1996 Candidate Free Time; No. 103

. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. It's almost election day, and with television's political ads, commentary, sound bites and spin, you still may have no idea who deserves your vote. Invest 30 minutes and will help. WTTW Channel 11 is providing two minutes of free, unedited television time to major candidates for federal and local offices. Candidate free time allows candidates to speak directly to voters, and gives voters a concise, unfiltered look at their choices. ..

The job of the Cook County State's Attorney is to prosecute criminal cases, represent the taxpayers' interest in civil cases, protect children and senior citizens from exploitation, abuse, and neglect, and to enhance public safety. ... The candidates for Cook County State's Attorney are Democrat Richard A. Divine, independent candidate R. Eugene Pincham, and Republican Jack O'Malley. The order of the candidate's appearance was determined by a random drawing. Jack O'Malley is a Republican from Chicago. He's running for reelection as Cook County State's Attorney and is 45 years old. I'm Jack O'Malley. The work you have allowed me to do as State's Attorney has been the most rewarding of my life, with the help of a highly competent team of assistant state's attorneys and staff. We have made progress in every conceivable area from violent crime to child support and violence prevention. We are working to make Cook County a better place. Since I took office in 1990, we have sent a record number of violent criminals to prison for record lengths of time. And now a murder of violent crime in Cook County has treated the same as a murder of violent crime in Peoria or anywhere else in the state, and that's the way it should be.

When I took office, murderers and violent criminals served less than half their sentences. That was wrong. We changed it. We said no early release for violent criminals, and we won truth in sentencing to ensure it. We used and will continue to use every possible tool to take down gang leaders and drug dealers. Our gang unit expanded to include the suburbs and increase the number of gang members prosecuted by over 200%. We completed a record number of major long-term gang narcotic investigations. We used wire taps and other high-tech tools that had never been used in Illinois, and we closed hundreds of dope houses. We made combatting juvenile crime and child abuse priorities in the state's attorney's office. We created a juvenile justice bureau with experienced prosecutors and increased our staff there by over 60%. We got serious about collecting child support and started throwing the book at deadbeat parents. We increased collections up to $132 million. And perhaps most importantly, we got everyone involved in efforts to stop domestic violence and prevent youth violence. We provided parents with anti-violence educational information, gave teachers anti-violence classes, and gave domestic violence victims the information they need to take violence out of their lives.

How have we done all this? A simple formula. Higher the best, promote the best, and give it everything you have to give. As state's attorney, I'm ready to face tomorrow's challenges. I hope he will back me, Jack O'Malley, for state's attorney on November 5th. R.U. Gene Pincham is an independent candidate from Chicago. He's a retired justice of the Illinois appellate court and is 71 years old. My name is R.U. Gene Pincham, and I am a candidate for Cook County State's Attorney in the November 5th election. I respectfully ask for your support and vote. From my 45 years' experiences in the legal profession, I have learned and I thoroughly understand that the Cook County Justice System, its ailments, and its infirmities. I was a trial and appellate attorney for over 32 years. I have tried thousands of cases and appealed over 250 cases with a success rate of over 85%. I was elected to the circuit court in a sign for eight years to the criminal division, where I tried and presided over the trial of thousands of cases.

I was a justice of the appellate court for six years, during which I authored hundreds of opinions. Over the past 30 years, I have taught law at the nation's major university law schools. I know that to effectively fight crime, drugs, gangs, and to make our streets safe for our citizens, the state's attorney's office must be depolarized. The office must cease being the office to further the higher political goals of ambitious partisan politicians. A candidate for that office should promise and commit not to hold any elected office for five years after the expiration of his attorney's state's attorney. The designated number of assistant states attorney positions should be made official career slots, so that experienced and trained prosecutors would be motivated to continue public service in that office. The state's attorney's office must have integrity. I would be honest and candid with the people, and I will not explore the people's fears, biases, and apprehensions. I will go into our schools and communities and use the influence of the office to motivate compliance with and respect for the law among our youth and others.

I will personally undertake criminal trial prosecutions when appropriate. I will be a prosecutor who will obtain justice for the people, and I will serve the people. Again, I ask for your vote and your support. Richard Divine is a Democrat from Chicago. He's a partner with a law firm of Chef Ski, Frolick, and Divine, and is 53 years old. I'm Dick Divine, the Democratic nominee for Cook County State's attorney. I am seeking this office to lead the fight against gang leaders and drug dealers, and restore a sense of security to the people of Cook County. When I was first assistant state's attorney for Rich Daily, the office effectively represented the good people in the neighborhoods, and especially the victims of crime. It angers me to see what has happened to the neighborhoods and towns where gangs and drugs have spread in the last five years. Gang leaders even run their criminal operations from prison. But what has the Republican incumbent, Jack O'Malley, done? He sits on millions of dollars and drug forfeiture money, money which could and should be used to combat the gang leaders' dealing drugs, but he refuses to account for how he spends it.

All we know is that he used thousands of dollars to buy coffee mugs with his signature etched in gold. O'Malley has done less to fight crime while spending more of your money. His budget increased by more than 50% during his tenure, but the percentage of trial convictions decreased by 26%. This is unacceptable. Fighting gangs, guns, and drugs are my top priorities. When I was in the office, we established the gang crimes in narcotics units. We upgraded the juvenile division, and we put well-trained professionals into the courtrooms to represent the victims of crime. I will use the drug forfeiture money to go after gang leaders who deal drugs and to educate our children to stay away from drugs. While O'Malley allowed gang activity to spread, my initiative to stop gang kingpins from operating in prison was passed this year by the General Assembly. Jack O'Malley has shown himself to be a politician, hunting headlines instead of criminals. I have been and intend to be a real prosecutor. I respectfully ask you, the voters of Cook County, to give me a chance to make the state's attorney's office what it once was, a place that criminals fear and citizens respect.

The clerk of the circuit court serves the court, the legal profession, and the general public. The clerk records court decisions and events, handles financial transactions such as fines and bail bonds, and provides the court system with supportive services such as record storage and microfilming. The candidates for the clerk of the circuit court of Cook County are Democrat Aurelia M. Pachinsky and Republican Sandy Stavropoulos. The order of the candidate's appearance was determined by a Queensland. Aurelia Pachinsky is a Democrat from Chicago. She's running for reelection as the clerk of the circuit court, and is 49 years old. As clerk of the court, I manage the staff that handles the paperwork, information, and money in the world's largest unified court system. With 2,200 employees, my office provides service to every litigant, 37,000 attorneys, 400 judges, and all communities in Cook County. I'm chairman of the county committee that is recommended modern fingerprint technology for every suburb, and initiated planning for the comprehensive information system for criminal justice.

I'm the author of the county's Crime Prevention Policy. I was asked by the county board to design and implement a new unified online warrant system for the county, which I have done on time and on budget. I spend much of my own time on issues that are the heart of government by reorganizing our child abuse court staff to make it more efficient by cutting the time it takes for child support checks to get out, by starting direct deposit for child support money, by working with kids to prevent date violence and by improving our service to victims of domestic violence. I hope to help put focus on serious family issues that impact on all of us. I initiated a youth peer jury program for non-violent youth offenders, implemented the county's first code of ethics, hired the county's first inspector general, reduced over time, started flex time scheduling, developed objective tests for managers, started work on a better traffic court system, reduced reliance on property taxes, and cut costs. My staff is smaller than when I was first elected, but we do twice as many case events, 14 million. I said I'd be tough, but fair, and I am. I said I'd do more with less, and I have. I'm asking for reelection is clerk of the court. I'm asking for your vote, November 5th.

Sandy Stepropoulos is a Republican from Orland Park. She's an attorney and is 42 years old. Hi, my name is Sandy Stepropoulos, and I'm the Republican candidate for clerk of the circuit court of Cook County. I have been a practicing attorney for the last 16 years. 14 of those years have been spent as a Cook County prosecutor. The last two as a supervisor in the Child Protection Division, where I oversee 15 court rooms manned by approximately 50 attorneys handling close to 45,000 child abuse and neglect cases from all over Cook County. I've never had any dealings with the clerk's office here in Cook County, as I have. You have most likely come away from the experience, feeling as though you were an inconvenience, rather than a valued customer. Your questions may have gone unanswered. Your requests ignored. Your documents mishandled or lost. Well, just what is behind these problems? The answer is simple.

Low morale. Low morale fosters irresponsibility towards one's duties, inefficiency, dissension, and disrespect towards those one is hired to serve, which in this case are the citizens of Cook County. If elected clerk of the circuit court, my top priority would be a total overhaul of the management style being utilized within that office. Everyone in that office is part of the same team from the clerk herself, on down the line. Fair treatment fosters cohesiveness, loyalty, diligence, and accountability. All things which would vastly improve service to the citizens of Cook County. For too long now, the emphasis has been on supposed technological improvements. Don't get me wrong. Modernization is fine. But not at the expense of the primary responsibility of that office. That being efficient and courteous service to all those who use our court system. It's time to make the clerk's office a user-friendly environment that offices there to serve you, the citizens of Cook County, and let someone who will never lose sight of that mission vote for me, Sandy Stevropoulos, on November 5th.

The job of the Cook County Recorder of Deeds is to record, store, and retrieve property transfers and other public records, and to make them available to the public. The candidates for Cook County Recorder of Deeds are Democrat Jesse White and Republican Patrick Dwyer. The order of the candidate's appearance was determined by a Queensland. Jesse White is a Democrat from Chicago. He's running for reelection as Cook County Recorder of Deeds and is 62 years old. My name is Jesse White. I'm the Cook County Recorder of Deeds. Many of you know me as the coach and founder of the Jesse White Tumick team. I served 16 years in the Illinois General Assembly, representing the most culturally, economically, and racially diverse district in Illinois. I was a physical education teacher for 33 years, a professional baseball player in the Chicago Cubs organization, and a paratrooper with a hundred first airborne division. I have served as a Recorder of Deeds since 1992, and I am seeking re-election. I am proud of my first term in office. I have streamlined our operation so that we are now handling more documents with greater efficiency and speed with fewer employees. I open suburban offices and extended working hours for greater convenience. I established quality assurance procedures and created a customer service department to help those individuals who need special assistance.

In December 1994, I replaced our outdated system of categorizing recorded documents with a new state of the art computerized document database. This new computer system is now saving the county over $2.5 million. Each year in addition, it will generate an additional $500,000 per year by making available and online service to fee paying customers. This will allow customers to access our database from the convenience of the home or office. I have been able to do all of this, generate over $100 billion for the county of Cook in three years. Record over 3 million documents, and still reduce my staff by 13%. In three short years, my administration has made great strides in making this office more customer-friendly, more accessible, and most importantly, preparing for the needs of the 12.

For the needs of the 21st century. Thank you for giving me the opportunity to serve you, and I look forward to working for you as the Cook County Record of Deeds for the next four years. Patrick Dwyer is a Republican from Chicago. He's currently an administrator in the state office of banks and real estate, and is 28 years old. Hello, my name is Patrick Dwyer, candidate for Cook County Record of Deeds. For a good many years, we as citizens of Cook County have heard empty promises of automation and efficiency for our recorder's office. During this time period, a revolution has transpired in computer technology, a revolution which has left our recorder's office out of date and out of touch. I make no claim to be a systems engineer capable of designing and implementing computer systems, and neither an off-fearness does the incumbent recorder. Our difference lies in how we as non-computer professionals would manage a 263-person staff, whose primary function is to maintain a sizeable computer database. The incumbents for your management style is on public display. He staphs his office with politically connected friends of friends, and contracts out to consultants the real work of the office. Yet another form of politics is usual in Cook County.

Crane Chicago reported that when the incumbent entered the recorder's office, it took seven business days to record a deed. It now takes 17 business days. We must do better. The revenues generated from recording fees have fallen drastically while the operating budget has continued to increase. While my job with the state office of banks and real estate gives me a clear understanding of the recorder's office, I will need the experience of others to assist in revamping the office. My top priority will be to recruit top computer personnel to upgrade the office from within. By using staff positions for professionals instead of patronage, all of the work being done by outside people can be brought in house. An effectively run recorder's office is in our public interest because it can generate surplus revenue for our county that can be used to hold the line or even offset property taxes. Now that's a win-win situation for all of Cook County. Let's stand together and changing local government as we know it. Most importantly, let's not sacrifice good government and exchange for entertainment any longer.

The Governor of Indiana serves a four-year term. The winner of this race will replace Governor Evan Bay, who has served two terms and is ineligible to run again. The candidates for Governor of Indiana are Democrat Franco Bannon and Republican Steve Goldsmith. Franklin Bannon did not participate in candidate three-time. Steve Goldsmith is a Republican from Indianapolis. He's currently the mayor of Indianapolis and is 49 years old. Oh, I'm Steve Goldsmith and I'm running for Governor in Indiana. This campaign offers a clear contrast on a range of issues. My belief is to get to the 21st century when he's smaller government, not bigger government. The first contrast in the biggest is on taxes. The time period that my opponent has been Lieutenant Governor in Indiana, property taxes have increased 100%. We can't afford it. We have a plan to dramatically reduce property taxes, to remove welfare from the property tax rate, to freeze the right of governments to continue to raise your property taxes. Secondly, on crime, I was a prosecutor for 12 years in Indianapolis. And in that period of time, I sent more felons away to prison than any prosecutor in Indiana's history. But the state keeps recycling those felons, particularly young juvenile delinquent predators back to our communities.

We need mandatory sentences and the state needs to keep those offenders locked up until they no longer can do harm. Third contrast infrastructure, the path to the future as economic development, economic development is founded on a good road system. We're proud of the fact that in the last four years in Indianapolis and the time I've been mayor, we invested over half billion dollars in roads and bridges. In the same period of time, when my opponent has been Lieutenant Governor, he's neglected the infrastructure, the highway system in northwest Indiana, my record is one of results. Our parents need more choices over where their children go to school. Our teachers need more discretion. We need more accountability in the system and more authority over what happens to our children. In this election for Governor in Indiana, there are two very different philosophies of government. Old style, big government approach in my opponent, the small government approach that we've taken in reducing the size of government in Indianapolis and lowering taxes and creating opportunity. When you go to vote in November for Governor in Indiana, my name is Steve Goldsmith and I'd appreciate your vote.

Indiana's first congressional district includes the city of Gary and portions of Lake and Porter counties. The candidates in Indiana's first congressional district are Democrat Pete Viscosky and Republican Michael Petio, the order of the candidate's appearance was determined by a coin flip. Michael Petio is a Republican from Hobart, Indiana. He's president and CEO of a residential and commercial remodeling company and is 47 years old. I'm Michael Petio, a family man, concerned about the future of my children, who's made the decision to ask the citizens of Indiana's first congressional district for the opportunity to be representative. Who and what is the problem facing us today? It's the career politician who spends their time and our money in Washington, D.C., dedicated preserving the status quo and unwilling to recognize the will of the people. But now is the time to get government off our backs, now is the time to get government out of our lives, and now is the time to get government out of our wallets. Who and what is the solution? You are. With the help of citizens and communities across the country who will stand up and hold their elected officials in Washington, D.C., accountable to our mandates for less intrusive and more efficient government.

My pledge to you today is this, a balanced budget for Americans children, Medicare reform for American seniors, tax cuts for American families, and welfare reform for American society. But until these reforms are implemented, the federal government, not the American people, will be in charge. It's time for Washington to quit using our concerns as an excuse to raise our taxes. Remember, there's not a single problem facing us today that cannot be solved by putting Americans back in charge. I'm running against Congressman Peter Viscolsky, who's voted 33 times to raise our taxes. I think it's time for a change. Thank you. Pete Biscolsky is a Democrat from Merrillville, Indiana. He's running for reelection as Congressman of the District, and is 47 years old. When I am in Washington, I do my job with no frills. I've never taken a junket. I have never voted myself a pay raise. I've never bounced a check at the house bank, and I voted to audit all of the house accounts. I've done these things because I know that the people of Northwest Indiana want a congressman and a government that is accountable. I'm glad to say that.

I have been successful in addressing the issues that are important to the people of Northwest Indiana. If I crime, I obtain funds to purchase bulletproof vest for every police officer in Northwest Indiana, who does not have one, a total of 600. I secured federal funding to purchase two military helicopters and night vision goggles for police surveillance. I also work to put 82 new police officers on our streets. I also voted for a constitutional amendment to balance the budget, and I helped write and co-sponsor the conservative coalition budget that will force the government to balance its budget by the year 2002. I voted for welfare reform that will cut $60 billion from the current system. The new program will move people from welfare to work by setting strict time limits for how long people can receive assistance. The reform I voted for is tough, but fair. I've worked to end government programs that pay large corporations to market products in foreign countries. These programs, which are nothing more than corporate welfare, send billions of your tax dollars to Fortune 500 companies.

I'm committed to the people of Northwest Indiana and am improving your quality of life. As your representative, I will continue to work to balance the budget, reform the welfare system, fight corporate welfare, and help our law enforcement officials, fight crime. Indiana's fifth congressional district includes the North Central portion of the state. The candidates in Indiana's fifth congressional district are Democrat Doug Clark and Republican Steve Bueer. Steve Bueer did not participate in candidate free time. Doug Clark is a Democrat from Winnipeg, Indiana. He's self-employed in the communications field, and is 25 years old. Good evening. My name is Doug Clark. I'm running for Congress in the fifth district of Indiana. I'm one of the youngest congressional candidates in the nation at 25. My hometown is Winnipeg, an agricultural community in Plaski County. I attended Valparaisal University, where I studied public relations and political science.

For the past three years, I did community relations work at the Plymouth School Corporation in Marshall County. I also coached the high school debate team. In May, I left my job to run for Congress full time. My campaign has been about putting people first. Rather than me tell you, I'd like to share with you a letter I received from a voter a few weeks ago. Dear Mr. Clark, I am writing to offer my support to your campaign. After listening to your views at the town meeting in Peru and weighing the past actions of Congressman Bueer, I feel you are the right person to represent what I believe is best for my country and my family. At the meeting, you asked each person to show their support by getting 10 votes for you. I have set my goal at 200. I have been promised three votes by veterans alone who want to stop losing what few benefits they have left. One area that impressed me was your position on labor. We need strong laws to keep large companies from moving to other countries and protect the future of our children. This is one area where Mr. Bueer has failed. Both the veteran and worker have not been supported by Mr. Bueer.

What impressed me the most was your promise to keep informed with the needs of the people. That is the one thing that Mr. Bueer has failed to do and has cost him the support of people like me. I feel that if you keep up your campaign to get out and meet the people of your district, you will be our next Congressman. If I can help, let me know. God bless and good luck. Dale Durham. My campaign is not about money. It's about people. I want to be your next U.S. representative. I will work hard for the working families in the fifth district. Please consider me this November 5th. Thank you. We hope candidate free time will help you make informed decisions at the polls. Most importantly, exercise your right and privilege to vote on Tuesday, November 5th. The candidate's statements of their own and WTTW is in no way responsible for the content.