December 29, 2004
POLITCAL POT BOILING ON NW SIDE, MAINE TOWNSHIP
Lot's of political blood will be spilled in both 2005 and 2006, as Democrats battle and bludgeon Democrats, and Republicans slice and skewer Republicans. In northwest suburban Maine Township, GOP Committeeman Mark Thompson is challenging incumbent Republican Supervisor Bob Dudycz in a Feb. 22, 2005 primary; Dudycz dumped Thompson from the job in a 2001 caucus. This is the first township party primary in at least 80 years, and the resultant Republican split could hand the job to a Democrat. In the nearby 41st Ward, on Chicago's far Northwest Side, Frank Coconate is the proverbial bull in the china shop. He wants to fill the "void" in the ward, and is planning on running a slate of candidates in 2006 for state senator, state representative, county commissioner (himself), and judge. Coconate, a city worker, has also been holding rallies blasting Mayor Daley's "anti-union, anti-worker" policies. Full Article...
December 22, 2004
D'AMICO, KARMEIER WINS SHOW THAT SIZE MATTERS
Size matters. And the size of Democratic winner John D'Amico's margin in the 15th House District, and that of Republican winner Lloyd Karmeier's margin for the Illinois Supreme Court in the far Downstate 5th District, does matter. Both wins were impressively large. D'Amico, despite the baggage of his parents' conviction for ghost-payrolling in the U.S. Attorney's investigation of his grandfather, the late Alderman Tony Laurino (39th), won solid victories in both the Democratic primary in this Northwest Side district, and in the election. D'Amico is carrying on the family business. He triumphed with 66.9% in November, and the size of that win insures that he will be the incumbent for a very long time. In Karmeier's race, pro-business sources funded him heavily, and stressed tort-reform -- which was especially salient in the East St. Louis area, as some doctors and hospitals are closing and fleeing because of high malpractice awards. Karmeier's 55% victory in a Democratic area sends a chilling message to the trial lawyers: Tort reform has political teeth. Full Article...
December 15, 2004
HERE'S POLITICAL AWARDS FOR 2004'S BEST AND WORST
Campaigns seem to never end, but this post-mortem is the end of the 2004 campaign. Here's the Worst and the Best of 2004. Mark down Melissa Bean and Mike McAuliffe as having waged the Best Campaigns, and Ralph Capparelli as the Worst. Mark down Jack Ryan as the Dumbest, with state legislative losers Doug Hayse and Michele Bromberg as having waged the male/female Worst Knucklehead campaigns. And there were some great quotes, like John Kerry's "idiot" reference to President Bush, Alan Keyes' reference to Barack Obama's half-white parentage, and Oklahoma's Tom Coburn's reference to Oklahoma's legislators as a "bunch of crapheads." On the Northwest Side, Democratic committeemen Randy Barnette (39th) and Berny Stone (50th) produced huge votes for, respectively, John D'Amico and Ira Silverstein. And state Comptroller Dan Hynes was the Worst Imitation of a Credible Politician, getting just 23.7% in the 2004 Democratic Senate primary; now he'll lower his sights, and run for cook County Assessor in 2006. And Illinois' bland senior Senator, Dick Durbin, is now the U.S. Senate's minority whip -- proving anew that mediocrity rises to its own level. Full Article...
December 8, 2004
NUMEROUS POLS AWAITS STOGER'S 2006 DECISION
To retire or not to retire? That is the question a lot of Cook County and Illinois politicians would like Cook County Board President John Stroger to answer. Don't expect an answer soon. From Chicago Mayor Rich Daley's perspective, he wants Stroger to stay in his current job as long as he has a pulse. The 75-year old Stroger, who is black, and has suffered from cancer and heart disease, is a staunch Daley ally. From everybody else's perspective, they want Stroger to quit, so they can run for a job that controls 24,000 jobs and a budget in excess of $3 billion. But right now, the mayor's brother, John Daley, as county board finance chairman, really runs the show. Stroger wants to hand off the job to his son, 8th Ward Alderman Todd Stroger. Circuit Court Clerk Dorothy Brown would be a very credible black contender, unless she runs for state treasurer. County commissioners Mike Quigley and Larry Suffredin want to move up to the presidency, and have been vociferous Stroger critics. Sheriff Mike Sheahan could run, especially after Stroger has been so contentious regarding his budget. But Assessor Jim Houlihan might be the consensus candidate to replace a retiring Stroger, which would open up his office for a bid by state Comptroller Dan Hynes, who, after his dismal 2004 Senate primary race, is looking for someplace to resuscitate himself. If Treasurer Judy Baar Topinka (R) runs for governor, Brown may run for that post, and a flock of Democrats may run for comptroller if Dan Hynes runs to succeed Houlihan. Full Article...
December 1, 2004
BLAGOJEVICH BUOYED BY ELECTIONS, ECONOMY
In some political circles, such as among Springfield insiders and in Chicago's City Hall, Democratic Governor Rod Blagojevich gets no respect. He's derisively known as "The Kid." But both electoral and economic trends augur well for his re-election in 2006. Illinois' deficit, once hovering around $5 billion, is now around $800 million. One-term governors not saddled with scandals or fiscal crises usually win. The Kid hasn't raised taxes or bought into casino gambling, as promised. He'll have $35 million for his 2006 race. Barack Obama is off to Washington, so he won't eclipse the governor, as he did much of 2004. Other than Paul Vallas, no Democrat has emerged to challenge him in the '06 primary. Blagojevich's ally, Senate President Emil Jones, lost only one seat, keeping the Dems in a 32-27 majority. Blagojevich's adversary, House Speaker Mike Madigan, lost only one seat, keeping the Dems in a 65-53 majority. Had Madigan lost more seats, the Guv could have claimed that the Speaker's "obstructionism" was the cause -- but that didn't happen. But Blagojevich, as is evident with his use of bodyguards, is growing increasingly arrogant; and he's barely mentioned as a 2008 presidential candidate. But, at this early date, he's favored to win re-election. Full Article...
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