I similarly would not allow a client to promise, in advance of jury selection, to take the stand.

I understand Blago's political motivation for doing this, as well as his desire to counteract the mountains of free publicity the government always gets in high-profile cases.  But that does not change it.  The simple fact is that unless the government's case collapses of its own weight, it will survive the motion for acquittal at the end of the government's case and then the defense will have to put on a case.  Blago has pretty much obligated his counsel to put on a defense case by promising to take the stand, because you know there is no way Fitz is taking a case to trial which would have even the slightest chance of collapsing.  

The ousted former governor has always displayed a flair for the dramatic, so it is perhaps fitting that the criminal defense for his trial -- scheduled to begin Thursday with jury selection -- is being orchestrated by two of the most unabashedly colorful and unorthodox characters on the Chicago legal scene.

The father-and-son combo has scripted a defense plan for Blagojevich that flies in the face of convention for handling public corruption cases at federal court. It also plays to the reputation as a street fighter that Blagojevich has tried to hone as a politician, and that the two attorneys, likewise, have developed in the courtroom.

Instead of instructing Blagojevich to lie low and let them battle the case, he was dispatched by the Adams on a coast-to-coast publicity blitz to loudly proclaim his innocence on TV and radio talk shows. He has written a book giving his side of the scandal and even took part in Donald Trump's "Celebrity Apprentice."

The strategy appears designed to play to widespread cynicism about government, likely shared by many in the prospective jury pool, by portraying the actions for which Blagojevich has been charged as nothing more than typical political horse trading. It also crafts an image of the former governor as an undisciplined motormouth -- not a schemer -- who blurts out whatever comes into his head without thinking about what it means or even intending to act on it.

For Republicans, it's the down-and-out party's best chance in a decade to convince voters they deserve another shot at running Illinois. The GOP is trying to regain relevancy that evaporated after a federal corruption investigation that ended with the imprisonment of former Republican Gov. George Ryan.

Watch for Republicans to run TV ads that link Blagojevich and any damaging trial testimony to their Democratic opponents. It's the same approach that Blagojevich used in winning two statewide elections, tarring both his opponents with the taint of the Ryan scandal. And some GOP campaigns already are exploring the possibility.

Democrats know they will be forced to play defense, and some will try to point out ties between Blagojevich and longtime Republicans to contend that corruption was not unique to one political party.

"I don't think it's going to be good for Democrats," said Christopher Mooney, a political science professor at the University of Illinois at Springfield. "Quinn inoculated himself pretty well from Blagojevich. But Blagojevich, himself, wrote the book on this. He's taught us how to take a person not associated in any way with taint and link them at the hip."

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As is often the case in Illinois' political environment, there is a bipartisan flavor to the Blagojevich scandal.

Blagojevich had dealings with prominent Republican Bob Kjellander, a former member of the GOP National Committee. Prosecutors say he also cultivated a relationship with Stuart Levine, a major fundraiser for Blagojevich and for Republicans who pleaded guilty to trying to use his position on state boards to extract kickbacks from contractors. Antoin "Tony" Rezko, a top Blagojevich fundraiser and adviser who also was convicted of corruption in 2008, was a donor to GOP candidates as well.

To that extent, the trial may serve to remind voters that they share some responsibility for electing him twice.

"Blagojevich is just a public buffoon, but he's all of ours," the Democratic consultant said. "He's not just an issue for Illinois Democrats. Everyone shares ownership."