Cook County state's attorney hopefuls fire away
With less than three weeks until the primary, the six Democratic Cook County State's Attorney candidates struggled mightily to distinguish themselves from one another Wednesday, with an endorsement interview at the Daily Herald in the morning and a television debate at ABC7 in the evening.
If the inter-candidate attacks were any indication, Cook County Commissioner Larry Suffredin and Chicago Alderman Howard Brookins concern the other candidates the most.
From the get-go of the debate, they hammered Suffredin for his history as a lobbyist, saying his many associations make him inherently conflicted for a job that requires equal justice for all.
Suffredin cast himself as a progressive candidate, touting his gun-restriction measures that he's put forth as a county commissioner and the smoking tax he advocated on the board, despite having been a lobbyist at one time for tobacco interests.
"I agree when Mr. Suffredin says he fights for justice -- as long as someone pays him to do it," quipped Chicago Alderman Tom Allen.
Anita Alvarez and Bob Milan, the only two career prosecutors in the race, hammered home the theme that the job should not go to a politician.
"This office should not be a rung on someone's political ladder," said Milan.
Milan promised to expand to the suburbs "street corner conspiracy units" that have worked well to reduce Chicago's homicide rate.
Alvarez also identified prosecution of violent crime as the office's core mission but has said she would make a better listener than Milan to address some of the problems the office has -- such as minority recruitment and trust in the community.
It's those problems that Alderman Howard Brookins hammered, claiming the office now currently doesn't treat citizens of different races and economic backgrounds equally.
"They say that Justice is blind and balanced. But in Cook County, Justice is unbalanced and she's peeking," said Brookins, who advocates computerizing the office so that it can become more efficient.
But Brookins was criticized by Allen for problems he had in paying rent on his office and city violations for a building he owned. Brookins has said the building was effectively in someone else's possession and his in name only.
Brewer, who ran for state's attorney before and lost, also attacked Brookins. When asked in the Daily Herald endorsement meeting if he and Brookins might split the black vote in the race, he laughed.
"Well, I'll say this: I think everybody here agrees that Howard is probably the least-qualified person," said Brewer.
The ABC7 debate will air at 4 p.m. Sunday, and more questions and answers with the candidates from the Daily Herald's endorsement interview can be found at www.beepcentral.com under the Animal Farm blog.