We are going to be having petition drives for Jill this Saturday and Sunday and next Saturday starting at 9:30am each day originating from our new campaign office (yes we have set up shop)… The address is 190 N. Swift Rd, Unit M in Addison.
* Um, Dan, “the most corruption-laden four years of state government ever” was probably during the 1920s, which is long before Pat Quinn was even born. Let’s refresh your memory…
Len Small was governor throughout the Roaring Twenties — that gilded age of prohibition and lawlessness.
Small was a close political ally of Chicago Mayor “Big” Bill Thompson, who was the Mafia’s chief enabler in this state. Small was also closely affiliated with Johnny Torrio, the guy who united the city’s innumerable rackets and gangsters under one umbrella during the beginning of Prohibition. Al Capone was Torrio’s top lieutenant, and when Torrio split town, Capone further refined his vast organization.
Len Small was known as the “pardoning governor.” He is alleged to have sold hundreds of pardons, mostly to gangsters. He even went so far as to pardon cop killers. In 1922, a group of Torrio’s bootleggers were on their way to Chicago when they shot and killed a motorcycle cop who was in full pursuit. Small pardoned the whole bunch.
Walter Stevens, the “dean of all Chicago’s gunmen,” was Johnny Torrio’s top trigger man. Stevens bumped off many of Torrio’s rivals. The murder of an Aurora policeman landed Stevens in prison, but Governor Small dutifully pardoned him. There were reports at the time that Stevens played a crucial role in helping Small beat an embezzlement charge. Some key evidence was “accidentally” burned by a janitor, who died soon afterwards.
Rod can’t touch that malfeasance.
* Speaking of Kankakee, the Daily Journal lists its top priorities for cleaning up state government…
* A ban on one political campaign contributing to another.
* A time limit on using donations, so they must be either returned or given to charity.
* A ban on all donations from gambling interests.
* Limits to push the system toward more small donations.
* Hey, Tribbies, if you’re gonna have a blog that invites comments, shouldn’t you post ‘em? I tried to comment on this post yesterday to point out an error. My comment’s still not up and the error hasn’t been changed.
* Springfield needs a blogger bash. If not, I may have to drive to Peoria this month.
* While we’re on the blogging subject, Zorn had high praise for your “pledge” entries. Go give him some love.
* 1-800-GOOG-411 is Google’s new, and free, directory assistance number. I gave it a try today and it seems to work well.
* From Pollster.com, Iowa caucus historical turnout. Miserable…
* New report to be released on drop-outs…
Governor Blagojevich’s Task Force on Re-enrolling Students Who Dropped Out is hosting a statewide summit on Monday, Oct. 22, 2007, in Chicago, to focus on building a system to re-enroll Illinois’ students who have dropped out of school. The Center for Labor Market Studies at Northeastern University in Boston will release a comprehensive report on the economic, social and health consequences of dropping out.
Caterpillar Inc. set a record for revenue, profits and earnings per share in the latest reporting period as a result of overseas demand, the company announced today.
Caterpillar Inc., the world’s top maker of earth-moving equipment, diesel engines and gas turbines, posted disappointing quarterly earnings on Friday and cut its full-year forecast, sending its shares down about 4 percent.
* I can’t make up my mind about who should win the t-shirt from yesterday’s QOTD, so I’m leaving it up to you. I’m partial to “unclesam’s” entry, but let’s put this up for a vote.
Please, vote only once. I know this is Illinois, but let’s at least try to keep our own election clean…
* “unclesam”
I pledge allegiance to Illinois,
and to the power of the Three.
And we shall not be done,
’til it’s a power of One,
And the only choice is ME!
I thought perhaps that I could include a photo of each of the three leaders under that last line, like maybe these…
* “Austin Mayor”
I pledge allegiance to the Flag of Illinois,
Rod R. Blagojevich, Governor,
And to the Republic, Rod R. Blagojevich, Governor,
For which it stands.
One Nation under God, indivisible,
With Liberty, Justice and Rod R. Blagojevich, Governor for all.
* “train111″
I pledge allegiance to the Illinois flag
and to the politicians that top dollar can buy
To the corruption for which it stands
One cesspool
in the heartland
With favors and payouts for the few.
* “God’s Country”
I pledge allegiance to the Blago,
of the deserted mansion in Springfield,
and to the hairstyle, which never moves,
one mindset, that of Rod’s,
with Elvis impersonators and mammograms for all.
* “Yellow Dog Democrat”
I pledge allegiance
to the flag
of the Land of Lincoln.
And to the system,
in Combine’s hands,
Where something’s really stinkin’.
Plenty of contracts
to go around
For those who have the Clout.
But if you want health care,
or better schools,
You’ll have to go without.
* “Poli-Sci Geek”
I pledge allegiance,
to the flag of the great state of illinois,
cuz some guy sent me,
to work this ward,
for some guy I don’t know,
so I might, someday, get a job.
* “The Curmudgeon”
I pledge allegiance to Illinoize
To the good old girls and the good old boys
Who run this State for a favored few,
And to their family members
Who will succeed them:
I pledge my wallet and my vote,
I pledge my car, I pledge my boat,
I pledge the Cubs’ famed Billy Goat.
I pledge to pay and pay and then
I pledge to pay and pay again.
* First, they came for red light violators, then they came for gangbangers, then they came for speeders in construction zones, now it’s parkers…
Drivers who park in the path of Chicago’s 118 street sweepers may soon find themselves in the same boat as those who run red lights: caught in the act by surveillance cameras.
Three years after Mayor Daley first raised the idea, City Hall has issued a “request for qualifications” from companies interested in providing “high-resolution digital cameras” for street sweepers.
Aldermen reacted coolly to the city’s latest plunge into the brave new world of surveillance cameras. They argued that it’s unfair to hammer motorists for street-sweeping violations when the signs that warn them are predominantly made of paper. […]
“The signs just disappear, and motorists don’t see them,” said Ald. Ricardo Munoz (22nd).
“The sign hanger goes out, and kids take ‘em all down. Then the guy who parks gets a ticket the next day. It’s not fair,” said Ald. Ed Smith (28th).
* Hey, Daily Herald, you need to find a replacement for departed political reporter Eric Krol, and soon. You’re getting killed on several stories by smaller papers, like this one, for instance…
The possibility looms that a Des Plaines woman who is also a military veteran, will follow in the footsteps of another female veteran to take on U.S. Rep. Peter Roskam (R-6th) in next fall’s congressional election.
Col. Jill Morgenthaler’s name has been mentioned just once in your paper, and that was one tiny line buried down deep in a story about Peter Roskam’s fundraising.
* And what’s with the Daily Herald using an AP story about Denny Hastert’s pending (or not) resignation? [UPDATE: The Daily Herald’s Animal Farm blog is finally back online, so that’s a good thing].
* Anyway, on to the Peoria area, where state Rep. Aaron Schock announced some endorsements yesterday in his race to replace retiring Ray LaHood. The Peoria paper copied and pasted his spin right into the lede…
State Rep. Aaron Schock said his campaign for Congress was boosted Thursday by endorsements from two dozen municipal leaders in Woodford and Tazewell counties.
Fooled me. I thought it was going to be a run-in-the-mill official campaign kickoff.
Turned out Aaron Schock wanted to show off his new acquisitions: Endorsement from some relatively minor Tazewell and Woodford county politicians, including one Democrat. Schock certainly seems to believe racking up a string of endorsements helps his campaign. But why are these guys endorsing him? Probably for the same reason the PACs are pumping money into Schock’s campaign — he’s the perceived front runner, which can be a self-fulfilling prophesy in a primary election.
I can’t help but feel that endorsements all these county party chairs, city council members and county board members mean nothing if Ray LaHood – one of the most electorally popular politicians in central Illinois — decided to, for whatever reason, come out for John Morris or Jim McConoughey.
This is a 2008 congressional campaign open thread.
* Gov. Blagojevich’s annual fundraiser was last night in Chicago. He spoke for 15 minutes and the Tribune has this priceless outtake…
Blagojevich said he was proud of his work in the overtime legislative session that has been marked by his sparring with House Speaker Michael Madigan, a fellow Democrat.
“If you measure success on whether or not you are doing things for people, this is the most successful session in years,” Blagojevich said, citing his push for more money for schools and health care.
* Meanwhile, Lt. Gov. Pat Quinn’s demand that Gov. Blagojevich urge Senate President Emil Jones to move the “pay to play” bill to the Senate floor drew these responses yesterday…
It’s narrow,” Blagojevich spokeswoman Rebecca Rausch said. “We should pass campaign-finance reform, and we should do it right.”
“We have an alternative bill,” Jones spokeswoman Cindy Davidsmeyer said. “It deals not only with pay-to-play, but with ethics concerning pensions and procurement.”
So, why not move that “alternative bill”? One reason is that Senators vastly prefer the House bill because they know it’s do-able and have been putting pressure on leadership not to call the other proposal.
Although an overall spending plan has been approved, several companion bills also must pass before all of the money can be spent. Without them, schools can’t get all of the extra money promised them in the budget, and the Illinois State Police could face severe financial shortfalls that could lead to layoffs.
“If nothing else, it would be a show of good faith to say we’ve got to put the personalities aside, we’ve got to put away the personal rancor and really start getting down to business,” Hynes said. “There is a growing sentiment out there among everyday people who normally don’t follow state government that this is ridiculous.”
Those budget implementation bills are being held up by House Speaker Michael Madigan, who wants the Senate to override the governor’s budget vetoes before he’ll release the BIMP bills. More from Hynes…
Hynes also criticized the atmosphere in the Capitol where various leaders hold bills hostage to others. Several lawmakers have said the companion budget bills, a Chicago mass-transit bailout and a capital construction program are all linked and that there must be agreement on all of them before any of them are called for a vote.
“To have this public posturing of ‘We’re not going to pass a [BIMP] bill until this happens,’ or ‘We’re not going to pass a capital bill until that happens’ — everybody gets hurt,” Hynes said.
House GOP Leader Tom Cross, Senate President Emil Jones and Gov. Blagojevich don’t want to act on the mass transit bailout bill until the capital bill is passed.
* Thousands upon thousands of cigarette butts have finally spurred the Chicago Park District to take drastic action….
Smoking is now prohibited at Chicago beaches and playgrounds. The city’s Park District passed the ban yesterday. New Board President Gery Chico says the ban protects people from second-hand smoke and cigarette litter. […]
The ban goes into effect immediately. Smokers must be at least 15 feet away from playgrounds and beaches. Violators could be fined up to $500.
Hundreds of thousands of butts were collected from the beaches and parks in various volunteer cleanups of recent years. Trash from smoking made up 54 percent of litter found on city beaches in September 2006. […]
What’s really going on this time isn’t about secondhand smoke or even litter. It’s about the nonsmoking majority telling the dwindling number of smokers to stop their stinky habit because “we, the majority” don’t like it. Once smoking outdoors is banned, how long before they move to ban it in one’s own car or home, as is happening in some parts of the country? And does anyone think they’ll stop at smoking?
Smokers need to recognize that their smoking is bothersome and dangerous to non-smokers - and to stop throwing their trash everywhere. But government agencies need to put the brakes on efforts targeting smokers. Yes, they should quit, but many can’t, and the rest choose not to - which still is their right.
Chasing them outside may be reasonable. But where do we expect them to go next?
* U.S. Attorney Patrick Fitzgerald to get married [corrected hed]
Fitzgerald’s pairing with investment-banker-turned-Head-Start-teacher Jennifer Letzkus was a surprise to many who think of the hard-charging prosecutor as having little time for a personal life.
But the state elected to hold on to the property and set an opening price of $25 million to keep anyone from bidding. With no willing buyers, the state took the title by default.
“We have effectively extinguished the rights of these deadbeat owners and taken a significant step toward ending this costly debacle,” said Scott Burnham, spokesman for Illinois Treasurer Alexi Giannoulias.
Rather than let the property go now, state officials want to rehab it.
It found that screeners at O’Hare’s passenger security checkpoints failed to detect 60 percent of simulated explosives that were hidden in carry-on bags or in the clothing of agents working for the U.S. Transportation Security Administration.
The poor performance prompted a Chicago-area congressman, Mark Kirk, to seek a high-level meeting with U.S. Department of Homeland Security officials to see what can be done immediately to shore up checkpoint security at the airport.
Cook County’s health care system, which serves about 1 million people, is facing a financial crisis, but elected leaders seem unable and unwilling to deal with the problem.
According to a new group organized to save the county system, which includes an organization represented by Young, there is a simple first step necessary to solve the problems, and it wouldn’t cost a dime.
Cook County needs to form a board of trustees to oversee the system to assure taxpayers that it is being managed “competently, transparently and without political interference,” Young said.
* Opinion: Firefighters, FOP to work under old contracts
It is a little surprising that a reporter with the experience and stature of Andy Shaw would be so apparently careless with checking his facts. In his Sunday Southtown article (Oct. 14, Insight, “We’re stuck with ‘em”), he states that Chicago Mayor Richard Daley gave “lovely long-term contracts with generous pay hikes to ensure labor peace until after the Olympics” to all unions, including police and firefighters.
A simple phone call to the Chicago Fire Fighters Union or Fraternal Order of Police would have confirmed that no such contract agreements have occurred with either union.
The billboard proposal calls for significantly raising the annual $75 permit fee and forcing sign companies to pay a lease transaction tax that is not being paid on the city’s 4,100 billboards. Daley already wants to raise the tax from 6 percent to 7.5 percent.
“Anything we can do to stop people from getting hit over the head with property taxes,” said Ald. Pat Levar (45th).
Zoning Committee Chairman William Banks (36th) said giant billboards in prime locations rake in “well over $1 million a year.”
But Stroger failed to mention he’s recommending spending 27 percent more on commissioners and their staffs, a move that would cost nearly $1.8 million a year.
* Cook Co. may stop buying bottled water to save money
The halls of the Capitol are rife with reports of former Speaker Denny Hastert leaving Congress before the end of his term. These reports are only kind of true.
I just spoke with Hastert, who calls the reports a “rumor,” and that he has a lot of work still to do for Illinois on transportation, health care, energy, etc. Asked directly if he has plans to resign, he said: “Not at this time.” […]
A GOP leadership source says that now the plan is for him to wait until the end of this year or early next to announce his departure… The source says that Hastert is “definitely going to resign,” but that it won’t happen be announced officially for a couple of months or so.
* 1:28 pm - As I told you earlier, Lt. Gov. Pat Quinn has demanded that Gov. Blagojevich push Senate President Emil Jones to call the “play to play” reform bill that’s been sitting in limbo for months. Quinn held a press conference today and here’s the official reaction…
Blagojevich spokeswoman Rebecca Rausch said the governor doesn’t control what bills legislative leaders call. Regarding HB1, she said, the governor is interested in more sweeping campaign-finance reform.
It gets more bizarre every day.
* 1:38 pm - From a speech given earlier today by Comptroller Dan Hynes…
The Illinois Legislative Session of 2007: A Fable.
“Once upon a time, in a Land of Lincoln, a Governor presented a budget in a lovely town called Springfield. This Governor was great and generous and had a tremendous head of hair. And the wise and diligent people who needed to approve the budget, the members of the General Assembly, invited the Governor to their home to talk about one part of his plan. He did. And when he left their house, the members did what any courteous hosts would do: they voted 107-0 against him. And told him he was always welcome to stop by.
Though the Governor declared this a great victory, the streets of Springfield were strangely free of dancing or parades or general merriment.
Instead, a great black cloud covered the Land.
And the members of the General Assembly knew, to save the day, they’d have to agree on some kind of plan. So their leaders set down to work, day and night, and agreed on nothing of consequence.
And the cloud remained.
Now danger was approaching, and everyone said that they needed more time — so that they could call each other the worst names they could think of. Nasty, terrible names. Like when someone called the Governor a demagogue. And when the Governor called the Speaker of the House —a Republican.
And then things got even worse. The Governor said that God was on his side, and then unleashed God’s fury against a Senator from Moline. And the men who led the General Assembly insisted that they were absolutely, positively right, and whenever discussing the Governor, took God’s name in vain.
God was generally not pleased.
And the cloud remained.
But just when things looked their worst — just in the nick of time — knowing all that was at stake for the people they served, the good and decent leaders came together – in courtrooms all across Illinois. You see, the Governor had said that the members should meet at 2 o’clock. But the members decided to get together at 10 o’clock. That could mean only one thing, in the name of truth and justice, and everything good in the world: sue the bums!.
So in the happiest of happy endings, the Governor sued the Speaker of the House. And just to make sure that the Speaker’s clerk didn’t feel lonely, he sued him, too. And for a moment, the Governor thought about suing a maid at the Statehouse Inn because she had once said hello to the Speaker. But, in the rush to get back for a Cubs playoff game, he forgot all about that.
And the cloud remains over the Land.
Some say that the Governor is acting crazy. Some say that the Speaker is acting crazy. Some say that the other leaders are acting crazy.
But all of the people in the Land of Lincoln do agree on one thing. Their leaders are always, always, always putting them first.”
* Eric Zorn has some flag pledges recited in states across the country. Illinois has no such pledge…
Texas: Honor the Texas flag; I pledge allegiance to thee, Texas, one state under God, one and indivisible.
Kentucky: I pledge allegiance to the Kentucky flag, and to the Sovereign State for which it stands, one Commonwealth, blessed with diversity, natural wealth, beauty, and grace from on High.
Michigan: I pledge allegiance to the flag of Michigan, and to the state for which it stands, 2 beautiful peninsulas united by a bridge of steel, where equal opportunity and justice to all is our ideal.
Question: Let’s come up with our own state flag pledge. I’ll put the winning entry on a t-shirt that we’ll sell at our charity store and the winner will get one of those shirts for free.
Mayor Daley would love to have a casino in Chicago, but the $800 million it would cost for a license makes it all but impossible, the city’s finance chief said Wednesday.
Pending legislation would require the city to pay the $800 million to the state for a gambling license. But Chief Financial Officer Paul Volpe said the price would prevent a Chicago casino from turning enough of a profit.
“The city will only go forward with a casino that is profitable,” Volpe told the House Gaming Committee at the Thompson Center. “Eight hundred million dollars, quite simply, does not work.” […]
“Even one dollar is too much,” Volpe said at the hearing. “Because every dollar paid for a license fee is less funding available for what we envision as a substantial capital program to improve our city.”
* The governor is reportedly willing to settle for much less than $800 million, but I doubt he’d go all the way down to zero. And Speaker Madigan’s spokesman did his best to throw cold water on the whole idea…
The likelihood of a Chicago casino curing the state’s financial woes edged a little further from reality Wednesday after Mayor Richard Daley’s administration asked for a sizable cut of casino revenues and considerable control. […]
While the committee’s chairman still expressed optimism that a casino deal could be negotiated, a spokesman for House Speaker Michael Madigan (D-Chicago) said the city’s demands did little to move things toward that end.
“It sounds to me that there needs to be a lot more clarity before anything happens with gambling expansion in Illinois, so that’s par for the course,” Madigan spokesman Steve Brown said after the hearing. “It sounds like it was a good idea to have this hearing, and it sounds like we need a couple more.”
* And there are other problems with the Senate’s version of the bill, as Mark Brown notes…
Gaming Board officials noted Wednesday that the gambling bill makes provisions to fund the Chicago Casino Development Authority, the agency that would control the city casino, but none to fund the Gaming Board, which would be charged with overseeing the city agency. […]
Left unclarified by Wednesday’s presentation by Paul Volpe, the city’s chief financial officer, was whether employees of the Chicago Casino Development Authority would be subject to background investigations by the Gaming Board.
Volpe told legislators the city has no interest in playing a role in filling the jobs that would be created by a casino, and Volpe probably doesn’t.
Former Speaker Dennis Hastert (R-Ill.) is expected to announce that he plans to leave the House later this year, setting up the widely anticipated prospect of a special election to replace him, Republican sources on Capitol Hill confirmed.
Hastert initially planned to make an announcement Thursday but has since scrapped that decision, according to one GOP aide. The former speaker, who announced his plans to retire over the summer, is still expected to leave the House some time in December, but the date of his departure — as well as his announcement — remains unclear.
* I don’t really understand why Hastert would do this, considering the consequences…
Republicans are already locked in a hard-fought primary. But Democratic Gov. Rod Blagojevich could fast-track that intramural contest in order to schedule the special on the same day as the state’s Feb. 5 primary - when Illinois Sen. Barack Obama will be on the ballot in his bid for the Democratic presidential nomination.
That could be seriously problemmatic for the Republican nominee, to say the least.
* Sometime after we spoke yesterday, retired Col Jill Morgenthaler decided to quit her state job…
Jill Morgenthaler, who is the governor’s deputy chief of staff for public safety, is apparently mulling a bid for Congress in Illinois 6th Congressional District.
The governor’s office said Wednesday that Morgenthaler, of Des Plaines, submitted her resignation on Tuesday, effective Nov. 1.
Morgenthaler is mulling a bid against freshman Republican Peter Roskam. I would take this resignation as a sign that she’s moving much closer to the race.
Do not be surprised if the National Republican Congressional Committee (NRCC) quietly gets into play sometime soon. If they do, it will be on behalf of Oberweis. It’s nothing personal; just follow the math. The NRCC was spread thin in 2006 and will be spread much thinner in 2008. They probably have twice as many seats they need to target as they have money to target them with. Regardless of how the Republican Primary turns out this seat is likely to become a Democratic target. While Lauzen may very well have the fundraising ability to make up for what he lacks in personal wealth to compete in the primary, he would assuredly need significant national help if the general was targeted by the Democrats. The decision-makers at the NRCC aren’t geniuses. But you don’t have to be a genius to figure out that, if Oberweis wins, money that would have to be used to prop up Lauzen in a general could be used elsewhere, relieving a little of the pressure on the very tight national NRCC budget.
It has been surprising how cautious and lackluster the Oberweis campaign has been to this point. Without a renewal of vigor, Oberweis risks repeating the results of his first statewide race when little-known, underfunded State Rep. Jim Durkin swept to victory in the U.S. Senate Primary. Anything other than a decisive win will almost certainly lead the Democrats to target the seat, making the cost of the general election campaign
* With all the talk about proposed tax hikes in Chicago, Cook County, the RTA region and the state, this whopper, which on a per capita basis makes all those other tax ideas look pretty tiny, has gone almost unnoticed…
Fox Valley Park District trustees plan to ask voters for a $57 million tax increase in February to help pay for an all-encompassing list of capital projects. […]
The district has reached a point where its parks and facilities are either going to get better or worse, Executive Director Steve Messerli said.
“We’d like to move it up from good to great,” he said.
That’s quite a bold statement, but at least voters will have a direct say come February.
…the [Progressive and Independent Caucus in the Chicago city council] is now talking about putting together a package of revenue and cost-cutting alternatives to Daley’s record $108 million property tax increase.
“If you look at stories in the paper, the mayor hasn’t got the votes for the property tax increase. And that’s a third of the [new revenue]. We’ve got to think about what [alternative] options might be,” Preckwinkle said.
Privatizing Chicago parking meters could produce a bonanza of revenue to build libraries, parks and schools, but it’s no substitute for raising taxes, Mayor Daley said Wednesday.
Concerned that aldermen might use the parking meter deal as an excuse to run even farther away from his $293 million tax package, Daley said he would insist the windfall be placed in a reserve fund with interest income set aside for long-term investment. It would not be used for day-to-day operations.
Should citizens entrust $890 million a year in new tax revenues to Cook County Board President Todd Stroger? Put on a pair of Stroger Goggles, which distort reality, and you’ll see what he sees — a government that he says has achieved “enormous operational efficiencies” and adopted “modern business practices.”
* Timing is everything. On the same day of Gov. Blagojevich’s annual megabucks fundraiser, Lt. Gov. Pat Quinn is demanding movement on a bill to end “pay to play” state contracts. From a press release…
With $25 billion in taxpayer funds at stake in the state’s proposed capital plan, Lt. Governor Pat Quinn on Thursday sent a public letter to Governor Rod R. Blagojevich asking him to call for an immediate vote in the Illinois Senate on House Bill 1, to outlaw pay-to-play state contracts in Illinois.
“The bill to end pay-to-play state contracts passed the Illinois House 116-0, and 46 out of 59 state senators have co-sponsored it as well,” Quinn said. “Before our state considers spending $25 billion in taxpayer funds on construction contracts, we need a tough new ethics law in place to make sure the people of Illinois get full value for their money.”
Quinn called on Governor Blagojevich to urge his legislative ally, Senate President Emil Jones, to call HB1 for an immediate vote by the members of the State Senate. If Jones refuses, Quinn said, Governor Blagojevich should institute the provisions of HB1 by executive order. […]
To demonstrate the widespread support for HB1, Quinn invited Illinois taxpayers to use his website, StandingUpForIllinois.org, to send an e-mail to Governor Blagojevich urging immediate passage of the bill. Quinn also unveiled a new feature on his website, — an animated cartoon showing vested interests being showered with billions of taxpayer dollars.
House Bill 1, introduced by State Rep. John A. Fritchey (D-Chicago), would require all bidders on state contracts of more than $10,000 to disclose any campaign contributions they have made to the elected official in charge of that contract. It also would prohibit any businesses holding more than $25,000 in state contracts from making campaign contributions to the officeholder in charge of those contracts.
A state employee whom Gov. Blagojevich once outed as a subject of a federal probe into his administration’s hiring practices is now being promoted to a top job within the Illinois Department of Children and Family Services.
Robin Staggers once was accused by a subordinate of creating “a culture of intimidation” within DCFS’ human resources department, according to an internal state report disclosed in January by the Associated Press.
But DCFS Acting Director Erwin McEwen said in a message Wednesday to the agency’s 3,000-plus employees that Staggers is being named chief of staff as part of a series of management changes.
A high-level official in an agency under Gov. Rod Blagojevich has resigned during a review of his ties to a company doing business with the state.
Mark Kolaz will leave his post as chief of staff for the Department of Central Management Services on Monday, Blagojevich spokeswoman Rebecca Rausch said Wednesday.
Kolaz will take a private-sector job in a move that has been “planned for some time,” although he officially submitted his resignation Friday, Rausch said. She would not elaborate and said she did not know what the new job would be.
Then in 2005, Glennon was indicted in what prosecutors say was a $700,000 kickback scheme involving construction projects at the Chicago Medical School.
Now, Glennon faces trial on Nov. 26 on federal charges of aiding and abetting the misapplication of government funds and lying to the FBI.
Despite his troubles, Glennon remains registered with the state as a lobbyist. And he still has one blue-chip client: the Wirtz Corp., owner of the Chicago Blackhawks.
* Press Release: Bicycling community wins key piece of legislation
* State Senator Link honored
State Sen. Terry Link, D-Waukegan, has been named the American Cancer Society’s “Legislator of the Year” for his lead sponsorship of the Smoke Free Illinois Act. It is the first time the society has named a “legislator of the year.” At the same time, Link has received the President’s Award from the Illinois Academy of Family Physicians, also for his work on the smoke-free bill.
