Testimony yesterday in the corruption trial of Rod Blagojevich indicated that the former governor was using Jesse Jackson, Jr. as a bargaining chip to shift discussion regarding the disputed Senate seat toward Illinois Attorney General Lisa Madigan.
Aaron Goldstein, one of Blagojevich's lawyers, reviewed a phone call between Blagojevich and his former Deputy Gov. Robert Greenlee from December 2008. In this call, Blagojevich told Greenlee not to disagree with him when he talked about Jackson getting the Senate seat in front of "national people" so that it would seem like they really were leaning toward Jackson.
This, Blagojevich hoped, would get other politicians to push Madigan into accepting a deal for the seat. It was also hoped that this would persuade Michael Madigan, Illinois Speaker of the House and Lisa Madigan's father, to approve legislation that Blagojevich wanted.
On the phone call, Greenlee said to Blagojevich, "I hear you."
In testimony, however, Greenlee said, "In the course of the conversation, I didn't know what he was talking about." When Blagojevich said, in the phone call, that "we" need to stay on this operation, Greenlee said he thought "we" was the royal "we," and that Blagojevich simply meant himself.
Greenlee said he really thought Blagojevich was serious about Jackson, Jr. because of the exchange of money that was promised in the deal.
In the end, Assistant US Attorney Reid Schar said that Greenlee had no more to offer in questioning from the defense. Zagel agreed, saying that it was a "waste of time."
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