WurfWhile

I’ve met a few times (and occasionally written about) State Senator Don Harmon - and he strikes me on a personal note as a really decent guy. Politically we share a number of similar views and, of course, the same party. Don has a strong record of making government work better and smarter through better coordination of programs. Senator Harmon’s first bill in office, Senate Bill 565, led to the creation of the Illinois Early Learning Council, designed to “coordinate local, state and federal resources to expand early education on the state-wide level.” The act helps improve education in the critical early years by streamlining it in a fiscally responsible way. In June this year Senator Harmon ushered a bill through the senate that consolidated mass transportation for people who have disabilities, making service more seamless at the same time it helps save money. As Senator Harmon describes it,

“This is the kind of legislation that improves peoples’ lives…. It means that one of my constituents who lives in Austin and needs to travel to Oak Park Hospital to see her doctor won’t need to stop at Austin Boulevard and transfer from a CTA paratransit vehicle to a Pace vehicle. It also means that we won’t have to subsidize two ’separate’ trips. That’s good news for everyone.”

It’s smart solutions like these that I think most people support - doing more for people while saving more. Senator Harmon’s record shows he is strong on a lot of issues that really impact people in Illinois.

I haven’t met Senator Harmon’s Republican challenger, Franklin Park School District 84 Board of Education member Jim Rowe, and until his challenge for the 39th Senate District seat, I had never heard of him. From what I’ve read I’m struck by his apparent commitment to education and helping disadvantaged low income people, including supporting education policies at odds with Republican state officials and voters. I’m also struck by Rowe’s harsh attacks on Senator Harmon - including calling him “evil” - attacks that seem misplaced, both based on the Senator’s record and for those who have met him.

In an interview with the Illinois Leader, Jim Rowe argues that more money should go to inner city “afterschool programs, mentoring programs, and tutoring programs for kids.” In fact Rowe’s main reason for running is his involvement with these programs and his reaction to budget cuts,

“So when your [sic] involved in different activities and you see money being cut, to what you think should be a priority - like youth, children in need, and low income children in failing schools - you want to help.”

I believe most Democrats, including Senator Harmon, agree with this position as far as it goes - but it would be news to me to hear that Republicans in the State General Assembly have been arguing for funding increases to help inner city schools and their children.

Likewise, when Jim Rowe tries to pin the blame for the education funding mess - he’s just wrong. I agree with Rowe that education funding in this state is poorly structured - and that too many children go without because of a lack of funding. It is my guess that Senator Harmon likewise agrees that the current education funding system doesn’t work well. It is incredibly unfair and inaccurate, however, to blame this solely on one party when it has been a long-term problem under both Republican and Democratic governors and legislatures. Remember when Republican Governor Jim Edgar said he would fix education funding in the state - and what about Republican Governor George Ryan? This is clearly an inherited long-term problem.

Jim Rowe is also unfair when he suggests that the underfunded (by President Bush’s own standards) No Child Left Behind (NCLB) law should not be blamed for a lack of education funding. I know some of what NCLB has done locally in DuPage, including some of the costs (see here and here). NCLB is far from the entire problem in Illinois education funding - but it does add to local educational costs.

In other respects Jim Rowe appears to support the traditional GOP agenda on hot-button issues, including social conservatism, anti-gun control, etc.

While most pundits believe Senator Don Harmon will win his race - that’s not a reason to vote for him. Look at his good government record providing solutions that improve the lives of people in his district, and in Illinois. That’s the reason to vote for him.