Solid reporting behind Broder's op-ed columns on Burris, Blagojevich and the 'Springfield Syndrome'

Two columns by David Broder, dean of The Washington Post's op-ed page columnists. One today and one back in December when the U.S. Attorney's Office in Chicago filed a criminal complaing against Gov. Rod Blagojevich.

Today's piece discusses Roland Burris' qualifications for high office in a candid, but even-tempered way:

Everyone, including Obama, has been exceedingly polite in their public comments about Burris. I have known him for years, and I like him. But I have never been confused about the level of his talent. He was elected as far back as 1978 as state comptroller and stayed in that low-visibility office for 12 years before moving up to attorney general in 1990.

When he tried to climb higher, he found the competition too tough. He lost a Senate race to Paul Simon, tried three times for the nomination for governor without success and ran for mayor of Chicago with the same result. He couldn't get past the Democratic primary in any of those contests.

Burris is, in short, typical of a lot of politicians in both parties who find a comfortable lodging for years in down-ballot offices but who never make the cut for the major prizes. He was distinctive in Illinois mainly for breaking the color barrier in statewide office, thanks to his downstate birth and friendships and his pleasant, accommodating personality.

A good piece of on-deadline analysis. Well sourced, too. One thing that distinguishes Broder from other op-ed pundits is that works the phone and wears out shoe leather. If he says something in print, it's based on reporting.

Linked to today's was a column he wrote Dec. 11 in which he said "Blagojevich was a scandal waiting to happen." Typically, he based it on solid reporting. In this case, of the 2002 gubernatorial primary:

When I went to Chicago to cover their pre-primary debate, Blagojevich, a boyish-looking young congressman who got his seat thanks to the clout of his father-in-law, an influential Chicago alderman, was by far the least impressive candidate. He had made no particular mark on Capitol Hill, and he seemed much less informed on Illinois issues than his rivals.

I was inclined to dismiss his chances, but a longtime Chicago reporter friend told me, "Don't write him off. He's a money machine."

The rest, as the cliche goes, is history. Or federal investigation, as the case may be.

Broder's assessment of Blagojevich is also, in the circumstances, remarkably even-handed:

The brazenness and utter sleaziness of Blagojevich stunned even veteran FBI men, [U.S. Attorney Patrick] Fitzgerald said, but it did not surprise people in Chicago or Springfield who had been watching the governor.

The criminal complaint against Blagojevich, the nominal head of [Barack] Obama's home-state party, is a mild embarrassment for the president-elect. But it really does not reflect on Obama, who has kept Blagojevich at arm's length for a long time.

As a fellow Illinoisan, I have to admit that this latest example of the Springfield Syndrome that has now tainted four recent governors is a signal that the ethics reforms Obama sponsored as a member of the Illinois Legislature did not go far enough to cleanse the pay-to-play culture.

Get out the scrub brushes.

How about that? "Springfield Syndrome." And I'll bet you thought our only contribution to the larger culture was the horseshoe sandwich!