* Rep. John Fritchey (D-Chicago) is expected to announce that he’s running for Cook County Board tomorrow. From a press release…
Long-time reformers Congressman Mike Quigley, Cook County Commissioner Forrest Claypool, and State Representative John Fritchey will appear together tomorrow to make an important campaign announcement regarding the February 2010 Primary Election.
Fritchey is expected to run for Claypool’s seat. Claypool announced his retirement a couple of months ago.
* Speaking of the county board, a replacement has been named for Roberto Maldanado, who resigned for an appointment to the city council…
The Cook County board has a new commissioner [state trooper Edwin Reyes].
And his first act will be to vote with fellow commissioners Tuesday to override Todd Stroger’s veto of a sales tax rollback.
* Don Rose looks at the US Senate race and opines…
The way it looks now, Hoffman would have the best chance against Kirk, Giannoulias would have a harder time but likely get by. Jackson, should she manage a primary upset, could easily lose the general election.
The reasoning is that former Chicago Inspector General David Hoffman has the reform chops. Treasurer Alexi Giannoulias would be hampered by his past. And Cheryle Jackson was Rod Blagojevich’s spokesperson.
That’s not unreasonable, but way too early. We still don’t know yet if Hoffman can do what it takes to win an election. He’s totally untested.
* Democratic Congressman Bill Foster is slammed in a new NRCC ad which ties him to US House Speaker Nancy Pelosi and an alleged “50 percent cut” to Medicare. Watch it…
[By the way, I’m now linking to videos because some people with mobile devices can’t see the embeds here. Hope this helps. Also, the new web design will hopefully be unveiled in a few weeks, so that may solve the problem.]
* Related…
* McCain endorses Kirk for Senate: “Mark Kirk will restore honest government to Illinois, strengthen our national security, fight for veterans and bring fiscal discipline to Washington,” McCain told a gathering of veterans in Glenview. He then appeared at a fund-raiser at a private home expected to net about $500,000.
* GOP far from settled on Senate nod: Caprio, who helped gather endorsers for the letter, said he’s been open about the fact that Hughes paid him $10,000 to help set up a citizens’ group to fight a proposed state income tax. Caprio also said he will be a consultant on the Hughes campaign. None of that detracts, of course, from his belief, he said, that Hughes has the energy and “the commitment to mainstream Republican values” that voters want.
* Will the immigrant story play in 2010?: Krishnamoorthi said he’s aware as he travels the state that he might have to respond to a heated cross-examination about how Illinois is outsourcing tech jobs to places like India. But he’s not worried about double-edged swords. He exudes a palpable American folksiness — just call him Raja, he says — that is the antithesis of foreign. “Despite what’s swirling in the greater immigration debate,” Krishnamoorthi said, “people still want to hear that it is possible to reaffirm the highest values of our country and attain the classic American dream.”
* Gov. Pat Quinn: “There’s a lot of ankle-biters out there running for office,” he said. “They’re going to tear me down, but I think the people of Illinois know I’m good and true when it comes to standing up for them.”
* Sen. Kirk Dillard seeks GOP nod for governor: “I want to announce to the world and the nation that Illinois is once again open to business, and I’m going to have the most aggressive job creation agenda that the state has ever seen. And among them is reaching out and knowing that any businessperson, whether it’s small business or large, like ConocoPhillips, can call the governor and talk about what their needs are, what problems they may have. I know the (Illinois Environmental Protection Agency) is a huge problem for places like ConocoPhillips, and we need to have somebody help cut through red tape, so we do not slow down the creation of jobs in Illinois.”
