Oberweis has gone on the radio questioning Jack!’s honesty and is telling about a conversation they had in private.
We have no idea whether this is affecting the underlying structure of the vote and won’t until they are cast. But if you think this is tough, wait for the general election.
There are two basic interpretations to what is going on. One, Jack is naive enough to believe he can keep these records out the public domain and really believes that his son’s privacy is the important issue here. Two, there is something there.
The problem with one is that if he sticks to his guns, it just sits there hovering over the election. In a sad twist, if he is being a good parent, it could potentially hurt him more than if there is damaging information to release.
But as the lecture about what happens in campaigns continues, it is naive to think that public records that were sealed after a judge originally refused because it could be embarrassing politically aren’t fair game. And that statement from the judge alone is motivating the avid press interest in the issue. This is something that should have been dealt with when he started his campaign.
The analysis of this shouldn’t leave out that Oberweis is an opportunistic ass. Others, like Rauschenberger are probably serious in their concern. The jury is out on Borling. But the Republican Party in Illinois can’t deal with another scandal while the former Governor is on trial and former legislative leaders are threatened with indictments.