Rail freight drives so much of our goods, our products made in America, built in America, shippin’ around the world. It is driven by train. Illinois is the only state that has all seven Class One railroads in it. The only state. And they converge around metropolitan Chicagoland. And unfortunately, for decades metropolitan Chicago has been the number one bottleneck for freight rail traffic in America. For decades this has been a problem.
Secretary Elaine Chao and the Trump administration have driven the result to untangle that bottleneck and drive great efficiency for the rail system of America. Thank you, Madame Secretary and the Trump administration.
Make no mistake, this is a hugely important project. Everyone involved should be congratulated.
But didja notice he said the word “Trump”? He doesn’t do that too often.
The Chicago Sun-Times has only a 60 percent chance of still being in business two years from now, according to the newspaper’s CEO.
Edwin Eisendrath, who headed the investor group that acquired the struggling daily tabloid last summer, shared the assessment in public remarks Thursday at the Illinois Press Association convention in Bloomington-Normal.
In response to an audience question, Eisendrath acknowledged that the Sun-Times was still losing money, and he pegged the likelihood of its survival in two years at “60 percent.” If it’s around then, he added, it should be viable for five years or more. […]
Despite its appeal for support among union households, the Sun-Times has not experienced a groundswell of subscribers under the new ownership, Eisendrath said. With a redesign of the paper’s website and its move to a subscription paywall model, there will be a renewed effort to attract new customers.
* Yours truly will be announcing the game at Busch Stadium when the Illinois side bats…
WHAT: First Annual Bi-State Softball Showdown - Missouri Legislators vs. Illinois Legislators Softball Game at Busch Stadium
WHEN: Thursday, June 14, 2018
TIME: 1:00 p.m. first pitch; broadcast winners and interviews in Media Room at 2:30 p.m.
LOCATION: Busch Stadium, 700 Clark Avenue, St. Louis, MO 63102
Join Missouri and Illinois Legislators for the First Annual Bi-State Softball Showdown Game at Busch Stadium, where legislators from both sides of the river and across party lines will be competing for bragging rights – all in the spirit of bi-state regional cooperation. The bipartisan event is sponsored by the St. Louis Regional Chamber.
Members of the media will have the opportunity to interview team captains Missouri Representative Elijah Haarh (R-District 134), Speaker Pro Tem, and Illinois Senator Bill Cunningham (D-District 18) after the game, as well as St. Louis Regional Chamber President & CEO Tom Chulick and other members of the Missouri and Illinois teams. See the attached Missouri and Illinois rosters for the team members.
The St. Louis Regional Chamber is the region’s principal business advocacy organization, championing forward-thinking economic policies in Illinois, Missouri and Washington D.C. The Chamber represents the St. Louis business community in both Missouri and Illinois across 15 counties and the City of St. Louis. The Chamber’s First Annual Bi-State Softball Showdown was organized to encourage regional understanding and cooperation among legislators to help St. Louis area economic growth and development.
* They’ll be playing with a 12-inch softball instead of the Chicago-style 16-inch, so the other side of the river will definitely have an advantage. Some of the Illinois players will have to buy gloves for the first time.
The idea is to hold another game next year in Chicago with a 16-inch ball, but we’ll see if that actually happens.
* And I was just told that we “can’t say anything inappropriate” over the stadium’s PA system, so I guess quoting the late, great Sen. Adeline Geo-Karis’ infamous admonition to players is out of the question.
…Adding… I’m told Rep. Ryan Spain is playing as well, and maybe a few others who are not yet confirmed. And Rep. Avery Bourne is definitely not a Senator.
Illinois lawmakers this week introduced a set of legislative proposals and began planning hearings in response to the Chicago Public Schools sexual abuse scandal.
A bill proposal filed Tuesday listed child protection shortfalls highlighted in a Tribune investigative series and outlined more than a dozen changes to state law. Those measures would swiftly revoke the licenses of educators found by districts to have sexually abused children and would make such disciplinary action more transparent to the public.
The proposed legislation also would make it a crime for school employees to have sexual contact with a student regardless of the student’s age. Under current law, sex with a student is legal if he or she is older than 17 and no force is involved.
Separately, state legislators called for a joint Senate and House hearing within the next two weeks.
* Other bills…
* State pension buyout programs will take time to start: “We’re working on it. We have to put it in place as practically as possible,” said TRS spokesman Dave Urbanek. “It involves a lot of IT work. It involves a lot of legal study to make sure that the law as written can be implemented. We’re not alone in this. The IRS gets involved, the comptroller’s office, the governor’s office. There are a lot of people who need to do things to make this work.”
* Illinois Lottery practice of selling tickets after top prizes are gone could end under proposed law change: A Camelot spokeswoman said the proposed measure aligns with the company’s views on instant game policy. “We’ve conducted research and prepared a recommendation to the lottery that includes adopting a new policy that begins closure of instant games once the last top-tier prize has been claimed,” spokeswoman Wendy Abrams said. “Once a new policy has been established, we plan to post it on the website. We are also working on updating the instant game prize report online every business day.”
* Bill to raise smoking age would hurt convenience stores, vape shops, retailers say: A bill on its way to Gov. Bruce Rauner’s desk would raise the legal age for purchasing tobacco and nicotine products from 18 to 21 statewide, a move praised by public health advocates and opposed by convenience stores and other Illinois retailers. … “If you look at the tobacco use rate for youth, it’s up to around 30 percent, and that’s mainly because of the e-cigarettes,” [Kathy Drea, senior director of advocacy for the American Lung Association of the Upper Midwest] said. “The 18-year-old in high school often buys tobacco products for the younger age group, the 14- through 17-year-olds. If you take away that supplier, the younger group has a much more difficult time obtaining tobacco products.”
* Seeing green in Illinois with possible return of hemp: Summers said now it could also be used as a plastics alternative, in clothing and foods, along with being beneficial for sustainable agriculture. Summers said, “Good for crop rotation and it’s also really good for bringing back the soil health.”
* Bill to help veterans at risk of suicide awaits Rauner’s signature: The Department of Veterans Affairs said 193 veterans — 183 men and 10 women — committed suicide in Illinois in 2014, the most recent year statistics are available. Nationally, 65 percent of veterans who commit suicide are 50 or older.
* Tim Mapes was DPI’s executive director until Wednesday, when he was forced to resign…
Michael J. Madigan, chairman of the Democratic Party of Illinois, announced formation of a committee which will select the party’s next executive director.
The search committee will be comprised of the 18 elected Democratic State Central Committeewomen, and chaired jointly by Juliana Stratton, Iris Martinez, Jayne Mazzotti, Carol Ronen and Karen Yarbrough.
“The members of this search committee share a commitment to the success of our Democratic Party, and also recognize the need for a better culture throughout Illinois government and politics,” Madigan said. “I know they will conduct a thorough search and select a candidate who reflects our commitment to a strong statewide party and a better future for all. I appreciate the work they are preparing to undertake.”
Those chairs are interesting. Mazzotti and Yarbrough can be considered Madigan people, but Stratton, Martinez and Ronen are most definitely not. Looks like the Pritzker folks had some influence there.
* Meanwhile…
Gov. Bruce Rauner has signed into law a measure that will increase independence in the investigation of legislative ethics complaints in Illinois. This new law, which makes significant reforms to the Legislative Ethics Commission and Office of the Legislative Inspector General, changes the process of handling ethics complaints to provide those who would come forward greater confidence that their concerns will be reviewed in a timely, transparent manner.
“This bill is a victory for the heroic women who have stepped forward to take on the culture of fear, abuse and retaliation that permeates too much of state government. Illinoisans should applaud this improvement and champion the women who stood up to Illinois’ political power structure in order to make this change happen.” Rauner said in his signing message. “Through their courageous words and actions, they have declared that the culture in Springfield must change.”
Under HB 138 the Legislative Inspector General (LIG) will be allowed to conduct independent investigations into sexual harassment allegations without obtaining consent from the Legislative Ethics Commission (LEC). The new law will create an independent search committee to recommend candidates for LIG, establish new restrictions on political parties and lobbying firms, and bring greater transparency to the management of ethics complaints. It also makes it possible to hire a full-time LIG, instead of the current part-time position, to more quickly investigate ethics complaints.
“Those who have been subject to sexual harassment can now have greater confidence that the investigatory process will not be controlled by those who are being investigated. The era of self-dealing in Springfield must come to an end,” Rauner said. “Victims should not live in fear that the truth they tell will bring more pain into their lives. That’s why I’m signing this bill – because it will help protect Illinois’ daughters, mothers, wives and others who dedicate their lives to improving state government.”
While this legislation is a step in the right direction, Rauner identified two critical flaws that should be addressed quickly by the legislature. First, the LIG should not need the legislature’s approval to investigate any type of ethics allegations.
“The same independent investigation that is needed for claims of sexual harassment is also needed for allegations such as bribery, fraud, prohibited political activity, and other crimes and ethics violations,” Rauner said, noting that the legislature has the authority to make those changes.
Rauner also noted that the LEC, which oversees investigations of claims against legislators and legislative staff, should not be composed of legislators. Outside individuals, not connected to the legislative process, should be tasked with oversight of the General Assembly.
“Illinois has one of the nation’s highest rates of public corruption, and Illinoisans have the lowest confidence in their government compared to citizens of every other state. An independent Legislative Inspector General and independent commission are needed to help restore Illinoisans’ confidence in the legislature,” Rauner said.
While work remains to be done, Rauner commended the work of the members of the General Assembly who made this step forward possible, and urged them to continue pushing for reform.
“I have to applaud the Illinois Senate Women’s Caucus who really championed this issue and have made this advancement possible,” Rauner said. “I hope they will stay vigilant, and remain engaged as we continue to work together to take on this toxic culture of corruption in Springfield.”
The new law also makes various changes aimed at increasing transparency including requiring enhanced reporting of matters brought to the LEC and the Executive Ethics Commission, procedures for LEC members to recuse themselves, and addresses limitations concerning the sharing of information about complaints and the investigative process with complainants. It also allows the Secretary of State Inspector General to enforce rules that apply to lobbyists, providing for suspension or revocation of a lobbyist’s registration for a sexual harassment violation.
On July 1, 2015, Rauner implemented new restrictions to [the Child Care Assistance Program] that cut the eligibility level from 185 percent of the federal poverty line to 50 percent and required new copay amounts for program recipients, among other changes. After a bipartisan outcry and a threat from the General Assembly to override the changes, Rauner in fall 2015 changed the eligibility level again, this time raising it to 162 percent of the federal poverty line. But the changes had already caused a massive scrubbing of the CCAP rolls.
In the year following Rauner’s action, over 32,000 fewer children were enrolled in CCAP-assisted day-care services, according to the Illinois Department of Human Services. Nearly 19,000 fewer families received child-care assistance due to the changes. From July 2015 to June 2016, 831 fewer licensed child-care providers received assistance from the state, which has caused providers to make painful choices on how they operate, including accepting fewer low-income parents in favor of those who can pay up front, experts said. […]
There was also good news in last week’s state budget plan, the first signed by Rauner. The Service Employees International Union Healthcare in Illinois cheered what it said was a 4.26 percent raise for CCAP workers included in the budget. “Illinois legislators stepped in where Gov. Rauner has failed by passing a budget that includes a raise for child-care providers,” said Maricarmen Macias, just one such provider.
But if the original eligibility has been reinstated and funding preserved, why are only a quarter of the state’s CCAP-eligible families receiving aid? Experts say the state is doing virtually nothing to market that the program has been expanded, and that the governor is doing even less to ensure the program’s future vitality.
What: Gov. Rauner is with U.S. Secretary of Transportation Elaine L. Chao today for the announcement of a major rail infrastructure grant for the 75th Street Corridor Improvement Project. The event is being live streamed at www.Transportation.gov.
Where: U.S. Department of Transportation - West Atrium, 1200 New Jersey Ave., SE, Washington, D.C.
Running for re-election, Gov. Bruce Rauner, who has distanced himself from the Trump administration and this city, will be here on Friday for a press event to highlight a $132 million federal rail infrastructure grant for crucial improvements needed in Chicago’s crowded rail network.
The grant was already announced on Tuesday in press releases from Rauner, a Republican and Democratic Illinois Senators Dick Durbin and Tammy Duckworth plus Rep. Dan Lipinski, D-Ill.
Rauner, locked in a battle with Democratic governor nominee J.B. Pritzker, has been traveling the state highlighting infrastructure projects, so the trip here at this time fits into his latest campaign theme.
Rauner will attend a press conference with Transportation Secretary Elaine Chao, providing him with a photo op that could be useful to his campaign. […]
I asked Lipinski about Rauner’s role in landing the grant and he said, “there is nothing that suggests that Gov. Rauner has a lot of clout in the Trump Administration, so it’s hard to say.”
* Pritzker campaign…
Bruce Rauner is taking his election-year stunts to the next level — flying to the nation’s capital today to tout a federal grant that was already announced.
In 2014, Rauner slammed election-year photo ops: “What I won’t do… is fail to invest in our infrastructure for years and run around at the last-minute making promises.” But today, Rauner is doing just that — attending a sham ribbon cutting without several members of the Illinois delegation that fought for the federal funds. […]
“Bruce Rauner is flying to DC for another sham ribbon cutting for a federal grant he already announced,” said Pritzker campaign spokesman Jason Rubin. “This failed governor let Illinois’ infrastructure crumble, and now thinks posing for a photo op with the Trump administration will mask his failed record and flailing re-election campaign.”
He’s recycling ads from the primary and now he’s recycling announcements. It’s campaign season.
That sucking sound you hear in Illinois might be jobs and moving vans leaving the state.
In the wee hours of Wednesday morning, Illinois lawmakers squeaked in a massive tax increase at the end of its session before a new legislature, that is unlikely to pass tax increases in a down economy, started Wednesday. Some lawmakers say the increase was desperately needed to balance the state’s fledgling budget. Now both residents and business owners in the “Land of Lincoln” are threatening to move out.
But that’s good news for Illinois’ neighbors to the north in Wisconsin, and they are laying out the welcome mat.
Illinois hiked the state income tax rate by 66 percent in 2011 and three years later, according to revised census estimates, the state’s population had grown by more than 20,000. The tax rate dropped down again in 2015 and, since then, the census estimate has plunged 60,000.
In 2017, a net of 33,703 people departed, dropping the state to sixth-largest, behind Pennsylvania.
What the Tribune doesn’t mention is that these estimates are often revised. Back to the BGA…
The instinct to pounce obscures a statistical quirk of the census: population estimates decried as disastrous on first blush often get revised upwards, sometimes significantly, to little fanfare. That clearly has been the case for Illinois, where a numbers downturn is troubling but far from the freefall some media reports and partisans suggest.
In 2016, for example, the Census Bureau’s American Community Survey population estimate for Illinois was initially listed as 12,801,539 and said to reflect a drop of more than 37,000 from the previous year. In 2017, the initial estimate was pegged at 12,802,023 and said to be down more than 33,000.
The glaring problem, of course, is that the first estimates released for both years were almost identical, so the big back-to-back declines in population that stirred sky-is-falling headlines don’t add up. What got buried in the analysis was that the 2016 estimate was later increased significantly from its original value.
* You also see a lot of this stuff…
Wheeler says progressive tax would 'accelerate' exodus of Illinois citizens https://t.co/sF9aIbw9vF
The Tax Foundation ranked Minnesota’s overall business tax climate among the nation’s worst. Even so, the state was among Midwestern leaders in population growth, with a 5.1 percent gain since 2010 and a 13.3 percent jump since 2000. The state also has the highest median household income and the lowest poverty rate. […]
When Minnesota imposed its upper-tax bracket in 2013, critics warned it would prompt the affluent to flee. But in the year after the tax was enacted, the number of people filing tax returns showing income in excess of $1 million grew by 15 percent.
* And while most of the stories, columns and editorials in the Tribune about the exodus focus on white, suburban, middle-class people, this is also a hard reality…
Illinois is more reliant on agriculture, construction and mining machinery manufacturing, as well as management, technical consulting and securities and investments. Michigan, Ohio, Indiana and Wisconsin are as much as five times above the national average in terms of motor vehicle-related manufacturing. In a touch of political irony, the controversial federal bailout of the auto industry during the Obama administration appears to have helped prop up population in those Republican-leaning states. […]
“If you look at a rural county in Illinois, it’s almost like any other state, where they’re losing just like the Illinois county is,” [Chicago demographer Rob Paral] said. “Illinois, though, is both unique in its total population but with very different things going on.”
“Black population growth and immigration growth used to offset the white decline,” Paral said. “Not anymore.”
In per capita terms, Illinois’ gross out-migration rate ranks just 29th out of the 50 states and the District of Columbia. In other words, Illinois residents are actually less likely to move out than are residents of the median state.
But things don’t look so good when it comes to gross in-migration. Adjusted for population, Illinois attracts fewer newcomers than all but two other states: New York and Michigan.
That means Illinois’ migration problems are mostly about how few people come here, not how many people leave.
We've only heard some of what @JBPritzker and Rod Blagojevich discussed on FBI wiretaps, now we want the rest. Sign the petition to demand the rest of the tapes: https://t.co/IZSebm6Wbt#twill#ILGov
First, as we discussed a few days ago, I can’t see how an online petition will do much of anything besides gather names for a campaign database. It’s a phony “issue” because the FBI surveillance tapes were sealed by a federal judge, who is now retired. And, anyway, who are they gonna submit their “petition” to? I’m thinking nobody. But, hey, maybe people will talk about it. They did the same thing during the primary, by the way. This is yet another Blagojevich-related primary tactic reboot by Team Rauner.
Second, what’s with the mixed messages? They’re combining the Rod tapes with “no balanced budget = no pay for legislators” thing? This has to be a clerical error because the governor just signed a budget that wasn’t technically balanced.
…Adding… They took down the tweet. Must’ve been the mistake I pointed out. I saved it, though…
An analysis of data from the nonpartisan site Follow the Money shows that back in the 2006 legislative and statewide races, Illinois candidates raised a combined $43 million.
Most of that money came from interests groups, businesses, trade unions and other organizations - “the traditional sources of big money,” as Kent Redfield, professor emeritus of political science at University of Illinois Springfield, describes them.
Fast forward to the 2014 elections - campaign fundraising had more than tripled. A good chunk of the cash, around 40 percent, came from just a handful of big donors. […]
This year, in the race for governor between a billionaire and a near-billionaire, campaign contributions from the candidates already total more than $150 million.
In other words, JB Pritzker and Gov. Bruce Rauner have individually given more money than was raised on all statewide and legislative races in 2014.
“Irreconcilable differences” have led to countless divorces. Now, the same reason is being given for the breakup of President Donald Trump and Ald. Edward M. Burke (14th).
The powerful Chicago alderman’s small law firm had worked for Trump for 12 years, persuading Cook County officials to cut the property taxes on the president’s namesake downtown skyscraper by a total of more than $14 million.
But Burke announced his breakup with Trump in letters filed last month with the Cook County courts and the Illinois State Property Tax Appeal Board. He wrote that “irreconcilable differences” have led his firm to stop representing Trump’s company and stepped aside in five current cases that seek refunds of millions of dollars in property taxes the president’s company has paid.
Those letters came two months after the alderman’s brother, state Rep. Dan Burke, narrowly lost a Democratic primary battle amid Hispanic voters’ outrage that the alderman was doing work for a president who wants to build a wall to thwart illegal immigration from Mexico. […]
Clem Balanoff — a longtime [Chuy Garcia] ally and chief strategist for Aaron Ortiz, who defeated Dan Burke in the Democratic primary despite being outspent 3-to-1 — said Ed Burke’s move to distance himself from Trump is “one more indication of just how afraid Ed Burke is.”
I agree with Balanoff here. People begged the Chairman to dump Trump before Rep. Dan Burke’s primary kicked into high gear. He ignored that advice. His brother lost.
Chuy and Clem haven’t yet announced a candidate to run against Ald. Burke and you can’t beat somebody with nobody. But I figure they’ll find someone and then the 14th Ward will be the scene of a battle royale.
A federal judge in Chicago says the state of Illinois’ plan to boost wages for caregivers who work with the developmentally disabled falls “woefully short” of what’s required under a 7-year-old court decree.
U.S. District Judge Sharon Johnson Coleman ordered state lawyers this week to come up with a better “long-term” plan to comply with the 2011 consent decree.
Coleman called the state’s proposal “a reasonable start,” but she wrote she “doubts that the proposal is adequate to address the issue of wages, staffing and retention.”
The judge’s order was the latest ruling stemming from the consent decree requiring the state Department of Healthcare and Family Services and Department of Human Services to provide adequate funding for people with developmental disabilities who want to live in an independent community setting.
“We are very pleased with the court’s decision rejecting the state’s plan for coming into compliance with the consent decree,” said Barry C. Taylor, an attorney with Equip for Equality, an advocacy group for the disabled that is among those suing the state. “This decision puts plaintiffs a step closer to realizing the promise of the consent decree: to receive services that allow them to become active, engaged and included members of their communities,”
* From a reader via e-mail…
Rich I know everything is about Tim Mapes but this ongoing saga in federal court - with the state in non-compliance for the Ligas Court Decree - continues to show a lack of commitment to people with intellectual and developmental disabilities.
What this really means is a weakened community provider system and forced reliance on more expensive state operations.
With an estimated difference of residential care in the community being $80k to State operations at $250-$300k; AND the Medicaid system computer disaster losing matching funds after dropping an estimated 150,000 eligible recipients - we are choosing an expensive, inefficient and now not paid for by the feds option.
You have Dir. Norwood leaving while the HFS Medicaid computer system to be fixed; you have a federal court saying DHS/DD has an insufficient plan for supporting people with disabilities.
The Judge acknowledged the argument made by Plaintiffs and the Court Monitor, supported by data from the Institute, that the wage proposal was particularly inadequate in Chicago where minimum wage will rise to $12/hour on 7/1/18. Judge Coleman acknowledges that DSP wages were originally nearly twice as high as minimum wage and that gap has eroded since the inception of the CILA program. She acknowledges the State may not be able to raise current wages to that level, but “…this Court hesitates to affirm the devaluing of the role of caregivers for some of the more vulnerable members of society. At the same time, this Court is not in the position to act as super-legislator by dictating how the State should allocate funds and administer its budget.”
The Order further states that “it has been nearly seven years since the entry of the Consent Decree and this Court sees no end to the Court’s oversight.” The Order recommends convening a work group that includes the Monitor and other independent stakeholders to study DSP wages, the overall CILA and ICFSS rate methodologies and develop monitoring tools to assess the adequacy of services, funding and administration. The Order notes that ideally the monitoring tool would include an independent review component. The Court also agrees with the Court Monitor’s recommendation regarding expeditiously developing criteria for moving people off the PUNS list at a reasonable pace.
The final statement of the Order puts the onus for developing a solution to the problems it identified on the parties, acknowledging the Court’s lack of expertise and budgetary authority to impose measures to the resolve the issues outlined in the Order. Parties will return to Court on July 10, 2018 to discuss the Order.
Pressure continues to mount on House Speaker Mike Madigan after his chief of staff is accused of sexual harassment. Now former Governor Pat Quinn is calling for Madigan to step aside as Democratic Party Chairman.
Former Gov. Quinn said Thursday that Illinois House Speaker Michael Madigan should step down as Illinois Democratic Party chairman.
While Quinn said he doesn’t think Madigan has done enough in response to recent reports of harassment that have rocked Springfield, his reasoning is unrelated, he said. Quinn said he believes nobody should head a political party while also holding elected office.
Former Governor Pat Quinn says House Speaker Mike Madigan should step down as state party chairman and Mayor Emanuel shouldn’t be allowed to run for a third term.
Pat Quinn says it’s a conflict of interest for an elected official to be party chairman and in the case of Madigan he says he’s also not doing enough to control pervasive sexual harassment in Springfield, “I think there must be an even more vigorous effort to root out all vestiges, all examples, all behavior that involves bullying, harassment, assault or anything else.”
* But this isn’t new news. Quinn called on Madigan to step down as party chairman more than three months ago. From March 3rd…
Former Illinois Governor Pat Quinn says he does not think that Illinois House Speaker Michael Madigan should continue as State Democratic Party chairman. Madigan has been under fire for his response to harassment complaints in his political organization. This morning Quinn, a Democrat who wants to succeed Madigan’s daughter Lisa as Illinois Attorney General, told “The Big John and Ramblin’ Ray Show” that Madigan should step down as party chairman.
“Well, I don’t think he should be the chairman of the Democratic Party”, said Quinn. ” As a matter of fact I think the voters in the primary ought to have a chance to vote for the chairman of the Democratic Party. I believe it term limits. I’ve been passing petitions for that over the years. I think reasonable term limits are needed for everybody and that includes running for Governor and Attorney General.”
* Related…
* Emanuel camp questions legality of Quinn’s term-limit drive: The Emanuel camp noted that “many election lawyers” believe Quinn’s latest populist campaign would “not pass constitutional muster since its wording suggests that it’s directed at the current incumbent — not the office.”
While the governor tried to rescind his appointment of Dunkin to the Metropolitan Water Reclamation District over harassment allegations lodged against Dunkin, the controversial former lawmaker says he’s not going anywhere.
And it appears Dunkin will win the battle. The governor’s office on Thursday acknowledged Rauner doesn’t have the authority to remove him from the board. […]
“Under the law the governor had the responsibility to appoint someone to fill this vacancy in an elected position,” Rauner spokeswoman Rachel Bold said in a statement. “However, under the present circumstances, we do not believe the governor has the authority to remove. We have asked Ken Dunkin to resign.”
In a May 18 statement, Rauner spokeswoman Rachel Bold said the governor chose Dunkin because he “has well represented his community and his constituents in the Illinois House of Representatives. On the MWRD board he can continue his commitment to public service and the taxpayers.”
Critics believe the appointment to be a form of payback – a reward for Dunkin’s breaking from Democrats in 2015 to form an allegiance with Rauner. Dunkin’s absence from the Illinois House during a vote of major importance to his party and to unions helped to kill the legislation, giving Rauner a win against labor and Madigan, his political nemesis.
Rauner allies supported Dunkin’s next run for re-election, but he was bested in the 2016 primary by now Rep. Juliana Stratton, who is the running mate of Democratic nominee for governor J.B. Pritzker.
“We believed Ken Dunkin would continue his commitment to public service on the MWRD board. Given new information that has come to light, we have asked him to resign,” Bold said Thursday via email.
Rauner allies also supported Dunkin earlier this year when the Illinois Chamber spent a bunch of money during his comeback attempt.
And Team Rauner had to know that appointing Dunkin to anything carried great risk.
“I’m happy to be here. Thanks to Governor Rauner for appointing me,” said Dunkin.
Just moments after Ken Dunkin settled in for his first meeting at the Metropolitan Water Reclamation Board, Dunkin got a not-too-thinly veiled dressing down from the board president.
During the meeting, he was welcomed by board President Mariyana Spyropoulos, who also referenced Garrett’s “deeply troubling” allegations.
“As a woman and as president of this organization, I can tell you that we do not and will not stand for any form of sexual harassment, and our record is very clear on this matter,” Spyropoulos said. […]
Turning to Spyropoulos, Dunkin said he would “certainly want to adhere to your statements, madam president, but baseless accusations are just that at times, and we need to be conscious of what it is that we say, certain things that we internalize because anyone can say anything about anybody at any given moment, especially in this political environment.
“Most of us, all of us, come from a political background,” he said. “And we have political sponsors. So let’s be conscious and let’s be clear of what’s heresay and what’s fact.”
Already making friends I see. Just like the old days in the House.
