May 24, 2009 10:48 am US/Central
Patti Blagojevich Stands By Her Man
Former First Lady Says She'll Appear On Reality TV Because She Can't Land Regular Job
CHICAGO (AP) ―
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Ex-Gov. Rod Blagojevich appears here with wife Patti, in this Aug. 10, 2007 photo.
AP
Patti Blagojevich said her marriage to ousted Illinois Gov. Rod Blagojevich has not been shaken since he was arrested on federal fraud charges.
"I love my husband. He's a devoted husband, a great father. He's loyal, hardworking," she said in an interview posted
Saturday on the Chicago Sun-Times' Web site. "I don't see why these circumstances -- which were wholly beyond our control, rained down on us -- would affect our relationship."
Rod Blagojevich, who was arrested on Dec. 9 of last year, faces federal corruption charges, including allegations that he tried to profit from President Barack Obama's vacant U.S. Senate seat. Blagojevich has pleaded not guilty.
The former Illinois first lady plans to take a role on NBC reality TV show "I'm a Celebrity... Get Me Out of Here." The show will be filmed in the Costa Rican jungle.
A federal has judge ruled that the impeached governor couldn't participate in the show's filming because it would send him out of the country.
Patti Blagojevich said she took the offer to appear on the show because she couldn't land a regular job, both because of the economy and the attention she would bring to any employer.
"It's harder when you've gotten notoriety attached to you," she said. "The first thing that an employer does is Google you, right?"
She has refused to say how much she will get paid to be on the show that will include appearances by "American Idol" contestant Sanjaya Malakar, MTV stars Heidi Montag and Spencer Pratt and actor Stephen Baldwin.
Patti Blagojevich said she is also appearing on the show for her daughters.
"The big challenge is keeping things as normal for them as possible," she said. "That's why I'm doing the show. We're going to try as hard as we can to keep them in the same school they've been in since they were toddlers, to keep that kind of stability in their lives. That's why I would consider anything like that."
(© 2009 The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.)
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