McHenry County Blog

John Kass lamented the lack of an Illinois Scott Walker last Thursday.

He certainly is asking the right question:

“Where is Illinois’ Scott Walker?”

I was tempted to prepare a sign to affix to me chest asking.

“Are you the Illinois Scott Walker?”

but didn’t get around to it.

That thought pretty much left my mind until Illinois Republican Party Chairman Pat Brady started throwing red meat to the audience at the Tinley Park Convention.

“Isn’t it nice to see courage rewarded?” Brady asked after explaining his joy at watching Walker beat back the Democrats’ recall effort.

He noted with irony and derision Pat Quinn’s reaction, “Illinois is different.”

“We are under the thumb of a controlling, vindictive, ethically challenged, self-serving leprechaun, and I mean no disrespect to leprechauns, Speaker Mike Madigan,” Brady said, setting the tone of the gathering.

Brady pointed out that a mere 5,000 votes in the right House districts could have made Tom Cross Speaker.

And just 31,000 votes would have meant Bill Brady would have been elected Governor, instead of Quinn.

A pick of six seats in the Senate and six in the House would turn control over to the GOP.

Next came speeches by elected officials.

First up was Peoria’s Aaron Schock, first elected in 2008.

He told of passing federal free trade legislation for Columbia and having received a call from the CEO of Caterpillar Corporation, based in his home town. He was congratulated and told the a new plant would be built that would create 1,400 new jobs.

But, that the plant would not be build in Illinois because of our Workers’ Comp and tort liability laws.

“If we keep the same boneheads in Springfield, we won’t get the benefits,” Schock said.

House Minority Leader Tom Cross was next.

Signaling a line of attack against Democrats outside of Chicago, he pledged opposition to Mike Madigan’s and John Cullerton’s proposal to transfer $20 billion of teacher pension burden from state taxpayers to property taxpayers.

The man whose rant against Madigan’s one-man rule spread throughout television and the internet was introduced next.

“We want Mike! We want Mike!” spread throughout the room.

“If you take one thing out of this, other states don’t have one person that has total power,” Bost emphasized. “That’s a dictatorship!”

Former State Rep. and State Senator Randy Hultgren, elected to Congress in 2010 followed former colleague Bost.

“Illinois is broke.

“Illinois is broken.

“Reduced to a punchline.”

He told of being in Indiana and talked to its Governor, Mitch Daniels.

“Being Governor in the state next to Illinois is like living next to Homer Simpson.  Anything you do looks good.

“If Wisconsin can do it, Illinois can do it,” Hultgren concluded.

Adam Kinzinger, also elected in 2010, was next up.

“America is the greatest hope for civilization,” the Air Force pilot, now in the Illinois National Guard, started out.

He observed that young folks signing up for the Armed Forces today at age 18 were only 7 on 9-11.

“America is worth defending and I will defend it,” he said movingly.

“The American DNA is a winning DNA.

“The defense of this country also extends here at home.

“We have to beat Mike Madigan.

“We have to build a brick wall in Illinois” so Nancy Pelosi’s prediction that “the route to the [Democratic Party congressional] majority goes through Illinois.,”Kinzinger concluded.

Senate Republican leader Christine Radogno  stepped to the podium.

“We need reinforcements.

“We can’t do it without you.

“You are the grass roots.

“The wave is coming and we’re going to ride it.”

Brady then introduced Congressman Joe Walsh, also in his first term.

He noted that Walsh got no help from the Republican Party in his narrow victory over Democrat Melissa Bean, but “that won’t happen again.”

“There is no person they want to beat more than Joe Walsh.”

Walsh entered to a standing ovation.

He began his speech by relating that he was a naturally smiling Irish Catholic guy.

Then there was the “but.”

“I did not go to Washington last year to smile.

“There’s very little subtle about Joe Walsh.

“When I say the President has not freaking clue what he is doing, I mean every word of it.”

Then Walsh took after Mike Madigan.

“No one person should run a state.

“He is a king.

“He is a dictator.

“He is corrupt.

“He symbolizes everything that is wrong in Illinois.

“Shame on us for not having the courage and the fortitude to say that.”

Moving on to his re-election race against Tammy Duckworth, whose name he did not mention, Walsh said, “This White House and the entire Demcoratic Party has a target on my back.

He explained that he “just goe[es] and say[s] what [he] mean[s].

“Amazing things begin to happen.”

Walsh referenced John Kass’ column:

“Where is Illinois’ Scott Walker?”

[At this point I began wondering if he was standing on the stage.]

“The Republican Party has been compliant.

“We’ve lost our way.

“Every nine minutes somebody move out of this state,” he said emphasizing it was taxpayers moving elsewhere.

“That’s terrible.

“We can’t let that happen.”

Ratcheting up the rhetoric Walsh proclaimed Illinois Republicans “must stand for everything that the Mike Madigans don’t.

“We don’t stand for making everybody dependent on government.

“We stand for the opposite.

“We’re the party of everything else.

“I’m gong to ask you to be responsible for your own life.”

[Hear Joe Walsh's speech, posted by The Prairie State Review, here.]

Another standing ovation occurred after Walsh finished his speech.

Freshman Congressman Bobby Shilling spoke next.

I didn’t get a chance to take notes, but I did get a decent close-up.

After him State Treasurer Dan Rutherford, head of the Mitt Romney effort in Illinois in 2008 and 2012, spoke.

He is widely thought to be laying the groundwork for a campaign for Governor in 2014.

A video greeting from State Comptroller Judy Baar Topinka completed the speeches.

The Chicago Tribune article by Rick Pearson failed to mention that Walsh even spoke, not to mention that he was greeted with a standing ovation and another one after he finished his speech.

He did note the attacks on Mike Madigan.

= = = = =

In the John Kass piece, the columnist mentions Walsh, but not favorably.

“I’m not talking about a Republican who’d scream with veins popping out of his or her neck and a wild angry look in the eye.  If you want someone in your face, you’ve got Republican U.S. Rep. Joe Walsh, and you can have him.  What was compelling about Walker wasn’t his in-you-face personality.  It was his ideas.”

But, as Party Chairman Pat Brady reporting Demcoratic Party Governor as saying, Illinois is different.”

From the crowd’s reaction to Walsh, I think Kass’ take on Walsh was not shared by a large proportion of the Republicans in attendance.

State Rep. Jack Franks (D-Marengo) presented a constitutional amendment to allow the recall of a future Illinois governor.

It didn’t include the other statewide elected officials.

It didn’t include legislators.

It didn’t include judges.

It didn’t include local officials like McHenry County College Board members who just gave MCC’s ex-president well over a $200,000 going away present.

Or the Grafton Township Trustees, who refuse to allow a referendum vote on a proposed new $5 million township hall.

And it wasn’t a straight citizen initiative.

It requires that 20 House members and 10 Senators would have to agree before a recall petition going forth. Half the representatives and senators will have to be from different parties. Obviously, that means any one caucus can smother the effort before it gets off the ground.

GOP Floor Spokesman Bill Black said the following:

“If any state deserves to have the ability to remove their governor, it’s Illinois.

“This is not the language I had expected,” stated Republican State Rep. Bill Black.

“It would appear to me that any caucus could stop a recall in its tracks.

“That’s not citizen recall.

“It’s better than walking away doing nothing.

“We could have done better. We should have done better.

“It’s kind of like winning the game in the bottom of the 9th with a wild pitch. I would have rather have had a home run.”

U.S. Senator Dick Durbin appeared during the debate and said he just stopped in to make sure that the

Of course, the recall of a current U.S. Senator, one Roland Burris, would be a possibility, if the proposal were a true, rather than the fake citizen recall plan being presented.

“This way there would be real checks and balances…an extra level of accountability on us,” Franks said, commenting on the requirement that state representatives and senators have to pre-approve any recall proposal.

“You say it’s a grass roots’ initiative,” said Republican Mike Bost, who early on called for Governor Rod Blagojevich’s impeachment.

“I can’t see that it’s a grass roots’ initiative (if you have to get through the General Assembly).”

“Is it the perfect bill? No,” Franks replied.

Ron Stephens asked Roland Burris to step forward and tell the General Assembly whether he would be willing to face a special election.

He wasn’t in the room of course.

“You’re going to call this reform on the 5 or 6 o’clock news in Chicago. What about the other statewide officers? What about the Speaker of the House and the President of the Senate?

“I wonder why they were left out,” Stephens asked sarcastically.

“I want to make sure Illinois is an outlier (and I think it is as far as having only the governor,”
Dave Winters said next.

“I believe in the other states it is either the voters or the legislators who can initiate recall,” Franks said.

“This a complete sham,” Winters said.

“This is only going to happen, if people are really upset,” Franks later explained.

“What would stop anyone (some rich person) from (putting in a pile of money to get rid of) a governor?” Will Davis asked.

“That could happen to you today,” Franks replied.

“Hopefully, we’ll pass campaign finance reform and we won’t have that problem anymore,” the sponsor continued.

“This may be the most important bill we pass this year,” Franks said before the vote.

The constitution amendment was adopted 109-6-2

That was the vote of the Illinois House Impeachment Committee about 5:40 this afternoon.

The committee report recommending the impeachment of Governor Rod Blagojevich slid out of the committee faster than my feet on the driveway ice this afternoon as I was shoveling.

McHenry County Democrat Jack Franks, a long-time nemesis of the governor, said he was “sad” when Blagojevich was arrested, but “Today is a great day.”

“The only was Rod Blagojevich can communicate with the legislature is through his criminal attorney,” Franks noted.

The Marengo resident noted the flu vaccine purchased that was never used, the Ali Ata and Joe Cari guilty plea agreements, the Tony Rezko conviction.

Southern Illinois Republican Mike Bost pointed out that all but three of the items in the impeachment report occurred before his call for impeachment hearings to be held in July 2007.

He noted that he was criticized for that request.

Indeed, Bost makes an excellent point.

Why did the General Assembly wait a year and a half more before taking action?

Why did the Republican Party fail to follow Bost’s lead in a timely fashion?

Democrat Lou Lang pointed out that the Illinois Constitution only refers to “cause” as a reason for impeachment.

Lang said what had been uncovered was “well sufficient to meet any standard of evidence,” while adding that “we can’t hold people to competence.”

“We have been thorough. We have been fair,” Republican Jim Tracy, a Republican attorney from Brown County elected in 2006, avowed.

“We can hardly reach any other conclusion,” she said. “We have no other evidence brought before us.”

Previous to the vote, Roland Burris testified.

Republican state representatives didn’t lay a serious glove on him, it seems to me.

Pulled from him was a July conversation with former Blagojevich Chief of Staff Lon Monk, a fellow lobbyist at the time, about how Burris would appreciate Monk passing on a good word for him with regard to the Senate appointment.

And, it was interesting to watch Burris’ face when he was asked how he felt when he heard Blagojevich had been arrested.

Burris did reveal that he had already opened a Federal political action committee, something he all but announced in the rain the day he was turned away from the U.S. Senate door.

Left hanging was Blagojevich attorney Sam Adams’ side of the story of his visit to Burris to make the offer of the U.S. Senate seat.

That was the vote of the Illinois House Impeachment Committee about 5:40 this afternoon.

The committee report recommending the impeachment of Governor Rod Blagojevich slid out of the committee faster than my feet on the driveway ice this afternoon as I was shoveling.

McHenry County Democrat Jack Franks, a long-time nemesis of the governor, said he was “sad” when Blagojevich was arrested, but “Today is a great day.”

“The only was Rod Blagojevich can communicate with the legislature is through his criminal attorney,” Franks noted.

The Marengo resident noted the flu vaccine purchased that was never used, the Ali Ata and Joe Cari guilty plea agreements, the Tony Rezko conviction.

Southern Illinois Republican Mike Bost pointed out that all but three of the items in the impeachment report occurred before his call for impeachment hearings to be held in July 2007.

He noted that he was criticized for that request.

Indeed, Bost makes an excellent point.

Why did the General Assembly wait a year and a half more before taking action?

Why did the Republican Party fail to follow Bost’s lead in a timely fashion?

Democrat Lou Lang pointed out that the Illinois Constitution only refers to “cause” as a reason for impeachment.

Lang said what had been uncovered was “well sufficient to meet any standard of evidence,” while adding that “we can’t hold people to competence.”

“We have been thorough. We have been fair,” Republican Jim Tracy, a Republican attorney from Brown County elected in 2006, avowed.

“We can hardly reach any other conclusion,” she said. “We have no other evidence brought before us.”

Previous to the vote, Roland Burris testified.

Republican state representatives didn’t lay a serious glove on him, it seems to me.

Pulled from him was a July conversation with former Blagojevich Chief of Staff Lon Monk, a fellow lobbyist at the time, about how Burris would appreciate Monk passing on a good word for him with regard to the Senate appointment.

And, it was interesting to watch Burris’ face when he was asked how he felt when he heard Blagojevich had been arrested.

Burris did reveal that he had already opened a Federal political action committee, something he all but announced in the rain the day he was turned away from the U.S. Senate door.

Left hanging was Blagojevich attorney Sam Adams’ side of the story of his visit to Burris to make the offer of the U.S. Senate seat.