* I could not figure out why I was in a Stevie Ray Vaughan mood all week. But then I came home and realized we kicked off the weekend with all sorts of storm warnings. Perhaps this video is appropriate.
Rich will be back on Monday. Thanks for putting up with the interns today!
Like a train that stops at every station
We all deal with trials and tribulations
Fear hangs the fellow that ties up his years
* Most Senate Democrats were mum on the talking points of this afternoon’s caucus meeting. However, Sen. Louis Viverito said an unspecified amount or type of borrowing is being discussed. Take a look…
* Speaking with Christopher Wills of the Associated Press, Sen. Donne Trotter talked about issuing pension obligation notes. The challenge there, he said, is getting other Democrats on board with the idea…
* Both chambers canceled their weekend sessions and plan to reconvene at noon on Monday.
* The latest Rasmussen poll puts Republican Sen. Bill Brady ahead of Gov. Pat Quinn by seven percentage points. Five percent of the respondents favor another candidate and 11 percent have yet to decide. From Rasmussen…
Brady posted a 47% to 37% lead over Quinn in early March just after the former was officially declared the GOP nominee by a 193-vote margin out of 750,000 cast.
The two are battling most notably these days over an income tax hike the governor has proposed as an alternative to a $1.3 billion cut in education funding.
Forty percent (40%) of voters in the state now approve of Quinn’s handling of the governorship, down three points from the previous survey. Fifty-eight percent (58%) disapprove. This includes seven percent (7%) who Strongly Approve and 28% who Strongly Disapprove.
* Rasmussen also showed Republican Congressman Mark Kirk leading state Treasurer Alexi Giannoulias in the U.S. Senate race…
Kirk now attracts 46% support in Illinois’ race for the U.S. Senate, up from 41% in early April. Support for Giannoulias is at 38%, virtually unchanged from the previous survey but down from March, when he earned 44% of the vote. Five percent (5%) currently support some other candidate, and 12% are undecided.
Kirk picked up 46% to Giannoulias’ 40% in the first survey after the two won their party primaries in February. But the race was a virtual toss-up by March. Still, despite the Broadway Bank controversy, Kirk has been unable to push past his previous high. Giannoulias got a much-sought-after boost of support from President Obama after the survey was taken, so it’s unclear at this point whether the bank issue has caused the candidate any long-term damage in a state that has trended Democratic in recent years.
Forty-seven percent said their house was worth more than they owe on the mortgage, but 44 percent believed they owed more than their house was worth.
And…
Other polls conducted by Rasmussen included a poll that questioned how the violence in some Illinois neighborhoods should or should not be handled.
It was determined that 37 percent were in favor of using the National Guard to fight crime in violent neighborhoods, while 48 percent were not. Sixteen percent were not sure.
Since the poll was conducted statewide, it was unclear whether those polled actually lived in the violent neighborhoods mentioned.
You may recall earlier this week state Reps. Fritchey and Ford suggested Gov. Quinn deploy the National Guard to Chicago to control violence. The governor said he would only send troops with Mayor Daley’s approval.
*** UPDATE 2 p.m. *** A day after the redistricting plan introduced by Senate Democrats was defeated in the House by two votes, Sen. Kwame Raoul had some harsh words for Gov. Pat Quinn. Raoul, who became chairman of the Senate Redistricting Committee last fall, spoke against Quinn for not falling behind the plan. Here’s Raoul speaking with CapFax intern Dan Weber on the Senate floor earlier today….
* Ex-Gov. Rod Blagojevich’s former chief of staff Alonzo Monk entered a new guilty plea in federal court this morning. The Sun-Times reports…
Monk, 51, admitted to attempting to extort a horse-racing businessman for a campaign contribution in exchange for getting a bill signed.
Monk is cooperating with investigators and pleaded guilty again after prosecutors filed new charges, crafted to deal with a possible future ruling from the U.S. Supreme Court that experts say could strike down of the federal “honest services” fraud statute.
Monk has agreed to serve 24 months in prison.
Monk is reportedly going to testify against his former employer. The Tribune has more…
Monk is expected to testify that Blagojevich and three of his closest friends - including Monk - schemed from the outset of his administration to enrich themselves by leveraging the powers of Blagojevich’s office.
Monk is expected to tell the jury how the four — a group that also included key fundraisers Christopher Kelly and Antoin “Tony” Rezko — planned to bring in hundreds of thousands of dollars in campaign contributions they could split up when Blagojevich left office.
The judge overseeing the corruption case against former Gov. Rod Blagojevich has denied a defense motion to issue a subpoena for the testimony of President Barack Obama.
U.S. District Judge James Zagel said he does not believe Obama’s testimony would be material to the charges.
Zagel said the defense motion fell “very short” of demonstrating a need to subpoena the president.
* STAR Bonds plan for Glen Carbon retail development is dead
“On Thursday, in a final attempt to reach consensus, we met with several mayors who told us there is nothing more we can do to secure their support for the project.”
In Tinley Park, overall costs are down by 20 percent to 25 percent, said Public Works Director Dale Schepers. One bid was 48 percent below the town engineer’s estimate.
A bid for landscaping in Naperville’s Riverwalk reconstruction project came in at $702,000, 46 percent lower than the engineer’s estimate, because of intense competition among eight bidders. Carey Plazak, purchasing manager for Schaumburg, recently accepted two roadwork bids considerably under budget.
In Chicago, Mayor Richard Daley recently challenged all city vendors to negotiate a 10 percent cut in spending on their contracts.
Instead, the commission on Thursday approved a rate increase of just $4.7 million, or about 97 percent less than what the utility giant had requested.
What this means for you: The rates that Ameren’s 1.1 million Illinois customers pay for the delivery of electricity and gas will remain unchanged at least for another year.
Almost a year ago, the company asked to increase what it charges for delivering electricity and natural gas by a total of $226 million. The utility had since changed that request to $162 million and was awarded only $5 million.
Chicago Public Schools says it will now involve the community in figuring out what to do about its worst performing schools.
It’s become an annual ritual: officials announce a list of schools they want to shut down for low performance. And parents, teachers and students protest to keep them open.
Ron Huberman says the district’s new school closings plan hinges on parents being told EARLY their child’s school needs help. Letters will go out soon to that effect.
The company housed ex-cons in two homes in Aurora, one at 14 S. Lancaster Ave. and the other at 838 N. View St., and the Department of Corrections paid TA Reentry to take parolees once they were released from prison.
* Officials said red-light cameras should be a go, but some in public not so sure
Springfield Mayor Tim Davlin on Thursday morning announced the results of a friendly bet made with Peoria Mayor Jim Ardis over whose city would have a higher percentage of its residents mail in their 2010 U.S. Bureau of the Census forms.
Springfield won, with 77 percent of residents participating to Peoria’s 75 percent.
According to the terms of their competition, Ardis will have to travel to Springfield and buy Davlin dinner. He also has to wear the city’s lapel pin for a week and issue a proclamation acknowledging - in writing - that Springfield is better than Peoria. (Springfield doesn’t have a city pin, so they’re going to find something else for Ardis to wear.)
A few hours after Washington Park Mayor John Thornton was shot to death on April 1, police had his suspected killer in custody.
Then they had to let him go 48 hours later because the overly cautious St. Clair County State’s Attorney’s Office wasn’t ready to file charges. The police couldn’t legally hold him any longer without charges.
Now a few weeks later, prosecutors have concluded that yes indeed, the police arrested the right guy. On Wednesday, they filed first-degree murder charges against Aaron B. Jackson.
But surprise, Jackson is nowhere to be found. He apparently decided not to sit home and wait for the police to pull up and lead him away in handcuffs.
* Here is Sen. Bill Brady’s reason for telling reporters that they had to travel to Springfield to view his tax returns last Friday afternoon…
“I think we’ve often criticized governors for not living in Springfield, not being in the state capital,” Brady said, referring to complaints raised about disgraced former Gov. Rod Blagojevich’s avoidance of Springfield. “We picked a location–the state of Illinois’ capital.”
That’s not gonna endear him to Chicago reporters, who are accustomed to getting their way and who often bite back hard, as we’ve seen time and time again.
Frankly, I don’t think the Springfield decision is a big deal. Just about every paper, TV and radio station in the Chicago area belongs to the AP. They could’ve set up something with the wire service in advance to make sure they got as much detail as they could ever want. The huffing from the TV stations is a bit strange, considering this isn’t exactly a “visual” story.
But this is an easy story to write, so we keep getting it over and over again. The much tougher story is figuring out what to do with all the data we’ve collected. I’m still in the planning stages myself. It’s time-consuming and will probably include lots of blind alleys, but there may be a nugget or two therein. The Peoria Journal Star editorial page hinted at one possibility…
Meanwhile, others have noted that the federal income taxes he did pay over the last five years were considerably less than the tax bracket he occupied would suggest.
“I love Springfield,” she said. “I could never understand how that Looney Tune Rod Blagojevich always felt, why he didn’t want to live here — the greatest place in the world.”
* A Republican refusal to vote for a budget they’ve been shut out of was expected, but GOP Rep. Mark Beaubien’s statement is ominous for the Democrats, who will need three-fifths majorities in both chambers to borrow money to make billions in pension payments…
“They (Democrats) haven’t come to us, they haven’t asked us for anything, they haven’t informed us of anything,” Beaubien said. “Since we haven’t been included, you’re not going to see any Republican support.”
That budget is gonna be ugly, man. Just ugly. Democratic Rep. Frank Mautino fills in a few blanks…
Democrats are being asked about a series of potential revenue generators, although Mautino said the budget being formulated does not include the income tax hike sought by Quinn. The options do include higher taxes on cigarettes and other tobacco products and eliminating some business tax breaks.
For 26 years, the Holy Angels Shelter in East St. Louis has been there to help homeless moms, women and families get off the streets and into their own homes.
But if the state doesn’t come through with an $80,000 grant by the end June, the shelter will have to close.
“We run it bare bones,” said Joe Hubbard, director of Catholic Urban Programs. “We’ve run it that way for 26 years. They can give us a grant, but if they don’t pay us in a timely manner, we can’t pay our bills, and if we can’t pay our bills, we have to close. We need to come up with other funding.”
If the shelter doesn’t find enough money to fill the hole the state is expected to leave, the homeless shelter will be forced to close its doors.
“And that will be a disaster,” said shelter director Pat Lewis. “They’ll be under the bridge with the tent people, and pretty soon, there won’t be room for them, either.”
* Related and a roundup…
* Vouchers for CPS students advances to House floor: The action would give vouchers not only to the schools where students are poorest and lowest performing. But it also would extend vouchers to students from poor families in the most-overcrowded schools, a change from the bill when Meeks won Senate approval.
* Obama and Quinn Discuss Money for Illinois Education, No Promises: Quinn reportedly said he would ask President Barack Obama for federal money to help pay for education. When asked if the president had obliged, the governor changed the subject… QUINN: We talked about that in general, but I can’t say that he had a pot of gold.
* Back in 2008, the Illinois League of Women Voters decided to oppose a state constitutional convention. This was one of the big reasons…
The serious problems suggested as a reason for a Con-Con can actually be addressed by legislation or constitutional amendment. Kaszak noted that there have been ten successful amendments since the 1970 Constitution, and the current Lt. Governor has successfully amended the Constitution (the Cutback Amendment of 1980 which reduced the number of members of the House of Representative by 59 and abolished cumulative voting) and could guide individuals through the process;
This year, the League has joined with Republicans and others to support a constitutional amendment on redistricting. They’ve discovered it ain’t as easy to amend our constitution as they thought two years ago. Their proposal went nowhere in the General Assembly and they announced yesterday they were abandoning their petition drive…
In a letter sent Thursday evening to The State Journal-Register’s editorial staff, however, the Illinois League of Women Voters — which coordinated the Fair Map effort — said that coalition had fallen short of the nearly 300,000 signatures needed to get on the ballot.
“We simply did not have enough time to finish the kind of statewide campaign necessary to meet the constitutional requirements of a citizen initiative,” League executive director Jan Czarnik wrote.
Well, look on the bright side. Maybe the League will favor a con-con the next time it comes around on the ballot, in 2028.
Sheesh.
* We have some video of yesterday’s redistricting debate. Rep. Jim Watson gave a passionate speech opposed to the Democratic plan, which fell two votes short of the required three-fifths majority (Democratic Rep. Jack Franks voted with the Republicans). It’s a must-view…
* Rep. Eddie Washington accused the Republicans of excluding minorities in his controversial speech…
* Majority Leader Barbara Currie took questions afterwards…
* Related…
* Remap fails in the House: “It gives an edge to the majority party. That’s not the way redistricting should be. It should be a level playing field … and it should not be about us taking care of our own districts. These are not ‘our’ districts,” House Minority Leader Tom Cross said after the vote.
* We’ve talked about the subject of my Sun-Times column most of the week. The silliness of the media as they engage in a feeding frenzy on the Giannoulias campaign. But you might want to read it anyway…
Political reporters, columnists and pundits don’t always band together as one, but when they do, watch out, especially when they’ve decided somebody is a bad guy and they’re going to “do something” about it.
Sometimes, it’s justified. The alleged hooker-knifing, wife-abusing Scott Lee Cohen is a case in point. Once we figured out that we had really goofed by not looking into the Democratic lieutenant governor nominee’s background more carefully, we pounced and tore him to shreds. But it was the right thing to do. Our mistake was not doing it earlier.
But it’s almost as if Cohen’s political blood tasted so good that members of the media wolf pack have decided that they just gotta have another kill. The bloodlust is leading some of them to resort to distortions and outright fabrications to achieve their goal.
The Cohen story practically wrote itself. It had just about all the elements of the perfect political scandal: sex, lies, drugs, lawsuits and violence. There was no need to embellish it.
But far too many of the stories being written about U.S. Senate nominee Alexi Giannoulias are taking embellishment to a whole new level.
The Chicago Tribune published a story earlier this month revealing that Giannoulias’ family bank had loaned two apparently mob-connected criminals $20 million. A banking consultant from Texas handed the Trib this ready-made quote: “Banks are not supposed to be doing business with criminals.”
But I searched Cook County Chancery Court records and found no less than 27 lawsuits, foreclosures, etc. filed by banks, financial service companies and a couple others against the two men over the years. Of those 27, just five were filed by Broadway Bank, which was owned by Giannoulias’ family before it was shut down a week ago by the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation.
Deutsche Bank, First American Bank, CitiMortgage, Austin Bank and more have all filed legal actions. Some were dismissed, some are still pending. The point is those two fellows did business with a bunch of different banks and had trouble with quite a few. But you’ll never read about that in the Tribune. The paper’s story was designed to look like Broadway was the exclusive go-to haven for mobsters. Turns out, there was nothing exclusive about it.
Seemingly seconds after the announcement that President Obama had planned a visit to Downstate Quincy, the chattering class speculated whether Obama would invite Giannoulias or throw his old friend and protege under the bus.
When asked last week if he had been invited, Giannoulias said he hadn’t, so the commentariat instantly leapt to the conclusion that “death by Trailways” was in Giannoulias’ immediate future.
Trouble is, no reporters bothered to see if any other Illinois VIPs had been invited. Nobody had been. The official invites didn’t go out until Monday.
That didn’t deter the feeding frenzy. The subject even came up at a White House press conference. Hours before the visit, Giannoulias was taunted by a Chicago reporter who wanted to know whether Giannoulias’ campaign needed “a presidential hug.”
All of the breathless anticipation was for nothing. Obama gave Giannoulias a shout-out from the podium and hugged him after the speech, and his top political adviser, David Axelrod, brought Giannoulias backstage for a friendly meeting.
I recently obtained a letter written by a Chicago reporter begging one of those two above-mentioned alleged mob guys to spill his guts about his dealings with Broadway Bank. He was lured with the promise that he could “change history.”
Instead of trying to “change history,” how about just focusing on telling a full and accurate story once in a while?
Admitting he had no evidence, Sen. John Cornyn, who runs the Senate GOP political operation, suggested Thursday that the White House may try to force Democratic U.S. Senate nominee Alexi Giannoulias out of the race — speculation that was flatly denied by the White House.
When I asked Cornyn, who’s from Texas, why he thought the White House would do that, he said: “I don’t know. Giannoulias is a flawed candidate and they are realizing it and I think they are worried. . . . I hope they respect the choices of Democratic primary voters and don’t engage in some sort of back-room shenanigans.”
A Giannoulias campaign spokeswoman said Cornyn’s comments were “ridiculous.”
Cornyn’s comment came a day after President Obama, in Downstate Quincy, gave a shout-out to Giannoulias, calling him the “soon-to-be senator” in a remark I think was calculated to quiet talk about distancing himself from Giannoulias.
“No one here is trying to ‘muscle’ him from the race. That should have been clear from the president’s comment yesterday,” White House senior adviser David Axelrod said Thursday. “Kind of ironic that on the day that Gov. [Charlie] Crist was forced out of the Florida Republican primary that Sen. Cornyn would be suggesting we would muscle someone out of a Senate race.”
One intriguing idea being considered: Force Mr. Giannoulias out of the race and replace him with . . . Rahm Emanuel. Mr. Emanuel is still popular in Illinois and there was a big push to get him handpicked as the Obama successor back in late 2008. Democrats have used the shaft-and-shift strategy before, as in New Jersey in 2002 when they dumped a walking wounded Bob Torricelli as their Senate candidate a few weeks before Election Day.
The first person to publicly suggest this was Rod Blagojevich, so that gives you an idea of how wonderful it is.
* Related…
* Chris Kennedy to Don & Roma: “Lexi got in and I didn’t, and he deserves credit”
* Sen. Bill Brady threw in a plug for his home-building company and a home-buyer tax credit today. He was then asked about it afterwards. Have a look…
* Brady took several questions from reporters afterwards. He was asked about his refusal to release hard copies of his tax returns, WalMart, the unionization of traditionally non-union state jobs like legislative liaisons, and the so-called (by those kinda unclear on the concept) “six month budget.” Watch…
Speaking to reporters after an appearance at a Sangamon County Republican luncheon, Brady was asked why he made the decision to choose Springfield for viewing his tax information instead of the much larger media center of Chicago.
“I think we’ve often criticized governors for not living in Springfield, not being in the state capital,” Brady said, referring to complaints raised about disgraced former Gov. Rod Blagojevich’s avoidance of Springfield. “We picked a location–the state of Illinois’ capital.”
Brady said no reporters who viewed his tax returns said they needed more than the three hour time period he allotted. But he said those calling for him to release copies of his tax returns, as many politicians do, don’t “understand the competitive nature of my business.”
* As I told subscribers this morning, the Civic Action Network held an unusual Springfield protest yesterday. Instead of heading to the Statehouse, like everybody else does, they descended upon an office of two lobbyists for the nursing home industry. They brought mock coffins and shouted slogans, including “”Terry Sullivan, what do you say! How many seniors have to die today?” referring to one of the lobbyists.” Here’s part one…
“I just think the best way to have redistricting is to set up competitive districts that are not gerrymandered to make sure the people have the best representatives,” said Quinn after a groundbreaking ceremony in Glenview for a pharmaceutical company building its headquarters there with $4 million in tax credits. “Too often this is an exercise of protecting incumbents of both parties. I don’t think that’s healthy.” […]
“I’ve always felt that redistricting has been way too political in our state, by both parties. So if I’m governor I’m going to try and be the person who makes sure we do it right for the people and not for the politicians.”
The sponsor of the Democratic plan today bristled when hearing about the governor’s comments. Chicago State Sen. Kwame Raoul says Quinn has never told him he opposed the plan.
Raoul says the governor’s decision to talk to the media first would be “highly disappointing.”
* 3:49 pm - The redistricting bill failed to achieve a three-fifths majority, as expected. We’ll post some videos later.
* State Rep. Jack Franks (D-Marengo) wins our award…
I offer a simple alternative, in return for my support of more borrowing. I call on Governor Quinn to make $2 in cuts for every $1 borrowed.
I’ll let you know when Franks comes up with $10 billion in cuts. Simple. Right.
* The governor has been using his “cuts” to education spending as a way to win support for a tax hike. This has often backfired, with people blaming him for the cuts and trashing him for the tax hike. Senate President John Cullerton has now proposed a partial solution to Quinn’s school cuts through a cigarette tax hike. He also got in some digs at the governor’s school funding cuts. From a press release…
“On March 10, 2010, Governor Pat Quinn proposed a series of cuts to education that includes spending reductions of $613 million in General State Aid payments and $400 million in mandated categorical spending for critical programs such as special education and school transportation.
After serious assessment and discussion with members of the Senate Democratic caucus, it is evident that there remains little if any support for these cuts to schools. So, to be clear, Senate Democrats support a budget plan that holds General State Aid payments to schools at current levels.
To avoid a reduction in mandated categorical spending, a bi-partisan coalition of members of the Illinois House of Representatives must pass the cigarette tax (SB 44). Through this measure, Illinois will realize approximately $200 million that will be matched with $120 million in federal funds, relieving pressure from Medicaid costs in the budget.
Our caucus continues to maintain a serious commitment to developing a short-term and long-term approach to stabilizing the state budget. We support significant spending cuts and recognize that Illinois’ outdated revenue system is in serious need for reform. However, draconian cuts to education would drop Illinois to worst-in-the-nation status when it comes to state support for schools and will kick an estimated 20,000 teaching professionals into the unemployment line.”
They’re going to try a piecemeal approach to closing this school budget hole. The cig tax is just one of the tools. Quinn is sticking to his tax hike guns, however.
A Carterville mom says she was denied medical care for her children because the state isn’t paying its bills. […]
“On one point, I want to be mad at the doctors because I feel like they have a moral obligation to hang in there and not bail on us when times get rough,” says [Ashley Wright of Carterville].
During a recent check-up, Ashley’s four month old son Noah was denied immunizations by his pediatrician.
The doctor said Ashley’s insurance provider wasn’t paying its bills. Ashley doesn’t know how to fight back.
“We can’t go after the doctors, they’re not being paid. We can’t go after the insurance company, they’re not being paid. But how do we fight the state?” she asks.
* The problems of bullying at schools has attracted much attention over the past several years, and the General Assembly has just sent an anti-bullying bill to the governor. Schools will have to adopt anti-bullying policies. It was watered down from its original format, which also required education and record-keeping.
Provides that nothing in the bullying prevention provisions is intended to infringe upon any right to exercise free expression or the free exercise of religion or religiously based views protected under the First Amendment to the United States Constitution or under Section 3 or 4 of Article 1 of the Illinois Constitution.
That was probably added via an amendment because gay rights groups were helping push the bill. The definition of bullying includes the usual race, national origin, etc., but also includes sexual orientation….
“At long last, schools across the state will be uniformly required to take steps to protect vulnerable kids from bullying and violence,” said Bernard Cherkasov, CEO of Equality Illinois, the state’s largest gay rights advocate.
“Students who are perceived to be lesbian, gay, bisexual or transgender are particularly vulnerable to bullying. And the attempted suicide rate rate among LGBT students, which is as much as three times higher than the general average, presents alarming evidence for just how urgently we need this law.”
Some on the religious Right were wary of the legislation, but it eventually passed the House unanimously and only two Senators voted against it.
Well, it’s happened again. Another state legislature has marched lock-step to the tune of the homosexual activist agenda—and once again, it will have a direct impact on local schools.
More…
Why are the advocacy groups so excited? As we have previously explained, the problem with these laws—enumerating special protections for homosexual categories–is that activist groups are using them as the leverage they need to get things like homosexuality teaching into public school classrooms. For detailed examples, click here.
Focus on the Family believes that every student—no matter who they are or what they believe—should be protected from harm. But at the same time, laws should not be passed that can used as tools to sexualize and politicize the entire school environment. There are good alternatives that provide protection to kids, but avoid entrapment in identity politics—such as the fair and objective model anti-bullying policy language drafted by the Alliance Defense Fund.
“Bullying” means systematic, repeated, or recurrent conduct committed by a
student or group of students against another student that causes measurable physical harm or
emotional distress. Verbal expression, whether oral, written, or electronic, is included within the definition of “bullying” only to the extent that (1) such expression is lewd, indecent, obscene, advocating for illegal conduct, intended to incite an immediate breach of peace, or the severe and pervasive use of threatening words that inflict injury; or (2) District administrators or officials reasonably believe that such expression will cause an actual, material disruption of school work.
The Illinois bill which just past is far more specific on what actually constitutes bullying…
“Bullying” means any severe or pervasive physical or verbal act or conduct, including communications made in writing or electronically, directed toward a student or students that has or can be reasonably predicted to have the effect of one or more of the following:
(1) placing the student or students in reasonable fear of harm to the student’s or students’ person or property;
(2) causing a substantially detrimental effect on the student’s or students’ physical or mental health;
(3) substantially interfering with the student’s or students’ academic performance; or
(4) substantially interfering with the student’s or students’ ability to participate in or benefit from the services, activities, or privileges provided by a school.
Bullying, as defined in this subsection (b), may take various forms, including without limitation one or more of the following: harassment, threats, intimidation, stalking, physical violence, sexual harassment, sexual violence, theft, public humiliation, destruction of property, or retaliation for asserting or alleging an act of bullying. This list is meant to be illustrative and non-exhaustive.
It also specifies who the proposal covers…
…actual or perceived race, color, religion, sex, national origin, ancestry, age, marital status, physical or mental disability, military status, sexual orientation, gender-related identity or expression,unfavorable discharge from military service, association witha person or group with one or more of the aforementioned actual or perceived characteristics, or any other distinguishing characteristic is prohibited in all school districts and non-public, non-sectarian elementary and secondary schools.
I can see Focus on the Family’s point about their more neutral measure, but I just don’t get how this Illinois bill will inject “homosexuality teaching into public school classrooms.” The only education component already exists in our state’s original anti-bullying statute…
[Schools] must communicate its policy on bullying to its students and their parent or guardian on an annual basis
* As we all know too well, some things just make people go off, and “homosexual rights” is one of them. Tom Roeser’s latest post is about his outrage over WTTW’s airing of a Carol Marin interview with Rep. Deb Mell and her partner about their pending marriage in Iowa. Roeser is a longtime conservative activist with a weekly radio show on WLS and didn’t much care for the WTTW program…
So just remember this. Get a coalition started to be in readiness when the next `TTW fund-raiser comes `round. That’s when the solicitation airwaves will be filled with the total traditional…replays of the late Lawrence Welk where traditional family life was glorified…or re-do’s of Peter, Paul & Mary where the trio’s goal was peace toward all.
That’s when your campaign should get going. Stressing to all that just when they feel soft, tender-hearted and magnanimous, that `TTW has become an articulate instrument of the Left and the culture—for which the enthusiast Marin has become its leading advocate.
Give `em a buck and you’ll be rewarded by more Marin-gay marriage promo’d telecasts along with other exotic formulae of the Left… all sponsored by “viewers like you.”
The laws of individual states are starting to reflect this evolving sensibility. Only five states allow same-sex marriage. Nine others have laws recognizing civil unions or domestic partnerships that convey most or all of the rights of marriage, and six have laws that go part of the way.
With so many people conflicted over the definition of marriage, it makes sense to claim the common ground — and secure the benefits — that come with recognizing civil unions.
* Lesbian state rep makes plea for same-sex marriage: Gov. Quinn, though called out by Mell, said he would like to see Illinois recognize civil unions. “I think that’s an issue that we can pass in Illinois, and I hope soon. I’ve known Debbie Mell since she was knee high to a duck,” Quinn said. “I honor her decisions.” However, Mell indicated civil unions were not enough.
* Lawmaker’s engagement spotlights gay marriage “This is an issue that the [Republican] party ought to get off of,” Beaubien said of the GOP’s traditional opposition to gay marriage. “It’s a whole different mindset than when I was young.” Beaubien said he understands the polarization of issues like abortion, which inevitably moves people in one of two directions. “But what do you care what two grown adults do?” Beaubien said. “It just makes us look more strident than we probably should.”
As far as we can tell, Brady did nothing illegal or unethical. He took advantage of legitimate tax deductions, credits and exemptions, including the provision designed to help businesses ride out the economic storm. As far as we can tell.
But questions are going to linger as long as everyone has to rely on that three-hour peek at his tax returns. He needs to release the returns. No time limits. No conditions. Get them out there and level with voters. Answer all the questions they raise.
There will be questions. Brady is the Republican nominee for governor. He’s going to be in a robust debate with Gov. Pat Quinn about state taxes. He’s going to be hampered in this debate if folks are left wondering why he didn’t pay taxes.
My idea of fair is that if I’m making $50,000 a year and another guy is making $119,000 a year, he should be paying more than I am in income tax.
What I’m hearing out there is that Brady should’ve paid taxes on his legislative income, regardless of his business losses. He obviously still had money in the bank because he could afford to loan his campaign tons of money over the years.
Quinn has kept the fund alive by pumping in a series of personal loans and then soliciting political donations so he can pay himself back, at interest rates approaching 10 percent.
The end result is that Quinn has made at least $24,000 in interest from the campaign fund he controls, according to documents filed with the Federal Election Commission.
Now, that’s not a lot of money in interest when stretched out over the years, as I pointed out at the time. And Quinn claims he paid taxes on that interest.
Last April, months before anyone knew about this campaign interest money story, Quinn allowed reporters to take a peek at his 2008 tax returns…
Getting a peek at Gov. Pat Quinn’s taxes isn’t as easy as you might think.
Quinn didn’t make copies of them available today when he released the returns, instead requiring people to make appointments to see them at his Chicago or Springfield offices… Quinn spokesman Bob Reed said in an e-mail that Quinn prefers viewers take notes from his original documents.
Again, since we didn’t know about the interest on his campaign account, it would be tough to see if he paid taxes on that interest.
So, since Quinn has loudly demanded that Brady distribute copies of his tax returns, I’d like to suggest that the governor ought to release all of his own tax returns dating back to the first time he took an interest payment from his campaign account. It’s only fair.
[President Obama is] not coming home to show his love for Alexi Giannoulias…
The Quincy visit comes less than a week after Broadway Bank closed, giving the impression that Obama is wiping the flailing Senate candidate off his shoe.
He’d better give his old friend another hug for all the viewers in Iowa, Missouri — and Illinois.
Just more silliness from people who’ve been reading too much into the crackpot DC tea leaves. White House reporters even demanded to know earlier yesterday whether Obama would mention Giannoulias in his speech.
Just hours earlier, Giannoulias had been facing questions in Chicago about whether Giannoulias’ late invitation to the event constituted a “snub” after months of bad press about the collapse of Giannoulias’ family’s Broadway Bank.
“There’s a lot of rumors and innuendo, but the White House is supportive of this campaign because they know we’ll stand up for Wall Street reform, move this country forward,” Giannoulias said.
When Obama was introducing the Quincy mayor and Illinois officials, he gave a shout-out, referring to Giannoulias as the “soon to be senator.” Right before the speech, Giannoulias met briefly with Axelrod, Reggie Love, Obama’s body man, and Marv Nicholson, chief of advance (the latter two are part of the basketball bunch).
Yet there was no mistaking the political implications for Giannoulias and his relationship with the White House as Obama closed out a two-day three-state campaign-style Midwest tour with a town hall event at the Oakley Lindsay Civic Center.
Obama mentioned Giannoulias’ name during his remarks. Later, the president gave a departing good-luck hug to Giannoulias, his former basketball playing buddy. Obama has been close with Giannoulias, providing a vital endorsement in getting Giannoulias elected state treasurer four years ago.
Prior to Obama taking the stage, White House Senior Adviser David Axelrod summoned Giannoulias out of his seat in the audience for a private backstage meeting. Axelrod said it involved “catching up” with the candidate.
A White House background sheet on the day’s activities, noting the elected officials from Illinois planning to attend the event, listed Giannoulias at the top, even though in ranking and seniority the state treasurer is last among the statewide offices.
Forget the man hug. Forget the announcement that Alexi Giannoulias is Illinois’ “next Senator.”
President Obama’s greatest gift to Giannoulias during his speech in Quincy was the speech itself. Obama ripped into Wall Street, using many of same anti-investment banking tropes Giannoulias has been employing in his campaign against Mark Kirk.
“Giannoulias and Obama are friends and he’s friendly with people around him,” Paul Green said. “It’s a no-brainer. He will support him when it counts.”
Rich Miller of Capitol Fax points out that he called the election even earlier: nearly a year ago, when Lisa Madigan refused to run for the Senate.
What I wrote was: “I’ve personally had this race in the ‘lean Republican’ column…” That’s not a prediction of a Mark Kirk win. I gotta wonder why that part of the piece wasn’t quoted.
The Illinois Public Interest Research Group argues that potholes and cracks at highways and bridges across the state are costing motorists at car repair shops. The state ranks 10th in the nation in terms of highest number of roads in poor or mediocre condition, the study states.
The world’s largest retailer has repeatedly insisted that it would not negotiate wages and that it would only agree to pay a “living wage” if the mandate applied to all Chicago retailers….But the company just might sign a “community benefits agreement” that guarantees that as many as five new Chicago stores would be 100 percent built by organized labor and that neighborhood residents would be hired to work in those stores.
The Illinois State Police will take over the work now being performed by V.I.P. Security & Detective Services of Matteson — a switch that Illinois Attorney General Lisa Madigan has said will save money and “provide greater protection for nursing home residents.”
The company’s contract wasn’t scheduled to expire until June 30, but the state health department sent the company a letter on Friday terminating the deal as of May 7.
So far 63 percent of Chicago households have mailed back the 2010 census forms. That number falls well below Illinois’ participation rate of 75 percent and the national goal of 72 percent.
CN reported 14 cases in November and December but the auditors found 1,457. Railroad executives apologized and explained they thought the board wanted only crossing delays caused by stopped trains not slow trains.
[STB Commissioner Charles] Nottingham suggested that the STB extend its five-year oversight of the sale to six years, saying CN’s failure to report these figures has cost the agency a year of working together.
Phil Pagano, Metra’s gruff boss of commuter rail operations for the last 20 years, is under scrutiny for possible financial irregularities involving an alleged “bonus” of $56,000, officials said today.
Metra Chairwoman Carole Doris called the agency’s directors into emergency session Friday to hire an outside legal counsel who would conduct an inquiry into extra compensation reportedly being paid to Pagano, apparently without the knowledge of the directors.
Metra officials would not comment on details regarding the inquiry. If approved by the Metra directors, the inquiry will be conducted by Itasca attorney James Sotos.
Cook County Board President Todd Stroger paid $24,975 to a private company owned by new Deputy Chief of Staff Carla Oglesby just days before she started her county job, a county commissioner said.
The fee falls just $25 under the $25,000 benchmark at which contracts require approval by the Cook County Board, said Bartlett Republican Commissioner Timothy Schneider.
* Top Stroger aide’s firm got payment for Cook County contract while on payroll
Stroger’s office refused to answer questions about when the contract was awarded. The office said in a statement that the county Department of Homeland Security hired CGC to help inform 2.5 million suburban residents that the state could provide disaster relief funds to them following flooding in 2008.
The municipal code calls for “20 square feet per person” in a classroom, which means CPS would need a 720-square-foot classroom to accommodate 35 kids and a teacher, a Fire Department spokesman said Wednesday. An additional aid or parent volunteer could require even more space.
More than 90 percent of CPS classrooms are at least 700 square feet, CPS spokeswoman Monique Bond said, with new buildings typically holding 900-square foot classrooms.
If the current trend continues, the office will be over its salary budget by $350,000 when the fiscal year ends, said Cheryl Pattelli, executive director of the finance department.
* Bolingbrook trustees get heat from employees and residents for approving 23 layoffs
Union representatives for village employees noted many of them have been working without a contract since 2008. They also argued village officials never made an attempt to negotiate or offer up alternative solutions — such as furlough days or pay cuts — to avoid layoffs.
This week, for the second time since being elected in 2007, LeClercq went to Washington, D.C., to speak with legislators, namely U.S. Sen. Dick Durbin, U.S. Rep. Bill Foster and staff of Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood. Although he had the same wish for a Metra station when he lobbied back in 2008, it was a different trip this time around.
City commissioners Randy Ervin, Rick Hall and Chris Rankin approved Gover’s appointment Wednesday afternoon to replace Dave Cline, who resigned Monday.
Gover, a commissioner who abstained during the roll call, will serve as acting mayor until a special election in April 2011 because there were more than two years remaining on Cline’s mayoral term….Cline resigned Monday because he is moving into a new residence built outside city limits, disqualifying him from holding elected office for the city.
* Charges brought in mayor’s killing; police seek suspect who has long history of arrests
St. Clair County prosecutors issued a first-degree murder charge Wednesday against a suspect in the slaying of Washington Park Mayor John Thornton.
A warrant was issued for the arrest of Aaron B. Jackson, 34. Illinois State Police ask that anyone with information about his whereabouts call 911 or Crimestoppers at 866-371-8477.
Circuit Judge Jan Fiss ordered that Jackson, when arrested, be held on $1 million bail.
* Several House members then rose to congratulate her. All but one was a Democrat. The lone Republican well-wisher was Rep. Mark Beaubien…
* Rod Blagojevich was on the Fox News channel last night. Watch if you dare…
And if you really have a strong stomach, Fox has posted the unedited interview. Part 1 and Part 2.
* The Illinois Family Institue has posted a video about the “addiction” problems associated with medical marijuana…
* Rep. Sara Feigenholtz and Sen. AJ Wilhelmi talk about their adoption rights bill…
* Once again, the Illinois Channel covered the annual House vs. Senate softball game. I’ve clipped the intro and posted it on YouTube. The clip features your faithful servant…
You can watch the full, higher definition video by clicking here.
* Related…
* If art bill signed, no state funds would finance Blago portrait
Wednesday, Apr 28, 2010 - Posted by Capitol Fax Blog Advertising Department
[The following is a paid advertisement.]
HB 6425 / SB 107, the Broadband Investment and Consumer Choice Act, seeks to modernize Illinois’ outdated telecom laws, which will encourage investment in the broadband networks that Illinois companies, entrepreneurs and individual consumers rely on to grow and thrive.
In a time when our state’s unemployment rates exceed 11 percent, updating our telecommunications laws has the potential to create or retain more than 100,000 jobs for Illinois residents.
ACT NOW. Visit ModernTelecomLaws.com to e-mail your state legislators today and encourage them to support HB 6425 / SB 107, to spur investment in broadband and wireless infrastructure that all of us count on for work, education, health care and much more.
If we don’t act this year, our state runs the risk of losing companies and jobs to states with more forward-thinking policies.
Gov. Pat Quinn said today he isn’t inclined to go along with a tax amnesty program to raise money for the cash-strapped state. […]
“We’ll look at anyone’s proposal, but I wouldn’t hold my breath,” Quinn said. “We already had one in 2003. You can’t have amnesties all of the time. After a while, people start to think just wait for the next amnesty.” […]
Quinn ducked a question about calling lawmakers into special session if they leave town without approving the income tax surcharge he wants for education. The legislature has set a May 7 adjournment date, but Quinn talked about continuing budget negotiations through the entire month.
He has a valid argument, but as I told subscribers last week, the Democratic leaders wanted to use that amnesty cash to help shield education from Quinn’s proposed cuts. And Quinn’s comments on negotiating the budget through the month of May looks ominous to Statehouse types who would rather not deal with this crud any more.
“The thing that we would like to see, if at all possible, is getting more money for education from Washington,” the governor said today after speaking to a group of park district executives in Springfield.
Illinois got about $1 billion last year from the federal government for schools but Quinn said “we have to be realistic” and not expect that much again.
* 1:04 pm - The governor also said he supports legislation that passed both chambers to tie gubernatorial candidates to lt. governor candidates in the primary.
* Woods Bowman has forgotten more about state budgets than most of us will ever know. Today he explains why a ten percent “across the board” state budget cut is actually much deeper than it appears…
Nearly a quarter of the state budget goes to Medicaid. The good news is that the federal government reimburses nearly half of this amount. That is also the bad news, because $2 of cuts are necessary to achieve $1 in savings, and federal law imposes lower limits on types of services and scope of coverage a state must provide to receive any federal reimbursement. Simply put, that means sick people receive fewer services and they remain sick and get sicker instead of better.
Another quarter of state spending goes to school districts and local governments. Cutting state spending in this area only pushes the problem onto the property tax - the dominant tax source at local levels. Cutting appropriations to state universities and scholarship aid, which are 4 percent of the budget, would force increases in tuition and parental contributions.
Ten percent of state spending goes for debt service and pensions that, as legal obligations, cannot be cut - period. Finally, nearly 8 percent of spending is for transportation, which is financed by taxes on gasoline, license fees and the like.
These objects of spending account for more than two out of every three dollars flowing through the budget. Thus a 10 percent budget cut translates into a 30 percent cut, more-or-less, in the remainder of the budget. This is why it would be unwise to try to cut our way out of the problem.
The most visible proponent of the ten percent across the board cut is, of course, Republican gubernatorial nominee Bill Brady.
* Speaking of Brady, his running mate has a new Internet video of college students talking about why they support Jason Plummer. Watch…
* Back to the session, there isn’t much faith out there that the General Assembly can adjourn by May 7th. Instead, as I’ve already told you, there’s an idea floating around to finish up the substantive issues by the 7th, then come back and do the budget…
“Do I believe that the General Assembly will recess May 7, or whatever that date is? Yes I believe they will,” [Sen. Dan Rutherford (R-Chenoa)] said. “Do I believe the budget will be put together properly? No I do not.”
But Sen. Toi Hutchinson, who is rapidly becoming one of my favorite freshmen for her reasonable outspokenness, is not enamored with the idea…
Hutchinson said this is just the latest excuse for lawmakers to push the state’s serious budget problems further down the road.
“The state of affairs in the state of Illinois, and the number of people that they affect should be priority No. 1…I’d like to keep working, but that’s not my call.”
* If you watched the video in a post below, you know that Speaker Madigan is still hopeful they can adjourn by the 7th, but doesn’t want to make any “mistakes” in any rush to get out of town…
* Related…
* Tribune: More kids, more choices: This is all far from a done deal. Opponents may have been caught by surprise by the strong approval in the Senate. We expect a tight vote in the House. And, unfortunately, an amended bill will have to go back to the Senate for another vote. That opens the door for more politicking. It makes this program vulnerable to getting lost in the rush to finish the legislative session.
* DH: Now is time for resolve, reason: But the solutions will not be found in demonizing the beneficiaries of a flawed system nor in lashing out defensively at the system’s critics. Solutions will come from doing what hasn’t been done - establishing firm standards on what constitutes a fair pension and how it will be paid for.
* Despite reforms, professor says Illinois pensions are still in crisis
During an interview Tuesday on WLS Radio in Chicago, Scott Lee Cohen said he’s weighing his options [about running for governor as an independent] and will make his decision sometime this week.
* The Question: Assuming he does gather 25,000 valid signatures (a big “if”), who should be his running mate? Explain.
Keep it clean, people. Let’s also confine these choices to Illinoisans who are still alive. But snark is heavily encouraged.
Rep. Jim Durkin, R-Western Springs, even said that if the Democratic plan winds up being added to the Illinois Constitution, Republicans might refuse to take part in the new system for drawing political boundaries.
“Be forewarned, be forewarned. That’s all I’m saying,” Durkin said. “If it comes to a constitutional crisis, so be it.”
So, if 60 percent of voters who vote on the question or a majority of voters who vote in the election approve the proposal, the Republicans wouldn’t go along? Really? Doubtful. Then again, it’s also doubtful that the Democratic proposal will make it to the ballot since the House Democrats don’t have the required three-fifths majority.
The debate turned heated on how the Fair Map Amendment would protect voting rights for minorities. [The League of Women Voters’ Chris Butler] said he took “strong offense” to the committee “parading as great defenders of minority rights.”
Raoul countered, saying African-Americans did not support the Fair Map Amendment during earlier redistricting hearings.
“Don’t bring tokens out here to defend something like that,” he said. “It’s insulting to my community as an African-American.”
* House GOP Leader Tom Cross, however, said he’d be open to changing his proposal, which is backed by the League of Women Voters and others, to provide more protections for minorities…
That sorta undercuts the argument by the League that their proposal isn’t strong enough on minority representation. And some wondered why the proposal wasn’t changed after Senate GOP Leader Radogno said she was open to changing it…
After the Republican plan was shot down in a Senate committee, Senate Minority Leader Christine Radogno, the sponsor of the amendment, said she would be willing to add more protection for minority populations. That was a major area of criticism from Democrats, and some supporters of “Fair Map” say it could be stronger on this point.
Radogno added that she thought concerns over diversity representation were not the real reason for Democratic opposition. She said Democrats’ true worry was the legislature losing its map-drawing power.
Yet the Republicans did not call what they perceived as the Democrats’ bluff today. The amendment they presented was identical to the one that stalled in the Senate, and many Democrats said their desires to protect minority voters played into their “no” votes.
“The question is, why do you not enhance the ability for communities of interest and minorities … to have their seat at the table,” said Rep. Lou Lang, a Democrat from Skokie.
* The House Republicans are planning to make a stink on the floor today after their redistricting proposal didn’t get out of committee. Speaker Madigan told my intern Barton Lorimor yesterday that he plans to call the Democratic proposal today…
Democrats have accused the League of cooperating with Republicans in exchange for financial support. Both Republican leaders – Rep. Tom Cross of Oswego and state Sen. Christine Radogno of Lemont – have made contributions from their campaign funds. The League’s executive director, Jan Czarnik, defended the organization’s decision to work with the GOP on the proposal.
“In my judgment, and I’ve been around here a long time as a public interest advocate, if the political situation were reversed the Democrats would be supporting our effort and the Republicans would be opposing our effort because this isn’t about ideology,” Czarnik said. “It’s about the power to draw the maps.”
No question that a lot of this is about politics, but the League undoubtedly blew it by not getting its ducks in a row on the minority represenation questions.
Curt Conrad, executive director of the Illinois GOP, said the party has raised more money in the first four months of 2010 than was raised in all of 2009 — when it collected more than $500,000.
“We’ve put in a little bit more of an aggressive approach to fundraising to support our candidates from the top of the ticket to the bottom of the ticket and we’re going to do what we can to make sure we get some wins this election,” he said.
Party officials have claimed to reporters that they’ve raised more cash in the first four months of this year than they did in all of last year at least three times in less than a week.
Their statements may be true, if you only confine yourself to the party’s Illinois campaign finance reports, which shows they raised about $533,000 in the first and second halves of the year for their state account.
But state parties usually immediately transfer most of their money into their federal campaign accounts. And, indeed, the IL GOP did send almost all of their ‘09 cash to their federal account numerous times during the first and second halves of last year.
However, the state GOP also raises money specifically for their federal account. The state party’s year-end FEC report shows they pulled in a little over $1.5 million in 2009.
Their latest federal account filing for this year (April 20th, 2010) shows they’ve raised $305,000.
In an apples to apples comparison, the Illinois Republican Party is actually way behind last year’s fundraising pace, at least in their reporting. Their April, 2009 filing shows they raised about $676,000. So, they have reported raising less than half the cash this year than what they reported raising at this point last year.
Unless they’ve got a ton of cash in their state account which they haven’t yet transferred over, “half” is not “more.”
Republican U.S. Senate candidate Mark Kirk won’t attend next month’s Illinois Republican Party fundraiser featuring Sarah Palin, campaign aides said Tuesday.
Instead, his aides said, the five-term North Shore congressman will be in Washington for House votes on May 12 when the former vice presidential candidate is scheduled to be in Rosemont raising money.
Kirk sought — but did not get — supportive words from Palin last fall during the Senate primary campaign. Palin was coming to Chicago to tape an episode of “The Oprah Winfrey Show,” and Kirk sent a memo asking Palin to “say something quick and decisive” in support of his campaign.
Neither Senate President John Cullerton nor House Speaker Michael Madigan are attending today’s presidential visit to Quincy for the exact, same reason. They have work to do. So, while this could make for an easy jab at Kirk, he needs to be in DC if he does have votes scheduled and not hanging around with Palin.
The White House is not trying to push [Democratic US Senate nominee Alexi Giannoulias] out of the race at the moment. They want to wait and see how the bank closure plays out. They assume that if Giannoulias drops steadily in the polls, he will get the hint, being ambitious but not to the point of blind arrogance.
Then the state’s 19 central committee chairs would decide the nominee. That’s where another Madigan — Michael Madigan, Lisa Madigan’s father — comes into play. He’s the party chair. And his principal concern is to hold on to his statehouse majority. He’s not the type of pol who’d be receptive to pressure from the White House.
There is one other matter. President Obama does not feel responsible for having created the morass from which the Illinois party must escape. So he does not particularly enjoy being told that he has to be the one with the rope doing the pulling. That said, if Giannoulias keeps his standing in the polls to within a few points of Mark Kirk, there’s a good chance that Obama will campaign for his old friend.
That’s all true. And with none of the crazy, breathless goofiness that we’re getting in most other reportage on this campaign.
State Rep. Deb Mell said she wants nothing more than to marry her partner of nearly six years in her home state of Illinois.
Mell — who six years ago turned to her father, Ald. Richard Mell, 33rd, to help her put a public face on families where a member is gay — plans to announce her engagement to Christin Baker on the House floor Wednesday.
“I want to spend the rest of my life with her, and I want to get married in Illinois,” Mell, D-Chicago, said Tuesday during an interview on WTTW’s ” Chicago Tonight” news program. “I mean, we could go to Iowa, and Iowa’s great … I went to school in Iowa. But you know what? It’s not the state where I represent, and it’s not the state where I grew up in.”
Mell, 41, said she hopes her announcement will spark public discussion about gay marriage in Illinois. Mell is Patti Blagojevich’s sister.
“I have to go to Iowa,” Mell said Tuesday, “a great state, but not where I grew up, not where my friends and family are.”
What will she tell her colleagues?
“That you can’t legislate who you love and can’t punish people for it,” she said. “That we are a regular couple, pay taxes, own a home, have a great belief in God.”
Baker, national director of arts and humanities for YMCA USA, will also be on the House floor Wednesday. It will be her 35th birthday.
And, Mell said, “She will be wearing my Mom’s ring.”
Margaret Mell died in 2006, but not before telling her daughter “how much she liked Christin.”
I wouldn’t read the comments if I were you. Man, newspapers really need to get a handle on their idiotic commenters.
The Illinois Department of Children and Family Services on Tuesday named an independent consultant to review the agency’s program for providing services to needy families who are not in the child welfare system, according to DCFS spokesman Kendall Marlowe.
Sources who should know say that former Illinois Department of Transportation Secretary Tim Martin is being pushed to become the new executive director of the Regional Transportation Authority.
The push is coming from Mayor Richard M. Daley, for whom Mr. Martin worked in the Chicago Department of Education and at Chicago Public Schools before becoming Rod Blagojevich’s transportation director.
It by no means is certain that Republicans on the RTA board are willing to sign onto this one. But we’ll see.
* Home sales have soared with federal incentive, but what happens after Friday?
Prices in the Chicago area fell 3 percent in February from a year earlier, but that was a major improvement from February 2009, when the annual decline was 17.6 percent.
That followed the Illinois Association of Realtors report that Chicago area home sales surged 37 percent the first three months of this year compared to a year ago.
* Homicide rate jumps in Chicago, Daley pushes for more gun control
Last month, Daley pressed the state legislature to pass a package that, among other things, would strengthen penalties for unlawful gun sales and ownership and require semiautomatic weapons to be stamped with more sophisticated tracking technology. The package is still pending.
Daley is also asking Congress to reinstate the federal ban on assault weapons, which expired in 2004.
The raid on Presidential Pavilion, 8001 S. Western Ave., was the latest in a series of unannounced visits as Madigan and her staff conduct broad safety checks at facilities that house high numbers of felons.
Madigan arrived at the block-square building shortly before 10 a.m. with almost 30 police and state officials. She went from room to room talking to residents and staff about conditions.
Cronin and Ramey both said Tuesday afternoon that a backlash from suburban mayors, however, prompted a proposed comprise. Ramey now is rallying support for an amendment that would allow mayors and township presidents to retain appointment power for six of the board’s 13 members.
For Extension, the fiscal year beginning July 1 and ending June 30, 2011, is going to be full of transition year: Multicounty units become effective July 1, 2011. Mailand believes core programs, like locally run 4-H and the master gardeners, won’t expand and will stay local.
