Governor Blagojevich's campaign war chest unfair

It should be no secret as to why an incumbent governor is able to amass such a large campaign fund. According to the Daily Herald website out of suburban Chicago, an analysis of Blagojevich's political benefactors and state appointees shows the governor has raised more than $4 million in campaign cash from people he's appointed and their associated companies and interests. In other words, people are willing to donate money to someone who is in a position to help them. Some would say that the State of Illinois is for sale.

It really is annoying to watch the negative ads run by the governor as it links Baar Topinka with former governor George Ryan who was convicted on racketeering charges this year by a federal court in Chicago. I knew that the Republican party would be vulnerable if they ran someone associated with the Ryan administration. Baar Topinka was the State Treasurer during the Ryan administration. Sure enough, Blagojevich seized the advantage.

However, Blagojevich's actions as governor suggest that it is business as usual not unlike the previous state administrations. His apparent willingness to favor appointments for political donors cannot be denied. What is really strange though is how he is able to lure a considerable amount of his campaign funds from out of state. Much of it came from California when he made a campaign trip there last year.

Blagojevich has blamed his opponent for not having a plan to help fund education. However, he himself had no plan until he came up with a $10 billion proposal to privatize the state lottery with the proceeds used for education. Most experts believe the reason he came up with this plan was to placate another potential opponent in the governor's race this fall. State Senator James Meeks of Chicago threatened to run against Blagojevich if he didn't come up with a plan to fund education. Meeks, who is head of the biggest black church in Chicago and would capture a large share of the black vote, announced his withdrawal from the race after the governor announced his proposal.

There really needs to be a limit on campaign funds. It is totally unfair for an incumbent to be able to amass a large war chest because of their position and use this against their opponent. It means that the person who can reach the most people will win rather than enabling the person with the best platform to win.

I hope that the voters of Illinois can see through the negative ads put out by the governor in this early stage of the campaign. Governor Blagojevich has not done anything to change the image of Illinois as one of the more corrupt state governments in the country. His political ambition is matched only by his low opinion of the intelligence of the voters in this state.

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