GOPUSA ILLINOIS Daily Clips - January 3, 2008
GOPUSA Illinois Daily Clips for January 3, 2008 includes news and commentaries on the following topics:
- Giuliani
- Republican Party candidates, campaigns, and events
- Republican Party platform issues including limited government, abortion, homosexual activity, immigration, gambling, etc.
- Illinois, Cook County, DuPage County, and Chicago budget problems
and more . . .
SPRINGFIELD STATE JOURNAL REGISTER
-- Illinois’ new primary date puts state in spotlight for Giuliani’s camp - Bernie Schoenburg
(THE ARTICLE: The fact that former New York Mayor RUDY GIULIANI is coming to Springfield three days before the Feb. 5 primary election is part of his strategy — Giuliani is putting more emphasis on populous states like Illinois rather than early states like Iowa. “Illinois is extraordinarily important this year, much more so than in many years in the past,” said MIKE DuHAIME, Giuliani’s national campaign manager, in a telephone interview from New York City this week. “A lot of campaigns, I don’t think, have recognized just what a big prize Illinois is and how important it is now that it’s moved up so early.” Formerly in mid-March, the Illinois primary is Feb. 5 — though other states also have changed their primary schedules, so Republicans in about 20 states will go to polls or caucuses that day. Giuliani isn’t expected to lead the ticket in either the Iowa results today or the New Hampshire primary next week. “Nobody’s ever won every single primary,” DuHaime said. “We’ve decided to look at this from a long-term approach, knowing that there are large states like California, like Florida, like New Jersey, like New York, that have moved up and have a say this year that (they) never have had before.” Florida has its primary Jan. 29. The other states he mentioned all have Feb. 5 contests. “I really believe that voters in Illinois are going to make their own decision, regardless of what voters in Iowa or New Hampshire say,” DuHaime said. “Each individual voter is going to vote based on who he or she thinks is going to be the best president, and I think Rudy is that person.” He said the campaign has viewed the primary season “from a long-term strategy in terms of trying to get the most delegates. It seems simplistic, but it’s a different and somewhat unorthodox strategy, and we accept that and know that with that comes some criticism.” But he said getting major endorsements from the likes of former Illinois Govs. JIM EDGAR and JIM THOMPSON, and House GOP Leader TOM CROSS, plus having an office in DuPage County and about 10 staffers in the state already, will pay dividends for Giuliani. Giuliani is moderate on some social issues, such as a willingness to allow abortion, and GOP candidates who have been successful in Illinois, including Edgar and Thompson, have also been considered moderate. But is Giuliani thus hurt in the GOP’s conservative base? “I think voters are going to look at Rudy. . .and they’re going to find someone that they agree with on a whole heckuva lot more than they disagree with,” DuHaime said. “He’s somebody who’s certainly going to be very tough when it comes to foreign policy, somebody who’s going to be very strong in keeping us on offense in the terrorists’ war against us, somebody who’s got the best record of fiscal conservatism of anybody in the race.” On social issues, he said, “You’ll see a lot more agreement than disagreement. You know, when Rudy was mayor of New York. . .abortions went down, adoptions went up dramatically through some of his initiatives.” He said New York City government is the 17th largest economy in the world, giving Giuliani strong executive experience. As a federal prosecutor, he said, Giuliani took on “the mafia and white-collar crime.” Because of the help Chicago police and firefighters provided after Sept. 11, 2001, to New York, DuHaime added, Giuliani has a special bond with Illinois and Chicago. There is, he said, “a passion about Illinois that really comes through.” Giuliani has recently chastised former Massachusetts Gov. MITT ROMNEY and U.S. Sen. JOHN McCAIN of Arizona, two other presidential candidates, for attacking each other. DuHaime said that doesn’t mean Giuliani won’t produce sharp ads. “He will not attack unless he gets attacked first,” DuHaime said. Giuliani is also married to his third wife, possibly opening him to attack on family values. DuHaime, not surprisingly, doesn’t think such issues will dominate. “The New York press certainly dove into his private life a great deal when he was mayor,” DuHaime said, but he thinks Giuliani’s public record will be more important. “I believe he is the single most effective government official in America in most of our lifetimes,” said DuHaime. He said he thinks Giuliani did “an incredible job” after 9/11, and in general, “I don’t think there’s anybody who could have done as great a job as he did in terms of actually making the lives of people better.” Giuliani will speak Feb. 2 at the Sangamon County GOP’s Lincoln Day Luncheon at the Illinois Building at the State Fairgrounds. DuHaime called the Sangamon County Republican Party’s endorsement of Giuliani a “huge boost.” The appearance is a way to say thank you and show the importance of Illinois. Giuliani is spending at least two days in the state in the week leading up to the Feb. 5 voting, DuHaime said. “Springfield, Illinois, has a special place in every Republican’s heart in terms of Abraham Lincoln and (the) symbolism there,” added the New Jersey native. “I’m a big Lincoln fan, although that wouldn’t put me in a very unique category.” Other presidential candidates are backed by prominent Illinois Republicans. McCain has the support of U.S. Reps. RAY LaHOOD, R-Peoria, and JOHN SHIMKUS, R-Collinsville. State Sen. DAN RUTHERFORD of Chenoa and former U.S. House Speaker DENNIS HASTERT of Plano are for Romney. Not to take away from others, DuHaime said, but “I don’t think there’s anybody that has the volume and quality of endorsements we have. . .I just think when you compare everything, I really think we have a very strong team.”)
BEACON NEWS
-- Cunningham and Saar: no time to run March 8 election by book Lawsuit in 14th District: Reasonable deadlines sought for canvassing, absentee voting - Steve Lord
DAILY HERALD
-- Election authorities in Kane, DuPage and six other jurisdictions in the 14th Congressional District are suing Gov. Rod Blagojevich Officials say they don't have enough time for March 8 election - Lisa Smith
Smoking tax could be part of bus, train bailout - John Patterson
-- DIERSEN HEADLINE: Daily Herald grouses "No apparent resolution to end impasse" to Illinois' budget problems, but what outrageous Democrat "resolution" does the Daily Herald want -- more taxes, more gambling, or both?
-- DIERSEN HEADLINE: While the Daily Herald reports that a few North Central College students will watch the Iowa caucuses on television, the Daily Herald does not report that hundreds of Republicans will watch Giuliani speak in person at the DuPage County Republican Party Lincoln Day Dinner on February 1. Has Jim Fuller replaced Eric Krol as the Daily Herald political reporter?
-- DIERSEN HEADLINE: Did the Andy Martin press release on Obama and Kenya prompt the Daily Herald to report on Kenya and the 5,000 Chicagoland Kenyans?
-- DIERSEN HEADLINE: Frigid weather hampers efforts to keep DuPage and Kane County homeless from heading south
-- Pick proven leader in Lauzen for 14th - Martin Kopp, Elgin
(THE LETTER: With regard to the Feb. 5 primaries, I would advise fellow citizens to vote for Chris Lauzen for Congress in the 14th Congressional District. I experienced a dispute with the Illinois Tollway and wrote letters and sent e-mails to each of my local and state representatives. There was not one single reply with the exception of Lauzen. He called me at home in the evening and was considerate enough to listen to me and express his personal concern and proposed action. I realized how he differentiated himself from those others that are suppose to represent their constituency -- he is a leader. As a quote from Colin Powell states: "The day soldiers stop bringing you their problems is the day you have stopped leading them. They have either lost confidence that you can help or concluded that you do not care. Either case is a failure of leadership." I am convinced that Lauzen as our congressman would continue to be a leader who would help solve problems, both locally and nationally.)
-- Stop destruction of our country - Jane D. Hossfeld, Streamwood
(THE LETTER: "Don't ask -- don't tell" We know what's destroying our country, but until we elect people who think like we do, the destruction will go on. NAFTA and CAFTA must be canceled. Charity begins at home, but Americans want jobs -- not charity. By sheer force of numbers, the illegal immigrants will overtake us, and we will have to learn Spanish instead of them learning English. It will not be justice for all, and native-born Americans will lose. We are providing illegal immigrants with the chance to better themselves by pushing us under.)
BLOOMINGTON PANTAGRAPH
-- Illinois election officials racing to get ready for Feb. 5 primary - Kurt Erickson
(THE ARTICLE: SPRINGFIELD -- Illinois election officials continue to scramble to prepare for the state’s earliest-ever Feb. 5 primary as the nation watches Iowa on Thursday night for the first results of the long presidential-nominating season. With just over a month to go before Illinoisans head to the polls, some counties are just now putting the finishing touches on sample ballots – a process that usually would have been done more than a week ago. But, because lawmakers moved up the primary election from its regular mid-March date, a variety of factors have resulted in some last-minute hold-ups. The Republican Party, for example, delayed its official filing for presidential candidates and delegates by nearly a month. In addition, the state didn’t certify the ballot until Dec. 21, which left local election officials just a couple of days before the Christmas holiday to begin printing ballots in time for absentee ballots to be sent out. “There are many things that can impact when the ballots are available,” said Mark Mossman of the Illinois State Board of Elections. State officials believe any glitches will be ironed out before the start of the Jan. 14 early voting period. In 2006, an estimated 9 percent of the voters took advantage of the state’s early and absentee voting laws.)
-- Special session opens with a whimper Legislative leaders among no-shows to fix transit woes - Kurt Erickson
(THE ARTICLE: SPRINGFIELD -- The new year in the Illinois Statehouse started out much like 2007 ended — in political gridlock. Top legislative leaders thumbed their noses at Gov. Rod Blagojevich’s call for a special session on mass transit by not even showing up in the Capitol Wednesday. The governor did make it to town, but watched as nothing again happened to break the legislative stalemate that has paralyzed state government since last summer. “Not a good sign for ’08,” said state Rep. Dan Brady, R-Bloomington. The governor called the special session to once again deal with a looming mass transit crisis in Chicago. Lawmakers have been unable to agree on a funding plan to help stave off fare hikes and service cuts to bus and train service. Downstate lawmakers are withholding their support for mass transit in hopes of leveraging a statewide construction program that would build roads, bridges and schools in their districts. But, with no deal on the horizon, just 70 of 118 members of the House showed up Wednesday. The Senate saw just 14 of 59 members on the floor when the session opened and quickly closed. Many members were unable to attend because of prior family commitments or because they attended Tuesday’s University of Illinois football game at the Rose Bowl in California. “I don’t know what today proves,” said Senate Majority Leader Debbie Halvorson, D-Crete. A House committee did discuss a plan that would boost cigarette taxes by 90-cents a pack in order to help the transit systems. But, that proposal has been floating around the Statehouse for months and hasn’t gained traction as a viable alternative. Blagojevich pointed out that Democrats could band together and overcome Republican objections to a mass transit bailout. Because it is a new year, a simply majority is needed to approve legislation. “That means Democrats in both chambers of the General Assembly should be able to come together and get something done quickly,” the governor said in a statement. But, given the lackluster interest shown by lawmakers Wednesday, it appears unlikely that any action will come before the General Assembly is due back in town again Wednesday.)
WEEK TV
-- The Rest of the Country Watches While Iowans Caucus
http://www.week.com/news/local/12994092.html (Article includes quotes from Illinois Republican Party Vice Chairman MaryAlice Erickson.)
(THE ARTICLE: The Iowans are getting ready to caucus. They'll gather at a local church or school and openly choose a candidate by popular vote. But what does that mean for us in Illinois? And will it make a difference by the time we vote on Super Tuesday, come February? You don't have to be a political pundit to know some presidential candidates will spend a lot of time in Iowa. There's the straw poll, and of course the caucuses. Unlike a primary, where your ballot is secret, caucus goers declare their support for a candidate publicly. Caucuses meet rooms. They're like neighborhood gatherings with open discussions, until a majority is in support of one candidate. But the fact is, Iowa is more liberal than the average state, is more elderly and has fewer urban concentrations. On average, only six percent of eligible voters will caucus. So why does the rest of the country care. . .? Well, the cameras are there, and the nation is watching. Vice Chairman of the IL Republican Party, MaryAlice Erickson said, "All of the candidates are getting national attention. Do you think Oprah went to Iowa for the Iowans?" Frank Mackaman of the Dirksen Congressional Center said, "They feel they have to do it because the attention paid to it largely by the media and because it gives them an opportunity to demonstrate viability, authenticity and strength." This year Illinois moved up its primary from March to February 5th. Frank Mackman says it's hard to predict what impact the early primaries will have on the presidential election. "Will it mean the eventual nominees will be selected very, very early, does it mean people won't have a chance to recover from mistakes. Will it mean someone who comes in third won't have time to raise money and come in first?" MaryAlice Erickson says it may place more importance on Illinois, but she doesn't like its effect on local races. "I think it makes it difficult for all the other candidates. It's great for incumbents because the incumbents are established. It makes it difficult for anybody who wants to challenge incumbents." But that will wait. . .because the Iowans will go first, and it's a chance for candidates to make a first impression on the rest of the country.)
CBS2
-- Special Session Falls Apart In Springfield Most Lawmakers Failed To Show Up To Find Solution To Transit Funding Crisis - Mike Parker
http://cbs2chicago.com/local/cta.funding.crisis.2.621513.html (Includes video clip)
ASSOCIATED PRESS
-- Mass transit stalemate continues, despite latest special session - Ryan Keith
CHICAGO TRIBUNE
-- Back on the stump, Giuliani now trails in poll - Jim Tankersley
(FROM THE ARTICLE: SOMERSWORTH, N.H. - Rudy Giuliani resurfaced on the Republican presidential campaign trail Wednesday, as media attention focused on his rivals in Iowa and a new poll showed his once-commanding national lead had vanished. The former New York mayor returned from a two-day break from public events to pitch his signature security-and-tax-cuts message in three small New Hampshire towns. In a news conference after the second event, a town hall gathering here at the Gateway Family Restaurant near the Maine border, he defended the unorthodox strategy that left him alone in the state among GOP contenders a day before the Iowa caucuses. Asked if he was worried that he was losing attention to his rivals, Giuliani counted the cameras lined up to film him: one, two, three, four, five, six, seven, eight. "We're doing OK," he said with a grin.)
-- It's mostly no-shows at special session on transit - Jeffrey Meitrodt
(FROM THE ARTICLE: SPRINGFIELD - Most lawmakers skipped Wednesday's special session called by Gov. Rod Blagojevich to fund Chicago's ailing mass transit system, ignoring the governor's plea to "just get it done" without any more delays. But transit advocates said they made progress in finding ways to help the system at a two-hour committee hearing in the state Capitol. State Rep. Julie Hamos (D-Evanston), who has led two failed efforts to find money for the region's transit agencies, said she will present one or more bills at the legislature's next regular session on Wednesday. Without a big infusion of cash from the state, transit officials have said they will be forced to impose major service cuts and fare increases on Jan. 20.)
-- Governor issues flat denial He disavows tie to U.S. probe -
(FROM THE ARTICLE: Gov. Rod Blagojevich on Wednesday denied allegations made in a federal court document that he offered to help two political insiders who have been convicted in a corruption investigation of his administration. Asked why he thinks he is not the "Public Official A" cited in the document, Blagojevich responded that he did not engage in the conversations with the two insiders that are detailed in the court filing. "No such conversations like that ever took place," Blagojevich said.)
-- DIERSEN HEADLINE: Someone who promotes anti-conservative candidates, Steve Chapman, promotes negative campaigning
(FROM THE COMMENTARY: Negative campaigning has a bad reputation, routinely being disparaged as juvenile taunting that serves only to degrade public discourse. A New York Times headline the other day noted "bickering and negative ads in countdown to caucuses," as though these were the moral equivalent of an old married couple grousing about that mess in the kitchen. Even devoted practitioners feel the duty to deplore negative campaigning. After commissioning an ad accusing Mitt Romney of grievous departures from conservative wisdom, Mike Huckabee was so remorseful that he refused to run it -- though he managed to disseminate his charges in a news conference where he sorrowfully screened the spot for the news media. Explaining his newfound magnanimity, Huckabee asserted, "It's never too late to do the right thing.")
CHICAGO SUN-TIMES
-- Gov scoffs at probes, media: 'They like to sell newspapers' - Chris Fusco
(THE ARTICLE: Gov. Blagojevich on Wednesday bluntly dismissed federal investigations that have sparked indictments against two of his top political fund-raisers, saying such "tangential, collateral" matters are detracting from important issues such as mass transit funding. "The reality is they like to sell newspapers," the governor said, gesturing toward reporters as he again called for a funding solution for CTA, Metra and Pace. "They're not interested in concrete solutions to problems for people. They just like controversy and tangents that have no relevance to the quality of life for people." In federal court filings, Blagojevich is the unnamed "Public Official A" who allegedly offered contracts and other financial rewards in exchange for political support, sources have told the Chicago Sun-Times. In a Dec. 21 government filing in the case of indicted ex-Blagojevich fund-raiser Tony Rezko, "Public Official A" is alleged to have told Stuart Levine -- an indicted former member of two state panels who is pleading guilty to corruption charges -- "You stick with us, and you will do very well for yourself." The governor has denied being "Public Official A." Asked again Wednesday, he replied, "No such conversations like that ever took place. Anything else?" The governor has not been charged with any crimes. Rezko is set to go to trial in February. Christopher G. Kelly, Blagojevich's former campaign finance chairman, is fighting tax-related charges stemming from gambling wagers. Those charges have nothing to do with Blagojevich, but Kelly's fund-raising role with the governor is under federal scrutiny, sources have said. Kelly has denied wrongdoing.)
-- DIERSEN HEADLINE: Did the Andy Martin press release on Obama and Kenya prompt the Chicago Sun-Times editorialize on the issue?
LAKE COUNTY NEWS SUN
-- JoAnn Osmond and Dan Venturi weigh in on Iowa showdown - Jim Newton
NAPERVILLE SUN
-- DIERSEN HEADLINE: The Naperville Sun encourages voters to attend the Iowa caucus watch at North Central College this evening, but will the Naperville Sun encourage voters to attend the DuPage County Republican Party Lincoln Day Dinner on February 1?
HERALD NEWS
-- Reduce quotas for immigration - Pete DeLaney, Crest Hill
ILLINOIS REVIEW
-- Iowa caucuses, schmacuses. Illinois GOP's got dinners - Fran Eaton
(THE ARTICLE: Big deal. Iowa has its Republican caucuses, but Illinois GOPers have their Lincoln Day Dinners. And this year, those dinners will be the place for Republicans to be in the days leading up to the February 5, 2008 primary. With two key Republican champions -- U.S. presidents Abraham Lincoln and Ronald Reagan -- linked to Illinois and born in February, it's become tradition for Illinois Republicans to brave February cold to dine together, raise money for local county organizations and provide candidates a chance to meet the party faithful. This year Illinois is one of 23 early states choosing their party's presidential nominee on Super Duper Tuesday. The traditional celebrations are expected to bring in a larger than normal number of Republicans eager to meet local primary candidates and hear what others are saying about their presidential picks. Eighteen different county organizations have scheduled their events before February 5. And at least one GOP presidential candidate, Rudy Giuliani, gets the importance of Illinois GOP's Lincoln Day Dinner circuit and sees the value of Illinois' number of potential national convention delegates. He's focusing on those Lincoln Day Dinners on the crucial weekend just prior to Super Duper Tuesday. Three key GOP counties tout Giuliani as their dinners' keynote speakers: DuPage County Republicans on Friday, February 1 and downstate Sangamon County GOP for a Saturday, February 2 luncheon and Tazewell County GOP later that same day. Other counties have campaign reps scheduled to speak, but as the race tightens, other presidential candidates -- especially those who sense Illinois a battleground state for their campaigns -- are likely to take advantage of the exposure to the IL GOP faithful. (For your convenience, Illinois Review is providing GOP Lincoln Day Dinner updates on our events calendar in the right hand margin.)
-- Illinois presidential delegate primer: who picks whom and does it matter anyway? - Fran Eaton
-- DIERSEN HEADLINE: Hastert campaigns for Romney in Cedar Rapids, Iowa
-- DIERSEN HEADLINE: Jon Zahm comments on latest Oberweis poll
(THE COMMENT: Laughable. Oberweis is running an extremely negative campaign. Full of name-calling and baiting tactics. What goes around will come around. The skeletons are rattling. We'll see who wins in the end. The grassroots feedback is still pro-Lauzen more than Oberweis.)
QUINCY HERALD-WHIG
-- Capital construction, transit funding shortfall to top discussion - Doug Wilson
CHICAGO SUBURBAN NEWS
-- Eight for 2008: New Year’s Resolutions for DuPage County - Bartlett Press
WHEATON LEADER
-- Homes sales down, prices up in DuPage County - Dan Petrella
(FROM THE ARTICLE: DuPage County, IL - Foreclosures, plummeting home sales and troubles with subprime mortgages have grabbed headlines across the country this year, but the housing market in DuPage County hasn’t been all gloom and doom. While the number of single-family homes sold throughout the county from January through November fell by 20.7 percent from 2006, the median sale price of those homes increased by 2.2 percent, according to statistics from the Main Street Organization of Realtors, a trade group in DuPage and the wider Chicago area. Chris Read is chief executive officer of John Greene Realtor in Naperville and past president of the Main Street Organization. She said declining sales this year are a result of the market correcting for the flood of homes built in the last five years. “The biggest (factor) is the oversupply in the market,” Read said. “We had a such a boom from 2003 to 2006. . .The supply (of new homes) overran the demand.” Since mid-2006, the U.S. real estate market has been troubled by a rise in foreclosures due to homeowners defaulting on subprime mortgages, which are loans made to high-risk borrowers who otherwise would not be able to obtain financing to purchase a home. For all the attention subprime mortgages have received, they only account for about 7 percent of all home loans, Read said. In addition to the oversupply, Read attributed the drop in sales to homebuyers’ lack of confidence in the market.)
WASHINGTON POST
-- Hastert and the FEC, the Untold Story - Mary Ann Akers
GOPUSA ILLINOIS
-- Ed Brennan, the outstanding Illinois Republican Party Finance Committee Chairman - Gary MacDougal
www.gopillinois.com (1/3/08 News Clips page)
(THE ARTICLE: Ed Brennan, the outstanding Chairman of the Finance Committee for the Illinois Republican Party died unexpectedly after a short illness on Thursday, December 27th. Ed rendered great service to the party when he agreed to be finance chairman in 2002. At that time there was no finance chairman, and the party's liabilities exceeded cash on hand. He quickly assembled an outstanding group of business leaders who made major financial contributions each year until he was recently succeeded in that position by Ty Fahner. Then state party chair Gary MacDougal said "We inherited a tough situation, with Governor Ryan's indictment hanging over the Party, and a tough primary where opponents spent $12 million trying to deny Jim Ryan the party's nomination. Ed Brennan's stepping up to take that job was heroic, and he was a major reason the party stayed financially viable during that tough period. I will always be grateful to Ed.")
FAMILY TAXPAYERS NETWORK
-- 14th Congressional District: Voting to waste another Illinois Congressional seat – or not - John Biver
http://www.familytaxpayers.net/article.asp?articleNumber=1554
http://www.familytaxpayers.net/article.asp?articleNumber=1554
-- 8th Congressional District: Greenberg sticks with Kjellander, says he won’t give up tainted cash
TOM ROESER
-- Chicago Sun-Times' Cynical Glorification of Single Women Having Babies
-- Chicago Sun-Times Resolution for Us: Have Sex More in 2008. Matters Not What Kind
(THE COMMENTARY: Wanton glorification of sex for sex’s sake was hyped yesterday by the paper’s amoral recommendation for everyone to have more sex in 2008-without any proviso that it should be restricted to the married state. This is more Michael Cooke. “Here’s one New Year’s resolution that won’t be drudgery” the paper announced. “Studies have found that having safe sex [sic] several times a week is good for your heart, muscle tone and sense of smell” (which the paper should be expert on) and “makes you feel closer to your partner [sic].” It quotes Newsweek.com saying unrestricted i.e. unclassified sex, not distinguishing between marrieds and singles, hetero- or homo-, ’burns four calories a minute.”)
OBERWEIS CAMPAIGN
-- Oberweis opens up double-digit lead over Lauzen - Bill Pascoe
(BATAVIA, January 2) -- Oberweis for Congress spokesman Bill Pascoe -- releasing a survey memo prepared by Oberweis for Congress pollster John McLaughlin which shows Oberweis has moved out to a double-digit lead over career politician Chris Lauzen -- today issued the following statement: "Over the past eight weeks, as Jim Oberweis has shared with the voters of the 14th District his vision for securing the borders and ending illegal immigration, cutting taxes and slashing wasteful spending, he has opened up a 12-point lead over Chris Lauzen, and now leads by 46-34 percent. This stands in contrast to our late October survey, which showed just a four-point, 41-37 percent lead for Jim over Chris Lauzen. "The new survey memo reveals that Jim's favorables are up and his unfavorables are down, while Chris Lauzen is in exactly the opposite position -- his favorables are down, while his unfavorables are up. "Apparently, voters in the 14th District have responded better to Jim Oberweis's positive, issue-oriented campaign than they have to Chris Lauzen's negative, typical-career-politician, slash-and-burn tactics." The survey was in the field on December 18 and 19, 2007, and surveyed 300 likely Republican primary voters. The survey has an accuracy of plus or minus 5.7 percent at the 95 percent confidence interval.)
SAUERBERG CAMPAIGN
-- Dr. Steve Sauerberg's 2008 New Year's Resolutions to Strengthen Illinois
(THE PRESS RELEASE: As 2007 draws to a close, I thought it was important to share with you my 2008 New Year's resolutions to strengthen Illinois. We have an historic opportunity this year to change direction - we have an opportunity to return Illinois values to Washington by electing a new U.S. Senator. The career politicians have had their turn at the wheel and the results have been disastrous. My campaign is about offering real solutions to the challenges we face as Americans and as Illinoisans. Below you will find my New Year's resolutions, a positive blue print for improving the lives of the hard-working men and women of Illinois. If you agree with me - that we can do better than politics as usual in Washington and Springfield - then I urge you to join me and contribute to my campaign. -- Protect tax relief currently enjoyed by Illinois families - make 2001 and 2003 tax cuts permanent. Pass real tax reform - our tax code should be fairer, flatter and substantially simpler Secure our borders - fully fund efforts to build a fence along our southern border and actually build it. End benefits for illegals - taxpayers should not have to foot the bill for benefits for those who have nothing but contempt for our laws. Deport felons - illegals who are convicted of felonies should be immediately deported upon the completion of their jail sentences. Pass private sector market-based healthcare reform - 40 million Americans without health insurance is a disgrace, but socialized medicine is not the answer. Eliminate frivolous lawsuits - we need to reform our tort system to protect patients not unscrupulous trial lawyers. End wasteful "earmark" spending - we must end the politicians addiction to wasteful pork barrel spending and our tax dollars. Prioritize and cut spending in Washington and Springfield - its time for our elected leaders to start to make the tough decisions about spending priorities. CHANGE WASHINGTON BY CHANGING WHO WE SEND TO WASHINGTON to be our U.S. Senator! After 37 years on the taxpayer dole, Dick Durbin has had ample time to address the challenges facing Illinoisans. It's time for new energy, new ideas, and new leadership. With your help we can change direction and return Illinois values to Washington and contribute to my campaign. Thank you for your support and God Bless.)
