There is one candidate in the primary this March 20th, Dan Patlak, who demonstrates the conservative qualities the Republican Party should always embody; as the sole GOP commissioner on the Cook County Board of Review, he’s conscientious, articulate and experienced. But unfortunately, he’s being challenged in an expensive, viciously personal, and divisive primary. And in addition, the campaign has become tangled in the weeds of the good old Illinois Republican/Combine swampland, a.k.a. North Cook Co. vs. South Cook Co. Never heard of that particular battleground? Well, it’s the Land of the Chicago Way – so plan on getting to know the Saul Alinsky model for political campaigning before you come to the end of this story, a few paragraphs down.
Patlak (R-Wheeling) was elected to the Cook County Board of Review in 2010, and now his two-year term is up. Before becoming a commissioner, Patlak put in a couple of decades supporting local GOP causes. He worked for Maureen Murphy when she was on the Cook Co. Board of Review, and later he became the Wheeling Twp. assessor. Since his 2010 election to the Board of Review, Dan has been a hard-working representative of his constituency; most property taxpayers around here (northern Cook Co.) are proud to endorse his reelection campaign.
But hold on, there is that one other factor: Dan Patlak is a conservative, and worse than that he comes out of a faction of the Illinois GOP that has a stubborn streak. Read that to mean they don’t make deals; they don’t pay-to-play; they aren’t ones to “take one for the team.” Maybe it won’t be surprising to hear that his opponent, Sean Morrison (Orland Park), comes from the team on the other side of the swamp – that would be, for example, the territory where some folks countenance bribes for phony drivers licenses, or replace conservative candidates for the U.S. Senate with sure losers from out of state, or maybe sell their votes on the Cook County Board for . . . whatever.
Dan Patlak is friends with Wheeling Twp. Committeeman Ruth O’Connell, another hard-working local conservative who labored behind the scenes for decades, not cooperating with the “team,” and finally got elected to a position where she is making a difference. Her nemesis is Cook County Board member and Orland Park Committeeman Elizabeth Doody Gorman. Now there’s an example of a Chicago Way wheeler-dealer who would do ACORN et al proud. (Just ask the mavericky former Cook Co. Board member Tony Peraica how it felt to get undercut by his GOP compatriot, Liz Gorman.)
So, let’s say an Illinois GOP “team” player wants to make sure the team on the Board of Tax Review is a wholly owned subsidiary of the Illinois Combine; what would Saul Alinsky do? How about this plan: the challenger invents a bogus personal attack theme, uses the press and social media to demagogue the opponent about it, and confuses voters into believing it matters. Case in point: Sean Morrison has focused his entire campaign on one issue: attacking Dan Patlak for accepting (100% legal) campaign contributions from attorneys who may or may not try real estate reassessment cases. Never mind that there is a First Amendment that allows campaign contributions; never mind that there is no real likelihood of corrupt practices in the Board of Review job description. Morrison’s team created the issue out of thin air, publicized it to death, and hopes to win the primary with just that one argument.
Welcome to business as usual in Illinois. Take a clear look at Dan Patlak and choose your side.
Listen to the Illinois Review interview with Sean Morrison here.
Race Between Patlak and Morrison, Taking Sides |
Feb 26, 2012 @ 18:42:10
Feb 27, 2012 @ 02:10:03
Jeeeez,,,Sounds like you don’t want any votes from the south end of Cook County the way you paint with that Broad Brush….
Feb 27, 2012 @ 04:20:00
I encourage everyone of integrity to vote for Dan Patlak. He has nothing to do with the Illinois Combine.
Feb 27, 2012 @ 05:12:33
I’m from the southside of Cook County and I’m voting for Dan Patlak. The Cook County GOP is in no position to be turning on each other. Aren’t there enough Democrats in Cook County to fight?
Feb 27, 2012 @ 21:29:40
This is the primary election, ergo two Republicans running for the same office. Morrison could have run for something else if he did not want to unseat a good conservative who is already in office.
Feb 27, 2012 @ 13:23:46
Let me repeat what I wrote earlier, as well as congratulate the author of the comment above.
I add only that I have friends in South Cook, Palos township who have endorsed Mr. Patlak. “Howdy” Doody” Gorman has gerrymandered her District so far north, that I — in Mount Prospect — am underrepresented by her on the Cook County Board. Another gift from The Democrat Party.
———-
Someday, perhaps, Mr. Morrison will tell us how he decided to run for the Board of Review, a job for which he has absolutely no qualifications. There were many positions for which Mr. Morrison might have run. He chooses to try to start at the top.
This happens to be one of the few now held by a qualified and able Republican in Cook County. It is in addition one of the few not under the thumb of “Howdy” Doody, who aspires to control the Cook County Republican Party.
Her machine, which gave us the last Cook County Party chief, a handsome young lawyer to be. It has now given us a second unqualified Party manager, and an executive director, equally unqualified to organize the Party for victory, the latter a supposed entrepreneur, who having made contacts in the Republican business circles to his gain will undoubtedly ‘preneur’ his way on to better things.
Remember, if you will, the Chairman of the State Party, the Great Buddha, who hs been succeeded by Pat Brady. I predicted at the time of his acession that is goal was not to grow the Party but to secure the gubernatorial nomination. He failed in that campaign as badly as he failed in raising money and organizing Republicans for victory, instead of for his own benefit.
It would appear that “Howdy” Doody Gorman is satisfied to be a minority party owner and keep the status quo of vacant precinct, Democrats masking as Republican Township leaders (hello, Skipper Saviano). A note from inside baseball, Ruth O’Connell, the Wheeling Township chairman tried to run against “Howdy” Doody and straighten the crooked Party out — which is more that “Howdy” is doing.
Dan, you see, is from the north side of the County in Wheeling Township — a former Wheeling Township Assessor and Graduate of the real Estate Institute, who insists on educating the taxpayers to make appeals. Why, in the future, he might even be a threat to the chubby Democrat who is the County Assessor and a great and good friend to Mike Madigan.
That is, he could be a threat if “Howdy” Doody Gorman let that happen. That might give the honest folk from North Cook County greater influence in the Party and organize it for victory.
The big question that all Republican should be asking is –”Who is “Howdy” Doody a puppet for?
In the meantime, Mr. Morrison, how do you like being used?
Feb 28, 2012 @ 10:46:56
Pete Speer asks “Who is Gorman a puppet for?” Answer: John Daley.
She, this tragic political sack who is helping Obama indirectly, and helping to destroy our nation effectually, but perhaps does not realize it, is a puppet for the criminal John Daley. Daley the brother of former criminal mayor Rich Daley, is the County Board Finance Chair and had been the effective “president” while the Strogers were just figure heads for all those years.Media knew it. The political class knew it. John Daley also ran the city hall hiring scandal and Hired Truck scandals in which his underlings went to prison for.
Doody Gorman is probably what many people call a “good guy”. She is just another person who may seem sweet to go to the shopping mall with, and have a cup of coffee, but she is in way over her head. She offers no push back on the board to Beavers, Preckwinkle and Daley and company. She was brought on board by John Daley’s political operatives including those in the 19th Ward. Gorman is a fake republican as many others including Saviano. This county board is tragic! Fake republicans Gorman, Pete Sylvestri and Tim Schneider all refused to help my campaign against John Daley! Twice!! They worked under the table FOR John Daley. Big money! They effectively work for the black panthers, the Madigans Obama, HDO, and Joe Berrios by taking their orders from the Daleys. These cowards sell their country and millions of good American citizens to make a few bucks and be in good standing with the Daley brothers tragic Liberal Democrat Political mafia.
They are in denial that they are all now owned by David Axelrod. Useful idiots.
(Morrison is part of this Daley/19th Ward group of Useful Idiots)
Axelrod and Obama are loving it. Picture that Obama smile.
Republican Carl Segvich
Feb 28, 2012 @ 16:34:54
Thanks for the reply. It’s always good to hear from the good guys. Now we just need the good guys to start winning some in Illinois.
Feb 28, 2012 @ 16:43:57
How come my comment remains not posted in the Illinois Review article where all this started. It made this Blog but aproval of the author is necessary to post IR where it was originally sent.
pete speer
Feb 28, 2012 @ 17:13:19
I don’t control IR comments of course, but maybe they are just behind.
Feb 28, 2012 @ 19:27:57
You approve it and then they publish it. But it takes your approving to get it included. I sent it to IR as a comment and they forwarded it to you
I sent your reply to Fran Eaton and they confirmed it was the way it was routed. perhaps you did not note that.
Feb 27, 2012 @ 14:15:37
The 11th Ward of Chicago (South Cook) Republicans endorse Dan Patlak for re-election. It is a STRONG endorsement.
Having ran against the crooked John Daley, and having the political tragedy of Liz Gorman, a fake republican working against me, and in favor of liberal democrat Daley, we conservatives in Cook’s 11th Commissioner district know we have to keep Sean Morrison and other Obama/Daley apparatchiks away from further infiltrating the conservative American movement. We are determined to take our country back, away from ACORN and the left.
As we lose our nation to Obama and David Axelrod, and we try to WIN it back, it is vitally imperative to know and understand that the Liz Gormans of the world are much much more our enemy than the Daleys and Madigans. With the Daleys, Madigans and others, we know our enemy, but with the nefarious Gorman, many good decent hard-working Americans do not see recognize the wolf in sheep’s clothing, It is diabolical and I’ve been saying this for years, including here at Illinois Review.
All American citizens and voters in Cook County must support Dan Patlak.
Carl Segvich – (CONSERVATIVE) Republican Chicago Committeeman – 11th
Feb 27, 2012 @ 14:42:28
Thank you so much for fighting the good fight. It’s gratifying to learn about the people with integrity in your neighborhood! Keep in touch.
Feb 27, 2012 @ 15:06:34
I’ve met both Mr Patlak and Mr Morrison, and let’s say I’ve found more to worry about from Patlak than Morrison.
Patlak is taking large amounts of cash contributions from attorneys for whom he makes rulings. If you can’t see a problem with that, you’ve got blinders on. Also, he was part of Murphy’s “pay to play” enourage. She designed the BOR to be a corrupt body, and her over $200K in campaign contributions from those appearing before the Board validated her “design”. She was also a Gorman buddy, so this is an internecine battle.
The fact is that a BOR member doesn’t NEED to be part of the real estate combine to do their job….they don’t do any technical analysis. That’s done by non-patronage analysts. They honest ones need to look at the analyst’s technical evaluation, and rule based upon thier studies, unless there’s something that looks amiss. It isn’t rocket science.
Perhaps the most telling thing is that Morrison has been wiling to stand before crowds in the North and South Suburbs and taek the toughest questions we can pitch, while Patlak has been hidng from the south suburbs and refuses to answer the tough questions about how he uses patronage to reward his campaign staff in the BOR and what he’s done for his campaign contribuotors that makes them so generous to him.
Morrison is wealthy enough that he doesn’t need to sell himself out so cheaply as Patlak. That’s important in a postion like this.
I’m not asking you to support Morrison, I’m just asking that you check him out before you make a voting choice.
Feb 27, 2012 @ 21:32:34
Maureen Murphy did not “design” the Board of Review; it existed long before her time. She is now deceased and is not part of the calculation. Many have heard Morrison speak and found him ineffective at best compared to Dan Patlak. His resume has some major weaknesses as well.