SPRINGFIELD - Members of the Illinois House impeachment panel repeatedly hammered Gov. Rod Blagojevich on Thursday for ignoring laws in his management of the state. | Arrest creates market for Blago merchandise | Blagojevich in the Twin Cities

On the third day of hearings into whether the second-term Chicago Democrat should be kicked out of office, the 21-member committee moved the focus of their efforts away from the federal criminal corruption charges that Blagojevich faces and shined their spotlight on his actions as chief executive.

In the crosshairs was Blagojevich's November 2007 decision to move forward with a health insurance initiative after a legislative panel had rejected the idea.

Lawmakers said the governor thumbed his nose at the state's rule-making process and went ahead with the expansion of the Family Care program.

"The governor's office did not follow the law," said state Rep. Lou Lang, D-Skokie.

Over the course of more than six hours, the panel heard testimony about similar incidents in the governor's tenure, including his decision to buy flu vaccine from overseas in violation of federal law, as well as allegations that his administration didn't comply with state public records laws.

Auditor General William Holland detailed the result of one audit in which the administration awarded a contract to a company that didn't yet exist.

"That's good work if you can get it," Holland said. "It was lousy government at its best and it was costly."

Blagojevich's attorney, Edward Genson, downplayed the evidence presented in the day-long hearing.

"I certainly believe it's not a good reason to impeach anybody," Genson said.

The panel originally had planned to meet every day until reaching a resolution, but now is not scheduled to reconvene until Monday. Members are awaiting a response from U.S. Attorney Patrick Fitzgerald about how much they can delve into the criminal complaint his office filed against Blagojevich, which contains allegations that Blagojevich was scheming to sell President-elect Barack Obama's vacant Senate seat for personal or political gain.

Blagojevich spent most of Thursday in his Chicago office, where he has been regularly since last week when he was arrested at his home Dec. 9 by federal agents.

A spokesman said the governor signed off on about 60 clemency petitions and signed one bill. He's expected to be back in the office today, but it's not clear whether he'll follow through on a plan to publicly address the blockbuster allegations he's facing.

While it was his arrest and the contents of the complaint that sparked the impeachment hearings, lawmakers have been talking about booting him out of office for more than a year because of his management style.

Vicki Thomas, director of the General Assembly's Joint Committee on Administrative Rules, said no other administration has behaved the way Blagojevich's has in moving forward on rules without approval from lawmakers. The 17-year agency veteran called some of the action "blatantly illegal."

Genson Thursday continued to object to the proceedings, which he has referred to as a "witch hunt."

Among his objections was the introduction of the criminal complaint into the record of the committee. The 76-page complaint contains transcripts of secretly recorded conversations of the governor and others.

"I think the use here is illegal," Genson told the committee. "I think you're using evidence here that was illegally obtained."

Genson, meanwhile, said he would continue to represent Blagojevich despite losing a bid to get taxpayers to pick up his legal bills. He also said he'd continue being the governor's lawyer even if Blagojevich's campaign fund is frozen by federal prosecutors as part of his criminal proceedings.

"I'll defend him either way," Genson said. "I'm just a good person."

Attorney General Lisa Madigan denied a request by Genson to have the state pay for Blagojevich's impeachment defense, a significant move because Genson said federal officials are seeking to freeze the governor's campaign fund - $3.6 million as of June - a source Blagojevich could tap to pay his legal bills.

Madigan's office said the impeachment review is a case against Blagojevich's capacity as governor and isn't a court action - a classification that doesn't entitle the governor to taxpayer-funded legal representation.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.