* Talk about your bad timing. Last night, Republican gubernatorial candidate Kirk Dillard announced he had been endorsed by ultra-conservative radio talk show host Sandy Rios. From a press release…
“I’m so honored to have your endorsement,” Dillard told Rios. He called Rios a strong voice in the conservative community. “Her support is a huge boost to my candidacy for governor.”
Rios is a prominent Christian radio host, television commentator, and political writer. Her talk radio program, The Sandy Rios Show, airs for two hours each weekday afternoon in Chicago.
Sometime yesterday, Rios penned a horrific piece of scurrilous nonsense for Townhall.com entitled: Do We Have a Right to Know If Candidates Are Gay? As you might expect, it’s a truly nasty swipe at Congressman Mark Kirk. I don’t recommend that you read it unless you have a strong stomach.
I called Dillard’s campaign for comment, and they eventually said they wouldn’t have anything to say. Congressman Kirk probably won’t be too happy to hear that.
* Meanwhile, the AP leads with the gay angle in a new story on Mark Kirk…
Republican Mark Kirk is responding to ads from a fringe candidate in the U.S. Senate race by flatly stating that he’s not gay.
“All the major leaders” of the Taliban opposition in Southern Afghanistan are former Guantanamo prisoners who have been released, U.S. Rep. Mark Kirk (R-Ill.) said Thursday.
“We have been presented with no information that suggests that any of the detainees transferred by this administration have returned to the fight. The President created the Guantanamo Review Task Force to conduct the thorough work that had not been done before: to review the relevant information about each detainee, including the threat they pose, to determine whether they should be prosecuted, detained, or transferred. Decisions about detainees are made on an individual basis only after all of that information is considered by an interagency group that includes the Defense Department, law enforcement, and the intelligence community.”
You can listen to Kirk’s entire speech by clicking here, courtesy of the Union League Club, of which I am a proud member.
A manhunt is under way for three federal prisoners who bolted from a detention center near the southern Illinois town of Ullin.
The U.S. Marshals Service isn’t saying how the three men on Wednesday managed to make their way out of the Tri-County Detention Center in Pulaski County.
*** UPDATE *** Andy McKenna saw the same thing I did. From a press release…
“Today’s escape of prisoners in southern Illinois is a stark reminder of the dangers Illinoisans could face if Governor Quinn allows GITMO detainees into northwest Illinois.
“This plan, much like Governor Quinn’s early prisoner release program, is another ill-conceived, hastily arranged Blagojevich-style scheme that could put our families in jeopardy.
“I call on President Obama and Governor Quinn to seriously rethink this dangerous plan.”
* And Paul Green rates Kirk’s chances as “excellent” in a USA Today story…
Illinois.Republican Rep. Mark Kirk has an “excellent chance” of winning the Senate seat that once belonged to Obama, says Paul Green, a political science professor at Chicago’s Roosevelt University. Kirk has won two tough races in a congressional district that Obama carried with 61% of the vote last year. There are five Democratic candidates vying for the party’s nomination in a primary Feb. 2.
* Candidates can disclose voluntarily: Three Republican candidates for lieutenant governor are letting the sun shine on their campaign contributions. Other candidates should do the same.
* Republican gubernatorial candidate state Sen. Kirk Dillard wants a legislative probe, with full subpoena powers, into the botched early prisoner release plan. From a press release…
State Senator Kirk Dillard today issued a letter to Senate and House Leaders urging for immediate action against Governor Quinn surrounding the second early release program and calling for a special session of the Committee of the Whole with full subpoena authority to gather the facts and repercussions.
“Quinn’s program raises additional troubling questions about how the administration is managing our state prisons and working in concert with prosecutors and victims,” Dillard begins in his letter to General Assembly leaders. “Governor Quinn and his administration continue to provide vastly different stories about these programs including who made the decision to authorize the early release, why violent criminals were included in the program, and why the MGT program was secretive. Far too many questions remain unanswered about these discretionary early release programs which could continue to have dramatic repercussions on our criminal justice system,” the letter states.
“Quinn is the only one accountable for this consequential error in judgment,” Dillard added. “His ‘word’ that he was left in the dark regarding a highly sensitive issue like early release is nothing short of deceit. Trying to place blame on Director of Prisons, Michael Randle is unacceptable and unprofessional,” Dillard said. “On issues such as public safety or homeland security the buck stops with the Governor. With all the people of Illinois have faced from the Blagojevich/Quinn Administrations, they not only deserve answers but also peace of mind,” said Dillard.
“I know that Illinois Legislators share the common goal of safety for each and every citizen of Illinois. We must work together to increase transparency, fully evaluate the programs, and explore all possible remediation measures,” Dillard wrote.
Dillard is a member of the Senate Criminal Law Judiciary committee, which oversees the Corrections Department, and a former co-chair of the panel.
There are some Democrats pushing quietly behind the scenes for a legislative probe, but Speaker Madigan just got back from vacation today, so nothing’s been decided - or even really discussed at the highest levels. But don’t hold your breath.
*** UPDATE *** From AFSCME…
In a letter sent today to Illinois Senate President John Cullerton and House Speaker Michael Madigan, the American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees (AFSCME) Council 31 called for the immediate creation of “a special joint task force, including legislators from both parties and both chambers, to answer urgent questions about the administration of the corrections department.”
AFSCME is the state’s largest union of public-service workers. Its members include some 11,000 frontline employees of the Illinois Department of Corrections.
“Recent events and news reports reveal a system spiraling out of control. Yet Governor Pat Quinn’s most substantive action has been to create new appointees answerable solely to him,” AFSCME executive director Henry Bayer wrote. “This response is wholly inadequate on its face.”
Bayer added: “[W]e are alarmed by the premature release of nearly 2,000 inmates through two IDOC initiatives—one conducted in secret—that have put violent and repeat offenders back in Illinois communities, despite pledges to the contrary. News reports indicate that many of these individuals have already committed new crimes. … Now, more than two weeks after the secret program was revealed, we still know almost nothing about how it was conceived, designed, approved or implemented. The public deserves a full accounting of who in IDOC management or the governor’s office authorized or was aware of the MGT Push program.”
Further, Bayer pointed out, “for years AFSCME has raised concerns about reckless budget cuts, mismanagement and neglect that have left state prisons severely short of staff”. Yet it appears that the premature-release programs were intended to “justify the governor’s threatened layoff of more than 1,000 prison employees.”
Bayer emphasized that “state prisons are increasingly dangerous” due to lack of staff, noting recent “disturbing outbreaks of violence” by prison inmates against employees at the Pinckneyville, Hill, Dixon, Pontiac, Illinois River, Logan and other facilities.
“These crises cannot be allowed to fester. Past patterns of cuts, mismanagement and neglect must not be repeated,” Bayer concluded. “The legislature has both the power to oversee the operation of state prisons, and the responsibility to serve as a co-equal check on the executive branch. In that capacity, I urge you to appoint a special joint task force to seek answers to these mushrooming scandals for the benefit of the people of Illinois.”
* I’m waiting on some return calls before I post a few things, so let’s just go right to the question. This photo is from a recent charity event at the Goodman Theater. Pictured are Congresscritters Mike Quigley and Jan Schakowsky and Sen. Dick Durbin…
Team America has confirmed with the Beth Coulson for Congress campaign that former Congressman John Porter is going to endorse State Rep. Beth Coulson in her bid for the GOP nomination to succeed Congressman Mark Kirk in the Tenth Congressional District. As most of you know, Porter was a popular and highly-regarded congressman who was noted for his political acumen and influence, as well as his ethics and attention to serving his district for many years.
The press release just arrived in my in-box…
“Beth is the best fit for the 10th district and I know her to be a dedicated leader” Porter said. “She is a strong fiscal conservative at a time when Washington, DC, needs legislators who will restrain runaway federal spending.”
Porter’s highly sought-after endorsement by 10th Congressional District GOP candidates comes on the heels of former-Gov. Jim Edgar announcing last month that he, too, is backing Coulson.
“Beth Coulson has demonstrated herself as a thoughtful legislator with the ability to master complex public policy issues and translate them into common sense solutions,” Porter said. “In particular, because of her professional background as a medical school professor, Beth would provide invaluable and much-needed insight into ongoing health care policy issues.” […]
Porter’s endorsement follows the endorsement of the majority of Illinois Congressional Republicans including Reps. Judy Biggert, Timothy Johnson, Aaron Schock and John Shimkus and Republican members of the Illinois General Assembly including leaders State Rep. Tom Cross and State Sen. Chris Radogno. Coulson has also received the backing of numerous local elected officials and civic leaders in the 10th District.
There wasn’t any of that on display Tuesday night, but then all of the speakers seemed to be preaching to the choir.
In fact, this crowd was beyond polite.
When someone asked people to give up their seats for older men and women in the audience who were standing, I saw one fellow with a cane get up and offer his chair to a younger person. I saw another senior citizen, who could barely balance himself, give up his seat to a woman and lean against a wall.
Every person I spoke with was so bursting with enthusiasm for the cause that I had trouble taking notes.
One man told me he’s tired of writing letters to politicians in Washington only to get form letters back saying, “Thank you for writing. Now I’m going to vote the way I want to.”
Several of the members told me they spend a lot of time on the Internet researching political issues and e-mailing friends.
The crowd was white, middle class and suburban. And for whatever reason, they feel their country is being taken away from them.
* Republican Cook County Board candidate Mark Thompson has a new Internet ad. At least I think it’s just an Internet ad. I hope he doesn’t put this on TV. Watch if you dare…
Sometimes, it’s better just to do nothing rather than put out stuff like that. Yeesh.
One year ago, the state of Illinois hit one of the lowest points in its 191-year history.
Then-Gov. Rod Blagojevich had been led away in handcuffs, charged with trying to sell Barack Obama’s U.S. Senate seat. His Springfield colleagues moved to excise the poison, swiftly impeaching him.
Into that void walked the anti-Blagojevich, Patrick J. Quinn.
Where Blagojevich is underhanded, Gov. Quinn is an open book. Where Blagojevich is flashy, Quinn is rumpled and real. And, most important, where Blagojevich is dishonest and manipulative, Quinn has proven himself over a long career to be a man you can trust.
As Illinois’ accidental governor, Quinn has had a bumpy ride. But nearly a year after landing the job, his integrity, passion and commitment to fight for the little guy are still what Illinois needs.
The paper even glossed over the early prisoner release debacle, pretty much ignoring much of their own publication’s coverage.
Anyway, there’s lots of great fodder in there for a Quinn TV ad. It was pretty darned solid.
Gov. Pat Quinn says he’s already addressed all questions about his administration’s role in a secret early release program from Illinois prisons.
He won’t explain exactly when he learned the program included violent offenders or why he has made contradictory statements about whether he knew of the program in advance.
…Quinn refused to give a clear timeline about when he met with corrections chief Michael Randle about the program. Instead, Quinn said he talked with Randle about the general policy of early release “on several occasions” following his May appointment.
Quinn has blamed Randle for the program but did not fire him.
The governor said he thought early release would involve only low-level offenders who were nearing the end of their prison terms. He said he learned of the “MGT Push” program only after reading the AP story. That contradicted his statement weeks earlier that he knew about the program and that it had been well-publicized.
When asked if he thought he had changed his story, Quinn said softly, “No, I don’t.”
This is not gonna die until we get some more answers. Period. The AP’s John O’Connor, who broke the MGT Push story, is about as dogged as a reported can get. He never lets go. Just ask the State Board of Education about O’Connor’s years-long jihad. It was quite an amazing sight to behold, I’m tellin’ ya.
An Elgin man sentenced to two years in prison for aggravated battery to a pregnant person, criminal trespass and knowingly damaging property was released on parole in October after serving only 15 days of his sentence.
It was uncomfortable for Kane County prosecutors to cut a deal with Michael Rodriguez. After all, he was charged with participating in the Halloween 1990 murder of rival Aurora gang leader Albert “Psycho” Gonzalez.
Rodriguez admitted to firing at Gonzalez, although ballistics proved he was a poor shot. The fatal bullets were fired by Rodriguez’s fellow gang members.
But prosecutors needed Rodriguez’s testimony. So he pleaded guilty to conspiracy to commit murder and got 5½ years in prison.
Now, less than three years after he was arrested, Rodriguez is back on the street.
A Will County man sentenced to prison on a drug charge was freed early under a controversial state program that Gov. Pat Quinn called a “mistake” and discontinued last week, a Chicago Sun-Times analysis found.
Charles Robinette, 40, had been sentenced to 12 months in prison. He served just 12 days, the analysis found.
This was not the first time Robinette was eligible for early release from prison.
On Oct. 5, 1995, Robinette, then 26, of Wilmington robbed a liquor store in Rockdale. The owner of Bait and Beer was stabbed and beaten with a hammer.
Robinette received a 20-year prison sentence for attempted murder.
And then there are the related angles. For instance…
A watchdog group says the state’s prison system for juveniles is hobbled by management problems and needs a major overhaul in order to better serve troubled youth.
After a two-year study, the John Howard Association of Illinois found shortfalls in staffing, deteriorating buildings and a lack of follow-up after juveniles are released from facilities.
“While the department has made progress, it needs to do more if Illinois is to offer troubled youth an opportunity for meaningful change in their lives,” the report said.
The group’s criticism of the Illinois Department of Juvenile Justice comes as Gov. Pat Quinn has been under fire for a secret early-release program for adult prisoners in which more than 1,700 inmates were let go after serving little time behind bars.
This is a policy and political disaster. There’s just no other way to put it.
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