Well, well, looky here. Remember during the fall 2008 campaign, when the GOP members of the Lake County Board found themselves under attack from a group of Dem challengers? The Dems all used basically the same claims in some very misleading (lying?) campaign material that had some obvious errors as to how taxes are assessed in Lake County, as we reported back in October. Moreover, the campaign mailers asserted that there were "sweetheart property tax cuts for political insiders which force all other taxpayers to pay more." You can see one of their false campaign mailers here.
Well, the Dems might have just thought this was acceptable "smear" politics, as seems to be business as usual down in Chicago. But, thankfully, Lake County is not Chicago (not yet) and the Lake County Board members took this allegation seriously, and had it investigated.
Oh, my, say the Dems! Who would have ever thought that someone would actually make us back up our campaign claims! No one is supposed to have to do that. We simply sling mud out there and see what sticks, without regard to the truth.
Well, not this time, folks. The County Board Chairman, Suzi Schmidt, asked Lake County State's Attorney Michael Waller to investigate. According to Waller:
"We asked those County Board members to provide us with facts and detailed information to corroborate their allegations," Waller wrote. "Christopher Kennedy, an attorney representing the four County Board candidates we contacted, responded on their behalf. He advised us that the four candidates we contacted had no factual information or evidence to substantiate their allegations."
As noted in an article in the News-Sun this morning, the candidates whose literature included those claims were Davita Siegel of Buffalo Grove, Peter Grant of Antioch, Melinda Bush of Grayslake and Terry Wilke of Round Lake Beach.
Of the four Dem candidates, two won: Bush beat GOP incumbent Larry Leafblad of Highland Lake, and Wilke beat GOP incumbent Bob Powers of Round Lake Beach.
Bush and Wilke should immediately resign. You can't be elected on a lie and expect to have the respect and trust of the people you govern. Of course, that's not going to happen. Even Round Lake Mayor Bill Gentes didn't drop out of the 26th District State Senate race when he was caught dead to rights in a lie over his employment situation. Luckily, in that race, the right candidate, Dan Duffy, won.
For the County Board, alas, it looks like we're stuck with a couple of liars.
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26 comments:
Just a note TA--
Duffy beat Gentes in the 26th Senate district - not the 30th.
Senator Bond designed and funded those mailers. He should be held acountable.
TA, I beleive it you meant fall 2008 campaign.
Thanks everyone for catching those slips. That's what you get for blogging while getting the kids ready for school and preparing for an 8:30 meeting.
I guess that means Curran needs to resign as he ran as a Democrat but now is a Republican, but his values are liberal to say the least. Once just need look at his headlines of late.
I think the four new Democrats should step down and a special election take place.
They knowingly and willingly particpating in a conspiracy to lead the voters of Lake County to believe that "sweetheart deals" were being provided to "political insiders".
When they asked to provide information to substantiate their allegations, their attorney stated they could provide "no factual information or evidence to substantiate their allegations".
I checked out Diane Hewitt's D2s and Senator Michael Bond was personally responsible for over 50%of her contributions. Unions and Senator Garrett made up the rest.
Another major contributor to the group of decievers is an organization called Lake County Forward...they contributed $12,000 in total to the scandalous crew including Pat Carey, Melinda Bush, Terry Wilke, Peter Grant, Davita Seigel, Diane Hewitt and Rothiemer from Barrington.
Who donates to Lake County Forward? Fran Beidler - major Dem out of Lake Forest, Elizabeth Dietel of Grayslake, Stuart Feen out of Grayslake and a number of smaller ($200 to $400) donors out of Grayslake. I wonder if this is part of the Michael Bond crew or the George Ranney crew.
One thing is for sure - transparency is not a priority and neither is ethics...
Senator Michael Bond- looking all of 14-was pictured in that palestinian/commie love note also known as the tenth dems newsletter.
As for Duffy he needs to begin a putsch/regime change action now against Christine Radogno, whose daughter btw is Mark's scheduler. Senator Radogno has been mia like a fat kid in the vegetable section of a grocery store thus far in rebuilding our party and communications infrastructure. She, McKenna, this tool Tom Cross and the rest of the team are having ZERO impact against the dems right now at one of their weaker moments.
FOKLAES
Sheriff Curran isn't liberal. He's pro-gun rights, anti-illegal alien, and pro-life.
Who should oppose St. Sen. Bond, in 2010? I hope that St. Rep. Osmond will run. If she runs, Judy Martini and Randy Whitmore should run for Osmond's seat. Either of them would be a very good legislator.
Phil Collins
FOKLAES,
With all due respect, we need to stay focused on what's happening in our backyard. If we do that - the rest will correct itself.
You've got to check out the D2s of the "new Bond" Democrats that ran in 2008. I agree with Anon 3:24. These folks knowingly acted in a conspiratorial fashion to deceive the voters of Lake County by accusing Lake County Government of providing sweetheart deals to political insiders.
We should get a group of folks to attend the next County Board meeting and demonstrate. Hold them accountable, etc.
Hey TA, can you tell us when the next County Board meeting is and FOKLAES can you put together a group of 10 and I'll do the same.
According to the County Board website, the Board meets regularly at 9 a.m., the second Tuesday of every month. Board meetings can be seen live on LCTV. Given that the events I wrote about took place yesterday and that was the second Tuesday, that adds up.
However, I'm not sure if the whole Board ever has additional meetings at other times. If so, they'd have to post public notice so I would check the website.
With all due respect, county board is small fish. Our state and national leaders are being given an excellent opportunity now to slam the democrats and lead our party into the promised land here in Illinois and yet what do we have? Have you read ANYWHERE where a conservative agenda is to the crap that's spewing out of springfield? Can anyones neighbor name 2 Illinois Republicans?
Tom Cross isn't getting it done, and neither has Andy McKenna or this woman Radogno who was brought in. They are kow-towing to the democrats when they should be blasting away like most opposition parties in democracies do.
Mark Kirk of course is nowhere to be seen, on the sidelines saving trees the way most other moderate Republicans did before they just couldn't hang on anymore. I don't see Mark becoming a Senator because there he's going to have to actually be heard and make some noise on real issues. Not something he seems to want to do.
FOKLAES
Foklaes, I guess you are clueless about what Mark Kirk says AND does every single day. His voice has been loud and clear on the failings of the Stimulus package, he is loud and clear on gangs out here, on funds FOR O'Hare's expansion, on education, on everything we all care about. So you're not a Kirk fan. Get over it and stop whining. Mr. Kirk will never be a Conservative, he will never be a right winger. If you can't see and can't understand all that he brings to the district and to the nation I'd suggest you have a chat with the catwoman or the nitwits over at 10th Dems where perhaps you'll have your views heard. Mark Kirk is a leader. Period. End of the story.
It's nice to know that y'all don't care that Linda Pederson gets a farming exemption to her huge estate even though there is less than half the tillable land on her property than on 2 others in Antioch which were denied the same exemption. It's nice to know that you , who claim to be a lawyer no less, are willing to accept the GOP assessor in Antioch who somehow,"mistakenly" gave her own two properties a homestead exemption. Lake county GOP yahoo's want fiscal responsibility right up until but no further than when the $ starts to line their pockets. Suzi's grandstanding for her own political agenda on County time will come back to haunt her. Just wait till the AG starts looking into Lake Villa deals!
Just so you know, the message of the Democratic Lake County Board candidates that convinced voters that it was time for a change was NOT that sweetheart deals were being made. The voters assumed that. The message that carried was that the county board refused to cap property tax increases at 7%. State law provided a window of time to county boards throughout the state to vote on the cap and many did. But Suzi wouldn't even allow full debate on the issue. And now she wants millions of dollars for a new forest preserve office and will not support ethics reforms that will prevent high-paying jobs going to family members as in the case of the Clerk of the Circuit Courts. So feel free to come to the county board meetings and continue to raise this issue. The Lake County Democratic Party will be eternally grateful! And, typically under her leadership for the past 4 years, not much will get done that will help the people of Lake County!
Yes, yes! Osmond should run against Bond. Or how about Jim Mitchell? Both would be sure winners!
Anon 12:15: Bill Gentes, is that you again? Someone from Round Lake simply insists on making really stupid comments.
Your point seems to be that it's OK to blatantly lie and make unsubtantiated representations because the issue didn't end up mattering that much, according to you? Hello?
You Dems really need to listen to yourselves sometimes.
"It's nice to know that y'all don't care that Linda Pederson gets a farming exemption to her huge estate even though there is less than half the tillable land on her property than on 2 others in Antioch which were denied the same exemption. It's nice to know that you , who claim to be a lawyer no less, are willing to accept the GOP assessor in Antioch who somehow,"mistakenly" gave her own two properties a homestead exemption. Lake county GOP yahoo's want fiscal responsibility right up until but no further than when the $ starts to line their pockets. Suzi's grandstanding for her own political agenda on County time will come back to haunt her. Just wait till the AG starts looking into Lake Villa deals!"
Oh Dear! The Attorney General of the State of Illinois is going to look into allegations of government corruption! That will be a first for her! Her position on dead people signing petitions to run for office? Silence!
Gee willikers there Mr. Anon! Why then didn't the lawyer for the four Democratic County Board Candidate Liars bring all these so-called "facts" up instead of stating that there were no facts to support what you just brought up? And he is a pretty sharp lawyer!
I saw that pathetic lie filled flyer with the aerial photograph of the Pederson property. The sharp lawyer for the liar who admitted that there were NO FACTS to support the allegations you just repeated. That crow must be a hard bitter pill to swallow by the four Democratic Liars, two of whom won their elections.
Democrats who lie and fib during elections? Emulating Blagojevich perhaps? Or emulating Obama who is running away from his campaign promises faster than a steroid injected Olympian sprinter? Or emulating Gentes?
And now that we know that two of the four liars now proudly sit on the County Board, are we supposed to now believe what comes out of their mouths at meetings? Will they stand up and tearfully apologize and offer to resign? Did they admit during the campaign that there were no facts to support their charges? Actually no! They claimed the charges to be true and accurate!
Liars!
Will they now hit the talk show circuit like our ex-governor Liar and claim that every fib they said has to be but into its proper context?
The difference between public servants vs. self-serving liars.
I mean, oh dear! How much schooling do you need to figure out that difference?
Louis G. Atsaves
So..... A double homestead exemption and a farm exemption denied to others is NOT a sweetheart deal? Waller INVESTIGATED these charges? Por favor, Amigo! Waller made 3 phone calls over a 2 day period then fired off his memo to Suzi. He treated this 'investigation' with just a slightly more cavalier attitude than he did with all the sex offenders he's cut deals with. The wolf investigating the henhouse break-in! But that's okay. Keep working this up into a real froth, folks. In fact, why not demand subpeonas of all assessments for all Lake County Board members and their contributors? Suzi will jump at that --- right out the window!
And no, Gentes is out representing the people. You really aren't much of a lawyer, are you?
Gentes might be out representing the people now, but not for long after the Round Lake folks boot him for being another lying Democrat.
Since you're hung up on Michael Waller and apparently have no idea how a prosecutor's office works, maybe you're actually Michael Jacobs. He didn't have a clue either.
""We asked those County Board members to provide us with facts and detailed information to corroborate their allegations," Waller wrote. "Christopher Kennedy, an attorney representing the four County Board candidates we contacted, responded on their behalf. He advised us that the four candidates we contacted had no factual information or evidence to substantiate their allegations."
No factual information. Says it all.
They lied.
Louis G. Atsaves
Anon, this is simply not worth debating anymore. Name me one moderate Republican still in the U.S. Senate that has been elected in the last decade.
There hasn't been one and that's in large part because people like Mark simply haven't stood up to offer anything more than gangs and a few bucks for fort sheridan schools. It's the agenda of a state senator whose afraid to be in the national spotlight.
I also trust Andy McKenna's ability to win a statewide election against the Obama White House about as much as I trust Mark Prior's elbow.
FOKLAES
http://www.sj-r.com/opinions/x494339665/Andy-McKenna-Demise-of-Republican-Party-is-greatly-exaggerated
It's not about names and faces and political fusillades, it's about ideas. Andy doesn't get it and until he does were not going back to power.
foklaes - get off the blogs amigo and read some newspapers. Your rants re: Cross, Radogno, McKenna are boring - booooring. Illinois newspapers are accessible via internet --- not just the liberal press you northshore dudes get. Since you have nothing affirmative to say about any republican leader, maybe you're just a nasty-nitpicker. I hope you run for office and get your solid 25% vote.
The News Sun this morning gave Suzie Schmidt a "laurel" for exposing the fraud the Democrats perpetrated on property tax issues this last election.
According to the News Sun, Democrats on the County Board COMPLAINED that this fraud was exposed and brought up at the last board meeting.
The News Sun did not report that any of them apologized to the voting public for their fraudulent actions.
Liars still!
Louis G. Atsaves
Lou,
Four of the six county board candidates now sit on the board. The literature sent out about the sweetheart deals was sent out by ALL the Dem candidates that received money from Lake County Forward, including Rothheimer of Barrington, Davita Siegel of Buffalo Grove, and the four new members of the County Board Melinda Bush, Terry Wilke, Diane Hewitt and Pat Carey.
As to Linda Pedersen's property, the mail piece accusing Linda of the farmstead exemption actually showed the farmed property.
If it is being farmed (as depicted in the mail piece) the property is allowed the exemption.
Keep trying to lie - that's the Dems MO - keep lying and someone is sure to believe it. But guess what - alot of us do research on your Democrat lies and find the truth.
Try another set of lies....see who bites...
Oh, as for the 7% cap - check the facts...again another lie...
Keep trying...in fact, I suggest you bring Todd Stroger, Rod (now that he's got more time), Emil Jones (now that he's retired) and of course the infamous Senator Terry Link and his mini me Senator Michael Bond...they're real good at deceiving the public while lining their pockets!
Can someone explain to my why JJJ would invite Rep. Kirk to his fundraiser? (I'm not sure how to paste the link, so forgive me if you need to copy and paste)
http://newsblogs.chicagotribune.com/clout_st/2009/02/rep-jesse-jackson-jr-looks-for-campaign-cash-at-roast.html
Jackson has invited an A-list of pols to the event, including Democratic U.S. Sens. Dick Durbin and Roland Burris, who eventually got the seat Jackson was coveting, Republican U.S. Rep. Mark Kirk, and Mayor Richard Daley, who's had a long-running feud with Jackson despite last year's hugfest between the two at the Democratic National Convention.
For those of you that rip on me, it is fair to ask. I want the best for the party which is why I and many others like me, want change.
1. Why it's been 20 years since this state was won by a gop presidential contender.
2. Where our leadership is. There are 1700 mentions of the senate democratic leader, cullerton but only 400 of the republican leader in google news the last few weeks.
3. our area voted democrat 61 percent for obama. Not good considering 10 years ago porter had no challenger here.
4. The democrats did not win in 2006 and 2008 because they listened to their establishment of gephardts, daschles and clintons that had failed like our leadership. They won because they QUESTIONED it. Thus the rise of thugs like catwoman, kos, dean and obama.
5. Around the country areas like ours are royal blue now, even Rich Miller, TA's guy and a neutral political insider has criticized mckenna.
FOKLAES
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