Speaker Madigan appointing committee to review impeachment
SPRINGFIELD - The Illinois House today plans to create a committee to begin investigating the grounds for impeaching Gov. Rod Blagojevich.
"I have allowed Gov. Rod Blagojevich six days to resign his office. It would appear as of this morning that he has declined to do so. Therefore, it is my intention to appoint a special committee to begin immediately an investigation into the governor's conduct in office, and to undertake the preparatory work that is a prerequisite to an impeachment proceeding in the Illinois House," Madigan said in a statement.
He said the committee would work daily, with only Christmas Eve, Christmas, New Year's Eve and New Year's Day off. But he cautioned that the governor will be afforded all constitutional rights and it appears any vote on removing him will not come until after Jan. 14 when newly elected members of the General Assembly are sworn in.
Madigan said his staff had been looking into impeachment as an option long before the governor and his chief of staff John Harris were arrested last week by federal authorities on charges of trying to sell President-elect Barack Obama's U.S. Senate seat for personal gain, get Chicago Tribune writers fired in exchange for help selling the company's professional baseball field and shaking down state vendors for campaign cash.
Asked what grounds he'd already explored as a possible reason to impeach the governor, Madigan said: "Abuse of power."
Madigan said the charges and vulgar language federal agents caught coming from the governor's mouth on tape were not a surprise.
Madigan also declined to join the chorus of officials who've called for Blagojevich to immediately step aside. The House speaker said any comment could taint his role in overseeing impeachment proceedings.
The committee looking into impeachment will be given subpoena powers and it's chairwoman - state Rep. Barbara Flynn Currie - said she plans to ask for the U.S. attorney's cooperation in providing information, evidence and potential witnesses to testify.
Whether that occurs is one of the key questions looming over impeachment proceedings given that the charges filed against the governor last week have yet to be presented or challenged in a criminal trial.
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