* From a reader…
Looks like the ILGOP is making hay statewide with the Kankakee voter fraud issue (I’m a Springfield resident). The following message was left on my phone at about 4pm Thursday.
Hello, this is Illinois Republican Party chairman Tim Schneider calling Republicans with an important voter alert (Siren sound plays).
We’re beginning to see news reports of the Chicago Democratic machine offering money for votes in places like Kankakee County. Let me be clear: Vote buying is illegal. It’s a felony, and we’re going to make sure that anyone who is caught gets prosecuted to the fullest extent of the law. But we need your help. If you see something, say something. If you see offers of money for votes, please call our voter fraud hotline at 1-844-4-IL-FRAUD.
Don’t let the Democrats steal this election, get out and vote now and help stop voter fraud (Siren sound plays again).
Paid for by the Illinois Republican Party, 312-201-9000.
* I asked him for the audio and he sent it over…
Man, that’s a loud siren.
- Annonin' - Friday, Oct 7, 16 @ 1:24 pm:
And then they moved that metro east voter site to the police station. it is amazing how easily the GOPies slip that voter suppression jacket on. One would think they would wake up and avoid this temptation …..btw is this what the Wingman’s cash is buyin’ ? —- that might not be good for her.
- IllinoisBoi - Friday, Oct 7, 16 @ 1:27 pm:
Ah, but Rauner handing out gift cards to get out the vote is A-OK?
- Anon - Friday, Oct 7, 16 @ 1:27 pm:
This is dangerous territory. Trump’s loss will fuel the fire — and now it looks like Rauner is helping add more gas.
- Anonymous - Friday, Oct 7, 16 @ 1:29 pm:
Kind of hard to distance yourself to Trump when you are mimicking him.
- wordslinger - Friday, Oct 7, 16 @ 1:39 pm:
When your party’s presidential candidate is polling at 28% statewide, and your party’s incumbent U.S. senator is polling at 34% statewide, I don’t think it’s votes that are being stolen.
It’s those contributing to the state party that are getting robbed.
- Anonymous - Friday, Oct 7, 16 @ 1:39 pm:
Years ago, one of my college professors was a high school teacher on the West Side of Chicago. The precinct captains at the local polling place offered him cartons of cigarettes for voting. The fact that he was a member of a Catholic religious order, dressed in clerical clothing, mattered not to the ward heelers.
- VanillaMan - Friday, Oct 7, 16 @ 1:41 pm:
Illinoisans claiming there’s no vote fraud is like hearing Disney world employees claim there are no gators in the Magic Kingdom.
There’s always been election fraud in Illinois. Where do you think we’re living, Iowa?
- sideline watcher - Friday, Oct 7, 16 @ 1:46 pm:
Knew it was coming. They can’t win on the merits so of course the election is stolen. When will Republicans learn that if you offend every demographic except old white people that it will be really hard to win elections that aren’t only for old white people.
- Threepwood - Friday, Oct 7, 16 @ 1:53 pm:
VM: Don’t confuse this with the kind of voter fraud cited in the voter ID arguments. Apples and oranges.
- Anonymous - Friday, Oct 7, 16 @ 1:57 pm:
Wow. They’re drinking the Trump kool-aid. Bad sign going forward.
- Peorgie Tirebiter - Friday, Oct 7, 16 @ 1:59 pm:
The guys who were paying $50 a vote in the primary are now complaining the election is being stolen?
- Markus - Friday, Oct 7, 16 @ 2:06 pm:
I received that call yesterday in SW suburbs. It was hilariously absurd… then it became sad to see the party was seriously playing to the demographic that would respond to such nonsense. What kind of fool would put their name to that? Don’t answer, it was rhetorical.
- Anon221 - Friday, Oct 7, 16 @ 2:09 pm:
“We’re beginning to see news reports of the Chicago Democratic machine offering money for votes in places like Kankakee County. ”
News reports from… INN and Proft papers??? And, please, tell me where the other places “like” Kankakee County are.
As to “our” fraud hotline, might want to check your digits folks. One too many in the number. Drop the extra 4, and its for this, not voter fraud
http://www.dhs.state.il.us/page.aspx?item=77762
Nuthin’ but fear mongering, and possible misrepresentation of a private group using a government entity (OIG) hotline.
- Archiesmom - Friday, Oct 7, 16 @ 2:12 pm:
This is really ticking me off. I’ve talked to a few people down in Kankakee, and their anecdotal stories about the problems voters are having with the early voting and the clerks office ring very true. I know people involved with the Clinton campaign, and if anything is going on down there with the Democrats, it’s not from the usual players.
- Archiesmom - Friday, Oct 7, 16 @ 2:13 pm:
My earlier post was meant to say the Cloonen campaign, not the Clinton campaign.
- hisgirlfriday - Friday, Oct 7, 16 @ 2:16 pm:
You can’t blame Trump for this. This is what the modern Republican Party was even before the orange one arrived as standard-bearer.
They did the exact same thing in Oct. 2014 complete with Tim Schneider robocalls then as well.
http://www.capitolfax.com/wp-mobile.php?p=23014&more=1
The allegations and wording of press releases may vary slightly, but revving up the base with last-minute unsubstantiated accusations of Dems stealing the election is the lynchpin of today’s IL GOP GOTV operation.
- City Zen - Friday, Oct 7, 16 @ 2:17 pm:
You can’t steal something that’s given away.
- Louis G. Atsaves - Friday, Oct 7, 16 @ 2:22 pm:
They moved early voting to a police station in the Metro East area? Oh. My. Goodness! Voter Suppression! Caused by the GOP!
But wait! In the People’s Republic of Highland Park, up in my Lake County, early voting has been setting voting records these past few election cycles and that site is the most popular in the County. A high percentage of minorities in Lake County vote at that location and the Highland Park Police had a long history of dumping homeless individuals in Waukegan.
Policemen nearby? Yup! Squad cars parked outside? Yes! Suppression of voters/voting?
Nope!
Can’t wait for this election to end!
- Anonymous - Friday, Oct 7, 16 @ 2:31 pm:
“Don’t let the Democrats steal this election,” says the party holding the state budget hostage to their
…turnaround agenda.
- Team Sleep - Friday, Oct 7, 16 @ 2:42 pm:
Annonin’ - what’s your point?! Madison and St. Clair Counties are solidly Democratic counties at the county level. The Madison County Clerk, Sheriff and County Board Chairman are all Dems. Every single countywide officeholder in St. Clair County is a Democrat. Oh - and both County Board Chairmen in Madison and St. Clair Counties are up for reelection. The Sangamon County Courthouse has had armed Sheriff’s deputies since it opened - and that’s where early voting has been conducted for years.
- RNUG - Friday, Oct 7, 16 @ 2:51 pm:
We got that call yesterday and I immediately added to my list of blocked numbers.
- Anon221 - Friday, Oct 7, 16 @ 2:56 pm:
1-844-4-IL-FRAUD seemed to have an extra 4 in it. Take that out, and you have this-
http://www.dhs.state.il.us/page.aspx?item=77762
I didn’t call it, so maybe that extra digit doesn’t matter. And, if it doesn’t matter and you can leave a message, since when is the OIG’s office in Illinois a subsidiary of the Illinois Republican Party? And, that may be a rhetorical question
- Uptown Progressive - Friday, Oct 7, 16 @ 3:06 pm:
Nostalgia - in 84 the parish I served was a polling place in the famous 47th Ward - Ed Kelly committeeman. The precinct had the second highest percentage turnout in the City, went over the top Democratic on local ticket and voted strongly for Reagan. Did I mention that everyone who stopped by to vote got lunch! (I threw them out when the organization opposed Washington’s reelection).
- Cubs in '16 - Friday, Oct 7, 16 @ 3:15 pm:
Maybe instead of cash the Dems are handing out working microphones in exchange for votes.
- Threepwood - Friday, Oct 7, 16 @ 3:33 pm:
That’s an interesting catch, Anon221. Although…why would they try to trick people into calling the OIG? Why not just list the OIG’s number? Is that not allowed in a political ad?
- Truthteller - Friday, Oct 7, 16 @ 4:09 pm:
Someone needs to inform the Governor that just because he has put up the money to buy the election, if he loses it, itdoesn’t mean it was stolen from him. It means the voters don’t like him and his cronies .
- Anonymous - Friday, Oct 7, 16 @ 4:15 pm:
Tim-go back to your car wash.
- Amalia - Friday, Oct 7, 16 @ 4:35 pm:
the only fraud involved in this election is Trump. after today’s WaPo reveal of Trump caught on a hot mic describing what can only be termed as sexual assault which he committed, lots of luck Republicans.
- James Knell - Friday, Oct 7, 16 @ 5:38 pm:
Someone should really tell John Kaas and the ILGOP that Chicago’s 25th ward alderman, Vito Marzullo died in 1990.