Speaker Madigan’s power and the facts on gambling
At any time Speaker of the State House Mike Madigan can end this governor’s race with a one-sentence statement to the press: “Judy Baar Topinka’s plan to put a casino in Chicago is going…
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Ryan, Topinka, and deja vu
The human capacity for hope is amazing indeed. We know, because we once had hope about the Old Guard of the Illinois Republican Party. At the latter part of the last century a man named George…
Read MoreWill Republican Turnout Be Down? It’s No Mystery Why
There are signs that Republican voters will be staying home in record numbers this November. Can anything be done in the next 80 days to avoid this?We think it isn’t too late to make…
Read MoreHave we reached critical mass yet?
Within the past couple days, the Illinois Family Institute and the Topinka Tattler listed bullet points comparing and contrasting the two major party candidates for Illinois governor this November. As a public service…
Read MoreA field trip idea for someone at the U.S. Attorney’s Office
The press is probably not welcome, but the rest of you are: Judy Baar Topinka – Volunteer Opportunity Please join us at the Citizens for Topinka Chicago Campaign Headquarters (312 West Randolph) on Tuesday,…
Read MoreWant to run for office? Please don’t unless you read this book
Henry Hazlitt’s book, “Economics in One Lesson: The Shortest and Surest Way to Understand Basic Economics“ is an excellent read that conveys what you need to know. In fact, if you have ever considered running for…
Read MoreNo consensus sought regarding what consensus means
ABC 7 News quotes Topinka commenting on Connecticut Senator Joe Lieberman’s primary loss: “As you drum out the moderates of the Democratic party, and Republicans have a tendency to do it to their moderates…
Read MoreA point worth repeating: 700 years is a lot of time
Not long ago we did a little math – and the numbers we added up are worth revisiting since the total hasn’t changed. The cumulative years of service of the Republican members of the…
Read MoreRepublicans and Democrats breathlessly await “new ideas” on education from Topinka
We struggled to come up with a headline for this post. We filtered out a few before arriving at the one chosen above. Our favorite was: “Topinka proposes radical idea: take yet more money from working…
Read MoreIt’s really not that complicated
A “big box” regulation passes the Chicago City Council…BP Amoco shuts down a pipeline and gas prices rise…property taxes or income taxes rise or there’s a threat to raise them…Topinka issues an “economic plan.”…
Read MoreStep One: admit you have a problem
One of the failed gubernatorial candidates from last March’s Republican primary rejected some good advice about a year ago. The simple suggestion was to admit that Republicans have been a part of the problem…
Read MoreMideast, Midwest, over there, over here
Our concentration is typically focused on Illinois political and governmental matters. National issues – and especially foreign policy – we leave to our allies with larger budgets and bigger staffs. Occasionally, however, events occur or words are…
Read MoreWho says we can’t cut spending in Illinois?
Government spending history keeps repeating itself because those who get elected think they’re there only to serve the interest groups clamoring for access to ever more tax dollars. It’s a problem at all levels of government. The personality…
Read MoreWho says public education in Illinois is under-funded? We’ve Got the Answers
One of the most enduring and popular Illinois myths is that government-run “public” education in this state is under-funded. We’re regularly reading reports of a “budget crisis” here or a “shortfall” there – and calls for…
Read MoreOne former Edgar advisor reveals the mind of Topinka
There’s at least one former advisor to Jim Edgar that’s being honest in an assessment about the problem with Blagojevich—and in so doing, implying the solution Topinka would bring. A year ago Mike Lawrence, who heads…
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