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Oh, sweet irony
Wednesday, Nov 3, 2010 - Posted by Rich Miller * The Tribune’s editorial today was entitled “The Rebuke.” It was pretty thin soup…
First, notice how they breezed past that Brady thing. More importantly, though, the US Senate seat is not part of “state government.” That’s quite the stretch. The state Senate, which is part of state government, gained just two Republican seats, despite the fact that the Tribune endorsed every Republican running in a contested district. And those two seats the Democrats lost were the hardest to hold. The only surprise last night in the state Senate was the large winning margins of some of the Democratic candidates. So, who was “rebuked,” exactly? House Speaker Michael Madigan, whom the Tribune has relentlessly railed against, lost a net of six seats. But Madigan only lost one seat in the Tribune’s coverage area: Rep. Mark Walker. The Tribune, you will recall, claimed that Walker was anti-business, even though he’d been endorsed by the Illinois Chamber. So, there’s a win, I suppose. But they lost every other suburban battle. The words “Madigan” and “Cullerton” aren’t even in the editorial. Curious, that. Well, what about those Congressional races? Surely, the big blue lady can crow about those, right? Well, the Tribune endorsed Democrats Bill Foster and Melissa Bean. Oops. And now for the grand finale…
Stay classy, boys.
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- Angry Chicagoan - Wednesday, Nov 3, 10 @ 10:19 am:
I would say I wouldn’t trust the Tribune as far as I can throw it, but they have so few ads these days that this old saying doesn’t work anymore.
- Anonymous - Wednesday, Nov 3, 10 @ 10:23 am:
Please give up the Tribune bashing and journalism review in general. It gets old. Comments and insight into the Illinois political landscape are much more the attractiveness of this blog and the Capitol Fax.
- Well.... - Wednesday, Nov 3, 10 @ 10:24 am:
They should change their name to the Chicago Republican!!!
- Lefty Lefty - Wednesday, Nov 3, 10 @ 10:28 am:
I like the Tribune bashing since it is well-deserved. The paper has lost its way, and criticism may help it find it. I for one don’t even go to the website anymore let alone subscribe (after 20 years).
- Bakersfield - Wednesday, Nov 3, 10 @ 10:28 am:
Rich, help those of us out who don’t follow Springfield as closely as the national stuff, what would be the breakdown in the House and Senate then with the meager GOP pick ups? Thanks
- siriusly - Wednesday, Nov 3, 10 @ 10:28 am:
I strongly disagree Anonymous 10:23. I think that the news coverage and editorial biases greatly influence the political process and I really think Rich’s analysis of the news business is terrific. Its even more important than ever because there is so little actual discussion of news coverage anywhere else, except perhaps for NPR’s On The Media.
Is it me or was Mr. Independent’s victory speech shockingly very partisan last night?
- Tom - Wednesday, Nov 3, 10 @ 10:29 am:
Hey Anon at 10:23–Rich should give up the Trib bashing when the Trib actually starts to report the facts about State Government politics. I hope that paper never gets out of bankruptcy. They are shameful for the crap they report as facts.
- Skeeter - Wednesday, Nov 3, 10 @ 10:29 am:
Hate to defend the Trib, but I interpreted that line as:
The GOP:
1. Broke the Dem control of state government;
and
2. Took the senate seat.
I did not read it as the second was part of the first.
- Amalia - Wednesday, Nov 3, 10 @ 10:30 am:
I second siriusly. this blog is a source of great info about the news and editorial world and I welcome more info on that.
speaking of that world, what electronic outlets are covering the Brady presser at 10:30?
- Rich Miller - Wednesday, Nov 3, 10 @ 10:35 am:
===Comments and insight into the Illinois political landscape ===
The Tribune considers itself a part of that landscape, ergo the commentary.
- Amalia - Wednesday, Nov 3, 10 @ 10:37 am:
what happens to the Berrios seat on the Board of Review?
- Heartless Libertarian - Wednesday, Nov 3, 10 @ 10:40 am:
Compared to my own predictions… the Trib still looks pretty acurate…. But I think at this point, Illinois did not rebuke democrats in general. Downstate did it, but Chicago and many parts of Cook county did not move an inch.
- sal-says - Wednesday, Nov 3, 10 @ 10:46 am:
“Stay classy, boys.”
Not likely…may be beyond them at this point.
- MOON - Wednesday, Nov 3, 10 @ 10:55 am:
AMALIA
Berrios position is filled by appointment. Tim Evans, chief judge of Cook County makes the appointment.
- lake county democrat - Wednesday, Nov 3, 10 @ 11:02 am:
Rich is correct that it’s wrong to conflate the Congressional races w/ the state government — in Illinois they are in two different orbits.
But the Tribune’s despair over Berrios and attack on those lawyers who subsidized his campaign is completely well founded and not un”classy” in the least. Those in the state govt. media who are too personally fond of these people have lost touch with their inner-child’s sense of fairness. Somewhere in Cook County, some old widow without the right lawyer (or ability to pay for one) is going to lose their home because of Berrios/Madigan’s pay to play who wouldn’t have under Claypool.
- jim - Wednesday, Nov 3, 10 @ 11:03 am:
Saints be praised, Madigan & Co. can continue business as usual.
- Anonymous - Wednesday, Nov 3, 10 @ 11:11 am:
At least the Tribune gave Mike Royko a place to be published, much as he may have despised the paper and it him. IMO no newspaper endorsements mean much of anything anymore.
- Fed up - Wednesday, Nov 3, 10 @ 11:14 am:
The GOP did incredible on the national level and good in Illinois. The GOP picked up 2 stardust offices and made gains in both of the state chambers. It didn’t put them over the top but it helps them moving forward. The senate seat is a huge win Obama campaigned hard for Alexi and lost. The congressional gains by the GOP are troubling. Some of the Dem losers (Bean, Foster) were good and the quality of the GOP winners is something to worry about. I doubt GOP holds these long unless they moderate.
- Ghost - Wednesday, Nov 3, 10 @ 11:33 am:
It appears that the Tribune editorial board is way out of step with the community, given that the overwhleming majority of their picks, including their token Dem toss in’s, lost.
But at least they arent afraid to hide the truth and cover up their own miscalculations.
- Obama's Puppy - Wednesday, Nov 3, 10 @ 11:34 am:
If the Trib were a baseball player they would be a punching judy middle infielder. So funny to see them take it in the shorts, they become less relevant every day. Stay tuned for their mayoral coverage I am sure it will be “fair and balanced” the Fox way.
- wordslinger - Wednesday, Nov 3, 10 @ 11:35 am:
Shouldn’t the Trib and Carol Marin publish the results of their investigative reporting on the illegal doings of Madigan, Berrios, et. al? There must be some, right, because they’ve been awfully exercised by them for some time.
Wasn’t Blago the crook? Indicted, tried, convicted, with more to come.
- MOON - Wednesday, Nov 3, 10 @ 11:42 am:
WORDSLINGER
The Tribune will be closing their doors !
Carol Marin will take a new position as public relation director for Jim Houlihan and Forrest Claypool.
- Great Caesar's Ghost! - Wednesday, Nov 3, 10 @ 11:54 am:
Didn’t the feds investigate Berrios a number of years ago? I think they even did a midnight raid on the Board of Review offices, taking files and computers and the like. And what happened? Nada. All smoke, no fire.
- Susie - Wednesday, Nov 3, 10 @ 12:15 pm:
by teh way, Rich, thanks for the great coverage last night and always. CF is the place to be!
- Mercutio_27 - Wednesday, Nov 3, 10 @ 12:17 pm:
So… Now that the Dems will control the legislature and will likely have the governorship, which two current sitting congress people are going to have to square off against each other when we lose a US Rep?
- Cynic Al - Wednesday, Nov 3, 10 @ 12:39 pm:
GCC - the feds pick and choose who to go after and when to go after them. Just recently, they took on Bamani Obadele, who engaged in some self-dealing during the early days of the Blago administration.
- Ray del Camino - Wednesday, Nov 3, 10 @ 12:58 pm:
@Mercutio–population declining in SO IL. I bet it’s Costello vs. Shimkus.
- Podge - Wednesday, Nov 3, 10 @ 1:09 pm:
Rich, you have done a great job following the state legislative and statewide officers contests with a glaring exception. Your anti-Quinn bias, to which you are entitiled, affected your reporting. Your daily drumbeat of Quinn errors, screw-ups and bad politics left no doubt about how you expected this race to turn out. You should be man enough to admit that you didn’t devote anywhere near that much attention to the baggage of his out-of-step opponent.
- Ghost - Wednesday, Nov 3, 10 @ 1:12 pm:
Word I thought we invented the editorial so we could skip the whole investigative side of reporting…
- Rich Miller - Wednesday, Nov 3, 10 @ 1:18 pm:
Podge, bite me. He got fair treatment.
- Great Caesar's Ghost! - Wednesday, Nov 3, 10 @ 1:32 pm:
2012 … Mr. Dold, meet Mr. Walsh.
- just sayin' - Wednesday, Nov 3, 10 @ 1:39 pm:
Obviously it was the Trib that was rebuked.
Gee, no one listened to a bankrupt Animal House frat. What a shock.
- Anonymous - Wednesday, Nov 3, 10 @ 1:45 pm:
Rich,
I know it’s not Clarence Page writing these editorials. Maybe it’s the “drawer” that WGN had on from Alabama. Who exactly on the Trib board are writing these things? Steve Chapman is as honest, middle of the road as it comes. So it’s not him.
Cross picks up a couple seats, Senate Rep one, I know the Congressional delegation flipped and was disappointing but everyone would agree anyone other than Alexi gets the nod. Maybe it’s Kass..