Month: April 2012

Campaign staffer sends briefing memo to news media

Posted by dwilson – April 27, 2012

Dave Spence has not caught fire as a GOP candidate for governor in Missouri, but there may be some flames licking at his heels after a campaign staff member inadvertently sent a briefing memo to the news media instead of to Spence.

Spence has a business background and has found the transition to political campaigner a little tough. He has blurted out a few things he shouldn’t have said and failed to add anything useful on other topics upon which he should speak.

A campaign worker/adviser hoped to lead Spence through the mine field with a briefing paper on how to respond if the news media asked him about his previous comment that President Obama is probably a Muslim. Her advice was to say that Obama says he is a Christian and then add that Spence takes him at his word.

She also wrote a comment for Spence on the Missouri Senate budget debate. Then she recommended Spence turn the discussion to a lack of leadership by incumbent Gov. Jay Nixon, a Democrat.

All that might have worked better had the email not gone to members of the press who were supposed to get an advisory on where Spence would be campaigning.

For those who want more on this, long-time St. Louis political reporter Jo Mannies’ column on the topic is linked here.

Senate candidates boost fundraising

Posted by dwilson – April 25, 2012

Illinois Senate candidates raised a combined total of $151,000 during the first quarter, with incumbent John Sullivan, D-Rushville, holding a two-to-one advantage over Republican Randy Frese of Paloma. Sullivan held nearly an eight-to-one edge for cash on hand.

Frese raised $47,553 during the quarter and had $41,774 on hand at the end of March. Sullivan raised $103,515 and ended the quarter with $326,814.66 on hand.

Sullivan, like many incumbents, got lots of his contributions from political action committees. His D-2 report linked here shows a mix of business, professional and union contributions which generated $79,350. Caterpillar Inc., the Illinois Trucking Association and Illinois CPAs for Political Action are listed along with the Illinois Federation of Teachers and Southern Central Ill. Laborers among the donors.

Sullivan’s individual contributions of $20,550 are linked here.

Frese got a $10,000 contribution from the Republican Central Committee out of Macomb and $250 from the Cass County Republican Central Committee as shown here.

In addition, Frese had 56 itemized individual contributions linked here that totaled $28,299, including seven family members named Frese.

Sullivan also received $1,009.83 from BNSF Railroad earlier this week.

The dollars don’t tell all of the story in political campaigns, but they’re interesting.

Politico analyst says tea party not part of GOP

Posted by dwilson – April 23, 2012

James Hohmann wrote an analysis piece for Politico last week after the Republican National Committee completed its annual meeting in Arizona.

One of his major themes is that tea party adherents have to rise through the ranks within the Republican party apparatus just like everyone else. Jack Kimball’s story is used as an example of what can happen when someone is put in a leadership position for which they are not prepared.

Kimball was elected as the New Hampshire Republican chairman, but resigned after he failed or refused to lead on several fronts. Fundraising crumbled, special elections were lost and Kimball signed an election petition for a Libertarian candidate.

The larger theme of the essay is that the tea party is more like any of the constituencies in the Republican party, such as defense hawks or fiscal conservatives.

Happy reading.

Sullivan: Regionalism often trumps politics

Posted by dwilson – April 10, 2012

State Sen. John Sullivan, D-Rushville, told an audience in Liberty Monday night that divisions in the Illinois Legislature revolve around regionalism more than politics most of the time.

“It’s not so much politics on 90 percent of what we deal with. It’s regionalism and trying to get our fair share” of services and funding, Sullivan said.

His comments came after several questioners had opined that liberalism or Chicago’s influence in the state capitol had put Illinois in its current financial straights. Sullivan said he often does not agree with other members of the Senate Democratic leadership, choosing to seek what he sees as best for those living in Western Illinois.

Likewise, Sullivan said the lawmakers who are in Chicago or any other area, try to look out for their constituents’ interests.

It’s a different world, with Sullivan representing about 210,000 residents of a district that measures 6,000 square miles in Western Illinois, while one Senator in Chicago represents 6 square miles, with a similar number of constituents.

Members of Congress banned from insider trading

Posted by dwilson – April 4, 2012

It may have looked like a “Duh?” moment to most people, but President Barack Obama has signed a law that outlaws insider trading by members of Congress.

The law, of course, was passed by members of Congress. It has been proposed before, but finally got favorable treatment in an election year. It remains to be seen whether doing the right thing will improve approval ratings for Congress which hover at between 12 and 19 percent — depending on the wording of the survey.

The STOCK Act is an acronym for Stop Trading on Congressional Knowledge. It requires public disclosure of transactions exceeding $1,000.