Conaty’s contract was not renewed, a station spokeswoman confirmed. His last Channel 32 appearance is expected to be on this weekend’s “Fox Chicago Sunday,” which was to be taped Friday and air Sunday morning at 8:30.
Of those who launched WFLD’s news operation under Fox in 1987, Conaty was among the last remaining few still at the station along with 9 p.m. anchor Robin Robinson and reporter Anne Kavanagh, whose contract was not renewed in July but has remained a regular contributor.
“We appreciate all of Jack’s hard work and dedication during his time with Fox Chicago,” a station statement said.
Citadel Broadcasting Corp., the nation’s third-biggest radio company and parent of Chicago’s WLS-AM 890 and WLS-FM 94.7, is preparing to file a prearranged bankruptcy before the end of the year, according to the Wall Street Journal and later the New York Times.
Citing unnamed sources familiar with the matter, the newspapers said the proposal presented this week to creditors — and reportedly supported by many — would have lenders trade a substantial amount of the $2 billion they’re owed for 99.5 percent equity in the reorganized company, which would have about $760 million in debt. […]
Citadel loaded up on debt to fund its acquisition of Walt Disney Co.’s ABC Radio stations, but not Radio Disney or ESPN Radio, in 2006, not a particularly good time to be in radio acquisition mode, it turned out.
Apparently, the bad karma from giving Rod Blagojevich his own show was just too much for the company. [/snark]
Reports of Roe Conn’s demise — like that of another Midwestern humorist — have been greatly exaggerated. In fact, the Chicago radio veteran is close to signing a new deal to continue as afternoon personality on Citadel Broadcasting news/talk WLS-AM (890).
Barring a last-minute snafu, sources said, Conn is expected to sign a two-year renewal any day now, superseding his current contract, which expires June 1. In exchange for the additional security, he’s likely to accept a reduction in his previously reported seven-figure salary.
The only obstacle to finalizing the deal could come from Citadel Broadcasting’s top bosses, who were reported to be preoccupied Thursday preparing to file for bankruptcy by the end of the year. Such a move would allow the company to restructure its $2 billion debt.
Word of Conn’s renewal comes despite speculation that his days are numbered at WLS. After the latest Arbitron survey showed him significantly underperforming the rest of the station, the Sun-Times’ Lewis Lazare cited unnamed “observers in the local radio market” who asserted that “the high-priced WLS talent might not be able to hold on at the station much longer.” My friends at the ever-vigilant ChicagolandRadioandMedia.com went even further, declaring it “the end of the line for Roe Conn at WLS,” and identifying three potential replacements for him.
Roe is the coolest, most down-to-earth millionaire I’ve ever met. Glad he’s staying put.
“Why should the voters of Cook County have confidence in a poll conducted by a newspaper whose owner and chairman of the board has made sizable campaign contributions to political opponents of President Stroger? We believe this owner has been the driving force behind the Chicago Tribune’s relentless negative reporting of President Stroger and his administration,” the Stroger campaign statement read.
In the weeks preceding the 2006 Democratic primary, Zell, a real estate magnate with no interest in Tribune at the time, donated $75,000 to Cook County Board Commissioner Forrest Claypool, D-Chicago. Claypool was running against Stroger’s father, John, who was seeking a fourth term as president.
John Stroger was incapacitated by a stroke before the primary, but won, and the Cook County Democratic Party put his son, Todd Stroger, on the general election ballot in his place. Todd Stroger went on to defeat Commissioner Tony Peraica, R-Riverside, to whom Zell donated $30,000.
WUIS/Illinois Public Radio statehouse reporter Amanda Vinicky is back in the United States after spending a week in Germany learning about media and culture.
Vinicky was one of 16 young journalists from the U.S. selected by the German-American Fulbright Commission to visit the country. Journalists from radio, television, newspapers and web outlets all took part in the trip.
“The whole thing was absolutely amazing,” said Vinicky.
* MWRD President Terry O’Brien is releasing his own polling results today in an attempt to counter the Tribune’s poll showing him in last place in the Cook County Board President’s race and trailing badly.
The O’Brien poll was conducted by Cooper & Secrest November 11-17 of 605 likely Democratic primary voters with a margin of error of +/-4%.
The polling memo, which can be downloaded by clicking here, claims that “Dorothy Brown is likely a temporary frontrunner” and, of course, claims that O’Brien is “positioned to emerge as the ultimate winner.”
O’Brien’s head-to-heads compared to the Trib’s.
*** UPDATE *** I don’t know how I did this, but I screwed up the poll numbers. Preckwinkle is at 16 and O’Brien is at 15. Oops. Sorry about that…
Brown 29% (80% name rec) - Trib: 29% Preckwinkle 16% (52% name rec) - Trib: 20% O’Brien 15% (39% name rec) - Trib: 11% Stroger 13% (96% name rec) - Trib: 14%
More from O’Brien’s pollster…
Just 13% of all primary voters are strong Brown voters… 16% are weak
The memo also touts O’Brien’s second place finish despite being the least well known of the candidates. And it points to Preckwinkle’s four votes for pay raises.
Friday, Dec 11, 2009 - Posted by Capitol Fax Blog Advertising Department
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A new Rasmussen Reports telephone survey of Illinois voters finds Giannoulias ahead of Kirk 42% to 39%. Three percent (3%) prefer some other candidate, and 15% are undecided.
In October, the two men were tied at 41% each. In mid-August, Kirk held a modest 41% to 38% lead over Giannoulias.
So, Giannoulias has managed to flip the numbers since August. The other Democrats still trail Kirk, but they’re closing the gap…
Kirk remains ahead of another Democratic hopeful, Cheryle Jackson, president of the Chicago Urban League and a former top aide to disgraced Governor Rod Blagojevich, but his lead has shrunk dramatically. Ahead of Jackson by 17 points – 47% to 30% - in October, he now leads just 42% to 39%. Four percent (4%) like another candidate, and 15% are not sure.
The Republican holds a similar 42% to 38% lead over Chicago Inspector General David Hoffman, another contender for the Democratic senatorial nomination. Kirk led Hoffman 43% to 33% in October. Seventeen percent (17%) are undecided, while three percent (3%) favor another candidate.
* Meanwhile…
Fifty-one percent (51%) approve of Governor Pat Quinn’s performance. Forty-seven percent (47%) disapprove. But Illinois voters are nearly three times as likely to strongly disapprove rather than strongly approve of the job he’s doing.
President Obama’s Illinois approval/disapproval numbers are 58-42, and that’s way better than Rasmussen’s national number of 47-51. Running against Obama is not a great idea here.
A proposal has been made to house some Guantanamo prison inmates in Illinois at the Thomson correctional facility. Do you favor or oppose housing Guantanamo prisoners at the Thomson correctional facility in Illinois?
39% Favor
51% Oppose
10% Not sure
No surprise there. The crosstabs show that Republicans oppose the plan 70-28, while a plurality of Democrats support it, 49-37.
His support remains soft, but the opposition is strengthening.
Afghanistan is becoming somewhat of an issue in the Democratic US Senate primary, with Cheryle Jackson and David Hoffman questioning the president’s new plan. But the crosstabs show large support for the president’s proposal among Democrats. 62 percent of Democrats “overall” favor the plan, 60 percent of liberals back it and 82 percent of African-Americans support it as well. Jackson is the most opposed of all the candidates, but that issue doesn’t appear to work well with African-American voters.
How it was done…
This telephone survey of 500 Likely Voters in Illinois was conducted by Rasmussen Reports December 9, 2009. The margin of sampling error for the survey is +/- 4.5 percentage points with a 95% level of confidence.
*** UPDATE 1 *** From a Mark Kirk press release…
Kirk Widens Lead over Giannoulias among Key Independent Voters to 34 Points in Latest Rasmussen Poll
Survey Shows Kirk and Giannoulias Remain in Statistical Dead Heat despite Democrat’s Network TV Ad Blitz
Northbrook, Ill. – A non-partisan poll released by Rasmussen Reports today shows Republican Congressman and Navy veteran Mark Kirk widening his lead over Democrat Alexi Giannoulias among key independent voters to 34 points despite Giannoulias’ early launch of network television ads to boost his numbers.
Responding to TV ads launched by Democrat David Hoffman, Giannoulias launched his own network television ad campaign at the beginning of the month to boost his name recognition and favorable ratings. But according to the Rasmussen survey, Kirk maintains a 50-32 favorable to unfavorable rating compared to Giannoulias’ 48-36 fav/unfav. Kirk holds a net positive strongly favorable/unfavorable rating of 13-8 while Giannoulias holds an even intensity ratio of 14-14.
The survey released today shows Kirk leading Giannoulias among key independent voters 54-20. In October, Rasmussen showed Kirk leading Giannoulias among this group 53-24. While the October poll showed both Kirk and Giannoulias at 41 with a 4.5-point margin of error, the survey released today shows Giannoulias with a slight 42-39 edge – remaining a statistical dead heat within the margin of error. A November 3rd poll by Magellan Data and Mapping Strategies showed Kirk with a 44-38 advantage.
“Despite more than a week of Giannoulias network television advertising, Congressman Kirk widened his lead over Alexi Giannoulias among key independent voters to 34 points without any television advertising from his own campaign,” Kirk spokesman Eric Elk said. “In addition, the survey shows Congressman Kirk and Alexi Giannoulias remain in a statistical dead heat. With a proven record of fighting tax increases, reining in spending and spurring economic growth, Congressman Mark Kirk brings the experience, integrity and reform-minded leadership Illinois needs to create jobs, end corruption and get our state back on track.”
*** UPDATE 2 *** From Giannoulias spokesperson Kati Phillips…
“Bizarre press release aside (which shows him losing), Mark Kirk can’t hide the fact that voters tend not to like flip-floppers who put politics before principles. Whether it’s having it both ways on earmarks, women’s rights, cap n trade, or Sarah Palin’s endorsement, voters know a pander bear when they see one.”
It almost goes without saying that Illinois Democrats have a whole lot of problems on their hands.
They gave us Rod Blagojevich and Todd Stroger. Their state government stewardship has resulted in bone-crushing budget deficits and threats of higher taxes.
Their control of Cook County resulted in the highest sales taxes in the country for parts of Chicago. Their control of the mayor’s office resulted in a short-sighted sale of the parking meters, which then resulted in skyrocketing user costs and the emptying of a permanent trust fund for a one-year government bailout.
Blagojevich’s federal corruption trial will catapult him — and the Democratic Party — back into the headlines every day throughout next summer if all goes as planned.
Stroger will probably lose the Democratic primary come February, but he’ll still be in office all next year, no doubt generating ever more controversy and woe for his party.
The horrific state budget deficit isn’t going to get any better. The General Assembly probably won’t increase taxes soon, but an easy case can be made that they’re planning to do it right after the November election.
We just found out that some of those fancy privatized parking meters don’t work in the cold, and one can only guess what the next bungle will be on that front.
Add to all of this the utter cluelessness of the national House and Senate Democrats, who have obviously failed to understand the lesson that the 1994 Republican landslide was brought on as much by the Democrats’ failure to enact real health-care reform as anything else, and you’re looking at serious, serious trouble.
But, of course, there’s more. There’s always more. One thing that few have discussed so far is who might be on the Democratic statewide ticket next fall.
For instance, every Democratic candidate for lieutenant governor is a potential land mine.
Rep. Michael Boland (D-East Moline) awarded a legislative scholarship to the daughter of his largest campaign contributor. After the University of Illinois admissions scandal, Boland is particularly vulnerable to attack.
Sen. Rickey Hendon (D-Chicago) has been a favorite media target for years. He makes no bones at all about using his office to help his friends and supporters. While he gets points in my book for blunt honesty, the media will have a field day with the guy.
Rep. Art Turner (D-Chicago) has been a member of the House Democratic leadership forever, and part of that job is taking a huge number of “bad” votes — which will be problematic if he steps into the limelight.
Sen. Terry Link (D-Waukegan) was dragged into a petition fraud case back in 2008. Even though he was never charged and it doesn’t look like he was involved, it won’t be tough for the opposition to use that ugly episode to smear him, along with whoever is at the top of the ticket. Like Turner, Link is a longtime member of the legislative leadership, so his voting record and his fund-raising history are undoubtedly full of land mines.
Even an unknown could bring trouble. Scott Lee Cohen’s money comes from a string of pawn shops — not exactly a beloved business.
Individually, most of these issues probably aren’t enough to sink the ticket. But considering the already dangerous climate for Democrats, they could add to the overall picture of a once-proud party in meltdown.
The campaigns of Pat Quinn and Dan Hynes are so focused on winning the gubernatorial primary that they’ve barely had time to think about gaming out the scenarios when one of the “lite guv” candidates is nominated. But they are definitely nervous, and they should be.
* The Question: What state and local Democratic woes did I miss? Explain.
* I’m not sure why WBEZ is being blocked from accessing some juvenile prisons where the station has eye-witness reporting that shines a negative light on the facilities, but WBEZ isn’t happy about it…
You may not think what goes on in Illinois’ youth prisons affects you. Think again. Thousands of teenagers from all across the state cycle in and out of Illinois’ eight juvenile prisons each year. What happens to them inside goes back with them to their communities. Taxpayers are footing the more-than-$100 million budget for these places. We want to be able to see for ourselves how they’re run and bring that information to you. But Governor Pat Quinn says no.
From the story…
Eighteen-year-old Brandon, who asked that we not use his last name, has spent nearly a third of his life in jails and prisons for kids in Illinois. He avoided solitary until this year, when he got in a fight near the end of his sentence. He says the harsh conditions made solitary confinement at the St. Charles facility west of Chicago something he’s unlikely to forget. For example, he says your food is handed to you through a small slot in the door. It’s not on one big tray, it’s on several small trays and they come through quickly. The first day he learned not to set the trays on the floor.
BRANDON: Rodents kept climbing on my food. When I set it down, they ran across the floor, ran over my food and ran around the room like six more times and I didn’t see it after that. There’s rats in there. Rats, there’s roaches all in there. On average, you’ll see like seven rats a day. Nine, 10 rats a day, yourself. Not including what everybody else din saw. […]
Brandon says there was feces smeared onto the tiles. He never took a shower during his two week stint in isolation. Brandon doesn’t have too much good to say about the education he received either. He graduated from the prison high school system but he says it was a joke.
WBEZ wanted to get into the St. Charles facility, but the governor’s office wouldn’t grant it, instead offering access to another facility…
These are certainly troubling allegations that merit further investigation to see if they’re true, or partially true, or if the kids are telling tall tales. But Governor Quinn is refusing to let WBEZ inside the Department of Juvenile Justice facilities to see how they’re run, for both the kids and the taxpayers of Illinois. After four months of meetings, emails and phone conversations, WBEZ was invited to go on a single supervised tour of the prison in Chicago, which kids say is much much better than St. Charles in the western suburbs. Quinn said no to WBEZ’s repeated requests for a reporter to spend four days during business hours sitting in classes and visiting other parts of the prison in St. Charles. That’s the same facility where a 16-year-old committed suicide in September.
You can hear the governor’s office response by going here. The answers are pretty weak, particularly considering the allegations…
[Guv’s spokesman Bob Reed]: Let me be clear. We didn’t bar them from all facilities. We offered a tour of the Chicago facility. Your editors decided that that was not the necessary access the station needed to tell its story.
[WBEZ reporter Rob Wildeboer]: Ok. So, do you think that, on a one tour of one facility, we will get a comprehensive, in-depth insight into a $100 million department that services thousands of kids every year in facilities across the state? Do you think we’ll get an in-depth understanding of that department in one tour?
REED: I don’t think you would get an in-depth understanding of that if you toured every facility you wanted, whenever you wanted, for any length of time. This is a long, long process and one of the reasons the governor’s staff wants to take a look at the system is to make sure it has an understanding of what is occurring there.
WILDEBOER: And, again, how would WBEZ doing the same thing at the same time interfere with that at all?
REED: We don’t think it’s appropriate for the press to go in, talk to juveniles who are in our charge. We’re really concerned about protecting their identities, their privacy.
WBEZ has been working on this story and attempting to negotiate with the administration for four months. It’s easy to see why the station is so upset here, particularly since Vinny Schiraldi, who runs the juvenile prison system in Washington, DC, was so open with the station and ridiculed the governor’s reasoning…
SCHIRALDI: Too many juvenile justice systems use those confidentiality rights to protect themselves as ways to protect themselves as opposed to protecting the confidentiality of the kids.
As I’ve been researching juvenile prisons over the last few months, a number of people have suggested I visit D.C., it has a good reputation for rehabilitating kids. I contacted them this week and Schiraldi called me back the same day.
WILDEBOER: I was hoping to come down and visit you guys there. Would that be possible?
SCHIRALDI: Yeah. Absolutely. Come any time you want. Yeah, I told Reggie that, just set it up for, I think next week, you wanted to set it up for? Or this week? I don’t know. Reggie’s going to deal with you on that.
Reggie is Reggie Sanders, the public information officer.
SCHIRALDI: There’s a great school at the facility. You know, you can hang around there, be where the kids are playing basketball. There’s a bunch of cool stuff you can take pictures of, but you’ll pretty much have free reign when you come.
And yet the state says “No way.” This is open government? C’mon.
* After a rough patch when he was talking about Barack Obama being a “socialist” and catering to the tea party crowd, Republican gubernatorial candidate Kirk Dillard seems to be softening his hard-line stances of late and returning to his more moderate roots.
“I have no designs to raise any taxes,” [Dillard] said.
But Dillard, unlike his fellow Republican candidates for governor, maintained that all options should be considered, including tax increases.
He said it doesn’t make sense to eliminate an option, like his opponents mostly have.
“I’m saying that some of them are pandering,” said Dillard.
Rival Republican state Sen. Bill Brady shot back…
“I believe any politician that opens the door for a tax increase puts in jeopardy Illinois jobs,” said Brady.
Illinois Review claimed this week that Dillard had sought the endorsement of the Illinois Education Association. If he did, yesterday’s comments make even more sense.
If former Illinois Attorney General Jim Ryan wins his bid for governor, the Elmhurst Republican says he will focus on cutting spending, but be open minded to tax hikes once the recession clears.
“If we do everything humanly possible,” Ryan said of the spending cuts and landmark reforms he is proposing, “then I would look at revenue enhancements.”
“But not before the recession is over,” Ryan quickly added during a tapping of WBBM 780AM’s At Issue program on Thursday.
During the program, Ryan didn’t identify a single state program that should be cut. He also backed away from his previous support of SB750, the tax swap plan…
Ryan had previously endorsed a plan to reduce property taxes in exchange for an increase in the income tax, but he says now that is a bad idea given the economy. He also says he has looked at other states that have a similar tax structure and seen the switch, intended to better fund education, doesn’t work as well as promised.
* The Tribune has finally uploaded the video from its editorial board “debate” between Gov. Pat Quinn and Comptroller Dan Hynes. You can watch the two-part video by going to the main editorial page and looking at the lower right side.
I excerpted one pretty testy back and forth between Hynes and Quinn. Hynes is usually a pretty placid guy, but he went off several times during this exchange and really showed some passion. The excerpt is definitely worth a look and it gets more interesting as the video goes on, so stay with it…
* Some of that back and forth had to do with Hynes’ refusal to approve Quinn’s $500 million short-term borrowing plan. ABC7 ran a story yesterday about an AARP press conference that you should definitely watch. For some reason, I can no longer get the station’s embed script to work, so it’s just words on this end again today…
The state of Illinois, with an estimated $11 billion to $13 billion deficit, owes an estimated $4.5 billion to its vendors. AARP says the creditors include 200 agencies around the state that serve the elderly that could be forced out of business within weeks.
“I have no funds to make payroll next week for my staff,” said Champaign Senior Care Provider Carol Acord.
“For our last payroll, our family had to deplete all of our savings,” said Norman James of Family Home Services, Inc. “So that we can keep our employees out there working and providing the service that the seniors need.” […]
But the worst-off providers want the state to use whatever means to pay what it owes now and save the politics for later.
“Put aside our partisan differences, our political aspirations, and take emergency action now,” said Democratic Rep. Greg Harris who represents Chicago.
* Comptroller Hynes claimed in the above Tribune debate video that fully a third of state revenues will have to used to pay off existing short-term loans come March and April. And as I told you yesterday, S&P downgraded Illinois’ general obligation debt and retained its negative outlook on the state’s credit. More on that from Reuters…
S&P said the negative outlook was retained because of the state’s “questionable” willingness to implement difficult and politically unpopular measures to restore a budget balance.
“There’s been very limited action on addressing the shortfall,” said Robin Prunty, an S&P analyst.
In its downgrade affecting $19 billion of outstanding Illinois GO debt, S&P said Illinois rolled its fiscal 2009 budget deficit into fiscal 2010, which in turn was balanced “with various spending reductions and a plan for debt restructuring to provide budget savings; the savings from both are uncertain at this time.”
The state also turned to one-time measures, such as a plan to issue $3.5 billion of pension notes to raise money for its fiscal 2010 payment to pension funds. That “might create out-year budget pressure,” S&P said.
The governor says in the excerpted Tribune video that the financial situation here is “stable.” Hynes responded: “If that’s stability, I’d hate to see chaos.” How right he is.
Faced with widespread voter dissatisfaction, embattled Cook County Board President Todd Stroger trails Circuit Clerk Dorothy Brown and Chicago Ald. Toni Preckwinkle in the race for the Democratic primary nomination, a Chicago Tribune/WGN-TV poll shows.
Brown had the support of 29 percent of likely Feb. 2 primary voters, ahead of Preckwinkle’s 20 percent, in the poll of 502 likely voters. Stroger received 14 percent and Terrence O’Brien, president of the Metropolitan Water Reclamation District, had 11 percent.
But the survey found that 26 percent of primary voters are undecided in the race or for someone else — meaning plenty of room exists for the contest to become even more fluid in the post-holiday sprint to the ballot box. […]
O’Brien is the lone white candidate in the race, but the prospect of three African-American candidates splintering the black vote to enable him to win isn’t borne out in the survey.
What is surprising is that for the first time that I can recall, the Tribune has released its questions, toplines and some crosstabs. Click here to download.
Toni Preckwinkle already has a press release out…
We are exactly where we expected to be at this point in our campaign. We entered this race 11 months ago and have been building positive momentum since. We are confident that, as voters continue to hear Toni Preckwinkle’s message - her commitment to repeal the Stroger sales tax increase and bring real reform to County government, that we will win the only poll that matters - on election day.
Our own recent polling shows that Dorothy Brown had a 2:1 name recognition advantage. Yet polling shows even though voters know her, they are unconvinced she deserves a promotion.
The Trib poll’s name recognition advantage for Brown over Preckwinkle - 91 vs. 62- isn’t nearly as high as Preckwinkle claims in her own polling. However, those with either a favorable or unfavorable opinion of the two is about two-to-one for Brown - 56-30. O’Brien comes in last in the Trib poll at 51 percent name rec, while just 14 percent know enough about him to rate him…
And here are the Trib’s crosstabs on the head-to-heads…
Preckwinkle absolutely needs to raise some money to get her message out. Her campaign has done a good job of leaking negative research on Brown and O’Brien to the media, but she obviously needs to reinforce that with advertising.
O’Brien needs to up his name ID, and only lots of cash will do that.
This is one reason why the reformers’ hatred of campaign cash is so misguided. Incumbents are already well-known. Challengers have to establish themselves with voters, but nobody in the reform movement is talking about making TV and radio ads lots cheaper.
Data…
This Chicago Tribune Poll is based on interviews of confirmed registered voters likely to vote in the February 2nd Cook County Democratic primary. Interviewing was conducted December 2nd to the 8th. The sample involved 502 Cook County Democratic primary voters, for a potential margin of error of 4.4% at the 95% level of confidence.
* Pat Quinn’s latest Internet promo video is probably the best yet. Quinn campaign staffer Simon Edelman is underpaid, overworked and hugely talented, and he gets better all the time. Have a look…
* Earlier this week, somebody in the governor’s office accidentally cc’d me on an e-mail that was meant for a subordinate…
Yes, it helps to email rich miller with our comments re breaking news. He’s at: capitolfax@aol.com
He may or may not use. Not a friend of the house.
I’ve never been a “friend of the house” for any governor, so that made me chuckle and wonder if they have any reporters who can be classified as such. I e-mailed him back and jokingly asked if he knew what he did. His response…
Truth to power
I literally spit out my coffee when I saw that one. Fast-thinking comedy gold, complete with an inside joke. You will recall that “truth to power” is one of Gov. Quinn’s favorite expressions and something I took him to task for in a recent newspaper column.
And, in case you’re wondering, I don’t hold that e-mail against the governor’s office. Things happen, things get said. No biggie. I’m only sharing this with you because I thought it was so funny, not to embarrass anyone.
* In other spit-take news, today’s John Kass column, “Lottery commercial redefines joy in spirit of Chicago Way,” was about a new ad from the Illinois Lottery. Among other things, Kass thought he saw glorified corruption in the spot…
Then comes a revealing voice-over that speaks directly to the heart of The Chicago Way and invokes one of the pillars of Illinois politics:
Cash kickbacks.
“Joy someone with holiday scratch-offs from the Illinois Lottery,” says a narrator. “Who knows? They might joy you back.”
That’s a kickback. You joy me, I joy you. Isn’t that what contractors call it when they’re caught on FBI surveillance tape bringing “joy” to politicians? One famous Chicago politician stored his “joy” in the freezer, right next to the rib-eyes and the lobster tails.
By early afternoon, the Illinois Family Institute had sent out an “E-Alert” about the Lottery ad…
Illinois Lottery’s “Joy to the World” Ad Promotes False Hope, by David E. Smith, Executive Director -Illinois Family Institute
The Illinois Lottery is currently airing radio and televsion ads promoting scratch-off lottery tickets during the Christmas season campaign. The new ad campaign corrupts the traditional Christian hymn “Joy to the World” in attempt to mislead Illinois citizens into thinking that the miniscule chance of winning a lottery prize could buy them happiness.
But even more than that, the song’s deep meaning celebrating the birth of the Savior as it proclaims “Joy to the world, the Lord is come!” is being perverted to sell a false hope of a different kind of “savior” — money and the love of it.
Take ACTION: Click HERE to contact Jodie Winnett, the Acting Supervisor of the Illinois Lottery, to ask her to stop misusing the true message of the season to promote its predatory lottery tickets which only push people deeper into debt and despair.
Here’s the ad…
* Meanwhile, in a bizarre turn of events, Rod Blagojevich’s PR firm claims that some congressman in Georgia wants to investigate US Attorney Patrick Fitzgerald’s office. From a press release…
In an apparent expansion of a four-year congressional investigation of United States Attorney for the Northern District of Illinois Patrick Fitzgerald’s office, a U.S. House Judiciary Subcommittee will call witnesses today to determine if the prosecutor’s office manufactured evidence and forced witnesses to lie to obtain a 2003 conviction of a then prominent Chicago real estate developer and attorney.
Actually, the part about the hearing today is not true. At the end of the press release is this notation…
Chairman Johnson is expected to mention the Palivos case [during a hearing today] and Mr. Palivos and his wife, Vicky, will sit in the front row for the hearing. However, the hearing today is about judicial recusals, not prosecutorial misconduct or U.S. Attorney Patrick Fitzgerald.
Background on Johnson’s claimed investigation…
After his trial and conviction, Peter Palivos, 51, presented the committee with evidence showing that prosecutors forced witnesses to lie against him or face charges themselves.
“They wanted to frame me to get me to become a witness against George Ryan, but I have nothing incriminating to say against the man,” Palivos said in Oct. 2005.
After hearing the evidence, which includes sworn affidavits from witnesses who say there were forced to lie about Mr. Palivos, three separate House Judiciary Subcommittees asked the U.S. Justice Department to investigate “possible prosecutorial misconduct” by Fitzgerald’s office. […]
Palivos alleges that he was convicted on a concocted obstruction of justice charge after he refused to lie for prosecutors in their investigation of former Ill. Gov. George Ryan, who is serving time in federal prison on corruption charges.
Palivos says he was told by federal agent Thomas Heinzer that he would be ‘framed with that crime’ unless he cooperated in the office’s investigation. When he did not, he was subsequently indicted and convicted. […]
Following Palivos’ trial, witnesses gave the House Judiciary Committee sworn affidavits “stating that they were forced to lie and the prosecutors on the case engaged in misconduct” in his case, prompting the committee to expand its investigation. […]
The documents the committee received also contained evidence, which appeared to show federal prosecutors prepared a false affidavit, falsified interview statements, threatened a defense attorney with a trumped-up obstruction of justice charge if he filed a motion, suborned perjury and withheld exculpatory evidence that would have prevented the imprisonment of an innocent man–Mr. Palivos.
Earlier this year, the Chairman of the Subcommittee on the Courts and Competition Policy, Congressman Hank Johnson wrote: “It appears [Palivos’] case is a good example of prosecutorial misconduct.” You can read that letter by clicking here.
I called the congressman’s office this morning, but haven’t heard back.
* A State Journal-Register reporter is sending around an e-mail asking various folks to help them put together a piece about the most important news events of the past decade. Here’s a list of suggestions from the e-mail…
Gov. Rod Blagojevich is arrested and later impeached and removed from office
Former state Sen. Barack Obama is elected President of the United States
Then-Gov. George Ryan clears Illinois’ death row
George Ryan issues a moratorium on executions that lasts for the decade
George Ryan is indicted and goes to prison for corruption
A shooting at the state Capitol claims the life of a security guard and prompts new security measures
Control of state government and the legislature switches from Republicans to Democrats
Budget problems plague state government throughout the decade
The legislature and Blagojevich break several overtime records for session with continued fighting
Longtime legislative leaders Pate Philip, Lee Daniels and Emil Jones hand over the reins of power to successors
Democrats take supermajority control of the state Senate and one seat shy of a supermajority in the House
Gov. Pat Quinn proposes a 50 percent income tax increase to fix budget holes, but lawmakers refuse to support it
Lawmakers end a 10-year standoff and approve a $31 billion capital construction program
Legislators end public outrage over soaring electric rates by approving a relief plan that reduces sharp increases after a 10-year rate freeze
The state’s pension debt grows astronomically, topping $70 billion by the end of the decade
Lawmakers approve the state’s first caps on campaign contributions to political campaigns in the wake of Blagojevich’s arrest
A smoking ban in public places forces smokers at bars, restaurants and public places outside to light up
* The Question, Part 1: Is there anything missing from this list?
* The Question, Part 2: What do you think are the top four or five state politics events of the decade? Explain.
* An AP reporter who doesn’t appear to cover Illinois at all nonetheless gets the job of writing one of those ridiculous “where there’s even a tiny bit of smoke, there’s gotta be a raging inferno” stories about Congressman Mark Kirk…
As Mark Kirk campaigns for the Senate seat once held by President Barack Obama, the Republican congressman casts himself as a scourge of the pork-barrel, special-interest congressional spending known as “earmarks.”
It wasn’t always that way.
Just two years ago, the four-term congressman secured more than $30 million for 19 pet projects in and around his Illinois congressional district. They included an aquarium, a planetarium and a church outreach project. In some cases, people linked to the projects reciprocated with thousands of dollars in campaign donations for Kirk’s re-election bids.
And what were those alleged reciprocations? How did this supposed pay to play game work?
Well, over the space of nine years, Adler Planetarium board members apparently gave Kirk a grand total of $23,000 and got over $1.1 million in earmarks. That’s an “eye-popping” $2,600 a year in contributions, and the AP doesn’t tell us how many board members contributed, so some might have given next to nothing. Whatever, I’m sure that money played such a big role in Kirk’s decision-making. Sheesh.
A board member of the Christian Outreach of Lutherans, which hasn’t exactly been on the US Attorney’s corruption radar screen, gave Kirk a whopping $4,600 in two years and the group received $119,000 from an earmark.
The mission of Christian Outreach of Lutherans (COOL) is to give comprehensive assistance to families in need, by reducing hunger and homelessness, while encouraging personal growth and self-sufficiency. Serving all of Lake County.
None of the contributors, by the way, were given an opportunity to respond to this smear. The story isn’t as bad as looking for hidden corruption messages in Lottery commercials, but it’s close.
Politically, though, this article will give Kirk’s opponent some ammo, either by using the contributions or the headline: “Hopeful for Obama seat changes tune.” Kirk has been repeatedly slammed for flip-flopping.
However, this point, about how Kirk decided to oppose earmarks, is more salient…
Kirk said his personal tipping point came after the furor over earmarks for the “Bridge to Nowhere.” The project, pushed by Alaska Republican Rep. Don Young, would have cost nearly $400 million and connected Ketchikan, Alaska, to an island with 50 residents.
Congress scrubbed funding for the project in 2005 — a full two years before Kirk gave up earmarks for good — but he still said it was the pivotal moment for him.
It apparently wasn’t all that pivotal if it took him two years to come to the conclusion.
“I had no interest in this race. I hadn’t considered running … then Mark Kirk voted for cap-and-trade,” said Hughes, a Hinsdale real estate developer.
More…
Kirk said he supported it as a way to wean America off foreign oil. Yet, he has since signed a pledged with a conservative group to oppose the legislation if elected to the Senate.
Hughes says he doesn’t believe global warming is caused by humans. But his platform against Kirk is bigger than cap-and-trade now.
“Our party is at a crossroads,” Hughes declared to the editorial board, before labeling Kirk “essentially a Democrat and in some respects an extraordinarily left-wing one.”
* Planned Parenthood Illinois/Action, the political arm of Planned Parenthood has announced that it has endorsed Gov. Pat Quinn. The group also endorsed Alexi Giannoulias for US Senate. Other endorsements…
Mike Boland, Terry Link
Rickey Hendon and Art Turner - Lt. Governor
Lisa Madigan - Attorney General
Jesse White - Secretary of State
David Miller - Comptroller
Robin Kelly - Treasurer
Apparently, all those legislators running for LG qualified for the nod.
* Former Gov. Jim Edgar has endorsed Rep. Beth Coulson for the open 10th Congressional District seat. From a press release…
“As governor, I worked closely with Beth Coulson,” said Edgar. “I find her to be a person of tremendous talent, integrity and compassion. The same qualities that have made her an effective state legislator will make her an excellent member of Congress. The 10th District will be well served by electing Beth Coulson to Congress.” […]
Gov. Edgar’s endorsement follows on the heels of endorsements Coulson has received from the majority of Illinois Congressional Republicans - Reps. Judy Biggert, Timothy Johnson, Aaron Schock and John Shimkus - as well as virtually every Republican member of the Illinois General Assembly - including leaders State Rep. Tom Cross and State Sen. Chris Radogno - and local elected officials and civic leaders in the 10thCongressional District.
The New Trier Democrats endorsed Dan Seals over state Rep. Julie Hamos in the 10th CD Democratic primary. Hamos was endorsed by Citizen Action/Illinois.
* In other campaign news, the 14th Congressional District GOP primary is now a two-person race…
When a candidate is running without name recognition or the money to create a big bang, being the bad guy, or the spoiler, quickly can become all there is to achieve.
Such was the case with the trio of Republicans leaving the 14th Congressional District race within the past week. In the course of five days, a field of five Republicans looking to unseat Democrat Bill Foster became a two-man contest.
Jim Purcell, Mark Vargas and Jeff Danklefsen all dropped out with about the same amount of campaign funds they had when they entered the contest. That amounted to little more than what they had in their own pockets.
The two left standing - Ethan Hastert and Randy Hultgren - already are well into six figures with their fundraising.
* As I mentioned to you the other day, Andy McKenna’s TV ads claim Illinois’ budget deficit is $11 billion and growing by $30 million a day. That would mean a $22 billion deficit by the beginning of next fiscal year. I asked the campaign about those figures, but never received an explanation.
Well, reporters asked McKenna Wednesday about the $11 billion number and McKenna claimed the deficit was actually less than half that amount…
On Wednesday, McKenna told reporters that if elected, he’d roll back state spending to 2006 levels, reverse expensive health care expansions initiated during Rod Blagojevich’s years as governor and push for pension reforms in order to save $5 billion and balance the budget.
Asked about the other $6 billion in red ink, McKenna, a Chicago Republican, questioned the figure and challenged the current administration to explain it.
But everyone from the legislative agency tasked with tracking economic activity to investment analysts who set the state’s credit rating have put the state’s deficit for the next year at $11 billion if not more. Lawmakers and Gov. Pat Quinn attempted to create the illusion of a balanced budget this year by borrowing $3.5 billion to make pension payments, plugging education and health care holes with billions from the federal stimulus program and not paying nearly $4.5 billion to vendors on time.
Oy.
McKenna’s running mate claimed that the money owed state vendors which is rolled over from one fiscal year to the next isn’t part of the deficit..
“You know, we’ve got at least, at this point, four-and-a-half billion dollars in unpaid bills that have been rolling over. We didn’t accumulate that in one year. You’re not going to pay that off in one year,” said Palatine Republican state Sen. Matt Murphy, McKenna’s favorite for the lieutenant governor post. “The only time it’s ever suggested that we’re going to pay that off in one year is when people down here are trying to sell a tax hike. That figure of 11 (billion dollars) is obviously inclusive of that rollover in any estimate I’ve seen. So the five billion we’re talking about, in my view, is pretty close to filling the entire hole. As Andy has said, if you don’t have the money, you can’t spend the money.”
Actually, the rollover amount is less than that. The $4.5 billion is only what’s owed right now.
Dillard, a veteran state senator from Hinsdale, said Illinois’ budget problems are driving jobs away, partly because businesses don’t know whether they’ll soon be forced to pay higher taxes and fees.
He promised to freeze state spending at current levels “for the foreseeable future.”
His campaign did not immediately respond to questions about how Dillard could freeze spending while also accomplishing his goals for schools, infrastructure and tax breaks — including what he called “the nation’s most aggressive tax credit for research.”
Quinn’s plan to borrow $500 million is half-baked, at least to the extent anyone believes it’s going to do anything but put Illinois further in a bind.
And lollygagging is a fairly apt way to describe Hynes’ refusal to acquiesce to the governor’s plan to use the borrowed money to pay the state’s bills.
OK, so Hynes is supposed to speed up his endorsement of a half-baked borrowing plan? I don’t get it.
Chicago would waive its $4-a-month employee head tax for two years — but only for newly hired employees — under a mayoral plan proposed Wednesday to stimulate job creation.[…]
Mayor Daley acknowledged that the symbolic savings of $48 a month would not be enough to persuade a struggling business to expand its payroll. But he’s hoping that a combination of local, state and federal tax incentives just might tip the scales.
* Daley wants to lift head tax on new employees for two years
TIF districts also give the mayor unprecedented political leverage.
“The mayor ultimately controls these accounts, which gives him leverage over every public entity, from the City Council to the public schools to the Park District,” the Reader notes. “[A]t least half a dozen aldermen have told us that mayoral aides pressure them on key votes - such as the ordinances for funding the Olympics or moving the Children’s Museum to Grant Park - by either promising to give their wards more TIF dollars or threatening to take TIF dollars away.
“The more TIF districts are created, the more money goes into the TIF accounts and the more powerful the mayor becomes. . . .
Mayor Daley on Wednesday cracked the door open to providing a government subsidy for cash-strapped McCormick Place, but only if the convention center cleans its own house first and ends price-gouging that has triggered a trade show exodus.
Meanwhile, chief executives from South Suburban, Ingalls Memorial, St. James and Little Company of Mary hospitals are campaigning against an ordinance proposed by county Commissioner Joseph Moreno (D-Chicago), whose district includes the city’s Southwest Side.[…]
Moreno wants to charge hospitals in the county a fee if they fail to meet county-mandated criteria for charity care - the equivalent of 4.5 percent of their annual expenses. Because most hospitals are exempt from paying property and income taxes and certain state and local sales taxes, they are expected to provide a commensurate level of free care to indigent patients.
On Wednesday, the Park District approved a $392 million budget that scraps any layoffs so long as its thousands of unionized employees agree to take eight unpaid furlough days in 2010.
Layoff notices are going out this week to Chicago Transit Authority workers. The CTA board approved the plan to help close a $300 million budget shortfall.
Saying blacks could be shortchanged by a proposed admissions policy for the city’s most coveted schools, some African-American parents are demanding that race be added as one factor in the admissions process.
A new domestic violence division will open in January. Behind-the-scenes changes are expected to speed up the process of getting a protection order and point abusers to programs designed to end the cycle of violence, said Cook County Circuit Court Chief Judge Tim Evans.
A preliminary hearing has been scheduled for Jan. 26 in the case of a Knox County official accused of stealing money from the political party she’s affiliated with.
Recorder of Deeds Paula Monzo is accused of writing about $3,500 in checks on the account of the Knox County Democratic Central Committee over the past year. Galesburg Police reports indicate Monzo was having trouble paying bills and had a cocaine habit.
For school officials considering budgets, the toughest decisions come when cuts go head to head with goals to ensure that every child has a chance to succeed. Those students labeled at risk in particular need every possible advantage.
Elgin Area School District U-46 found a way to further chip away at its massive deficit by returning its three year-round schools to a traditional nine-month calendar. The move, at Garfield, Channing and Sheridan elementary schools, is projected to save $200,000.
ROCKFORD — A project that could represent the most significant economic development on West State Street in decades could get a boost of $500,000 in federal funding.
U.S. Rep. Don Manzullo, R-Egan, and U.S. Sen. Dick Durbin, D-Ill., announced in a news release today that the money is included in a 2010 Omnibus Appropriations bill expected to be considered by Congress over the next few weeks.
The board voted 13-1 to extend a hiring freeze requiring all departments to clear hires, both new and replacement, with Chairman John Evans. Evans reported to the board he has heard of people violating the same procedure that had been implemented in the previous fiscal year.
* NDK hopes some employees can return to work next week
BELVIDERE — Some NDK workers may return to their jobs at the Belvidere plant as early as next week, company officials said today.
They’ll be joined — perhaps for months — by investigators from state and federal agencies who are investigating the cause of an explosion Monday that blew out the west side of the Crystal Parkway building and left a 63-year-old Indiana man dead.
The Springfield forecast for today calls for a high temperature of 21, but winds of 15 to 20 mph will make it feel like the air is between -9 and 1. Wind gusts up to 24 mph are expected.
Counties north of here, including Mason and Schuyler, are under a wind chill advisory this morning. Wind chills there range from -15 to -20. The advisory is in place through 9 a.m.
