Report: Blagojevich's donors benefited from state actions

CHICAGO -- Gov. Rod Blagojevich's campaign has received nearly $6 million in donations since 2000 that came in the form of checks written for exactly $25,000, according to a published report.

Of those 235 donations, 75 percent came from donors who later benefited from his administration -- receiving everything from profitable state contracts to influential state board appointments to favorable regulatory or policy decisions, according to an investigation by the Chicago Tribune published in Sunday's editions.

Donors who gave $25,000 included individuals, companies, unions and trade groups. Some interviewed by the newspaper said they were trying to show their support for the state's first Democratic governor since the 1970s. Others said they were trying to get the attention of a new administration.

But the report comes as Blagojevich insiders have been accused in a wide-ranging federal corruption investigation of alleged pay-to-play political schemes. Former Illinois Finance Authority executive director Ali Ata is due to take the stand this week in the federal corruption trial of Antoin "Tony" Rezko, the Chicago real estate developer and fast-food tycoon who raised more than $1.6 million for Blagojevich's campaign fund.

Prosecutors say Ata will testify that he delivered a $25,000 campaign contribution to Rezko's office and, with the check still lying on the table, Blagojevich asked Rezko if he had discussed a job on the state payroll with Ata.

A spokeswoman for Blagojevich denied any suggestion the governor traded favors for donations. So did an official with the governor's campaign fund, Friends of Blagojevich.

"Absolutely not," Doug Scofield, a top campaign adviser, wrote in an e-mail response to written questions.

"There is no connection between campaign contributions and the awarding of contracts or jobs," he said. "The amount of the contribution is a decision made by the contributor alone."

Blagojevich has an aggressive fundraising machine, and Illinois is one of just five states with no limits on campaign contributions.

In total, his campaign has raised more than $58 million since 2000, two years before he was elected governor. The 235 donations of $25,000 each came from 166 different donors.

Among those who gave Blagojevich's campaign $25,000 was a Chicago engineering firm and its affiliate. They wrote two $25,000 checks in 2006, and within months won $25.4 million in new state business.

A state lawmaker who donated $25,000 got a six-figure state job. And more than 40 of the $25,000 donors or their close relatives or associates were appointed to typically unpaid but influential state regulatory boards and commissions.

Blagojevich spokeswoman Rebecca Rausch said such appointments are based on the nominee's qualifications. Regarding state contracts, she said: "Strong procurement rules are in place that guide the process of awarding contracts and it is independent of our office."

One of the $25,000 donors was Cordogan, Clark & Associates, a Chicago architectural firm that designed the newly revamped oases on the Illinois Tollway.

John Clark, a principal with the company, said that the lead agency on the project -- a California firm -- suggested Cordogan, Clark & Associates donate to Blagojevich as a way to call attention to the then-slowing moving oases project. The California firm donated $50,000 to the governor's campaign fund on the same day.

"Giving puts an exclamation point next to your name," Clark told the Tribune.

Clark said the project did proceed more smoothly after the donation was made -- but he said that could have been because "people were finally getting up to speed."

He said he didn't see the donation as a favor and believes the state was merely living up to the terms of its original agreement signed under former governor George Ryan's administration. Wilton has spent more than $80 million to renovate the oases and is paid by vendors renting space there.

"Maybe the contribution helped but I can't say that for sure because it didn't immediately happen," Clark said. "If that's a favor, it isn't much of one."

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Information from: Chicago Tribune, http://www.chicagotribune.com