Here in Illinois, the Machine picks the candidates for the most part. If you're not a loyal Machine Democrat, or a loyal Machine Republican't, you're basically not going to get on the ballot.
At the Federal level, it looks like we're getting down to that, too. I would only vote for McCain because he's the best of a poor lot.
And did you see the charges after the PA primary that any Democrat that didn't vote for Obama is a racist? If that doesn't sound like Chicago politics. We have a Black county board President who has mistaken the County Board Presidency for the office of Caesar. We have a black beer baron in Al Capone's old territory who has a dad that is supposedly a Baptist Minister. I wouldn't vote for either one of them if they were white, red, brown or pink polkdadotted.
This campaign is not about the real issues. EVERYBODY is avoiding the real issues. If it weren't for 4 dollar gas, the housing market wouldn't be in the mess it's in now. If it weren't for 4 dollar gas and 5 dollar diesel, businesses wouldn't be filing for chapter 11 all over the country. And ALL of the Presidential candidates are basically friends with those rag-heads that control the oil anyway. I'm really getting timed of assuming the position and grabbing my ankles. The war in Iraq was supposed to bring down gas prices. It failed miserably in that regard. The Dims got elected in
2006 because Americans were getting fed up with rising gas prices and they're higher still today, the Dims did NOTHING. Both parties should be banned from national campaigns for 10 years, maybe they'll remember why the public is so tired of them. The Democrats have been far-left since McGovern and the Republicans have abandoned Reagainism to try to look more like the Democrats.Charles the Curmudgeon.