Following news yesterday that Democratic nominee for Cook County Board president Toni Preckwinkle would not commit to repealing the remainder of the county's sales tax until 2012 at the earliest, Preckwinkle's opponents went on the offensive.
The Cook County Republican Party released a statement calling her a flip-flopper and dishonest.
"After months of misleading voters, Alderman Toni Preckwinkle has finally acknowledged she has no intention of immediately repealing the Cook County sales tax increase and will not cut wasteful spending to east the tax burden," the statement says.
Republican nominee Roger Keats suggested her 20-year career as a Chicago alderman means she is beholden to machine politics.
Preckwinkle consistently stated throughout the campaign that she supported a gradual repeal of the tax, and she reiterated that position in her response today.
"At this point, it has been suggested that we could be looking at a huge deficit next year. It would be irresponsible to cut resources without knowing more about the state of the County's financial condition. I am committed to filling any budget gaps without burdening the people of Cook County," she said.
At a press conference with Mayor Richard M. Daley yesterday, Preckwinkle said the county's defiicit next year could be anywhere between $250 and $500 million, due to fewer federal funds, the partial repeal of the sales tax and the crummy economy.
Both her opponents - Keats and Green Party candidate Tom Tresser - favor an immediate repeal of the sales tax hike.
Preckwinkle said yesterday that while 2012 would be the earliest she would aim to begin repealing the tax, even that could be uncertain.
Windy Citizen 