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Central Illinois Gazette

Not quite a fiery speech

Posted by: Tom Kacich

Monday, April 28, 2008 9:00 AM

State Sen. Bill Brady, R-Bloomington, who undoubtedly will be a Republican contender for governor in 2010, was the keynote speaker at Sunday night's 2008 Lincoln Day Dinner.

Those expecting some hot partisan rhetoric (like me) had to be disappointed. I suppose it's too way too early to get too excited about the gubernatorial race, especially when it's pretty likely the incumbent governor won't be running for reelection.

Brady's speech mostly focused on fiscal issues which, on a Sunday evening, would seem to be a tough nut for an audience to crack. He talked about out-of-control spending (which even the Democratic state comptroller acknowledges), the state's mounting debt and the alarming loss of jobs. Nothing really new there.

Illinois has a revenue problem, he said, but it's one that could be fixed not with more taxes but with more jobs.

The one interesting point Brady made -- to a room that was 95 percent or more white -- was that the Republican Party has to work harder to attract Hispanic and African-American voters. "We haven't brought our party to them," he said.

That's a point I don't think I've heard Brady address before.

He dropped plenty of hints that he intends to run for governor in two years but never overtly said it. The closest he came was when he thanked those Champaign County residents who had supported him in past campaigns for Congress and governor.

To those who had not supported him, he said, "God willing, I'll give you another chance."