Hynes Running for Governor
ArchPundit
He pulls the trigger and good for him.
2009
Hannity Attacks Giannoulias
Who knew, Hannity sounds kind of like a Madigan worker…
Alexi responded over at Daily Kos
My favorite is:
Rod Blagojevich
Everyone in Illinois knows that I was never close to Blagojevich. He endorsed my primary opponent when I ran for treasurer in 2006. In fact, I was a major critic of Blagojevich and I was one of the first Democrats to call for him to resign. I instituted the strictest ethics rules in state government, ending pay-to-play in my office and I’m the first Senate candidate in Illinois who does not take money from any corporate PACs or federal lobbyists.
Within a few weeks after being sworn in, I was one of the first Democrats to oppose Blagojevich’s gross receipts tax on businesses, and I strongly criticized him for failing to sign the ban on “pay to play” contributions from state contractors. Finally, I said he was dead wrong to think he could appoint anyone to Barack Obama’s senate seat.
Fritchey might have as much standing as Alexi to being the Anti-Blagojevich, but Alexi is close behind. Arguing Alexi is somehow part of the Chicago Machine politics is absurd given Madigan did everything he could to stop him and essentially supported Radogno in the general election.
The rest is the usual stuff. Broadway Bank loaned money to people who weren’t so great, but everything about the specific loans was legal and above board. With Bright Start, he was a relatively new State Treasurer who actually figured out the problem before several other states.
Yes, it sucks, but the state was defrauded by the company and the state is attempting to recoup that money now.
Calling Loons Loons
Awesome—Durbin calls the loons exactly what they are–loons.
“It is a small fringe group,” Schumer told the Huffington Post, “and if we let a small group of people who want to monopolize the conversation and not listen to the facts win, you may as well hang it up.”
“These town hall meetings have been orchestrated by the tea baggers and the birthers to just be a free-for-alls, make a lot of noise, go on YouTube and show discord,” said Durbin. “I mean that is what they are determined to do. But that is not going to accomplish what we need to accomplish: real health care reform.”
Showing up and disagreeing is perfectly reasonable, but the stated point is to disrupt the events.
Kirk’s Not So Good Summer
Senate Guru covers Mark Kirk’s summer and despite an effective kick-off, it’s not been good to him:
And there you have the story of Mark Kirk and the Terrible, Horrible, No Good, Very Bad Summer: personally undermining the U.S. economy; getting a divorce of which a wingnut primary opponent will doggedly investigate the sordid details; massively flubbing his Senate campaign roll-out in headline-making, embarrassing fashion; and possibly violating military regulations. And that’s just June and July. I wonder what Republican Mark Kirk has in store for us in August.
Republican Mark Kirk has two advantages as a Senate candidate: his existing House campaign bankroll and his undeserved reputation as a moderate. Both “advantages” have begun to fall by the wayside this summer, as well. Though Kirk’s bankroll, as of the end of June, just barely topped $1 million, Democratic state Treasurer Alexi Giannoulias‘ campaign account has broken $1.65 million. So Kirk’s money advantage is gone. Also, the DSCC has begun working to evaporate Kirk’s faux-moderate image with a pair of informative and entertaining web videos:
Now, in fairness, Andy Martin’s bizarre rantings about the marriage stuff is complete BS. SG should have left that out.
And now he claims there are only 8 million truly uninsured people in the US. Dandy. Oh, and let’s not forget his fine townhall that essentially led him to flip flopping on the climate change bill.
Only 8 Million Uninsured
Seriously–for as good as he is at staging events, he’s turning into Sarah Palin.
The Kaiser Foundation tracks the non-elderly uninsured population in Illinois as 15% of the non-elderly population which means about 1.7 million uninsured and another 1.6 million or so on public insurance already. By Mark Kirk’s claim then there are over 1.4 million or so undocumented immigrants and those who can afford or don’t want insurance.
How stupid is Mark Kirk? Really, he seems to get a pass for ridiculous statements such as his comments in China, but what it’s really shaping up to be is that Mark Kirk doesn’t know what the hell he’s talking about.
Proof Positive: I Was Born In Mombassa Kenya
You see, my official birth certificate from Will County is not actually a birth certificate, but a Certificate of Live Birth!
Drag Queens Against Obama
WTF…
I believe one line (and it’s hard to tell) was “who cares what Ann Coulter thinks, she’s not an Israeli”
More Like It
Rich has Dan Hynes’ response to Governor Quinn and it’s decidedly un-Hynes like:
Statement from Dan Hynes’ Campaign Spokesman Mike Rendina on Governor Quinn’s Negative Attack
“Governor Quinn is entitled to his own opinion, but not his own facts. After Lieutenant Governor Pat Quinn spent 6 years in silence watching Rod Blagojevich drive our state into a ditch it is puzzling that he describes a 50% income tax increase on Illinois families as leadership. Comptroller Hynes sent Governor Quinn two letters this past year laying out $1.2 billion in cuts along with alternative revenue sources and urged the Governor not to incite panic in order to pass a 50% tax increase on the backs of working families. While Quinn flip-flopped on his own plans for the last six months, he couldn’t find the time to read either letter.”
Usually Hynes says something strong and by the end of the paragraph backs out of it. It’s still possible that he’ll back down from this one, but ultimately, I hope this is a new tougher Dan Hynes. It’s safe to say he’s in the Governor’s race and while I don’t dislike Quinn and appreciate the job he’s done given the circumstances, I’m quite happy to have Hynes as an alternative and fully plan on supporting him.
Unless he starts backing down from this…
Why is a Straight Answer So Hard?
Eric asks the GOP candidates if they are birthers:
As you know, there are some on the right who have serious concerns about whether President Barack Obama qualifies as a “natural-born citizen.” They question the validity of his birth records and therefore the legitimacy of his presidency. To what degree, if any, do you share those concerns?
Adam Andrzejewski— I do have concerns about Obama’s policies, which I think run counter to the American mainstream. I would hope that the many conservatives who are “concerned” about Obama’s citizenship exercise their citizenship more effectively by pointing out their differences with his policies rather than with his birth certificate.
Bill Brady–I frankly don’t hear that much about it. I continue to hear people talk about how they’re worried about the economy and jobs. Obama will be judged on his actions and if I were him I’d just provide the proof. One action he should do is provide the proof. I really haven’t seen any proof, but I haven’t been following this issue closely.
Kirk Dillard — (via a spokesman) Senator Dillard has no comment with respect to this issue. He’s out talking to the voters about the economy and the enormous issues facing Illinois.
Matt Murphy — (awaiting answer)
Dan Proft –I’ll defer to Kirk Dillard on this matter as I’m sure he was fully briefed prior to cutting his endorsement commercial for Barack Obama.
Bob Schillerstrom–(via a spokesman) The short answer is no. From the economy to soaring unemployment to runaway spending, we have real challenges that require serious attention – that is not one of them.
Credit to Andrzejewski and Schillerstrom who didn’t take the time to point out how ridiculous the whole discusssion is, but were clear in pointing out they don’t agree with the Birthers.
Dillard fails miserably. Proft finds a way to attack someone completely unrelated to the question. And Bill Brady buys into the Birther conspiracies by calling on the President to produce what he has already produced.
Leave it to the jackass from my hometown.
If He’d Just Obeyed the Police Officer
The usual suspects are trying to claim Henry Louis Gates is at fault for not obeying the police in his arrest from his own home:
I’m saying ‘You need to send someone to fix my lock.’ All of a sudden, there was a policeman on my porch. And I thought, ‘This is strange.’ So I went over to the front porch still holding the phone, and I said ‘Officer, can I help you?’ And he said, ‘Would you step outside onto the porch.’ And the way he said it, I knew he wasn’t canvassing for the police benevolent association. All the hairs stood up on the back of my neck, and I realized that I was in danger. And I said to him no, out of instinct. I said, ‘No, I will not.’
My lawyers later told me that that was a good move and had I walked out onto the porch he could have arrested me for breaking and entering. He said ‘I’m here to investigate a 911 call for breaking and entering into this house.’ And I said ‘That’s ridiculous because this happens to be my house. And I’m a Harvard professor.’ He says ‘Can you prove that you’re a Harvard professor?’ I said yes, I turned and closed the front door to the kitchen where I’d left my wallet, and I got out my Harvard ID and my Massachusetts driver’s license which includes my address and I handed them to him. And he’s sitting there looking at them.
Now it’s clear that he had a narrative in his head: A black man was inside someone’s house, probably a white person’s house, and this black man had broken and entered, and this black man was me.
So he’s looking at my ID, he asked me another question, which I refused to answer. And I said I want your name and your badge number because I want to file a complaint because of the way he had treated me at the front door. He didn’t say, ‘Excuse me, sir, is there a disturbance here, is this your house?’—he demanded that I step out on the porch, and I don’t think he would have done that if I was a white person.
But at that point, I realized that I was in danger. And so I said to him that I want your name, and I want your badge number and I said it repeatedly.
HLG: The police report says I was engaged in loud and tumultuous behavior. That’s a joke. Because I have a severe bronchial infection which I contracted in China and for which I was treated and have a doctor’s report from the Peninsula hotel in Beijing. So I couldn’t have yelled. I can’t yell even today, I’m not fully cured.
It escalated as follows: I kept saying to him, ‘What is your name, and what is your badge number?’ and he refused to respond. I asked him three times, and he refused to respond. And then I said, ‘You’re not responding because I’m a black man, and you’re a white officer.’ That’s what I said. He didn’t say anything. He turned his back to me and turned back to the porch. And I followed him. I kept saying, “I want your name, and I want your badge number.”
It looked like an ocean of police had gathered on my front porch. There were probably half a dozen police officers at this point. The mistake I made was I stepped onto the front porch and asked one of his colleagues for his name and badge number. And when I did, the same officer said, ‘Thank you for accommodating our request. You are under arrest.’ And he handcuffed me right there. It was outrageous. My hands were behind my back I said, ‘I’m handicapped. I walk with a cane. I can’t walk to the squad car like this.’ There was a huddle among the officers; there was a black man among them. They removed the cuffs from the back and put them around the front.
A crowd had gathered, and as they were handcuffing me and walking me out to the car, I said, ‘Is this how you treat a black man in America?’
I believe the crime is known as being an uppity black man. Jeebus, you prove you identity and your residency and they still arrest you for essentially not being defferential to the police in your own home.