Scott Lee Cohen
Update | 12:23 p.m. Gov. Pat Quinn's campaign has responded to Scott Lee Cohen's announcement in an e-mail to the Current. Campaign spokeswoman Mica Matsoff:
Scott Lee Cohen withdrew his candidacy for lieutenant governor in February amid allegations of steroid use, domestic battery, and failure to pay child support. Today, he painted his entry into the governor’s race as a principled decision to spur economic growth in Illinois. Governor Quinn believes anything that focuses more attention on job creation is a good thing.
But while both Scott Lee Cohen and Bill Brady have talked a lot about creating jobs, neither has a proven track record of accomplishments in this area. By contrast, Governor Quinn has lead the fight to implement a range of measures to boost hiring—from a capital bill that would create 439,000 jobs over the next six years to a tax credit for small businesses. By working with business leaders, he has taken concrete steps to get residents back to work and secure a more prosperous future for Illinois. And unlike Cohen and Brady, Governor Quinn understands that promoting women’s rights and equal pay for equal work are crucial to the well-being of Illinois working families. Read more...
Is it hype?
Earlier this week, former Republican comptroller candidate William J. Kelly told me that Scott Lee Cohen would be the featured speaker at the first meeting of the new Reform Chicago Now group.
Cohen, who dropped his nomination for lieutenant governor, was widely speculated to announce an independent run for governor at the meeting, and Kelly wasn't denying the rumors. Read more...
Scott Lee Cohen
As speculation builds about a possible independent run for governor by disgraced lieutenant governor candidate Scott Lee Cohen, we're hearing that a speech Cohen's due to make tonight "is going to affect the election this year."
That's the word from William J. Kelly, a former Republican comptroller candidate who then founded Reform Chicago Now.
Kelly declined to confirm whether Cohen would announce a new campaign at the group's first meeting tonight. Cohen could not be reached immediately. Read more...
Illinois General Assembly quickly passes pension reforms
State legislators swiftly approved a bill that would raise the retirement age for future government employees and force them to wait longer to collect on their pensions.
The bill, passed last night in the Senate after it sailed throught the House, would not affect anyone who is currently in the retirement system. Read more...
Even by Illinois standards, Scott Lee Cohen was an unlikely candidate.
Before he campaigned to become the state’s lieutenant governor, Cohen had weathered a messy divorce and was arrested in connection with domestic-abuse allegations.
But after a few sit-downs with his political consultant, Cohen started holding job fairs around the state and touting them in his campaign advertisements. Read more...
