Politics: October 2009 Archives

There's nothing like a Democrat scorned, The Hound always says. Take Lake County Democratic Party boss, state Sen. Terry Link of Waukegan. He's still in a snit over Sheriff Mark Curran jumping to the Republican Party.

So Link now has a candidate to fight fire with fire. He's tapped Waukegan criminal attorney Douglas Roberts to take on Curran, who once was a Waukegan criminal attorney and a Democrat. Says Link in today's Lake County News-Sun about Roberts' candidacy: "He's a real Democrat."

Like there's a litmus test for this in Lake County? A lot of Republicans running at the County Board level are actually Democrats in disguise, knowing they probably couldn't get elected in certain districts unless being a Republican. And, Curran, according to newsroom geezers, isn't the only Democrat who's jumped to the GOP side in past years.

Looks like Democrats' memories are as long as an elephant's. And, what happened to actual law enforcement types seeking the sheriff's job instead of lawyers? Maybe it's tough to make a living as a lawyer in a recession, eh?

Stay tuned. Candidate filing for countywide and state offices begins Monday in Waukegan and Springfield. The primaries are in February 2010 and the general election in November, which is when the real fun begins.

Those Democratic lawmakers in Springfield sure have some nerve. After rejecting the chance for voters to boot former Gov. Rod Blagojevich to the curb last year, they now vote to put a gubernatorial recall measure on next year's ballot. And, like most of their backbones, this offering for voters surely is weak.

State Sens. Terry Link, D-Waukegan, who also doubles as Lake County Democratic chairman and is an announced candidate for lieutenant governor, and Michael Bond, D-Grayslake, decided to join the rest of their colleagues this time around and let us nobodies vote to get rid of a sitting governor. Except, if voters approve it, the law specifies that 30 members of the General Assembly must support the recall measure and then supporters would have to get at least 15 percent of the total votes cast in the previous gubernatorial election.

And the kicker: It's only governor we can try to recall. Not, for instance state senators. Like most of what has been accomplished in Springfield this year, this is a nothing bill. Voters wold be wise to reject this bone tossed to us and make sure the candidates we elect next year won't be afraid to put the people's business before their political backsides.