Blago probe hits Chicago, O’Hare deals

The Chicago Sun-Times reports:

Federal authorities are investigating five construction companies that collectively have gotten hundreds of millions of dollars in construction work at O’Hare Airport under Mayor Daley, the Chicago Sun-Times has learned.

One question being looked at, sources said, is how the companies landed those city deals.


News of the probe comes two days after Daley lobbied Congress to pass President Obama’s multibillion-dollar stimulus bill — a package the mayor wants to include money for his O’Hare Modernization Program, which could cost as much as $15 billion.

The investigation appears to be an outgrowth of the probe of former Gov. Rod Blagojevich, whose fund-raiser Christopher G. Kelly was a top roofing contractor at O’Hare. Kelly worked at O’Hare when John Harris was a top city aviation official. Harris, who later became Blagojevich’s chief of staff, was arrested with Blagojevich on Dec. 9 on federal corruption charges.

Operation Board Games continues.No word yet from David Axelrod or Barack Obama on this one.