Illinois 2010 Elections–Round’em Up: Pat Quinn and Dan Hynes Clash at Candidate Forum; Mell, Laiacona, Madigan, Lang, Connor, Meister, Biss, Mullen, Raoul, Burns, and Poshard

(Chicago, IL) — November 13, 2009. From the Illinois 2010 elections campaign and cow-pie trail…

… Governor Pat Quinn and Dan Hynes slugged it out at their first joint appearance at a candidate forum in Rock Island on Thursday night.

Their exchanges were brutal.

The Quad City Times reporter Ed Tibbetts gives a flavor of the evening:

“All of a sudden he says he’s for a graduated income tax, but it was on the ballot in 2004, he voted against it,” Quinn said.

Hynes has proposed a 3 percent rate for those earning $200,000, with a top rate of 7.5 percent for those with incomes over $1 million.

He defended his opposition to the 2004 measure, saying he didn’t favor a tax increase then and now there’s a crisis. “If the competition is who was for raising taxes first, I guess you win,” he told Quinn.

Ouch.

… State Rep. Deb Mell‘s opponent Joe Laiacona blogged on Tuesday, November 10 about his petition challenge that may knock Mell off the ballot:

For more than three months, I have been carrying the secret that Deb Mell wasn’t registered to vote. For an extrovert like myself that was a very difficult task. I did share it with a few close advisors, including my partner Patrick and my lawyer, Rich Means.

… His & Her Holiday Fund-Raisers …

… Illinois Attorney General Lisa Madigan is hosting her 5th annual Holiday Party fund-raiser at Harry Caray‘s in Chicago on Tuesday, December 2 from 5:00 to 7:00 p.m. Co-Chairs include Bettylu and Paul Saltzman, John O’Connell, Steve Crown, Stephanie Comer, Robert Craigie, and Kraft Foods Global, Inc.

… Deputy House Majority Leader Lou Lang (D-Skokie) is hosting his Holiday Reception at the Holiday Inn Chicago North Shore in Skokie on Wednesday, December 9 from 6:00 to 8:00 p.m.

… Democratic Metropolitan Water Reclamation District candidate Todd Connor has a fund-raiser at the Lakeview bar Sidetrack on Saturday, November 14 from 4:00 to 6:00 p.m.

… Democratic U.S. Senate candidate Jacob Meister held an open-house at his new campaign office in Champaign on Wednesday night which prompted local Bryce Bowman to write us and comment: “Place was pretty packed and some of policy ideas seems [sic] pretty interesting.”

Meanwhile, Meister yesterday also unveiled an economic and jobs plan in Springfield stuffed with platitudes like “create jobs by revitalizing Illinois manufacturing” and “implement forward-looking environmental solutions”. Hardly worth the paper on which it was written.

… Democratic State Rep. candidate Daniel Biss who is seeking the north suburban House seat being vacated by State Rep. Beth Coulson (R-Glenview) is having a fund-raiser at District Bar in Chicago on December 3 at 6:00 p.m. Biss has no primary opponent. The cash is for the general election against GOP candidate Hamilton Chang.

… Ed Mullen–who is one of three Democrats seeking the State House seat in Chicago being vacated by John Fritchey–has been a busy guy. So far, he has knocked on nearly 4,000 doors in the district. Mullen, a civil rights lawyer whose name is first on the ballot, faces Dan Farley, son of former State Senator Bruce Farley (D-Chicago), and lobbyist Ann Williams. More on this race later.

… State Sen. Kwame Raoul (D-Hyde Park) and State Rep. Will Burns (D-Bronzeville) are also trying to raise money but for the heat-less Bronzeville Visitor Information Center at 35th Street and King in Chicago which owes $3,000 to Peoples Gas and sale tax money to the City of Chicago.

Raoul and Burns have petitioned Gov. Pat Quinn for $99,000 for six months of general operating funds to keep the visitors center running. Good luck with that.

… Meanwhile, Quinn is struggling to pay state universities. The state owes Southern Illinois University $105 million and President Glenn Poshard is worried about making payroll. The state owes Western Illinois University $26 million. And so far this year the University of Illinois has received only $400,000 of the $317 million owed from the state. Oof.

The State of Illinois is just–barely–a going concern.

For Quinn, the campaign is a bed of roses–laden with thorns beneath the pedals.