Rep. Mike Boland is not exactly the most popular member of the Illinois House. Many of his colleagues say they just don’t trust his word. I used to like the guy. I thought he was plucky in the face of overhwhelming odds. Then I saw close hand a couple of years ago why he wasn’t trusted.

Boland also introduces more than his share of goofy bills. One of those bills crashed and burned yesterday…

While opponents whistled the sound of falling bombs, proponents argued passionately for anti-smoking legislation aimed at protecting the health of young children.

House Bill 1769 went down in flames Thursday, garnering just 18 “yes” votes while the 91 opponents cheered.

The bill would have prohibited smoking in a vehicle with children ages 8 and under.

Rep. Mike Boland, D-East Moline, sponsor of the bill, said he chose that age because children are in car seats until then. He thought it would simplify things for police officers.

If everyone had voted, Boland might have hit the magic “Century” mark of “No” votes. Anyway, here’s more…

“Enough is enough,” said state Rep. Bill Black, a Danville Republican. “What’s next? Are we going to have the smoke police come to your house?

“Why don’t we just put a bill on the calendar that says no cigarettes shall be sold in the state of Illinois and the possession … the mere possession of a cigarette would be a Class X felony?”

State Rep. Michael Boland, an East Moline Democrat, sponsored the plan, citing similar laws in Louisiana, West Virginia and Arkansas. […]

Few of his colleagues agreed.

“Few” is right.

Meanwhile, the Senate passed a statewide smoking ban yesterday…

Handing anti-tobacco forces a major political win, the Illinois Senate on Thursday voted to ban smoking in bars, restaurants, casinos and workplaces statewide.

The initiative, which passed 34-23 and now moves to the House, would replace a patchwork of local anti-smoking laws beginning next January.

The American Cancer Society estimates that eight Illinoisans die each day — about 2,900 a year — after getting sick from breathing smoke-filled air.

Restaurant and bar employees who work eight-hour shifts in a smoke-filled environment breathe in the equivalent of 16 cigarettes, supporters said.

The Pantagraph takes another angle…

Thursday’s Senate vote to ban smoking in all Illinois public places comes on the heels of hundreds of thousands of dollars in television advertising trying to convince voters and lawmakers that second-hand smoke is dangerous.

The anti-smoking ads join spots about Gov. Rod Blagojevich’s business tax plan and others about cable TV competition as recent commercials that could interrupt the local news or “Good Morning America.”

Jeff Brand, a communication professor at Millikin University in Decatur, says it’s not necessarily unusual to see groups take their legislative goals to the tube.

“I think right now we just have a glut of issues,” he said.