This is why soon-to-be Gov. Pat Quinn should have appoint Obama's successor. Otherwise, Kirk, who is one of the House's most prodigious fundraisers, can run risk-free for a Senate seat. Give Jan Schakowsky two years in office and she'll be the favorite in 2010.
But suppose Blago refuses to resign. How long will it take for the legislature to go through with the impeachment proceedings? A month? Two months? There's nothing to stop Blago from appointing someone to the seat in the interim (as a final f you to all other concerned parties).
OTOH, I guess passing a law for a special election would also take some time, as you'd have to submit it to the governor to sign or veto. Even if you're prepared to override the veto, the governor doesn't have to act on it immediately.
Would the US Senate be willing to seat anyone appointed by Blago? If not, the process doesn't need to be so immediate to be effective.
Good point. I assume that there are no legal complications with the Senate refusing to seat a new member? They can just say "We won't accept anyone appointed by Blago", and that's that?
the senate can, at least in theory, refuse to seat anyone, and they would almost definately refuse to seat somebody appointed by Blagojevich, especially since there would be the strong suspicion that this person would have gotten their seat through underhanded means.
