The Chicago Way

Politics in Illinois are always interesting. Voting irregularities are the norm not the exception. For the most part, the problems can be linked to the Democratic Party Machine. The Machine is so powerful the scandals, bribes, convictions, and illegal activities are overlooked by the media and, generally, the public. That’s the Chicago Way.

The debacle of the current campaign for US Senate, however, is the fault of a Republican Party in Illinois that is in disarray. The scandals of former governor, George Ryan, are behind the failure of the Illinois Republican Party to win many statewide offices in the last election. In fact, there is only one, Judy Barr Topinka. Topinka is also the current leader of the Illinois Republican Party. Topinka is also part of the problem.

When US Senator, Peter Fitzgerald, decided not to seek re-election, the Republicans were left with a major fight to retain the seat and help to maintain a Republican controlled Senate. After a hard-fought campaign with a group of virtual unknowns, Jack Ryan, an investment banker turned teacher, emerged as the likely successor to Fitzgerald. All the Democrats had was a very liberal State Senator named Barrack Obama. It would have been an interesting campaign with Ryan the eventual winner. That, of course, did not sit well with the liberal media and the Democrats.

Unfortunately, the liberal media, led by the Chicago Tribune, and Democratic operatives did not want a campaign. They wanted dirt, any kind of dirt.

Ryan was once married to actress Jeri Ryan. Their divorce was bitter and contentious, especially in child custody matters. The divorce records were sealed. Sealed records were just the kind of fodder that the liberals were looking for. If they are sealed, there must be some truth to the rumors. The liberal media sued to open the records and a liberal, activist judge in California agreed to open all the records.

The revelation of allegations of a sexual nature eventually led to Ryan's quitting the race much to the delight of the liberal and the Democrats.

To make matters worse, the Illinois Republican Party fell further into disarray after Ryan’s departure. It took the Republicans six weeks to find a replacement. A replacement guaranteed to make the race interesting, but a replacement guaranteed to lose. Why?

The Republican Party did not plan to financially support any candidate. They needed a candidate who could self-finance a campaign. The remaining candidates from the primary were interested, but could not self-finance. Da Coach, Mike Ditka, was interested until he met Judy Barr Topinka and the Gang That Couldn’t Shoot Straight. In the end the Illinois Republican Party selected, Alan Keyes, a Maryland resident to be the sacrificial lamb.

Keyes, descried as an ultra conservative, had run two unsuccessful presidential campaigns and a failed Senate campaign in his home state of Maryland.

Keyes is not a bad candidate. He speaks his mind and points out problems with his opponent, Barack Obama. There is, however, one problem with Obama that Keyes has not mentioned. If you listen to Obama speak, if you read his positions, if you look at his record, you simply see a black John Kerry. Obama recites the DNC and Kerry campaign line. It is unlikely that he has an original thought in the campaign. He, if elected, will be a liberal, obstructionist much like Dick Durbin and Tom Daschle.

Keyes has not received any assistance from the Illinois Republic Party. Judy Barr Topinka will not talk with him. She ignored and avoided him at the RNC and former Republican governors do not endorse him. Former Governor, Jim Thompson, said he would vote for Obama. It makes you wonder how he was selected. I know. Keyes is the only one who would take the job.

The Illinois Republican Party has lost its way. It is losing any of its remaining power and integrity because of this campaign. It is unlikely that a Illinois Republican Party will be able to endorse and elect anyone for statewide or Federal office for a decade or more. That is how bad it is in Illinois.

Then again, That’s the Chicago Way.