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Today’s quote

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* Heh

Gov. Pat Quinn is enlisting the support of Chicago’s business community to sell his Medicaid and pension reform plans to state lawmakers before the Legislature adjourns at the end of this month.

WBBM Newsradio’s Regine Schlesinger reports spoke to civic leaders at the City Club of Chicago on Monday, urging them to pressure the Illinois General Assembly to approve his proposals.

“Our state is really at a crossroads,” Quinn said, telling business leaders he can’t wait until next year to tackle the state’s Medicaid and pension problems, which are strangling the state’s budget.

“We’re not the Chicago Cubs. We’re not going to wait till another century,” Quinn said. “We’re going to do things and do them now, and we’re going to be like the White Sox were in 2005. Nobody expected them to win, and they won.” [Emphasis added.]

Spoken like a true Sox fan.

* The governor’s full City Club address…

* Q&A…

posted by Rich Miller
Monday, May 14, 12 @ 12:03 pm

Comments

  1. The only problem is Quinn will be out of office when the courts overturn his pension reform plans.

    Comment by foster brooks Monday, May 14, 12 @ 12:10 pm

  2. Prior to 2005, the Sox last Series title was 1917.

    So, technically, they did wait until the next century.

    Given that’s he’s teaming up now now with a Murderers Row of the Civic Committee, Chamber of Commerce, ComEd and Exelon, I wonder if Young Pat Quinn would consider Gov. Pat Quinn a modern-day Eddie Cicotte.

    Say it ain’t so, governor.

    Comment by wordslinger Monday, May 14, 12 @ 12:15 pm

  3. The pension and medicaid reforms affect peoples lives, and how they live. How dare he demean people by comparing it to a game.

    What did he promise the Businesses (contributors) for getting behind him on he plans?

    Comment by He Makes Ryan Look Like a Saint Monday, May 14, 12 @ 12:31 pm

  4. I think he just lost the Chicago Cubs fan vote! LOL!

    Comment by Levois Monday, May 14, 12 @ 12:32 pm

  5. Just remember, when Moses came down from Mt. Sinai the Illinois Pension Guarantee was what was on the third tablet.

    Comment by leftist Monday, May 14, 12 @ 12:33 pm

  6. Modify your pension first, then we can at least take you seriously.

    Comment by Modify your pension first Monday, May 14, 12 @ 12:34 pm

  7. ==What did he promise the Businesses (contributors) for getting behind him on he plans?==

    They were already behind the plan. In fact, they probably wrote it for him. A better question is what did they promise Quinn. If I know Quinn he probably sold out pretty cheap.

    Comment by Bill Monday, May 14, 12 @ 12:41 pm

  8. Do ya spose he can get as much from them in the future as Brady did last time?

    Comment by jimmyd Monday, May 14, 12 @ 12:45 pm

  9. Well, we do have the guy running the show who doesn’t have a filter between his brain and his mouth.

    Comment by Cheryl44 Monday, May 14, 12 @ 12:45 pm

  10. Foster: Or he could still be Governor when the courts uphold it given the fact he taken the message of smaller government and cuts away from the GOP who for some reason, can’t cut or close anything.

    Comment by Give Me A Break Monday, May 14, 12 @ 12:46 pm

  11. It makes sense for ComEd lobbyists and other business lobbyists to help push for Medicaid and pension reform, and is one of the few times I’m glad big business lobbies, but I wish they and Gov. Quinn would be more quiet about these efforts.

    Comment by Robert Monday, May 14, 12 @ 12:49 pm

  12. Quinn is only cutting from pensions and insurance so he can spend the money elsewhere. In a household budget you cut back on the extras and unnecessary expenditures first and pay your obligations. It seems that with Quinn you do not pay your obligations so you can buy extras (for
    Chicago).

    Comment by State Worker Monday, May 14, 12 @ 12:54 pm

  13. ==The only problem is Quinn will be out of office when the courts overturn his pension reform plans.==

    If it happens, I sure hope it doesn’t take that long. Having to repay 3 years of retiree insurance premiums will not come easy, and it will be impossible to get any pension/retirement benefit concessions from employees or retirees after shoving reforms down their throats only to have the reforms overturned by the courts. We’ll be in a deeper hole with fewer options.

    Comment by anonymice Monday, May 14, 12 @ 12:59 pm

  14. ===so he can spend the money elsewhere===

    And you think that “elsewhere” is where, exactly?

    Comment by Rich Miller Monday, May 14, 12 @ 1:05 pm

  15. Let’s see…Cubs: Win lose or draw, they make money

    Sox: Win lose or draw, they loose money…

    At Lease Quinn is consistant…

    Comment by Captain Illini Monday, May 14, 12 @ 1:08 pm

  16. God Bless Gov. Pat Quinn!

    Comment by mokenavince Monday, May 14, 12 @ 1:08 pm

  17. The pesnsion problem has been in this mess for well over 50 years, hasn’t it? The Pension Guarantee in the Constitution (which apparently doesn’t mean what people think Guarantee means) was put in there because the pensions were similarly chronically underfnded in the 1960s.

    So he actually is in the Cubs ballpark of perpetual futility.

    Comment by titan Monday, May 14, 12 @ 1:13 pm

  18. ===because the pensions were similarly chronically underfnded in the 1960s===

    And the 1950s.

    Comment by Rich Miller Monday, May 14, 12 @ 1:22 pm

  19. ===Spoken like a true Sox fan.===

    I think the red caps are making Quinn think it’s 1972 again when he says stuff like that. He thinks Wilbur Wood will be on the mound tomorrow. So naturally when he says “we’ll do things” he means he and Dan Walker.

    Don’t read too much into it. He’ll come back to his senses eventually, until he sees Ozzie Guillen in a Marlins uniform…and then his head will explode.

    Comment by 47th Ward Monday, May 14, 12 @ 2:17 pm

  20. If we’re going to be like the White Sox, then I expect to read in tomorrow’s Fax about the Jesse White and Scott Walker trade Ken Williams works out.

    Comment by Dirty Red Monday, May 14, 12 @ 2:54 pm

  21. Later that day…”We need to start getting things done. You know who I admire for getting things done- fidel castro. That man ruled with an iron fist.”

    Comment by Boone's is Back Monday, May 14, 12 @ 2:59 pm

  22. If I understand this correctly, pension items cannot be negotiated.

    The Illinois Constitution does not allow diminishment of current employees’ pension items.

    So the options are do one of the above and probably lose in court.

    (Quinn’s proposals are; change the cola, eliminate cola compounding, require 3% more in employee contributions, and raise the retirement age to 67. An item of the proposal that isn’t getting a lot of play is that if an employee decides to take the above proposal and remain under Tier 1 any future salary increases WILL NOT add to their retirement benefits.) All of these diminish retirement pensions and would most likely be declared unconstitutional albeit a long court proceeding.

    Or they can attack another part of current employees’ benefits which would be insurance, which they have done, and/or pay. There is a rumor out there of a proposal that would cut employees’pay two pay grades. (I am assuming they mean steps.) They either do this or they threaten it to get the employees to agree to something else, possibly one of the items on Gov. Lil’ Blago’s list.

    Comment by Irish Monday, May 14, 12 @ 3:06 pm

  23. cute quote from quinn but a lot of people think he’s the chicago cubs of governors and Illinois is the bad news bears of states.

    Comment by Shore Monday, May 14, 12 @ 3:30 pm

  24. Irish, the salary reduction is part of the AFSCME negotions. There are other aspects of it that has a LOT of state workers looking at Retirement by the end of May.

    Comment by He Makes Ryan Look Like a Saint Monday, May 14, 12 @ 3:40 pm

  25. –If we’re going to be like the White Sox, then I expect to read in tomorrow’s Fax about the Jesse White and Scott Walker trade Ken Williams works out.–

    If you know Kenny, or Jerry, a little bit, you’d know that they wouldn’t trade a bag of broken bats for Scott Walker.

    Comment by wordslinger Monday, May 14, 12 @ 6:07 pm

  26. He talks to the business people like they’re his children he promises them candy and won’t dare break a promise.

    Comment by LUCKY Monday, May 14, 12 @ 6:13 pm

  27. Rich asked elsewhere is where exactly. If I know most state workers in Springfield, elsewhere to them means programs for the poor

    Comment by reformedformerlibertarian Monday, May 14, 12 @ 6:42 pm

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