Ladies and gentlemen of the Democratic Party, I stand here to plead my case for your consideration of my candidacy as Lieutenant Governor. If you choose me as Governor Quinn’s running mate, I will serve the high office only in the worst cases. No one here wants these contingencies to come to pass. Therefore I speak today as both a potential Governor and the his potential Lieutenant.
My name is John Edgar Mihelic. Nobody knows me, or my name. My father is not the chair of this party, head of the county board, or a powerful Alderman. I stand here today because like my father I feel a calling to service. I have previously answered this calling by teaching; now I am volunteering my service to the state. I would not be here if I didn’t think my involvement could not improve the state or the conditions of its people.
I am here because I believe the people deserve better than the status quo that has perpetuated itself so wonderfully in Springfield. Hard choices have to be made in the realms of revenue creation and spending. I largely support my potential running mate’s proposals. Most importantly, however, we have to be open and honest about our priorities. The monies generated through taxation and borrowing might fall short. The state government calls out for streamlining.
Because of this, we cannot continue to allow money to disappear at every level of bureaucracy. Every wasted dollar has a motivated advocate to continue the programs they benefit from. But every dollar lost represents a dollar not spent on important infrastructure; dollars not invested in education. Expectations in these areas should start high and continue to grow. Finally, we need to keep our commitments to public workers. For too long we have borrowed against their futures and now many want to point fingers at those who have dedicated a career to the betterment of the state. Unions and pensions are not the problem in Illinois; the problem is politicians seeing higher office as a source for private gain and not public service. Ultimately we have to run Illinois for the people of Illinois and be unafraid to make the hard choices to solve these hard problems.
I do not have the answers to all these complex situations. What I have is the knowledge, the determination and the vision that working together we can move from this atmosphere of fear and mutual suspicion to a shared prosperity. Too many before have allowed petty ambitions for material gains to cloud the reputation of this state’s government. I allow that I am ambitious. My ambition is the greater glory of the state – beginning now. I may succeed greatly or fail spectacularly. Either way I will wake up tomorrow knowing how to move forward better by the lessons I learn today.
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