RESPONSES TO ICPR'S 2006 CANDIDATE QUESTIONNAIRE
Candidates were instructed to answer YES or NO to the questions. Because some candidates provided more detailed answers, ICPR decided to publish the annotated responses and gave all gubernatorial candidates an opportunity to expand on their original responses.
Red = Republican  Blue = DemocratGreen = Green Party
Question 1 Do you support legislation to prohibit direct campaign contributions by corporations and labor unions, bringing Illinois in line with regulations of federal campaigns and the campaign laws in most other states?
Judy Baar Topinka - YES, I could support such legislation if it is part of a broad campaign financing package that A) does not include loopholes to allow candidates and political parties to subvert the purpose and B) does not favor millionaires who are able to self-finance.
Rod Blagojevich - YES, I proposed new legislation last year that would have created a McCain-Feingold type of campaign finance system for Illinois. Illinois is one of only five states with no limits on contributions
Rich Whitney - YES
Question 2 Do you support limitations on the amount of money that individuals and political action committees can contribute to campaign committees?
Judy Baar Topinka - YES, and yes. There are two different issues. I could support legislation that limits campaign contributions from individuals and PACs, provided there are exceptions for campaigns in which millionaire candidates are self-financing and thus creating unfair playing fields.
Rod Blagojevich - YES
Rich Whitney - YES
Question 3 Do you support limits on transfers between political committees?
Judy Baar Topinka - YES. I would strongly support limitations. The current situation is not healthy. As an example, legislative leaders use their political committees to centralize fundraising, consolidate too much power and undermine independence.
Rod Blagojevich - YES
Rich Whitney - YES
Question 4 Do you support ending pay-to-play by banning state contractors, including owners, directors and officers, from making campaign contributions to the constitutional officer who issues the contracts and oversees the work they do?
Judy Baar Topinka - YES, I could support this measure, provided that it is applied fairly to all candidates. As State Treasurer, I do not sell jobs, contracts, commissions or appointments. My directive to staff is to bid state contracts whenever feasible and reasonable and select the lowest qualified bidder.
Rod Blagojevich - The legislation I proposed would have eliminated contributions from all corporations, including state contractors. It would have also limited individual contributions to $2000 per election.
Rich Whitney - YES
Question 5 Should heavily regulated industries, such as gaming interests and utilities, be prohibited from contributing to campaign committees?
Judy Baar Topinka - YES, I believe there are certain entities that should be prohibited from making campaign contributions. Not every regulated business should be banned, but I can certainly agree with targeting certain industries. For example, I would sign legislation to ban gaming interests from contributing to campaign committees.
Rod Blagojevich - I support eliminating contributions from all corporations, including heavily regulated industries.
Rich Whitney - YES
Question 6 Do you support voluntary public funding of campaigns, tied to spending limits, for candidates for the Illinois Supreme Court?
Judy Baar Topinka - YES, I am willing to support this approach. Our Supreme Court races have become so political and so costly that I am willing to give a different approach a try. It is unseemly for selections to this state’s highest court to be as political and costly as they have become.
Rod Blagojevich - I support moving toward a system of merit selection of judges that maintains and expands the diversity of our judiciary. A truly just court must be as diverse, fair, and capable as the people it serves.
Rich Whitney - NO
Question 7 Do you support increased sunshine on the state’s two ethics commissions, allowing the public to receive some information on allegations of corruption and the status of investigations by the inspector generals?
Judy Baar Topinka - YES. Absolutely, we should increase openness and transparency for these bodies. As a reporter in my prior life and throughout my time in government, I have supported open government and increased transparency. I am especially concerned about the secrecy employed by the inspector generals under the governor’s purview. It is wrong that no one can find out what is happening with investigations or how they are handled. The only time one of the governor’s inspector generals discusses a case is after a bad story is leaked to the media.
Rod Blagojevich - I believe in open and transparent government and I introduced and signed a comprehensive ethics law in 2003 that created the toughest reforms in state history. I support openness in the process but we must also consider the privacy rights of state employees.
Rich Whitney - YES
Question 8 Do you support quarterly, rather than biannual, campaign finance disclosure by committees registered with the State Board of Elections?
Judy Baar Topinka - YES
Rod Blagojevich - YES
Rich Whitney - YES
Question 9 Do you support increased funding for the State Board of Elections to allow for increased enforcement efforts and randomized audits?
Judy Baar Topinka - YES, but I want the State Board of Elections to more aggressively enforce its current laws and not let gross violations pass with only a slap on the wrist. I will support additional funding, provided the State Board can show they will step up their enforcement and audit efforts.
Rod Blagojevich - YES
Rich Whitney - YES
Question 10 Do you support extending the definition of “lobbying” to require registration of entities and individuals attempting to influence the decisions of board and commissions, including those administering state retirement funds?
Judy Baar Topinka - YES. This is consistent with my belief that we should have increased transparency and openness in all aspects of government.
Rod Blagojevich - YES
Rich Whitney - YES
Question 11 Do you favor reapportionment reform that would result in the greatest possible number of competitive legislative and congressional districts; require that district boundary lines be drawn without favoritism to any political party or incumbent; and require that the district boundaries respect the boundaries of counties, cities and neighborhoods as much as possible?
Judy Baar Topinka - YES. Absolutely. The current system is not working and has never worked well during its 30-plus years of existence. The Paul Simon Public Policy Institute at Southern Illinois University is examining ideas for reforming the redistricting process. I look forward to their recommendations. As governor, I would support efforts to remove the political partisanship in the remapping process. We should look at the experience in Iowa and more recently in Arizona. It may take a constitutional amendment to set meaningful criteria in place, setting such guidelines as "communities of interest." I would support this approach.
Rod Blagojevich - I believe that the process is working. Control of the House of Representatives changed hands twice in the 1990’s and the Senate has seen a close split between the political parties in the last few years. This closely divided government requires compromise and bipartisanship on issues ranging from taxes and spending to social issues.
Rich Whitney - YES
|
 |
 |
Stay Informed!
Spotcheck is the e-mail newsletter of ICPR. It contains news and information
on our activities.
|
 |
|
