Selfish Hedonist

Needs almost no comment.

Time for Emanuel to support Cegelis in 6th

November 29, 2005

BY DICK SIMPSON

Rep. Rahm Emanuel (D-Ill.) should quit playing games and support Christine Cegelis for Congress. Cegelis is running for the second time for Henry Hyde's seat in the suburban 6th District that includes northeast DuPage County and northwest Cook County.

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In comparison to Duckworth and Scott, who have never run for office before, Cegelis received 44.2 percent of the vote in 2004 against long-term Republican incumbent Hyde. Her election would revolutionize suburban politics by making elections between Democrats and Republicans competitive.

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Cegelis' sin in the eyes of Emanuel is that she has raised only $160,000 this year and has only $50,000 in the bank. Washington insiders believe that only campaigns that raise $1 million win. Emanuel previously tried and failed to get some personally wealthy Democrat to jump in the race. Failing that, he is putting up a war veteran in the hope of winning the sympathy and patriotic vote despite the fact that the majority of Americans now want to get out of Iraq.

The national Democratic Party would do better to send money and support to Cegelis. She, her more than 100 campaign volunteers, and the Democrats and Republicans in the 6th District who voted for her last time, have earned the right to run this race.

(Note: I said almost no comment. All this has been evident for months. It's particularly distressing that the D-Trip is running veterans just because they're veterans, particularly when the party as a whole has no clear message on the war in Iraq. And, as others have pointed out, don't think today's GOP will for a second think twice about sliming a disabled vet with all the slime their slimeguns hold, should an election be at stake. But again, no matter. I believe Cegelis's team is strong enough to parry this challenge, who knows? Maybe the whole thing will end up serving as an important learning experience to those powers that be, consultant class, and the money-above-all folks! Ha! Just kidding. They never learn.)