Fugitive Governor in New York

Rod Blagojevich has fled Illinois on the first day of his trial. Most criminals would probably want to be anywhere else other than in the docket when their trial begins. But most don't do it so publicly.

Does Illinois have a reciprocity agreement with New York? Can we force his return?

More to the point, do we want to?

I don't know about you, but I'd like to suggest a quick trial -- after all, the Governor is offering no defense -- and immediate impeachment of the obviously corrupt, clearly criminal governor. Stop pussyfooting around. I don't care if he never comes back.

Aren't we humiliated enough? Blagojevich is possibly the only governor to call Barack Obama a motherfu**er. Congress has already passed legislation that prohibits the curser of our new president from distributing Illinois' part of the stimulus package. Don't want the governor to auction off federal monies as he attempted to do with a federal office.

A quick end to this colossal embarrassment will not only allow the healing to begin but our state government to get back to work. Blagoparalysis will then go to the federal court system; maybe we could even export Rod and his family to the warm embrace of the so-called "First City."

I'm not expecting a quick criminal trial, but at least Blagojevich's impeachment would end the national embarrassment to which he has subjected the state. At the start of 2009, we've seen the best (Obama, the reformer) and the worst (Blagojevich, the machine pol) of what Illinois has to offer. I'm hoping for more of the former and a lot less of the latter for the rest of the year...