* We started our day with a VanillaMan tune, so let’s wind up the day with another one. Click here if you want to listen to Dean Martin’s version of “Let it Snow” while reading VanillaMan’s, um, “highly” appropriate lyrics…
Oh the news tonight is frightful,
But this mulled wine is so delightful,
And since our politics is a no-go,
Let it flow! let it flow! let it flow!
Yeah - State budget talks are flopping,
So it’s time for a little bar hopping,
Drink up and drop your ammo,
Let it flow! let it flow! let it flow!
During these extra-long Illinois fights,
We’ve got to keep our spirits high!
Drink enough and you’ll get tight,
Making compromise easier to try!
Yeah – the other guys are evil elves,
But these kegs won’t empty themselves,
Drink up until they become your amigo,
Let it flow! let it flow! let it flow!
When you finally end the night,
And perhaps an end to the partisan show
Remember that no one’s wrong or right,
After you finish off the last Bordeaux.
Functioning government is so delightful,
There’s no room to be so spiteful,
Look! Sheila brought along her banjo!
Don’t go! Don’t go! Don’t go!
Let it flow! let it flow! let it flow!
Find the dough! Pay what we owe! LET’S GO!
J.B. Pritzker Can’t Hide from His Deep Ties to Rod Blagojevich
Pritzker following the Madigan Playbook - dodge and distract when you can’t handle the truth
“Now that J.B. Pritzker is desperate to hide his deep ties to Rod Blagojevich, he’s dusting off the Madigan Playbook - dodge and distract when you can’t handle the truth. Pritzker is attempting to whitewash history by calling his dealmaking with disgraced former governor Rod Blagojevich “crazy rantings.” The truth is that J.B. Pritzker and his family have a decades-long record of cutting deals with Rod Blagojevich and bankrolling his campaigns, while subsequently facing subpoenas from a federal grand jury.” - Illinois Republican Party Spokesman Aaron DeGroot
Moments ago, J.B. Pritzker’s spokesman attempted to whitewash the long record of Blagojevich-Pritzker dealmaking by calling Blagojevich’s propositions to Pritzker “crazy rantings.”
Unfortunately for Pritzker, his ties to Blagojevich go back decades.
J.B. Worked as Campaign Fundraiser for Rod Blagojevich
J.B. Pritzker fundraised for Rod Blagojevich’s campaign for the U.S. House, working alongside “North Side political boss” Dick Mell, Blagojevich’s father-in-law. The Chicago Sun-Times reporter visited Blagojevich’s campaign office and reported that J.B. worked there.
“’I’m J. B. Pritzker; I help with fund-raising,’ said the man in a dark green suit.”
(Chicago Sun-Times, In Mell’s World, It’s Politics as Usual, Jorge Oclander, March 23, 1996)
After Raising Money for Blagojevich, Pritzker Remarked That Blagojevich Would Be “very helpful” In His Own Campaign for U.S. House Crain’s Chicago Business reported, “Fresh from installing one junior congressman-son-in-law Rod Blagojevich-Alderman Richard Mell (33rd) apparently has his eye on another: J. B. Pritzker, 32, who wants Rep. Sidney Yates’ lakefront seat. Mr. Mell says any behind-the-scenes role won’t be official until Mr. Pritzker’s ‘98 campaign is official. The Pritzker family scion, who aborted a challenge to Mr. Yates, 87, two years ago, raised money for Mr. Blagojevich’s ‘96 race. Demurring about Mr. Mell’s future role, Mr. Pritzker, right, says, ‘I know Rod is going to be very helpful.’
Blagojevich Even Considered Giving Up His Seat to Pritzker, If Pritzker Would Help Fund His Gubernatorial Campaign
The Chicago Sun-Times reported, “Sneed hears Pritzker would help fund the gubernatorial race of Mell’s son-in-law, Rep. Rod Blagojevich (D-Ill.) and Mell, in turn, would throw his weight behind Pritzker for his son-in-law’s North Side congressional seat.”
Pritzker Fulfilled His End of the Bargain
J.B. and his family contributed over $160,000 to Rod Blagojevich’s campaigns. (Source: IL State Board of Elections)
Patti Blagojevich Uses Ties with J.B. In Job Search
Patti Blagojevich met with J.B., looking for job, just as Rod Blagojevich was trying to sell Illinois’ US Senate Seat.
The Chicago Sun-Times reported, “On Oct. 6, Blagojevich met with officials of the Pritzker Family Foundation, which has $65 million in assets. Among those at the meeting was foundation president J.B. Pritzker, one of several candidates the Chicago-Sun Times has reported the governor was considering to fill President-elect Barack Obama’s seat in the U.S. Senate.”
J.B. Pritzker’s Connections to Blagojevich were Subpoenaed by a Federal Grand Jury
Read the subpoena here.
An Illinois state representative is preparing to call a bill that would expand abortion access for women on Medicaid and some state health insurance plans.
State Rep. Sara Feigenholtz says the bill, which has been floating for two years, has renewed urgency in light of anti-abortion comments made by President-elect Donald Trump while he was on the campaign trail.
Currently, Medicaid covers abortion in the cases of rape and incest, as well as in some cases where the health of the mother is at stake. But pro-choice advocates say the exceptions are narrow, subject to the agreement of an auditor and that current law discriminates against low-income women who are on Medicaid plans, when more expensive private health plans cover the service fully. […]
Another bill sponsored by Feigenholtz may be largely political. She is proposing to protect the legality of abortion in case the U.S. Supreme Court’s landmark 1973 Roe v. Wade law is overturned. […]
The bill would abolish Illinois’ so-called ‘trigger law,’ that states that, if Roe v. Wade is overturned, abortion would become illegal in Illinois, as would several forms of birth control. […]
Feigenholtz says she is close to having the required number of votes to pass both bills, but she does not believe she’ll have a veto-proof majority. That means the bills are contingent on Gov. Bruce Rauner supporting them and signing them into law.
Some supporters have been saying that they want to put Rauner on the hot seat. Either make him veto whatever they can get to his desk, or if he signs them it could gin up a credible primary opponent.
* But, always remember, suburban women have historically decided statewide elections and Rauner fully understands this. It’s a good bet that he signs whatever the sponsor can move to his desk, particularly that second bill, which doesn’t cost any money. We’ll see if they can pass the other one.
An attorney for a Rockford pregnancy care center and a host of Downers Grove medical centers argued in a Winnebago County courtroom today that an amendment to state law will serve as “a sword” should they be forced to hand out information about abortion services.
The Pregnancy Care Center of Rockford, Anthony Caruso, A Bella Baby OBGYN in Downers Grove, Best Care for Women in Downers Grove and Aid for Women filed suit in August against Gov. Bruce Rauner regarding an amendment to the Illinois Healthcare Right of Conscience Act. Bryan A. Schneider, secretary of the Illinois Department of Financial and Professional Regulation, also was named in the suit. […]
Bowman argued the amendment violates the free speech rights of anti-abortion medical professionals. If they don’t refer patients to those who provide abortions, or hand them a written list, the Department of Financial and Professional Regulation “can fine you $10,000 and take away your medical license,” he said.
And a primary opponent? Who’s gonna fund it? And who you got? Also, too, history.
* The 2016 Golden Horseshoe Award for Best Campaign Staffer - Senate Republicans goes to Nick McNeeley hands down…
(T)here’s something to be said for campaigns that understand that embracing the new doesn’t mean forgetting the old. When someone can run a campaign that has the good ole fashion ops and have a field operation to bring home a victory, then a person that can make a huge difference in an outcome.
Nick McNeeley has a reputation by doing just that, with Sen. Anderson just a cycle ago, and putting again his skill and political savvy to a test to bring Dale Fowler home. McNeeley’s work in the field and orchestrating significant support from officials that could make a difference continue to make him shine, proving once again that the science and art of campaigns can also include the old and the new. Nick McNeeley proved he has the skills to make art, science, old and new equal victory.
I can’t add to that. He’s the best they have.
* The 2016 Golden Horseshoe Award for Best Campaign Staffer - House Republicans goes to Kyle Haevers…
Haevers was one of the top Rauner field staff in 2014 managing Lake County. This year, for reasons mentioned above, had the unenviable task of dealing with Madigan’s number 1 target. Haevers pulled off a big win despite millions spent against them and Madigan sending his top guys. Haevers went toe to toe with Marty Quinn and handed “The General” his first defeat in the city.
Ald. Quinn pulled his crew out in the final days to save Rep. Yingling’s behind, but, yeah, he supposedly “never loses.” For a while there, that was a ground game like no other.
* From the Illinois Policy Institute’s news service…
What should be a resolved labor dispute between the state and its largest public employee union is instead costing taxpayers an additional $3 million each day, Gov. Bruce Rauner said.
AFSCME has been without a contract since July 2015. Although the state labor board ruled over a month ago that the two sides were officially at an impasse and Gov. Rauner can enact his “last, best, and final” offer, the union continues to challenge that ruling.
Rauner said last week that there’s a daily cost from the American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees (AFSCME) union’s appeal to a higher court of the state labor board’s ruling that the talks had reached an impasse.
“Every day that we delay through these court actions costs the people of Illinois almost $3 million per day,” Rauner said. “Think of how much we could do for our children in poverty, think of how much we could do for our schools and our human services if we weren’t wasting almost $3 million a day on this contract.”
$3 million a day seems kinda high, so I checked in with AFSCME. I was told that if you look at just the people on whom Rauner is attempting to impose his contract demands, that’s “about 25,000 employees.”
$3 million per day divided by 25,000 unionized workers is $120 per person, per day.
That’s a huge cut. Gigantic, even. I mean, that’s $600 a week, man.
Just got robocalled by the Republican Party on pritzker. They play rod tape of how much he thought jb could raise if he got appointed to the senate seat
I heard that this could be coming so I did a little homework in advance.
* Here’s part of the raw audio of the exchange between Blagojevich and his aide Doug Scofield…
* And here’s the full transcript of the conversation. It’s on pages 6-7 on the Tribune’s site…
Notice how Scofield says it would be hard to get JB to do that and Blagojevich agrees.
Today, the Illinois Republican Party released a robocall highlighting potential gubernatorial candidate J.B. Pritzker’s deep ties to Illinois’ most corrupt political insiders, including Rod Blagojevich and his criminal scheme to sell President Obama’s US Senate seat.
“For years, J.B. Pritzker has worked behind the scenes to screw Illinois taxpayers. Pritzker provided nearly a million dollars to Mike Madigan’s political front group and inserted himself into Rod Blagojevich’s criminal scheme to sell Illinois’ US Senate seat. J.B. Pritzker is just another corrupt political insider.” – Illinois Republican Party Spokesman Steven Yaffe
JB Pritzker wants to run for Governor. But how well do we really know Pritzker?
We know that political boss Mike Madigan likes Pritzker and his billion dollar fortune as much as disgraced and imprisoned Governor Rod Blagojevich did.
Pritzker told Blagojevich he wanted to be appointed to the U.S. Senate and in exchange Blagojevich wanted JB to personally raise tens of millions of dollars for him.
Here’s Blagojevich on FBI tapes talking about it….
[Audio] I betcha JB can raise me money like that … If I can get JB to do somethin’ like that is it worth, ah, givin’ him the Senate seat? Incidentally, he, he asked me for it. Don’t repeat that.
JB Pritzker. Just another crooked insider who seeks to screw over Illinois taxpayers.
[Audio] $10 million dollars, $15 million dollars … JB can do it, couldn’t he? … Don’t repeat that.
Paid for by the Illinois Republican Party. 872-216-3791
Mess with a guy worth close to $4 billion and you’re essentially inviting him to start spending money soon.
Stay tuned, campers.
*** UPDATE *** From Pritzker’s spokesman…
“You would think a governor who has failed to pass a budget for two years and has allowed human services to be gutted would have better things to do with his time than to dredge up the crazy rantings of Rod Blagojevich.”
* Pastor Corey Brooks and Hermene Hartman, both Bruce Rauner campaign supporters, were at the governor’s minority business event and were interviewed by CBS 2’s Derrick Blakely…
Both Brooks and Hartman say they still believe in Rauner’s vision of economic growth to benefit black communities.
“Lack of economic opportunity is directly tied to the violence in our communities,” Rauner said.
Brooks says he has no regrets [for supporting Rauner despite several threats] and criticizes black legislators in Springfield.
“A lot of people in our community want them to stand for us, and not just stand for Madigan,” Brooks says, referring to Illinois House Speaker Michael Madigan, D-Chicago, the political rival of Rauner.
Hartman did not foresee the state budget stalemate and the damage to social services.
“Some of these agencies are going out of business,” she says.
She doesn’t blame the governor for that?
“I blame all of them for that because they’re all responsible. That’s their job. Their job is to give us a budget,” Hartman says.
Three points:
1) Economic development is vital to stemming violence, no doubt. But it’ll take a whole lot more than Rauner’s Turnaround Agenda to accomplish that goal on the South and West Sides. He shouldn’t just be let off the hook here;
2) Speaker Madigan has truly become the be-all, end-all excuse for anyone in the Republican Party to avoid answering any sort of tough or even softball question; and
3) Yes, the governor has never proposed a truly balanced budget, but the Illinois Constitution also requires the General Assembly to pass a balanced budget, which it has not yet done under this governor. So, Hartman is correct.
Three Added to BossMadigan.com
Time for Sente, Fine and Mussman to Stop Empowering Madigan at Our Expense
The Illinois Republican Party today added three more legislators – Reps. Carol Sente, Laura Fine and Michelle Mussman – to BossMadigan.com.
“Mike Madigan has run Illinois as a political boss for over three decades. Madigan’s only motivation is to increase his own political power at our expense. The middle class, the voters, and honest, transparent government fall by the wayside in Madigan’s Illinois,” said Illinois Republican Party Spokesman Steven Yaffe.
“By repeatedly voting for Madigan for Speaker, empowering Madigan instead of standing up to him, Reps. Carol Sente, Laura Fine and Michelle Mussman bear responsibility for how far Illinois has fallen.
It’s not too late for them to do the right thing and pledge to oppose Madigan for Speaker this time.”
Carol Sente is a consistent vote for political boss Mike Madigan’s disastrous tax-and-spend agenda. Mike Madigan has channeled $1.5 million to Carol Sente over the years, and in exchange Sente has supported Madigan three times for Speaker. She backed Madigan’s plan to nearly double the income tax on many Illinois families. Worst of all, Sente voted to make sure she gets paid if the government shuts down, ahead of social service organizations and higher education. It’s time for Sente to finally break from Madigan and oppose his bid for Speaker.
Laura Fine has been a staunch Madigan ally in the House, supporting Madigan for Speaker at every opportunity. This should not come as a surprise, since Madigan has directed hundreds of thousands in special interest cash to Fine’s campaigns. Instead of standing up for fiscal sanity in Springfield, Fine helped Madigan ram through a budget that was $8 billion out of balance. She even voted to ensure that she is paid ahead of critical social services and schools. Fine has backed Madigan’s agenda for too long, but she can demonstrate her independence by refusing to support Madigan for Speaker again.
Michelle Mussman is one of Madigan’s most loyal legislators, having supported him for Speaker three times. Madigan called on Mussman to vote for the most unbalanced budget in Illinois history, and Mussman obliged, supporting a budget that would have required a $1,000 tax on Illinois families to balance. Mussman even voted to make sure she gets paid before schools and social services. It’s no wonder Michelle Mussman has backed Mike Madigan’s agenda, since he has funneled close to a million dollars into her accounts. Mussman now has a chance to break away from her support of Madigan by refusing to vote for him for Speaker for a fourth time.
To borrow a concept from Wordslinger, if Madigan’s “only motivation is to increase his own political power at our expense,” then why is the governor currently demanding that he present a budget plan? After all, if that stuff is true, then shouldn’t the governor completely mistrust anything Madigan proposes?
Joe Topinka, son of late Comptroller Judy Baar Topinka, has filed a lawsuit in Sangamon County Circuit Court seeking more than $60,000 in contributions she made to her state retirement system while serving as comptroller.
The suit seeks to overturn a ruling by the General Assembly Retirement System that because Topinka was paid more in retirement benefits than she contributed to the system over her life, no refund is due.
But Joe Topinka, 48, the late comptroller’s only child and a married father of a 6-year-old daughter, said his mother had said the money she put into her pension fund could help her grandchild with education expenses. […]
According to the written decision of the retirement system’s board, after Topinka’s death, the board issued an interpretation of state law. That interpretation stated, in part, that when a retiree goes back to work and becomes a participant in the system again, the death benefit “will equal total contributions made by the participant during all periods of active service, less the total amount of retirement and survivor’s annuity payments received by the participant and the participant’s survivor. If the total amount of … benefits paid is greater than the total contributions, no death benefit is payable.”
JBT’s total payments into the GARS pension system were about $262,000 and she collected almost $533,000. GARS has by far the worst unfunded liability of all the state’s pension systems.
Bernie also reports that Joe Topinka filed suit over his mother’s campaign fund, but that was dismissed and he’s appealing. He also filed suit in probate court to gain control of the campaign fund, but that, too, was dismissed and he’s appealing it as well, Bernie writes.
State lawmakers from both political parties are calling for an investigation of how the Illinois Lottery managed scratch-off games in response to a Tribune report showing the lottery didn’t award many of the biggest prizes in the biggest games.
“I just don’t think we should promise people things we don’t deliver,” said state Rep. Lou Lang, D-Skokie. “And if we say we have a game that’s going to pay X and it doesn’t pay X, then we’ve lied to the people who bought the tickets.” […]
Illinois handed over management of its lottery in mid-2011 to a private firm, Northstar Lottery Group, and the Tribune studied the 17 biggest-prize instant games that were begun and ended in the five years since.
Reporters found most of those games did not award all of their grand prizes and some did not award any. In all, those games awarded less than 60 percent of their grand prizes — a rate lower than other states studied by the Tribune, and lower than when Illinois managed its own lottery. The Tribune also found that, because of how the games ended, the lottery often paid a lower percentage of revenue than the games were designed to pay.
One $30-a-ticket game, for example, pitched the biggest instant grand prize in Illinois history: $46 million in periodic payments. But it was pulled from store shelves before it awarded either of its two grand prizes. Its designed payout rate — nearly 78 percent of sales — ended at 61 percent of sales. Had it paid out at its designed rate, players would have won an additional $10 million, the Tribune found.
The original story is here. I didn’t post it on Friday because I wasn’t quite clear on what the alleged scam was all about. You have to kinda read between the lines. For instance…
Take the game The Good Life: $30,000 A Week For 30 Years.
Based on internal design documents kept by the lottery, the game was designed to award 78 percent of its revenue — most of it in smaller prizes but anchored by two mammoth grand prizes.
It was pulled after selling less than 15 percent of the tickets printed; no grand prizes were awarded.
On an Internet bulletin board devoted to core lottery players, one poster lamented to his peers: “I don’t know why they are pulling it, but … I was playing this game for months and feel they must have made a whole lot of money and paid out very little.”
Indeed, by then, the game had raised about $63 million in sales.
It awarded about $38 million in smaller prizes.
The payout rate ended up being just shy of 61 percent, 17 percentage points less than the designed rate of 78 percent. […]
Because of when games were ended, and payout rates being lower than designed, the excess money was counted as profit — a metric for which Northstar was judged.
So, if I’m reading this right, the company apparently ordered far more scratch-off tickets printed than could possibly be sold, which would greatly lower the odds that somebody actually buys a winning ticket. Then, the game was canceled without any big payouts.
If that is the allegation, the Tribune doesn’t clearly spell it out. But it sure makes it look that way.
Also, for grand prizes that cost $1 million or more to fund, Illinois’ payout rate was about 60 percent, while New York’s was about 80 percent, Pennsylvania’s was 83 percent, Texas’ was 88 percent and the rate was 100 percent in Florida, Massachusetts and Ohio.
The Illinois budget ball appears to be in Gov. Bruce Rauner’s court, and he should take advantage of the opportunity to show real statesmanship and leadership.
On Friday, Republican Rauner canceled a budget discussion meeting with legislative leaders — including House Speaker MIchael Madigan and Senate President John Cullerton, both Democrats — when he learned the lawmakers did not plan to present a balanced budget proposal.
Rauner said he would not schedule another meeting to discuss possible ways of hopefully ending the state’s ongoing budget impasse until lawmakers could present a balanced budget.
There’s only one problem with the tactic: It’s Rauner’s job to propose a budget.
The Governor shall prepare and submit to the General Assembly, at a time prescribed by law, a State budget for the ensuing fiscal year. The budget shall set forth the estimated balance of funds available for appropriation at the beginning of the fiscal year, the estimated receipts, and a plan for expenditures and obligations during the fiscal year of every department, authority, public corporation and quasi-public corporation of the State, every State college and university, and every other public agency created by the State, but not of units of local government or school districts. The budget shall also set forth the indebtedness and contingent liabilities of the State and such other information as may be required by law. Proposed expenditures shall not exceed funds estimated to be available for the fiscal year as shown in the budget.
The governor should lay political concerns aside and do the job dictated to his office by the Illinois Constitution. No one else in Springfield appears to want to do what is necessary to fix this ongoing fiscal mess. Rauner should lead the way.
* Meanwhile, we’ll be covering this live today, so check back…
* Another holiday song from VanillaMan. This one’s pretty darned dark, but VMan thought it was necessary. He does promise more light-hearted material next time. Click here if you’re unfamiliar with the tune, “Infant Holy Infant Lowly,”…
Governor’s goal he, starves us slowly
For his political wins, we fall
Unions suffer, incomes rougher
Government collapses in downfall
Cold winds stinging, state wards clinging
Without means, ruled by Philistines
The government of our sad state
Kills our dreams and suffocates
Progress slowly, politics lowly
Overtaxing, prevents relaxing
Underachieving, jobs are leaving
Government budgets take an axing
Chicago Looping, Mayoral regrouping
City’s teachers’ backs astooping
Communities crying out for saving
Instead its leaders are misbehaving
Always hoping, perpetually coping
Illinoisans await a joyous Spring
New day coming with factories humming
Our great state, once more will sing
And both parties, will be very sorry
For what they’ve done, to our happy home
That they’ll work forever harder
Or face wrath under Springfield’s dome
What’s the lesson, we’re confessin’
Over what we’ve seen transpire?
It’s that whether or not you like government
We cannot be led by crooks or liar
Doing nothing, will get us nothing
And with nothing, we fall on our face
It matters not what ere your party
It matters not what ere your race
