* I’ve been taking a tiny bit of amusing heat from another blog about my post this week on former Sen. Steve Rauschenberger. It was no big deal, and I got a nice chuckle out of it, as did a few other bloggers.

Their love for their hero of political cleanliness is commendable, but it got me to thinking about this whole idea of holier than thou purity that we hear so often from the self-described “reform” wing of the Republican Party. So I did about 30 seconds of checking and found something curious.

* Four years ago, Tribune columnist John Kass wrote the following about Sen. Rauschenberger, who was at that time attempting to move up the ladder to US Senate. Kass was referring to Rauschenberger’s quest to kick Bob Kjellander out of a top GOP slot for, among other things, working with the Democrats on bigtime money-making deals…

He’s the the only one of them willing to stand up and oppose the combine.

* Indeed, Rauschenberger continues to this day in his role as tireless spokesman in the fight against “The Combine” and the harmful influence of Chicago politics. He was on a radio program this week and made this stark comment…

“In Illinois, we all should remind people that ‘change’ means kicking the Chicago Democratic Machine out of Springfield.”

Listen to the whole thing…

He had quite a few good things to say on that program. That’s not a surprise. Sen. Rauschenberger has done a lot of good things over the years. He was a decent, competent legislator.

* Rauschenberger is now a registered lobbyist in Illinois. You can view a screen cap of his official lobbyist disclosure form by clicking here.

* Notice that one of Rauschenberger’s clients is Advanced Practical Solutions. APS is run by Milan Petrovic, Gov. Blagojevich’s most prodigious fundraiser…

FBI Agent Charles Willenborg testified that internal documents from the campaign showed Rezko’s bundles [for Blagojevich] totaled $1,437,350 from 2000 to December 2004 — making him the No.2 bundler after lobbyist Milan Petrovic.

Petrovic’s bundles totaled $1,963,485, by the FBI’s count.

* You can read more about Petrovic here.

* As far as I know, Petrovic has never been accused of anything untoward at the Statehouse. But you won’t hear Petrovic talking about kicking the Machine out of Illinois because, well, Milan Petrovich is part of that Machine. And now he and Steve Rauschenberger have hooked up to lobby the Statehouse.

Don’t get me wrong, this is a very positive move for Petrovic. He’s known as a Democrat and a “Rod guy,” so it’s always a plus to have an “in” with the Republicans if you want to have a fuller, rounder Statehouse operation. And because of his years of experience, Rauschenberger has an intimate knowledge of how the General Assembly runs and how to best construct legislation. All good.

Rauschenberger asked not to talk on the record when we spoke yesterday, but it was clear from our (mostly pleasant) conversation that he sees nothing at all wrong about this. He obviously respects Petrovic and believes him to be on the up and up. I don’t disagree. In Statehouse terms, or even in my own terms, this is just good business for both men, little more.

* But considering the inflamed environment within the way over the top “reform” wing of the GOP, and its repeated purge attempts against accused “Combine” members who appear to be hiding under every bed, you wonder how Rauschenberger’s impassioned anti-Combine admirers are gonna feel about this admittedly smart career move.

Hopefully, they’ll be understanding and kind.

As for me, I wish him the best of luck.