Capitol Fax.com - Your Illinois News Radar » 2004 » December
SUBSCRIBE to Capitol Fax      Advertise Here      About     Exclusive Subscriber Content     Updated Posts    Contact Rich Miller
CapitolFax.com
To subscribe to Capitol Fax, click here.
Dragons and wolves

Sunday, Dec 5, 2004 - Posted by Rich Miller

The So-Called Austin Mayor has deconstructed Governor Rod Blagojevich’s penchant for scoring cheap publicity points. He calls it “Blago-Mojo.”

1) A cause that no one could be against

2) Action required by a non-Blago entity

followed always by, 3) A press release

This is pretty standard political stuff, but the governor appears to be elevating it to an art form. He specializes in tackling “issues” that he has no or very little influence over, but are popular with the voting public.

The So-Called Austin Mayor’s (I’d use a simple abbreviation rather than repeating his whole name, but in this case it would be the unfortunately harsh acronym “SCAM,” and that wouldn’t be nice) latest “Blago-Mojo” entry was about the guv’s reaction to the Chicago Sun-Times’ excellent report on how wounded Illinois veterans are being shafted by the Veterans’Administration.

In today’s Sun-Times, the Blagovernor returns to the first page in his playbook, this time as a response to the ST investigation into why Illinois’ wounded soldiers are receiving some of the lowest disability pay in the country:

Gov. Blagojevich also sent a terse letter to [Veterans Affairs Secretary Anthony Principi] demanding a plan to address “this intolerable situation.”

So let’s take a look at our Blagorgeous leadership check lists:

1) A cause that no one could be against — disability pay for wounded veterans — Check!
2) Action required by a non-Blago entity — a demand that the V.A. craft a plan to address “this intolerable situation” — Check!
3) A press release — an open letter to the V.A. Secretary — Check!
4) The win-win Blago-bonus — A) Action by the V.A. means a moral victory for Blagorgeous, and B) inaction by the V.A. means Blagorgeous stood up for Illinois military men and women, so no matter what, Rod Blagojevich is the champion of wounded soldiers — Check!

Hat’s off to the Governor, for yet another heroic press release!

What the so-called mayor didn’t include from the article might be even more illuminating, however, and is also part of a pattern.

In his letter… Blagojevich called the Chicago office “hostile” and criticized Chicago VA Director Michael Olson as giving “little cooperation” to the governor’s veterans affairs staff.

Blagojevich wrote that his director of veterans affairs had repeatedly reached out to the VA regional office in Chicago to try to improve the disability claims process. [Snip]

Olson said he had never dealt with the governor’s office of veterans affairs. “I don’t know what he is referring to,” Olson said.

Here’s another Blago-Mojo deconstruction of the guv’s attack on foreign flu-shot maker Aventis for not cooperating with federal authorities:

1) A cause that no one could be against — “the health of the most vulnerable members of our population” — Check!
2) Money outside the state’s budget responsiblity — “that Aventis start cooperating with the FDA immediately” — Check!
3) A press release — an open letter to the president of Aventis — Check!

Even the Blago-bonus applies in this case: The Guv has brilliantly positioned himself so that 1) action by the drug company means an apparent victory for Blagorgeous, and 2) if the flu becomes an epidemic Blagorgeous can say he saw the looming threat and tried to stop it. Either way Rod Blagojevich is the champion of “the most vulnerable members of our population”.

Once again, it’s all upside and no downside.

Except that Aventis flatly denied it was dragging its feet.

So, maybe there is an eventual downside. The governor flailing at imaginary dragons is one thing. But constantly crying “wolf” can have consequences.

  Comments Off      


Kirk delivers cards to Iraq

Friday, Dec 3, 2004 - Posted by Rich Miller

Republican representative Mark Kirk announced Thursday he will personally carry holiday cards and letters to Illinois troops in Iraq. [Snip]

If you would like to send a card or letter with Congressman Kirk, send it to:

Suite 200
102 Wilmot Road
Deerfield, Illinois
60015

The deadline is December 9th.

  1 Comment      


Princess on the steeple

Friday, Dec 3, 2004 - Posted by Rich Miller


The New York Times has a fascinating op-ed today about how Bob Dylan’s classic “Like a Rolling Stone” was almost not released. Turns out, Columbia Records’ sales execs didn’t like the song.

Their objection to the song came on two levels. The unstated reason was that they just didn’t like raucous rock ‘n’ roll. The sales and marketing people had made Columbia a winner by selling mainstream American music - pop, jazz, country, gospel, the best of Broadway and Hollywood. But rock? No way. It was this thinking that had led the label to turn down Elvis Presley in 1955 and the first American album by the Beatles in 1963.

Of course, none of this was raised at the meeting about “Like a Rolling Stone.” What did come up was the length of the song. In 1965, three minutes was the average time for singles played on national radio. “Like a Rolling Stone” clocked in at one second under six minutes. The solution? Cut the baby in half, the wise Solomon of Sales decreed.

Read the whole thing. Definitely worth it.

Also, Grow a Brain has a bunch of great Dylan links, including some rare bootleg cuts.

  1 Comment      


Slone Snark

Friday, Dec 3, 2004 - Posted by Rich Miller

This is the snarkiest thing I’ve seen on Rep. Ricca Slone to date, and it didn’t even come from Peoria Pundit.

  Comments Off      


Friday Topinka blogging

Friday, Dec 3, 2004 - Posted by Rich Miller

Because Friday cat blogging is just so pre-election.


  2 Comments      


Bad budget news

Thursday, Dec 2, 2004 - Posted by Rich Miller

The spring session will likely be long and mean. And the worse the budget situation, the longer and meaner the session will be.

The state’s backlog of Medicaid payments to vendors such as pharmacies, nursing homes and hospitals has reached $1 billion, just six months after the state borrowed $850 million to clear the back payments. [Snip]

The $1 billion backlog only adds to a bleak financial situation the state is staring at for the upcoming fiscal year. This week a Cook County judge ruled that a business fee hike in 2003 was unconstitutional, putting in question $18 million that was raised by the increased fee and perhaps many millions more in similar fee hikes. And a few weeks ago, the Illinois Economic and Fiscal Commission - the economic forecasting branch of the legislature - reported the state would garner only $325 million in new revenue for the fiscal year set to begin July 1, 2005. Also, the state’s five pension programs need a $600 million infusion next fiscal year.

  Comments Off      


« NEWER POSTS PREVIOUS POSTS »
* Trump sends National Guard to Memphis, says Chicago is ‘probably next’ — again
* Isabel’s morning briefing
* Open thread
* Selected press releases (Live updates)
* Live coverage
* Yesterday's stories

Support CapitolFax.com
Visit our advertisers...

...............

...............

...............

...............

...............

...............


Loading


Main Menu
Home
Illinois
YouTube
Pundit rankings
Obama
Subscriber Content
Durbin
Burris
Blagojevich Trial
Advertising
Updated Posts
Polls

Archives
September 2025
August 2025
July 2025
June 2025
May 2025
April 2025
March 2025
February 2025
January 2025
December 2024
November 2024
October 2024
September 2024
August 2024
July 2024
June 2024
May 2024
April 2024
March 2024
February 2024
January 2024
December 2023
November 2023
October 2023
September 2023
August 2023
July 2023
June 2023
May 2023
April 2023
March 2023
February 2023
January 2023
December 2022
November 2022
October 2022
September 2022
August 2022
July 2022
June 2022
May 2022
April 2022
March 2022
February 2022
January 2022
December 2021
November 2021
October 2021
September 2021
August 2021
July 2021
June 2021
May 2021
April 2021
March 2021
February 2021
January 2021
December 2020
November 2020
October 2020
September 2020
August 2020
July 2020
June 2020
May 2020
April 2020
March 2020
February 2020
January 2020
December 2019
November 2019
October 2019
September 2019
August 2019
July 2019
June 2019
May 2019
April 2019
March 2019
February 2019
January 2019
December 2018
November 2018
October 2018
September 2018
August 2018
July 2018
June 2018
May 2018
April 2018
March 2018
February 2018
January 2018
December 2017
November 2017
October 2017
September 2017
August 2017
July 2017
June 2017
May 2017
April 2017
March 2017
February 2017
January 2017
December 2016
November 2016
October 2016
September 2016
August 2016
July 2016
June 2016
May 2016
April 2016
March 2016
February 2016
January 2016
December 2015
November 2015
October 2015
September 2015
August 2015
July 2015
June 2015
May 2015
April 2015
March 2015
February 2015
January 2015
December 2014
November 2014
October 2014
September 2014
August 2014
July 2014
June 2014
May 2014
April 2014
March 2014
February 2014
January 2014
December 2013
November 2013
October 2013
September 2013
August 2013
July 2013
June 2013
May 2013
April 2013
March 2013
February 2013
January 2013
December 2012
November 2012
October 2012
September 2012
August 2012
July 2012
June 2012
May 2012
April 2012
March 2012
February 2012
January 2012
December 2011
November 2011
October 2011
September 2011
August 2011
July 2011
June 2011
May 2011
April 2011
March 2011
February 2011
January 2011
December 2010
November 2010
October 2010
September 2010
August 2010
July 2010
June 2010
May 2010
April 2010
March 2010
February 2010
January 2010
December 2009
November 2009
October 2009
September 2009
August 2009
July 2009
June 2009
May 2009
April 2009
March 2009
February 2009
January 2009
December 2008
November 2008
October 2008
September 2008
August 2008
July 2008
June 2008
May 2008
April 2008
March 2008
February 2008
January 2008
December 2007
November 2007
October 2007
September 2007
August 2007
July 2007
June 2007
May 2007
April 2007
March 2007
February 2007
January 2007
December 2006
November 2006
October 2006
September 2006
August 2006
July 2006
June 2006
May 2006
April 2006
March 2006
February 2006
January 2006
December 2005
April 2005
March 2005
February 2005
January 2005
December 2004
November 2004
October 2004

Blog*Spot Archives
November 2005
October 2005
September 2005
August 2005
July 2005
June 2005
May 2005

Syndication

RSS Feed 2.0
Comments RSS 2.0




Hosted by MCS SUBSCRIBE to Capitol Fax Advertise Here Mobile Version Contact Rich Miller