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IL Dems rally for Obama’s Health Care

Wednesday, Aug 5, 2009 - Posted by Mike Murray

[posted by Mike Murray]

Yesterday, I had a post on whether it was smart for Rep. Kirk, as a state wide candidate in Democratic IL, to be so critical of President Obama’s health care plan. Kirk may well have made the right move, but I still think that the positive impact he experiences in the primary may not outweigh the potential cost in the general. The voters will decide, but Kirk will continue to see stories, like this one, that tie his likely opponent, treasurer Alexi Giannoulis, to IL’s favorite son President Obama.

Gov. Pat Quinn, Treasurer Alexi Giannoulis, U.S. Rep. Danny Davis and several state lawmakers were among those firing up the Democratic base of organized labor and liberal advocacy groups gathered at Federal Plaza to speak out against an insurance system they argued is broken.

“Let us mark this day as the beginning of our summer offensive to win the battle for quality, affordable health care for each and every American,” said U.S. Rep. Jan Schakowsky, an Evanston Democrat who said the fight for reform was “a battle of Biblical dimensions” against powerful insurance companies and the sick people they deny coverage.[…]

North Shore Republican U.S. Rep. Mark Kirk, who is running for U.S. Senate, jumped on the issue at a Monday news conference where he accused Democrats of moving too quickly on a health care plan he called partisan and costly. Kirk said he favors an alternative plan that would require insurers to create interstate pools to offer more affordable health coverage.

But I am sure Kirk has his reasons. For one, there appears to be some real hostility toward the Democratic health plan in the all important suburbs of Cook County…

Opponents are making an equally strong effort to defeat one of the most formidable attempts in decades to offer public health care coverage to everyone.

Schakowsky conceded after her speech Tuesday that expansion backers may be losing public support. She sees this monthlong break as a chance to win back independents.

“I am concerned that they’ve spent lots and lots of effort and money to try to fool the people once again,” she said of opponents, including insurance companies. “Let this mark the first day of our summer offensive to win real health-care reform in the fall.”

The pressure is acutely felt in the suburbs, where Democratic lawmakers have been reluctant to embrace the plan and Republicans are aggressively opposing it.

A high risk, high reward mentality I guess.

* Related…

* August Promises Red Hot Health Care Debate

* Obama and allies brace for health care showdown

* Getting health care healthy

* A myth that scares seniors to death

  53 Comments      


3 Cheers for Ford Motor Company and the New Taurus

Wednesday, Aug 5, 2009 - Posted by Mike Murray

[posted by Mike Murray]

I’m Running short on time, so I will have to let the quotes and article titles do most of the talking for me. But I’d like to take a moment and thank the Ford for sticking with and investing in the South Side of Chicago through the good times and the bad. They have staked their comeback on the new Taurus and the South Side factory will take the lead in its production. Maybe my next car will be a Taurus…

* Ford’s Chicago Assembly Plant starting production on new Taurus, SHO

The 2.7 million-square-foot plant long at 130th Street and Torrence Avenue has been integral to the South Side manufacturing corridor despite its initial geographic isolation from the rest of the city (when Henry Ford opened the plant in 1924, it was surrounded by marshland). It has seen generations of families working to produce some of the most storied vehicles in Ford’s history — from the Model T to the Thunderbird to the Taurus.[…]

Still, the plant has seen lean times. Last November Ford cut shifts from three to one, which resulted in 700 layoffs. The plant currently employs 1,372 workers, which is less than half the number during its heyday in the late 1970s.

“Whatever happens at this plant impacts the larger bistate area,” said Neil Bosanko, executive director of the South Chicago Chamber of Commerce. He pointed to the $88 million Ford invested in an adjacent manufacturing and supplier campus in 2004, which was supposed to boost both housing and the area economy. It didn’t happen quite that way, he said, because many of the workers lived in the suburbs or Indiana.[…]

The company invests in its products and Chicago Assembly, David Schoenecker, secretary and treasurer of United Auto Workers Local 551, said, citing the $400 million in improvements made in 2005. As a plant worker since 1976, he believes the facility has a reputation “for putting out a vehicle that is at times of the highest quality” the company has ever produced.

* Ford hoping to get more mileage out of Taurus

As Ford on Tuesday formally launched the 2010 Taurus, Gov. Pat Quinn pointed out to hundreds of cheering workers at the company’s Southeast Side factory that he too drives a Taurus, albeit a slightly older version. The new sedan just recently began arriving at dealers, and Ford hopes to get a few more miles from a car it once drove to the top of the sales heap.

The arrival comes on the heels of Ford posting its first year-over-year sales increase in July, led largely by improved sales of fuel-efficient cars. Ford and other automakers, including General Motors, have raced to introduce fuel-sipping vehicles and hybrids as high gas prices and the recession have consumers dumping trucks and sport utility vehicles.

“The pendulum has definitely swung back to cars,” Mark Fields, Ford’s president of the Americas, told the crowd, which included plant employees and Chicago-area Ford dealers.

The new Taurus “is going to be the flagship of the Ford brand,” he said.

They are not out of the woods yet…

* Ford unveils new Taurus at South Side plant

But analysts warn that Ford will have to resist the temptation to over build and kill the car’s economics. Hill said the old Taurus lost much of its appeal when Ford pushed it into the car rental fleets to absorb the huge volume of cars it was producing.

“They will have to do a much better job of matching customer demand to inventory,” said Hill. “The right strategy is to balance demand with production.”

But at least the federal government is doing what it can…

* Ford Pins Hopes on Sedan Made in Chicago

Fields says he hopes the company can keep up the momentum of the federal government’s so-called “cash for clunkers” program.

That program allows car owners to trade in their old gas-guzzlers in exchange for a government credit toward a new, more fuel-efficient car.

Ford posted its first monthly sales increase in two years Monday - a jump it contributed, in part, to the federal program.

* Clunkers by the numbers

Reid says Senate will OK $2 bil. to keep program going

  15 Comments      


U of I Board of Trustees debate: slow down and get it right…

Wednesday, Aug 5, 2009 - Posted by Mike Murray

[posted by Mike Murray]

As an U of I alumni and current student I want to see positive, well thought out reform as much as anybody. But lets make sure we get it right while minimizing the harm caused to the university. So far this attitude has been lacking.

There have been numerous calls from editorial boards for the complete dismal of the U of I Board of trustees. If there is evidence of unethical or inappropriate behavior I say give them the boot. It seems, in my humble opinion anyway, that such an action would be based upon at least a healthy douse of guilt by association.

* Thankfully, there is an editorial board out there acting as a voice of reason regarding how to deal with the U of I Trustees post ‘clout’ fallout…

Kicking out the entire nine-member board may feel good. It may have symbolic value.

But it could hurt the university.

The university’s trustees oversee a $4.2 billion annual budget, covering 70,000 students and almost 25,000 employees. One trustee has served 10 years on the board, five others have served between six and eight years. Their expertise covers auditing, medicine, athletics, K-12 education, agriculture and law.

Should we really throw that away, denying the university the benefit of their institutional knowledge, contacts and expertise, particularly if they did very little wrong?

The key issue should be whether they did something that merits there dismissal. The impact of losing those individuals should be a secondary concern.

* The SJ-R ran an AP story that avoids the issue of whether the entire board deserves to be fired and instead claims that the removal of the board would not cause ‘turmoil’ at U of I.

While the board oversees the campuses in Champaign-Urbana, Chicago and Springfield, it doesn’t have a major role in their operational nuts and bolts. Trustees vote on measures that university staff members have researched and choose university leaders such as the president and campus chancellors.

“Having nine new trustees at one time would be a disaster for that university that would harm it for a long, long time,” Dorris, a graduate of the university’s law school and a trustee since 2005, said in an interview last week. “For at least six months but probably a year, you would have people that would probably not be able to make sound decisions for that university.”[…]

That’s true to some degree, said Richard Novak, senior vice president of the Center for Public Trusteeship at the Association of Governing Boards of Universities and Colleges in Washington.

“There’s going to be some lag time until they get up to speed,” Novak said. “Institutional memory’s gonna be lost.”

Um…so, AP, are we playing semantics here or what? Lag time and loss of institutional memory does not equal turmoil? What does?

To be fair, Novak continued…

But if Quinn chooses to sweep most or all of the board away, Novak said he probably won’t have trouble finding qualified people with either higher education experience, public governance experience or both.

He added that Quinn shouldn’t have trouble finding trustees who are likely to do the right thing, given the memory of the current scandal and the scrutiny they would likely face.

As long as Quinn acts quickly -and when has he ever been slow to act on something- he will ‘probably’ be able to find competent people that could ensure the purging of the board only results in ’some lag time’ and ‘loss of institutional memory’ instead of turmoil. So it does not matter if the entire board deserves to be purged or not, because the transition will be smooth sailing. Now I understand! Silly me.

* Related…

* Our Opinion: Sign FOIA bill, governor

* Open up

* Little-Noticed ‘Fair Campaign’ Code Twenty Years Old

  27 Comments      


Campaign 2010 Round-Up

Wednesday, Aug 5, 2009 - Posted by Mike Murray

[posted by Mike Murray]

* State Capitol Q&A: The candidacy process

Political candidates have been preparing for months, but the 2010 election season didn’t officially start until Tuesday, the first day candidates could circulate the nominating petitions they need to file for office.

This week’s State Capitol Q&A takes a closer look at the process and what it means to Illinois voters.

* Pankau launches petition drive for DuPage Co. Board president

tate Senator Carole Pankau began campaigning for DuPage County Board chairman at the Wheaton Metra Station. Pankau, pictured here with an unidentified voter, began soliciting signatures for her nominating petitions from voters boarding trains early Tuesday morning. Fellow State Senator Dan Cronin and several other Repubican DuPage Board members have voiced interest in the chairmanship as well.

* GOP field in 10th growing

Most expect a fierce fight among Democrats with the exodus of U.S. Rep. Mark Kirk in the North suburban 10th District.

The region is tilted Democratic and Kirk, a Highland Park Republican, has had to fight hard to keep the seat. For years district voters haven chosen a Democrat for president. Plus, the national Democrats are expected to make sure they win the seat as they play mostly defense in next year’s mid-term elections.

Now another potential candidate is stepping forward: Renee Thaler, a small business owner in Northfield and Kirk camp insider. Certainly, any Republican to make it through the primary is going to have an uphill battle. To win, they will need serious name recognition and big bucks.

On the Democrat side so far, state Rep. Julie Hamos, an Evanston Democrat and three-peat candidate Dan Seals are among those running. State Sen. Terry Link, a veteran Waukegan Democrat, is also weighing a bid.

  14 Comments      


Hynes, Sen. Brady rip into Quinn’s handling of Budget; Budget Round-Up

Wednesday, Aug 5, 2009 - Posted by Mike Murray

[posted by Mike Murray]

* Yesterday, Comptroller Hynes unloaded full-bore on Governor Quinn’s management of the of the budget

Quinn announced about $1 billion in budget cuts Friday, including employee layoffs and furloughs and cuts in human service programs. However, Hynes said the long-awaited announcement didn’t clarify the state’s financial situation.

“They were very vague and they seemed to be a regurgitation of cuts previously announced,” Hynes said in an interview. “In terms of providing clarity and consistency to where we stand and what needs to be done, I think he gets pretty low marks. I think the overall theme is chaos reigns, and confusion permeates the Quinn administration.”

Hynes repeated complaints leveled by many lawmakers that Quinn shifted positions on what kinds of cuts were necessary and what cuts could be avoided with a tax. Numbers used to describe the size of the state’s budget shortfall also changed.

“It’s frustratingly confusing, and I’m the comptroller,” Hynes said.

Hynes did not stop there…

Some budget cuts announced by Quinn last week could have been avoided, Hynes added, if the budget axe had fallen first on middle- and upper-level managers and on contracts promoting the Illinois State Lottery and tourism. […]

Hynes said Quinn is cutting front-line workers before weeding out middle- and upper-level managers.

Oof. A brand of harshness that is not surprising considering it’s coming from Quinn’s 2010 primary opponent.

To his credit, however, Hynes did provide some specific points of criticism…

Hynes’ office said 1,600 people on the state payroll who earn $70,000 or more a year were hired while Rod Blagojevich was governor. Hynes described them as “mostly political appointees.”

“There are 1,600 positions that should be scrutinized before we consider cutting employees who take care of our children and protect our communities,” Hynes said, adding that he is not suggesting all of the jobs are unnecessary. […]

“This should have been done months ago,” Hynes said.

Hynes also complained about the state spending $20 million on contracts to promote the Lottery and tourism at the same time Quinn cut $30 million from programs for the developmentally disabled.

* Sen. Brady, also a vying for the IL governor’s mansion, echoed Hynes’ criticisms of Quinn’s handling of the budget, with specific focus on the IDOC…

Brady of Bloomington, questioned the wisdom of the layoffs, which he said could prove to be dangerous and “put the security of our prison system at greater risk.”

In a separate release, Brady noted the department of corrections employee headcount is about 11,000, its lowest level since 1992, despite the fact that the prison inmate population has grown in that same period from 30,400 to 45,500.

Much of the problem, Brady said, is that the department is top heavy with high-paid bureaucrats.

“Rather than laying off critical correction employees, the governor should be reducing high-level staff, eliminating mandatory overtime and spreading the shared sacrifice necessary to balance the budget more equally throughout state government,” he said.

When both Democrats and Republicans vioce the same criticism, it might be a very real problem. That said…

* Sen. Sullivan was dismissive of that line of criticism…

Sen. John Sullivan, D-Rushville, said the issue of Blagojevich appointees still on the payroll was raised during a meeting between Quinn and lawmakers at the Executive Mansion weeks ago.

“The governor agreed to look at those positions,” Sullivan said of the meeting. “I feel pretty confident he is.”

While not a ringing endorsement, Sullivan’s statement certainly pack more of a punch then Quinn’s written response to Hynes’ comments…

“Gov. Quinn has been at the forefront of reshaping Illinois government by cutting costs, making efficiencies, proposing structural changes such as pension reform and recognizing the need for greater revenue,” Reed said in a written statement. “Governor Quinn will continue to battle for our most needy residents while restoring fiscal integrity to the state.”

***Budget Round-Up***

* Tax-free weekend off table in Illinois for now

SPRINGFIELD - Among Gov. Pat Quinn’s budget plans that were put on hold this year was one to grant Illinois residents relief from sales taxes on back-to-school purchases.

* SIUC hopes for change in financial aid

Despite Gov. Pat Quinn’s most recent budget confirming a complete cut in Monetary Assistance Program grants for the spring semester, Southern Illinois University administrators remain hopeful that something will change.

SIU President Glenn Poshard and SIUC Chancellor Samuel Goldman are hopeful the Illinois legislator’s veto session or the new session in January brings better news. […]

Until then, he said he is sitting down with the chancellors from the Carbondale and Edwardsville campuses to look at the university’s budget and decide what can be done. In addition to the MAP grants, SIUC will also lose Walker Scholarships and reimbursement for Illinois Veterans Grants. Despite the lack of reimbursement, Goldman said it will not affect the veterans, only the university.

* Illinois State freezes pay for nonunion employees

NORMAL — Illinois State University is freezing pay rates for nonunion faculty and staff for the fall semester, citing budget woes.[…]

He says the state has cut $10 million for the school’s tuition waiver program for veterans and for the Monetary Award Program that provides financial aid. […]

ISU has nearly 1,900 faculty and staff and more than 20,000 students.

* State cuts hit ISU agriculture, food research program

State money used for agriculture and food research at Illinois State and Southern Illinois universities won’t be available this year because of budget cuts.

About $2.2 million that had been planned for the program was cut off by Gov. Pat Quinn Friday as part of a $1 billion reduction in state government spending.

  14 Comments      


Round-Up: Video Poker Debate Goes Local

Wednesday, Aug 5, 2009 - Posted by Mike Murray

[posted by Mike Murray]

Quinn and the GA support video poker as a funding mechanism for the capital bill, but the debate continues at the local level…

* Peoria County considers ban on video poker

* Luciano: Video gaming ban would be a losing bet

A county ban would affect 53 taverns and businesses in unincorporated areas. Municipalities, including Peoria, would not be affected by a county prohibition. However, those municipalities could enact bans of their own. Gambling opponents are pushing cities and counties statewide to say no to video gaming. […]

But that’s not an issue here. Illinois allows numerous forms of wagering, and video gaming is on the way. The Peoria County Board is not going to stop that.

It’s safe to say that most county and municipal governments will welcome the notion of taking a share of video gaming. Peoria certainly will. So, residents in unincorporated Peoria County would not have to go very far to play a poker machine.

In the end, a county ban would crush pubs in unincorporated areas. Many patrons would go elsewhere for video gaming. That’s hardly a fair playing field.

* Daley Discourages Video Poker Opt Out

Chicago Mayor Richard Daley is warning community leaders not to ban video poker machines. State lawmakers approved the gambling machines in bars and restaurants to raise revenue for statewide construction projects. But DuPage County Board Chairman and gubernatorial candidate Bob Schillerstrom is urging his county and others to opt out of the gambling plan. Mayor Daley says pulling out of the deal could hamper road and school projects all over the state.

* Legalized video betting could put Springfield VFW out of business

  6 Comments      


Round-Up: Newly Signed Legislation

Wednesday, Aug 5, 2009 - Posted by Mike Murray

[posted by Mike Murray]

Quinn signed a group of bills yesterday…

* Illinois takes step to protect water quality

Legislation that Gov. Pat Quinn signed into law Tuesday asks state environmental officials to find ways to reduce trace elements of painkillers, bug spray, sex hormones and other man-made products that show up in water quality tests.

The Illinois Environmental Protection Agency is required to establish a program giving people places to drop off unused medications, personal-care products, batteries, auto fluid, mercury thermometers and other general household waste rather than pouring it into toilets or down the drain, said sponsoring Sen. Susan Garrett (D-Lake Forest).

Under the law, spurred by Tribune stories exposing water contaminants, state officials also will be required to prepare information about proper disposal of unused drugs.

* Illinois law now requires minors seeking abortions to inform parents

After more than a decade of legal wrangling, Illinois began on Tuesday requiring minors who seek abortions in the state to first inform their parents of the decision.

* Quinn signs cancer awareness measure

The legislation, named “Brandon’s Law” after a 19-year-old Taylor Ridge resident who died of testicular cancer last year, requires high school health classes to teach students about cancer.

* Victims of crimes by mentally ill get new legal voice

Barbara McNally pushed lawmakers to give victims and their families some say in the process. The law signed Tuesday by Gov. Pat Quinn allows for impact statements at the initial commitment hearings in cases where the defendant was found not guilty by reason of insanity.

* Illinois law bars sex offenders from ice cream trucks

Gov. Pat Quinn signed the new law Tuesday. It also bars offenders from operating emergency vehicles, such as an ambulance.

* County to get new judgeship

McHenry County residents will elect a new circuit judge in November 2010 because of legislation that Gov. Pat Quinn signed last week.

The new law gives the Illinois Supreme Court authority to appoint someone to the new position before the election, but local officials did not know Tuesday whether that would happen. Candidates seeking a party’s nomination for that office in the February primary could start circulating petitions Tuesday.

  5 Comments      


Morning Shorts

Wednesday, Aug 5, 2009 - Posted by Mike Murray

FYI- I will be guest blogging again today. I will have some post up very soon, however, a few posts will just be round-ups because I have work at 11:30.

* CPS Keeping Quiet About Investigation

CPS head Ron Huberman won’t say much about the investigation, just that it’s on going.

* CPS president subpoenaed

Chicago Board of Education President Michael Scott disclosed Tuesday that he has been subpoenaed to testify before a federal grand jury investigating how students are chosen for admission to some of the city’s most elite public schools.

Scott said he was surprised by the subpoena and flatly denied that he has ever flexed his political muscle — during two stints as board president — to clout any student into a “selective enrollment” school.[…]

Scott said the Board of Education launched its internal investigation of the admissions process before the federal grand jury issued separate subpoenas for school records and Scott’s testimony.

* Jeremih to encourage CPS kids to go back to school via Twitter

Jeremih Felton — the home-grown rapper who struck gold with the racy song, “Birthday Sex”— has agreed to use “Twitter” to encourage his 70,000 followers to get back to Chicago Public Schools on Sept. 8.[…]

He’s the local kid who made good — a Morgan Park High School alum who graduated at 16 and studied engineering at the University of Illinois before transferring to Columbia College to pursue music.

But the raunchy lyrics of “Birthday Sex” also make Jeremih a somewhat controversial choice.[…]

“He had 70 million hits on his MySpace page. For us to be naïve and believe that this is not what our students are listening to would be not living in the world where our students are,” Huberman said.

* One quarter of Chicagoans unwired

One-quarter of Chicagoans are unwired: They don’t use the Internet at all, anywhere, a new study revealed Monday.[…]

African-Americans were 6 percent less likely to use the Internet than whites, while Latinos were 18 percent less likely, after age, income and education were taken into account.

* One-quarter of Chicagoans can’t see this story

In a citywide survey, the study found that only 39 percent of Spanish-speaking Latinos are Internet users. That compares to 79 percent among English-speaking respondents.

* Hospital boosts parking pledge

The planned development approved by the City Council and the Chicago Plan Commission required Northwestern Memorial, which owns the land at 215-233 E. Chestnut, to provide a minimum of 1,100 new parking spaces prior to 2012, when the $1 billion Children’s Memorial Hospital is expected.

Northwestern is exceeding that promise. At last week’s City Council meeting, the hospital filed a zoning application that calls for construction of a 1,300-space parking garage at 440-458 E. Ohio — 200 more spaces than initially promised.

* Proposed heliport amid Streeterville high-rises now up to state

Experts from the Illinois Department of Transportation will pore over stacks of statistics and tales of medical emergencies in trying to decide whether a heliport proposed for the new Lurie Children’s Hospital in Streeterville can be built.

* ‘Silent’ heart attacks heard by new ECG test

* Workers cultivate their future at nonprofit farm

A new Farm and Training Center at the organization’s South Wood Street location opens Wednesday and is intended to be part of what city officials call an “urban agricultural district.” A garden center, bakery and additional farmland may be added to the district in coming years, said Harry Rhodes, Growing Home’s executive director.

* Subdivisions designed for conservation get a boost

Will County, others see developments bloom after rules were changed[…]

A quick look at real estate offerings shows a vacant lot in Canterbury Lakes priced at $129,000, while a nearby single-family home’s asking price is about $800,000.

“People will pay a premium to live next to managed open space,” Lobbes said, adding that a home within 600 feet of open space commands a 19 percent premium — if it’s an aesthetically pleasing natural area.

* Orland Park mayor unveils ‘Smart Living’ project

Orland Park rolled out an initiative Tuesday to make the village a greener community including a program for residents, businesses and housing developments.

* Smart Living comes to Orland Park

By developing an Energy Efficiency and Conservation Municipal Action Plan (ECOMAP), Orland Park will ask ComEd and the Illinois Department of Commerce and Economic Opportunity to set aside nearly $400,000 ($200,000 from each agency in the first year) to help implement its strategy. It also expects to get $520,000 in federal funds.

* Some towns feeling growing pains

When the Village Board demoted Police Chief Michael Joswick, former Mayor Gordon Mueller — who hired Joswick as a part-time officer 27 years ago — called it “one of the blackest days in Gilberts history.”

For the other side of the story, though, you’d need to talk to the man who cast the tie-breaking vote that resulted in the chief’s removal last week. The village used to be able to juggle the needs of hundreds of residents, but the population jumped almost 500 percent in eight years and that demanded new tactics, Mayor Rick Zirk said. Joswick and Zirk ended up at philosophical odds, both said.

* Belvidere, firefighters come to agreement

* Millions announced in Illinois research funding

* The jobs map

Last week, the City Council did what it does best: pass the buck. An ordinance that would open the way for a Wal-Mart Supercenter on the South Side skipped from the Rules Committee to the Finance Committee, where it is likely to settle in for a long winter’s rest. Finance Committee Chairman Ed Burke (14th) and other council leaders appear to be in no hurry to let the Wal-Mart ordinance escape to a vote on the floor of the council.

Construction of the store would create 200 jobs. The store, once it was running, would provide nearly 500 jobs. […]

Organized labor doesn’t like Wal-Mart because Wal-Mart doesn’t have union jobs. It just has jobs (with an average hourly wage of $12.05 in Chicago). […]

One in 10 Chicagoans is out of work.

* Caterpillar CEO reaffirms outlook, recovery

Caterpillar Inc. said Tuesday its cost cuts and strategic planning had positioned the company for long-term profitability whether the global economy improves or remains mired in recession.

The world’s largest maker of construction and mining equipment affirmed its 2009 forecast and said it expects profit of $8 to $10 per share within five years if the world economy recovers and $2.50 per share annually if the recession continues.

* Owens says Cat will gain strength, market position

* Hewitt rises as company boosts full-year outlook

Human-resource services company Hewitt Associates Inc. posted third-quarter profit that beat market expectations, helped by lower expenses, and raised its full-year earnings outlook by 10 cents, sending its shares up 5 percent in early trading.

* Kraft Foods 2Q profit rises 11 percent

* First American takes $50M TARP infusion

First American, based in Elk Grove Village, is one of the area’s largest banks, with $2.8 billion in assets and 49 branches in the city and suburbs. CEO Thomas Wells says First American saw the capital infusion, completed July 24, as a prudent step to take with uncertainty about the economy still prevalent.

“We could have gone to our shareholders, but that gets to be pretty heavy lifting,” Mr. Wells said Tuesday. “We felt that this was the very conservative way to play the game.”

* United’s on-time rate, traffic levels dip

Also Tuesday, United said its traffic fell 4% in July as a steep uptick in regional traffic partially offset a continued downturn in its core business.

United said paying passengers flew a total of 11.15 billion miles last month, compared with 11.62 billion a year earlier. Excluding a 19.3% gain from regional carriers operated by United, traffic fell 6.5%.

* Can hobbled Huron Consulting survive this scandal?

Late Friday, Huron said it would restate results for the three years ended in 2008 and for the first quarter of 2009, resulting in a halving of its profits, to $63 million from $120 million, for the 39-month period. Revenue projections for 2009 were cut by more than 10%, to a range of $650 million to $680 million from $730 million to $770 million.

* Northern Illinois Food Bank began in 1983 and serves 13 counties

The bank covered only DuPage County at the time but has expanded to 13 counties and distributes more than 2 million pounds of food a month.

* Catholic Charities: ‘If you come in helpless, they will help you’

“If you come in helpless, they’ll help you,” said Waldron, 33, who lost her job as a health club sales manager a year ago. The Waldrons are among the 468 families using the Emergency Assistance Food Pantry Program at Catholic Charities North/Northwest Regional Services in Des Plaines.

The number of families has nearly doubled in the last year, officials said.

* BGA files suit against impostor ‘New BGA’

An independent, non-partisan political watchdog group formed in Chicago in 1923 does not want to be confused with a highly-partisan new group out of Akron, Ohio, also calling itself the Better Government Association.

* Lawsuit claims Natural Hair Growth Institute’s products, therapy didn’t work

* 1 in 10 Illinois drivers have potentially defective license plates

* Handicap parking scofflaws: Anonymous complaints on Illinois Web site brings in 114 complaints

* Brown’s Chicken massacre comes back to haunt Palatine

* Object lessons in elusive justice

* Two beluga whales pregnant at Shedd

  2 Comments      


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* Why did ACLU Illinois staffers picket the organization this week?
* Hopefully, IDHS will figure this out soon
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