-By Warner Todd Huston
Oopsie. Cook County Commissioner Peter Silvestri (R, Elmwood Park) was caught violating his own ethics rule, one he wrote and ushered through the County Board himself. He says it was an accident — don’t they always say that, though?
As FoxNews Chicago reports, last Wednesday a full page ad paid for by a state disaster grant (in other words, our tax money) appeared in the Chicago Sun-Times. The ad featured a photo of Silversti and several other area pols all speaking in favor of the county’s flood relief grant program.
The ad violates Silvestri’s ethics policy because politicians are barred from appearing in ads touting public service campaigns when said pol is up for reelection. With this policy an incumbent is barred from flooding the voters just ahead of an election with ads paid for by county funds saying what wonderful things he’s done while in government.
Silverstri says he had no idea he was to be in the ad and when asked about it said he didn’t even know who authorized it all.
“I thought to myself, I guess I’m part of a violation of the ethics ordinance that I introduced.” Silvestri said. “I’d just like to find out who authorized it without first of all finding what the rules are. And second, checking with the people whose pictures they’re plastering on it.”
I guess it isn’t a big deal IF you really believe Silvestri had no idea that the ad was coming out. I mean, it IS possible he didn’t. But is it likely? I guess you’ll have to take his word or not on this one.
-By Warner Todd Huston
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“The only end of writing is to enable the reader better to enjoy life, or better to endure it.”
–Samuel Johnson
Warner Todd Huston is a Chicago based freelance writer. He has been writing opinion editorials and social criticism since early 200 and before that he wrote articles on U.S. history for several small American magazines. His political columns are featured on many websites such as Andrew Breitbart’s BigGovernment.com, BigHollywood.com, and BigJournalism.com, as well as RightWingNews.com, CanadaFreePress.com, StoptheACLU.com, AmericanDailyReview.com, among many, many others. Mr. Huston is also endlessly amused that one of his articles formed the basis of an article in Germany’s Der Spiegel Magazine in 2008.
Huston has been a frequent guest on talk-radio programs to discuss his opinion editorials and current events and is currently the co-host of “Life, Liberty, and the Pursuit of Conservatism” heard on BlogTalkRadio. Huston’s work has appeared on Rush Limbaugh, Sean Hannity, Neil Bortz, and Michael Savage. He has appeared on the G. Gordon Liddy show, dozens of local shows from coast to coast, and many blogtalk radio shows.
Mr. Huston has appeared on local TV news to discuss his writing, has been a guest of CNN’s blogger lunch, and has appeared on Breitbart TV’s B-Team show.
Warner is also the editor of the Cook County Page for RedCounty.com and has a blog on the Tribune-Owned http://www.chicagonow.com/blogs/publius-forum/ChicagoNow.com website. He is a well known writer on Illinois politics.
He has also written for several history magazines and appears in the book “Americans on Politics, Policy and Pop Culture” which can be purchased on amazon.com. He is also the owner and operator of PubliusForum.com. Feel free to contact him with any comments or questions : EMAIL Warner Todd Huston