By Andrew Stern and Michael Conlon
CHICAGO (Reuters) - Illinois lawmakers on Monday took their first step towards the possible impeachment of scandal-scarred Gov. Rod Blagojevich.
Citing "abuse of power" as a possible reason to remove the Democratic governor, Illinois House Speaker Mike Madigan told reporters in Springfield, the state capital, that he had appointed a committee to assemble grounds for an impeachment trial.
"We are preparing for a trial in the (state) senate" and will move with "all due speed," Madigan, also a Democrat, said, while following U.S. and Illinois constitutional protections afforded the governor.
Another committee of state legislators will consider stripping Blagojevich of the power to fill the U.S. Senate seat vacated by President-elect Barack Obama, said Madigan, a power broker in Illinois politics.
Blagojevich, who federal prosecutors arrested last week and charged with attempting to swap that seat and political favours for cash and jobs, was silent about his plans, going to work again at his Chicago office.
Through his lawyer, Blagojevich has denied doing anything wrong and shown no willingness to resign his $177,000 -a-year post (117,882.12 pounds).
The controversy has been a distraction for Obama and his team as he announces Cabinet nominations and tries to lay out plans for dealing with the recession and other crises once he becomes president on January 20.
THREE PROPOSALS AIM AT BLAGOJEVICH
Three bills filed late last week for this week's special legislative session in Springfield would relieve Blagojevich of his sole authority to name someone to replace Obama who, like the governor, is a Democrat.
One proposal prohibits a governor charged with a felony offence from filling a Senate vacancy and another bill transfers that power to the state's top six elected officers. A third proposal has yet to offer a mechanism.
Illinois lawmakers were expected to meet in committees later on Monday and then debate legislation and possibly vote on Tuesday or Wednesday.
The legislature also was expected to weigh authorizing a special election for Obama's Senate seat, the latter an approach favoured by Republicans who see an opening to flip a seat that had been expected to remain in Democratic hands. Democrats will hold 57 of the 100 Senate seats, with the Illinois seat vacant and the outcome of a Republican-held Minnesota senate race still undecided.
Illinois Attorney General Lisa Madigan, who has been expected to be a candidate for governor in 2010, on Friday asked the state supreme court to remove Blagojevich from office on the grounds he is "disabled" and has paralyzed state government.
State officials said state borrowing has been held up and unpaid bills are piling up for food service for state prisons, salaries at nursing homes, and gas for state police cars.
Lt. Gov. Pat Quinn, a Democrat who would take over as governor if Blagojevich is removed, has offered several approaches to the Senate vacancy but said he would like to appoint a new senator as soon as possible, regardless of whether there is a special election.
Blagojevich on Monday apparently sought to show government was still operating, saying he would sign his second bill since being charged by prosecutors last Tuesday.
The governor, 52, is accused of conspiracy to commit fraud and solicitation of bribes, based on conversations recorded on court-approved wiretaps.
Blagojevich spent time over the weekend huddling with noted Chicago defence attorney Edward Genson. A spokesman has said the governor intends to speak out but would not say when.
(Additional reporting by Karen Pierog; editing by Peter Bohan and Bill Trott)
