Four of Illinois’s last eight governors went to prison. We’re batting .500, if I’m counting correctly. I don’t know if that’s bad news (Illinois has more corruption) or good news (We’re better at catching the bastards).
Here’s Wikipedia’s list:
“Otto Kerner, Jr. (D) was 33rd Governor of Illinois … Kerner was convicted on 17 counts of mail fraud, conspiracy, perjury, and related charges.
“Dan Walker (D) was the 36th Governor of Illinois … Walker pleaded guilty to bank fraud and perjury for receiving improper loans from First American. He was sentenced to seven years in prison.
“George Ryan (R) was the 39th Governor of Illinois … he was found guilty of fraud and racketeering charges … He was sentenced to six and a half years in prison.
Rod Blagojevich (D) was the 40th Governor of Illinois … He was found guilty of 18 counts of corruption, including attempting to sell or trade an appointment to fill a vacant seat in the U.S. Senate. He was sentenced to 14 years in prison.”
In raw number counts, New York and California send more government officials to jail than Illinois does. I don’t know the per capita numbers.
Illinois is the worst. Taxes keep increasing an politicians put it in their pockets. Nothing improves.
I’d like to see a more comprehensive drop-down list with Democrats vs Republicans covering the last 20 years, each with their own link to convictions, resignations, etc. Might help to make the argument for term limits. Thx.
What did Governor Stratton of Illinois go to prison for?