* Democratic US Senate candidate Cheryle Jackson claims in an e-mail that she’s going on TV tomorrow with a new ad. Rate it…

* House Republican Leader Tom Cross was asked today about a subscriber story I ran this morning about how the HGOPs are paying for a robocall blasting a House Democratic candidate in the Quad Cities area. My intern Barton Lorimor was there and we have video of Cross’ non-response…

* A video of GOP state Rep. Beth Coulson is making the rounds. Coulson is running for the Republican nomination in the 10th Congressional District. But she was asked in 2000 if she was supporting fellow Republican George W. Bush or any Republican candidates. Coulson refused to commit, including on Mark Kirk’s congressional bid. “I have to wait and see where they are on some of the issues that are important to me.” The full video is here, but I excerpted the best part. Watch…

* A new ad from Cook County Board President candidate Terry O’Brien goes after Toni Preckwinkle and Dorothy Brown. Rate it…

At least O’Brien kept his eyes open in this one.

Preckwinkle has a response ad. Rate it, too…

* I’ve never seen a candidate apologize via robocall, but it happened this week in the 14th CD Republican primary…

In the flier, [state Sen. Randy Hultgren] alleges that [Ethan Hastert] is “employed by the same law firm that lobbies on behalf of foreign mining companies with deplorable human rights records and a history of human trafficking.”

Hastert is an attorney with the law firm of Mayer Brown in Chicago, which does represent several mining interests around the world. The firm is also a major donor to Hastert’s campaign.

But Hastert campaign spokesman Andrew Nelms said the candidate has “never had anything to do with human trafficking,” which he called “reprehensible.”

In an automated call to voters on Monday, Hultgren apologized for “discussing some questionable clients of my opponent’s law firm.”

* Village President Hartstein has a lot to learn about how the House Democrats operate. These are definitely not the most “absurd” pieces that they are capable of…

Calling it the “most absurd campaign piece he has ever seen,” state House District 59 candidate Elliott Hartstein said his Democratic primary opponent is using “distortions” in two direct mail campaign pieces sent in recent days.

Hartstein, who is currently Buffalo Grove village president, said state Rep. Carol Sente claims he tried to take away free speech rights for people attending zoning hearings.

The ad uses quotes from 2005 newspaper stories about Hartstein’s visit to Springfield to lobby for a bill that focused on zoning hearing rules. It concludes by stating, “For Elliott Hartstein, sometimes the First Amendment is just a suggestion, not a right.”

He’s also upset by another piece warning voters of his support for a tax increase to bolster the state’s budget.

“She was appointed by party leaders and her political godfather, Mike Madigan, who is bankrolling a good portion of her campaign,” Hartstein said Monday. “They should be ashamed of themselves for their current tactics in the primary races.”

* 10th state House District Democratic candidate Jonathan Goldman is having no luck with a FOIA request to DCFS. They have some explaining to do. From a press release…

The Illinois Department of Children and Family Services has failed one of the first tests of a new law that went into effect Jan. 1of this year that requires state agencies to respond within five business days to a Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) request.

On Jan. 8, Jonathan Goldman, a Democratic candidate for state representative in the 10th District, filed a request to DCFS concerning State Rep. Annazette Collin’s employment as a social worker with the agency. He specifically asked for information about her hiring date, salary and who authorized her hiring.

“My curiosity was piqued when I saw that Ms. Collins, who is already employed by the State as a legislator, making $76,732 in 2008, had landed another job with the state during a time of record unemployment when the state has laid off thousands of workers,” said Goldman. “I made a simple FOIA request 18 days ago and still haven’t heard from DCFS.”

When five business days had passed with no response, Goldman contacted DCFS on Jan. 15 to inquire about his request and was told he would receive a letter requesting an extension from the agency in the mail. He still hasn’t received correspondence of any kind from the department.

What’s the point in having a new FOIA law if the Quinn administration won’t follow it? It’s like déjà vu all over again. Sheesh.

* One of Peter LaBarbera’s websites is currently attempting to out a suburban county candidate for having adulterous affairs. No link. Try to avoid the Google. It’s really disgusting. LaBarbera has stooped to a new low.