By Keith Liscio for Observer.com -
Tuesday morning a Donald Trump supporter who lives in Rep. Jan Schakowsky’s Illinois Congressional district organized a rally outside of the Congresswoman’s Evanston office demanding investigations into Robert Creamer and others alleged to have incited violence at a Trump rally in Chicago in March.
Creamer is Schakowsky’s husband and the political consultant with Democracy Partners who appeared in a surreptitiously recorded undercover video in which he and associates from Americans United for Change seemed to take credit for planting agitators at Trump rallies. In the videos, Creamer also claims to work on behalf of the Democratic National Committee and the Hillary Clinton campaign.
Suzanne Monk attended the Trump rally which she claimed descended into “a riot,” and was motivated to act by her frustration at the seeming inaction of law enforcement. Initially, she began a petition on Change.org which garnered about 100 signatures. She knew of Schakowsky’s Republican opponent Joan McCarthy Lasonde’s call for investigations and said, “I was inspired to see her stand up and use her voice.” Eventually Monk’s petition came to the attention of Lasonde’s campaign and they helped her to coordinate Tuesday’s demonstration. Monk and Joan Lasonde did not meet until the event.
Lasonde was on hand at the protest outside of Schakowsky’s Evanston Congressional office and made a speech attempting to link the Congresswoman to her husband’s actions. While Monk criticized Creamer and his association with the Democratic Party, Lasonde directed her comments to her opponent’s alleged involvement:
“This is about Schakowsky, not her husband. Schakowsky’s campaign is a client of Democracy Partners, the criminal operation at the center of the video evidence. Don’t think Schakowsky doesn’t know. On the same night as the Chicago Trump rally cancelled for violence, Schakowsky herself led a separate protest against a GOP dinner at the Palmer House. It was just as provocative and we are lucky violence didn’t break out there, too.”
A group of about four dozen protesters escorted by police then marched the two blocks to the Evanston post office chanting “Hey, hey, ho, ho, what did Jan Schakowsky know?” Evanston police officers on the scene reported no problems as the rally and marchers were generally peaceful and well-behaved.
The rest of Liscio's story is HERE.
