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  OPENING ARGUMENTS
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the allegations in each PC [petition], and what our investigation has discovered. The goal is to seek justice, which is what we feel is happening in each one of these cases.”
Madigan’s most famous case, of course, was the one that was never heard. On Dec. 12, just three days after federal agents arrested Gov. Rod Blagojevich in the midst of what court documents describe as “a political corruption crime spree,” Madigan filed a motion asking the Illinois Supreme Court to temporarily remove Blagojevich from office by declaring him essentially disabled.
Bob Wesley, former chairman of the Sangamon County Democrats, calls Madigan’s motion “creative” but knew it had little chance to succeed. “I think you look into your toolbox and use whatever you can to make a reasonable effort to get things done,” Wesley says. “I applaud the effort, because I think he was unfit to govern.”
Madigan, aware that she was asking the court to stretch, says she tried to craft a request that was narrow and reasonable. For example, she offered the court the alternative to simply enjoin the governor from performing specific actions mentioned in the federal criminal complaint (i.e. appointing someone to fill Obama’s vacant U.S. senate seat, acting on legislation, directing financial matters of state agencies).
She also didn’t request any expert opinion on the governor’s mental fitness, though Madigan says people have asked her why she didn’t.
“Many others — and I’m probably in this camp as well — would argue that there’s something there. I’m not clinically able to diagnose, so I can’t,” she says. “I have heard the question: Why didn’t you request a psychiatric evaluation? And I’ve said because I think that would make it even less likely for the supreme court to take our motion.”
Over the next few days, Madigan appeared on numerous national news shows, explaining this unprecedented legal maneuver (a co-worker says Madigan also turned down many other media invitations). On Dec. 17, the court declined to hear the case. The governor was voted out of office Jan. 29. “We’ve had an ensuing I think disaster,” Madigan says, citing the extra $20 million lost when the state’s credit rating dropped, affecting bond deals that could have propped up the budget. “I don’t blame this on the supreme court, because they have full discretion, but we wouldn’t necessarily be in as bad of a situation if the court would’ve been willing to grant us what I believe to be very reasonable relief.”
Recently, she discovered that state law in Connecticut requires an impeached governor to step aside and yield his or her duties to the lieutenant governor until the Senate trial is concluded. Madigan’s press officer, Robyn Zeigler, says the attorney general plans to introduce legislation during the current session to amend the Illinois Constitution to include a similar provision.
Throughout the scandal, the notion of Madigan’s potential 2010 candidacy for governor or U.S. senator draws ever more interest.
Recent reports show she raised more than $1 million in the last half of 2008, while her closest competitor, Comptroller Dan Hynes, raised about $645,000. The questions have come up so many times that she has perfected the artful dodge. “Quite honestly, I’m going to do what I think is best for the state, and right now, what’s best for the state is that I focus on my job,” she says. “There may come a time when I believe that I can serve the people of the state better in another capacity, but we’re not there yet.
Contact Dusty Rhodes at [email protected]
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