A new filing in the Rod Blagojevich corruption case indicates that the disgraced former governor's alleged shakedown of Children's Memorial Hospital, occurred after he received a personal call on behalf of the hospital from then-Cubs manager Dusty Baker.
The revelation comes in a motion filed by Blagojevich's brother Robert, quoting the affidavit prosecutors used to obtain wiretaps on Robert's cell phone. In that document, prosecutors talk about an October 8, 2008 meeting where the Blagojevich campaign team discussed ways to raise massive amounts of cash in advance of an end-of-year deadline where new ethics laws were to kick in.
A confidential source, who was a lobbyist, said that he was present for the meeting, and that when the subject of one of his clients, Children's Hospital, came up, then-governor Blagojevich allegedly said, "Dusty Baker called me. I'm going to do $8 million for them. I want to get Magoon for 50."
In the words of the affidavit, "The CS (confidential source) understood Governor Blagojevich to be referring to the CS approaching Pat Magoon, the CEO of Children's Memorial Hospital, for a $50,000 contribution."
The document goes on to say that the source understood Blagojevich's reference to $8 million, to be his recent commitment to get Children's Memorial $8 million in state funds for a pediatric care reimbursement.
"It is my belief," says the affidavit, "that the conversation as related by the CS indicates that Governor Rod Blagojevich expects a quid pro quo of $50,000 from Children's Memorial, in exchange for his commitment of money."
Through his lawyer, Robert Blagojevich argues that the government never established a quid pro quo had taken place. In other words, there is no evidence that the state grant was tied to any campaign cash solicitations which would be made by Robert Blagojevich.
Chicago Politics
"Evidence of Robert Blagojevich soliciting campaign contributions on behalf of his brother, without proof of an explicit quid pro quo is not remotely criminal," his attorney writes, "but rather, exemplifies the American political process."
