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Blagojevich was a master at 'Pay to Play' and Burris has played too
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Former Gov. Blagojevich (AP Photo/Seth Wenig)
Former Illinois Governor Rod Blagojevich, from the minute he was elected until the day he was convicted by the Illinois Senate, had a very large "For Sale" sign on his office. It was known everywhere. If you wanted a job or an appointment in the Blagojevich administration, the opening bid started at $25,000.
For Blagojevich, a $25,000 campaign donation was the magic number. In fact, The Chicago Tribune discovered an inordinate amount of $25,000 donations: 235 of them in fact.
A Chicago engineering firm and its affiliate wrote two $25,000 checks in 2006, and within months won $25.4 million in new state business. A state lawmaker got a six-figure state job, one of more than four dozen donors awarded jobs or appointments by Blagojevich. One Chicago pharmacist previously told the Tribune -- and law enforcement -- that his $25,000 check to the governor's campaign was the price tag for fixing a critical state audit of his drugstore, an allegation the fundraiser who solicited the check adamantly denies.
Breaking down donations
All told, Blagojevich's campaign has raised more than $58 million since 2000, with nearly $6 million coming in donations of exactly $25,000. Those contributions -- 235 in all -- came from 166 different donors. Those donors gave an additional $8.6 million in amounts larger and smaller than $25,000.
And one of Blagojevich's opponents in the 2002 campaign, Roland Burris, now United States Senator Roland Burris, accepted money from businessman Joseph Stroud.
Roland Burris, Illinois' newest senator, likes to talk about his years of service to the people of the state and his steadfast refusal to engage in the politics of favors.
He rarely discusses one milestone in his long public career: a record $800,000 campaign loan he received in his 2002 run for governor. Nor is he quick to mention the man who made the loan, businessman Joseph Stroud, who provided most of Burris' financial support—$1.57 million in all—for that failed bid.
But court documents in an obscure civil case shine light on that relationship and raise questions about how much influence flowed from such a large loan, none of which Burris has repaid.
And apparently, had we elected Roland Burris as Governor in 2002, it appears he would have had a "For Sale" sign on his door, judging by this money that came into his hands: a loan, one that was never repaid. And the fact it was never repaid and may never be repaid, is certainly a problem.
Yes, United States Senator Roland Burris, the same man that former Governor Rod Blagojevich appointed to President Barack Obama's seat. The same seat Blagojevich was trying to sell for $25,000 times many many times. This smells.
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