Suburban Democratic leaders calls allegations 'horrendous'

Once the popular standard-bearer for Illinois Democrats, Gov. Rod Blagojevich would've been hard pressed to find a supporter among his party's suburban delegation Tuesday.

Some Democratic lawmakers called for impeachment. Others demanded he resign.

They used words like "horrendous," "frustrating" and "disappointed" to describe the criminal allegations against Blagojevich.

"It's a sad day," said Democratic state Rep. Fred Crespo of Hoffman Estates.

Crespo's feelings were echoed by Democratic state Rep. Kathy Ryg of Vernon Hills, who sounded shaken by the charges.

"It makes me sad that public service gets tainted when people abuse their powers, or there's a perception that people have abused their powers," Ryg said.

State Sen. Michael Bond called the governor's arrest horrible and disappointing. "The allegations, if proven to be true, are horrendous," said Bond, a Grayslake Democrat who serves as first vice chair of Lake County's Democratic organization. "I, like many others, were hoping these days were behind us."

Talk quickly surfaced Tuesday about whether Blagojevich will finish his second term.

Democratic State Sen. Michael Noland of Elgin formally requested a joint emergency session of the General Assembly to evaluate possible impeachment proceedings.

Democratic state Rep. Elaine Nekritz of Northbrook said Blagojevich should resign for the good of an already-troubled state.

A trial or impeachment proceedings will only prolong Illinois' woes, she said.

"That's the healthiest thing for the state," Nekritz said. "We could move ahead to address the needs of the people of the state if Illinois."

State Sen. Terry Link of Waukegan learned of the arrest through a flurry of e-mails, telephone calls and radio reports. The chairman of the Lake County Democratic organization, Link said his initial reaction was one of "sheer disappointment."

The expected appointment of a new U.S. senator to replace President-Elect Barack Obama was at the heart of the charges. State Sen. Susan Garrett of Lake Forest said the General Assembly must find a way to remove Blagojevich from that process.

"As legislators, we have to make sure he has nothing to do with the appointment of the next U.S. senator," Garrett said. "I think we need to take immediate action."

Crespo suggested a special election to name the new senator, a concept also endorsed by U.S. Sen. Dick Durbin.

Ryg suggested the long-term solution for stopping corruption in Illinois politics is campaign-finance reform. Pay-to-pay politics have their root in the need to fund campaign war chests, she said.

<div class="infoBox"> <h1>More Coverage</h1> <div class="infoBoxContent"> <div class="infoArea"> <h2>Related links</h2> <ul class="moreWeb"> <li><a href="http://beta.dailyherald.com/packages/2008/blagojevich/">Complete coverage of Blagojevich investigation</a></li> </ul> </div> </div> </div>