* 2:40 pm - The Senate Democrats have given up on moving an income tax hike bill… for now…
A fight over whether to raise the state income tax is being postponed until the fall.
State Sen. John Cullerton, D-Chicago, says he and Senate colleague James Meeks, D-Chicago, will not call their bill to boost the income tax on individuals and corporations by next week’s deadline for Senate action, but instead will move forward in the fall veto session — after the November elections.
“We’re playing for the fall,” Mr. Cullerton said in a phone interview. “We met with a bunch of supporters, and they want the summer to line up additional support for it.”
However, Senate President Emil Jones moved a proposed constitutional amendment that calls for a graduated income tax (instead of the current flat tax) to the Executive Committee yesterday…
Proposes to amend the Revenue Article of the Illinois Constitution. Authorizes a tax on or measured by income to be at a graduated rate (now, all taxes on or measured by income shall be at a non-graduated rate). Provides that, in any such tax imposed upon corporations, the rate shall not exceed the weighted average rate imposed on individuals by more than a ratio of 8 to 5. Effective upon being declared adopted.
That CA will likely get a committee vote next week and might even make it to the floor. Stay tuned.
* 2:49 pm - House Speaker Michael Madigan sent a letter to members of the Legislature today which claimed that the guv was working “outside the constitutionally-prescribed lawmaking process.” Here it is…
Dear General Assembly Member:
On March 31 the Illinois Department of Healthcare and Family Services and its director, Barry Maram, filed suit in Cook County Circuit Court to challenge the constitutionality of the Joint Committee on Administrative Rules. The complaint demands that the court force Secretary of State Jesse White to accept and publish in the Illinois Register permanent rules to implement the governor’s desired expansion of state health care programs. Absent specific statutory authorization for such an expansion, JCAR last month voted to suspend the implementation of those rules. Were the Secretary of State to publish the rules, it would give IDHFS the authority to enforce them, in effect a back-door way to implement the governor’s policies.
The lawsuit, filed at the governor’s direction, is an explicit statement that he does not want executive agencies to work in a cooperative manner with the Legislature. This is a stark departure from the past practices of this and previous governors. It is important that legislators recognize its implications.
This spring, the House has required that any bills asking executive agencies to promulgate rules include an amendment that necessitates the agencies return to the General Assembly and receive ratification of those rules via statute. In light of the governor’s lawsuit, this has proven to be a prudent decision and we will continue to operate accordingly.
Since 1977, four governors and sixteen General Assemblies have functioned under the provisions of the Illinois Administrative Procedure Act, which established JCAR as a legislative oversight committee with its membership apportioned equally between the House and Senate, Republicans and Democrats. For the last five years, until recently, the current governor and his agency directors have adhered to the JCAR framework. In fact, Governor Blagojevich himself signed legislation that strengthened JCAR’s authority and gave it the power to suspend emergency rules proposed by governors and their agency directors. The governor’s complaint came only when JCAR denied his policy objectives in a particular instance.
It is worth restating the fact that most members of the General Assembly do not stand in opposition to the governor’s ends of greater health care coverage for the uninsured. Rather, we oppose the governor’s decision to work outside the constitutionally-prescribed lawmaking process
Such behavior might rise to the level of impeachable offense. Just sayin’.
…Adding… I put this in comments, but I should also add it here…
I should have been more clear. Under the Constitution, all that’s required for impeachment is 60 votes. Nothing more. No reasons. Nothing.
However, since the Senate holds a trial and votes on whether to convict and remove, you ought to have a reason.
So, breathing rises to the level of an impeachable offense. Defying the Constitution is a possible ground for removal.
* 3:34 pm - Both Eric Zorn and I have spoken to atheist activist Rob Sherman. I have some notes which I may use in Monday’s Capitol Fax or here at the blog. Here’s Zorn’s story…
Sherman replied to my note:
“[’Negroes’ is] what the group was called when they were being discriminated against, but now that this same group has political power, discrimination is OK, as long as it’s not them that’s being discriminated against. That’s the reason for the use of the term.”
Invoking Civil Rights-era terminology to sharpen an attempt to draw an ironic (and dubious) analogy between persecuted African Americans and persecuted atheists is not a polemical stunt I would recommend to anyone. […]
Sherman’s beef was with Monique Davis, legislator. Not Monique Davis black legislator or black legislators in general.
Sherman refused to apologize for the overbroad remark about “negroes,” both to myself and Zorn.
* 4:13 pm - Jim Oberweis has promised to run a positive campaign just about every time he’s run for office, and every time he ends up going negative and looking goofy, so take this AP story with a large grain of salt…
[Oberweis] says he’s looking to refocus his campaign to be as appealing to voters as his family dairy’s sweets are to the dessert set.
A tough campaigner, Oberweis this week used words like “positive campaign” and “respectful discussion” to describe what voters will see from him between now and November.
Voters also will see different TV ads, possibly some featuring his family.
It would be a pleasant change if he finally learns from all his past failures. I figure he’ll probably start off positive, but I just don’t think it will last.
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* Barack Obama has been endorsed by most of the Chicago Machine, but he is refusing so far to play ball with the Philadelphia Machine…
…Sen. Barack Obama has collided with the gritty political traditions of Philadelphia, where ward bosses love their candidates, but also expect them to pay up.
The dispute centers on the dispensing of “street money,” a long-standing Philadelphia ritual in which candidates deliver cash to the city’s Democratic operatives in return for getting out the vote.
Flush with payments from well-funded campaigns, the ward leaders and Democratic Party bosses typically spread out the cash in the days before the election, handing $10, $20 and $50 bills to the foot soldiers and loyalists who make up the party’s workforce.
It is all legal — but Obama’s people are telling the local bosses he won’t pay.
The article also quotes an unnamed Obama official as saying it had never been the campaign’s practice to make street payments.
* Obama is not unfamiliar with this practice. In the days leading up to his 2004 US Senate primary, Obama’s campaign fund distributed more than $47,000, mostly to Chicago ward organizations. The list of his pre-primary contributions can be found here, since the State Board of Elections website still doesn’t allow direct linking to search results, even after its much anticipated rehab.
Obama’s presidential campaign didn’t appear to hand out street money before this year’s Illinois primary. Not like he needed to.
* But Philly is a far different story. According to the article, the ward groups there want $400,000 to $500,000 from Obama alone. Wow. That’s borderline banditry.
Hillary Clinton is expected to pay up, by the way.
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Screw-ups galore
Friday, Apr 11, 2008 - Posted by Rich Miller
* A hospital really screwed up, but as this story mentions it wasn’t required to report the mistake to the state. Unbelievable…
A federal agency is investigating the case of a baby apparently sent home with the wrong family from a southern Illinois hospital.
Officials say the mistake happened in March at Heartland Regional Medical Center in Marion.
A spokeswoman for the state Department of Public Health says the hospital wasn’t required to report the matter but it did on April 4th.
Perhaps we need a new law to remedy this.
* Speaking of mistakes, this one was pretty egregious…
For 17 years, Gordon “Randy” Steidl fought from behind bars to prove his innocence in a 1986 double-murder and clear his name. In the nearly four years since winning freedom, he hasn’t let up, requesting an official pardon from Gov. Rod Blagojevich.
So when the letter arrived informing Steidl his petition had been denied, it was a major blow. Depressed, Steidl and his attorneys sat on the news for more than a month before going public this week, only to find that the letter, dated Feb. 14, was issued because of a “clerical error.”
In fact, Blagojevich hasn’t acted on the pardon request, and Steidl’s case is still pending, a spokesman for the state’s Prisoner Review Board said Thursday.
“It’s kind of a cruel joke,” Steidl said. “It’s like getting a stay of execution after you’ve already received another date. After 22 years, it’s like how much more do these people want to put me through?”
Eric Zorn has more on the problems with Blagojevich and pardons.
* Stu Levine is obviously a screw-up, and the G’s reliance on him to make their case against Tony Rezko has been exposed as severely flawed by defense attorney Joe Duffy. The Tribune has a story today with the subhed: “Defense attorney Joseph Duffy’s cross-examination of Stuart Levine, the prosecution’s key witness in corruption case, is drawing rave reviews from peers”
Under questioning from Duffy, Levine described with great clarity his first meeting with Rezko at a 2002 party. Duffy even prodded him to detail the seating arrangements at the dinner that night.
Then, to drive home the notion that much of this was the product of Levine’s imagination, Duffy asked Levine to pinpoint when he pleaded guilty in the case—clearly a very significant moment in his life. Levine said he couldn’t even remember the year.
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Question of the day
Friday, Apr 11, 2008 - Posted by Rich Miller
* I’ve been telling subscribers about this proposal for most of the week, and the Tribune picked up on it yesterday…
Democrats advanced legislation to reinstate straight-ticket voting that allows citizens to punch one box on a ballot to support a party’s entire slate. The Elections and Campaign Reform Committee sent the bill to the full House on a party-line 5-4 vote.
Fearing Democrats sought to take advantage of momentum from U.S. Sen. Barack Obama’s presidential bid, Rep. Tim Schmitz (R- Batavia) called the timing “suspect.” Sponsoring Rep. John Fritchey (D-Chicago) said he has long wanted to resurrect straight-ticket voting, which Republicans abolished in 1997 after losing control of the House.
“This bill simply restores what had been the law of the land in Illinois for well over a century and that is giving voters a choice to cast a straight-ticket vote,” Fritchey said.
* Question: Should straight-party voting be reinstated in Illinois? Why or why not?
* Bonus question: How badly might this proposal hurt the GOP in Illinois this year?
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Odds and ends
Friday, Apr 11, 2008 - Posted by Rich Miller
* Lawmakers are considering a bill to ban trans fats in schools…
Illinois could join eight other states in restricting or banning trans fats in schools if lawmakers act on a bill pending in the state Senate. California, Connecticut, Idaho, Indiana, New Jersey, North Carolina, Oregon and Texas have laws on the books, according to the School Nutrition Association, an advocacy group.
“One of the first places children are exposed to trans fats is in our schools,” said Sen. Donne Trotter, D-Chicago, who introduced the Illinois bill. “We think that is the first environment where children should learn good eating habits and the benefits of it.”
Produced when hydrogen is added to vegetable oil, trans fats increase the shelf life and improve the flavor of foods. But they also can raise a person’s level of so-called “bad cholesterol” and have been linked to obesity, heart disease and diabetes.
Nearly 16 percent of Illinois youngsters ages 10-17 are overweight, the 14th highest percentage in the country, according to Trust for America’s Health, a research group that focuses on disease prevention.
* A goofy idea has been shelved for now…
A bill sponsored by state Rep. Kenneth Dunkin (D-Chicago) aims to reduce accidents where distracted walkers — yammering on about dinner possibilities, perhaps — mindlessly step into traffic.
The bill has been put on hold for now, as a panel led by Secretary of State Jesse White that is investigating distracted driving finishes its work. As for walkers being run down mid-sentence, a White spokesman says the office has no numbers documenting the alleged problem.
If only every problem — and we’re not convinced there is one here — could be solved with a roll call vote and a scratch of the governor’s pen. Jaywalking is already illegal (but that doesn’t stop it from happening, oh, about a million times a day in the Loop) and as for intersections, so is crossing against the light (again, a common occurrence).
* This doesn’t bother me much, but some might be offended…
An Illinois state legislator says his former Catholic high school invited him to join the school’s “Hall of Honor” in recognition of his political career — then yanked back that invitation after deciding his voting record wasn’t in line with the church’s positions on abortion.
“The school called me (this week) and informed me … that they had serious concerns about my voting record,” said state Rep. Kurt Granberg, D-Carlyle, describing the conversation in which, he said, he was effectively un-inducted from the school’s Hall of Honor, shortly after being invited into it.
“I said, ‘Why is that?’” Granberg said. “They said they were very concerned I wasn’t ‘pro-life enough.’”
Illinois Citizens for Life claimed Granberg “will not support most pro-life issues” in 2006.
* A movie about the first Mayor Daley, entitled “Boss Daley” may be filmed in Chicago. A John Dillinger film is currently in production and a movie about the 1968 Democratic National Convention may be in the offing. Bill Zwecker reports, however, that the mayor is hoping for a feel-good movie…
I’m hearing some big Chicago honchos — including Mayor Daley — are intrigued by the “I Love New York” film project currently shooting in the Big Apple. The reason? There’s some buzz a similar movie could be made here.
The bottom line: If an “I Love Chicago” film were shot in the near future — given the large number of actors and directors with strong local connections — it could be a nice “commercial” for the Windy City, especially if we snare the Summer Olympics for 2016.
* Meanwhile Mayor Daley talked about changing Chicago’s motto yesterday…
“We’re the city of flowers. We’re the city of trees and gardens and all that. I’d like to maybe change that motto to, ‘City of Children.’ I really believe that.”
No comment.
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4-H and the Illinois disaster
Friday, Apr 11, 2008 - Posted by Rich Miller
* My Sun-Times column this week is about state politics and the 4-H pledge…
“I pledge my head to clearer thinking, my heart to greater loyalty, my hands to larger service and my health to better living for my club, my community, my country and my world.”
I was a loyal 4-H member for years, back when I was living on a farm in Iroquois County. I raised animals, did some photography projects, small engine repair and a bunch of other stuff during my membership in the Milks Grove Challengers club. (Milks Grove was the name of our township.) So I recited that pledge a kabillion times.
* Anyway, to the column…
The pledge came back to me this week when we learned Gov. Blagojevich was withholding $18 million from the agency that oversees 4-H programs in Illinois. […]
The three most powerful Democrats in Springfield, Gov. Blagojevich, Speaker Madigan and Senate President Emil Jones, are from Chicago and they don’t have a 4-H background. The program does serve city kids, but not those three city natives.
If they had taken that pledge, and thought about what it meant, perhaps we wouldn’t be in this mess today.
Clearer thinking? That behavior does not spring immediately to mind when Springfield is mentioned these days. Just the opposite. Umpteen special sessions which resolved nothing, crisis after crisis, intraparty bickering, all while the state slips into recession.
Greater loyalty? The only thing those three guys are loyal to is their long-standing grudges against one another. Blagojevich has plotted against Madigan since his days in the Illinois House. Jones has grumbled for years that Madigan refuses to give him the respect he deserves. Madigan believes that Jones and Blagojevich are out to destroy him. They have their reasons, some of them pretty solid, but if they were loyal to the state they’d all find a way to get past their disdain for one another and get something done.
Larger service? The three men generally serve only their own interests. They’re either trying to protect or expand their respective power bases, often at the expense of the other guy. Also, the Tony Rezko corruption trial has shown that the governor has had his “hands” out to campaign contributors — palms up — in return for alleged “pledges” of state business. Not exactly the same thing.
Better living? The endless legislative sessions have just about killed the mental health of rank-and-file legislators who are caught in the middle of this war, Statehouse reporters and newspaper editorial writers who have to write about this insanity and, as polling has clearly shown, the vast majority of voters. The only people making out like bandits are the big-money insiders and me. I’ve sold a lot of newsletter subscriptions and blog ads since Rod Blagojevich was first elected. My wife thinks he’s the greatest thing ever.
Then again, Gov. Blagojevich is so fond of bald-faced spin I can already guess which loophole he’d find to get out of that 4-H pledge.
“It says ‘my club, community, country and world,’ ” he’d claim. “There’s nothing in there about my state.”
Jones would agree with Blagojevich, because that’s what he always does. Madigan, who rarely talks to the press, would simply refuse to answer the question.
* More Statehouse news…
* Auditor general faults SIU in release of student information
* Fissures
* Tax raises, breaks on the agenda
* Democrats fail in attempt to raise income tax for wealthy
* House defeats $3 billion tax hike that targets rich
* Cayman Islands-style economic development by tax haven
* Hastert pushes massive state public works program
* Springfield stalemate jeopardizes programs and jobs
Discuss.
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* Ray Hanania reports today that Congressman Dan Lipinski’s Chicago chief of staff will soon get hit with a formal congressional ethics complaint…
Everyone by now knows that Jerry Hurckes, the trustee from the 1st District in Oak Lawn, is planning to run for mayor of Oak Lawn against popular incumbent Dave Heilmann.
A major part of Hurckes campaign was to showcase his effectiveness representing the interests of Oak Lawn in Washington D.C., as the chief of staff to Cong. Dan Lipinski (D-3rd).
But apparently, boasting about his successes in Washington D.C., may in fact be a no-no.
According to several observers, employees of congressional staff are not supposed to bring any kind of services to places where they work in or outside of a district. […]
Roll Call, the prestigious four-day a week newspaper of record for the U.S. Congress, reports that Hurckes may have violated ethics rules, although it would take another congressman to file for an ethics investigation.
My sources tell me that a congressman is in fact about to make that filing, investigating what Hurckes did or did not do. Stay tuned on this one.
* Meanwhile, Melissa Bean has proposed banning some campaign robocalls…
The plan, introduced Wednesday, mirrors a companion Senate bill. It would:
• Prohibit such calls between 9 p.m. and 8 a.m.
• Ban more than two calls per day to the same phone number from the same candidate, party or interest group.
• Require the sponsor of the call to be clearly identified at the beginning of the call.
• Require the caller’s phone number be displayed on the voter’s caller ID system.
* The Tribbies take a look at an uphill congressional battle…
Emboldened by the upset victory that claimed former House Speaker Dennis Hastert’s old seat, Democratic congressional candidates in the Chicago suburbs have high hopes heading into the November election.
In the 13th Congressional District, Democrat Scott Harper believes he stands a real chance of unseating popular, 10-year incumbent Republican U.S. Rep. Judy Biggert of Hinsdale. Harper released a statement Thursday bragging that he had shattered “every significant fundraising record ever held here (13th District) by a Democratic candidate.”
That wouldn’t be difficult, given that Democrats have not been competitive in the district for ages. Harper’s claim that he raised more than $247,000 so far is inflated by the $96,000 in loans he made to his campaign. It’s part of more than $115,000 in overall debt he listed on Federal Elections Commission paperwork filed this week.
* Another story is here
* More congressional stuff…
* Weller extols Colombia trade deal
* Keeping Score on the Colombia Trade Pact
* Latino Leaders to Release First-Ever Illinois Latino Policy Agenda at Statewide Summit in Chicago
* Bean, Manzullo honored by national chamber
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Trib blasts “museum” idea
Friday, Apr 11, 2008 - Posted by Rich Miller
* I have my issues with the Chicago Tribune, but I agree with every word of today’s editorial lambasting the goofy idea to put that corporate children’s “museum” in Grant Park…
The outpouring of opposition bent on protecting Grant Park—its special designation dates to 1836 and has been reinforced four times by the Illinois Supreme Court—only grows louder. On Wednesday, opponents of the land grab booed Chicago Park District commissioners who—instead of protecting Grant Park—rolled over for the mayor. Commissioners empowered their staff to negotiate with the museum on deeds, contracts and operating rules.
Don’t forget: The Children’s Museum wouldn’t just get a long-term, low-cost berth in Grant Park. This private museum also would be eligible for a subsidy from the Chicago Park District under a program that pays millions of dollars to other museums. Maybe you like the idea of taxpayers subsidizing the Children’s Museum. Or maybe you think you suddenly understand why the museum has so assiduously pursued a location in Grant Park: It’s following the money.
* The editorial also referenced yesterday’s Trib story about the land grab, which reported that the “museum” was sticking to its plan to sell naming rights to Allstate Insurance Co. for $15 million…
“A commitment was made,” said Jim Law, the museum’s vice president of planning and external affairs. “This is what the Chicago Children’s Museum wanted to do to honor their gift.”
Parks Supt. Tim Mitchell said he saw no problem with a corporate donor getting naming rights to a museum on Park District land.
* Back to today’s editorial…
A commitment was made? What the museum wanted to do? By what right does a private institution peddle naming rights—for millions of dollars—in Grant Park? Note that this isn’t like, say, Nike’s donation of soccer fields and basketball courts to the Park District. This is a donation to the museum—which then awards naming rights. Does this outfit’s sense of entitlement bother you?
* There was a spot of good news this week for those of us who think this idea is crazy…
Rebel rookie Ald. Brendan Reilly (42nd) claimed Wednesday that half a dozen aldermen have changed sides in recent days and now oppose Mayor Daley’s plan to build a $100 million Children’s Museum in Grant Park.
Reilly credited editorials by the Chicago Sun-Times and Tribune against the Grant Park “land grab” and the mobilization by advocacy groups — Friends of the Parks, Friends of Downtown and Preservation Chicago — for changing the minds of aldermen who were either uncommitted or in Daley’s camp.
* The reason I usually try to put quotation marks around “museum” is that it’s more like a giant McDonald’s Playland than a real museum. From its description of the “permanent exhibits”….
In My Museum… you can take a self-portrait in the Picture Me photo booth and add it to the Neighborhood Mural… Travel through a mirrored Kaleidoscope tunnel to see reflections of yourself and others from every angle. […]
“Treehouse Trails” - Camp out, climb a tree and explore a cave in this enchanted forest setting.
Discuss.
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Morning Shorts
Friday, Apr 11, 2008 - Posted by Kevin Fanning
* CBS2 interview with Obama
* Cook County Home Rule vote dies
* ISMIE pays $11.5-mil. dividend
Citing a “healing medical malpractice climate” in Illinois, the state’s largest liability insurer said it will shave $11.5 million off its policyholders’ future premiums.
ISMIE Mutual Insurance Co., which insures about 13,000 physicians statewide, said Wednesday that a drop in the number of malpractice claims filed over the last two years allowed it to return money to policyholders through dividend payments.
* Patients rate their hospital care
On average, 60 percent of patients surveyed in Illinois said hospital staff “always” provided help as soon as they wanted, meaning four out of 10 patients had waited longer than they’d hoped for assistance. An average 68 percent of patients in Illinois hospitals said their pain was “always” controlled, leaving nearly one in three patients with pain they thought was poorly managed.
* Daley pitches youth violence program but specifics in short supply
* Central Illinois Flood Victims Get Help With Coping
* Rita Rezko under fire for alleged sporadic monthly board attendance worth 38K per year
* Levine banned from downtown hotel
* Duffy to Levine: ‘Do you have telepathic powers?’
* Judge to Levine: Answer the questions. Nothing more.
* We’ve reached the point of ridiculousness
* With jury away, the defense will play
* Gavel-to-Gavel: Recess comes at good time
* Energy expert top candidate to be Illinois power czar
Mark Pruitt, senior program manager for UIC’s Energy Resources Center and manager of energy procurement for state government, is the lead candidate to be the first executive director of the Illinois Power Agency, according to people familiar with the matter.
* Are we too nice to homeless?
* Senate expected to bury election recall
* Colleges reaching out to recruit gay, lesbian and transgender students
* FutureGen official touts Mattoon site to Senate panel
Mudd said Wednesday that he believes building one plant in Mattoon will ensure the process of capturing and storing carbon far below the earth’s surface is implemented as quickly as possible.
* What’s all this about licensed and bonded?
* Coury leaves as Edwardsville publisher
* Sun-Times Media Group’s Lake County paper gets new publisher
* Wash. Post Editor Says He Can’t See a Time When There Won’t Be a Print Edition
“I do think the cities will have some newspaper in it, but what kind of newspaper it’s going to be, what kind of journalism it’s going to be doing – that’s an issue.”
* Grand Red Line station rehab — a giant mess
* CTA tests student smart cards
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Rob Sherman: Bigot or inelegant?
Friday, Apr 11, 2008 - Posted by Rich Miller
* As you already know, State Rep. Monique Davis was hammered by Tribune columnist/blogger Eric Zorn, numerous bloggers and liberal broadcaster Keith Olbermann for her tirade against atheist activist Rob Sherman. Davis eventually apologized and Sherman accepted.
* But Daily Illini columnist/blogger Jonathan Jacobson took a look at Rob Sherman’s website and found this curious remark by Sherman about Rep. Davis from last Friday…
“Now that Negroes like Representative Monique Davis have political power, it seems that they have no problem at all with discrimination, just as long as it isn’t them who are being discriminated against.”
* Sherman, a Green Party candidate for the Illinois House, apparently read the Daily Illini column and deleted the sentence about “negroes” and political power early yesterday morning. Jacobson wrote about the deletion on his blog last night…
[Sherman] called me this afternoon and told me that I had taken the comment out of context. I disagreed and suggested the possibility of his explaining the deletion on his site. So far, nothing. But I do have links to both versions of the site, thanks to a Google cache: pre-deletion and post-deletion. This is a limited time offer, because Google caches update every few days.
* Jacobson then got in contact with Eric Zorn, who has defended Sherman over the years. In an e-mail to Jacobson, Zorn wrote that he had…
“…interviewed Rob Sherman scores of times in the last 22 years and never heard him say anything even remotely racist or bigoted, which causes me to think this was simply a very inelegant, infelicitous attempt to make an argument.”
Interviews and personal conversations can reveal quite different things about a person, so I don’t buy that defense.
Even so, not mentioned by Jacobson was the claim by Sherman right after the “negroes” remark that Martin Luther King, Jr. was his “boyhood hero.”
I’m sure that my boyhood hero, the Reverend Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., would have been appalled at Rep. Davis’ bigotry.
I don’t think he’d have cared for Sherman’s comments, either, but whatever.
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This just in…
Thursday, Apr 10, 2008 - Posted by Rich Miller
* 12:53 pm - The House is now debating a proposed constitutional amendment that would double the state income tax rate for people who make more than $250,000 a year.
Read the proposal here. Listen or watch the debate here. Background here.
The proposal, if approved by both chambers and the voters, would raise $3 billion a year.
* 1:03 pm - The House Republicans demanded a “Committee of the Whole” to discuss the topic in as much depth as the governor’s Gross Receipts Tax was last year. A motion to adjourn until Monday so that a Committee of the Whole could be held was defeated on party lines.
* 1:56 pm - From the SJ-R…
Firefighters and a hazardous materials team have left the Howlett building after determining no dangerous substance was inside.
One floor of the building, at Second and Edwards streets, was evacuated about 11 a.m. today after a mailroom worker opened an envelope that smelled like gasoline and had a brown smudge on the paperwork inside.
Interesting that they only evacuated one floor.
*** 3:20 pm *** The proposed constitutional amendment failed to garner enough votes to send it to the Senate. There were 60 “No” votes. At least that’s what I think the number was. I was momentarily distracted. It did fail, however.
…Adding… The vote was 52-60
* 3:47 pm - The Tribbies have an update…
House Republican leader Tom Cross accused the Democrats of playing election-year politics and trying to distance themselves from past support of embattled Democratic Gov. Rod Blagojevich.
But Minority Leader Tom Cross (R-Oswego) contended the “most troubling part” of the measure fails to break down specifics, such as which education programs would get more money and which school districts would come out ahead.
That last point would simply be a silly thing to do with a Constitutional amendment and Cross knows it. Not to say that this idea was great - it was fatally flawed on many levels - but that sort of detail should never be put into a Constitution.
* 4:05 pm - Barack Obama sat down with Chicago TV reporters after his speech in Gary. CLTV’s Carlos Hernandez Gomez has the first one posted online.
On a semi-related note… Um, dude?
* 4:29 pm - AP story on the failed con amend…
But Republicans say it’s unwise to raise taxes in a sour economy.
I don’t really buy that one, either. When the economy is strong, they say “Don’t raise taxes or you’ll kill the expansion.” When it’s weak, they say “Don’t raise taxes or you’ll make things worse.” Pick one.
Again, I’m not necessarily arguing for a tax hike here, but these circular arguments that are reported without challenge kinda bug me.
* 4:39 pm - The roll call for the con amend vote is now online. It appears that some conservative Dems, Dems with GOP opponents, and Blagojevich allies voted “No.” Two Democrats (Hamos and Washington) were absent.
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Question of the day
Thursday, Apr 10, 2008 - Posted by Rich Miller
* The setup…
A bill to lift the state’s long-standing prohibition on building new nuclear power plants has won approval in a state House committee and may soon get a floor vote. […]
The action surprised environmental groups, some of which adamantly oppose new nuclear plants. They had little warning of the committee hearing and vote.
[Rep. JoAnn Osmond, R-Antioch] said she moved to lift the moratorium on new plants — first approved in the 1980s following the near-disaster in 1979 at the Three Mile Island plant in Pennsylvania — after learning of the ban’s existence during recent discussions with Exelon about a fast-track plan to reclaim a shuttered plant in north suburban Zion. (Zion is in Ms. Osmond’s district.)
“Do I have someone on the side who’s ready to place a nuclear plant in Illinois? No,” Ms. Osmond says. “But I think we should look at it again. It’s been 30 years.”
She referenced recent moves by power generators in other parts of the country to consider building new reactors as the industry responds to heightened concerns about global warming. Coal-fired plants are major sources of carbon emissions tied to global climate change; nuclear plants are not.
* The question: Should the state’s moratorium on building new nuclear power plants be abolished? Explain.
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* This has been done before, but check the last paragraph for a glimpse into the bill’s future…
Illinoisans with kids in schools would get an unexpected state tax break before fall classes begin under a plan that unanimously passed the Senate Wednesday but appears to face long odds in the House.
The legislation would impose a nine-day period at the beginning of August where the state sales tax would be suspended on the purchase of school supplies, clothing, shoes or computers. […]
The $33 million measure passed the Senate 58-0 and now moves to the House, where it could face difficulty because there is no clear funding source to pay for the program at a time when the state can’t pay many of its bills on time.
* In other tax news…
Cook County would join the rest of the state in having annual property tax assessments under legislation the Illinois House passed Wednesday.
The measure is designed to take advantage of rapid fluctuations in the housing market, particularly when dropping values could lower property tax bills. Rep. Kevin Joyce (D-Chicago), the legislation’s sponsor, said the current three-year reassessment cycle is “not fair and equitable.” […]
The House approved the bill on a 78-32 vote, sending it to the Senate. But Cook County Assessor James Houlihan’s office questioned the price tag, saying it could cost $10 million to reassess the entire county by the measure’s proposed October deadline. The bill does not apply to commercial or industrial property.
Its fate in the Senate is uncertain, to say the least. Senate President Jones tends to ally with Speaker Madigan’s enemies, and Houlihan is high on Madigan’s enemies list.
* Also yesterday, a conservative group released its list of what it calls egregious pork projects…
llinois’ state budget for the current fiscal year is loaded with hundreds of millions of dollars in “wasteful spending,” two organizations said in releasing the 2008 Illinois Piglet Book on Wednesday.
* But much of what the group claims is “pork” really doesn’t fall under that traditional definition…
The report targeted projects such as Rural Medical Edcuation program at Rockford’s University of Illinois campus as wasteful spending.
The group’s “2008 Piglet Book” can be read here.
* More tax and spend stories…
* 4 H Kids Learn About Broken Promises as Governor Holds Back Funding
* Drivers on hook for old toll fines
* Texas ruling sheds light on strip-club tax
* Art Is Long, Money Is Short
* University advocates protest flat funding
* How is that extra sales tax being used?
* Sens. Hunter, Trotter Seek Reduction of Minorities in Illinois Prisons; Want Drug Laws Study, $10 Million for Treatment
* Pork Report for Illinois
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Jacobs: Blagojevich should resign
Thursday, Apr 10, 2008 - Posted by Rich Miller
* Forget recall, Sen. Mike Jacobs says, the governor should resign…
A state senator who has a history of confrontations with Gov. Rod Blagojevich called on the governor to resign Wednesday.
State Sen. Mike Jacobs, D-East Moline, said revelations about corruption that are surfacing in the federal trial of one of the governor’s former top advisors are the main reason he wants Blagojevich to step down.
“No one has confidence in the man,” Jacobs said. […]
“State capitols are known for being full of hot air. That’s all this is,” said [a Blagojevich spokesperson].
* More…
Sen. Mike Jacobs, D-East Moline, said he is troubled by testimony emerging from the Tony Rezko trial. Rezko, a top fundraiser and a close adviser to the governor, is on trial on federal corruption charges.
In addition, Blagojevich has been “derelict in running the state,” Jacobs said.
* On a similar vein, here’s a part of today’s Tribune editorial…
It has been almost a year—351 days, but who’s counting?—since a bill to raise ethics standards in state government whizzed out of the Illinois House on a 116-0 vote and landed with a thud in the Senate. More than three-quarters of the members of the Senate signed on as co-sponsors, a pretty good sign that the measure would pass there, too, given half a chance. But that’s half a chance more than Senate President Emil Jones has been willing to give it.
The “better bill” that Senate Democrats have been working on for almost a year finally squirted out of the Rules Committee on Wednesday… it looks an awful lot like the House bill. […]
Senate Democrats are painfully aware that their reluctance to challenge Jones on this and many other fronts makes them look like a flock of hapless sheeple. So it’s likely the Senate will dither awhile longer and then pass a slightly altered ethics bill on a lopsided vote and send it to the House, instead of to the governor’s desk.
At the end of the day we’ll have two bills and no law. If that’s how it shakes out, smart voters will hold the Senate Democrats accountable.
* More recall/ethics stuff…
* Blagojevich must act now on pardons
* Recall measure could drag down Quinn legacy
* Recall vote allowed Madigan to have it both ways
* Senate expected to bury election recall
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Schock opens leadership PAC
Thursday, Apr 10, 2008 - Posted by Rich Miller
* After raising over $800,000 through mid-January and winning the primary with 71 percent of the vote, GOP congressional frontrunner Aaron Schock has decided he can raise even more and give it away to other congressional candidates…
Schock, the GOP nominee to succeed retiring seven-term Republican Ray LaHood , has formed a “leadership” political action committee (PAC) to help Republican candidates who also are seeking re-election to or membership in the upcoming 111th Congress.
It is hardly unusual for members of Congress to set up leadership PACs. These fundraising vehicles, which collect money from donors and mete it out to other candidates of the same party, once were mainly the province of top party leaders but have proliferated through the ranks in recent years.
But it is still extremely rare for a candidate who has not yet arrived in Congress to establish a leadership PAC — especially someone like Schock, who still is roughly seven months out from the general election that he expects to send him to Washington. Schock faces a viable though longshot challenger in Democratic farm broadcaster Colleen Callahan.
Schock, a 26-year-old state representative from Peoria touted by some Republicans as one of his party’s rising stars, has filed papers with the Federal Election Commission to form his leadership PAC, just two months after his victory in the Feb. 5 Republican primary. The committee, which has been dubbed the “GOP Generation Y Fund”, will give donations this fall to Republican candidates in close races for the U.S. House, said Steven Shearer, Schock’s campaign manager and the treasurer of the leadership PAC.
Barack Obama did the same thing a few years ago, and it has helped his presidential campaign a lot.
Schock may be presumptuous, but he ain’t dumb.
* Meanwhile, Hiram informs us of this interesting turn of events…
While the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee (DCCC) has long targeted the 6th Congressional District where Democrat Jill Morgenthaler is battling one-term incumbent Republican Peter Roskam, the DCCC now is targeting the 13th District where Democrat Scott Harper faces incumbent Republican Judy Biggert.
Harper is not on the DCCC’s successful “Red to Blue” program, which would indicate serious financial support, but the Dems appear to be expanding the playing field a bit here.
* Harper press release…
Harper reported raising $134,115 this quarter with $103,463.54 cash on hand. By March 31 of this year, Harper had raised $247,410, which is more than any Democratic candidate in this district has ever raised for an entire cycle.
* More congressional stuff…
* Oak Lawn to hire lobbyist
* Pro-Life Women’s Political Group Kicks Off 2008 Election Effort
* Bush signs bill backed by Danny Davis to help ex-convicts
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Morning Shorts
Thursday, Apr 10, 2008 - Posted by Kevin Fanning
* Cook County Commissioners Question Report on Patronage Hiring
* Stroger says county too ‘broke’ to hire HR workers
* Hiring monitor slams patronage
* Chicago Park District signs off on Children’s Museum project
* Pew on the Middle Class
* Study: Earners high, low think they belong to middle class
A new report by the Pew Research Center finds that this fiscal paradox is common in America. Most people, no matter where they fall on the economic spectrum, believe they’re in some way part of the middle class.
* Study: Reimbursement rate too low for foster parents
* Getting rid of ‘attractive nuisances’
* How is that extra sales tax being used?
State Sen. Susan Garrett, a Lake Forest Democrat, and sponsor of the follow-up legislation, said she felt it was important to have transparency when spending tax dollars. As lawmakers worked to stave off a transportation “doomsday” scenario, Garrett said she fielded concerns from the disabled community who felt they were forgotten.
* House turns down limit on handguns
* Equal Marriage for All
* Seniors protest possible ComEd hikes
* Goodbye to ‘Ba-boom, ba-boom, ba-boom’?
If Canadian National gets its way, the days of its locomotives sitting in the South Loop would soon end. Last fall, company announced it wanted to purchase the Elgin, Joliet and Eastern Railroad.
* Callum and Bryne to leave Appellate Court
* Are Newspapers Doomed? Do We Care?
* Focus Group Guides Moore Public Pronouncements
* Small Illinois town with no cell phone service to get tower
* Chicago isn’t Detroit
* Berwyn alderman faces ethics inquiry over newsletter addressed to residents’ pets
“I’d say that many of the people are laughing and saying it’s idiotic,” Pavlik said of Erickson’s pet-addressed newsletter. “Why would he send something to a dog?”
* Charges won’t be filed against ex- Lombard trustee who flashed badge
* Levine was not close to Rezko, lawyer says
* Levine: Gov had Rezko keep score
* Rezko lawyer goes back to the tapes
* Defense hits Levine’s memory over meeting with Rezko
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This just in… Rep. Davis apologizes to atheist
Thursday, Apr 10, 2008 - Posted by Rich Miller
* 7:39 am - Atheist activist (and Green Party state Rep. candidate) Rob Sherman claims on his website that Rep. Monique Davis has apologized for her public tirade against him…
Rep. Davis said that she had been upset, earlier in the day, to learn that a twenty-second and twenty-third Chicago Public School student this school year had been shot to death that morning. She said that it was wrong for her to take out her anger, frustrations and emotions on me, and that she apologized to me.
I told her that her explanation was reasonable and that I forgave her. I also suggested that if she really was concerned about public school students dying needlessly, she should look into helping me to get passed legislation to get lap and shoulder seat belts on school busses that is pending in the House and in the Senate.
She thanked me for forgiving her and said that she would look into those two pieces of legislation.
Among other things, Rep. Davis said to the atheist: “You believe in destroying! You believe in destroying what this state was built upon.”
She also said about atheists and Sherman, “They want to fight prayer in school. I don’t see you fighting guns in school…. You will go to court to fight kids having an opportunity to be quiet for a minute, but damned if you’ll go to school to fight for an opportunity to keep guns out of their hands.”
Anyway, it’s good to see she apologized. Davis can certainly be a hothead, and she does get carried away, and what she said was out of line, but she isn’t nearly as bad as some of you claimed in comments yesterday.
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