Birkett wants Lisa Madigan to reveal donation information
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SPRINGFIELD — Republican Illinois attorney general candidate Joe Birkett has demanded that Democratic candidate Lisa Madigan reveal more about her links to the sons of a Cook County judge who donated $50,000 to her campaign.
During a Statehouse news conference Thursday, Birkett questioned whether money donated by Andrew Harris of Northbrook and David Harris of Buffalo Grove was meant to win support from the Cook County Democratic Party for their father, Circuit Judge Sheldon Harris. He also asked for proof that the money really came from the sons.
Lisa Madigan's father, House Speaker Michael Madigan, D-Chicago, is chairman of the state Democratic Party, and he has influence over Cook County judicial selections.
"They (the donations) came at a time when Judge Harris was seeking help from the speaker, loaning 20 campaign workers to his campaign, getting him slated through the Cook County Democratic Party as one of the slated candidates, and then suddenly, out of the blue, $50,000 in contributions," Birkett said. "What did she know and when did she know it?"
Mike Noonan, Lisa Madigan's campaign manager, said Madigan would not ask for additional information about the contributions. He said Lisa Madigan believes the contributions came from the sons because they supported her candidacy.
Steve Brown, press secretary to Michael Madigan, denied that there is a connection between the sons' donations and the father's bid to win a primary election.
Noonan said Lisa Madigan's campaign did give away $30,000 in donations this week, including the $25,000 donated by Andrew Harris.
She gave Andrew Harris' donation "to groups that fight hate and bigotry" because he is a member of the heavy metal band Judas Iscariot, Noonan said. The band is a "black metal" group that promotes itself as Satanic and anti-Christian, he said.
The other $5,000 was returned to Thomas Donald Fazioli, 57. He was charged in March 2001 by the arm of the Illinois Supreme Court that disciplines lawyers with trying to obtain an associate judgeship through illegal campaign contributions.
Birkett signed a pledge Thursday not to take money in the future from people under investigation and urged Lisa Madigan to do the same thing. But Birkett said he would not return money donated to his campaign by House Minority Leader Lee Daniels, R-Elmhurst. Daniels' operation is under federal investigation because employees in the Chicago suburbs allegedly performed campaign work on state time.