By Ray Hanania

Cook County Commissioner Sean Morrison has tried to define himself as an outspoken critic of government officials who exploit police resources for their personal security.

But recent reports by WBEZ radio and Chicago Sun-Times expose his hypocrisy. Morrison received an inordinate amount of formal police security checks of his home in the tiny suburb of Palos Park, where police costs are more than half the village budget.

Morrison has lived at his one-acre Palos Park property at least 14 years. During the first seven, Morrison’s home barely received any police checks, despite being a prominent township political official.

But beginning in 2015, after being appointed to the Cook County Board, “Big Shot” Morrison started receiving special attention from the Palos Park Police, which made an annual average of 60 formal security checks on his home, or 415 during the past seven years.

These were not the typical security checks by police driving through a neighborhood or passing homes. There are about 2,000 homes that need protection in Palos Park. The police security checks on Morrison’s home were special, formal and detailed. Police were required to document them each time.

I don’t know about you, but I’ve only asked for two formal police security checks during the 35 years I’ve lived at my home. Morrison gets 60 a year? Talk about privilege, and a waste of taxpayer money. Police could be doing more important things like focusing on the needs of the village’s 4,899 residents (2020 Census).

These formal home security checks took place while Morrison stood atop his flimsy political soapbox and attacked other politicians for abusing police resources.

The need for security checks is burdensome, considering Palos Park police resources constitute more than half of the village’s annual $4.7 million budget.

Even more perplexing is why would a big shot like Morrison — who owns his own security company, Morrison Security, with some 850 employees — need the taxpayers to protect his home? Why would you exploit those police resources, diluting the focus on the homes of your neighbors?

The 415 security checks sound small, but considering Palos Park has only 2,000 homes, it means the focus was more on Morrison than on anyone else in the Palos Park.

If I were a Palos Park homeowner, I would be upset with Morrison!

The question is who required this?

In his media response, Morrison threw the Palos Park police under the bus by asserting he never requested the security checks — something he must say as he stumbles through the final days of his beleaguered re-election bid. Morrison is being challenged by a real taxpayer and homeowner champion, Elizabeth “Liz” Doody-Gorman.

You can’t take Morrison’s word for anything because he lies so much about almost everything.

My guess is the 415 formal security checks don’t include other routine checks police often make just driving around a neighborhood protecting the less important people, like taxpayers.

Morrison’s hypocrisy is astounding. He constantly complains about tax hikes because it makes him look good to voters, but he can’t even pay his own property taxes on time as the Sun-Times reported in 2017. When asked about it, Morrison claimed he didn’t know he didn’t pay his property taxes.

Didn’t know? That’s the kind of person you want watching the rights of the regular, unimportant people who don’t get special privileges like Morrison?

Is Palos Park thanking Morrison for his support in their battle with Lemont? In 2015, during Morrison’s first year on the County Board, Palos Park was given approval by the County Board to annex county land. It gave Palos Park what it needed to annex Lemont Township properties owned by Cog Hill Golf and Country Club, Gleneagles Country Club, Mid Iron Golf Club and Ludwig Farm. That would increase property tax revenues for Palos Park, while taking it away from others.

Morrison claims he is an anti-tax fighter, but in fact he is ineffective. He road the coattails of Cook County Democrats to block the pop tax increase that he claims he overturned all by his lonesome.

Compare Morrison to Gorman, who is clearly better qualified to be the 17th District Cook County Commissioner. When Gorman was on the board, before Morrison, she opposed Stroger’s One Cent Sales Tax hike, which later passed. But, she kept fighting and led a campaign that convinced the Democrat majority on the board to reverse itself and repeal the tax.

Taxpayers can’t afford Morrison. He needs to resign. Why support someone so disrespectful of taxpayer needs?

Check out Ray Hanania’s columns and political podcasts at hanania.com.