Anyone down for a protest?

By KAREN MCDONALD
of the Journal Star
Posted Jul 10, 2008 @ 02:48 PM
Last update Jul 11, 2008 @ 12:18 PM

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PEORIA — Though his approval rating is one of the lowest of all U.S. presidents, George Bush is expected to raise hundreds of thousands of dollars for 18th Congressional District candidate Aaron Schock when he appears at a fundraiser in the Peoria area later this month.

Bush, who last was in Peoria in January 2007 to visit Caterpillar Inc., will visit this time for the sole benefit of Schock. He'll be at a $500 per head fundraiser at a yet-to-be determined private residence on July 25, Schock said.

"It's humbling that out of 435 congressional races that (Bush) is willing to take time to help me and that I'm on his radar screen," said Schock, currently a state House representative.

With Illinois U.S. Sen. Barack Obama at the top of the ballot in the November general election, current 18th District seat holder Ray LaHood, R-Peoria, said Republicans - particularly in Illinois - need all the help they can get.

"Aaron and other Republicans need to make sure that voters know they have to go down the ticket and cross over and vote. It's going to take money to persuade people that these folks are on the ballot," LaHood said. "It's no secret that President Bush is very low in the polls, but I believe based on his visit here 18 months ago, central Illinois has a very good feeling about the president."

Shock campaign manager Steve Shearer said Bush hasn't gotten involved in many congressional races thus far. He's only helped raise money for a handful and isn't expected to pick up the pace before November.

Democratic congressional candidate Colleen Callahan questioned whether it is a desperate move.

"Really, what a compliment it is to us to have the president of the United States come into our district on behalf of our opponent," Callahan said. "However, politically speaking, you have to ask the question: is it wise to bring in a president with an approval rating of one of the lowest (presidents) in history, in the mid-20s?"

A June 26 Los Angeles Times/Bloomberg poll showed Bush with an approval rating of 23 percent among registered voters.

Callahan said she will not be attending the fundraiser.

"In our campaign we have tried to strike a balance in fundraising and friend-raising," said Callahan, who's raised $280,000 in the four months since announcing her candidacy, with about half that cash on hand.

"It is not always about the fundraising. It should not always have to be about the bottom line. This is clearly about the bottom line."

Schock has raised nearly $1.1 million since he entered the race in August. He had $188,115 in cash on hand at the close of the April reporting period, with about $77,460 in debts.

The next fund-raising filings will be available July 15.

Mike Lawrence, director of the Paul Simon Public Policy Institute at Southern Illinois University, said despite Bush's dismal rating, he can still bring in the cash.

"There's a possible downside because of President Bush's unpopularity, but Republican candidates throughout the country have used President Bush to raise money for them," Lawrence said.

"So the candidates and the managers of their campaigns have obviously decided that the upsides substantially outweigh the downsides."

On the first day of ticket sales, Schock already sold 500 tickets, which means he's already cleared at least $250,000. He said he had to provide Secret Service with several possible locations for the lunch or dinner event. Bush will speak for 50 minutes.

Shearer said the visit doesn't mean Schock shares all of Bush's political views.

"It's different eras. Aaron was 18 years old when President Bush was elected. The world was a lot different then," Shearer said. "What this is about is Aaron and the promise he holds for the future. Aaron has always chartered his own course. Any patriotic American would be honored to have the president of the United States help them."

Karen McDonald can be reached at 686-3285 or This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it .

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