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Wednesday, Aug 30, 2006 - Posted by Rich Miller

This leak…

Dorothy Brown, the clerk of the Cook County Circuit Court, intends to announce plans to run for mayor next year, according to a person close to her campaign committee.

Ms. Brown plans to announce her decision Thursday afternoon at the Hotel Allegro in downtown Chicago, months after forming an exploratory committee to eye a potential campaign for City Hall. The mayoral election is scheduled for February 2007.

…may have been caused by this…

As for Dorothy Brown, Axelrod says she may be jumping in now because the word on the street is that Jesse Jackson Jr. is contemplating some type of announcement of his own in the next few days, and she wants to beat him to the punch.

…which undoubtedly triggered this leak…

Chicago Housing Authority Chief Terry Peterson is taking a leave of absence to run Mayor Daley’s re-election campaign in the first concrete sign that Daley intends to shake off recent corruption scandals and seek a sixth term, sources said Tuesday.

“Nobody’s heard him say it, but if you’re looking for tangibles, this is as good a sign as any,” said a Daley adviser, who asked to remain unnamed.

Meanwhile, there’s more division in the African-American community.

In an exclusive CBS 2 News report, CBS 2’s Mike Parker has learned that some leaders among the Democrats want Todd Stroger off the ballot for November and replaced by a stronger candidate to face Peraica.

“I’m going to win, and I don’t see any reason why I would want to bow out,” Stroger said.

But quietly, some Democrats have discovered that election law allows the candidate to refuse the nomination before Oct. 1. Party leaders would then select somebody else.

One possible alternative appears to be Interim Board President Bobbie Steele. In the wake of a patronage hiring flap, Steele issued an executive order Tuesday threatening to discipline anybody who hires, fires or promotes, based on politics.

12 Comments

- Ravenswood Right Winger - Wednesday, Aug 30, 06 @ 8:20 am:
West Side Dems revolting against South Side Dems? Could this have ramifications beyond the Cook County President’s race and carry into the 2007 race for Chicago Mayor?

- Levois - Wednesday, Aug 30, 06 @ 8:48 am:
Why should this be division? I see this as the best man or I should person seeking the job. Maybe we’ll see who does well for mayor. Is it Dorothy Brown or Jesse Jackson Jr.

And I do hope Todd Stroger gets replaced. I’m still perplexed as to why they let him be the nominee in the first place. They got him and Beavers in the wrong roles. Stroger should take his old man’s seat.

- Tom - Wednesday, Aug 30, 06 @ 9:23 am:
I’m not sure if Brown is running to win or if she is doing this to deflect attention from Daley’s potential opponents, including Jackson Jr.

- Silas - Wednesday, Aug 30, 06 @ 10:42 am:
Gotta give it to Daley, he strategizes very well. His aggressive move has now put pressure on his opponent.

- Anon. - Wednesday, Aug 30, 06 @ 10:52 am:
Steele would be a slick move. She’s a long-time party hack, loyalist and Stoger yes-man, BUT, she was treated with kids gloves by the press and turned into the “most qualified” on the mere basis of 20 years on the job (voting “yes” to Stroger’s proposals). She’s doing nothing to upset the Stroger empire’s applecart, but saying the right things and issuing the right meaningless orders that make it appear she’s rooting out corruption. It would be hard to run a negative campaign against her. It would also leave Peraica only a few weeks to dramatically alter his camaign strategy, effectively killing his chances of winning. Also, let’s not forget that in a symbolic show of unity, the Board voted Steele in a president unanimously when it was clear she had the votes needed to win. So, how can Peraica slam her when he voted for her, they’ll argue.

Hint-hint: This may be what they’ve had planned all along.

- Cook citizen - Wednesday, Aug 30, 06 @ 12:11 pm:
Anon. is on to something. Steele has done nothing but perpetuate the old regime while deftly getting headlines implying she’s actually doing something.

She gets headlines saying she “booted” the Stroger patronage chief when all she did was move his office, and his six figure salary, upstairs.

She got a headline for firing the head of the violence-filled juvenile center, but quietly replaced him with the guy’s boss!

She defends the 1300 hires during a period of a hiring freeze but gets a favorable headline by issuing an “executive order” against clout hiring, when in fact the County has been under a LEGAL court order against patronage hiring for years (and has routinely violated it).

Steele is playing ball, keeping all the 8th warders in place and doing nothing to upset the apple cart. But she’s manipulated the Tribune and Sun-Times in ways Stroger never could. She would be the perfect replacement choice to win the election but keep everything the way it is for the insiders.

- Tom - Wednesday, Aug 30, 06 @ 12:36 pm:
Terry Peterson will be the public face of the campaign to soften Daley’s image with disgruntled African-Americans regarding lack of minority contracts and the Burge Report. Behind the scenes the same good ol’ boys will be pulling the strings: Jeremiah Joyce, Tim Degnan, David Axelrod, and Bill Daley.

There will be four more years of 11th Warders and HDO members grabbing the lion’s share of city goodies.

- Captain America - Wednesday, Aug 30, 06 @ 1:31 pm:
I heard a rumor/political gossip a month or so ago that Stroger would be pressured to drop out of the race this fall because of terrible poll numbers and replaced by some unnamed, more formidable candidate.

It seemes far-fetched to me, but I certainly wouldn’t object. Stroger is the only Democrat who Peraica might have a plausible chance of defeating. I never understood why the Cook County Democratic Party decided it was appropriate to slate the weakest, least qualified candidate.

I still consider the Stroger replacement scenario reported by Mike Parker as far-fetched, wishful thinking.

- Levois - Wednesday, Aug 30, 06 @ 5:18 pm:
Hmm the county race has just gotten a little more cynical for my tastes. Looking at all these comments.

- Snidely Whiplash - Wednesday, Aug 30, 06 @ 10:02 pm:
Whether planned or not, I would be shocked to see Todd still on the ballot as of October 1st. I just can’t see the machine taking the chance of losing a $3 billion budget, 25,000 jobs and hundreds of millions in contracts out of loyolty to John Stroger, when his son is the only plausible candidate against whom Peraica has a realistic chance. Painting Peraica as a right winger only goes so far when the issues and policies confronting Cook County are taxes, nepotism, cronyism and corruption; social issue beliefs don’t have any bearing on anything actually relevant to the President’s race. Many people can be easy to manipulate though, so I guess you never know, but … why take the chance?

- In the Sticks - Thursday, Aug 31, 06 @ 12:22 am:
There is a movement to try to shift as much money as possible from the state to Cook County - especially the Health Department. Look for moves at Oak Forest to find a way to make the state pay expenses for the county operation.

- anon - Thursday, Aug 31, 06 @ 9:42 am:
tom is exactly on point

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