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Raoul focuses on bipartisanship after DeVore win

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Illinois

* Brett Chase at the Sun-Times…

DeVore’s central theme has focused on Pritzker’s COVID mandates. On Tuesday, he said Raoul has been too complicit.

“Raoul has for the last two years done whatever the governor has asked him to do,” DeVore said in an interview. “I’ll tell whoever is governor that there will be no more mandates.” […]

Campaigning as “the People’s Attorney,” DeVore has the words “Freedom” and “Liberty” tattooed on his forearms and has frequently referred to Pritzker as a tyrant.

“The people have been paralyzed by fear and allowed J.B. Pritzker to rule as a king,” he says in a recent ad. “I’m running for attorney general to educate, empower and equip the people to take back their government and restore the power where it belongs.”

* Media advisory…

Attorney General Kwame Raoul will be joined by Illinois State Police Director Brendan F. Kelly, law enforcement representatives and gun safety advocates to announce a new state-of-the-art online platform to assist law enforcement agencies in investigating gun crimes and identifying the sources of illegal guns.

Who: Attorney General Kwame Raoul
Brendan F. Kelly, Director, Illinois State Police
Mitchell Davis, Past President, Illinois Association of Chiefs of Police
Leo Schmitz, Chief of Police, Cook County Sheriff
Dan Kotowski, President and CEO, Kids Above All
Kim Smith, Director of Programs, University of Chicago Crime Lab
Kayce Ataiyero, Chief External Affairs Officer, The Joyce Foundation
Valerie Burgest, Moms Demand Action

When: Wednesday, June 29, 2022
11 a.m.

Where: James R. Thompson Center
Blue Room, 15th Floor

* AG Raoul was asked about Tom DeVore’s GOP primary win and what it says about the state of the Republican Party here…

Raoul: Well, first of all, congratulations to Tom DeVore. Listen, in my role, I think in the role of Attorney General, it’s important not only for me in this state, but for my colleagues in other states to try to be as nonpartisan as possible. In our law enforcement role, for example, I don’t choose which state’s attorneys I collaborate with based on party affiliation, I don’t choose which police chiefs I collaborate with based on party affiliation. I count many of them, who may be Republicans, as my personal friends, who I’ve worked with on this project, as well as on making sure we get relief to those who are addicted to opioids, and trying to combat organized retail crime. We’ve collaborated and we haven’t talked a second about Tom DeVore or partisan politics.

I look forward to being able to compare my record, serving as Attorney General to Mr. Devore and whoever may have been nominated with any other parties.

Q: [Unintelligible.]

Raoul: Yeah, no, I understand your question. And believe me, I would have rather used those resources on on some of the other things that I mentioned to keep on continuously making successfully the same argument over and over again about mitigations that we put in place to save lives. What we’re doing here is aimed at saving lives. What we do with regards to opioid abatement is aimed at saving lives, not drawing attention to ourselves. We’re hosting a press conference here not to draw attention to ourselves, but to get the word out there to law enforcement partners and to the public at large that we need to focus not just on the shooter, but on those who are trafficking guns to the shooter.

posted by Rich Miller
Wednesday, Jun 29, 22 @ 12:51 pm

Comments

AG Raoul is a class act.

Comment by Big Dipper Wednesday, Jun 29, 22 @ 12:55 pm
-I’ll tell whoever is governor that there will be no more mandates.-

So one candidate will follow the law, and one won’t if he doesn’t feel like it. Got it.

Comment by Ron Burgundy Wednesday, Jun 29, 22 @ 12:58 pm
Devore will end up much closer to being disbarred than ever being AG.

Comment by Do It Wednesday, Jun 29, 22 @ 1:07 pm
Devore is like an Oprah episode. and I’ve got covid for you and covid for you. terrible message and terrible policy. Extreme.

Comment by Amalia Wednesday, Jun 29, 22 @ 1:08 pm
Could today’s presser be among the last (if not the last) press conference ever held at 15th floor JRTC? Since the Governor’s office moved out of there recently.

Comment by Just Sayin Wednesday, Jun 29, 22 @ 1:14 pm
AG Raoul handled that question perfectly.

He can’t say it, but I will: Tom DeVore is a clown.

Comment by Night Rider Wednesday, Jun 29, 22 @ 1:17 pm
So our AG saw no need to include any gun rights people at the press conference, who have demanded enforcement of laws like no bond for violent felons, repeat offenders, or any felon in possession of a firearm? Every person or entity listed is for gun restrictions and bans; so much for the “try to be as nonpartisan as possible” he claims.

Comment by thisjustinagain Wednesday, Jun 29, 22 @ 1:31 pm
“”So our AG saw no need to include any gun rights people at the press conference””

You didn’t watch the conference did ya? He announced a crime gun tracing program. What law abiding “pro gun rights” citizen is up in arms about this? Tracing crime guns is a no-no for the pro gun rights crowd? If it is, I hear crickets over here my friend.

Comment by Miso Wednesday, Jun 29, 22 @ 1:45 pm
-So our AG saw no need to include any gun rights people at the press conference, who have demanded enforcement of laws like no bond for violent felons, repeat offenders, or any felon in possession of a firearm?-

If any of them are supportive of the program he announced today, I’m sure they would be more than welcome. People usually don’t invite detractors to their own press conferences.

Comment by Ron Burgundy Wednesday, Jun 29, 22 @ 2:17 pm
Waiting for Tom to seek Rudy Giuliani’s endorsement

Comment by Now What? Wednesday, Jun 29, 22 @ 2:32 pm
@ thisjustinagain - You seem to misunderstand the role of the AG (as does Tom DeVore).

The AG gives advice and consent to the Governor’s Office regarding the law as it exists, not, as the AG would wish it to be.

The AG enforces (or sometimes does not enforce) the law as it exists, not as the AG would wish it to be.

Those who would advocate for “no bond for violent felons, repeat offenders, or any felon in possession of a firearm” would seem to be advocating that the AG violate the laws just passed last year.

If people want to change the law, the Legislature is the place to go, not, the AG Office.

Comment by H-W Wednesday, Jun 29, 22 @ 2:36 pm
@ NowWhat - DeVore has already sought endorsements from Trump and Giuliani. He did so during his self-aborted trip to DisneyWorld. He left there early, and went to Mar a Lago. He posted lots of pictures of Trump across the room, and suggested Trump acknowledged him. He also posted pictures of himself standing next to Giuliani by a pool.

Apparently, that’s about as close as DeVore will get to Trump (across the room), and as far as Giuliani, DeVore would do well to wait until we learn whether Giuliani will be spending the Fall in Court for his role in propagating the legal attempt to go around the Electoral College, and inciting the Jan. 6th attempted coup. /s

Comment by H-W Wednesday, Jun 29, 22 @ 2:44 pm
I predict that Kwame will be considered the most popular politician in the State. He’s a true statesman like Jesse White

Comment by Flexible One Thursday, Jun 30, 22 @ 12:16 am
…still waiting for Kwame to get started

Comment by Alphabet Soup Thursday, Jun 30, 22 @ 7:34 am
Raoul is going to have an absolute blowout win in November vs this weirdo.

Comment by Nazgul Thursday, Jun 30, 22 @ 8:48 am