* My tech guys are shutting down this site for about 30 minutes around 8 o’clock tonight to get things ready for tomorrow. I apologize in advance for any convenience this may cause you.
Early youth voting in Illinois is up 144 percent over the 2014 midterms. More than 70 percent of the 6,200 undergraduates at the University of Chicago registered to vote through the TurboVote app. At the university’s early voting site, students waited up to an hour to cast their ballots.
Keep in mind that early voting has become far more common in recent years. But it still does probably show voter intensity.
* From UIUC today…
It is taking 2 hrs to vote at the Illini Union! The line is running from the 4th floor all the way down to the 1st floor. @ChampCtyClerk refused to open more than one early voting location on campus. Please encourage UIUC student voters to STAY IN LINE and VOTE! #twillpic.twitter.com/VxTNBpq2gG
““The big question: Is all this surge in early voting, is it just just to get it out of the way? Or has it more to do with a bigger turnout?” Orr said during a news conference with city officials Monday. “The buzz clearly is we’re going to have a bigger turnout. We see so many signs, but they’re not necessarily provable at this point. We’ll see that tomorrow.
“It’s hard for us to say, but we clearly, I believe, will break the normal 49 to 52 (percent turnout),” he said.
Marisel Hernandez, chairwoman of the election board that supervises Chicago voting, was a bit more cautious in her turnout estimate.
“I don’t know if you can have an educated guess, but we definitely will see over 50 percent, but as far as anything more specific than that, I’m hesitant to say,” Hernandez said. “We think that this election has generated a lot of interest, so we’re hoping for a good turnout.”
Ugh. What a horrible thing to do. Not to mention that there’s no statute of limitations on arson.
* From a longtime Peoria-area subscriber…
Hey an odd FYI, I received a robocall last night at my home in Peoria County, on behalf of the GOP candidate against John D’Amico. Obviously an error somehow, but errors like this always make me wonder how many other wasted contacts they made.
D’Amico is a Chicago Democrat.
* Mike Bost and the ILGOP go with Hillary, Madigan, Pelosi and Trump…
That piece has a very retro feel to it, and I don’t just mean the inclusion of Hillary Clinton.
* Roskam’s opponent, Sean Casten, tweeted out a video of Daniel Biss juggling fire…
We're all juggling a lot before Election Day, but we need to make time to Get Out The Vote and #FlipThe6th for @SeanCasten. Thank you @DanielBiss for lending your voice to remind everyone in #IL06 to vote early and on Election Day, November 6th! pic.twitter.com/QwOh1JhYVR
* Constable: Democrat or Republican, these election judges work together for voters: Chatting politely and chuckling at times, these two longtime election judges figure out they probably have been to the same political rallies. Dianna Rushing, 67, a passionate Democrat from Palatine, was on one side holding her sign. Richard Townsend, 40, a fervent Republican from Arlington Heights, was on the other side holding his sign.
but passing a budget with the largest permanent income tax hike in state history didn’t improve Illinois’ economic climate.
* Jake breaks it down…
IPI claims the 2017 tax change “appears to be hurting the state’s economy” because the average private sector job growth from July 2010 to July 2017 was 1.4%, while that same growth number dropped to 0.97% from July 17-18.
Personal PAC, the powerful abortion rights/pro-choice organization which is a major force on the the political scene, seems scared to death that it’s chosen candidate for Illinois attorney general — Democrat Kwame Raoul — might be in trouble.
In a confidential letter dispatched late last week to board members by PAC leader Terry Cosgrove, the fear of Raoul losing the state race is palpable.
In the letter, which was obtained by Sneed, Cosgrove states:
“Putting aside the closeness of many legislative races, I am most concerned about Kwame Raoul defeating [Republican] Erika Harold.”
When Obama approached Kwame Raoul for a similar embrace, the state senator in a tough battle for attorney general gave the former president a giant bear hug.
One race that’s expected to be close is the race for attorney general, in which Democratic state Sen. Kwame Raoul – who took Obama’s seat when Obama left Springfield for the U.S. Senate – is facing off against Urbana attorney and former Miss America Erika Harold.
At the same time, Harold, an Urbana attorney, bought limited broadcast TV advertising time in the Chicago market for the race’s final weekend. Her campaign late Friday also purchased cable advertising time in the Chicago market.
She’s basically dark on Chicago broadcast.
* The Question: What’s your over/under prediction for the percentage margin between Harold and Raoul? Explain.
Former President Barack Obama returned to Chicago to rally voters while supporting gubernatorial candidate J.B. Pritzker and other Democrats on the ballot in the coming election. […]
Just looking at the latest polls, Democratic gubernatorial candidate JB Pritzker may not need the help from the former president to defeat Gov. Rauner, but it didn’t stop him from taking the podium.
“Republicans are just plain wrong. Democrats are about being fair and decent we can be to one another,” Pritzker said.
While former presidents often stay in the political background for a few years after leaving office, the Trump-led attacks on Obama’s legacy drew him back onto the campaign trail. Republicans, said Obama, are “blatantly, repeatedly, baldly, shamelessly lying.” And the Trump administration, which promised to “clean the swamp,” instead, Obama said, “racked up enough indictments to field a football team.” […]
Gubernatorial candidate Pritzker took the stage before Obama spoke to say “hatred and misogyny should have no place in America.” He told the crowd, “This election is about what Illinois can be.”
Raoul told the crowd, “I’m a proud son of Haitian immigrants who did not come from [a] s-hole,” referencing reports of President Donald Trump’s disparaging remarks about immigration from several countries earlier this year. “I am a birthright baby,” Raoul said.
Comptroller and likely Chicago mayoral contender Susana Mendoza called herself at the rally “your truth-telling fiscal watchdog who is not afraid to stand up to Bruce Rauner.”
I’m assuming we’ll hear some “truth-telling” from Mendoza in the coming days about her mayoral bid.
Pritzker accused Rauner and the state Republican Party of adopting Trump’s “retrograde views,” including viewing people as a threat “because of the way they look or worship or identify.”
“Illinois, my faith in you has never been greater,” Pritzker said, saying residents have shown “you prove progress is always possible.”
At Honest Abe’s Tap & Grill in Morris, the governor spoke of an uphill battle back to a second term, while warning a victory by Democrat J.B. Pritzker will turn the state into a “nightmare.”
“People are counting us out now. They’re saying, ‘Oh the polls are showing this or that,’” Rauner said. “You know what? The polls are baloney. These polls don’t mean anything. The only poll that matters is on Election Day,” Rauner said. […]
“We had a supermajority against us and it was brutal,” Rauner said of the Democratic majority in both the Illinois House and Senate. “But you know what? Two years ago, thanks to your hard work, we picked up six seats in the General Assembly to knock Mike Madigan out of the supermajority. And you know what? what we’re going to do this time … we’re going to pick up nine seats in the House and knock Mike Madigan out. He’s not going to be the speaker of the House anymore.
“That’s what we’re going to do. We’re going to get him out,” Rauner said.
Discussing his opponent, Pritzker, Rauner said Pritzker could be indicted in the next few months because of a a tax scheme. The audience jeered at the mention of Pritzker, with one woman in the crowd shouting “Screw him,” and a man called him the Pillsbury Dough boy. Rauner said Pritzker could join his predecessors as an Illinois governor going to jail.
“And you know what ‘J.B.’ stands for then: Jail Bird,” Rauner said.
From the man who has repeatedly bemoaned the rhetoric in politics today.
“I was trailing in most polls four years ago … and I don’t think they are really accurate,” said the 62-year-old incumbent. “Everywhere I travel people say ‘Governor, you are on the right track.’” […]
“People say ‘Governor, stay strong, don’t give in. Madigan is the problem, he’s the one that has gotta go,’ ” Rauner said. “And a lot of times they will go on and say, ‘I am a Democrat, and I don’t normally support Republicans, but I love what you are trying to do.’ ” […]
In Decatur, Rauner already had convinced Shirley and Jim Cairns from Mount Zion, diehard fans who came to the cafe to see him and definitely plan on voting for him. They don’t believe in the polls, either.
“He’s going to get it, he’s going to win,” said Shirley Cairns as her husband nodded in agreement. “He deserves it because of all the changes he’s made and the fact he’s made Illinois a better state.”
During his visit, many tailgaters introduced themselves to Rauner and asked him to pose for a picture with them. Parents brought their children to meet the governor. One gentleman said the last governor he had seen up close was Dan Walker. […]
A few people declined offers to have their pictures taken with the governor, but they were polite about it. Some tailgaters ignored the governor as he walked by their tables and tents. Most partiers seemed pleasantly surprised by his visit.
“Everywhere we go, people will come up to us and say, ‘Governor, stay strong. Don’t back down. You’re on the right track. Madigan has got to go.’ And, a lot of times, they will go on and say, ‘I’m a Democrat. I don’t normally support Republicans, but I support you because we have got to stop that corruption and the tax hikes coming out of Chicago.’ So, it’s very exciting,” Rauner said.
* Gov. Bruce Rauner has a campaign stop scheduled in Spring Grove and an evening rally at Benedictine University in Lisle.
* J.B. Pritzker has campaign stops scheduled in Rockford, Moline, Belleville, Marion, Springfield and Peoria with other candidates on the Democratic ticket, including attorney general hopeful Kwame Raoul and Treasurer Mike Frerichs.
* The governor also did a round of morning show appearances…
Rauner appeared heartened by the ovation he got from the lunchtime crowd at the Country Kettle Restaurant on a rainy Sunday afternoon. Four years ago, Rauner got 76 percent of the vote in heavily Republican Ford County and 50.3 percent statewide as he upended Democratic Gov. Pat Quinn. […]
“Don’t believe those polls,” he told diners at the crowded restaurant Sunday in an impromptu campaign rally. “We need to get out the votes downstate to cancel those votes in Chicago.
“They’re trying to bring in the big guns,” Rauner said in reference to a late Sunday afternoon rally in Chicago featuring former President Barack Obama and the statewide Democratic ticket.
“All the trends are with us. We’ve got to fight these guys,” Rauner said.
State and local public health authorities have looked high and low for the sources of fatal Legionnaires’ disease outbreaks at the Quincy veterans’ home. Now, Illinois Gov. Bruce Rauner is offering a new theory.
“Massive floods and tornadoes” and “a lot of dirt.”
But Rauner offered no proof, and experts who spoke to WBEZ were skeptical.
…Adding… The Pritzker campaign compiled a long list of the governor’s excuses. Click here.
* WBEZ now reports that the Rauner administration released 132,700 pages of documents related to the Quincy veterans’ home on Friday. Here’s one bit…
Illinois Gov. Bruce Rauner’s administration knew the Quincy veterans’ home had bungled a water-system repair in violation of state health codes but chose not to cite the facility for a mistake that likely contributed to a fatal Legionnaires’ outbreak in 2015, state records show. […]
One email has Rauner’s public health director explaining how a bacteria-laden “broth of legionella” was mistakenly released into the Illinois Veterans Home water system before a 2015 outbreak killed 12 residents.
That discharge had been previously highlighted in state and federal reports. But until now, it had not been known the release was serious enough to be a “citable offense” under state rules — an important detail that could weaken the state’s position in a dozen negligence lawsuits brought by victims’ families. […]
Shah outlined how a malfunctioning tank used to supply the home with hot water sat dormant for more than a month, filled with water that had cooled to 80 or 90 degrees — a level he described as the “optimal growing temperature” for Legionella, the bacteria that causes Legionnaires’.
When the tank was repaired on Aug. 6, 2015 and put back online, the facility failed to empty out the stagnant water, which wound up being warmed to a temperature in which Legionella can still flourish. Gallons upon gallons of that water were then distributed “for normal use throughout the facility,” Shah wrote.
He likened it all to a “broth of legionella” and said it likely contaminated shower heads in the home within a week of the repair.
A top Illinois public health official delivered a searing indictment of how Gov. Bruce Rauner’s office handled fallout from the Legionnaires’ disease crisis at the Quincy veterans’ home, alleging that secrecy, indecision and “never-ending conference calls” created a “mess,” state records show.
Emails sent earlier this year by state Public Health Director Nirav Shah’s chief of staff offer some of the most damaging evidence yet that Rauner’s office itself was responsible for withholding key information from state lawmakers and the media about successive Legionnaires’ disease outbreaks at the facility.
“The [governor’s office] should have followed our advice and just release [sic] the documents with no redactions. Now we have another mess created by them to deal with,” Shah’s underling, Erik Rayman, wrote on April 4.
Rayman’s note to Shah and others within their agency came in response to a WBEZ story about how Rauner administration lawyers were aggressively censoring public documents related to Legionnaires’ outbreaks at the home, which are now linked to 14 deaths.
*** UPDATE *** Press release…
U.S. Senators Dick Durbin (D-IL) and Tammy Duckworth (D-IL) today called for Illinois Public Health Director Nirav Shah to resign following reports that the Rauner Administration botched a water-system repair at Illinois Veterans Home (IVH) Quincy, which was in violation of state health codes, and then chose to deliberately withhold that information from the public and not cite the facility for a mistake. In newly released documents, Shah detailed the dangers present at the facility, noted that the violations warranted a citation, yet chose not to issue one. Additional reports indicate that Shah and other staff at the Illinois Department of Public Health found Governor Rauner’s office to be an obstacle in ensuring a prompt and comprehensive response to the deadly outbreaks and more focused on public perception.
“There was definitive evidence that a serious public health crisis was underway at the veterans’ home in Quincy in 2015, and the Rauner Administration and Director Shah chose to sit on their hands as veterans and staff at the home fell victim to these deadly bacteria. It’s an outrage that time after time the Governor and his team prioritized public relations over protecting vulnerable veterans, their spouses, and staff at IVH Quincy. Director Shah’s response to this tragedy reflects the height of irresponsibility and negligence, and it’s time for him to go,” said Durbin and Duckworth.
* The Democrats are focusing intently on their vote by mail program. These numbers are from last Thursday, so they’re way outdated, but here’s Greg Hinz…
As of [November 1], Orr’s office had received 110,868 applications for mail ballots, with 54,304 already returned. Only 51,237 voted by mail in all of 2014, and Orr’s office says the final mail total this year is likely to exceed the final 2016 figure of 87,987.
According to Board of Elections spokesman Jim Allen, 118,544 persons had cast early ballots as of yesterday, compared to 73,127 at this point in 2014, and 191,808 with six days to go in 2016. But mail voting is soaring even compared to 2016, with 116,124 applications for mail ballots so far, compared to final figures of 40,869 in 2014 and 102,896 in 2016. So far, 48,174 of those ballots of been returned.
According to [Chicago] Board of Elections spokesman Jim Allen, 118,544 persons had cast early ballots as of yesterday, compared to 73,127 at this point in 2014, and 191,808 with six days to go in 2016. But mail voting is soaring even compared to 2016, with 116,124 applications for mail ballots so far, compared to final figures of 40,869 in 2014 and 102,896 in 2016. So far, 48,174 of those ballots of been returned. […]
As for [DuPage County] mail ballots, 19,922 have been returned so far. There were only about 7,000 four years ago, and 25,000 in 2016.
* From the DuPage Democrats…
There are reports that many more than usual mail in ballots are being rejected this year. To see if your mail in vote may have been rejected use the following link to look up the status of your vote: www.dupageco.org/VoterLookup If your vote has been rejected, call the election commission to see why and what you can do about it. (630) 407-5600
* From the 10th District Democrats…
Lake County Clerk Carla Wyckoff’s office is rejecting Vote-By-Mail ballots from voters across Lake County but the office is refusing to confirm how many voters are affected or release the names of which voters’ ballots were thrown out. As a result, many voters may not find out until after Election Day that they were disenfranchised and their votes were not counted. Wyckoff, a Republican, is up for re-election on Tuesday.
“Voters across Lake County may think they’ve already voted but the County Clerk’s office won’t say whether or not their vote has been cast. That’s unacceptable,” said Lauren Beth Gash. “The County Clerk’s refusal to be transparent is an affront to democracy and we urge them to reverse course immediately.”
County clerks are required to notify voters by letter in the mail letting them know they need to take action by filling out an affidavit to affirm that ballot was properly cast or directing them to vote in person on Election Day. However, many voters may not receive that letter until after Election Day has passed, especially if election judges reject their ballot within a few days of Election Day.
In other counties around Chicagoland, the County Clerk’s offices have been transparent when they reject ballots, regularly responding to requests to determine how many ballots are being rejected and the identity of the voters who have been affected. This allows voting rights advocates to follow up with voters to let them know they need to return an affidavit, come to the Election Commission in person, or show up at the polls in order to make their ballot count. To make matters worse, unlike other neighboring counties, Lake County does not operate a website allowing voters to verify online if their votes have been cast.
The last column I write before an election day is always the toughest because some papers will publish this before election day and others will publish it after. So, today you get a yard sign story.
Let’s start with Congressman Peter Roskam’s campaign, which sent out two press releases during the fall campaign complaining about stolen yard signs.
It wasn’t a stolen sign that prompted a proposed temporary restraining order by an apparent supporter. Instead the fear of unwanted yard signs wound up in Lake County court.
A group called Illinois Citizens Ignited formed after one of Roskam’s constituents had two yard signs made to protest Roskam’s NRA support. She placed the signs, which read “Roskam accepted $20,450 from the NRA,” next to Roskam yard signs. The signs were updated after Roskam received more NRA money. Ignited has reported raising $4,420.
Ignited asks residents on its website to help the group find Roskam signs “in the public right of way,” or on a street corner or “along a busy road.” The group has an online form to fill out to report sign locations and it uses a Facebook page to spread the word.
Congressman Roskam was once a law partner in the personal injury firm Salvi, Roskam & Maher. That firm is now called Salvi & Maher and includes the husband and wife duo of former state Rep. Al Salvi and Kathy Salvi.
Kathy Salvi filed a motion for a temporary restraining order against the group on Oct. 23 because, as she claimed through another attorney at her firm, she “fears that her property will be trespassed upon … and that her freedom of speech and political expression, especially as it relates to the free exclusion of the same on her own private property, will be violated by Ignited.”
Ignited’s response claimed that Salvi doesn’t live in Roskam’s district, so she shouldn’t be worried that her yard would be tagged. The judge dismissed the case.
But another TRO demand was filed a few days later against Ignited by a company that owns a shopping center in Lake Zurich. The motion was also filed by that same former Roskam firm.
The new filing claims that since Ignited has “incited, encouraged and/or instructed” incidents of trespass, and has already placed one of the anti-Roskam signs on the plaintiff’s property next to a pro-Roskam sign, it has reason to fear it could happen again.
Congressman Roskam appeared at an event in August with the owner of the shopping center and called the owner and his spouse “dear friends,” according to the Daily Herald. The Roskam campaign did not respond to a request for comment.
The plaintiffs have a point. Don’t put something on my property without my consent. I get that. But a lawsuit seems like a bit much.
Meanwhile, if you think that court action is a little excessive, how does a lawsuit seeking $1 million per removed yard sign sound? That’s the case filed in the 59th House District, where Dan Didech (D-Buffalo Grove) is running against Karen Feldman (R-Lincolnshire) in an open seat race to replace retiring Democratic Rep. Carol Sente.
Feldman and two other local Republican candidates are suing Didech in his official capacity as Vernon Township Supervisor and the township itself because they believe Didech ordered their yard signs removed.
They claim they “placed, or caused to be placed” yard signs in a park, which turns out to be near a polling place.
They allege that Didech had their Republican signs removed, but not Democratic signs. The suit also claims Didech had no legal authority to remove anything. They’re asking $1 million for each sign “to punish them and to deter others from similar wrongful conduct.”
Feldman’s attorney told me that police reports have been filed and said the matter has been referred to the state’s attorney.
Now, if this is true and Didech abused his authority, he should face consequences. But I thought the GOP was for lawsuit reform.
* From Brendan Murray on Sunday morning…
Hello Mr. Miller,
My name is Brendan Murray, and I am the attorney who represented Mrs. Salvi and now represents The Fidelity Group, LP as to their claims against IL Citizens Ignited.
I had the pleasure of reading your 11/2/18 article Saturday evening – wow $1 million per sign? I hope to see a follow-up to that one!
I didn’t want to bother you too late in the night, so I waited until this morning.
After reading your article, I thought that it was very well put, which is why I ask that you give credence to what I am about to say. I know you stated it was your last article pre-election, but in case you ever follow-up with this story, or are reporting another similar matter, that you take the opportunity to clarify something that was put to question in your 11/2/18 article.
You are correct in stating that bringing action into court for an emergency injunctive relief (a.k.a. temporary restraining order, “TRO”) may be a bit much. The granting of a TRO is to maintain the status quo to prevent further harm, but is only applied in exceptional and emergency circumstances because it is considered a drastic remedy.
You are also correct when you say not everything needs to be brought into court. However, the court system is exactly the proper place to bring conflicts such as these, especially in the passionate political climate of the day. It is not just me arguing this, it has been the public policy of Illinois since 1992 when the Illinois Supreme Court held in People v. DiGuida, 152 Ill. 2d 104, 126 (1992), that without the ability of a plaintiff to request relief from court system in a conflict between a private property owner’s rights and the freedom of expression right of another, the only recourse is to resort to self-help. This is not adequate according to the Supreme Court of Illinois, and therefore the public policy is to give individuals an opportunity to resolve the conflict through the court system.
Especially in this passionate climate as it comes to politics and elections, I think reducing incidents of these conflicts is paramount to maintaining respect for the rights of all individuals involved.
In People v. DiGuida, the Supreme Court also found that the private property owner’s right to use and exclude from their property as they wish is a right that is superior to the right of any entrant onto that private property to engage in unconsented to free speech.
These conflicts are unwarranted in a society that believes that open dialogue is the key to success, but as you well know there is activity claimed by all sides as to sign theft, property trespass, etc. Importantly, and to your worry of overkill, an analysis of the details between the first TRO suit from 10/26/18, in which our petition was denied, and that of the second suit from 11/2/18, which granted my client temporary relief, reveals the standards to satisfy in a TRO are difficult to obtain, and the clear capability of the court to apply this rigorous standard. This, again, is due to the remedy being one of a drastic nature.
I only ask that you consider clarifying this issue whenever you get a chance, as you are clearly an author whose writings communicate clear and critical analysis, and thus, your influence to society’s understanding of their rights is great.
IL Citizens Ignited made a press release dated October 30, 2018, stating the Court Order from the Salvi lawsuit gave the right to post signs throughout the 6th district. This was a complete mischaracterization of the Order from 10/26/18, and the Judge made sure it was so stated in the Order from 11/2/18 that nothing in that Order is to be considered as giving IL Citizens Ignited the right to trespass onto private property or post signs on the same. The Judge was not happy at the misrepresentation in the media as to the law and the rights of the citizens.
I appreciate any consideration you have to my input, and please do not take this as any criticism to your work – thank you for your efforts!
Take care,
Brendan M. Murray
That was the most polite letter I’ve ever received from an attorney in my life, including my own.
All the real action in the 2018 governor’s race happened in the primary. Since then, it’s been little more than a series of sideshows while we wait for what looks to be a very predictable outcome.
Democrat J.B. Pritzker unveiled all but one of his policy proposals before the March 20 vote and spent much of that race debating the direction of Illinois with his two main opponents, who produced their own plans and then graciously endorsed him shortly after they lost.
Republican Gov. Bruce Rauner started his primary race by ignoring his opponent, but then had to kick it into high gear in the closing days to narrowly avoid defeat. Polls have shown since then that he has failed to unify Republican voters after that bitter battle. And his rival, state Rep. Jeanne Ives, R-Wheaton, has refused to endorse him to this day.
The governor has since had to scramble to pull his base together while also trying to appeal to moderate suburban women, who have long held the key to the Governor’s Mansion in this state. That’s been complicated by a union-funded “Conservative Party” candidate who regularly slashes him from the right. So Rauner’s been forced to do things like stage an endorsement from the Illinois State Rifle Association in southern Illinois to try to hold things together.
Pritzker, for his part, has spent the general election campaign shelling out massive amounts of money to make extra-special sure that every single sentient creature in this state has received and understood his ubiquitous message on all available news and social media platforms that the governor is a lying failure.
The biggest news since the primary about the Democratic front-runner is not what he wants to do, but what he has been accused of doing. A Cook County inspector general’s report alleged that people near him participated in a “scheme to defraud” taxpayers when they ripped toilets out of Pritzker’s vacant mansion to lower its property taxes. Ten current and former staffers sued his campaign for racial discrimination and retaliation. And then two of his staffers were fired after one took a video of another staffer putting on what resembled blackface (it was supposedly a charcoal facial treatment) and then posted it online.
But Pritzker’s double-digit lead in every public poll has contributed to a lack of enthusiasm by reporters, their editors or both to thoroughly cover his candidacy. During the last few months he’s held publicized Chicago-area events and no reporters turned up to ask him questions. Half the city running for mayor probably doesn’t help, either.
* Doug Finke quotes a Teachers Retirement System press release…
TRS made sure to emphasize the financial issues facing the system in a news release about the trustees’ action. It noted that TRS’ unfunded liability grew to $75.8 billion in the last budget year “due to the 80th consecutive year of underfunding from state government.”
“Since its founding in 1939, state government has never once appropriated an annual contribution to TRS that equaled full funding in any year,” the news release said.
* I held my quadrennial pre-election party in Chicago over the weekend. I always invite a couple of dozen or so campaign types to have drinks and break bread the Saturday before election day. I’ve been doing this since 2002 and have never seen one argument.
This year was, I think, the best one. I even convinced the campaign managers for the Bruce Rauner and JB Pritzker campaigns to pose together for a photo. On the left is Betsy Ankney with the Rauner campaign. On the right is Anne Caprara with the Pritzker campaign…
What some of these folks discover at my party is how much alike they all are. It takes a special type of person to run campaigns or flak for them, so most are cut from the same cloth. They may be on opposite sides, but they have lots of things in common.
* The Siena College/New York Times poll of 428 likely voters has Democratic challenger Lauren Underwood leading incumbent Republican Congressman Randy Hultgren by 6 points, 49-43. MoE of +/-5 percent.
*** UPDATE 1 *** He should’ve dropped this oppo at least a month ago and followed it up with TV ads. Instead, he let Dan Proft release the information and is holding an election eve press conference. Political malpractice on Hultgren’s part…
Last minute news conference this afternoon from @RepHultgren as questions are raised about @LUnderwood630 experience as a nurse, #IL14 polling shows Underwood ahead #November6
“We have fewer than 24 hours before Election Day and I’m traveling across the seven counties of the 14th District, visiting with voters and my team’s dedicated volunteers. Randy Hultgren clearly saw polling numbers that made him nervous, so he is staging a last minute press conference to discredit my professional work. Our voters deserve better than desperate political stunts from a career politician. They deserve honesty and responsiveness from their representative in Congress; Randy Hultgren has failed on both counts.
“The facts are simple: I’m proud to be a licensed registered nurse in the state of Illinois and two other jurisdictions. I specialize in public health nursing. I have spent my career fighting for affordable, quality healthcare. Throughout my clinical training and decade of nursing experience, I have spent thousands of hours working with patients. I look forward to carrying the values of the 14th District with me to Washington to make real progress on issues like health care that are important to the families of this community.”
