Corrupt Christmas Season In Illinois

“ln Roman times, when a fellow tried to bribe a public official, they would cut off his nose, him in a bag with a wild animal, and throw that bag in the river.” – The Untouchables (1987)

From that quote, you can guess what my position is on corruption. So you have to understand the pain I experience as a resident of Illinois. The joke goes like this…Illinois: The state where your governor makes your license plates. The problem is that it is true, and that it affects both political parties. Former Governor George Ryan is in prison on a bribery conviction. He is an older man, who has a deathly ill wife. Many people on both sides of the political fence (ex. Jesse Jackson and Jim Thompson) would like for him to be released after serving only one year of a six-year sentence so that he can be with his wife.  While we feel terribly for Mrs. Ryan, we cannot allow that to let us make an exception for a criminal; a criminal who you can say is among the worst because he was entrusted with governing our state. I also wonder if any lesson has been learned by George Ryan or his family. His son, George Ryan Jr., was quoted as saying “Is this what American justice is now.” What the Ryan family and his supporters forget is that he committed the crimes that put him in prison. He has a price to pay. Justice doesn’t have sick days.

Since I’m writing about corruption, I can’t leave out the man who is likely to be the next mayor of Chicago. Rahm Emanuel will hear the ruling on his eligibility tomorrow. The fact that he was not ruled ineligible immediately is a travesty. Another person lives in his home! To prove the point, that man attempted to get enough petitions signed to run for mayor. He failed and did not submit the petitions, but what if he had enough signatures? Can you have two people from the same address, that aren’t related, running for the same office. It appears that in Chicago you can. The election law is BS as well. It provides Emanuel his loophole. It says that you don’t have to live in the city as long as you maintain ownership of the residence and intend to return. Had Mayor Daley not decided to retire, Rahm Emanuel would have spent the next six years in Washington DC and everyone knows it.

What is worse is that according to a poll by the Chicago Retail Merchants Association, 44% of likely voters favor Rahm Emanuel to be the next mayor.

http://www.cbsnews.com/8301-503544_162-20026403-503544.html

The next closest person has only 11% of the vote. Emanuel is the overwhelming favorite to be the next mayor. My question is why? Because he was part of the successful Obama Administration? Because he was involved in selling a senate seat (I dare him to testify in court)? Because he has been on the Judicial Watch list of most corrupt politicians since he served in the Clinton Administration? I don’t believe the people of Chicago are stupid. I do believe the people of Chicago love clout. Old habits die-hard. Chicago, please consider this. Rahm Emanuel doesn’t want to be your mayor. Rahm Emanuel wants to walk down the street and have people say “there goes the mayor of Chicago.”