Former senator visits Chicago
By Paul Meincke, ABC-7 Chicago WLS-TV
November 9, 2006 - A former U.S. senator is back in Chicago for the
first time in a while. Peter Fitzgerald was asked to return to talk
about his recommendation of Patrick Fitzgerald as U.S. attorney. It
was a move that put the former senator out of favor among state Republican
party leaders.
Peter Fitzgerald lives in Virginia now. He is back in the banking
business and has no desire to return to public office.
Always a bit of a maverick, Fitzgerald made enemies -- powerful ones
-- in his own party. But the political history of this one-term senator
will always include his decision to nominate an "outsider"
as U.S. attorney. It was that process that the Illinois campaign for
political reform wanted to hear about Thursday.
When Peter Fitzgerald decided not to run for a second term, he knew
it would be difficult for a Republican in an increasingly Democratic
state, and he knew that he had also thoroughly aggravated his own
party's leadership -- the former Governor -- who is supposed to report
to prison in January, and the soon to be former Speaker of the House.
Their differences reached a zenith when Fitzgerald decided to nominate
someone from outside Illinois as the new U.S. attorney. The pressure
to do otherwise, as Fitzgerald told the story Thursday, came from
high places and powerful names -- like White House senior advisor
Karl Rove.
"Karl called back and said 'We'll let you pick anyone you want
as long as he's from Chicago,' " said Peter Fitzgerald, former
Illinois senator.
Fitzgerald said that just wouldn't be possible, and decided to challenge
the process by calling a news conference and announcing his selection
of Patrick Fitzgerald as the new U.S. attorney.
"If they were gonna kill my nomination --I was going to leave
them in a tough position -- go ahead, make my day," Fitzgerald
said.
Fitzgerald says he's proud of Fitzgerald and pleased with what he
sees as a robust assault on public corruption. And, the former senator
says, "It's sad what happened to George Ryan."
As for the political scene Fitzgerald watches but wants no part of
returning to it. And he cautions Republicans in Illinois that to win
the candidates will have to be extraordinary and have luck to boot.
"An orangutan could win Illinois as long as the Orangutan was
a Democrat," said Fitzgerald.
ABC7 asked, If the Illinois GOP was a hospital patient, what condition
would it be in? He didn't choose among the more specific fair, poor,
or serious, but said simply, "It's in bad shape." To get
better, he said, it's got to do a better job drawing the best possible
candidates.
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