Thus far, we have been treated to the “Chicago Way” of Obama and Daley and the other Daley machine cronies. Now, with the nomination of Republican Congressman, Ray LaHood as Secretary of Transportation, we will be introduced to the Illinois Way, the bipartisan corruption that has killed off the Republican Party in Illinois. Dennis Hastert was the Speaker of the House when the Republican majority frittered away its chances for a long run by passing pork-laden spending bills and convincing Bush not to veto them. Hastert retired before the 2006 election and his seat was taken by a Democrat in that election. What about LaHood and Obama’s “infrastructure projects?”
Via David Frum, John Kass of the Chicago Tribune has the explanation of LaHood’s appointment.
What Obama forgot to mention is that with LaHood in charge of the roads, they’ll lead to one place:
Bill Cellini.
Cellini, the Republican boss of Springfield who has been indicted in the Blagojevich scandal for allegedly shaking down the producer of the movie “Million Dollar Baby,” is a strong LaHood ally. Cellini runs Sangamon County, and LaHood has enjoyed Cellini’s political support.
They also joined to help oust the last true reformer in Illinois politics, former Sen. Peter Fitzgerald, the Republican who was denied an endorsement from his own state party after he brought federal prosecutors to Illinois with no connection to the bipartisan Combine that runs things here.
Republican money man Cellini is not only the Chicago political connection to machine Democrats and Mayor Richard Daley’s City Hall—and a Blagojevich fundraiser—he’s also the boss of the Illinois Asphalt Pavement Association.
I wonder if former Senator Fitzgerald might be convinced to come back and try to clean up Illinois. He’s probably too smart of try an Augean stables project like that.