My biggest fear is that it won't just be the GOP!
With Blago's opponent tanking, my guess is that Daley will have his precinct captains in the city flip 30 to 40 voters per precinct over to GOP ballots with instructions to vote for Topinka. That would make the guber race a WIN-WIN for Daley either way ... perhaps an even bigger win for Daley if Judas beats Blago.
I fear you're right. Daley's people covertly worked to get Lyin' Ryan votes in the city too. I'm pretty sure the Chicago Dem machine actually perfers Judas Topinka over "useful idiot" HotRod. She'd be able to enact the leftist agenda more skillfully than the inept stooge currently in office.
Another thing to watch out for is they are trying to sell Judy as a "fiscal conservative" (they always say "fiscal conservative" when someone favors banning guns, supports abortion in every circumstance, legalizing gay marriage, et. al.), we need to debunk this as well. I have to give Gidwitz credit for circulating a flyer debunking this lie. It notes:
-- As a state Senator, Judy Baar Topinka LEAD the fight to raise the state sales tax from 1% to 6.25% -- a tax increase of $753 million oa year on Illinois working families (Source: 1993 Illinois State Senate records, SB 1040 transcripts)
-- Since 1995, Topinka has DOUBLED the spending in her own treasurer's office budget. (Source: Illinois State Budget records, FY 1995-2006)
-- As state treasurer, Topinka has happily signed off on more than than $5.6 billion in debt to pay for additional state spending (Source: Commission on Government Accountablity onded Indebtedness Report 11/05)
Billyboy's Note: Let's remember she started her tenure a decade ago with Illinois enjoying a state SURPLUS during the Edgar years, then watched Lyin' Ryan' "borrow-and-spend" this state into obviviion and our "fiscal watchdog" gleefully SUPPORTED him every step of the way.
The Topinka people are going to whine that we're all intolerant "purists" and right-wing idelogues no matter what, so I really think conservatives in Illinois need to get together and make it clear that we don't "have" to have a candidate who agrees with us 100%, but rather we will vote for ANYONE BUT TOPINKA (even Gidwitz) in the general. The ICRC should pass a resolution to that effect and further make it clear that we will NOT support Topinka in the general elction under ANY circumstances.
If the RINO-Chicago Dem combine figures they could lose due to the GOP "base" staying home (unlike in 1998 when they duped half of the state's conservatives into voting for Ryan), they might not be so enthuestic for her anymore.