Felsenthal Files - October 2010

10/29/10

Dennis Hastert on Daley, Rahm, Bush, 9/11, and more

Former Speaker of the House Dennis Hastert, once a teacher and wrestling coach at Yorkville High School, is an Illinoisan through and through—born in Aurora, reared in Oswego, lived and worked in Plano and Yorkville. His wife, Jean, a retired teacher, remains in Plano, and “The Speaker,” as his staff calls him, spends most weeks in Washington...

Posted at 12:36 PM in Felsenthal Files | Permalink | Comments (1)

10/25/10

Chicago Goes Hollywood in Fundraiser for Rahm Emanuel

The Hollywood fundraiser being staged on November 4th in Beverly Hills for Rahm Emanuel brings the presumed mayoral front-runner squarely into the big bucks game of presidential campaigns. One of the organizers of the party, to be held just two days after the midterms, is Rahm’s younger brother Ari, co-CEO of William Morris Endeavor Entertainment. As political junkies everywhere know, Ari is a...

Posted at 01:16 PM in Felsenthal Files | Permalink | Comments (4)

10/20/10

Highlights (Such as They Were) of the Illinois Senate Debate

The debate Tuesday night between Democrat Alexi Giannoulias and Republican Mark Kirk enjoyed none of the whacko moments featured in the notorious New York gubernatorial debate the night before. Still, Giannoulias seemed to take at least a line or two from the New York script with his repeated mention (nine times, by my count) of Karl Rove as an evil player in Kirk’s campaign...

Posted at 01:26 PM in Felsenthal Files | Permalink | Comments (2)

10/20/10

Double the Fun on the Illinois Ballot

The ballot that will be handed to Illinois voters on November 2nd will cover two elections—special and regular—for the U.S. Senate. Voters will be instructed to choose among Republican Mark Kirk, Democrat Alexi Giannoulias, Green Party candidate LeAlan Jones, and Libertarian Mike Labno in a special election for the lame-duck period extending until January 3rd, when all U.S. Senators are sworn in. Then voters will be asked to choose between the same candidates for the full six-year term...

Posted at 12:11 PM in Felsenthal Files | Permalink | Comments (1)

10/15/10

How Will Rahm's Role in NAFTA Play in the Mayor's Race?

Free trade is quickly moving up the charts as an issue in the midterm elections. China is the biggest bogeyman this cycle, but NAFTA (North American Free Trade Agreement)—the 1993 agreement among the U.S., Mexico, and Canada that knocked down most barriers to trade—is also hitting the headlines...

Posted at 12:28 PM in Felsenthal Files | Permalink | Comments (1)

10/12/10

A Look at Rich Whitney, the Green Party Candidate for Governor

The Chicago Tribune endorsed Republican Bill Brady over Democrat Pat Quinn on Sunday, but if an editorial ever screamed “We’re holding our noses while we write,” this was it. Neither of these guys is any good, the message seemed to be. It was this kind of analysis that prompted me to call Green Party candidate Rich Whitney...

Posted at 03:55 PM in Felsenthal Files | Permalink | Comments (1)

10/08/10

Ron Huberman Out? Michelle Rhee May Be Looking for a Job

With Ron Huberman set to step down as CEO of Chicago Public Schools before the end of the school year, could D.C. Public Schools Chancellor Michelle Rhee—who is likely to leave her post in the near future—be a good fit for the job?...

Posted at 11:37 AM in Felsenthal Files | Permalink | Comments (0)

10/01/10

A Chat with Mayoral Candidate Gery Chico

Gery Chico has had a great couple of days since announcing that he’s running for mayor. Rich Daley—for whom Chico worked as chief of staff, president of the board of Chicago Public Schools, and, currently, chairman of the City Colleges of Chicago board—sang Chico’s praises Wednesday night on WTTW’s Chicago Tonight, describing his staffer as “a wonderful public servant” and “closer to me than...

Posted at 05:24 PM in Felsenthal Files | Permalink | Comments (1)