Jack Ryan...Gotta Love Those Family Values!

[KharmaTrain]

I'm surprised I haven't seen a flood of posts on what's happening here. The hypocrisy is incredible and so damn juicy. And who said Illinois politics was dull.

A couple of observations around the ranch today:

- Gotta figure the big chuckle old Oberweis is having right now. Wanna bet he's working those phones like an Indian customer service rep.

= Ray LaHood..."if we had only known...". Earth to gavel-head...it was being pointed at by the Tribune BEFORE the primaries...you figure that if Ryan was fighting that hard to keep it private, it hadda be some thing hot in there....especially considering you presided over the inquisition of the President for having problems involving sex in a civil suit. Guess the soundbite will CYA.

Note to Obama: Run a commercial that says "And now we know where Jack Ryan learned about video cameras"...:evilgrin:

Yes...there's a lot of chuckles and outright laughs here today as we see the party of family values show its sleezy side, and the subsequent spin/damage control that will vibrate right up to the Rove War room.

It's almost a slam dunk Ryan's toast and a new candidate will have to be found. This is a party pick now...just like how Lautenberg was flipped for Torecelli in NJ in '02...and it could be anyone...Jim Edgar (doubtful), but possible James R. 911 Thompson.

A point to ponder: Thompson appears to like that national spotlight...doing the cable food fights and hitting the beltway party circuit with a "name". Is he bored playing high-priced corporate gun?

And how would a Thompson candidacy affect things? Ya gotta think Rove would love pulling this old clothes horse out of "retirement" and turn lemons into lemonaide.

Now tinfoilers may think this could have been the plan all along...knowing the Ryan name is so damaged in this state in GOOP circles it might as well be Manson on a ballot...and this goof's real dirty laundry...was able to finesse the primaries...shaking off the Oberweises and "undesirables" and then allow the national party to pick it's own candidate?

Anyway, I get a feeling there's gonna me more to come on this one. Get some popcorn. And definitely, no time to be complacent or think Barak has this thing sown up now...or any other state Democrat!

Cheers!

[benburch]

1. Earlier thread here...

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=view_all&address=104x1833284

[KharmaTrain]

2. Was looking for a more local view of things here...

Cheers!

[chiburb]

3. Your Thompson theory...

He is the ONLY puke that might make the race interesting (close). Edgar isn't strong enough, Rauschenberg is brilliant but no personality, Topinka wouldn't/couldn't do it. However...

It wouldn't surprise me to see Thompson frog-marched to a Club Fed. He was on the board at Hollinger as Black and Radler were raiding the treasury, and he was CHAIRMAN of the Audit Committee.

Mark my words, Thompson's going down!

[apnu]

4. Obama will not be complacent...

... he's fought too hard to get to this point. He knows well the cabal he's facing and seems to have the guts to fight it.

GO Obama GO!

[davsand]

5. Thompson may be the only Repub that CAN run.

But he's kinda shakey. Edgar also has his own issues--other than ill health. If you take a look at google and do a google search on Edgar AND Kemper, you will pull up an article from the Illinois Leader (The GOP rag for Illinois.) In that article, they discuss the fact that Edgar declined to run for Senate becasue of his involvement with Kemper Insurance:

http://illinoisleader.com/news/newsview.asp?c=5973

snip....

"Kemper's collapse has done more than bring down an important Illinois-based company. It has also helped end whatever political aspirations Edgar may have had.


In an interview with Crain's Chicago Business last week, Edgar admitted the company's fall influenced his recent decision to not run for the U.S. Senate next year. In the May 9 story, "Kemper a factor in Edgar's call," Crain's reporters Greg Hinz and Steve Daniels wrote: "Mr. Edgar made clear that he was uneasy answering growing questions about Long Grove-based Kemper Insurance Cos.' decision to pull the plug on most of its business, costing hundreds of Illinois residents their jobs."


To be fair, Edgar did not join Kemper's board until February 1999, three years after Mathis took charge and turned over much of the operation to William Smith, whom he hired to be president and chief operating officer.


On the other hand, it was also just seven weeks after Edgar signed a bill largely written by Kemper to help it partially "demutualize" to raise money through the stock markets. That was one of Edgar's last acts as governor. (Bad timing, management ineptness or both kept Kemper from following through on its plans to tap the equity markets.)


But there was plenty going on that Edgar and other directors either did not see or chose to ignore..."

I doubt you will see Edgar running because he doesn't want to face questions about his huge salary from Kemper after he left office (and after he gave Kemper a rather lucrative deal on some state business, BTW, in his final days.)

The rumors about "Big Jim" Thompson are really fun, too, btw. Have any of you read much of the internet stuff about Thompson's ties to reporter Steve Neal's death?

"Neal was reportedly inquiring into what, if anything, the Bush Justice Department is doing in investigating the criminal role of Jim Thompson, former Illinois Governor, and for several years now Chairman of the huge worldwide law firm, Winston & Strawn and Thompson is a Hollinger official supposedly involved in supervising the auditing of the firm's funds.

A Director of Hollinger, "Big Jim" Thompson is accused of okaying or facilitating the huge misappropriations of Hollinger funds, of which Lord Black recently alleged he did not know about, yet he and his cronies pocketed the loot.



http://www.themedianews.com/DAGGER/Skolnick/Reporter%20death%20linked%20to%20Conrad%20Black%20%20%20.htm

Odd as it may sound, Ryan MAY be about the best the Illinois GOP could find to run!

Laura

edited to fix html tags.

[Padraig18]

6. Big Jim's bisexual...

Pretty common knowledge, although he (allegedly) doesn't 'play' any longer, like he did before he married the lil' woman...

[davsand]

7. That was out there when he was in office.

(Forgive the expression!)

Nah--the rumors about "Big Jim" (didja ever wonder WHY they called him that? :puke: ) were floating around when he was still in office. I honestly can't say I think that would be a big issue for him if he ran. Maybe it would be to the good old boys way down south--I dunno...

I really think that there's some good dirt floating on Thompson other than the rumors about his off work activities...


Laura

[KharmaTrain]

11. A Fly On The Wall At Winston & Strawn

I've heard big Jim used to like to party quite hardy...when two fisting was a shot & a beer.

But I'd be curious about the many wheels and deals he's gotten his grubbies on playing corporate big gun. He didn't take a step down when he left Springfield...and I've heard he'll start the meter running when you say "Hey Jim, can I ask..."

I, too, heard all the Thompson rumors (thus the clothes horse reference above)...and in fairness, there were those about Harold Washington as well. At least in social issues, Thompson was a moderate...as most statewide Illinois GOOPs have been.

I think his big obsession is money and power...he found out that government was power without the money...but "lawyerin'", now that's good stuff. But I can just tell he's getting bored these days. Watching him play hatchet man for the regime on Clarke made me wonder what's going on here. This wasn't the same Thompson who headed the Dobson hearing that opened the door to legal DNA testing.

The connections between Thompson & other "Strawners" like Ken Starr and a leads right to Rove & the Dark side.

I had a sneaky feeling a week or so ago when I saw some polls that showed Kerry not as far ahead of Bushyboy as he was in other states it would get the beltway wheel turning, and maybe it has.

I can see this thing playing out to stir up more headlines for the next couple days (letting Ryan go amock on the news shows and further destroy himself seems part of the playbook here), then in come the "adults" to save the day.

At least we'll have some better stuff to watch than Mr. Food.

Cheers!

[greatauntoftriplets]

8. And that's why Jayne drinks....

I've seen her in action.

[ThePandaBear]

9. I could care less about this.

The politicians sex lives have no influence on my votes. With that said, Obama has shown that he is a man of great character this week. When asked about this, he refused to comment saying ''This is not something I was going focus on and something I wouldn't want my supporters to focus on, I think it's a distraction.'' I wish all the Republicans would have followed Obama's lead during the Clinton scandles.

[KharmaTrain]

10. This Is Kettle Meeting Pot

Before I start some laptop indignation...Welcome To DU!

I don't know where you were during those dark days with the Clinton inquisition, but those who instigated that travesty did so under the guise of "morality police" especially in their definition of sex. They couldn't find any real crimes, so they used sex to attempt to overturn an election...and they still continue to judge people by their lifestyles and private lives.

Most notably, there were several Illinois Repugnicans: Henry Hyde, Thomas Shippers & Ray LaHood, who were intricately involved in that fiasco. Don't you sense any hypocrisy here?

I'm rewatching the Ryan interview with Elizabeth Brackett...Excellent! She drew and quartered this slime for using his child to hide his personal pecadillos, and this trash heep is saying that's not the issue. That it's no big deal.

Yep, he wants us to think it's no big deal so we'll think what Clinton did was the same as this scum bucket!

This guy is absolutely disgusting!

I don't even want to connect Obama with this POS. Obama is light years away in intellect, morals, experience and integrity.

This guy really thinks that he can continue to lie and distort and distract...and I can't help but also note the timing of letting this mouse loose under the noise of the Clinton book and the manufactured spin about Monica, Monica, Monica.

Personally, it's all disgusting!

Cheers!

[dogman]

12. This is the true hypocrisy,

just like always, the cover-up. The son is reported as autistic and would not even be exposed to the scandal unless he were suddenly cured. This was to protect Ryan not his son. This is just some of the hypocrisy that has been shown by the Illinois Rethugs this year. Another one to watch was the parading of Bo Derek through Springfield. If this were a Dem actress defending animal rights we would have heard screaming from top to bottom how a no nothing Hollywood elitist who had appeared nude in movies was trying to preach morality to our upstanding rural citizenry. Likewise, all the speculation about Big Dog's penis, while you can go on the internet and see Arnold's exposed in movie and posing. Tom Roeser opines on Henry Hydes fine moral leadership even after his affair was exposed during Clinton's impeachment. I've come to the conclusion that whatever subject the Rethugs are railing about is most likely what they are currently engaged in.

[KharmaTrain]

13. I Think They Call This "Dumbing Down"

Mike Malloy used to talk about it...several techniques used by the Right Wing to make so much noise most people will tune out...not vote, not want to discuss politics...go along, get along.

Another popular tactic...and effective one...is to "frame the debate". This means saying a lie often enough it becomes considered truth & fact...distort the gravity of a situation, create a scandal where little to none exists or deflect any attack on their guy by sticking something on your guy. Hate radio worked really effectively in this...thus the dittohead mentality that has been inbred in a generation of lame brains.

I think Ryan, at least at this point, thinks he can ride this puppy out. I can't see how...even if he were a Democrat...after all the horse-laughs and embarassment this has created. This dude's been "outed"...humiliated. He had the chutzpah to tell Elizabeth Bracket that going to the sex club with his wife was fine and that he didn't cheat on his wife (Clinton poke). I rolled my eyes.

Didn't this moron realize it's not the legality here, it's the "morality"...especially as he represents the "party of "morality""...the one that condemns anything sexual...especially where getting kinky is involved. It's incredible to think this guy not just knew what he did and tried to hide it, but that it was in writing somewhere and that he could keep that hidden. Sheesh. And then it's an invasion of privacy that we get a better picture of someone who will rule on many issues that will affect our lives. Excuse me, did I miss something?

It's a disgrace that the Repugnicans haven't really pulled the plug on this cad...just for their own image. Actually, I like it, as it just digs this corrupt party...especially here in Illinois...even deeper in a hole.

I had to chuckle when I heard him say he attempted to contact Judy Topinka about what was coming out, but she was on "vacation". Yeah, right. This dude thinks he can get away with this...people are gonna shrug and say, "so what" and in two months he'll do a TV blitz and buy his way "upward" in life, as he's been able to do before. I truely think this guy is that detached from reality, and still doesn't get it.

Oh well...get some more popcorn!!!