Marathon Pundit: Ill gov race: Joe Birkett on Andy McKenna's deception

Monday, January 25, 2010

Ill gov race: Joe Birkett on Andy McKenna's deception

Andy McKenna, the former head of the Illinois Republican Party who is now running for governor as a political outsider, conducted an expensive poll last year without approval of the state central committee.

Here is what the Jim Ryan campaign says about this issue:

A new scandal is emerging from Andy McKenna's days as Illinois GOP chairman that is casting a cloud over his candidacy for Governor.

One of the most respected county prosecutors in the United States, Joe Birkett, says that McKenna "deceived me" when he was exploring a statewide candidacy of his own. He says McKenna flat out denied having poll numbers on Birkett and others when we now know he did.

Here, for the first time, is the complete poll. It was obtained by the Ryan campaign.

Here's a chronology:

MARCH 2009: A Zogby poll shows that Birkett was leading the early field for Governor (Birkett 39, Brady 8, Whitley 5).

APRIL 2009: State party takes extensive $28,000 poll, using nearly half of all party funds. Just this month, McKenna admitted breaking party ethics rules by submitting his name in the poll for both Governor and Senator. Birkett was far ahead of McKenna in the poll.

JUNE 16, 2009: Birkett meets with McKenna at his dad's business, Schwarz Supply Source, Morton Grove. At the meeting, Birkett asks whether McKenna has any poll numbers relating to him. McKenna says no.

Jim Ryan's campaign wants to know if McKenna will answer Birkett's allegation. So do I. State Sen. Bill Brady, who is also running for governor, confronted McKenna about the secret poll in a debate, McKenna said he didn't respect Brady enough to reply to the question.

Here's a shorter version of the Birkett video I posted yesterday, in which Birkett discusses the McKenna poll issue: