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Young and conservative in the age of Obama |
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by Josh Lederman
June 02, 2010
Hinds grew up in an ideologically split family in southern Illinois. His father’s side was made up of blue-collar, conservative Democrats and his mother’s side traditional Republicans.
But Hinds, 18, came into his own political identity during high school, when President Bush announced a troop surge in Iraq in early 2007. Hinds supported the surge, but his peers thought he was clinging to a lost cause and employing the same thought processes their grandparents employed in the Vietnam era.
“I felt like a voice crying in the wilderness,” Hinds said. “They might still talk to you about something else like sports,” he said, “but when it got around to politics, you tended to be laughed at, ignored. Nobody really wants to talk to you.”
It’s an experience shared by many young conservatives living in an era of rapid political and social change; growing up in the state that spawned the Democratic machine, “Chicago-style politics” and President Barack Obama.
How permanently Democratic the Land of Lincoln really is may be fun fodder for pundits and politicos, but it doesn’t change the situation on the ground: Illinois is perceived to be solidly blue territory. For young people on the opposite side of the ideological spectrum, growing up here can mean feeling isolated and ostracized just at the age when everyone craves acceptance by their peer group.
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Last Updated on Monday, 14 June 2010 16:00 |
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Kirk Calls for Invesitgation into Cook County Census Funds |
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Written by Alex Keown
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Wednesday, 26 May 2010 16:41 |
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U.S. Rep. Mark Kirk is calling for a federal investigation into the award of nearly $200,000 in no-bid contracts by Cook County Board President Todd Stroger.
Stroger approved eight separate no-bid contracts—each worth $24,995 —to “businesses” that did not exist until just before they received the awards. Four of the recipients used the same attorney to incorporate within days of receiving the contracts, a Fox News report said. Bids under $25,000 do not require county board approval.
“These reports indicate a pattern of misuse and mismanagement that warrant a full investigation,” Kirk said.
One of the contracts went to a modeling agency, and another went to a company called “Citymerge” run by rap artist and convicted felon Prentice Harris. One of the addresses on the Citymerge contract is a vacant lot, and another belongs to a homeowner who told reporters she didn’t know Harris and never heard of Citymerge, Kirk said in a press release.
Kirk said the Fox News report is troubling since it comes in the midst of an ongoing federal investigation of the county’s alleged misuse of Homeland Security funds for a program called “Project Shield.”
Fox Chicago News reported that county pays nearly $200,000 to a few companies to help publicize the U.S. Census. But there are questions about just what kind of work is happening - and if the companies exist. The county's inspector general is now probing those deals.
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Last Updated on Monday, 14 June 2010 16:19 |
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Illinois to be a top priority for RNC in 2010 |
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Written by Administrator
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Thursday, 06 May 2010 21:28 |
Thursday, the IL GOP held a three-part party-building event at downtown Chicago's Drake Hotel, and spirits were high among those attending, most of whom were much more optimistic about election outcomes than they were in 2008, when Illinois-based Barack Obama headed the November ballot.
Not only is the voter angst with the Obama Administration's efforts a good indication Illinois Republicans may do well in November, so is the work the IL GOP is doing within the state, RNC Chairman Michael Steele said. As a result, the Land of Lincoln will be one of the national party's top priorities in 2010.
This emphasis was launched in Illinois Thursday afternoon, when RNC National Committeewoman Demetra DeMonte called together 30 representatives of the newly-formed Illinois Coalitions effort. Since her election in 2008, DeMonte has reached out to diverse subgroups within the ILGOP, from Blacks to Latinos, women to College Republicans and Young Republicans, all with the goal of building up the party's grassroots.
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Last Updated on Monday, 14 June 2010 16:01 |
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