Deerfield, IL — Republican Congressman Bob Dold’s private fundraiser with the previous losing Republican presidential candidate tonight highlights just how out of touch Bob Dold is with the people of the 10th District.
Bob Dold in 2012: Dold endorsed Republican presidential candidate Mitt Romney over President Barack Obama, saying the election was about “the direction of the country” and the “American Compact that is we leave our country better for the next generation than the ones we received from our parents and grandparents.”
Bob Dold in 2016: With the politically toxic Donald Trump at the top of his party’s ticket, Bob Dold suddenly thinks the presidential race doesn’t affect “the direction the country“and “the next generation.” Dold’s gone quiet. That is, of course, if you don’t count Bob Dold headlining a “Beat Hillary” fundraiser for pro-Trump Republicans, saying Clinton would be “a disaster” and not good for the country, and even going so far as to equate Clinton’s desire to look at Donald Trump’s record of mistreating workers with Trump calling Hillary Clinton the devil.
Why was Bob Dold willing to endorse Mitt Romney to get rid of President Obama for the sake of the country but is unwilling to take a stand between Clinton and Trump? How could Bob Dold think President Obama was worth stopping but not Donald Trump?
Nobody who claims to be pro-choice, pro-environment, pro-immigration reform, and pro-gun safety reform would equate a Trump presidency with a Clinton presidency. It’s about more than rhetoric to the people whose lives would be harmed by a Trump presidency. If he actually thought those issues were worth fighting for, Bob Dold would endorse Hillary Clinton and urge his supporters not to vote for Donald Trump.
Instead, Bob Dold, like every other Republican in Congress running this fall, has refused to endorse Hillary Clinton, the only viable alternative to Donald Trump.
It’s clear that Bob Dold lacks the courage or the judgment to continue to represent the 10th District.
Deerfield, IL — Republican Congressman Bob Dold (IL-10) has said voting for Hillary Clinton would be a “disaster” and that he would not support her over Donald Trump (NBC, 10/17/16). Every reasonable person knows that if Hillary Clinton does not become the next President, then the dangerous and unfit Donald Trump will.
With that in mind, here are some questions for Bob Dold to answer. People having the opportunity to pose them to Dold at upcoming forums and debates or on the campaign trail at a different time should ask Dold the following:
- Does Bob Dold think Donald Trump, a person who threatened to jail his political opponent, who believes climate change is a hoax, who wants to abolish the EPA, who wants to punish women who have abortions, who thinks adding more guns prevents mass shootings, who’s boasted about grabbing women by their genitals, who’s been accused of inappropriate groping, and who wants to repeal birthright citizenship, would be a better President than Hillary Clinton? If so, please explain. If he thinks Trump would be worse — something Bob Dold has not even said — why won’t Dold endorse Hillary Clinton over Donald Trump?
- Does Bob Dold think America would be safer if Hillary Clinton or Donald Trump were commander-in-chief with access to the nuclear codes?
- Who would appoint better justices to the Supreme Court — Hillary Clinton, who wants to protect Roe v. Wade or Donald Trump, who has said he wants to appoint justices who would overturn Roe v. Wade?
- Bob Dold headlined a fundraiser called “Beat Hillary at the Distillery” for a pro-Trump group. How many anti-Trump fundraisers has Dold headlined?
- Why hasn’t Bob Dold publicly urged his supporters to not vote for Donald Trump?
- Why does Bob Dold think numerous Republicans who have served in Republican Administrations have endorsed Hillary Clinton for President but no House Republican up for election this fall, including Dold, has endorsed Hillary Clinton?
Bob Dold claims to be a problem solver, but either Bob Dold doesn’t think a Trump presidency would be a problem or he’s not interested in solving it, even though a Trump presidency would damage the lives of 10th District voters who care about women’s choice, the environment, immigration reform, and gun violence.
Voting is underway. Trump and Pence have not been stopped.
It’s clear that Bob Dold lacks the courage and/or the judgment to continue to represent the 10th District. This November, Dold will be voted out of the office he’s proven to put above the interests of the people of the 10th District.
The Illinois Tenth Congressional District Democrats (Tenth Dems) released the following statement:
“During this entire 2016 campaign cycle, Republican Congressman Bob Dold has been content with publicly posturing, like in his recent campaign ad, that Hillary Clinton and Donald Trump are equal. Away from the cameras, Dold has taken the shameful step of actually helping Trump’s cause by headlining a ‘Beat Hillary’ fundraiser for his Republican base.
Nobody who claims to be pro-choice, pro-environment, pro-immigration, and pro-gun safety reform would equate Clinton-Kaine with Trump-Pence.
Yet Bob Dold, like every other Republican in Congress running this fall, has refused to endorse Hillary Clinton, the only viable alternative to Donald Trump.
In 2012, Dold endorsed Mitt Romney over President Barack Obama, saying the election was about ‘the direction of the country’ and the ‘American Compact that is we leave our country better for the next generation than the ones we received from our parents and grandparents.’ That’s right—Bob Dold was willing to endorse Mitt Romney to get rid of President Obama for the sake of the country, but Dold is unwilling to take a stand between Clinton and Trump. Congressman Dold, how could President Obama be worth stopping but not Donald Trump?
Voting is underway. Trump and Pence have not been stopped.
It’s clear that Bob Dold lacks the courage or the judgment to continue to represent the 10th District. We’re confident he will be voted out of the office he’s proven to put above the interests of the people of the 10th District.”
(above) Bob Dold headlined an anti-Clinton fundraiser for a group making Trump signs; (below) “Sold On Dold” campaign button on Trump hat at the group’s picnic a week later
Bob Dold’s Embrace Of Pence Foreshadowed His Own Anti-Women’s Choice Record
Deerfield, IL — Was it worth the money? When he tried to get into office during the Tea Party wave of 2010, Republican Bob Dold (IL-10) had no problem taking $1,000 from then-Congressman Mike Pence. This foreshadowed Bob Dold’s consistent willingness to go along with the worst anti-choice elements of his Republican Party.
Back in 2007, Mike Pence sponsored legislation in Congress to defund Planned Parenthood. Pence’s move sparked the battle over Planned Parenthood that shamefully continues to this day, in large part because Pence went after Planned Parenthood again and again and again.
Did Bob Dold not know or just not care about Pence’s anti-choice crusade when Dold took Pence’s money?
Now Bob Dold refuses to stop the destruction, especially to women’s reproductive rights, that would result from a Trump-Pence victory. In fact, rather than take on Pence, a darling of the Republican base that Dold needs to turn out in a competitive race, for his appalling record on women’s choice, Bob Dold headlined a “Beat Hillary” fundraiser instead. Why is Bob Dold trying to beat Hillary Clinton instead of stopping the only presidential ticket with someone — Pence — who signed eight anti-abortion bills into law?
And while Pence has garnered national notoriety for his radical right-wing agenda, Bob Dold has established a less high-profile yet harmful pattern of anti-choice behavior —NARAL said “Dold has spent his time in Congress obsessed with banning abortion and smearing Planned Parenthood”–that is out of touch with the 10th District:
- Dold introduced a measure to withhold funding of Planned Parenthood for 90 days
- Dold voted for the ‘Let Women Die’ Act that would have allowed hospitals to refuse life-saving care if it conflicted with their corporate religious beliefs
- Dold has headlined campaign events for some of the most vehemently anti-choice Republican candidates in Lake County, including candidates supported by Pro-Life Victory PAC and Lake County Life PAC. This includes the legislator who led the effort to defund Planned Parenthood in Illinois. Nevertheless, Dold referred to this year’s Republican slate as “the strongest that I’ve seen certainly in my time in politics.”
- Dold voted for the Conscience Protection Act — a bill praised by right-wing groups, it would undermine women’s ability to obtain safe, legal abortion care and put women’s health at serious risk in emergencies.
“Vulnerable politicians say a lot of things but true pro-choice advocates don’t do the things that Republican Bob Dold has done,” said Tenth Dems Managing Vice-Chair Barbara Altman. “People like Bob Dold enable people like Mike Pence. And the people of the 10th District deserve better.”
See the WBEZ article related to this post.
By Matt Stanton
Who’s Driving the Bus?
Is anybody really in charge at the Lake County State’s Attorney’s office?
Operation “Shut Down the Hustle”, the much anticipated Lake County prosecution against gang activity that was announced last year with considerable fanfare, has now been undone by the Lake County State’s Attorney’s own negligence. And it was an amateur mistake.
Here’s the key point, which is paraphrased from the state’s own response. The State acknowledged that in January 2014 “FBI and local law enforcement officials met to brief Nerheim on the federal investigation, and an FBI agent informed Nerheim that one of the goals was to develop probable cause to support applications for wiretap surveillance.”
The core of Judge Strickland’s ruling is that Nerheim abdicated his responsibility to the people of Lake County. He knew about developments in this important investigation, having been briefed on it. He knew there was going to be wiretap surveillance. And he was supposed to know the plain meaning of the law: that he had to request the wiretaps personally. But he abdicated that responsibility and left the whole matter in the hands of subordinates, who were legally prohibited from doing it. Now this major case is down the drain; and these suspected gangbangers will probably skate.
This confirms what I have been saying all along, that Nerheim isn’t really running the office. Confusion reigns as he has turned over the day to day management of the office to subordinates, including not just these two people, but also the same ones who cost the taxpayers millions of dollars through the mindless railroading of innocent people.
Nerheim is too busy planning his ladder-climbing expedition for higher office to handle the people’s business, and everybody in Lake County is paying for it!
