New ethics package step forward

Lawmakers last week finally passed a comprehensive ethics package that covers the legislature and the statewide officials. It was hailed as the toughest ethics package in the history of Illinois.

Talk about damning with faint praise.

That said, the package still represents an achievement for Illinois that would have been unthinkable just a few years ago.

Back and forth

Also on the ethics front, Gov. Rod Blagojevich finally decided he would not attend a fund-raiser put on by his personnel chief, John Gianulis. Gianulis is also head of a little group called the Democratic County Chairmen's Association, which was pivotal in helping get Blagojevich elected.

For the better part of a week, Blagojevich wavered about whether to attend the fund-raiser in Springfield. First he was going to attend. Then he wasn't because his lawyers said the fund-raiser was illegal under state law. Then Blagojevich got a new legal opinion that determined the fund-raiser was legal, so he decided he would attend. Finally, he opted to skip it because, his office said, the fund-raiser was beginning to overshadow efforts to reform ethics laws.

Some people praised the governor for doing the right thing. Really? He wasn't planning to do the right thing until the issue threatened to tarnish his reformer image. Frankly, we'd be more comfortable with new-way-of-doing-business Blagojevich if he had figured out on his own that there's an ethical problem in attending his patronage chief's fund-raiser, rather than needing the news media to point it out for him.

War of words

Weird doesn't begin to describe the atmosphere last week during the formal unveiling of former Gov. George Ryan's official portrait.

Sitting right there in the front row with Ryan was Blagojevich, a man who's had nothing good to say about Ryan for at least two years. In fact, just a day earlier, Blagojevich had this to say about Ryan: "If there wasn't tension (between Blagojevich and lawmakers) you'd have George Ryan and you'd have a spending spree. He said 'yes' to everything. Everyone in Springfield thought he was the nicest guy since ... Jimmy Stewart."

Yes, some people did, and still do, think Ryan is a nice guy. They said so at the portrait ceremony, but Blagojevich explained it away as the mumblings of people enamored with the old way of doing business.

"I think what you saw was really the difference between two administrations," Blagojevich said. "One administration was focused on go along and get along. Ours is focused on changing the system."

And just what did people find endearing about the go along, get along Ryan?

"His word meant something," said Senate President Emil Jones, D-Chicago. "You always knew where he stood."

"You got the (phone) calls back," Treasurer Judy Baar Topinka said.

Guess the new way of doing business doesn't involve keeping your word or showing respect by returning people's phone calls.

Shark bite

Jones recalled that in their early days in the General Assembly, he and Ryan used to shoot a little pool. It appears Jones was the better player of the two.

"Emil used to peel me like a banana many times at the pool table," Ryan said.

Numbers count

One of the dignitaries on hand was former Gov. James Thompson who had the honor of introducing Ryan. During the climactic moment, Thompson introduced Ryan as the state's 37th governor.

"Wait, wait, wait," Thompson said immediately. "He's the 39th governor."

Just so you know, the 37th governor was Thompson.

Photo op

There's a homey new touch in Blagojevich's Capitol office for those times he invites reporters in to answer questions. His desk, which appears largely unused, now sports two framed pictures of his family. The pictures are carefully positioned to face out toward TV cameras. If Blagojevich actually used the desk to conduct business, he would be looking at the backs of the photos.

The pictures are a new addition since the brouhaha two weeks ago when Blagojevich said he was flying home (on a state airplane) each night to Chicago to kiss his children good night. Responding to the public uproar over that waste of state money, Blagojevich decided to stay in Springfield this past week. Put the pictures on the desk when the media is around, and you can still convey that wholesome, family values image, don't you see.

Sometimes it feels like we're all just props in a Blagojevich media production.

- Doug Finke is a columnist and statehouse reporter for Copley News Service.