Kendall Coffey on Rod Blagojevich with Rick Sanchez on CNN

CNN Newsroom: 12/16/2008 12:06 p.m.

RICK SANCHEZ:     Blagojevich, the governor of Illinois, today digging in his heels in what may be the fight of his life but he’s not stepping down, he’s not quitting.  Here’s some of the first video that we’ve got and he’s seen here – he’s leaving with a briefcase and a gym bag earlier this morning.  No explanation still as to where he was going but we do know this – he’s hired a top-notch attorney, he’s gonna fight this thing; he says he’s not guilty and his attorney says we all have it wrong.
 
ED GENSON:     The case that I’ve seen so far is significantly exaggerated.  It’s just not – it’s not what people think it is and we’ll have time to talk about it. 
 
RICK SANCHEZ:     All right, that’s his attorney trying to explain to reporters what’s going on. While that’s going on, there’s also this – his own colleagues, politicians in the state of Illinois – both in the senate and in the congress have come together and have formed what is essentially an impeachment committee.  There it is today as they were meeting trying to come up with a way to decide whether he will be impeached and, if so, how they remove him from office.  But this is obviously a sticky matter.  Let’s do this, let’s bring in Kendall Coffey.  He’s a former U.S. prosecutor.  He knows how these things work.  You just heard a little while ago, Kendall, the defense attorney saying this thing’s being exaggerated.  It’s not what it appears to be.  The charges are conspiracy and solicitation of bribery.  You know, when you prosecutors hold these news conferences, announce all this information, it does seem very grandiose but are they going to be able to nail this guy?  Is there really enough there from what you’ve seen in this case?
 
KENDALL COFFEY:     Well, it may or may not be a defensible case.  Still too early to say.   But let’s compare this with another kind of case, Rick, where the prosecutors had everything they wanted.  Congressman William Jefferson, Louisiana, caught on videotape receiving $100,000 for bribery from an FBI agent, most of that money showing up inside the freezer in the Congressman’s home.  That’s a dream case, talk about cold hard cash.  In this one, I think the defense is going to try to portray it as a lot of trash talking inside the governor’s locker room.
 
RICK SANCHEZ:     Well, if you don’t have money changing hands, what you have is someone talking and you know and I know, because you and I have worked  in this business for a long time that that’s essentially called conspiracy – hoping that you can prove that two people agreed to do something.  Have you heard anything evidentiary wise that would lead you to suspect that there’s enough goods here for them to get him on that?
 
KENDALL COFFEY:     Well, we’re all assuming it is, but let’s consider what they really need.  In an extortion you need the victim that says “yeah, they weren’t just talking inside the governor’s house, they were actually hitting up on me for money”.  Are any of the aspirants for the U.S. Senate gonna say that they participated in illicit discussions with somebody from the governor’s office.  I don’t think so.  Haven’t heard it yet.  What will happen with the Chicago Tribune?  Were they actually extorted by someone?  Don’t know.  You can certainly get yourself convicted with the wrong kind of talk.  On the other hand, bad talk can also get explained sometimes by very, very skilled defense lawyers.
 
RICK SANCHEZ:     Well, and still, I mean it’s like they say you can beat the rap but you can’t beat the ride.   Obviously it’s all out there.  He doesn’t look good.  In the court of public opinion he looks absolutely horrible.  Let me ask you one more question before I let you go, Kendall.  Is it possible that they are holding something back-- that they haven’t shown us all the goods yet?  I’m talking about Fitzgerald up in the U.S. Attorney’s office there in Chicago?
 
KENDALL COFFEY:    Well, you probably think so, but on the other hand in a case like this, where he’s arresting the governor and calling international attention essentially a state of crisis.  You would think whatever his best ammunition is has already been put on the table.
 
RICK SANCHEZ:     He’s already shown them.  Kendall, one of the best U.S. attorneys around, and I thank you, sir, for taking time to take us through this.