* Linda Ellerbee told a story in her book “And So It Goes” about how covering presidential campaigns could be mentally grueling. She eventually learned a trick to keep her somewhat sane during the never-ending blur of multiple cities a day. Every night before she went to bed, she’d write a note to herself that included what candidate she was covering and what town she was in. That way, when she suddenly woke up with a start in the middle of the night in yet another strange hotel room, she could just look at her note to settle her nerves.
I told that story last night at dinner (or maybe it was the night before last - this week has been so busy), and then today I watched Rep. Jeanne Ives’ interview at Quad Cities TV station KWQC…
Interviewer: So, if you don’t live in Chicago you’re considered Downstate. The Quad Cities is not actually Downstate, it’s directly west. How will you make sure the rest of the state feels included?
Ives: We’ve traveled the state. I think they feel included. My, my, uh, uh, I’m sorry, my lieutenant governor selection is Rich Morthland. He is a farmer from Rock Island County, which is in the far western part of the state right on the border of Iowa. He’s also a community college professor. We, listen, I grew up in a small town in South Dakota. It was a farming community. And my three uncles farmed around the area. All of us grew up working on the farm. I’m just as much associated with farmland as I am the suburbs where I live. So, I, I, the entire southern, central Illinois, this resonates with me and my background.
Um, KWQC’s studio is in Iowa and sits 1.6 miles across the Mississippi River from Rock Island County. No explanation needed on that one.
And since she was just over the border from western Illinois, perhaps she could’ve mentioned that when talking about how the various regions resonate with her.
Look, sometimes candidates talk so much to so many people in so many towns and then get so tired from all that yakking that their talking points just automatically take over. If you watch the video, she looks relieved when she gets back to familiar ground.
I’m not trying to pick on Rep. Ives here. This stuff happens perhaps more often than you’d think. And, frankly, my brain is a little bit fried as well these days. I don’t know how these people do it.
Today the Biss campaign is announcing it has raised more than $2 million in the first two months of 2018, including $150,073.33 raised through a ten-day small donor matching challenge. Inspired by the success of small donor matching programs in other states as well as Daniel Biss’ legislation designed to take on the influence of big money in politics, the Biss campaign launched a small donor matching program of its own.
Between February 19 and February 28, all contributions of $150 or less were matched, up to $100,000. This small donor matching program was so successful the campaign surpassed its goal by more than 50 percent. During the ten-day period, there were 4,819 unique donors who made 5,928 contributions at or below the $150 threshold. The average contribution was $25.32.
“Our grassroots campaign is powered by thousands of people across the state who are investing their time, their money, and their energy to elect a middle-class progressive who will make transformational change in Illinois,” said Biss campaign manager Abby Witt. “When people hear Daniel’s message, it resonates. Despite the millions of dollars Daniel’s opponents are spending to self-fund their campaigns, we know Illinois voters want a governor who will represent their interests, not the billionaires and corporations. In an era of Bruce Rauner and Donald Trump, voters want a middle-class progressive with a record of getting things done to help working families.”
The Biss campaign won’t identify the person who promised to match the contributions, so I suppose we just have to look for the next person who contributes $150,073.33 to him. Shouldn’t be too difficult.
The Illinois Education Association (IEA) is proud of its work that helped kill Gov. Bruce Rauner’s plan to shift the cost of pensions from the state to local school and community college districts and universities.
Rep. David McSweeney, R-Barrington Hills, introduced a resolution last year that stated the pension cost shift is “financially wrong” and would harm local school districts and taxpayers.
McSweeney approached the IEA for help in talking to lawmakers on both sides of the aisle to build support for his measure because of IEA’s history of bipartisanship. Together, they were able to get 66 House members to sign on to the resolution in a show of force that effectively kills the Rauner pension cost shift.
“The pension cost shift would result in a massive increase in property taxes and would jeopardize education funding. I’m proud of the bipartisan coalition of 65 House members, and working with the IEA, to oppose this cost shift and do what’s right for the taxpayers and students of this state,” said McSweeney.
The resolution reads: “States the opinion of the Illinois House of Representatives that the proposed educational pension cost shift from the State of Illinois to local school districts, community colleges, and institutions of higher education is financially wrong.”
“If the state quits paying its portion of pension benefits and pushes it off to the local school districts, it strangles local school funding and harms students,” said IEA President Kathi Griffin. “We need to be looking for ways to provide more funding for our students, not taking money away from them to pay for state obligations.”
For decades, the IEA has been fighting for changes to the way Illinois schools are funded to create a more equitable formula that ensures a quality education for all students regardless of where they live. This summer the legislature passed a new school funding formula.
“It’s interesting that now you have the governor talking about shifting pension costs to local school districts and community colleges. While at the same time, Rauner continually tries to take credit for passing the historic school funding reform bill, even though he originally vetoed the bill,” Griffin said. “You can’t give with one hand and take away with the other. Rauner is not a friend of education. Our kids deserve more than this.”
That is one odd coupling right there, kids. Politics, bedfellows, etc.
…Adding… I had this one saved up to post and then forgot to do it. Busy day…
NEIU tells #SenateApprop that @GovRauner’s proposal to shift pension costs to univ could “shut off the lights and close the doors”.
* Gov. Rauner has said that the state is looking at various options with the Quincy veterans’ home, including replacing the plumbing and putting up a new building. But that would take a lot of time and with 4 recent Legionnaires’ cases, the Quincy Herald-Whig has another idea. Move the residents two blocks down the street…
We strongly urge the governor and state agencies to give careful consideration to a feasible, transitional option that would address many of the stated safety concerns and achieve that short-term objective.
It would require the state to buy — or rent — the vacant Sycamore Healthcare Center facility just two blocks from the Veterans Home grounds and temporarily move the 75 residents now living in Elmore Infirmary — where most of the Legionnaires’ cases have been traced — there until Elmore can be renovated or replaced.
Sycamore Healthcare Center closed in April 2017, a victim of Medicaid funding cuts instituted in 2015 and a state budget impasse that began that year and lasted until last summer.
The skilled nursing facility at 720 Sycamore has more than 26,000 square feet of space, features 102 rooms and was licensed for 205 beds at the time of its closing. DLZ Capital of New York bought the facility out of foreclosure and has it listed with Mays Realtors of Quincy for $795,000.
There has been a growing chorus of politicians calling for residents to be moved to other facilities across Illinois, which also would carry a hefty price tag for the state. We strenuously object to any such plan and urge our readers to do the same.
First, it seems fitting to use what is essentially a belly-up budget hostage to fix the problem.
Second, why the heck didn’t any of the governor’s “super stars” think of this idea?
* The Democratic-controlled House and Senate pass a bunch of gun bills and right on cure, here’s the DGA…
Today, the Democratic Governors Association launched a new digital ad campaign holding Governor Bruce Rauner accountable for his failure to lead on gun safety. As Governor, Rauner has failed to take on the NRA or fight for bold reforms that will keep families safe. The DGA’s ad campaign will call on Rauner to show leadership on the issue of gun safety.
“Illinoisans are fed up with Bruce Rauner’s failure to show leadership on gun safety,” said DGA Illinois Communications Director Sam Salustro. “The nation reels from one shooting after another, and in three years Rauner’s refused to take on the NRA and take charge in Illinois. Illinois families need the Governor to stop making excuses and start leading on gun safety.
The DGA confirms this buy will be in the “high six figures.”
Illinois has had enough. Enough with assault weapons. Enough with guns in the hands of the mentally ill.
And enough with Gov. Rauner letting the NRA call the shots and saying [Rauner appears on camera] ‘I am not in charge.”‘
Tell Rauner, enough excuses. Lead on gun safety.
*** UPDATE *** RGA’s response…
“The DGA knows full well that Governor Rauner is working hard to ensure that guns stay out of the wrong hands. This is the DGA desperately spending J.B. Pritzker’s cash to distract from shocking revelations that their favored candidate is a corrupt political insider with longtime ties to Mike Madigan and Rod Blagojevich.” – Republican Governors Association Spokesman Steven Yaffe
* Troy LaRaviere, president of the Chicago Principals and Administrators Association and candidate for mayor has endorsed Chris Kennedy. A campaign press release says LaRaviere “referenced JB Pritzker’s profits from social impact bonds for preschool.” He did more than that…
We have endured an endless stream of reckless budgetary practices from an administration and city hall that seems hell-bent on indebting taxpayers to the mayor’s campaign donors.
One of the most asinine examples of this reckless and incompetent spending is the so-called social impact bond for preschool. Three investors–all of whom are donors to the Emanuel Campaign–Goldman Sachs, Northern Trust and the Pritzker Group headed by J.B. Pritzker himself.
They loaned CPS $17 million and stand to gain more than $34 million from taxpayers in return. We’re paying $34 million for a program that cost $17 million, and we’re paying it to Sachs, Northern Trust and Pritzker. Yes. One of the many wealthy beneficiaries of this legalized theft is the Pritzker Foundation, headed by a man who wants to be your next governor.
The grant will follow participants for 14 years to determine if outcome measurements have been met. Metrics include increasing kindergarten readiness, improving third grade literacy and reducing the need for special education services. An independent evaluator will assess whether these measurements have been met. If analysis proves students have fared well after attending the early education programs, investors will get a return on their investment.
The city estimates that surplus will come from CPS savings of $9,100 per student for each student who avoids special education services. An additional $2,900 would be saved for each student deemed ready for kindergarten after attending the program, and a $750 savings for each student who scores above the national average on a third-grade reading test.
In a political attack ad paid for by Pritzker, a narrator assails his primary opponent, state senator Daniel Biss, for his 2012 vote “to increase funding for charter schools at the expense of neighborhood public schools.” The ad also says “he’s supported by a pro-charter group who’s fought for school privatization.”
Biss campaign spokesman Tom Elliott hit back, saying, “The height of J.B. Pritzker’s hypocrisy is astounding. While he spends millions of dollars on sloppy attack ads against Daniel Biss for voting for a bill that provides funding parity for all school children in Illinois, Pritzker tries to privatize education so he can profit off the backs of underprivileged families.” […]
“All of these guys are trying to claim the wing of progressivism when none of them have a record that supports that,” [Blogger and retired teacher Fred Klonsky] said. “I don’t think there’s anybody running for statewide office as a Democrat who can make a claim that they were defenders of neighborhood public schools and that they were opponents of charter schools. If they can make that claim, show it. Before you attack someone else, show us your record.” […]
Klonsky says Pritzker’s political attacks against charter schools is evidence of a larger nationwide shift in the political conversation around privatizing education.
“After nearly 20 years of corporate-driven education reform, they have nothing to show for it.”
* Meanwhile…
A day after reporting a $20k contribution from a nephew of former mayor Richard M. Daley, @KennedyforIL–who's ripped the culture of insiders in IL politics–reported getting $100k from the mayor's brother, former White House chief of staff Bill Daley. pic.twitter.com/7CRYE1My1q
Remember the days when Bill Daley was brought in as Kennedy’s finance chairman and was talking about raising $8-10 million?
Also, speaking of Daley, that Kennedy presser was held in front of Rauner Prep charter school, which Daley’s brother Mayor Richard M. Daley helped get off the ground.
Biss is the only candidate who has featured video of his home in a campaign ad, showcasing his family’s modest duplex in Evanston. He also owns a small home in Urbana, Illinois, that his wife bought before they were married and they now rent, he said. […]
Of those, Pritzker’s Astor Street mansion in Chicago’s Gold Coast neighborhood has received considerable attention in the past, not just for its size but also on the topic of property taxes.
Pritzker owns the mansion next door, where the toilets were removed and it was deemed uninhabitable, resulting in a major reduction in property taxes.
Just north of the Illinois border, Pritzker also owns an expansive horse farm in Racine, Wisconsin, with several buildings on its grounds. And not far from that is the Pritzker vacation home, a mansion in Lake Geneva.
NBC 5 also obtained photos of another home, believed to be Pritzker’s, under construction in an exclusive area of the Bahamas with ocean views. The Pritzker campaign would only say that he has a home in the Bahamas, but would not confirm that the photos are of his property. […]
“My wife Sheila and I have a house here in Illinois, near her parents and her brothers and sisters, and then we have a house up in Cape Cod near the Kennedy compound, close to all of my brothers and sisters,” Kennedy said
Two leading female lawmakers have floated a set of recommendations aimed at improving the system for reporting and investigating sexual harassment at the Capitol, but questions remain about legislative leaders retaining control over complaints that are filed.
Democratic state Rep. Barbara Flynn Currie and Republican Rep. Sara Wojcicki Jimenez offered the “working draft” at a meeting of a House task force on sexual discrimination and harassment on Tuesday […]
Currie and Wojcicki Jimenez suggest that each legislative leader appoint a person who is responsible for receiving and reviewing complaints. That person would decide which ones should be turned over for investigation. Then, each leader would either employ their own investigator, refer investigations to an outside attorney or refer them to the legislative watchdog.
That structure reflects the current system, except that the roles of receiving complaints and of investigating them would be separated. Currie acknowledged that expecting staffers or lawmakers to complain to legislative leaders or their chosen representatives could have a chilling effect.
“There is an awkwardness, I recognize that,” Currie said.
* From the “Open Questions” section, which means they’re still discussing it…
Adding additional punishment options to House Rules for lawmakers such as reprimand or censure for violations of the Ethics Act.
Long way to go, campers.
* But some legislators are working on a different track. Sun-Times…
Democratic women of the Illinois House on Wednesday held a closed door meeting at the Capitol with Alaina Hampton — the woman whose accusations of harassment led to the firing of a top political aide to Illinois House Speaker Mike Madigan.
And while Hampton shared her perspective, women legislators are trying to look forward and introduce new legislation to help combat sexual harassment — and also to help empower women in politics. […]
“The broader context is to ensure that any legislation that comes out of part of a final package has the input of women around the Capitol who are impacted and will be impacted by the policies we implement,” [Rep. Ann Williams, D-Chicago] said.
Williams said the caucus plans to meet with female staffers, former female staffers, current lobbyists and other women at the Capitol to get their perspective.
* And this is from Rep. Kelly Cassidy’s constituent newsletter…
Last week, as stories of sexual harassment and abusive behavior as well as questions about how complaints were handled within Illinois political offices and campaigns swirled, I called for a proactive and truly independent investigation of the various entities involved with the House Democratic Caucus. Recognizing the challenge of finding someone locally that wouldn’t have some political or family connection to someone involved, I made clear that I intended to research both locally and nationally.
Over the last week, we have reached out to the local group Women Employed as well as nationally to the National Women’s Law Center, the National Conference of State Legislatures and the State Innovation Exchange. At the same time, we have been contacted by groups both locally and nationally who have expressed interest in the possible investigation. Each of these groups or firms were asked to submit a proposal outlining how they would accomplish a probe resulting in concrete proposals for change as well as to disclose any actual or perceived conflict along with their plan for addressing potential conflicts.
So far, four organizations have agreed to submit proposals. Once all of these proposals have been received, I intend to share them with the Speaker and the House Democratic Women’s Caucus in order to be as transparent as possible as we attempt to move forward and improve the culture of our operations. I am happy to share the results of my research with any of the other caucuses or members of leadership seeking to proactively make change within their own organizations as well.
* Rep. Cassidy also included a list of legislation to watch. Here’s one of the bills…
Provides that the Secretary of State or the Executive Ethics Commission, after the adjudication of a violation regarding sexual harassment under the Lobbyist Registration Act for which an investigation was initiated by the Inspector General appointed by the Secretary of State, are authorized to temporarily suspend or terminate any person, or lobbying entity for which that person is employed, registered under the Lobbyist Registration Act.
* I haven’t seen this covered any where else and I’m on deadline for Crain’s so I don’t have much time for a post, but here’s yesterday’s veto message…
February 28, 2018
To the Honorable Members of
The Illinois House of Representatives,
100th General Assembly:
Today I veto House Bill 768 from the 100th General Assembly, which would eliminate a route for charter school applicants and operators to appeal denial or closure decisions made by their local school boards.
This legislation would deny charter school applicants and operators the right to appeal local school board decisions through the Charter School Commission, instead sending every appeal to the judicial system. Furthermore, it would strip the Charter School Commission of responsibilities that are rightfully under its jurisdiction as a check on local school board decisions. The Commission has only approved 6 out of 48 appeals since its inception in 2011, and has a track record of careful consideration of what is best for students within local contexts, as it is statutorily bound to do. Further, the decisions of the Commission are already judicially reviewable. Current law provides applicants a second venue before turning to the courts.
The Charter School Commission is more well-equipped to facilitate the appeals process than local courts, and should continue to be empowered with the charge of ensuring that all Illinois children have access to a high-quality education.
Therefore, pursuant to Section 9(b) of Article IV of the Illinois Constitution of 1970, I hereby return House Bill 768, entitled “AN ACT concerning education”, with the foregoing objections, vetoed in its entirety.
Amends the Charter Schools Law of the School Code. Removes provisions allowing the State Charter School Commission to reverse a school board’s decision to deny, revoke, or not renew a charter; makes related changes. Provides that if a charter school applicant submits a proposal to a school board outside of the process adopted by that school board for receiving charter school proposals on an annual basis, the applicant shall not have any right to submit its proposal to the State Charter School Commission as otherwise authorized. In a provision concerning a charter school proposed to be jointly authorized by 2 or more school districts and the school boards unanimously denying the charter school proposal with a statement that the school boards are not opposed to the charter school, but that they yield to the Commission in light of the complexities of joint administration, allows the charter applicant to submit the proposal to the Commission and requires the Commission to follow the same process and be subject to the same timelines for review as a school board. Allows the Commission to approve an application for a charter if certain conditions are met. Provide that the Commission may condition approval of an application on the acceptance of funding in an amount less than requested. Provides that final decisions of the Commission are subject to judicial review under the Administrative Review Law. Provides that if the Commission approves an application for a charter school, then the Commission shall act as the authorized chartering entity. Provides that if the Commission is the authorized chartering entity, then the Commission shall execute a charter agreement (instead of approve the charter agreement). Provides that the Commission has no authority to approve a charter school proposal that has been denied by a school board. Effective immediately.
State Sen. Linda Holmes (D-Aurora) released the following statement in response to the governor’s veto of her measure Senate Bill 768, which allows local school boards to make the final decision when issuing, denying or revoking charter school licenses:
“Governor Rauner wants to deny local officials the right to decide who educates their communities. By vetoing this bipartisan measure, Rauner keeps charter school permitting decision-making at the state level, where he can more easily influence outcomes and force communities to support charter schools that they may not need or want. School boards across the state know what is best for those that they serve and should have the final word on issuing, denying or revoking a charter school permit.”
* Up until this week, the JB Pritzker campaign has been very careful to not say much in the way of negative stuff about Chris Kennedy. Well, not on the record, anyway. But after launching a negative TV ad yesterday, I guess they have a new track. From a press release…
A claim that spurred backlash from Cairo students themselves landed Chris Kennedy in hot water with fact checkers. The Better Government Association rated Kennedy’s claim that “zero percent of kids in Cairo are college-ready” as false.
BGA: Fact Check: Chris Kennedy Flunks Data Interpretation 101 With Cairo College Readiness Claim
Kennedy tried to make a point about inadequate state school funding when he declared “zero percent of kids in Cairo are college-ready.”
But school officials in that deep southern Illinois community report a majority of current seniors have already received acceptance offers from at least one college.
Kennedy backtracked on his original statement when news media sought clarification, though he did not admit error. In the second go-around, he pointed to slightly better numbers from a different set of state-collected test data. […]
The confusing set of numbers and assertions reeled out by Kennedy to bolster his comments about Cairo students make it clear he didn’t do his homework before claiming initially that no members of the graduating class of 2018 were prepared for college. For that reason, we rate his statement False.
“Chris Kennedy should get his facts straight and take time to understand the needs of the communities he’s so thoroughly insulting from the campaign trail,” said Pritzker communications director Galia Slayen. “Public education is the lifeblood of the Illinois economy and students are the future of this state, but Kennedy seems intent on badmouthing them instead of bringing people together to move Illinois forward.”
The [Paul Simon Public Policy Institute] survey, conducted Feb. 19 through Sunday, was made up of registered voters who identified their party preference to poll takers and said they were likely to vote in the March 20 primary. The sample was not weighted to reflect voters more likely to go to the polls based on past voting history and was not adjusted for historical racial and age demographics or turnout.
For example, African-Americans make up about one-third of the state’s Democratic primary vote. But of Democratic voters surveyed in the poll, only 19 percent were black based on those giving their race or ethnicity to pollsters. […]
Among African-American voters, a key demographic in Democratic elections, Pritzker had 45 percent to 22 percent for Kennedy and 6 percent for Biss, the poll showed. But the smaller sample of black voters also has a significantly larger margin of error.
In addition, Chicago voters cast one-third of the state’s Democratic primary votes in the 2016 presidential primary election. But only a quarter of the voters in the poll who said they would vote in the Democratic primary were from Chicago.
The Tribune almost never writes about anybody else’s polls, so this story makes me wonder if the paper is ever going to do its own poll. Usually, it does two and would have published one by now.
* Let’s go back to Speaker Madigan’s gun bills press release. He included a list of what passed and I then added the bill status as of about 10 o’clock this morning…
* House Bill 1465, which raises the minimum age to purchase an assault rifle from 18 to 21. [Passed the House 64-51 and is in the Senate]
* House Bill 1467, which bans the sale of bump stocks and other modifications like those used by the Las Vegas shooter to turn an arsenal of semi-automatic rifles into fully automatic machine guns. [Passed the House 83-31 and is in the Senate]
* House Bill 1468, which requires a 72-hour “cooling off” period on all assault rifle sales. [Passed the House 79-37 and is in the Senate]
* Senate Bill 1657 [Passed the House 64-52 and goes to the governor] and House Bill 1273 [House concurs 64-51-3 and goes to the governor], which ensure gun shops will comply with these and other state and federal laws by creating a gun dealer licensing system. These bills will hold gun dealers to the same standard as many other licensed professions including car dealerships, real estate agencies, and even beauty salons, to ensure gun shops meet basic levels of security and training.
Facing pressure to tighten gun laws after a Florida high school shooting and the slaying of a Chicago police officer, Illinois House lawmakers led by Democrats on Wednesday voted to create new rules for gun shops, ban the sale of “bump stocks” and restrict purchases of assault weapons.
The votes at the Capitol came as hundreds of gun control advocates including Cardinal Blase Cupich and Chicago police Superintendent Eddie Johnson called for action, while opponents argued that Democrats in control of the legislature were exploiting tragedy to score political points in an election year.
Even so, some Republican lawmakers broke with most of their party, particularly suburban lawmakers who said the changes represented a reasonable response to violence.
Republican Gov. Bruce Rauner largely has avoided weighing in on specific gun proposals, saying it’s a matter for the federal government. He may have to soon, though, now that the House voted Wednesday to put on his desk a bill that would require gun retailers to get state licenses. Once the legislation arrives in Rauner’s office, he will have 60 days to act. That means he will not have to make a decision until after the March 20 primary election in which he faces Rep. Jeanne Ives of Wheaton, who voted against the bill.
The proposed law requires background checks for gun dealers and their employees; allows the Illinois Department of Financial and Professional Regulation to inspect businesses that sell firearms; and requires gun dealers to undergo training on conducting background checks, identifying straw purchasers, and properly storing firearms to prevent theft. […]
Harmon said he has received no indication from Gov. Bruce Rauner on whether he will sign the bill if approved by state lawmakers.
“I think the governor would be foolish to not embrace this bill, but he has a habit of surprising me,” Harmon said. “There have been no commitments, but there have been no threats to veto either.”
The day began with a plea to lawmakers from the influential leader of Chicago’s Catholic Archdiocese to pass “sensible” gun control measures in the name of “murdered children” in Parkland, Florida, and Newtown, Connecticut.
As the day wore on, Cardinal Blase Cupich’s call was echoed in emotional pleas from gun control advocates, many who have lost family members to violence, at rallies outside the Capitol.
And it ended with controversial legislation being sent to Gov. Bruce Rauner’s desk that would require gun dealers to be licensed by the state, and not just the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco & Firearms. […]
The House, however, is still working to gain support on other measures, including one named after Chicago Police Cmdr. Paul Bauer, who was shot and killed while responding to an armed robbery in the James R. Thompson Center in the Loop earlier this month. The bill would ban the sale of body armor and high-capacity gun magazines to anyone other than police officers, licensed security guards and members of the armed forces. Shomari Legghette, charged with the murder, was allegedly wearing body armor and using a gun with an extra-capacity magazine when he is accused of shooting Bauer. Legghette also is a four-time felon.
Some cattle farms in southern Illinois have experienced attacks by black vultures, with one farm losing four cows.
Teresa Steckler, commercial agriculture educator at the University of Illinois Extension, said the vultures appear to be moving north in recent years and that Interstate 64 seems like the cutoff line.
Steckler said besides the reported cases, some farmers might not realize they are losing calves to attacks by the vultures. […]
Steckler said that the black vultures will use a coordinated attack to go after cattle, teaming up on a mother cow while others attack the calve from another direction. She said the attacks remind her of another predator, the hyena. […]
Steckler said the vultures will attack calves, adult cows and just about anything else. She said setting up Canada goose decoys could be a deterrent for the vultures. Additionally, Steckler said farmers should keep watch on their cattle and that the vultures are very brazen and will attack close to barns.
The birds also can recognize farm vehicles, Steckler said.
“They learn pretty quickly what your truck is like or your vehicle is like and they will fly off and wait until you leave, and they come right back,” Steckler said.
They’re also a protected species and can’t be killed.
* Gov. Rauner talked to reporters yesterday about his possible general election opponent, JB Pritzker…
The tragedy for the people of Illinois is Pritzker is a hand-picked candidate of Mike Madigan. Madigan has controlled our state for 35 years. He brought Pritzker in to run for governor. Pritzker, because he had, Pritzker inherited billions of dollars and he can put lots of money in the race, that’s why they want him.
Unfortunately, Pritzker’s part of the corruption in Illinois. He funded Blagojevich, he’s funded Madigan. He’s part of that machine out of Chicago.
And he’s a tax dodger, and he tried to buy the Senate seat from Blagojevich, he’s been on the FBI tapes.
He’s a bad, bad person and if he were to become governor he would hand the governorship to Mike Madigan. Disaster for the state.
In a nutshell, that’s pretty much your fall campaign preview.
* Related…
* Video: Why Illinois Gov. Bruce Rauner thinks he should be re-elected
* Gov. Rauner talked to reporters yesterday about the gun bills moving through the General Assembly…
I’ll tell you, one of my frustrations, Speaker Madigan and his majority so far have not been willing to really bring Republicans in. Republican legislators have not really been included in much of the negotiations and my team has not really been brought in very much. I’m concerned that they want to just do a one party, partisan type of legislation. I don’t think that’s right. We should be a bipartisan negotiation to get good bills done.
* From a Speaker Madigan press release…
Today, Democrats and a few thoughtful Republicans stood up and answered the call, but the silence from Governor Rauner speaks volumes and is reflected in the fact that the majority of his caucus opposed even these most basic gun safety measures. While the successful passage of these bills is a critical step for safer communities, it should have been a step we took together rather than another example of the governor’s failure to lead.”
Ah, Illinois. What would I ever do without you?
* Meanwhile, Senate President Cullerton’s release looked outward…
With Congress paralyzed by partisan politics, Illinois Senate President John J. Cullerton applauded his Illinois colleagues for taking action Wednesday to protect public safety and urged state lawmakers across the country to show similar leadership.
“I’m proud of the Illinois Senate’s continued leadership in pushing for safer communities. We all recognize the need for federal action on gun safety. But in the absence of federal action, I want to encourage our statehouse colleagues across the country to do what we did today, seize this opportunity to make a difference,” said Illinois Senate President John J. Cullerton, who represents the state’s 6th Senate District in Chicago.
“And I want to specifically call on Indiana officials to finally do something about the flood of guns from their state flowing into Chicago and being used for crimes. If Indiana were to take public safety as seriously as we do, both of our states would be far better.”
The Senate President’s call for statehouse leadership across America followed the Illinois Senate’s approval of legislation regarding gun dealer licenses (HB1273) and creation of a process through which guns can be removed from people who family members believe are prone to violence (HB772).
Cullerton also stressed that annual studies have shown that lax gun laws in Indiana result in firearms flooding into the Chicago and being used for crimes. Between 2013 and 2016, 21 percent of the guns recovered by Chicago police had been sold in Indiana.
* You really gotta hand it to this guy. He just doesn’t care about how he looks to the populace…
With less than three weeks until election day, Democratic Cook County Assessor Joe Berrios went to court in an effort to keep the spigot flowing on campaign contributions from property tax appeal lawyers whose livelihoods can depend on the decisions his office makes.
On Wednesday, Berrios’ lawyers asked Circuit Court Judge Sanjay Tailor to void county ethics rules that place limits on campaign contributions to elected officials and candidates from those who seek “official action” from the county. Berrios’ team argued the county rules violate the state constitution because only the Illinois legislature has authority to set campaign contribution limits.
The county, however, maintained that it has the power to set its own, more-restrictive limits on campaign cash to avoid quid pro quo politics.
While the optics of the situation won’t exactly win the old-school Berrios praise from good government groups, a look at where Berrios’ campaign cash is coming from shows that property appeals lawyers remain a vital source of contributions. Since October, Berrios has collected more than $276,000 from those attorneys — about four-fifths of what he’s received in individual contributions during that time.
* Meanwhile…
Our Revolution Illinois/Chicago, candidates call on Commissioners to act immediately to Reduce Homeowners Property Taxes
WHO: Our Revolution Illinois/Chicago, along with Fritz Kaegi and other Our Revolution Illinois endorsed candidates, will hold a press conference Thursday at 11am, prior to the Finance Committee meeting of the Cook County Board of Commissioners.
WHAT: Commissioners are summoning Berrios to testify before the Finance Committee on the heels of a scathing report by the Civic Consulting Alliance—commissioned by Berrios himself—showing deep inequity in the way he values residential properties in Cook County. Further, Crain’s Chicago Business reported that the 50 highest priced commercial property sales in Cook County, whose total value is $17.1 billion, were only valued at $7.8 billion—46% of their actual value.
Our Revolution Illinois will offer specifics ways the Cook County Board can act immediately to start to correct some of the inequities and provide much needed property tax relief for homeowners.
…Adding… Rauner campaign…
As Berrios Takes Advantage of Middle Class Illinoisans, Pritzker Stays Silent
On Wednesday, the Chicago Tribune reported that Cook County Commissioner and close Madigan ally Joe Berrios is going to court to fight limits on campaign contributions from “those who seek ‘official action’ from the county.” Berrios’ actions are clearly a conflict of interest, and yet another example of how corrupt and broken the property tax system is in Cook County: he receives help getting elected from Madigan, and in return, Madigan receives favorable reductions in value for clients of his tax reassessment firm.
From the Tribune:
The practice also was highlighted in “The Tax Divide,” a Chicago Tribune and ProPublica Illinois series that concluded Berrios’ assessment practices favored the wealthy at the expense of the poor. Tax appeals, which have flourished under Berrios, only make the system less fair, the series concluded and a recent independent study commissioned by county officials confirmed.
In addition, how Berrios’ case plays out — and is perceived by the public — also could have implications well beyond the down-ballot campaign for assessor. Some of the state’s most powerful politicians, including House Speaker Michael Madigan and 14th Ward Ald. Ed Burke, are lawyers whose firms make money handling property tax appeals. Berrios, chairman of the Cook County Democratic Party, is a key Madigan ally.
Pritzker, who has personally benefitted from property tax breaks from Berrios’ office, continues to be unwilling to stand up to entrenched political interests, to the detriment of hardworking Illinois families
