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Cook County Politics
 Certainly the time that has passed since the raucous 2006 election night that saw Todd Stroger defeat Tony Peraica for the Cook County Board Presidency has at least made Peraica look better, if still imperfect, by comparison.Just the past month has seen Todd Stroger renege on his pledge not to raise taxes, raising Chicago's sales tax rate to the highest in the country. Just this week, Stroger announced that his cousin, Cook County CFO Donna Dunnings was deserved of a staggering 12% raise, now that the county has the revenue thanks to the tax hike. As transparent as all of this is, one really has to wonder if Stroger even really cares about his public perception. That could possibly come back to bite him if Com. Forrest Claypool decides to take another run at the office. Stroger also thinks that the media criticism of the raise and of him are unfair: In addition to foes on the Cook County Board, Stroger sees one other big obstacle to his re-election plans. He says news reporters treat him like a political punching bag and don't apologize even when they get stories wrong, including a gossip columnist who reported that Dunnings had county workers assembling an exercise treadmill in her government office. Certainly Stroger's most voracious critic, Peraica seems to lack a sense of timing in his political actions. It was mere 7 months after the election when Peraica called for a vote of "no confidence" in Todd Stroger. It died a swift, squelching death. Perhaps if Peraica had waited to make that move until, say, now to make that call. After Stroger had already pushed through a major tax increase, it might have gained at least some traction with some commissioners looking to make an added anti-Stroger statement in the wake. One could even contend that Peraica's current electoral undertaking, his campaign for Cook County State's Attorney, shows his lack of timing. What Peraica gained politically in his loss to Stroger was high name recognition at least some semblance of favorability in Cook County in comparison to Stroger. Perhaps it would have been wiser for Peraica to be currently gathering funds to take a run at the wide-open GOP nod for governor in 2010. The current, expected field is essentially non-existent. Instead, Peraica is choosing to attempt the summit of a much higher, treacherous mountain. His Democrat opponent Anita Alvarez, a Hispanic female, is a formidable opponent. She drew nearly twice the number of votes is winning 26% of a six-way Democrat primary than Peraica took running unopposed in the GOP primary. Not a good omen. The latest example of Peraica's jumping the gun is his submission of a call for a ballot referendum on the removal of Cook County's home rule status. Frustrated, as many of Cook County taxpayers, with the recent tax hikes to prop up a patronage-laden government, Peraica is content to throw out the democratic baby with the political bathwater. In essence, Peraica is making the case to dispense with local governmental control because of a disagreement with the policy prescriptions of the majority democratically elected representatives that comprise the board. This seems pointless when one considers the makeup the board. As the continued war over budgets shows, the county board is almost evenly split. If Cook County taxpayers are frustrated enough with the currently political and financial climate of Cook County, they'd be just as willing to elect new leadership to the board that supports lower taxes. A more focused and sensible approach would be the targeting of some commissioners in vulnerable districts with anti-tax increase candidates. Yet, Cook County voters continue to get just what they vote for. Todd Stroger, for example. If they weren't willing to reject Todd Stroger, what makes Peraica think they'd reject the whole institution of home rule? Filed Under: Cook County Politics E-mail this article to a friend | Printer friendly format |
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