Today's big local story is that the Lake County Republicans have succeeded in challenging the nomination petitions of the four slated candidates that Terry Link and the Lake County Dems put up against a number of incumbent Republican County Board members, including County Board Chairman Suzi Schmidt.
The races affected are: 3rd District (Mark Nielsen challenging incumbent County Board President Suzi Schmidt); 5th District (Steve Pearson challenging Bonnie Thompson Carter); 10th District Sari Hurtig challenging Diana O'Kelly); and 20th District (Davita Siegel challenging David Stolman). More background here. Dem operative "Sneaky" Pete Couvall attended the hearings and looked pretty P.O.'d. Sorry, Charlie.
The challenge to State Representative Sandy Cole's opponent, Terry Hall, is in the process of motion practice, so that decisions will probably be delayed for some time. The GOP objection to State Representative Mark Beaubien's opponent will likely not be decided for some time because that is being heard by the State Board of Elections, as his district straddles two counties, Lake and McHenry. On the Dem side, the Dem's objections to challengers Keith Gray (running against Terry Link) and Dan Sugrue also are being heard by the SBE (those districts include Lake and parts of Cook Counties).
The GOP victory against all four of the county board Dem hopefuls gives the local GOP a much-needed shot in the arm, after months of dealing with Obama-mania. That, plus the hope that they will be successful in the as-yet undecided challenges, and the Dems' various troubles (Link's petition scandal, Blago's impending indictment, anyone?), gives the Lake GOP hope to carry on the battle, for now.
The Dems, of course, will claim that their defeats today are simply a political hatchet job. But TA hears that the decision of the panel was well-articulated, and if the Dems really feel they got railroaded, they can always put their money where their large mouths are, and appeal to the circuit court. They are also in a poor position to claim that the Republicans are unfairly beating up on their slated candidates, considering the Dems filed challenges of their own (including a challenge to the poor Green guy in the 10th CD).
FRIDAY UPDATE: The Pioneer Press filed this story on the GOP victory. Interestingly, it quotes Sneaky Pete and identifies him as the Dem's First Vice-Chairman. Is this a mistake or did the Dems reappoint him after reportedly booting him only a few weeks ago? TA wonders, if Pioneer Press got it wrong and Couvall is out, what's he doing covering the hearings for the Dems and talking to the press? I had surely believed that they had jettisoned Couvall so that they did not risk the chance that their sitting vice-chairman would be the subject of some anticipated election fraud indictments...
BACK TO THE BIG PICTURE: Israel's UN Ambassador calls former President Jimmy Carter a bigot. Yes, the Dems really know how to increase our standing in the world, don't they?
Also, check out this great post from Little Green Footballs on Reverend Wright's idiotic attempt to defend himself for his words that he claims have been twisted for political purposes. He then goes on to basically say that he thinks the only reason Barack Obama disavowed his comments is simply because politics demanded that he do so... not because he really means it. Read the whole thing, then tell me if you think Obama is going to get elected.
SATURDAY UPDATE: Check out this video snippet of Wright's interview by Bill Moyers. It illustrates pretty well the hypocrisy that is evident in both Obama and Wright, given that Wright basically comes out and says he's not insulted that Obama cut him loose (sort of) because Obama was just saying that because he had to as a politician. Swell. Just the kind of "say whatever you need to win" guy I want for my president. h/t: Backyard Conservative
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8 comments:
Great job TA. Where can we get faster better information on what is happening in Lake County politics. This is a real coup for the Republicans in Lake. Better a win for the residents. Isn't it a felon to submit false affidavits in an election challenge? This kind of behavior is an extension of the petition fraud and disregard for the law. It will catch up to them.
You know, Anon 8:08, I hadn't thought of that. I understand that some of the statements that Nancy Shepardson, who ran against State Rep. Ed Sullivan, Jr., and is now leading the so-called Eight District Democrats and Independents (EDDI), made were VERY questionable (more on this later)... I wonder if this is another investigation to be teed up for State's Attorney Mike Waller...
I saw a bit of the promo for tonight's interview with that wacko "Reverend Wright". That it continues to keep the story alive can only hurt our Junior Senator. Dressed in a business suit and using a very moderated voice, he almost sounds normal. Notice I've said, almost. When he goes into his song and dance about this whole thing being just political you want to throw something at the TV screen. I think that his babbling just keeps this whole ugly mess in the front lines of the media. Way to go, Mr. Wright. If you think this helps your buddy, think again.
And in other news, Seals bestest, leftest buddy, Al Franken, is in tax trouble.
http://www.startribune.com/politics/national/senate/18160744.html
TA, I am a Lake County Democrat. And I'm fed up.
Pete Couvall is still alive and well and running the day to day operations of the Democratic Party in Lake County. He is still a Vice-Chairman. Don't let that little smoke screen at the last Lake County Democratic Convention, run with an iron fist and ramming votes down our throats, fool you.
He was in the middle of the mess over Link's forged signatures on his petitions. He is again in the middle with the short cuts to try to nominate the four candidates for the County Board. Rules don't apply to Pete Couvall. That's why Link's D2 showed payments to Couvall for what turned out to be "walking around money" for the primary campaign. He sits in the Democrat offices each day and smokes inside the building on the sneak, even though Terry Link enacted that bill that bars that behavior. He is Pete Couvall. Rules don't apply to him.
Makes you wonder when do-gooders Gash, Garrett and Sheperdson will finally stand up and demand that Couvall get booted out. They are the ones who built the party in Lake County, not Link and Couvall. Link has merely benefited from their actions independent of him.
Make you wonder when elected officials Garrett, May, Ryg, Washington and Bond will stand up finally and demand that he get booted out. Makes you wonder why a free thinker like Keller still tolerates him.
Link and Couvell have been joined at the hip forever. Only radical surgery can pry them apart.
By keeping Couvall around, the so-called "do gooders" such as Garrett, Gash and Shepherson only dirty themselves up by tolerating his presence and his behavior.
Unless they too are birds of a feather who flock together.
Time for them to stand up and take over the party before it gets flattened by a Lake County GOP Party that has been busy reinvigorating itself.
Anon 3:29- wow, I think you pretty much said it all. About the only thing I would take issue with is Link's not deserving credit for taking the Lake Dems where they are--I think Link and Couvall deserve much of the "credit", as tainted as it is, with their thug-like tactics.
Link made Bond, for example (largely by shamelessly taking advantage of an old lady's wounded pride), it wasn't Garrett, LBG, Ryg or Nancy, or the others. Link's behind Kyle, obviously, as well. The "do-gooders" are behind Seals but not all that much else, except for drumming up a lot of grass roots noise looking for an outlet. Clearly, they couldn't wrest control from Link at the convention, not that they tried. As far as I can tell, from the outside looking in, you stick your neck out against Link/Couvall, you get it chopped off, and only folks like Jones and Washington are willing to stand up to them. It clearly comes with a cost.
On the other side, I'm pleased that someone is noticing that the Lake GOP has finally woken up and is fighting back. Although, I'd have to say I wish you hadn't noticed for a few months more into this cycle; we were counting on sneaking up on you guys.
TA, you and I have had this same argument elsewhere about Senator Geo-Karis.
As a Geo-Karis insider, I can affirm that Link and Couvall pushed Geo-Karis pretty hard to get her to endorse Bond. But it was Senate President Emil Jones who closed that deal, not Link and Couvall. Jones went so far as to go to her house towards the end of the campaign.
While the Democrats courted her, the Republicans after the primary basically did not, (with the exceptions of several who recognized the folly of the behavior of their party).
Oh the stories I could tell about that campaign!
It seems that some rank and file democrats are displeased over the Link-Couvall rule in Lake County Democratic Party affairs. That one posting was pretty interesting.
Wonder how many stories THAT person can tell about Lake County Democrats?
Was that you, Lou? If so, you forgot to sign. Anyway, I don't disagree about Jones and Geo, but clearly Jones would be in the Link-Couvall camp, not the LBG camp, which was the point of my comment to Anon 3:29.
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