Illinois governor ousted in plot to sell Obama's seat (3rd Roundup)

By Mike McCarthy Jan 30, 2009, 1:34 GMT

Washington - Illinois Governor Rod Blagojevich was thrown out of office on Thursday by state legislators on criminal corruption misconduct charges that included a plot to sell President Barack Obama's vacated US Senate seat to the highest bidder.

The Illinois Senate's 59 members voted unanimously to convict and remove Blagojevich from the post. Blagojevich, who was immediately stripped of his power, became the eighth governor in US history to be impeached and removed from office.

The Senate also voted unanimously to ban Blagojevich, 52, from ever again seeking elected office in the state.

'Today ends a painful episode for Illinois,' Obama said in a statement late Thursday. 'For months, the state had been crippled by a crisis of leadership. Now that cloud has lifted.'

At an impromptu press conference outside his Chicago home after the Senate vote, Blagojevich said, 'I'm obviously sad and disappointed, but not at all surprised by what the state Senate did today.'

Surrounded by a motley crowd of supporters, he said, 'It's something I knew they would do a long time ago. The fix was in from the very beginning.'

Blagojevich, who said he didn't watch the vote on TV but was informed of the result by phone, also added that he was determined to 'keep fighting to clear my name ... I'll have my day in court.'

Blagojevich was elected governor in 2002 and has been the subject of federal investigation for years.

Federal agents arrested Blagojevich outside his Chicago home on December 9 on charges of a 'pay to play' scheme to solicit campaign contributions for political favours. Federal prosecutors said wiretaps of phone conversations showed Blagojevich was exploring ways to profit or personally benefit by using his authority to appoint Obama's successor in the US Senate.

Earlier Thursday, an ever defiant Blagojevich made his first appearance during the impeachment trial in the Senate, denied any wrongdoing and argued that removing him from office would set a dangerous precedent.

'I have done nothing wrong and all I ask of you is a chance to show you I have done nothing wrong,' Blagojevich said.

The Illinois House voted 114-1 on January 9 to impeach Blagojevich and send the matter to the Senate. After Thursday's vote, Lieutenant Governor Pat Quinn was sworn in as the new leader of the state.

Blagojevich refused to step down after the arrest, maintaining that he was innocent and that the charges against him were politically motived. Obama was among those urging Blagojevich to step down.

'If I felt I had done something wrong, I would have resigned,' Blagojevich said Thursday.

Blagojevich argued the evidence against him did not support his removal from office and declared he should have a chance to defend himself in federal court. Blagojevich and his former top aide, John Harris, face up to 20 years in prison if convicted on the federal charges in the ongoing investigation.

Blagojevich's defiance was characterized by his controversial decision to appoint Roland Burris, 71, to the US Senate even after he was arrested. Democratic leaders in Washington reluctantly agreed to accept Burris after concluding their legal options to oppose it were limited.

Burris has not been accused of any wrongdoing but the Democrats believed his appointment was not credible given the allegations surrounding Blagojevich. Burris was sworn in on January 15.

Illinois has long been considered among the most corrupt US states. Blagojevich's predecessor, George Ryan, is serving a six-and- a-half-year prison term for corruption. If Blagojevich is convicted and sent to prison, he would become the fourth of the previous eight Illinois governors to serve time behind bars.

The last state governor to be impeached and removed from office was in 1988, when then-Arizona governor Evan Mecham was ousted on charges of obstruction of justice and misuse of government funds.