Illinois Gov. arrested in corruption crime spree

Gov. Rod Blagojevich and his chief of staff, John Harris, were arrested Tuesday by FBI agents for what U.S. Atty. Patrick Fitzgerald called a “staggering” level of corruption involving pay-to-play politics in Illinois’ top office.

The predawn rousting of Gov. Rod Blagojevich from his Ravenswood Manor home Tuesday marked a stunning climax to a tale of alleged public corruption unmatched in Illinois’ storied history of elected scoundrels and thrust the state into an unprecedented political crisis.

* Editorial: Gov. Blagojevich, resign

* Blagojevich: Obama Senate seat “a [effing] valuable thing”

FULL COVERAGE IN THE CHICAGO TRIBUNE Illinoisans awoke to news that their governor had been arrested, handcuffed and hauled before a federal magistrate on sweeping charges he conspired to sell his office many times over–including putting a price on the U.S. Senate seat vacated by President-elect Barack Obama.

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