Oberweis on TV: George Ryan, Bob Kjellander and Blogging Blago
Jeff Berkowitz: Unless he [Former Gov. George Ryan] settles, unless he cops a plea, as they say. It is a criminal trial. What do you think of George Ryan?
Jim Oberweis: You know, I don’t know him that well, to be honest with you. My suspicion is-- as sort of an outsider—is [that] he is sort of a nice guy who grew up in this type of politics and let it get the better of him. Let it go to far, without really realizing perhaps the serious nature of what was going on, but I don’t really know. That’s only an outsider’s guess.
*************************************************
Berkowitz: So, you would try to get Kjellander out of his [Republican Party National Committeeman] position?
Oberweis: Yes.
*******************************************
Berkowitz: And, you think you would beat [former Governor] Jim Edgar.
Oberweis: Yes, I do.
****************************************
Tonight's City of Chicago edition of “Public Affairs,” features Jim Oberweis [R-Sugar Grove], candidate in the 2006 Republican Primary for Governor. The show airs throughout the City of Chicago [in the regular “Public Affairs,” City of Chicago time slot] tonight at 8:30 pm on Cable Ch. 21 [CANTV]. See here for more about the topics discussed on tonight's show with Jim Oberweis, as well as a partial transcript of tonight's show and links to partial transcripts of a prior show with Oberweis.
***********************************************
Next week’s guest on the City of Chicago edition of “Public Affairs,” [and this week’s guest on the suburban edition of “Public Affairs,”] is State Senator Chris Lauzen [R-Aurora], a member of the Fab 5 group of State Senators first elected in 1992, and 1998 Republican nominee for Comptroller
**********************************************
An additional partial transcript of tonight’s show with 2006 Republican Primary Guv candidate Jim Oberweis is included, below:
*************************************************
Jeff Berkowitz: In Republican politics, it is sort of a big deal in terms of what you [a candidate for public office] think or don’t think of Bob Kjellander, the national Republican Committeeman from Illinois. The grassroots suggest that candidates who are running for Governor should say they would work hard to remove-- they may not be able to-- but to remove Bob Kjellander from his [Republican Party] position. Do you agree with that?
Jim Oberweis: Jeff, I have said over and over again that I believe that we, as a Republican Party, need to find and work for and support candidates who are involved in the political process to serve their country, to serve their state and to serve their party, not people who are involved in the political sphere for financial gain.
Berkowitz: So, you would try to get Kjellander out of his [Republican Party] position?
Oberweis: Yes.
Berkowitz: What about direct election? Would you favor direct election of the [Republican Party] State Central Committee members [SB 600]? That’s not the case now.
Oberweis: I do. I do.
**************************************
Jim Oberweis: This is complete nonsense as to what the Governor has done in this case. Our pension system in Illinois is the most under funded pension system of all 50 states, already. Now, he [Governor Blagojevich] is holding back…1.2 billion [dollars] this year, and another billion [dollars] next year and a third billion [dollars], the third year, from the required contribution that the state must make to bring it up to—still an under funded pension…
Berkowitz: So if you had not done that, if you made, say, a 900 million dollar payment [into the pension system]…where were you going to get that 900 million dollars to manage the deficit issues.
Oberweis: We’d be looking for the full billion dollars because when you say booking savings, this is fallacious because…
Berkowitz: Be as specific as you can, what would you have cut in spending for a billion dollars because you don’t want to raise taxes to …deal with the deficit?
Oberweis: There are lots of things that can be done. First of all, one simple, you know, quick answer is—that amounts to about a 2% across the board cut. Or, another alternative is not to increase spending for a year—would do the same type of thing—to bring it back. The focus must be controlling spending. Our spending is totally out of control within this state. We would do a lot of things. Putting things out for bid, by contract, would begin to save money…
Berkowitz: Are you saying that, as of today, if you had to make a choice, you might favor a 2% across the board cut?
Oberweis: I am saying that is one approach to it
Berkowitz: That you would consider?
Oberweis: Yes, I think there are even better approaches, however.
Berkowitz: And, the better approaches are to find specific areas where you think the cuts should be made?
Oberweis: Correct. Correct.
*****************************************
Oberweis: In Chicago, we have had a high level of corruption in politics in Chicago for many decades. And, it has spread to Springfield. We have, what, two former governors who have been convicted of felonies.
Berkowitz: Otto Kerner, right?
Oberweis: Otto Kerner. I believe Dan Walker.
Berkowitz: He walked right into prison.
Oberweis: And, we’ve got number three that we are working on, perhaps next year, as well.
Berkowitz: George Ryan. Republican Governor [1998-2002]. His trial for Racketeering, RICO charges, racketeering Influenced Corrupt Organization, that [trial] will be in the fall of 2005, just two or three months [from now].
Oberweis: Potentially, yes.
Berkowitz: Unless he settles, unless he cops a plea, as they say. It is a criminal trial. What do you think of George Ryan?
Oberweis: You know, I don’t know him that well, to be honest with you. My suspicion is-- as sort of an outsider—is [that] he is sort of a nice guy who grew up in this type of politics and let it get the better of him. Let it go to far, without really realizing perhaps the serious nature of what was going on, but I don’t really know. That’s only an outsider’s guess.
Berkowitz: You mean in terms of the Secretary of State’s office and the selling—licenses for bribes and all that
Oberweis: Yes, Yes.
Berkowitz: You are saying all of that was benign?
Oberweis: Yes, and I suspect that he didn’t think that he was doing anything different than everybody has done in that position for many, many years.
Berkowitz: Really. You think they have been selling licenses for all of that time?
Oberweis: What I said was that I believe that he felt that he wasn’t doing anything that hadn’t been going on for years.
Berkowitz: But, Jim Edgar was the Secretary of State for a while, right?
Oberweis: Yes.
Berkowitz: You don’t think that Jim Edgar was taking bribes to sell licenses, do you?
Oberweis: No.
Berkowitz: And, you don’t think that anybody in the SOS, Secretary of state’s office, was doing it at that time, or do you?
Oberweis: Not to my knowledge.
Berkowitz: And certainly if he [Gov. Edgar] had known about that, he would have done something about it? You think?
Oberweis: I would certainly think so.
Berkowitz: That’s an interesting name [Jim Edgar] because a lot of people… say that if [former Governor] Jim Edgar were to come in [the 2006 Governor’s Republican Primary], he would clear the field. That’s what the popular pundits say—if he entered this Republican Primary, everybody else—
Oberweis: Popular pundits are wrong.
Berkowitz: So, if Jim Edgar were to enter [this race] tomorrow, Jim Oberweis would be fighting on, is that right?
Oberweis: Absolutely, no question.
Berkowitz: And, you think you would beat Jim Edgar.
Oberweis: Yes, I do.
Berkowitz: And, you think—
Oberweis: I think it would be a much, much tougher battle.
Berkowitz: You think so. He would be the toughest opponent you would have if he entered this field?
Oberweis: Absolutely. But, I don’t think that is even under consideration…
Berkowitz: Do you remember that scandal, MSI? A lot of people say he [Edgar] chose not to run for anything [in ‘98], [reelection] as Governor or [a run for the U. S.] Senate because that [MSI] might come up a little more if he ran. Do you think that was the issue?
Oberweis: I believe it would come up. I think it would become a significant issue.
Berkowitz: So, corruption and the hint of corruption, might even dog Jim Edgar as a gubernatorial candidate? Is that what you are saying?
Oberweis: I have no inside information on that. I am sure you know as much or more about that than I do.
Berkowitz: Or I should say the allegation of corruption, I don’t know about corruption.
Oberweis: Right.
*******************************************
Jim Oberweis, candidate in the 2006 Republican Primary for Governor, recorded on June 26, 2005, as is airing on the City of Chicago edition of Public Affairs tonight, July 11 at 8:30 pm on Cable Ch. 21.
*****************************************************
Jeff Berkowitz, Host and Producer of Public Affairs and an Executive Recruiter doing Legal Search, can be reached at JBCG@aol.com
***********************
Jim Oberweis: You know, I don’t know him that well, to be honest with you. My suspicion is-- as sort of an outsider—is [that] he is sort of a nice guy who grew up in this type of politics and let it get the better of him. Let it go to far, without really realizing perhaps the serious nature of what was going on, but I don’t really know. That’s only an outsider’s guess.
*************************************************
Berkowitz: So, you would try to get Kjellander out of his [Republican Party National Committeeman] position?
Oberweis: Yes.
*******************************************
Berkowitz: And, you think you would beat [former Governor] Jim Edgar.
Oberweis: Yes, I do.
****************************************
Tonight's City of Chicago edition of “Public Affairs,” features Jim Oberweis [R-Sugar Grove], candidate in the 2006 Republican Primary for Governor. The show airs throughout the City of Chicago [in the regular “Public Affairs,” City of Chicago time slot] tonight at 8:30 pm on Cable Ch. 21 [CANTV]. See here for more about the topics discussed on tonight's show with Jim Oberweis, as well as a partial transcript of tonight's show and links to partial transcripts of a prior show with Oberweis.
***********************************************
Next week’s guest on the City of Chicago edition of “Public Affairs,” [and this week’s guest on the suburban edition of “Public Affairs,”] is State Senator Chris Lauzen [R-Aurora], a member of the Fab 5 group of State Senators first elected in 1992, and 1998 Republican nominee for Comptroller
**********************************************
An additional partial transcript of tonight’s show with 2006 Republican Primary Guv candidate Jim Oberweis is included, below:
*************************************************
Jeff Berkowitz: In Republican politics, it is sort of a big deal in terms of what you [a candidate for public office] think or don’t think of Bob Kjellander, the national Republican Committeeman from Illinois. The grassroots suggest that candidates who are running for Governor should say they would work hard to remove-- they may not be able to-- but to remove Bob Kjellander from his [Republican Party] position. Do you agree with that?
Jim Oberweis: Jeff, I have said over and over again that I believe that we, as a Republican Party, need to find and work for and support candidates who are involved in the political process to serve their country, to serve their state and to serve their party, not people who are involved in the political sphere for financial gain.
Berkowitz: So, you would try to get Kjellander out of his [Republican Party] position?
Oberweis: Yes.
Berkowitz: What about direct election? Would you favor direct election of the [Republican Party] State Central Committee members [SB 600]? That’s not the case now.
Oberweis: I do. I do.
**************************************
Jim Oberweis: This is complete nonsense as to what the Governor has done in this case. Our pension system in Illinois is the most under funded pension system of all 50 states, already. Now, he [Governor Blagojevich] is holding back…1.2 billion [dollars] this year, and another billion [dollars] next year and a third billion [dollars], the third year, from the required contribution that the state must make to bring it up to—still an under funded pension…
Berkowitz: So if you had not done that, if you made, say, a 900 million dollar payment [into the pension system]…where were you going to get that 900 million dollars to manage the deficit issues.
Oberweis: We’d be looking for the full billion dollars because when you say booking savings, this is fallacious because…
Berkowitz: Be as specific as you can, what would you have cut in spending for a billion dollars because you don’t want to raise taxes to …deal with the deficit?
Oberweis: There are lots of things that can be done. First of all, one simple, you know, quick answer is—that amounts to about a 2% across the board cut. Or, another alternative is not to increase spending for a year—would do the same type of thing—to bring it back. The focus must be controlling spending. Our spending is totally out of control within this state. We would do a lot of things. Putting things out for bid, by contract, would begin to save money…
Berkowitz: Are you saying that, as of today, if you had to make a choice, you might favor a 2% across the board cut?
Oberweis: I am saying that is one approach to it
Berkowitz: That you would consider?
Oberweis: Yes, I think there are even better approaches, however.
Berkowitz: And, the better approaches are to find specific areas where you think the cuts should be made?
Oberweis: Correct. Correct.
*****************************************
Oberweis: In Chicago, we have had a high level of corruption in politics in Chicago for many decades. And, it has spread to Springfield. We have, what, two former governors who have been convicted of felonies.
Berkowitz: Otto Kerner, right?
Oberweis: Otto Kerner. I believe Dan Walker.
Berkowitz: He walked right into prison.
Oberweis: And, we’ve got number three that we are working on, perhaps next year, as well.
Berkowitz: George Ryan. Republican Governor [1998-2002]. His trial for Racketeering, RICO charges, racketeering Influenced Corrupt Organization, that [trial] will be in the fall of 2005, just two or three months [from now].
Oberweis: Potentially, yes.
Berkowitz: Unless he settles, unless he cops a plea, as they say. It is a criminal trial. What do you think of George Ryan?
Oberweis: You know, I don’t know him that well, to be honest with you. My suspicion is-- as sort of an outsider—is [that] he is sort of a nice guy who grew up in this type of politics and let it get the better of him. Let it go to far, without really realizing perhaps the serious nature of what was going on, but I don’t really know. That’s only an outsider’s guess.
Berkowitz: You mean in terms of the Secretary of State’s office and the selling—licenses for bribes and all that
Oberweis: Yes, Yes.
Berkowitz: You are saying all of that was benign?
Oberweis: Yes, and I suspect that he didn’t think that he was doing anything different than everybody has done in that position for many, many years.
Berkowitz: Really. You think they have been selling licenses for all of that time?
Oberweis: What I said was that I believe that he felt that he wasn’t doing anything that hadn’t been going on for years.
Berkowitz: But, Jim Edgar was the Secretary of State for a while, right?
Oberweis: Yes.
Berkowitz: You don’t think that Jim Edgar was taking bribes to sell licenses, do you?
Oberweis: No.
Berkowitz: And, you don’t think that anybody in the SOS, Secretary of state’s office, was doing it at that time, or do you?
Oberweis: Not to my knowledge.
Berkowitz: And certainly if he [Gov. Edgar] had known about that, he would have done something about it? You think?
Oberweis: I would certainly think so.
Berkowitz: That’s an interesting name [Jim Edgar] because a lot of people… say that if [former Governor] Jim Edgar were to come in [the 2006 Governor’s Republican Primary], he would clear the field. That’s what the popular pundits say—if he entered this Republican Primary, everybody else—
Oberweis: Popular pundits are wrong.
Berkowitz: So, if Jim Edgar were to enter [this race] tomorrow, Jim Oberweis would be fighting on, is that right?
Oberweis: Absolutely, no question.
Berkowitz: And, you think you would beat Jim Edgar.
Oberweis: Yes, I do.
Berkowitz: And, you think—
Oberweis: I think it would be a much, much tougher battle.
Berkowitz: You think so. He would be the toughest opponent you would have if he entered this field?
Oberweis: Absolutely. But, I don’t think that is even under consideration…
Berkowitz: Do you remember that scandal, MSI? A lot of people say he [Edgar] chose not to run for anything [in ‘98], [reelection] as Governor or [a run for the U. S.] Senate because that [MSI] might come up a little more if he ran. Do you think that was the issue?
Oberweis: I believe it would come up. I think it would become a significant issue.
Berkowitz: So, corruption and the hint of corruption, might even dog Jim Edgar as a gubernatorial candidate? Is that what you are saying?
Oberweis: I have no inside information on that. I am sure you know as much or more about that than I do.
Berkowitz: Or I should say the allegation of corruption, I don’t know about corruption.
Oberweis: Right.
*******************************************
Jim Oberweis, candidate in the 2006 Republican Primary for Governor, recorded on June 26, 2005, as is airing on the City of Chicago edition of Public Affairs tonight, July 11 at 8:30 pm on Cable Ch. 21.
*****************************************************
Jeff Berkowitz, Host and Producer of Public Affairs and an Executive Recruiter doing Legal Search, can be reached at JBCG@aol.com
***********************
<< Home