Marathon Pundit: Ill. GOP press release: Day 13, why is Alexi hiding?

Wednesday, February 10, 2010

Ill. GOP press release: Day 13, why is Alexi hiding?

In this Illinois Republican Party press release, the state GOP poses a question:

Day 13: Why is Alexi Hiding?

"Alexi Giannoulias's own vulnerabilities are so significant, and far more damning than Kirk's among the electorate, that Giannoulias is deeply flawed as a general election candidate for the Democratic Party. His nomination would put Barack Obama's former Senate seat in extreme jeopardy for the Democrats." - Democratic Pollster Geoff Garin, November 16, 2009.

Despite Alexi Giannoulias' promise to answer questions about his banking practices if he won the Democratic primary, Giannoulias now enters his 13th day of silence. Even his new campaign chairman Senator Dick Durbin is calling on Alexi to "come clean" about his shady past.

In the wake of Rod Blagojevich, Roland Burris and now Scott Lee Cohen, why would Alexi Giannoulias wait so long to face the voters? Maybe Alexi saw that three quarters of all voters have serious concerns about electing him as their senator after hearing about his sketchy banking practices – making him nearly unelectable in Illinois. On November 16, 2009, Democratic pollster Geoff Garin wrote:

The attacks that the Republicans are likely to make against Giannoulias, and in fact already are making, are powerful in raising deep concerns about him among voters. For example, three-quarters of all voters say they have very (62%) or fairly (13%) serious concerns about Giannoulias when they hear the following:
Alexi Giannoulias's family bank had close financial ties with Tony Rezko, one of Rod Blagojevich's top funders who is now in jail, and Alexi Giannoulias met personally with Rezko. Not only did the bank give $11 million in loans to Rezko and his businesses, but the bank also gave Rezko preferential treatment by allowing him to bounce nine checks worth more than $500,000 without closing his account or reporting his actions to the authorities.

Unfortunately, other criticisms of Giannoulias related to the Broadway Bank are nearly as potent. Moreover, voters show little sympathy for a defense arguing that it is unfair to criticize Alexi Giannoulias for problems at the Broadway Bank, including its involvement with Tony Rezko, because Alexi Giannoulias has not been involved with the bank for four years, and many other banks also made loans to Rezko before he was exposed as a criminal. Only 18% side with this point of view, while 63% agree instead with the following counter argument:

Other people say that Alexi Giannoulias's involvement with the Broadway Bank gives them serious concerns about electing him senator. These people say that Alexi Giannoulias refuses to reveal the details about his dealings with Tony Rezko at the bank, and note that Rezko helped Giannoulias's brother obtain a position in the Blagojevich administration. They also say that Alexi Giannoulias has given conflicting explanations of his involvement in the bank's loans to a convicted mobster.

Will today be the day Alexi Giannoulias breaks his silence? Here's a reminder of just three of the many outstanding questions Alexi needs to answer:

Did the Giannoulias family meet the FDIC's deadline to replenish $19 million (the deadline was February 4, 2010)? Did Alexi contribute to the replenishment?

Why did Alexi and his family withdraw $70 million from the bank just before the institution incurred heavy loan and lease losses -- ultimately leading to the FDIC consent decree? ("Alexi Kin Cash In At Broadway," Crain's Chicago Business, 9/7/09)

How many of the bank's losses were from loans and leases Alexi Giannoulias approved when he served as the bank's Chief Loan Officer from 2002-2006?

Learn more about Giannoulias; record by visiting the NRSC's new web site.