Illinois State Assembly Democratic Primary Candidates for the 18th District

Several months ago, and over the interim, I had and have had the opportunity to meet and assess the numerous candidates for State Representative in the 18^th Illinois District. At the outset, I knew none of them, nor did I know anything about them. I was asked by a couple of candidates to get on board with their campaign. After three weeks of research, I had made my decision. I chose to work with the Jeff Smith campaign because he had the background, the dedication, and unlike any of the others, he had a plan, a comprehensive one.

Patrick Keenan-Devlin

Patrick is just 26 years old and is only now in his second semester of Law School at Loyola University. While he has done a tremendous amount of work in various fields for the Progressive agenda, this work has been along the lines of internships and volunteering. One has to wonder whether it shall be his educational aspirations or his necessary work in the State Assembly should he win the Primary. His literature amounts to little more than accolades from friends and associates and talking points. His website showed actually nothing more until months after Jeff Smith had written up a comprehensive plan to address many problematic areas in Illinois’ government and economy.

http://www.patrickforillinois.com/about/

Robyn Gabel

Robyn has done much good for the women and children in the State of Illinois. She has spent nearly her entire career working for the advancement of health issues for women and children, with little attention or experience to other areas of concern to Illinoisans. This writer has heard about three different stories regarding her education. I have also heard, from her at a debate in Evanston, that she increased the number of children receiving health care by 70% and the number of free clinics have been doubled as a direct result of her actions. Those figures cannot be confirmed unless one blindly accepts what she says, as they do not match any other records. In most respects, Robyn appears to be a boilerplate feminist with nothing new to offer. Where she has offered any sort of substantive material, it has come after and duplicated that presented by Jeff Smith.

http://www.robynforrep.com/biography

Eamon Kelly

Eamon has demonstrated himself to be a reliable Progressive, even campaigning for Obama here in Illinois. Eamon is a graduate of the University of Illinois School of Law. He is currently a practicing attorney in Evanston. Most of the materials available on Eamon point to his notable past accomplishments and otherwise consist of accolades from others and generic Progressive talking points. For the third time this candidate, when presenting an actual position, opinion, or plan practically duplicates that which was provided by Jeff Smith’s campaign from the first day. I believe that Eamon would make a satisfactory state legislator, however I also believe that he might be too available for compromise with more conservative elements in the Statehouse.

http://www.eamon2010.com/about/

Jeff Smith

Jeff Smith is a Harvard-trained Evanston attorney with his own practice. For the last twenty years, he has worked tirelessly for the betterment of his community, its governance and the environment. Jeff has had a plan for addressing Illinois’ concerns since he announced his candidacy. His positions and ideas have been adopted in large part by his opponents. While the other campaigns seemed initially to have a “let’s wait and see what happens when we get in office” attitude, Jeff has proactively addressed the issues of Illinois from the start. And his ideas and plans show an adaptive facet as they are reviewed and modified as new information regarding the particular concerns of Illinois residents of the 18^th District is discovered. Jeff has, over the years, been involved in a number of political and legal disputes for the environment, for the community, and for local small business. He has demonstrated the tenacity to stand for principle even with the odds stacked against him. Jeff Smith is a proven reformer with a solid track history.

http://electjeffsmith.org/AboutJeffSmith/JeffSmithBio/JeffSmithBio.html

I now volunteer with the Jeff Smith campaign for free. In Illinois, it is customary to be compensated, and some of the other candidates compensate their “volunteers”. But I believe that Jeff Smith is the right candidate and I am willing to freely give of my available time and effort towards seeing him elected. I invite the reader to compare the campaign websites for which I have provided hyperlinks and see if they agree.

The Illinois Primary Races and My Thoughts:

US Senate

The slate of Democratic Party candidates to replace Illinois Senator Roland Burris represents the diversity of Chicago and changes within its political system.

Alexi Giannoulias, State Treasurer, Boston University, banker, financial reformer, quasi-environmentalist:

Alexi is currently the Treasurer for the State of Illinois, having run on a platform of financial reform. He was elected to the position just before it was discovered that his running of his family’s bank in Chicago had suffered some “irregularities”. Also, he hasn’t done much in the way of accomplishing fiscal reform in his time in the Office of the Treasurer. This makes it difficult imagine how much of a true reformist platform he can claim.He is well connected to both the Chicago and Illinois “machines” and was an intimate of now disgraced former Illinois Governor Rod Blagojevic as well as Tony Rezko. He would almost certainly lose to the GOP contender Mark Kirk, as the GOP plans on running against the corruption of current and former Democratic politicians.

http://www.alexiforillinois.com/splash/general?gclid=CPKAqe2Aqp8CFQYeDQodenXy1g

David Hoffman, Inspector General of the City of Chicago, former federal prosecutor,

Yale University, University of Chicago Law:

David Hoffman is currently the Inspector General for the City of Chicago. He was previously a federal prosecutor who focused on matters of corruption, both corporate and government, in Chicago and Illinois. He is definitely the strongest candidate when one talks about integrity and reform of the system. However, his dedication to the Progressive movement and the Democratic Party sometimes seem to be more politically motivated than an actual attachment to principles. In many ways Mr. Hoffman appears as a boilerplate Progressive with few fresh ideas and no plan.

http://www.hoffmanforillinois.com/

Cheryle Robinson Jackson, Urban League President, Amtrak officer, Community activist:

There is absolutely nothing in Ms. Jackson’s resume to suggest that she should be a senator for Illinois nor even the Democratic candidate in the general election. She has done outstanding work in the community, but I believe that she would be out of her league in the Capitol. She presents nothing original in the way of ideas or plans to improve Illinois governance.

http://www.cheryle2010.com/

Jacob Meister Attorney, BA American University, JD University of Wisconsin, practicing attorney, the Law of Offices of Jacob L Meister:

Jacob Meister has spent his life as an attorney and, subsequently, a small business owner/operator. Of the candidates, Jacob Meister seems most well versed and practiced in the conduct of business relations and law. Before any of the other candidates had done so, Mr. Meister published a list of goals and a plan of action to see those goals met. He is a proven, dedicated, and passionate Progressive. In his professional career, Jacob has demonstrated a mastery of the argument that makes debate and compromise largely irrelevant; he seeks what is right. As a business owner and litigant for both business and employees, he understands the necessary balancing act that other candidates may ignore.

http://www.meisterforsenate.com/home

In the end, I believe that Jacob Meister will do the best job representing Illinois in the U.S. Senate. David Hoffman is, I believe, more electable and has better name recognition. Still, I do not believe that Mr. Hoffman would sell Illinois out, so he is a valid option. Either of these candidates would serve Illinois well as U.S. Senator, though I prefer Meister. As for Giannoulias and Ms. Jackson, I believe that they both are too much students and adherents of the old way of doing business in Chicago and would drag their local connections to undeserved influence in Washington.