Kass on Ryan’s Integrity, Perspective
Chicago Tribune columnist John Kass has a great column about our campaign, writing:
The last time Jim Ryan ran for governor of Illinois, he offered voters a clear choice between a man who never took a dime in public life and Rod Blagojevich.
Kass quotes Jim:
“I’m running because I’m disgusted in what I see,” said Ryan, a distinguished fellow at Illinois Benedictine University’s Center of Civic Leadership and Public Service. “I teach young people and they’re disgusted, and that has to change.
“It’s very hard to convince young people today about public service. They see it as politics, as a blood sport; they see the corruption, they think politics is dirty work. There’s an entire generation of young people who’ll be turned off to public service if we don’t change that around. I’m in this for two reasons: to help my state and the people of my state.”
Please click here to read the full column and leave a comment on the Tribune Web site.
Happy Thanksgiving
On behalf of my family and our entire campaign team — I want to wish you a happy and healthy Thanksgiving.
Our family has faced its share of challenges during the past two decades — but we have never lost faith or the hope that tomorrow is a better day.
For that, I am so very thankful.
Long ago, our family realized that the only way to face any challenge is to face it together.
Here in Illinois, we face the greatest challenges we’ve ever seen. But I know we will perservere by facing these challenges together.
I was born and raised here in Illinois, and I’ve seen our state at its best … and at its worst. I believe in the good people of this state, and I know that tomorrow is a better day.
We hold the power to restore and renew Illinois. And I know we will work together to do just that.
Please enjoy your Thanksgiving weekend. Relish the time you spend with your family, friends and loved ones.
Thank you so much for your support and encouragement during this campaign.
God Bless,
Jim Ryan
New Poll: Big Lead for Jim Ryan
A new poll — conducted for one of our Republican challengers — is the latest to show a sizable lead for Jim Ryan in the Republican Primary. As you can see, the results track closely with the poll we released in early October:
Jim Ryan 30%
Adam Andrzejewski 11%
Bill Brady 11%
Andy McKenna 10%
Kirk Dillard 7%
Bob Schillerstrom 3%
The poll was conducted November 15-16 by Wilson Research Strategies for the Adam for Illinois committee.
WSIL-TV reports on the poll:
Chicago Bankruptcies Surge
As this Crain’s Chicago Business video shows, bankruptcy filings among Chicago employers are surging. Illinois needs a governor who will make business and job growth his top priority.
‘Let’s Try Governing for a Change’
The Decatur Herald & Review’s editorial this morning cites Jim Ryan in admonishing the Springfield politicians for practicing politics, instead of actually governing to serve the people:
The key, he (Ryan) said, is the difference between good government and politics. Ryan said when House Speaker Michael Madigan fights to continue to control huge amounts of campaign contributions that he can use to influence individual legislative races, “That’s not about good governmental policy, it’s about politics.’’
The Herald & Review editorial board goes on to agree with Jim’s assertions:
But the pendulum has swung so far in favor of politics that’s it hard to find anyone worrying about the proper role of government. Politics has government so buried that it takes a mine shaft to even find a debate that’s centered on what’s right for the people of this state.
Politicians and others can disagree about the best way for the government to serve the people.
But when policies and practices only serve the politicians, we have a big problem.
Jim is basing his campaign on the simple (yet oft ignored) principle that petty, partisan politics are at the core of the broken representative government that we see in Springfield.
Jim said as much in his campaign announcement speech — and in this great closing statement from the recent Illinois Republican Party gubernatorial debate.
More importantly — his career of public service has been one marked by effectiveness, integrity and authenticity.
Just what Illinois needs right now.
GITMO Detainees in Illinois? Jim Says “No”
The Associated Press reports that the Obama Administration is considering moving Guantanamo Bay al-Qaeda terrorist detainees to the prison in Thomson, Illinois:
The Obama administration may buy a near-empty prison in rural northwestern Illinois to house detainees from Guantanamo Bay along with federal inmates, a White House official said Saturday.
The maximum-security Thomson Correctional Facility, about 150 miles west of Chicago, was one of several evaluated by the Federal Bureau of Prisons, and emerged as a leading option to house the detainees, the official told The Associated Press on condition of anonymity because a decision has not been made.
Jim Ryan issued the following statement today on this proposal:
“While the issue of jobs is extremely important to our economy, protecting the public is the number one responsibility of government. I oppose bringing al-Qaeda terrorists to northern Illinois not because we can’t house them safely but because their location here could put the region in the crosshairs of other acts of terror. The federal government should look for other options.”
Job Number One: Jobs
During the past week, Jim toured the state outside of the Chicago area — visiting Rockford, the Quad Cities, Peoria, Quincy, the Metro East, Carbondale, Carterville, Effingham, Decatur and Chamapaign.
The issue most on the minds of the voters? Simple: jobs, jobs and jobs.
As Jim has said throughout this campaign, his top priority will be firing up the state’s economic engines to put Illinoisans back to work. Unlike the Democrats — Jim won’t raise taxes, but reverse seven years of anti-jobs policies that has left employers fleeing the state, people out of work, and our state budget in crisis.
The below video from Crain’s Chicago Business reflects the growing job crisis in Chicago — and crisis that is being felt just as bad, if not worse, in other areas of the state:
Jim’s Statewide Tour: Jobs, Jobs & Jobs
Jim is touring the state this week, talking about the issues important to Illinois — especially the vital need to improve our jobs and business climate. You can view updated photos from the tour by clicking here or follow regular updates on Facebook and Twitter.
Here is just some of the great media coverage Jim has received during this tour:
- Ryan Strategy: Cut Spending, Don’t Raise Taxes (Rockford Register-Star)
- Ryan: Jobs Creation Should be Job No. 1 (Peoria Journal-Star)
- Illinois Gov. Candidate Ryan Says Budget Needs to be Straightened (WGEM-TV Quincy)
- Gubernatorial Candidate Ryan Says Raising Taxes is “the Last Thing We Should Do” (Quincy Herald-Whig)
- Former Attorney General Jim Ryan Says His Run for Governor Will Be Different This Time (Decatur Herald & Review)
WEEK-TV in Peoria also had a good story — and please also watch this great clip from extended raw footage of Jim’s interview with WTVO in Rockford:
WEEK-TV Peoria Highlights Our Campaign
WEEK-TV in Peoria had this great story earlier tonight … Peoria is just one of the stops on Jim’s tour of Illinois this week. You can view updated photos of that tour by clicking here — and get regular updates on Twitter and Facebook.
Ryan: Illinois’ Defining Moment
Following is the strong closing statement made by Jim Ryan at the Illinois Republican Party Gubernatorial Debate, held November 5, 2009 in Chicago:
This is truly a defining moment in Illinois.
Our state clearly is going in the wrong direction.
Our state government is broken. In fact, what I’ve told my students is that representative government in this state is broken.
The social contract that we talk about … has been breached:
- We didn’t consent to 80 billion dollars in unfunded pensions.
- We did not consent to eight-to-eleven billion dollars in budget deficits.
- We didn’t consent to paying a corruption tax.
Our representatives — some of them, there are a lot of good men and women there, but some of them — have not represented us well, and have done just the opposite.
Government is supposed to improve people’s lives — I believe that. Government isn’t the enemy, government should be on the side of the people, and in Illinois it hasn’t been.
Now, there’s plenty of blame to go around, but there’s no denying that the Democrats have been in control of everything for almost eight years — and everything has gotten worse.
Reckless spending … fiscal mismanagement … systemic corruption … a hostile business environment that’s costing Illinois jobs .. and a lack of authentic leadership … all threaten the future of Illinois.
We can do better than that. Our state needs experience. Steady, honest leadership. And I’m prepared to bring that kind of leadership to Springfield.
And, as I said when I announced my candidacy: No one person can do this alone.
We do have to start a revolution in Illinois. We have to encourage citizens to speak out and to get engaged and end the debacle that we’ve created in our state capitol.