Wire the Money

That smoke you smell is not your neighbor burning leaves. No, it is from Richard Uihlein, who has money to burn:

A suburban billionaire and his wife have contributed millions of dollars to conservative candidates and organizations across Illinois and the nation this election cycle, state and federal records show.
Which candidates are being backed by suburban megadonors Richard and Elizabeth Uihlein?

Lake County moneybags Richard Uihlein has, in particular, lavished his largesse on Dan McConchie:

Uihlein has given to Illinois Republicans running for a variety of other offices this cycle, including:
• State Sen. Dan McConchie of Hawthorn Woods, whose campaign received $277,137
Which candidates are being backed by suburban megadonors Richard and Elizabeth Uihlein?

McConchie is a former anti-abortion lobbyist. This is from 2013:

Dan McConchie, vice president of public affairs for Washington-based Americans United for Life, was the keynote speaker. He cautioned there is "no one silver bullet" that will suddenly prohibit legalized abortion. But he urged abortion foes to bring pressure upon legislators to force votes on initiatives aimed at chipping away at legal abortion, suggesting it offers the best path towards success.
McConchie in the Des Moines Register at the Iowa Rally for Life

From the same year:

The Sioux City Journal reports on yesterday's rally in Iowa:
It's been 40 years since the landmark U.S. Supreme Court ruling that legalized abortion, but Daniel McConchie isn't giving up hope of overturning that decision.
Sioux City Journal on AUL’s McConchie at Iowa Pro-Life Rally

For the record, Uihlein cofounded and is CEO of the ULINE shipping supply company. A variety of coat hangers are available from the ULINE catalog:

Sunk Cost

Question of the Day:

What is the difference between the McHenry County Blog, the International Space Station, and this photo posted on the McHenry County Blog?

Answer: The photo may appear to be a sunken boat with waving BIDEN flags. But even someone looking down from the orbiting space station can see that the image was photo shopped.

Not so obvious is where the boat sank. Sharpeyed operatives may notice a boat sticker:

Note to Ops: Boat Responsibly!

Whatever Floats Your Boat

An actual unretouched screencap from the tinfoil theocrats at the McHenry County Blog:

Judging from the picture, the McHenryCountyBlog boat has been under water for a few years, maybe since before Joe Biden was elected:

UPDATE!

Your LakeCountyEye has obtained exclusive photos of the sunken Trump boat:

Note to Ops: Image totally not photo shopped. Totally Not!

Brown v Board of Stagnation

An actual unretouched screencap from Lake County's 1# fakenews source, the Lake County Gazette:

To find out why everything is stagnating, your LakeCountyEye contacted the Russian Troll Farm that provides all the content for the Lake County Gazette. They said: "We dispatched a busload of critical race theory teachers to Deerfield, through Long Grove. We don't know what happened to them."

That's all your LakeCountyEye has. Go critical.

The Revelator

An actual unretouched screencap from the Facebook page of an actual Lake County Congressional candidate:

Facebook :: Joseph Severino

What's THE REVELATOR? Nobody knows. And don't try asking Joe Severino. Nobody knows who he is.

Your LakeCountyEye did ask some experts at the Labor Dept. and got ten leads:

10 Occupations for The Revelator

Revlon Products Door to Door Salesman Arnold Schwarzenegger Stunt Double Former Congressman Joe Walsh Stunt Double Long Grove Bridge Traffic Cop Golden Escalator Repairman Croupier: Waukegan Casino Russian Troll Farm Boat Sticker Inspector (Third Lake) The Butter Cow Comic Book Guy

Look for your LakeCountyEye in the Book of Revelations near you.

The Party of Fiscal Responsibility

Note to Ops, we have a winner. This week's Joe Walsh Lifetime Achievement Award goes to Lake County GOP Congressional Candidate Joe Severino:

Businessman Joe Severino contends he had to file to protect his interests and that he is the victim of a bad court ruling and bad lawyering. But with claimants against him including the Internal Revenue Service and the Illinois Department of Revenue, the action will not be helpful to him
Bankruptcy filing emerges in North Shore congressional race

A GOP spokesman said: "(Former Lake County Congressman) Joe Walsh left behind some big shoes to fill. Even one of those shoes would be hard to fill. We are confidant that our Congressional candidate will step in it."

Bad Things Come in Third Lake

Did you know that Clarke Mosquito is in the business of also killing aquatic plants?

The residents of Third Lake ought to know, if they don't:

On Friday June 24th Clarke will be treating both Third Lake and Druce Lake for invasive weeds. They will be applying the application within the outlined treatment zones which can be found here.
Yellow Flag – Lakes being treated for invasive weeds

Do you want Clarke dispensing herbicides in your lake? Not if you believe the report from an expert at the last Third Lake Village meeting:

"Let me start with what we are doing to our lake is not making any logical sense, and appears to actually be detrimental to the health of the lake and it's inhabitants. The proposed treatments are being done far to late in the season, using a general photosynthesis inhibiting herbicide that kills anything it comes in contact with."

"This is going to kill most of the vegetation in the lake. That alone should be enough to give us reason to pause this treatment, however there are a few other questions based on information from Clarke that just does not make any sense."

"By doing what is proposed we will kill the majority of the aquatic vegetation in the lake, which will cause oxygen depletion and that will kill fish."

"They did something similar in Silver Lake MN when they did exactly what is being proposed here in treating both the curley leaf and milfoil at the same time. It suffered a major decline in water quality and native plant diversity. It took years to recover."

"Basically, we stand at a point where we are going to do more harm than good by moving forward with the proposed treatments based on the results from similar efforts elsewhere. This combined with the illogical answers and information provided by our selected vendor leads me to believe that it is unwise both financially and as a steward of the lake to allow this treatment at this time."

"I ask you to not make the mistake of allowing the inappropriate treatment that is going to kill our lake at this time."

Village of Third Lake / Jun 20 2022 Minutes

After Clarke does a job of dispensing herbicides into Third Lake, what's next? Clarke will be dispensing insecticides in the Village of Third Lake:

Clarke will be performing the second Village wide adult mosquito control application this evening, July 21, 2022
Mosquito Spraying Tonight 7/21/22

Note to Ops: If you are visiting Third Lake, don't drink the water. Or breathe the air.

McMinions

Note to Ops: Activate your motion detectors. The guy accused of vandalizing the Lake in the Hills restaurant is out of jail:

Man accused of Lake in the Hills hate crime released on bond

Who posted his bail? Probably not the lockem-up-and-throw-away-the-key McHenryCountyBlog:

All the same, overlook the McHenryCountyBlog minions at your own peril:

McHenryCountyBlog

Minion

Turn Up the Heat

Were they served up a sack of soggy nuggets at the McHenryCountyBlog? What explains their vendetta against a neighborhood restaurant?

This restaurant had planned to host a drag show and brunch.

The McHenryCountyBlog posted a picture of the invitation:

And the McHenryCountyBlog posted the ticket prices, highlighting the kids prices:

And the McHenryCountyBlog posted a picture of the alleged Highland Park shooter dressed in drag:

The McHenryCountyBlog posted more than a dozen updates to the story, frequently repeating the images.

In the interim, the restaurant received ugly calls, threatening messages and excrement were put at the door, windows were broken and the shop was vandalized. The event has been cancelled:

Police arrest suspect in hate crime involving UpRising Bakery & Cafe

Note to the McHenryCountyBlog: stay classy.

A Blast from the Past

The Chicago Tribune Creepy Cartoonist® thinks it is high time Congress started passing some gun laws:

MASS SHOOTINGS; GUN LAWS; CONGRESS

Which Congress does he have in mind? The Congress from the Woodrow Wilson administration, obviously:

Note to Ops: This is what Congress looks like in 2022, i.e. nowadays:

Next Week ...
The Creepy Tribune Cartoonist recalls back when William Randolph Hearst said to him: "You furnish the pictures. I'll furnish the war."

The Oldest Established Permanent Floating GOP Gun Raffle

Note to Ops: The winning ticket holder to the Lake County GOP Gun Raffle has been asked to claim his AR-15 ...

Lake Villa Township Republican Club Gun Raffle

HaHa, J/K. As readers of this blog are aware, the Lake County GOP gun raffle got cancelled out of an abundance of wokeness:

The Lake Villa GOP was supposed to raffle off five guns, including an AR-15 rifle. But mass shootings in Buffalo and Uvalde led to the event’s postponement.

HaHa, J/K again. The GOP never cancels their gun raffle. It just gets moved to a new location:

Democrats criticize Kendall County GOP plan to raffle off gun similar to one used in Highland Park mass shooting

Note to Ops: Gun rafflers gonna gun raffle.

The Griff that Keeps on Griffing

Hedge-fund plutocrat Ken Griffin may be gone but he is not forgotten.

Readers of this blog will recall that after failing to defeat Lake County favorite-son Mark Curran in the primary election,

All the Justice Money Can Buy

Ken Griffin moved his Illinois investment firm, Citadel, to Florida:

Parting Griff

Griffin had better luck at the polls two years ago. Did you vote to defeat the Illinois Fair Tax in 2020? Your LakeCountyEye sure did. Why? Because Ken Griffin said so:

For billionaire Ken Griffin, it was well worth spending $54 million to ensure he and other rich Illinoisans wouldn't have to pay more tax. By the time Illinois voters streamed into voting booths on Election Day in 2020, Griffin, then Illinois' wealthiest resident, had made sure they'd heard plenty about why they should not vote to raise taxes on him and the state's other rich people. His tens of millions paid for an unrelenting stream of ads and flyers against an initiative on that year's ballot, which would have allowed Illinois lawmakers to join 32 other states in setting higher tax rates for the wealthy than for everyone else.
Ken Griffin Spent $54 Million Fighting a Tax Increase for the Rich. Secret IRS Data Shows It Paid Off for Him.

That $54 million turned out to be a good investment. Griffin would have been taxed an estimated $51 million every year, had the ballot measure passed:

the new state tax increase, which aimed to raise the rate from 5% to 8% on the highest incomes, would have cost Griffin around $51 million every year in extra tax.
Ken Griffin Spent $54 Million Fighting a Tax Increase for the Rich. Secret IRS Data Shows It Paid Off for Him.

Counting just the past two years, Griffin saved himself $102 million. At a cost of $54 million, that adds up to $48 million in Ken Griffin's pocket and nothing in the Illinois treasury.

Note to Ops: That's why Griffin is a billionaire hedge fund manager and you're not.

Stat

Q the Eye/07.03.22

Dear LakeCountyEye,

Doing less with more is harder than it sounds. Particularly when your job is to count votes.  How do I suppress the vote in my County?

Not the Lake County Clerk

Dear Willard,

Don't do it like they do it in McHenry County.  Yes, the goal is to suppress your voter turnout. But no, not your MAGA voters:

You need to allow all your octogenarian theocrats to vote as much as they can!

No, do it like they do it in Lake County. Hold your election in June when nobody expects one:

Lake County currently has the lowest voter turnout in the suburbs at 17.9%.
Why so few Illinois voters cast ballots in Tuesday’s primary

And then bus all of your people to the polls:

The Lake County Republican Party held a straw poll last week. And of course there was voter fraud. The fraudsters "bussed in a bunch of Indian voters"
Too Many Chuffs and Not Enough Indians

Pull off that trick in November and you're sure to be endorsed by Donald J Trump!

Send your questions to Q the Eye c/o ... LakeCountyEye@gMail.com

All the Justice Money Can Buy

How is it done, son? Mark Curran knows how, son:

Curran started the quarter with $10,150.09 in the bank and didn't report raising any other money since then.
Ken Griffin's no-good, lousy day

Despite spending virtually no money, Lake County favorite son Mark Curran beat opponents who spent more than $200,000 for a chance to be an Illinois Supreme Court Justice.

Curran, however, would be advised not to get fitted for his black robe and powdered wig just yet. He still needs to win the General Election in November. Where that trick of his of raising no money is not going to work.

No, Curran needs to up his game. And see what other Republicans do to win, despite being outspent by significantly better funded opponents. Like Mary Miller and Darren Bailey. Quite frankly, Curran will need to get the endorsement of backseat driver and current President of the United States, Donald J Trump.

Note to Ops: Make that powdered wig an extra large, please.

Roe No More

Lake County has paid sad witness, as an authoritarian regime wages ruthless war on its genteel, peace-loving neighbors. Vladimir Putin's invasion of Ukraine? No, your LakeCountyEye refers to the Lake County GOP's war on women.

Lake County Senator Dan McConchie said this:

Illinois Senate Republican Leader Dan McConchie argued Democrats "want to push Illinois to the utter extreme on abortion policy. Right now, Illinoisans can already get an abortion in all nine months of pregnancy for any reason and use taxpayer dollars to pay for it."
'We've planned for this terrible day': Pritzker calls for special session on abortion rights

For the record ...

Access to abortion remains legal in Illinois, which restricts the procedure only after the point of viability — the time at which a fetus can survive outside the womb.
What Illinois law allows — and prohibits — with regard to abortion

Viability is usually at 24 to 26 weeks, much earlier than McConchie's pronounced 9 months.

Coincidentally, 24 to 26 weeks from now is when entrenched incumbent Dan McConchie would be sent back to the private sector if he were voted out of office.

Note to Ops: The Illinois Primary is June 28, next Tuesday.

Parting Griff

Literally no one:

Hedge-fund plutocrat Ken Griffin does not want Lake County favorite-son Mark Curran to be an Illinois Supreme Court Justice ...

Citizens for Judicial Fairness, the group funded by Griffin, has spent nearly $50,000 on campaign mail opposing Curran's primary bid. The recently appointed chair of Citizens for Judicial Fairness, D.J. Eckert, did not respond to requests for comment. Curran said he was not sure why Citizens for Judicial Fairness was opposing his run
Ken Griffin's money expected to again play role in Illinois Supreme Court elections, starting with primary for suburban district seat

To make matters worse, Curran will have to abandon any daydreams of sitting on the IL Supreme Court and ruling on securities and exchange fraud cases against certain hedge fund managers:

Billionaire hedge fund manager Ken Griffin is moving his company's headquarters from Chicago to Miami.
After apparent spectacular political failure, Ken Griffin takes ball, goes home to Florida

Note to Florida Ops: The Illinois Primary is June 28, next Tuesday. It is a crime to cast a ballot in two different states.

Just sayin!

Q the Eye/06.20.22

Dear LakeCountyEye,

I may be gone but all of these Townships are not.

How do the Lake County voters go about eliminating their Townships?

Boo to Townships

Dear David McSweeney's Ghost,

The voters in McHenry County have the power to eliminate their Townships. But a referendum never got to the voters there, because of some low-quality County Clerk who illegally removed it from the ballot:

The McHenry County clerk did not have the authority to throw out a McHenry Township ballot question, even if it was almost identical to a question rejected months earlier, the Illinois Supreme Court said in a decision Wednesday. The legal battle centered on whether a referendum question put forth by McHenry Township trustees asking voters if they wanted to dissolve the township should have remained on the November 2020 ballot.
McHenry County clerk erred in township ballot issue, Illinois Supreme Court rules

So if you are saddled with a low-quality County Clerk then don't try this option.  Full disclosure: This means you, Lake County!

No, just do what they did in Shields Township. Elect candidates to your Township government who will all resign:

Shields Township Supervisor Heather Kerr said she tendered her resignation from office claiming she could not work out her differences
Shields Township supervisor explains reasons for resignation; ‘I had hoped we could come to good, safe resolutions for everyone’

Besides Kerr, several deputy assessors said they would also be resigning Monday in the latest development in a very rocky period for the obscure government agency.
Shields Township supervisor explains reasons for resignation; ‘I had hoped we could come to good, safe resolutions for everyone’

Assessor Scott Helton also said in April he would be leaving and he did follow through and his resignation became effective in May. Earlier in June, township attorney Keri-Lyn J. Krafthefer informed Kerr that she would be resigning effective June 17.
Shields Township supervisor explains reasons for resignation; ‘I had hoped we could come to good, safe resolutions for everyone’

For those scoring at home, that's one Lake County Township down, seventeen to go.

Send your questions to Q the Eye c/o ... LakeCountyEye@gMail.com

More or Less

Lake County Republican elected officials have always excelled at Doing Less With More.

Sez who? Sez Lake County Republican elected official Robin O'Connor.

O'Connor sent out a campaign mailer:

Your LakeCountyEye expects a GOP spokesman will issue a clarification: "Lake County deserves a County Clerk who knows the difference between shit and shinola!"

Identity Crisis

An actual unretouched screencap from the tinfoil theocrats at the McHenryCountyBlog:

Is it a good idea to see your personal information plastered all over the Internet?

The experts all agree. The answer is NO:

• Scrub your personal identity information from that tip before sending it to some Internet blogger. Who knows who that blogger is?  He could be some uninformed octogenarian who will post your tip as-is, without redacting your personal identity information.
  
  
• And you Internet bloggers, you should redact any personal identity information from the tips that are sent to you. That tipster may be some uninformed octogenarian who will send you something without first scrubbing his personal information.

Note to Ops: Follow either or both of these suggestions to ensure safe surfing on the Web!

A Personal Uline of Credit

Lake County moneybags, Richard Uihlein, is in the news again:

That brings Uihlein's total to $9,025,000.
Uihlein ups the ante with another $3 million to Bailey

One informed expert told your LakeCountyEye: "For that kind of money, Uihlein should at least expect a topnotch yardsign for his frontyard."

Note to Ops: It's just plain big!

Who Needs Statistics?

An actual unretouched screencap from Lake County's #1 fakenews source, the Lake County Gazette:

Note to Ops: There is one advantage to obtaining your content from Russian Troll Farms, as the Lake County Gazette does. Those Russian Troll Farms have a keen grasp of the obvious.

LWV Lake County Sheriff Virtual Candidate Forum

League of Women Voters of Lake County, Illinois

Guns Guns Guns

Are you running low on guns? If so, hotfoot it over to the Lake Villa Township Republican Club Gun Raffle:

Lake Villa Township Republican Club Gun Raffle

• Charles Daly 601 Shotgun
• Anderson AM15 Forged Rifle 5.56
• Charles Daly 1911 Field .45ACP
• Ruger 10/22 Rifle Combo w/Scope & Case
• S&W M&P 9MM

Winning tickets to be drawn during the Lake Villa Township Republican Club Golf Outing Dinner:

• 5:30 PM Cocktails
• 6:30 PM Dinner (Keynote Speaker: Lake County Board Member Dick Barr)
• 8:00 PM Gun Raffle

Note to Ops: Please drink responsibly. You might be a winner.

Bet the Farm

Here's a moneysaving tip: Have you recently booked a flight to Las Vegas, because you want to place a bet on your favorite powerhouse Chicago sports franchise?  You don't need to do that any more! Go to Waukegan instead:

Plans for a sportsbook at both the American Place casino in Waukegan and The Temporary by American Place will apparently become a reality
Agreements will enable Waukegan casino to feature sportsbook; ‘It will be an integral part of the casino’

That giant bookmaking sound you hear are residents of the Village of Mettawa who are moving to Waukegan:

That's all your LakeCountyEye has. Get rolling.

Loaded

Note to Ops:

Come for the libations ...

Mundelein approves beer, wine sales for gas stations in town

Come for the cannabis ...

Marijuana smokers celebrate 420 holiday at new Mundelein cannabis lounge

Stay for the guns ...

Plan for gun range and store gets good reviews in Mundelein

HaHa, by all appearances, the Village of Mundelein is a local hub for recreational marijuana, alcohol and firearms.

A tourism and hospitality spokesman issued a statement: "Enjoy your visit. If you see someone waving a pistol in your direction, please do not be alarmed.  No one here is sober enough to shoot straight."

That's all your LakeCountyEye has. Make love not war.

Here Come the Judge

Lake County favorite son and future Supreme Court Justice Mark Curran is back in the saddle.

Curran, who had been kicked off the ballot for IL Supreme Court Justice, yesterday was kicked back on:

A Cook County judge ruled Thursday that three candidates who were removed in April from the race for Illinois Supreme Court judge will be reinstated for the June 28 primary election.
Three Illinois Supreme Court candidates back on the ballot in 2nd District

Curran's opponents are expected to appeal the ruling.

Proceedings like these sometimes take years to wind their way through the courts. This raises a legal question: How will Justice Mark Curran rule when his own case finally gets up to the Illinois Supreme Court?

Stay tuned!

LWV Judicial Virtual Candidate Forum

League of Women Voters of Lake County, Illinois

LWV Primary Candidate Forum

League of Women Voters of Lake County, Illinois

Curran Liabilities

OK people listen up. Everyone whose nominating petitions were challenged, but the challenge was rejected by your hearing officer, and you are now a candidate for the IL Supreme Court, please take one step forward.

Not so fast there, Mark Currran. And Susan Hutchinson. And Nancy Rotering.

HaHa, that recommendation from your hearing officer was ignored ISBE board, who voted 8-0 to remove you from the ballot:

Lake County’s June 28 primary ballot almost set; judge to decide fate of 3 state Supreme Court candidates

The Illinois State Board of Elections unanimously voted to remove these candidates from the ballot because none met a minimum ballot requirement of 791 signatures. This in spite of the fact that the ISBE's own candidate guide said only 334 signatures would be required:

State of Illinois 2022 CANDIDATE'S GUIDE

... which all three candidates exceeded.

What's the reason behind the bum's rush from the ISBE? One knowledgeable political scientist told your LakeCountyEye: "It all boils down to five words: Supreme Court Justice Mark Curran."

Note to Ops: This is why you can't have nice things.

Party Line Vote

That giant ka-ching sound you heard came from the direction of Lake County moneybags, Richard Uihlein:

Late Wednesday, conservative megadonor Richard Uihlein, founder of the privately held Uline office supply business, gave $2.5 million to state Sen. Darren Bailey's effort for the GOP governor nomination. That's on top of $1 million Uihlein already contributed to Bailey's campaign.
Another billionaire throws major cash into the race for Illinois governor

For the record, Darren Bailey lost last week in a Lake County Republican straw poll. As readers of this blog are aware, Bailey's opponent "bussed in a bunch of Indian voters" in order to stuff the ballot box:

Too Many Chuffs and Not Enough Indians

Note to GOP Ops: Are you tired of seeing your elections stolen by better organized opponents? Then equip all of your polling locations with a Corrugated Floor Standing Ballot Box:

These ballot boxes are corrugated, stand at 50", and include a plain removable header. Best of all, these boxes are available at ULINE now!

Too Many Chuffs and Not Enough Indians

The Lake County Republican Party held a straw poll last week. And of course there was voter fraud.

The fraudsters "bussed in a bunch of Indian voters":

Another picture. @chicagotribune @ThinkerChicago @nbcchicago pic.twitter.com/cFD2xGKTN3

— Gabe F. Guidarini (@GabeGuidarini) April 23, 2022

One GOP spokesman said: "You're damn sure this would never happen if John Wayne was alive now."

100% Mark Off

The Mark Curran spoof website has been removed from the ballot:

Mark Curran For Judge?

This follows in a the wake of a State Board of Elections ruling, where it was determined that Lake County favorite son Mark Curran is not eligible to be a candidate for Supreme Court Justice:

Candidate List - GENERAL PRIMARY - 6/28/2022

One veteran poll watcher told your LakeCountyEye: "I expect an appeal will be filed. Don't count the Mark Curran spoof website out just yet."

Your LakeCountyEye will keep you apprised when further developments warrant.