The Chicago Trib has a great site where you can view all the responding candidate’s questionnaire’s detailing their stance on the issues they will face in their particular races. Candidates from statewide offices as well as state rep races have responded.
Hundreds of candidates have responses to the Trib’s questions, but by no means all of them have done so. Take a look and see if the candidates in your district have done so, won’t you?
Check it out:
Editorial Board Questionnaire Responses
-By Warner Todd Huston
William Kelly is running for Illinois State Comptroller. We’ve highlighted him several times here and as long as he is in the news we will continue to do so. Sometimes, of course, the “news” is not all good. In fact, it looks like at least one person is passing around a compilation video showing Mr. Kelly over indulging some “adult beverages,” if you will, in his guise as TV sports show host.
The YouTube videos show Kelly really putting on the show and downing enough alcohol to float a battleship it seems. Let us assume he had someone to drive him home after the show that night! (We’re sure he did, of course)
As fun-loving, TV show host, of course, Kelly proves an interesting screen presence but his is certainly not the sort of behavior we are used to from our politicians. At some point I guess I’d rather see a guy in office that likes to have some fun once in a while than one that will end up in jail for corruption like so many of our less emotive sorts seem to end up.
And, one cannot do years of TV appearances without something coming back to haunt you, I’d suspect. My own writing has gotten me in trouble in the past, so I can relate — at least a little.
Still, I would be remiss in my reporting duties if I did not report the existence of these less than savory videos. So here are the two videos in question:
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It’s About Authenticity: Odd Video of William Kelly Surfaces”
-By Warner Todd Huston
One of our local Tea Party groups is sponsoring a candidate’s forum On Dec. 9th. I find it a bit telling that these folks invited the local Democrats to participate in the forum and they all declined, yet all the republicans accepted the invitation. So, uh, what are the Dems afraid of?
Here is the press release for the event:
Sponsored by Joliet Tea Party & Homer/Lockport Tea Party
Wednesday – Dec 9th 6:00 – 9:00 pm
The Holiday Inn (Louis Joliet Ballroom) 411 S. Larkin, Joliet IL.
The Joliet Tea Party & Homer/Lockport Tea Party are joining forces once again and holding a “Tea Party” Forum for the 11th US Congressional and US Senate Candidates. Tea Partiers have asked the candidates to “hear their voices” and they have responded. Congressional and Senate Candidates are coming to our area for a Town Hall /Forum to answer some important questions and meet the people. The event is free, with live music, tea party slide show, Candidate Forum, Meet & Greet the Candidates, Streaming Video Live on the Internet, Cash Bar, and Fellow Patriots.
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11th U.S. Congressional and U.S. Senate Candidate Forum “Tea Party Style””
-By Warner Todd Huston
The Denklefsen campaign is reporting that Tax Accountability, the political action arm of National Taxpayers United of Illinois, is endorsing Jeff Danklefsen in his effort to take the GOP nomination for the 14th District Congressional seat.
In making the endorsement, president Jim Tobin cited Jeff’s “exceptional desire to fight taxes and support economic growth.”
Founded in 1976, NTUI is the largest taxpayer protection organization in Illinois with more than 30,000 members and supporters. For more information, see www.ntui.org.
For more information of Jeff Danklefsen, see his campaign website.
-By Warner Todd Huston
Gubernatorial candidate Bill Brady (R, Bloomington) announced at a campaign stop at the Willard Airport in Savoy, Illinois that he has the support of 14 out of 70 Republican members of the Legislature.
Brady is also calling for a 10 percent across the board cut in the state’s budget.
“I have called for a 10 percent cut across the board in every area of state government. We’ve got to rein in government spending.”
The 14 Legislators that have endorsed Brady are as follows:
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Brady Announces 14 GOP Legislators Endorsing Him for Governor”
From the Morrison campaign:
Palatine, IL – Challenger Tom Morrison received an overwhelming endorsement of the Palatine Township Republicans for state representative of the 54th district against incumbent Suzie Bassi in the upcoming Republican primary on February 2nd.
Palatine Township Republican precinct captains overwhelmingly endorsed Morrison. More than 85% of the precinct captains supported Morrison against 11 year incumbent Suzie Bassi.
“I am honored to receive such a strong endorsement from the Republican Township precinct captains,” Morrison said. “This is further testimony from our party leaders of the urgent need to correct the enormous problems facing our state. I am heartened by this support and will continue with my efforts to run a spirited, door-to-door campaign for the Republican primary election on February 2nd.”
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54th District: Tom Morrison Endorsed By Palatine Township GOP”
-By Warner Todd Huston
A new FaceBook effort to rally conservative Illinoisans to the state’s electoral process was launched by several youngsters out of the Rockford area and they’ve decided to make a few endorsements for some of the statewide races coming up soon in the February primary. The group is calling itself “Illinois Conservatives” and can be found on FaceBook.
Here are their endorsements thus far:
The new group says in its mission statement that they are trying to support candidates for “the betterment of Illinois.”
The Illinois Conservatives Facebook group believes in conservative ideologies and supports political candidates who share in those beliefs for the betterment of the State of Illinois
I have to thank Tom Mannis of Chicago New Bench for alerting me to this group. On his site, Tom says of this effort, “Frankly, endorsements like the one from Illinois Conservatives means a lot more than those from the inbred, cloistered little Republican groups around the state.” I couldn’t agree more.
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New Illinois Conservative FaceBook Group Makes Endorsements”
-By Warner Todd Huston
Incumbent Kane County Recorder of Deeds Sandy Wegman has before claimed that she is a “team player” for the GOP. Her actions, however, make that out to be a lie. The last time Wegman tried to get out of her dead end clerk’s job was when she ran for Lt. Governor in 2006 despite that she had no party backing. In fact, her run then likely took votes away from State Senator Steve Rauschenberger who also ran for Lt. Governor that election, the only candidate that had a chance to beat Joe Birkett for the nod. (She got a measly 13% to Steve’s 30%)
A team player in 2006 would have dumped her own effort in order to back either Rauschenberger or States Attorney Joe Birkett the only two in the race with any party backing at all. Instead she stayed in causing the race to look uncompetitive.
Now we get another example of Wegman’s party averse opportunism, once again seemingly intended to hurt former Senator Steve Rauschenberger. She has inexplicably launched a late “write-in” bid for the State Senate seat of the 22nd District in opposition, once again, too a Rauschenberger candidacy.
Wegman’s cynical opportunism comes just as Rauschenberger faces an odd but vexing petition challenge forced upon him by the Democrat Party aimed at keeping him from appearing on the primary ballot as a Republican.
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Sandy Wegman: Team Player or Self-Interested Opportunist?”
-By Warner Todd Huston
Looks like Jim Purcell, a solid conservative, has decided not to run for the 14th District seat after all. That still leaves four Republicans in the race.
Still in:
Here is the Purcell press release:
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Purcell Says no to 14th District Run”
There has been some question on candidate Joe Walsh’s pro-life stance, so here is his “setting the record straight” message to try and settle the question:
You may have heard some rumor and innuendo over the past few days, writtennand spoken, trying to distort my position on the life issue. I would like to set the record straight.
For seven years, I have been pro-life without exception. I believe in the
sanctity of all human life from conception to natural death. There is no
candidate in this race who is more pro-life than I am.
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8th District: Joe Walsh ‘Sets Record Straight’ On Pro-Life Issue”
Several Illinois candidates have been signing no-tax pledges of late and 5th District candidate David Ratowitz is the latest. This from the campaign…
“Cap and Trade is a disaster that will sacrifice jobs and increase energy costs.”
CHICAGO – December 3, 2009 – U.S. House candidate David Ratowitz (IL-5) this week signed Americans for Prosperity’s “No Climate Tax Pledge, vowing to “oppose any legislation relating to climate change that includes a net increase in government revenue.” He is one of only nine Illinois state or federal candidates to sign the pledge to date.
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5th District Race: David Ratowitz Signs AFP’s “No Climate Tax” Pledge”
-By Warner Todd Huston
Well, Illinois voter, say you go to the polls and you decide you don’t like any of the candidates for lt. governor or secretary of state but you are all fired up about your choice for governor. So, you just don’t want to vote for the ones you don’t like but you darn sure want to vote for the ones you DO like. Guess what? If certain authorities in Illinois have their way your vote won’t count at all. It’ll be flagged as an undervote, kicked out of the machine, and you’ll be urged to complete the ballot whether you want to or not.
As a result of Public Act 95-699, passed in 2007, a ballot that is fed into the voting machine that has any of the Constitutional offices left un-marked will be kicked out as an undervote. At this point the voter will be informed in front of everyone that they didn’t chose a candidate for all the major offices and will be informed that he should complete the ballot. In fact, the vote cannot even be counted unless the judge depresses a special button to allow the vote to go through with an undervote.
Critics say that these hoops that must be jumped through denies the voter the right not to vote for whatever office they don’t want to vote for. Further, it sets up the situation where voters can be strong armed by unscrupulous election judges into voting for candidates for whom they do not really want to vote. It sets up the possibility that the voter can be intimidated into going back to the booth and continue voting when they really don’t want to. Just imagine, for instance, the intimidation and control a connected Chicago election judge will likely impose on voters unsure of their rights.
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Is Your Right Not to Vote Endangered in Illinois?”
The newest McKenna for Governor ad takes Governor Quinn to task for an over $11 billion deficit, one that is growing at “$30 million a day.”
8th District Congressional candidate Joe Walsh has signed the AFP no tax pledge…
CHICAGO-The Illinois chapter of the free-market grassroots group Americans for Prosperity (AFP-IL) today applauded U.S. House candidate Joe Walsh (8th District) for signing the group’s “No Climate Tax Pledge.” By doing so, Walsh joins over 285 lawmakers and candidates on the federal, state and local levels pledging to “oppose legislation relating to climate change that includes a net increase in government revenue.”
“The one thing elected officials should all be able to agree on is that global warming shouldn’t be used as an excuse to hike taxes on citizens and businesses,” said AFP-IL State Director Joe Calomino. “We encourage all of Illinois’ elected officials and candidates for elected office to sign.”
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Americans for Prosperity: U.S. House Candidate Joe Walsh Signs No Climate Tax Pledge”
From the Isaac Hayes campaign:
CHICAGO – December 1, 2009: The following statement was released today by Rev. Isaac C. Hayes, the GOP nominee for Congress in IL-2, and opponent of Rep. Jesse Jackson Jr. (D-Ill.) regarding President Obama’s announcement to send 30,000 more soldiers to Afghanistan:
“President Obama’s decision to send 30,000 additional troops into the theatre of Afghanistan is a good step in the right direction” said Hayes. “His decision to not cut-and-run despite opposition to the buildup by members of his own party is commendable. However, I am disappointed that he has chosen not to deploy the minimum number of troops requested by General McCrystal of 40,000. As Congress debates funding for the troop buildup, it is important that the Republican Party work to ensure our soldiers have the best chance of success by heeding the firsthand assessment of Gen. McCrystal.”
For more information, go to:http://www.isaac4honesty.com.
From the Joe Walsh campaign:
8th District GOP Congressional Candidate Supports More Troops
Lake Zurich, IL – Joe Walsh, Republican candidate for the GOP nomination for the 8th District Congressional seat currently held by Rep. Melissa Bean has issued the following statement in response to President Obama’s speech on Afghanistan policy tonight:
According to Mr. Walsh:
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8th District: Joe Walsh Pans Obama’s Afghanistan Policy Speech”
-By Warner Todd Huston
On the Ryan FaceBook page the claim was recently made that Jim Ryan was endorsed by the Illinois State Rifle Association’s political action arm for his 2002 race against Rod Blagojevich for governor. Au contraire, says the ISRA-PVF. They didn’t endorse anyone in 2002, they say.
The ISRA-PVF issued a news release to correct the record:
ISRA-PVF Calls Upon Illinois Gubernatorial Candidate Jim Ryan to Retract Endorsement Claims
CHICAGO, Nov. 30 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ — The following was released today by the ISRA Political Victory Fund (ISRA-PVF):
The ISRA-PVF is today calling upon Illinois gubernatorial candidate Jim Ryan to retract claims that he received the group’s endorsement during his failed 2002 run for governor against Rod Blagojevich. Such misleading claims have surfaced on Ryan’s social networking internet sites in recent days. Additionally, individuals have made reports to the ISRA-PVF that Ryan campaign staffers have made similar endorsement claims when questioned about Ryan’s stands on issues important to law-abiding Illinois firearm owners.
The fact of the matter is, the ISRA-PVF declined to make an endorsement in the 2002 race for Illinois governor as neither the Republican candidate, Jim Ryan, nor his Democratic opponent, Rod Blagojevich, were deemed suitable for endorsement.
Ill. Rifle Assoc.: Oh, No We Didn’t Endorse Jim Ryan in 2002″
From the Plummer for Lt. Guv campaign (and yes, I want to stress that HIS release spelled Lieutenant wrong several times)…
If you think the office of Illinois Leiutenant Governor doesn’t matter — just wait until now-Governor Pat Quinn passes his massive income tax hike.
For seven years, Pat Quinn played loyal second fiddle to Rod Blagojevich — remaining silent while Rod plundered the state and destroyed our economy.
As governor, Pat Quinn has continued the Blagojevich legacy — padding the state budget to pay off political special interests at our expense.
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Lt. Guv Candidate Jason Plummer: Still think the Illinois Lt. Governor doesn’t matter?”
From the Dold campaign…
The end of 2009 is almost here, and as Election Day, February 2nd, quickly approaches, it is time to look forward to electing a new Congressional leader who will bring your concerns and ideas to Washington. I believe that healthcare, an issue at the forefront of our minds this election season, needs to be reformed the right way—without a government takeover.
The current Democrat-backed health care plan will increase government health expenditures by an estimated $1 trillion over a ten year period. While the consequences of the enormous bill will affect us on a national level, it will also make things worse for Illinois. A recent report released by the Illinois Policy Institute revealed the nationalized health care plan will lower economic growth by costing Illinois 169,000 jobs, impose $57 billion in costs for Illinois taxpayers to bear, and shrink our state’s economy by 5.1 percent.
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10th District, Robert Dold: Government Run Health Care is Bad Medicine”
In a small TV ad buy, Kirk Dillard will soon unleash a new ad and this one features former GOP Governor Jim Edgar telling us that Dillard is “that person” to lead this state to “solve our budget problems.”
From the Stufflebeam campaign…
We had a great time in Alton yesterday (Saturday, November 28) and I am really proud of the organizers of this tea party that had a focus on the youth. You can read the Alton Telegraphs report below.
I had the opportunity to speak, not as a candidate, but as a “Constitutionalist.” I opened my speech with this phrase, “In just a little over three years from now, we will be celebrating the 100th year anniversary of the day that tyranny got it’s foothold here in America.” On February 3, 1913 the 16th Amendment (Known to most people as the “Income Tax Amendment”) was declared to have been ratified. Then on April 8, 1913, the 17th Amendment was declared to have been ratified. Interestingly, in October of the same year, the Federal Reserve Act was ratified. Can you connect the dots?
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Constitution Party: Randall Stufflebeam for Ill. Governor”
-By Warner Todd Huston
John Kass, he of the rail against “the combine,” has another column reminding us of why the Illinois GOP has become the laughing stalk of the GOP nation wide. It’s because up until this very day, the Illinois Republican Party has been but a weaker arm of the Illinois Democrat Party. Too many in the state GOP have been so intertwined with the criminal Democrats that they are indistinguishable one from the other, hence why Kass calls them “the combine.”
Kass reminded us of how the Illinois GOP establishment under past Party Chair Andy McKenna worked hand in glove with the corrupt Democrats. As Kass interviewed Jim Ryan, GOP candidate for Governor, he detailed just some of combine’s nefarious actions in 2006 when Ryan faced now indicted ex-Governor Rod Blagojevich.
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Chgo Trib: Remembering Why the ILl. GOP Backed Blago”
-By Warner Todd Huston
Of the Republicans running for the 10th District seat, Bob Dold is one of four, the others being Beth Coulson (the party favorite), Bill Cadigan (endorsed by former State Senator Steve Rauschenberger), and Dick Green.
Dold recently participated in a short phone conversation with Jeff Berkowitz of the Public Affairs Show the upshot of which seems to show that Dold supports the Bush/Obama bank bailouts.
Dold told Berkowitz that he thinks government needs the “ability to make sure that we’re stabilizing the banks.” Now, a conservative would far more likely say that no bank or business is “too big to fail” and that the only way to truly stabilize the banking system is to let banks that make bad choices suffer the consequences of their choices, not buoy them up and give them free money from the taxpayers so that they are insulated from those bad choices.
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“Jim Dodge has the qualifications,” says the commercial. But the funniest part is that it ends saying, “we can vote for a blast from the past or begin a new, winning chapter for Illinois Republicans.”
Why is that last bit funny? Because it is a slap at Judy Baar Topinka, the former, former of the Illinois Good ‘ol Boy GOP network, who is also running (again) for a state-wide office, this time comptroller.
List includes two statewide candidates, current and former political leaders.
Paul Mitchell, a Republican candidate for State Representative in the 62nd District, today released the following list of individual endorsements:
Each of these endorsements is from the endorser personally, and is not representative of the organizations or offices they are associated with.
62nd District: Mitchell’s Mounting Endorsements”
-By Warner Todd Huston
Andy McKenna recently vacated the Chairmanship of the Illinois Republican Party where he presided over the loss to the GOP of every statewide office. He was its Chairman for four years. It was recently hinted by new GOP Chair Pat Brady that McKenna is the favored candidate of the National Party in the race for Governor. It seems like Andy McKenna has the inside track on his late-emerged campaign for governor.
… yet McKenna is styling himself as an “outsider”?
In his newest ad appearing on both TV and radio, McKenna calls himself “Honest, outsider businessman Andy McKenna.”
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McKenna the ‘Outsider’?”
-By Warner Todd Huston
The petition challenge is a long-time, widely abused, wholly cynical method of destroying your opponent here in Illinois. The petition challenge has been known to eliminate candidates from ballots all across the state — but most often in the tough town of Chicago — preventing voters from having their choice on election day. In fact, a petition challenge is how Barack Obama beat his first major political opponent in Chicago.
Back in 1996 young candidate Barack Hussein Obama challenged the petition of long-time Chicago pol Alice Palmer and had her knocked off the ballot leaving Obama as the only one left for the voters to chose from come election day. The worst part of Obama’s cynical effort to ditch his opponent is that Alice Palmer was widely accepted as his political mentor at the time. With the disrespect Obama is now showing America’s allies we should find this as no surprise considering how he treated his own political mentor and friend back in ‘96.
There are legitimate reasons for a petition challenge, of course. Fake petition signatures, false filings, etc., these things should be challenged, certainly. We don’t want candidates to reach the ballot through fraud to be sure. But silly challenges abound in this state and it is nothing but a cynical gaming of the system.
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An Example of Electoral Foolishness in Illinois”
-By Warner Todd Huston
Jeff Berkowitz cornered Illinois GOP Chair Pat Brady and asked him if the invite to Beth Coulson to the state-wide meeting with national party Chairman Michael Steele was a defacto endorsement of Coulson’s 10th District candidacy? Brady says no, there was no endorsement.
At issue was a press release by Beth Coulson, candidate for the 10th Congressional District, that could easily be read as an announcement of support from the national party because Coulson was invited to a meeting with the GOP chair Steele.
Brady, however, denies that this invite equated to an endorsement by either the state party or the national party. In fact, despite what Politico said and what the Coulson camp is saying, the meeting had nothing at all to do with any specific District but was a general meeting of what the national party’s goals are state-wide.
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Ill. GOP Chairman: Coulson Thing a ‘Screw Up’”
Rosanna Pulido, staunch defender for unemployed American citizens in her district, expressed outrage this afternoon at Luis Guterriez’s Amnesty reform bill, to be introduced some time this month. “With unemployment in Illinois at 10% and rising, our nation’s legal law abiding citizens do not need more competition for jobs”, Rosanna said. “It is irresponsible public policy”.
53 rallies have been held across the country this week protesting the Obama administration’s amnesty for undocumented immigrants already living in the United States, along with a promise of tougher enforcement and a streamlined legal immigration system. In other countries, if you enter their borders illegally, you could be shot or thrown in prison. Cross the border into America, you get a drivers license, Social Security card, welfare, Food Stamps, bank accounts and credit cards, subsidized rent or a loan to buy a house, free education, free health care, a lobbyist in Springfield and Washington and a voter registration card. All paid for by the Illinois taxpayer.
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Guitierrez Amnesty Plan a Disaster, focus should be on American jobs”
Statement from Congressman Peter Roskam on the disclosure this morning from Democrat Senate Candidate Alexi Giannoulias that he received a National Security Council (NSC) briefing on possibly moving Guantanamo to Illinois:
“Given Mr. Giannoulias’ disclosure that he received a NSC briefing on possibly moving Guantanamo to Illinois, I urge the Obama Administration to eschew the increasingly political nature of this situation. Moving terrorists to Illinois will have tremendous security and economic implications, and now this situation has been tainted by the appearance of political favoritism given that a Democrat U.S. Senate candidate received a NSC briefing while elected Members of Congress have not. The people of Illinois will be best served by a process that forgoes the behind-closed-doors political approach and instead provides for open and transparent consideration.”
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Roskam Statement on Giannoulias Disclosure of Receiving a National Security Briefing”