On tape, Blago says he wants 'a good gig' for seat

[June 23, 2010]  CHICAGO (AP) -- Rod Blagojevich wanted nothing more to do with political battles in Illinois and wanted to stop reading newspapers calling for his impeachment and reporting on the federal investigation of him, according to tapes being played at the ousted governor's corruption trial.

Caption: In this Dec. 9, 2008, file photo, John Harris, a former top aide to ousted Illinois Gov. Rod Blagojevich, leaves the federal building in Chicago after his arrest on corruption charges. Harris took the stand on Monday at Blagojevich's corruption trial. (AP file photo by Gerald Herbert)

Blagojevich's former chief of staff, John Harris, testified that the governor plotted to parlay the biggest bargaining chip he'd ever had -- the authority to name President Barack Obama's replacement to the U.S. Senate -- into a new life.

"I have to get the ... out of here," Blagojevich said on a wiretap recording that is sprinkled with profanities. "The objective is to get a good gig over there (in Washington, D.C.)."

The testimony from Harris and the recordings have offered the most extensive glimpse yet into what prosecutors contend was a frenzied effort by Blagojevich to use the opening in the Senate to his advantage.

Harris, who pleaded guilty in the corruption case in exchange for leniency, will return to the witness stand Wednesday. He testified Tuesday that Blagojevich wanted to trade an appointment of Obama confidant Valerie Jarrett to the seat for a position with the administration.

The hoped-for position, according to Harris' testimony and the recordings made by authorities, ranged from secretary of health and human services to U.N. ambassador to becoming ambassador to India, England, Canada, France, South Africa or other countries.

"I'm the governor of a $58 billion corporation," Blagojevich tells Harris on one recording, cursing. "Why can't I be ... ambassador to India?"

Blagojevich was serious enough that at one point Tuesday, jurors listened to him and his wife, Patti, talk about how a move to India would "change our lives."

Harris said he told Blagojevich that it was unrealistic to think Obama would appoint him to a Cabinet post and that the ambassadorship to India might be a tough sell as well. An agitated Blagojevich responded by pointing to President Bill Clinton's appointment of William Daley, Chicago Mayor Richard Daley's brother, as Secretary of Commerce.

"What the ... were his credentials?" Blagojevich asked.

Harris, on the tape, also agreed that Blagojevich had, as the governor pointed out, an "ace in the hole" if the administration did not find him a post: He could appoint himself to the Senate.

Blagojevich, 53, has pleaded not guilty to scheming to sell or trade the appointment to Obama's seat. He has also pleaded not guilty to plotting to launch a racketeering scheme using the powers of the governor's office. If convicted, he could face up to $6 million in fines and a sentence of 415 years in prison, although he is certain to get much less under federal guidelines.

His brother, Nashville, Tenn., businessman Robert Blagojevich, 54, has pleaded not guilty to taking part in the alleged scheme to sell the Senate seat and to plotting to illegally pressure a racetrack owner for a $100,000 campaign contribution.

Harris said Blagojevich considered several tactics to get the best possible deal for himself. Speaking on the day of Obama's election, Blagojevich can be heard on one recording saying he'll make a good-faith effort to fill the open seat but hastens to add sternly that, "it's not coming for free."

"It's gotta be good for the people of Illinois -- and for me," he says.

[Associated Press; By MICHAEL TARM and DON BABWIN]

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