Friday, February 24, 2012
Journalism major and Geneva Patch contributor Tara Knott asks why a primary race between two nice guys had to get so low.
- OPINION
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Friday, February 24, 2012
To the Editor: Hi, boss! I know I’m completely unqualified to write this letter to you, but I’ve been monitoring this Kane County Board chairman race all the way from Nashville, and I have a question for you. In the interest of full disclosure for readers who don’t know, I’m a journalism major at Belmont University in Nashville, TN, but I grew up in Geneva, and I honed my reporting skills interviewing both of the candidates in this race. During my senior year at Geneva High School, I was a student correspondent at The Beacon News (also under your supervision, Rick, though I’m sure I wasn’t on your radar screen then!) For one of my first articles, I covered a city meeting where state Sen. Lauzen spoke against opening a controversial …
Wednesday, February 22, 2012
The Kane County Board chairman GOP primary race continues to heat up, as Geneva Mayor Kevin Burns holds a press conference Tuesday, in which he accuses his opponent, state Sen. Chris Lauzen, of manipulating the facts.
Kevin Burns accused Chris Lauzen on Tuesday of "misrepresentation, misuse and misdirection" of facts that make Lauzen "profoundly unqualified to lead" Kane County. The Geneva mayor and Kane County Board chairman candidate held a press conference at noon Tuesday at his campaign headquarters, at 1950 S. Batavia Ave., just north of the Campana Building. The purpose, he said, was to "set the record straight" about statements Lauzen has made during the GOP primary race for County Board chairman. Burns laid out a litany of "misrepresentations" he said are revealing of Lauzen's character. Burns claimed: (1) Lauzen borrowed campaign contributions from his failed 14th District congressional campaign fund to pay for his Kane County campaign, then …
41.866428
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1950 S Batavia Ave, Geneva, IL
/articles/burns-lauzen-s
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Tuesday, February 21, 2012
Drew Frasz: A candidate with Harvard MBA is the right person to lead a $230 million budget. Chris Lauzen is above party politics and will make a great leader for Kane County.
- OPINION
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Tuesday, February 21, 2012
Dear Editor: As a lifelong resident of Kane County and a member of the Kane County Board, I have an admittedly biased opinion that Kane County is a great place to live, work and raise a family. I am also proud of our county and local government’s ability to maintain our high quality of life in Kane County. To that end, I am wholeheartedly endorsing Chris Lauzen for Kane County Board chairman. Chris is a model father, husband and citizen. As a longtime member of the state senate, Chris’s reputation for returning all calls and doggedly following up on his constituents issues is well known. He is a CPA and a Harvard MBA, which will serve us well overseeing a $230 million budget and 1,300 employees. Chris puts his constituents' needs well …
Thursday, February 16, 2012
Kane County Board chairman candidate state Sen. Chris Lauzen provides the perfect photo op to emphasize his opposition to red-light cameras—the intersection of Randall Road and Williamsburg Avenue in Geneva.
Kane County Board chairman candidate Chris Lauzen underlined his opposition to red-light cameras Thursday afternoon and dotted the exclamation point with a flourish by making his statement under a red-light camera in his opponent's home town. Standing under a sign that read "Red Light Photo Enforced" at the intersection of Randall Road and Williamsburg Avenue in Geneva, Lauzen visually illustrated that his position on red-light cameras is very different than that of Geneva Mayor Kevin Burns. Lauzen brought three supporters who formally endorsed his candidacy and spoke passionately against the use of red-light cameras as law-enforcement tools. Some of the rhetoric was heavily charged. "Chris' opponent, the mayor who placed the red-light …
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Randall Rd & Williamsburg Ave, Geneva, IL
/articles/lauzen-makes-red-light-camera-point-in-burns-back-yard
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Tuesday, February 14, 2012
Kane County Board chairman candidate Chris Lauzen will hold a press conference on Thursday in GOP opponent Kevin Burns' home court. Lauzen will announce his opposition to red-light cameras.
Kane County Board candidate Chris Lauzen is holding a press conference Thursday to announce his opposition to red-light cameras—and his venue of choice is an intersection where his Republican primary opponent serves as mayor. The Illinois state senator sent a press release Tuesday inviting members of the media to a press conference at 2 p.m. Thursday, Feb. 16, at the northeast corner of the intersection of Randall Road and Williamsburg Drive. This location is across the street from the southern edge of Geneva Commons in Geneva. Lauzen's opponent in the primary is Mayor Kevin Burns of Geneva, who has supported the use of red-light cameras in the community. Geneva has two red-light cameras on Randall Road, at the intersections of …
41.89039
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Randall Rd & Williamsburg Ave, Geneva, IL
/articles/lauzen-to-hold-press-conference-in-geneva-to-oppose-red-light-cameras
/locations/6387104
41.87574
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Randall Ct & Fargo Blvd, Geneva, IL
/articles/lauzen-to-hold-press-conference-in-geneva-to-oppose-red-light-cameras
/locations/6387105
Monday, February 6, 2012
Congressman Randy Hultgren's endorsement of Chris Lauzen for Kane County Board chairman GOP nominee takes Kevin Burns camp by surprise.
- ELECTIONS
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Monday, February 6, 2012
In a statement issued Saturday, Feb. 4, Kevin Burns describes his conversation with Randy Hultgren following (a Saturday announcement.) In an apparent about-face from last Saturday, when Congressman Hultgren publicly praised Burns and urged voters to support him in his race to become Kane County Board chairman, Hultgren endorsed Burns' opponent, Chris Lauzen. “While I respect Randy’s right to do what he wants,” said Burns, “I was obviously taken aback by this action. It was only last week he told voters we encountered in Huntley that I was ‘the right man for the job,’ so you can understand my surprise when I read the news.” According to Burns, Hultgren did not contact him to tell him about his switch until late this afternoon. “I spoke …
Sunday, January 29, 2012
Mark Wissing, Geneva Township supervisor, says the difference between the two GOP candidates for County Board chairman is shown in their campaign strategies.
- ELECTIONS
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Sunday, January 29, 2012
Dear Editor, Republican voters will be faced with a decision in the primary election to select a new County Board chairman candidate. The choices are Geneva Mayor Kevin Burns and state Sen. Chris Lauzen. The current County Board chairman, Karen McConnaughay, has decided to run for the new 33rd State Senate seat. This is a loss for Kane County but good for the people of Illinois. McConnaughay has demonstrated strong leadership with conservative fiscal responsibility that has placed the county in excellent financial position. The candidates have chosen different campaign strategies. Mr. Lauzen has decided to attack Karen McConnaughay’s character and reputation. He has accused her of pay-to-play politics and when asked to prove it he offered …
Saturday, January 28, 2012
County Board chair candidate creates a Kane County portal for the federal Home Affordability Refinance Program 2.0.
- ELECTIONS
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Saturday, January 28, 2012
Today state Sen. Chris Lauzen, candidate for Kane County Board chairman, announced a Kane County portal for the federal Home Affordability Refinance Program 2.0 at the website LauzenKaneCountyMortgageRelief.com or the new Lauzen.com. Homeowners who have kept current on their mortgage payment, but who have seen their property values dramatically decrease thereby disqualifying them for refinancing at lower interest rates, are encouraged to log onto the “LauzenKaneCountyMortgageRelief.com” website. When they enter their address and press either the Fannie Mae or Freddie Mac buttons, they will see if their mortgage is guaranteed by one of the federal agencies that underwrites hundreds of billions of mortgage loans. The benefit of this program …
Saturday, January 21, 2012
Former U.S. Sen. Peter Fitzgerald writes to endorse Chris Lauzen as the GOP nomination for Kane County Board chairman.
Dear Editor, Illinois state Sen. Chris Lauzen is running for Kane County Board chairman. His credentials as fiscal conservative, pro-life, pro-Constitution including Second Amendment rights, and pro-traditional family are impeccable. Sen. Lauzen has served the people of Kane County with distinction for 19 years. We first served together in 1993, as two of the “Fab Five” freshman state senators who came from various business backgrounds and demonstrated independent thinking. We successfully co-sponsored Truth-in-Pensions that took three years to pass both chambers of the legislature and Truth-in-Budgets that took five years to pass before Gov. Jim Edgar signed it into law. Sen. Lauzen has built a solid reputation, on both sides of the …
Wednesday, January 18, 2012
At a press conference Tuesday, state Sen. Chris Lauzen, who is seeking the GOP nomination for Kane County Board chairman, says the current board chair is using vendors and other county "players" to boost her campaign coffers.
At a "press conversation" Tuesday at the "Honest Abe" Lincoln Inn, a Republican candidate for Kane County Board chairman seat accused the present board chairman of "pay-to-play" politics. GOP candidate and Illinois state Sen. Chris Lauzen handed out documents showing donations made to Kane County Board Chairman Karen McConnaughay, according to an article by Eric Schelkopf in the Kane County Chronicle. Lauzen said 80 to 90 percent of the donations McConnaughay received are from folks who've done business with the county, according to an article by James Fuller in the Daily Herald. Lauzen is facing off against Geneva Mayor Kevin Burns in the March 20 primary for the GOP board chairman nomination. McConnaughay is running for the …
Dennis C. Ryan
8:06 am on Saturday, February 25, 2012
Zahm had to bring this to the fore himself because the press is often too lazy to dig for anything. I studied journalism in college. Many of my liberal classmates intended to be reporters because they "wanted to change the world." The job of the press is not to change the world. It's to dig for the facts, inform the readers, and to follow up until all the facts, or as many as possible, are … more ›