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Fall / Election - 5767/2006
CHICAGO’S MOST RESPECTED JEWISH PUBLICATION
Judy or Rod?
Big Differences!
Detailed Analysis
Inside These Pages
• Morris J. Amitay says
“New York Times — Enough is Enough”
MWRD President
Terry O’Brien
• Complete In-depth Political Roundup,
Analysis and Endorsements
Who are these people
and should you be voting for them?
Stroger & Peraica
Battle to Wire
for County Board
Presidency
The New York Times – Enough is Enough
by Morrie Amitay
After 50 plus years of reading the New York Times, I just couldn’t take it anymore. “All the news that’s fit to print” gave me that final push when it published the details
of an effective secret surveillance program of terrorist financing. This, plus the
incredible anti-Israel bias in its reporting finally convinced me to dump “the Gray
Lady” for both emotional and political reasons. In recent months the Times has almost
become a caricature of itself in pushing an uncompromising far left agenda with its
selective reporting, disclosures of sensitive information which helps our enemies, and
its extreme editorial pages. A steady diet of the “blame America” inanities spewed
forth from the pens of Krugman, Herbert, Kristof and Dowd just became too much
to stomach. For too long now Times readers endured not only blatant bias, but an
unbelievable hatred expressed not only for the President, Vice President, and White
House staff, but for our own country. With their motto – “my country, always wrong”,
- it is reasonable to assume that despite any lip service about supporting our troops,
they are secretly cheering for the insurgents in Iraq so that their own misbegotten
views might be vindicated. With Bill Safire no longer on the editorial pages – and
columnist David Brooks a valiant but pale imitation, why would self-respecting
Americans subject themselves to these daily doses of ultra-liberal drivel? Not me.
The only question I ask myself is why didn’t I do it much sooner?
The answer might be that a 60 year habit is hard to kick. As a precocious reader
during WWII (ages 6-9 years old) I followed the war on the radio, but also by scanning
the Daily News, Tribune, Journal - American and PM. I would even take a peek at the
Communist Party’s “Daily Worker.” My ready access to most of these newspapers
(along with my favorite comic books) was provided by “Max the Bookie,” who
operated a kiosk around the corner from my father’s Army/Navy (clothing) store at
the corner of 82nd St. and First Ave. in Manhattan. In exchange for letting me borrow
and read anything I wanted (as long as it was returned in mint condition), I would take
his place in the kiosk standing on an empty soda case, making sales, giving change,
and telling everyone “Max will be right back”. (Much later I was told he was busy
running bets to a much bigger betting operation two blocks away). But I didn’t get
into the New York Times. It looked too big and foreboding and besides, it didn’t have
any “funnies”. But by the fifth grade or so I began to eschew the lurid headlines of
the tabloids for the Times. There was really a whole lot of information crammed into
its pages and, being a natural speed-reader I could get through most of it on a daily
basis – forget the Sunday edition. I credit this accumulation of so much useful and
useless knowledge to getting one of the highest possible scores on the Foreign Service
Entrance Exam some years later. This either says something about the Times or from
where the State Department takes its cues.
The New York Times followed me through high school, college, law school, grad
school, the Foreign Service, as an aide in the House and Senate, Director of AIPAC, and as a Washington lobbyist the past 25 years. During this time I, of course, relied on
numerous other sources to keep me up to date – particularly during the past decade with
the growth of the internet. But the Times was a staple. Up until the mid-nineties my own
political views were not that far removed from those of the Times. However, in recent
years as the Times has lurched increasingly leftward, I moved toward the center – and
on national security and Israel related issues – definitely to the right. The gap between
us increasingly widened. The editorial page and reporting from the Middle East created
doubt at first, then unease gradually leading to nausea – and finally, I began to retch. The
Times’ anti-Israel, blame American agenda is now so pronounced that this once respected
newspaper has become not only infuriating, but utterly predictable and boring. So who
needs the aggravation when better daily print media is available – like The Wall Street
Journal, or The New York Sun?
JEWISH CHICAGO
Jewish Chicago is a complimentary publication
Copyright 2006
that is usually published just prior to elections.
The opinions of our columnists and writers do not Publisher and Editor .................... Avy Meyers
necessarily reflect the opinions of Jewish Chicago. Graphic Artist .................... Marvin B. Simcha
email - [email protected] Phone 773- Columnists .............................Morrie J .Amitay
290-2677. Our website is at www.avyworld.com.
.......................Emanuel Winston
We invite you to visit www.ntnm.org. for all the Contributing Writers ....... Francois T. Fressier
latest on the North Town News Magazine hosted by
Afleck L. Arine, Simcha Magid
publisher, Avy Meyers.
Photography ..................................Sonny Hersh
But, as I stated at the beginning of my diatribe, the proverbial straw that broke this
camel’s back was the second time in seven months that the Times, with malice aforethought,
exposed classified information about programs designed to protect America from terrorist
attacks. This goes far beyond the sarcastic, supercilious style of its editorials, and the
slanted coverage of its reporters who report only what fits with their bosses’ biases. The
latest disclosure demonstrated a flagrant disregard for our safety in order to score political
points against an Administration the Times openly loathes. No matter that it aids those
whose goal is either to convert us or kill us. The Times, I’m afraid, just doesn’t get it – and
that’s why I no longer get the Times.
I am reminded of the old saw about why radios would never replace newspapers –
because you couldn’t wrap a herring in a radio! Well, as far as I am concerned that is
about the only proper use nowadays for the New York Times.
Morrie Amitay, a Washington attorney, is a former Executive Director of AIPAC and
founder of the pro-Israel Washington PAC (www.washingtonpac.com).
Elect
Terrence J. O’Brien
BALLOT #55
BALLOT #55
DEMOCRATIC CANDIDATE
METROPOLITAN WATER RECLAMATION DISTRICT
• O’Brien was elected to the Metropolitan Water Reclamation District of Greater Chicago in 1988 and has served
17 years on the Board of Commissioners and 9 of those years as President.
• O’Brien’s extensive knowledge, professionalism and integrity have allowed him to streamline many tasks and responsibilities of the District at the lowest possible cost to every household in Cook County.
• O’Brien, a taxpayer advocate, whose efforts brought a 1.1% reduction in your property tax bill for 2006, and maintained the AAA bond rating for the District.
• O’Brien continually pursues funding of the Deep Tunnel and Reservoir Plan, and spearheaded the successful introduction and passage of a storm water management program which gives the MWRDGC sole responsibility to manage storm water in Cook County
Vote Democratic, November 7th
www.terrencejobrienmwrd.com.
Jewish Chicago Election Analysis
by Avy Meyers
Tuesday November 7th is election day and this year you can actually vote early at a
number of locations through out the area. You don’t need to file for an absentee ballot. Just
walk in and vote. You can take Jewish Chicago into the voting booth with you
If for whatever reason you are not registered, register now. The location is different than
the early voting centers. In Chicago, call the Chicago Board of Elections at 312-269-7936
to find the location nearest you and join the ranks of registered voters.
Before I get started with the rundown, it is important for everyone to know the criteria
used in making endorsements.
Just being Jewish is not enough, not even close. If a Jewish candidate is pitted against a
non–Jewish candidate and all things are equal in terms of their ability to do the job, there
won’t necessarily be an endorsement.
By the same token, there are some non-Jews who have done an absolutely superb job
of taking care of both Jewish concerns and the community. They will most certainly be
endorsed and yes, even against Jewish opposition.
If a Jewish candidate is well qualified for the office but does not take care of real Jewish
concerns for his or her constituents, he/she will not be endorsed and maybe even blasted.
If there is no specific Jewish angle in a race, it may not be touched. There are regular
newspapers and various political experts in other media who can perform that function.
This is a Jewish newspaper and I focus on Jewish concerns.
The bottom line is that Jewish Chicago looks for candidates of quality for the community
as a whole who will take care of Jewish concerns as they arise. The primary Jewish
concerns are on a national level and concern Israel.
There are very serious local Jewish issues, but not every election. The recent actions
by Governor Blagojevich with the Governor’s Commission on Discrimination and Hate
Crimes and that of State Representative and Niles Township Democratic Committeeman
Lou Lang among others, show us that we always must be on guard and all too often, the
enemy is within. The Governors race analysis contains a detailed description of these
events.
I recently hosted a live one hour election preview show on CANTV-19, Sunday morning
October 22nd that featured County Board president challengers Todd Stroger (D) and
Tony Peraica (R), Sec. of State Jesse White, Metropolitan Water Reclamation District
President Terry O’Brien, Tom Dart, Democrat for Sheriff and County Commissioner
Larry Suffredin. The program was produced by Sonny Hersh and cohosted by Jim Nally
and can be watched in its entirety on the web. www.ntnm.org.
Congressional Races
M
o
s
t
knowledgeable
political observers
are conceding that
United States House
of Representatives
will switch to a
Democratic majority
this fall. It is usual
for the party of the
President to lose
strength in Congress
during
the
mid
presidential term.
The unpopularity
of the war in Irag
and failure of Bush’s
foreign policy also threatens the Republican majority in
the Senate.
Once upon a time, virtually all Jews were Democrats
and voted that way. The Democrats were the party of the
people and the Republicans, the party of business, and
especially big business.
The Republicans are still the party of big business, but
unfortunately the Democrats have joined them. Add to that
the liberals inherent dislike of Israel and consistent support
of the so called Palestinians (Jordan is the Palestinian
homeland) and the idea of voting a straight party ticket
should be the furthest thing from anyone’s mind.
I asked one of the most liberal members of congress if
they had ever voted for a Republican and the Congressman
looked at me like I was nuts saying “Of course I have.”
I asked a union leader the same question. He told me,
he was voting for Judy Baar Topinka because Blagojevich
chose to cater to the Black Muslims at the expense of the
Jews.
Whether you like Bush or not, and the polls say not, he
has consistently supported Israel and better than many
Jews. Its a very strange world when the most powerful
nations in the world meet and the only country standing
up for Israel other than the United States is Germany.
“Eisav Sonay es Yaakov” is still the answer to much of
our unpopularity and will be.
Don’t make the mistake of taking for granted that Israel
is so strong and so powerful that they can withstand any
attack. If G-d forbid Israel gets beaten once, that is going
to be all she wrote. The Arabs who outnumber us by
hundreds of millions of people don’t fight by the fancy
rules of today’s’ liberal society. If they get a chance to
wipe Israel off the face of the map, they won’t hesitate.
Dear Friends,
As Jewish Americans who live in Illinois, we wanted to let you
know about a friend of ours and yours, Illinois State Treasurer, Judy
Baar Topinka; who is a staunch supporter of the State of Israel, an
advocate for American Jewry and recipient of the Americanism
Award from the Anti Defamation League. As a voice of minority
communities across Illinois, Judy has implemented programs that
have assisted individuals to invest their money, open businesses and
purchase homes. She developed the Bright Start College Savings
Program, which helps parents and grandparents invest their dollars in
a tax-free savings account for their child’s education.
Judy is a strong fiscal conservative and a social moderate. Her
record reflects many “firsts.” She is the first woman in Illinois
history to be elected State Treasurer, the first woman to be reelected
to statewide office in Illinois, the first woman to serve on the Legislative Audit Commission and if elected, the first woman
Governor in Illinois. Before becoming a public servant, Judy was an award winning journalist who graduated from
Northwestern University’s Medill School of Journalism.
Judy has been a great friend of Israel. In 1952, her parents purchased State of Israel Bonds as a personal investment
and show of support for the young State. Forty years later, Judy and State Senator Jeff Schoenberg initiated and promoted
legislation to make it possible for the State of Illinois to invest state funds in foreign bonds. After this bill became state law,
Judy directed her office to purchase $10 million in State of Israel Bonds. Judy is quick to point out that this was one of the best
investments she ever made for the State of Illinois. Last month, Judy approved an additional $10 million purchase of Israel
Bonds for the State of Illinois and she purchased $25,000 as a personal investment.
Judy has visited Israel on numerous occasions over the years for both business and pleasure. In 2004, Judy was honored by
Jerusalem’s Bikur Cholim Hospital for her efforts in helping the hospital raise funds to expand its trauma ward. Bikur Cholim
is centrally located and is often the first facility called upon to treat victims of terrorist attacks. Judy was recently named the
Women’s Honorary Chair of the Heart of Gold Award, presented by the Midwest Chapter of the American Committee of the
Shaare Zedek Medical Center of Jerusalem. She was also the only State Constitutional Officer to speak at the Israel Solidarity
Rally at Federal plaza in Chicago this past July. Every time Judy has been asked to stand with Israel or support its interests, she
has responded swiftly and effectively. Most recently, at the request of the America Israel Chamber of Commerce, Judy wrote
to the El Al Airlines management and requested non-stop flights from Chicago to Tel Aviv. El Al Airlines has agreed, and will
begin this service later this month.
As many of you know, the Minister of Protocol for the Nation of Islam is a member of the Illinois Hate Crimes Commission. The Governor has refused to remove her even though five Jewish members of the commission resigned in protest. Judy has
stated publicly that if the Minister of Protocol does not voluntarily resign from the State’s Hate Crimes Commission, she would
not hesitate to remove the Minister when she is Governor. The Hate Crimes Commission has become the focus of ridicule
because the governor has not acted to correct his terrible mistake. He needs to act now and put this panel back to work. Judy Baar Topinka has shown a lifelong commitment to furthering the efforts and causes of the Jewish people, in Illinois and
in Israel. She has stated that during a Topinka Administration, Illinois would open a trade office in Israel. She has been a good
friend to our community. We think it is important for the Illinois Jewish community to recognize a true friend.
Paid for by Al Levin
Israel exists literally by the grace of G-d. We need to do our job in supporting the elected
men and women that support us. Don’t make the mistake of choosing your liberalism or
conservatism over your Judaism. We need to help ourselves because regardless of how
often we as Jews help others, all too often the favor is not returned.
Don’t lose sight of the truth. After the 67 war, the so called West Bank was offered back
to Jordan who were the previous owners and it was a status the so called Palestinians
never objected to. The Gaza strip was Egypt’s and like Jordan, they wanted no more part
of it.
Lebanon got along with Israel before the Christian majority was snuffed, suppressed and
muffled by the Syrians. You don’t hear the Arabs complaining about Syria, just us.
Ask the Assyrians about how wonderfully the Arab world has treated them. There are
tons of Assyrians in this region and they fled the Mideast due to Arab persecution.
In fact go back in history and you will find that a high percentage of the blacks sent to
America to serve as slaves, were originally enslaved by the Arabs. They are still at it.
Have you looked at what’s happening in Darfur lately?
On to the races.
2nd Congressional District
While we may not live in great numbers
in the Second Congressional district,
incumbent Jesse Jackson Jr. is so
consistently anti-Israel that he deserves
special mention here. We urge you to
vote for his Republican opponent, Robert
Belin. Oh, and by the way, U.S. Senator
Barack O’Bama’s record on Israel, isn’t
much better.
Jewish Chicago endorses Robert Belin
in the 2nd congressional district.
5th Congressional District
2 term incumbent Rahm Emanuel is
a rising star in the Democrat party. He
is extraordinarily capable, a great fund
raiser and a true leader. He is Jewish and a
definite friend
of Israel.
J e w i s h
Chicago
endorses
Rahm Emanuel in the 5th congressional district.
6th Congressional District
The contest between Democrat Tammy Duckworth and
Republican Peter Roskam has drawn about as much attention
as any Congressional contest nationally.
While I have been told that Roskam is supposed to be a
friend of Israel and Duckworth is not, I have been unable to
find any real proof of either candidates’ stand on the subject.
Once upon a time every congressional candidate was on the
record about Israel. That is no longer the case.
Jewish Chicago will take a pass on the race in the 6th
Congressional district.
9th Congressional District
This
is
a
no
brainier.
Incumbent Cong.
Jan Schakowsky
came under fire
by a number
of her liberal
supporters for her
support of Israel.
She stuck to her
guns. While the
9th District has
a large Jewish
population, it has
a much larger
liberal population
and it has been
awhile since the
average liberal
was a friend of
Israel and the
passage of time has only made things worse.
Jewish Chicago endorses Cong. Jan Schakowsky for a
fifth term in Congress.
10th Congressional District
Republican Mark Steven Kirk is about as good a friend as
Israel has in the Illinois congressional delegation. He covers
the far northern suburbs and is a leader and a true champion
for Israel.
Jewish Chicago endorses Cong. Mark Steven Kirk for reelection to Congress.
State Wide Races
The
Governors
Race
Rarely will there
ever be a clearer
contest from a
Jewish standpoint
but it is always
important to look at
the entire picture.
In the 3 1/2 years
Rod Blagojevich
has been governor
he has single handedly rewritten the book on the political double cross and set new records
for biting the hands that have fed him.
His feud with his father-in-law, Ald. Richard Mell, who put him in the legislature and
championed his candidacy for Congress and then the Governor’s office was another low
light of the Blagojevich administration.
Blagojevich raised 20 million dollars for his initial election campaign to the governors’
office and the taxpayers of Illinois have been paying a very dear price ever since.
Blagojevich’s short sighted plans to sell the State of Illinois building as well as the state
lottery would have cost the state billions of dollars through the years for an immediate
quick fix that would have served no real purpose other than to make Blagojevich look
good in the short term.
He has spent an obscenely large amount of money on television ads that brutally attack
his opponent and distort the truth in
a shameful manner. One ad brutally
slammed Topinka for her stand on
nursing homes. One look at the
State Election web site will tell you
that the managed care industry has
no use for Blagojevich, have been
consistent supporters of Topinka
and are putting their dollars to work
for Topinka.
And despite spending millions
and millions of dollars on TV ads
slamming Topinka, Blagojevich
isn’t ahead by much at the polls theTopinka presents $10 million dollar check to Israel Bonds
Tribune poll showed 51% of Illinois voters had a negative opinion of him.
There is no depth to which Blagojevich won’t sink.
While publicly, most of the Democratic politicians will smile and tell you they support
Blagojevich, privately, I have been told early and often that they have no intention of
voting for him, let alone lifting their finger for him. They want him gone.
Indicted Syrian born businessman, Tony Rezko, a close friend and ally of Blagojevich
may well be just the first in a series of indictments in the Blagojevich administration that
may wind up including Blagojevich himself.
Considering the huge amounts of money being given to Blagojevich, it would be a bit
naive not to think there isn’t an awful lot being promised for all that cash, at the expense
of the citizens of the state of Illinois of course.
Blagojevich record on Jewish issues is abysmal. He is not our friend.
Let us harken back to that shameful chapter concerning the Governor’s Commission on
Discrimination and Hate Crimes.
Blagojevich appointed Sister Claudette Muhammad to the Commission. Muhammad is
a senior official of Louis Farrakhan’s Nation of Islam. He didn’t appoint her for her own
merit, like other committee members she was appointed to represent a larger organization,
in this case the dishonorable Louis Farrakhan’s Nation of Islam.
Muhammad invited the other committee members to come hear Farrakhan speak on
March 2nd. Farrakhan spouted his anti-Semitic venom d’jour. He also came down hard
on other groups as is his custom.
Efforts by the Jewish commission members were made to come to a common
understanding against discrimination and hate. These efforts failed.
Michael C. Moses
Attorney at Law
2335 W. Devon Ave
Chicago, IL, 60659
Call 773-508-0100 Fax 773-508-0111 North Town News Magazine
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Re-elect
Jesse White
Secretary of State
•Leadership •Integrity •Innovation
•White has implemented new ethics rules to help restore
public confidence and integrity to the Secretary of State’s office
•White created a strong, independent Inspector General
and hired former U.S. Atty. Jim Burns to fill that position.
•White made the Roads of Illinois safer
by toughening penalties for DUI offenders.
•White increased the amount of practice time
our new young drivers need before being able to get a license.
Endorsed by Jewish Chicago
Chicago Sun-Times
Chicago Tribune
Illinois Education Association
Illinois AFL-CIO
Re-elect Jesse White, Tuesday, November 7th
Call Chani - 1-888-295-6038
Jewish Chicago is available in its entirety
on the world wide web at
www.Avyworld.com
Lonnie Nasatir representing the Anti Defamation League was the first to resign. Richard
Hirschhaut, executive director of the Illinois Holocaust Museum and Education Center,
resigned later in the day.
In announcing ADL’s resignation, Lonnie Nasatir, Regional Director of ADL’s Greater
Chicago/Upper Midwest office, issued the following statement: “We cannot continue to
serve on a Commission that remains silent in the face of bigotry and makes a mockery of
the fight against hatred and intolerance in Illinois.
“It is a sad day when we are left with no choice but to resign from the Commission. We
are utterly disappointed at the Blagojevich administration’s decision to stand by Sister
Muhammad and the Nation of Islam. She serves on the Commission as a representative
of the Nation of Islam, just as I serve as a representative of ADL, and she must be held
accountable for the statements of her organization’s leader.
Sister Muhammad’s statement is wholly inadequate. She in no way condemns or
apologizes for Minister Farrakhan’s hate-filled rhetoric that pervades the message and
beliefs of the Nation of Islam. Moreover, in stating that she respects those who practice the
‘true tenets’ of their faith, she echoes Minister Farrakhan’s comments Sunday that, ‘These
false Jews promote the filth of Hollywood that is seeding the American people... It’s the
wicked Jews, the false Jews, that are promoting Lesbianism, homosexuality. It’s wicked
Jews, false Jews, that make it a crime for you to preach the word of God, then they call you
homo phobic!’ It is clear to us that the Nation of Islam considers the Jewish community to
be ‘false Jews’ whom it is acceptable to hate.
The Anti-Defamation League will continue to be a loud, clear and consistent voice in the
fight against hate and discrimination in Illinois.”
That same day Sen. Ira Silverstein and the state’s first openly homosexual legislator,
State Rep. Larry McKeon held a joint press conference expressing their disappointment
in Blagojevich.
There are three groups here–the African-American community, the Jewish community
and the gay and lesbian community–who are normally united,” Silverstein said. “We are
being torn apart because of this.”
Soon after, State Rep. Lou Lang
decided he was up to taking Nasatir’s
spot on the commission. According to
Rich Miller of Capital Fax, “Lang’s
immediate appointment was designed
by the governor’s office to show that the
Jewish community was divided over the
governor’s decision.”
Later that same day, another Jewish
commission member, Richard Hirschhaut,
executive director of the Illinois Holocaust
Museum and Education Center, resigned.
He stated “It is essential the commission
be a place of the utmost integrity and
there be no question as to whether it’s
tainted by the presence of one member
or another, I fear we are now at a point
where there is a cloud over this body.”
This became big time news. It was the
lead item on every TV news program in Chicago.
Howard Kaplan, who has chaired and ably served numerous Jewish charities including
the JUF and Israel Bonds was out of the country, but the fuss reached him and he sent in
his resignation the next day.
Lang according to Rich Miller’s Capital Fax is “a long time critic of Blagojevich, who
jumped all the way on board a few months ago, and has become a vocal supporter.”
Lang attempted to reconstruct his shattered dignity in the Jewish community with a
belated resignation. He claimed he was unaware of the resignations when he accepted the
appointment. Sure thing Mr. Lang.
Lang was flooded with complaints including some people with enough money to do
something about replacing him. We urge them to do just that.
State Senator Carol Ronen whose district goes from Edgewater into the north suburbs
along the lake is the one Jewish member of the panel who remains. She is very tight with
Blagojevich and like Lang, obviously considers that more important then her Judaism or
the Jewish people.
Blagojevich didn’t quit. According to Capital Fax, a prominent Rabbi came close to
joining the commission.
When word got out that Blagojevich was desperately searching for a Jewish member and
was offering healthy incentives to join the hate crimes council, the Chicago Rabbinical
Council informed their members that anyone accepting such a slot would be tossed from
their council.
Blagojevich attended the Passover Seder of Rabbi Phillip Lefkowitz in Uptown and
showed his face at the “Simcha Beis Hashoaiva” the gala outdoor Sukkos party at Cong.
Bnei Ruven where he danced with Sen. Ira Silverstein.
That Black Muslim lady is still a member of the Governor’s commission. The Jewish
members of the committee strove to make peace but were rebuffed.
I don’t begin to understand how any self respecting Jewish person can support Rod
Blagojevich.
His opponent is the three term State Treasurer of Illinois, Judy Baar Topinka, and the
object of millions and millions of dollars of highly negative advertising.
Given the public’s lousy opinion of Blagojevich and his numerous misdeeds, Topinka
should be running away with this race, but that simply isn’t happening. She has really run
a lousy campaign.
Still, Topinka is closing in on Blagojevich. His ads are backfiring, the indictment of his
Syrian buddy Rezko, the $1,500 birthday present to his 7 year old daughter by a lady who
just got a state job, are making Blagojevich look really bad.
Topinka has a solid and competent but not spectacular record. She served in the State
Legislature before becoming Treasurer and has run a reputable scandal free office during
her tenure. It isn’t her job to decide how the state spends their money, but it is her job to
make sure the State’s money is invested wisely, earns interest, etc.
Topinka is a long time friend of the State of Israel and has made numerous trips to
Israel. She also was the first Treasurer to invest in Israel Bonds, starting with an initial
investment of $10 million dollars and has recently doubled that amount to $20 million.
She also has personally invested in Israel Bonds.
Last year she was the honoree of Bikur Cholim Hospital in Jerusalem and raised a
substantial amount of money to aid their life saving services.
She actually has campaign people in place specifically to aid her in the Jewish community
and while I have found her campaign staff frustrating at times, they work hard and their
intent is good.
During an appearance before the Jewish Republican Coalition in Skokie, Topinka was
surprisingly honest before a very large crowd. She was strongly applauded for her stand
and involvement with Israel. Her pro choice stance yielded a few scant claps and her
stance in favor of assault weapons drew virtual silence.
I understand that the assault weapon thing is a stance that had to be taken to make peace
with the statewide Republicans. What surprised me is that she would bring it up where
she did, because even Jewish Republicans don’t care much for assault weapons and more
power to them for that.
Once upon a time, candidates were stepping on each other to be the biggest supporter
of Israel. Now its uncommon to hear a word and most candidate web sites including
Congressional ones, ignore the subject. Topinka is a loud, vocal and consistent friend.
There is only one choice in this campaign.
Jewish Chicago strongly endorses Judy Baar Topinka to be the next Governor of
the State of Illinois. Mark 2 on your ballots.
Secretary of State
This is about as easy a contested conquest as there is in the entire election. Illinois
Secretary of State Jesse White is
running for reelection to a third
term in office.
He has an exemplary record of
accomplishments. When White
first took office he immediately
began modernizing the office.
The early accomplishments
included stringent ethics reform,
banning contributions from his
employees, Redesigning the
license plates and developing
a new temporary registration
permit to prevent fraud and allow
the police to trace the owners and
dates the permits were valid.
White is extremely proud of his
efforts to increase organ and blood
donations. He has eased the waits
at driver’s license facilities and
made license renewal extremely
simple and fast for motorists with
spotless driving record.
He is by no means sitting on his
laurels and has an extremely ambitious agenda planned to continue the improvement and
modernization of the Secretary of State’s office.
Often you can tell a lot about someone by the workers in their office. White’s people
respect him greatly and he has some extremely competent people in his office and a very
respectable amount of Jewish people.
His PR chief is Dave Drucker, who has distinguished himself in a number of positions
through the years including advising Arlington Park. Drucker is an extreme gentleman
and a pleasure to work with.
Then there are the Jesse White Tumblers. The world famous tumbling troupe that
consist of young men from humble backgrounds that White has molded into young men
of character and accomplishment.
They perform at hundreds of venues a year, some of them specifically Jewish. They
appear in movies, they perform in other countries. Many are young men who began life in
city housing projects who are on target toward being responsible citizens and benefitting
society.
Did I mention that White doesn’t take a nickel for this, and how many elected officials
do you know that greet their Jewish friends by letting them know they are “lantzmen”.
White is truly a rare and outstanding individual and I urge everyone to mark 11 on their
ballot.
It is a true privilege for Jewish Chicago to endorse Jesse White for reelection as
Secretary of State for Illinois on Tuesday November 7th.
Attorney General
Lisa Madigan surprised me by doing a reasonably competent job in her first term as
Attorney General and deserves a second shot.
She has been a good consumer advocate and seems to care about doing a good job. She
faces no more than token opposition.
Jewish Chicago endorses Lisa Madigan for reelection as Illinois Attorney General.
State Treasurer
Democrat Alexi Giannoulias is a relative political newcomer at age
30. He played professional basketball in Greece and went to work at his
father’s bank, “Broadway Bank”. He upset the organization candidate
in the primary and was looking good until he lied about okaying a loan.
The loan isn’t really that big a deal, if someone has the collateral, you
make the loan, it’s not a banks job to judge the morals of its customers.
The lying is the not so bright part, but maybe Giannoulias will learn.
A lot of Jewish politicos are backing him.
The Republican is State Senator Christine
Radogno who is a very competent individual whose emphasis in
the Senate has been in finance.
I have an axe to grind with the Giannoulias campaign as they
asked us to set up a special television shoot just for them at which
they failed to appear. As such I don’t feel it would be appropriate to
endorse a candidate in this race.
Jewish Chicago takes a pass on the State Treasurer’s
campaign.
State Legislature
In the 7th State Senate District, incumbent Carol Ronen as previously mentioned
decided that her alliance with Blagojevich is more important than her fellow Jews.
Her Republican opponent is Frank Thomas.
Jewish Chicago endorses Frank Thomas for election to the State Senate. Mark 30
on your ballot for Thomas.
In the 9th State Senate District, Democrat Jeff Schoenberg is running for a second term.
Schoenberg has distinguished himself as a top level player in the legislature and there has
already been talk of him someday going to Congress.
He is an involved Jew and attended day school.
Jewish Chicago endorses Jeff Schoenberg for reelection.
On to the State House where Ida Crown Academy graduate Sara Feigenholtz is running
for reelection in the 12th district. Mark Ballot 32 for Feigenholtz come election day.
Jewish Chicago endorses Sara Feigenholtz for reelection Tuesday November 7th.
In the 16th district, incumbent Lou Lang is running for reelection. There is no Jewish
elected official who has dishonored his people more than Lang.
When Illinois Governor, Rod Blagojevich sided with the Black Muslims and needed to
cloud his actions, self respecting Jews were running as far away as they could from Rod.
The exception was “What’s in it for me - Lou Lang” The buzz phrase among his supporters
was “What was he thinking?” Lang wasn’t doing anything that isn’t part of his nature.
There is a reason that his district, West Rogers Park, Lincolnwood, parts of Skokie, Niles
and Morton Grove at one time got less money from the State than any other district in the
northern half of Illinois and that may still be true today. Look at his major contributors, it’s
a who’s who of casinos, racetracks, slot machine manufacturers and the like.
Look at the legislation Lang has proposed. He championed legalizing video poker
gambling machines in every establishment that has a liquor license. That means your
corner convenience store, Jewel, Dominicks, Walgreens, CVS and more. Heaven help
people with gambling problems if anything close to that passes, let alone all the new
people that would be exposed to serious gambling on a continuous basis throughout the
state.
“What was he thinking” - No what are those of who support this guy thinking.
Unfortunately he has no opposition this year. I would welcome the chance to help any
reasonably decent person that wants to challenge him in 08.
Lang needs to go!
In the 17th Legislative district, consisting of chunks of Skokie, Niles, Morton Grove
plus, Democratic Challenger Judith Rae Ross is
challenging incumbent Elizabeth Coulson. While
Coulson has done a reasonably decent job, Ross
would do a much better job of serving her district.
Ross has ably been involved in her community
on a number of levels. Dr. Ross holds a Ph.D from
the University of Illinois at Chicago and currently
teaches in the History Department at DePaul
University. She has also served as an elected trustee
of Niles Township from 1980-2001, and is a political
consultant. Her media experience spans both
newspaper writing and television. Her newspaper
writing experience includes five years with Lerner
newspapers, and she is currently a frequent op-ed
writer for Pioneer Press. Since 1994, she has been
a regular panelist on cable television.
Her campaign theme is “Because She Cares” and
Ross most certainly does. Education, Health Care,
Seniors and Tax Reform are among her primary
issues.
The voters of the 17th District would be doing themselves a service by marking ballot
#32 for Judith Rae-Ross on election day. Jewish Chicago endorses Judith Rae-Ross for
election to the State House.
In the 18th District State Rep. Julie Hamos is running unopposed for reelection. Hamos
is sharp as they come. She was a big time lobbyist when she made the switch to run for
the State Legislature. Her husband Judge Alan Greiman was a State Representative before
her, and now serves ably on the bench.
While Hamos could be more plugged into the Jewish community, she really distinguished
herself with her handling of the CTA
funding problems in Springfield.
Sending
Hamos
back
to
Springfield for 2 more years is a no
brainer. Jewish Chicago endorses
Julie Hamos for reelection to the
State legislature.
President of the Cook
County Board
Things have been very Democratic
in Cook County for a very long
time. At one time the suburban
Republicans could gather enough
strength to elect a candidate every
now and then, buts its been a good 40 years since former Governor Richard Ogilvie was
President of the Cook County Board.
This time around there could be a big change. John Stroger, long time President of the
Cook County Board suffered a disabling stroke shortly before the March primary election,
but he still managed to defeat fellow Democrat Forrest Claypool.
Then there was a very long period of uncertainty as to whether Stroger could return to
office. If the county actually did much that was meaningful, it would be intolerable. Cook
County actually represents the 17th largest governmental body in the United States. The
jail and the hospital/health care are the most visible segments. The Cook County board
wasn’t much more active than a wax museum until the last election.
Suddenly there was a substantial number of new board members who were looking to
not only reform county government, but make it effective and relevant to the residents of
Cook County.
Larry Suffredin, Forrest Claypool, Mike Quigley, Tony Peraica were among a group of
Democrats and Republicans who had enough of business as usual.
County Board meetings became lively, there were arguments and controversy. There
was no more rubber stamping and blindly saluting the powers that be. There was real
debate and meaningful discussions. A new day dawned in county government. There was
a very real threat of good government breaking out throughout the land.
Then the circus began. The Stroger family wanted time to determine if John Stroger
could return to office. People were bending over backward to be nice, but that is a pretty
important office that is highly coveted by many of the board members.
The black politicos were adamant that the County Board Presidency was their birthright
and if Stroger needed replacing, it had to be someone black. Does that strike you as
racist?
Someone black leaves out Claypool who ran a very close second. It also leaves out Mike
Quigley who was also interested in running for President in the primary before deferring
to Claypool.
So we need a qualified person who is black. Well how about Dorothy Brown? Clerk of the
Circuit Court and a highly capable individual. Not a chance, she ran against the Democratic
powers and has never been much more than tolerated by the regular organization.
Others outside of the inner Democratic circle showed interest, they weren’t about to get
party approval.
County Commissioner Bobbie Steele was someone who had the respect of a large
number of board members, but she appeared overly eager to be the next President and an
indelicately worded statement knocked her out
for the long term, but was settled upon in the
short term as acting President until the election.
8th ward Alderman Todd Stroger, son of
John, got the nod. By all accounts Stroger is
a nice guy, but not overly impressive. In fact
every time he started talking in public, his poll
numbers started going down. So much so that he
virtually disappeared from the campaign trail.
When he called in to my show, the North Town
News Magazine on CANTV-19 www.ntnm.org,
he was nervous and frightened and my show is
run very congenially.
I have never had more politicians try to talk me
into backing someone than Todd Stroger. I have
never had more people try to get someone on my
show than was the case with Todd Stroger.
People I strongly respect went further than
they have ever gone to get me to back Stroger. I
was open to the idea, I was willing to listen, but Todd Stroger has just plain not stepped up
to the plate in any kind of meaningful manner. If anything he has run and hid.
Some people seem quite wary of the Republican candidate for Cook County Board
President, Tony Peraica. I don’t know why. He is finishing his first term on the County
Board. He was orphaned early and came here from Croatia where he has become a lawyer,
built a practice and got himself elected to the county board. He has a lot of guts and real
desire. Traits that are sorely lacking in Todd Stroger.
People who are worried that Peraica will inject his personal religious beliefs about
abortion and gay rights into County Board Policy don’t understand how things work.
The Supreme Court, Congress and to a lesser extent the legislature have say. The courts
are the ones who really write the rules.
Peraica is pretty straight forward and extremely focused. I find him quite impressive. I
can’t tell you that there is a specific Jewish reason to vote for either one, but if you are
interested in taking a shot at good county government, Peraica is the way to go.
I am voting for him and I hope you will too. Jewish Chicago endorses Tony Peraica
for President of the County Board.
www.ntnm.org
County Commissioners
The 13th District of Cook County which
includes Rogers Park, most of West Rogers Park,
the City of Evanston and the Villages of Glencoe,
Glenview, Kenilworth, Lincolnwood, Morton
Grove, Niles, Northbrook, Skokie, Wilmette and
Winnetka. This district has been graced with a
true breath of fresh air the last 4 years in Comm.
Larry Suffredin. Suffredin is the first intelligent,
independent, proactive voice the 13th District has
seen in the 30 plus years I’ve lived there.
Suffredin has sought from the start to shake up
county government and get them to actually start
serving the needs of its constituents.
He has been involved in trying to improve the
forest preserves, streamline county government,
not waste resources like the old county hospital.
He has been instrumental in trying to bring a
county health care facility to our region. The
nearest one is miles and miles away and would
offer free and low cost health care to area people
in need. It would help lift some of the burden
from local private charities and you can never have too much health care services.
It was particularly poignant that at the Greater Chicago Jewish festival, founder Michael
Lorge singled out Suffredin at the largest venue at the Fest for providing them with
more help than any other elected official. Suffredin is a partner in the firm of Shefsky &
Froelich and is a former Chairman of the Democratic Party of Evanston.
Jewish Chicago strongly endorses Larry Suffredin for reelection. Mark Ballot 45.
In the 10th county district, which encompasses part of West Rogers Park, Peterson Park
and more, Comm. Mike Quigley has been an integral part of the move to make the Cook
County Board a responsible branch of government.
Jewish Chicago endorses Mike Quigley for reelection to the Cook County Board.
Sheriff of Cook County
This is another race that is about as clear
cut as can be. It’s almost as if Tom Dart’s
whole professional life has moved toward
the moment he can be Sheriff.
Dart served as an Assistant District
Attorney where he prosecuted hundreds
of felony cases. He then served a term in
State Senate and 5 terms in the State House
gaining a reputation as a reform minded
legislator who sponsored more than a dozen
child welfare laws and helped restructure the
Illinois Department of Children and Family
Services. He also battled the predatory
“payday loan” industry, proposing new laws
against predatory lenders.
Dart served as chairman of the House
Judiciary Committee and was Cochairman of the House Prison Oversight Committee. He
has awarded numerous legislator of the year awards.
He presently is the chief assistant to Cook County Sheriff Michael Sheehan and has had
a first hand up close look at what he is going to be running after handily winning election
on November 7th.
Jewish Chicago strongly endorses Tom Dart for Sheriff of Cook County. Mark Ballot
39 on election day.
Jewish Chicago commends Maria Pappas for her success in modernizing the office
of Treasurer of Cook County and endorses her for reelection. Mark Ballot 41.
The Metropolitan Water Reclamation District of Greater Chicago
The MWRD is the 4th largest governmental agency in Illinois and is in the midst of a
massive public works project, the largest in Illinois and still there are many who have no
clue as to who they are and what they do.
Their job starts when water runs down your drain. There are nine Commissioners of the
MWRD that are elected to 6 year terms. 3 of them are up for reelection every 2 years
Their star player and President
(the President is elected by the 9
commissioners) is Terrence J. (Terry)
O’Brien who is running for reelection
for a 4th term.
O’Brien is the third generation of
his family to toil for the MWRD. It
is the agency where his father and
grandfather worked. He started there
as a youthful laborer who worked on
the deep tunnel.
He won election to the MWRD 18
years ago and 10 years ago, in the midst
of scandal, his fellow commissioners
turned to him to clean up the MWRD
and that is exactly what O’Brien has
accomplished over the last 10 years.
This year the MWRD was the only
agency in Cook County to lower their
tax bill. As the largest land owner in
this area, O’Brien has found creative
ways to benefit local municipalities
while adding revenue to defray the
tax burden on the citizens of Cook
County.
The Deep Tunnel project which consists of 109 miles of tunnel and when finished
several huge reservoirs that will be able to store close to 20 billion gallons of water until
the system is clear enough to process them and keep untreated sewage out of our inland
waterways and Lake Michigan.
It is a modern engineering marvel and has already helped clean our inland waterways to
the point that 68 varieties of fish can now be found in the Chicago River and North Shore
Channel. The Bass Masters fishing championships were held in the Chicago River and
they caught lots of Bass.
Before constructing the tunnel underneath the English Channel, France and England
came to Chicago to examine and learn how the MWRD built their tunnel system. The
system here, when finished will cost the taxpayers 3 billion dollars, the French and English
expended $15 billion for a few miles less than our 109.
In the primary, there were a slew of challengers for the 3 available slots and all of them
sought to tie themselves in some way to Terry O’Brien. He is that highly thought of and
was endorsed by absolutely everybody.
O’Brien grew up in West Rogers Park at Albion and Rockwell. He has lots of friends
in the Jewish community. He has helped numerous individuals and institutions with
everything from a possible broken water main (even though that’s not his department)
to helping save institutions from possible eviction from MWRD land. He is a genuinely
nice guy.
If someone asked me to pick the single most outstanding person running in this election,
I could make a very serious case for MWRD President Terry O’Brien.
Jewish Chicago strongly endorses Terry O’Brien for reelection to the MWRD.
Mark 55 on your ballot come election day.
Judicial Races
I am not a lawyer and even the lawyers who regularly go to court tell me they can’t keep
track of all of the Judges. They rely heavily on the evaluations of the bar associations
when they are not familiar with a particular individual.
There are 4 contested Judicial races this year and the clear consensus of my experts is
as follows:
Madden vacancy: Mary Katherine Rochford Ballot 68 over Don R. Sampen
Sampen.
Siebel vacancy: Grace G. Dickler Ballot 70 gets the call over Steve Goebel
12th Subcircuit vacancy: Ronald J. Nelson Ballot 73, is the clear choice over Ellen
L. Flannigan.
15th Subcircuit vacancy: Anthony C. Scrementi Ballot 69 is the definite pick over
Daniel Patrick Brennan.
A number of judges are running for retention which means you vote yes or no to either
keep them in the judiciary or toss them out.
Jewish Chicago Recommends you vote no for the following
Cynthia Brim
Barbara Disko
Christopher Donnelly
Loretta Eadie-Daniels
Robert Kowalski
Marcella Lipinski
P. Scott Neville, Jr.
Donna Phelps Felton
Amanda Toney
There are ten Jewish judges seeking retention and Jewish Chicago recommends
you vote for them. They have all been found qualified and then some.
They are:
Martin S. Agran
Carole Kamin Bellows
James R. Epstein
Alan J. Greiman
Moshe Jacobius
Edward R. Jordan
Marvin P. Luckman
Stuart E. Palmer
Lee Stuart Preston
Warren D. Wolfson
The Law Office of James P. Nally, P.C.
Make sure you cast your vote on Tuesday November 7th. The are many centers in the
area that allow you to vote early and all you have to do is walk in and vote.
Eight South Michigan
Suite 3500
Chicago, Illinois 60603
Watch 3 time nationally award winning
Jewish Chicago Publisher Avy Meyers every week
on Cable TV or the Internet
tel 312-422-5560
fax 312-346-7999
caps24.org
For the location and date of your next community policing meeting
There is no substitute for talking directly to the police!
In Chicago, every Thursday 7:30 pm, Friday 2:30 pm CANTV-19
In Evanston, every Thursday 8:00 pm on ECMC-6
In numerous North & Northwest Suburbs 6:00 pm, Channels 19/35
Check out www.ntnm.org
for full details and direct internet links
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Call Avy Meyers
773-290-2677 [email protected]