18 Comments - Anonymous - Friday, Apr 6, 07 @ 8:05 am: Sounds like that bus trip made our Governor a little testy. Must have been those large screeming adoring crowds that showed up at all his stops. NOT. Pretty funny. - El Heck - Friday, Apr 6, 07 @ 8:23 am: Driving “certificate” sends mixed message? What about the message sent by the IRS when it issues a Taxpayer Identification number? If we don’t want to allow the undocumented any benefits, then we shoudl’nt make them pay taxes, correct? Many here allege that the undocumented use up too much in public funds; has anyone bothered to check how much revenue is received from persons using Taxpayer identification numbers? - It's about time - Friday, Apr 6, 07 @ 8:38 am: The You Tube video on Matlak is hilarious. I’m thinking that the days are numbered for Jabba the Ted. Good riddance. - VanillaMan - Friday, Apr 6, 07 @ 9:08 am: “I can’t be the only guy in Illinois” fighting for health care and schools, Blagojevich said. “This defines whose side you are on the side of the people, or the side of the big, powerful corporations and their big lobbyists.” You are right sir, you are not the only person fighting for health care and schools. We all are. You however, are fighting for yourself. You want us to empower you to take 8 Billion dollars and spend it on what you believe is THE solution regarding our health care and school issues. We live in a democracy. We believe in empowering citizens, not governors. We believe that parents best understand their children’s educational needs, not unions. We believe that we should have a choice regarding our most precious assets - our health - that allow us to determine what is best for US. We do not want you to take away our freedom of choice and replace it with a social plan full of your cronies and full of your flawed social beliefs. We know what we want. You refuse to listen to us. Get back on your bus and please drive far, far, away and don’t look back as we cheer at your parting. - Cassandra - Friday, Apr 6, 07 @ 9:20 am: The problem is that many of us don’t believe that Blago is going to spend that money only on health care and schools. We think he is going to use a hefty chunk of it to free up other state funds so that he can hire more do-nothing state employees at above-market salaries, reward more contributor contractors regardless of the value and cost of whatever they are selling, fund huge additional sums for Emil’s Earmarks and otherwise soak the taxpayers for political gain. If we have to raise taxes (and apparently our Democratic leaders and Democratic majority think we do–and we voted them in) let’s be honest about it. It’s not all going to fund schools and universal health care.It’s going to enrich Democrats, especially powerful Democrats. That is a completely separate issue from what type of taxation is finally decided upon. - Poolside @ Hotel Ibiza - Friday, Apr 6, 07 @ 9:27 am: Quotes yesterday from our fearless leader, “This defines whose side you are on … the side of the people, or the side of the big, powerful corporations and their big lobbyists.” “These are the same fat cats who make it almost impossible for you to turn your lights on,” Blagojevich said. Seems to me, those same FATCATS as the Governor refers to are the same ones who got him elected in the first place. Governor, let’s forget the Bill Cellini is the unofficial king of the bi-partisan corruption machine, former chief of staff and longtime buddy Lon Monk has formed a new lobbying firm with a starter kit of new clients from the Bill Cellini collection, indicted pals Antoine “Tony” Rezko and Stuart Levine, fellow insider Robert Kjellander, and pal Christopher Kelly. I am certain this list is just the tip of the iceberg. Careful who you call a FATCAT Governor! - Bill - Friday, Apr 6, 07 @ 9:30 am: “We live in a democracy.” Yes, we do, and a majority of voters caste their vote for Rod Blagojevich because of his promise of health care for all, more funding for education, etc., without raising sales and income taxes. We the voters chose which side we are on on election day. We elected the governor to enact “what (he)you believe is THE solution regarding our health care and school issues.” That is what he is doing with his budget proposals. These are your own words, VM. Blagojevich is not the only one fighting. A lot of us are there with him. The will of the majority will rule. The issues will be negotiated and resolved and the people of this state will be better off for it. Hold on to your wallet, dude! - Pat Hickey - Friday, Apr 6, 07 @ 9:31 am: Just one thought for Dick Simpson, Lynn Sweet and the good folks at SEIU http://hickeysite.blogspot.com/2007/04/seiu-is-threat-to-american-standard-of.html - Bill - Friday, Apr 6, 07 @ 9:33 am: Poolside, At least yoiu are bi-partisian in your feeble attempt at insults. Those guys didn’t get Rod elected. We, the people, did. - Rich Miller - Friday, Apr 6, 07 @ 9:37 am: Bill, a plurality elected the governor, not a majority. - Bill - Friday, Apr 6, 07 @ 9:49 am: Ok, but a majority of eligible citizens did not vote to change course. - Poolside @ Hotel Ibiza - Friday, Apr 6, 07 @ 9:49 am: Bill, I agree the people did elect Rod. But Rod had mucho help from his very influential pals. Rod and his pals are waist deep into corruption. The corruption thing is not an insult, it is a fact. But keep telling yourself your not in Kansas anymore Bill. - Yellow Dog Democrat - Friday, Apr 6, 07 @ 10:27 am: Bill, Rod Blagojevich didn’t get a majority of the votes, he got less than 50%. A majority voted for someone else. Let’s also not forget that the Governor didn’t campaign on the Gross Receipts Tax, he kept it hidden in his back pocket. So the election reflects no mandate for this policy. This “My way or the highway” attitude of the Governor needs to go if he ever hopes to do any significant good in this world. - steve schnorf - Friday, Apr 6, 07 @ 11:13 am: Folks, any way you cut it, 3/4 of the registered voters in the state were not unhappy enough with the current Administration to vote for anyone else. - So Blue Democrat - Friday, Apr 6, 07 @ 11:35 am: As always, Cassandra rants on about “do nothing” state employees. She never has an original thought except blasting state employees. I have determined it is an obession with her. I wonder if some state employee in the past denied her some form of public assistance? - Reality - Friday, Apr 6, 07 @ 11:56 am: Many people came here from to escape Eastern European socialism and/or dictatorships. This governor is successfully recreating both with the sleepy, lazy consent of the governed. Wake up, Illinois, if you really want to take your state back. - Keepin' Tabs - Friday, Apr 6, 07 @ 1:10 pm: R-E-A-L-I-T-Y ! Bill, A foreign concept. - VanillaMan - Friday, Apr 6, 07 @ 2:00 pm: Bill, Did Blagojevich run for re-election mentioning his GRT? If he is as ethical as you believe he is, why didn’t he tell us he was going to create a new tax so that he can wet-nurse everyone with a new superbureaucracy he envisions? What happened? Did he sometime between November 2006 and February 2007 suddenly discover the the miraculous benefits of a GRT and how to package his legacy into a “health care/education plan” AND a “tax fairness plan”? He sounds like an old Ron Popeil TV ad: “Not only does the GRT fix our tax problems, it ensures you health care coverage AND educational opportunities for those kiddies!” Unfortunately, unlike Mr. Popeil, who would under Rod’s tax move from Chicago, Rod is staying and hawking his miracle cure on his medicine wagon across the state. Mr. Blagojevich was NOT elected for a second term telling us the truth. He either had a GRT plan in place and kept his mouth shut, or he didn’t have a GRT plan in place and pretends today to have burned the midnight oil to get all the bugs worked out of it. Somehow, the “back-of-the-envelope” approach seems more likely. If he really wanted a GRT, he would have TOLD SOMEONE, besides God, who he claims supports it. The man is hearing voices… Sorry, comments for this post are now closed.