Lisa's Thin Legal Gruel

Illinois Attorney General Lisa Madigan has been getting accolades as a supposed dragonslayer, but clearly she is grandstanding, as her legal arguments are embarrassingly thin gruel. Playing politics rather than exercising sound legal judgment is not the mark of the kind of leader we want in Illinois after all the Blagogate dust settles. Lisa has her eye on the governorship, if not the Senate seat, and let us recall as a freshly minted lawyer of little experience she got her AG job with the imprimatur of her dad, Illinois Speaker of the House Michael Madigan.

It shows. Cornell law professor William A. Jacobson gives her a C- on her Brief, and I think he is probably being kind:

The Brief and supporting motion papers filed by the Illinois Attorney General with the Illinois Supreme Court in support of the request to remove Gov. Rod Blagojevich, now are available online. I have no idea what the Illinois Supreme Court will do on the motion, or if Gov. Blagojevich will resign prior to the Court ruling, but I can tell you that the papers are very, very weak. Embarrassingly weak. If submitted in my course by a 2nd or 3rd year law student, I would give the student a C-, with a chance to redo the papers to get a higher grade.

The good professor lays out why, but, get this--part of her argument is citing public opinions of Barack Obama and Dem Senate leader Harry Reid and other politicians as to what should happen to Blago. Look, we appreciate the sentiment of throwing the bum(s) out, but this is America--that's why we have elections. And the principle of due process--innocent until proven guilty.

Impeach the governor. And call a special election.