By Rick Pearson and Ray Long Republican governor candidate Bill Brady today called on Democratic Gov. Pat Quinn to fire the state's prisons chief following an early release plan that a panel ripped for saving money at the expense of public safety. "I believe the highest obligation of any governor is to protect the interests of the public, the public safety. By allowing these releases to occur, Gov. Quinn failed to meet this obligation," Brady, a state senator from Bloomington, said at a downtown Chicago news conference. In Springfield, Quinn responded that he would not fire corrections chief Michael Randle, saying "I don't need a lecture from Sen. Brady." Quinn defended Randle, calling him a nationally known expert on prison matters. "I'm not going to change the director," Quinn said during an interview today at the Executive Mansion. "He did make a mistake. He took responsibility for it." Brady's call for Randle's ouster came after Quinn released a report Friday that reviewed the circumstances surrounding the controversial program known as Meritorious Good Time Push. Under it, the state let out 1,745 inmates out of prison an average of 36 days early as a cost-savings move. Some of those released committed new crimes The report from former judge David Erickson concluded that the program was a "mistake" and "ill-conceived." Quinn has said he was unaware that the program was being implemented by Randle and ordered it stopped in December after he found out. But Brady today maintained that the report showed "knowledge of this program was widespread among senior officials" and called it "one of the greatest lapses in public safety in recent history." "How is it possible that Corrections Director Michael Randle still has a job?" the Republican asked. "If the governor doesn't remove Director Randle, that will be one of the first resignations I will accept on my first day in office." On Friday, Quinn acknowledged for the first time that he did consider firing Randle. Today, the governor again said that he has established a director of public safety and a liaison between the prison agency and the governor's office. Brady has come under fire for failing to detail how he would implement budget cuts to the state's deficit-plagued budget in lieu of the income-tax hike Quinn supports. Asked how he would achieve cost savings at the Illinois Department of Corrections, Brady said he would seek a detailed audit of the agency, cut down on mid-level bureaucracy in favor of front line prison guards and eliminate cable television in prisons. Erickson's report, politically embarrassing to the election-seeking governor, was released on a Friday afternoon -- a time traditionally reserved by politicians to deliver bad news. In a bit of a role reversal, Brady sought to publicly exploit the report by using a longtime Quinn tactic -- a Sunday news conference scheduled when news tends to be scarce. Seeking to underscore his law-and-order bonafides, Quinn contended his support for a ban on assault weapons is a stark contrast to Brady's opposition to it. A ban has long been backed by Mayor Richard Daley, but legislation has repeatedly stalled in a General Assembly sharply by regional and philosophical differences between the gun rights of hunters and the desires of Chicago-area politicians who want to ban assault-styled weapons. "I believe in banning assault weapons," Quinn said. "Sen. Brady is the poster boy for the assault weapons makers."

By Doug Wilson Bill Brady, the Republican nominee for Illinois governor, prefers to see challenges as opportunities. By that measure, he said Illinois has "the greatest opportunity of any state in the nation." With more than $70 billion in unfunded pension obligations, another $20 billion in bonded debt and about $5 billion in unpaid bills, Brady said it is no wonder Illinois has the worst bond rating in the nation. The first step in recovering fiscal health is to "stop the bleeding." "We can't afford to let Illinois keep spending beyond its means," Brady said during a campaign stop Monday in Quincy. A state senator and business owner from Bloomington, Brady said he would run the state like a business, trimming expenses that have built up during the past eight years. He has pledged to cut 10 percent of state spending and balance the budget in his first year, but offered no specifics on how plans to achieve those goals and work to eliminate a $13 billion state budget deficit. When challenged on whether 10 percent funding cuts would cripple schools, Brady would only say putting professionals in leadership will help. He suggested that employees who agree to forgo pay raises could help school districts. He did not say how that would help school districts recoup money they are owed by the state -- $5.8 million for Quincy Public Schools alone -- or offset earlier education cuts, including a 42 percent reduction in transportation funding announced last week by Gov. Pat Quinn. During a later stop, Brady pledged to eliminate the Illinois State Board of Education, trimming about half of the $80 million that currently goes to that agency. Earlier this year, former GOP Gov. Jim Edgar called Brady's budget plan "simplistic" and "naive." Edgar has said the state must cut spending and then increase taxes. A disastrous fiscal situation in the early 1990s forced the Republican governor to make drastic cuts and make permanent a temporary income tax increase. "If we root out corruption and fraud and abuse ... we can have better government, with 90 cents on the dollar, than we have now," Brady said. Cost-cutting moves will occupy the first year if Brady is elected, he said. But to restore Illinois to fiscal health, he said a lot of business-friendly reforms will also be needed. Workers compensation needs to be fixed, because it currently costs twice as much as some surrounding states, Brady said. He also wants to see medical malpractice claims reduce, wants to eliminate Illinois estate taxes and would cut the regulations that make it hard to create ethanol and biodiesel facilities or coal mines. Brady said each of those things will reduce some of the disincentives to job creation in Illinois. Brady said the next step will be to provide incentives such a $2,100 tax credit for each new job created by a business. "That's half of the $4,200 that gets paid in to the state in new revenue the first year a job is created. That's part of what it's going to take to bring back the 700,000 jobs the state has lost in the past 10 years," Brady said. Brady said Democratic nominee Quinn's plan for an income tax hike would be "a job killer." Quinn's campaign spokesman could not immediately be reached for a comment but has previously said that Brady's 10 percent budget cuts would be harmful to Illinois and its citizens. Brady's first local campaign stop of the day was at Industrial Support Services, where company president Nick Lansing is working to rebuild the jobs that were lost in recent years. At one time ISS had nearly 400 employees, but now has 42 workers on payroll. Lansing showed Brady how some new product lines hold promise for the company. Kim Maisch, state director for the National Federation of Independent Business, also announced the NFIB's political action committee's endorsement of Brady. "He has a 96 percent lifetime voting record of supporting business" and 93 percent of the NFIB's Illinois members urged support for Brady, Maisch said. During a luncheon meeting at Knapheide Manufacturing, Brady spoke to local business leaders. He got his loudest applause of the day while promising to end the atmosphere of corruption in Springfield. "Yes I will live in the governor's mansion if you so choose to put me there. But I promise you that will be the only form of government housing I will accept. I'll refuse to go anywhere they have bars," Brady said.

State Sen. Bill Brady made his first major appearance Saturday night since becoming the GOP's candidate for governor. After a month of political wrangling, Brady, R-Bloomington, was named the Republican challenger in the Nov. 2 election. Brady emerged as the nominee when the State Board of Elections declared him the official winner on Friday by a mere 193 votes. Brady, along with other GOP candidates, spoke to a crowd of nearly 300 at the 55th annual Lincoln Day Dinner. The crowd included elected officials from across the state as well as some from Madison, Macoupin, Montgomery and St. Clair counties. Brady said he worked hard on his primary campaign and would continue the momentum. "We built a great grassroots organization," Brady said. He said his focus will be on two objectives - bringing jobs to Illinois and ending the machine culture of corruption and politics. "People are fed up," he said. He said the state needs to balance its budget but doesn't need to do so at taxpayers' expense. "Raising the income tax by 50 percent will not work," he said. "Gov. Pat Quinn is a failure when it comes to fiscal management." Brady said the state needs to be more welcoming to businesses. He said he intends to create a more positive business climate, which in turn will create jobs and bring income back to the state. He said other areas of focus are public safety, transportation, health care and education. "If we do these things right and efficiently, the private sector jobs will begin to flourish," he said. Brady asked the crowd if they wanted to continue with Chicago-style machine politics. He said the governor's office should be more representative of the state, not just Chicago. "Gov. Quinn cares more about politics than policy," he said. Brady said he is "thrilled and excited" about having Edwardsville's Jason Plummer running for lieutenant governor. "He's one of your own," Brady said. He said Plummer is from outside the machine's geographical boundary of Cook County and from a younger generation. Brady said the state is "rich in assets." "Illinois is not bankrupt," he said. "It's rich in opportunity. We need to make the state a place we want to live and work again." Brady said he knows the election will be tough, but he will remain focused on bringing and retaining jobs and reforming state politics. Other Republican candidates to speak included state treasurer candidate state Sen. Dan Rutherford, Pontiac; state senator candidate William "Sam" McCann of Carlinville; and attorney general candidate Steve Kim of Chicago. Plummer said he's spoken all across the state, but speaking in Madison County is different because it's among family and friends. "We've heard a lot about 2010 being our year," Plummer said. ""I think it can, but the only way we are going to win is to work hard." Plummer said Illinois residents deserve someone in Springfield who will talk about the issues. "It's not about increasing taxes, but increasing the tax base," he said. "We have to stop punishing businesses and create an environment where they will want to be." U.S Rep. John Shimkus of Collinsville, along with state Sen. Kyle McCarter of Lebanon and state Rep. Ron Stephens of Greenville, also spoke. Lone Democrat and Madison County Board member Helen Hawkins of Granite City said she enjoyed the speakers. She said she's never voted a straight ticket in a general election and after listening to many of them, she liked what she heard. "I think I will be voting for a few Republicans," Hawkins said. Hawkins said she is considered a "renegade" Democrat. "I always vote for who I believe will do the best job," she said.