Leadership in Illinois seems to miss a point or two as the harping continues about an ill-fated proposal to control a new airport near Peotone.

An editorial by County Executive Larry Walsh recently hit the papers proclaiming that the airport won’t fly with Chicago-like tactics. His words answer the original charge leveled by Rick Bryant, aide to U.S. Rep. Jesse Jackson, Jr., that congressional candidate; State Sen. Majority Leader Debbie Halvorson modeled an airport authority bill after a plan conceived by political fundraiser Anthony Rezko. Rezko was convicted on 16 counts of fraud and bribery earlier this year.

Instead of creating a picture of good government where representatives manage the state’s business, the Peotone airport story conjures up an old Bogart movie set on a dark and rainy night – a street scene where a small group of people wearing dark trench coats and broad-rimmed hats convene on a corner as if in a huddle.

The notion that Halvorson could push legislation through the Illinois Senate with broad powers for controlling thousands of acres of Illinois land and the ability to simply take it from its owners makes pay-to-play politics pale in comparison.

“This proposed legislation is consistent with similar airport authorities that have been successful in the design, construction and operation of other successful airports and includes the use of private partners who must adhere to the highest ethical standards,” Walsh writes.

How can Walsh, a former legislator, refer to the Peotone proposal and other successful airports in the same breath? In baseball terms, the Peotone airport has never made it past first base.

Walsh goes on to say, “It is obvious that Illinois Senate Bill 2063 provides the statutory authority that will be required to see this airport through to fruition. Can good faith negotiations over the structure of SB 2063 still occur? Absolutely.”

How is airport control going to satisfy all the unanswered questions about building an airport at Peotone? And if good faith negotiations over the structure of the legislation can still occur, doesn’t that simply translate into let’s make a deal?

Walsh and Will County bicker with Bryant and Jackson. They act like mortal enemies. But you can rest assured that when election time comes around, they will find their way back together – to walk through the halls of government arm-in-arm, courting anyone and everyone who will finance their campaigns so they can keep pushing this ill-fated proposal.

They have and will continue to receive handsome sums from contractors, concrete workers, union officials concession operators, lobbyists, and everyone who has something to gain by building a new airport, whether it is good for the region or not. Isn’t pay to play?

Perhaps the conviction of Rezko and others like him, including the state’s past governor should send a message to the leadership in Illinois. There is accountability. Isn’t it time Illinois was accountable to the people it is meant to serve?

Since it began, the ‘study’ for a new airport has had little accountability. Assumptions have skewed an examination of whether a new airport is really needed. Some of the most basic of questions have gone unanswered – literally for years. Lies have been told to manufacture support. People’s lives have been destroyed.

A debate about who will control an airport modeled after a 1960’s proposal that was renewed in the mid-80’s is an absurdity. Isn’t it time to look honestly at this proposal and the motive behind it? Over the years, it has gone from real estate investment to creation of jobs and controlling concessions and political deals.

Shouldn’t transportation need enter the equation? Wouldn’t an honest look consider all the changes that have occurred in the last four decades, underscoring the last several years, with the downward spiral of the economy, a struggling airline industry, the cost of fuel, and an uncertain business future? Is it wise to continue the bickering about controlling an airport that will never be built?

Wouldn’t it be refreshing to see real leadership in Illinois – a voice that calls attention to the reality of the Peotone airport – proclaiming that it isn’t needed, or its time has come and gone, or even there is a better way? Or are these just more questions that will remain unanswered in the legacy of the Peotone airport?