It was a cold, rainy day in Illinois' 14th district and I was on the road with John Laesch, Democratic candidate for Congress for Illinois' 14th district, visiting with residents.
This diary includes a first for a jdl06 podcast. Myself and others will start to write diaries from 14th CD as we campaign with John.
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Laesch for Congress joined 4 of the "50 State" Canvasses in the Illinois' 14th CD.
Kendall County
In Kendall County, Illinois, we met at a Panera Bread in Yorkville with Democratic Party Chairman Jim Birch, IL state Senate candidate Frank Craig, and county board candidate Arden Plocher. While Craig and Plocher took volunteers to a new subdivision, John and I met with farmers in the rural parts of Kendall. We met one farmer who described the grip of fear that Hastert has on residents of Kendall County, particularly on its farmers. While he was supportive of John, he was afraid to put a yard sign on his property. John pointed out to them, "we can't be afraid to speak out about what's wrong." This is just one way that John is showing the residents of Illinois' 14th district that he is not afraid to go up against the current Speaker of the House, Dennis Hastert. The grip of fear that plagues the 14th district must end and John is the man to stop this "dastardly Hastert" culture of fear. John had no qualms about walking up to the homes of known Republicans and discussing with them whether they thought our country was going in the right direction. Including this house that had a Hastert sign in the front yard.
Aurora, IL,
In Aurora, Steve Aldrich put together one of the fifty state canvasses in Illinois' 14th district. Aurora is the second largest city in Illinois and is predominantly Democratic. Many enthusiastic volunteers showed up at the Aurora Panera Bread and, together, they walked 2 precincts and reached 250 voters. Republicans were equally interested in what John Laesch's campaign had to say about the issues that matter most to them. In fact, based on volunteer feedback, at least 6 or 7 Republicans converted to Democrats. Steve Aldrich will be joining this blog with more feedback.
Elgin, IL
Team Laesch also canvassed in Elgin. The event was coordinated by Janice Bennet; however, there is no report in as of yet.
St. Charles, IL
In St. Charles, Carolyn Shannon, Kane County Precinct Committee Person, organized the largest canvass effort in the district and will be on here to blog later. John Laesch, fellow volunteer Jared Lash, and I also visited St. Charles, Illinois, where we met with both Republicans and Democrats and talked about what issues matter most to Illinois' 14th district. Most residents we asked stated honest/open government, the war in Iraq, and the environment as top issues. Denton Morris, a St. Charles resident, found it difficult to name just one issue that should be at the top of the government's priority, when there are so many problems in so many areas (MP3 audio, Ogg Vorbis audio of interview). One Republican voiced to us his concern for a more honest government and how even members of his own party are guilty of failing America in this respect. John assured him that, as a person running for elected office for the first time, he will be a fresh face in Washington helping to foster in a new age of government integrity. We then went to the home of Carolyn Shannon, where we debriefed with County Sheriff candidate Pat Perez.
What "dastardly Hastert" actions has Denny made in your neighborhood to
incite fear in the hearts of conscientious voters? How far does Hastert's
grip of fear extend?
How high is the "Dastardly Hastert Fear Factor" in your neighborhood?
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