* 1:46 pm - Gov. Pat Quinn is meeting with another group of state legislators and Rep. John Fritchey is live-Tweeting. Apparently, the guv is talking about a $3.5 billion pension note plan, instead of the $2.2 billion proposal that failed in the Senate…
Lavin talking about pension reform, healthcare reforms, a billion in cuts. Aim is 5 month budget or 12 month w/ a 5 month sunset.
21 minutes ago
Now they’re floating the idea of 3.5 billion in pension obligation notes instead of 2.2 billion. Job cuts would still come.
19 minutes ago
Plan seems to be that come December, either find revenue or impose more cuts.
17 minutes ago
This meeting with the Gov. and his staff is not giving me a good feeling about session next week.
less than 10 seconds ago
Oy.
As I mentioned below, I have to leave the office soon, so follow along by clicking here. Help out in comments if you can.
…Adding… More from Fritchey…
Gov’s plan would have providers funded at about 90% for the next 5 months. But they keep ignoring the possibility of an override.1 minute ago
* I have to leave the office, so my kinda former intern Mike Murray will be handling the live blogging duties on this post if he can find a live feed of the announcement. Burris is apparently announcing that he won’t run in the 2010 election at 2 o’clock this afternoon. Help him out in comments if you can. Thanks.
* 2pm - I still have not found a live news feed of Sen. Burris’s press conference. If anyone has found one just make a comment to let me know so I can live blog it. Either way, I will post something once the presser is over and and stories start to go up on the web…
2:10 pm -USA TODAY is live blogging it all. CNN also has it on live….
Updated at 3:03 p.m. ET. A little late, but Burris stepped to the microphone, with a big smile, to applause and cheers of “don’t quit” from his supporters. “Run, Roland, Run.” They cheered.
Updated at 3:08 p.m. ET. He talks about how proud he is to have served the people of Illinois for 30 years. “Life is about choices. Make no mistake, I love serving in the United States Senate,” he said. He talks about how he is the only African American in the Senate.
Updated at 3:09 p.m. ET. He gets to the point: “And so today i return to where my political journey began back in 1978 … to announce announce that, my friends, I will not be a candidate in the 2010 election.” He says he cannot raise money and focus on the issues in the Senate.
Updated at 3:12 p.m. ET. “I will keep fighting for the great people of the state of Illinois,” he said, ticking off issues he wants to work on, including health care and military veterans.
Updated at 3:13 p.m. ET. It’s over. That was quick. He took no questions, just walking away to polite applause.
* Sen. Burris is not eligible for Senate pension, from the Trib…
Burris plans to serve out the remainder of the term, which expires in January 2011. Under federal law, he is not entitled to a pension for his Senate service since he did not serve a minimum of five years.
I thought I might see [at the Sheriff Dart press conference] another prominent politico with 19th Ward Democratic organization connections: Illinois Comptroller Dan Hynes.
A few years ago Hynes campaigned on cemetery rip-offs and made news splash after news splash about abuses in what he calls the “death care industry.” He vowed to fight them. His Web page is full of such vows.
Though Hynes’ office is responsible for the oversight of privately owned cemeteries like Burr Oak, he wasn’t at the news conference. His office said he has oversight but little legal authority to enforce cemetery upkeep.
Perhaps Hynes was busy making plans to get into the U.S. Senate race. Sen. Roland “Tombstone” Burris, who cozied up to disgraced former Gov. Rod Blagojevich for the Senate appointment, has apparently decided to drop out of politics.
It’s hard to believe, but state regulators say that other than checking out records, they literally have blinders on when it comes to checking out conditions at cemeteries. It’s not their jurisdiction, they say. […]
[Cook County Sheriff Tom Dart] was shocked to learn how little oversight there are for cemeteries in Illinois. So were we. Cemeteries are licensed by the Illinois comptroller and required to keep 15 percent of the cost of a grave in a trust fund for cemetery care. Documents show Burr Oak had almost $2 million in its trust funds.
The comptroller’s office says the law only allows them to audit the cemetery care trust funds. Critics argue that when they come to inspect the books, they should take a look around. If they had, they might have found the desecrated graves at Burr Oak before the body count reached 300, and it’s still climbing. […]
Talk about lack of enforcement. The comptroller’s office, which investigates misuse of burial trust funds, says it’s had 20 complaints about Burr Oak but referred them to the cemetery. [emphasis added]
* OK, first of all, the comptroller’s oversight is, indeed, limited, as Zekman pointed out. Here’s the official explanation…
The Comptroller’s Office has limited legal authority over cemeteries, specifically focusing on consumer funds accepted by the cemetery that may be held in trust. The office licenses all funeral homes and cemeteries that sell arrangements in advance of death to ensure proper safeguards are taken with the consumers’ monies. The office requires annual financial reporting and conducts audits to ensure financial compliance.
More specifically, Hynes would require an owner to provide “reasonable maintenance” of the property. […]
The plan has received bipartisan support in the General Assembly, but it faces some hurdles. The Illinois Cemetery and Funeral Home Association is opposed to the package as drafted. The 200-member trade group argues that cookie-cutter standards are unrealistic.
As Larry also notes, the Senate Majority Leader back then was a funeral director, which made it tough on Hynes.
* OK, well, what about those “20 complaints” about Burr Oak? Turns out, that’s 20 over the past decade. The problems apparently started four years ago. There was just one complaint filed this year, according to the comptroller’s office. That complaint was about maintenance of the facility. It was filed in April and it concerned potholes in the road and standing water, the comptroller’s office said.
* And Zekman’s claim that if the comptroller’s office had just “looked around” while they were auditing the books they might have found something? Well, a Google search shows a major Chicago Tribune story about the maintenance problems at the cemetery back in May of this year…
Burr Oak Cemetery — known as an historic resting site for a number of prominent African-Americans — has been drawing complaints from visitors appalled by the apparent lack of care and upkeep.
Sunken or tilting gravestones, unmanageable roads, rivers of rainwater, and an abundance of uncut weeds dot the Alsip cemetery where Emmett Till, blues legend Dinah Washington and heavyweight boxing champion Ezzard Charles are buried along with many other famous figures.Complaints over the years have led to reprimands from the state and a bevy of fines issued by village officials. But little has improved, probably because laws regarding the cemetery don’t come with enforcement powers.
So, a reporter and a photographer both visited the cemetery looking for a story, but neither noticed that graves had been dug up and resold. I’m not completely sure that the “look around” criticism has much value. It took a pretty intense police investigation to find those problems. Just looking around obviously wasn’t enough.
The scam came to light after someone who paid [former Burr Oak general manager Carolyn Towns] cash asked another cemetery employee about the purchase of a plot. When no record of the transaction could be found, the Perpetua Corp. president questioned Towns in March. Court documents show Towns confessed to stealing the $8,400 cash deposit and showed company officials all the other cases in which she kept the cash.
The general manager’s firing was reported to the comptroller’s office. The report included notification that the local police had been called into the case, the comptroller’s office said today.
Also, since the stolen cash was “off the books,” the comptroller’s office says, it wouldn’t show up in an audit of the official records.
* Without a doubt, Hynes should’ve been all over this thing once the cemetery scandal story broke. He wasn’t. That’s not good for him at all. But whether he’s actually to blame for this mess is entirely another matter The fact that he’s from the 19th Ward shouldn’t automatically mean he’s guilty, no matter what some may think.
Still, his office should immediately release all 20 complaints. Were there any hints over the past four years? If so, I, for one, would like to know about it.
And, considering the Tribune story back in May - which was bad enough as it was even without the dug up graves aspect - Hynes should’ve been a whole lot more proactive.
But I’m not sure we should be burning him at the stake just yet.
Yet.
*** UPDATE *** From the comptroller’s office, here is a list of the complaints filed…
5/13/02 Care related complaint regarding flooding.
5/6/05 Inquiry regarding an exhumation.
5/9/05 Care /professionalism complaint against CBOC staff.
11/1/05 Consumer received 2 headstones with wrong design.
12/13/05 Consumer wants to change the design on grave marker.
5/26/06 Care complaint regarding drainage/pot holes in roads.
6/15/06 Care complaint regarding raising of markers and potholes in roads.
3/5/07 Mother’s grave was not opened on time.
4/23/07 Care complaint regarding pumped water making her parent’s section inaccessible.
5/16/07 Care complaint regarding potholes.
10/16/07 Care complaint regarding poor upkeep in cemetery.
10/22/07 Consumer’s mother was temporarily displaced by CBOC staff.
10/26/07 Family spaces occupied by non-family members.
10/30/07 Care complaint on overgrown grass and fence down.
2/19/08 Contract dispute regarding open/closing fees and Saturday burial fees.
5/29/08 Care complaint regarding mud and water in cemetery.
6/3/08 Care complaint regarding water drainage.
6/9/08 Care complaint regarding sitting water, potholes, and poor grass cutting.
11/19/08 Consumer feels his mother was not buried deep enough. Cemetery verified that depth was sufficient.
4/23/09 Care complaint regarding standing water and potholes in the road.
* Zorn mocks the dogged LMadigan conspiracy theorists…
What’s Lisa Madigan really up to?
* She’s secretly angling to challenge Chicago Mayor Richard M. Daley in 2011.
* She and her father, Illinois House Speaker Michael Madigan, are setting her up to run for governor in 2014.
* She’s biding her time until her friend and former legislative seatmate, President Barack Obama, appoints her to a Cabinet post or perhaps even to the U.S. Supreme Court.
* I’ve seen this one floated a lot since the AG’s announcement…
[Lisa Madigan] could have had the democrat nomination for either seat. For the asking. And here’s where the tell comes in: she’d have to run for either office as a Democrat. In 2010, that looks like a very risky situation. My gut tells me that Madigan has calculated the same thing, i.e. 2010 is going to be a terrible, horrible, no-good, very bad election year for Democrats.
Running for reelection, she’s essentially decided to sit this one out. By the time national Democrats realize what Madigan signaled today, it will be too late for them.
…it’s just dreadful for the White House, which seems to be striking out everywhere in terms of influencing statewide elections. Joe Sestak, Carolyn Maloney, and now Lisa Madigan. Obama should give Emanuel a good time-out.
I think Chris Cillizza was the first to use that particular theory…
For the moment, however, the team that beat Hillary Clinton in a primary and then overwhelmingly elected the nation’s first black president last year hasn’t been able to recreate that magic in downballot contests.
[Jim Nalepa] said correctly when we had lunch earlier this week that Lisa wouldn’t run either for governor or Senator but for reelection. Then he added that in the future she will run for only one thing more: the Illinois Supreme Court where she will spend her time waiting to later to be named to the U. S. Supremes.
Mike Madigan, the Illinois House Speaker: Found himself in a dilemma. He wants his daughter to become Governor, or possibly now US Senator — Senators do become presidents — but he also wants to maintain his iron fist majority rule in the Illinois House and the battle over the budget could jeopardize that. He’s held back on an income tax increase to protect his daughter and to protect the many spineless legislators who don’t want to say if they will support an income tax increase until they know for sure no one of substance will be running against them in this Spring primary.
I have no doubt her father, House Speaker Mike Madigan, would have twisted enough arms among his fellow House Dems to get a tax hike passed. That way, a budget fix would be in place by now, Lisa Madigan could criticize Gov. Pat Quinn for raising taxes in a recession but still reap the financial benefits when she took office in 2011. That Mike Madigan didn’t get a tax hike passed through the House was a pretty big red flag that his daughter wasn’t going to run for governor in 2010.
“It’s the worst kept secret in Springfield that a lot of this is driven by the Attorney General’s political ambitions,” said Righter.
Sen. Righter also claimed in that article that the Senate passed a budget this year which went nowhere in the House. I don’t remember that.
* My personal favorites came from a couple of often strange commenters on my own blog…
lake county democrat - Wednesday, Jul 8, 09 @ 11:19 am
Come on people, there’s more smoke here than in Wasilla, Alaska — people who wouldn’t believe Sarah Palin for an instant think that Lisa Madigan who HERSELF has indicated interest in both races suddenly drops out because she likes her present job/wants more time with her family/etc.?
Conservative Republican - Wednesday, Jul 8, 09 @ 11:30 am
Good example of liberal hypocrisy here:
Palin quits: she’s a coward and a loser
Lisa Madigan wimps out on higher office run: she is “wise” and a “gift” to the people of Illinois in deciding to continue as a “wonderful Attorney General”
* Stu Rothenburg rates the US Sen. race closer now that Lisa Madigan is out of the picture…
Here are our latest Senate ratings, reflecting Attorney General Lisa Madigan’s (D) decision not to run for the U.S. Senate in Illinois and Cong. Mark Kirk’s (R) decision to run.
*- Moved benefiting Republicans
Narrow Advantage for Incumbent Party
Burris (D-IL) *
Asked about the news that Lisa Madigan plans to seek re-election as the Illinois Attorney General and not seek higher office, Hamos said Wednesday that’s one post off her list.
Everything else — Governor, Lieutenant Governor, Comptroller, Treasurer — remain options, said Hamos, whose profile has soared recently from her work on transportation, the budget, and call for tougher ethics reform.
I’m also hearing 10th Congressional District, believe it or not.
As many as 300 bodies were unearthed and dumped in a mass grave as part of a scam that netted the workers about $300,000, authorities said Thursday.
The empty graves were resold to unsuspecting families for cash — off the books, authorities said.
“There should be … a special place in hell for these graveyard thieves,” said the Rev. Jesse Jackson, who appeared with authorities at a press conference at the cemetery Thursday.
The four cemetery employees charged in the alleged scheme to dig up bodies at Burr Oak Cemetery and illegally resell their grave sites have been moved into a special section of Cook County Jail to avoid serious injury from other inmates, Sheriff Tom Dart said this morning.
“These people need to be put in a special place because there is the strongest possibility of serious injury if that doesn’t happen,” he said. “We jumped on that right away.”…
Former cemetery manager Carolyn Towns, 49, foreman Keith Nicks, 45, and dump-truck operator Terrence Nicks, 39, all of Chicago, and back-hoe operator Maurice Dailey, 59, of Robbins, were each charged with dismembering a human body, a Class X felony. All face up to 30 years in prison.
Towns’ bail was set at $250,000, the others’ at $200,000. Towns was placed in the psychiatric wing of Cermak Hospital. “We’re concerned for her based on a psychiatric evaluation,” said sheriff’s office spokesman Steve Patterson.
* Exclusive: Emmett Till’s casket left to waste at Burr Oak
Broken. Rusted. Battered. The image of a glass-covered casket with the body of Emmett Till was shown around the world in the 1950s. But on Thursday, as hundreds of African Americans searched frantically for the graves of love ones, the battered casket of Till was rusting in the back of a shack at Burr Oak Cemetery in Alsip…
“When we opened it up trying to find what we have, a family of possums ran out,” said Cook County Sheriff Tom Dart.
Cemetery workers had been cooperative and informed law enforcement officials that it was indeed Till’s original casket.
“It sure looks like all of the photos I have ever seen,” Dart said. “This is absolutely horrible.”
Tristan’s lawyer, William Coulson, sent a letter Wednesday to the mayor in which he defended Tristan’s conduct and suggested Inspector General David Hoffman violated a federal court’s wishes and a city ordinance by making his investigative report public.
“Mr. Hoffman’s report is, in my view, shockingly deficient in both factual support and analysis, and falls far short of the high standards which the citizens of Chicago should expect from the Inspector General,” Coulson wrote to Daley.
Various city employees who also were mentioned in Hoffman’s report have hired a lawyer and separately asked a federal court judge to remove Hoffman’s report from the public file.
The unidentified employees want the report sealed, Hoffman and other city employees barred from making any more comments about it, and future reports by Hoffman that recommend employee discipline to be filed under seal.
Here are a few suggestions for the mayor as he considers Tristan’s replacement:
• • Pick a professional with no deep political ties. We’re not saying all top city professionals need to be free of politics, but if you want this post to have credibility, pick an outsider.
• • Hire someone who understands that the federal court order on city hiring means what it says. When an alderman sends a letter advocating for a city employee, it’s time to pick up the phone and inform the federal hiring monitor — not ship it along to the city’s legal department to see if it absolutely, positively has to be reported.
• • Select someone who understands the best way to end the costly federal monitoring of the city’s hiring is to work with the federal court monitor, not around her.
The Daley administration moved Thursday to fire a $91,008-a-year plumbing inspector caught doing a side job with no permit, city license and without signing a secondary employment form allowing him to perform the work.
The violations were particularly egregious because Kendrick was assigned to a task force that busts people for working without permits.
On Thursday, Kendrick was placed on administrative leave pending termination proceedings. The fact that he allegedly asked Water Management investigators for city-owned parts — lead packs and copper — to repair the broken pipe did not factor into the decision.
“It’s not that we’re making light of that. It’s just that we have enough to fire him without delving into that,” said Buildings Department spokesman Bill McCaffrey.
Daley said 69.8 percent of Chicago elementary students passed their 2009 state exams.
There’s just one problem: That’s not correct. It’s actually 67.5 percent — 2.3 points lower than what Daley and CPS’ leaders announced. This is the real number, the one that goes on the state report card.
There is a logic to using two numbers, but CPS and Daley didn’t explain it, preferring to highlight the higher number in their press release, which is what many reporters and the public rely on. The higher number, you see, excludes Chicago students still learning English. The lower number includes them.
* Alexi Giannoulias’ fundraising slowed down in the second quarter. That usually happens. The first round of calls is almost always the easiest. Still, he’s raised an impressive amount of dough…
Illinois Treasurer Alexi Giannoulias raised $1.8 million to date for his Senate bid, while his likely Democratic rivals have zero dollars in their warchests.
Giannoulias has been fund-raising since March. Federal fund-raising reports, public next week, will show that Giannoulias raised about $670,000 in the second quarter of 2009. […]
Giannoulias is also in a position to pour some of his own money in his campaign; his federal financial disclosure statement–which requires that only the range of assets be listed–will show that he is worth between $13 million and $62 million, I’m told.
Yikes.
* Comptroller Dan Hynes posted a message to his FaceBook page yesterday about the governor’s race…
…Over the next couple of weeks I plan on taking a serious look at running for Governor and what we can do together to solve our problems. I’m confident that, with your support, we can bring progress back to Illinois.
In the meantime, I’d like to hear your thinking on the upcoming election and encourage you to email me at dan@friendsofdan.com or send me a Facebook message with your thoughts….
* No surprise at all. JBT is gearing up for another statewide bid…
Former state Treasurer Judy Baar Topinka is looking to return to state government. The Riverside Republican is eyeing a run for state comptroller, a position now held by Democrat Dan Hynes.
“I am very frustrated watching what is going on in Springfield,” Topinka said Thursday. “It would give me a chance to fight back.”
* Sen. Kirk Dillard was in southern Illinois touting his campaign yesterday. No slip-ups about Lisa Madigan this time…
On the matter of Wednesday’s announcement by Illinois Attorney General Lisa Madigan that she will not be seeking the governorship or a seat in the U.S. Senate, Dillard said he hoped the move would help break the budget gridlock.
“We have been sitting back for too long (waiting) for what Lisa wants to do,” he said, referring to her father, House Speaker Michael Madigan’s, lack of action so far.
A friend pointed out yesterday that Dillard’s Republican opponents screwed up even more than Dillard did this week with his “I look forward to having Lisa Madigan as attorney general when I’m the governor” comment.
None of the other GOP gubernatorial candidates had a tracking staffer at the Dillard announcement with a video camera. If they had, that comment could’ve been posted to YouTube before Dillard’s plane landed at the next town. Over.
* There’s more to it than what I wrote today, but things were changing so fast yesterday that I didn’t have time to get to it all before my deadline. Anyway, here’s my Sun-Times column…
Maybe now that Lisa Madigan has decided to stay put as Illinois’ attorney general, Gov. Pat Quinn can finally relax a little and get down to the business of governing.
When Quinn was sworn in after Rod Blagojevich’s impeachment and removal, he seemed like a guy who wanted to do what was right, regardless of the political consequences.
He proposed an unpopular tax increase because he knew it was the only real and honest way to comply with the state’s Constitution and balance the budget, despite the continued protestations of Fantasy Island naysayers.
He demanded serious pension reforms that freaked out the teachers unions and the American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees — two enormously influential interest groups.
He proposed a couple of steep budget cuts that enraged the Service Employees International Union, which has been one of the top players in Illinois politics for most of this decade.
Quinn made it abundantly clear that he was prepared to sacrifice his own political future to do what he believed was right. Whether you agreed with him or not, the new governor’s attitude was quite refreshing.
But then, things started going haywire in a hurry.
He’s not a very capable manager, and it really showed. He is, by all reports, an inexperienced, stubborn micromanager who refuses to listen to sound advice.
And, for whatever reason, he’s one of those guys who doesn’t seem to realize that he loses credibility when he abruptly changes position. After he infuriated the teachers unions by demanding that their members pay another two percentage points from their paychecks into the pension fund, he backed off during a speech to a teachers union rally. But he never got anything from the unions in return, so it was a pointless gesture.
The same thing was true about his tax increase proposal. He refused to budge off a big tax increase for corporations, then offered to drop most of it, even though nobody had ever agreed to support the revised plan.
Quinn’s flip-flops are becoming legendary. He said he’d sign the public works bill right away, but then changed his mind and tried to use the job-creating bill to pry votes loose for his income tax increase. He testified in favor of the Senate Democrats’ tax increase plan, then a few hours later said he was for a different plan. He made his reputation as a government reformer, then wholeheartedly agreed to a woefully inadequate reform bill, then privately indicated that he might veto it.
People around the governor say some of this can be blamed on the threat that Lisa Madigan posed. He knew he was finished if she ran, even if he somehow managed to beat her in the primary. Her father, the House speaker, would’ve made Quinn’s life unbearable. The threat meant the governor just wasn’t thinking right.
Quinn’s news conference earlier this week was described by the Sun-Times editorial page as “confusing and bewildering.”
He looked to me like he was melting down in front of our very eyes. I was actually worried for him.
But, lo and behold, just one day after Lisa Madigan decided to run for re-election, Quinn looked like he was pulling himself together.
First, he announced he would sign the massive public works bill that has been awaiting his action for weeks.
Then, he bowed to the harsh Springfield reality and said he could accept a temporary, five-month budget, even though it could mean he has to sign a tax increase into law a month before his own Democratic primary.
Maybe, just maybe, he’s finally starting to settle down and really govern. Let’s hope so. It was all getting too weird, even for me.
Sneed has learned U.S. Sen. Roland Burris has decided NOT to seek election to the seat he fought the government to keep. […]
The decision by Burris was based on his inability to raise campaign funds; campaign disclosures with the Federal Election Commission are expected to be filed next week…and he has reportedly only raised approximately $20,000 […]
“After 20 years in government service, Burris didn’t want the last four months in office to be that legacy,” said a source.
Too late. That is his legacy now. He screwed it up himself by taking up Rod Blagojevich on his offer of a Senate appointment and then allowing his allies and staff to use disgusting race-baiting tactics to keep him there.
Good riddance.
* 4:59 pm - The Tribune has a brief bit that appears to confirm.
* 5:19 pm - From a press release…
United States Senator Roland W. Burris to Make Major Announcement Tomorrow
CHICAGO, IL— United States Senator Roland W. Burris will make a major announcement during a speech in Chicago on Friday afternoon. Senator Burris will be addressing a group of Illinois residents at the Chicago South Loop Hotel at 2:00PM.
WHO: Senator Roland W. Burris
WHAT: Speech to Illinois Youth
WHEN: Today, Friday, July 10, 2009, at 2:00 p.m.
WHERE: Chicago South Loop Hotel, 2600 South State Street,
“”Right now, obviously, the plan is the plan,” Birkett said. “I didn’t formally announce, but I was indicating I would not be a candidate for governor and was looking at the attorney general’s race, and that’s the way it stands right now.”
Really? That’s what he said?
Um, no.
This is from the e-mail Birkett sent out last week…
I’ve made the decision to remain a prosecutor and to run for the Office of Illinois Attorney General in 2010.
There was no “indicating” that he wasn’t running for guv and “looking” at the AG’s office. He announced for AG. Watch his campaign video if you don’t believe me. It’s entitled: “Joe Birkett Announces for Illinois Attorney General.”
Yet, the local paper described his comments as: “hedged a little.” That’s more than a little.
* Birkett said he’s now going to have to talk to his supporters to see what they want him to do…
“Lisa Madigan’s decision to retain that office is something I have to speak with my supporters about and assess the possibilities. But anybody can be beat.”
Hat tip to a commenter.
…Adding… With all the flip-flopping today from Quinn and now Birkett, I think I need some Dramamine.
Quinn also said a temporary budget that would extend spending for another month or so would not happen, dousing the hopes of Republicans who had been pushing that idea to buy more time on a full agreement.
“We’ve got to get a full budget as quickly as possible for the people,” Quinn said.
That would mean a tax hike vote in January - right before the primary.
Senator Bill Brady, Republican candidate for Governor, today demanded that Kirk Dillard apologize to Attorney General Candidate Joe Birkett and to Illinois Republicans for his apparent endorsement Wednesday of Democrat Lisa Madigan
“Republicans must support Republicans,” Brady said.
“I am calling on Senator Dillard to publicly apologize to Republicans and especially to Joe Birkett. Further, I am asking Kirk to request that Lisa not use his comments during the upcoming campaign, unlike President Obama’s use of Kirk’s commercial during the presidential campaign.”
On this morning’s WLS 890 AM Don and Roma Show, Attorney General Madigan laughingly said Kirk Dillard’s fawning endorsement of her for reelection as Attorney General, the previous day, would be used on her mailings into DuPage County during the upcoming campaign against Birkett.
Cook County Assessor James Houlihan said Thursday he will not be a candidate for Cook County Board President.
A spokesman for the former state representative and aide to former Mayor Harold Washington said, “After careful consideration, Assessor Houlihan has decided not to run for president of the Cook County Board. As Assessor, Jim has fought to make the assessment process more transparent and responsive to the taxpayers of Cook County. He is focused on continuing those reforms — and on the 2009 reassessment of the city of Chicago.”
* 12:50 pm - I told subscribers about this already, but Rep. Roger Eddy is Tweeting from inside a meeting with Downstate lawmakers and Gov. Pat Quinn and just Tweeted this…
The Governor is here and says he will sign the capital bill on Monday.
That’s true.
* 1:39 pm - Another Tweet from Rep. Eddy inside the meeting with Quinn…
Gov. Quinn says he will present his specific plan for economic stabilization & recovery in drafted language tomorrow.
24 minutes ago from web
Not sure what the heck that means yet.
* 2:03 pm - From a press release…
The Illinois State Legislature’s $375 million revenue estimate from a new tax on video gaming is at least $165 million too low, according to a new study of other states with legalized video gaming machines. Citing this new data, Illinois’ hospitality industry again called on Governor Quinn to veto the proposed alcohol tax hike, saying that the legislature’s under-accounted for windfall would more than cover any alcohol tax gains.
“Each extra dollar of revenue from gaming represents one more reason not to punish the state’s struggling hospitality industry through higher alcohol taxes,” said Distilled Spirits Council Vice President Dale Szyndrowski, who noted that Illinois’ hospitality industry has already lost over 18,700 jobs in the past year due to the recession. “A tax on alcohol hurts the restaurant, hotel and tourism industries and will destroy thousands more jobs among those least able to afford it.”
The new study, conducted by Arduin, Laffer & Moore Econometrics (ALME), found that based on the experiences of other states that have legalized video gaming, the Illinois State Legislature’s $375 million revenue estimate is far too conservative. ALME estimated that the average revenue experience from other states could justify revenues of at least $540 million – or, a $165 million tax revenue windfall for the state of Illinois. The report found revenue forecasts could be as high as $1.7 billion.
Another point that could be made is, why not use the “extra” revenue for more projects or to balance the state budget?
State lawmakers who met privately with Gov. Pat Quinn today said he told them he now plans to sign a $29 billion statewide construction bill next week.
If he does, it would mark the latest change of heart for Quinn, who has been criticized by fellow Democrats for flip-flopping as politicians try to come up with a solution for Illinois’ latest budget impasse. Quinn previously has tied signing the construction bill into law to a budget deal.
* Progress Illinois has done a yeoman’s job of collecting stories and data about private social service providers who are now laying off staff and cutting back services. Check out the map…
This issue is extremely important and has been kinda lost in the shuffle recently. Good job by PI. Keep it up.
…Adding… With thanks to a commenter, click here for a list of all the info in that PI map.
…Adding… The Fox News Chicago talking heads just called a proposal to eliminate all of Chicago’s state revenue sharing money “common sense.” No joke. Watch it…
[Lisa] Madigan’s move has repercussions beyond just the ballot box.
Quinn, who rose to the spot from lieutenant governor after Blagojevich’s ouster, has had trouble marshaling support from lawmakers as he pushes an income tax hike and struggles with service cuts facing a $9 billion budget shortfall.
Lawmakers who have long expected Madigan to successfully challenge Quinn in a primary had little reason to listen to him.
“Certainly the idea that Lisa Madigan was going to be there to take him out made it easier for lawmakers to take Quinn on,” said Kent Redfield, interim director of the Institute for Legislative Studies at the University of Illinois in Springfield. “If they now come to the conclusion that they are stuck with Quinn, that may change the calculations.”
There was far more to the resistance than that. A tax hike is considered by many to be a political death trap. But it’s still an interesting thought.
* Campaign-wise, Delmarie Cobb wins our quote of the day award… again…
Burris campaign aide Delmarie Cobb said Madigan’s decision, along with money are part of “a long line of factors” determining if Burris would seek election.
“As you know, there have been many marquee names thrown out for this seat and so far they have all fizzled,” Cobb said. “With [Burris] as the incumbent, it seems the Democratic Party would do well to rally around the person who has the seat and keep the seat rather than mine for a candidate.”
I can’t foresee a career in political prognostication for Ms. Cobb. Then again, the cable networks tend to choose people who are always wrong as their regular pundits, so maybe I’m off base here.
* The a general consensus is building that yesterday’s announcement was good for Republicans…
Republicans in general and state Treasurer Alexi Giannoulias in particular look like the beneficiaries of Wednesday’s announcement by Illinois Attorney General Lisa Madigan that she’s running for re-election, not for governor or U.S. Senate, one analyst says.
It was certainly good news for US Senate Republicans. A Lisa Madigan candidacy was their most feared outcome. But Mark Kirk is no sure thing. Not yet, anyway. We’ll see how the Democratic primary goes.
* Speaking of Kirk, if he does go ahead with a US Senate run as expected, his seat will be open…
Potential Democratic nominees include: State Sen. Michael Bond, who was already in the race; Dan Seals, who was Kirk’s opponent in 2006 and 2008; and state Sen. Susan Garrett. Possible Republican candidates include state Rep. Elizabeth Coulson, state Rep. JoAnn Osmond, and businessman Dick Green.
Democrats think they’ll have a pretty good shot at this seat, as it is one of only six districts that were won by both Obama in 2008 and Kerry in 2004, but are represented by Republicans. On the Republican side, a source told me: “This won’t be an easy seat to hold, but with the right candidate and Kirk on the ticket, it is possible.”
Kirk had an amazing ballot impact last year. Down-ballot legislative Republicans in his district who were deemed vulnerable all ended up winning. That’s one big reason Republicans love the idea of a Kirk candidacy. Here’s another…
“He attracts votes in large percentages from both independents and Democrats,” Edgar said. “He is the moderate kind of Republican that can win statewide in Illinois.”
…Adding… The Democratic Senate Campaign Committee already has an Intertubes ad thingy designed to discredit Kirk as a moderate…
The Madigan move also could be felt further down the ballot. State Rep. Julie Hamos (D-Evanston), who had been weighing a possible candidacy for attorney general, told supporters she was looking for their input about another office to seek—potentially lieutenant governor.
* The best thing about Lisa Madigan’s decision to run for reelection is the death of ridiculous comments like this one…
Illinois Atty. Gen. Lisa Madigan (D-Daddy will make her governor)
The assumption that Lisa Madigan is just a little girl following her daddy’s orders was always goofy, but it persisted, perhaps because she is a female, but also because of her father’s awesome power…
…some Democrats speculated that the lack of a state budget had much to do with her father’s influence and an attempt to make the governor look bad in the eyes of voters.
It was a lot more than just “some Democrats” and the Tribsters know that.
…Adding… I didn’t see this one earlier. Hilarious…
Conventional wisdom at the Capitol was that Mike Madigan was motivated to do whatever was needed to resolve state budget problems so that his daughter would not inherit a financial mess if she became governor.
Oh, yeah? Really? That’s why the budget mess was resolved long before May 31st, right?
* The Tribune editorial board looks back this morning and realizes that, in fact, Lisa Madigan has been leaning against moving up the ladder for a year or more…
The conversation over lunch salads occurred more than a year ago. Atty. Gen. Lisa Madigan was mulling a run for governor — or, if Barack Obama ascended to the presidency, for his seat in the U.S. Senate. But try as she did to sound captivated by the politics, Madigan kept circling back uncomfortably to the costs her family would pay if she succumbed to the ceaseless grind of campaigning for, and holding, higher office.
On Wednesday morning the mother of two young children echoed what she had said back then: “Both the governorship and the Senate seat are great opportunities,” she mused in a phone call, “but once you have kids it’s not just about you. It’s about these little people. I have a great family and a great job I’m committed to. How greedy do I want to be?” One influence on her decision to run again for attorney general: a neighbor woman who gave Madigan the warning every parent hears but not every parent heeds: “Your children will grow up in the blink of an eye. Don’t miss it.”
Lisa Madigan, of course, was until Wednesday the el-primo domino whose pick of either a gubernatorial or Senate race would tip lots of other pols — and not just her fellow Democrats — into or out of races for various Illinois offices. Her declaration that she wants to stay put liberates not just her, but all those other potential candidates.
* But the alleged conspiracy to elect Lisa governor so she could “share Illinois with her daddy” seemed so “obvious” to some that it refused to die, until now. Wally Haas is a must-read…
The biggest conspiracy theory in Illinois has been that Speaker of the House Mike Madigan was making life difficult for Gov. Pat Quinn because Madigan wanted his daughter, Attorney General Lisa Madigan, to have a clear shot at becoming the state’s top executive.
“You guys are going to have to come up with a new conspiracy theory,” Lisa Madigan told me Wednesday in a telephone interview.
Madigan announced Wednesday she will run for re-election in 2010 and not seek higher office. Lisa Madigan was called “governor-in-waiting” before she was elected attorney general in 2002, so it’s always been assumed she would seek that office and get it with the help of her influential father.
“I had it from a pretty good source as recently as Friday that she was going to run (for governor),” state Sen Brad Burzynski, R-Clare, said. “It makes me wonder: What’s (Mike) Madigan’s end game?”
Sheesh.
* I’m sure it won’t be long before some of those same folks switch gears and say that daddy ordered “Little Lisa” to stay put.
But, for now, at least, the tinfoil hat types have been discredited…
“Politics is something that breeds conspiracy theories and there are going to be all sorts of armchair quarterback questions,” said House Republican leader Tom Cross, who opposes Madigan’s father at the Statehouse. “But I have every reason to believe her. I guess maybe that is because I struggled myself with those questions.” […]
Former Gov. Jim Edgar said he understands. “Politicians are people and personal considerations often trump political considerations,” Edgar said.
“She has a young family,” he added. “It is a very legitimate reason.” […]
Paul Green, political professor at Roosevelt University, agrees. “I know a lot of political families,” he said. “It is hard.”
A federal judge this week gutted a lawsuit aiming to force the state to give thousands of developmentally disabled people the choice of moving out of large group facilities and into smaller community homes.
In his ruling, U.S. District Court Judge James F. Holderman said the suit was overly broad, affecting people who don’t want to move to smaller facilities.
Representatives from Equip for Equality, an advocacy group for the developmentally disabled, said they were disappointed by the judge’s ruling, but called it a “temporary setback.”
Equip for Equality’s Barry Taylor noted that Holderman didn’t dismiss the lawsuit, but instead stripped it of class-action status; that means any resolution of the current lawsuit would affect only the nine original plaintiffs and not thousands statewide.
Five employees of the historic Burr Oak Cemetery in Alsip were taken into custody Wednesday after authorities learned numerous bodies had been dug up and the grave sites were illegally resold, Cook County Sheriff Tom Dart said.
Detectives discovered a pile of bones — from more than 100 decomposed bodies — above ground and uncovered in an overgrown, fenced-off portion of the cemetery, Dart said.
“What we found was beyond startling and revolting,” the sheriff said.
Officers raided the cemetery, at 4400 W. 127th St, in Alsip, Wednesday morning. Five people were taken into custody…
“We thought it would be straightforward financial theft. We found out that graves were being opened and remains were disinterred and removed,” he said.
Dart believes the scheme has been going on for about four years.
The Illinois Attorney General’s office says prosecutors are dropping charges against 42-year-old Ronald Kitchen and 50-year-old Marvin Reeves. The two men were convicted of killing two women and three children in 1988.
Their case was based largely on Kitchen’s confession, but he’s long maintained that he was tortured into the admission. The men were granted a new trial, but Attorney General Lisa Madigan’s deputy chief of staff says her office couldn’t meet the burden of proof and justice required the men’s release.
Daley said Tuesday, long holiday weekends are usually difficult for police. He added that concentration of police at the Taste of Chicago was not behind the lawlessness that erupted elsewhere in the city.
Eleven people were killed and at least 30 others were wounded in shootings and stabbings during the holiday weekend. According to authorities, it was among the city’s deadliest weekends in recent years.
According to police, some of the slayings appeared to be gang-related, while others may have resulted from domestic disputes. Many of the victims had criminal records.
Daley said the violence was a reminder the city must do everything it can to fight gangs, guns and drugs.
Mayor Daley acknowledged today that his outgoing personnel chief should have reported a letter from an alderman seeking to block a job transfer, but he said the “minor violation” did not warrant termination.
Nevertheless, Daley said he accepted the resignation of Human Resources Commissioner Homero Tristan because the “honest, hard-working” attorney did not want to become a “distraction” to the city’s efforts to implement a hiring system free of politics.
“He doesn’t want to be in the headlines. . . . He’s a wonderful young lawyer. He has good judgement. And he doesn’t want to be the ping-pong ball,” the mayor said.
Noting that Inspector General David Hoffman recommended that Tristan be fired, Daley said don’t “pit me against David Hoffman like David Hoffman is over here and the mayor is over [there]. . . . . I appointed him. I asked him to do the things that are necessary. So, don’t try to get him against me.’’
Mayor Daley made a personal appeal to three hold-out unions today, but could not convince them to swallow cost-cutting concessions that would avert the need for 650 layoffs.
“No agreement, no movement, no nothing. They haven’t moved. … They don’t seem willing to compromise or entertain any other ways of saving money,” said Henry Bayer, executive director of AFSCME Council 31.
Lou Phillips, secretary-treasurer of Laborers Local 1001, said the mayor and unions leaders remain “at an impasse” with less than one week to go before Daley has threatened to pull the trigger on 650 layoffs.
“We don’t want to give up paid holidays. We negotiated for those years and years ago,” Phillips said.
He added, “You’re never willing to see people laid off. But, we can’t concede everything we’ve worked for.”
Davlin and the police union are close to reaching an agreement that would allow employees who are at least 50 years old and have 20 years of service to retire during a “pay spike” for the pay period that ends July 18 and is paid out on July 24, Davidsmeyer said.
Already, employees are eligible for a 5 percent bump in pay for one pay period twice a year around their work anniversaries and birthdays. After those pay periods, the employee’s pay returns back to normal. Employees who retire during bump periods can have their pensions based on the increased salary rather than their regular pay.
Davidsmeyer said offering a pay spike now is aimed at workers who are waiting to retire around their anniversary dates or birthdays later this budget year. Nineteen police department employees could be eligible for retirement, he said.
Retirements could reduce the number of layoffs at the department. Layoff notices already have been sent to 36 officers.
A one-year wage freeze for all union employees, cuts to arts and library budgets, the elimination of free landscape waste hauling and a new water utility tax highlight a list of solutions the city’s administration released Wednesday to resolve a $10 million budget deficit next year.
Facing a deficit projected at more than $2 million in the city general fund, Morrissey is looking for structural changes in labor agreements that would lead to sustained budget savings.
That would mean significant concessions from unions representing about 570 public safety employees.
At least one proposed concession early this year was met with resistance from the unions and from the Rockford City Council.
Reducing the number of firefighters who man eight city fire engine companies from four to three would mean sustained savings for the city. Although it is a staffing level found in many cities the size of Rockford, firefighters rejected the notion during the buildup to the April election.
Even as he questioned the efficacy of Illinois’ standardized school tests Wednesday, Mayor Richard Daley touted modest gains made by elementary students in Chicago Public Schools who met or exceeded expectations on one of those tests this year.
The percentage of elementary students who met or exceeded standards increased by 2 points to 69.8 in 2009, with math scores for 3rd through 8th graders showing the sharpest increase, Daley said at a news conference.
But even as he and other school officials highlighted the score increase as evidence of progress, they also said that the tests were not necessarily a good indication of a student’s ability to succeed in the real world. Nationally administered tests consistently show Chicago scores near the bottom.
Some Spanish-speaking kids and other immigrants enjoyed new versions of state achievement tests this year, including a DVD video version of the ACT college-admission test, officials revealed Wednesday.
The problem for kids is that colleges will not accept the ACT scores of juniors who, for the first time this spring, got to listen to the ACT math and science questions in Spanish while reading them on a computer screen in English.
“In the next eight years of any city in America, tell me where the economic development is gonna come from. Is it gonna come from the military? The military builds in the south and southwest. It does not build in the Midwest and East,” Daley said.
“You tell me one economic program that anyone has offered — both in the private sector or public sector. Every other city would love to have this—when the federal government will spend billions of dollars on infrastructure and on security. Besides that, the national and global publicity we receive from the build-up all the way to 2016. This is the only economic engine. We’re talking about jobs. We’re talking about contracts…coming into Chicago.”
But, the mayor warned, “If people keep throwing darts at it, maybe they will not get it.”
Pressed on whom he believes is “throwing darts,” Daley said, “Did you read any headlines?” He added, “You beat us up.”
The mayor has been casting about the last few weeks, trying to save his Olympic dream as the clock runs out. On Oct. 2, the International Olympic Committee will chose one of four cities — Chicago, Rio de Janeiro, Tokyo or Madrid — to host the 2016 Games.
But it’s the mayor himself who has put the city’s bid in jeopardy. At an IOC event in Switzerland last month, Daley said he would sign a host-city contract, putting the city on the hook financially for any Olympic losses. He did it without warning or City Council approval, generating a tidal wave of criticism back at home.
Daley then reversed course, saying he would put the issue before the City Council.
But dozens of questions remain — and they must be answered. We want the Olympics in Chicago, and we know the IOC won’t pick the city without Daley’s signature. But if taxpayers are at risk, it’s not worth it.
If anything, many of the 400 who packed the Southwest Side McKinley Park field house wanted to know what they stand to gain if the city wins the 2016 Summer Games.
The 11,000-seat Sears Centre isn’t drawing the crowds Hoffman Estates officials once expected, so village leaders now are considering taking ownership of the struggling sports and music venue…
Opened in 2006, the Sears Centre is privately owned, though Hoffman Estates backed the $50 million loan used to build the structure near Route 59 and I-90. Its builder and primary owner, Ryan Companies, is obligated to pay for the center through 2010, but has approached Hoffman Estates about taking control after that, officials said.
“When the guarantee ends, the village anticipates it will be required to undertake a greater, overall financial contribution going forward,” Hoffman Estates officials said in their statement.
If Chicago hosts the 2016 Olympics, the building could house the entire Olympic Village and be sold off as condos afterward, suggests auctioneer Rick Levin, whose firm will oversee auction.
“I don’t think, in my career, I’ve seen a more underutilized piece of real estate,” Levin said. “To me, the biggest negative right now is it’s 2009. Financing is soft, and people are apprehensive about taking on projects.”
The building carries a suggested opening bid of $300,000 but no minimum bid, meaning it will go to the highest offer. To show their interest, registered bidders must submit a $250,000 cashier’s check. Losing bidders get their checks back; for the winning bidder, the check becomes earnest money, and any overpayment would be returned at closing.
A company founded by South Shore native George D. Sullivan on Tuesday won the exclusive North American rights to sell small wind turbines under the brand name Gentle Breeze.
Retailers desperate for hard-to-get dollars are already advertising back-to-school sales, but Sears and Kmart may take the early-bird award for opening online Christmas shops.
Two members of the Illinois Army National Guard have died this week while serving in Afghanistan.
Forty-one-year-old 1st Lt. Derwin Williams of Glenwood and 35-year-old Spc. Chester Hosford of Ottawa were killed Monday when their vehicle hit a roadside bomb in Kandu.
All were members of the Guard’s 33rd Infantry Brigade, a group of about 3,000 soldiers that has had 17 deaths during a yearlong deployment scheduled to end early this fall.
“Throughout her years in public office, Attorney General Lisa Madigan has proven herself to be capable, conscientious, and committed to the best interests of the people of Illinois. She has done a fine job as ‘the people’s lawyer.’ I look forward to working alongside her in our common cause of providing strong, responsible, honest government for the people of Illinois. “
This ought to be the Question of the Day, but what do you think he really wanted to write?
