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Morning shorts
Monday, Aug 7, 2006 - Posted by Rich Miller · “A case of a mother who once supervised her daughter’s time sheets has revealed a wider web of family ties within a state agency, the Chicago Sun-Times has found.” · Tribune retracts harsh editorial about Gov. Blagojevich · Editorial: A victory for clean air · Daily Herald survey of suburbs hospital pandemic preparedness finds mixed results · State Fair trumpets tradition, innovation · PRC: Wedge Issues on the Ballot - Can State Initiatives on Gay Marriage, Minimum Wage Affect Candidate Races? · Austin Mayor: Sometimes a political ad inadvertently reveals more than was intended. · Editorial: Governor gets a grip, or else · Editorial: Those promiscuous TIFs · Sweet: Lapdog patrol… Helen Thomas quote: “My criticism of the press secretaries in the Bush-2 administration is that they are robots parroting the party line, on message word for word. They are afraid to deviate even when they are spouting nonsense. They stay on one page, no matter what the question.” Sounds vaguely familiar.
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- Disgusted - Monday, Aug 7, 06 @ 8:03 am:
No need for the Tribune to retract. Blago SHOULD stop patting himself on the back. Most of his pie-in-the-sky programs are not funded properly, just based on “future incomes.” And he bad-mouths the very people he depends on to get these programs up and continually running. He didn’t collect one cent for Child Support. The Child Support staff did it through sheer hard work. Guess some state employees are not as lazy or incompetent as the governor has been touting.
- anon - Monday, Aug 7, 06 @ 8:30 am:
I’m glad the Trib apologized.
- state worker - Monday, Aug 7, 06 @ 8:39 am:
#1) Ottenhoff said more than 900 contract employees have been eliminated since Blagojevich took office. They’ve been replaced with about 500 unionized state workers.
That is not the entire truth. They were replaced with political people who were initially appointed to that position starting at a higher than normal salary. Then after their six month probationary period, they were ‘transferred’ to a more secure union position. The positions they were placed in sometimes required certain experiences and degrees that they did not have. This is where a lot of the problems started. They were put in positions that long time union members were hoping that they could interview for in order to ‘move up the ladder’. This was prevented, and to boot, the political person was making more money then the people who were told to train them.
#2) “We have been able to eliminate high-cost contractors and instead hire state employees at more appropriate prices,” Ottenhoff said. “There’s no question that government is operating more efficiently and cost-effectively than it was before Gov. Blagojevich came into office.”
We have consultants sitting inside our office doing the same work and being paid 1.5 to 2 times what we are paid. (In addition, they get a bonus at the end of the year). We have had our training budget cut disastrously, there are more consultants doing plans that we have to check and correct (so in essence, the state pays for the work twice), there are consultants in construction, land acquisition and design. You can do the math.
- Walking Wounded - Monday, Aug 7, 06 @ 8:41 am:
I didn’t see the words “apology” or “sorry” in the article, so I don’t know how it could be construed the Trib apologized. Not only are we outpacing other states in improvements were #1 when it comes to being in debt. Yeah, lots of pats on the back for ARod.
- Mr. Ethics - Monday, Aug 7, 06 @ 8:42 am:
Do DHS employees take the ethics test? The state should make an example of this woman and her mother/daughter scheme. Otherwise why have the test?
- Cassandra - Monday, Aug 7, 06 @ 10:03 am:
It seems that the Democrats are increasing the use of contract jobs as a source of party-based patronage and nepotism, over and above what already goes on in regular state hiring (a lot).
Good government types can wail but the fact is that despite their efforts, in the 21st Century, the Dems are still about using patronage and nepotism to reward political supporters, just as in the 19th and 20th centuries. At least contract workers don’t get the lush state pension and health benefits the taxpayers are funding for state employees, but they also are even less accountable for their deliverables than state employees are for their work. If the Dems want to give a political supporter or political supporter relative a pile of cash as a reward, in other words, if they want to pay them for their votes and campaign work, “contracting” paid for by taxpayer dollars is a cheap (for Dems) way of doing it. And that is essentially what is happening.
Another reason why I think our state taxes should be lowered. So much of our taxpayer money is going to support the Democratic Party, a wealthy entity which I am not interested in supporting nor, I imagine, are the majority of llinoisians.
- NW burbs - Monday, Aug 7, 06 @ 10:04 am:
Crossposted from S-CAM:
What a bunch of cheap maroons. What is McLaughlin thinking (do you pronounce it with a “laugh”).
They used a royalty-free picture which means Tammy or any other progressive-leaning group is more than welcome to plunk down their own 189 bucks and use THE SAME IMAGE to knuckle Petey Roskum on the crown.
Dumb.
Mr. and Mrs. S-CAM ought to sponsor a caption contest. Maybe you can get DCCC or DFA to fund a mailing using the best one.
- Shallow Pharnyx - Monday, Aug 7, 06 @ 10:05 am:
Disgusted,
Don’t let Cassandra hear you.
- sam - Monday, Aug 7, 06 @ 10:40 am:
” But we were wrong. The calculations were based on an incorrect number for child support collections in 2001. The state has, in fact, made better strides than we thought. The rate of child support collections has risen from 38 percent in 2001 to 53 percent in 2005. Illinois has outpaced the nation as a whole in its improvements.”
Rich, you and everybody else here went on and on about how this was a huge issue - the administration lying again. Even when confronted with the real numbers earlier, you didn’t say anything.
You have slandered the child support enforcement employees. And all they get is a ONE LINE LINK!?!
When will you retract?
If you want to be respected, you have to admit when you are wrong. You have the ability to create a story. That is a big responsibility.
- Carl Nyberg - Monday, Aug 7, 06 @ 10:43 am:
When’s the Trib going to run editorial mea culpas for supporting Bush foreign policy and blaming the Democrats for the bombings in Turkey?
- Niles Township - Monday, Aug 7, 06 @ 12:25 pm:
Anyone see the news that Rod is spending $7 million to fight the ash borer. Seems like a good headline, right. Well, what is the detail. He is spending $7 million HIRING people to look out for the ash borer. Rod and political jobs…does it ever end.
- Save a Horse Ride a Harley - Monday, Aug 7, 06 @ 6:02 pm:
Take a look at IDOT where contractors are making HUGE bucks and the bet is that some of it is ending up in Elvis’ campaign fund. Just like the power washing money. When will the BIG INDIANS drop the dime on this bunch?
- Patrick McDonough - Monday, Aug 7, 06 @ 10:08 pm:
It is about time we start looking into TIF’s, Chicago dirty little secret. Ben Joravsky a Reader Staff writer has been beating that drum for a long time. I glad the message is getting out.
- Max Maxwell - Monday, Aug 7, 06 @ 10:56 pm:
The Sun-Times left a lot out of today’s article on DHS. The contract employees have no pension, no insurance, no union, no job security, nothing but an hourly wage. This is not a “state hiring scandal” in any sense. Mr. Fusco was advised so, but they printed the article anyway. Not a good article.