Rant of the week
Friday, May 16, 2014 - Posted by Rich Miller
* Fox 32 reports on the often contentious appropriations bill debates yesterday…
The Illinois House was voting all day, and sent one appropriations bill after another to the State Senate. However, angry Republicans, and several suburban Democrats, complained that the Democratic majority is spending money the state doesn’t have.
They had signs asking, “Temporary?”
It was a mocking reference to the state income tax increase that is scheduled to roll back next January.
* One of the signs…
* But the Democrats did have a response…
Democrats, however, say Republicans only want to criticize, and haven’t put forth a plan of their own.
Representative Jay Hoffman (D-Swansea) says he searched for the Republican budget everywhere. He even asked his dog.
“And I said, ‘Willie, did you eat the Republicans’ plan?’ But he wouldn’t do that to you, he’s a good dog, he would never eat your plan,” he said. “You know what your plan is? Your plan is to not have a plan.”
Regardless of what you think of the debate, Hoffman’s full speech was hilarious. Our good friends at BlueRoomStream.com isolated it for me last night, but their live video host livestream.com has been down since late last night. I asked Amanda Vinicki at WUIS if she could post a copy of Hoffman’s entire rant. Listen to the whole thing…
Heh.
- Michelle Flaherty - Friday, May 16, 14 @ 11:02 am:
Hoffman should have to pay royalties to Bill Black, who, almost every May, would take to his microphone to ask if he needed to bring his dawg over from Danville to help find the budget.
- Norseman - Friday, May 16, 14 @ 11:02 am:
Gotta love the creativity of some of these speeches. Very good Rep. Hoffman.
- The Patriot - Friday, May 16, 14 @ 11:06 am:
They are allowing Madigan to dictate the debate on temporary versus permanent and allowing him to dodge the issue on why it was bad 2 years ago and why it is bad now.
I don’t care about a 2 year old lie, tell me how this helps? You took tax money, cut education, and did nothing for me as a state or locally.
Republican need to tell Madigan you can have our plan if you agree to call it for a vote on the floor of both houses and make your members defend their vote. He won’t do it. They need to let the people know they will not waste time on a proposal that Madigan will not let the people’s representatives vote on.
- Rich Miller - Friday, May 16, 14 @ 11:07 am:
===Republican need to tell Madigan you can have our plan if you agree to call it for a vote on the floor of both houses ===
I’d be willing to bet serious cash that both Dem leaders would agree to that.
- Give Me A Break - Friday, May 16, 14 @ 11:11 am:
Patriot, I’m thinking the last thing the GOP wants is to have bill on Third Reading with specefic cuts outlined in the bill and their members pushing their Red or Green buttons.
- fed up - Friday, May 16, 14 @ 11:12 am:
” willie did you eat all the paperwork that shows where Pinnochio Pat Quinn spent 50 Million in taxpayer money he handed out to South side Revs before the last election”
- Bobby Hill - Friday, May 16, 14 @ 11:14 am:
===Regardless of what you think of the debate, Hoffman’s full speech was hilarious====
I didn’t think it was hilarious or even funny. It seemed like he wasted a lot of people’s time with that speech. It didn’t seem to add one constructive thing to the debate. Ironic since that is what he was complaining others are doing.
Maybe the video is better. Is he a big fat guy in a small jacket, throwing his arms around like Chris Farley?
- Rich Miller - Friday, May 16, 14 @ 11:16 am:
===Is he a big fat guy in a small jacket===
He used to be.
lol
- fed up - Friday, May 16, 14 @ 11:17 am:
I wonder if Hoffman asked any of the 18 Dems from yesterdays post who are against the Permanatley Temporary or Temporarly Permanant Tax hike. Also has Hoffman already been given a future state job from Quinn you know like how Quinn was alble to get votes for the last tax increase vote.
- Rich Miller - Friday, May 16, 14 @ 11:19 am:
People, it’s Friday. Lighten the heck up.
For crying out loud, even Leader Durkin thought it was funny and walked over to Hoffman after the rant ended.
- Capitol View - Friday, May 16, 14 @ 11:27 am:
Too little humor in May… when I lobbied, I always carried a joke around me to leave with legislative secretaries and other lobbyists in May.
My usual parting statement to legislators was “try to keep your sanity and your sense of humor.”
- Nonplussed - Friday, May 16, 14 @ 11:28 am:
21 years, 2 weeks and 2 days after one of the greatest rants in history. Thank you Lee Elia (and NSFW) http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uv23pqH9iG0
- wordslinger - Friday, May 16, 14 @ 11:29 am:
===Republican need to tell Madigan you can have our plan if you agree to call it for a vote on the floor of both houses ===
Are you kidding? If Madigan or Cullerton could get the GOP to put their “ideas” to paper, for all the world to see, if would get a full airing and a vote in a heartbeat.
- Walker - Friday, May 16, 14 @ 11:31 am:
Durkin’s criticism of the process so far is sound, as are Reboletti’s and Tryon’s.
But for Durkin to push for adjournment before what’s in the bills now held for reconsideration can be renegotiated or changed, shows that they prefer criticism to movement.
In the absence of any counter-proposal, it would be nice to know how many of the GOP legislators would agree to support the plan already offered by Quinn — his “non-recommended” budget outline — which has sufficient spending cuts to be balanced with the tax rates reduced.
If I missed that public statement, my mistake.
Are they really stuck in the “No” position?
- Oswego Willy - Friday, May 16, 14 @ 11:36 am:
===Are you kidding? If Madigan or Cullerton could get the GOP to put their “ideas” to paper, for all the world to see, if would get a full airing and a vote in a heartbeat.===
Add Bruce Rauner to that. The ILDems would be besides themselves if the ILGOP GA gave up the art if evasion.
To Rich’s Comment ,
Heck ya, levity is needed and appreciated. I enjoyed it immensely. Good on Durkin to give “the nod”.
Long days, they need comic perspective.
I loved it.
“A little nonsense, now and then, is relished by the wisest men”. Willy Wonka
- David Ormsby - Friday, May 16, 14 @ 11:37 am:
–Are they really stuck in the “No” position?–
Yes.
- Give Me A Break - Friday, May 16, 14 @ 11:45 am:
What yesterday needed was Golar bursting into song like she did a couple of years ago when things got wild on the House floor. It even calmed Bill Black down for bit.
- A guy... - Friday, May 16, 14 @ 12:00 pm:
===Rich Miller - Friday, May 16, 14 @ 11:07 am:
===Republican need to tell Madigan you can have our plan if you agree to call it for a vote on the floor of both houses ===
I’d be willing to bet serious cash that both Dem leaders would agree to that.===
How serious? Any good ideas are almost always surrendered into bills on the other side just so they see the light of day…maybe. A comprehensive GOP budget hitting the floor? I wish that could happen. Let’s see a bill that in the future requires a budget from each side that must be voted on. That’d be something.
- Anon - Friday, May 16, 14 @ 12:04 pm:
With great power comes great responsibility. The Dems wanted it, they got it, and now they don’t know what to do with it. And, they want the GOP to propose a plan that they’d turn around and beat them over the head with? I’m glad Durkin was amused. I am too.
- Walter Mitty - Friday, May 16, 14 @ 12:04 pm:
I am all for humor… It was funny I suppose. I guess ask the tax payers that are hurting? The super minority is quite aware they are a super minority. In this case, No is appropriate. You said temporary. This is now permanent. Very smart to stay quiet. Minimum wage hike? Interesting… You think we have a surplus… So yes, I laughed. Now I am clear, MJM and the Dems are laughing at us…
- Lt. Guv. - Friday, May 16, 14 @ 12:18 pm:
One of the great House rants was twenty-off years ago by then Majority Leader Jim McPike. It was on a undistinguished bill to make it a crime to harm a ratite (no, most of us didn’t know what that was at the time. . .birds like an ostrich, an emu, etc.).
McPike went into an inspired rant about how his little girl’s small dog might wander into the neighbor’s land, bark a couple of times, scare the bird to death and thereby make his daughter responsible for a crime.
Need more like that.
- The Captain - Friday, May 16, 14 @ 12:29 pm:
I’m for Willie’s plan, it cuts mailman funding and shores up the state’s strategic bacon reserve. Also it lowers overall healthcare costs with more walks.
- Anon - Friday, May 16, 14 @ 1:38 pm:
== They need to let the people know they will not waste time on a proposal that Madigan will not let the people’s representatives vote on.==
I also bet MJM would love to have GOP targets vote on a GOP plan to balance the budget sans the tax extension. The reason is simple: If it actually proposed a balanced budget, it would inevitably contain severe cuts to basic state services. I’d love to see our downstate Republican friends vote to shutter state facilities and lay off state workers.
It’s the Republicans who don’t want to vote on a draconian budget, not Madigan who stops them.
- Joan P. - Friday, May 16, 14 @ 2:16 pm:
That’s one of the funniest things I’ve heard in a long time.
- Yellow Dog Democrat - Friday, May 16, 14 @ 3:02 pm:
Anon hit it.
The Illinois GOP hasn’t put a budget forward because most of them honestly are for the Democratic budget, or something not to different.
They simply lack the courage to vote for it.
- Yellow Dog Democrat - Friday, May 16, 14 @ 3:22 pm:
Anon 12:04:
The Democrats did not want great power, they had it foisted upon them.
Republicans stopped offering any leadership in Illinois nearly a decade ago. Instead of offering voters an alternative, they became the party of No.
Democrats won races last time around that they were not even trying to win.
- CircularFiringSquad - Friday, May 16, 14 @ 3:30 pm:
The signs were sheer genius….probably the handiwork of Billboards Cross that last great GOPie visualizer. The speeches breathtaking and the decision to folo up today with GuitarBoyHays and the sneak tuition waivers for EIU must get a A+ for timing
Fire, Aim,Ready!
- yo - Friday, May 16, 14 @ 3:43 pm:
why doesn’t the GA keep most of tax hike, and let some of it expire? then everybody wins…