3 Democratic Candidates Worth a Closer Look – And Your Electoral Support – In the Feb. 2 Election…
Posted By: Michael Sweeney
Jan. 30, 2010
As I stated when I advocated some out-of-state telephone-bank support for MA Senate candidate Martha Coakley (grrr…uh, moving on!), we here at The Stonecipher Report site AND radio show walk a fine line between reliable reporting, well-thought-out personal opinion, and even some selected advocacy for the politicians and causes we believe in and support. My original training was in journalism, where ONLY the accurate reporting side is supposed to be principal…My voice in more feature- and philosophy-oriented writing has emerged and (if I might say so) been near-perfected over the years…And, even considering the first two, I’ve never put aside my (at-times impassioned) support for the things and figures that meant the most to me. I truly believe in the possibilities of beneficial change through the election of key leaders – even if not in all-at-once movement "revolution," then at least in a drip-drip-drip of continuing to seek out and support the most Progressive candidates as possible…
That said as an explanatory introduction, Tyler and I have agreed to use our little political "soap box" here to climb on up in front of you and endorse a few selected candidates in the upcoming (this Tuesday, February 2) Illinois primary election. (These are mine; he also agrees with them and added a few others on our radio show.) But, first – a couple of disclaimers. Our goal is to – perhaps – introduce you more fully to some of the candidates that, even though they may already hold office or that you may have seen their commercials, you may not have heard enough about. If you already have – even competing – favorites or decided-upon choices in these races, great…be sure to vote on Tuesday – and perhaps some of my arguments may make you want to look a little more deeply into some of the races. But, most of all – do vote! Also, yes, of course, there ARE Republican primary races also being held, and…even though we would probably rather see SOME of the GOP candidates prevail (Kirk, Dillard) than others (Martin, Hughes, McKenna, Ryan), there are NONE of those candidates that I (at least) would support in a general election. Face it – we are Progressive / Liberal / Democrats out here, and, thusly, THOSE are the types of candidates we are trying to elevate and promote. If you want some IL Republican endorsements – as TRULY "fair and balanced" with facts (although ABSOLUTELY opinionated) as we try to be at The Stonecipher Report – you’re gonna have to go someplace else!
OK…so, here we go…
Top of the ticket here is the sole, statewide federal race, for the US Senate seat formerly occupied by President Barack Obama [quick aside – I STILL love typing that!] and recently kept barely-body-temperature warm by the electoral corpse of Roland "Finally got a last line to chisel into my cemetery memorial!" Burris. The leading candidates on the Dem side are IL state Treasurer Alexi Giannoulias, former Blago administration figure and current President of the Chicago Urban League Cheryle Jackson, and – my strong choice – former Chicago Inspector General David Hoffman (his campaign website is here). Rather than tear down Giannoulias or Jackson (either one of which I would have little problem casting a general election vote for), I want to instead talk pro-Hoffman.
Prior to his Inspector Generalship, he served as an Assistant US Attorney in Chicago from 1998 - 2005 and was a key deputy to respected US Attorney Patrick Fitzgerald (aka "The Man Who Brought Blago Down"); earlier, he also worked as a legislative aide to former Oklahoma Democratic US Senator David Boren. He is a fresh-voice independent ("machine" or "combine" politics-wise…NOT Lieberman-wise) Democrat, who will provide IL with – accompanied by Senior Senator (and possible future Senate Majority Leader) Dick Durbin – one of the most Progressive combined presences in the Senate of ANY state.
Hoffman describes himself as a "pro-growth Democrat" who sees potential premature tightening of fiscal policy as likely causing more economic decline and the worsening of our country’s deficit problem. He strongly supports healthcare reform, including the end of exclusions for pre-existing conditions, an expansion of coverage for those living in or near poverty, the creation of a health insurance exchange (so individuals can become part of a larger group and therefore receive savings), and the continued testing of new ideas to improve the quality and cost-effectiveness of overall healthcare. Hoffman also agrees with former Chairman of the Federal Reserve Paul Volcker, who testified to Congress last year that financial institutions that are "too big to fail" do not warrant LESS regulation, but instead more stringent standards. He is calling for bank regulations that adopt more stringent risk-based capital requirements, providing tighter observation on these large, previously overly "creative" financial institutions. And, as if I needed any other defining reason to support Hoffman, he personally reports that "Of the endorsements I have received, I am most proud of my endorsement from Abner Mikva, someone who epitomizes integrity and dedication to public service" – and, since the former US Representative, federal judge, and law professor (AND early political advisor and mentor to Obama…who, timing aside, should have served on the US Supreme Court, had their been a Dem Prez with an available appointment from 1977 through 1993 (by which time Mikva was 67 years old)) is one of my leading political-social heroes, that’s MORE than good enough for me…
Hoffman has gained much approval and support from his smart debate appearances, straightforward commercials, and the major endorsements he has received (including from BOTH the Chicago Sun-Times and Chicago Tribune); he still faces an uphill climb against Giannoulias, but…here’s hoping he can prevail – and, if not, I hope he remains an active, competing voice and presence in local politics.
Next on the IL ballot will be the race for Governor…and, heaven knows!, we have certainly seen more than enough upheaval in that office recently here in this state. With our last two Governors sitting in jail (Ryan) and awaiting a corruption trial (Blagojevich), we are at a turning point of potential on-going change…but NOT (I believe) in the controlling party in this still very Blue state…and, even, NOT (necessarily) in the person holding the office. Thusly, I am endorsing – with some faith and hope – the man elevated into the Governor’s office with the impeachment of Blago, Governor Pat Quinn (his campaign website is here). The longtime consumer advocate (Quinn was instrumental in the creation of the Citizens Utility Board, a consumer watchdog organization) was elected IL state Treasurer in 1990. After a few other primary losses, in 2002 he won the general election as Lieutenant Governor on the Democratic ticket alongside Gubernatorial nominee Rod Blagojevich (and was re-elected in ’06); but in all that time in office, he had little contact with the isolated (and then allegedly criminal) now-impeached ex-Governor.
The current state of budgetary and policy affairs in Illinois are not good…but these are still part of the hangover of the one-year-beyond-Blago era (PLUS the previous 6 years of B-Rod running things into the ground AND the overall troubled US economy). While he has far-from-failed at the difficult tasks in front of him (and still remaining ahead), I definitely prefer the hands-on, honest and open populism of Quinn to the (frankly) dull mere competence of his main rival, current IL state Comptroller (and Chicago / Cook County family legacy politician) Dan Hynes. This race has tightened, especially with the Hynes campaign’s ironic digging up of a tape of beloved former Chicago Mayor Harold Washington tearing down Quinn more than 2 decades ago (ironic, since the Hynes family stood opposed to Washington then, with Dan’s father Tom running against him for Mayor – and the then-college-student Dan appearing in his father’s anti-Harold TV ads),,,but I still feel that Quinn is the best choice for this state and its people.
The last race I am going to look at here is even more local, affecting "only" voters in Chicago-and-surrounding-suburbs area of Cook County – home to approximately 5.3 million of the 12.9 million residents of Illinois. The $3.2-billion-dollar-budget of the county is run by the County Board of Commissioners, which is led by a powerful President. Currently, this elective body is run by the nearly-completely-unqualified – except for sharing the last name and genetics of his father, effective previous County Board Prez, John Stroger – Todd Stroger. The nearly-universally-derided "Toddler" is running for re-election…but is facing a strong field of primary opponents. Chief among these is my choice in this race, current Alderwoman of Chicago’s South Side (and very mixed, from poor to solidly middle-class) 4th Ward, Toni Preckwinkle (her campaign website is here). In the Chicago City Council, she has become known as perhaps the MOST Progressive member, remaining very independent of Mayor Daley, with whom she dissented more often than any other alderman (at times being the lone vote against some of the Mayor’s policy proposals).
Not only does it seem obvious that we have to replace the raging incompetence of young Stroger…but, of course, it would also be terrific to be able to do so with a very Progressive, female, African-American candidate. (Note: Stroger is also black; in fact, 3 of the 4 major candidates for this office ARE…and, in still-Caucasian-majority (56%) Cook County, the fact that there will NOT be a "reverse Harold Washington" splitting favoring the sole white candidate (who distantly trails the field) is, I truly believe, strong evidence of continuing racial progress here…) Preckwinkle has also been endorsed by both of the major Chicago newspapers…as well as by a growing number of suburban voter groups, far removed from her South Side city home ward. The race still may be close, but, at this point, Preckwinkle looks like the leading competitor in the primary (which, in so-heavily Democratic Cook County, will practically guarantee her election as Board President).
Thanks once again for sticking with me for these endorsements and explanations – and, of course, do not hesitate to follow-up with the candidates’ own sites to learn more about each of them. And, not to get too preachy, but…be sure to vote here in Illinois on Tuesday! The only way we can keep changing and influencing local and national politics is to stay involved and cherishingly cast our oh-so-valuable votes. I still believe that – more than paying taxes or even opting to serve in the military services – voting is our primary duty as active, informed citizens…
For more coverage of Illinois politics, look for my regular posts here on The Stonecipher Report. (And, for a free subscription to my twice-weekly e-mail column on politics and pop-culture, "And, in the News…" send a note to: m_l_sweeney@hotmail.com)
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