Conservatives put to test in November
It came as little surprise, but I was still disappointed, when the Daily Herald obediently followed the Republican establishment endorsements of Andy McKenna, Matt Murphy, Judy Topinka and Mark Kirk despite its editorializing throughout the past year for new and fresh candidates who could sweep corruption and bring needed change to Illinois.
McKenna, Murphy, Topinka and Kirk were hand-picked by the Republican establishment and then promoted and supported financially, in its mistaken belief that retreads and left-of-center candidates are the way to go for a winning Republican ticket in the November general election. There was some good news for Illinois conservative voters, tea party movement people and pro-family voters who have long rejected the dictatorial approach of the establishment in handpicking candidates. Their votes did make a difference.
Andy McKenna went down in a yet unsettled race for governor, leaving pro-life senators Bill Brady and Kirk Dillard in a tie for the governorship candidacy. Jason Plummer, a fresh new face and also pro-life, defeated Matt Murphy as the Republican nominee for lieutenant governor. My biggest disappointment was the selection by Republican primary voters of Mark Kirk to represent Illinois in the U.S. Senate. Is it possible for a candidate who strays far from Republican values to be supported by conservatives and tea party movement people in the November general election? Pragmatic individuals will vote for Kirk for the sake of electing a Republican, even if that Republican is objectionable to them. For others, Mark Kirk only defiles the name of the Republican Party in his rejection of the principles outlined in both the state and the national Republican platform. As such Mark Kirk is looked upon as a classic RINO, or a Democrat in sheep's clothing. Kirk's voting record speaks of an individual where there is little daylight on issues between Giannoulias and himself. Even if Mark Kirk should win the U.S. Senate race given that Illinois has twice as many Democrat as Republican voters, and that Democrats will surely mount a brutal and nasty fight to keep the Senate seat in the Democrat aisle, Democrats will still win as Mark Kirk, for starters, is a reliable Democrat on social issues. This question remains, will Mark Kirk generate interest from real Republicans in the Nov. 2 general election, the base of the Republican Party, to win his Senate race, or will Republican conservative voters opt out of casting a vote for U.S. Senate candidate Mark Kirk, as well as Judy Topinka as a matter of conscience?
Conservatism is alive and well in Illinois. It will only falter if conservative Republicans give up and allow the establishment to call the shots. The Nov. 2 general election will be an important one.
Nancy J. Thorner
Lake Bluff