Free Republic

Mitt Romney's top ten is made up of Goldman Sachs, followed by Credit Suisse (Switzerland), Morgan Stanley, Barclays (UK), Bank of America and JP Morgan. In contrast Romney's co-frontrunner in Iowa, Ron Paul, has a top three donor list made up of the US Army, US Navy and US Airforce.

When it came to choosing a Republican presidential nominee, Benjamin Franklin just couldn't commit. “It's too early. There's so many qualified people,” said Don Van Gogh, dressed up as the Founding Father at the Midwest tea party convention this weekend in Schaumburg. But his fellow tea party members displayed no such indecisiveness, picking Herman Cain as the decisive winner in a straw poll. Cain, a former Godfather's Pizza CEO and radio talk show personality, has been building momentum since placing first in a similar poll in Florida a week earlier. On Saturday, he received 77 percent of the votes among...

Former Republican vice presidential candidate Sarah Palin, her husband Todd and other members of her family were in Springfield Sunday morning to tour the Abraham Lincoln Presidential Museum. Shortly after 11 a.m., museum officials posted pictures of the visit on Facebook. Palin's political action committee website also made mention of her stop in Springfield. NBC News' Alexandra Moe also posted a photo on Twitter of Palin's bus passing the Statehouse. According to news reports, the visit came a day after the Palins spent time visiting a historic site dedicated to another Republican president from Illinois, Ronald Reagan. Saukvalley.com reported the...

Sarah Palin's bus has been parked in Moline all day long, and it was creating quite a buzz. The question was is she actually in town? Well, she was not in town. The bus driver was told to go to Moline and wait for further instructions. Palin's bus was tucked behind Benjamin Franklin Crafts in Moline. Even though you could not see it from the main road, folks were still finding it. "I think that it spreads quickly. I think that it's really one person saw it, couple more people. But truthfully we haven't had much interest through the store,"...

While speaking at the Washington Area Community Center’s Lessons for Leaders (Washington, IL) on August 6, Coach Mike Ditka lambasted the mainstream media (MSM) and heaped praise on Gov. Sarah Palin. Said Ditka: “I understand Sarah Palin spoke here last year. I admire her. She’s a great lady, mother and wife, and that’s more important than the [bull****] the media spreads about her.” Ditka has offered up a strong defense of Palin before. For instance, in 2010, during an interview on Fox and Friends, he said “Sarah Palin is one of the greatest people I’ve ever met.” When he stumped...

Sen. Althoff sets the record straight on “Illinois DREAM Act” bill. Recently, the Illinois Senate approved legislation (Senate Bill 2185) aimed at allowing student immigrants who have a valid taxpayer ID to invest in their college education – this legislation has been the subject of much misinformation on the Internet and in the media. The bill requires the Illinois Student Assistance Commission to create an Illinois DREAM Fund that will provide scholarships funded entirely from private contributions – no Illinois tax dollars will be directed toward these scholarships. In addition, to be eligible for the program, a student must be...

Special delivery for President Obama: From Romney, with love? The former Massachusetts governor and all-but-declared presidential candidate sent his leftover pizza to President Barack Obama?a>??s election headquarters after a fundraising event in Chicago on Thursday. "Great deep dish at @ginoseast. Sending the extra slices to @barackobama and his Chicago HQ team," he tweeted, adding a photo of the deliveryman. Jeff Himmel, president of Bravo Restaurants, Inc., which owns Gino’s East, wouldn't take sides, adding Obama is no stranger to his home-town restaurant's famed pies. "I’m quite certain that the President has visited our institution on several occasions and is familiar...

President Obama “never did a deal in his life except with Tony Rezko,” said Donald Trump on Fox News. “People should look into that one,” he added. Trump once again went on the offensive against Obama. His previous point of attack was doubts over Obama’s birthplace. Now, it’s the latter’s long history with Tony Rezko, who Hillary Clinton in 2008 called a “slum landlord.” Rezko is am Illinoisan political fundraiser who was convicted for fraud and bribery in 2008. He was accused of using his political position to extort money from businesses seeking contracts from the Illinois Teachers System Board...

CNN’s chief national correspondent and anchor John King was in Chicago this afternoon to report on the mayoral race. King sat down at Manny's Cafeteria with David Axelrod, former senior adviser to President Obama, to discuss the mayoral race, Chicago politics and Wisconsin. The second part of the interview with David Axelrod will air tomorrow on John King, USA – 7pm ET. Transcript is after the jump. MANDATORY CREDIT: JOHN KING, USA HIGHLIGHT TRANSCRIPT THIS IS A RUSH FDCH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED. KING: Any doubt that your friend will...

Can we compare the State Of Cally,New York&Illinois to The Three Blind Mice?or Monkey See,Monkey Hear,Monkey Do? As far as conservatives see those states,they are through. Billions in debt and no way to pay it off. If this keeps up Obama will only carry about ten states in 2012.

Former President Bill Clinton is coming to Chicago in January to campaign for mayoral candidate Rahm Emanuel. Before serving in President Barack Obama's White House and representing the North Side of Chicago in Congress, Emanuel worked in Clinton's administration as a senior adviser for policy and strategy. Clinton is scheduled to headline a public event that highlights Emanuel's role in passing a crime bill....

When President Obama kicks off his reelection campaign sometime in the next few months, senior advisers say, it is virtually certain that his headquarters will be located in Chicago. But should it be? Full of nostalgia for the 2008 campaign and keenly aware of the anti-Washington vibe in the electorate, advocates say the arrangement would give the president's team a chance to get away from inside-the-Beltway conventional wisdom and to recapture the grass-roots energy that helped Obama beat two candidates entrenched in the capital's culture two years ago. Yet no president or vice president in recent history has won reelection...

"I don't think about Sarah Palin," President Barack Obama tells Barbara Walters in a White House interview. Obama said he is concentrating on being "the best possible president" rather than the 2012 election, ABC News said in a preview of the conversation. "Obviously Sarah Palin has a strong base of support in the Republican Party, and I respect those skills," he said. "But I spend most of my time right now on how I can be the best possible president. And my attitude has always been from the day I started this job that if I do a good job...

Sarah Palin tells Barbara Walters that she could beat Barack Obama in 2012, if she were to run for president. Ms. Palin tells Ms. Walters that she is "seriously considering running."

EDITOR’S NOTE: The writer is addressing the question, Should Hillary Clinton challenge President Obama for the Democratic presidential nomination in 2012?The latest buzz flitting among the Georgetown salons is that Secretary of State Hillary Clinton will switch jobs with Vice President Joe Biden and take his place on the Democratic ticket in 2012. That’s one of the tidbits being peddled by Bob Woodward to promote his new book “Obama’s Wars” and it has Democratic loyalists desperate to salvage a rapidly failing Obama presidency atwitter with unbridled joy. As a rumor, it’s intriguing. As common sense, it doesn’t pass Logic 101....

According to the U.S. Justice Department, some counties in Illinois may have missed the deadline for mailing absentee ballots to members of the military and other overseas American voters as part of a new federal overseas voting law. At least one county has already admitted its military ballots were not mailed by the September deadline. St. Clair County Clerk Bob Delaney says absentee ballots to military personnel didn’t get mailed in time because they were waiting on a court decision as to whether the Constitution Party candidates would be on the ballot. Top Republicans, as expected, wasted no time flooding...

As Democrats nationwide shun campaign help from the White House, Senate candidate Alexi Giannoulias plans to buck the trend and stand boldly with President Obama during a presidential stop this week in Illinois. Despite the president's waning popularity, Mr. Giannoulias has hitched his campaign to Mr. Obama, running television advertisements touting his close relationship with the former senator from the Land of Lincoln. Such a move would be politically risky in many states where "tea party" fervor and anti-Obama sentiment runs high. But the president still holds some cachet in his home state, which Mr. Giannoulias hopes will help push...

The Illinois First District Appellate Court has received briefs from both sides in Constitution Party v State Board of Elections, 1-10-2813. The issue is whether the statewide candidates of the Constitution Party will be on the ballot. Under the ruling of the lower court, the party has 24,920 valid signatures, and it needs 25,000. One issue in the appeal is whether to count the 82 otherwise valid signatures collected by Rosanna Pulido. The lower court did not count them because Pulido was a candidate for U.S. House in the February 2010 Republican primary. The law is ambiguous on whether someone...

Grab your towels and head for the steam room.

I am returning from a Republican Picnic and what I witnessed is absolutely astounding. I have been on the forefront of the illegal immigration battle, including being one of the original Minutemen on the Arizona/Mexico border in 2005 for the Original Minuteman Border watch. With all the talk of Tea Parties and bringing back the Constitution, I learned it's just that. a LOT of talk. I do not need to give most of you the run down on illegal immigration and Illinois. Or the shambles the Democratic and Republican parties ( Is There any difference?)have left Illinois in. The Illinois...

The End Justifies the Means What does the Illinois Republican Party stand for? The Illinois Republican Party, a party that claims to support “less litigation*,” retained attorneys and a private investigator to limit your choice in the November 2nd election. To block ballot access, they have attacked the candidates, the petition circulators and challenged the intention of Illinois voters. After candidates and volunteers for the Constitution Party spent 4 grueling days analyzing thousands of individual petition signer entries at the Illinois Board of Elections in Springfield, the Board of Elections determined that at least 25,017 voter’s entries are VALID (exceeding...

Chicago - The Republican candidate for governor Friday declared that Illinois needs more legal immigration. Speaking to a group of Hispanic business leaders at Chicago's Navy Pier Friday morning, State Senator Bill Brady called on the federal government to reform immigration laws and to secure America's border.

The Illinois Republican Party has learned quickly from Barack Obama and while they despise him, they are following in his path. Obviously the Illinois Republican Party is so scared because they have served up Pro-Amnesty Pro-illegal alien and Open Borders candidates, and they see the tide going the other way in the country. Remember!! The Illinois Republican Party is the one who gave you Barack Obama. The Illinois Republican Party has NOT been able to capitalize on the tremendous downfalls of the Democratic machine her in Illinois because they themselves are SO corrupt. They have served us up candidates like...

Way back when, I would go fishing with my (former) stepfather. Don't get me started on the agony of baiting the hook. And I possessed no ability to cast the line far enough without falling out of the tiny bass boat or hitting the other folks on board. So, I would just drop my hook off the side and hope the fish would find it. Besides, why else would we be in that spot if there weren't fish there in the first place? That was my logic. And it was pretty dumb. Which leads me to Sarah Palin. The best-selling...

March 21, 2010 (CHICAGO) (WLS) -- Tens of thousands gathered on the National Mall in Washington,DC Sunday for a rally focused on immigration reform. Some of those gathered are from the Chicago area. They say they fear reform efforts have been put on the back burner. While in the shadow of Sunday's health care reform vote, tens of thousands of protesters from around the country marched in Washington to push for a long-awaited immigration overhaul, as their fellow advocates in the Chicago area demanded the president make good on his promise of change. "One thing we want to see [is]...

As the road salt settles in the wake of Illinois primary election, both local and national commentators are in agreement on several general themes: - Toni Preckwinkle’s victory for Cook County Board President proves that Illinois Democrats are committed to reform. - The low turnout shows that Illinois voters aren’t really all that angry. - Mark Kirk’s victory for the U.S. Senate proves that Illinois Republicans really are moderate after all. All are of course incorrect. Cook County Commitment: In fact, Toni Preckwinkle’s victory only proves that Illinois Democrats are committed to winning. Does anyone honestly believe that they would...

Republicans, Welcome to Human Resources by John F. Di Leo, for Illinois Review, February 1, 2010 A.D. Good morning, Republicans. Congratulations; you’ve been hired for a job – one of very short duration, but of critical importance. For 13 hours, you'll be working in HR; you’ll be selecting your government. You have quite a task before you. Evaluate a stack of resumes and applications, and decide which of the newcomers is the best choice… and often too, decide which current employees deserve a promotion. When the contract hiring you was originally written, things were a bit different than they are...

The decision by Beau Biden not to run for Senate brings to mind an historical parallel. With no Biden in the race, with no Ted Kaufman serving another term, the Democratic candidate is likely to be New Castle County executive Chris Coons. Back in 1972, no Democrat wanted to run against a popular Republican, so a young New Castle County Councilman with no money entered the race. His name: Joe Biden. Historical parallels might be all that Democrats have to hang onto. Rep. Mike Castle (R) is sufficiently popular statewide and has a fairly unimpeachable record of service in Washington....

by John F. Di Leo How do you best judge the strength of a challenger, when the race isn't "important" enough to have national interest and national polling? Sometimes a single negative flyer can reveal all. In the quiet, Republican northwest suburbs of Chicago recently represented by Rep. Philip M. Crane and the late Bernie "No New Taxes" Pedersen - roughly Palatine, Inverness, and South Barrington, Illinois - the Republican state representative for the past decade or so has been Suzie Bassi, a moderate who moved up to the general assembly from a school board. Like hundreds - or perhaps...

What a coup it would be for the GOP to win Obama's former senate seat. There's no doubt that the post, which is currently occupied by recently admonished Senator Roland Burris, would be an emotional victory for the Republican party. So it makes sense that the national Republican Party has signaled a willingness to pour a sizable chunk of money into Illinois’ political races, according to Crain’s. Illinois State GOP Chairman Pat Brady said he received a commitment from the RNC to pour funds into the state in hopes of a political breakthrough. Brady said chairman Michael Steele told him...

State Rep. Beth Coulson, one of the most moderate Republican candidates running for Congress, will be meeting with Republican National Committee chairman Michael Steele tomorrow in Illinois to discuss her campaign – and the need for Republicans to have a big-tent party so it can compete in Democratic-minded districts.

Andy McKenna is running for Governor in Illinois. The only person that would be worse that Rod Blagojevich is Andy McKenna. Andy McKenna is a DEMOCRAT in REPUBLICAN clothing. THIS you tube says it all it gives you the history of Andy McKenna who has gobs of money and is running for governor of Illinois RINO ALERT! RINO ALERT! RINO ALERT!

Political payback could turn an Illinois primary campaign into a Republican grudge match. Less than two years after a divisive primary crippled the GOP’s hopes in a special election won by Rep. Bill Foster (D-Ill.), Republicans are setting up strikingly similar battle lines in their February primary. State Sen. Randy Hultgren announced his candidacy for the seat on Monday, joining attorney Ethan Hastert — the son of the district’s longtime congressman and former House Speaker Dennis Hastert (R) — and several other candidates. Hultgren has drawn praise from state Sen. Chris Lauzen, who bloodied up businessman Jim Oberweis in the...

Former Crystal Lake High School District 155 board member John Dawson wants to take his politics to a higher level. Dawson, 52, of Barrington, announced Thursday he's running in the 8th Congressional District's Republican primary. Democratic U.S. Rep. Melissa Bean of Barrington holds the seat Dawson wants. Other candidates for the GOP or Democratic primaries in the 8th District have not yet stepped forward publicly. The district includes Cook, Lake and McHenry counties. The owner of a home building and remodeling company, Dawson said the need for job creation and getting a handle on the national deficit are two issues...

Former Republican Speaker of the House Dennis Hastert's son, Ethan Hastert, has announced he'll run for his father's Chicago-area seat in Congress. The 31-year-old Hastert said Monday he would begin campaigning and fundraising for the 14th District seat. Dennis Hastert held the seat for 20 years and was the longest-serving Republican House Speaker. He announced in August 2007 that he would not seek reelection. Democratic U.S. Rep. Bill Foster of Batavia won the seat in the November general election. The younger Hastert has never held elected office. The self-described economic and social conservative grew up in Yorkville and now is...

In Illinois, Republicans have been anxiously waiting for Rep. Mark Kirk (R-Ill.) to decide whether he’s running for the Senate. If the popular, suburban Chicago congressman enters the race, strategists on both sides of the aisle expect the Illinois Senate race to be highly competitive. But, as Kirk takes his time in making a decision, the party is beginning to consider an alternative plan. And a new name is now being floated – Steve Preston, who served as Housing and Urban Development Secretary in the final year of President Bush’s administration. Preston is a former executive vice president at ServiceMaster...

Unbelievable. On Thursday, 25 House Republicans joined Democrats in passing HB255. The vote was 86 to 30, with one Democrat voting “Present.” HB255 is a three-pronged attack on the Republican Party Platform. First, it massively expands gambling in the state by legalizing video poker. It also allows lottery wagering over the Internet. Second, it raises the fee for a driver’s license. And third, it imposes sales taxes for the first time on previously exempt grocery items like candy, non-carbonated beverages, and health and beauty aids. Taxes on wine, beer and other alcohol are also increased. Here are the names of...

Well here we go again. There are very few actual leaders in Illinois Republican politics to begin with. But whenever we do see one – there’s some school yard bully ready to personally attack that person. A couple of weeks ago a sewer blogging little punk named Tom Swiss made a complete fool of himself for about the 150th time by trying to smear Jack Roeser. [By the way, just earlier today – Jack was awarded the de Fleury Medal by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers in honor of his significant contributions to Army Engineering. So be sure to...

SPRINGFIELD, Ill. - Party interests blurred and twisted at the state Capitol Wednesday as Democrats, led by a former Republican, teamed up with disgruntled GOP members to change the way they choose their leaders. Top Republicans oppose the change, even threatening to sue over it. What's at stake is whether rank-and-file Republicans will get to vote on who serves on the party's central committee, the governing board for the party in Illinois. Right now, Republican leaders in wards, townships and precincts across the state choose the central committee. Some Republican activists say that system produces a central committee that's out...

State GOP Chairman Andy McKenna was at it again last week. He continued to push the ridiculous lie that Senate Bill 600 Of course McKenna never even attempts to explain how it's "punishment" for Republicans voters to have a right restored - one they had for over 70 years, and one the Democrats have always enjoyed. McKenna's faction can't even come up with decent lies anymore. They're finished. In the same article linked above, McKenna was also complaining again about primaries, and worries they are "not constructive." That's all very interesting of course coming from a guy who no one...

Could another Hastert be in line for a run at the 14th Congressional District seat? Ethan Hastert, the 31-year-old son of former Speaker of the House Dennis Hastert, confirmed Friday that he has started meeting local leaders and introducing himself as a potential candidate. He said he has made no decisions yet. Hastert's father held the far west suburban seat for nearly 21 years, serving as speaker from 1999 to 2007. Ethan Hastert is an associate at Mayer Brown LLP in Chicago. He worked for more than a year in then-Vice President Dick Cheney's office.

Illinois' Republican chairman acknowledged Sunday that his party's often-bitter 2006 primary for governor "was not constructive" in helping nominee Judy Baar Topinka challenge wounded Democrat Rod Blagojevich's bid for a second term. Andy McKenna also criticized Democrats in the legislature for being "small-minded" by helping push legislation that would let primary voters rather than party officials decide the Republicans' top leaders. Speaking on WGN-AM 720, McKenna said Republican leaders and donors don't want to see a repeat of the four-way 2006 GOP primary for governor that he contended produced a weakened Topinka who was unable to challenge a better-funded Blagojevich...

http://www.worldviewradio.com/episode.php/episodeid-10978/Brannon-Howse/Brannon-Howse

Candidate for 5th Congressional District primary February 9, 2009 Party affiliation: Republican Date of birth: May 12, 1956 Web site: www.RosannaPulido2009.com Occupation: Senior Citizen Advocacy Previous political experience (elective and appointed positions): I have been a grassroots activist that has worked on issues that affect the everyday life of the people who reside here. Senior citizen advocacy and Senior transportation issues, 2ND Amendment rights issues and illegal immigration issues. I have testified before the Illinois General Assembly and in Washington DC. My life experience of seeing problems and lobbying, writing letters and educating the public about the issues is a...

Barack Obama's election has already brought about change -- a vacancy in Rahm Emanuel's old seat in the U.S. House of Representatives in the Fifth Congressional District ofIllinois -- and that is giving hope to Republicans. Hope that we can begin to take back the Congress, and push back the Democrats' massive, trillion dollar deficit spending plans. Since Obama's election on Nov. 5, Republicans have won the Senate seat in Georgia, and a House seat in Louisiana. Let's make it three straight wins this spring and elect an amazing Republican, Greg Bedell for Congress. We need your support. The March...

Rep. Peter Roskam (R-Ill.) said Monday that he expects a crowded field to pursue the Senate seat of Roland Burris (D) and that it might include him. “I do think that Roland Burris is going to be political sorbet,” Roskam said of embattled Gov. Rod Blagojevich’s (D) appointee. He added: “I think you’ll see a whole host of folks coming forward.” In an interview with The Hill, Roskam promoted his Illinois GOP colleague, Rep. Mark Kirk, saying he would be “a very, very strong candidate.” But Roskam also said he would consider the race.

First, Obama's fellow Daley machine hack, Rod Blagojevich, tried to sell Obama's Senate seat. Obama's Chief of Staff, Rahm Emmanuel, discussed the future of the Senate seat with Blagojevich. Obama has since "cleared himself" of any wrongdoing. Then, Obama's advisor, Caroline Kennedy, tried to steal a Senate seat in New York, citing royal prerogative. Now, Obama's Commerce Secretary nominee, Bill Richardson, has withdrawn his nomination, amid speculation that he will be indicted for corruption. All this, and Obama hasn't even been sworn in!

And then Tuesday, we learned that Roland Burris, a guy who has been hanging around in Illinois politics for decades, saw in all of this an opportunity to vault himself into the Senate -- no matter what Obama and every other Democrat from Springfield to Washington thought. Everyone, including Obama, has been exceedingly polite in their public comments about Burris. I have known him for years and I like him. But I have never been confused about the level of his talent. He was elected as far back as 1978 as state comptroller and stayed in that low-visibility office for...

♫ O Rahm, O Rahm Emanuel! Come and give jobs to Liberals That wait for their appointments here Until Barack Obama appears.Employed! Employed! Emanuel Shall find thee work, oh Liberal! ♫ O Come, thou Rahm with Jesse’s boy, Thy Democratic colleagues to employ. After two terms in the wilderness It’s time that situation to address.Employed! Employed! Emanuel Shall find thee work, oh Liberal! ♫ O Come, thou Chief of Staff and appoint On behalf of The One we did anoint. Disperse those NeoCons from our sight And make some office space for us forthright.Employed! Employed! Emanuel Shall find thee work,...

Lt. Dan for Senate from Illinois!!! Lets draft Gary Sinise for US Senate.