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| Impeach Blagojevich Memo Stirring Controversy |
An Illinois House Republican incumbent on the receiving end of a political attack says telling people to lie is a bad strategy. State Rep. Brent Hassert (R-Romeoville) is running against Emily McAsey, who is using the "impeachment talking points memo" House Speaker Mike Madigan's office distributed to Democrats in House campaigns.
Among other things, the memo says to deny any involvement by Madigan's staff and to say the candidate has decided on his or her own that investigating a possible impeachment of Gov. Rod Blagojevich is a good idea.
Hassert says the memo is more of a political document than a legal one. He says, "You've got to remember, Mike Madigan was Rod Blagojevich's campaign chairman. It's kind of funny and ironic that, all of a sudden, when he sees that the heat is building up against Rod Blagojevich throughout the state, that he is going to try to turn something politically for his candidates."
Hassert says the memo is damaging to candidates such as McAsey.
Disagreeing is State Rep. Jack Franks (D-Woodstock), a major critic of Blagojevich within his own party. He says the "talking points" memo simply gives Democratic candidates something to consider in terms of making the argument for an impeachment investigation. Franks does acknowledge that a reader of the 14-page memo must separate "the wheat from the chaff" in terms of allegations both serious and not serious – convictions of Blagojevich allies and complaints that Blagojevich does not live in Springfield.
State Sen. Mike Jacobs (D-East Moline) agrees with Franks that the focus must be on Blagojevich's possible criminal behavior, adding Madigan's tactics are simply "Politics 101" and that Madigan, like the governor, employs a press staff to try to get the message into the news. "I think the governor's going to jail anyway," says Jacobs, "so I don't think this memo does anything but just point out the obvious." |
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| 06 12 08 by Newsroom |
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