Jim Dey: A familiar face for Dems, a new leader for GOP

Apr. 22—Starting over

It's back to the future for Champaign County Democrats while county Republicans have selected a new leader.

Republican and Democratic precinct committeemen met Wednesday night in what is known as a post-primary election party convention to select their county leaders.

Democrats elected former chairman Mike Ingram. He resigned from that post last year when he moved outside his precinct but indicated he would run anew following the March primary election.

Elected along with Ingram were members of his slate. They are DeShawn Williams, first vice chairman; Matt Sullard, second vice chairman; Will Schoell, secretary; and Michelle Jett, treasurer.

Republicans elected as chairwoman Dr. Susan Mantell, a family medicine physician who is from Philo. She defeated Jeff Wilson, a Republican member of the county board, in the race for party boss.

Mantell will replace outgoing chairman Jim McGuire.

Elected along with Mantell were members of her slate, Rich Harshbarger, vice chairman; Michael Schamer, secretary; and Rich Montgomery, treasurer.

Getting squeezed

Rivian, the electric vehicle manufacturer that has boosted the McLean County economy, continues to struggle in the wake of the falling e-vehicle popularity.

Recent news reports indicated Rivian has ordered "more companywide layoffs," small ones that still send a sign of trouble ahead.

The company said the move "will affect an additional 1 percent of the electric vehicle manufacturer's workforce." They come on top of a February announcement that Rivian was cutting "its salaried workforce by 10%."

None of the layoffs are expected to affect hourly manufacturing workers in Normal.

Meanwhile, the company's stock price has fallen to around $9 a share. That's down from a post-initial public offering high of around $180.

Rivian, whose vehicles have drawn high praise, has yet to make a profit. It is currently conducting a cost-cutting campaign with the hope it will result in lower prices for potential buyers.

Free speech not free

Oklahoma State University is the latest institution of higher learning to agree to disband its "bias response teams" under threat of litigation.

Speech First, which filed a lawsuit challenging the university's free speech policies, said OSU has agreed last week to disband its organized effort to monitor and diminish students' speech.

OSU is among a number of universities, including the University of Illinois, to disband its speech monitoring organizations as a consequence of Speech First litigation.

The settlement with OSU also requires it to change its "computer policy that previously forbade students from sending emails about politics," Speech First stated.

In addition, OSU will pay $18,000 to cover attorneys' fees for Speech First.

In addition to the UI and OSU, Speech First has successfully won lawsuits against the University of Central Florida, the University of Houston, the University of Michigan, the University of Texas and Iowa State University. It has other lawsuits pending.

Family feud

Members of the Kennedy family are famous for always sticking together. Not now.

They're turning on Robert F. Kennedy Jr., who's running an independent campaign for president.

Sixteen members of the Kennedy family, including onetime Illinois gubernatorial candidate and brother Chris Kennedy of Chicago, "endorsed President Biden on Thursday at a campaign rally in Philadelphia," according to a New York Times story.

The Times said they were "pointedly rejecting one of their own."

The Times said "many Democrats" believe RFK Jr. "poses a significant threat" to Biden's re-election chances. The newspaper also reported that members of the Trump campaign fear RFK Jr. poses a similar threat to Trump's campaign.

RFK Jr. professed to be unbothered by his family members' endorsement of Biden.

"I hear some of my family will be endorsing President Biden today. I am pleased they are politically active — it's a family tradition. We are divided in our opinions but united in our love for each other," he said.

The Biden campaign is doing more than collecting a Kennedy family endorsement to undermine RFK Jr.'s campaign.

The Times reported "the Democratic Party has put together a team of lawyers aimed at tracking Mr. Kennedy's threat, especially in battleground states." They also have targeted "other potential spoilers such as Cornel West, a progressive academic seeking the presidency, and the Green Party."

Officially terrible

The Illinois State Board of Elections reported its "official vote total" certification last week, reporting that turnout in the March 19 primary was just 19.07 percent.

It said the "official total showed 1,518,856 of the state's 7,965,287 registered voters cast ballots in the primary," a percentage that "was the lowest turnout in a presidential primary in several decades.

Democratic voters accounted for 58.69 percent of the total while Republicans just 40.16 percent.

The only defense for the poor turnout statewide was the absence of competitive races in the state's 102 counties. But even in counties where there were hot races for important posts, turnout was anemic.

Farewell White Rat

The death at 92 of former St. Louis Cardinals manager Whitey Herzog last week touched a chord in many baseball fans, especially Cardinals fans.

The native of New Athens was a great baseball man who combined a folksy sense of humor with a real genius for managing men and games.

Herzog was a winning manager with the Kansas City Royals. But when he was dismissed after losing two league championship series with the Yankees, the Cardinals quickly snapped him up in 1980.

He fit in beautifully in St. Louis, a manager/general manager who wheeled and dealed to create a team built on speed, defense and pitching. They called it "Whiteyball," but it was just a different version of the more common power game other teams adopted.

He took the Cards to three World Series in the 1980s, winning one against Milwaukee and losing two to the Twins (rats!) and the Royals (double rats!!).

He, mostly, made the game exciting and fun.

Get along little dogies!

Howdy, pahdnuh, it's time for another recommendation from Jim's Pseudo-Intellectual Book Club.

There is a good reason this city slicker is dressed up today in cowboy garb — got my 10-gallon hat, saddle cum saddle-sores plus spurs on my new designer tennis shoes.

This here cowboy has a new readin' recommendation, not a specific book, but an author.

It's Will Henry, described in a 1991 Los Angeles Times obituary as a "prolific author" of Western adventure novels and historical fiction.

Stumbled by accident across this jasper's book — "I, Tom Horn," a real-life western gunslinger who got hung — and found it pretty interesting.

Henry, that was his alias, was a regular writin' fool. He penned Hollywood screenplays and fiction based on fact, much of it from the point of view of Indian warriors like Crazy Horse, Sitting Bull and Geronimo.

Given the age of his books, they aren't easy to find. But the librarians in Champaign have been helpful, and the list of his works are all over the internet. Read five of Henry's works so far, including his most highly acclaimed — "No Survivors," the story of "Custer's Last Stand" from the winner's viewpoint. Absolutely first rate and informative.

Henry's obituary stated he wrote roughly 40 novels under various names, sellin' an estimated 15 million copies around the world. Eight were turned into movies, starring the likes of Gregory Peck and Steve McQueen.

Henry has been residing on Boot Hill for three decades-plus now. But his novels remain alive, among the best in the western fiction genre.

He's worth a close look. That's what I do when not rustlin' cattle, downin' shots of whiskey, meetin' some low-down sidewinder at high noon in the town square or goin' to Illini basketball games.