Jesse Jackson, Jr. Resigns

The big news here in Chicago is that Jesse Jackson, Jr. has resigned his seat in Congress:

Rep. Jesse Jackson resigned from Congress Wednesday, saying in a letter that he is cooperating with a federal investigation “into my activities” but blaming his health problems for his decision to step down just two weeks after his re-election.

Jackson’s letter to House Speaker John Boehner was his first acknowledgment of the ongoing corruption probe into his alleged misuse of campaign dollars.

“I am doing my best to address the situation responsibly, cooperate with the investigators, and accept responsibility for my mistakes, for they are my mistakes and mine alone,” Jackson said in the two-page letter dated Nov. 21. “None of us is immune from our share of shortcomings or human frailties and I pray that I will be remembered for what I did right.”

The full text of the letter is here.

This is hardly a surprise. I actually expected Rep. Jackson to resign shortly after the election. I can only speculate that he was prevailed upon to recognize that caring for his health, repairing his relationship with his family, and dealing with the various investigations that are embroiling both him and his wife are likely to require his full energies and in the meantime his constituents deserve representation.

Under Illinois law Gov. Quinn must call a special election with five days and the election must be held within 115 days. This could have been avoided had Rep. Jackson stepped aside some months ago but, alas, that was not to be.