Should Scott Cohen Drop Out?

by: Suzanne

Thu Feb 04, 2010 at 12:56:39 PM CST


It's been reported that Governor Quinn expects Cohen to drop out of the Lt. Governor's race because of allegations he abused a woman. This story is deeper than that. At least for now, Cohen may be a position of power. Will he be able to leverage it?

Suzanne :: Should Scott Cohen Drop Out?
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Should Scott Cohen Drop Out? | 68 comments
yes... n/t (0.00 / 0)


"We have a lot of kids on the ground acting like adults and we have a lot of adults in this room acting like kids," President Obama told his advisors about all the infighting
Is that yes and yes? n/t (0.00 / 0)


Jeff Wegerson
[ Parent ]
yes, he should drop out... (0.00 / 0)
his ability to leverage whatever power he thinks he has is directly related to his willingness to be cast in the harshest light possible (and his complete independence of how that effects people's views of the democratic party)...

"We have a lot of kids on the ground acting like adults and we have a lot of adults in this room acting like kids," President Obama told his advisors about all the infighting
[ Parent ]
I sorta picture him haggling (0.00 / 0)
"I paid over $2 million for your valued possession. And I know it slipped out of your family's control due to exigent circumstances. There's always a sob story.

"But your problem Mr. Governor and Mr. Speaker is you ain't the only bidders in town. You gotta cover my costs, plus a fee and outbid those Republican assholes too.

"Life's tough. A man's gotta make a living."

[ Parent ]
He has no motivation (0.00 / 0)
for dropping out -- as far as I can tell, he was up front about the police record from the beginning.  So how exactly does he get shamed into dropping out when the problem was other people not paying attention?

I think Carl's right about how it will go down.  I also think Quinn will make Madigan deal with it, and Madigan will hate it.  

should Cohen fiasco cause MJM to resign as chair of the party? (4.00 / 1)
I found the argument persuasive that Michael J. Madigan's myopic approach to being chairman of the Illinois Democratic Party is partially to blame for Scott Lee Cohen slipping through the primary without his issue being addressed.

Should we organize petitions, Facebook groups and the like demanding that part of the resolution be that MJM give up his role as chairman of the party to someone who will take a more balanced approach to supporting Democratic candidates?

[ Parent ]
And if we did organize petitions (4.00 / 1)
and Facebook groups and the like would it do a damn bit of good?  Would anyone on the State Central Committee listen and actually bring it up as a topic of discussion?  
[ Parent ]
Right (4.00 / 2)
The way to get rid of Madigan is by electing a state central committee with the guts to build a real statewide party.  We missed the chance to do that two days ago.  I can't even find the results of that election online.

Did anyone ask the state central committee candidates in their area who they're supporting for state party chair?  

[ Parent ]
I think this situation will help with that... (0.00 / 0)
but it's not too many years past the LaRouchies and we have the same problem, so, maybe not.
[ Parent ]
Also (4.00 / 1)
Here's another good reason
http://www.thereisaway.us/2010...
[ Parent ]
I had to look up Bill Brandt's website... (3.00 / 1)
to find that Dan Pierce won in the 10th CD.
[ Parent ]
You should complain to the newspapers. (4.00 / 1)
The media in this town should get a lot of grief over their continual slip-shod reporting of politics.  it ids only when something like this finally breaks, after the election, that these jackyls go into pack journalism mode.  If the TV stations had spent half their newstime the last four months investigating candidates that they spend standing in front of murder scene crime tape, the details of Cohen's past would have become public knowledge and many people and groups that backed him may well have chosen someone else.
[ Parent ]
You might as well complain about the weather being cold... (0.00 / 0)
in the winter here.
[ Parent ]
Uh, Randy Baby... (0.00 / 0)
The Illinois Committee for Honest Government endorsed Cohen. Any comments on that?
[ Parent ]
2 comments earlier than yours (0.00 / 0)
[ Parent ]
Unfortunately, most of them... (3.00 / 1)
...at least in the Congressional Districts in Chicago that have the majority of the weighted vote, ran uncontested.

As a result, Madigan still has fellow cheerleaders/committee members like James DeLeo and Cynthia Santos in the 5th District, Carol Ronen and Billy Marovitz in the 9th, Bobby Rush in the 1st, Carrie Austin in the 2nd, Helen Ozima Barc (a resident of Madigan's 13th Ward) in Madigan's own 3rd District, Iris Martinez in the 4th, and Madigan himself in the 3rd... all of whom ran unopposed.  I believe their weighted votes alone are enough to re-elect Mike Madigan for another four-year term as State Party Chairman.

[ Parent ]
Of course, if someone progressive enough... (4.00 / 2)
brave enough, wealthy enough and/or known enough ran for an unpaid job in a district the size of a congressional district, and enough of those people won to control the party, they'd also have to get enough 'average' people, who thought it mattered, to fund it in any kind of meaningful way, since Madigan's not going to fund anything not controlled by him.

A tall order, if you ask me.  But one that Howard Dean proved is important, IMHO.

[ Parent ]
And Madigan will also have Jen Laesch from the 14th... (3.00 / 1)
..to contend with. Jen is doing the kind of thing that progressives should be doing. Instead of bemoaning the fact that Obama isn't the amazing president we all had hoped for in the best possible universe, work to make that political universe better... starting with our state and local Dem parties.

Great start, Jen!

[ Parent ]
state central committee (4.00 / 3)
As someone who's run for and been on the state central committee, my guess would be that less than 5% of Illinois registered voters know what that entity is. Perhaps as low as 1%. Voters have some awareness that there is a state party. Who runs it and how they get into office, not so sure.

I was asked variants on "the Madigan question" throughout the campaign by everyone from average voters to newspapers (actually, there were two, contradictory questions people wanted me to answer "correctly," the first being to assure them that I would oppose Madigan, and the second being to assure them that I could work with him in order to deliver for my district). I stressed that focus on the individual -- and especially changing laws because of one individual, as was done with the primary date for Barack -- is wrong. I would remind folks that Madigan is not just Speaker but party chair (and ward committeeman). His power derives in part from the multiple positions.

"If you think Madigan is the problem," I would challenge folks, "don't lay it on state reps, don't put it all on them -- especially potential freshmen -- to go down and put their neck and their district on the chopping block legislatively. Run state central committee candidates. Change the party."

I could not help but note that one of my competitors in my recent race was the same age I was when I ran for SCC, the difference being that I took on an established power.

The irony of political participation is that the greatest volunteer participation occurs in the biggest, most well-funded races -- starting with POTUS -- that need it the least, and where the volunteer's impact is the smallest. If progressives are serious about change, they must run and participate in the smallest of races, starting with the unpaid post of committeeman.

[ Parent ]
The 14th Congressional district elected an excellent progressive.. (4.00 / 1)
.. to the Dem Central Committee: Jen Laesch. Congratulations to her, and to the party. She is a great counter-example to the bitch and whine liberals, who are simply throwing up their hands, dropping out, giving up on the party instead of trying to change it, or better yet, trying to take it over.

You make an excellent point about who can be the drivers of the Party. Until any third party gets serious, i.e., long term strategy targeting a couple dozen Congressional districts to get 5-10 seats over a decade, third parties will be nothing but a waste of time in state or national elections.

Make the Democratic party more democratic...

[ Parent ]
Better thing to do is to pass petitions for the 'Fair Map'... (0.00 / 0)
amendment, and take some power out of the Four Tops hands.
[ Parent ]
I Suppose A Fella Can Dream, Can't He? (0.00 / 0)
But Madigan won't leave unless he's indicted or decides he can live on that Bahama Out Island our dollars pay for ...
[ Parent ]
Or, until enough people insist that they won't vote for his... (0.00 / 0)
daughter for, say, Governor, if he's still S.O.H.
[ Parent ]
Except I Kinda LIKE Lisa (0.00 / 0)
She showed she had the most brains in the family by deciding not to run for Governor this go-round, IMHO. Points in my book.
[ Parent ]
It's not about Lisa... (0.00 / 0)
It's about Mr. Madigan.
[ Parent ]
The insight I got today makes me disagree... (0.00 / 0)
but then again, we're all speculating without much info about Mr. Cohen, which is what over 210,000 Illinoisans have already done, so who are we to take a different path?
[ Parent ]
First of all... (0.00 / 0)
...the poll should give people a choice, even if your mind is already made up.

Therre are some new developments that have come out from his divorce papers.  It doesn't look very pleasant.  All I can say right now is that it is about another three weeks before the State Board of Elections formally proclaims the statewide results (at which point Scott Lee Cohen officially becomes the Democratic nominee for Lt. Governor).  

If this mess continues to that point, then Michael Madigan and Democratic Party officials may have to find a way to pay off the loans to the Cohen campaign (I believe about $2 million to this point, all owed to the candidate).  I have to assume that Cohen ould be receptive to a solution should it become neccessary.  

Should Cohen withdraw as a candidate, the replacement must be someone other then the five men Cohen defeated.  We would need a fresh face, one that clearly has avoided any sort of ethical or other problems such as those facing Mr. Cohen right now.

How much fresher (0.00 / 0)
a face is there than Thomas Castillo?  What ethical or other problems do you see in him?  

I don't see being an underfunded, first-time candidate as a big issue.

Not that I see the Democratic Party of Illinois actually picking him -- but I do object to your outright dismissal of him.

[ Parent ]
Not true, as Mr. Cohen can drop out all the way up to the day before... (0.00 / 0)
the election and the State Central Committee could replace him with anyone they want.

What makes you say that it "must be someone other then the five men Cohen defeated."?  You're more than welcome to express your opinion about it, but those of us who disagree with your choice of Mr. Berrios as Assessor may want to disagree with it.

[ Parent ]
Perhaps my choice for Assessor should have been Shaw? (0.00 / 0)
No thanks.  As for Figueroa, it was clear to me and others within the Illinois committee for Honest Government that he was more interested in continuing his decades-long feud with berrios than in actually wanting to serve as Assessor (which may explain why he finished last).  Now had Andrea Raila or Eugene Staples remained on the ballot, the ICHG might have reached a different endorsement action.  But unlike some other political groups, we prefer to deal with the real world and the real choices presented to us.
[ Parent ]
No, of the three, you should have chosen Figueroa... (4.00 / 2)
or no one.  If your group is about "Honest Government".  And, as you won't admit, there is no "others" in IC'HG', just Mr. Avila and you, who have vested interests.

Just admit it, and others will stop pointing it out.

[ Parent ]
Bob, when the ICHG issues its endorsements... (0.00 / 0)
...we call on voters to utilize our Endorsement List as a guide, not as THE guide.  I have been thru too many elections to be foolish enough to claim that our choices are perfect.  There have been many times in the past where I came to rue an endorsement (the top example prior to this year would have been endorsing Richard M. Daley for Mayor in 1989, having believed that Daley would have an open administration).

Hopefully Joe Berrios has had a Chester A. Arthur experience with his campaign claims to work on behalf of the average property owner.  (History buffs will recall that Arthur, who had been the product of one of the more corrupt political machines of his time, championed the enactment of Civil Service in federal government after succeeding the assassinated James Garfield as President in 1881.) If Berrios' claims turn out to be a bunch of lies, he will almost certainly face a credible challenger in 2014.

[ Parent ]
His quote from the Tribune. (4.00 / 1)
"I have no intention of stepping down or stepping aside. When the facts come to light, after my ex-wife and ex-girlfriend speak, the people of Illinois can decide, and I will listen to them directly. I am asking my ex-wife and ex-girlfriend to come forward and to talk with the media.

There are questions, and I will provide all answers honestly and openly. I only ask for time to do the interviews. 2005 was a difficult time in my life. I was going through a divorce, and I started running with a fast group. I was in a tumultuous relationship with the woman I was dating. We had a fight, but I never touched her. She called the police, however, she never came to court, and the charges were dismissed. I realized this relationship was not healthy, I ended it, and we parted amicably."

(Italics added by me.)

This doesn't sound like a guy who's going to hold people up for $2 million.  It sounds like a niave first time candidate who has no real idea what he's in for if he doesn't drop out.  My feeling is that this will be worked out, sooner I hope than later.  But the more focus on Brady and HIS running mate by us, probably the better.

[ Parent ]
This is a guy (0.00 / 0)
who doesn't realize that the voters don't get to vote for him stand-alone in the general, that he's tied to Quinn.  
[ Parent ]
Oh, I think he gets it n/t (0.00 / 0)

[ Parent ]
the ideal press conference (4.00 / 1)
...usually doesn't include one's ex-wife and ex-girlfriend. I'm just sayin'.

Devil's advocate department: a lot of Illinoisans probably have some exes who've said some crazy stuff. And if we rule out everyone whose past love life is fractured, we'd have a very small pool of public servants. And I generally disfavor the use of divorce records in political campaigns. Still, it's a little bit... I think the term is "off-message."

[ Parent ]
Feel Free to post your own diary with it's own poll. n/t (3.00 / 1)


Jeff Wegerson
[ Parent ]
Ok, the divorce papers stuff (0.00 / 0)
is really bad -- I think he's going to be forced to go sooner rather than later.  

Mike Madigan did a really crappy job with this race.  And Mell's organization really knows how to pick some winners, doesn't it?

Can we say JACK!? But will the Illinois Democratic Party bring in Alan Keyes to be the savior? >Snark<

Scott Lee Cohen on 'Chicago Tonight' tonight. n/t (0.00 / 0)

Well, that was interesting. n/t (0.00 / 0)

[ Parent ]
The ironies abound (0.00 / 0)
I don't believe for a minute that the party was asleep on this one; rather I think they made a calculation early on and determined that challenging Scott's petition and/or his character had a low ROI because, well, who would vote for the guy, right?

I get that. Sort of. He's not polished and he has more than a few skeletons that make him unpalatable for the chicken dinner circuit but the fact remains Scott caught the powers that be flat-footed and now they're scrambling.

Calling for a flag after the fact that he won the election is not only petulant, it's a variant of the arrogance that enabled the party to discount his candidacy in the first place.

The state party is fatally disconnected from voters and the Democratic brand has been decimated by years of scandal, every one of them more detrimental and damaging to the public trust than Scott's turbulent personal life.

Tucked in this controversy is the potential for a real win-win. Oddly, in this moment, I'm more confident that Scott will identify it and act on it than party leaders.  

Here's the way I see it. (4.00 / 2)
You are correct about the condition the Democratic brand. But unfortunately as far as the electorate can tell there is only one other brand for them to choose from and that's the Republican brand. Progressives and independents don't have a brand that most voters can see.

Are Quinn and Preckwinkle independents? Well we pretty much consider them such but are they members of an "indpendent brand?" No. And until we can begin branding a group of candidates and politicians and market that brand as a brand name then voters will continue to see-saw back and forth between the Democrats and the Republicans.

And I am quite aware that real third parties are non-starters within the constituted system.

Jeff Wegerson

[ Parent ]
Actually, there is a third (0.00 / 0)
It's the shadow "brand," a third party if you will, and it now constitutes the reliable majority. This party attracts more voters than the Democrats and Republicans put together and has, arguably, won almost every election.

It's the party of voters who stay home, the voters who rationally calculate that their time is better spent doing just about anything else other than voting.

The majority of voters no longer see voting as agency for the their own self-interest (or their families or their communities) and who no longer believe voting is a viable venue for  democratic revolt.

The power of voting has been diluted and I think, kind a like gin, people just don't buy the watered down stuff, you know?

[ Parent ]
So you describe (0.00 / 0)
a constituency waiting to be sold our new and improved independent progressive brand politics. So not only could a successful third brand (fourth counting the tea partiers) begind to take votes from the see-saw voters but also the voters waiting around for new playground equipment.

And IVI-IPO could be the core and/or catalyst of this new brand in Illinois.

Couldn't it? Shouldn't it.

Jeff Wegerson

[ Parent ]
May Not Be Possible (0.00 / 0)
I don't ascribe any of these characteristics to these voters and I don't assume them to be "ours." Not enough information to describe them beyond their disengagement and disaffection.

Can this pool be activated? Yes. Obama took about a third of them. But look what it took. Could a charismatic Republican come along and capture as many of them as Obama did. Of course.

Not understanding or not preparing for this is what makes state Dem Party politics so shortsighted in my opinion. In lieu of strategy and capacity building, the party appears to have invested 100% of its portfolio in suppressing voter turnout and discouraging primary competition, leaving it with no development plan and no message that matters, just history and it's one that's getting ickier and stickier by the day.  

[ Parent ]
I don't assume (0.00 / 0)
that they are "ours" for the taking. But could they be sold our brand. You say Obama was able to sell them and you suggest an authoritarian populist could sell them but not us? Money I guess is the difference?

So I am left with the assumption that you think that for whatever reasons that this group is beyond our abilities to sell our brand of politics.

Jeff Wegerson

[ Parent ]
Not Beyond Our Reach (0.00 / 0)
..but difficult to persuade. It's difficult to restore trust. Sometimes you can't. Money has its utility but if it's the only fuel (see SLC) then I think it further erodes trust by commodifying elected office. Btw, authoritarian populists come in several flavors ;-)  
[ Parent ]
What? (0.00 / 0)
authoritarian populists come in several flavors

What, meaning some types can do the sell but others not?

I would be interested in hearing your run down of the various flavors.

Jeff Wegerson

[ Parent ]
I honestly don't know (0.00 / 0)
...what you're talking about. The Authoritarian populist (AP) flavor comment was a joke, meant only to point out that there are differences, that APs exist along the spectrum (maybe lefty lime, moderate mango, and raspberry right?)  
[ Parent ]
SHOULD He? DUH! (4.00 / 1)
WILL he?

THAT'S the real question ...

when your elevator speech... (4.00 / 1)
...includes the line, "I never put a knife to her throat," that's usually a good sign that your message may not be the most well-crafted to win in November.  
Yeah, but (0.00 / 0)
some clever PR and a couple hundred jobs at Chicago Cutlery and that quote becomes an asset. ;-)))
[ Parent ]
I think it cuts both ways (0.00 / 0)
n/t
[ Parent ]
(GrrroooOOOAAAANNNN....) (0.00 / 0)
Welcome back, by the way!
[ Parent ]
tell SLC to drop out... (0.00 / 0)

http://scottleecohen.com/CONTA...

he's asked us to give him our opinions...

"We have a lot of kids on the ground acting like adults and we have a lot of adults in this room acting like kids," President Obama told his advisors about all the infighting

I'm guessing that sympathetic requests from anxious... (0.00 / 0)
Dems will work best.

Just a guess.

[ Parent ]
From Channel 2 news: Scott LC wants out... (0.00 / 0)
Scott Lee Cohen 'Wants To Get Out' Of Lieutenant Governor's Nomination, Says Source

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/...

[ Parent ]
$629K to Grainger Terry (0.00 / 0)
...for about a year's worth of work on behalf of the Lt. Gov-elect. Dang, that's a lot of dough.  
Correction: Lt. Gov-nominee n/t (0.00 / 0)

[ Parent ]
forces that will push Cohen out (0.00 / 0)
Who runs the spas and massage parlors that are more-or-less openly known to be brothels?

Why aren't county or muncipal officials moving against these illegal institutions? Why can't the cops prove criminal activity?

Whether it's the mafia or not some form of organized crime makes money off these brothels.

While the specifics may be unknown, the local officials, including law enforcement, have some reason for not enforcing the law.

A bunch of people making lots of money and people who kill people with firearms have strong reason to avoid answering questions about these suburban brothels.

The Democratic Party has done plenty of favors for people in organized crime over the years.

Organized crime doesn't even have to kill Amanda Eneman and pin it on Scott Lee Cohen. Pawn shops carry insurance, right?

Someone tells the insurance companies they would be wise to discontinuing the insurance on SLC's pawn shops. Then a pawn shop gets burned down.

Once the situation gets explained to Scott Lee Cohen he will see that it's in his interests to resign the Dem nomination.

How about the apparent fact that the guy doesn't want... (0.00 / 0)
to hurt the Dems chances in Nov.?

I love the wild suppositions that fly around this blog, when reality, crazy as it is, apparently doesn't satisfy.

[ Parent ]
I think it will something less sinister than that. (3.50 / 2)
As Secretary/Treasurer of the Illinois Committee for Honest Government, I am preparing a letter to send to Cohen informing him that we have taken the extraordinary action (for us, at least) of revoking our endorsement of his candidacy.  In that letter, I will also inform him that he should step down as the Democratic Party's nominee for Lieutenant Governor without delay.

Since there are reports that Cohen is looking for a face-saving way to withdrawl as the candidate, I will inform him that the stress he has been feeling to this point is only a fraction of what he would have to endure between now and November 2.  Putting everything else aside for the moment, that stress (for that length of time) has the very real potential to inflict physical harm to Cohen.  Thus Cohen could cite potential health concerns as a legitimate reason for stepping aside as the Democratic candidate for Lieutenant Governor.

[ Parent ]
Thinking like a thug not the FBI (0.00 / 0)
The guy owns a pawn shop.  Has he now or ever accepted stolen goods?  A business that does a lot of cash transactions is ripe for tax fraud.  How good are his books and can he withstand a massive tax audit?  How about his brother's books?
I am sure the press will want to look into some of these questions when the more salacious ones get old in a week or two.  Apparently hitting him in the pocket book will have more meaning than attacking his character.  
[ Parent ]
SLC may be immune from the threat of firing his kin (0.00 / 0)
But he can be touched.
[ Parent ]
I hear that the only thing that might bring him down... (0.00 / 0)
is Gold Kryptonite!
[ Parent ]
You geeky guys sure (0.00 / 0)
know how to reduce a flight of fancy to the mundane.

Jeff Wegerson
[ Parent ]
This Ain't As Crazy As It Sounds (0.00 / 0)
I'm not sayin' I've heard that some of SLC's 'friends' have other 'friends' who do things that make certain 'friends' disappear or anythin' ...

... I'm just sayin', word on the street about some of SLC's less savory connections don't make this as big a leap as you might presume it is.

[ Parent ]
The record of some cops in Chicago is mighty unsavory - you're right! (0.00 / 0)
I've been mulling over the cases like Drew Peterson, who possibly has killed and gotten away with it, and the cops who killed innocent people while driving while drunk, and the cop caught on tape beating up a barmaid. I was thinking Cohen hadn't caused deaths by his behavior...but the idea of his warchest possibly coming from unsavory sources that are being tolerated for profit is worth being investigated and exposed!
[ Parent ]
Should Scott Cohen Drop Out? | 68 comments
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