One his campaign blog, GOP State Rep. candidate Steve Reick makes his first comments on the Democrats’ slating of former McHenry County Democratic Central Committee Chairman John Bartman:
Game On
Last weekend, McHenry County Democrats came out from behind closed doors to announce that they’d unanimously selected John Bartman to run as the party’s candidate for Illinois’ 63rd House district, replacing Jack Franks on the November ballot.
So much for openness, transparency and letting the voters decide.
Bartman’s appointment adds yet another chapter to the sordid tale of intrigue that began when Mike Madigan and/or Jack Franks (probably both) enlisted Jeff Lichte, a reliable Democrat, to run in the Republican primary.
Their obvious intention was to get him on the ballot so they could block the Republicans from later slating a candidate, thus saving them from having to go through the charade of pretending they were opening up the appointment process to anyone interested in running for the job.
Instead, they could have simply announced in April that they had their guy, a protégé of Jack Franks who got a $45,000 per year patronage job at IDOT at Franks’ request, and who now works for an outfit that claims it was established to support, promote, and encourage fair contracting (translation: prevailing wage contracts). Bartman is a “monitor”for McHenry and Lake Counties.
John Bartman
OK, now that the Democrats have their candidate, it’s time to find out just what how independent he’ll be if he’s elected:
- Will he vote for Mike Madigan as Speaker of the House?
- Will he vote for Mike Madigan’s House Rules?
- Will he pledge to vote to term limit his party’s leadership?
- Will he disavow Mike Madigan’s lawsuit to get redistricting reform thrown off the November ballot?
When asked by the McHenry County Blog why he was running, Bartman said:
“I’m running to make Springfield work again. It’s an absolute travesty. I’m running to bring tax relief to the middle class of McHenry County.”
The travesty in Springfield is of his own party’s making.
The Steve Reick campaign headquarters sign is easy to spot.
I, along with the people of this District would like to know why it is that he thinks that another vote on Madigan’s side of the aisle will change that.
It’s time to start debating the issues.
Game on.
= = = = =
This afternoon from 4-7 Reick will open his campaign headquarters just north of the Red Mill Inn across from the Dorr Township Hall and down the street from Walmart in Woodstock.
He’s doing the cooking.
So what is a “monitor”, here is what
the link provided sends us to for info.
Illinois Field Supervisors/Monitors (FFC)
“The III FFC is a labor-management organization,
funded solely through participating contractors,
established to support, promote, and encourage
Fair contracting. We provide a “level playing field”
In the public arena for both contractors and workers.
The III FFC has assembled a team of Compliance
Monitors to monitor public works construction projects
in Indiana, Illinois and Iowa. ”
Here is the part I find interesting
“Labor-management organization, FUNDED SOLELY by PARTICIPATING CONTRACTORS”‘
This is a group that KEEPS a lot of
Smaller POSSIBLE contractors OUT
Of the bidding by giving the work to
PREFFERED contractors.
On the surface it looks like another TYPE
of patronage job.
So will Bartman continue the “Monitor” job,
Farming the 1000 acres & do the state rep
Job IF ELECTED.
Hope people will stay aware of this possibility
& keep an EYE on Bartman !
If Bartman plans on receiving money from the Democratic Party of Illinois or any of the PACs they control (Trial Lawyers, AFL-CIO, AFSCME, etc) then the answers to those questions will be;
Without hesitation
There is no doubt I will
There are already term limits, and they’re called elections (right out of Madigan’s playbook)
Disavow?! How would I ever get re-elected if the Dems don’t control the map?
End scene.
So when Cal Skinner lobbies for a candidate outside of the elecfion process, that’s ok.
When Democrats do, it’s a closed process.
Lol What’s the word? Hypo-
Also the “issues,” you want to debate are great! That’s total primary fodder!
It will pull really well in the general just how it always has!
Not.
Bartman has no chance, Walkup has no chance!
Moderate, your comments are very disingenuous.
What the Dems did was not just lobby for candidates. YOU CHOSE candidates in a secret meeting behind closed doors, and without voter input.
Then you want to tell us that you represent full transparency
The only thing that is transparent is that what you say is not true.
We see though your baloney
John,
Tonya Franklin didn’t run for the primary, then Cal knighted her and demanded she be on the ballot for a choice.
And that’s transparent?
You’re taking the piss, mate.
The GOP Central Committee meeting at which Tonya Franklin could have slated was held was open to the public.
She decided to run when she found out that the Republican Party had not found a candidate to run in the primary.
Moderate,
Lobbying/=/slating a candidate that did not go through the political process.
Don’t even act like they’re close to being the same.
The McHenry Co Dems had until tomorrow, July 16th, to accept applications and to hear applicants in an open and transparent fashion.
To think that was ever the case is a joke.
They always intended to slate Bartman and did so the very next day after Franks filed his paperwork.
Lobbying, or more appropriately advocating, for a candidate on a blog is totally transparent and has literally no real consequences on the voters.
Slating a candidate before the statutorily allotted time and without hearing applicants during open meetings is not transparent and has real consequences on the voters.
Those are real questions that need to be asked of a Dem candidate.
The Democrats vote for their own Leader and the Republicans vote for their Leader.
Currently the Dems have control of the House and thusly make the vote for Speaker.
Madigan has received that title for 31 years.
Because he his Speaker and the Dems have majority, they set the House Rules, not the Republicans.
Because he has held the position of Speaker for 31 years (see also Leader Currie and Leader Lang), the question about party leadership and term limits is pretty self explanatory.
As both Speaker and Chairman of the DPI, Madigan has controlled the map-making process for the last, well 31 years.
Fair maps would take away his ability to draw safe majorities for his party members (read; those who will continue to vote for him as Speaker.)
You are right about these questions being pertinent in a Primary.
But there wasn’t a Dem Primary so, we don’t have answers to those questions.
Now that we’re into the General election and there is a newly appointed Dem candidate, these questions need to be answered to the satisfactory of the constituents of the 63rd Dist.
Cal,
It was not open to the public, you whined online that Franklim met in a back room and was interviewed by Tryon and they determined she was not fit to run based on lack of knowledge on key issues.
Hippo- what?
http://mchenrycountyblog.com/2012/05/13/the-mchenry-county-committee-who-interviewed-tonya-franking-for-state-rep-vacancy-against-jack-franks/
BOOOOOOOM!!!!
Great open house!!
im confused. Steve are you saying the Republicans could slate a Candidate for the spot left by Jack?
There is no lack of transparency- it was a party proces.
Pretty sure Pam Althoff wAs chosen the same way all those years ago.
Stop whining and start campaigning to convince people you are good for the job instead of complaining about the FORMER candidate
Steve Reick was JUST STATING FACTS in evidence
On his campaign blog.
Somebody twisted Steve’s words & called it “whining”.
Sometimes people should leave things alone, because
It just sounds like BACKPEDALING & diversion.
Tonya wanted to run after GOP did nothing.
And then they didn’t even let her run anyway.
And that was 4 years ago.
Look for another smoking gun.
Bartman and Jack are both shining examples of patronage politics from the Dem machine.
Their connection with Blagojevich is also worthy of being shared regularly.
The connection with the Madigan, and Chicago dem machines makes voters uncomfortable.
Even used it to turn a number of D voters.
Can’t hide it, they are both running now.
Now is the time to hold them accountable and make it an issue for this election.
Pour in the coals, and don’t let up.
If there ever was a political season where voters are disgusted with career politicians who live off of patronage, this is the one.
Jacks letter to Blago is a fantastic example of a self inflicted wound.
Getting some great traction with Bernie supporters too.
John Bartman is an employee of the Illinois Indiana Iowa Foundation for Fair Contracting.
IIIFFC is an IUOE Local 150 affiliated labor management organization.
IIIFFC notably monitors construction sites to determine if contractors are paying their employees prevailing wage on taxpayer funded construction projects
IUOE Local 150 = International Union of Operating Engineers.
Their traditional membership is heavy equipment operators.
However they have several locals in local government, universities, and school districts including McHenry County such as the Village of Algonquin.
IIIFFC and Local 150 were very upset with the Turnaround Agenda put out by the Governor Bruce Rauner administration, in particular, the proposal to allow exceptions of the laws that have been enacted forcing local governments to pay prevailing wage in various situations.
IIIFFC and Local 150 were upset when the McHenry County Board voted in 2015 to support the Turnaround Agenda.
That animosity led to IUOE questioning whether McHenry County Board members were working 1,000 hours a year (20 hours a week) to qualify for the IMRF pension fund in which 20 of the 24 board members participated.
The McHenry County Board voted in 1997 to create the 1,000 hour minimum; prior to that it was 600 hours.
There is a strong IOUE presence in McHenry County.
If elected as 63rd District State Representative, the unions would retain a union supporting State Representative, and the Democrats would retain the 63rd District.
That is significant as the Democrats currently hold a slim supermajority in the Illinois State House of Representatives.
Current 63rd District State Representative Jack Franks was able to maintain the appearance that although he was a Democrat, he was independent in many ways.
That will be much more difficult for John Bartman as he is currently employed by a union affiliated organization.
In fact, IIIFC offices are in the same complex in Countryside as IUOE Local 150 offices.
A key for Republican Governor Bruce Rauner to achieve some of his legislative goals is to break the Democrat supermajority in the Illinois State House so the Democrats cannot override his vetoes.
John Bartman would arguably be more apt to vote to override a Bruce Rauner veto than Jack Franks.
The 63rd District State Representative District is thus very important for Michael Madigan to retain.
It should be crystal clear, a vote for Bartman is a vote for Madigan is a vote to stonewall Rauner.
So if you voted Rauner, don’t vote Bartman.
It will be very important for Republicans to assist Steve Reick in this campaign in particular.
It has already been documented the Democrats recruited petition passers from outside the county to assist in passing gathering signatures to get fake Republican / real Democrat Jeffery Lichte on the primary ballot as a Republican State Representative candidate for 63rd State Representative District in the March 15, 2016 primary election, opposing Steve Reick.
The Democrats spent heavily in that Republican primary campaign.
Fake Republican / real Democrat Jeffery Lichte was defeated.
Real Republican Steve Reick prevailed.
The Democrats have a much more established get out the vote network than the Republicans, in no small part due to the fact that thousands of union locals which lean heavily Democrat meet on a regular basis, and most of those locals are directly or indirectly tied to government funding.
Now it is Democrat John Bartman v Republican Steve Reick for 63rd District State Representative representing western McHenry County in the November 8, 2016 general election.