Stroger's son says he's his own man

Chicago it seems is a city of political families. First you have the Daleys, they are the best known. With the patriarch (Richard Joseph) and his son (Richard Michael, currently) as mayor, and the current mayor's brothers such Bill was commerce secretary but now is in the business realm and John who is a Cook County Commissioner and Democratic Committeeman for the Daley's neighborhood, Bridgeport in the 11th ward. Then there are the Lipinskis Bill who retired at the end of his term as a member of the US House of Representatives and gave up the nomination (having won the primary before he decided to retire) in favor of his son and current Rep. Dan Lipinski. And still you can consider the Jacksons. Jesse Jackson Sr., is a well known name not just in Chicago, and not just the nation, but around the world too. Except for his two runs for the Presidency in the 1980s, he's never attained higher office. However his son Rep. Jesse Jackson Jr. is looking to run for mayor of Chicago in either 2007 or sometime down the road beyond that.

Well there's one more family to add to that, the Stroger's. Ald. Todd Stroger, the Democratic nominee for Cook County Board President, who became the nominee after his father fell ill thanks to a stroke and proved unable to serve, was in today's Sun-Times. This was a nice interview. As much as I think he isn't ready for the county, I'll have to admit this is a good article. I didn't know as much about him except the video we may see on TV vs. the coverage of his campaign. Aside from what I believe to be the fact that he's unqualified, if only he had done this earlier, I think many people could have a different view of him. Check this out...

But the quest to fill his father's shoes has shown that Todd Stroger inherited none of his bravado or boasting.

It can seem a bit forced, at times, when Todd Stroger goes on the attack, and he says he has no interest in the rigid form of politics and government his father practiced.

"My father learned his management style in the '50s -- he was a dictator -- you made a decision, everyone fell in line behind you," Todd Stroger said. "I like to talk to people, get both sides of things, work with people."

On the other hand there is a lot in this article that talks about whether Stroger is qualified and how he's been able to get to this point. Which is thanks to his father's "clout". Of course beyond that one could allege that Ald. Stroger hasn't been a leader either in Springfield or on the Chicago City Council. But then again a lot of leader in America become prominent even if they haven't proven themselves to have been leadership material.

Anyway I suggest you check out the the last section which talks about him as a person. Foods he wouldn't eat, movies he wanted to walk out on, a book he thinks people should read, even favorite TV programs (I found out he like Law and Order:CI, I don't know if I should stop watching or continue anyway LOL). So in all not a bad article though not a basis for me to vote for him.