16 Comments - very old soil - Tuesday, Apr 21, 15 @ 12:31 pm: If we would just adopt the Turnaround Agenda, we could become Mississippi and get plenty more federal dollars, - Oswego Willy - Tuesday, Apr 21, 15 @ 12:37 pm: Pandering makes for fun videos. - Team Sleep - Tuesday, Apr 21, 15 @ 12:42 pm: I know a lot of people always vote for Senator Durbin as their “Golden Horseshoe for Best Congresscritter” and I know that most commenters and site loyalists love President Obama, but what good has it done us?! Senator Durbin offers a lot of fluff and words and rarely delivers. Speaker Hastert and Congressman (Ray) LaHood were the real deal when it came to bringing federal funding, and Congressman Costello was the Second Patron Saint of Scott Air Force Base. Now…?! - Team Sleep - Tuesday, Apr 21, 15 @ 12:48 pm: And if a long term transportation bill is not passed this year, then we can wait even longer for big time cash like we say in 2005. - Liberty - Tuesday, Apr 21, 15 @ 12:48 pm: When Democrats had the majority in both houses, the number 2 in the senate and the presidency, Illinois looses. Why do people keep voting this guy in? - siriusly - Tuesday, Apr 21, 15 @ 12:49 pm: We will always be a payer state because the country spends about 55% on areas that are not localized (infrastructure, national defense, etc.) and about 45% on social security, Medicare, Medicaid and other human services (which are localized). Our national revenues are based on income. As a state with high amounts of wealth and a large population - we contribute a lot. But more than half our expenditures are not based on wealth or population. Equal return is a false premise. We will always be a payer state. - Wordslinger - Tuesday, Apr 21, 15 @ 12:50 pm: Every state has two senators, and when it comes time to write formula for distribution of funds the many smaller states band together to soak the few big states. Always been that way. - Liberty - Tuesday, Apr 21, 15 @ 12:56 pm: Illinois is 3rd from the bottom. http://www.theatlantic.com/business/archive/2014/05/which-states-are-givers-and-which-are-takers/361668/ - Wordslinger - Tuesday, Apr 21, 15 @ 1:00 pm: Liberty, Texas was a loser when HW was president, Jim Wright was speaker and Lloyd Bentsen was chair of the Senate finance committee. You go where the money is, and Texas and Illinois are among the richest states. - A guy - Tuesday, Apr 21, 15 @ 1:01 pm: It was generous of you to pass this along… - VanillaMan - Tuesday, Apr 21, 15 @ 1:02 pm: There will always been state inequalities when we go from a federal level of tax policy, and then break it down into how those tax policies work within states. That might not result in what looks equal - but there is no reason to believe that it is unfair. There are plenty of Americans who’ve never visited Chicago and never will - but due to federal policies based on population, will pay a higher percentage of their taxes to Chicago. During tough economic times, we see these tax inequalities surface and debated. When those tough times end, we see that these tax inequalities do not result in tax unfairness. It is no magic bullet. - Liberty - Tuesday, Apr 21, 15 @ 1:09 pm: Wordslinger, Illinois gets .43 and Texas gets .79 and Pennsylvania gets $1.41 - Cheswick - Tuesday, Apr 21, 15 @ 1:13 pm: When was the last time Illinois was not a payer state? - Anonin' - Tuesday, Apr 21, 15 @ 1:39 pm: As soon as we finish the race to be West Indiana we will do “better” And the rivers will have nice glow too. - Juvenal - Tuesday, Apr 21, 15 @ 2:10 pm: It is about Medicare, Social Security, Military bases, and military contractors. Illinois is low on all four, and that will never change. - Precinct Captain - Tuesday, Apr 21, 15 @ 3:29 pm: Team Sleep, we were still a payer state when your idol Hastert was Speaker. Sorry, comments for this post are now closed.