Senator Roland Burris??

The United States Senate will soon have another member, Roland Burris. Now that Illinois Secretary of State Jessie White has sent a letter with his signature that states the papers from the Governor appointing Roland Burris are from the Governor of Illinois. I guess that is Jessie White’s way of getting around certifying the papers from the Governor appointing Roland Burris. Even our current U. S. Senator Dick Durbin has trouble keeping this all straight, since his statements keep changing day to day. This confusion and national embarrassment is courtesy of the Democratic Party of Illinois.

I think there might be a new breeze in the air, one that I hope blows away the corruption, double talk and pay to play politics from the Land of Lincoln.

Where is Bean?

National and local leaders from both parties have come out against the corruption in Illinois government. I have not read or heard anything from Congresswoman Melissa Bean, maybe she is unaware of what is happening? Does she have an opinion on the appointment of Roland Burris to the U.S. Senate?

The national economy is in trouble, what is Bean doing? Her press releases do not mention the economy or the unemployment, maybe she is unaware of what is happening?

Must we wait until she is up for reelection before Congresswoman Bean takes some action on what the people of the 8th District are concerned about?

Kirk in 2010

Roland Burris looks like he will be the next Senator from the State of Illinois. The Democratic Party's firm NO to any appointment from the Governor has shown too many cracks, from the first day the appointment was made. However now that the Senate confirmation is close, the Dems are already looking at 2010. Rumors have it that Burris should only be a place holder for a better Dem. It seems the Dems are afraid of Republican Congressman Mark Kirk being the candidate to beat in 2010. That may have been one of the reasons the Democratically controlled State Legislature failed to set a date for a special election.

Mark Kirk could be a good person to be at the top of ILL. GOP ticket for 2010. The Republicans now need to get other good candidates for the right type of change this state needs.

Fix Cook County First

New York activist Al Sharpton is coming to Lake County with his National Action Network. The reason given for coming to Lake County is the number of shootings of Blacks in Waukegan and North Chicago by police.

This is just one more example of the Democratic Party wanting to change Lake County from mostly Republican to Democratic control. Maybe they don't like that the Lake County County Board has been running a balanced budget, without any scandal. That just makes their neighbor to the south look bad. The population of Cook County is dropping, while Lake and other counties are still on the upswing. That just weakens the power base of Cook County, not a good thing for the Democrats. So instead of fixing their own house, it makes more sense to just take over your neighbor's house.

If the Democratic Party of IL. is such a great thing to belong to, why are they trying to get rid of the Governor they helped to elect and why would the Lake County Sheriff switch to the Republican Party? Maybe Al Sharpton should work on Cook County before coming to a county that does work for the people.

Real Change for Illinois

Lake County Sheriff Mark Curran held a press conference at the Lake County Republican Headquarters to announce his switch from the Democrats to the Republicans.

Sheriff Curran stated several times that his switch was a “matter of conscience” and he said “My conscience will not allow me to stand by and be a member of the Democratic Party any longer.”

Curran said, “I’d hoped to fight for change within the Democratic Party, I’d hoped to bring the Democratic Party back to the ideals it once stood for. But as I stand here today, I do not believe that it is a possibility. I certainly do not believe that it is a possibility in the State of Illinois, and I certainly do not believe that there is any hope in the Democratic Party in this state or in (Lake ) County.”

The Democratic Party of Illinois is not heading the state in the right direction. This state does need change, but that change is to turn the state from a Democratic Party majority in the legislature and statewide office holders to Republican / Conservative values. Sheriff Mark Curran’s change is just a good start on that path.

The Governor vs The People

Rod closed the seven state parks after all. Closing state parks which can bring in tourist and other dollars to the State of Illinois.

Maybe Rod cared more about how much money his campaign fund could get from selling a U.S. Senate seat. It could be he was more concerned about closing that deal that would get him more campaign money in exchange for helping Children' s Memorial Hospital.

I think Rod needs time off from the duties of Governor for more important things, like staying out of prison.

What happens next?

While the country waits and watches for what President Elect Obama will say or do, we in Illinois have our game to watch. What will the Governor do next, what programs will he add to the red ink budget, what programs will he cut and of course who does he name as the next Senator to Congress.

Illinois Issues Magazine Blog Site has some of the latest news on the closings of state parks and historic sites. Apparently the parks will stay open and the historic sites will close. To read more check out their site http://illinoisissuesblog.blogspot.com

I really wonder if the new leadership in our State Senate will force our Governor into really working for the people of Illinois or will it be more of the same. Every year this state has sunk lower on the list of states for services provided for the people, but every year the Governor has some new program to help the people. Could it be that maybe we should check what the state budget can afford before adding any new programs? Should we fully fund programs that the state already has? Does the U.S. Attorney General have any surprises for our Governor in 2009?

For answers to these and other questions, stayed tuned.