House Ethics Committee Dogs Rep. Jackson

Jordy Yager in The Hill reports on Rep. Jesse Jackson, Jr.’s ethics woes and the possibility it could wear him down during next year’s primary:

If the Ethics panel does investigate Jackson, the veteran lawmaker is likely to push for a speedy resolution, in order to get it behind him before the primary. A probe that runs through his March primary date without a verdict could leave voters with too many unanswered questions about whether they can trust Jackson at his word.

Veteran lawmaker Rep. Charles Rangel (D-N.Y.) was in a similar electoral predicament last year as he faced a looming ethics battle ahead of his primary and general election.

Rangel said in an interview with The Hill that one of the most difficult aspects of his campaign was the failure of the Ethics Committee to deliver a verdict on the charges against him.

Dave Wasserman, the House editor of The Cook Political Report, said that while Jackson’s ethics issues are going to be a thorn in his side, they are not going to seriously jeopardize his reelection. 

“There are usually enough ethics questions in Illinois or Chicago for one like this to get lost in the mix,” said Wasserman. “I don’t think he’s vulnerable unless the charges get more serious.”

Wasserman said that even if the Ethics Committee does not reach a verdict in Jackson’s case before his primary, the looming possibility of guilt won’t be enough to dissuade voters. 

Read more

Here’s some local perspective from Henry C. Jackson and Deanna Bellandi in The Herald News:

“He’s essentially been in hiding … the whole momentum of his role in government and politics has gone away,” said Dick Simpson, a former Chicago alderman who monitors Chicago politics closely as head of the political science department at the University of Illinois-Chicago. “People aren’t generally seeking his endorsement. There are some races where it might be important, but people are nervous about it, whereas before they’d be delighted.”

Halvorson’s decision to run against him is another sign that Jackson is no longer feared. A one-term member of Congress who lost her seat in 2010, she represented the new territory in Jackson’s district around Kankakee, about 25 percent of the voting base. She is expected to run a vigorous campaign, though the district is still packed with voters loyal to Jackson.

“We need a congressman who doesn’t have ethical distractions,” Halvorson said when she announced her campaign.

Given a viable alternative, some say they’re not sure they’ll vote for Jackson again.

“No matter what your name is or what family you come from in America, the democratic process is supposed to work and you should not be let off the hook for any reason,” said Brian Mullins, a real estate developer who voted for Jackson in 2010. He spoke down the street from storefront offices for Jackson and his wife, Chicago Ald. Sandi Jackson, which are emblazoned with their pictures. 

Read more

But, it’s not all bad if the President says he’s got your back, as Mary Ann Ahern reported in NBC Chicago:

“I met with the president’s campaign,”  the statement, which followed a Wednesday visit to DNC Offices, said. “We are in the process of coordinating the official endorsement and how our campaigns will move forward together … I’m grateful for the President’s support.”

The South Side congressman applied plenty of pressure. He walked straight up to President Obama during the Martin Luther King Memorial dedication on Oct. 16th and personally asked him for support. He made sure he had witnesses, too.    

A spokesman for Jackson says “his father (Reverenced Jesse Jackson) and sister Santita were present.”   Apparently it worked.

Read more

The staff of Politic365.

More on Politic365

• More than Just the Benjamins, Mr. Romney
• Why Oprah Is No Longer Part of the Big "O"
• Can the Government Mix Drugs and Post-Combat Stress?