* I sure hope Gov. Pat Quinn asked for big buckaroos for the state budget when he was kibitzing in the Oval Office…
Quinn, a longtime friend of senior White House advisor David Axelrod, met with him at the White House and after talking about stimulus funding Axelrod walked him into the Oval Office to see Obama. Quinn said he ran into Chief of Staff Rahm Emanuel and Senior Advisor Valerie Jarrett.
Don’t be proud, guv, just ask for the cash. Beg if you have to. Heck, stand on your head and spin around the Oval Office like a top for the preznit’s amusement if that’s what it takes.
* And while you’re at it, you might want to prod your legal team to speed up their review…
Republican Commissioners Tony Peraica and Timothy Schneider on Wednesday delayed plans to push for a rollback in the Cook County sales tax until Gov. Pat Quinn formally signs new legislation reducing the number of votes required to override President Todd Stroger’s inevitable veto.
A spokesman for Schneider said they hoped Quinn would sign it before the next meeting of the Cook County Board Nov. 18. Quinn spokesman Bob Reed said the governor was going to “review the law” and has not made a decision on if or when to sign it.
“If” he’ll sign it? “If”? I was out a bit too late last night with an old friend, so I don’t have the energy or the brain power to look it up, but I could’ve sworn that Quinn said he was in favor of that legislation.
…Adding… The governor’s office notes that the bill has not yet been transmitted to them. Good point, but I’m still a little concerned about the waffling on whether Quinn will sign it.
More…
Democratic Commissioner Larry Suffredin, of Evanston, who supports the reduction in the sales tax, warned that language added to the bill in Springfield during the recent veto session could contain a “poison pill.” Although it says the new law takes effect immediately, it also specifies staying consistent with the state constitution, which could give Stroger an angle to fight the new law in court.
All laws have to be “consistent with the state constitution.” But the Stroger court challenge angle is a real possibility, as I told subscribers last week. Stroger could conceivably hold up any override while he takes the state law to court, if he finds a willing judge, which might not be easy. The Senate Democrats said they believe Stroger has no legal leg to stand on, but this is America, baby. Anybody can sue anybody for anything.
* The state has a new accountability office? Huh. OK, get cracking…
Gov. Patrick Quinn on Wednesday dispatched officials from a new accountability office to investigate errors in a state database detailing stimulus-funded school jobs promoted by the Obama administration, a day after the Tribune raised questions about the job numbers’ accuracy.
The officials have asked the Illinois State Board of Education to verify the number of jobs created and retained in school districts detailed in the report, said Ashley Cross, a spokeswoman for Quinn’s office. Any necessary adjustments will be incorporated into the next quarterly report on the federal stimulus, she said.
Matt Vanover, a spokesman for board of education, said the flawed database actually had been washed of some glaring errors before being included in the official tabulation, which claimed 14,330 school jobs in Illinois had either been saved or created thanks to $1.25 billion in federal funds.
But the Tribune found that the database claimed far more jobs had been saved in some local school districts than actually existed on district payrolls.
That was a bizarre little story…
More than $4.7 million in federal stimulus aid so far has been funneled to schools in North Chicago, and state and federal officials say that money has saved the jobs of 473 teachers.
Problem is, the district employs only 290 teachers.
The stats were compiled by the Illinois State Board of Education, which should’ve known better.
* Related…
* Lawmaker’s wife doubles salary with appointment
* Tollway gets an earful on oasis contracts at hearing
* SOS White’s office to trim its staff
- VanillaMan - Thursday, Nov 5, 09 @ 10:30 am:
You don’t put water into leaky buckets then wonder why they never fill. Our government is broken. Giving it more money is nothing but a waste. Until we get leadership that respects where that money comes from, and reform to make it more efficient - these stories are not surprises.
Pfft! They don’t even know how to freakin’ count!
- Anon - Thursday, Nov 5, 09 @ 10:31 am:
== . . . but I could’ve sworn that Quinn said he was in favor of that legislation.==
And your point is?
- The Doc - Thursday, Nov 5, 09 @ 10:38 am:
The point is Quinn could take his sweet time, and ultimately veto the legislation, citing possible litigation, and pledging to “make it better” come January when the GA reconvenes.
Consider that MJM has never been in support of such legislation until he was “convinced” by a freshman rep that it shouldn’t be bottled up.
- cassandra - Thursday, Nov 5, 09 @ 10:38 am:
Well, it looks as if Jesse White knows how to count.
Why is it that only the SOS can manage the kind of employee buyout that private sector firms do all the time; a modest reward for civil servants who leave sooner rather than later.
Now, it’s possible that few will take it, but if a sizeable number do, Quinn should take time off from planning his income tax increase, hiring more patronage employees and providing soft landings to troubled execs and consider White’s approach. It could save some taxpayer cash.
- yipes - Thursday, Nov 5, 09 @ 10:39 am:
Rep. Zalewski worked for Rod before the 23rd ward and his dad gave him the rep spot. Now Rep. Zalewski gets his wife a gig for over $100,000.
I love reform in Illinois.
- wordslinger - Thursday, Nov 5, 09 @ 10:43 am:
A lot of the money comes from the printing press, or just a thumbs-up from the Fed window. When the economy experiences sustained growth, it will disappear again as the Fed raises rates.
- Bill - Thursday, Nov 5, 09 @ 10:44 am:
There is no one in Illinois more qualified than Carrie Zalweski, a lawyer and a degreed engineer, for that particular job who would be willing to work for that salary. Illinois is lucky to have her.
- dupage dan - Thursday, Nov 5, 09 @ 10:51 am:
VM,
The current administration in both Illinois and DC are throwing money into leaky buckets all over the place. Nothing new there.
The counting problem is especially disturbing coming from multiple school districts around the state. The Ill Board of Ed got some ’splainin’ to do.
- yipes - Thursday, Nov 5, 09 @ 11:00 am:
Bill,
Of course she’s the most qualified . . . Rep. Zalewski only has one wife.
- Cindy Lou - Thursday, Nov 5, 09 @ 11:01 am:
Cassandra– “Why is it that only the SOS can manage the kind of employee buyout that private sector firms do all the time; a modest reward for civil servants who leave sooner rather than later”–
psst, Cassandra, what can of incentive is it when the state whispers in the background that if they get their way premiums will skyrocket for retirees that are non-medicare age?
- Will County Woman - Thursday, Nov 5, 09 @ 11:21 am:
the governor should NOT sign the bill. the federal government/whit house, which has a enormous and outrageous deficit of its own, should NOT give illinois any more money than it is giving to the other states.
the governor should not be counting on any bailouts to H-E-L-P do his job. he needs to just do his job! throught december and january of last year he ran around talking about how he was ready to lead. it’s almost a year later, when will he start leading? uh, nevermind.
- Will County Woman - Thursday, Nov 5, 09 @ 12:46 pm:
greg hinz of crain’s doesn’t thinks quinn should sign the bill.
i don’t find myself defending todd stroger, and haven’t since he assumed office, but on this one i have to defend stroger. please note, i am defending stroger here on principle/home rule and for no other reason.
the bill is a veiled attack against stroger more than it is about the number of commissioners it takes to override his veto power.
when the GA impeached and ousted blago it did so setting bad precedent. The GA must refrain from doing things that look personal as opposed to good/sound public policy.
- Rich Miller - Thursday, Nov 5, 09 @ 12:49 pm:
===when the GA impeached and ousted blago it did so setting bad precedent. ===
Please.
In your mind, maybe. It was their constitutional right. Their constitutional obligation, even.
- Rich Miller - Thursday, Nov 5, 09 @ 12:53 pm:
===greg hinz of crain’s doesn’t thinks quinn should sign the bill. ===
You mean that headline over Greg’s post today which read: “Quinn ought to sign bill cutting Stroger veto power — fast”?
WCW, you need to slow down. Hinz wants the bill signed, right now.
- Will County Woman - Thursday, Nov 5, 09 @ 1:21 pm:
So sorry, i did mean that hinz wants the bill signed. and i tried to post the link to his opinion on the matter, but it didn’t work and i think that’s what threw me off in that sentence.
In my defense it was not just in my mind that it set bad/dangerous precedent, as would the bill that Hinz wants signed ASAP. furthermore on the blago thing, some people in the media whom I’m sure you respect expressed the same concern at the time and afterwards.
i understand that the opinions of greg hinz matter way more to you and others than mine ever could. i am under no illusions about that fact.
finally, you were correct in thinking that quinn initially expressed support for the bill and indicated that he would sign it.
- The Doc - Thursday, Nov 5, 09 @ 1:29 pm:
WCW, lowering the threshold doesn’t destroy the essence of home county rule.
A 4/5 majority for a veto override is onerous, and one could reasonably argue that it affords the county board president disproportionate unilateral authority.
==i understand that the opinions of greg hinz matter way more to you and others than mine ever could. i am under no illusions about that fact==
Not really sure what to make of that one. Sounds like you need a time-out.
- Will County Woman - Thursday, Nov 5, 09 @ 1:58 pm:
the problem isn’t the override threshold because it’s never been a problem before. it does seem suspect that it is a problem that the GA just had to pursue.
the problem is and was and will always be that commissioner suffredin cut a deal with the stroger administration when he should not have.
so, when i see him on the news rallying on this issue i really think it’s more about him saving his bacon because HE did something he should not have done in the first place. he’s trying to right his wrong. the threshold that the bill wants to undo is not wrong or the problem. i undersand and appreciate that the 4/5 is an anomaly in comparsion to all other governing bodies.
to me, and not that my views matter a hill of beans, but a cleaner and better way for the GA to have undermined this “horrid” penny tax would have been to write legislation enabling the municipalities to secede from cook county, as some wanted to do from the moment that tax hit. that is of course assuming that there is a real concern here beyond just what it seems to be.
hinz suggests that the gov sign the bill because the tax is killing business. ok. but is violating home rule the best and only way to rectify the matter? i’m just wonderin’ because it all looks kinda shady to me.
- The Doc - Thursday, Nov 5, 09 @ 2:55 pm:
==it does seem suspect that it is a problem that the GA just had to pursue.==
Does that make it suspect, or simply recognition of a policy flaw? This is how the process works, WCW. Issues generally become politically expedient because it reflects the will of the population.
==the problem is and was and will always be that commissioner suffredin cut a deal with the stroger administration when he should not have==
I’m not sure I follow. I didn’t like Suffredin’s deal with Stroger either, but it certainly appears that the county health system is functioning more efficiently - right?
==a cleaner and better way for the GA to have undermined this “horrid” penny tax would have been to write legislation enabling the municipalities to secede from cook county==
Munis can secede from the county. Additional legislation is not required. Secession is anything but “clean”, which is why it rarely occurs. And if it’s better, why hasn’t it happened?
- Will County Woman - Thursday, Nov 5, 09 @ 5:05 pm:
simply a recognition of a policy flaw, you suggest?
I disagree. The timing of this “recognition” of the cook county override threshold is rather suspect and frankly it is politically motivated.
perhaps I should have prefaced the “cleaner and better” statement with a perhaps? My understanding and recollection is that at the time of the secession talks the munis put the matter to a non-binding referendum. As I understood at the time GA involvement would be required to make secession happen. As I recall the GA was loathe to take the matter up, and that is why it did not happen. For what it is worth, todd stroger was not on the outs politically speaking as he is today.
And, I find it hard to believe that secession would not be a GA legislative matter in whole or part.
I agree with you that the idea of secession is anything but clean and that is why it rarely occurs. we all know how well things went when the southern states tried to breakaway from the union. As far as I know no muni has ever seceded from any county in Illinois. But, there’s a first time for everything, right. We never had a governor impeached and ousted from before, but it was done for the first time last year and earlier this year. So, why not give secession a try? How hard can it be to let the munis simply join lake or kane or dupage or the very beautiful will county?
Cook county has a lot of problems and maybe if it were downsized many of its problems could be better managed and/or resolved even, thereby making it less needy of so much tax revenue.
- Quinn T. Sential - Thursday, Nov 5, 09 @ 5:53 pm:
[Democratic Commissioner Larry Suffredin, of Evanston, who supports the reduction in the sales tax, warned that language added to the bill in Springfield during the recent veto session could contain a “poison pill.” Although it says the new law takes effect immediately, it also specifies staying consistent with the state constitution, which could give Stroger an angle to fight the new law in court.]
Supports the reduction in the sales tax? If it weren’t for “swing vote Larry”, we wouldn’t have the increased sales tax to begin with.
Larry Sufferedin; who you crappin?
Nice head fake with the “poison Pill” cop out too. Larry’s afraid that the elctorate is recovering from its Anheuser’s Disease, and sober up come election time and remember that it was he who delivered us this baby, and now he wants to abort it.
I may have been born at night Larry, but it wasn’t last night!
- No STAR - Thursday, Nov 5, 09 @ 7:12 pm:
Hey Rich, keep up the good work. Please stay on top of the “worst bill ever” - STAR Bonds. Yes, it did not move or pass in the veto session BUT it will be returning in January. Rest assured that the next “version” of giving away state sales tax for one development will cost, or result in, the loss of millions of state tax dollars. The “worst bill ever”, in new form, will probably remain the “worst bill” ever. Please stay on top of this one.