Capitol Fax.com - Your Illinois News Radar

Thursday, Sep 1, 2011 - Posted by Rich Miller

* The Democratic congressional delegation is being asked to pony up to defend their new map…

Attorney General Lisa Madigan’s office doesn’t feel it has the lawyers or skills it needs to defend the state’s new Democrat-drawn congressional map on its own, so three outside lawyers have been hired and the Democratic congressional delegation can raise $500,000 to pay their bill.

None of the members of Congress are named defendants in the lawsuits filed by Republican members of Congress and the League of Women voters. Those lawsuits name the State Board of Elections, challenging the maps drawn by House Speaker Mike Madigan, Senate President John Cullerton and other Democrats. Those maps eviscerated Republican congressional districts while protecting Democratic districts.

Rep. Jerry Costello (D-Belleville) explained to the rest of the Democratic congressional delegation: if they want to keep the map most favorable to them, they should each pony up a check for $10,000 and then start raising more money.

“[Lisa Madigan] is prepared to carry out her responsibilities but she’s just letting us know that: ‘If you want the most expert testimony that you can find, that’s going to require expert witnesses we don’t have,’” said Rep. Danny Davis (D-Chicago). “The budget that the state passed for her did not include money for the expert witnesses.”

…Adding… Lisa Madigan’s office hotly disputed the claim that her office doesn’t have “the lawyers or skills.” They have plenty of both, I was told this afternoon. The delegation was apparently told, however, that the State Board of Elections doesn’t have the funds to pay for expert testimony and that these sorts of cases pretty much require that. Hence, the cash for experts and additional lawyers.

* The Dems are gonna need all the money they can get. The three-judge panel that will hear the case has a Republican majority…

One development worrisome to the Democrats is that the Republican-appointed chief judge of the federal appellate court has appointed two Republican-appointed Indiana judges to round out the three-judge panel that will make substantive decisions in the case along with the Democratic-appointed judge who was assigned to the case, Joan Lefkow.

* Meawhile, the Illinois House GOP’s Kevin Artl recently shared a bit of redistricting history…

Illinois’ winner-take-all legislative redistricting process is “fundamentally flawed” and should be replaced with a less politically driven system like in Iowa and California, an Illinois House Republican political strategist said Wednesday.

Illinois law puts redistricting in the hands of a special commission if lawmakers can’t agree on a map to send the governor. But the last time the General Assembly was actually able to redistrict itself — without a commission or courts involved — was in 1955, according to Kevin Artl, political director for the House Republicans.

Great track record.

* Ohio Republicans are also pretty partisan when it comes to the remap…

This year, four of the five board members are Republicans: Gov. John Kasich, Secretary of State Jon Husted, Auditor Dave Yost, and Senate President Tom Niehaus (R., New Richmond). House Minority Leader Armond Budish (D., Beachwood) is the only Democrat.

Among the Republicans, only Mr. Husted has expressed interest in making the process less partisan. Mr. Budish proposed several rule changes designed to expand public participation and make the process more transparent and less partisan. Republicans rejected them.

But a group of good government types sponsored a contest to draw new maps that would “enhance partisan competition, split as few counties and communities as possible, and reflect the true political makeup of the state. ” The winner? An Illinois Republican…

The top-scoring map was drawn by Mike Fortner, a Republican state representative — from Illinois. His plan increases the number of competitive districts in the 99-member Ohio House from 30 to 35 and in the 33-member Senate from nine to 14.

* Related…

* ICPR: Redistricting Illinois in 2011: Politics as Usual Under a Facade of Transparency

15 Comments

I did not know that

Thursday, Sep 1, 2011 - Posted by Rich Miller

* I was thinking about using this story for a question of the day…

A 33-year-old requirement that almost everything sold in [Michigan] be adorned with an individual price tag ends today, the result of legislation passed early this year at the urging of Gov. Rick Snyder.

Snyder and other advocates for repeal said Michigan’s item-pricing law, the strictest in the nation, was a relic of an era that was slowing innovation and adding more than $2 billion a year in costs to consumers. Defenders of the old law said repeal would sow frustration and anger among shoppers, result in layoffs for store clerks, and doubted that consumer savings would follow.

Tom Scott, vice president of the Michigan Retailers Association, said Wednesday he doesn’t expect much drama when the stores open today.

I couldn’t find an Illinois statute mandating price tags, so I called the Illinois Retail Merchants Association and spoke with its top dog, Dave Vite. Vite said Illinois has no mandatory price tag law on the books. So, all the tags you see are put there voluntarily.

* I’ve been a bit puzzled about this new “purple paint” law. Thankfully, GateHouse explains…

Purple paint violators will be prosecuted.

Legislation signed by Gov. Pat Quinn this week allows landowners to substitute purple paint on trees and poles for the traditional “no trespassing” signs. The purple option is effective immediately, state officials said.

“The forestry industry brought it to my attention,” said state Sen. John Sulllivan, D-Rushville, a chief sponsor of the legislation.

Sullivan said he got the idea for purple paint from Missouri, where the alternative to trespassing signs already is available. […]

According to research at the Missouri Agricultural Law Center, Arkansas started the purple-paint trend in 1989 in response to requests from agricultural, lumber and outdoor sporting groups for an alternative to metal signs that can be removed, vandalized or wear out.

It also appears to be working in Texas…

“A ‘No trespassing’ sign may be shot up or taken down and a fence may be cut, but a post or tree marked with purple paint is not as easily removed, therefore causing your property to be legally posted more effectively and for a longer period of time before the markings need to be replaced,” said [Lieutenant Game Warden Lewis Rather].

He added that the use of purple paint appears to be a successful measure in notifying potential trespassers.

“Complaints received are down as far as trespassing on property marked with purple paint.”

* Here’s an interesting story on state implementation of the federal government’s new Rube Goldberg Machine healthcare law…

Almost no one wants the state running Illinois’ new health-care exchanges.

Health-care advocates, unions, doctors’ groups and business people testified in unison this week before the Legislature’s rule-making body, the Commission on Government Forecasting and Accountability that the state should have a limited role in running the health-care exchanges, but they were divided on their reasons.

Each state must create an exchange where people can shop for and purchase competitive health insurance plans, as required under the federal Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act. But each state can create its own exchange.

At its most basic, an exchange would be a marketplace, a one-stop shop. Some states are looking at online exchanges or physical exchanges or both, but no single model has emerged.

Jim Duffett, executive director of Illinois Campaign for Better Health Care, which advocates for health care for everyone, said exchanges should be outside direct government control and, more importantly, governmental influence.

“Political winds change,” said Duffett. “We need to keep this marketplace stable, no matter if it is a Democrat or Republican in the (governor’s) mansion.”

7 Comments

Question of the day

Thursday, Sep 1, 2011 - Posted by Rich Miller

* You may have seen this story…

Wayne Sabaj was cooking a pork shoulder on his grill Monday when he decided to pick some broccoli from his garden in the far northwestern suburbs. There, next to the red bell peppers and beneath the pole beans, the unemployed carpenter found more than just vegetables — a bag of money containing thousands of dollars.

McHenry County sheriff’s police came out and found another bag. Together, the bags contained $150,000, officials said.

“I’m unemployed and have no money. I lost my house a few years ago when I ran out of work,” Sabaj said.

At first, “I was worried about who would come back for it and figured I couldn’t keep it. . . . Now I’m hoping no one claims it and I get it back.”

* The Question: What do you think Gov. Pat Quinn and each of the four legislative leaders would do if they found a bag of money in their back yards?

Snark is heavily encouraged, of course.

36 Comments

Adventures in press releases

Thursday, Sep 1, 2011 - Posted by Rich Miller

* He just won’t go away…

The following is a statement from Rod Blagojevich, the former governor of Illinois, on the free public transit rides for seniors program that ends at midnight.

STATEMENT FROM ROD BLAGOJEVICH:

“I’m really sad to see free public transportation being taking way from our seniors. I ruffled a lot of feathers to make this happen but I know it was the right thing to do. I wish I was in a position to do something about it.”

Please Note: Rod Blagojevich is NOT doing any interviews at this time.

“I wish I was in a position to do something about it.”

Yeah. OK. Perhaps you should’ve thought about that before deciding to become a criminal.

Sheesh.

* This might’ve been a cute idea a month or two ago, but not so much now…

Prompted by several bill signings and announcements made by Governor Pat Quinn on Fridays so that they can be buried in the news cycle, Illinois Republican Party Chairman Pat Brady has announced a contest to predict the next bill signed or other controversial action taken by Quinn on a Friday.

“While most of us are getting ready to spend time with our families for the weekend, Governor Quinn has been quietly signing legislation or making other announcements on Fridays that will affect most Illinoisans.” said Brady. “The problem is that these actions get little or no press coverage, and that’s no accident on the Governor’s part.”

Actions taken by Quinn on Fridays include signing Democrat drawn redistricting maps and legislation watering down the state’s Freedom of Information Act as well as revealing his support for an 87% tollway tax increase.

“The Governor is happy to have popular bill signing announcements in front of the TV cameras during the rest of the week,” said Brady. “But on Fridays, he likes to take action on more controversial items hoping no one will notice. This weekend – Labor Day Weekend – could be especially brutal so we wanted to put some sunshine on this practice.”

Trouble is, there’s only one bill currently on Gov. Pat Quinn’s desk: The ComEd bill, which Quinn has repeatedly said that he’ll veto. Quinn has either signed or vetoed everything the General Assembly sent him. Of course, they haven’t yet sent him the gaming bill.

Quinn may have some bad news to drop this Friday afternoon/evening, but signing a lousy bill just ain’t on the agenda.

Maybe the IL GOP can try this contest again next year.

Anyway, if you’d like to enter the contest, click here…

The first contestant to successfully predict a controversial Quinn Friday bill signing or action will receive a $25 gift card to T. G. I. Friday’s Restaurant. The gift card will be paid for personally by Chairman Pat Brady. Because they may have advanced warning of Quinn’s activities, state employees and members of the news media (and their families) are not eligible to play.

Bummer. No gift card for moi.

* The mayor’s public schedule is almost always packed, so this is a rarity…

THE PUBLIC SCHEDULE FOR MAYOR RAHM EMANUEL SEPTEMBER 1, 2011

There are no public events scheduled at this time.

* Emanuel will have a busy night, however…

Mayor Rahm Emanuel is billed as the guest of honor Thursday night at a popular Chinatown restaurant for a political fundraiser where “gold sponsors” who throw down $2,000 will be able to greet him at a private reception.

But the event isn’t a fundraiser for Emanuel or even any of the 50 aldermen in the City Council. It’s for Laura Liu, a Cook County circuit judge running for election next year.

Emanuel also has offered his support to Supreme Court Justice Mary Jane Theis, who faces a potential Democratic primary fight in 2012. That backing also comes with the pledge of fundraising help from the new mayor, who has become one of the hottest tickets on the Democratic campaign circuit.

Liu is Mike Kasper’s wife. Subscribers already know about the Theis endorsement.

* Emanuel is also hosting a dinner tonight at Millennium Park for state legislators. All legislators have been invited. I gotta wonder if the governor will be slowly circling the park tonight trying to see who shows up to cavort with the enemy.

Just kidding.

Kinda…

16 Comments

*** UPDATED x1 *** Quinn disingenuous on gaming bill

Thursday, Sep 1, 2011 - Posted by Rich Miller

* Yesterday during a press conference, Gov. Pat Quinn expressed strong concerns about the proponents’ plan to “fix” the gaming bill via a trailer, or cleanup bill…

“They talk about something called a trailer bill; I don’t know what that is,” Quinn said. “I think that if you have a bill that isn’t a good bill, then you should roll up your sleeves and correct that bill rather than tell the governor to sign something that isn’t top notch. Who would ever do that? I think that’s a bad way to go. … Do it right the first time, that’s my philosophy.”

Quinn also said, “The notion that we work it out later, that’s not in my book.”

Listen to the raw audio…

Click to download

* The governor was obviously being disingenuous here. He is no stranger to trailer bills, having signed several into law. Earlier this month, for instance, he signed HB 3376, wich was the trailer bill to the Police and Fire Pension bill, SB 3538. Quinn signed the initial legislation last December. The trailer fixed technical errors, but there was no expression of outrage when he signed the cleanup legislation.

Quinn has often touted the big education reform bill, SB 7. But that bill was fixed by a trailer as well, HB 1197. Again, no complaints out of the governor.

Then there was SB 1641, which was a trailer to HB 6094, which was passed in the 96th General Assembly, which was a trailer to correct confusion between HB 2455 and SB 1866, which also passed in the 96th.

It goes on and on and on. There was even a trailer to fix the capital bill to tighten up the video gaming regulations. That video gaming law was a quite large legal expansion of gambling (even though the illegal activities already exist all over the state).

…Adding… From commenter “siriusly”…

Even more ironic in that audio clip he was asked about the FOIA bill he just signed - it was essentially a clean up bill too . . .

*** UPDATE *** Looks like we need another gaming trailer bill…

Finally, a new owner opened the Rivers Casino in Des Plaines in July, yet the portion slated for horse racing remains in the state’s Gaming Fund. Brad Hahn, a spokesman with the state’s comptroller’s office, said that’s because the law states the money “shall be paid” rather than “transferred.”

And without an appropriation from the General Assembly, the Gaming Board can’t send the money.

[ *** End Of Update *** ]

* I asked the governor’s office about Quinn’s comments and was sent this…

What the Gov responded on the “trailer” method [yesterday] was in reference to a question on the gambling bill. Basically, he was saying that he is not aware of what is in said gaming trailer bill, what it contains, what it looks like, what it proposes to change, etc.

Well, of course he wouldn’t know. Nobody knows because the trailer doesn’t yet exist. The sponsoring legislators are waiting on Gov. Quinn to finally engage and list his “must haves.” Until Quinn does that, no bill can be constructed. The trailer is all about satisfying Quinn, but Quinn won’t say what, exactly, would satisfy him. If he’d lay out his specific demands, he’d know pretty quickly what was going to be in the trailer bill.

The governor did lay out some demands for the ComEd bill, which the company hasn’t fully agreed to. So, why isn’t he doing the same with the gaming bill? The administration response was “We will.”

“When?” is the next big question here.

And then there’s the indisputable fact that if Quinn had been more engaged during the spring session there would be no need for a trailer bill at all. He made himself irrelevant all last spring, and now he wants back into the game, but he won’t actually get into the game.

* If you listen to the audio, you’ll hear Quinn expressing concerns that the mob might get involved in Chicago’s new casino. When asked to explain, Quinn couldn’t provide any specifics in the legislation.

* The governor was also pressed by reporters to say whether he planned to sign the gaming bill, veto it or issue an amendatory veto. Quinn said that he never talks about his actions before bills actually reach his desk.

That’s just ridiculous. Quinn’s been saying since June 1st that he plans to veto the ComEd bill.

* Meanwhile, black and Latino aldermen demanded yesterday that Quinn sign the gaming bill…

The City Council’s Black and Hispanic Caucuses on Wednesday joined the bitter battle between Mayor Rahm Emanuel and Gov. Pat Quinn aimed at pressuring the governor to sign a bill that would pave the way for a land-based Chicago casino and slot machines at O’Hare and Midway Airports.

It’s one thing for the governor to ignore a political plea from the newly-elected mayor of Chicago. It’s quite another to turn a deaf ear to elected representatives of black and Hispanic voters who helped put Quinn in office, the aldermen said.

“Our caucus came out and supported Quinn when it was a close call. He needs to understand that and see that our communities are suffering,” said Ald. Howard Brookins (21st), chairman of the City Council’s Black Caucus.

“Some of the prosperity seen downtown [was] not seen in our communities. There’s simply not enough money in the meager [aldermanic] menu program to fix everything that needs to be done in our communities. This is a way that we can help our constituents without raising taxes.”

What happens if Quinn refuses to sign the bill?

“There’s always a political consequence to anything you do or you don’t do. Those people who are out of work will look unfavorably on that,” Brookins warned.

* Also yesterday, organized labor and the Chicagoland Chamber urged Quinn not to veto the ComEd bill. From a press release…

Business and labor leaders today called on Governor Pat Quinn to sign legislation authorizing investment in upgrading and modernizing the state’s electric grid, saying it would spark economic growth, create new jobs and make Illinois a hub in the nation’s emerging “new energy economy.”

Senate Bill 1652, the Energy Infrastructure Modernization Act, was approved by the General Assembly in late May and sent to the Governor on Monday. It would authorize ComEd and Ameren to spend more than $3 billion over the next 10 years to upgrade the state’s electric grid and install new “smart grid” digital technology.

With this new technology, including smart meters installed in homes, consumers will be able to save money on electric bills with new pricing options, more information about their usage and new energy efficiency programs. The legislation contains strict regulatory provisions protecting business and residential customers during the 10-year period of investment through oversight by the Illinois Commerce Commission. […]

“As Labor Day approaches, we urge the Governor to remember the thousands of Illinoisans who are out of work – more than 627,000 to be exact, according to the July report from the Illinois Department of Employment Security,” said Dean Apple, president and business manager of IBEW Local 15 in Downers Grove.

“The best way I can think of to remember our out-of-work brothers and sisters is to approve this major job-creating legislation and get to work on strengthening and modernizing our electric grid,” Apple said.

“SB1652 is a critical jobs initiative that will spur major economic development for our state,” said Jorge Ramirez, president of the Chicago Federation of Labor. “A 10-year program to invest billions of dollars in our infrastructure and in a modern grid will provide thousands of jobs not just over the short-term, but over the long haul. This bill represents a major step forward in the new economy of the 21st century.”

Discuss.

30 Comments

Jay Hoffman moves closer to run for Congress

Thursday, Sep 1, 2011 - Posted by Rich Miller

* From a press release…

Former State Representative Jay Hoffman will file paperwork with the Federal Election Commission this week to form a committee to explore a bid for Congress in Illinois’ new 13th congressional district.

“While Illinois families are hurting, those in Congress have failed miserably to create jobs, get our economy going, or seriously reduce the deficit,” said Hoffman. “Like most Americans, I am disgusted with Congress’s failure to get things done. Central and Southwestern Illinois need a voice in Washington that will work in a bi-partisan fashion to find common-sense solutions to put people back to work.”

Hoffman has authored a book “Hope from the Heartland: Jobs, Clean Air, Energy Security,” that outlines how the Midwest can lead the nation in research and the production of alternative energy by utilizing the Midwestern state’s natural resources to create jobs in the declining manufacturing sector.

Hoffman said he will immediately begin travelling the district talking about jobs and the economy directly with the district’s voters and expects to make an announcement of candidacy by the end of September. This weekend Hoffman will appear at several events honoring working families as part of Labor Day festivities. On Sunday Hoffman will appear at the Laborers Labor Day picnic in Decatur. On Monday Hoffman will participate in the Decatur Labor Day parade and will appear at Labor Day picnics in Bloomington-Normal and Champaign-Urbana.

Filing paperwork with the FEC is the first step towards running for Congress. Creating a committee will allow Hoffman to raise and spend money on behalf of his candidacy.

Hoffman lost his state House seat last year in a close and bitter election and then voted for the income tax hike two months later, so that won’t help him much. He is, however, a very energetic campaigner. He does have baggage. He was, after all, Rod Blagojevich’s House floor leader. But unlike many around the former governor, Hoffman was not tainted all that much by Blagojevich’s criminal trial. No shoes dropped.

Your thoughts?

[Fixed headline because I was distracted and wrote something inaccurate.]

34 Comments

Morning videos

Thursday, Sep 1, 2011 - Posted by Rich Miller

* I’ve been working on a longer post, then looked up and noticed how late it’s getting. Sorry about that. Republican firebrand Congressman Joe Walsh was on “Chicago Tonight” last night and he did pretty well considering that the show is not exactly the best venue for a guy like him. Have a look…

* Walsh did let loose at an event later in the evening, however…

Congressman Joe Walsh, once again, didn’t mince words about his thoughts about the Democratic Party and President Barack Obama.

“How idiotic is this president?” Walsh said to the GOP crowd Wednesday night in Nunda Township. “I don’t want to be disrespectful, but he’s going to bring forth a jobs plan next week. Think about that for a minute. He’s been in office for three years. He’s destroyed job creation systematically for three years.”

* Mayor Rahm Emanuel was also on “Chicago Tonight” this week for an extended interview. A story of mine is mentioned about 26 or so minutes into the show…

* More…

* John Tillman on Berkowitz show

* Raja Krishnamoorphi on Berkowitz show

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