Posted on 04/01/2004 9:39:10 AM PST by keyd
Illinois LP demands that Republicans abide by election law
Under Illinois law, President Bush should not be allowed to run for re-election on the Republican ticket in that state. Illinois
Libertarian Party chair Jeff Trigg is trying to convince state election officials either to uphold the law by keeping Bush off the
ballot or to change the law to eliminate the obstacles for all candidates.
"They need to live by the rules which they wrote," Trigg said. "They made their bed and now they must lie in it by petitioning
to get on the ballot just like they require of us."
By the time Bush is nominated by the Republican convention in September, the August deadline to get on the Illinois ballot will
have passed.
So either the president should have to get on the ballot as an independent -- as the law approved in 2003 requires -- or the law
should be changed for all political parties, Trigg noted.
On March 25, the state Senate unanimously approved a bill that would allow candidates from only the two major political parties
to be nominated after the filing deadline, while leaving the requirements the same for all other candidates.
"This doesn't change the deadline; it just lets them ignore it for 2004," Trigg said. "To write this into our law just for one
candidate and just for one election is nothing less than favoritism and a mockery of the principles of democracy."
Republicans knew the deadline in Illinois before they set their convention date, but "deliberately ignored the rule of law and
arrogantly expected the law to be changed just for them," Trigg noted.
In a March 30 press conference, while demanding that the Illinois House and Governor Blagojevich reject Senate Bill 2123, Trigg
also asked that the Legislature lower the petition signature requirements for independent and minor party candidates.
The Republicans and Democrats have written the law to make access extremely difficult for third-party candidates. For example,
in the race for U.S. House District 1, the Republicans need 196 signatures to get on the ballot, while "new parties" and
independents need 9,793 signatures, he said.
In neighboring states -- Missouri and Wisconsin -- 10,000 signatures "would allow a political party to run for every partisan
office in the state, so our demand is more than reasonable," Trigg said.
"In fact, with two-thirds of all General Assembly races unopposed in 2004, Illinois should be copying those states' election
laws so more voters in Illinois will actually have a choice on the ballot."
Current state law will force the Libertarian Party to collect about 50,000 petition signatures in 90 days just to run for the
president and U.S. Senate seats, making Illinois's restrictive ballot access one of the worst in the nation, Trigg said.
Libertarians running in Illinois races in 2002 got enough votes that in 39 other states they would automatically have
"established party" status, with full access to all partisan races.
Instead, due to the restrictive laws, Libertarians will spend about 2,000 work hours to collect signatures for ballot access --
forcing "money and volunteer effort to be spent on getting on the ballot instead of educating voters and promoting candidates and
policies," Trigg said.
And it gets even worse, he noted.
In 1998, then Secretary of State George Ryan, who was running for governor, used employees in his office on the petition
challenge that knocked Libertarian candidates off the ballot. He was recently indicted for improper use of state resources.
"The Republicans have shown they will even break the laws … in order to remove us from the ballot, so they need to live by the
laws they create without getting special rights," Trigg said.
(Excerpt) Read more at lp.org ...
We will just let your rant stand on it's own merits ...
Under LP platform, you could legally marry your cellmate.
You posted the goofy picture of a guy who ran for public office in a small population state a long time ago in an effort to discredit and ridicule Libertarians.
You don't like it when it gets thrown back in your face.
GWB is not corrupt, nor is he the cause of the IL corruption.
No, you are. You and everyone in the Republican party who didn't stay home and not vote for Ryan. I'll speculate you gave them money.
Anything for power.
Like building a better wine cellar using illegal alien labor?
You are back on ignore.
----------------------------------------------------------
He made his own concoction by electrically charging a couple of silver wires in a glass of water.
His skin began turning blue-gray a year ago.
"People ask me if it's permanent and if I'm dead," he said. "I tell them I'm practicing for Halloween."
He does not take the supplement any longer, but the skin condition, called argyria, is permanent. The condition is generally not serious.
Colloidal silver dietary supplements are marketed widely as an anti-bacterial agent or immune-system booster, but some consider it quackery.
Posts like this are why L's are considered whacky.
Let me again first note that I have nothing to do with the LP. Having said that, let me note that neither the LP nor the Democrats are currently keeping Bush off the ballot. The Reflublicans did that by scheduling their convention for after the deadline in long-standing Illinois election law. What you're asking to be done here is for the citizens of Illinois to change their election law after the fact to accomodate the GOP. There's a difference. I say, "Tough." If the GOP wants to be that arrogant, or stupid, let them do a write-in campaign. Bet they'll check the laws next time.
Right arm, dude! You know what I enjoy about my job? Everyday, I get to ask folks, "Will that be paper or plastic?"
Pretty cool, eh?
What's that got to do with anything? The GOP flubbed this big time. They decided to move their convention from it's traditional dates and didn't do due diligence. Last time I checked, people are supposed to pay for their mistakes. What, GOP voters in Illinois are illiterate and can't write "George Bush" on a ballot?
ARE YOU A PROUD SUPPORTER OF THE WAR ON DRUGS LIKE YOUR LIBERTARIAN GUBERNATORAL NOMINEE CAL SKINNER IS?
"Libertarian" Cal Skinner
"Not only do I love the war on drugs, I oppose legalizing ALL "victim less" crimes... oh,and I support the death penalty, and I support border control, and I support term limits for everyone but me..."
And I do not support the WOD. And I don't need anyone else to join me in that opposition to validate it.
Now run along son.
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.