By Tribune-Review

Published: Tuesday, February 19, 2013, 9:00 p.m.
Updated: Tuesday, February 19, 2013

In the end, Congressman Jesse Jackson Jr. proved to be nothing more than a crook — another in a long line of common Chicago crooks who have used their power and position not for public service but for self-service. The same goes for Sandi Jackson, his wife and former Chicago alderwoman.

Mr. Jackson, a Democrat of Illinois who gave up his House seat in November after 17 years, has agreed to plead guilty to one federal count of conspiracy. He spent about $750,000 in campaign money for personal gain. That included a $43,350 gold-plated Rolex watch. He also spent more than $9,500 on children's furniture. And he was really big into furs and Michael Jackson and Bruce Lee memorabilia.

Mrs. Jackson, who resigned her public post last month, has agreed to plead guilty to one federal count of filing false joint federal income tax returns from 2006 to 2011. She could — and should — be sentenced to the count's maximum penalty of three years in prison.

Jesse Jr. faces up to five years in the slammer, has to surrender his ill-gotten goods and pay back the three-quarters of a million dollars that he five-fingered from people he snookered into donating to his campaign. He'll likely be stripped of his congressional pension, valued at $45,000. The feds could — and again should — fine these Windy City crooks an additional combined half-million bucks.

Jesse Jackson Jr. invariably is referred to in liberal media circles, still, as one of the nation's leading black politicians devoted to black causes. And that won't change as long as the blind continue to praise the crooked.

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