On Tuesday, students will have a chance to grill Northwestern alumnus and former Illinois Governor Rod Blagojevich on everything from his time at NU to his alleged attempt to sell President Barack Obama’s former senate seat. Students will be joined by Law School Professor Tonja Jacobi, Political Science Professor Donald Gordon and Medill Professor Donna Leff to question Blagojevich about the scandal and anything else they can weasel out of him.
In fairness, it’s important to note that few remember his achievements before being accused of being a regular Chicago politician; as governor, Blagojevich actually made some positive changes in Illinois. But before he sits down in Cahn Auditorium, we’ll take a look back at some of Blago’s shadier activities before those f***ing phone calls.
Education
Growing up in Chicago, Blagojevich was admitted to the competitive Lane Tech for high school, but ended up transferring to Forman High School. He did the exact opposite for college. He spent two years at the University of Tampa, but ended up at Northwestern for his junior and senior year. He eventually graduated with a BA in History, but what exactly he did with his time on campus isn’t as clear.
First of all, he didn’t spent much time on campus. Blagojevich never lived on campus, preferring to live just north of Oak Park, about 30 minutes away. Based on yearbook photos, he wasn’t significantly involved in campus clubs. More interestingly, in the 1979 Syllabus, there is no senior head shot of Blagojevich. He graduated in the summer after the June, 1979 commencement ceremony and so his name only appears in the 1980 commencement program, one of the only actual records of Blagojevich’s time here at NU.
Sick of the Chicago weather, he eventually when to Pepperdine University in Malibu to get his JD. But by his own admission, he didn’t do a lot of studying while he was there. He told reporters in 2003, “I went to law school at a place called Pepperdine in Malibu, Calif., overlooking the Pacific Ocean — a lot of surfing and movie stars and all the rest. I barely knew where that law library was.”
Early politics and shady connections
After law school, it doesn’t seem that he stepped up his motivation game much. Instead of shopping his resume around like a traditional post-grad, he used a bit of friendly networking. Blagojevich used his father-in-law Richard Mell’s connections to get a job with Chicago Alderman Edward Vrdolyak. He eventually moved up and took at job with the Cook County state’s attorney, future Chicago mayor Richard M. Daley.
Using family connections to get employment isn’t uncommon, but for Blagojevich it should make a difference. Vrdolyak plead guilty to conspiracy to commit wire fraud and mail fraud in 2008. Being associated with a known conspirator isn’t a guilty sentence, but in Chicago politics, it can’t help.
Houses
Blagojevich channeled his experience as a prosecutor into a successful 1992 election campaign for the Illinois House of Representatives. His platform focused mainly on the reduction of crime through the strengthening of the judicial system, which one may find ironic in the wake of recent allegations. But the Illinois House was just one step on the way to bigger and better things.
Daddy(in-law)’s help came in handy with his next job as well. After having his fill of the Illinois legislature, Blagojevich decided to run for the seat in Illinois’ 5th congressional district. He defeated the incumbent in 1996, but it’s unclear whether a scandal in the district two years before or his political connections that made the largest difference in his victory. In his time in congress, he voted opposite of many Democrats, most notably on the Iraq War. He was in the minority of Democrats who voted to invade Iraq, by a margin of 82-126.
Being Governor Blagojevich
Alderman Mell helped Blagojevich out yet again in 2002 when he helped him run for governor of Illinois. He wasn’t an obvious choice for the post. In the primary, he barely defeated former Attorney General Roland Burris, whom he would later suggest to fill Obama’s vacated senate seat. He defeated Republican Attorney General Jim Ryan by almost seven points.
During his administration, Blagojevich helped to push through important legislation for Illinois. He was a champion of death penalty reform and strongly supported the statewide smoking ban. Under his watch employers were forbidden from discriminating against employees because of their sexual orientation and he expanded KidCare (now All Kids), a public health care initiative.
The people of Illinois overall liked Blagojevich as governor, because his second gubernatorial bid was much easier than his first. He swept the primary, and won the general election with almost 50 percent of the vote. He was elected to serve until 2011, but he was impeached in 2009.
And you’re out!
In total, Blagojevich has been the subject of more than twelve federal investigations, although two have been more public than the others – he was accused of trying to buy positive press in the Chicago Tribune and other Chicago publications using money from the sale of the Chicago Cubs.
The national scandal even involved the president. Blagojevich is accused of trying to trade an appointment to President Obama’s vacated senate seat for, among other things, campaign financing and an appointment as the U.S. Ambassador to Serbia.
Blagojevich was removed from office on January 29, 2009, with a unanimous vote from the state Senate and a 114-1 vote from the House.
Going forward
Nothing has been proven against Blagojevich yet. He has maintained throughout investigations that he is completely innocent of the charges brought against him, and is awaiting trial. He’s not doing so well in the court of public opinion, but his appearance at Northwestern could be an effort to change that.
His political career hasn’t been shining in terms of monumental achievements, and his only election without any meddling by his father-in-law was his campaign for re-election for governor. Based on what is known to the general public, though, it’s impossible to say whether he’s guilty of anything but exploiting family connections and a bit of old-fashioned laziness.