The Joe Birkett-Mike Noonan team on Sunday’s Political Shootout (WLS-AM: 890) was one of the best debates held in the current season and shows graphically how Joe Birkett is, as a running mate, developing into a first-tier help for Judy Baar Topinka. Probably Birkett is helping her more than any other lieutenant governor candidate—because he is supplying the authentic conservative edge to a governor candidate who is far beyond the social policy mainstream. Face it: Topinka is no different than your average liberal Democrat on social issues but Birkett supplies the thrust that could spell the difference between how many votes they get from the right. Assuredly, she may lose and he may come in first for lieutenant governor—but any candidate for governor would be able to accept this straight-talking ingratiating prosecutor who comes from the Austin west-side neighborhood, one of 10 children whose father died early and who built up an impressive string of accomplishments by age 50 (a tender age for politicians).
One thing that struck me in the program was Birkett’s ease in melding his experience with Topinka’s, showing no discomfort in delineating where they disagree but stressing their agreement. It was a bravura performance by a real pro. It seems to me that Topinka executed a masterstroke in picking him and thus indicating that his rugged views on society and law enforcement will at least be given high visibility in her administration. There also was a feeble attempt with a few phone calls to register the old Rolando Cruz argument—but time has passed on that issue: indeed, it has grown whiskers. Birkett’s smooth handling of a possible embarrassing situation with Rod McCollough and the bogus voter lists showed me how adroit he has become in the handling of touchy issues. As the only one in the Conservative Summit who voted for Birkett for governor, I left the studio convinced that I was right all along—indeed, prescient. But then I was brought down to earth by my wife who also likes Birkett but who said I ought to stop thinking about how smart I was and get home and take out ash cans for garbage pickup in Park Ridge.
All of this is not to negate the man who drives conservatives nuts and who sets all ten lines to burning brightly with his provocative yet astute assessments, Mike Noonan. It’s always a good day for me when Noonan agrees to be on the show. Now that we won’t be hearing any more from the Bears for a year, I plan to have him hold up the liberal end quite often.
The only thing Birkett could thrust into the campaign of Judy Topinka's run for Governor, is more corruption. Birkett could not clean up corruption even if he wanted to. He had an opportunity, in 1998 during a Public Corruption Investigation, his office investigated. He was the only one high enough, to order the cancellation of the indictments of the County Administrator, and County Board Members, who were most likely part of the Transportation Committee of 1987. This was all over the buried paint striper, that was unearthed during the summer of 1998. The County then announced, that the site had no contamination. That was a bald-face lie, and I have a document from environment section of the Attorney General's Office, posted on my document page. I have a delightful story of how DuPage County treats Purple Heart Veterans of which, I am one of them. The have a history of discrimination and is aimed at Veterans, as well as people who have ever worked for union shops. My termination was mainly because I was in favor of union representation. DuPage County is a "Cesspool of Corruption. Go to my Birkett Corruption page and see if you would vote for a man like this? http://www.tomrodeffer.com/birkettcorruption.html.
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