The news that the Governor of Illinois had put Barack Obama's seat in the US Senate on the auction block is the first major test for Team Hope - and here's hoping they pass. I, like others have nervously read through reports of the Blagojevich arrest this morning for any hint that we may have bigger trouble on our hands. So far, the worst possible outcome for Obama would seem to be 'tainted by proximity'.
The worries are clearly shared throughout the left, with progressive bloggers aggressively building a narrative that it may have been Obama and his team that helped take the Governor down. There is even a rumour that Rahm Emmanuel may have provided the vital tip-off in the case (but given that Rod had been under investigation for many months this seems like wishful thinking).
But before we get too focused on how the case will affect the incoming administration, let us take a moment to reflect on the Governor's behaviour. 'Holy shit' seems to be only emotional summary I can conjure. In the past few years we have seen governors taken down by both secret gay lovers and high-end call girls (both Democrats, sadly). In each of those cases the initial shock was deeply felt, but in the end sex scandals are what they are.
In contrast, the emerging picture of Blagojevich is truly disturbing. We have a Governor of a major state who is not only profoundly corrupt, but most likely suffering from acute mental illness. What else can explain the reckless behaviour of someone who knows they are under investigation and that his conversations have probably been recorded by investigators in the past? His conduct is so brazen that it beggars belief that senior figures in Illinois politics did not know that the Governor was spinning out of control. Even those who believe that all politicians are corrupt and venal will have been taken aback by what we're seeing today. Aaron Sorkin would not have dared to write a character who says the sort of things Blagojevich got caught saying. "Fucking golden"!!?
When on Monday night Blagojevich appeared on national television instructing all state agencies to terminate their dealings with the Bank of America I can't say I thought he looked like a good guy.
Back to Obama just briefly, the truly paranoid among us have room for concern with Obama's correction here where he stops himself from saying "we" - as in his team - had no knowledge of the Governor's actions and instead says "I". At the very least, it shows he doesn't feel solid as a rock with all of this just yet.
The only silver lining is that the storm may give Obama's unfairly vilified speechwriter some breathing space. Poor bastard.
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