Illinois Review

Four GOP state lawmakers launch Restore Illinois bus tour

Xenia, IL – This week, several lawmakers will hit the road to rally voters and talk about the important issues facing the State of Illinois, a press release said Monday afternoon.

The Restore Illinois Statewide Bus Tour will feature State Representatives Chris Miller (R-Oakland); Darren Bailey (R-Xenia); Blaine Wilhour (R-Beecher City); and Brad Halbrook (R-Shelbyville). The Tour will go as far south as Metropolis and as far north as Rockford and several locations in between. At each bus stop, the lawmakers hope to rally voters as they answer questions.

“Our faith, our values, and our Constitutional rights are under assault,” Bailey said. “We can no longer sit on the sidelines and watch as our freedoms are systematically being eroded. If we as freedom loving Americans are asleep at the wheel on Election Day, the country we know, and love could soon be gone. This bus tour is a rallying cry for patriots to step up and get involved. Illinois is not lost, but it soon will be if we do not take a stand.”

Di Leo: The Biden Crime Family – From Embarrassment to Extortion

By John F. Di Leo - 

Many politicians have an embarrassment or two in their families.

In my lifetime, Jimmy Carter’s brother Billy was the most famous example.  Billy Carter ran a dingy, dreadful gas station (Amoco was constantly trying to find a way to force him to clean it up) and upon his brother’s election, he marketed a cheap beer – Billy Beer! - to capitalize on his proximity to fame and fortune.

But it wasn't illegal. It was pretty embarrassing for Jimmy, sure, but it didn’t reflect badly on the president in the eyes of the law. There’s no law against being the brother of a slob with an unkempt gas station.

Similarly, there have been other presidents with a son or daughter whose misbehavior embarrassed them in the press - being notorious for drunk driving, drug abuse, wild partying, or other such problems.

But even if their behavior was illegal, it only reflected upon the politician as an impropriety, a black mark.  It wasn't like the politician himself was the one breaking the law.

Trump shouts out to IL GOP candidate Mark Curran at Wisconsin rally

Illinois' GOP candidate for US Senate was on hand at the Janesville, Wisconsin Trump rally Saturday night, and received a shout out from the President - who went on to take a jab at Illinois Gov JB Pritzker that "Illinois could use a new governor ..." 

Curran replied to the president, holding up a red cap saying instead of the traditional "Make America Great Again," saying "Make Them Cry Again" - referring to the shocking display of temper tantrums Leftists showed when Hillary Clinton lost to Trump in 2016.  

Curran is challenging Democrat incumbent Dick Durbin, who has represented Illinois to the US Senate since 1997. 

Thorner: Ways in which 2020 election differs from 2016 signals Trump victory

2016 photo

By Nancy Thorner -

Biased polling to raise money, discourage the Republican vote and hide voter fraud has been a weapon for Democrats all my life. This year incentives to jigger polls have never been greater for a Democrat Establishment who fears their colleges, cities, and states will go broke without a federal bailout that depends on the Democrats at least holding the House.  But fundamental polling problems will cause even the best like Trafalgar to underestimate Trump support.

There are about 12% more registered voters this year over 2016. Did they get a call?  Pollsters still mostly call landlines. In 2016, about 50% had landlines, in 2020, that percentage is down to about 37%. Did the many millions that have switched to cell phones get a call?  How many pollsters call only registered voters instead only those that voted the last 4 out of 5 elections? Polls have been wrong around the world because they get librarians, teachers and unemployed “activists” to respond, while plumbers, electricians, carpenters, etc. (blue collar folks) refuse to talk to them.

A net of one sixth of people asked refuse to answer polls when they are voting for Trump, only 6% refuse to say Biden, 23% refuse to answer, Trump. That means only 77 % of Trump vote is there but 94 % of Biden vote is there for pollsters.

61% likely US voters think social media bad for politics

With Facebook and Twitter under fire for their one-sided censorship of the news, most voters agree that social media has had a negative impact on politics in this country.

A new Rasmussen Reports national telephone and online survey finds that 61% of Likely U.S. Voters now think the impact on politics of social media like Facebook and Twitter has been bad for the nation. That’s up from 51% when Rasmussen first asked the question three years ago.

Just seven percent (7%) say social media has been good for politics in this country, while 28% consider it neither good nor bad.

What do you think? Has social media been good or bad for politics? 

Rossi: Proof The “Fake News” Is Indeed “The Enemy Of the People”

By Randy Rossi - 

If you had any doubt about the “Fake News” being “The Enemy of the People”, the fact that most of the “Fake News” hid the New York Post’s breakthrough report on the content of Hunter Biden’s computer which proves beyond a shadow of a doubt that he used his dad’s powerful position as VP to make millions of dollars from China, Russia, Ukraine, and other countries proves that the “Fake News” acts as an agent for Democrats and against Republicans.

Not only did Twitter and Facebook censor anybody that tried to share this critical news with the American people, the vast majority of news sources refused to report on this breakthrough news hiding it from the American people. In the NBC and ABC debates with President Trump and VP Biden, this breakthrough news was not even mentioned once as we are just a few days away from the election.

Pritzker: Illinois Lockdown Is All Trump's Fault

By Stephen Moore - 

Illinois continues to have one of the harshest economic lockdowns in the country and new unemployment claims have risen for the past four consecutive weeks - capped by a 27 percent increase last week.

Rockford is Illinois’ third-largest city. Mayor Tom McNamara, a Democrats is begging Pritzker, to end some state mandates, including one that’s shut down indoor dining in his region.

He says if restaurants don’t get relief “we're really just saying close your doors, you're not going to make it through the holiday season.”

Will the Cultural Revolution Be Canceled?

Americans aren't as keen on "wokeness" as our major institutions are. Joel Kotkin writes:

It’s an article of faith among many conservatives, and some liberals, that we’re being swept by a Maoist cultural revolution destined to transform American society into a woke collective. Yet before surrendering basics like equality of opportunity, social order, and free speech to leftist authoritarians, we should consider whether they’re the ones who will wind up getting canceled.

Most Americans don’t favor defunding police or instituting race quotas; they are wary of the costs connected with the Green New Deal and of allowing Washington to control local zoning. Many are already voting with their feet, fleeing places that promote these ideas and seeking out areas aligned with more recognizable American values. Over the past 20 years, virtually all the most progressive large states—New York, New Jersey, Illinois, and California—have suffered massive outmigration, while red or purplish states like Florida, Texas, the Carolinas, or Arizona welcome more and more Americans to resettle there. On the metropolitan level, even before Covid-19 accelerated the trend, a steady, largely unacknowledged, movement from the deep-blue core to the less progressive suburbs or exurbs has been underway.

Amy Coney Barrett Will Protect the Constitution

Amy Coney Barrett's judicial philosophy will protect the Constitution. Stephanie Taub writes:

Modern debates over judicial nominees, to our great national shame, seem to feature more attacks on the person than sincere deliberation about his or her professional credentials.

Missing is any reflection on the nominee’s judicial philosophy and demonstrated commitment to upholding the Constitution.

Thorner: Don't believe the doomsday reports of Trump losing

By Nancy Thorner -

Media reports every day express the notion that President Donald J. Trump is double digits behind former Vice President Joe Biden in the polls to depress voting among Republicans.  But we all know what happened in 2016 in the Hillary/Trump race for president when the polls predicted Hillary would win by a landslide, and then she lost to outsider businessman Donald Trump.

According to the following article posted at Powerlineblog.com, Beneath the Top Line Poll Numbers, "The shift to the left by the Democrat Party of today has occurred chiefly among white Democrats. This may be the hidden weakness that delivers the election to Trump."

What Tammy Duckworth is telling Illinoisans about Amy Coney Barrett

CHICAGO - Illinois' junior US Senator Tammy Duckworth will not be supporting Amy Coney Barrett for the US Supreme Court - and nothing any Illinois constituent can say will change her mind. Judge Barrett will not be an "impartial, fair and independent jurist," she says in responses she's sending to those asking her to support Judge Barrett. 

Here's what Duckworth is sending to those inquiring: 

Dear Neighbor,

Thank you for contacting me about the nomination of Judge Amy Coney Barrett to be an Associate Justice of the Supreme Court of the United States for a lifetime term. I appreciate you taking the time to make me aware of your concerns on this important matter. 

As your Senator, my constitutional responsibility is to fairly evaluate a Supreme Court nominee’s qualifications to serve a lifetime appointment. To earn my support, a nominee must demonstrate the capability and willingness to serve as an independent jurist who exercises integrity, wisdom and fairness on the bench. I carefully examined Judge Barrett’s record and suitability after President Trump nominated her in 2017 to serve a lifetime appointment as a Circuit Judge on the United States Court of Appeals for the Seventh Circuit, which covers our home State of Illinois. I was forced to oppose Judge Barrett’s confirmation after concluding that Judge Barrett demonstrated neither the capability nor willingness to serve as an impartial, fair and independent jurist.

They Say Scandinavia But They Mean Venezuela

What do Democratic Socialists like Bernie Sanders and Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez want America to look like? They say they want America to emulate Scandinavian countries like Denmark and Sweden. But do their proposed policies reflect that? Or do they point down a darker path? Debbie D’Souza, a native Venezuelan and political commentator, investigates.

Will County Board Dems agree to move forward with racial reparations for "transgenerational damage"

WILL COUNTY - Will County and Illinois residents may not be aware of its offensive history, but the Will County Democrats have decided that because the county and state participated in slavery, it is time they compensate for it. 

At least those Will County citizens participating in legalized pot sales will. 

This week, the Will County majority voted to set up a committee to determine how funds the county acquires via cannabis sales can be channeled towards slave descendents. 

The Dems agreed that the state of Illinois promoted "white supremacy" and "made legal, tolerated and enabled the institution of slavery" in its history.

The Caucus voted to move forward with the following proclamation, entitled "Repairing the Transgenerational Damage Done through Slavery, the Black Codes, the War on Drugs and Mass Incarceration in Will County, IL:" 

Former IL GOP House floor leader endorses Dem in 65th race

GENEVA - Steve Andersson once served as the Illinois Republican House Floor Leader - a position with considerable political influence - but this campaign season, he's backing the Democrat running in the 65th District. 

Andersson, who stepped down as floor leader after voting against his constituents to raise the Illinois income tax rate to 4.95% from 3.75% in 2017, chose not to seek re-election in 2018.  

Democrat Martha Paschke posted on her Facebook page photos taken during the press conference announcing Andersson's support.

Where’s Weyermuller? Reviewing Evanston Bakery's Presidential “Cookie Polling“

By Mark Weyermuller -

The media is obsessed with election surveys, studies, and polls. I often question the legitimacy of these polls, along with who pays to promote them. With that I mind, I stopped by Bennison's Bakery on Davis Street in Evanston, Illinois to check on their presidential "cookie poll."

Bennison's are selling Joe Biden and Donald Trump sugar cookies for $2.50 each (plus tax) during the campaign season. Each sale is posted as a vote on a board behind the counter. 

Today Biden in today’s polls based on cookie sales leads 27 to 13. That's 67% to 33%.  Trump receiving 33% in an area of 100% Democrats means a huge amount of Democrats are voting Trump.

The overall cookie count for the past month of Biden 864 to Trump 242 for 1106 cookies purchased. That’s 78% Biden and 22% Trump, again a big deal for Trump as people, I mean Democrats are voting Trump. 

The cookie polling has been very accurate in the past. We covered this in 2016 at Illinois Review. 

The election is just 20 days away on Tuesday, November 3, 2020. 

Di Leo: Musings on a Washington Circus

By John F. Di Leo - 

Reflections on the confirmation process, now and then... 

While watching the news this week, one was forced to ponder many things... the Supreme Court, the United States Senate, the wonders of the internet, and how far we have fallen as a nation. 

We have more information at our fingertips today than anyone ever had in generations before.  Questions might take hours in a library to research, staring at encyclopedias, digging through dusty old reference books, even squinting to read old periodicals on microfiche. 

Such methods still exist, for data not yet digitized, but 90% of what we need is now available online at the click of a mouse. There is no longer any excuse for being ignorant of the process, the issues of the day, or the big names in the news.  Everything is literally at our fingertips. 

 

New Trump Ad Asks: Why Did Joe Biden Let Hunter Do It?

As the scandal deepens around Joe Biden’s lies to the American people about never discussing his son Hunter’s foreign business deals, President Trump’s re-election campaign today launched a new ad asking why Joe Biden never stopped his son from selling access to his powerful father. The ad details Hunter’s $83,000-per-month position with a Ukrainian energy company, his $1.5 billion business deal with a communist Chinese bank, and his legal work with a corrupt businessman in Romania, all while his father was Vice President of the United States.

Three Other Meetings That Were Not On Joe Biden’s “Official Schedule”

According to an April 17, 2015, email published by The New York Post, Hunter Biden arranged a meeting between his father, Vice President Joe Biden, and a top advisor to the board of the Ukrainian gas company Burisma, Ukrainian Vadym Pozharskyi. “Dear Hunter, thank you for inviting me to DC and giving an opportunity to meet your father and spent [sic] some time together. It’s realty [sic] an honor and pleasure,” the email from Pozharskyi to Hunter reads.

In response to this bombshell, mid-level Biden staffer Andrew Bates said, “we have reviewed Joe Biden’s official schedules from the time and no meeting, as alleged by the New York Post, ever took place.”

But now Team Biden’s story is changing. “Biden’s campaign would not rule out the possibility that the former VP had some kind of informal interaction with Pozharskyi, which wouldn’t appear on Biden’s official schedule. But they said any encounter would have been cursory,” reported Politico. In short, the Biden campaign is now describing the length of a meeting they originally claimed did not exist.

Below are three confirmed meetings that did not make it onto Biden’s “official schedule.” Two of them involve his family members’ business partners:

1. Politico reported this week that Vice President Biden arranged an Oval Office meeting with President Obama for his son-in-law Howard Krein's business partners Steven Krein and Unity Stoakes in 2011. There's a photo of it. It was not on Biden's “official schedule.”
2. Vice President Biden’s 2013 introduction to Jonathan Li in Beijing was also not on his “official schedule.” Hunter Biden admits he arranged the meeting for Li, who ran a Chinese private-equity fund and was setting up a new fund with Hunter. “Ten days after the Bidens’ trip, Shanghai authorities issued the fund’s business license,” reported NBC News. Amazing timing!
3. In January 2017, Vice President Biden met with President Obama, Deputy Attorney General Sally Yates, FBI Director James Comey, and National Security Advisor Susan Rice in the Oval Office to discuss the political targeting of incoming National Security Advisor Lt. Gen. Michael Flynn. Biden lied about this meeting. It was also not on his “official schedule.”

32,000+ scientists say COVID policies demanding lockdowns until vaccines available "damaging" and "harmful"

WHEATON - Congressman Sean Casten (IL-06) demanded this week the media censor a declaration agreed upon by thousands of scientists, epidemiologists and other respected public health professionals expressing what they called "grave concerns" about the impact of prevailing COVID-19 policies.

The piece especially condemns public policies such as those Illinois Governor JB Pritzker has set into place, which isolate citizens until a COVID vaccine is available. 

In "The Great Barrington Declaration," the experts warn such ongoing lockdowns "will cause irreparable damage, with the underprivileged disproportionately harmed." 

Casten, who calls himself a climate change scientist, said the declaration was "a heaping, stinking pile of junk science, advocating that we isolate the sick and the elderly and pretend that COVID doesn't effect [sic] young healthy people in the name of 'restarting' the economy and herd immunity."

32,000 scientists agree on what Casten demeans as "a heaping, stinking pile of junk science"

WHEATON - The Washington Times, this morning, reported a recent Twitter-rant in which Democrat incumbent Sean Casten (IL-06) attempted to discredit the Great Barrington Declaration petition, which calls for using “focused protection” to isolate the elderly and vulnerable while opening up the rest of the society to “build up immunity to the virus through natural protection,” over an endless lockdown.

The document Casten rejected was co-authored by epidemiologists at Harvard, Stanford and Oxford. Thirty-two thousand other scientists and medical experts signed on, endorsing the policy prescription.

"It is a heaping, stinking pile of junk science, advocating that we isolate the sick and the elderly and pretend that COVID doesn't effect [sic] young healthy people in the name of 'restarting' the economy and herd immunity," Casten tweeted earlier this week. 

Then he wrote, “The GBD advocates nothing more than killing Americans. That is pure, unadulterated evil.”

The congressman's response shocked the Ives' campaign.