the
COOK-WITTER REPORT
Volume 25, Number 9
W
25th Anniversary Issue
Cook-Witter Turned 25!
orking with the Illinois General Assembly
bying firm -- Cook-Witter, Inc. “By the first week in
can get in your blood. When some people
September of 1985 we were in an office at 625 South
leave the Statehouse they miss “the game.”
Second Street (barely two blocks south of the capiThat was the case for Cook-Witter, Inc. co-founder
tol),” Witter said. “The official documents of incorpoBob Cook. Although he now lives in Colorado, Cook
ration were dated October 1, 1985.”
returned to Springfield this past summer and spent
“I wanted the firm to be a place where I could
time at the firm he helped to found. While there he
take it easier, so I could do things with my wife,
and co-founder Randy Witter discussed the firm’s
things I had promised her 25 years before,” Cook
origins and future.
said. “The key was having someone who knew
Cook’s first experience with the legislature came
what they were doing and Randy was the best one I
when he served on the
knew…I wanted a crestaff of the Taxpayers
ative person and a hard
Federation of Illinois
worker.
beginning in 1949. Six
“Both of us had
years later, in 1956, he
a dream for this firm,”
was hired as the first
Cook recalled, “and
staff person of what was
the two minds came
then called the Illinois
together…My vision
Association of Real
for Cook-Witter was
Estate Board (later it
dictated by my own bebecame the Illinois Asliefs. We knew the type
sociation of Realtors).
of organization that I
Cook realized how
was willing to represent.
important it was for the
It had to be an organizaAssociation to interact
tion I could agree with..
with lawmakers whose
.”
Randy Witter, Bob Cook and Bruce Kinnett
work could greatly afWitter added: “We
fect Realtors, but since
had a basic understandthe group originally had no staff besides Cook, he
ing that we didn’t want to represent tobacco, liquor or
had to do the interacting. “I had a love/hate relationgambling. We’re not passing judgment. It’s because
ship with the Illinois General Assembly,” Cook said,
of our comfort level.” While the pair started with a
smiling.
few clients, including some that remain, the list has
grown to 16 groups and associations.
They came from referrals, not advertising. “I
The Beginning
don’t know that we’ve ever done a remarkable job of
marketing, because we were so busy representing the
After he retired from the Realtors in 1984, Cook
clients we did have,” Cook said.
wanted to continue lobbying. So the following spring
Witter continued: “We wanted to make a differhe approached Witter, whom he’d hired and menence. We wanted to address clients’ problems and try
tored as the Association’s first legislative assistant ten
to correct them--”
years earlier. By the time Cook approached him in the
“Whether it be legislatively or administratively,”
spring of 1985, Witter was the Association’s director
Cook
added seamlessly. “We looked at the best way
of governmental affairs.
to
solve
their problem.”
Months later, Witter resigned from the Realtors
“A
perfect example,” Witter said, “is when we
so he and Cook could open their own Springfield lob-
continued on page 2
2 • Cook-Witter Report
Cook-Witter Turned 25!
Continued from page 1
were representing the Chicago Park District. We’re
close with the agriculture community because of
Bruce Kinnett, (who joined the firm in 1988 and has a
background in agribusiness). He knew the ag community was experimenting with biodegradable plastics,
so we suggested to the Chicago Park District that it
integrate the use of those plastics into their events and
facilities.”
Pushing Technology
In order to help clients, the firm has made it a
practice to embrace new technology, especially in
communications. “When we were working at the
Realtors, communication was by landline phones,”
Witter said. Lobbyists had to depend on legislators to
tell them a bill was being debated or they had to post
staff in the chambers’ galleries to monitor debate.
“When we started Cook-Witter, we were the first
to have walkie talkies at the Capitol,” Witter said.
“We also had walkie talkie phones (this was the late
1980s). We worked with a local company that gave
us a walkie talkie phone the size of a brick and it
weighed as much!”
“I wore out the lining of suits because of it!”
Cook laughed.
“And belts,” Kinnett added.
“People made fun of us and our phones -- until
they needed a phone,” Witter said. “The phones let us
get the edge and people recognized that.”
In addition, the firm has “consistently fought
for better communications at the Statehouse itself,”
he added. “When we started Cook-Witter the only
way to hear floor debate was to be in the legislative
chambers or be at a state agency with a ‘squawk box’
(a speaker that broadcasts legislative debate). That
was it!”
So the men approached legislative staff suggesting that these speakers be made available to organizations that needed them. “One chief of staff said, ‘I
have enough problems locating my members around
the Capitol for a vote and if the box is across the
street at Sam’s (a popular bar at the time), they would
stay there and listen to debate!’” Witter said.
In time, speakers were made available to the private sector. Today anyone with access to the Internet
can watch legislative debate live at
www.ilga.gov (click on “Audio/Video” beneath
the Senate or House columns to watch that chamber).
Recently Cook-Witter had the large TV screen in
its conference room formatted so staff can watch live
debate from the House and Senate simultaneously
via a split-screen. Witter thinks technology can help
citizens and businesses keep abreast of legislative
activity in other ways. He’s talked to the Legislative
Information Service about creating a subscription service which would alert subscribers via pager or phone
that a bill they’re interested in is being debated.
To make sure they’re staying ahead of technology and other changes, Cook-Witter is planning a
brainstorming retreat for staff. “As society and the
way people do business change, we want to re-evaluate our way of doing business and how we promote
ourselves.” Witter explained. “Maybe we can provide
additional services to our clients.”
The Philosophy
Bob Cook retired from the firm in 1995. Today
Witter is its president, Kinnett is the vice president,
and Betsy Mitchell is an associate. Nonetheless, the
firm’s original name hasn’t changed. “It’s a pleasant
surprise that Randy has kept it,” Cook said.
The name is intact for more than sentimentality,
Witter explained. “Bob’s reputation is sterling, he set
a standard by which we must continue to operate. The
day doesn’t pass when I don’t think of the level of integrity and operation he established…At Cook-Witter
we’ve always tried to do the right thing.”
Cook-Witter is currently -- and appropriately -located at 225 East Cook Street in Springfield. “The
opportunity to acquire the current building occurred
and we did so in the fall of 2001,” Witter said. “We
totally revamped it.”
“This building is a showcase and a credit to
Springfield,” Cook added.
The firm dedicated its new building on November 1, 2002, which was the same day the White
House was dedicated 202 years earlier. “I was reading
John Adams’ biography at the time and he was the
first occupant of the White House,” Witter said. “He
wrote to his wife a blessing for the White House and
we paraphrased it for this building. It embodies the
philosophy we’ve had for Cook-Witter these many
years.”
The blessing is printed on a plaque located at the
front door. It reads:
“May Heaven bestow the best of blessings on
this building and all that shall ever work here. May
none but honest and wise individuals ever do business
under this roof.”
Cook-Witter Report • 3
A History of Helping
Cook-Witter, Inc. has made it a practice to assist
their clients as well as others. “I always believed in
mentoring and helping people improve themselves,”
said Bob Cook, Cook-Witter, Inc. co-founder. He
takes “pride” in seeing staff and interns he’s mentored
excel in the field. “Training young people was a highlight for me,” he said.
One of those people was Randy Witter, whom
Cook hired to work for him in 1974, while he was
head of the Illinois Association of Realtors. Betsy
Mitchell, who is an Associate at Cook-Witter, Inc.,
also started out as an intern with the Illinois Association of Realtors.
Cook-Witter has carried on that tradition and
has had 41 interns since its creation. Young people interested in learning about the legislative process and
state government apply for the internship and those
selected assist staff in tracking legislation and administrative rules that impact its clients. The internship is
intended to give students hands-on experience working with lobbyists. They do not lobby, but they work
directly beside the lobbyists when they’re analyzing
issues and discussion legislation with lawmakers.
“We’re very proud of our interns. In addition
to lobbying, some have gone on to become lawyers
or teachers, legislative staff (for the state or federal
government) and one even worked for the Secret Service on Capitol Hill. Some hold various positions in
the private sector,” said Witter. Many still come back
for holiday gatherings or an occasional Cook-Witter
intern get-together. “They know our door is always
open,” Witter said.
Cook-Witter Presents Volume to Secretary of State’s Office
Bob Cook and Randy Witter give Illinois State Library
Director Anne Craig a volume of the Cook-Witter Report
newsletters. “On behalf of Secretary of State and State
Librarian Jesse White, I am delighted to accept this collection
of newsletters that I am certain will be useful to current
readers and future patrons. Many thanks to Bob Cook and
Randy Witter for their thoughtfulness and generosity in
providing this collection to the State Library,” Craig said.
This summer, Cook-Witter, Inc. founders Bob
Cook and Randy Witter presented Anne Craig, Director of the Illinois State Library, with their third bound
volume of the firm’s newsletter, the Cook-Witter
Report. “The Cook Witter Report is one of state
government’s most valuable sources of information
about current legislative affairs and important events
in Illinois history,” said Craig.
Cook-Witter has published a regular newsletter
since the company was created in 1985. “The Report
started as another way to send clients updates on their
bills,” Witter explained. “We used to place a client’s
list of important bills in the center of the Report, but
with modern technology and the need to update the
status of important bills more frequently, we do not
do that these days, we use e-mails.”
The newsletter has another function, too. “We
thought the Report would provide added insight
into the legislative process, Illinois history, and the
Springfield scene,” he added. Occasionally, staff will
hear feedback about the articles. “Some people have
said to me, ‘Gosh, I didn’t know that, it was very interesting,’ or a lawmaker might comment that a story
really touched them,” Witter said.
continued on page 4
4 • Cook-Witter Report
Cook-Witter Presents Volume...
Continued from page 3
Newsletter topics have ranged from wrap-ups of
legislative sessions to the Springfield race riots to the
work of Illinois artist Preston Jackson. Witter said he
remembers getting positive feedback on several articles, including: “History of the Grandstand Shows at
the State Fair,” “How Tall is the Capitol?,” “Myths of
the Capitol Building,” “The Lincoln Colored Home,”
and “The Rulemaking Process.”
Many back issues of the Cook-Witter Report are
available at the Cook-Witter web site (www.cookwitter.com). All back issues can be found in bound
volumes at the Illinois State Library.
Cook-Witter, Inc. Staff
Randy Witter, President
Bruce Kinnett,
Vice President
Betsy Mitchell
Ann Bond
Beth Martin
Tara McClellan McAndrew, newsletter managing editor
Transitions
Republican Dan Rutherford became state treasurer after the November General Election, leaving
his 53rd District Illinois Senate seat empty. On November 20, Republican Shane Cultra of Onarga was
chosen to replace him, leaving Cultra’s seat in the Illinois House of Representatives open. Cultra’s replacement has not been named.
The COOK-WITTER REPORT is published and distributed courtesy of Cook-Witter, Inc. Online versions of the COOKWITTER REPORT are available at www.cook-witter.com. All rights reserved. Reproduction in whole or part without
permission is prohibited. Send comments to 225 East Cook Street, Springfield, IL 62704, (217) 789-6252.