McHenry County Blog

Mike Tryon

Happened upon the endorsement of State Senator Kirk Dillard by Crystal Lake’s State Rep. Mike Tryon.

If anything has been made of it, except listing it on Dillard’s web site in a press release announcing that the Sangamon County Republican Party (can’t get much more Establishment than that) was endorsing Kirk, I’ve missed it.

Also listed there is Family PAC right next to the Illinois Education Association. That’s the first time I’ve seen those ideological opponents on the same page.

Found Irene Napier of McHenry County Right to Life, as well. She attended State Senator Pam Althoff’s breakfast at 1776 for Dillard.

McHenry County Treasurer Bill LeFew has signed up, too.

Jack Franks

And, on Pete Gonigam’s First Electric Newspaper, I discovered that Democratic Party State Rep. Jack Franks supports State Comptroller Dan Hynes for governor.

No big surprise there.

Franks was willing to hold hearings on Governor Pat Quinn’s “Catch and Release” prisoner program.

Some call it by the “Revolving Door.”

Maybe I’m sensitive about the question because I was McHenry County Treasurer as a child way back from 1966 to 1970.

As you might guess, the question is arising in Grafton Township as the four trustees try to garner the power that Trustee Gerry McMahon keeps insisting belongs to the majority, of which he is a member.

By now, the four trustees have probably passed a resolution giving Trustees Betty Zirk and Robert LaPorta signature authority on township checks.  ( I was at the Crystal Lake Kiwanis Club’s Christmas Party tonight.)

At the last meeting and in his management letter, the auditor had pointed out that requiring two signatures was a good check and balance to implement.

So far, so good.

But the resolution being considered tonight says that if Supervisor Linda Moore, who, by statute, is the treasurer of all Grafton Township funds, doesn’t sign them within seven days of approval, the two township trustees can.

Setting aside that Moore is the one with the bond that would repay the township if anyone made off with some money, that procedure could take away the supervisor’s authority as treasurer.

It would be like the McHenry County Board’s proposing that two board members be given the keys to the county treasury, just in case Treasurer Bill LeFew didn’t want to do the job.

I’m certainly no attorney, but the section in the resolution stating that if any part of the resolution is found invalid, the rest remains valid seems to be more than boilerplate.

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The photo of the Grafton Township Board comes from last week’s meeting.

Related articles:

Auditing Grafton Township Style – Part 1

Auditing Grafton Township Style – Part 2

For several election cycles, McHenry County’s Democratic State Representative Jack Franks has been given a pass by local Republicans. One time ex-Republican County Chairman, Bill LeFew, even attended his fund raiser.

Now McHenry Grade School Board and Library Board member John O’Neill has stepped forward. O’Neill won the District 15 school board race, even though his family home schools.  The family has lots of photogenic children.

Many might consider him a sacrificial lamb.

Others might think that he is staking out the territory in anticipation for Franks’ abandoning the State House for a candidacy for Congress in a newly-drawn 2012 district.

O’Neill has been active in the Republican Party, being elected a precinct committeeman the year all statewide Republicans lost. In 2008, he was recruiting walkers for McHenry’s Fiesta Days Parade.  He attended the state GOP convention. 

O’Neill also was one of the organizers of the demonstration on Route 47 in Woodstock in front of Jack Franks’ legislative office in March. Protesters objected to Franks’ position on abortion and gun control.

O’Neill wrote Franks “had given me the tired old line that,

‘I personally oppose abortion but I support a woman’s right to choose.’”

The ad below appeared in the Northwest Herald:

After the demonstration and ad, both legislators retreated.

While always having described himself as “pro-choice,” Franks had a fairly conservative voting record on the issue in his early days. He infuriated pro-lifers statewide, however, by blocking the advancement of a “CHOOSE Life” license plate in the committee he chairs.

To understand why pro-lifers were enraged, take a look at the specialty license plates Illinois allows on the right hand side of the Sun-Times article above:

• Illinois & Michigan Canal
• Sheet Metal Workers
• Agriculture in the Classroom
• Illinois Route 66
• Master Mason

Previously, it appeared that Woodstock Mayor Brian Sager was preparing to run for the office. He, however, is a strong enough supporter of Franks that he was listed as a sponsor on Franks’ 12th Annual Breakfast Fundraiser October 3rd. Sager also would qualify as a liberal Republican, while O’Neill fits into the conservative mold.  Sager retired in July from McHenry County College, his last position being Interim President after Walt Packard was forced from the post, albeit with the biggest governmental golden parachute that has been seen locally.

Below is the email that popped into my computer:

Dear Friends,

For the past couple of election cycles here in McHenry County as well as our Nation, we have seen our political opponents gaining momentum. In some cases we have not even fielded a conservative candidate for office. I would like to reverse that trend.

I will be seeking the Republican nomination for Representative in the General Assembly for the 63rd District.

Since this is an 11th hour decision, based in part on the fact that nobody else in McHenry has stepped-up, I am seeking your help. Attached is a copy of the primary petition, we need to have a minimum of 500 signatures collected which need to be submitted to the Illinois Board of Elections during the week of of October 26.

I am asking you to get involved and help me collect these signatures. I have also included an instructional sheet explaining the general requirements for both the petition Circulator and Signer.

The petition sheets may be printed in multiple or copied and the Circulator needs to have them notarized in order to be valid. Please do not number the sheets; we will do that once they have all been returned.

I would like to have all of the petiton sheets returned by Monday, October 26 so I may prepare the packets for submission. Petition sheets without the full 10 signature lines completed are valid as long as they are notarized.

Please call or email if you have any questions.

I sincerely appreciate your help.

Thank you,
John O’Neill
(815) 276-2507

Should he or shouldn’t he?

Run for governor or some other statewide office, that is.

That will be the question this Labor Day Weekend among State Representative Jack Franks’ family and friends.

My guess is that he runs for re-election, but I don’t have $1 million of family money in my campaign fund.

But being state representative having to drive that really horrible trip to and from Springfield has to get old after ten years.

Of course, when McHenry County Republicans keep giving you a pass, you can relax every other fall.

As long as Bill LeFew was GOP county chairman, you could understand how he, as a Jack Franks’ campaign contributor who has even said a few words at a fund raiser, wouldn’t recruit an opponent.

It’s more difficult to understand now that State Rep. Mike Tryon is county chairman…especially with his having Crystal Lake’s Robert Kaempfe challenge him for two elections in a row while Franks has gone challenger-free.

I suppose Franks could keep the money in his fund, hoping to use it four years from now when rich friends and family may not be able to contribute such large amounts.

That assumes that campaign contribution limits are enacted.

Crystal Lake’s McHenry County Associate Judge Gordon Graham, who is running for the Republican nomination for circuit court judge, will appoint a special prosecutor to investigate the charges that taxpayer resources were used in McHenry County State’s Attorney Lou Bianchi’s campaign for re-election.

The charges, first floated anonymously by former McHenry County Republican Central Committee Bill LeFew, then, admitted publicly when his cover was blown. Needless to say, LeFew was a main backer of Bianchi primary opponent Dan Regna.

Here is McHenry County State’s Attorney Lou Bianchi’s statement:

“I welcome the Court’s decision to allow an independent review of the false allegations leveled by my political opponents. In fact, I initiated the public disclosure of this matter when I discovered the theft of over 5,000 sensitive documents from my office computer.

“I am satisfied that this matter will be aired in the proper forum – a courtroom – instead of irresponsible and false statements by my political opponents to the media.

“I will fully cooperate with this investigation, just as I did with the previous investigation.

“My only regret is that these politically motivated and spurious allegations may detract unduly from the good work the men and women of my office perform every day to protect the citizens of McHenry County.”

While the McHenry County Young Republicans met Sunday in Crystal Lake’s Veterans Acres for a Petition Party, they will meet tonight at 7 PM at the upscale 1776 Restaurant on Route 14 in Crystal Lake.

The YR weekly newsletter reports that the following candidates attended their Petition Party:

• Congressman Don Manzullo
• State Senator/Gubernatorial Candidate Matt Murphy from Palatine
• United State Senate Candidate Ed Varga from Richmond
• McHenry County Sheriff Keith Nygren
• McHenry County Treasurer Bill LeFew
• McHenry County Board Members/Candidates

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Gubernatorial candidate State Senator Matt Murphy can be seen in the red shirt to the left of the top photo and on the left hand side facing right in the bottom picture. Sheriff Keith Nygren is sitting at the picnic table in the top shot looking right. His wife Marge is sitting across from him. Standing behind Nygren in that same picture is County Treasurer Bill LeFew. STAR 105 FM radio newsman Stew Cohen is standing next to LeFew, facing the end of the table. YR Jon Heideman, who is running for Republican precinct committeeman in Nunda 19, is in the foreground right looking away from the camera. He was the grill master.

In the bottom photo, McHenry County Board candidate John Jung is center right facing right next to Brent Smith. Again, you can see YR Jon Heideman’s back in the foreground left.

As you can see, McHenry County Treasurer paid the Northwest Herald to put a

Wonder how much it cost?

This appeared before the robo calls from Washington, D.C., that people received last Saturday.

A Crystal Laker got a phone call from McHenry County Treasurer (and Tax Collector) Bill LaFew today.

It was a robo call from Washington, D.C., caller ID said. The number was 202-495-7118.

LeFew wanted to remind my friend that property taxes are due on June 4th.

There are two ways to look at this.

Cynic that I am, I’ll look at the political side first.

It’s another way to try to convince people that he is helpful less than a year before what could be a hard-fought GOP primary campaign, if McHenry County State’s Attorney Lou Bianchi’s supporters and financiers are in a vindictive mood for what LeFew did to oust him.

The other way of looking at it is that LeFew was being helpful.

In any event, this is the first time I have seen this technique used.

I wonder what it cost and who paid for it.

Slim advertising have apparently loosened standards for political inserts at the Northwest Herald.

I can’t remember the campaign (one in the Cary area pops into my mind), but a former managing editor pledged that a political insert would no longer be allowed the day before an election.

The Republicans in Nunda Township, labeling themselves “Team Nunda,”
paid for an insert that I didn’t get, but discovered while reading the paper at the First United Methodist Church of Crystal Lake. The church is located just north of the Algonquin-Nunda Township line, which is Crystal Lake Avenue.

So, it appears the local GOP candidates didn’t waste their money on the Algonquin part of Crystal Lake.

The Team Nunda sign is reproduced on both sides of the three color campaign piece.

Endorsements from

• former State Senator Dick Klemm
• current State Senator Dan Duffy
• State Rep. Mike Tryon
• McHenry County Sheriff Keith Nygren
• McHenry County board members Ed Dvorak, Mary Donner and Barb Wheeler

are featured on one side.

The other side has endorsements from

• State Senator Pam Althoff
• McHenry County Treasurer Bill LeFew
• McHenry County Board Chairman Ken Koehler
• McHenry County Auditor Pam Palmer
• McHenry County Coroner Marlene Lantz
• Bryan Javor, Young Republicans Chairman

And there’s a big

on both sides.

On our way back from Milwaukee’s Mitchell Airport, we drove through Woodstock on Route 47.

There was a big back-up as we entered and left Burger King.

As we paused at the McConnell Road stop light, here’s what I saw framed by the railroad overpass.

Demonstrators on both sides of Route 47.

Traffic was moving slowly.

There were a lot of people on my side of the road.

The first sign I saw was on the city side of the road.

It was held by a man in a ski mask to ward off the 35 degree temperature and biting wind and said,

There is at least one other that says,

You can click on the photo to enlarge it, but it was taken through the windshield and is a bit fuzzy.

My wife asked if our son knew what that meant.

“Of course, everybody knows abortion kills a child!”

He sounded exasperated to be asked such an easy question.

Most of the protesters seemed to be right in front of State Rep. Jack Franks’ office.

A pickup truck held some youngsters.

One’s sign read,

A man held a larger sign saying,

Taking another approach, a man with hat and earmuffs held a poster saying,

Tough to do when the Republican Party under both Bill LeFew’s and Mike Tryon’s chairmanships would not even get a candidate to run.

Maybe next year one of the demonstrators will run for the office.

As we waited to turn left on Route 14, we a cluster of demonstrators. A boy held a sign with a happy face saying,

I’ll run more if I get some reports from people who took part in the demonstration. Maybe they will even send me pictures of those who spoke to the crowd.

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House Bill 2354 was introduced on Feb. 18th. Jack Franks signed on as a co-sponsor three weeks later on March 12th one day after it was voted onto the House floor on a 5-2 vote by the House Human Services Committee. Perhaps I will be excused for thinking that Franks is positioning himself for a statewide run for attorney general. With his colleague Julie Hamos also jockeying for the attorney general position and having become a co-sponsor the day the bill was introduced, perhaps I will be excused for suggesting Franks has figured out that a Democrat who is not acceptable to the pro-abortion Personal PAC will have a difficult time winning a Democratic Party primary election. Personal PAC has not traditionally been friendly to Franks.

HB 2354 basically puts into state law the ability to have an abortion any time during pregnancy.