Question of the day
Thursday, Sep 13, 2012 - Posted by Rich Miller
* Illinois Republican Party Chairman Pat Brady touted Congressman Aaron Schock for governor the other day…
Brady gave strong hints to Congressman Aaron Schock running for governor in 2014. “
I think Aaron impressed a lot of people down there both in the media world and delegates, the activists. Very serious guy, very good, gave one of I thought one of the best if not the best speech to the delegation. Tell you what, he would be a tough guy for Pat Quinn to beat. He’s young, he’s smart, he’s energetic, raised a lot of money, ” Brady said.
He said he can’t comment on if he’s had a discussion with Schock about running because that is up to Schock to discuss publicly. Brady believes Schock would help mobilize the young voters.
* But Schock has some vulnerabilities…
An Illinois congressman eying a potential 2014 run for governor drew criticism Wednesday from a left-leaning, campaign-finance watchdog for allegedly improperly soliciting a donation and using campaign funds for personal use.
U.S. Rep. Aaron Schock was one of two Illinois lawmakers targeted by Citizens for Responsibility and Ethics in Washington (CREW) in its “Most Corrupt Members of Congress” report, which also took aim at Sen. Mark Kirk (R-IL). Thirteen Republicans and seven Democrats made the group’s list.
In zinging Schock with a “dishonorable mention” in its list, CREW accused him of improperly soliciting a donation to a super PAC and using his political funds for a stay at a five-star hotel in Greece and for home exercise DVDs.
“Rep. Schock’s naïve disregard for campaign finance regulations reflects discreditably on the office he holds,” CREW Executive Director Melanie Sloan said in a prepared statement. “The only reason he’s been able to avoid accountability is the sheer ineptitude of the Federal Election Commission.”
A call and email to Schock’s spokesman Wednesday was not returned.
CREW cited a report by Roll Call that alleged Schock asked House Majority Leader Eric Cantor (R-VA) to contribute $25,000 to an anti-incumbent super PAC called the Campaign for Primary Accountability to help U.S. Rep. Adam Kinzinger (R-IL) oust 10-term incumbent U.S. Rep. Donald Manzullo (R-IL) in last March’s primary.
Federal election law permits $5,000 contributions on such requests.
The group also slammed Schock for billing his campaign for $154,466 in questionable expenditures in 2008 and 2010, including a stay at a five-star luxury hotel in Greece and a series of P90X workout DVDs.
“Rep. Schock needs to work less on his abs and more on following the law,” Sloan said.
Ouch.
* And here’s what the Club For Growth’s Andy Roth has to say about Schock…
He’s a very liberal Republican. The reason he decided to go with Kinzinger is because they are two peas out of the same pod. Schock on our scorecard only got a 44%, which is a flunking grade for anybody. Unfortunately, Schock is a young guy in his early 30s as is Kinzinger but they are trying to portray themselves as the next generation of Republicans in Illinois. Awful way to reenergize the GOP.
With regard to the FEC complaint against him, Schock admitted to his crime in the press. He said he would support Kinzinger against Manzullo and he wanted Cantor’s help so he went to Cantor and said Cantor please give $25,000 to the Campaign for Primary Accountability and by doing that he broke the law. As a lawmaker, you cannot solicit for more than $5,000.
Clearly, they [Cantor and Schock] are targeting conservatives because they have impeded leadership’s ability to pass large spending bills with liberal Democrats. We saw that with the debt deal last year and earlier this year with the highway bill. We will see it again this year with the farm bill.
* The Question: Should Aaron Schock run for governor? Take the poll and then explain your answer in comments, please.
I would also ask that Congressman Schock and all other interested parties to please refrain from e-mailing their supporters and asking them to vote in this poll. Thanks.
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One revenue speed bump fixed, others pop up
Thursday, Sep 13, 2012 - Posted by Rich Miller
* The first video gaming license has been issued…
Mary Callisen had just wrapped up her Wednesday lunch shift at the Bringer Inn in Morton Grove when the waitress walked to a back room, perched on a stool and slipped $20 into a blinking video gambling machine.
“This is going to eat my money real fast,” Callisen joked midway through a hand of electronic poker. “But it’s fun.”
The neighborhood tavern became the first in Illinois to offer legalized video gambling when state regulators brought its five machines online late last week as part of a test to make sure a centralized computer system is working correctly before a statewide rollout that’s been more than three years in the making.
Video gambling is expected to go live at bars, restaurants, truck stops and fraternal organizations in a matter of weeks, according to an Illinois Gaming Board spokesman.
“We are in the preliminary phase now,” said spokesman Gene O’Shea, who added that more testing sites will come online in the coming days. As of Wednesday, machines were making legal payouts at two locations — Bringer Inn and Opsahl’s Tavern in Rockford.
* But Chicago’s speed cameras won’t be deployed for months because of a big problem with state law…
A quirk in Illinois traffic laws has complicated Mayor Rahm Emanuel’s plan to pepper the city with speed cameras and slowed down bidding on a multimillion-dollar system scheduled to begin issuing $100 tickets by early next year.
The problem: a 38-year-old opinion by the Illinois attorney general that says children must be “visibly present” before school zone speed limits can be enforced.
What that means is those robotic safety-zone cameras must not only capture high-definition images of speeding cars and their license plates, they also must seek out and photograph a child as much as a football field’s distance away — preferably in the same shot.
The legal technicality was not addressed when Emanuel persuaded state lawmakers and Chicago aldermen to quickly give City Hall authority to tag speeders near schools and parks in new safety zones that could cover half the city. The mayor argued that a crisis of pedestrian accidents required a quick response, though a Tribune analysis raised doubts about his claims.
Now the bidding process has revealed the complication, which presents both technological and legal issues.
Heh.
* And now this…
The private firm that runs the Illinois Lottery should not have to pay roughly $25 million in potential penalties for failing to meet profit targets in its state contract, according to an independent mediator.
Two years ago Northstar Lottery Group LLC won an intense bidding war to run the multibillion-dollar lottery by promising substantially higher profits than its competitor did. It was the first contract of its kind in the nation, now being emulated by Indiana and other states to boost performance.
Though the lottery’s profits improved last year, the Chicago-based firm fell at least $50 million short of projections, triggering a penalty equal to half the difference. Under its private management agreement (PMA) with the state, the firm gets a bonus if it exceeds the profit target, on top of other payments and incentives.
But after months of deliberations, an independent mediator has tentatively decided that “certain actions by the state” entitled Northstar to adjust its profit targets down by $55.6 million in the year ended June 30, substantially reducing or perhaps eliminating any penalties it may owe. The mediator also said Northstar could reduce this year’s profit target by $20.2 million.
This was a preliminary ruling and the state is pressing hard to get the mediator to change his mind. If not, court action is likely.
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*** UPDATE *** From Durbin spokesman Max Gleischman…
“If I had to chase down every blind rumor about Senator Durbin’s future plans, I’d be able to beat Paul Ryan in a marathon.”
He adds…
Senator Durbin said last week at the DNC that he’s planning to run for reelection - Durbin: “I’m planning to run for re-election but I’ll make my final decision next year. I love this business and I love this state and I’ll match my schedule with any elected official in our state. I cover it from one end to the other every time I get home. I draw energy from it.”
So, there you go.
[ *** End Of Update *** ]
* This was apparently the big rumor being passed around by Democratic National Convention attendees…
A top Dem source tells Sneed that U.S. Sen. Dick Durbin, who has held his post for almost two decades, may be eyeing a Cabinet post as U.S. transportation or labor secretary if President Barack Obama is re-elected.
* I’ve asked the Durbin folks for a comment. But the last time Sneed wrote that Durbin might not run again, back in June, Durbin’s office sent me this…
Rich – Senator Durbin has answered this question a number of times in the last few months and his answer hasn’t changed:
Press Conference – 1.3.12: “My political future? I am exactly halfway through my term. So I have three years before I would be standing for reelection. I have not made any decision on this. If you ask me today, I’d say I’m announcing for reelection. But, at some point I will sit down with my highest counsel of advisors in my life, which would be my wife, and we will make a decision. But I enjoy the job and hope to continue doing it for a long, long time.”
Chicago Tonight – 10.10.11:
Q: Got to talk a little politics here. So, Senator Durbin, I’ve been hearing that in 2014, you’re not going to run again.
Durbin: Well, that’s just plain wrong.
Q: Is it?
Durbin: Where have you been hearing that Carol?
Q: You know, I’ll go back to those people and tell them that.
We’re two-and-half years away from the 2014 election and have five months left in the current campaign. One election at a time.
I’ll let you know if a new comment arrives.
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No, Hugo, they’re not “supremely unhappy”… Yet
Thursday, Sep 13, 2012 - Posted by Rich Miller
* Hugo Lindgren is the editor of the New York Times Magazine and was a guest on the cable news show “Now with Alex Wagner” yesterday. Lindgren had this to say about the Chicago teachers strike…
What I’m guessing Rahm is betting on the thing that will resolve this, the power of the Chicago parents association. Which I’m guessing is supremely unhappy day three of their schoolchildren, I think they’re getting baby sat four hours a day and then let out into the, you know, to … where.
Video is here.
This is why I hate cable TV “news” shows. Even prestigious people from top notch publications way too often make themselves look like idiots when they blather on topics they know nothing about.
* As subscribers already know, I commissioned a poll by We Ask America of 1,344 voting Chicago households yesterday. I’m not going to get into too many details, because it’s subscriber-only.
But the poll asked parents who have children attending Chicago public school whether they approved or disapproved of the strike. 66 percent of those parents approved of the CTU strike. Just 31 percent disapproved.
The majority of folks who opposed the strike were either white or had kids in private school.
Parents and the community almost always rally around school teachers at the beginning of a strike, almost no matter where it is. People have strong connections to their teachers, and they tend to back the teachers at the start of job actions. That wears off as strikes wear on, but it should be no surprise that parents (and the Chicago public at large, for that matter) currently support the strike.
* The CTU has sent out a press release about the poll…
According to Capitol Fax, an influential political report that covers state politics, “Chicago teachers have a strong majority of Chicagoans behind them, according to a new poll. Also, an overwhelming majority of Chicago parents with public school students support the strike, the poll found. And strong pluralities blame Mayor Rahm Emanuel.”
Conducted by We Ask America, the poll of 1,344 voting Chicago households asked, “In general, do you approve or disapprove of the Chicago Teachers Union’s decision to go on strike?” 55.5 percent said they approved and 40 percent disapproved. Another 4 percent had no opinion. The poll has a margin of error of +/- 2.8 percent,” according to Rich Miller, the report’s publisher.
Miller also noted:
(CTU) support jumped to 66 percent among parents of public school children. Less than a third of those parents, 31 percent, disapproved of the strike, according to the poll. Among people with no school-age children, 51 percent approved of the job action, while 44 percent disapproved.
A very strong 63 percent of African-Americans polled approved of the strike, while 65 percent of Latinos expressed approval. Women and men almost equally approved of the strike - 55 percent of women and 56 percent of men.
Asked who they thought was “most to blame” for the strike, just over 34 percent pointed their finger at Mayor Rahm Emanuel, while 29 percent blamed the Chicago Teachers Union and 19 percent blamed the school board. In other words, a solid majority blames management, one way or the other.
But almost a majority, 48 percent, of Latinos blamed Mayor Emanuel, as did 33 percent of African-Americans, 42 percent of parents of public school children and 40 percent of parents of school-age children. All age brackets except those aged 55-64 blamed Emanuel the most, with 50 percent of 18-24 year olds pointing their finger at hizzoner, as well as 41 percent of 35-44 year olds.
Discuss.
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AFSCME picket attempt foiled by no-show Quinn
Thursday, Sep 13, 2012 - Posted by Rich Miller
* AFSCME sent out this press release Tuesday night…
AFSCME MEMBERS TO PICKET GOV. QUINN SPEECH IN SPRINGFIELD
Governor scheduled to address Digital Government Summit at Crowne Plaza Hotel
Frontline state employees represented by AFSCME Council 31 will demonstrate at 8:15 a.m. tomorrow (Wednesday, Sept. 12) outside the Crowne Plaza Springfield (3000 South Dirksen Pkwy.) where Governor Pat Quinn is scheduled to address the Illinois Digital Government Summit.
Union members will form a “Pat Quinn Truth Squad” to picket and leaflet against the governor’s false claims about public employee pensions, his push for nearly 4,000 layoffs and his efforts to weaken workers’ right to collective bargaining.
* But the governor was a no-show, and AFSCME claimed it had scared him off…
The state’s largest employee union said Wednesday that Gov. Pat Quinn canceled a speech after learning rank-and-file workers would be protesting outside the event.
A spokeswoman for the governor, however, said the claim by the American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees was “not true” because the governor had taken the appearance off his schedule two weeks ago.
Wednesday’s disagreement was just the latest wrinkle in the escalating standoff between the union and the Chicago Democrat. The two have locked horns over the governor’s plan to cancel raises, close facilities and lay off thousands of workers.
In August, AFSCME protesters dominated Governor’s Day at the Illinois State Fair, drowning out a welcoming speech by the governor and surrounding him as he ate a pork chop sandwich.
* It turns out, Quinn’s office was right…
“We were told two weeks ago that he had a conflict and surely wouldn’t be able to speak,” said Jack Mortimer of Government Technology Magazine, which organized the summit. “But our program guide had already gone to print.”
The program guide listed Quinn as delivering opening remarks first thing Wednesday morning as the conference got under way.
However, that’s not where AFSCME learned that Quinn was scheduled to speak. Jeff Bigelow, regional director for AFSCME Council 31, said the union learned of Quinn’s appearance from the web site devoted to the summit. As of Wednesday morning, the site still listed Quinn as giving opening remarks beginning at 8:45 a.m.
“He’s been advertised as showing up there for weeks and weeks,” Bigelow said. “It’s clear to me, from talking to the person who was running the show there, that they knew he was scheduled to give opening remarks and the fact that they called and said they were not doing it at seven (Tuesday night) shows there was a scheduling.”
Or hopeful thinking on his part, Mortimer said.
“We kept him on the web site in hopes that maybe a miracle would happen and his schedule would change, but it didn’t,” Mortimer said. “I didn’t find that for sure until (Tuesday night). I said is there any hope and they said ‘Nope. It’s still the same situation.’”
* Here’s the leaflet that about 50 AFSCME protesters distributed outside the event. Click the pic for a larger pdf image…
* Some photos provided by AFSCME…
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*** UPDATE 1 *** There’s a huge union rally planned for Saturday, so maybe that played into it a bit?…
Chicago Teachers Union President Karen Lewis said Thursday that it would be “highly unlikely” that students will return to school Friday but was more hopeful for Monday.
“I’m praying, praying, praying. I’m on my knees for that,” Lewis said about students’ return to school Monday.
Casting doubt on a return to school for students by Friday, Lewis questioned if there was enough time to go through all the details that both sides still need to address Thursday and then get it to the union’s House of Delegates for the necessary vote to end the strike.
*** UPDATE 2 *** Tribune…
As negotiations began this morning between the Chicago Teachers Union and Chicago Public Schools, the two sides said they were still confident of reaching an agreement today but were divided on how soon classes can resume.
On a scale of 1-10, Chicago Teachers Union President Karen Lewis said “I’m a 9″ on a deal being reached today. But she said classes may not resume until Monday because the union’s House of Delegates would have to approve ending the strike.
“We’re hoping we can tighten up some of the things we talked about yesterday. . .and get this thing done,” Lewis told reporters.
[ *** End Of Updates *** ]
* Sun-Times…
Two sides in the battle to end a Chicago teachers strike emerged from Wednesday night talks hopeful that students might be back in school Friday.
CTU President Karen Lewis said her message to parents was “for sure, plan for something for your children for [Thursday]. Let’s hope for Friday.’’
School Board President David Vitale agreed. He called the talks “very productive” and said “we’ll hope for Friday.”
After a long day of talks that ended around 11:30 p.m., Lewis said the system’s offer on teacher evaluations, a key stumbling block, had improved to the point that “I’m smiling. I’m very happy.’’
Although she was not ready to check it off her list, “it’s a lot better,’’ Lewis said.
* Tribune…
The progress was reported after Chicago Public Schools officials presented a revised contract proposal to the union on Tuesday and it was reviewed and discussed during talks Wednesday.
Under the proposal, teacher raises would be structured differently, as requested by the union; evaluations of tenured teachers during the first year could not result in dismissal; later evaluations could be appealed; and health insurance rates would hold steady if the union agreed to take part in a wellness program.
The new proposal also removes the district’s ability to rescind raises because of an economic crisis. The board stripped teachers of a 4 percent raise last year, sparking union distrust of the mayor.
The issues of recall and how to evaluate teachers have been cited as crucial in recent days, while there has been little if any debate over a proposed salary boost that would average 16 percent over four years.
Interesting.
* On to the live coverage. BlackBerry users click here. Everybody else can just watch..
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