Curran a ray of political sunshine
It was with interest that I read Mike Zawislak's account in the Daily Herald on Tuesday, Dec. 16 of Sheriff Curran's shift to the Republican Party, "Sheriff says Democrats are just too corrupt." As one of many who packed the conference room at Lake County Republican Headquarters in Libertyville on Monday morning, Dec. 15 to hear Lake County Sheriff Mark Curran announce his switch from the Democrat to the Republican side of the aisle, I am appalled by the insults and accusations that have been forthcoming from Democrat legislators and the expressed outrage from letter writers, all hurled against the Republican Party and Sheriff Curran because he dared to switch parties.
Not that the Republican Party isn't deserving of insults from time to time, especially statewide, where there exists a bipartisan political combine whose members crave both power and money. Notwithstanding, when considering the current brand of the Democrat Party given the shenanigans of Gov. Blagojevich, it doesn't smell all that good right now. Such corruption undoubtedly represents just the tip of the iceberg for the Illinois Democratic Party.
Regarding 30th District Democrat and state Sen. Terry Link of Waukegan, his pointed remarks chastising Sheriff Curran for his Republican shift were featured in Zawislak's Daily Herald account. According to Link, "To do this, I think, is a show of the individual not party politics. I'm glad the Republicans have him now. That's not the type of person I want."
But what about Terry Link's own ethically challenged candidacy in the last election cycle? Although Link did defeat his reform-minded Republican challenger and businessman Keith Gray of Mettawa, Link has no moral standing to criticize Mark Curran, whose life and actions reveal a strong moral compass. At the Monday, Dec. 15 news conference, Sheriff Mark Curran spoke boldly and clearly about his decision, knowing that in his announcement he would lose friends and create enemies. To Mark Curran there was only one reason he made the switch. It was a "matter of conscience." His conscience would no longer allow him to remain a member of the Democratic Party. Sheriff Curran had hoped to fight for change within his own party, but came to the realization that change was no longer possible in the state or in the Lake County Democrat Party.
Lake County Democrats who persist in calling Sheriff Curran's switch traitorous are displaying pettiness and blatant partisanship. Is Sheriff Curran a different person because he no longer has a "D" connected with his name? Mark Curran puts service above all else. He sees himself as a humble county office holder. He rejects the job perks of money and power coveted by many Illinois office holders.
There is no reason to doubt that Sheriff Curran will continue to bring to the sheriff's office the same ethical values and standards as he did when a Democrat. Readers of the Daily Herald, as in the rest of Illinois, should hunger for leaders at all levels of government who are motivated out of a desire to serve, regardless of political affiliation, in a state where corruption has brought Illinois undesirable national attention and shame. As such Sheriff Curran brings a welcome "ray of political sunshine" to Lake County and the state of Illinois that should serve its citizens well.
Nancy J. Thorner
Lake Bluff