Talkin' politics with Rosemary

I had a long talk with state Rep. Rosemary Mulligan yesterday, the day after the Des Plaines Republican fended off a tough political challenge from Park Ridge Democrat Aurora Austriaco.

Mulligan is a suburban Republican who’s never been one of the good ol’ boys of the region’s GOP. She’s often taken outspoken offense at things her party has done and said. She’s unabashedly moderate, outspokenly pro-choice and counts among her local supporters the parents of gays and lesbians. And her top issue in Springfield is social service funding – not cutting it – which is not exactly your typical GOP issue.

Anyway, she first won and has kept winning by building a strong and loyal network of independent and moderate supporters. And that made this the most interesting comment from our chat:

“I had my people ready to vote for McCain. Then they put Palin on (the ticket) and they look and me and say, ‘What do you want me to do now?’”

That may be the most telling comment about why the presidential race turned out the way it did in parts of the suburbs. But this is my favorite comment. If you’ve ever heard Mulligan launch into one of her patented screeds in the House, you’ll understand why.

Mulligan said she’d heard that the Democrats were surprised at how “mean” she was in going after her challenger.

“I guess they don’t hear me on the House floor.”