PeoriaStory

Chicago March for Families and Children:Awesome!

CHICAGO, IL -- The June 30, 2018 Chicago rally to reunite families with their children was amazing and awesome.

Thousands of people appeared, with colorful handmade signs and musical instruments.  Many signs attacked Trump, Pence and the GOP for policies that led to nearly 3,000 children now separated from migrant parents and most placed in prison-like conditions. Some asked for ICE to be abolished. Here's a good one:

Despite the 90 degree heat, the crowd sang, chanted, and listened to speakers for an hour.  A surprise politician, J. B Pritzker, Democratic party candidate for Illinois governor appeared briefly to shake hands. People greeted him as "our next governor."

 

After an hour the rally marched with a line blocks long, too long to calculate the length, along Clark then back to Dearborn Street, going two different ways at the same time.

The people were angry over the GOP policies, with some signs urging voting in November.  But it was also peaceful, polite and good natured, sharing water and shade.

Politicians should beware, because people of all ages, races, colors and other aspects are mad and ready for change. 

 -- Elaine Hopkins

 

Why Hillary lost and what we have lost

PEORIA, IL -- I am still in mourning over Hillary Clinton's Electoral College loss in her run for the presidency. Only 80,000 votes in three states account for her defeat, even though she won nearly 3 million more individual votes than the odious Trump.

I have read many accounts of her defeat, yet none of them accurately list all the reasons.  Here is my list:

1. Voter suppression.  The minority turnout was lower than expected, but voter suppression tactics in the key Midwestern swing states, controlled by Republicans, account for this issue.  Getting the proper voter ID is difficult for some. They may not have drivers licenses, nor the money or know-how to get a birth certificate, if one exists.  They may be working or caring for many children and can't make it to the polling place or place where they get a voter ID. Polling days and places were cut back to suppress the minority vote, as well. This tactic worked.
2. Fake news.  It's no longer news that false news on propaganda websites circulated to millions (thanks Facebook!  You stupid and exploitative site that I don't look at.) telling lies about Clinton.  She has been the target of right wing groups for years, and this long term smear campaign worked.
3. Hacked emails.  The Democrats were stupid to put incriminating items on emails. Didn't they remember that you never, ever, put anything in an email that you don't want to see on a billboard? But they did it, and the Russians or someone favoring Trump now famously stole the emails and released them gradually to smear Clinton's campaign.
4. The FBI.  Comey's releases on Clinton's emails were fatal and unprecedented. He's a Republican, and found a way to smear Clinton with the email investigation which turned up nothing. Her private servers were not hacked. Others in the government had done the same thing, including at least one of Trump's appointments to his new  regime. It was a ridiculous issue but the media and the fake sites, lacking other issues, kept at it, to Trump's benefit.
5. Sexism. There's a lot of anti-female prejudice out there.  Clinton went from a very admired figure to a hated one, thanks to the smears and fake news, which abetted sexism against a female presidential candidate. 

 

1. So now we have Trump and his hard right wing administration taking shape. He and his vice president Pence are putting together a group of cabinet members and others who are anti-female, anti-minority, anti-immigrants, anti-unions, against environmental action on global warming, anti-Obamacare, anti-consumer, you name it. 

1. They're going to approve drilling on federal lands, constructing the pipelines, and for all we know will sell off national parks and treasures to the highest bidders. 
2. And they're pro-Russian! Perhaps they can be blackmailed into destroying NATO, letting Russia invade the Balkans, etc.Are we ready for World War III?
   
3. Meanwhile with Trump's temperament, can we expect a nuclear missile aimed at anyone who annoys him?  Or arrests of anyone who criticizes him or his administration? (That's what Putin does.)
   
4. Protest in the streets?  The militarized police will stop that as they tried to do at Standing Rock. There won't be an Obama to intervene. Anyone can be branded a terrorist (with fake evidence) and sent to Guantanamo.  (There's a million woman march scheduled for Jan. 21, to compete with the inauguration in Washington DC, a terrible idea. In winter? A night long bus ride both ways? Forget it. Yet it may be the last great march possible under Trump.)
   
5. Or, Trump will resign within 6 months to run his business empire, leaving the government to the hard-right-wing Pence. It won't make much difference to ordinary citizens.  Our democracy and gradual progress and support for human rights, justice and environmental sanity will be set back decades.
6. It's terrible, and we are apparently helpless.  We can support the remaining Democrats in the Senate, and send money to the groups that fight Trump's ideas, prepare for the 2018 elections, and that's about it. Happy New Year. (Forgive the numbers, can't find a way to get rid of them.)
   
7. -- Elaine Hopkins

Ed Dentino comments: I've just read your "Why Hillary Lost"  column.  I pretty much agree with your points.  My angst, was and is severe, that a person of Donald Trump's character is becoming a United States president.  I sense  American decency lost with his control of the Administrative Branch with the Congress and Supreme Court on the republican partisan side. 

I could have been ok with a good person elected.  It is not my sense of grief that Hillary Clinton did not get the electoral vote number required.  It is, though, a sense that we can see now that every vote counts... until it doesn't.  Does not make sense that  a dock worker in New Jersey' s vote is outweighed by a truck driver's vote in Wyoming.  Would be just as stupid to say that people with grey eyes votes will count 1/2 of that of those with brown eyes.  That said, I recall George's column about the electoral college.  My view is that a suitable alternate might be proposed that keeps the vote in perspective in the election,  yet provides a clear path to rejection of an unfit person to become president. I don't have a solution, but it could be considered by those in the political science domain.  Or, another alternative,  a different vote system altogether.  That is less likely to get traction as people and politicians tend to be stuck in a tradition even when it is a nonsensical burden. 

I perceive the United States voters split along two paths of two circumstances.  One is the rural and small town vote contrast with the urban vote.  They are not economically voting... most of that wear and tear is not their burden.  They are the firearm rights folks and the ones who see moral issues as being thrust at them ... especially in the past few years.  They are resenting the gay, transgender news, and are against what they perceive as burdens of immigration, race, religion, inner city crime they think could affect them.  The second split is along general lines of income.  The have and have not people of the United States have been divided sharply by income, job and residential status.  The high income folks sense that they are self made and that those needing government funded aid are being lazy and undeserving.  They perceive  government spending on food and housing along with the Affordable Care Act as adding to their tax burden.  Asked about specifics.. like should grandma get social security, should children with poor parents get food,  etc,  they will respond as normal people. It has been the republican mantra to harp on those themes as if they were social issues that hit our own ability to live well.  Not mentioned is that when a significant part of a society is not housed, fed or educated, that the financial, cultural and moral burden becomes even greater.- 30 -

Ed Dentino writes on 12/19/16: 

Some are thinking "sore loser."    I am partisan for the Dems, but my citizen concern is above those politics. It has been clear since Donald Trump started the primaries that he was a seriously flawed character. He bullied, name called, demeaned, lied, exaggerated his way through that series of events. Same story with the final campaign. Often he would go into illogical rants and even nonsensical babble spewing words without sentence structure. About 57 news editors said that Donald Trump is not qualified and is unfit to become president. 20 security top tier people said Donald Trump is a danger to the United States. His campaign rhetoric was malfeasance against his opponents and he made promises to instigate actions that are illegal and unconstitutional. The case for the electoral college, the U.S. Congress, and Federal courts to reject Donald Trump could hardly be more certain.

During the Bush Lite years, I kept saying to save a big cardboard box in case it became necessary to live under a bridge. With the possible event of DT becoming a president.... I'd say, forget the box... look for a cave or dig one in the side of a mountain.  - 30 -

Peoria Candidate Forum

PEORIA, IL -- The first forum for candidates running in Peoria County in contested races began to define the differences between them.

The event was on Sept. 24, sponsored by the Greater Peoria League of Women Voters, and followed rules that included only written questions from the audience.

Here is a recording of the forum. 

Download Peo candidate forum Sept 24 16

Circuit Judge:  Democrat Jodi Hoos and Republican Tim Cusack, both now serving as appointed judges, are competing for this open post. Both stressed their experience, though Cusack likely has an edge with his 27 years as an attorney, in private practice, as a public defender, a prosecutor and now a judge.

Hoos has been a lawyer since 2000, and worked in the prosecutor's office before her appointment to the bench 18 months ago.

Cusack made an interesting observation that his service in juvenile and family court has saved taxpayers $4 million, in settling cases and keeping kids out of the state system.

In an April forum on so-called shaken baby syndrome, it was noted that he is open to the science on that subject. The science maintains that it takes real trauma to cause the symptoms often cited in court, and therefore physical signs of that trauma.  Merely shaking a baby cannot cause death or trauma.

This is a question that should be asked of these candidates in other forums.

Peoria County Auditor:  Democrat Carol VanWinkle is the incumbent in this office, there since 2007. Republican Alan Paredes is the challenger.

Both agreed that the office should not be abolished, as it provides independent oversight on county spending by an elected official answerable to the public. The alternative is a hired auditor who only samples the expenditures, a situation that has led to fraud elsewhere. 

VanWinkle said she believes in transparency, and that the county's checkbook is on the web and "can be downloaded." Paredes said it's too complicated, and "should be simplified."

Peoria County Coroner: Incumbent Johnna Ingersoll, a Republican, is being challenged by Democrat Jamie Harwood, a certified forensic nurse.

Ingersoll was elected in 2004, and has worked in the office for 28 years. She said 78 percent of all deaths in the county are reported to the coroner.

Harwood said she has not taken advantage of training for her staff, and that inquests should be abolished as they are obsolete in today's world. That would enable a death certificate to be issued more quickly, a crucial document for survivors to access insurance and other necessities.

"We're one of the few (counties) offering inquests," Harwood said.

Ingersoll said "we issue pending death certificates."

Harwood said families should be told what happened to the deceased, but "not in the courtroom setting," namely the inquest.

These candidates also need other questions about their actions in this office. A civil lawsuit involving employment issues is pending against Ingersoll.

Peoria County Board, District 11. Democrat Laurie Covington and Republican Greg Adamson are the candidates for this open seat.

Adamson, a physician, was scheduled to attend but did not appear. Covington was only able to introduce herself, then mingle with the audience, according to LWV rules. 

In a forum for the Republican primary, Adamson had to ask for an explanation of TIF districts, Tax Increment Financing districts, controversial because they deprive taxing districts such as the schools and parks of tax revenue for 23 years to foster development.He should be asked about this if he appears at a subsequent forum.

Also present at the event was the Democratic candidate for the 18th Congressional District, Junius Rodriguez.  He is challenging Daren LaHood, the Republican incumbent.  LaHood has ducked the League's attempts to schedule a forum for this race, claiming to be too busy.

Rodriguez, a Eureka College history professor and author, also mingled  with the audience. 

Here's the Journal Star's story on the forum.

 -- Elaine Hopkins

 

 

Junius Rodriguez running for Congress, 18th District

PEORIA, IL -- Congressman Darin LaHood, R-Peoria, slipped into his Congressional seat in the 18th District thanks to low voter turnout in a special election. Now he faces real opposition from Democrat Junius Rodriguez, a Eureka College history professor and author, who is a good speaker and knows the issues. 

The November 8 election will determine the winner in this huge district, of 19 counties and a population of more than 710,000.

LaHood,a lawyer and former federal prosecutor, is the son of former 18th District congressman and US Secretary of Transportation Ray LaHood.He's known as a moderate Republican.

Ray LaHood has refused to endorse controversial GOP presidential candidate Donald Trump. But Darin LaHood has endorsed Trump. Has he made a huge mistake?

Darin LaHood has refused invitations to debate Rodriguez.  But Rodriguez is an active campaigner, meeting people everywhere.  On August 25 he met two dozen voters at a private house party where he addressed them and answered questions between personal handshakes.

Here is a recordings of his talk.

Download Rodriguez 1 Aug 25

Here is a recording of the question and answer session.

Download Rodriguez 2 Aug 25

Rodriguez said he decided to run for Congress as an example to his students. "I've tried to encourage out students to be engaged. I don't want to say I'm part of the problem."

He added, "I'm upset about the tone of politics. I know we can be better than what we have seen and witnessed."

ln addition, "this is a real strange year....Everything we think we know about politics in 2016 has proved to be wrong."

The 18th District has a history of moderate Republicans serving in Congress, he said. "We need to flip the district back to moderates."

"We need a Congressman who is not going to endorse the likes of Donald Trump," and who is not a "science denier," involved with "special interests," and takes "PAC money from outside the district," he said.

"We have to go back to where we were," back to bipartisanism, he said.

"We have a real opportunity to do something this time, "  in the nine weeks before the election, he said. "Tell your friends."

 Rodriguez has a website with position papers, and is on Facebook and Twitter.

In addition to his endorsement of Trump,  LaHood has an interesting past -- problems as a federal prosecutor in Nevada. Here are the details.

 -- Elaine Hopkins

Dear Hillary...

PEORIA, IL -- The Hillary Clinton e-mail issue is such a crock of you know what!  And it's a Republican witch hunt, as well

But given the usual media hate-fest involving Hillary, she must respond. I have watched and read about the controversy, and here's what I have concluded.  So --

Dear Hillary, here's what you should say:

This e-mail system was set up for convenience, and in the tradition of other government officials, including Colin Powell. (Notice, no one is investigating them!)

Government people do this so they can respond regardless of where they are, in a distant land or on vacation.

I was never told my system was not secure.  In fact it apparently was not hacked, something that can't be said of the State Department's servers.

Every e-mail eventually came from or went to the State Department, so was not kept from the public record.

To the best of my knowledge every e-mail was not classified when I sent or received it. (Over-classification is an issue that should be resolved.)

Given the above, to the best of my knowledge I was not careless or reckless.  I know little about technology, so trusted my aides to manage the servers. In fact I thought there was only one server, and it was secure because my residence was guarded around the clock by the Secret Service. At least nobody burglarized my home and stole the system.

If the FBI has concluded this was a reckless system, I won't disagree. In hindsight it was a mistake, made because of tradition, not malice. (Why would I want to harm the USA?)

So this whole situation is like a bad dog with a ball in its mouth. "Drop it, drop it," I say.  Let's talk about the real issues facing our nation, not this.

 -- Elaine Hopkins

 

 

An 18th District candidate and rebranding District 150

PEORIA, IL -- A Democratic party candidate will be slated to run in the Illinois 18th Congressional District against Cong. Darren LaHood.

He is Junius Rodriguez, professor of history at Eureka College, and the author and editor of Slavery in the United States,A Social, Political, and Historical Encyclopedia.

The announcement was made by Peoria County Democratic Party Chairman Billy Halstead  at the annual May Day Dinner of the Peoria County Democratic Women, held on May 1.

Democrats have until the end of May to slate candidates to run in open seats that were not filled during the primary.

Also at the dinner, the featured speaker, Peoria District 150 Supt. Sharon Desmoulin-Kherat, said the district is being "rebranded" and should be known as the Peoria Public Schools.

She described the diversity of the school district, with 13,145 students speaking 44 different languages and from a variety of nations. This diversity has been celebrated at the schools, she said.

Fifth graders at Mark Bills School formed a sign language club to better communicate with a classmate, an event that has made national news, she said.

She named four "wicked problems" that need to be solved to improve the schools: academic achievement, which includes higher test scores and, an improved graduation rate which was 65 percent in 2015; poverty and lack of opportunity in some neighborhoods; mental health including student exposure to crime, violence, poverty, high teen pregnancy and STD rates, even a suicide rate double the overall Illinois rate; and money.

Since 2012, the district has lost $21 million in state funding it expected, she said. It receives only 30 percent of the needed funds from property taxes, she said. 

The district's strategic plan shows the solutions, she said. They include higher educational standards and better curriculum; support for the whole child; effective leadership; engaging families and the community; and financial stewardship.

She hopes to find $150,000 for an 'alignment plan' that has worked elsewhere to help Rockford, she said.

The district faces a possible $300,000 a year 'fee' as part of the city solution to its combined sewer overflow, required by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, she said. She's hoping for an exemption."We cannot afford it," she said.

 -- Elaine Hopkins

Democrats have big day in Peoria

Peoria, IL -- Friday, March 11 was a 'huge' day for Peoria Democrats, who saw candidates and their supporters hold strong rallies.

The biggest news was former president Bill Clinton, who spoke to an overflow crowd at a union hall.  I tried to attend, and arrived an hour before he was supposed to speak but the crowd was already so large that parking spaces were limited, so I gave up and left. I didn't feel like standing for hours, even if I could find a parking place.

However the Peoria Journal Star's coverage was strong on Clinton's appearance.  See these links, with photos from the Peoria Democratic Facebook site.

(Alas it's Facebook, the world's most exploitive website, which makes you sign up to see other people's sites, so Facebook then can pester you endlessly. Evil. Not like this blog site host, Typepad, which is open and log-in free for viewers.)

Earlier in the day Cong. Tammy Duckworth campaigned at the union hall with 17th District Cong. Cheri Bustos, also a good event.  The hall was filled, but there were enough seats at tables for people to sit down. 

Duckworth is a candidate for the U.S. Senate, against the incumbent Republican Mark Kirk. But first she must win in the Democratic primary, which is Tuesday, March 15.  Her opponents are lawyer Andrea Zopp and Illinois Sen. Napoleon Harris. Both are good candidates, but I prefer Duckworth.

Strangely the Journal Star endorsed Zopp, saying Duckworth has not been in central Illinois. That was refuted by Bustos, who said "she came to our district and she knows this area."  In fact in the military she flew planes from the Peoria airport.

I speculate the newspaper meant she didn't show up for the required interview with the editorial board. But I don't know and it doesn't really matter.

Duckworth is the endorsed candidate of the Democratic establishment in Illinois, and after listening to her speech I understand why.  She has a very compelling life history, which influences her views today.

When she was a teenager, her father lost his job and she ended up working at age 16 to support her family on a $3.10 minimum wage.  Her family lost their home and had to live in a motel, she said.

Foodstamps and free school lunches saved her in high school, and scholarships sent her to college, she said.  So she understands the problems many people face.

After college she joined the military, became a pilot, and lost both legs in combat in a crash. That hasn't slowed her down. She just had a baby girl at age 45, she said.

Here is a recording of her speech, and Bustos' introduction and speech.

Download Duckworth and Bustos

"I stand with labor," Duckworth told the audience. "You are not Kirk's priority" which is big business" and "folks like (Illinois Gov. Bruce) Rauner." 

He's the Republican governor whose anti-union ideology is wrecking the state's public universities and public services. He's refusing to negotiate a budget until the Democrats in the General Assembly let him end collective bargaining for state employees. They are standing firm.

Bustos also criticized Rauner, saying "let's hope (he) will sit down and talk." 

She attacked Republican candidate Donald Trump, saying "can you believe what's going on?  Now he's going after the media, verbally and physically.  It's unbelievable."

Duckworth is in one of the top national races for the U.S. Senate, and if she wins the primary, as predicted, she will face "a flood of money" with "negative advertising" attacking her, Bustos said. "She's in a fight and stands for the right things."

"A home, an education, a secure retirement, these are slipping away, being traded away," Duckworth said of national issues.

Kirk voted against Pell grants (for college,) she said, and voted for other anti-family and worker proposals. "He's putting large corporations over the well being of families," Duckworth said. 

"I thank labor for putting a roof over my head," she said, citing labor's work over the years for a minimum wage, weekends and other pro-family achievements.

Now "labor is under assault" she said.  "We're in a fight. We need your help."

The next president likely could replace three U.S. Supreme Court justices, who are in their 80s, she said, so the presidential election is very important.

She didn't mention Hillary Clinton, but the Illinois Democratic establishment is backing her, likely for reasons outlined in Bill Clinton's speech as reported in the Journal Star.

 -- Elaine Hopkins

 

Thinking about Hillary...

PEORIA, IL -- Hillary or Bernie? Head or heart?

I love Bernie Sanders’ ideas. He’s right about taxing the rich to fund basics such as health and education.

Allowing the rich to escape taxation has funded the oligarchy that now controls most of the think tanks, the media and the elections, especially statehouse elections, where the awful gerrymandering has taken place. (Though not so much in Illinois.)

But let’s be honest: the gerrymandered U.S. House will never work with Sanders as president. The Obama stalemate will continue, so Sanders’ ideas will go nowhere.

Moreover he’s too old to be president, at 75 when he takes office, and he’s unlikely to run for a second term if he wins.

There’s a fabulous cartoon that ran recently, showing Hillary Clinton walking into a dorm room where two young women sit on the bed, one on her cell phone, the other with a ‘feel the Bern’ t-shirt. There’s a poster of Sanders on the wall.

Hillary says to them “When you get done mooning over a guy who’s way too old for you, I could use a little help.”

The girl with the t-shirt replies “Gawd, she sounds just like my mother.”

And there you have it – young women who should be supporting Hillary are rebelling against her because she reminds them of mom. Let’s hope they get over it.

Hillary Clinton, on the other hand, is brilliant, has great detailed plans to help the public, is more familiar with foreign policy, however flawed, and luckily has been pulled to the left by Sanders. That’s his real achievement.

She gets my vote.

Can Hillary be elected? I think so. Her ideas are so much better than any Republican ideas. All she has to do is communicate them to the public, and she will do that, despite sexist and other attacks against her. Those likely will generate sympathy.

I also believe that if elected, she can govern by charming enough Republicans to get legislation passed. Watch her on TV and listen, really listen to what she says.

Meanwhile, there’s a fabulous analysis of the election campaigns so far. Here is the link.

Basically the author says there are 3 ideologies at play in 2016. Bernie Sanders represents the social welfare left in the tradition of FDR and the Democrats until Reagan was elected in 1980.

Hillary Clinton and the establishment Republicans represent the neocon or neoliberal tradition in economics which has basically left the USA with increasing inequality and lower class discontent. Globalism and free trade policies come from this tradition. There are left and right versions of neoliberalism.

Trump and Crews represent right wing nationalism, thus blame immigrants, wrongly, for US problems. They are racist bullies, in the European tradition of fascism. Trump reminds me of Mussolini as he struts about the stage.

Some voters understand what Trump and Crews represent, but others apparently do not.

Recall the crowds cheering European fascists in the old newsreels and photos, oblivious to the dangers such candidates represent.  

I believe only Hillary can defeat them because the Democratic voters will realize that only she can govern if elected. She will need Bernie’s help in the campaign, as he rouses young people from apathy. Despite the ‘feel the Bern’ rallies, statistics show that only Trump has brought in substantial numbers of new voters, so defeating him will be tough.

Here’s a bit of fun: Will Trump next turn on Rubio and demolish him as Chris Christie did recently? Or will he pick Rubio as VP?

Some say the Republican establishment will not allow Trump or Crews to get the nomination. Marco Rubio seems to be the choice, and a Rubio/Kasich ticket, Florida/Ohio, would be formidable. Their ideology seems to be right wing neoliberal but awful on social issues such as women’s reproductive rights, LGBT rights, union rights.

Can they defeat Trump and win the GOP nomination? Maybe.

But I predict Hillary vs. The Donald. Fasten your seat belts.

-- Elaine Hopkins

Peoria County primary races, continued.

PEORIA, IL -- Here's the second and final edition, hopefully, of my coverage of the Peoria County primary races. It follows the third candidate forum I have attended, held Feb 20, and sponsored by the Greater Peoria League of Women Voters.

The election is March 15, and early voting and grace period voting, where you can register and vote at the same time, has already begun. Information from the Election Bureau can be found here.

Every Democrat voting in the primary will choose between two women for Peoria County judge, with the winner to face Republican Tim Cusack in November.

The two candidates are Jodi Hoos and Sonni Williams. Both are qualified by their experience, but both have troubling conflicts of interest and questionable law cases in their pasts.  See my story on them below for the details.

            
Williams                               Hoos                                                                                               Photos by Al Harkrader

At the League forum they were asked whether they would recuse themselves if asked to sign a warrant involving one of their conflicts -- for Hoos the Peoria County State's Attorney, and for Williams, her husband's law firm and the city of Peoria, now her employer.

(The background:  three judges signed warrants so the city of Peoria could conduct a police raid on a citizen's residence for the supposed crime of posting Twitter comments mocking the mayor of Peoria.  Guess they had never studied the First Amendment to the U.S. Constitution and its clause on free speech. Let's hope whoever wins this judge race has learned a lesson from the Twittergate fiasco, also well covered in this blog.)

At the candidate forum, Williams said she would recuse herself.  Hoos was vague saying "it wouldn't be a conflict" under Illinois law, for her, as a former Peoria County prosecutor, to sign warrants from the police, with the  implication they could be backed by the State's Attorney's office.

State's Attorney Jerry Brady has endorsed her, and held a joint fund raiser with her.

So -- who to vote for?  Williams is preferred.

(Compare this coverage with the lame story in today's Peoria Journal Star -- no mention of the real issues in this race.)

Here is the recording of the judges race. 

Download Judges

The Republican race involves a doctor vs. a lawyer!  They are competing for the nomination in District 11 of the Peoria County Board, a far north district gerrymandered for the Republicans.  No Democrat is competing for this seat, though one could be slated after the primary. 

The lawyer is Chris Crawford, late of the Peoria District 150 School Board where he served a five year term, rarely speaking, looking bored, and supporting the disastrous superintendent who resigned before she could be ousted after a board election in 2015.  This service does, however, give him somewhat valuable experience as a public official.

His opponent is physician Gregory Adamson, an orthopedic surgeon who told the League audience that he also holds an MBA. He apparently has never served in a public office.

              
Crawford                                Adamson                      Photos by Al Harkrader

Both want lower taxes and spending cuts where possible.  Crawford would sell the county's nursing home.  Adamson said it loses $5 million a year, a sum that apparently is not true, according to board member Allen Mayer, who attended the meeting in the audience. He said it made a profit of half a million dollars last year, and had figures on his cell phone to show the budget information.

The nursing home is valuable, in that it charges somewhat lower rates than other nursing homes in the area, and is their competitor, at least in theory, keeping rates low for everyone.

Adamson was more nuanced in his answer to this question, saying selling "should be looked at" along with other options including a change in management.

Adamson also did not know what a TIF district is, when asked a question about TIFs.  The widely used term means tax increment financing districts, that deny governments such as school districts and the county, most of the tax funds from development for 23 years, using the money instead, at least supposedly, for other development.

Crawford is suspicious of TIFs, from his school board experience. Adamson then responded, questioning "sweetheart deals" such as the city's Warehouse District, and said he's "skeptical" of these deals. 

Crawford promised to attend every committee and board meeting and study the material beforehand, which can take a lot of time. Adamson didn't comment on that, and that may be problematic for him if he has a busy medical practice.

So -- from this one forum -- Adamson has not attended the other two forums -- he seems preferable, but can he do the service this position requires?  He needs to be pinned down on this by his constituents.

Here is the recording of the County Board candidates:

Download County Board

The candidates for Peoria District 150 School Board in District 3 did not attend this forum, but have been at previous forums in person or on the phone.  Dan Walther has been endorsed by Change 150, and that's good enough for me to prefer him.His opponent is Terry Spayer.

The winner will be elected in this non-partisan race.  That means a voter can take a non-partisan ballot to vote only in this race, if the voter does not want to take a Republican or Democratic ballot.

Recordings of the forum will be posted here later, along with photos of the candidates.

 -- Elaine Hopkins

 

Democratic primary candidate forum: the judge candidates

PEORIA, IL -- The most interesting local race in the Democratic primary here is the contest between two women for Peoria County judge, Jodi Hoos, now an appointed judge, and Sonni Williams, an attorney for the city of Peoria.  The winner faces a Republican in November.

The two women appeared at a candidate forum held on Feb.6 by the Peoria County Democratic Women. Thanks to my question, about potential conflicts of interest, and interviews after the event, the forum moved beyond biography and experience. 

Both women have working class backgrounds, but managed to attend college and law school.  Both have the requisite experience for judge. Both have conflicts of interest that need to be addressed, as well as troubling cases they have been involved with. 

Jodi Hoos said she went to work for the Peoria County State's Attorney's office  out of law school, became chief of felony prosecutions, and was appointed judge 14 months ago.

She has been endorsed by State's Attorney Jerry Brady and the Peoria County Democratic party.  Democrat Brady is running for reelection unopposed thus far, though the Republican party still has time to appoint someone to run against him.

Hoos and Brady recently held a joint fund-raiser.  Hoos doesn't view this connection as a problem, because she is currently assigned to hear civil cases, not criminal cases. Her opponent, Williams, finds the connection a violation of judicial ethics.

"I'm proud of (Brady's) support, but that does not mean there's a conflict," Hoos said.

"Every person gets a fair opportunity," in her courtroom, she said.

In addition, Hoos was recently sued in federal court for a criminal case she was involved with as prosecutor that was overturned by the Appellate Court.  It allegedly sent an innocent man to prison for three years.  A justice stated that the evidence shows he was innocent, not guilty. 

In an interview, Hoos said the suit against her personally has been dismissed, but she does not know whether that will be appealed.  She said the evidence was strong against the defendant, and the courtroom testimony against him was compelling.

Williams has a different conflict, her marriage to attorney Dick Williams who works in a Peoria law firm.  She said she would not hear cases involving that firm. "I bring impartiality. I'm not tied to anyone," she said. 

Afterward I asked Williams about her role in the notorious Twittergate case, the  case that brought international attention to Peoria.  The mayor, Jim Ardis, was angry that a Peoria man set up a fake Twitter account that rudely and obscenely mocked him, so ordered police to arrest him and raid the house where he lived with others.

Three judges, not Hoos, signed the required warrants to find out the ownership of the Twitter account and search the house. When the house was raided police found marijuana, and one of the residents was prosecuted for possession. 

Brady ultimately did not prosecute the Twitter poster, as he belatedly realized the free speech implications. 

With the entire event a serious free speech violation, the American Civil Liberties Union sued the city in federal court and won a $250,000 settlement for the Twitter poster. The settlement irked some civil libertarians because no depositions were ever taken to find out who said what to generate the police raid.

The fellow arrested for marijuana possession pleaded guilty to a low level charge, so the warrants were not contested.

Williams in an interview said she had no real involvement in the case. Brady told the mayor initially that the Twitter case broke the law, thus signing off on the raid, she said. He later recanted that position.

On the day the mayor held a press conference to read the Twitter insults against him, Williams said she was in Chicago at a conference on other city business, the combined sewer outflow issues. She had no role in his awful performance that was mocked widely, she said.

So -- which candidate deserves a vote in the primary? 

The entire judicial system in Peoria has been criticized by some as too inbred, with many conflicts of interest.

Defendants hate it when the lawyers and judges appear to be golfing or hunting buddies, since it reeks of bias on the part of the judge.  Both candidates pledged to be impartial if elected.

There's another candidate forum on Feb. 20, at 10:15 am at the Peoria Public Library's North Branch, on Allen Road behind Menards.  Stay tuned.

 -- Elaine Hopkins