A modest proposal

Nothing but trouble comes out of Serbia? Don't you believe it. The country that gave us Gavrilo Princip -- the assassin who started the ball rolling for World War I -- has now redeemed itself by giving us Rod Blagojevich, a governor whose conduct may offer a whole new paradigm in state government financing.

Gov. Blagojevich's snuffling around in the muck for the juiciest truffle he could get in exchange for Obama's former Senate seat -- an appointment that he found himself happily holding in the palm of his trotter -- may seem distasteful to the brahmins and puritans among us. But once you hose off the slime of personal greed, the Illinois governor's conduct actually suggests a wonderful remedy for state insolvency, especially in these harsh economic times.

For several years, a lot of states have relied on state lotteries to help themselves balance their books. These lotteries have, in fact, proven excellent sources of revenue. Unfortunately, lottery profits come disproportionately from the elements of society least able to afford them -- and they shield the wealthiest members of society from increases in their own state income and property taxes.

The Blagojevich Plan -- for want of a better term -- would avoid this regressive effect. Each state government would put Senate vacancies, as they occur, up for auction. The seat would go to the highest bidder. The auction would be managed by the state treasurer, with the governor obligated by law to give the winner his formal appointment. All proceeds would go to the state's general fund, together with conventional tax revenue.

At present, the Seventeenth Amendment would permit this method to be used only for Senate vacancies occuring in mid-term. But radical right wing groups have been agitating for repeal of that amendment, permitting state legislatures once more to appoint Senators. Liberals can join that movement, while urging states to use their new freedom to adopt the Blagojevich Plan. There's no cash to be had from making appointments for political rather than economic reasons, and so the states can be trusted to make the rational decision.

Will the the Blagojevich Plan cause a decrease in quality of our esteemed Senate? Don't be silly. Take a look at who's sitting in the Senate under today's system!

Don't send Blagojevich to jail. Give him the Nobel Prize for Economics.