the kicker

By Blago Interview #14, What’s Left To Ask?

January 28, 2009

What’s left to ask when you’re conducting the 17th 14th (of 17, total*) interview with Gov. Blagojevich in 48 hours (per Campbell Brown’s own tally)? Among the questions CNN’s Brown came up with last night:

BROWN: How exactly are you explaining that [your side] to the people of Illinois when you go on a show like The View and you let the ladies run their fingers through your hair?

BLAGOJEVICH: Well, I didn’t expect [Joy Behar] would do that. She did it on her own. How do you stop that when she does it?

(How do you stop that?) And:

BROWN: So I’ve got to ask one more thing. The poetry.

BLAGOJEVICH: Is that bad?

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BROWN: What’s with the poetry?

BLAGOJEVICH: Is that bad?

BROWN: I’m not suggesting at all it’s bad. I think this is a pretty innocuous question. Well, just — I’m curious. What’s with the poetry?

BLAGOJEVICH: Well, here, let me set the record straight. I don’t know a lot of poetry. There’s a couple of poems I’ve learned ever since I was a little kid. ..

…The ones I know are motivators. Is that bad?

And, after so many interviews over the past two days, could Blagojevich be souring on reporters?

BROWN: The mayor of Chicago says you’re cuckoo.

BLAGOJEVICH: Do you know the context?

BROWN: Please …

BLAGOJEVICH: Of course not. You guys never do.

He was asked, the governor says they’re trying to rush him out of office because he says his fellow Democrats are bent on a huge tax increase on the people before Memorial Day. He then said cuckoo. Now why did he say cuckoo? Because he’s one of those Democrats who wants those tax increases that I promise you is going to happen before Memorial Day in Illinois. A tax increase on people, middle-class family, that I fought against for six years.

So again, you take that and you put it in a certain context. I understand your business, but see, that’s inaccurate. That’s what his response was to a question about taxes.

*The headline of this post has been updated (“#17” changed to “#14”).

Liz Cox Barrett is a writer at CJR.