UPDATE: 3:10 P.M.

SPRINGFIELD, Ill. - Gov. Rod Blagojevich wants to give a "closing argument" to Illinois state senators who are deciding whether to remove him from office for abuse of power.

That's an about-face from Blagojevich's previous stance, which has been to boycott the impeachment trial on the argument that the proceedings are unfair. For the three days so far of the trial, two large leather chairs have sat empty before the lectern at the front of the Senate chamber, marking the absence of Blagojevich's defense team.

The Democratic governor's surprise request was announced by Senate President John Cullerton, D-Chicago, just before 3 p.m. today. Cullerton told Senate members that the body had been contacted and told that Blagojevich wants to file leave to address the tribunal.

Earlier story:


SPRINGFIELD, Ill. — Wiretapped audio of Gov. Rod Blagojevich apparently attempting to sell his official signature rang out publicly for the first time Tuesday, with the embattled Democrat heard talking in brief, stinted language about what federal authorities call a plot to collect political donations in exchange for legislation.

"Before the end of the year, though, right? … Clearly before the end of the year, right?" Blagojevich says repeatedly in one taped conversation from November — a concern driven, federal investigators allege, by the fact that a new ethics law would make it illegal as of January to collect big donations from state contractors.

Illinois lawmakers who are deciding whether to impeach Blagojevich listened intently to a few minutes of muddled, uneven audio booming through the sound system of the state Senate chamber.

A voice that appears to be Blagojevich's was heard in talks with his brother, Rob Blagojevich, and later with a lobbyist. They talk about the "timing" of signing legislation, and about whether a potential political donor would be "good for it" — meaning, allegedly, a political contribution.

"I mean, you want me to call him directly, I will, whatever's the best thing…" Blagojevich is heard telling the lobbyist, who had been in contact with a Chicago-area horse track owner.

"I think it's better if you do it," the lobbyist tells Blagojevich, who was on the verge of signing legislation that would benefit the horse racing industry, but allegedly was holding out for a big contribution first from the track owner.

Blagojevich later says: "We want to do it and hope … to do this so we can get together and start picking some dates to do a bill signing? Right?"

"What are the chances, based on my conversation with you yesterday, that this gets done next week?" the lobbyist asks, apparently referring to the signing of the horse-racing bill.

"You know, they're good," says Blagojevich.

"I'm telling you," the lobbyist assures him, "he's going to be good for it. I got in his face."

A spokesman for Blagojevich declined to comment on the released tapes Tuesday. But in an interview earlier in the day with The Associated Press in New York, Blagojevich didn't deny making the comments alleged by federal prosecutors. He claimed the comments were taken out of context and don't amount to anything illegal.

"In the end, a lot of it was talk and exploring ideas. … I never, ever intended to violate any criminal law," Blagojevich told the AP.

An attorney for the horse track owner said Tuesday that his client donated money to Blagojevich but never expected the governor to sign legislation in return.

In the second day of the state Senate impeachment trial of Blagojevich, FBI Special Agent Daniel Cain confirmed the content of other conversations wiretapped by f ederal investigators in late 2008 at Blagojevich's Chicago campaign office, his Chicago home phone and other sources.

Under questioning from legislative prosecutor David Ellis, Cain said that other tapes, unheard publicly, show Blagojevich discussing how he could benefit personally from his power to appoint a replacement to the vacant U.S. Senate seat of President Barack Obama, as well as an alleged attempt to extort the Chicago Tribune into firing hostile editorial writers.

The Senate post "is a (expletive) valuable thing, you just don't give it away for nothing," Ellis quoted Blagojevich as saying, based on transcripts of other wiretapped audio.

As large white posterboard signs containing the censored quotes were displayed in the chamber, one after another, Cain confirmed the content after each quote: "I've got this thing and it's (expletive) golden. … I'm not giving it up for (expletive) nothing. … I want to make money."

Ellis also made a point to ask Cain if there was any possibility that investigators had mistakenly attributed someone else's voice to Blagojevich on the wiretaps.

"The governor is a very public figure. … So there is a certain voice recognition with that element alone," Cain responded. He added that Blagojevich would occasionally "self-identify" in phone conversations.

Blagojevich faces federal corruption charges following his Dec. 9 arrest, but his more immediate threat is his likely removal from office, which is expected from the state Senate in the coming days or weeks. Blagojevich has boycotted the proceedings, doing talk shows in New York while the Senate impeachment trial continues in Springfield.

That trial resumes today. Blagojevich, in his Tuesday interview with The Associated Press in New York, said he hasn't ruled out legal action if he's removed from office. He said he would respect "the law and the Constitution and the rules" but would explore his legal options.

kmcdermott@post-dispatch.com

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