Dorothy Brown's Ethics For Dummies

Cook County Circuit Court Clerk Dorothy Brown wants to bring ethics reforms to the Cook County presidency.

She said so at a campaign event she held this week.

On the fifth floor of the County Building.

That's an ethical no-no.

As noted by Fox Chicago's Dane Placko, public officials running for office typically hold their campaign events in hotel ballrooms, campaign offices or private homes.

Not in government buildings during the workday. When they should be working.

(State Comptroller Dan Hynes, for example, runs across the street to use another phone when reporters call his office with questions about his campaign for governor.)

And when Placko asked Brown if it was appropriate to hold her event in the County Building, she only embarrassed herself.

"This is a place where many, many candidates hold their press conferences."

Really? Cue Andy Shaw, former ABC 7 political reporter and now executive director of the Better Government Association.

"I've covered thousands of campaign events in Cook County and I don't remember a single one in a government building," he told Placko.

And when Placko pushed Brown to cite just one, she said " There's been many. I can't cite any right now."

Oops.

Placko also saw Brown aides carrying campaign signs - another no-no.

Brown explained that they were doing so against her direction.

But she's going to clean up Cook County government if we elect her president.

Right.

Steve Rhodes is the proprietor of The Beachwood Reporter, a Chicago-centric news and culture review.

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