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Monday, May 3, 2010 - Posted by Rich Miller

* I just sent this e-mail to Bill Brady’s campaign spokesperson…

What does Sen. Brady intend to do with his business interests if he’s elected governor? Will he dispose of them, put them into a blind trust, continue to actively engage in the day-to-day operations?

* The Question: What do you think Brady should do with his various businesses if he’s elected governor? Explain.

66 Comments

Another way of looking at the budget choices ahead

Monday, May 3, 2010 - Posted by Rich Miller

* I suppose you could think that Democratic legislators are taking a gigantic risk by planning to adjourn this week without completely “solving” the state’s budget mess. The Tribune certainly does…

If legislators adjourn after doing so little, they’ll be asking citizens to oust them from office

Then again, if legislators cut $13 billion from the budget, or cut half of that and fill the rest of the hole with tax hikes, they’d actually be begging - not asking, begging - voters to oust them from office come November. That’s just reality. Look at the polls if you don’t believe me. The voters clearly do not want their taxes raised and they don’t want services cut. Period.

Last year, I wrote countless columns and blog posts favoring a tax hike and measured budget cuts. I stopped doing that when something happened during the primary campaign that made me rethink my position. Pat Quinn kept saying that if he won the nomination he would have a “mandate” to move his tax hike forward.

Quinn just barely won that primary but it made me stop and think. The last gubernatorial election was won by ten points by a guy who swore up and down to “never raise taxes on people.” Therefore, no public mandate exists to do that now. Period. And since the Democrats won, there is no mandate to cut services, either.

This election represents the clearest choice voters have had in decades. Tax hikes with smallish cuts or major cuts with no tax hikes? It’s not ideal, but I think we can probably muddle through another six or so months until election day to figure out which way the public wants to go.

On the other hand, this is obviously an emergency situation and allowing problems to fester any longer isn’t exactly ideal. Leaders are supposed to lead, after all.

But the Tribune so thoroughly botched its own attempt at coming up with solutions to close the budget hole that it has zero credibility now on this entire topic.

* And this stuff isn’t new, either. The Peoria paper takes a look back at an editorial it published in 1990…

First, the Legislature gave all the new revenues to localities, keeping none for services provided directly by the state, then increased the level of those services anyway. To do this, it spent more than it took in … because the previous year’s treasury had provided a nifty $266 million surplus. This time around, there is no surplus, and that puts state budget-making $266 million behind at the starting gate.

Secondly, the Legislature declared the new tax to be temporary, thrusting the issue of its renewal into the fires of an election year while rendering the schools and communities it was supposed to help powerless to plan sensible budgets.

Foresight tells us that Illinois is on the verge of making things worse. … While those who would succeed him preach about keeping taxes low, or cutting them, outgoing Gov. Jim Thompson proposes a budget which will be balanced only if (a) taxes go up and sports betting, which is still illegal, manages somehow to bring the state $30 million and (b) the state doesn’t pay its bills on time. Chances of the former are minimal, which just about ensures that the latter will occur on a grand scale.

The governor wants to postpone or ignore $349 million worth of due bills in fiscal 1991. He would “save” the state $246 million on paper by paying only 10 1/2 months of Medicaid and group insurance bills during the fiscal year and by delaying circuit-breaker refund payments by six weeks …

The tactics amount to deficit spending, technically forbidden in Illinois, but easy to get around in the short term. … Remember when corporations and citizens waited months to get their state tax refunds? When pharmacists, nursing homes and hospitals which cared for Medicaid patients were forced to borrow money to pay their own bills because the state wasn’t paying its? Do we want government to become the state’s biggest scofflaw again, and so soon?

* Related and a roundup…

* Makeshift Illinois budget could include pension IOUs: The state doesn’t have the $3.7 billion it owes to retirement systems in the upcoming fiscal year, so top Democrats are discussing a plan to make good by giving the systems bonds that pay off over eight years, documents and interviews show.< * Erickson: Election Day blocks any action on fiscal mess

* Lawmakers in Springfield Want to Bring Video Machines to Racetracks

* Quinn proposes property tax relief legislation

* With several budget options, legislators poised to borrow more, make cuts

* End is near? Lawmakers scramble for budget fix in final days

* Finke: Budget could be passed by Friday

* State schools chief paints dire funding picture

* SIU employees face insurance problems

* Private vendors, local businesses suffer as Illinois fails to pay its bills

* State owes millions to Twin City companies

* SJ-R: 2 budget ideas that could work

* Tribune: How it works

* Tribune: School vouchers vote: House must put kids first

* Bill could mean jail time for minors’ tattoos

* Hair-braiding bill offers regulatory compromise

* New Law Will Grant Illinois Adult Adopted Children Access to Their Birth Certificates

* Shaken-baby bill goes to governor

* Our View: Lawmakers give pedestrians a win in crosswalk fight

57 Comments

Walsh campaign appears to be imploding

Monday, May 3, 2010 - Posted by Rich Miller

* The wheels keep falling off Republican 8th Congressional District nominee Joe Walsh’s campaign. The latest began with an open letter from two top staffers who resigned…

We had to go public and announce our resignation from the campaign shortly following his choice to stay in the race. We came to this conclusion after doing some intense investigations into the lies that Joe had told us since October. Again we would like to apologize for unintentionally misleading supporters and voters throughout the primary process. If we would have known who the true Joe Walsh was, we never would have supported him. Don’t make the same mistake we made. Make sure you always question your candidate thoroughly.

They also posed a series of questions…

Ask about his drivers license and insurance ( If it has ever been suspended )

Ask him about his taxes ( If he owes the IRS )

Ask him about his questionable fundraising and accounting ( If he ever bounced checks )

Ask him if he ever inflated his donations in his FEC filings to make himself appear to have more money then he actually raised.

Ask him if he ever handled a firearm in his life ( Why he was anti gun in his past races )

Ask him what his opinion is of Obama and then why he would hire an ex Obama intern to be his Press Secretary.

Ask him if he has ever been evicted from his residency.

Ask him if he has ever had any court judgements or leans against him.

Ask him where the $28,000 he loaned his campaign came from after only making $41,000 last year and $25,000 the year before.( And ask him about his taxes again )

Yikes, man.

* The two told the Daily Herald that they planned to shut down Walsh’s campaign office on their own…

“We’re basically just done,” Walsh field director Richard Cape said. “Everyone is walking. We’ve just had it.”

Cape, Walsh’s former campaign manager, said he and fellow field director Ted Livengood are among the 200 volunteers who have left the campaign in recent weeks.

At 6 p.m. Sunday, Cape said, volunteers will “shut down” the 218 Barron Blvd. office, which opened just weeks ago. Cape has termed the event a “campaign kick out” party.

But the cops were called and the resigned staffers were foiled…

Police were called to Walsh’s Graylake campaign office Sunday afternoon after Cape and others went there to retrieve office equipment and other property they claim is theirs. They were not allowed in the campaign office, and officers told them it was a civil matter and they would have to go to court to settle their dispute.

The Lake County GOP Chairman didn’t ask for Walsh’s resignation, but they didn’t exactly give him a ringing vote of confidence, either…

But the Republican leadership in Lake County was concerned enough to meet for two hours Sunday behind closed doors to discuss Walsh’s future. They declined to ask him to step down.

“Joe Walsh is still our candidate, we’re not gonna get involved in a campaign dispute,” said Lake County Republican Party Chairman Bob Cook.

But when pressed on Walsh’s future, and how recent issues might affect the general election in November Cook said “We’re always concerned when there’s something that could hurt our chances of beating Melissa Bean in the General election.” He said it’s up to the voters to decide if those chances will be hurt if Walsh stays in the race.

Video…

* Other campaign stuff…

* Illinois Race Presents Peril for Durbin

* Schoenburg: Demuzio’s foe hires one of her aides

* News-Democrat: Winning is the only thing

* Local efforts on campaign reform mired in politics

32 Comments

*** UPDATED x8 *** Cohen set to announce plans to humiliate himself all over again

Monday, May 3, 2010 - Posted by Rich Miller

* It’s not like he can win, he’ll just extend the clown show. But Scott Lee Cohen is expected to announce a bid for governor today…

The man who voluntarily gave up his spot as Democratic nominee for lieutenant governor is expected to announce today that he will run for governor as an independent.

From his Facebook page…

Scott Lee Cohen will be making an announcement on Monday at 10:30 in front of the State of Illinois Building on the Randolph Street side. I would love to see you there and have your support!

The closest thing to a politician I can find who commented on or “liked” that post was Wanda Majcher, a Democrat who lost the 10th Senate nomination this past February. A yard sign maker also weighed in for him.

The governor isn’t worried…

Quinn says it’s a free country and Cohen is welcome to try to collect the necessary signatures to get on the ballot. The Chicago Democrat says he’s not worried Cohen could siphon away some of his support.

Who the heck would vote for him?

*** UPDATE 1 *** NBC5 is planning live video.

*** UPDATE 2 *** That video didn’t work for me and they’ve taken down the live vid post. This post, however, says he’s in, which is no surprise.

*** UPDATE 3 *** From an onsite pal. Click the photo for a bigger one…

*** UPDATE 4 *** Ha….

“I am running for governor because like the rest of the citizens of Illinois, I am tired of waste and mismanagement, which has led our state to the current financial instability,” Cohen said in a news conference outside Chicago’s Thompson Center this morning. “The people of this great state are suffering every day.”

*** UPDATE 5 *** More ha….

“Illinois needs honesty more than perfection” he said in a release. Campaign aides handed out white “Scott Lee Cohen for Governor” T-shirts.

*** UPDATE 6 *** More pics from our pal on the scene. Click for larger versions…

*** UPDATE 7 *** More quotes…

Cohen did not immediately announce a running mate and called for resumes during the press conference.

“We have several people that we are considering,” he said. “I have not made a decision.”

No running mate means he can’t circulate petitions.

This morning, Cohen deflected questions about his own qualifications by ungrammatically expressing doubts about Quinn.

“What is Quinn’s qualifications?” he asked reporters.

As far as we know, Quinn never tried to knife a hooker. Just sayin…

*** UPDATE 8 *** This will be one very small advisory committee…

Cohen reiterated that he would not advocate for a tax increase, and would organize a committee of small and large business owners to assist with fiscal policy.

96 Comments

Brady won’t go to Palin event, and the heat continues on his taxes

Monday, May 3, 2010 - Posted by Rich Miller

* A host of Republicans are planning to skip the state party’s $500 per person fundraiser featuring Sarah Palin next week, including GOP gubernatorial nominee Bill Brady…

Brady’s campaign won’t say why the candidate isn’t attending, only that he has no plans to be there.

GOP congressional candidates Randy Hultgren and Bob Dold aren’t gonna show, and neither will state Senators John Millner and Dan Duffy…

A photo with Palin could prove damaging to some Republicans running in suburban districts that have been trending more and more Democratic in recent elections, [Roosevelt University’s Paul Green] says.

And even for steadfast conservatives like Brady of Bloomington, there is little upside in publicly aligning himself with Palin even though he has been quietly making the rounds with suburban tea party groups for months.

* Speaking of Brady, the Northwest Herald was not happy with the gubernatorial candidate’s failure to provide copies of his tax returns…

His reluctance to release his tax records, however, was a poor decision, and the peek-a-boo nature of their release was an inadequate gesture for someone seeking the state’s highest office.

Brady wants to become the first elected Illinois governor in more than a decade who is not either in jail or under indictment. Secrecy is not a good way to start.

The more transparent the better. And besides, we just might learn something along the way.

* Finke focused on the non-payment issue…

It’s not that he did anything illegal. He just apparently took every advantage he could of the tax code written by the bad big government to reduce his tax obligation to zero.

Anyone who files a tax return does everything he or she can to minimize the tax hit. Most people, though, still end up paying something to the government. Even if you get a refund, it’s probably only for a small portion of the money withheld from your paycheck.

Quinn’s a populist from way back. It seems like he’s forever carped about giant corporations and fat cats and what have you. He shouldn’t have to break a sweat working Brady’s unique tax status into his campaign rhetoric

* And my syndicated newspaper column looked at it as well…

I was out with some political buddies the other night and the subject of Bill Brady’s taxes came up.

Just about everybody agreed that Brady should never have released his tax returns. All he did was make a bad situation worse, they said.

The Republican gubernatorial nominee released his returns four years ago when he ran for governor the first time. The returns showed he earned well into six figures and had lots of successful businesses. Nobody paid much attention at the time because Brady was an unknown state senator with little chance of winning the GOP nomination.

But when “tax day” came around this year, reporters asked the new nominee if he’d release his returns again. He said he wouldn’t, claiming that the last time his business suffered. Brady’s refusal sparked a few stories, but things really heated up when Gov. Pat Quinn stepped into the fray.

Quinn asked what Brady was hiding and demanded that Brady put the public interest before his private business interests. Brady eventually relented, but only to a point. He said he’d allow reporters to look at his returns for three hours that Friday afternoon in his Springfield campaign office. No copies would be distributed. Look only.

Chicago reporters were not amused. Not only would the returns be released 200 miles from their home base, but Brady had scheduled the unveiling around the same time that the family bank of Democratic U.S. Senate candidate Alexi Giannoulias was going to be seized by the Federal Deposit Insurance Corp. Brady was obviously trying to bury the story on a busy Friday, when it would get lost over the weekend.

Springfield-based reporters weren’t all that happy either. A glimpse of several years of complicated tax returns didn’t seem adequate.

But what we found was fascinating. Brady had declared so many losses on his businesses that he paid no state or federal income taxes at all for 2008 and no federal income taxes for 2009.

Also, the conservative Republican had used a tax break from President Barack Obama’s stimulus law to avoid paying federal taxes last year.

So, Brady was triple-troubled. He had most political reporters peeved at him and he handed them a story about not paying taxes on his state senate salary of about $75,000 a year. He had money to loan his campaign tens of thousands of dollars during that same time, but he chose instead to use a provision in the much-hated (by his Republican “base”) stimulus law to pay zero income tax.

So, instead of fading away into the weekend, the story kept going strong. Editorial boards and columnists weighed in. Reporters started combing through what they had for more tidbits, and in the meantime they wrote stories about Brady’s refusal to provide them with copies of his returns as Gov. Quinn had done. Something they haven’t written about yet is that Brady actually got a state income tax refund of more than $1,600 on what appears to be his withholding taxes on his Senate paychecks. Not good.

Brady told me last week that when his businesses started to wane as the economy tanked, he and his partners decided to go into the red rather than lay people off or shut down the companies. That’s honorable. If you have the cash to keep the businesses open, you should do what you can.

But Brady probably should’ve kicked a few bucks into the tax till for that legislative gig of his. At the very least, he should not have asked for a refund to bring his total tax bill down to zero. He had a right to the tax breaks he got, but he wasn’t required to do it.

Maybe my buddies were correct. Maybe Brady should’ve just mummed up and took the heat for not disclosing his returns. That story might’ve gone away in a few days. The resulting attack TV ad wouldn’t have been pleasant, but they would’ve been better than what we’ll see now: “Bill Brady funneled tens of thousands of dollars into his own campaign fund while he paid no income taxes on his legislative salary.” Oof.

Then again, I have to respect Brady for opening himself up to this hit, regardless of whether I agree with the rest of what he did. There’s no law (yet) requiring candidates to disclose their tax returns, but Brady swallowed hard and took his lumps. Now, if he’d just send us some actual copies of those returns …

Thoughts?

86 Comments

Morning Shorts

Monday, May 3, 2010 - Posted by Rich Miller

* Charged lawmaker may lose pharmacy license

State regulators have notified Stephens that his arrest, coupled with a prior disciplinary action, are grounds not to renew his pharmacy license when it expires next year.

Stephens was put on probation in 2001 for “habitually using controlled substances.”

* Ill. collects $100 million in late child support

* Records: Congressman put daughter up for her state job

Before he lent her $140,000 to buy an “affordable home,” U.S. Rep. Luis Gutierrez helped his daughter get a government job, according to records kept by former Gov. Rod Blagojevich’s administration.

Omaira Figueroa became a consumer counselor for the Illinois Commerce Commission in June 2004, after Blagojevich aides included her in the then-secret hiring database under a spreadsheet labeled “Gutierrez, Luis (CONG-D-4th Dist.)”

* Gutierrez no longer lives in his district

The U.S. Constitution doesn’t require congressmen to live in the districts they represent. The only residency requirement is this: They have to live somewhere in the state from which they are elected.

* Gutierrez arrested for immigration protest; explains on CBS “Face the Nation”

* Stroger charged own bills to county

The charges range from $30 to $400 and include a hotel stay in the West Loop as well as an “emergency” run to a clothing store to get a new dress shirt after he spilled food on another, sources said.

Though Stroger has reimbursed the county for the personal charges, some county commissioners say his use of the card should be investigated.

* Washington: Todd’s on way out; Tillman may return

* Sneed: Money, money: The Stroger file

Sneed hears rumbles Cook County Commissioner John Daley, who is flummoxed by rumors Stroger may have given pay increases to top aides despite a board resolution forbidding him to do so, plans to ask the Cook County comptroller and the director of human resources to rescind them.

* Daily Herald: Time for Todd Stroger to move on

* Daley: Market not good for Midway sale

Daley noted that London’s Gatwick Airport sold late last year for 1.5 billion pounds — about 300 million pounds less than anticipated.

A $2.5 billion deal to privatize Midway collapsed last year when funding dried up in the credit crisis.

* McCormick Place study calls for substantial change

James Reilly, who is advising lawmakers on how to reduce costs at McCormick Place, said he proposed putting the property under temporary control of a trustee. The trustee would legally have 18 months to find a private management firm to take over, he said.

Also, Reilly said he urged that the General Assembly approve work rule changes designed to lower the cost of staging conventions in Chicago. The proposal calls for eliminating the exclusive electrical service franchise at McCormick Place, called Focus One.

* State adviser wants McCormick Place privatized

* Top lawmakers get roadmap to revamp city’s sagging convention biz

* Wal-Mart To Go Before Committee This Week

* Sun-Times: Wind turbines in lake an idea worth study

* City needs $660 million more a year for pensions — for 50 years, report says

* CTA awaits word on federal funds for faster bus system

* ‘An awful lot’ of O.T. for Chicago cops

The city paid $18.5 million in police overtime in 2005, $33.8 million in 2006 and $37.1 million in 2009 — its highest in eight years, according to figures obtained by the Chicago Sun-Times in response to a Freedom of Information request.

Police officials attribute the enormous rise from 2005 to 2006 to officers landing a new contract with the city. Their 2006 paychecks included three years of retroactive pay increases.

The big jump in 2009 was partly because of a legal settlement that required $3.5 million in overtime payments to officers.

* Daley panel recommends more money, benefit cuts for city worker pensions

The changes are needed because there is only $10.9 billion in the city’s four pension funds — a shortfall of nearly $14.6 billion, states the report by the Commission to Strengthen Chicago’s Pension Funds.

Without changes, closing all but 10 percent of the gap would require that the city pay $710 million more a year into the funds starting in 2012. The city’s current budget is $6.1 billion, and in recent years Daley has tapped reserves to balance it.

* The most forgiving judges

A Tribune review of 2006 to 2009 cases found that Jordan ranks as the most forgiving judge in Cook, DuPage and Lake counties for drivers cited by state police for going 100 mph or faster….Jordan isn’t the only judge who has repeatedly given supervision to speeders cited for driving 100 mph or higher. Cook County Circuit Judge Jill Cerone-Marisie, based in Rolling Meadows, gave 52 supervisions. Her colleague, Cook County Associate Judge Larry Axelrood, handed out 36 in Skokie.

* New School Closings Policy: Loving What You Once Fought

* Illinois officials call Nicor pipe-repair plan overpriced, misleading

Ms. Madigan, along with the staff of the Illinois Commerce Commission, says the charge for Nicor’s ComfortGuard service, which covers the cost of repairing gas pipes within customers’ homes, far exceeds its benefits….More than 440,000, or 20%, of Nicor’s 2.2 million suburban customers pay $4.95 per month for ComfortGuard, according to the ICC staff filings. Nicor reaped a total of $26 million from the product last year while paying out only $600,000 in benefits, the filings allege.

* That Kane Co. tax bill may get your blood boiling

Residents in Kane County will feel, on average, about a 3 percent increase in their property taxes payable June 1 and Sept. 1.

How can this be, you say? The answer mostly goes back to the fact that even though most everything from the thickness of wallets to the waiting times at your local restaurant is down, the cost of taxing bodies providing their services is up.

* SouthtownStar: Yet again, CN angers residents

* Oswego approves budget; water rate to increase this summer

* Downers Grove posts strong census results

* Oak Lawn to get $40 million in low-interest loans to upgrade its water system

* Recall organizers rally against Buffalo Grove Trustee Lisa Stone

* Moline police chief wants more officers

* Raises for city employees decided tonight at R.I. Council meeting

* No raises in [Quincy] contracts; tentative agreements reached with four of six unions

* Washington fire chief wants fines for false alarms

After dealing with multiple false alarms, including three in less than 24 hours, at a Washington business this winter, Vaughn discovered there are no penalties in the city’s fire prevention ordinance for several false alarms caused by maintenance issues at the same location.

So he’s proposing adding fines to the ordinance. The fines range from $75 for the third false alarm to $750 for the 10th and additional false alarms at the same location over a 12-month period.

* McLean County contemplating layoffs, other cuts

* Pontiac Council to vote on wind turbines ordinance

The proposed ordinance would ban the building of wind farms in Pontiac, as well as within a 1.5 mile radius around the city limits. City Attorney Alan Schrock said the change would make sure the turbines did not hinder any potential growth.

* Tempers flare as East St. Louis OKs budget with 7 layoffs

* Fairview Heights mayor unhappy with budget; starts veto process

* Quinn proclaims Dick Biondi Day to honor DJ

* State fire officials offer safe grilling tips

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Monday, May 3, 2010 - Posted by Rich Miller

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