A massive failure
Monday, Feb 6, 2023 - Posted by Rich Miller
* This is a massive failure on every level. The unions who chose to set up this committee instead of contributing directly to what turned out to be some pretty well-run Supreme Court races failed. Harmon’s operation failed. The State Board of Elections failed. The Republicans failed for not noticing the lack of reporting. And, more importantly, those of us in the news media failed to see it and call it out in real time. Here’s Ray Long and Rick Pearson…
A political committee, funded in part by Senate President Don Harmon’s campaign that helped expand the Democratic majority on the Illinois Supreme Court, failed to file timely campaign reports as required by state law and didn’t disclose the bulk of its $7.3 million in spending until after the election.
The committee — All for Justice — spent heavily on television ads in support of winning Democratic Justices Elizabeth Rochford and Mary Kay O’Brien. The commercials painted Republican opponents as virulent anti-abortion candidates, politically potent attacks given the U.S. Supreme Court decision that sent the issue of abortion rights to the states only months earlier.
The failure of All for Justice to follow the disclosure guidelines mandated by state election law obscured its pro-Democratic spending in the critical months preceding the November races in which the partisan balance of the Illinois Supreme Court was up for grabs.
“It’s amazing,” said Kent Redfield, an Illinois campaign finance expert and professor emeritus of political science at the University of Illinois at Springfield. “It denied the public, the news media and the people who participated in the campaigns full knowledge of what’s going on.”
Unreal.
Also, as subscribers know, All for Justice was forced off Chicago broadcast TV near the end of the campaign because they messed up their ad buys.
I hope we all learned something here.
- Bruce( no not him) - Monday, Feb 6, 23 @ 9:11 am:
Failure?
== …helped expand the Democratic majority on the Illinois Supreme Court==
Looks like it worked as planned.
- Hannibal Lecter - Monday, Feb 6, 23 @ 9:24 am:
Harmon’s political guy was running the show, but apparently doesn’t know what he is doing when it comes to campaign disclosure. What an embarrassment for the Senate President.
- Benny Hill - Monday, Feb 6, 23 @ 9:24 am:
Agree , it’s classic but not as bad as the money JB wasted on a sure thing
- Donnie Elgin - Monday, Feb 6, 23 @ 9:27 am:
All for Justice
In addition to the Union support the committee also had significant money backing from influential personal injury attorneys. Keefe, Gori downstate, and Corboy in Chicago contribute large sums. And big money from the National Dem group Act Blue.
https://madisonrecord.com/stories/632539267-keefe-and-gori-firms-contribute-151k-each-to-all-for-justice-pac-supporting-dem-supreme-court-candidates
- Torco Sign - Monday, Feb 6, 23 @ 9:34 am:
Nobody looked up the committee spending in the highest-profile races and noticed anything off?
- Oswego Willy - Monday, Feb 6, 23 @ 9:36 am:
===not as bad as the money JB wasted on a sure thing===
It’s not your money, LOL
To the post,
Harmon’s own operational thoughts and practices seemingly want to mirror MJM but without the legal smarts to process or politics or a Kasper seemingly always around to look at the crossing of T’s and dotting of I’s
Dare I say, they’re just not a bunch of smart people running that shop.
The GOP is so grossly inept they couldn’t find errors with blinking lights and airhorns.
I’m not saying the ILGOP or GOP here in Illinois is not being served well by their legal counsels, I’m just saying it’s nice to be a legal kind for the ILGOP collecting cash and fail to actually understand legal things.
- bout time - Monday, Feb 6, 23 @ 9:37 am:
lol at Benny thinking reforming taxes was a sure thing. Have you ever met a voter?
Turns out a bunch of dudes aren’t the smartest people in the room… shocker.
- Annonin' - Monday, Feb 6, 23 @ 9:54 am:
We laughed out loud when the GOPies whined about a lack of info. What would they do if they knew more ? Maybe get their Supremes to tell us they were pro Choice. We like to think of it as a return serve for their use of Griffie $$ and voice of the confessed congressman to whack Tom Kilbride.
- General Banks - Monday, Feb 6, 23 @ 10:03 am:
You cannot do what the PAC and those involved did. If we are to have a truly new era in Illinois politics, we cannot keep repeating the same mistakes of the past. Everyone needs to be held accountable.
That being said…Is this Tribune article really trying to spin the narrative that everyone wasn’t completely aware of who was funding “All for Justice” or why they were doing so? It was no secrete to anyone…
- Rich Miller - Monday, Feb 6, 23 @ 10:06 am:
===Is this Tribune article really trying to spin the narrative that everyone wasn’t completely aware of who was funding===
No. They reported their contributions, but they’re required to report their independent expenditures.
- Tammy - Monday, Feb 6, 23 @ 10:08 am:
== The unions who chose to set up this committee instead of contributing directly…=
I thought it was set up so they could double-up and give to both, no?
- Hannibal Lecter - Monday, Feb 6, 23 @ 10:12 am:
=== If we are to have a truly new era in Illinois politics, we cannot keep repeating the same mistakes of the past. ===
When in the past was something done like this? This is so amateur-hour.
- Dupage mom - Monday, Feb 6, 23 @ 10:26 am:
Failure? Um, it worked as planned.
- the 647 - Monday, Feb 6, 23 @ 10:31 am:
At least they have $150K left over to pay all those fines.
- Torco Sign - Monday, Feb 6, 23 @ 10:32 am:
Some of these comments are crazy — ‘if it works, it’s OK.’ Really, people? That is scary. The idea that they needed to do this in order to win is pretty out there anyway. It’s not like there was a shady contribution that could’ve shaken up the dynamics of the races in a post-Roe world. Even if you think the ends justify the means, the means weren’t even necessary in this case. All this does is erode the integrity of the political system and that does have a negative impact.
- Arsenal - Monday, Feb 6, 23 @ 10:53 am:
==Um, it worked as planned.==
Not for Republicans and the news media.
And, while it probably would’ve only changed a tiny handful of votes, not for the voters.
- Hannibal Lecter - Monday, Feb 6, 23 @ 10:55 am:
=== Failure? Um, it worked as planned. ===
Are you suggesting that the Harmon folks intentionally skirted state campaign disclosure laws for the purposes of winning the election?
- New Day - Monday, Feb 6, 23 @ 10:59 am:
“Dare I say, they’re just not a bunch of smart people running that shop.”
Well let’s see. They helped get him the job of Senate president when you and so many others wrote him off. They raised an enormous amount of money to protect their members without the kind of help that the governor gave Welch. And they won two of three really hard races downstate. The only one they lost was a new member.
So yea, this was a major screw-up and yea the political committee folks were sloppy. But maybe, just maybe, you’re painting with an overly broad brush there.
- Oswego Willy - Monday, Feb 6, 23 @ 11:13 am:
=== when you and so many others ===
Aw. Nice try. No.
I stated that Lightford and the Governor’s insertion to that race was not the way the Senate and that caucus should choose it’s leader, and further I stated that Lightford was not the leader needed with that insertion.
“But maybe, just maybe, you’re painting with an overly broad brush there.”
Physician, heal thyself.
Oh, and when union backing to give independence to Harmon from Pritzker, go back and see my thoughts in that.
===So yea, this was a major screw-up and yea the political committee folks were sloppy===
So… “Dare I say, they’re just not a bunch of smart people running that shop.”
Exactly.
- Lincoln Lad - Monday, Feb 6, 23 @ 12:20 pm:
The Supreme Court races were going to be defined by who supported overturning Roe and who opposed that decision. Just needed to get that message in front of voters. Failing to report was a bonehead move that didn’t need to happen. It’s an embarrassment.
- Jilted - Monday, Feb 6, 23 @ 12:37 pm:
Failure? Um, it worked as planned. ===
Are you suggesting that the Harmon folks intentionally skirted state campaign disclosure laws for the purposes of winning the election
Sure, because of you know the only consequences is a meet fine, paid by committee why not? Also if you argue it was a mistake then your saying they senate president is incompent and now we must question what else….so pick your poison.
- City Zen - Monday, Feb 6, 23 @ 3:46 pm:
Sam McCann says hello.
- Loop Lady - Monday, Feb 6, 23 @ 4:24 pm:
To quote Vinny Barbarino, I’m so confused…
- Hannibal Lecter - Monday, Feb 6, 23 @ 5:31 pm:
=== To quote Vinny Barbarino, I’m so confused…===
What’s confusing? They didn’t properly report the independent expenditures in violation of state law.
- Jim Nowlan - Monday, Feb 6, 23 @ 7:07 pm:
I am told that this Indie Expenditure group never planned to disclose prior, and that Dems changed campaign finance laws specifically so that the fine would be peanuts, rather than hundreds of thousands. I am not following professionally, so haven’t checked out. Let’s call a con-con in 2028 so we can get at the rot— redistricting, partisan courts, lack of transparency.
- Protocol Droid - Monday, Feb 6, 23 @ 7:09 pm:
What about the Firewall Project on the other side of the Supreme Court race? Their reporting doesn’t seem to exactly line up either, even after they amended their reports.
- Oswego Willy - Monday, Feb 6, 23 @ 7:16 pm:
- Jim Nowlan -
With respect,
With your own massive failure when it came to the Illinois Supreme Court, maybe you should sit this out?
- Oswego Willy - Monday, Feb 6, 23 @ 7:21 pm:
- Jim Nowlan -
Also, for the record I support a “Con-Con”, and would like to see one.
Voters are fickle.