Senate Seat for Sale

The Federal Bureau of Investigation discovered – by wire tapping – that the Democratic governor of Illinois, Rod Blagojevich, was trying to sell the seat left vacant by Barack Obama in the Senate. This constitutes a big blow to the prestige of American democracy, and particularly to the image of the Democratic Party.

A judicial process has been initiated in which Jesse Jackson, Jr., son of the well-known Democratic ex-presidential candidate in past elections, has been mentioned. The federal prosecution officially ruled out Obama’s involvement in the scandal. However, the investigation could still end up affecting the image of the President-elect – who has a very high popularity, greater than 70 percent – if it were to be proven that someone in his transition team had been involved in talks with the Governor.

The corruption revealed so far has been surprising and shameful. It is difficult to find another example that shows more flagrantly the degradation of politics. Blagojevich – by law designated to appoint Obama’s successor to the Senate – was overheard offering the Senate position in exchange for money, a place in the Cabinet, an ambassadorship, or a position for his wife on the board of a company.

The contrast of this scandal with the impeccable democratic process in the U.S. that ended with Obama’s triumph only a couple of weeks ago – widely recognized in the international arena – is well-known and demands a complete clarification and resolution for all those responsible.

So far, Blagojevich has refused to resign, despite the almost unanimous request from various political agencies. This could deepen the crisis if he retains the duty to designate Obama’s successor in the Senate. The most reasonable idea would be to call elections to fill this vacancy, as the President-elect proposed.

This painful episode, as well as the problems presented in the filling of Hillary Clinton’s Senate vacancy, revealed evidence of a replacement system that lacks transparency and lends itself to all types of dark maneuvers to fill a position representing the people.