* State Sen. Kyle McCarter (R-Lebanon) says he fears the fix is in for Jerry Clarke…
Johnson announced on April 5, about two weeks after he won the 13th Congressional District primary election, that he would not run for a seventh term in Congress. Clarke said that day that he was interested in replacing Johnson and that he had already begun calling the county chairmen who will make the appointment.
“It’s not right. This is not right,” said state Sen. Kyle McCarter, R-Lebanon, who told a Republican luncheon gathering in Bloomington that he is interested in the congressional seat. “You know what’s really insulting about this? It didn’t just happen. There was talk of this happening a year ago, and it’s a real insult to the people. Like I said, their vote was taken away from them.
“I think we’re used to politics as usual. The politics as usual is that you manipulate the system to put certain people in positions of power. That’s not the way it ought to be. The people should decide who is going to be speaking for them. Remember, this power that (politicians) have, they don’t own it. It’s only borrowed from the people who elect them. We forget that. But when you have people in back rooms who decide they are going to put in place who they want so that they can control them and they can control what happens in this country, that’s wrong.”
McCarter said the county chairmen should slow down the process to appoint Johnson’s replacement.
“We need to see who would represent the people best, not what person was decided in a back room deal who was going to get the job,” said the one-term state senator, who lives in the Illinois suburbs of St. Louis. “This heir-to-the-throne idea in politics, I don’t care what party you’re in, it’s wrong. It’s an injustice and it doesn’t work because ultimately, when you get that person in there, they don’t serve us well.”
* Meanwhile, the Trib has some campaign finance numbers for the primary…
Duckworth, whose allies include President Barack Obama’s top campaign adviser, David Axelrod, and Chicago Mayor Rahm Emanuel, spent nearly $1.4 million last year and in 2012 to capture the nomination. Reporting nearly $97,000 in debts, Duckworth began April with $259,975 in her campaign fund, records showed, but she also has national fundraising reach.
Another $1.2 million was spent in the new north suburban 10th District, where the Democratic primary came down to Brad Schneider, of Deerfield, defeating activist Ilya Sheyman, of Waukegan.
As the Democrats battled, first-term Republican Rep. Robert Dold, of Kenilworth, raised nearly $400,000 in March and has a campaign war chest of more than $1.6 million. Schneider, who put $150,000 of his own money into his bid, began the month with $226,000 in his campaign bank account.
And $1 million was spent in the new South Side and southwest suburban 2nd District, where Rep. Jesse Jackson Jr., of Chicago, easily survived a primary battle against former one-term Rep. Debbie Halvorson, of Crete,. Almost $850,000 was spent in March, records showed. […]
The state’s lone Republican incumbent-versus-incumbent battle between Kinzinger, of Manteno, and Manzullo, of Leaf River, was the second-most expensive campaign battle based on spending this year at almost $1.9 million.
* And Joe Walsh hit the Tea Party circuit…
On Saturday, Walsh participated in Huntley’s third annual Tax Day rally, and told supporters there that, when it comes to the fall election, “If we don’t get this right, we may lose this thing we call America,” Patch reports.
“We don’t have an election to win. We don’t have a few elections to win. We have a country to save,” Walsh said Saturday before a crowd of some 60 Tea Party supporters.
The colorful congressman went on to tout the white RV — emblazoned with the words “It’s Time! You Ready?” and “Let’s Take Back America — You In?” — as the vehicle he will use to travel during his 8th Congressional District campaign against Democrat Tammy Duckworth. NBC Chicago notes that the vehicle, a 1984 Fleetwood Pace Arrow, was purchased for $7,500 in Madison, Wis. Walsh unveiled the RV in a YouTube video that went live Saturday.
On Sunday, Walsh turned up at the Tax Day rally in Rockford where “dozens” of Tea Party members gathered at Sinnissippi Park to see Walsh and U.S. Rep. Bobby Schilling, who is being challenged in the 17th District downstate by Democratic challenger Cheri Bustos, speak, WIFR reports.
Attendance appeared pretty light, eh?
- Dirty Red - Wednesday, Apr 18, 12 @ 1:53 pm:
Great way for McCarter to get the County Chairmen to like him enough for the appointment: trash their system. At least he didn’t bring a roasted pig this time.
And is it just me, or is $1.4M a bit excessive for Tammy v Raja?
- Interested Observer - Wednesday, Apr 18, 12 @ 1:58 pm:
Too bad Illinois doesn’t have a law like Texas. Tom DeLay tried to pull a similar stunt in Texas by dropping out and claiming he no longer lived in Texas as an excuse for not running for re-election after he won the primary. The state Democratic Party sued the Republican Party and blocked it from picking a replacement for DeLay on the November ballot.
- Anonymous - Wednesday, Apr 18, 12 @ 2:03 pm:
Staffers ascending to Congress? Happens all the time.
Bob Michel begat Ray LaHood.
John Porter begat Mark Kirk.
Lane Evans begat Phil Hare.
Commentors will think of others.
An affront to democracy? Oh, I suppose.
Uniformly, categorically bad? I think not.
- D.P. Gumby - Wednesday, Apr 18, 12 @ 2:09 pm:
So does anyone know the real Tim Johnson story–w/ his history there must be one.
- The Appointed - Wednesday, Apr 18, 12 @ 2:12 pm:
Wasn’t Senator McCarter originally appointed to the Senate in a back room deal with the county chairmen? Isn’t that how he got his seat?
- Lil' Enchilada - Wednesday, Apr 18, 12 @ 2:15 pm:
As a matter of fact, Senator McCarter WAS appointed to the Senate in a back room deal with his county chairmen.
- wordslinger - Wednesday, Apr 18, 12 @ 2:38 pm:
–“If we don’t get this right, we may lose this thing we call America,”–
How delusional. I think America could do just fine without Cong. Walsh.
- jo jo - Wednesday, Apr 18, 12 @ 3:09 pm:
The tea party and Congresssman Schilling seem to be on their way out up here in the nortland. Schilling looked good against Hare and that’s why he won. Not gonna be so easy for him this time around.
- Shore - Wednesday, Apr 18, 12 @ 3:28 pm:
Kirk had to go through an absurdly difficult primary against 10 candidates, most of which outspent him badly and was not favored to finish in the top 5 in his primary in 2000 until porter endorsed him late. You left out roskam-hyde. All primaries should be decided by voters not county chairmen but that’s your problem. I don’t think the state has been well served by all the us house rep aides turned congressmen. In my experience while they have “experience” they also tend to be incredibly careerist and stale in their thinking and approach.
Hamos spent $1.1 million to lose to seals in 2010 in a neighboring district and for the axelrod-rahm machine $1.4 million for a duckworth primary is nothing. Those that want a preview of walsh-duckworth should put the pollak-jan vhs into their vcr and hit play. You can’t run a Rush limbaugh campaign and expect to win in the north suburbs.
- anon - Wednesday, Apr 18, 12 @ 4:34 pm:
Wonder if good old McCarter remembers how he got to the Senate ? A last minute deal on him too. Not best suited unless of course it was him. Not making many friends Senator. If there was “talk” about it as he alludes…why didn’t he run for Congress? He was busy trying to scoot his opponent off the ballot to run for the state senate. Waiting ?…ya if you want the seat to slide away to the other side. There’s also a time-line to slate. Plenty of folks seem interested.
- vandalia - Wednesday, Apr 18, 12 @ 4:57 pm:
Please take McCarter so we dont have to put up with him as our State Senator. He got the job by the county chairman and now complains about a similar process? I wish I could say I am surprised.
- anon - Wednesday, Apr 18, 12 @ 5:26 pm:
Wasn’t gripeing too loud about the “process” when it was he getting picked in the 11th hour for the state senate. It’s the law & how it’s done. Might not agree with it, but it’s how it’s done. Nothing illegal about it. Don’t like it, don’t gripe about it, introduce legislation to change it. It’s a party appointment, by the duly elected party GOP chairman of the respective counties involved to fill a vacancy & fill out a slate on the GOP ballot. No one is getting coronated here. It’s the process. Where was he at 2 weeks ago ? I guess if he vacated his post, the same process would occur. Sounds like sour grapes for nor being “asked”.
- hisgirlfriday - Wednesday, Apr 18, 12 @ 5:46 pm:
“The colorful congressman went on to tout the white RV — emblazoned with the words “It’s Time! You Ready?” and “Let’s Take Back America — You In?” — as the vehicle he will use”
Can someone explain to me how a sitting U.S. congressman of the majority party in control of the House of Representatives is going to “take back America” by getting re-elected to Congress?
- Cal Skinner - Wednesday, Apr 18, 12 @ 5:59 pm:
Perhaps he is referring to a Democratic Party President.
- jake - Wednesday, Apr 18, 12 @ 8:53 pm:
I think there is a genuine family issue with Tim Johnson.