McHenry County Blog

At two forums I attended on then-State Rep. Penny Pullen’s behalf I made predictions about the danger black women had of becoming HIV-infected.

One was a debate with a left-wing law professor at John Marshall Law School in Chicago and the other was on a pilot of a talk show hosted by Faye Wattleton, who had just resigned as president of Planned Parenthood.

At both events a black woman stood up and shouted angrily.

That was probably in 1991 when I was working for Pullen.

My logic was based on male prisoners being released from prison with being told they were infected with the AIDs virus.

Based on a study by the CDC, one-third of one percent of male inmates each year became HIV-infected while in Illinois prisons. (That transmission rate sounds low, but, if it existed in the general Illinois population, all of the infections through the mid-1990′s would have occurred in one year.)

I couldn’t think of any reason the rate of transmission would be less from sharing tattoo needles, hypodermic needles or getting raped by HIV-positive men elsewhere in the country than it was in Illinois.

There was no serious attempt to stop the spread of HIV in Illinois prisons then and there still isn’t.

Since a disproportionate number of black men were imprisoned and they weren’t tested on the way out—even if they were married—it stood to reason that black women were in danger. Even if an ex-convict would be willing to avoid having intercourse if he knew he was HIV-infected, IDOC saw no reason to let the prisoners know before they were released into the general populaiton.

And, I’m told, that when men get out of prison, it’s sex and drugs they want first.

So, in those two Chicago forums I stated my prediction.

Now comes USA Today, reporting http://www.usatoday.com/yourlife/health/medical/2011-02-05-blacks-aids_N.htm on the Feb 4th Centers for Disease Control Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report that shows I was unfortunately correct those 20 year ago.

The evidence:

“The rate of HIV diagnosis among black men is eight times that of whites, and the rate for black women is 19 times that of whites…”

The author talks about prison, but still doesn’t get the point I made above. Here’s what Dr. Kevin Fenton, Director of CDC’s National Center for HIV/AIDS, Viral Hepatitis, STD, and TB Prevention, days:

“High rates of male imprisonment are another factor, he added. ‘This leads to imbalances in male-to-female ratios in the community, which in turn result in sexual networks which facilitate transmission of HIV.’”

I guess he’s part right, but he’s missing something public health types have ignored for decades—HIV is spread in prisons and they and corrections officials have done virtually nothing to deter that.

The following was written by my former colleague Penny Pullen. She serves as state president for Eagle Forum of Illinois and is active in Republicans of Wheeling Township.

“No man’s life, liberty or property is safe while the legislature is in session.”

Penny Pullen

These true words were written in a 19th-century New York court decision, and they are still true today.

It is of some comfort that we have reached the midpoint in the General Assembly’s election-year session without yet being clobbered by a tax increase.

But no Illinois citizen can afford to assume our lawmakers will not yet commit what would appear to us as a rash act of political suicide. A lot of factors go into the collective decisions that beset us from Springfield.

Here are some realities that “we the people” do not automatically grasp:

• The hallways, chambers and offices of a Capitol building are constructed with a unique brand of highly resistant insulation. (It’s only a façade, but it’s convincing to those who enter the cocoon of a legislative session, and too seldom is it penetrated by an aroused citizenry.)
• Lobbyists not only have access to lawmakers to present the unique point of view they are paid to offer; they also have built relationships with the senators and representatives over sometimes years or even decades. (How many ordinary citizens have even bothered to meet their elected lawmakers, let alone developed a relationship?)
• Special interest groups dominate the campaign fundraising for those who hold the power to aid, abet or hinder their particular interest. (Have ordinary citizens shown themselves helpful when the going gets rough, or have they sat out the necessary process of offering financial backing to a candidate who’s doing the right thing?) Campaign contributions are no guarantee that a lawmaker will vote in line with the contributor, but they certainly and understandably open the door to friendly conversation, which can be just one step away from persuasion.
• Gov. Quinn is determined to raise our taxes, and he can wield power to get what he wants. (It’s up to “we the people,” for whom he has always claimed to be speaking, to make clear that this year, on this question, Pat Quinn does not speak for us!)
• Unique tactics are available to the governor, and he is using them: Never before have legislators’ landlords been stiffed by the state for legislative office rent, making the legislators themselves logical participants in the “Enough-already – let’s-raise-taxes-to-ease-the-pain” coalition. (Yes, that looks to the ordinary person like an oxymoron, but the governor is inflicting pain on certain segments – like the government schools lobby – for the express purpose of getting them to beg for a tax increase.)

Having been an elected State Representative for 16 years, I can tell you this: Anything can happen when the legislature is in session; it doesn’t have to make sense to “we the people.”

But, an aroused, engaged citizenry – even if only for these critical days and weeks (though sustained engagement is so much better!) – can produce enough angst in a re-election-driven legislator to bring him to his senses.

The single worst thing a citizen can do right now, though, is to assume that, this being an election year, we’re safe from legislators doing dumb things.

That New York judge knew what he was talking about.

Pressure will fill the House and Senate chambers in Springfield all the way to adjournment, be that May 31 or July 15; the real question is, whose pressure?

Will pressure from the voters exceed pressure from the usual sources of power?

It’s up to “we the people.”

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Penny Pullen served in Springfield from 1977-1993 as an elected State Representative and was a member of the House Republican Leadership from 1983-1993. She authored the legislation which, in 1983, repealed the state inheritance tax and was the leading Springfield lawmaker on pro-life reforms and on public health strategies to contain the HIV/AIDS epidemic.

About the same time the Northwest Herald was endorsing Jim Ryan, the man whose buddy and over-$800,000-contributor arranged (without Ryan’s knowledge) for Mercy Hospital to gain approval from the Illinois Health Facilitates Planning Board, my friend former State Rep. Penny Pullen was endorsing Andy McKenna. Below you see the front of the pamphlet I’ll be distributing in my precinct for Ryan.

The same day of the NW Herald endorsement, I received a mailing from McKenna emphasizing his stand against raising taxes, something that McKenna is bashing both Ryan and Kirk Dillard on not promising.

The front runner for governor, according to a now-probably-outdated Chicago Tribune poll, was former Attorney General Ryan.  The three second tier candidates were Andy McKenna, Kirk Dillard and Bill Brady.  They had about half the percentage Ryan showed.

Here’s pro-life leader Pullen’s endorsemen of McKennat:

Conservative Leader Penny Pullen Endorses
Andy McKenna for Governor

Key conservative endorsement in final weeks of campaign

Highlights McKenna’s work to defeat tax increases

CHICAGO – Conservative pro-life/pro-family leader and former State Representative Penny Pullen today endorsed Andy McKenna for Governor of Illinois. Pullen is one of the most influential and respected leaders in the conservative movement in Illinois.

“It is with the utmost honor that I accept this endorsement from such a respected leader in the conservative and pro-life community,” said McKenna. “Penny’s endorsement is further indication that top leaders and activists across the state are joining our campaign.”

“Andy McKenna is just the person we need to lead us out of the fiscal mess Democrats have put us in,” said Pullen. “His background as a successful business leader gives him insight and strong determination to advocate for taxpayers and for job creators.

“Further, I like the fact that Andy McKenna knows his way around Springfield — as former state GOP chairman — but has not been a part of the Springfield problem; quite the contrary — he has a proven track record of working to defeat tax increases.

The inside of the Jim Ryan precinct piece.

“I believe Andy’s conservative credentials make him the best Republican to win in November, and I trust him to promote strong traditional family policies and justice for vulnerable human beings at any age.”

Pullen served 16 years as a member of the Illinois General Assembly, served on three councils under Presidents Reagan and Bush, is a former Illinois GOP National Committeewoman, and founder of the Illinois Family Institute. Pullen resides in Arlington Heights.

An associate from years past who seems to think he is more of a “Movement Conservative” than Penny replied that he couldn’t understand Penny’s endorsement. He also questioned McKenna’s intellect.

He said he expected Penny would be in the camp of two candidates that registered about 2% on the Tribune poll.

Here is Penny’s reply:

The inside of the Andy McKenna mailing that came the same day the Northwest Herald endorsed Jim Ryan.

My endorsement is based on what I know, not on what others say.

How nice to hear from you. Brings back old times. Really old times!

I know that Andy met with pro-life/pro-family leaders not once but several times, at his own initiative while state chairman. I know that no other state chairman in my time of involvement in the Republican Party had done that even once. I know that whatever we laid before him, he listened to with respect and attention, responded to, and on everything he agreed to do (which was most), he pursued it thoroughly (even if without fanfare).

I know that he committed the State GOP to join the Marriage-Amendment petition process the second time around — the time he was asked to — but the organizers themselves chose not to move ahead, so this initiative ended up not becoming public.

I know that he exerted great personal effort to prevent Republican legislators from voting for the RTA/DuPage sales tax and wrecking the GOP brand, only to be undercut by Bob Schillerstrom at the last minute. I know that he worked against the Dem income tax hike.

I know that he sought to get the McCain people (who controlled the process) to name at least one pro-life/family at-large delegate (by name) to the 2008 National Convention. I know that he went into the delegation selection committee (controlled by the McCainiacs) at the state convention and publicly argued that Jim Thompson and Bob Schillerstrom were unworthy to be named to the Illinois delegation and then called down the committee in front of the entire convention, specifically criticizing them for including Thompson & Schillerstrom.

I know that he worked to raise funds for specific conservative campaigns.

I believe - and trust – based on much interaction with him, that he is a heart-committed pro-lifer.

Yes, his chief pursuit in his campaign for governor is to get spending under control and give the entrepreneurs who are still left in Illinois an opportunity to build ventures that succeed and offer workers an opportunity to feed their families. Controlling spending and taxes used to be important to conservatives; that agenda is still important to me and appears to me to be of critical importance in 2010.

The address side of Andy McKenna's mailing also talkks about holding the line on taxes.

It was Andy McKenna alone who outlined a concrete agenda for getting the state’s fiscal disaster under control while addressing the Tribune editorial board; it was Andy McKenna alone who criticized the lousy quality taxpayers are getting for the billions we spend on public schools. (I watched the interviews online.)

I am aware that Andy is reserved; as someone who has seen him at work, I reject your assertion that he is intellectually weak. And I am personally aware that he has a good ability to choose the right strategy after collecting sufficient information to make an informed choice.

I knew that my endorsement would not be popular, because I know all the buzz that has attached itself to his name.

Someone sometime has to stand up for what they know to be true and not just listen to the buzz.

I have confidence in Andy McKenna, because I have good reason to. And by the way, I haven’t forgotten who I am.

Thanks for asking.

Penny

PS – I would not be found in the Adam or Dan camp for various and good reasons. But I choose not to bash other candidates or their supporters, so I won’t go into that.

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Click to enlarge any image.

There is a certain irony to Jim Ryan's use of a Chicago Tribune quote to try to convince voters to support him for governor. The Tribune endorsed Andy McKenna.

Illinois’ most prominent election law attorney died this week.

His name was Mike Lavelle and the case which gave him national attention in 2000 in the Florida recount fight between George Bush and Al Gore was one he won in 1990.

That’s when he represented my friend Penny Pullen in her bid to overturn the apparent electoral primary victory of Rosemary Mulligan, who was strongly backed by the pro-abortion Personal PAC. I and others spend days at the Cook County Clerk’s warehouse looking for ballots that might show a preference for Penny. Below are her memories of Lavelle. She doesn’t say it, but Lavelle is among the the in last pro-life Democrat Illinois.

The end of an era in Illinois politics … the passing this week of election attorney Michael Lavelle from this earth.

He was simply the best at what he did. And what he did was to know Illinois election law inside and out; he had written much of it during his days at the Chicago Board of Election Commissioners and as a founding member of the State Board of Elections.

He knew the pluses and minuses of voting equipment, the ins and outs of petition law … every angle a public official or citizen might need to explore to resolve a disputed election.

And for a Chicago-born Democrat, he was a good and honest man, from everything I saw of him.

For years I would see Mike Lavelle in the Illinois House chamber, usually advising one of the leading Democrats or offering his expertise in committee testimony. But though I was very much a partisan Republican, he always had a ready smile and a wave for me. We seemed to hold mutual respect as two people for whom politics was an honorable contest. (Those were the days!)

When I faced the necessity of filing for a recount in the 1990 GOP primary, having come up short by 31 votes – supposedly – on election day, I consulted friends while casting about for a good attorney. One of those friends mentioned Mike Lavelle, and I said, “Of course! Why didn’t I think of him?!” He already, in 1990, had a reputation as Illinois’s leading election lawyer. What I didn’t realize was that he had never taken a case for a Republican.

But he took my case and many other Republicans after me. And for me, he was just the advocate I needed.

We established case law in Illinois that year for the recounting of punchcard ballots, and some of the principles we established in the state supreme court are applicable even today, though punchcards have been replaced by electronic scan and touchscreen devices. Our case was cited also in the Bush v. Gore recount in Florida.

It was a six-month process, in which Mike supervised our volunteers monitoring the actual recount and then researched, prepared and argued the points of law which would assist the courts in determining which candidate had actually won.

I will never forget the day I sat in Judge Francis Barth’s courtroom and watched him create a tie vote by ruling on various questions in a way that he knew would produce a tie. Nor will I forget the calm and reassuring way Mike coached me to address the media after that gut-wrenching experience.

I won’t forget watching him present oral arguments in our case at the Illinois Supreme Court; I wasn’t there because with Mike handling the case, I didn’t need to be looking over his shoulder. But his presentation to the court was telecast live by public television across the state. So watching from afar, I was spellbound by his effectiveness in making total sense out of a rather arcane field of the law and in suggesting how the court could effect justice from a highly contentious situation. I say this about very few people, but about Mike it is true:

He was awesome.

I will always remember Mike’s kindness and generosity in hosting some 30 volunteers – and me – at a rooftop party across from his beloved Wrigley Field to watch his (and my) beloved Cubs.

I will always remember his long-planned trip to Ireland in the midst of trial preparation for our case. He searched for hours for a fax machine in rural Ireland (back in 1990) so he could receive, review and revise a voluminous brief while “on vacation.”  What a guy – worth every cent of the considerable fee my faithful contributors furnished me to pay him.

And I will never forget the confidence I had in knowing we truly would find out the actual outcome of the primary, because I had thankfully landed the best lawyer there is, and when one’s career and one’s driving principles are on the line, it’s a great comfort to have the best fighting at your side. Though “conventional wisdom” had said we couldn’t overcome a 31-vote deficit in a punchcard recount, we won the case, showing that I had indeed won the primary, and I had two more years of fighting for the taxpayers in Springfield.

I am sad to realize I cannot again find him on election night when a friend is needing a lawyer, or call on him to help a friend whose petitions are being challenged. (I recall one such situation where the challenge was dropped as soon as the other side learned that Mike Lavelle was on the case.) I cannot be anything but glad for him, though, to be released finally from the debilitating illness that he battled so long, to be received, as I expect he has been just this week, into the arms of his loving Lord.

No question about it. Mike Lavelle was one of a kind. He was simply and elegantly the best.

This time from former State Rep. Penny Pullen (R-Park Ridge).

The Chicago Tribune obituary concentrated on the opposition of former State Representative Tom Hanahan (D-Johnsburg) to the Equal Rights Amendment.

I asked, Penny Pullen, the Republican leader of the opposition to the ERA, to jot down a few thoughts and here they are,

“When Illinois was besieged by the radical feminists, demanding that the Illinois House vote over and over again (something like 13 times!) on the so-called Equal Rights Amendment to the US Constitution, it was Rep. Tom Hanahan who marshaled the votes on the Democrat side.  

“Though we had little else in common — he being a union Democrat and I being a pro-business Republican — we did share the cause of protecting the family, the Constitution and the sovereignty of the states in our opposition to the ERA.

“We used to meet clandestinely in a little-traveled corner on the south side of the second floor of the state capitol to swap ERA vote counts on our respective sides of the partisan aisle. 

“Tom had very little use for radical feminist types (like the female legislators who sponsored ERA and by the very fact that they had attained positions of leadership in government proved that ERA was unnecessary for the fulfillment of women!).  

“It was he who circulated on the House floor a hilarious color poster showing a woman lined up with the men at a public restroom’s urinals; the radical fems were flabbergasted. 

“It was also he who referred to their pals in the sisterhood (also known as the ERA lobby) as ‘brain-less, bra-less broads,’ in House debate, no less! 

“Flamboyant, cheerful, funny and thoroughly settled in his beliefs, Tom Hanahan was one of a kind and literally contributed to the history not only of Illinois but of this country.”

My memories are here and here.

The pharmacist who broke the Democratic Party dam in the Metro East part of Illinois and rose to be Senate Republican Leader announced his retirement yesterday.

First, Watson was elected to the Illinois House.

Then, he was elected to the State Senate and was replaced with State Rep. Ron Stephens.

The Republican franchise in this St. Louis suburban area is beginning to look and act more and more like the Chicago suburbs in the 1970′s.

Frank Watson was the leading edge.

I remember working with him on State Rep. Penny Pullen’s behalf when she was pushing her public protection AIDS/HIV legislative package. His office was on the first floor of the Capitol then.

Watson was in his prime when he gave an off-the-cuff speech at the Republican State Convention in Decatur in early June. I characterized the talk as a “red meat” talk.

I asked his press secretary if I could have a copy of it. She told me he didn’t prepare a text.

Here is part of that speech:

= = = = =
We’ll see if he was right.

The pharmacist who broke the Democratic Party dam in the Metro East part of Illinois and rose to be Senate Republican Leader announced his retirement yesterday.

First, Watson was elected to the Illinois House.

Then, he was elected to the State Senate and was replaced with State Rep. Ron Stephens.

The Republican franchise in this St. Louis suburban area is beginning to look and act more and more like the Chicago suburbs in the 1970′s.

Frank Watson was the leading edge.

I remember working with him on State Rep. Penny Pullen’s behalf when she was pushing her public protection AIDS/HIV legislative package. His office was on the first floor of the Capitol then.

Watson was in his prime when he gave an off-the-cuff speech at the Republican State Convention in Decatur in early June. I characterized the talk as a “red meat” talk.

I asked his press secretary if I could have a copy of it. She told me he didn’t prepare a text.

Here is part of that speech:

= = = = =
We’ll see if he was right.

I served with former State Senator John Nimrod until State Representative Bob Kusta beat him in a Republican primary election.

My friend Penny Pullen knew him much better than I and has written the paragraphs below:

John Nimrod has been out of office more than 20 years, but the constituents he served – and the friends with whom he served – still remember him as a dedicated state senator, an advocate for the Right to Life who lived out his commitment in his own family.

He was an engineer by profession and advocated sound, creative changes in energy policy before anyone else was paying attention.

And he held down the fort for the Republican Party as township committeeman in the very challenging north suburban neighborhoods of Niles Township.

He was also a good friend to a young legislative aide whose boss had died while in office, hiring her part-time to help with his own work and then helping her get elected to the Illinois House in her own right … and driving back and forth to Springfield sessions with me, staying awake at the wheel by singing Christian camp songs and sharing his faith with me, eventually taking me, along with his family, to his church’s anniversary banquet, where I accepted Jesus Christ as my Savior under the compelling preaching of evangelist Luis Palau.

John was controversial; he rubbed many people the wrong way. But that often happens when a public official stands on principle and carries integrity into office. And it happens when such a man refuses to get out of the way so a younger man – of infinitely less principle and worth – decides it’s time to move up. He was, in the end of his legislative career, ill served by the voters he had served so well, but his disappointment did not turn to bitterness.

He turned instead to further work for his Lord, devoting himself to the well being and international representation of one of the world’s displaced and sometimes persecuted people groups, the Assyrian Christians, of whom John was a tireless leader.

Now he is enjoying the welcome of his Lord and Savior in the peace of his eternal reward. The tears shed by those he left behind are tears of gratitude for having known such a complicated man both of generous heart and of ethical rectitude. In my life, John Nimrod made a profound difference. I rejoice in the sure knowledge I will one day see him again.

I served with former State Senator John Nimrod until State Representative Bob Kusta beat him in a Republican primary election.

My friend Penny Pullen knew him much better than I and has written the paragraphs below:

John Nimrod has been out of office more than 20 years, but the constituents he served – and the friends with whom he served – still remember him as a dedicated state senator, an advocate for the Right to Life who lived out his commitment in his own family.

He was an engineer by profession and advocated sound, creative changes in energy policy before anyone else was paying attention.

And he held down the fort for the Republican Party as township committeeman in the very challenging north suburban neighborhoods of Niles Township.

He was also a good friend to a young legislative aide whose boss had died while in office, hiring her part-time to help with his own work and then helping her get elected to the Illinois House in her own right … and driving back and forth to Springfield sessions with me, staying awake at the wheel by singing Christian camp songs and sharing his faith with me, eventually taking me, along with his family, to his church’s anniversary banquet, where I accepted Jesus Christ as my Savior under the compelling preaching of evangelist Luis Palau.

John was controversial; he rubbed many people the wrong way. But that often happens when a public official stands on principle and carries integrity into office. And it happens when such a man refuses to get out of the way so a younger man – of infinitely less principle and worth – decides it’s time to move up. He was, in the end of his legislative career, ill served by the voters he had served so well, but his disappointment did not turn to bitterness.

He turned instead to further work for his Lord, devoting himself to the well being and international representation of one of the world’s displaced and sometimes persecuted people groups, the Assyrian Christians, of whom John was a tireless leader.

Now he is enjoying the welcome of his Lord and Savior in the peace of his eternal reward. The tears shed by those he left behind are tears of gratitude for having known such a complicated man both of generous heart and of ethical rectitude. In my life, John Nimrod made a profound difference. I rejoice in the sure knowledge I will one day see him again.

Former 1970 Constitutional Convention Delegate, State Representative and State Senator Virginia Macdonald died this week.

I learned that when I read the Chicago Tribune’s obituary.

During the 1970’s, Ginny sat in front of me all but my first term. She was part of the voluntary “no smoking” section on the House floor in front of the press box.

She was a kind, gentle soul.

I asked my friend former State Rep. Penny Pullen if she had any thoughts she wanted to share. She wrote the following:

In official General Assembly-ese, Virginia Macdonald was addressed from the chair of the House or Senate as “The Lady from Cook, Mrs. Macdonald.” In her case, the words were true.

She was a gentle lady and kind. And though she was a firm partisan and the epitome of the “moderate” Republican, Virginia Macdonald befriended people she thought worthy regardless of differences in views. (This is how it should be but often is not!)

She was one of the two legislators I often affectionately called “Mom,” the other being the late Dolly Hallstrom of Evanston.

My friendship with Ginny began when my boss lost his battle to leukemia while in his early 40s. I had been his administrative assistant, working with him not just in the district office but also in Springfield, which occasioned my acquaintance with many legislators.

I’d been working in the Illinois House for seven years and had expected this behind-the-scenes job to be my career, but suddenly it was gone, and I was left to wonder what the future might have in store for me.

I received a call from one of the legislators who had taken over sponsorship of my boss’s dozen bills, requesting me to come back to Springfield to testify for the legislation and help the various sponsors gain insight into what my boss had intended with his proposals.

I was willing to do that but wasn’t sure whether I’d be comfortable kicking around Springfield with too little to do. Ginny was kind enough to put me to work; she had not yet been assigned a secretary, and her mail was piling up so badly, she feared she could never catch up. I played secretary for Ginny, and she drove me back and forth each week to session.

It was during this session, thanks to her kindness in recognizing my need to be useful, that I found the legislature was still the place where I could work effectively, and Ginny became one of four legislators who hired me part-time while I decided what to do, a season that soon led to my 16-year career as a Member of the Illinois House.

Her kindness and friendship, along with her strong sense of justice, came to the fore again many years later, when State Rep. Bernie Pedersen was being challenged by the feminist movement in the Republican primary.

Though Bernie was much more conservative than Ginny, and his opponent was more in line with Ginny philosophically, she was furious and determined that no harm should come to this good and gentle man while she could have any say about it!

She personally wrote and endorsed a large post card to every woman voter in Bernie’s district who might take a Republican ballot, urging the voters to ignore the smears being leveled at Bernie and instead to vote for his re-election.

That card – signed by a lady who was well respected by every Republican in the area – played a major role in Bernie’s prevailing in a primary where several of his conservative colleagues (including me!) went down.

I have not had the pleasure of seeing Ginny during the last several years, and I am saddened now to read of her passing. For her kindness and her friendship and for her iron will of justice, I will never forget Virginia Macdonald. She was a credit to her district, to her party and to the people of Illinois.

To both of us – and to Bernie, too, I’m sure – our philosophical differences made no difference.

She was a gem.

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Rep. Virginia Macdonald can be seen in the third row from the back sitting two seats to the right of House Speaker W. Robert Blair, who is standing in giving a speech. The photo was taken in either 1974 or 1975 in Macdonald’s and my first term. Click to enlarge either image.