* CQ Politics has switched its rating on the Kirk vs. Seals congressional race to “No Clear Favorite”…
• Illinois’ 10th District (New Rating: No Clear Favorite. Previous Rating: Leans Republican)
The re-rating of this race isn’t due to any slipup by four-term moderate Republican Rep. Mark Steven Kirk , who hasn’t made any missteps in the rematch of the 2006 race in which he defeated Democrat Dan Seals by 7 percentage points. Kirk is exceptionally well-funded, with $4.8 million raised through Oct. 15, and he’s touting a voting record that is among the most independent-minded among House Republicans. History also shows that many rematch challengers do worse on their second try.
But there is plenty of evidence to suggest that Seals is running closer to Kirk than he did two years ago in a slightly Democratic-leaning swing district that includes some affluent suburbs north of Chicago. Seals began his second campaign not long after he lost his first, which helps explain why he’s raised more than $3 million, one of the highest totals in the nation for a challenging candidate. The DCCC, which gave Seals’ 2006 campaign very limited assistance, has spent more than $1 million on this year’s race. And if there is a coattails effect anywhere from Obama’s presidential bid, it should be in this district in the Illinois senator’s home state — which even in 2004 favored Democrat John Kerry for president over Bush by 5 percentage points.
I don’t know if they’ll run it or not, but after this morning’s event, WBBM Radio asked me for my surprise of the night for next Tuesday. I was caught a bit off guard and pointed to a possible Kirk upset. There are other possibilities, however, so perhaps you can discuss them below.
* The DCCC has a new TV ad attacking Kirk and tying him to President Bush…
* But the Politico names Kirk as one of its “stand-out centrists of 2008″…
Mark Kirk of Illinois: A military man and leader of the Republican Main Street Partnership, this congressman from the suburbs of Chicago has the unenviable task this year of running against a charismatic African-American challenger. But Kirk has shown the mettle to stand up to Bush and Tom DeLay and the vision to set out a “suburban agenda” that is “pro-defense, pro-personal responsibility, pro-environment and pro-science.”
* After saying he wouldn’t do it, Jim Oberweis is now running a negative TV ad. The ad highlights his disagreement with Democratic incumbent Bill Foster on the bailout plan. So far, I’m told, this is just on cable TV, but he also bought radio time…
* Democrat Jill Morgenthaler’s new TV ad…
* Republican Aaron Schock’s leadership PAC got a writeup in CQ…
Another would-be House member who has been donating to party candidates is Illinois Republican Aaron Schock, a 27-year-old state representative who set up a “leadership” political action committee after easily winning a primary election in February in the state’s Peoria-centered 18th District. Schock, who is heavily favored to succeed retiring Republican Rep. Ray LaHood , started cutting checks of $5,000 apiece to non-incumbent Republicans earlier this month, including several who are certain to win and therefore vote in freshman class leadership elections.
These young guns are part of a small and very slowly growing set of politicians who have presaged leadership potential by capitalizing on electoral safety and fundraising prowess to raise their profiles before they take the oath of office.
Whether the early giving turns pre-frosh candidates into political players or simply reflects acumen that will serve their ambitions later on, it is a tactic that has been employed by fast-rising stars in the past.
Q: Some pretty well-known and respected special interest groups are trying to convince Illinoisans to vote against the question of holding a constitutional convention. What’s up with that?
A: Everyone likes the status quo. These groups have gotten to be influential under the current system. They help control who’s elected. Why would they want to change that? Remember that when you go to the polls: your voice or their voice.
Q: What would be one reason to vote for a constitutional convention?
A: It should be pretty clear when you go into the ballot box. Because of the way lawmakers have gerrymandered the political map, it makes it nearly impossible for incumbents to lose. Out of 80-some races for seats in the General Assembly, just a handful are actually competitive. Think about what the current crop of incumbents has achieved in the last two years.
* The SouthtownStar’s living legend Phil Kadner also urges a “Yes” vote…
Other states have found ways to support their schools without relying so heavily on the property tax. So can Illinois.
But the state constitution needs to be changed to alter the way that legislators are elected, to threaten them with recall and to clarify the state’s responsibility for school funding.
Despite what people tell you, no changes in the constitution can be made without a final vote at the ballot box.
All the corrupt, powerful forces that have controlled this state oppose the constitutional convention.
If you trust them, vote “no” on Tuesday. If you don’t, vote “yes.”
* Congressman Jesse Jackson, Jr. will support a con-con today. From a press release…
Today, Tuesday, October 28th at 1:30pm Congressman Jesse Jackson Jr., and Alderman Sandi Jackson will join Lt. Governor Pat Quinn in endorsing a “yes” vote on the November 4 Constitutional Convention.
In 1969 and 1970 when the pension guarantee was debated, it was decided that the particulars of how to fund the pension should be left up to the General Assembly. We have seen the profound error of that decision. In every single year since the ratification of the 1970 Constitution, the General Assembly has failed to put in their promised share of contributions to the pension system. More than once they actually attempted (sometimes successfully) to raid those pension funds.
If this was a problem that only occurred in one budget year, it would have long since been solved. This is a systemic constitutional defect that takes place year and year. It allows the state to delay meeting its obligations while the debt keeps on growing and growing. The state is in debt almost $111 billion (or twice the annual state budget) and a large part of that is pension debt. This debt prevents capital projects moving forward, puts a straying on improving education funding, and has drastic effects all across Illinois.
While some argue that the pensions are “safe” now, how could a system that doesn’t require the state to put up its fair share be considered safe? The fact is, the state is going bankrupt because of the recurring deferral of pension payments. Bankruptcy is the only situation when the pensions can be cut because a federal judge will come in and decide what bills can be paid and what can’t, and historically pensions haven’t done well in that situation.
Simply put, there is absolutely no risk to the pensions should there be a constitutional convention. Most importantly, the voters have to ratify any change that a constitutional convention proposes. Not even a single comma can be modified without voter approval. It is ludicrous to believe that voters will approve a “special interests” constitution.
Bethany Jaeger…
Elena Kezelis, former chief counsel for then-Gov. Jim Edgar, says she interprets the Constitution as protecting those who are fully vested in the pension system as having unalterable rights. She points to the back of the state Constitution, where a “savings clause” would protect every contract in place if a new document were approved. If another convention were called and pension benefits were revised, then she says that provision would grandfather in the existing pension contracts. Prudent drafters would include that kind of language again, she says.
The question is, she says, how delegates and how courts would define the point at which current state employees are vested into a contractual right that cannot be taken away from them.
“Our constitution, regarded as one of the best in the nation, certainly does not require the sweeping rewrite that a convention could produce. Like the U.S. Constitution, it is an enduring, broadly worded document that protects our rights, lays out a sound framework for governing and is insulated from the passions of the moment.”
* Patterson has the top donors to the Alliance to Protect the Constitution…
1) Illinois Federation of Teachers and affiliated: $300,000
(2) Illinois Education Association/National Education Association: $225,000
(3) Exelon: $100,000
(4) Illinois Coalition for Jobs, Growth, and Prosperity: $92,500
(5 - tie) American Insurance Association: $50,000
(5 - tie) Health Care Services Corp: $50,000
Plans to lease out the Illinois Lottery for billions of dollars could be in jeopardy after federal authorities recently said such deals might be illegal.
On Friday, Indiana’s governor abandoned the idea of privatizing the Hoosier Lottery, pointing to a Department of Justice opinion saying states must retain control over all significant business decisions and equity interest in lotteries.
Federal law prohibits lotteries but has exemptions for those run by states.
Chicago aldermen afraid of catching grief in their wards are looking for ways to keep the “jumping jacks” program that provides bouncy, inflatable playgrounds for children but is slated for elimination in Mayor Richard Daley’s proposed 2009 budget.
“We, as elected officials, are going to hear it,” Ald. Ed Smith (28th) said Monday, contending residents would be upset at the demise of a program that provides entertainment for many children who don’t have much. “People are not going to understand why the program is taken out.”
One alderman said the cut, which is slated to save $800,000, simply would not go through.
At 12:01 a.m. Friday, the $1-a-ride surcharge imposed last spring to provide relief to cabdrivers squeezed by skyrocketing gasoline prices will be reduced to 50 cents.
Noting that Chicago has 6,900 taxicab medallions and 6,800 active vehicles, Reyes said, “We will have done everything we are requierd to do to notify owners and drivers. And if they’re charging more than 50 cents a ride, they will be subjecting themselves to a fine.”
* I am on an elections 2008 panel with Paul Green at the Union League Club this morning, so blog posts will be a bit late. In the meantime, I just wanted to warn you about today’s Sneedlling. Don’t get your hopes (or fears, as the case may be) up too high just yet…
Sneed hears a plan is afoot to impeach Gov. Blagojevich following the presidential election next month. Word is the votes are there. Stay tuned.
The House votes have been “there” for a very long time. It’s all about the will and the opportunity.
Staunch Blagojevich ally Emil Jones may be Senate President until January, and the Senate Dems have yet to pick a replacement. Unless there’s an indictment soon, I’m not sure at all that this will happen right away. Down the road? Perhaps. “Following the presidential election” could mean 2010. Or 2013, if he’s reelected.
* If this Peter Roskam quote gets picked up, it might do some damage in the closing days…
[Roskam] asked in the Pioneer Press interview why women can have abortions if rapists cannot be executed.
Here’s the response from Roskam’s Democratic opponent…
Lumping women who have abortions in with rapists and the death penalty? It’s offensive, demeaning to women and just downright creepy. It tells you all you need to know about Peter Roskam and what he thinks about women, even if he really doesn’t want you to know it.
*** UPDATE 1 *** [Posted by Kevin Fanning] Adding a quote forwarded to us from the Pioneer Press:
Roskam: “You know, my position is the same as Henry Hyde’s. And Henry Hyde put it best when he said, when somebody is the victim of a crime, the law currently says that a rapist can’t be put to death. That’s the law. A rapist under the court doctrines can’t be put to death. He said, why is it that the baby who is the result of that criminal behavior can be put to death? He said, isn’t that a sad, sad thing. So my feeling is, look, in the case of that, that’s the hard case, right? That’s the ultimate painful and difficult case. And what we need to do is love that person and encourage them and support them. But once people are categorized by how they were conceived and the circumstances of their conception, you end up going down a route that ultimately I don’t think we want to be.”
* John Patterson made an excellent point the other day. After noting this AP story about the governor’s reaction to the Tribune poll…
The governor says his 13 percent job approval rating is unrelated to the federal corruption investigation that’s been swirling around his administration.”
…Patterson digs into his memory bank and realizes that former Gov. George Ryan made essentially the same argument…
When Ryan’s popularity tanked early on, he said it had far more to do with his 1999 decision to push higher alcohol and vehicle taxes – which paid for construction spending – than the federal investigation of his administration. There was also his decision to support O’Hare expansion after telling suburban voters he’d fight against more runways.
The federal proble was merely something of media fascination, he and his aides argued.
In case you forgot, and I doubt you have, that investigation no one was paying attention to ultimately caught up to Ryan. He’s now in prison.
The Chicago Tribune had an interesting political poll last week that showed Gov. Rod Blagojevich’s approval rating at 13 percent. Of those polled, 75 percent said they don’t want to see him re-elected.
I just happened to be digging through some of my George Ryan files recently and came across the Oct. 31, 2000 Daily Herald story on the poll we did back then with news partner ABC-7. 65 percent said Ryan should not seek re-election.
Big parties require work. And no one works harder than the volunteer in charge of invitations or seating — not even the chefs who prepare fancy meals for hundreds of picky eaters.
It’s the invitation committee that must navigate the treacherous minefield of contentious relationships.
Consider the Joffrey Ballet gala held earlier this party season.
Organizers were faced with the predicament of waiting for Mayor Richard M. Daley’s RSVP before inviting Gov. Rod Blagojevich. In the end, neither attended.
Though their staffs deny any animosity, party planners say the two politicos aren’t likely to be seen at the same soiree.
And Blagojevich, the financial wunderkind who has shattered campaign money records, isn’t even involved in races this fall.
His campaign told the State Board of Elections last week it isn’t giving money to support other candidates or ballot issues this election.
So that means Democrats running for legislative seats won’t reap the rewards of cash from a governor whose administration is under the cloud of federal investigations, whose poll ratings are at all-time lows and whose fights with lawmakers have dominated government in recent years.
No doubt tears are flowing on campaigns throughout Illinois.
A quick check of campaign records shows just one actual campaign contribution to a legislative candidate in 2006 (Rep. Eddie Washington), one in 2004 (Rep. Bob Flider) and none in 2002.
Blagojevich set up an “independent” Move Illinois Forward PAC a few years back, which doled out $30,000 to Emil Jones and about $70,000 to legislative candidates in 2004, but that was the only cycle he really played in.
Cross sets himself apart from the infighting among the state’s top Democratic leaders, including Gov. Rod Blagojevich. He said he works well with Democrats in his district.
“Here in Will County,” he said, “I feel pretty good about the fact that we work in a bipartisan way.”
All of Cross’ House campaigns are blasting Democrats for real and imagined ties to the governor. Ironic, ain’t it?
* Some say the public’s ire at Blagojevich will impact the constitutional convention referendum vote next week…
…the ballot’s convention question could essentially become an approval poll of Blagojevich and the state’s other top Democrats who control almost all aspects of state government.
“That’s basically what they’ve been telling me,” said state Rep. Mike Boland, an East Moline Democrat and convention supporter.
* The Bond Buyer has a fascinating article behind its firewall which was forwarded to me by someone at the pubication…
In an opinion that could impact revenue-raising proposals from a number of states, the U.S. Justice Department has ruled that long-term leases of state lotteries would violate federal law. […]
The 13-page opinion issued Oct. 16. can be found at [this link]. It said a statemust “exercise actual control over all significant business decisions made bythe lottery enterprise” in order to comply with the federal lottery statuteexemption.
Federal law currently prohibits the promotion and advertising of lotteries ininterstate commerce with an exemption for those that are operated by a state. In addition to maintaining control over business decisions, a state must retain a majority share in the profits and losses of a lottery, as well as the rightsto the trade marks and other essential assets of the state lottery, the rulingstated.
While federal law does allow a state to contract with a private firm to “provide goods and services necessary to enable the state to conduct its lottery, including management services,” such a company cannot receive more than a minimal interest in the profits and losses of a state-run lottery.
The House and Senate have both passed competing legislation to privatize the state lottery in order to pay for the capital construction package. This DoJ ruling puts all of that in doubt.
* Here’s the report’s conclusion…
We conclude that the statutory exemption for lotteries “conducted by a State” requires that the State exercise actual control over all significant business decisions made by the lottery enterprise and retain all but a de minimis share of the equity interest in the profits and losses of the business, as well as the rights to the trademarks and other unique intellectual property or essential assets of the State’s lottery. It is permissible under the exemption for a State to contract with private firms to provide goods and services necessary to enable the State to conduct its lottery, including management services, as discussed herein. [emphasis added]
More…
As we have discussed above, we believe that the ownership by the private management company of a significant equity interest in the profits of the lottery would go beyond the scope of the exemption. We understand that some States have proposed to enter into agreements with private management firms under which the private company would assist in the management of the lottery and receive a significant share of the lottery’s profits or bear a significant share of the risk of losses.
In return, it has been proposed that the management company would make a significant upfront payment to the State or make annual disbursements to the State. We believe that such an arrangement would not be consistent with the limited exemption for lotteries “conducted by a State.” If a private management company were to oversee the lottery’s operations and receive a significant share of the lottery’s profits (particularly in return for an investment of capital), we think it clear that the company would not be a mere contractor or agent, assisting the State in operating a lottery that the State conducts, but rather a co-participant in the conduct of the lottery with substantial managerial responsibilities and a significant equity stake in the lottery’s success or failure. In such circumstances, the private management company’s incentives and ability to influence the lottery would be significant.
Where a State has a reduced stake in the profits or losses of a lottery, its incentive to exercise the actual control over all significant business decisions required by the exemption is necessarily diminished. Indeed, in practical respects, an arrangement in which the State cedes to a private firm a significant economic interest in the profits and losses of the business may be functionally quite similar to an arrangement whereby the State licenses a lottery concession to a private company. As described above, these incentives and characteristics are precisely what Congress sought to avoid in enacting the exemption for lotteries “conducted by a State.” [emphasis added]
I’ve asked for a comment from the governor’s office and will update this post with any response. The office did not offer up anything to the Bond Buyer.
However, the article reports that Indiana Gov. Mitch Daniels has now decided to drop his lottery lease idea as a result of this opinion.
*** UPDATE 1 *** From the governor’s office…
We are reviewing the advisory opinion, but we believe the facts and circumstances of the Illinois lottery lease proposal are different than the other state’s proposals.
*** UPDATE 2 *** The Pantagraph now has a story online that has a response from Speaker Madigan’s office…
A spokesman for House Speaker Michael Madigan said the federal opinion is a cause for concern, especially in light of the governor’s numerous legal battles on other policy initiatives.
‘’We don’t want to be embroiled in another costly lawsuit,'’ Brown said.
Brown said the federal decision could be used as a template to design a lottery lease plan that complies with federal law.
‘’It is certainly something that should be reviewed,'’ Brown said.
Brian J. McPartlin quit as Illinois Tollway director last week. But he can’t start his new job with a politically connected engineering consulting firm quite yet.
Illinois Attorney General Lisa Madigan has asked the Illinois Ethics Commission to delay approving McPartlin’s request to join Chicago’s McDonough Associates, a firm that has done millions of dollars of work with the Tollway.
McPartlin, 42, had asked for a waiver of the “revolving door prohibition,” which requires state officials to wait a year before taking a job with a company they hired or regulated. An ethics law loophole allows the commission to grant these waivers. Only one request out of 14 has been denied since 2005. […]
The commission gave McPartlin until today to respond to the motion. After that, the commission can act on the motion. If it’s granted, the commission will set up time frames in which the attorney general can conduct fact-finding.
McPartlin says he won’t do any tollway-related work for a year, but could he have obtained this job had he not been the director for two years? Doubtful, at best.
* Attorney General Madigan aggressively fought attempts to change the horribly biased ballot language on the constitutional convention question. Then, when she lost the case, she sent a letter to the state Board of Elections claiming that the ruling applied to all counties…
An appellate court affirmed the ruling on Oct. 16, and on Wednesday, Oct. 22, Attorney General Lisa Madigan sent a letter to the State Board of Elections which concluded, “Because the opinion in this case is binding throughout Illinois, I expect each local election authority in the State to follow the mandate of the Appellate Court of Illinois.”
…But no follow-up action has yet been reported, even though there are at least some reported instances of counties refusing to comply. Perhaps she is reticent because one of those counties is in the Metro East, a Democratic primary voter haven.
AG Madigan has done a pretty good job on consumer issues, as have most of our attorneys general in the past 30 years or so, but she has been average, at best, in fighting political corruption and the old boy network.
Tons of those afore-mentioned revoving door waivers have been approved without a peep from Madigan.
* Related…
* Chicago torture victims face uphill legal battle: The state attorney general’s office hasn’t agreed to new trials for those claiming coerced confessions and the city opposes paying damages to alleged victims, they say.
* My weekly newspaper column looks at what I believe are two of the most talked-about objections to a constitutional convention….
The pricetag and our state’s failed politics appear to be the two biggest arguments against holding a constitutional convention.
Every 20 years, Illinois voters are given the right to call a constitutional convention. I want you to vote “Yes,” but various interest groups are spending millions to convince you to vote “No.”
The “Vote No” ads claim the projected cost of holding a convention is too high, especially considering that the state is running a horrific budget deficit.
They aren’t telling you something.
1) The state constitution itself is partially responsible for our current budget problems because glaring loopholes allow politicians to ignore balanced budget “requirements.”
2) Most of the interest groups opposing a constitutional convention are themselves responsible for our budget situation. They’ve pushed countless tax breaks and spending increases. And now they’re using the very budget problems they helped create to argue against a solution. Ironic, eh?
My opinion is we can’t afford not to call a convention.
Another argument against a constitutional convention is: “The same politicians who got us into this mess will be the ones controlling a convention.”
I wouldn’t be too sure of that.
Right now, both political parties in the Illinois House are stretching themselves to the limit over eight House campaigns. They’ve dumped hundreds of thousands of dollars into those races and are struggling to find the money from interest groups to continue the pace.
So, if the powers that be are straining to control the outcome of eight races, how can they control a process that will elect 118 constitutional convention delegates at once?
Legislators will be allowed to run for delegate, but they can’t be paid for both jobs at the same time, which will likely discourage most of them from seeking the position.
Gov. Rod Blagojevich is so horribly unpopular now that he’s the political kiss of death. If he lends support to delegate candidates, they will almost surely lose.
Delegates won’t be running for reelection, so they will be far less beholden to any assistance they do receive from interest groups than state legislators, who must run again every two to four years.
The Chicago machine will certainly become involved, but recent prison terms for Daley’s former patronage chieftains have hobbled the organization. Besides, the machine elected delegates to the last convention 38 years ago (at the height of the organization’s power and strength), but the hacks failed to exert much influence because they simply didn’t care enough about policy. That hasn’t changed.
The machine’s biggest loss back then was a provision which moved the statewide elections to the “off” years. Illinois used to elect its governor the same year it voted for president. The first Mayor Daley was horrified at the move, telling a young delegate, Michael J. Madigan, that the change would mean no Democrat would be elected governor for the next 30 years. After the change took effect, no Democrat was elected governor until 2002. Daley’s prediction was right on the money.
Constitutional convention delegate campaigns have historically attracted large numbers of young, smart, issue-oriented candidates, not just in Illinois but all over the country. Also, never forget that voters get the final say on the convention’s finished product via referendum.
“But what about the stupidity of Illinois voters?” some ask, pointing to Gov. Rod Blagojevich and Cook County Board President Todd Stroger as examples of the danger of putting such an important decision into the hands of clueless voters.
If Rod and Todd were wildly popular today I would agree with that analysis. Instead, they are two of the most despised politicians in all of Illinois history. The overwhelming majority of voters clearly regret those decisions, and I think they’ve learned from their mistakes.
If you want to stop state politicians from running multi billion-dollar deficits, then vote to spend a relatively paltry sum to hold a constitutional convention.
If you are afraid of the voters, well, you might as well just move somewhere else because you’ll be stuck with their choices for legislators and statewide officials for the rest of your life.
If you don’t want any change, then vote “No.”
I can’t promise you massive amounts of change if we do get a constitutional convention. I can promise, however, that nothing will change if you vote “No.”
There they stood, like an old Archie and Edith. Gov. Jim Edgar and his 1992 gubernatorial opponent, Dawn Clark Netsch, side by side in the Thompson Center press room last week to unite behind a cause. They want you to vote “no” to a constitutional convention on your Nov. 4 ballot.
Frankly, I was insulted.
Their bottom line, along with all the special interest groups weaving fear into their messaging, is this: Anything you want to change about Illinois government - the players, the stalemate, the governor himself - can and should be done through the legislative process. The problem is not the constitution. It’s the people we send to Springfield. If we did a better job vetting them, we wouldn’t be stuck in this mess.
I disagree. I am voting for a convention for two very specific reasons: Article IV, Section 3, Legislative Redistricting, and Article X, Section 1, Education.
* Ballot language still at issue: County Clerk Bob Delaney said Thursday that he had not been distributing the “corrective notice” because he and the county state’s attorney didn’t think the original ruling applied statewide.
* Voters will decide whether Illinois needs to rewrite state constitution
“Both in terms of financial industries and credit downturns that impacted the economy and markets nationwide, we’re still ahead of the curve,” Rowen said. “We could even come out of this ahead of the rest of the United States and international economies.”
Other experts weren’t as positive and felt Illinois was at the edge or already in a recession and possibly headed for worse. Moody’s economy.com issued data this week that said Illinois was one of 27 states already in a recession.
* Press Release: National Legal Association Asks Illinois Banks Receiving State Investments to Consider Hiring Minority- or Women-Owned Businesses
The poll of 800 likely voters conducted last week by Maryland-based Research 2000 found that Durbin holds a 59 percent to 34 percent lead, with 7 percent undecided. Durbin also has a 59 percent favorable rating — the highest in two years under the poll. Sauerberg, a physician, has a favorable rating of 41 percent, and his unfavorable rating is 44 percent.
In an election where Democratic U.S. Sen. Dick Durbin is heavily favored, Republicans are getting what they want from their challenger, suburban family practice physician Steve Sauerberg.
Rep. Rahm Emanuel (D-Ill.), another alumnus of the Clinton White House, is advising on inauguration matters, process, personnel and priorities, if indeed Obama wins. On Sunday, ABC’s George Stephanopoulos asked Emanuel whether he would be interested in serving as Obama’s chief of staff. Emanuel did not rule it out.
Nine months after an inspector general’s probe led to the indictment of his ward’s Streets and Sanitation superintendent, Ald. Bernie Stone (50th) vowed to “destroy” the agency at a Friday budget hearing.
“It is my intent, Mr. Inspector General, to wipe your entire office out of the budget,” Stone told Inspector General David Hoffman. “It is my intent to submit a budget amendment which will destroy your department.”
So far this year, former inspector general Joseph Price — a Todd Stroger appointee replaced this month by Pat Blanchard — started 91 investigations. Among the allegations Price looked into involved employees reporting to Chief Judge Tim Evans and Circuit Court Clerk Dorothy Brown.
And the number of new investigations is expected to skyrocket, the Sun-Times has learned. Since Blanchard was sworn in last week, his office has been in steady contact with sources offering up information.
Budget hearings continue this morning as Chicago aldermen try to find ways to make up a $469-million deficit. One of the suggestions for bringing in more money is expected to come up at today’s hearing. That’s increasing the fines for overdue library books from ten cents a day to twenty. Alderman Ed Smith says there are better ways to raise revenue than increasing fines on overdue books.
The Chicago area is poised to become a top destination for Iraqi war refugees, according to Illinois officials who worry about finding housing and jobs for the newcomers in a struggling economy.
In the first years of the war, fewer than 200 Iraqi refugees came to Illinois, but more than 1,000 have landed in the state in the last year, and nearly 1,400 more are expected in the next 12 months.
Efforts by U.S. officials to admit Iraqis by the thousands could lead to 20 years of Immigration on par with the area’s roughly 30,000 Vietnam War refugees, said Ed Silverman, who directs the Illinois Bureau of Refugee and Immigrant Services.
Illinois officials say the state will have an extra $118 million this year to help low-income families with their winter heating costs.
Gov. Rod Blagojevich said in statement Sunday that Illinois has $265 million in money from the federal government’s Low Income Home Energy Assistance Program.
Grant money to help farmers markets pay the cost of advertising will be available through the state next year, according to a news release from Gov. Rod Blagojevich’s office.
The Illinois Farmers Market Advertising Grant Program will provide up to $7,500 to qualifying farmers markets to help with advertising and promotions in 2009. The funds — $132,565 the first year — will be distributed through the Illinois Department of Agriculture, the release said.
Richard Rodriguez would like hungry passengers to have more choices of ethnic foods to buy while traveling through Chicago’s airports.
As the city’s aviation commissioner, Rodriguez wants folks to rumba with their roller bags to the sound of live bands in the concourses. He wants to see more uniquely Chicago artwork hanging on the walls.
And he envisions nail boutiques, like those located on hundreds of Chicago streets, offering manicures and fake fingernails that can be glued on while passengers are waiting between flights.
The Chicago Sun-Times, setting itself apart from most American newspapers, is reporting an increase in circulation in the latest six-month reporting period.
The paper said that from March through September, its average weekday circulation rose 0.3 percent to 313,174 copies. For the Sunday edition, the paper reported a 3.4 percent increase to 255,906 copies.
* Lawrence leaves public policy institute to go back to journalism
After 11 years administering and teaching at the Paul Simon Public Policy Institute at Southern Illinois University Carbondale, Mike Lawrence is leaving to return to his roots.
Lawrence, who has spent the last four years as the institute’s director, said recently that it’s been a rewarding experience, but Friday will be his last day at the institute.
Wednesday was the last day GateHouse Media — the company that owns the Peoria Journal Star and most of the other daily and weekly newspapers in the area — was traded on the New York Stock exchange. It’s trading price at the exchange closed? Seven cents per share. At one point, it sold at more than $20 per share.
