That Darn Rod!

In the whirl of events surrounding the Rod Blagojevich scandals, it's instructive that the only person who seems to be keeping his head, and acting with complete confidence, is Blagojevich himself. That shouldn't be too surprising. For one thing, he is obviously shameless, which will get you through many an angry breakfast with your mistress, not to mention an impeachment hearing. 

More important, Blagojevich remains - it can be hard to remember this - the governor of Illinois. That gives him the power to do things like appoint Barack Obama's replacement in the Senate over the objections of virtually everyone in the state and national establishment of the Democratic Party. 

Many have hinted loudly that Blagojevich is crazy. They wish. What Blagojevich is doing, and has been doing, is engaging in some of the most naked and aggressive acts of pure power by a US politician that we have seen in a long time. He is not doing this to "save the environment," or "to make the world safe for democracy," or even "to protect the children." He is acting solely in his self-interest, using the power of his office, and the tools that the law has given him, to regain his base and save his skin. He can appoint the U.S. Senator from Illinois, and by God, he will exercise that right. I can't wait to see what he has planned next, but I imagine that public school teachers will be involved. 

Liberal pundits have issued weighty news analyses with headlines like "Tough Calculus for Blagojevich." These analyses dance around a lot, trying to suss out what he is up to, as if Blagojevich was a triangulating Bill Clinton clone trying to pass NAFTA. They dance around because what is happening is an ugly reminder of the dark side of the Democratic coalition; that it is made up of disparate groups that can be mollified with favors, appointments, and politically correct pronouncements. It should come as no surprise that Blagojevich went to an impromptu sit-down strike on the night before his arrest. A Democrat can never go wrong defending a union against faceless management and stingy banks. 

It should also come as no surprise that Blagojevich would call upon former Black Panther Bobby Rush - the only man to ever defeat Barack Obama in an election - to take the lead in a race baiting news conference in which Blagojevich announced his choice for Illinois' new Senator. Announcing that Illinois now has a "black" Senate seat will go a long way towards support from the civil rights crowd, no matter how undeserved that support might be. 

What Blagojevich is doing is what "normal" politicians call shoring up their base. Clinton did it during Lewinski-gate, using Jesse Jackson and assorted feminists to accomplish what Rod is trying to do; hold on when the evidence and good morals say you should leave (worked with Spitzer...). Republicans in trouble do it every time they wrap themselves in a flag and head to Bob Jones University. Usually, there is a veneer of respectability over these things, illusory though they might be. With Blagojevich, there is no illusion, just a naked power grab. 

One has to wonder what the Prius driving, white progressives in Evanston, Hyde Park and other enclaves of the Illinois liberal intelligencia think of all of this. Their political views are based, essentially, on the idea that they are the Enlightened Ones, who have joined with minorities and union workers to pursue The Cause; bringing the patriotic, Protestant, entrepreneurial America to heel. They provide the Democratic Party with its brains, if not its brawn. Are they embarrassed by this (and by their earnest voting patterns that have enabled this corruption)? Or are they waiting for their turn at the next Blagojevich press conference? Hey! How about some new funding for Bill Ayers' education reforms!