Forgot all about it

Darn! I forgot to go to Andy Zinke's fundraiser at Donley's on June 30.

Cal Skinner reports at this article on his McHenry County Blog that, as of June 30, Zinke had raised only $240 in the second quarter of 2012. Cal points out that donations don't have to be reported until they are deposited. Zinke reports $4,735 on hand on June 30.

Add in whatever was tossed in the Zinke kitty for the fundraiser and then take out the expenses of the fundraiser, and my guess is that the total isn't going to change by much. In fact, the total might even decrease. What does it cost to rent Donley's for a bash and then pay for the food, decorations, political hand-outs, entertainment, etc.?

So, don't you wonder who coughed up $30 for Zinke's 2014 campaign for sheriff? Or is he really campaigning for appointment, when the incumbent, Keith Nygren, bails out. I'm hearing that Keith is hardly ever in his office or in town; where is he? Is he reading the instructions on how to pack a parachute?

When you consider that Nygren can collect $12,000/month and keep his take-home squad car by not showing up for work, why should he resign? Somebody told me recently that Nygren won't resign, because he likes the money too much.

It seems to me that the McHenry County Board ought to be pulling out all their manuals and looking for ways to close loopholes. Is it right that an elected official can skip the "duties" part of his elected office and just be in line every pay day?

Unfortunately, they probably can't expect much help from the McHenry County State's Attorney's Office (SAO) on that issue, because the SAO is the sheriff's attorney. Then an ethical issue would arise as to how the S/A could advise the County Board on matters that might adversely affect his "client", the sheriff.