CHICAGO — Rod Blagojevich is insecure, he talks a lot and he’s a bad judge of character - but he is not a criminal, the ousted Illinois governor’s defense attorney told jurors at his corruption trial Tuesday during a theatrical closing argument.
Sam Adam Jr. told jurors that he did not call Blagojevich to testify, as he had promised when the trial started, because the government did not prove its case.
“I thought he’d sit right up here,” Adam shouted, walking over to the witness stand and pointing at the empty chair. “I promised he’d testify. We were wrong. Blame me.”
“I had no idea that in 2 1/2 months of trial that they’d prove nothing. ... They want you, you and you to convict him” with no evidence, he yelled, pointing to individual jurors.
In its rebuttal, the prosecution said Blagojevich is not the bumbling, naive victim portrayed by defense attorneys. Assistant U.S. Attorney Reid Schar told jurors Blagojevich is a smart man and experienced politician who knows better than to explicitly ask for money or other favors.
But he said Blagojevich “knows how to communicate” his intent.
Schar said the people who testified understood that Blagojevich was threatening funding their projects if they did not pony up campaign contributions.
“It was obvious,” he said. “Somehow Mr. Adam would say to you the master communicator here didn’t get it.”
Schar told jurors Blagojevich had more legal training than most of his purported co-conspirators.
“But somehow he is the accidentally corrupt governor,” he said, his voice rising slightly. “Come on, ladies and gentlemen. Come on!”
Adam, for his part, portrayed Blagojevich as a victim of overzealous prosecutors. Known for his dramatic style, Adam dismissed prosecution claims that Blagojevich tried to sell or trade the nomination to Barack Obama’s former Senate seat, telling jurors they knew for themselves that wasn’t the case that after listeningto hours of FBI wiretap tapes played by prosecutors during the trial.
“You can infer what was in Rod’s mind on the tapes,” he said. You can infer from those tapes whether he’s trying to extort the president of the United States. We heard tape after tape of just talking.”
Adam had wanted to name potential witnesses that prosecutors didn’t call to testify, while Judge James Zagel warned him not to, saying if he did he would be in contempt of court. He never mentioned those specifically, but did find a way to work in names from Obama to presidential adviser Valerie Jarrett to White House chief of staff Rahm Emanuel.
He also discussed allegations that the former governor considered naming U.S. Rep. Jesse Jackson Jr. to Obama’s old seat, after a businessman offered to raise millions for Blagojevich.
Adam said Blagojevich was trying to float the idea that he would appoint Jesse Jackson Jr. to give him more leverage trying to persuade state House Speaker Mike Madigan to promise help with things like health care if Blagojevich appointed Madigan’s daughter, Attorney General Lisa Madigan, to the Senate instead.
“That man wasn’t selling any Senate seat,” Adam said. “You know what he was doing, ladies and gentleman. ... He was trying to get 300,000 people health care, make sure a capital bill was passed” and other efforts.
Adam also said prosecutors never presented evidence of any fundraisers from anyone that Blagojevich was purportedly shaking down.
Blagojevich, 53, has pleaded innocent to 24 counts, including trying to sell or trade an appointment to Obama’s vacated Senate seat for a Cabinet post, private job or campaign cash. His brother, Nashville, Tenn. businessman Robert Blagojevich, 54, has also pleaded innocent to taking part in that purported scheme.
Front Section, Pages 3 on 07/28/2010