Dillard wrong man for GOP leadership

The elevation of state Sen. Kirk Dillard to the position of assistant minority leader in the Illinois Republican Senate leadership is a travesty of justice. It also shows how seriously out of touch this party is. With Dillard in any position of leadership, the party is doomed.

Dillard made a campaign ad endorsing Barack Obama. Not only was Obama an ineffectual leader in the Illinois Senate with no real legislation, but he is a tax-and-spend liberal who is the antithesis of Republican values.

While Dillard was chief of staff to Gov. Jim Edgar, now-convicted felon Bill Cellini used the state budget as his personal bank account with all kinds of deals that cost the taxpayers millions. Dillard sat back and did nothing. When Cellini’s sister Janis was appointed by Edgar to be the patronage chief, Dillard sat back as Chicago machine Democrats and organized crime associates were placed on the payroll and he did nothing. Some of these people are still on the state payroll earning salaries in excess of $100,000 and will be earning giant pensions.

As one looks deeper into Dillard’s background, it can be seen that he is not a real Republican. He is very close in principle to Chicago machine Democrats as his past actions have shown that this is what he is. He is a Springfield insider who has been there when the seeds of the current state of Illinois financial crisis were being planted. He watered those seeds, fertilized them with his lack of attention and tacit approval and sat back and watched them flourish into a billion-dollar problem.

Ken Gaines

Chicago