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Illinois

Secretary of State Jesse White announced a couple of years ago that he planned to run again in 2010.

Since the SoS office has often been used as a successful springboard to higher office (Dixon, Edgar, Ryan, to name a few) and White says he won’t move up, do you think he ought to abandon his ‘10 reelection plans for the “good of the party” or do you think he ought to keep on racking up those crushing wins over his GOP opponents, which might also be considered acting on behalf of the “good of the party”? After all, he carried DuPage County four years ago, breaking a once unheard-of barrier.

And, please, anybody who thinks Jesse White is not as sharp mentally as he’s always been has never spent much time with the guy. I have. So I don’t care what you’ve heard, you’re wrong. I don’t want to see any goofy comments about how he’s “losing it.” I’ve been listening to people (mostly Republicans) whisper about this alleged “affliction” for years, and they’ve always been wrong. Stick to the topic at hand, please.

posted by Rich Miller
Tuesday, Feb 6, 07 @ 9:55 am

Comments

He should keep running as long as he wants.

Comment by Way Northsider Tuesday, Feb 6, 07 @ 10:06 am
Right now there are no more Republicans holding statewide offices. There are no GOP majorities in the General Assembly. There is no two party political system in Illinois at all.

So Jesse has to go! He helped bring them into power, but now there are too many Democrats fighting among themselves for the spoils. We’ll start seeing a lot more infighting and cannibalism. Jesse isn’t needed anymore. He is a great guy and I always voted for him, but take a look around. There are other corrupt Chicago Democrats needing to hold power in Illinois. Move it Jesse!

Comment by VanillaMan Tuesday, Feb 6, 07 @ 10:08 am
At this point, all I wish to say is that it is a lot easier for an office-holder to keep insisting that he will seek another term and later announce his retirement than the other way around. The minute White announces his intentions not to seek re-election, the battle among Democrats for that political plum will be enormous, and quite likely disruptive. So why in the world should White change his story at this time? I believe he will change his story come the summer of 2009, at which point the battle to replace White will commence.

Comment by fedup dem Tuesday, Feb 6, 07 @ 10:14 am
Jesse ought to run as long as he wants. The office seems to be running OK (I was impressed last time I went to a facility). There are plenty of other opportunities for hungry Dems to grab. He’s good for the party in that he keeps it broadbased.

Comment by cermak_rd Tuesday, Feb 6, 07 @ 10:16 am
Allow me to put partisanship aside and speak as an â€œobjectiveâ€ observer:

The Dems already have more â€œspringboardsâ€ than they have space in which to jump. Lisa is poised to move up to Gov (which will already open another spot for an â€œup and comerâ€); Durbin (sadly) probably wonâ€™t be gone anytime soon; Hynes has been sitting on the edge of his â€˜springboardâ€™ for about a decade already; and now we have the young Alexi ready toâ€¦..what? Run again, I guess.

I think you see my point. There isnâ€™t likely to be anywhere for a new SoS to â€œspring toâ€ anytime soon, so why drop a proven asset to the ticket like White?

Comment by grand old partisan Tuesday, Feb 6, 07 @ 10:22 am
If he didn’t use his clout to help questionable characters move ahead, I’d be much more inclined to say leave him be. But Jesse White often gets behind candidates who are less than stellar public servants. He should step aside for someone who can do the party good long term with party building and bringing in quality, fresh talent.

Comment by phocion Tuesday, Feb 6, 07 @ 10:30 am
Hmmmm. Don’t mean to fire on you Rich, but I’m wondering why this is even a topic. Jesse is a successful politician who has soundly defeated his opponents. WHEN he runs in 2010, he will again soundly defeat his opponent(s). Jesse has my vote for as long as he wants to run.

Comment by Little Egypt Tuesday, Feb 6, 07 @ 10:56 am
LE, you’re free to fire away, of course. I try every day to come up with a provocative or interesting question. Sometimes I succeed, sometimes I don’t. We’ll see how this one turns out.

Comment by Rich Miller Tuesday, Feb 6, 07 @ 11:02 am
I am always amused by Republicans who call Dems corrupt. They have such short memories. No political party in this state has a monoply on honesty. To borrow a phrase from Joe Biden ” he clean” He’s got my vote

Comment by oldie opah Tuesday, Feb 6, 07 @ 11:03 am
Keeping running - except that President Obama will given him an Under Secretary appointment.

The answer to yesterday’s question abou replacing Obama need to factor in the Presidential appointment impact in IL. Obama’s win open up a lot of spots in IL as current officeholders move to Washington.

Comment by RBD Tuesday, Feb 6, 07 @ 11:04 am
How old is he? There is something to be said about stepping aside for the good of the party. I think that if someone challenged him he would lose. Despite getting a pass from the media, he hasnt had the cleanest administration.

Comment by Mr Brown Tuesday, Feb 6, 07 @ 11:18 am
Run until the people don’t vote for you anymore. Hasn’t stopped Oberwies, but that is a good plan. He is grooming his daughter, but she may have to take a pay cut. Whose yer daddy? Wumpus is!

Comment by Wumpus Tuesday, Feb 6, 07 @ 11:37 am
If we had term limits we wouldn’t have to worry about 4th…5th terms…

Comment by Common sense Tuesday, Feb 6, 07 @ 11:37 am
I respect Jesse. When he became Secretary of State, he did not fire Republicans. If you did a good job, you had a job. He kept the brain trust, this is one of the reasons why his office runs so well. As for the Governor, no respect. Someone ought to fire him.

Comment by Anon. Tuesday, Feb 6, 07 @ 12:17 pm
Run, Jesse, run!

Here’s a possible future QOTD: When, ever, has someone in Illinois state Democratic politics acted “for the good of the party”? Not saying there haven’t been examples, but this is a pretty individualistic game. If Jesse wants to keep running, that’s as good for the party as much else I’ve seen going on in Springfield.

Comment by ZC Tuesday, Feb 6, 07 @ 12:18 pm
Jesse runs = Jesse wins. There would be no reason to not run other than health problems or if he just didn’t want to. No democrat would be able to beat him in a primary even if he was having some health issues. Even if he wins and decides to step down, odds are, there will be a democratic governor to appoint some other democrat. No way should the dems dump White.

Comment by Lovie's Leather Tuesday, Feb 6, 07 @ 12:33 pm
I hope he’s grooming someone now to replace him. It would be a smart move. I just know there is someone in his office behind the scenes who is looking to take this office whenever White decides to give it up.

Comment by Levois Tuesday, Feb 6, 07 @ 12:57 pm
He is a good, bright person. He treats all the employees with respect and dignity. The gov clown could take many pages out of Jesse’s book. I say he should run as long as he is mentally and physically capable. We all win.

Comment by Justice Tuesday, Feb 6, 07 @ 1:01 pm
Jesse should continue to run. His office is very well organized and extremly service oriented. His political operation is equally as professional. Not only did he carry Dupage in 02 but also in 06
(2010) because his campaign retains coordinators
such as Tom Garippo who actually attend township meetings and attempt to assist local organizations.

Comment by Scott Lukas Tuesday, Feb 6, 07 @ 1:15 pm
Jesse should continue to run as long as the office continues to innovate and provide good service. I’ve been impressed at the number of things the office has done to get various services handled electronically over the Internet. That’s why he got my vote last time, even though I’m a pretty strong Repub.

Comment by Anon from BB Tuesday, Feb 6, 07 @ 1:44 pm
Jesse is a consistently a huge draw on the Dems’ statewide ticket, e.g. White was re-elected in 2002 by winning all 102 counties and garnering more than 2.3 million votes â€” the largest vote total by any candidate for Illinois statewide office in a quarter of a century and was re-elected in 2006 to a third term having received 63 percent of the vote statewide. His party will nominate him and Illinoisians will elect him to serve as SoS for so long as he wishes to serve.

More proof that Dems love Jesse: Dems begging - BEGGING - Jesse to serve as acting Cook County Board President when John Stroger stepped down. Cook County Dems knew Jesse is respected and trusted and were hopeful he would agree to serve. (Still not entirely clear if he was offered the job, though, and/or if he turned it down…)

Comment by George Ryan's Cellmate Tuesday, Feb 6, 07 @ 2:03 pm
Jesse is okay. He will be the Mel Price of statewide office holders. Of course, 99% of you don’t know who Mel Price was.

Comment by Wile Coyote Tuesday, Feb 6, 07 @ 2:56 pm
Wile are you refering to Congressman Mel Price?

Comment by Scott Lukas Tuesday, Feb 6, 07 @ 3:01 pm
But, if he leaves, what happens to all his relatives on the payroll?

Maybe he could convince a successor to keep them on but it’s safer for them if he stays.

He’ll die in office decades from now (looks pretty healthy) when the kids have put in enuf years to retire.

Comment by Cassandra Tuesday, Feb 6, 07 @ 3:04 pm
The Democratic bench won’t be in bad shape if White stays in office four more years. The party’s chief worry is what voters will think of Rod over the next four years.

Comment by Boone Logan Square Tuesday, Feb 6, 07 @ 3:21 pm
Run Jesse Run
Unless, of course, the President needs you to fill the other SOS job. You don’t get to hand out cool plates, but you and the tumblers could solve world problems.

Comment by ReddByrd Tuesday, Feb 6, 07 @ 4:05 pm
Scott Lukas: yes I am and was.

Comment by Wile Coyote Tuesday, Feb 6, 07 @ 4:52 pm
Say what you will, but Jesse seems to “do the right thing” more often that any other statewide politician, Dem or Repub (Are there any good R’s left?). He just does his job and does it well. That’s why Jesse will occupy the SOS office for as long as he wants it.

Comment by Anon Sequitor Tuesday, Feb 6, 07 @ 4:54 pm
Jesse is one of the few Democrats that I like. Not only is he personable, but he has decent values. He doesn’t mind saying the Jacksons are just in it for the money.

Comment by Festering Drippage Tuesday, Feb 6, 07 @ 5:34 pm
Rich,

I know my opinion will come as a surprise to no one, but I think that if anybody should step aside for the “good of the party” it is the Governor of Illinois.

– SCAM

Comment by So-Called "Austin Mayor" Wednesday, Feb 7, 07 @ 7:52 am
I am a knee jerk Republican in a Republican County, but I have met Jesse White, I like him as a man. The Driver’s Facility in our County runs great. Our libraries get their grants in a timely fashion. Why would I vote for someone else.

Comment by The Federalist Wednesday, Feb 7, 07 @ 3:36 pm