A Triple Agent?

Senate District 26 not withstanding, there must be a lot of long stop lights in the new Illinois House District 61, because the 61st was redistricted to look like a red-light camera:

61st House District Red-Light Camera Thank you for enjoying this hilarious LakeCountyEye Double Vision™

The new District 61 extends from the upper right corner of the State all the way down to Gurnee and beyond. And all the way west to Antioch & Lake Villa -- but not quite beyond enough to where JoAnn Osmond, the current 61st District Rep, lives. Osmond according to the News-Sun has nonetheless vowed to run for re-election there ...

State Rep. JoAnn Osmond, R-Antioch, said she will seek re-election to a sixth term in the Legislature from the 61st House District. "I am aware that the requirement is to live in the district you serve," Osmond said. "In the Democratic redistricting process, I was drawn out of my current district. My plan is to relocate to the 61st District upon a successful bid for re-election."
Osmond seeks re-election

As readers of this blog are vaguely aware, there was some speculation that Osmond might run for re-election in the adjoining 64th District ...

Ozymandias, I Met a Traveller from an Antique Land

A decision to run in the 61st, by your LakeCountyEye's reckoning, poses little downside risk for Osmond. Osmond's best chance for victory is in the 61st where she would have name recognition and be the incumbent.

If Osmond does win there in 2012, she would be required to relocate to somewhere within the 61st District boundaries. However, as Joe Walsh has proven, it is possible (not to mention economical) to live out of your legislative office. Illinois Reps get a stipend to maintain an in-district office, so Osmond may be considering the same solution. As readers of this blog are doubly aware, Osmond currently dual-uses her legislative office with her insurance business ...

Double Identity?

Operatives are advised to keep an eye peeled for a triple-use facility

1. Legislative
2. Insurance
3. Home-Address

being leveraged somewhere in the new 61st District, if Osmond is successful in her re-election bid.

Stipendous!

In Lake County the dog days of summer do not creep in on little cat's feet. Unlucky residents displaced by Monday's twister are being forced to endure spartan living conditions of no electricity or running water. The lucky residents, on the other hand, are up north in their vacation cabins -- where they enjoy spartan living conditions of no electricity or running water. All of which, as every operative knows, means this is the time of year to announce re-election plans.

According to the News-Sun ...

State Rep. JoAnn Osmond, R-Antioch, said she will seek re-election to a sixth term in the Legislature from the 61st House District.
Osmond seeks re-election

And according to the Daily Herald ...

Rep. Kent Gaffney, who was sworn in to join the Illinois House Monday, says he intends to run for election in 2012. Gaffney last week was appointed to finish the term of Rep. Mark Beaubien, who died of a heart attack in June.
Gaffney looking to run for House seat in 2012

Among Gaffney's admirers are the generous government pensioners at the McHenryCountyBlog ...

The base salary for a state representative is $67,836, so Gaffney is taking quite a pay cut by stepping into the public eye. This is still further evidence that people seek pubic [sic] office for more than the money.
Lake County Dem Does Opposition Research on Kent Gaffney

Absolutely -- they also seek public office for the generous government pensions.

Moreover our Springfield reps typically pull in more than the base salary. They get additional stipends for committee assignments and leadership posts. The Daily Herald reports ...

Antioch Republican JoAnn Osmond is one of six assistant minority leaders in the House who receive an additional $17,235 a year for the post. She said party leaders do put in a lot of extra work each year, even during the six months when the legislature is not in session. "I don't think people realize the amount of work that goes into it," she said. "But that's not to say it's not something we could look at and review. I should say I am a little surprised by the amount of money."
State legislators' stipends cost taxpayers $1.7 million

Adding $17,235 to that $67,836 yields $85,017. A committee assignment here, a leadership post there, and -- surprise! -- pretty soon they're talking some real money!

Ozymandias, I Met a Traveller from an Antique Land

Yes, it may have narrowly avoided an invasion of the 13-year cicadas. But Lake County is still on schedule to be pillaged by the 10-year Illinois political remapping. There was already one close call: State Senator Suzi Schmidt just missed by less than a furlong being redrawn outside the 31st District. Your LakeCountyEye does note there is little truth to the rumor that Senate Republican leaders asked her to change her name to Suzi Schick in commemoration of the razor-thin close shave.

Your LakeCountyEye broke the story on Sunday that another Rep, JoAnn Osmond, wasn't as lucky -- and after the maps are redrawn will in all likelihood reside inside Michael Tryon's adjacent Representative District 64.

District 61 Revisited

The Daily Herald did some old-fashioned reportorial legwork on Osmond's plight, yesterday afternoon:

Here's what she said on Facebook.

"After the map release yesterday I have to look hard at my future ... stay in my home and run in McHenry County, move to my current district ... or retire. These are all options for the summer debate. I am fortunate to have support from so many family and friends."

Now, Osmond represents a district that spans the northern part of Lake County. There's a district like that in the proposed map. But Osmond would live in a district that would look significantly different, taking up the northwestern part of Lake County and sprawling into McHenry County.
Rep. JoAnn Osmond not a fan of her proposed district

In other words, what Rep Osmond must contemplate is the difference between indoor plumbing and none of the above. Your LakeCountyEye feels her pain. The situation however is by no means hopeless. There are many people who manage to pursue what could pass as normal lives over in McHenry County. It's simply a matter of possessing the right survival skills. Your LakeCountyEye has contacted some of McHenry County's prominent elected officials and they have shared their secrets. Here are ten items to remember when running for election in McHenry County:

A McHenry County Political Survival Guide: Ten Campaign Tips

Make friends with the disoriented government pensioners at the McHenryCountyBlog. Watch some Green Acres reruns. That farmer's market really is one. The largest municipality in your district is Wal-Mart. Be sure to attend McHenry County's Antique & Restored Auto Parade, AKA Route 31. Lobbyists may hand you confederate money. Candidates are expected to know the Napoleonic code. Don't forget that livestock are eligible to vote in McHenry County. McHenry County residents are not glad to see you. That's a gun in their pocket. Remember: you're not in Kansas any more.

Look for your LakeCountyEye, downloading more of those hilarious Jeff Foxworthy MP4s.

District 61 Revisited

As readers of this blog are aware, the Illinois legislative maps are all being redrawn ...

31 Favors

Operatives looking for a Lake County angle on the story should expect to hear the crickets from the MSM and influential bloggers, who all seem to be relaxing this weekend on their big yachts or big golfcourses. For the big unreported remap story, however, look no farther than State Representative District 61, held by State Rep JoAnn Osmond. Well, District 61 used to be represented by her anyways, because if the new map lines are drawn as-is, Osmond will no longer live in her district:

The new Representative District 61 is the part shaded in green. Operatives are challenged to figure out on their own where Osmond's home address is. As a hint, the part shaded in purple is Representative District 64 -- which is currently held by a different Republican, Michael Tryon. Operatives are asked to visualize Rep District 64 breaching a levy separating Lake from McHenry County, and inundating Antioch and many other Lake County municipalities.

This is not all bad news for Osmond. Tryon, like Osmond, has been redistricted out of his district. The new Rep District 64 will be up for grabs in 2012, and presumably waits for Osmond to claim it. Which will make the new Rep District 61 an open seat. It could happen. Operatives are advised to stay tuned.

The Nuclear Option

Your LakeCountyEye will be visiting the Zion Nuclear Power Station this April Fool's weekend, to work on the LakeCountyEye tan. As readers of this blog will know ...

That Healthy Glow

tanning parlors, because of their harmful UV radiation, are destined to become adults-only in Illinois. And the only way your LakeCountyEye now hopes to maintain the signature suntan will be with the direct application of radioactive isotopes. The meltdown at the Fukushima reactor has unquestionably been a windfall -- but nothing beats a long weekend at a decommissioned nuclear power plant for turning that dawn-of-the-dead blogger's pallor into a rich chocolate brown patina.

Zion Nuclear Power Station Fun Fact #1:

The Zion Nuclear Power Station was retired on February 13, 1998. The plant had not been in operation since February, 1997, after a control-room operator accidentally shut down Reactor 1 and then tried to restart it without following procedures.
WikiPedia

D'Oh!

Situated in JoAnn Osmond's 61st House District, Zion is the only nuclear plant in Lake County. But not from any lack of trying on Osmond's part. According to the News-Sun ...

Osmond introduced legislation in January that would have lifted the state's 24-year ban on nuclear power plant construction, but said it no longer is on her legislative front burner. "I don't know it's permanently dead, but it's not a thing we want to do at this point until we've researched and really made sure that whatever causes there were for what happened in Japan are something we wouldn't have right here," Osmond said.
Osmond shelves bill to lift ban on new nukes

The legislation may be off the front burner -- and in the nuclear cooling tower -- but your LakeCountyEye, for one, looks forward to a Lake County with a nuclear plant conveniently located in every town or township. That would certainly beat having to schlep over to Zion just for a lousy suntan.

Until then, look for your LakeCountyEye doing laps in the spent fuel pool -- maintained at a constant & toasty 120°F!

Double Identity?

The hot potato that was the ethics complaint filed against Lake County Commissioner Linda Pedersen seems to have cooled off like a bowl of instant potatoes in the back of the fridge. As reported here recently ...

Judgement Calls?
Call In To Question

Pedersen was accused by the Democrats of using her position as legislative aide for State Representative JoAnn Osmond to engage in political fundraising. So it shouldn't be a total surprise that while searching for a late night snack, your LakeCountyEye would stumble on some more hot grist for the rumor mill.

When grist goes thru the LakeCountyEye's mill it is ground to nothing, and in this case ground zero happens to be -- 976 Hillside, Antioch -- Rep Osmond's legislative office.

That's because it looks to your LakeCountyEye that more than just legislation was being conducted under the roof there.

It's no secret any more that there are webcams watching all of us, and beaming pictures back to The Google. The webcam they got pointed at the 976 Hillside that is Osmond's legislative address shows a modest office that to the untrained eye could well have been a non-descript insurance agency.


Google Map

Now, politics is like gumshoeing -- it's a safe bet things are seldom as they seem. The Illinois State Board of Elections has it's own search engine at ...

http://www.elections.state.il.us/

which had originally been developed for a UNIVAC platform. Not to brag but your LakeCountyEye knows no fear when it comes to antiquated hardware. Looking up 976 Hillside on the ISBE website reveals some interesting details about the day to day operation there.

That non-descript office at 976 Hillside in Antioch has been a roof over a heterogeneous assortment of candidates, committees, charities, business interests, including ...

• Antioch Township Republican Club
• Churchill, Robert W.
• Churchill, Citz For
• Citizens for JoAnn Osmond
• Citizens for JoAnn D. Osmond
• Citizens for Osmond
• Citizens to Elect JoAnn Osmond
• Committee To Re-Elect Barbara E. Richardson
• Elect Judge Ray McKoski
• Osmond, Citz For
• Rep, Beat the
• Campaign for Rep JoAnn Osmond
• Churchill, Bob
• Churchill for Congress
• CITIZENS FOR ROBERT CHURCHILL
• Friends of JoAnn Osmond
• Lake County Republican Central Committee
• Osmond, Citizens for JoAnn
• Citz To Retain Drew, Geiger & Scott
• Comm To Elect Robert C Wilton
• Comm to Re-elect Barbara Richardson Coroner of Lake County
• ... and many others.

Your LakeCountyEye can now go on record as being in total awe. This address has seen more action than a Las Vegas subprime condo!

Long story short, the clueless Lake County Democrats have taken a dim view of these hijinx and one of their cohorts on the ground filed another ethics complaint -- this time against JoAnn Osmond. Your LakeCountyEye had been wondering when this other gumshoe was gonna fall.

Like a hot potato.

Call In To Question

It's a truism in politics anywhere: they don't get you for the crime, they get you for the cover-up. The latest salvo of denials and rationalizations surrounding Lake County Board Chair Suzi Schmidt's fundraiser is making a crater deep enough that your LakeCountyEye wonders if anyone will be climbing out.

To recap, Lake County Board Chair Suzi Schmidt held a fundraiser on Thursday. A press release had 847-838-6200 as the RSVP number & County Board Member Linda Pedersen as the person to contact. As a matter of fact, 847-838-6200 is the official number to JoAnn Osmond's legislative office and Pedersen is Osmond's legislative aide.

This was followed by a not unexpected volley of accusations & efforts at damage control. The phone number and Pedersen's name were scrubbed off a calendar of events at the Lake County Republican Federation. Then an ethics complaint was filed against Pedersen by Lake County Democratic Party factotum, Nancy Shepherdson.

On Wednesday, Osmond told the NewsSun that her ...

office is located in a building that she owns. Osmond said she also owns the phones and doesn't accept any state money for the running of her office.

By Friday, Osmond was telling the Daily Herald that ...

Lake County Republican Party Chairman Dan Venturi included the number in an e-mail blast about the event. "He should have used the campaign phone number but in any case, the state does not pay for my office phone. I do"

Pedersen was echoing these remarks ...

"I am not running Suzi Schmidt's fundraiser," Pedersen said Thursday. "And the phone number was never intended to be used for people to RSVP."

It goes without saying that the first rule of damage control is get your story straight. You're less likely to be believed if everyone is saying something different. However, your LakeCountyEye perceives two distinct story-lines being pitched to the public:

1. Using 847-838-6200 on the RSVP was an isolated mistake.
2. And besides, public funds were not spent on Schmidt's fundraiser.

Now, while surfing The Google for this story, your LakeCountyEye noticed that the Lake County Republican Central Committee hosts a Golf Outing/fundraiser every year. In 2005 the contact person appears to have been been JoAnn Osmond's legislative aide, Linda Pedersen ... at 847-838-6200.

Republican Assembly of Lake County, Apr-Jun 2005, p.16

Your LakeCountyEye also noticed that Lake County Clerk Willard Helander holds regular fundraisers as well. The apparent contact for Helander's funder in 2005 would have been JoAnn Osmond ... at, you guessed it, 847-838-6200.

Republican Assembly of Lake County, Jan-Mar 2005, p.12

The second rule of damage control is when deciding on a story, stick with the one that best matches up with the facts. Pictures are worth 10,000 words. Your LakeCountyEye recommends sticking with story-line #2:

No harm no foul -- public funds were not spent to promote Suzi Schmidt's fundraiser.

This one is more Google-resistant than story-line #1.

Judgement Calls?

Your LakeCountyEye broke the story here on Tuesday ...

Telephone Swag

with a follow-up on Wednesday ...

Coverup Uncovered

It can be reported today that your LakeCountyEye's perseverance has not been wasted. The telephone game being played by Suzi Schmidt & JoAnn Osmond & Linda Peterson is a comedy gift that just keeps on giving.

For those just dialing in, Lake County Board Chair Suzi Schmidt held a fundraiser yesterday. The press release for the event listed 847-838-6200 as the RSVP number and County Board Member Linda Pedersen as the contact person. It turns out that 847-838-6200 is the official number to JoAnn Osmond's legislative office. And Pedersen is Osmond's legislative aide.

The Daily Herald has the latest 411 ...

Ethics complaint filed against Lake County's Linda Pedersen

Hopefully the busdriver isn't texting or driving while distracted by a cellphone because there are some passengers to be found under the bus ...

Pedersen said she isn't the organizer of the event and said the phone number was published by mistake. "I am not running Suzi Schmidt's fundraiser," Pedersen said Thursday. "And the phone number was never intended to be used for people to RSVP."

Osmond said Lake County Republican Party Chairman Dan Venturi included the number in an e-mail blast about the event. "He should have used the campaign phone number but in any case, the state does not pay for my office phone. I do," she said Thursday.

The next thing your LakeCountyEye expects to hear is that Active Killdisk was used by mistake to send out Schmidt's fundraiser press release.

Coverup Uncovered

It seems like it was just yesterday that your LakeCountyEye broke the story in this blog ...

Telephone Swag

about Lake County Board Chair Suzi Schmidt's Nov 12 fundraiser. About how the RSVP number to Schmidt's funder -- 847-838-6200 -- is the contact number to State Rep JoAnn Osmond's legislative office. And about how the RSVP contact person at Osmond's office is County Board Member Linda Pedersen ...

Lake County Board Members (District 1)

For those just tuning in, Linda Pedersen is also JoAnn Osmond's legislative aide (a State employee) ...

Linda's Bio

It goes without saying Pederson sits on the same County Board Chaired by Suzi Schmidt. (Your LakeCountyEye takes a perverse fascination in these internecine political liaisons.)

Being no run-of-the-mill pajama-clad Internet blogger, your LakeCountyEye took pains to provide plenty of documented evidence of these assertions. Including a link and a screen-cap of the funder's details posted at the Lake County Republican Federation's website.

Well, within a few hours after the LakeCountyEye story got posted some Winston Smith at the Lake County Republican Federation scrubbed their website. See for yourself ...

Before LakeCountyEye Bare-Knuckle Exposé	After LakeCountyEye Bare-Knuckle Exposé

See the cleansed Lake County Republican Federation webpage

The images may be hard to read -- click them for full resolution -- but the one on the right has been divested of the phrase ...

Please RSVP to Linda Pedersen at 847-838-6200

Osmond denied any wrong-doing today, explaining to the NewsSun that she pays for the phone out of her own pocket ...

County Board chair accused of ethics violation

Osmond doesn't say however whether or not she pays out-of-pocket Pedersen's legislative salary as well. Nor does she explain then if she is guilty of no wrong-doing, howcome the Lake County Republican Federation's website was scrubbed last night?

All of which tells your LakeCountyEye one thing and one thing only: Your LakeCountyEye has the juice to send ripples of shock throughout Lake County political circles. Bwaa Ha Ha Ha!

But your LakeCountyEye digresses, the point of this post is not to flaunt one's considerable, nay monumental, clout. Rather the point is to announce a watch. You see, news of Schmidt's funder is still posted on other Internet sites, unexpurgated.

... like at the NewsSun


... and at the Illinois Republican Party


Your LakeCountyEye will be watching for if and when that phrase ...

Please RSVP to Linda Pedersen at 847-838-6200

disappears from these other websites as well. Readers are invited to send their wagers to the LakeCountyEye Office Pool C/O lakecountyeye@gmail.com. Be sure to include the URL of the webpage and the date/time you think either (A) the incriminating evidence will disappear from the page or (B) the webpage will be taken down entirely.

Fair warning, the Grand Prize goes to JoAnn Osmond if it is her legislative phone number that winds up being changed.

Illinois General Assembly

Finally, what if it is the ILGA website where the relevant ethics statues are posted that gets taken down or is scrubbed clean?

State Officials and Employees Ethics Act

In that unlikely event, your LakeCountyEye will be cashing in the LakeCountyEye chips, departing the county, and spending some down time in an undisclosed lamasery.

Telephone Swag

For those of you who like to keep track of the fundraising activities of our local officeholders -- licit and/or illicit -- file this story under Dialing for Dollars.

Everyone knows Lake County Board Chair Suzi Schmidt is running for IL Senate 31, so your LakeCountyEye was not surprised to receive an invitation to a Nov 12 fundraiser.

NewsSun

The IL GOP picked up the event on their website.

Illinois Republican Party

Not to be outdone, Republican Federation put the event on their website.

Lake County Republican Federation

Being in an uncharacteristic generous mood, your LakeCountyEye decided to dial Schmidt's fundraiser RSVP number and got ... JoAnn Osmond's Legislative Office. (Apparently they make these cell phones for 12-year-old teenagers, because those itty-bitty little keys make it way too easy to misdial.) Anyways, your LakeCountyEye tried again and got ... JoAnn Osmond's Legislative Office. Again.

This being a muckraking investigative blog, and being a student of The Google, your LakeCountyEye has verified that 847-838-6200 is indeed the posted number for JoAnn Osmond's Legislative Office.

Illinois General Assembly

Try the number yourself if you're skeptical.

Your LakeCountyEye is no simple country lawyer but nonetheless is pretty sure something like that is not legal. Well, that is if 5 ILCS 430/5‑35 of the Illinois Compiled Statutes is to be believed ...

State Officials and Employees Ethics Act

Your LakeCountyEye seems to recall that it was State employees doing political fundraising while on the taxpayer's dime that got George Ryan tossed into the federal lockup. Just sayin!

Anyways if you're a constituent of JoAnn Osmond's but all you are hearing from her is a busy signal, your LakeCountyEye suggests to keep trying. The magic crystal ball predicts that the lines will open up sometime after Nov 12.

The Skinny on Schmidt

The latest skinny, reported by the Daily Herald the NewsSun and the Pioneer Press, is that Lake County Chair Suzi Schmidt is running for Michael Bond's open Senate District 31 seat. According to the NewsSun Schmidt said

I've been mulling this over for a long time, probably for the last four months. I always have problems with the state (government), and I thought I'd just get my name out there.

Your LakeCountyEye hazards to guess that Schmidt would have been still mulling four months hence, had not Bond announced his plans to run for the 10th Congressional District.

Not so, reports the Pioneer Press:

Schmidt said Bond's decision to run for Congress was not a factor in her decision to seek the state senate seat. "Whether he was running or not I was going to run. That didn't have any influence on my decision at all," she said.

Readers are encouraged to make up their own joke regarding the LakeCountyEye's schmidt detector here.

Admittedly your LakeCountyEye is at a disadvantage when it comes to reporting any skinny on Suzi Schmidt, at least when it comes to handicapping her campaign prospects. Schmidt represents County Board District 3, and is not up for re-election until 2012. Which means Schmidt takes a minimal electoral risk running for anything in 2010. County Board 3 is fully contained in and at the western portion of Senate 31. It is a compact district of about 20,000 registered voters -- about 1/7 of Senate 31's total.

The Herald also reports that Schmidt has the backing of Lake County GOP Chair and Lake Villa Township Supervisor, Dan Venturi. This is surprising because your LakeCountyEye expected Venturi to run for Bond's seat. The rumor rumbling through northwest Lake County had been that JoAnn Osmond was planning to retire from her Representative District 61 seat before her term expired. Venturi would be appointed to sit out the remainder of her term. And Venturi would run for Senate 31 in 2010 -- using the Rep seat as way to ensure the pole position against his primary competitors.

But according to the Herald,

Venturi doubts Schmidt will have any serious opposition in the 2010 GOP primary.

OK but let's not forget Senate 31 will be an open seat. And only 1000 signatures are needed to be on the GOP ballot. So whether or not deals have been struck to see that Schmidt rolls to an easy primary win, your LakeCountyEye predicts there will be a crowded field of primary candidates for Senate 31.

On both sides.