Blagojevich pleads his case to impeachment trial

[January 29, 2009]  SPRINGFIELD (AP) -- In a long-shot attempt to save his job, Illinois Gov. Rod Blagojevich insisted Thursday that he had done nothing wrong and should not be removed from office over unproven criminal charges and complaints about his management decisions.

"You haven't proved a crime, and you can't because it didn't happen," Blagojevich told senators, who were prepared to vote within hours on whether to remove him. "How can you throw a governor out of office with insufficient and incomplete evidence?"

The two-term Democrat also said he would not quit.

"I am not resigning now because I have done nothing wrong," he said in a closing argument made near the end of a trial he had previously avoided.

The Democratic governor acknowledged the truth about his conduct is "maybe not flattering in some cases," referring to several secretly recorded conversations played earlier in the trial.

The FBI wiretaps appear to show Blagojevich linking his decision on legislation to receiving campaign contributions.

Blagojevich told the state Senate the tapes captured something that "all of us in politics do in order to run campaigns and win elections."

The governor had refused to take part in the trial, but he surprised everyone by asking to make a closing statement. By making a speech instead of testifying, he did not have to take an oath or answer any questions.

The governor's impeachment was triggered by his arrest last month on a variety of federal corruption charges. The criminal complaint against him included a long list of shocking quotes that portrayed Blagojevich as trying to auction off President Barack Obama's vacant U.S. Senate seat and pressure people for campaign donations.

But Blagojevich said those are mere allegations that have not been proven. Also unproven are claims that his administration evaded state hiring laws to give jobs to political allies, expanded a health care program without legislative approval and spent $2.6 million on flu vaccine that went to waste.

"There hasn't been a single piece of information that shows any wrongdoing," Blagojevich said. "You haven't proved a crime."

The senators watched attentively. Many leaned forward in their seats. Some took notes during Blagojevich's 47-minute speech.

Only a small part of Blagojevich's defense was dedicated to a point-by-point rebuttal of the impeachment charges. Most of his remarks focused on reminding senators that he came from humble beginnings. He said his intentions were always good, and he peppered his statement with anecdotes about struggling constituents he has met.

Blagojevich arrived at the state Capitol while impeachment prosecutor David Ellis delivered his own closing argument, which included some of the secretly recorded conversations.

Ellis also quoted snippets of other conversations federal prosecutors released when they arrested Blagojevich last month.

"Every decision this governor made was based on one of three criteria: his legal situation, his personal situation and his political situation," Ellis told lawmakers.

Ellis was to have 30 minutes for a rebuttal later Thursday.

Blagojevich avoided the trial all week, calling it biased and unconstitutional. But he reversed course Wednesday and asked to make a closing argument.

Senators will hold public deliberations, with each getting five minutes to speak. A vote on whether to convict, censure or acquit the governor could come before the end of the day.

If Blagojevich is convicted, he will immediately be removed from office and replaced by Lt. Gov. Patrick Quinn, a fellow Democrat. No other Illinois governor has been impeached, let alone convicted in a Senate trial.

Blagojevich, 52, was arrested last month on a variety of federal corruption charges, including scheming to benefit from appointing Obama's Senate replacement and demanding campaign contributions in exchange for state services.

He was impeached in the House on Jan. 9 for abuse of power. The 13 accusations included plotting to give financial assistance to the Tribune Co. only if members of the Chicago Tribune editorial board were fired, awarding state contracts or permits in exchange for campaign contributions and violating hiring and firing laws.

[Associated Press; By CHRISTOPHER WILLS]

Associated Press writers Deanna Bellandi and Andrea Zelinski contributed to this report.

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