Former Justice Dept. official Victoria Toensing lays into Prosecutor Fitzgerald for editorializing about his and the FBI’s findings in l’affair Blagojevich.

In the Dec. 9 press conference regarding the federal corruption charges against Gov. Blagojevich and his chief of staff, Mr. Fitzgerald violated the ethical requirement of the Justice Department guidelines that prior to trial a “prosecutor shall refrain from making extrajudicial comments that pose a serious and imminent threat of heightening public condemnation of the accused.”

His “political corruption crime spree” and other vivid depictions of Blago’s behavior took him over the line in violation of his duty  to “inform the public of the nature and extent” of charges without “ to “inform the public of the nature and extent” without “making extrajudicial comments that pose a serious and imminent threat of heightening public condemnation of the accused.”

She recalls similar Fitzgerald violations in the Scotter Libby announcement in October, 2005, when he likened himself to an umpire who “gets sand thrown in his eyes” by obstruction of justice — acting as if he did not already know who had leaked the Valerie Plame name.  (He did, from the start of his investigation.)

Blago engaged in “base, sordid conduct,” she said.  “But those thoughts and words are for the rest of us to express before the trial. It is unethical for those who are government prosecutors to do so.”

In other words, he was a reporter in this case, not a columnist or editorial writer.

U Wis-Madison law prof Ann Althouse takes Illinois Atty. Genl Lisa’s argument to remove Blagojevich from office apart piece by piece, in the process dismantling Madigan as someone to be taken seriously in this latest Illinois tragi-comedy of errors.

Madigan is relying on Article V, Section 6 of the Illinois constitution: “If the Governor is unable to serve because of death, conviction on impeachment, failure to qualify, resignation or other disability, the office of Governor shall be filled by the officer next in line of succession for the remainder of the term or until the disability is removed.” So she needs to argue that Blagojevich is disabled within the meaning of that text.

Asked by an Illinois Supreme Court justice if this article “was meant for a political or legal crisis like this or simply for some kind of, you know, medical or emotional issue,” she says “we,” she and her office, presumably,

would look to the fact that the term disability legally is very broad, that it is not simply isolated to a physical or mental disability. And you can read all about that in our pleadings.

“Yes,” said the questioner, letting it go at that.

Would removing the governor for this reason “set a dangerous precedent,” she was asked, but did not understand the question.

Q. Are there enough protections in place to stop someone from doing what you’re doing in the future?

Q For political ends.

Q From abusing the —

. . . Q (Off mike) — abusing the AG authority.

“One of the protections,” she answered, finally getting it, is that the state supreme court “has total discretion” in the matter and “serves as a check on the executive branch in the circumstance.”

To which Althouse:

So the safeguard against the AG’s abuse of power is that the court will have the role of deciding? How can it be the court‘s role to make the final call about things that belong in the realm of impeachment? Why do constitutions put impeachment trials in legislatures? Because courts are ill-suited to such decision-making.

Althouse was just getting warmed up.  The rest is here.  Vanderbilt U. law prof Glenn Reynolds (Instapundit) calls it “embarrassing,” says, “Illinois state government is looking like one big clown show.”

And Ms. Madigan is looking like a hack  She’s been the strong, silent type in Chi newspapers, etc., with nothing to say, apparently.

 Later:

The court is on to her, to judge from this exchange:

At the end of the oral argument, the court flat-out confronts Madigan about her own political ambitions and conflict of interest:

Q I know you say that you haven’t been thinking about politics at all, but there have obviously been a lot of questions about politics, and there wouldn’t be questions about politics unless your political future was considered very bright and in play here. Given the fact of your possible interest in being governor, given the fact that you’ve been mentioned as a possible Senate replacement for Barack Obama, was any consideration given to your removing yourself from this issue because of a possible perception, if not reality, of conflict of interest?

MS. MADIGAN: No. And let me make two further statements. One is I never expressed any interest in even being considered for the U.S. Senate vacancy. I never contacted or talked to any — the governor or anybody in the governor’s office about that.

In addition, I am supporting putting the lieutenant governor in to serve as at governor of the state of Illinois. I think that is in the best interests of the people of this state. And I am happy to serve as the attorney general of this state. And I will continue in that role to do what is best for the people of this state.

Well, the answer is meaningless. The question says it all [comments Althouse].

I’d say so.

Jesse J Jr. denies making a $500G or more offer to Blago.  He’s innocent until he’s guilty, same as Blago, as Prosecutor Fitz said of the latter several times in his news conference yesterday. 

Also on the tape are the two or more conversations with an SEIU official about Blago’s getting the $300G/year SEIU-related Change to Win job.  Note that neither of these called 9-1-1 to report these calls, reeking of illegality as they were.  Twice or more the SEIU naif conversed.  Blago may be dumb and brazen, but what of those who did not hang up on him or his guy who did the calling?  They are so used to these things, it’s no big deal, apparently.

Chi SEIU local 1 president Tom Balanoff also got a

6 a.m. Tuesday visit from his local FBI, but was out of town for a union meeting.  The focus of SEIU discussions was Candidate #1, says the Fitzgerald Complaint (not yet an indictment).  That would be thisclose Obama advisor and confidante Valerie Jarrett, per WSJ, “Graft Case Touches Jackson Jr.: Democrat Denies Seeking Senate Seat From Blagojevich; Service Union Is Scrutinized”.

The Obama team used SEIU to keep Blago “at arm’s length,” Republican National Committee alleges. Which puts SEIU in a surrogate role here, seeing what it could see about getting Valerie the senate seat.  Who has a half million for this, or a million, more readily available than O. and his team?  

Tom Balanoff is brother of the far lesser known James Balanoff, his brother, a (losing) 2007 Oak Park village board candidate.

Meanwhile, Chi Trib’s Sam Zell told a CNBC interviewer he is not “personally familiar” with Blago pressuring the Trib about staffers whom Blago wanted fired. (“Personally”? In what way was he familiar?) Z. couldn’t say if staffers were pressured. He was not asked about his role in the sordid episode.

Both Triple-J, as WLS-AM’s Roe Conn calls Jesse Jr, and SEIU are very close to Obama, by the way. SEIU outgave all other non-party givers to his campaign this year, coughing up $29.2 million in checked-off dues money. Balanoff and Obama go back 15 years, says Balanoff.

We have learned by now to take what Big O. says with our ever-handy grain of salt.  Here’s an item about his supposed small-donor explosion:

The Campaign Finance Institute (CFI) study says that 26 percent of donors to Obama’s presidential campaign gave $200 or less, the definition of a small donation. That’s compared to 25 percent for President George W. Bush’s 2004 reelection campaign.

I blame the tingle-in-leg mediums for their habits of ballyhoo.