Tonight’s US Senate debate
Tuesday, Oct 19, 2010 - Posted by Rich Miller * I’m not sure I’ll be liveblogging much of the US Senate debate tonight at 7 because it’s a League of Women Voters debate. That means it’ll be stiffly controlled with no real follow-ups. The League and ABC7 sponsored the absolute worst debates of the primary and I don’t think it’ll be much better tonight. I hope I’m wrong. Anyway, you can watch the debate live by clicking here. Help everyone out by live-blogging in comments if you can Here are a couple of videos to start things going. First, a new TV ad running Downstate by Working For Us PAC. Rate it… Our next video is debate-related, but not Illinois-related. I don’t usually post out-of-state stuff, but you really should watch this one… * 7:05 pm - Basically, they both just said that if you like the way things are going, then vote for the other guy. * Kirk had an effective attack for once on Giannoulias over the military issue. “In the rear with the gear.” Kirk claimed Giannoulias has based his entire campaign on Kirk’s service, while Giannoulias never served. Kirk, of course, avoided the questions about his embellishments, but it was a decent pivot. * Twice Kirk was asked what was wrong with the tea party. Twice he completely avoided the question, more so than Giannoulias, who somewhat avoided the two questions on what he would advice the president to do differently. * Ah, a little news. Kirk finally admitted that he can’t vote for the DREAM Act right now because “it’s not the time.” Kirk said the border situation and Mexico’s situation and everything else is just too bad right now to move forward with that bill. Giannoulias, however, claims Kirk didn’t answer the question. He actually did, but Kirk certainly buried it under lots of rhetoric. * “Voter integrity” program question from Charles Thomas to Kirk. Asks Kirk whether the program is not targeted at African-Americans. Kirk says it’s not because, he says, Metro East is 85 percent non African-American. Said he supported Giannoulias for saying he’d respond with his own voter integrity program. Giannoulias hits back, and presses Kirk over where the voter fraud was on the South and West sides of Chicago. Kirk can’t do so. Giannoulias overreached, however by saying there had “never” been voter fraud there. “Never” is a long time back. * Stephanopoulos: “Throw away the script” on creating jobs. Giannoulias sticks to the script: “Focus on education.” Kirk not only doesn’t throw away the script, he looks at his notes. * Kirk said he favors opening up the books on these non-profits that are spending so much money on TV ads throughout the country. Giannoulias blasts Kirk for benefiting from them, mentioning Karl Rove twice. * Giannoulias has said several times that Kirk won’t answer the questions, but Kirk does appear to be answering the questions - quickly, no doubt, and then moving along to something else - but he is mostly offering up answers. I just received an e-mail from Giannoulias’ campaign claiming that Kirk didn’t answer the DREAM Act question. He did. * George Stephanopoulos just asked a truly idiotic question. Should Anita Hill apologize to Clarence Thomas? Um, what? Kirk was right to say that was long ago and then pivot to qualifications for justices. Giannoulias rightly blows off Stephanopoulos’ goofy Anita Hill question as well. This is why we should keep DC people out of Illinois debates. What a crock. * Thank goodness that is over. Painful to watch. Stephanopoulos was the biggest loser with that unbelievably stupid Anita Hill question. Hey, George, it’s 2010. You wanna refight Vietnam, too? Giannoulias showed once again that he is Policy Lite, if that. Kirk the wonk, but painful to listen to for some reason. I’ve never quite been able to put my finger on that one.
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GOP chairman lashes out at Quinn, but is working with a “birther”
Tuesday, Oct 19, 2010 - Posted by Rich Miller * Another silly press release…
If you listen to the audio from the GOP tracker, the rest of the Quinn quote is “They’re a bunch of haters, a lot of them, on those TV shows.” Audio… Quinn wasn’t talking about Illinois citizens upset about Quinn’s many failures or the state’s horrific budget deficit. The governor was talking about the cable TV goofballs, who don’t even live here. Personally, I can’t bear to watch cable “news,” whether it’s Fox or MSNBC. Shrill haters all. It creeps me out after about 2 minutes. It’s just a vast wasteland of hate. * And speaking of haters…
* Doug Ibendahl has more on Meroni…
* And the Illinois Republican Party has apparently scrubbed its website of its ballot integrity program…
Sheesh.
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Another Quinn flip-flop and other weirdness
Tuesday, Oct 19, 2010 - Posted by Rich Miller * As usual, give him a few days and Gov. Pat Quinn will flip-flop on his tax hike plan. The truth is, he doesn’t really have a plan. From Crains…
In other words, Quinn’s “education surcharge” is basically the infamous Lottery scam under a different name. Man, I’m really getting tired of these flip-flops. * In other weird education-related news, the IEA’s latest anti Bill Brady Internet video is a bit on the creepy side… * Unclear on the concept…
No. The home rule circumvention means that the town couldn’t stop the slot machines from being placed at the track. The Gaming Board will have control of the slots, just like at the casinos. * The Palatine Tea Party sent me an e-mail this afternoon saying this radio ad will be playing statewide. I put it on YouTube so you could listen easier… It’s supposed to be a “get out the vote” ad, but I’m not sure that thing’s gonna motivate anybody. Whew. Somebody got ripped off. * First came the tracker videos, now comes the oppo dump on a tea party candidate…
Oops. * The most breathless press release of the season is from Republican Joel Pollak’s campaign this morning…
Yeah. OK. * Speaking of Schakowsky, the Teaparazzi failed to even get an acknowledgement of their presence the other day. Watch… * Scott Lee Cohen’s latest targeted mailer clumsily features a Menora… ![]() The guy is doing a ton of mail and nobody’s covering him. * And, finally, the Jeff Tobolski for Cook County Board campaign is claiming that the Tony Peraica folks are attaching a nasty sticker to their yard signs… ![]()
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Question of the day
Tuesday, Oct 19, 2010 - Posted by Rich Miller * Mark Kirk and Alexi Giannoulias are squaring off tonight at 7 on ABC7. George Stephanopoulos is co-moderating. * The Question: What as yet unanswered question(s) would you like to see each of these candidates answer? Try to post questions for both, please. Thanks.
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Big money and Chuck’s bus trip
Tuesday, Oct 19, 2010 - Posted by Rich Miller * Last night at midnight was the deadline to file campaign finance pre-election reports, covering July 1 through October 3rd. As I told subscribers, the Tribune and I have different numbers for Bill Brady and Pat Quinn…
When I count both of Quinn’s campaign committees (and subtract money sent to one from the other), I get $9.3 million for Quinn as of early this morning And when I search the Board of Elections’ website for Brady’s contributions during the same period, I get this… ![]() Either way, the money race is pretty darned close. And there’s lots of it, although not nearly as much as Rod Blagojevich raised. Heck, it’s not as much as Jane Byrne raised for her Chicago mayoral reelection: $10 million. And that was back in 1983. That’s almost $22 million in today’s dollars. Also, it sure looks like the DGA spent a whole lot of cash on TV ads last summer for nothing. Sheesh, what a waste. The RGA has had much greater success with Brady. * As of 10:54 this morning, Scott Lee Cohen has not yet filed his pre-election report. It’s not on par with knifing a hooker, but it’s still not legal. Cohen recently loaned his campaign $1 million. Green Party nominee Rich Whitney, on the other extreme, raised just $31,322.48 during the pre-election reporting period and about $2,500 since then. * If you think Whitney’s numbers are low, try looking at Steve Kim’s pre-election report. $15,760 in cash. Oof. But that was still better than Robert Enriquez’s pathetic $6,288.50 in cash. Having trouble figuring out who they are? Kim is running against Lisa Madigan and Enriquez is up against Jesse White. They’re not Green Party guys, either. They’re Republicans, left out to dry. * Democratic comptroller candidate filed his pre-election report 7 hours late. And he wants to manage the state’s books? Miller raised $195,274 in the pre-election reporting period to Judy Baar Topinka’s $193,380 in cash, plus $12K in in-kinds. Topinka started out with $473K to Miller’s $158K. * Chuck Sweeny of the Rockford Register Star rode along on Bill Brady’s fancy campaign bus. His report is quite long and involved, but there are a couple of items of note. This, for instance, is a Brady quote…
That’s quite true. Every Democrat who is worried about what Brady will do is also worried about what Pat Quinn will do. If it wasn’t for the remap, many probably wouldn’t care all that much if Brady was elected because they could simply let him do his thing and take all the blame. Cutting programs will not be popular, no matter what some may think. His best hope is that the economy makes a roaring comeback by 2014. Something else to take note of…
The Chicago vs. Downstate divide is more intense than I’ve ever seen it. Brady is doing better than recent candidates in Democratic Downstate counties partly for that very reason. Umm…
I hope he wasn’t cutting business deals. Just kidding. Kinda. * Speaking of Bloomington homebuilders, the Today Show had a segment today about how a house built with Bloomington building standards couldn’t stand up to high winds. Watch.
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Claypool goes up with first TV ad
Tuesday, Oct 19, 2010 - Posted by Rich Miller * Forrest Claypool is up with his first TV ad of the season. Rate it… Not as hard-hitting as I thought it would be. * Claypool, Joe Berrios and the other assessor candidates debated last night on WTTW. Watch…
* Both Berrios and Claypool plan to run ads on black radio stations, WBEZ reports. Claypool was at Sen. James Meeks’ House of Hope on Sunday. ABC7’s photo still wasn’t exactly flattering… ![]() * Clapyool is also running a robocall from Jesse Jackson, Jr...
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They’re forgetting something; Plus: Viral videos
Tuesday, Oct 19, 2010 - Posted by Rich Miller * There’s a real problem with the coverage today about Bill Brady’s legislation to overturn a state law to ban mass euthanasia of pet animals…
So, after much thought and the realization of how unpopular it was, Brady wouldn’t sign his own bill. Trouble is, Brady voted against the original law that banned the mass animal killings not once but twice. The law was a product of negotiations between the Farm Bureau and the Humane Society. It wasn’t an easy process by any means. The talks lasted two long years, and they were often difficult. So, it’s hard to disagree with Gov. Pat Quinn on this one…
Not only that, what was he thinking when he twice voted against the original moratorium back in 2009? * Keep in mind, Brady’s bill was introduced just two days after the February primary. This is what I told subscribers back in late February…
Brady shouldn’t be let off the hook so easily on this thing. He ought to be held accountable not only for his incredibly goofy bill, but for his two votes against the original moratorium. Now, is this the most important issue in the state? Hardly. But Brady’s legislation sure was the stupidest bill of the year. By far. That’s really saying something, and that alone makes it an issue. * Meanwhile, Illinois Statehouse News has a story about “viral” YouTube campaign videos…
No surprise, Gov. Pat Quinn’s puppy killer video is by far his top-watched YouTube effort at 20,681 views. Bill Brady’s most-viewed YouTube video is an ad from the primary. It was called “Brady Plan” and it has received 7,074 views. Mark Kirk’s most-watched video, at 9,754 views, is his TV ad called “Risky.” Alexi Giannoulias’ top video has 13,155 views. It’s called “On and On,” a web vid about Kirk’s military embellishments. None of these are truly “viral” videos. But Quinn’s puppy vid is probably the closest thing we have to that because it is the only one which has generated any sort of buzz and “mainstream” media coverage. ABC7 was one of the outlets that covered the story last night. The Guardian did a piece on it last week.
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Morning Shorts
Tuesday, Oct 19, 2010 - Posted by Rich Miller * Quinn names retired FBI agent as tollway watchdog * Tollway watchdog named inspector general * Time Running Out To Take Advantage Of Tax Amnesty * State commended for new panel * Quinn to improve breast cancer treatment * Statewide Panel To Work To Improve Breast Cancer Treatment * State Officials Urge Testing For Radon * Illinois cracks down on sex offender compliance * Madigan: More lawyers devoted to FOIA * Corn prices up as harvest winds down * Tribune Board Said Ready to Oust Chief Executive
* Tribune Co. board is weighing CEO’s fate, sources say * Watchdog: Chicago 911 officials skirted bidding on $23 million contract
* Inspector General’s Report: Chicago OEMC Improperly Dealt Contract * Judge focuses on carp DNA in lawsuit over locks * Judge Considering Whether to Close Locks Against Carp * Burke says Daley ignoring city pension crisis
* VIDEO: Richard M. Daley on his struggle to balance the budget * Chicago writing fewer parking tickets, using Denver boot more
* CPS to Meet with Whittier Protesters * Whittier Protesters Want CPS to Sign Off on Plans * Maggie Daley scheduled to fly home tomorrow * District 203 reviews plans for TIF district * Dist. 203 supports Navistar TIF * School secretary accused of stealing variety show money
* State police sergeant goes on trial in fatal shooting
* Peoria city budget proposal weighs on firefighters * Agreement between Normal, One Main terminated * Herald & Review: Meyer earns endorsement for county treasurer * Herald & Review: Both experienced, but Schneider wins nod * SJ-R: Voters should OK sales tax hike for schools * Marion council approves expense * Report says Marion VA hospital has improved * Vandergraph unfit for trial
* Don Monty formally announces candidacy for Carbondale City Council * Illinois state bird: Groups consider new pecking order
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*** UPDATED x1 *** New ads: Kirk, Quinn, Dold
Tuesday, Oct 19, 2010 - Posted by Rich Miller * We have three new ads this morning. The first is an independent expenditure by the National Republican Senatorial Committee which hits Alexi Giannoulias on his support for a state income tax increase and ties it to other stuff, including Bright Start and the fact that he paid no income taxes. Rate it… Script…
* Congressman Luis Gutierrez has cut a TV ad for Pat Quinn in Spanish. Watch… Script…
*** UPDATE *** The Dold campaign left something out of the script. Toward the end of the ad a woman says: “We gotta get it right this time.” From the Dan Seals campaign…
* Jack Roeser and others speak on behalf of Roger Keats for Cook County Board President…
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Protected: SUBSCRIBERS ONLY - Supplement to today’s edition and lots, lots more
Tuesday, Oct 19, 2010 - Posted by Rich Miller
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Protected: SUBSCRIBERS ONLY - Today’s edition of Capitol Fax (use all CAPS in password)
Tuesday, Oct 19, 2010 - Posted by Rich Miller
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*** UPDATED x2 *** Bean calls Walsh “dangerous” in new TV ad
Tuesday, Oct 19, 2010 - Posted by Rich Miller [Updated and bumped up for visibility.] * I tried getting through to Democratic Congresswoman Melissa Bean’s campaign spokesperson twice today so I could get a copy of her new hard-hitting TV ad. I wasn’t successful. So, I had a buddy make a copy using his mobile phone. That means the video/audio quality is lousy, but this is one tough hit on Republican Joe Walsh and you should watch it. *** UPDATE 1 *** The Bean campaign sent a better quality version. Rate it… * Script…
Bean is obviously concerned about a tightening race. * Walsh has no money, so he has uploaded an angry YouTube video in response… Um, yes, Joe, I do believe she’s serious. *** UPDATE 2 *** From a Joe Walsh campaign e-mail..
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