December 9, 2008 was quite a day for Illinois politics. You can hear some of the stories we produced that day (and in the weeks that followed) by heading over to our A State of Corruption? page. And here’s one of our newscasts from the early afternoon, right after Blagojevich’s initial appearance in court:

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We spent much of that day calling the state’s political experts and leaders for their reactions.

Lieutenant Governor (now Governor) Pat Quinn had become accustomed to holding events that got little attention from the media. But on December 9, 2008, he became a bit more popular. Here’s part of his press conference:

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The Illinois Republican Party sought to tie Quinn to Blagojevich. Here’s then-Chairman Andy McKenna (now a gubernatorial candidate):

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Secretary of State Jesse White joined in the call for Blagojevich to resign.

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Chicago Mayor Richard Daley was one of the few prominent Illinois politicians that day who didn’t call for Blagojevich to resign. Daley said, “That’s up to him.”

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(Just to clarify a question posed to Daley in that press conference, Blagojevich was not indicted on December 9th. He was charged in a criminal complaint. The indictment didn’t come down until April 2, 2009.)

Also cautious – state Senator John Cullerton, who’d just been picked by the Democratic caucus to succeed Emil Jones as Senate President. Cullerton didn’t think senators should comment, given their roles as jurors in impeachment proceedings.

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(Cullerton would soon back away from that call for a special election for the U.S. Senate seat.)

Congressman Danny Davis had been publicly campaigning for the Senate appointment from Blagojevich. Davis called the news of the day “shockingly unfortunate.”

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Former Illinois Comptroller Dawn Clark Netsch said, “In the minds of most people, at this stage in the game, it would probably be a positive if [Blagojevich] were to resign.” That said, Netsch said she didn’t think Blagojevich would.

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In the moments after the charges were announced, I talked to some people outside the Thompson Center in downtown Chicago.

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Where were you when you heard Blagojevich had been arrested, and what was your reaction?

Check out more coverage of the anniversary of the arrest:

BLOG: Whatever happened to THAT politician: The Blagojevich casualty edition.

FEATURE: A Year Later, Blagojevich Arrest Still Disgusts and Amuses