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Be fair when citing party affiliations

It seems to me, the Daily Herald always cites the party of any Republican who has done something wrong. Two stories in the paper just the other day are a perfect example of this. The piece on former Virginia Gov. Bob McDonald, who is under indictment on corruption charges, noted immediately that he was a Republican. However, in the same paper there was an article on the death of ex-speaker of the Illinois House Robert Blair II, and the great job he did in modernizing the Illinois legislature, but it never mentioned that he was a member of the Republican Party.

On the other hand, I noticed when it comes to Democrats, if it’s good news, the party is always shown after the person’s name, but if it is bad news, no mention of the party is made.

This doesn’t seem right to me. In another recent example, the two senators pushing for an extension of unemployment benefits, and attending various functions to talk about their positions, are immediately identified as Democrats. Your guest writer, Lee Hamilton, who you must think a lot about as he appears often, spent 34 years in the U.S. House, but you never describe his party, which was as a Republican. And of course it’s front-page news about the Republican who made comments to the Daily Herald editorial board on her feelings about God and what is going on in this country.

I just wonder is the Daily Herald suggesting that only Republicans do bad things, or are crazy, and Democrats only do good things, or give only intelligent answers? It sure often seems that way. C’mon, be fair: List the party, good or bad, after any politician who is named in any piece in your paper.

Ed Gleason

Prospect Heights

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