Gov. Rod Blagojevich isn’t attending his impeachment trial, but at least one person there is looking out for his interests.
Gov. Rod Blagojevich isn’t attending his impeachment trial, but at least one person there is looking out for his interests.
Sen. Rickey Hendon said he intends to confront prosecutors and witnesses with the tough questions that Blagojevich’s lawyers should be asking. Hendon says that’s not because he supports Blagojevich, who refuses to take part in the trial, but because it’s important to know all the facts.
“It’s very difficult to get at the truth without the defense being here,” said Hendon, D-Chicago Hendon also has questions about the way the impeachment is being handled.
For instance, should the House have lumped all 13 accusations into one all-or-nothing article of impeachment or should senators have to vote on each allegation separately? Should the evidence really include the proposal from a couple of members of Congress that Blagojevich be barred from overseeing any federal stimulus money that Illinois receives?
Hendon also questioned impeaching Blagojevich over using his executive power to expand health care without legislators’ permission. He compared it to former President Richard Nixon’s secret bombing of Cambodia, which was dropped from the list of possible impeachment charges back in 1974.
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