Aftershocks: GOP needs a new darling to be relevant

GOP leaders are in a tizzy over the precipitous flameout of their Golden Boy, Congressman Aaron Schock, who resigned Tuesday amid endless financial shenanigans. Schock's new gig is trying to avoid jail. Likely, we won't see any pics of Schock's chiseled pecks on his Instagram account as he huddles fully clothed with legal council.

If Schock was the new 'face' of the GOP, they have zero chance of becoming relevant. If up to ...him, 16.4 million desperate folks would not have health care under the ACA; our Guantanamo Gulag would be busting at the seems; there wouldn't have been an economic stimulus which kick-started the spectacular Obama recovery. If up to him, considered the most closeted gay Congressman, gays would not be marrying and not serving in the military. Oh yes, Schock thinks water boarding, indeed all forms of torture are cool, and abortion is best reserved for the back alley.

But Aaron Schock did show us "You can play in Peoria." As of now he plays nowhere else.

Scorecard needed for 12 COD Board candidates

Getting folks to run for College of DuPage Board was no problem this year due to endless ongoing scandals, presidential hubris and an unanswered, unresolved NO CONFIDENCE vote by faculty. Fourteen started out and twelve made it to the ballot. How can one decide?

For starters, I excluded the four who are current/former incumbents or related to an incumbent. They had their chance to govern COD effectively and blew it; appearing to be both seduced and bullied by their primary employee, President Robert L. Breuder.

Of the eight others only two stand out: former six term state rep Sandy Pihos and COD alumnus, union member, union leader, and registered nurse, Dan Bailey. Pihos brings decades of commitment to education and a wealth of experience and knowledge of state government that will make it impossible for her to be bamboozled by Breuder and any successor. Bailey also has decades of community involvement and a passion for public service. He is the only candidate I've heard, besides Pihos, who has spoken up against the shameful lack of response to the COD Faculty Association's NO CONFIDENCE vote against the Breuder administration. For the other six, concern about faculty, the single most critical element in a successful educational institution, appears to be an afterthought.

While I'm still pondering my third and last vote, Sandy Pihos and Dan Bailey get my first two.

A Mulligan to the Mullahs

There are no do-overs for traitorous letters sent to foreign leaders to derail delicate negotiations designed to prevent the next Middle East war. But let's pretend the 47 GOP senators, signatories to that traitorous letter, were given a Mulligan, the golf term whereby after making a terrible shot, the owner yells "Mulligan," to take the shot over.  Here's how the senators' Mulligan might unfold:

Dear Iranian Mullahs:

Regarding that letter of March 9 you received, please be advised it never happened. We thought it was a joke cooked up by that goofy looking newbie senator Tom Cotton (R-AR). We just found out he's not playing with a full deck, given that his surname was shortened from Cottonforbrains.
The fact is we would never knowingly send a such an obvious act of treason to you or any other country. Sure we want to blast you to smithereens for remaining an existential threat to the country that really pays our salary: Israel. Collectively, we get millions of dollars from the Israel Lobby here in the good ol' USA to do their bidding and alas, that means you have to go. But we normally like to work in secret, behind the curtain of senatorial privilege and shadowy governmental machinations. So please disregard that letter which was due to the stress of being unable to destroy the presidency of man who doesn't love America, according to the sage of New York, Rudy Giuliani. Even though you're a signatory to the Nuclear Non Proliferation Treaty and have never attacked another country (unlike we who do all the time), we simply can't let you even think about a nuclear weapon. Just being years away from even one, would totally disrupt the balance of power with Israel which only has about 150 to defend itself. Besides, destroying Iran is in our DNA. Sixty-two years ago we got together with the Brits to overthrow your Prime Minister Mohammad Mosaddegh. Operation Boot, as it was known, sure gave the boot to that democratically Mosaddegh, who had the audacity to try and control his own oil reserves without consulting their real controllers, British Petroleum. OK, bye for now. But remember, tell the world this was simply all a big joke to see if the press and that guy who hates America were paying attention.

Burn after reading,
47 of the worst legislators money can buy