Delay of Springfield hotel sale not Cellini related

By: Barton Lorimor

The sale of the state-owned Abraham Lincoln Hotel and Conference Center in Springfield has been delayed, but that is not because of the property’s connections to a recently indicted lobbyists, a spokeswoman for State Treasurer Alexi Giannoulias said Tuesday.

William Cellini, Sr., 74, of Springfield, pleaded his innocence Friday to charges he conspired with Stuart Levine, a key-witness in the federal case against Antoin “Tony” Rezko. According to U.S. District Attorney Patrick Fitzgerald of Northern Illinois, Cellini used his position on the state’s Teachers’ Retirement System to obtain campaign contributions for Illinois Gov. Rod Blagojevich.

The governor is not charged with wrongdoings at this time.

Sara Wojcicki, the spokeswoman, told the State Journal-Register the sale of the downtown facility had been delayed because of an effort to gain millions of dollars from the bonds used to contruct the building in the 1980s. At that time, Cellini was the developer.

Wojcicki said Tuesday the sale’s delay was not motived by the case against Cellini.

“In fact, the federal indictments against Mr. Cellini do not include anything to do with the hotel,” she said in an email.

The state took over the hotel, commonly filled with legislators in town for session, in March.

Ill. Senate Republicans consider minority leader job

Posted by Barton Lorimor

While Illinois Senate Minority Leader Frank Watson recovers from a “mild” stroke in St. Louis, members of his caucus are throwing their names into a hat for his job.

Watson, a Greenville Republican, announced Tuesday he would not seek re-election for his post as the caucus’ leader, but retain his seat in the Senate.

The announcement spawned a number of Senate Republicans to throw their names into a pool of possible successors. The caucus will elect its new leader in January.

The pool included the name of Carbondale’s voice in the Senate, Dave Luechtefeld. Elected to his first term in 1995, Luechtefeld serves as assistant minority leader. Luechtefeld said his name is on the list at the request of people from inside and outside the Senate Republicans.

“I have not really withdrawl from consideration, yet my main motivation is to try to hold the caucus together,” Luechtefeld said.

Sen. Christine Radogno, R- Lemont, said she is very interested in the position because she may be able to include Chicago’s voice in the caucus better than Watson. She said that is not because Watson was inconsiderate, but geographically displaced. Radogno’s district office is near the Interstate 355 and Instate 55 intersection.

But Radogno said her strong relationship with her colleagues is what seperates her from the pack. If elected, the 12-year veteran Senator would continue to push for less government spending.

Minority Caucus Whip Kirk Dillard was someone Radogno said was another Chicago-area Republican interested in the position. Dillard, who served as former Illinois Gov. Jim Edgar’s chief of staff, could not be reached for comment Friday.

Though their districts have had strong Republican support in the past, most central Illinois Senators have kept their name out of the race. Sens. Bill Brady and Dan Rutherford have said they are not interested in the job.

Brady said Wednesday his gubernatorial intentions yielded his interest in minority leader. The Bloomington Republican told his supporters in a letter Thursday he intends to run for the state’s highest office in 2010.

However, speculation about Sen. Dale Righter’s interest in the positon remained unconfirmed Friday. The Mattoon Republican, a strong opponent of Gov. Rod Blagojevich’s, did not return a phone calls to his cell phone or district office.

Sources close to Watson said the stroke affected his left leg, right arm and speech. But Watson’s doctors remain positive that he will make a full recovery, according to Patty Schuh, the Senator’s spokeswoman.

Lorimor is a reporter and columnist for the Daily Egyptian.

State political insider, Cellini, indicted

By: Barton Lorimor

Not since Eliot Ness unraveled Al Capone’s underworld business franchise in 1931 has Chicago seen a federal officer come down on so many of its big-name political insiders. But taking Ness’ place Thursday was U.S. District Attorney Patrick Fitzgerald, who announced federal corruption charges against William Cellini, Sr., a longtime influence in Illinois politics.

Fitzgerald, who led federal trials against former Illinois Gov. George Ryan and Antoin “Tony” Rezko, a former campaign fundraiser, said Cellini had been charged with conspiracy to raise campaign funds for current Illinois Gov. Rod Blagojevich.

Cellini, now 73, led a multi-decade career in the state’s government. Among the collection of state boards and agencies he directed is the Department of Transportation, which was under the Springfield Republican’s control during former Gov. Richard Ogilvie’s tenure. He was also the developer of the former Ramada Renaissance Hotel in downtown Springfield (now known as the Abraham Lincoln Hotel and Conference Center), which was purchased by the state a few years ago.

The four-count indictment against Cellini accuses him of forcing Capri Capital, a Chicago real estate firm, to make campaign contributions to “Public Official A,” who was identified as Blagojevich during the Rezko trial. Fitzgerald said Cellini was also charged with conspiring with Rezko and Stuart Levine, a former Teachers Retirement System executiver.

While testifying in the Rezko trial, Levine said he was appointed to a state board after he allocated $25,000 for Blagojevich’s campaign fund.

The governor has not been charged with any wrongdoing at this time.

The indictments are a part of Operation Board Games, an ongoing federal probe into corruption within various state boards and non-profit organizations, Fitzgerald said.

Randall Samborn, spokesman for Fitzgerald’s office, said no court appearances have been scheduled at this time. If found guilty, Cellini could face up to five years in prison and a $250,000 fine.

It’s your info ‘08: Foreign policy

By: Diana Soliwon

This week’s look at the foreign policy platforms of presidential candidates Sens. Barack Obama and John McCain:

-An essay by John McCain in the November/December 2007 issue of Foreign Affairs, which is published by the Center of Foreign Relations

-And one by Barack Obama in the July/August 2007 edition. The Web site also offers an easy way to learn more about specific issues if you’re like me and only know a little bit about lots of things. Just click “Browse by topic” on the left.

-One minute of news from BBC on what the candidates have said on their trails this week.

-A quiz on where you might stand at this point.

As always check out the paper today to read our weekly series!

Race plays role in presidential race, students say

Posted by Barton Lorimor

Marla Baker is a junior double majoring in radio-television and speech communication. She is the mother of two paying for her children’s education at a private school as well as her own through student loans.

Baker is also an African American woman that plans to vote for Democrat Barack Obama in the Nov. 4 election.

“I got to fight my way through those Washington (D.C.) fat cats,” she said to a crowd of roughly 100 in the Lesar Law Building Thursday night.

Baker was one of three student speakers that delivered speeches about whether or not a candidate’s skin color play a role in this year’s presidential election. All of the speakers, which included Baker, Cassie McKay, a junior studying public relations, and Katie Thomas, a senior studying political science, said skin color has already played a role and will be a factor voters take with them to the polls.

Thomas, a member of the university debate team, delivered a fiery address to the crowd in which she compared people being color blind to a Walt Disney movie where no one’s skin color is an issue.

Though the election highlighted the racial freedoms in America, Thomas said it is “unconscionable” that Republican John McCain would suggest Obama cannot play the race card.

“People saying he doesn’t have enough experience are in a colorblind world,” she said of Obama having to plow through social roadblocks in order for him to become his party’s nominee for the Oval Office.

Associate Law Professor Sheila Simon, daughter of the late former U.S. Sen. Paul Simon, said she has met people voting against Obama simply because of his racial background while campaigning on the Illinois Senator’s behalf in southeastern Missouri.

“We can’t get to a point where we’re color blind, but we can make wiser associations,” she said.

Simon said she saw similar traits in potential voters while campaigning for his father’s Senate races in the 1980s.

Paul Flowers, approached the lectern when the floor was opened up to members of the audience to make impromptu speeches. Flowers said that as an African American he has seen racism while walking on the campus sidewalks, but nevertheless has made it a priority to say, ‘Hello,’ to people that would not normally acknowledge him.

Before the evening concluded, Dylan Hertel, a student at John A. Logan College, said he was upset Obama was stealing the spotlight from another African American running for president.

“My problem is that nobody said anything about Cynthia McKinney,” he said referring to the Green Party’s African American presidential candidate.

An impromptu speaker who did not identify himself to the audience said even though race will play a part in the election, that is not the only reason voters should circle Obama or McKinney’s name on the ballot.

“Race plays a part of everyday life, so you can’t tell me it doesn’t play a factor in this election,” he said. “Make sure it’s an educated vote, and not just one for a ‘brotha’ because he’s running for the White House.”

Illinois Senate Leader Watson suffers “mild stroke”

Posted by Barton Lorimor

Illinois Senate Minority Leader Frank Watson remains at Barnes-Jewish Hospital in St. Louis today after suffering what officials in his office are calling a “mild stroke” while campaigning in southern Illinois.

A report in the St. Louis Post-Dispatch said Watson was in “satisfactory condition” and is directing his staff in Springfield, Greenville and Decatur.

Watson spokeswoman Patty Schuh could not immediately be reached for comment.

The same report said Watson had been campaigning with Republican Ken Burzynski, who is challenging current Sen. Gary Forby in a race for control of the state’s 59th Senate district.

Blagojevich skips SoIL ceremony honoring past campaign fundraiser

Posted by Barton Lorimor

ULLIN — Two of Illinois’ most recognizable Democrats, Gov. Rod Blagojevich and Glenn Poshard, relied on Edward M. Smith to raise money for their gubernatorial campaigns, but only one of those figures spoke at a weekend ceremony honoring him.

Poshard, now president of Southern Illinois University, delivered a 10-minute speech at Shawnee Community College Saturday, during which he announced the governor had declared Saturday “Edward M. Smith Day in Illinois.”

A public relations official for the college said Blagojevich was scheduled to attend the event, which included a reunion of the college’s 1973 basketball team and renaming the gymnasium in Smith’s honor, but canceled “at the last minute.” Poshard unraveled Blagojevich’s proclomation before a crowd of roughly 300 gathered in the gymnasium.

A receptionist in the Blagojevich press office said questions about the cancellation could not be answered until Monday.

Smith, president of Ullico, Inc. of Washington D.C., was a fundraiser for Poshard’s unsuccessful 1998 gubernatorial campaign against Republican George Ryan. Archived Daily Egyptian reports say Poshard inquired Smith about running for the office again in 2002, but backed-off because of Smith’s prior commitment to Blagojevich’s campaign that year.

Blagojevich’s absence came at a time when his administration and family’s financial background is subject to federal investigation. Fueling that fire is possible revelations from another of the governor’s former campaign fundraisers, Antoin “Tony” Rezko, who is reportedly speaking with federal prosecuors about his business deals with Blagojevich.

A jury found Rezko guilty of fraud and bribery for using his connections in state government to trade state contracts for campaign contributions to Blagojevich and other Democrats such as White House contender Barack Obama.

Obama has since redistributed Rezko’s contributions to his 2004 U.S. Senate campaign to charitable organizations, but contributions to Blagojvich remain in the governor’s accounts.

Political analysts, such as Charlie Wheeler of the University of Illinois Springfield, believe Blagojevich will be indicted as a result for the probe.

Despite Blagojevich’s absence, other state Democrats including Sen. Gary Forby of Benton, Harrisburg Rep. Brandon Phelps and State Treasurer Alexi Giannoulias made an appearence. Each of the three said Smith played an important roll in their campaigns and felt he was a close friend.

Giannoulias said he did not attend to makeup for Blagojevich’s absence, but had driven to this rural southern Illinois town on his own dime.

Quinn: recall amendment would survive a con-con

By: Barton Lorimor

Illinois Lt. Gov. Pat Quinn said Wednesday a proposed amendment to the state’s constitution legalizing the removal of elected officials from office could take an alternative route and still become law.

Quinn, an advocate of the recall amendment, said the issue could be added to the state’s governing document if a constitutional convention were convened within the next two years. Voters have the chance to call a convention during the Nov. 4 election.

Quinn said ethics and government reform would be the main focus by the convention’s delegates, but not something Gov. Rod Blagojevich and his allies in the House and Senate are interested in moving forward with.

“Don’t hold your breath on the legislators or governor to pass reform,” Quinn said at an informational meeting about constitutional conventions hosted by the Paul Simon Public Policy Institute Wednesday. Flyers advertising the event said the event was meant to aid voters in their decision.

A recall amendment would allow voters to organize petitions calling for the removal of elected officials before their term ends. Legislation approved by the House, but hit a brick wall in the Senate, last spring said those petitions must be supported by 12 percent of the vote the official received to take office. The question would then be placed on the ballot.

Quinn said he does not anticipate legislators to revisit the issue even though Senate President Emil Jones, a Blagojevich ally, retires after the upcoming election.

The OTHER candidate

By: Brandy Oxford

One name is listed on Illinois’ ballot but not mentioned in our article.

The reason?

He’s the mystery candidate.

While I’m sure he exists, I’ve researched him to the point of exhaustion and found a lot of articles that call him a mystery, but nothing with any real information on the guy.

Although John Joseph Polachek’s name is on the ballot, the campaign address he registered with, 1529 1/2 West Estes, Chicago, IL 60626, belongs to someone else, according to an article in Medill Reports – Chicago, Northwestern University.

He registered no running mate, no campaign information and my research has revealed no campaign events.

“Polachek’s name appears on the ballot because, as required, notarized forms and a petition were submitted to nominate him on behalf of the New Party,” the article says.

The Democratic and Republican parties must not have seen him as a threat because no one contested his nomination.

However, his petition has no signatures on it, not even his own, according to the article.

Without 25,000 signatures, a petition is not valid if it is contested, but nobody cared to contest his nomination.

So, while I would have loved to provide a picture, bio and rundown on his stances, his name has become nothing more than a curious blip on the presidential ballot.

It’s your info ‘08: Health care

MONDAY, Oct. 13, 2008- Mike Staff, a physician's assistant at the Center for Medical Arts in Carbondale, Ill., listens to the heart rate of Daisy Delmore Monday. Delmore, an SIUC senior with a degree in rehabilitation services, said her insurance covers her health care. An estimated 50 million Americans do not have health insurance, according to the National Coalition on Health Care. Stephen Rickerl ~ Daily Egyptian

By: Diana Soliwon

Editor’s note: This blog will coincide with the “It’s your vote ‘08″ series running in the Daily Egyptian up until Election Day. That series, like this one, explores presidential nominees Sens. John McCain and Sen. Barack Obama’s platforms on various issues.

The purpose of this blog will be to provide easy, FUN, alternative ways to find out more on each candidate.

You know you’re spending too much time on your computer anyway. Now you can say you did something productive.

First and foremost, as it goes sometimes in newsrooms, a vital part of the McCain platform didn’t make it in the paper. Savings from the Medicaid and Medicare programs would fund McCain’s proposed tax credits for individuals and families, according to Douglas Holtz-Eakin, McCain’s senior policy adviser, in the Wall Street Journal. Check it out and self-educate.

Onward to more orbs of election candy. I don’t know about you, but if I were running for president, I’d probably get about 10x more things wrong than what McCain, Palin, Obama and Biden have been during their campaigns. They’re all making their attempts to be walking encyclopedias, but I have to say, it just ain’t so.

After the debates I usually turn to Web sites such as FactCheck.org or the Washington Post’s blog (by Michael Dobbs) to see what they flubbed. Once I get there, I find they usually do a pretty good job of checking on what’s said in interviews, on the trail, etc., as well. Some definite bookmarks for you at least (just like this blog).

Here’s an example of part of a FactCheck.org post after McCain and Obama’s Oct. 7 debate:

• Obama said his health care plan would lower insurance premiums by up to $2,500 a year. Experts we’ve consulted see little evidence such savings would materialize.

• McCain misstated his own health care plan, saying he’d give a $5,000 tax credit to “every American” His plan actually would provide only $2,500 per individual, or $5,000 for couples and families. He also misstated Obama’s health care plan, claiming it would levy fines on “small businesses” that fail to provide health insurance. Actually, Obama’s plan exempts “small businesses.”

Alos, major news Web sites, such as CNN and NPR, offer comprehensive election info. If you’re trying to figure out which side you saddle up with on a particular issue, USAToday has a super quick quiz that will tell who you should vote for per your answers.

If you really just want to tickle your raunchier side, though, I recommend Comedy Central’s InDecision 2008 coverage. I’ll let you decide whether you’re still being productive.

I know what I’ll be doing.