In the News
Here are the latest articles about Maria's campaign:
Rodriguez best bet to beat Bean in fall
After learning more about each candidate and attending two debates, I have come to the obvious conclusion that Maria Rodriguez is the strongest candidate for Congress in the 8th District Republican primary.
What separates her from the rest of the pack is not her position on the issues. All of the candidates running are conservatives who are virtually indistinguishable from one another on the issues. Rather, Maria Rodriguez is the candidate Republicans can most confidently expect to unseat Melissa Bean this November.
Unlike her opponents, Rodriguez has demonstrated her strong appeal to voters in several previous elections. As a local mother of three, she did not like how things were being run in her community, and not unlike Sarah Palin, she decided to do something about it. She ran for mayor against an incumbent politician and to the surprise of the local establishment, she won that race by a substantial margin. She remains so popular with voters that she ran unopposed in her last election.
The other candidates in the race either remain untested or bring too many liabilities with them. Dirk Beveridge and Chris Geissler are both well spoken, but have never run for office so their ability to appeal to voters remains unseen. Joe Walsh is a tested candidate, but voters have rejected him at the ballot box in two previous races. Walsh would also be easy for Bean to paint as a flip-flopper since his positions on issues like abortion or gun control have changed back and forth depending on the politics of the area in which he was running.
So Maria Rodriguez is the obvious choice. She is a strong conservative who has demonstrated her appeal to voters and she is the only candidate Republicans can confidently expect to beat Melissa Bean in November.
Jim Uren
Mundelein
Discontent and Anger Motivate Voters
On Jan. 23, about 65 people went to the wood-paneled Gurnee American Legion Hall for a Republican candidates’ event sponsored by the Northern Illinois Patriots, a Tea Party group. Among them were Amy and Jesse Moore of Zion, who have a 2-year-old daughter and a mortgage they struggle to pay.
“We are wondering, Where is our money going?” said Mrs. Moore, 28, a self-described staunch pro-life voter. “What are we paying taxes for?”
Mr. Moore, 28, lost his job in 2005, but quickly found work in Lake Bluff as a machinist. Mrs. Moore is a full-time mother. They said they considered themselves lucky even though their home had plummeted in value in the six years since they bought it.
“We wish we had never bought the house,” Mrs. Moore said. “We’re stuck now.”
She leaned forward in her seat as the candidates, including Dan Proft, a contender for governor, and Maria Rodriguez, the hopeful for the Eighth Congressional District, spoke and fielded questions about the economy, protecting gun rights and their plans to clean up corruption in a state where one in five former governors in the past century have wound up behind bars.
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PermalinkSBA List Candidate Fund Endorses Maria Rodriguez for Congress in Illinois' 8th District
WASHINGTON, Jan. 28 /Christian Newswire/ -- Today the Susan B. Anthony List Candidate Fund, a national pro-life political action committee, announced their endorsement of Maria Rodriguez, Republican candidate for Congress in Illinois' 8th District.
"The Susan B. Anthony List is proud to endorse Maria Rodriguez for Congress," said Susan B. Anthony List Candidate Fund President Marjorie Dannenfelser. "Maria Rodriguez will be an authentic pro-life voice and passionate advocate for women and unborn children in the halls of Congress. Health care reform legislation could open floodgates to taxpayer-funded abortion, and we need women like Maria to stand firm against such efforts to violate the consciences of pro-life Americans."
"2010 could very well be the year of the pro-life woman," Dannenfelser continued. "We're seeing more and more qualified pro-life women step up to serve their communities as candidates for Congress and statewide office. Maria Rodriguez is the only candidate in this race who holds elected office, and she brings a strong record of support from both sides of the aisle. Maria has both the practical experience and personal pro-life convictions necessary to best represent Illinois' 8th District."
The Susan B. Anthony List Candidate Fund will be contributing the maximum contribution of $5000 to Maria Rodriguez for Congress for use in her primary election campaign. The primary election is scheduled for Tuesday, February 2, 2010.
Susan B. Anthony List Candidate Fund endorsements are promoted to the organization's nationwide membership of over 280,000 Americans. The SBA List Candidate Fund endorses pro-life female candidates, as well as pro-life male candidates who run against female candidates in favor of abortion rights. During the 2008 election cycle, the Susan B. Anthony List bundled over $1 million in direct candidate contributions from its members.
The Susan B. Anthony List is a nationwide network of over 280,000 Americans, residing in all 50 states, dedicated to mobilizing, advancing, and representing pro-life women in politics. Its nonpartisan connected Candidate Fund increases the percentage of pro-life women in the political process.
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Maria on the Sandy Rios Show
Yesterday, Maria was on the Sandy Rios show on WYLL. Click on the player below to listen.
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Maria on the Dennis Miller Show
Today, Maria was interviewed live on the Dennis Miller show. Click on the link below to listen.
Sun-Times endorses Maria to take on Bean
The Chicago Sun-Times endorses Maria Rodriguez to take on Melissa Bean:
Long Grove mayor Rodriguez our pick to take on Bean
The prospect of a good Republican election cycle and votes by Democratic Rep. Melissa Bean for controversial issues like the stimulus and cap-and-trade energy bills have produced half a dozen GOP candidates hoping to recapture this northwest suburban district seat held for 3½ decades by Phil Crane. The candidates mostly share similar views supporting lower taxes and less regulation and strong national security measures while opposing President Obama's health care agenda and cap-and-trade regulation.
This race will be watched by political trend-spotters not just because of any threat to Bean but because it pits a tea-party insurgent against a Republican mayor with support from key GOP politicians....
Our endorsement for the Republican nomination goes to Maria Rodriguez, village president of Long Grove. Re-elected without opposition last year, Rodriguez has presided over revitalization of Long Grove's historic business district and worked on a $30 million development project for the town. She pledges to work to create jobs through reforming the federal tax code, starting with a temporary payroll tax reduction to help small business, supports a balanced budget amendment, and backs charter schools and vouchers.
Rodriguez is the only contestant who has won an election. She has been endorsed by state Senate Minority Leader Christine Radogno and several GOP lawmakers and local leaders. Rodriguez is a dynamic and capable mayor whom Republican voters would be wise to select to represent them in their drive to unseat Bean.
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PermalinkABC7 News on 8th District Race
Maria Earns Northwest Herald Endorsement
LONG GROVE - Today, the Northwest Herald newspaper endorsed Maria Rodriguez to win the Republican primary in Illinois' 8th Congressional District on February 2.
Here's what the paper said about their endorsement:
Voters in Illinois’ 8th Congressional District have an important task in 2010.
Of course, voters in every Congressional district in the country have the same tough task.
They must go to the polls during the primary season and again on Nov. 2 and elect candidates to Congress who will put their country’s and their district’s best interests before their own, refuse to continue spending the United States further into debt, and put partisan politics aside to work for reasonable solutions to our many problems.
In Illinois’ 8th District, six candidates are seeking the GOP nomination for a chance to face incumbent Congresswoman Melissa Bean and Green Party challenger Bill Scheurer in the general election. This primary race is a good one, with many solid candidates.
Long Grove Village President Maria Rodriguez has experience in both the business and political arenas. She defeated an incumbent village president in 2005 and owns a small business along with her husband.
She is a fiscal conservative who believes in small government and lower taxes. For the 8th district, her top priority is job creation.
The other candidates in the field – Joe Walsh of Winnetka, Dirk Beveridge of Barrington, John Dawson of Barrington, Christopher Geissler of Barrington, and Greg Jacobs of Mundelein – also bring strong attributes to the race.
On policy, it’s difficult to tell the candidates apart. On experience, Rodriguez’ background in business and politics sets her apart.
We endorse Rodriguez for Illinois’ 8th Congressional District GOP nomination.
Click here to see this article on the Northwest Herald website. Comments can be left on the paper's website in response to the endorsement.
PermalinkGOP candidates in 8th District try to separate from pack
Six Republicans in the 8th Congressional District primary handled a variety of questions at a Sunday afternoon forum in Grayslake, including one on what they bring to the table beyond the party's standard mission statements.
Running in the Feb. 2 primary are the following Republicans: Dirk Beveridge of Barrington, John Dawson of Barrington, Chris Geissler of Barrington, Greg Jacobs of Mundelein, Maria Rodriguez of Long Grove and Joe Walsh of Winnetka.
In an effort to help voters choose between the six candidates, one of the written questions asked at Grayslake Central High School's auditorium was what they offer beyond repeating the GOP's traditional stances, such as reducing federal government.
Beveridge said he brings a desire to focus on spending issues if he went to Washington.
"If you take a look at what we're doing in Washington, we're spending money like it's going out of style," said Beveridge, a business owner. "It doesn't matter if it's Democrats or Republicans in office. Both parties are spending."
Rodriguez, the village president of Long Grove, said her municipal government experience separates her from the Republican pack.
"What I bring to this is some experience as an elected official and knowing you have to be a strong elected voice at the table for the discussion to move the agenda forward," Rodriguez said.
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Permalink8th Congressional GOP candidates differ on gay marriage
The six Republicans running for Congress in the 8th District generally adhere to the GOP playbook when it comes to gay marriage and oppose it, but their philosophies differ in the details.
Some support amending the U.S. Constitution to ban gay marriage, while others say it's a state issue. One says government shouldn't interfere in marriage at all.....
Rodriguez, the village president of Long Grove, supports a national definition of marriage and would support a constitutional amendment banning gay marriage.
She opposes civil unions as an alternative to marriage for gay couples.
"That devalues the institution of marriage itself," Rodriguez said.
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PermalinkDaily Herald | Candidates flock to social media to connect, influence
If John Kennedy was the first presidential candidate made for television, Barack Obama might have been the first made for the Internet.
With his campaign's heavy reliance on e-mail, Twitter, MySpace and other Web-based tools, Obama used the Internet to attract volunteers, connect supporters and raise money like no one before him.
Now, a year after Obama's historic election, candidates across the country - and throughout the Chicago suburbs - are using his high-tech model as a blueprint for their own political bids. Candidates running for federal, state and even county offices are campaigning via Facebook, YouTube, Twitter and e-mail.
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PermalinkNorthwest Herald | Constituents turn out to survey candidates
Northwest Herald
CRYSTAL LAKE – A sympathetic audience liked what they heard Friday night from the first debate for the six Republican candidates jockeying for the 8th Congressional District.
More than 300 people attended the debate, hosted at McHenry County College by 9-12 Patriots Northern Illinois and the McHenry County Young Republicans.
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Six running for GOP to face Bean in November
Six Republican candidates are vying in the 8th Congressional District primary Feb. 2 to see who will emerge to challenge incumbent Democrat Melissa Bean.
Bean is serving her third term as the 8th District representative and defeated the two previous Republican challengers easily -- David McSweeney in 2006 and Steve Greenberg in 2008. Prior to Bean winning the seat in 2004, it was held by Republican Phil Crane, who was in congress since 1969 before Bean unseated him.
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PermalinkBuffalo Grove Countryside | Long Grove president wants Bean's job
Buffalo Grove Countryside: Long Grove president wants Bean's job
Long Grove Village President Maria Rodriguez said Monday she has the economic background to deliver the 8th Congressional District from incumbent Democrat Melissa Bean back into the Republican camp.
Rodriguez has figured into speculation about the race for months and was courted by the National Republican Congressional Committee earlier this summer. She announced last week her intention to run in next February's 8th District Republican primary.
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Read More | PermalinkDaily Herald | 8th District candidate: Congress 'out of touch'
Daily Herald
Maria Rodriguez's choice of location for her congressional campaign kickoff Thursday was no accident.
Standing on a sidewalk in front of the long-closed Abernathy's Department Store in downtown Mundelein, Rodriguez talked of economic recovery and the need to create jobs before formally announcing her bid to unseat Democrat incumbent Melissa Bean in the 8th House District in 2010.
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