900 At Chris Lauzen Porky Picnic

It was a large crowd for a state senate fund raiser.

900 people.

It has been said that to win a congressional campaign, one needs 1,000 volunteers.

If a large proportion of the attendees can be turned into volunteers, Lauzen would be well on the way to meeting that requirement.

In his comments to his supporters, State Senator Chris Lauzen, with his wife Sarah at his side, said this near the end of his talk:

“Some people in politics think politics is about money.

“It’s about service, relationships and proper examples given by families.

“You know there are going to be campaigns in the future and I’d appreciate your support.”

I’m sure I was not the only one to think of Jim Oberweis when Lauzen made those comments.

As McHenry County Blog reported Saturday, incumbent Congressman Dennis Hastert has scheduled a rally/press conference at the Kendall County Courthouse at 10 AM Friday, August 17th.

It reminds me of a similar rally/press conference that Governor George Ryan held in Kankakee the day he announced that he was not running for re-election in that attendees will not know whether Hastert plans to run again or retire until he tells those gathered in front of him.

Earlier in the day, I overhead one of a fair number of ABATE member present pledge his and his fellow motorcyclists support “in what we do best.”

Pro-lifers were obvious by the tee shirts many wore.

There were enough Christian tee shirts on adults and kids to supply “Messages of the Day” for Sundays to come.

Protect Marriage Illinois
was allowed to post signs and gather petition signatures. (You can download petitions for your county or city election commission at the PMI web site.)

I met Dave Richmond, the person whom I suggested would be the Establishment favorite in the GOP primary to replace State Rep. Pat Lindner, after he signed the Protect Marriage petition. He said he was going to announce his candidacy Monday, four days before his boss, Denny Hastert announces his decision.

I also made the acquaintance of Geneva Alderman William Barclay, another potential candidate. He and his wife were selling drink tickets for Lauzen and his son was passing out free water and soft drinks for the pig roast.

A third person I thought might be a logical candidate was Elburn Mayor Jim Willey. He told me that the recent death of his wife had probably precluded that path, but seemed pleased that I thought he might be a logical candidate.

I also took a picture of Kane County Board member Bill Wyatt’s tee shirt logo, but didn’t find out who he was until after he left. The tee shirt said he was chairman of the Kane County Republican Golf Day Chairman. I mentioned that he might also be a candidate to replace Lindner. I’m sure he thought I was nuts for wanting a picture of his tee shirt.

Signs of military men and fathers of men in Iraq were evident and Lauzen asked for prayers for his eldest son, who had suffered a separated shoulder in a training accident last Thursday.

State Senator Dan Rutherford, the GOP candidate for Secretary of State against Jesse White last year told of his desire to see Lauzen go to the “Big House” in Washington.

And, there was Kendall County State’s Attorney, as was retired State Senator Bob Mitchler, also from Kendall County.

Kane County Auditor Bill Keck, a CPA like Lauzen, also stopped long enough for me to get a picture of his tee shirt and hat.

A young lady named Meagan Szydlowski, President of the Northern Illinois College Republicans, was introduced. When I was in the Oberlin College Young Republicans, I marshaled 2,700 student hours of campaign work for Charles A. Mosher. I wonder if she can match or exceed that for Lauzen, if Hastert decides not to run for re-election.

My guess is that she can because, college students will be able to pass petitions this fall and campaign during the winter months. She may even be able to convince a number to stay on campus between semesters and devote full-time to the campaign.

I finally found former McHenry County Board member Leslie Root, who now lives in Springfield and works in Lauzen’s office there. Had she stayed in Lake in the Hills, she would probably be my state representative now.

Lauzen has developed a fascinating tradition of raffling off decorated piggy banks. Some of his supporters make them in various costumes. I finally figured that when I saw a pig that looked like a motorcycle rider.

How delightful!

I don’t know if it is a take-off on the cows of Chicago or vice versa, but it’s a great idea.

And, I reconnected with Kay’s pork chops. I first found them at the DeKalb County Fair when I represented the northern tier of townships in DeKalb County in the 1970’s. The Waterman company still serves up really tasty pork chops.

All photos may be enlarged by clicking on them.

For more McHenry County Blog, click here.


Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *