‘Some people just don’t know when their time is up,” I muttered to myself yesterday while watching Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak address his nation.
The media had reported beforehand that Mubarak would abandon his power. His speech said otherwise.
Heck, I thought to myself, even Mayor Daley knew when to quit.
It wasn’t all that long ago when lots of people “in the know” thought Daley would be mayor until he was hauled out of his 5th Floor office feet first. But his magic was no longer working. His parking meter deal destroyed his credibility as a manager. His Olympics bid failure wiped out his reputation as a superior player. He was done, and he knew it. Time to vamoose while the vamoosing was good.
Mubarak’s regime has always justified the civil liberties crackdowns and ever-escalating power grabs by telling the citizenry that they had two choices: Mubarak or those crazy fanatics in the Muslim Brotherhood.
Daley’s apologists played pretty much the same game: It’s either Daley or the city ends up like Detroit. It worked for both men for a very long time.
I don’t want to equate these two people. As much power as he’s had, Daley could never rival Mubarak for complete control. But while the boundaries are far different, the game is basically the same: Position yourself as the “Indispensable Man.”
It’s my guy or chaos.
Almost all truly successful politicians create this aura. Franklin Roosevelt did it so well he was elected to four terms.
Some, maybe even most, were actually indispensable at least part of their time in power. Even Mubarak served his purpose. But if you stick around long enough, the mistakes tend to catch up with you.
And that brings me to Illinois House Speaker Michael Madigan. He’s been one of the most powerful Illinois politicians for decades.
His members re-elect him time and time again because they believe he is their best and only hope for keeping the Republicans at bay. He also had a reputation in many circles for fiscal stewardship.
Madigan’s still quite adept at beating Republicans. He held onto the House during last year’s massive GOP tidal wave despite repeated attacks on him by the media and his Republican nemeses.
But after years of letting too many problems slide, combined with an international economic collapse, Madigan found himself forced to deal with a state budget mess of epic proportions.
While Daley surrendered in similar circumstances, Madigan has seemed to regain his footing. He muscled through an income tax hike which included some very real state spending caps and will force significant budget reforms.
Madigan is talking seriously about reducing pension benefits for current state employees. He’s pushing for some much-needed workers’ compensation changes. He backed some major education reforms. And he scolded his members this week for sponsoring bills which spend money the state simply doesn’t have.
Not to mention that the South Side Irish Catholic helped pass a civil unions bill and another measure to abolish the death penalty.
A whole lot of people disagree with much of what he’s accomplished. But my mantra for the last six years has been: “Always bet on nothing getting done at the Statehouse.”
I based that on Madigan’s refusal to really do much of anything. That’s obviously no longer true.
For now, at least, it looks like he’ll probably avoid Daley’s fate and go out on his own terms, whenever that may be.
- BSP II - Friday, Feb 11, 11 @ 1:37 am:
Great article. Although I have to take issue with you calling the Muslim Brotherhood “crazy fanatics”. A lot of people have argued that we can’t quite be sure what the MB will do, given their history, because they’ve never really been given the chance. “[T]he brother are a varied bunch, and more flexible than they were.” (The Economist) While their name may hint at fanaticism to an Anglo observer, that might be an unfortunate circumstance of sheer naming and having the opposition in charge for 20+ years. The majority and the minority have a history of producing villains. The Brothers may not be the answer in the end, but they’ve been waiting in the wings for so long that it might be prudent to give them an opportunity.
- shore - Friday, Feb 11, 11 @ 1:40 am:
The old washington saying is that the only cure for political ambition is embalming fluid, apparently there’s a Springfield corollary to that.
- Rich Miller - Friday, Feb 11, 11 @ 2:24 am:
===Although I have to take issue with you calling the Muslim Brotherhood “crazy fanatics”. ===
I was merely repeating the official Egyptian line to illustrate a point.
- You Can't Stop What's Coming - Friday, Feb 11, 11 @ 7:28 am:
It’s always been that Madigan is not so great, but that the ILL-GOPhers so inept.
- Gregor - Friday, Feb 11, 11 @ 7:35 am:
For the sake of argument, I’ll wager a Mel o Cream that Madigan retires after a successfully gerrymandered district remap, but not before.
- Richard Afflis - Friday, Feb 11, 11 @ 8:04 am:
Mike Madigan’s staying power has a lot to do with his incredible political prowess and the fact he is a legislator as opposed to Mayor Daley being an executive. The speaker knows this state very well and how to get things done.
Having said that, I believe he is stepping things up to set the table for a possible governor candidate who is also very astute and competent person- Lisa (if she wants to run). Hard decisions are being made right now and unpopular items like State retiree pension issues now so that they do not need to be done in 2015 or later.
- Yellow Dog Democrat - Friday, Feb 11, 11 @ 8:16 am:
Madigan has always been one of the most fiscally conservative Democrats…just ask Jim Edgar.
It’s not so much he’s against new spending or new ideas, just generally opposed to spending money the state doesn’t have.
Let’s not forget he backed an income tax increase to try to deal with the state’s structural budget deficit 14 years ago. If not for the Senate Republicans, we would be in much better financial shape right now, and our schools wouldn’t be in such deplorable shape.
That’s not to say Madigan hasn’t given in to the political pressures of his own party to spend more from time to time. The last budget enacted under George Ryan was based on some pretty wildly optimistic economic forecasts, and ended up some $600 million out-of-whack. That budget was also passed with broad bipartisan support.
As for when Madigan will retire, who can say? But if the Tribune really wants him to retire, my advice to their editorial board is to stop trying to force him out the door. I don’t have any personal insight, except that my dad was an Irish Democrat with a history that traces back through Chicago’s southside, and my old man didn’t like anyone telling him what he could or couldn’t do.
- thechampaignlife - Friday, Feb 11, 11 @ 8:33 am:
We Irish Catholics have been known to surprise!
- Renaldo - Friday, Feb 11, 11 @ 8:40 am:
Mike Madigan has finally decided to “dance off the stage” just like Mayor Daley finally did. They both knew that “the day of financial reckoning” had finally come and that they couldn’t keep putting it off for the next guy.
Mike Madigan is finally going to do what should have been done a long time ago so his daughter Lisa can run for governor and not have to be burdened with the mess. It probably is an astute political move for Lisa as well as for future Illinois Democrat Party candidates.
- wordslinger - Friday, Feb 11, 11 @ 8:41 am:
There’s been a lot of heavy lifting since the election, and seemingly more to come, that could give the impression there’s some legacy-building going on.
But it also could just be a function of finally having to deal with issues after the long siege of Blago and pre-election inertia.
Whatever Mike Madigan does, I doubt if it has anything to do with Lisa. She could have written her own ticket last year. She didn’t need his help to step up if she had wanted to.
- park - Friday, Feb 11, 11 @ 9:01 am:
I may be wrong, but I don’t see that Madigan has gotten incredible rich out of government. I know about his law firm and the property tax angle, but that’s no different that what Chicago alderman like Burke do on a regular basis. Even Emmanuel made several hundred K off fannie or freddie for no work because of his Clinton connections.
I’m an R and think that Madigan has way too much power (as an R I blame dem’s for letting that happen). But I just don’t see him as being dishonest.
- wordslinger - Friday, Feb 11, 11 @ 9:08 am:
– Even Emmanuel made several hundred K off fannie or freddie for no work because of his Clinton connections.–
I believe the ballpark figure is $18.5 million in two years from “relationship investment banking.”
- Anonymous - Friday, Feb 11, 11 @ 9:12 am:
Daley knew he couldn’t keep putting it off for the next guy? I haven’t seen any sign of that. Daley has put it off for the next guy. Made it worse by his asset sales.
- DuPage Dave - Friday, Feb 11, 11 @ 9:40 am:
I’ve grudgingly admired Madigan for years. He’s very smart and knows how to count votes. And he’s raised a daughter who’s a heck of an attorney general.
But now he’s coming after my pension and I am incredibly ticked off. He’s intelligent enough to know that state employees pay their share of the pension cost twice per month, which the State pays only part of its share whenever it feels like it.
Blaming the workers for this mess is inexcusable and unforgivable. Madigan’s irrational hatred for what he perceives to be the Chatham crowd is affecting thousands of state workers who, like me, have voted Democrat all their lives. Some gratitude, Mike.
Somebody please talk some sense into this guy.
- mokenavince - Friday, Feb 11, 11 @ 9:49 am:
Madigan is buy far the smartest of the trio.Cullerton & Quinn are back benchwarmers.He will get things done so Lisa, can defeat Quinn.The man never stops thinking.
- Ronald McFirbank - Friday, Feb 11, 11 @ 9:49 am:
God, watching Obama flounder with the end of a corrupt dynasty in Egypt, I really wish he’d had experience in dealing with the same thing at home… by running for mayor this year. 4 or 8 years in that job and he might actually have been qualified at the end of it for the one he has now.
Likewise, Emanuel is likely to finally find some rough justice in a job where every time something goes wrong, he can’t go leaking to the press about how he would have done it better than his boss….
- wordslinger - Friday, Feb 11, 11 @ 10:06 am:
–God, watching Obama flounder with the end of a corrupt dynasty in Egypt, I really wish he’d had experience in dealing with the same thing at home… by running for mayor this year. 4 or 8 years in that job and he might actually have been qualified at the end of it for the one he has now.–
Yeah, all you have to do is wave a magic wand and you can dictate outcomes to an iron-fisted dictator who still has the backing of the army in a land thousands of miles away. History has proven that.
- Obamarama - Friday, Feb 11, 11 @ 10:18 am:
===Yeah, all you have to do is wave a magic wand and you can dictate outcomes to an iron-fisted dictator who still has the backing of the army in a land thousands of miles away. History has proven that.===
Word, everyone knows the President was born in Kenya. He should have more clout over there, right?
- middle - Friday, Feb 11, 11 @ 10:30 am:
To S Simon…with all respect.
1. A defendent is found guilty of murder.
jury vote 12-0
2. Hearing held to determine weather defendent should be considered for the DP.
jury vote again… must be 12-0
3. Hearing (evidence presented)held on the determination of receiving the DP
jury vote again 12-0
Since most of the public, including President Obama supports the death penalty on a limited basis… how come there are no press stories pro-death penalty?
- Bill F. - Friday, Feb 11, 11 @ 10:38 am:
Let’s not forget - an iron-fisted dictator willing to work with the US and Israel in a region where the US and Israel are ill-regarded.
- wordslinger - Friday, Feb 11, 11 @ 10:43 am:
–how come there are no press stories pro-death penalty?–
There have been plenty. Recent stories with supportive statements by the Dugans, Daley, Bill Brady, state’s attorneys and Rolando Cruz, of all people, come to mind.
That’s even without benefit of the google, which I’m sure could help you out.
No conspiracy, unless you want to see one.
- wordslinger - Friday, Feb 11, 11 @ 10:46 am:
AP reports Mubarak has stepped down and the military is in charge.
- Bill Baar - Friday, Feb 11, 11 @ 11:18 am:
It’s my guy or chaos.
I’ve heard that case made on voting for Rahm too. Something along the lines of he’s a tough guy to run a tough city. I’d like to think Chicagoans and Egyptians beyond the need of a strong-arm if they ever needed one to begin with.
- middle - Friday, Feb 11, 11 @ 11:44 am:
Thanks wordslinger… must be my bias coming out.
- amalia - Friday, Feb 11, 11 @ 12:15 pm:
@Wordslinger, actually, there are relatively few stories about those in favor of the death penalty. and, no, I don’t have to use the Google to know this. this is not a surprise, since the Chicago Tribune has been on a crusade against the death penalty for quite some time. Stories about prosecutorial misconduct skew statistics. Editorialist wins a Pulitzer on the work of Maurice Possley. we constantly hear what one paper wants on the death penalty. leaves little room in the media when one paper is clearly on one side.
anyone note the jaw dropping comments of Sr. Helen Prejean on WTTW the other night? Not only is she against the death penalty, she questions whether 25 years in prison for someone with three strikes is a good thing for society. incredible.
- 47th Ward - Friday, Feb 11, 11 @ 12:43 pm:
amalia,
Generally speaking, stories in favor of the status quo aren’t really “news.” By definition, when a serious proposal is made to change something as important as this, it is newsworthy, and the coverage reflects that. It isn’t bias. It’s how the news business works.
As for Prejean’s comments, I think what she was getting at is that mandatory minimum sentences can have troubling real world applications and do not necessarily serve the public interest. I think a strong case can made to toss out the three strikes laws and return sentencing to judges.
- middle - Friday, Feb 11, 11 @ 1:20 pm:
–47th ward–
Oh.. ok as I said my bias is coming out. But wait…Let’s examine your opinion. We would all agree that the proposed conceal and carry gun law is against the staus quo. So those in favor should get all the coverage… need I go on with more examples.
- Anonymous - Friday, Feb 11, 11 @ 1:41 pm:
I always liked these lines from Viva Zapata!:
“A strong man makes a weak people.
Strong people don’t need a strong man.”
That relationship between weak and strong certainly has been the M.O. in the Illinois House.
- 47th Ward - Friday, Feb 11, 11 @ 1:46 pm:
middle,
I guess I wasn’t clear. If the General Assembly advances legislation to allow concealed carry, that would be news. You would expect to read about the proposal from the time it was introduced through each step of the legislative process until it is signed in to law.
And no, that doesn’t mean that editorials and columns, which are news-related opinion, would necessarily support concealed carry or any other examples you can come up with.
What we’d hope for, is that the news coverage wasn’t slanted because of the opinions of some on the editorial board. And we’d hope that reporters covering it would interview those with views on all sides of the issue and present an accurate portrayal to the public.
So far, in almost every news article I’ve read recently, those in favor of keeping the death penalty in Illinois have been included in the coverage. Unlike you and amalia, I don’t believe these views are being neglected.
- Responsa - Friday, Feb 11, 11 @ 1:47 pm:
Amalia– I must agree with you about your observations regarding the WTTW interview of Sr. Prejean by Carol Marin. I have followed the Sr’s movement for years and have always believed it to be rooted in her sincere search for humanity and the practice of it. She came across in that interview perilously close to a blinded ideologue leading a crusade in which she has almost completely lost touch with the humanity that crime victims and their families are also due.
- amalia - Friday, Feb 11, 11 @ 1:56 pm:
of course the news coverage at the Tribune has been slanted. it’s not just about the recent proposal on the death penalty, they have been on a crusade against the death penalty FOR YEARS. when did Cornelia Grumman win her Pulitzer for the editorials on the death penalty? Years ago.
I don’t have all the articles committed to memory, but there is just much more on the anti side of the death penalty. and lots of anti prosecution bias, although less so now that Maurice Possley is gone from the Tribune.
some of it is understandable….it’s warm and fuzzy to talk about saving someone. the death penalty is, and should be, a horrible thing. but it’s horrible for a reason…..the evil ones deserve it. that makes it a not nice topic to discuss. not nice to detail the physical causes of death of a victim in graphic details, including photos, in a mainstream newspaper. photos of a defendant with a claim of being hit by a cop? sure, looks really bad. (and, yes, I agree, police brutality is a horrible thing.)
but the photos of a baby and a 6 year old child, both raped and tossed from a porch and left for dead, a death eligible case in Chicago from the 1980s, not so much. but that is part of the story that the public doesn’t get to see. and stories of brutality
occur every day in Chicago.
besides the death penalty, we should be talking more about sexual assault victims. enough of helping defendants. lock them up.
- Rich Miller - Friday, Feb 11, 11 @ 2:05 pm:
amalia, I agree with you that the truly awful ones really do deserve to die. I would’ve had no problem pulling the switch on Gacy, for instance.
The problem is, I would also have eagerly pulled the switch on convicted child abducter/rapist/murderer Rolando Cruz after his first trial.
- wordslinger - Friday, Feb 11, 11 @ 2:08 pm:
Amalia, I simply don’t believe there’s any media repression of opinions in favor of the death penalty. I read them all the time.
There’s a story about Rolando Cruz being in favor of it, for crying out loud. If that’s not Man Bites Dog, I don’t know what is.
The problem in Illinois, of course, is that we found out after all the alleged justice system safeguards had been employed and “worked,” many convicted by a jury tried and true were still heading to a date with a lethal needle for crimes they didn’t commit.
You can weep for victims and run the gamut of emotions all you want, but until you apply reason to solve that problem, you run the risk of state murder.
- Middle - Friday, Feb 11, 11 @ 2:17 pm:
Rich and wordslinger…
Good then we are all in agreement. Governor Quinn needs to veto the bill and appoint a special commission to reform the death penalty. During this period the moritorium is allowed to continue. With all of the latest technology avaliable the commission can apply “reason” and ensure that justice is meted out by the jury on extreme cases.
- Rich Miller - Friday, Feb 11, 11 @ 2:19 pm:
Middle, the cops and the state’s attorneys stonewalled for years on truly reforming the death penalty. I doubt they’ll start now. They had their chance at the table.
- Middle - Friday, Feb 11, 11 @ 2:21 pm:
Rich
That is a fair point.
- jim - Friday, Feb 11, 11 @ 2:25 pm:
Daley has been a huge contributor to the pension crisis. He helped to balance his budget by allowing 50-year olds to retire and never took any action to attempt to increase city employees contribution level until it is almost too late, in fact he still hasn’t done anything with non-CPD and CFD employees contribution level. Now he is leaving a financial disaster in his wake and the City CLub, Economic Club, etc. are treating him like he is a retiring hero. Deplorable.
- Responsa - Friday, Feb 11, 11 @ 2:28 pm:
== but until you apply reason to solve that problem, you run the risk of state murder==
Word, would you have objected to a continuation of the existing moratorium while the system’s safeguards were enhanced and the law could be changed to reflect fail safes–very specific and very limited circumstances under which the penalty could actually be carried out against the worst of the worst? I believe this is the sort of approach and “reason” that law enforcement, prosecutors, and a great many citizens who certainly do not sanction “state murder” felt was the better way to “solve the problem”. Not outright ban.
- Responsa - Friday, Feb 11, 11 @ 2:36 pm:
=I doubt they’ll start now. They had their chance at the table.==
Yes, they certainly stonewalled. But I guess I am less cynical than you about their willingness to come to the table now–considering the amazing advances in analyzing physical evidence, and considering the alternative of losing the DP entirely and forever.
- Rich Miller - Friday, Feb 11, 11 @ 2:36 pm:
Responsa, the horse is out of the barn.
- Rich Miller - Friday, Feb 11, 11 @ 2:39 pm:
Also, with the new GA sworn in, the votes don’t exist to pass this repeal again. The opponents surely know that. Why they would suddenly negotiate huge changes now is a mystery to me.
- wordslinger - Friday, Feb 11, 11 @ 2:39 pm:
–and considering the alternative of losing the DP entirely and forever.–
You know, Responsa, you surprise me (while I eat an orange). If history has taught us anything, nothing is forever.
The U.S. Supremes outlawed the death penalty back in the day. Didn’t last.
- amalia - Friday, Feb 11, 11 @ 4:17 pm:
I don’t believe that Anita Alvarez has had enough time in office to be accused of not taking her chance to come to the table on the death penalty. In addition to being the State’s Attorney of one of the largest counties in the nation, she is, or was, the President of the Chicago Bar Association, collaborative and smart. Quinn should give Anita a chance to bring folks to the table. She has testified in favor of the death penalty. Now that she’s done with her budget crisis, phone her Pat, she’s smart.