Posted on 07/10/2004 7:14:23 PM PDT by RWR8189
SOUTHERN ILLINOIS -- Da Bears or Da Senate.
Most conversations involving fans of the Chicago Bears eventually revert to the 1986 Super Bowl championship and their ringleader, Coach Mike Ditka.
"Iron Mike," as he is known, won more than 100 games for the Bears from 1982 to 1992 after a distinguished playing career with the Monsters of the Midway.
Now 64, Ditka is making news outside the gridiron. It has been speculated that he may enter the political arena. The prize -- a U.S. Senate seat now up for grabs after incumbent Republican Peter Fitzgerald announced he would not seek re-election.
Jack Ryan, who won the Republican primary this spring, and was scheduled to face Democrat Barack Obama in Nov- ember, withdrew from the race amid pressure from party stalwarts.
Divorce records revealed that Ryan's ex-wife accused him of asking her to perform sex acts at various sex clubs. With Ryan apparently out of the mix, the Republicans are now looking for a candidate with name recognition to take on the highly-favored Obama.
Ditka could be that candidate. Other former athletes have made it big in politics -- Arnold Schwarzenegger, Bill Bradley, Jesse Ventura, Steve Largent and Jack Kemp, to name a few.
"This is the first I've heard of it," said Jeff Hoch of Herrin, a self-described Bears fanatic. "At first glance, I like the idea, but when it comes down to voting, I go with my conscience. I'd have to know where Mike stood on some important issues like abortion, domestic partnerships, taxes, business, and stem cell research."
Hoch said if Ditka were to follow Republican Party lines, he might be inclined to vote for him. "What I do know is that Ditka is one who would stand up and be accountable. I believe him to be a man of integrity." Hoch added that the Republican Party is not only reeling from Jack Ryan's sex scandal, but also from former Gov. George Ryan's license for bribes scandal. "Either way, it's going to be an uphill battle," he said.
Amy Turner of Carterville said the Republican Party would be making a mistake by asking Ditka to represent the party in November.
"I think if they would stick a name out there that is friendly (to the voters), they would be doing so because they feel the pressure. Really, it would be a bad thing," she said. "Mike Ditka has no political background. I couldn't even tell you what he stands for. It's ridiculous. I'm not a fan of career politicians, but I'd like to have someone running for office with some political knowledge. I'm not sure Ditka has even served on so much as a PTO board."
A staunch Democrat, Turner said she would not vote for Ditka even though she is from Chicago, is a huge Bears fan, and is appreciative of the work he did as the team's head coach.
"I think Ditka's an intelligent guy, but I don't know if he has enough appeal statewide," Turner said. "I think he might offend too many people. I just know I wouldn't vote for him."
Turner's husband, Dan, stands on the opposite end of the political aisle from his wife.
"I absolutely would vote for Mike Ditka if he ran on the Republican ballot," Dan Turner said. "He definitely has some leadership qualities. Of course, I'd still like to see what his thoughts are. As opposed to Jack Ryan, I think he'd make an excellent candidate."
Josh Dunderdale of Herrin used to work for the Bears as a sales representative for their radio broadcast of games.
"I really don't have any strong feelings about Mike Ditka running for senator, but I would say he is a powerful person who I would describe as a successful leader. He seems to express himself well. How that would transfer to politics is hard to say."
Dunderdale said Ditka could garner a large percentage of the Chicago vote because of his immense popularity. "For me to vote for him, I would have to find out a lot more about him."
Impressive argumentation.
But do realize how many skeletons Ditka has in his closet. The media and the RATS would have a field day.
He was more than a few DUI's, he left his 1st wife when he was a Cowboy for his 2nd when he met her in a bar - she was a cocktail waitress. Then there's his kids from his 1st marriage, which by all reports (as I recall) he has not exactly treated kindly.
All this mean s zero in sports, but running for the Senate, he'd be toast. That's why I think it would be ridiculous for him to run, as all his personal life's antics would all come out.
Hilarious. Here's to Senator Ditka.
Once upon a time that was not a liability, and was in fact, a positive.
Not for Illinois it is not. Our Senators have been RAT Bagmen who are dumb as dirt such as Durbin or GOP Rich men who buy their seats then get bored.
Dikta would be a tremendous improvement for Illinois and far better than the Socialist running for the RATs.
He is a stone cold conservative.
It's all in the public record. Everything that could come out has come out.
Chalk it all up to the exuberance of youth.
His last 15 years have been pretty tame.
Accepted. Your post is what I've been looking for on any of the Ditka threads. Haven't seen that sort of detail offered yet.
As a native Chicagoan, I would love to see Ditka in the Senate.
Now as to 'Da Coach', I'm really surprised people don't recall all of Ditka's peccadillo's when he was a player. Again, nothing wrong with that - for a pro sports guy of 'his time' (heck it was almost expected), but surely not for a politician these days. Ditka would be ruined.
While all this needs to be out in the open early, I'm not at all sure that this equals "ruin" in 2004. Maybe in 1964, but not in 2004.
Arnold's private life was brought to light largely during his campaign for governor. Many Californians were hearing all about Arnold's past for the first time and it didn't keep him from being elected.
Ditka's mistakes have all been exposed in Illinois from one end of the state to the other over the years.
Anything that could come out, did come out.
The residents of Illinois that would have accepted his apologies already have.
Ditka has already made his amends, in public, in Illinois, for everything that's been mentioned on this thread.
How Conservative is he? That's what I want to know.
Bingo!
BTW, there were rumors that Mike was kind of 'violent' during his 1st marriage. Not like Bobby Hull (Blackhawks) who beat his wife almost daily (that unfortunately is a fact), but along those lines - allegedly.
The RATS would demand his divorce records be opened and they'd do the same to Ditka as they did with their own candidate Blair Hull (no relation to Bobby Hull) - "Wife Beater", blah, blah, blah.
What decades are you talking about?
As we know, the politics of personal destruction is their strong suit, nothing is beneath them. They can't win on the issues so they destroy the persons credibility and character.
I am a conservative, and so anyone who is a Republican and can win I will support, but I have to say it troubles me that we have to resort to winning popularity contests to win elections. I know I sure hate it when Hollywood trots out its famous libs, and I kind of feel the same way when we do the same, but I guess we gotta do what we gotta do.
HE has said he thinks GW is too liberal.
There's nothing 'new' to hear about Ditka.
His life is an open book. He's apologized for everything. The average resident of Illinois has forgiven him.
He's been on pretty good behavior for the last 15 to 20 years.
How Conservative is he? That's what I want to know now.
Mike Ditka would win in a heartbeat. Lets hope he runs and sinks the crooked dimocrat agenda in Illinois.
"I think if they would stick a name out there that is friendly (to the voters), they would be doing so because they feel the pressure. Really, it would be a bad thing," she said. "Mike Ditka has no political background. I couldn't even tell you what he stands for. It's ridiculous. I'm not a fan of career politicians, but I'd like to have someone running for office with some political knowledge. I'm not sure Ditka has even served on so much as a PTO board."
This is a staunch Democrat. Translation: We're about to get steamrolled by Ditka!
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