Ministers Back Stroger

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by Lesley R. Chinn

Before a standing room crowd on Tuesday at the historic Quinn AME Chapel, members of the Concerned Clergy for a Better Chicagoland (CCBC) chose incumbent Cook County Board resident Todd H. Stroger as the best candidate in the race.

Stroger is currently running against: Congressman Danny Davis; Cook County Circuit Court Clerk Dorothy Brown; and 4th Ward Ald. Toni Preckwinkle, who are all African- American and Terrence OBrien, president of the Metropolitan Water Reclamation District, who is White.

The ministers said they did not want to repeat the history of the past when they referred to the fragmented vote of the Black community in 1989 between interim Mayor Eugene Sawyer and then 4th Ward Ald. Tim Evans, now Cook County Judge who ran against then Cook County States Attorney Richard M. Daley. Sawyer and Evans, both Black, were defeated by Daley, a White candidate, who has been mayor ever since.

We believe through Todd Strogers candidacy, its an opportunity to keep the Democratic Party united and were asking them not to blow this opportunity by coming out against what we consider our political interests, stated Bro. Leonard Muhammad, who is a CCBC executive committee member and an adviser to Nation of Islam Min. Louis Farrakhan.

Since Stroger took office in 2006, he has managed to balance three budgets; increase minority contract participation from 25 to 35 percent; and he has kept the county health care system open. Stroger, with the support of Cook County Commissioner John Daley, passed a one penny on a dollar increase in Cook Countys portion of the State of Illinois sales tax increase. This move raised Cook Countys portion of the tax to 1.7%. However, the countys portion is lower than the various municipal and state portions of the state sales tax. Moreover, supporters have pointed out that Stroger has been unfairly tagged with owning the state sales tax. They contend that the sales tax provided the necessary additional revenue which saved the Cook County Healthcare system from collapsing.

Stroger contends that he has kept the County in the black, while the city of Chicago and State of Illinois, have their own fiscal woes. He added that while he has been fiscally responsible, Chicago has shut down its government, laid off countless workers and demanded numerous furlough days and still has a $500 million dollar deficit. He also pointed

to the State of Illinois, which has a $7 billion dollar deficit.

Stroger was grateful for the ministers support because it shows the good work that hes done in office, he said.

I know my record and I knew when I showed it to [the ministers], I knew that they would be behind me, he stated. As a young man, if you work hard and do the right things, people will notice and get behind you.

Three CCBC executive committee members and several community activists, business, religious, and political leaders recently met at the home of Atty. Jim Montgomery to discuss the current climate of Black politics in Cook County. During that meeting, they thought it would be wise to endorse one candidate for Cook County Board president. President Stroger received 19 out of 24 votes from this coalition of leaders.

Last month, the CCBC Executive Committee met without the candidates at Quinn Chapel AME Church. The 90 executive committee members in that meeting, representing congregations countywide, endorsed Stroger-with 87 votes while 3 clergymen abstained from the vote. The CCBC members endorsed Strogers three Black opponents for the offices

they currently serve.

Fellow CCBC members previously met in August with all four candidates separately in Posen, IL where they presented their current platforms for the Office of Cook County Board

President.

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