Senator Winfrey: Like She Would Have Taken a Demotion?

Guilty or innocent, Illinois Governor Rod Blagojevich is the gift that keeps on giving. He says he considered Oprah to replace President Obama in the U.S. Senate, while lawmakers back home start the impeachment process today.

Blagojevich - a name I’m confident I’ve mastered at last - is getting ready to be grilled by the ladies on The View instead of being in Springfield where the process begins on potentially adding the word former to his name.

The media tour included a trip to Good Morning, America where Blago told Diane Sawyer that “She (Oprah) seemed to be someone who had helped Barack Obama in a significant way to become president.“ He added that “she had a much broader bully pulpit than a lot of senators.“

Forbes Magazine ranked Oprah as their number one on their list of most powerful celebrities in 2008. Her pay is somewhere around 275 million dollars. Here’s their take:

“Ratings for the self-made billionaire’s flagship production, The Oprah Winfrey Show, may have diminished, but her earning power appears bulletproof-at least for now. She will debut the Oprah Winfrey Network in partnership with Discovery Communications next year. She also has a three-year, $55 million deal with XM Satellite Radio. Her Harpo production company helped create Dr. Phil and The Rachael Ray Show. Less successful: a recent reality-TV show, Oprah’s Big Give.“

And Blago thinks she would put her financials out there for public consumption, move from Chicago to Washington DC and live a life filled with the tedious minutiae of government service?

I can’t wait to see what tough questions Joy Behar sends his way.