My kind of town

Ah, to be in Chicago in January!

The wind is whipping off the lake, the temperature drops to 50 below (with windchill), and the former governor is so on trial:

RYAN REPLY WAS CURT, JURY TOLD: An ex-prosecutor says George Ryan reacted to a plan to curb government corruption with the words "[Expletive] you."

Sorry, governor, but apparently...ah, fuck you.

Unfortunately, Ryan's replacement, and the first Democratic governor of Illinois in thirty years, Rod Blagojevich, appears to be ethically challenged as well, and he's being opposed IN THE MARCH DEMOCRATIC PRIMARY.

To an ex-Chicagoan, primary challenges to a Democratic incumbent are like sweets to a diabetic: they satisfy a serious craving, but they are also possibly lethal.

And who's challenging him? Get this: I KNOW the guy. He's the former alderman (city councilman) for my former neighborhood, the 43rd ward.

When he first ran for alderman, he used to eat in the cafe where I worked. I opened up the place at 7am, and he would come in for breakfast before hitting the nearby el platforms and bus stops to shake hands and talk to the residents. And after chatting with him about politics one day, I took my entire tips for that day and walked into his campaign headquarters and donated them. It think it was, like, $36.50 in cash, and to me in those days that was a chunk of change.

I ended up volunteering for a couple of his subsequent campaigns.

Look, if it means anything to anyone in the fine state of Illinois, this guy is the real deal. He's smart, he's dedicated, and he's wonky in all the right places. And speaking as someone who witnessed first hand his frustrations with the big machine, the guy is clean, and he always will be. If I could vote for him...okay, it is Illinois so I probably could still vote for him...I mean if I could vote for him legally I would.

So you vote for him, you fine, upstanding citizens of my former home. You vote for him.

Eisendrath for Governor 2006