Charges, countercharges in 56th House campaign
It's no surprise that the campaign literature in the 56th District state House race is saying unflattering things about each candidate's rival.
But both Republican Ryan Higgins, 29, and Democrat Michelle Mussman, 37, are demanding more strongly that the other back up what's being said or implied.
Mussman said she's being wrongly associated with Gov. Pat Quinn and Democratic House Speaker Michael Madigan - particularly in regard to a possible income tax increase which she's vowed to vote against.
And Higgins said he's being tied to corporate polluters and former Gov. Rod Blagojevich without any factual basis whatsoever.
One of Mussman's mailers says Higgins recently worked for a law firm that donated $50,000 to Blagojevich and received hundreds of thousands of dollars in legal work from his administration.
Higgins said there are three things factually wrong with the claim - that it was the McGuireWoods consulting group that made the donation, not the McGuireWoods law firm; that the contribution made was less than half the amount stated; and that donation occurred in 2006 before he even had a law degree or worked for the law firm.
Mussman could not speak to the specifics of the allegation, but said all statements made on her campaign literature are carefully researched.
Mussman's campaign office staff conceded they did not know the dates of Higgins' employment with the law firm but argued that the consulting firm was just a subsidiary of it.
Higgins also criticized Mussman's campaign of painting him as supporter of corporate polluters, going so far as to superimpose his photo over industrial smokestacks. He said the only corporate sponsors on his last 6-month campaign finance disclosure form were a dental management firm, a nursing home, funeral home and Motorola.
Mussman also did not know the specific source of the mailer's charge, but her staff pointed to a $500 donation in December 2009 from the Commonwealth Edison Co-Affiliate of Exelon Corp. PAC. They also argued that donations from heavy industry to Republican state party leader Tom Cross trickle down to candidates like Higgins whom they're supporting.
How independent the two candidates are of their respective party leaders is a major issue of contention between them.
Mussman said she's been very critical of Madigan's role in the state's current financial crisis and that it's dirty politics on Higgins' part that's tying her to both the state party leader and Quinn - two men she said she's never even met.
"He's trying to tie me to an unpopular politician," Mussman said of Higgins' association of her with Madigan.
But Higgins said the proof of Mussman's loyalties is in her financing - that 43 percent of her contributions up to the middle of the year came from the Democratic Party Madigan leads, and that her campaign consultant is an in-kind donation from the party.
"She's either being disingenuous with the voters about where her loyalties lie or being disingenuous with Michael Madigan," Higgins said.
Mussman replied that Higgins must know, from his own acceptance of money from Cross and the Republicans, that such donations are no guarantees of a vote on any bill or policy.
"They must assume I have something else to offer beyond a guaranteed vote," Mussman said of party leaders.
Higgins responded that the main difference between his and Mussman's acceptance of party money is that he isn't trying to distance himself from Republican leadership. In fact, he said his only concern with it would be if it didn't follow through on the reforms it's currently promising.
The 56th District includes Schaumburg and portions of Elk Grove Village, Hoffman Estates, Palatine, Rolling Meadows, Hanover Park, Roselle and Bloomingdale.