The Tribune’s guiding principles list four roles for the editorial page: to serve as a check on the power of government, to set an agenda for the Chicago region and the nation, to make persuasive arguments for the enactment of that agenda, and to inform and guide its readers so they can make better decisions as citizens.<\/p>\n
So we have criticized Blagojevich for his reckless stewardship of state finances, his refusal to work with the legislature, his unabashed trafficking in political favors. We’ve questioned why the governor dragged his feet on signing an ethics bill and why his hand-picked Tollway Authority Board was in such a hurry to approve a vaguely conceived $1.8 billion plan to add high occupancy lanes; Tuesday’s documents hint at some compelling answers. Last year, we started a discussion that led to a failed attempt at adding a recall provision to the state constitution, with Blagojevich as Exhibit A. We stopped short of urging impeachment, aware that a criminal investigation was under way, but the court documents released Tuesday make it clear the governor wanted to short-circuit such a campaign.<\/p>\n