Illinois Review

Term Limits for Legislative Leaders

by Cal Skinner

One of the proposals which has the greatest potential to break the logjam in Springfield is the one I campaigned on for governor in 2002, when I was the Libertarian Party candidate for governor against Rod Blagojevich and Jim Ryan: Term Limits for Legislative Leaders.

Al Qaeda agent admits aiding Sept. 11 attacks

Breaking news from Chicago Tribune:

Accused Al Qaeda sleeper agent Ali Al-Marri made a stunning reversal in federal court in Peoria on Thursday, pleading guilty to conspiring and providing support for two of the chief architects of the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks.

Ali Al-Marri entered his plea before U.S. District Judge Michael Mihm in Peoria. He admitted to one count of conspiring to provide material support or resources to a foreign terrorist organization. The Bush administration declared Al-Marri, a legal U.S. resident, an "enemy combatant" in late 2001 and held him without charges for more than five years at a Navy brig in South Carolina.

The designation was dropped when a federal grand jury in Illinois indicted him on charges of conspiracy and providing material support to terror. Sentencing is set for July 30.

Proft Steps Down as Cicero Town Spokesman

Adding to the speculation that Dan Proft is preparing to toss his hat into the ring for the 2010 Republican gubernatorial race, Illinois Review received this a few minutes ago ....

Cicero, Illinois... Dan Proft released the following statement today about his decision to step down as Cicero Town Spokesman effective May 1, 2009:

It is after much deliberation that I have come to the decision to leave the town. My decision is based entirely on an opportunity that has presented itself to pursue other professional endeavors. To highlight this point, I am not only leaving the town but I am also taking a leave from my firm, Urquhart Media, to take up the opportunity I referenced.

I want to begin by thanking Larry Dominick, the members of the Town Board, Cicero's town employees and Cicero's residents for making my time in Cicero over the past five years so enjoyable.

You made an "immigrant" from Wheaton feel very much at home and I greatly appreciate the hospitality I was shown. In particular, Larry's kindness has been clearly boundless as evidenced by his tolerance of this die-hard White Sox fan for the past five years.

New Hate Crimes Bill Unconstitutional and Threat to Religious Freedom?

by Jim Kouri

Wednesday night, while President Barack Obama held his televised press conference marking his first 100 days in office, the federal hate crimes bill passed in the House of Representatives by a vote of  249 to 175.

But not everyone believes this piece of legislation is a great idea. They are cautioning many supporters that such a law is a two-edged sword and may have unintended consequences that includes misuse by overzealous and politically motivated prosecutors.

During a discussion of HR 1913, the Local Law Enforcement Hate Crimes Prevention Act of 2009, opponents of the proposed law offered compelling arguments for scrapping the bill.

For example, Federal Bureau of Investigation statistics contained in the Bureau's annual Uniform Crime Report showed that the number of so-called hate crimes has actually declined over the last 10 years.  Also, the last UCR released by the FBI revealed that of the approximately 17,000 homicides that occurred in the U.S., only 9 of the murders were determined to be motivated by bias. 

Obama's bitter view of tea party goers

Here's what Obama told supporters in Missouri yesterday about the national "tea party" movement:

The 'tea parties' had a serious message -- were you listening?

by Phil Kerpen

Judging by his April 24 Times Op-Ed article, "The GOP: divorced from reality," alleged comedian Bill Maher is confused about the message of the April 15 "tea party" protests. In saying demonstrators were merely sore losers reacting to an election that didn't go in their favor, Maher ignores the clear statements made by the overwhelming majority of the hundreds of thousands of ordinary Americans who took to the streets earlier this month: Enough bailouts. Enough debt. Enough taxes.

When President Obama took office in January, the predicted deficit for the 2009 budget year (assuming current projections for tax receipts and economic activity) amounted to 9.7% of the U.S. gross domestic product. Obama grew that to 11.9% with the stimulus and the omnibus spending bill he signed last month. And under Obama's proposed budget, it will grow even more this year, to an astonishing 12.9% of GDP.

The amount of money for which the government put taxpayers on the hook through bailouts -- undeserved rewards for people who took risks that didn't work out -- went from a shocking $7.7 trillion under George W. Bush to an utterly incomprehensible $12.8 trillion during Obama's brief time in office so far. The anti-bailout majority of Americans are justifiably angry. They were angry when Bush got this mess started and are really angry now that Obama has made it worse. People who played by the rules, took care of their families and paid their taxes are going to pick up the tab for special interests on Wall Street and in Washington.

Sen. Specter 2001 Rule to Prevent Party Switching

by Eric Wallace

Is Sen. Specter a man of Principle or just another opportunist?

Barack Obama: 100 Days of No Accountability

Obama's 100 days of death

by Jill Stanek

On Jan. 20, 2009, Barack Obama began his death march as the most anti-life president in U.S. history.

Today marks Obama's 100th day in office. This list substantiates Obama's personnel and policies to that end. He actually started way before Day 1:

Day -75: Names pro-abortion Rahm Emmanuel as chief of staff, who earned a 100 percent approval rating from NARAL while congressman.

Day -59: Appoints executive director of EMILY's List, Ellen Moran, as White House communications director.

Day -56: Names Melody Barnes, who previously served on the boards of EMILY's List and Planned Parenthood Action Fund, as his director of the Domestic Policy Council.

Day -51: Nominates pro-abortion Sen. Hillary Clinton as secretary of state.

New ad: Birkett vs. Quinn