* 7:58 pm - I’ve taken down the feed because it goes to some live weather report thingy. Browse the comments for my take. The format was horrible, so no questions were really answered. It was basically just two guys throwing the same darts at each other for an hour. I don’t know who came up with this goofy format, but it should be dumped. The only news we got was the vitriol. The candidates were simply given too much leeway, but so little time that they had little choice but to use well-worn hits on each other.
Tomorrow is the filing deadline for D-2 reports, but your website has been crashing all day today. If this problem isn’t fixed, tomorrow is gonna be a nightmare for candidates and reporters alike. Fix it, please. [I’m not linking to the site because it would only make a bad problem worse.]
* Dear budding media critics,
If you’re gonna be a media critic, it would be best to point to the stories you are actually trying to critique. For example, Progress Illinois has a post today entitled The Problem With The Media’s Early Release Coverage in which it derides the “spotty” reports on the secret, botched program. In doing so, they link approvingly to this post by the Chicago Justice Project…
The press is all a flutter over the fact that some of the individuals released under the MGT program committed new offenses after their release from the Illinois Department of Corrections (IDOC). The reporting on the issue leads the reader to believe that if only these individuals had not been let out after serving 7 days rather than the 61 days that was mandatory they would never have reoffended. The media has presented no evidence to demonstrate this.
The problem with the slam is that not a single media report was cited to demonstrate the underlying thesis. Not one. The Justice Project’s argument, therefore, is little more than a bogus, defensive red herring.
* Dear UNITE/HERE Local 1,
A 37-second text lead-in to the actual meat of your Internet video does not encourage viewing. Your point is good, but, please, get to it quicker…
Illinois officials and industry representatives are relieved after the U.S. Supreme Court decided not to allow the immediate closure of shipping locks to prevent the Asian carp from infesting the Great Lakes.
The office of Illinois Attorney General Lisa Madigan opposed Michigan’s request for a preliminary injunction that would have ordered the locks in the Chicago area closed. They argued the move would deal an economic blow to Illinois.
It could’ve also led to massive flooding of the city. Seriously, this was the best idea that Michigan and those other states could come up with? Does Michigan want our economy to suck as badly as its own? We are in desperate need of a solution to this Asian carp thing, but closing the locks? A bit extreme, no?
* Dear Capitol Fax Blog commenters,
Thanks.
Something that I neglected to post in my obituary of Carlos Hernandez Gomez was the real impact you had on his life. I didn’t say so at the time, but he had told me on a late-night phone call that he was pretty much giving up. The next morning, I was desperate to do whatever I could as fast as I could, so I asked you to help lift his spirits. Your comments really turned him around. I can never, ever repay the debt I owe all of you for those kind and timely words. They meant so much to Carlos, to his wife and to his family.
* We’ve heard endless talk from Republican gubernatorial candidates and GOP legislative leaders about their firm opposition to tax hikes, but Fox Chicago’s Dane Placko claims (rightly) that the behind the scenes talk is far more realistic. Watch the video…
Transcript…
“I was just down in Springfield last week for the State of the State and everybody you talk to — Republican, Democrat, behind the scenes — they all say there’s no way you dig yourselves out of this hole without some sort of enhanced revenues. Is it disingenuous of the Republicans — at least five of them — to say we will sign this no tax pledge?”
* Remember when a Sara Feigenholtz yard sign appeared in Rahm Emanuel’s front yard before last year’s special congressional primary? Turns out, it was Emanuel’s wife who placed the sign. This time, things are closer to what they appear to be…
llinois Attorney General Lisa Madigan has tipped her hand in the race on Chicago’s north side to succeed John Fritchey in Illinois’ 11th House district.
Madigan’s preferred candidate in the Democratic primary–which includes attorneys Dan Farley and Ed Mullen–is Ann Williams.
How do we know?
A drive by the Attorney General’s house reveals a “Ann Williams for State Representative” sign firmly planted in Madigan’s postage stamp-sized front yard and another in the front window.
I called Madigan’s campaign office and was told the AG and her husband would both be voting for Ms. Williams. Asked whether this was an endorsement, I was told that the AG and her husband would both be voting for Ms. Williams. Ah, the Madigan’s. Gotta love ‘em for their complete, forthright answers.
* Speaking of endorsements, the Chicago Tribune editorial board has long lavished praise upon state Rep. Beth Coulson. So everybody figured she had a lock on the Trib’s nod this year in the 10th Congressional primary. Nope. The Trib endorsed Bob Dold instead. Wow.
* Campaign contributions are not always evil things, and they’re often overused to make a point that most likely doesn’t exist. For instance, Crain’s has a story about an unusual proposal to bail out ShoreBank with state funds…
The state of Illinois is considering an unprecedented bailout of ShoreBank, the struggling South Side bank acclaimed for its commitment to lending in low-income neighborhoods.
Prodded by the likes of U.S. Sen. Richard Durbin and U.S. Rep. Jan Schakowsky, Illinois Finance Authority officials met earlier this month with ShoreBank executives to discuss raising tens of millions for the bank through an IFA bond offering. […]
ShoreBank’s political supporters don’t want it to suffer the same fate as Park National Bank, a lender active in West Side neighborhoods. Despite eleventh-hour intervention by members of Congress, federal bank regulators seized Chicago-based Park National and handed it over to Minnesota-based U.S. Bancorp. in October after it was unable to raise capital to offset loan losses.
The answer may lie in the history of campaign contributions by ShoreBank executives and employees.
Federal Election Commission records reveal that ShoreBank executives and employees gave thousands of dollars to Rep. Schakowsky and Sen. Durbin.
Actually, bank employees have contributed less than $3.000 to Schakowsky’s campaign committee since 1997, with the most recent contri in March of 2007. Durbin got $6650 since 1997 - hardly a king’s ransom.
The ideology angle is far more believable here.
* Sometimes, though, campaign contributions are probably just as they seem. Mark Brown’s column on a suspect contribution is one of those…
As a Cook County government contractor, supplying mail-order prescription drugs to patients in the county’s heath-care system, Nebraska-based SAV-Rx Inc. is limited by law to donating no more than $1,500 this election year to its favorite local politician, Commissioner Joseph Mario Moreno.
But at a fund-raiser held in Moreno’s honor earlier this month, SAV-Rx left the county’s contribution limits in the dust by writing out a check for $25,000.
The catch is that the check was made out to the Mexican American Political Action Committee, a group that hosted the fund-raiser using Moreno’s donor list to target its solicitations.
Significantly, there are no legal limits on what SAV-Rx can contribute to MAPAC, just as there no limits on what MAPAC can donate to Moreno, one of the candidates it plans to support in the Feb. 2 primary election.
Some might look at that set of facts, as does Moreno’s opponent, former alderman and state senator Jesus Garcia, and suspect an intentional effort to circumvent the county’s contribution limits.
Compared with the first week in November 2008, when then-presidential candidate Barack Obama pulled in lots of folks who often don’t vote, relative turnout is way down on the lakefront and in many predominantly African-American wards. And it’s way, way up in organization bastions on the Southwest and Northwest sides.
For instance, in the first week in 2008, the number of those who cast early ballots in Illinois House Speaker Mike Madigan’s 13th Ward ranked near the bottom, 42nd of the 50 wards. But this time, the 13th Ward has moved up a spiffy 24 slots, to No. 18.
Similarly on the Southwest Side, the 23rd Ward went from 26th to first place, and the 19th Ward from 15th to second.
And in good organization wards on the Northwest Side, the 36th Ward leapt from 33rd to 13th place; the 38th Ward from 38th to 23rd, and the 45th Ward from 32nd place to ninth.
In comparison, the lakefront 44th Ward slipped from sixth place to 24th, and the adjoining 32nd Ward from 19th to 33rd.
The 47th Ward, which is backing Dan Farley against Ann Williams in that above-mentioned House race, dropped 12 notches to 21st in the city. The 41st Ward, site of a very hot state Senate primary, jumped way up from 13th to 3rd. Todd Stroger’s 8th Ward dropped from 3rd to 15th. Read the entire document by clicking here.
* Democratic US Senate candidate David Hoffman is, as expected, making a clean sweep of newspaper endorsements, mainly because he was such a strong fighter against Mayor Daley. He’s reportedly going up on the air with a major TV buy soon, which will most likely feature those endorsements. More details when I get them. Hoffman is also doing personalized videos in e-mail blasts. Mary Schmich has more on that.
Senate primary candidate David Hoffman, who made headlines investigating Chicago Mayor Richard Daley’s administration, says he hopes to use the Democrat’s political muscle to win the general election.
“I would seek his endorsement,” Hoffman said during Thursday’s taping of WBBM’s At Issue program on 780AM.
Reasonable, but probably not great timing.
UPDATE: I was right about Hoffman’s new ad. Rate it…
I’m hearing this is a very big buy. Meanwhile, Giannoulias also has a new ad, featuring his mom…
[End of update]
* Sneed reports that Republican Cook County Commissioner Peter Silvestri is endorsing Democrat Terry O’Brien for Cook County Board president. That’s just what it looks like. The bipartisan “combine” is in full force there.
* Other campaign stuff…
* Press Release: The Senate Democratic caucus committees took in over $1,919,000 in the last six months. Over the last four election cycles for this time period the caucus committees average of just over $940,000 with the best period being just over $1,120,000 in 2005. The Senate Democrats financial prowess shows no signs of slowing as they have already filed over $130,000 in contributions since January 1st… Senate Democrats caucus committees ended the year with just over $2,800,000 cash on hand. That surpasses the previous cash on hand record set in 2005 by over $60,000, even though the Senate Democrats started this cycle with $500,000 less in the bank than the Democrats did back in 2005.
* LIVE COVERAGE: Illinois democratic candidates for governor debate
* Profile: Alexi Giannoulias runs for U.S. Senate with President Barack Obama as a mentor
* Gov. Pat Quinn told the Daily Herald the other day that House Republican Leader Tom Coross presented the video gaming idea to fund the capital bill as a “non-negotiable” item. Quinn claimed that Cross, the son of a Methodist minister, refused to put any votes on the bill unless video gaming was included. Cross and Senate GOP Leader Christine Radogno denied the guv’s claim…
Cross and Radogno say they did agree to support [video gaming], but it wasn’t a “nonnegotiable” position as Quinn claims. They point out that gambling expansion has always been on the table when it comes to funding road, transit and school construction.
Video gambling, the Republican leaders say, ended up being the one gambling measure that could gain widespread support, as opposed to a Chicago casino, slots at racetracks like Arlington Park or more casinos in other parts of the state.
“That looked to be a responsible source that could pass into law,” said Radogno spokeswoman Patty Schuh. “Gaming was always on the table.”
Cross spokeswoman Sarah Wojcicki said, “To go back and nitpick about whose idea was whose, I don’t think is very productive.”
“We said that was something we could support,” Wojcicki said of video gambling before pointing out, “The Democratic leaders signed on and the governor actually signed the bill.”
The leaders and the governor made a “gentleman’s agreement” not to point fingers on the capital package so as not to create even more controversy. Quinn has clearly broken the agreement, which shouldn’t be a surprise. He does this all the time when he’s in a tight spot.
“I think it’s important to make sure we have a governor who believes in competition and a fair map,” Mr. Quinn replied when asked how he would handle remap. “Compact, contiguous districts that assure competition” are needed, he said.
An aide later added that Mr. Quinn is prepared to use the best available computer technology to get such a reapportionment plan.
Does that mean he wouldn’t sign into law a map like the current one, which is filled with an abundance of squiggles, bumps, curlicues and sharp turns designed to help one politician or another?
No, he wouldn’t, Mr. Quinn signaled with a shake of his head. “There’s a problem” with maps that do what the current one does.
Rich Miller, author of The Capitol Fax Blog, kicked off the event by giving his insights on the seat of governor and the campaigns of its contenders before they arrived. Miller outlined the incarceration of former Governor George Ryan, the legal woes of former Governor Rod Blagojevich, and what he perceives to be the incompetent work of Pat Quinn, struggling with a capital bill and the mistake of an early prisoner release program.
“It would be nice if we could get an honest and competent governor at the same time,” Miller said.
Actually, what I said was that George Ryan was a competent governor and a crook. Rod Blagojevich was incompetent and a crook. Pat Quinn wasn’t a crook, but was also incompetent.
Love him or hate him, Ryan actually made things happen that we’re still benefitting from today.
Jim Edgar? His legacy seems to be he didn’t do anything particularly bad. But he didn’t do anything particularly great, either.
Rod Blagojevich? Interested in helping himself and no one else. A cartoon character.
Pat Quinn? The recovering gadfly promises anything and everything, with no real vision to back up the plans.
The batch that aspires to become the next governor offers more of the same. A lot of promises, but no real hope for touching lives in a positive way.
* Related…
* ADDING: Chamber speaker wants Illinois to come up with new way to draw districts: Maisch, vice president of government affairs for the Illinois State Chamber of Commerce, will speak in Quincy today about a proposed referendum on changing the way legislative redistricting is done. The goal will be to end gerrymandering — the practice of creating political maps that favor a particular political party — in Illinois House and Senate districts.
* Get an inside look at how Illinois legalized UFC: It didn’t take any punches or kicks or choke holds for mixed martial arts to be legalized by the Illinois Legislature and signed into law by then-Gov. Rod Blagojevich, just the usual mix of political clout and a little campaign cash, according to a portion of Blagojevich’s new book, The Governor.
When you deliver a major speech and the two things people say about it afterward are that it was long and it rambled, you probably haven’t made the best speech of your career.
And all of those politicos who feared the boost Quinn would get by delivering a big speech on the eve of the primary election? They can quit worrying.
To say that Quinn’s speech was short of details is an understatement. It’s hard to believe, but the speech probably had less substance than even the last State of the State address given by Blagojevich.
The public deserved more from Quinn and the State of the State address. He wasted an opportunity to show he’s a true leader and not just another politician concerned about the next election.
“The Governor, at the beginning of each annual session of the General Assembly and at the close of his term of office, shall report to the General Assembly on the condition of the State and recommend such measures as he deems desirable.” - Illinois Constitution
I don’t know if Gov. Pat Quinn glanced at the state Constitution before he jotted down his notes, but his rambled, jumbled, disjointed mess he delivered off the cuff last week was not a State of the State address.
Quinn did, I suppose, “recommend” a couple of “measures,” including income tax reform, but he barely touched on that issue.
“Our mission this year,” the governor told assembled legislators, “is to revive our economy and put people back to work.” Yet, he presented no new ideas for accomplishing that mission. The economy is in horrible shape, and the governor could’ve used his address to show he was on top of things, knew what he was doing and knew where he was going. So, we can probably safely infer that he hasn’t a clue what to do.
Instead, we were subjected to a speech that was almost Fidel Castro-like in its length, full of rambling displays of sentiment and accidentally repeated thoughts.
One reason the speech was such a technical disaster was that Quinn spoke from hand-written notes rather than from a prepared text. But a bigger reason it was a mess was that Quinn didn’t seem to put much thought into it. There was no structure, no real sense of what he was trying to say. Instead, he just stringed together his press conference talking points and regurgitated them for more than an hour.
From an audience’s perspective, there seemed to be no good reason why we were being subjected to the speech. “What is the point?” I kept asking myself. “When will we hear about some real meat?”
Even House Speaker Michael Madigan wasn’t happy with Quinn. Madigan apparently didn’t know his microphone was on when he turned to his chief of staff and cracked about the speech which had started almost an hour and a half earlier: “His people said it would be forty minutes,” adding that it was now 1:21 in the afternoon.
Sen. Kirk Dillard, a Republican candidate for governor, said the speech was a lot like Quinn’s governing, “It is basically wing it as you go.” Dan Hynes, Quinn’s Democratic opponent, said the speech was more of a “Pat Quinn state of mind speech” than a State of the State address. Both men hit it on the head.
But, wait, it gets worse.
Gov. Quinn thanked the General Assembly during his State of the State address for approving a bill that would allow the state to borrow $250 million and use it to help social service agencies. Quinn announced that he would definitely sign the legislation, and couldn’t help but get in a zinger at Hynes for blocking a similar Quinn proposal last month.
Trouble is, the bill had merely passed the House by the time Quinn spoke last week - another strong indication that little to no preparation went into that speech. Later that day, the Senate adjourned for the month without taking up the measure. Unlike their House counterparts, the Senate Republicans refused to support the new borrowing, and the Democrats didn’t have enough members in town to pass the bill on their own.
You can’t sign a bill that isn’t on your desk, so Quinn’s pre-emptive praise for the General Assembly was a major embarrassment for the governor.
The governor teared up near the end of his speech when he talked about his late father, which touched many people in the room. Quinn is, in many respects, not your usual politician. He is far more genuine than any governor we’ve had in a very long time. He didn’t fill the address with slick lines and focus group-approved ideas. He spoke from the heart. He even brought up the uncomfortable facts surrounding the botched early prisoner release program and shouldered the ultimate blame.
For all that, I give the governor much credit. But a State of the State address is a constitutional mandate of historical significance which should be taken far more seriously than Quinn did last week.
You’re the governor now, Pat. Start acting like it.
Roeser said Dillard “assured” him that he would fight for pension reform, stand up to the unions and support additional charter schools or voucher legislation. “If he retreats from all that stuff,” Roeser says, “I will not aid him.”
And the aid is considerable. Roeser says he is putting $250,000 into Dillard’s campaign, not to mention his personal endorsement to potentially thousands of supporters. […]
IEA spokesman Charles McBarron said it is understood Dillard and the union don’t see eye-to-eye on all pension reform plans.
Dillard says he hasn’t changed his position on pensions. In a Daily Herald survey, he supports lowering benefits for incoming teachers - a plan opposed by the unions. But he also pledged to “protect the benefits of current participants.” […]
“Why take money from these guys if they don’t know what … he is planning for?” Roeser said.
Mr. Dillard circled “yes” when asked if he favors a two-track pension system, and didn’t otherwise amend that answer. But while he circled “no” when asked about raising the income tax or implementing a graduated income tax, he did say schools would get more money if he was governor because “I will reprioritize state spending (and) cut waste and fraud.”
Then, he added, “This must be done before any new revenue sources are explored.” He did not indicate on the questionnaire how much waste, fraud and reprioritization must be found — nor how long it will take to find it.
A top Dillard strategist added that IEA is with Mr. Dillard not because he’s with them on their issues but because other candidates are at the conservative extreme, and because Mr. Dillard is going to win the primary and the union wants to stay on his good side.
We don’t know what was said off the record, of course, or through back channels. Also, Roeser isn’t yet backing away from Dillard.
…Republican candidate Kirk Dillard’s campaign is crowing about an automated poll it recently commissioned, which shows Dillard leading the crowded field with 22.4 percent, with Andy McKenna and Jim Ryan at distant 13.5 and 10.3 percent, respectively.
If that’s true, it would signal a remarkable turnaround from five weeks ago, when the Trib poll showed Ryan leading the pack with 26 percent and Dillard running fourth at 9 percent.
Ryan’s people, of course, aren’t buying it. “There’s no way that Dillard or McKenna have dramatically flipped the race upside down in just a couple weeks,” Ryan spokesman Dan Curry wrote in an angry email to reporters entitled, “Attack of the Phony Polls.”
And what do the McKenna people think of all this? House Republican leader Tom Cross, a McKenna supporter, cited yet another poll from who-knows-where, which he said shows (you guessed it) that McKenna is far ahead of the pack.
* And then there was the Illinois State Rifle Association endorsement of Kirk Dillard, which brought this press release response from Sen. Bill Brady’s campaign…
And, just like he double talked on taxes, Kirk Dillard, who did a commercial for Barack Obama, told the Associated Press he “could support allowing concealed-carry” depending on how the legislation was written, proper training and thorough background checks.
The bottom line is, Senator Brady is the only candidate with a proven and clear record of supporting the Second Amendment, and he will continue to do so when he is elected Governor.
You can read more about the IEA/ISRA endorsements and the polling story by clicking here and here.
Earlier this month, Plummer loaned $150,000 to his own campaign.
Plummer, of Edwardsville, also received a $500,000 donation last week from the lumber company owned by his family. His father, Robert, also loaned his campaign $200,000 in December.
John Pastuovic, spokesperson for Plummer’s campaign, said Plummer decided early in the race to self-fund his campaign and rely on donations primarily from friends and family.
* I sure hope this story gets picked up by the AP and other outlets, because this is just ridiculous…
Illinois Department of Corrections Director Michael Randle has issued a warning to state prison workers: If you talk to the media, you could be fired.
In a Jan. 13 memo to the agency’s 12,000 employees, Randle says all requests for information should be routed to a designated department spokesperson in order to best coordinate the prison system’s message.
“Employees are reminded that they are not to release information except to the extent required in the performance of their job duties,” Randle wrote.
Corrections spokeswoman Januari Smith says the memo, obtained by the Lee Enterprises Springfield new bureau last week, does not amount to a gag order on employees.
Yeah. Not a gag order. Right. As the story notes, Quinn spoke out against a similar gag order at the Illinois State Police when he was lt. governor. At the time, the state police were in the midst of a blowup over then-Gov. Rod Blagojevich’s security detail.
* The Illinois State Rifle Association has a huge mailing list and can be a factor in close races, so its endorsements are always closely watched. Here are a few…
In the Republican primary race for Illinois Governor, the ISRA-PVF has endorsed the candidacy of Kirk Dillard. The board found this a very difficult decision in light of the fact that the crowded field of candidates included long-time friend Sen. Bill Brady and exciting newcomer, Adam Andrzejewski.
In the Democratic primary race for Illinois Governor, the ISRA-PVF board of directors has expressed a preference for candidate Pat Quinn over his opponent, Dan Hynes.
In the Republican primary race for Illinois Lt. Governor, the ISRA-PVF board of directors has expressed its preference for candidate Jason Plummer.
In the Democratic primary race for Illinois Lt. Governor, the ISRA-PVF board of directors has expressed its preference for candidate Art Turner.
Another big boost for Dillard. Conversely, being endorsed by ISRA might not be such a good thing for Gov. Quinn if the media picks this up and Dan Hynes uses it in targeted mail. Otherwise, it’s a plus for Quinn downstate. The full endorsement list is here.
That ISRA endorsement will also be golden for down-ballot candidates like lt. governor hopeful Jason Plummer, who has a new TV ad. Watch it…
* Speaking of endorsements, US Senate candidate David Hoffman finally got a big, institutional nod over the holiday weekend. The IEA is stepping up…
“We were very impressed by David Hoffman. His intelligence and commitment to public education make him our strong choice for the Democratic nomination,” said IEA President Ken Swanson.
“I was saddened to hear of the passing of Carlos Hernandez Gomez. Our paths first crossed when I was a State Senator. He was a throwback in the style of Chicago’s storied political reporters. He loved Chicago, and he relentlessly sought to tell its story with the commitment to truth and the insatiable curiosity that any good reporter has to have. I quickly learned that when you saw his sharp fedora in a crowd, hard questions were coming. But Carlos always played it straight. And I always enjoyed our interactions in Springfield, Chicago, or on the campaign trail. Carlos was a role model to many, and an integral part of the Chicago story he strived to tell. My thoughts and prayers are with his wife Randi and his family.”
Earlier today, U.S. Sen. Dick Durbin, the chamber’s 2nd ranking Democrat, hailed Hernandez Gomez as a real professional whose “word’s good and they’re up on the news and they’re nice people to be with.”
“He’s the kind of person that’s a great credit to the profession and did a great job for people across Chicagoland and America to understand the real issues we face,” Durbin said.
Gov. Pat Quinn called Hernandez Gomez “a man of great humor and commitment and dedication. So, losing Carlos is a loss for everybody in Illinois and our country.”
“He was always not the first person to throw out a question, but not shy, either. And his questions were always pretty informed. He wasn’t looking for the short answer and the quick sound bite. He might say, ‘Given this fact and given this fact, what does this tell us?’”
Fitzgerald says he would often talk to Carlos in the hallways of the federal courthouse, adding that he valued Carlos’s input and impressions on what was going on in Chicago’s courtrooms.
* Dan Hynes…
“Christina and I were deeply saddened to learn of the passing of Carlos Hernandez Gomez. Carlos was a dogged reporter who covered the politics beat with a style and substance that belied his years, and he will be greatly missed. Our thoughts are with his wife, Randi, his family and his many, many friends in this difficult time.”
Torey Malatia, General Manager: Carlos thought of Chicago as an unfinished process. He felt it was the job of you and me to see that it finished well. He loved the city’s achievements and lamented its failures. He reveled in its history and decried its corruption. He knew every current political alliance, those that made us stronger and those that shamed us.
As a journalist, he believed he was part of a tradition of road blocking the bad guys from completely having their way. He hoped to hone his craft to be remembered someday as a guardian of the common good –like Royko, or Fitzpatrick or the handful of other journalists from Chicago’s print history that he saw as the watchdogs, the truth tellers.
When Carlos worked at WBEZ, we would lunch frequently at Gene and Georgetti’s, one of his favorite restaurants and people-watching perches. One day, Carlos looked around and realized he knew every patron in the room. He whispered all their names to me and what they did–journalists, lobbyists, politicians, city officials, syndicate big shots. As we left, and he grabbed me with his customary warm bear hug, I thought, good Lord, this man was born to be a reporter.
