Illinois Governor Arrested

AP is reporting that Illinois Gov. Rod Blagojevich has been arrested on corruption charges. It quotes a federal law-enforcement official as saying the charges result from Blagojevich's handling of the selection of a successor to Illinois Sen. Barack Obama. Beyond the breaking news, the Chicago Tribune's Web site includes a backgrounder, criminal complaint, video of Blagojevich's reaction and photos of his time in office. We didn't have to wait long for the Chicago Sun-Times headline. "Busted," said the banner headline on an eight-page special edition.
The Sun-Times also is reporting: "The charges also include alleged attempts by the governor to influence the Tribune editorial board, threatening, that if the Tribune didn’t support him, he wouldn’t approve the sale of Wrigley Field." The Tribune posted a statement from Editor Gerould Kern that included: "On occasion, prosecutors asked us to delay publication of stories, asserting that disclosure would jeopardize the criminal investigation. In isolated instances, we granted the requests, but other requests were refused." From Illinois' state capital, the Springfield Journal-Register reports that the first demand for the governor's resignation has been made.