Bernie Stone's Son Has Some Chutzpah, Possible Daddy Issues

By Chuck Sudo in News on Dec 20, 2007 8:07PM

In politics, when you see an opening, no matter how small, you take it. And Jay Stone, son of 50th Ward Alderman Bernie Stone, is really reaching here.

The younger Stone has filed a claim for some of the $12 million dollars set aside in the Shakman settlement, alleging that he couldn't unseat former 32nd Ward Alderman Ted Matlak in 2003 because of the patronage army controlled by former deputy Water Commissioner Donald Tomczak. Jay Stone, who ran against Matlak without the blessing of his father - and, one would assume, also without his father's own considerable support - said that since he was an "unfavored candidate" without the "blessing of City Hall", he has a legitimate claim. "All I have to do is prove that I was discriminated against for political reasons," Jay Stone said.

Rrriiiiiggggghhht. It seems to us that in this case, the elder Stone, with a lifetime's worth of political experience, realized that he didn't want to be seen as flexing his clout in the direction of a local ward machine whose power base stretched back to the Great Depression. This should make for an awkward holiday season at Bernie Stone's house. Maybe Jay Stone can utilize some of his own hypnotherapy techniques.