Friday, Aug. 30

 

Wright appointed assistant state’s attorney, also named to state GOP post

[AUG. 30, 2002]  Jonathan Wright, Logan County’s current state representative, begins a new job as a Logan County assistant state’s attorney on Sept. 16. He was appointed by State’s Attorney Tim Huyett after a former assistant, Michael Risinger, left the position.

He was also recently named deputy state central committeeman for the 18th District of the Illinois Republican Party.

Wright will close his law office at 503 Broadway but will keep his district office at 407 Keokuk open at least through the November veto session and probably until the new legislators are seated in January, he said.

He has been serving as state representative for the 90th District since June of 2001, when he was appointed to fill the seat vacated by John Turner, who became an appellate court judge.

After the redistricting, which divided Logan County into two representative districts, Wright chose not to run in the November election for another term in the House. His term expires in January of 2003.

However, he will remain active in Republican politics because of the appointment as a deputy committeeman, he said. He was asked to fill the position by State Central Committeewoman MaryAlice Erickson, Peoria, after her re-election.

"MaryAlice contacted me eight weeks ago, told me her former deputy had to resign, and asked me if I would accept the position. My job is to assist her, and part of that entails working with county Republican associations in the district."

The 18th District includes Logan, Tazewell, Peoria and some of McLean counties and is the same as Ray LaHood’s U.S. Congressional District. Altogether there are 19 districts in Illinois.

Wright said his new job as assistant state’s attorney won’t conflict with his duties as a committeeman, because most of his political activities will be on weekends and evenings.

 

The State Central Committee, he said, determines how the party will stand on issues and how it will support candidates. It is not a paid position but does play an important role. "I will have some input on decisions the party makes," Wright said.

The committee decides policy and platform issues and makes sure the Republican organization is moving in the right direction. It also supports candidates with money, time, phone calls and other resources.

"It’s a great honor to be asked to step into this kind of role. What’s going on right now makes me realize how important the position is," he said.

"I believe the Republican Party is at a crossroads. We have an important election coming up, and it would be naive to ignore the scandals going on, the investigations that involve Republican officials. Scandals have put the credibility of the state party at issue.

"There needs to be a serious housecleaning in the state Republican Party. If we do anything less than that, we will lose whatever credibility we have with the public."

Both parties need to clean house, Wright believes, and he expects to see the General Assembly take some action on that in the November veto session.

"I think at the very minimum some effort will be made then to deal with the question of state employees working on political campaigns," he said.

Politicians of both parties need to stop concentrating so much on winning the next election, Wright said.

"I have seen, at the state level, how much winning the next election drives our elected officials. Too many are pandering to whatever constituent group squawks the loudest.

"We have public apathy because there are too many elected officials the public doesn’t respect. Voters want someone they can respect. Contrary to what some officials think, if they took a stand on principle they might be surprised how many votes they would get."

 

Short term, he says, the GOP needs to clean its house. Long term, it needs to revisit its principles."

"I am disappointed that we didn’t try to change our fiscal policy. We have plenty of money to run the state of Illinois; the problem is how it is spent and what it is spent on.

"We have a $22 billion budget. We need to look at which programs we are spending money on actually work and which don’t work. Too many members of the General Assembly don’t really have a good grasp of the budget. It’s a huge and complicated thing, difficult to get a handle on.

"At the 11th hour in the budget process we are finally asking the questions we should have asked months ago. It’s a lot of work to go through this budget in detail, but that’s what we should be doing."

 

[to top of second column in this article]

Wright has made his own contribution to controlling government spending. At the end of the last fiscal year he returned $13,000 to the state, the part of his allowance for a district office that he didn’t spend. He said John Turner also used to return funds to the state, from $5,000 to $8,000 a year.

Another problem with state government, Wright believes, is that too often it doesn’t have a broad picture of what it wants to accomplish and passes a lot of piecemeal legislation, in both criminal law and on social issues.

"I had a lot of trouble trying to funnel all the bills brought up in the House through a consistent philosophy," he said. "Government needs a consistent philosophy."

For example, he says, the Department of Human Services has three line items for teenage pregnancy programs. "They may all be good programs, but there is probably a lot of overlapping. If we combined all those resources, the program could be more effective."

The closing of the Lincoln Developmental Center epitomizes the state’s lack of an overall approach, he said. There was no consistent policy involved in deciding to close the Lincoln center or in the methods use to close it.

"We will work to push developmentally disabled people out into the community because we don’t want to spend $125,000 a year to care for them. Yet we spend at least that much on people who commit sex crimes."

Wright has no trouble defining his own political philosophy, which is derived in part from his strong Christian belief.

"I like to think of myself as a true conservative, one who believes in limited government based upon the premise that people of faith and values will regulate themselves. Our government was never designed to regulate what it has to regulate today.

"The papers of our founding fathers are based on the premise that individuals would have faith and values. The problem is that we have gotten away from having values of right and wrong and from personal responsibility.

"We’ve let political corruption run out of control, and we don’t have the philosophy and character to back up what we are doing.

"If people of all faiths would stand up for what they believe in, we would have a better society and a better government."

Wright is strongly pro-life and recently tried to get through the House a bill that would protect any infant born alive by requiring it be given whatever medical attention is needed.

 

The bill was the same as one sponsored by state Sen. Patrick O’Malley, R-Palos Park, but it did not get out of the House rules committee.

Wright said it is almost identical to the bill recently passed 98-0 by the U.S. Senate and signed by President Bush, protecting any infant with signs of a heartbeat, voluntary muscle movement or breathing.

One bill he sponsored that did get passed and recently signed into law by Gov. Ryan concerns school prayer.

"It clarifies and codifies students’ right to pray out loud in a non-disruptive manner, so long as it is not endorsed or promoted by school officials," he said. This means a group of students might meet for a prayer session before or after school, at lunch break, or any other time when they are not disrupting any type of instruction.

"School officials lacked real guidance on this matter because there is nothing in the statues," Wright said.

"Our constitution doesn’t separate church and state. What it does is prohibit the government from establishing a religion and mandating that everyone follow it. It doesn’t prohibit faith from public life."

Wright said taking the deputy state committeeman post shows that he is not closing the door to further involvement in the state politics.

"I believe in GOP values. I am open to and would activity pursue other options that might become available to me in the future," he said.

Wright, who began practicing law in Lincoln in August of 1997, lives in Hartsburg with his wife, the former Melanie Usherwood, and four children: Katie, age 6, Alison, 5, Melissa, 3 and Joshua, 2 months. He is an active member of the Park Meadows Baptist Church of Lincoln.

[Joan Crabb]


Web has help for job-seekers

A place to go for interview tips

[AUG. 30, 2002]  URBANA — Job-seekers concerned about making a positive impression in interviews with prospective employers have a place to go for tips about putting their best foot forward. "Looking Your Best for Work" is offered on the Web by University of Illinois Extension. The site, part of the Urban Programs Resources Network, is located at http://www.urbanext.uiuc.edu/dress/index.html.

"Making a good impression is important, and this site provides information that can help people get off to a good start," said Jane Scherer, U of I Extension urban programs specialist. "With the economic problems of the past year, we’ve seen an increasing number of people entering the job market again after layoffs or plant closings. Additionally, we have many first-time job-seekers. Often, individuals in both groups can benefit from the tips on this site."

Among the site’s categories are "Dress to Impress," "Clothing Choices for Women," "Personal Grooming for Women," "Clothing and Grooming for Men," "Getting the Clothing You Need," "Interviews" and "On the Job Success."

"How you look and present yourself can make the difference between getting and not getting the job as well as a promotion," said Scherer. "Clothing choices, grooming, interview tips and positive body language are important areas, and anyone seeking a job or promotion could benefit from reviewing them."

[U of I news release]

Thank You

To Lincoln Developmental Center employees:

The Lincoln Parents' Association would like to express our sincere appreciation for the excellent care you have given our loved ones over the years. You chose to make a career in caring for the most fragile of individuals with disabilities. For this, we are most grateful. 

The stress of this past year has been almost unbearable for you and for us. In spite of poor management, politics and constant scrutiny, you have maintained your excellent level of care. There are not enough words to express our thanks.

Sincerely,
Members of the
Lincoln Parents' Association


Gov. Ryan signs legislation to
restrict underage drinking, fake IDs

[AUG. 30, 2002]  CHICAGO — Gov. George Ryan has signed House Bill 5941, further strengthening Illinois’ penalties for underage drinking and possession of false identification. The legislation revokes or suspends the driver’s license or permit of any person under the age of 21 who is convicted of those violations.

"Unfortunately, some of our teenagers choose to break the law by drinking and using fake IDs," said Gov. Ryan. "This legislation further strengthens the penalties for this dangerous behavior and will hopefully reduce the number of underage alcohol-related crashes."

House Bill 5941 was an initiative of the Illinois Licensed Beverage Association in response to the results of a survey of college students the association conducted. The results of their study indicated that the possibility of losing a driver’s license or learner’s permit as a consequence of violating any of the prohibitions of the Liquor Control Act is a significant deterrent to underage drinking.

Under the provisions of the legislation, a conviction must occur before the secretary of state suspends one year of driving privileges. Local liquor commissioners must report to the secretary of state when a person under 21 is convicted of purchasing, accepting, possessing or consuming alcohol and possession of false identification.

The bill was sponsored in the House by Michael McAuliffe, R-Chicago; Timothy Osmond, R-Antioch; Eileen Lyons, R-Western Springs; Patricia R. Bellock, R-Hinsdale. Senate sponsors were David Sullivan, R-Park Ridge, and Christine Radogno, R-LaGrange.

[Illinois Government News Network
press release]

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