* Even though comments are now closed, you can continue voting for best House members throughout the weekend. You won’t be able to see the comments, but I will.
* No video this week. Today’s horrible shootings in Connecticut make musical joy seem almost vulgar.
The Supreme Court finally allowed cameras in the courtroom this year and Tybor has been everywhere working with media and judges to make the experiment work. He’s getting good coverage for the court, but also helped develop a working cameras policy in Illinois. No one else has had as much influence as a spokesman.
Tybor’s work will have a lasting impact on Illinois, so he wins hands down.
* Runner-up is John Patterson with the Senate Democrats…
He “came over to the dark side” from a successful career in journalism, so he understands how reporters tick. That’s been invaluable for the Sen Dems - and will be even more important with all those new members needing to make a name for themselves with the statehouse press corps. John has a quick wit but is always respectful of other people and their time. He may be paid to put a spin on things, but he still goes out of his way to get the story right and make sure his staff puts out top-quality work.
* For the second year in a row, the Golden Horseshoe for Best Campaign Staff Director goes to Will Cousineau. He was a clear commenter favorite. Oswego Willy summed it up well…
My vote goes to Will Cousineau. While Will might not be the best cheerleader, therapist, marriage counselor and drinking buddy, what Will is really, really, good at … is winning.
Will “owned” the HGOP Senoir Staff, threw the “Fire Madigan” back at the HGOP and beat the HGOP Senior staff like a drum. Will had twice as many seats than the SDems to worry about, and Will ran circles around his HGOP counterpart.
When you are Senior Staff, you don’t get Participatory Trophies , you win Seats.
Will Cousineau appears to understand that better than some. Not taking anything away from SDems, as a whole or the leadership, but Will Cousineau ran as perfect of a cycle to defeat his opponents as you can.
Brendan O’Sullivan was responsible for picking up 40 seats for the Senate Dems - a truly historic feat in modern Illinois politics. It was only his first cycle in charge of the Senate Dems, and he was able lead his team to win where they never had before, as well as fend off challenges that most thought were foregone conclusions. It wasn’t just the map or the President at the top of the ticket - and it was flat-out hard work. And he did it all with a level-head and easy-going manner. Hands down, he is to be one of the true rising stars in this business.
* And now for today’s categories…
* Best Illinois State Representative - Republican
* Best Illinois State Representative - Democrat
As always, remember that this is about the intensity of your vote. A simple name won’t suffice. Please explain your nominations as fully as you can.
Hydraulic fracturing in Southern Illinois has the potential to create more than 47,000 jobs and more than $9.5 billion in economic impact, according to a study released Thursday by the Illinois Chamber Foundation.
The study, conducted over the last four months, is the first of its kind to focus entirely on the state’s potential with regard to increased horizontal drilling and hydraulic fracturing, or fracking, the chamber said. The study, based on the potential of the state’s New Albany shale field, was administered by economist David Loomis, a professor at Illinois State University.
Laying out three possible scenarios for exploring natural gas production — low, medium and high — Mr. Loomis determined a range of economic outcomes that could benefit Illinois based on the amount of labor and equipment supplied from inside and outside the state.
Illinois Geological Survey Director Don McKay cautioned that the formation may never be capable of producing a boom, based on the work of the agency’s recently retired expert on the subject, David Morse.
“His assessment is that our New Albany Shale resource in Illinois probably doesn’t contain a lot of gas,” McKay said. “Our shale because of its geological history was not subjected to the high temperatures for the long range of time that would be required.”
Chamber member Tom Wolf said the business group hopes lawmakers consider those potential effects as they work on Senate Bill 3280. The legislation would set up regulations for hydraulic fracturing, which detractors call fracking, and other drilling techniques that would be used to explore the New Albany formation.
“The industry’s at the table because they want a road map that helps them in the long term,” Wolf said, adding that the oil and gas industry hopes to talk the state out of setting fees to mitigate wear and tear on roads and impacts on the environment before it knows what the formation might produce. “What I’m trying to avoid is impact fees and taxes based on the hope that this (drilling) will come about and that would scare people away.”
“The negative outlook reflects our view that the state’s pension funding pressures are likely to persist and perhaps worsen in the near term,” Moody’s said in its report. “Moreover, fiscal 2014 marks the last year before Illinois’ 2011 income tax increases are partly unwound, putting the state on track to deal with simultaneous growth in pension funding needs and loss of revenue.”
Moody’s also pointed out that any steps likely to be taken to reform the pension system will almost certainly be challenged because the state’s constitution protects retiree benefits.
Gay marriage supporters said Thursday they are “within striking distance” of passing a bill that for the first time would let same-sex couples be legally wed in Illinois. […]
The two Chicago Democrats said they plan to put up the same-sex marriage bill for a vote, and they indicated they wouldn’t do that without believing it would pass. It’s a tough vote for some lawmakers to take.
The move carried the practical effect of mobilizing gay activists to lobby lawmakers over the holidays but also represented a tossing down of the gauntlet on the issue, revving up opponents for an intense battle. […]
[Robert Gilligan, executive director of the Catholic Conference of Illinois] knew of no lawmakers whose positions had switched from opposition to support of gay marriage
Five days after Jesse Jackson Jr. resigned from Congress, his wife, Ald. Sandi Jackson, filed a series of amendments to her ward committee’s campaign fund, revealing dozens of previously undisclosed transactions that went back three years. That includes at least $13,000 in previously undisclosed transfers from her husband’s congressional account into her ward organization account, a Sun-Times review of campaign records show.
Among the undisclosed transactions shown in the amended reports were monthly transfers of $1,250 to his wife’s 7th Ward Independent Political Organization — or SWIPO. In a federal disclosure, Rep. Jackson’s campaign fund indicates a $1,250 payment to SWIPO is for rent — he and his wife share campaign office space on Chicago’s South Side. However, the 7th Ward disclosure did not list the purpose of the $1,250 transfers. […]
Some of the corrected reports now indicate negative balances — something that an official with the Illinois State Board of Elections said could result in a review.
In the second quarter of 2011, for instance, the committee originally filed a report showing nearly $12,000 cash on hand. The amended report showed the committee was actually $7,000 under water. It also did not originally disclose $3,750 in transfers from Jesse Jackson Jr.’s congressional fund.
Typically, negative balances call for follow-up from the board of elections.
“It’s something that we would potentially put an inquiry out to the political committee to see what the circumstances were behind this,” said Andy Nauman, deputy director of the division of campaign disclosure with the State Board of Elections.
To Whom It May Concern, Per our recent conversations, I am amending this file to reflect corrections made to this report reflecting contributions and disbursements that were not included in the original report due to staff transitions and computer error.
* Her amended reports are a mess. For example, on her original report for the first quarter of 2011, she listed $29,720.00 in total receipts. And this was her fund balance…
I could go on, but like I said, her reports are a total mess. And I don’t think the amended reports really cleared this up.
* Meanwhile, Mark Brown thinks Sen. Donne Trotter’s days as a candidate are numbered…
Getting the party’s endorsement, though, was probably Trotter’s only chance of winning, and if he fails in that regard Saturday, you’d expect him to rethink his candidacy and concentrate on his legal problems. He probably should anyhow.
Trotter’s court case was continued until Jan. 17, and Durkin predicted Cook County prosecutors will seek to have him indicted in the meantime. Durkin argues somewhat persuasively that Trotter should not have been charged with a felony because he didn’t know he was carrying the gun in his luggage.
I tend to believe that, although I find absolutely preposterous Trotter’s claim that he had the gun because he’d been working late the previous night as a security guard.
If he seriously wants to run for Congress, he is going to have to explain why he was carrying that gun — without his lawyer at his side.
During a speech last month at the Roseland Business Development Council banquet, Trotter dropped a derogatory term to describe some of his white legislative colleagues.
“I always tell people I know a cr—– when I see one, and there’s a lot of cr—–s in Springfield, a lot of them,” he says on a video recording of the event. […]
Trotter, speaking to Tucker Thursday, says he doesn’t think the word is derogatory. The Southern Illinois native says the word refers to anyone “who’s oppressing, someone that’s fighting you, keeping you from raising yourself up.”
Pressed about who in the Legislature he was referring to, Trotter said he wasn’t thinking of anyone specific and the term doesn’t automatically refer to a white person.
“There were no specific faces that I was putting to the word,” he said. “I was talking about people who do not support our interests.”
The dictionary says the word comes “from the sound a whip makes (when used by a slave master)” and is “a mildly offensive word for white people.”
Told that some people in his district were offended by his use of the term, Trotter said, “Then I apologize for that. That certainly was not the intent.”
The word he used, by the way, was “cracker.” I’ve never seen that word censored out of a TV broadcast before.
A member of Cook County Board President Toni Preckwinkle’s cabinet has resigned to devote her time and energy to running for the 2nd District Congressional seat vacated by Jesse Jackson Jr.
Robin Kelly, who was Preckwinkle’s chief administrative officer, had told the Sun-Times she had planned to take a leave of absence, but in a Dec. 7th letter to Preckwinkle, Kelly stated she “will be resigning my position as Chief Administrative Officer (CAO), effective immediately to run for Congress…”
Asked whether Preckwinkle called for or suggested the resignation in light of Kelly’s bid for Congress, Preckwinkle spokesman Kristen Mack stated in an email: “Robin chose to resign to fully commit to running her congressional campaign.”
Veteran radio star Don Wade and his wife and radio partner, Roma, are stepping down from their morning show to focus on Wade’s health, the couple announced Thursday.
Wade, 71, has been battling brain cancer. The couple went off the air from their WLS-AM (890) show three months ago when he started undergoing treatment for the brain tumor.
Love them or not, they were an institution and more often than not a whole lot of fun to listen to. Sad times.
Bruce Wolf and Dan Proft, who had been filling in for the Wades, will continue as hosts of the 5 a.m. to 9 a.m. morning show, according to a statement released by Cumulus Media.
“We are pleased to pass the morning show gauntlet to two of our favorite WLS hosts: Dan Proft who was a regular feature on our show [“Pundit” and “Fundit”] long before he ran for governor, and crazy Bruce Wolf who brings the perfect balance to start your day on WLS,” the couple said. “We like to think we hand-picked our great replacements. They are terrific!”
I want you to be very careful in comments here. Be respectful or I’ll ban you. I mean it.
* Cook County State’s Attorney Anita Alvarez is miffed about a story aired by “60 Minutes” last Sunday which portrayed her in a harsh light…
Cook County State’s Attorney Anita Alvarez called a recent “60 Minutes” report on false confessions in the Chicago area a “misrepresentation of the facts” and sent a letter to the chairman of CBS News.
Byron Pitts interviewed Alvarez six months ago for the segment “Chicago: The False Confession Capital,” a piece about Cook County leading the nation in false confessions that aired nationally Sunday night on CBS. It featured high-profile murder cases where teenage boys falsely confessed and were later exonerated by DNA evidence.
One particularly damaging portion of the interview involved the Dixmoor Five case in which five men were convicted as teens of the 1991 rape and murder of a 14-year-old girl whose body was found on a path. DNA linked a serial rapist to the crime and undermined confessions from the teens. They were cleared in 2011 after spending years in prison.
Alvarez explained in the interview that one possible explanation for the DNA was necrophilia — that the rapist had sex with the girl after she’d already been killed.
That answer — which was roundly mocked in blogs and news critiques — was misconstrued, Alvarez said in the letter. She wrote that the necrophilia theory was used at trial years before she had any involvement in the case.
“I have never advanced that theory or argument, but simply responded, when asked by Mr. Pitts, that we can’t say with certainty what had occurred,” Alvarez wrote. “This story was not designed to inform, it was designed to undermine me and mislead the public.”
Narration: In the case of Robert Taylor, Jonathan Barr and James Harden, DNA found inside the 14-year-old victim Catteresa Matthews was also retested, and a match was made to Willie Randolph, a 34-year-old convicted rapist, with 39 arrests. (Innocence Project Defense attorney) Peter Neufeld says prosecutors rejected the DNA evidence and instead came up with an unusual theory to explain it all away.
Peter Neufeld: They suggest perhaps after the kids killed her this man wandered by and committed an act of necrophilia.
Byron Pitts: Necrophilia. A lot of our viewers won’t know what that means.
Peter Neufeld: Having sex with a dead person.
Anita Alvarez: It’s possible. We have seen cases like that.
Byron Pitts: Possible?
Anita Alvarez: It is. We’ve seen it in other cases.
Byron Pitts: It’s possible that this convicted rapist, wandered past an open field, and had sex with a 14-year-old girl who was dead?
Anita Alvarez: Well, there’s all kinds of possibilities out there, and what I’m saying is that I don’t know what happened.
* But here’s the problem with Alvarez’s protests. She had an opportunity to support a common sense change in the law this year which would’ve probably prevented the false convictions of the Dixmoor Five.
Provides that an oral, written, or sign language statement of a minor who, at the time of the commission of the offense was under the age of 17 years, made as a result of a custodial interrogation conducted at a police station or other place of detention shall be presumed to be inadmissible as evidence against the minor in any criminal proceeding, for an act that if committed by an adult would be homicide or would be driving under the influence that was the proximate cause of death of another person unless the minor was allowed to consult with and have access to counsel throughout the entire custodial interrogation.
In the last four months, Cook County has vacated the convictions of eleven men. Nine African American children were wrongfully convicted and served a total of 145 years in prison for rape/murders they did not commit. Seven of those nine children falsely confessed to these crimes and these confessions were used to obtain their convictions. If this bill had been law at the time of these convictions, none of these children would have been in prison.
Not passing this law is an expensive decision. On January 26th, 2012, another child who was wrongfully convicted for murder in Illinois was awarded $25million by a jury.
From a friend who passed this info along…
Such a modest proposal - you could still use the confession in juvenile court, but if there was no lawyer then there was just a presumption against admission in adult court (15 and 16 year olds automatically tried as adults based on murder confession).
If she’s really so interested in preventing more of these horrific cases of false juvenile imprisonment, she’d help come up with a solution. So far, nothing.
*** UPDATE *** Gov. Pat Quinn told reporters today that some of the items on the tax and fee hike list weren’t his, except for the loophole closings, which he’s supported for a long time. The elimination of tax breaks for ethanol, for instance, came from the corn growers, Quinn said. Other tax and fee ideas came from members. He said he didn’t now much about some others, including the frack tax. But he did say that driver-related “loopholes” would have to be closed. Listen…
* The 2009 capital plan relied on several different revenue sources, including a sales tax on candy. Another of those sources was video gaming, which has just now got off the ground. Gov. Pat Quinn says the program is in need of more funding because of a $300 million shortfall, and he’s given legislative leaders some options…
Several would hit motorists; including a higher sales tax on new cars, to bring in $250 million. Raising the car rental sales tax: $30 million.
Likely to raise prices at the fuel pump: eliminating current tax breaks for biodiesel and ethanol would raise $185 million to $230 million.
Other proposals targeting the energy industry would impose new natural gas-fracking fees on drillers downstate, to raise an estimated $55 million; a new oil drilling severance tax would raise $25 to $30 million; and closing a loophole specifically for the oil industry would bring in another $75 million.
The governor told legislators that he doesn’t need all of it and that they can choose any combination of new taxes and fees, as long as it comes close to $300 million.
There are other taxes on the list too, including $75 million on satellite TV subscribers, a fee on digital entertainment downloads and an internet sales tax.
Again, these are just proposals, and from what I’m hearing, they’re not going over very well in the GA. So it could be back to the drawing board for Quinn.
I’ve long subscribed to the belief that if someone’s behavior isn’t hurting anybody else, then the government ought to leave them alone.
Legalizing marijuana certainly falls into that belief structure. If somebody wants to get high and eat Cheetos all day, then I don’t think they ought to be locked in steel cages.
There was a time just a few years ago when the “mainstream” media constantly fretted about blogs — forgetting that the First Amendment didn’t belong solely to “traditional” news outlets. But the country is much better off after a literal explosion of free speech. Blogs have made us more informed and are now as American as the Chicago Sun-Times. Heck, the Sun-Times now has blogs. The more speech, the better.
I’m not particularly religious, but as long as you don’t use the government to impose your specific religious practices on me, then I’m all for you doing your thing.
I think there are far too many restrictions on public protests. Having to reroute your shopping trip because a group is marching in the street is not really being harmed. The government has too often used the possibility of smallish annoyances to motorists as an excuse to literally steal peoples’ constitutional rights to peaceably assemble.
Guns are a different matter. Clearly, guns can really hurt people. I’ve struggled with this issue pretty much all my adult life. My mother hated guns, so we had none in our house, but her brother and a brother-in-law had guns and I used to occasionally shoot with them. I’m not afraid of guns the way some are. I’ve been to a few war zones, seen a few fire fights, but was never once armed. I’ve never felt the need to strap on a pistol while in “bad” Chicago neighborhoods, either, and I’ve spent time in those.
Most of the people who want the right to carry a concealed handgun happen to be white suburban or rural men. It’s easy to play armchair psychiatrist and dismiss them as perpetually angry, overcompensating paranoids.
But not everybody who wants a concealed handgun in public is a wingnut. Women are often threatened by ex-boyfriends and know the cops can’t offer much protection. People who work in dangerous neighborhoods at night could have a legit reason to carry . Decent, law-abiding citizens who live in areas infested with gang thugs can’t be blamed for wanting to pack heat.
I’ve spent some time in Florida, where the cities can often be as crazy or even crazier than anything we see up here. The state has a concealed carry law but the Sunshine State hasn’t exploded in violence. Florida’s murder rate in 1987, the year concealed carry was legalized, was 11.4 per 100,000 residents, according to government data on disastercenter.com. Illinois’s rate that year was 8.3. Last year, Florida’s murder rate was 5.2 per 100,000. Illinois’ was 5.6. I don’t think Florida’s law mattered much either way.
So, I’ve evolved.
Nobody wants to see gangbangers carrying concealed handguns. But if somebody has never been convicted of a felony, isn’t crazy, doesn’t have an order of protection against them, belongs to no gang, can pass a training course, can be required to renew their licenses every year or so and isn’t allowed to bring guns into schools or some other public places, then I don’t really buy into the hyperbolic fears about the tragedies that will befall us because Chicago’s U.S. Appellate court has ruled that the state’s gun carrying bans are unconstitutional. It’s just not going to be the end of the world.
* Meanwhile, the Tribune argues for a two-track approach in the wake of the appellate court ruling. Appeal to the Supreme Court and craft a “may issue” bill in Springfield…
The resulting indignation in some quarters, and jubilation in others, is understandable. Longtime opponents of concealed carry in Illinois, this page included, have suffered a major setback. But what they — we — cannot do now is pout. The wise and practical response now is a two-track approach:
If [Attorney General Lisa Madigan] thinks Tuesday’s 2-1 decision justifies an appeal to the full 7th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals, fine. Illinois doesn’t have a lot to lose. But a subsequent appeal to the U.S. Supreme Court could invite the justices to, in effect, expand their earlier decisions and limit restrictions on concealed carry that other states have enacted. Nationally, gun control advocates could lose more than they’ve already lost.
Simultaneously, though, Illinois lawmakers need to obey the appellate panel and write what its majority prescribed: a new law that legalizes concealed carry, within “reasonable” restrictions. That lawmaking will require more efficiency, and less rancor, than the low-performing General Assembly has demonstrated of late. But legislators will be, pardon the phrase, under the gun: If they don’t comply, it’s conceivable that police and sheriff’s officers no longer could enforce the law that the judges invalidated but left in effect temporarily.
The Legislature might even be able to find a way to continue banning concealed carry while rewriting the law to satisfy the appeals court, which said the current law doesn’t rest on sufficient justification. Short of that, the Legislature could consider a narrowly crafted law, such as that in New York, which has concealed carry in theory but does not grant many permits.
Supporters of concealed carry have brought the issue to Springfield many times but have not had enough votes to prevail.
While not denying the appeal of concealed carry to people who feel threatened, we have long opposed such laws, arguing that we should be working toward a more civilized society, not an armed camp.
In a dissent Tuesday Judge Ann C. Williams wrote, “[the] Illinois Legislature . . . sought to ‘prevent situations where no criminal intent existed, but criminal conduct resulted despite the lack of intent, e.g., accidents with loaded guns on public streets or the escalation of minor public altercations into gun battles.’ . . . The danger of such situations increases if guns may be carried outside the home.”
The Legislature has every reason to limit that danger as much as possible, and it should continue to do so.
* Related…
* Editorial: Go slow on crafting concealed carry law
* Kadner: Time for a concealed carry law in Illinois
* SIU must consider impact of concealed carry: University President Glenn Poshard told the board of trustees at its meeting Thursday college campuses were previously exempt from concealed carry laws, but since the U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals wants the state to start over with new legislation, such restrictions might not end up in place. “We may end up with low restrictions on concealed carry on our campus,” Poshard said, noting the prospect could become problematic for the university
* The Golden Horseshoe Award for best House Democratic campaign staffer is a tie. The obvious crowd favorite is Shaw Decremer…
Shaw Decremer should win hands down. Who else has been the quintessential poster-boy of the Big Bad Madigan Political Operative, while continuing to win over the hearts and minds of suburban women for several big wins. He also manages to be respected by nearly everyone in the capitol, which is not easy considering the many big He also manages to be respected by nearly everyone in the capitol, which is no easy task, considering the many big personalities involved. I would say he will be missed when he moves on, but people with reputations like his never really leave…
Shaw is leaving staff after many years of winning campaigns. He’s won the award before, but most of you believed that he ought to win again on his way out the door. The guy is amazing.
* Kristen Bauer was runner-up last year, and she probably would’ve won this year all by herself if Decremer wasn’t leaving staff, so that’s why I declared a tie. Check out this incredible nomination…
For the House Dems, Kristen Bauer is simply the best. In 10 years with the HDems, she has NEVER lost a race. Not even Shaw Decremer can say that.
In 2012 specifically, Kristen has proven herself to be invaluable to the HDems.
In the 2012 primary, Speaker Madigan had his first real primary challenger in 40 years - with quite a bit of new territory due to the remap. We all know that the Speaker never takes any chances. Who did he call upon to serve as the lead on his primary campaign? Kristen Bauer. She delivered.
In the 2012 general election, Kristen was sent to Decatur to lead Sue Scherer’s campaign - a campaign that was left licking its wounds after a brutal primary. Bauer was able to repair the relationships that were left strained after the primary and was also able to keep Scherer on the program - not an easy task to say the least. At the end of the day, Kristen led Scherer to a 24 point victory. People claim that this was a district that leaned Democratic, but not 24 points Democratic!
Kristen also took a number of newer staffers under her wing in the last few years. Many of these newer staffers served as leads and won a number of targeted campaigns (Moylan, Willis, etc.). Kristen Bauer is the obvious choice!
Honorable mention goes to Anne Schaeffer for her amazing work on the new map.
* The Golden Horseshoe Award for best House Republican campaign staffer goes to Bob Stefanski …
My nomination on the GOP side goes to Bob Stefanski who ran Susan Sweeney’s campaign. Stefanski dealt with a trio of unprecedented circumstances: a write-in candidate in a tier 1 race, an opponent with unparalleled union support and an incumbent GOP member who supported a dem. Stefanski turned a newbie candidate into one of the most impressive challengers of the fall. She was one of the top GOP fundraisers and most aggressive campaigners. She outperformed every GOP candidate in her area, but in this year, unfortunately that still wasn’t enough.
* Runner-up is perennial favorite and last year’s winner Nick Bellini…
He was thrown into the Saviano race 3 weeks out and expected to fix a tough situation. He did more than any other staffer could’ve done and was 100% invested in Saviano. If he had been put on the race from day one maybe the outcome would have been different.
* I should have more for subscribers tomorrow, but if they say they’re running the bill, then they apparently have the votes…
Legal gay marriage may be coming to Illinois as soon as next month.
After counting heads and consulting with legislative leaders, the chief sponsors of a bill to permit same-sex couples to get married in the state this morning disclosed they intend to push for a vote in the General Assembly’s lame-duck session, which will occur over two weeks just after New Year’s.
And, in an indication of how big a campaign the pro side is launching, they’ve hired the firm founded by top presidential adviser David Axelrod to help them with media, organization and outreach to potential supporters, including corporate officials.
As recently as a couple of weeks ago, sponsors had indicted that a January vote was highly unlikely with several other big measures likely to take precedence, including reform of state pension plans and a gambling bill that would authorize a Chicago casino.
* Could a federal idea help fix the state’s pension mess? Maybe…
The chained Consumer Price Index is viewed as a more accurate measure of how people substitute one item for another in the face of a price increase. The result would be lower COLAs over time. COLAs currently are determined using a formula that takes into account increases in the Consumer Price Index for Urban Wage Earners and Clerical Workers, but some experts argue that a chained CPI, which takes into account modifications in purchasing habits as prices change, provides a clearer understanding of inflation.
Republicans are floating the chained CPI proposal as part of their fiscal cliff deal; during the past few years, Obama reportedly has expressed support for switching to a chained CPI, at least in private deficit reduction talks. It also was considered by the joint congressional committee on deficit reduction, and endorsed by Simpson-Bowles, Rivlin-Domenici, and other double-barreled deficit duos.
This is how a 2010 memo from the nonpartisan Congressional Budget Office explains it: “The chained CPI grows more slowly than the traditional CPI does: by an average of 0.3 percentage points per year over the past decade. As a result, using that measure to index benefit programs and tax provisions would reduce federal spending (especially on Social Security and federal pensions) and increase revenues.”
And this is how a February article from the Center on Budget and Policy Priorities puts the issue into context: “Many of the federal government’s retirement, disability and income-support programs — including Social Security, federal civilian and military retirement, railroad retirement, [Supplemental Security Income], and veterans’ compensation and pensions — pay annual COLAs that are linked to the CPI.” The line was included under a subheading that read “Using Chained CPI Would Affect a Number of Programs and Save Significant Amounts.”
[Hat tip: Mom]
What do you think?
* Meanwhile, Gov. Pat Quinn has a new pension reform video. This one’s not bad. It features Quinn staffer Sean Vinck, who does some standup comedy in his free time. Rate it…
* Related and a roundup…
* Franklin County Family Files Lawsuit Against H Group: The lawsuit says at one point, the woman was removed from the H Group because her parents felt the agency and its workers weren’t doing enough to protect her. But she returned to the facility after the defendants insisted L.T. was “being a complete gentleman” and that they had nothing to worry about because Doe was being “watched closely.”
* Iroquois County taxes hiked 29 percent: The hike in taxes was driven almost entirely to boost payments on employee retirement programs, according to board member Dale Schultz, of Clifton, the tax committee chairman.
* Report: Mental health care at juvenile center lacking: Only eight of 17 mental health positions were filled at the Illinois Youth Center-Kewanee, the state’s designated facility for delinquent young people with the worst mental disturbances, when the John Howard Association visited in September. As a result, Kewanee residents get only half as much treatment as all detainees at another, general-population facility.
* Region’s lawmakers disappointed by court ruling: “By closing these facilities the governor’s making the overcrowding problem more of a problem, a serious problem,” Phelps said. “We’re not going to quit fighting. I want to make sure we do everything we can to make sure those facilities stay open. But if they do have to close… my first and main objective would be to make sure we find positions for all those employees that are going to be affected by the closures.”
Thursday, Dec 13, 2012 - Posted by Advertising Department
[The following is a paid advertisement.]
The cable industry is asking lawmakers to place a NEW 5% tax on satellite TV service. HB 5440 is not about fairness, equity or parity – it’s a tax increase on the 1.3 million Illinois families and businesses who subscribe to satellite TV. They cannot afford another NEW tax – not now and not in this economy!
HB 5440 Will Hurt Illinois Families and Small Businesses
• Satellite TV subscribers will see their monthly bills go up 5%.
• This tax will impact every bar, restaurant and hotel that subscribes to satellite TV service, which will translate into higher prices, decreased revenues, and fewer jobs.
• Rural Illinois has no choice: In many parts of Illinois, cable refuses to provide TV service to rural communities. Satellite TV is their only option.
HB 5440 Is Not About Parity or Fairness
• Cable’s claim that this discriminatory tax is justified because satellite TV doesn’t pay local franchise fees could not be further from the truth. Cable pays those fees to local towns and cities in exchange for the right to bury cables in the public rights of way—a right that Comcast and Charter value in the tens of billions of dollars in their SEC filings.
• Satellite companies don’t pay franchise fees for one simple reason: We use satellites—unlike cable, we don’t need to dig up streets and sidewalks to deliver our TV service.
• Making satellite subscribers pay franchise fees—or, in this case, an equivalent amount in taxes—would be like taxing the air It’s no different than making airline passengers pay a fee for laying railroad tracks.
* Look, like it or not, if it’s a constitutional right to carry a gun outside one’s home, then that means everybody has to be treated equally under the Constitution…
The head of an influential bloc of black lawmakers says he may be able to support a law that allows Illinoisans to carry concealed weapons in every county except the state’s most populated one.
State Rep. Will Davis, D-Homewood, who chairs the House Legislative Black Caucus, said Cook County is too congested to allow people to carry firearms on the streets and should be exempted from any statewide concealed gun law.
“I think there could be some room for compromise,” Davis said.
As head of the black caucus, Davis could play a key role in crafting a concealed weapons law in the wake of a federal court ruling Tuesday that struck down as unconstitutional the state law that prohibits most citizens from carrying a concealed handgun in public.
There are ways around this, but the NRA will likely do everything it can to block them. For instance, the county sheriff could be given discretion on whether to issue permits. It’s unlikely that Cook County’s sheriff would hand out very many. But the NRA is so far taking a hardline stance against any such ideas…
“We are not going to accept that. Chicago is not going to get their own rules. Your rights don’t change by the zip code you live in,” said Vandermyde. “We’re not going to accept that kind of legislation here in Illinois.”
Mayor Rahm Emanuel blasted Tuesday’s federal appellate court decision as “wrongheaded” as he offered legal help to Illinois Attorney General Lisa Madigan as she weighs an appeal. […]
For his part, Emanuel noted his efforts while working for former President Bill Clinton to require background checks for gun buyers and ban semi-automatic assault weapons.
“We fought against the National Rifle Association. They had not been beaten in 30 years in the United States Congress, and we beat ‘em,” Emanuel said.
“I think this opinion by the 7th Circuit Court is also wrongheaded,” he added.
“If the bill is appealed to the Supreme Court, and the Supreme Court rules in favor of concealed carry, all of the states that have restricted carry laws go bye bye,” said Vandermyde.
* So if it’s not appealed and if Chicago and Cook can’t come to an agreement or find the votes to beat the gun guys, the NRA can just stall this thing until June, when the appellate court will step in…
The Court has given the legislature 180 days to find a solution.
“If they fail to do that, the Unlawful Use of Weapons’ action is found to be unconstitutional and there’s an injunction against its enforcement across the state,” said Vandermyde. “That means, if you have a FOID card in your pocket, you’ll be able to walk down the street with any firearm that’s legal in the state of Illinois.”
“We have to have reasonable limitations so people who have clear situations where they should not be carrying a gun, for example, those with mental health challenges, those who have records of domestic violence, we cannot have those sorts of people eligible to carry weapons, loaded weapons, on their person in public places” Quinn said.
National Rifle Association lobbyist Todd Vandermyde said the governor is “being very pragmatic in his approach” on concealed carry. Though Vandermyde expected gun rights groups to hold firm on a variety of points, he said his group wanted to “work for a reasonable solution and policy on right to carry.”
“The concept of concealed, loaded hand guns in the possession of private citizens does not enhance public safety, on the contrary it increases danger for everyday people as they go about their lives,” Quinn said, according to the Chicago Tribune.
“I don’t think we’re in the business of trying to increase danger to the people of Illinois. We want to work with our law enforcement and prevent bad things from happening,” Quinn continued. “I think the passage of this law by the General Assembly would be most unwise and they should know where they governor stands [i.e. he’d veto it] and where the people stand.”
