* His name was floated weeks ago for secretary of state, so I suppose this isn’t unexpected. But he quickly deleted his initial tweet…
Chaos, eh?
* And then he deleted another tweet which omitted the reference to chaos…
* I DM’d him to ask about the two deleted tweets and this was his response…
Tech issues. It’s live
* We’ll see if this third one lasts because he still hasn’t included the most important thing: Which members of the state central committee actually signed the letter on his behalf? That part of the letter is cut off on all three tweets…
*** UPDATE 1 *** It just gets weirder…
Rich:
I am Shaun Murphy, member of the Republican State Central Committee and Worth Township Republican Committeeman. I am writing to inform you that Mr. Griffin’s press release is misleading. The Illinois Republican Party has not endorsed his candidacy and I personally refuse to endorse someone’s candidacy until they have been fully vetted and until we can measure the interest of all persons interested in running for any position.
The letter that is partially attached to his press release can be found in full at JC’s website. The letter is signed by four members of the State Central Committee:
Fred Floreth, 13th Congressional District Committeeman
Jan Weber, 17th Congressional District Committewoman
Michael Neubert, 12th Congressional District Committeeman
John McGlasson, 16th Congressional District Committeeman
Spinning that the support of 4 members of our committee equates to an endorsement from the Illinois Republican Party is simply dishonest.
Please update your post to reflect that fact.
Shaun Murphy
*** UPDATE 2 *** This is one stellar rollout…
Rich, this is Sean Morrison.
I echo the same sentiment as Shaun Murphy, To be clear I have not endorsed Mr. Griffin and to my knowledge nor has the IL GOP endorsed Mr. Griffin.
I am uncertain as to the cause of this confusion on Mr. Griffin’s behalf.
Regards,
Sean M. Morrison
Chairman, Cook County Republican party
3rd Congressional district, Republican State Central committeemen.
*** UPDATE 3 *** ILGOP…
“The Illinois Republican Party has not yet formally made any endorsements in the race for Secretary of State. These four out of eighteen State Central Committee members are acting in their own individual capacities as they are free to do, but are not speaking for the State Central Committee or Illinois Republican Party as a whole. With that being said, we are committed to defeating Mike Madigan’s chief patronage boss, Jesse White, and electing a Secretary of State who works for the people, not a corrupt political machine.” - Illinois Republican Party Spokesman Aaron DeGroot
*** UPDATE 4 *** The candidate has posted a clarification…
Due to abbreviated social media headlines and the omission of the portion of the support letter listing the names of the specific supporters, it may have been inferred by readers that the entire Illinois Republican State Central Committee (IRSCC) had endorsed me for Secretary of State when in fact it was only 4 members of the committee.
I will be working diligently to gain the support of the remaining members of the IRSCC and the individual Republican County Chairman throughout Illinois in the coming months.
- Grand Avenue - Friday, Sep 29, 17 @ 12:50 pm:
It would have been nice to have this done before circulation so Gov/LG/AG/SOS/Comp/Treas could all run on a slate and not have to get 6 times the signatures.
- @MisterJayEm - Friday, Sep 29, 17 @ 12:51 pm:
– MrJM
- Grand Avenue - Friday, Sep 29, 17 @ 12:52 pm:
Also - what is with praising George Ryan? He realized Ryan got convicted for corrupt practices as SOS - that led to the Willis Children tragedy, right?
- DarkHorse - Friday, Sep 29, 17 @ 12:52 pm:
Wonder if Rauner will put anything beyond a symbolic amount of money behind Griffin, who by his “kick off” doesn’t seem ready for prime time.
- Not a Superstar - Friday, Sep 29, 17 @ 12:53 pm:
Was Ken Dunkin not available?
- Macbeth - Friday, Sep 29, 17 @ 12:55 pm:
—
Also - what is with praising George Ryan?
—
Probably too young to remember. Or simply didn’t care enough to remember.
- Oswego Willy - Friday, Sep 29, 17 @ 12:58 pm:
With a press contact, it may be his Crew also felt the praising of GHR worked too?
With SoS very specifically, Edgar might have been enough of a reference point for the GOP.
I’ll wait and watch how this all unfolds.
Running against Jesse White is a thankless task for anyone.
Best of luck,
OW
- 47th Ward - Friday, Sep 29, 17 @ 1:01 pm:
A fan of George Ryan and Rand Paul? That is what is known as having considerable political flexibility. Big government loving, convicted felon, machine pol meets nepotistic, Libertarian Aqua Budda.
Strange bedfellows indeed.
- walker - Friday, Sep 29, 17 @ 1:09 pm:
Did some actual committee slate him? Or is it that some Committeemen endorse him?
I don’t see him out performing Erika
- Swift - Friday, Sep 29, 17 @ 1:12 pm:
Not so sure about referring to an African American as being “well-spoken”…did his press contact go to Biden school of racial slights? Or does it reflect that his g’s are present.
- DuPage Saint - Friday, Sep 29, 17 @ 1:16 pm:
Well I was going to make a snarky comment about George Ryan but obviously the people on this blog have some institutional memory so will let it go. Really a strange mention tho. But the then again JB does mention Blagoevich
Any idea yet who else drew short straws to run state wide as a Republican?
- FIREDup! - Friday, Sep 29, 17 @ 1:22 pm:
This guy was a Democrat three years ago that only lasted in a state job for 2 weeks and demanded everyone call him “Chief”. Please do a shallow dive on his “credentials’ and you will see they are false. All of them.
- Anonymous - Friday, Sep 29, 17 @ 1:28 pm:
Trust me if Tom Mannix is involved it more then likely a wives tale to put it nicely. He worked with or for Senator Hastings who got rid of him very quickly
- Oswego Willy - Friday, Sep 29, 17 @ 1:47 pm:
To the update,
Welp, that’s not the best way to prove yourself to those other committeemen when you send out a release and a SCC member calls the letter rubbish.
Whew.
- Anonymous - Friday, Sep 29, 17 @ 1:50 pm:
I’m sure Murphys stern denial won’t be the last one either
- PJ - Friday, Sep 29, 17 @ 1:58 pm:
Statewide Republicans are off to a fabulous start for the 2018 season
- How Ironic - Friday, Sep 29, 17 @ 2:01 pm:
Almost makes you wonder if the BTIM(TM) wrote that press release?
- How Ironic - Friday, Sep 29, 17 @ 2:01 pm:
Apologies, writing on device sometimes doesn’t come out that well.
should read BTIA ™
- Oswego Willy - Friday, Sep 29, 17 @ 2:04 pm:
For the love of Pete,
Is this guy even remotely “able” to understand how to run for office.
Who in that Crew decided to alienate those allegedly supporting this candidate?
If someone knew this was all a farce, why roll any of this out?
- DarkHorse - Friday, Sep 29, 17 @ 2:08 pm:
This guy may have an even shorter run than Scaramucci.
- 360 Degree TurnAround - Friday, Sep 29, 17 @ 2:08 pm:
In other news, if your name is Shaun or any variation of, you have a good chance of being employed by the Republican Party.
- 47th Ward - Friday, Sep 29, 17 @ 2:08 pm:
Politics, like nature, abhors a vacuum. It’s October now, and the ILGOP is still auditioning for candidates for SoS, Comptroller and Treasurer. I don’t blame people like Griffin who want to push the issue because the silence coming from the Rauner Party - I mean Republican Party - is deafening.
- Grand Avenue - Friday, Sep 29, 17 @ 2:11 pm:
I think JC has some serious atoning to do this Yom Kippur.
- Grand Avenue - Friday, Sep 29, 17 @ 2:19 pm:
Rich - have you finally seen a roll out that tops Ed Burke’s daughter (whichever one was running before she wasn’t)?
- Grand Avenue - Friday, Sep 29, 17 @ 2:22 pm:
Also, if I were JC, I would copy the Dan Rutherford 2006 campaign message - “Jesse is too old”.
It’s didn’t work against a 72 year old Jesse, but it might work against an 84 year old Jesse. I can guarantee it’s better than his current game plan of promising to bring back the glory years of George Ryan.
- Rich Miller - Friday, Sep 29, 17 @ 2:44 pm:
===have you finally seen a roll out that tops Ed Burke’s daughter===
Not yet. That was a multi-media disaster.
- Ron Burgundy - Friday, Sep 29, 17 @ 2:58 pm:
Seems like this may create an opening for an ambitious personage not named JC with about 14 other potentially peeved off committee members who might be open to anyone else about now. Maybe a JD. Then again, we skipped right over JA.
- Senator Clay Davis - Friday, Sep 29, 17 @ 3:03 pm:
Echoing FIRED Up - This dude is a charlatan.
I interviewed him for a position a couple years ago and the entire panel instantly knew he was full of sh*t. Guy looked the part, like a TV version of how an ambitious, successful African American politician would look and act, but we quickly picked apart his experience.
And the position was with an org with an outwardly progressive mission. That he wants to run now as a Republican indicates that he remains an opportunist with terrible execution skills.
- ??? - Friday, Sep 29, 17 @ 3:16 pm:
Speaking of “chaos”…that’s quite a roll-out, J.C. Good gravy.
- ??? - Friday, Sep 29, 17 @ 3:56 pm:
He provided a “clarification” on his website:
https://www.joshuacgriffin.com/newsleader/2017/9/29/clarification-of-illinois-republican-state-central-committee-support
- Oswego Willy - Friday, Sep 29, 17 @ 4:00 pm:
- ??? -
Who is “Fled Floreth” and why is “Fled Floreth” endorsing?
#NameTyposHaunt
- ??? - Friday, Sep 29, 17 @ 4:06 pm:
Willy, your guess is as good as mine. I guess you’ll need to ask “Fled” himself.
- Oswego Willy - Friday, Sep 29, 17 @ 4:11 pm:
- ??? -
“Fled” can be testy. The stories about “Fled” are legendary. I remember a few years back “Fled” was asked how he got his trademark glare. “Fled” said it ain’t no glare, I save my glare for people worth him thinking about.
Man, “Fled” can be testy.
- Oswego Willy - Friday, Sep 29, 17 @ 4:14 pm:
With a name like “Fled” you’d think he’d run away from Griffin after this rollout…
But, “Fled” stays put.
- The Way I See It - Friday, Sep 29, 17 @ 4:17 pm:
Now we know where the Second Best Team in America ™ is working.
- Oswego Willy - Friday, Sep 29, 17 @ 4:17 pm:
Little know fact, - ??? -…
“Fled” is short for “learn how to double check names in a press release”
That’s just too long for most families so they call em “Fled”.
Name etymology is really amazing.
- ??? - Friday, Sep 29, 17 @ 4:28 pm:
OW, I’d think Fled would want to flee from J.C. after this ridiculous rollout.
- Oswego Willy - Friday, Sep 29, 17 @ 4:34 pm:
===…I’d think Fled would want to flee from J.C. after this ridiculous rollout.===
Ah, you would think.
Fled gets something in his head, you can’t change it. At a golf outing I saw Fled hit 13 golf balls out of bounds, in a beets and radish field, Ole Fled just kept hitting them in that field, used that glare and we all gave him at least a golf ball after he ran out.
Fled stays.