Probe targets 7 city workers

From the Chicago Tribune:

Probe targets 7 city workers
Seeking votes for Blagojevich on job is alleged

By John Chase and James Janega, Tribune staff reporters. Tribune staff reporters Dan Mihalopoulos and John McCormick contributed to this report
Published November 1, 2002

Seven city transportation workers, including a supervisor, were suspended Thursday amid an investigation into whether they used a municipal truck as they solicited votes on taxpayer time in a northwest suburb for Democratic candidate for governor Rod Blagojevich.

"We are currently investigating these serious allegations," said Miguel d'Escoto, the city's transportation commissioner. "If it is determined there was any wrongdoing, we will pursue immediate discipline."

None of the workers was identified, but d'Escoto said five seasonal workers were suspended without pay while a supervisor and another worker remained on the city payroll although they were "temporarily relieved of their duties."

The move by d'Escoto came after Blagojevich's Republican rival, Atty. Gen. Jim Ryan, appeared at a news conference with a woman who said she snapped a picture of the workers and their truck as they campaigned for the Democrat in Park Ridge a few weeks ago.

Beverly Stanis, a longtime Republican who has previously been a GOP election judge, said one of the men seeking support for Blagojevich rang the door bell in the home where she was staying. Stanis said the conversation turned "extremely negative" when she told the man she wasn't backing the Democrat. Stanis said the man then joined eight or nine other men who were following an orange city Transportation Department truck.

Stanis said one of the men grabbed Blagojevich campaign literature from the vehicle, prompting her to grab a camera. She said one man yelled at her, "You shouldn't be taking pictures," and she said they quickly drove off while several of them gave her a thumb's down sign.

"It was very intimidating," Stanis said. "I don't believe that this is the proper type of campaign style."

Stanis' story was more fodder for Ryan, who has spent recent days looking for support among Downstate voters by trying to demonize Blagojevich, the son-in-law of Ald. Dick Mell (33rd), as a tool of Chicago Democrats.

"The episode is more evidence that Blagojevich is nothing more than a typical Chicago machine politician," said the Republican, as he campaigned Downstate. "The evidence mounts that he's part of a political machine that is the antithesis of good government."

Blagojevich, stumping for votes in the city and south suburbs, said the workers have "got nothing to do with me" or his campaign.

"That's not behavior that's appropriate," the Democrat said. "If it's true, that person is probably going to have problems on his job and rightfully so. He shouldn't be doing that."

Still, in attacking Ryan for running "against the city of Chicago," Blagojevich belittled the incident.

"Jim wants to keep talking about silly things like that rather than talking about his ideas on growing the economy," the Democrat said. "It's an indication of why his campaign's been sputtering and he continues his relentless pursuit of the irrelevant as it speaks to the needs of people across our state."

Meanwhile, in the race for attorney general, the State Board of Elections split 4-4 along party lines Tuesday on whether there was sufficient merit to Democratic complaints about $1.3 million in assistance given to Republican Joe Birkett from a gun-owners rights group to warrant a full-blown investigation.

Under board rules, a tie vote means the matter will still be reviewed, but not before Tuesday's election.

The complaints were filed with the board by Michael Lavelle, a former chairman of the panel. Lavelle contended the Law Enforcement Alliance of America, which has run ads critical of Birkett's Democratic rival, Lisa Madigan, should be required to register as a political committee.

Lavelle said Birkett should report the television advertising help he has received from the group, which has ties to the National Rifle Association, on his campaign finance reports.

Birkett maintained he had no intention of reporting the ads as a contribution because his campaign has had no contact with the group and did not provide it with any television footage.

"Not a single word of that ad came from my campaign," Birkett said. "At the same time, not a single word of that ad was false or misleading."

A hearing examiner for the panel earlier this week had recommended that it find that Lavelle's complaints had merit.