By The Beachwood Political Affairs Desk

A look at what we’ve learned from Tuesday’s primaries, and what we can expect from here until November. It’s depressing in either direction.
Rod Blagojevich: As we asked in our primary guide, Has there ever been such a lack of enthusiasm for a virtually unchallenged incumbent? Clearly it was the governor’s bulging-at-the-seams campaign fund rather than his record in office that scared away challengers. And that, my friends, is example No. 845,000 (or so) of how money has hijacked your democracy. It is also Example No. 845,001 of how the private two-party system operates to prevent you from having too many choices.
Edwin Eisendrath: His phantom campaign won 30 percent of the vote. Makes you wonder what it would have been like had a real challenger stepped up and forced a real referendum on Public Official A‘s job performance. Eisendrath now goes back to cooking school.
Pat Quinn: The forgotten man as Blago’s lieutenant governor. So we just thought we’d mention him.
Judy Baar Topinka: We’ll still be wondering in the fall what it would have been like to have a real campaign challenge to Blagojevich–unless his world is rocked by more indictments.

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Posted on March 23, 2006

By The Beachwood Political Affairs Desk

This state’s congressional delegation is a powerhouse. You might not know this, but the frickin’ Speaker of the House, you know, the guy who used to be Newt Gingrich, and before that Tip O’Neill, is from Illinois. His name is Dennis Hastert. He is from Yorkville. He is two heartbeats from the presidency – meaning if Dick Cheney shot George W. Bush while hunting and then had a heart attack, Dennis Hastert would be president.
So yeah, he’s kind of undercovered in the local press. At least others have taken notice.

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Posted on March 17, 2006

By The Beachwood Political Affairs Desk

Less than half of the lawyers running for Cook County Circuit Court judgeships are qualified, according to the Chicago Council of Lawyers.
Many of them, as they always do, will win seats on the bench. We have an incapable judiciary.
Our judges are even less qualified than our aldermen.
What kind of place are we living in?
[See also: A Beachwood Guide to the Primaries: Governor and Cook County President; A Beachwood Guide to the Primaries: Congress & You.]

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Posted on March 17, 2006

By The Beachwood Political Affairs Desk

Still haven’t decided who to vote for in the primaries on Tuesday? Let us help.
We’ve analyzed each candidate’s record, studied their policy papers, parsed their campaign contribution data, and spied on their neighbors and family. And then we flipped through the articles written by other news organizations and wrote our evaluations. We are particularly indebted to the Chicago Sun-Times‘s series of candidate profiles, especially in isolating each candidate’s Creepiness Factor. So a blanket nod to The Bright One and everyone else we stole from. Good work!
[See also: A Beachwood Guide to the Primaries: Congress & You; A Beachwood Guide to the Primaries: Judging Not.]

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Posted on March 16, 2006

By Kiljoong Kim

With Jesse Jackson Jr. and Luis Gutierrez rattling around the outskirts of the next mayoral race, and a city council packed with women, African Americans, and at least one openly gay man, you might think that diversity has found its place in Chicago’s political arena. Indeed, African Americans and Hispanics in particular have joined the great parade of minority groups before them who have worked their way up, at least to some degree, from outsider status into the halls of power.
But there is a glaring absence from this picture of diverse representation, a missing piece of the puzzle rarely if ever considered among the political practitioners, the political pundits, and the political press. It is this simple fact: There are no Asian-American aldermen here.
Curious, isn’t it? Especially for a growing part of the population which, as a group, is in seemingly good economic shape. Yet, in the case of Chicago’s Asian Americans, money doesn’t equal power.
Why not?
Let’s take a look at the numbers.

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Posted on March 13, 2006

By Steve Rhodes

Cook County Board Commissioner Forrest Claypool, running against incumbent John Stroger in the Democratic primary for Cook County Board president, made news last week when he endorsed U.S. Rep. Jesse Jackson Jr.’s proposed Peotone airport.
Simple enough, you might think. But the weird dynamics of this campaign left all three in a bit of a tangle.

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Posted on March 5, 2006