Illinois State Board of Elections records show that on Aug. 17 – the same day as the Special Session – Service Employee International Unions (SEIU) gave $47,000 and another $50,000 to the Democratic Majority (a committee chaired by Madigan to elect Democratic State House members); on Aug. 13 it contributed $50,000 to Cullerton; on Aug. 10, $45,000 to the Senate Democratic Victory Fund, and on Aug. 6, $50,000 to the Democratic Party of Illinois (chaired by Madigan).
The special session dealt with pension reform. The allegation is that Madigan and Cullerton were bought off by SEIU to kill pension reform. Here’s GOP Chairman Pat Brady…
“In fact, Mike Madigan collected $90,000 two hours after he killed the pension reform bill,” said Brady.
That’s a pretty bold statement, to say the least. Is it true? Signs point to “No.”
* The union has claimed that it sent the checks much earlier. I asked for proof earlier today. The union consented to send me electronic copies of the checks, but SEIU officials didn’t want me publishing anything that had any signatures or checking account numbers on it. So, we agreed I could do some screen captures from parts of the checks.
Here is part of one of the checks that the Democratic Majority disclosed as receiving on the special session day. Click the pic for a larger image…
As you can see, the check was written on July 27th - well before the special session day, and four days after SEIU announced its endorsements and approved its campaign contributions.
SEIU says those four checks were mailed on August 1st.
* Another $50,000 check was cut on July 25th and mailed to the Democratic Majority on July 30th. It was also disclosed as being received by Democratic Majority on the special session day. This check is configured differently, so a screen cap was ruled out by the union. Here’s the date on the check, however…
* So, if the checks were cut on the 25th and 27th and mailed a few days later, why were they reported by Madigan as being received on August 17th? From the Illinois State Board of Elections…
In the case of a contribution made by check or money order, the date of receipt is the date the money is either deposited or the check is cashed and the money becomes available to the committee.
So “received” doesn’t mean the same thing in state campaign law as the state GOP says it means.
FACT: SEIU’s contributions to Speaker Michael Madigan and Senate Majority Leader John Cullerton were made nearly three weeks before the date of the special session. The donations were approved as part of our political endorsement session on July 23rd, and the corresponding checks were cut within the same week and promptly delivered. The claims that the contributions were given on August 17th is false. Moreover, the donations are consistent with our pattern of giving over the past decade.
FACT: Less than 10 percent of SEIU’s 170,000 Illinois members have a pension administered by the state – a fact that Republicans have conspicuously chosen to ignore while contriving a false connection between our recent political donations and the subject of the August 17th special session.
FACT: SEIU’s PACs are supported by small donations from our mostly low-wage members. In giving to our PACs, these workers sacrifice some of their limited resources to gain a collective voice in policy debates that have profound ramifications on their jobs, their families, and their communities. The attacks on their recent donations dishonor the democratic process and belittle the average working families who partake in it through PAC donations.
* SEIU has also produced a timeline, which you can read by clicking here.
* Calling for a federal investigation is about the most serious thing somebody can do in this state. It ought to be done with extreme care and preceded by more than just a cursory glance at the Internet. Obviously, neither of those two things were done in this instance.
The state GOP should either put up or retract. Simple as that. Politics may be a game to some, but screaming for the feds is not a game - or, at least, it shouldn’t be.
…Adding… Related…
* GOP smear efforts against Madigan could be ‘a swing and a miss’: “This is not a new tactic. What’s new here is the environment and the antipathy toward Springfield and the problems that exist. People in Illinois do know who Mike Madigan is. Maybe this is the year that (the tactic) works.”
Former state Sen. John Davidson, R-Springfield, who served in the Statehouse for 20 years, has died. He was 87. […]
Davidson was chairman of the Sangamon County Board before going to the Senate, where he served from 1973 to 1993. He was a chiropractic physician and a Navy Air Corps veteran of World War II.
Man, he was a true character. Old school. Had his legislative office in the same building as his chiropractic office. He did more for chiropractors in this state than just about anybody. He also got a whole lot of people jobs through his Republican patronage network. Like I said. Old school.
* Meanwhile, I told subscribers about this Monday morning…
Sen. John Sullivan plans to have surgery this week to manage a rare but treatable form of cancer.
“It’s a personal and private issue, and yet because I’m a public official I just thought it was important that I let my constituents know what’s going on,” Sullivan said.
Four years ago Sullivan had a small growth removed from his lower abdomen as an outpatient procedure. Recently, his doctor observed a recurrence.
“I am scheduled to undergo a surgical procedure this week and will be away from my full-time duties for two or three weeks,” Sullivan said.
State Senate candidate Randy Frese issued the following statement regarding Sen. John Sullivan’s announcement that he’s having cancer surgery.
“My family and I are praying for John and his family as they deal with this difficult time,” Frese said. “I wish him a complete and speedy recovery.”
Frese echoed Sullivan’s commitment to continuing his campaign. “I look forward to news that his treatment was completely successful and his return to work.”
The following statement is from the Quincy Tea Party:
On behalf of its members, the Board of Directors of Quincy Tea Party would like to express our concern and wishes for a quick recovery for Senator John Sullivan as he battles his illness, announced today. We wish him and his family the best, and will be praying for a positive outcome to this challenge. We look forward to seeing Senator Sullivan back out and on the campaign trail, and discussing the issues important to our congressional district.
Cardinal Francis E. George of Chicago will work with his doctors to determine a course of treatment after test results showed cancerous cells in his kidney and in a nodule removed from his liver.
The archdiocese made the announcement Aug. 17. The cardinal received the results after undergoing a procedure Aug. 15 at Loyola University Medical Center.
After resting at home over the weekend, Cardinal George went on retreat for a week.
“We have no further information at this time,” the archdiocese said.
After visiting Rep. Jesse Jackson Jr. at the Mayo Clinic, Rep. Dennis Kucinich told me Tuesday that he made the trip because “it’s about being there for a friend who is obviously in a fragile condition and who needs love and support.”
Jackson is “emotionally fragile,” Kucinich said.
Kucinich, an Ohio Democrat, said he talked for hours with Jackson over last Friday and Saturday morning about diet and nutrition — Kucinich himself is a vegan — and Jackson’s path back to health.
Last week, Jackson (who has been absent from Congress since June 10) was diagnosed with a bipolar disorder and depression. Mayo said in a statement that the condition was connected to bariatric surgery Jackson had in 2004, “specifically a duodenal switch. This type of surgery is increasingly common in the U.S. and can change how the body absorbs food, liquids, vitamins, nutrients and medications.”
* Not long after a federal court denied former Gov. George Ryan’s appeal and refused to release him from prison, Gov. Pat Quinn was quoted as saying that Ryan should serve out the remainder of his sentence and that Ryan “has to do the time.”
But Ron Jackson looks at a new law signed by Gov. Quinn that allows for early release of state prisoners to argue that Quinn shouldn’t have so harshly judged Ryan…
In order to qualify for early release under the new law, inmates must “successfully complete rehabilitation treatments, which could include substance abuse treatment, adult education, and behavior modification or life skills programs. Inmates may also receive sentence credit for passing the Test of General Educational Development (GED) while in DOC custody.” With the incentive of getting out early, it is hoped that inmates will maintain good behavior in prison, earning a day off their sentence for each good day served.
But what incentive to not re-offend does the felon have once released? They won’t be able to find employment. Their newly enhanced prison skills aren’t transferable to society. Even with a GED, a nonviolent car thief or copper thief has to survive. How long can we reasonably expect their good behavior to continue? Gov. Quinn said the new early release law will make criminals less likely to commit crime in the future. How so, Governor?
I am not advocating that George Ryan be allowed early release just because he is a fellow Kankakeean or because he is old. I am saying that if anyone meets the standards for early release, it is him. He committed a nonviolent offense, is least likely to re-offend, and has a support system in place upon release. Whether you like George Ryan or not, you know on the day after his release he will not be selling drugs, stealing copper, molesting children or assaulting women.
Gov. Quinn knows that, too.
* The Question: Ignoring the state vs. federal issue here, do you agree with Gov. Quinn or Ron Jackson? Take the poll and then explain your answer in comments, please.
* Gun rights folks are pointing to this development as evidence of a major shift in Illinois…
McLean County could become an island of concealed carry for gun owners in a state that does not allow weapons to be carried in public, according to new guidelines for prosecuting gun crimes announced Tuesday by State’s Attorney Ron Dozier. […]
“We will no longer use the power and authority of our office to criminalize and punish decent otherwise law-abiding citizens who chose to exercise their rights granted under them by the Second Amendment of the U.S. Constitution to keep and bear arms in defense of themselves and their families,” said Dozier’s statement. […]
Dozier cited a 2008 case that held citizens — not just the military — have a right to possess guns for personal defense, and a 2010 decision that held states have a right to make their own gun laws.
Dozier said his office will no longer prosecute violations of state laws related to Firearm Owners Identification Cards, unlawful use of weapons and aggravated unlawful use of weapons and other statutes that appear to be in conflict with two other Supreme Court decisions on gun ownership. The use of weapons laws punish people “for merely possessing (not using or threatening to use) a firearm in the wrong place or wrong kind of container,” said Dozier.
Dozier said his purpose is sending a message to Gov. Pat Quinn and the legislators who, “continue to ignore the U.S. Supreme Court decisions, and who continue to oppose reasonable legislation that would bring Illinois into compliance with the Second Amendment.”
“I think it does go against the (U.S.) Constitution,” said Valentine of the state’s stance. “I agree and commend Ron for his stance.”
It is a stance, the non prosecution of non-violent firearm violations such as FOID violations, unlawful use of weapons that conflict with federal policy, that Valentine’s office, as well as many in the region, carry out, just not as vocally as Dozier.
“It’s a policy I know several counties in Illinois, including Edwards, now follow,” he said.
* Gov. Quinn won’t talk about how he intends to “activate” the grassroots on pension reform, leading me to strongly suspect that he made up the “plan” at the spur of the moment Friday when pension reform efforts collapsed…
Gov. Pat Quinn said Tuesday that he’ll wait until next month to debut his so-called grassroots campaign raising awareness about Illinois’ pension problem, a move that comes days after lawmakers failed to come up with a plan to overhaul the massively underfunded system. […]
Quinn, a Chicago Democrat, has vowed to push forward and “activate the public,” but he said Tuesday that he won’t release a plan until the middle of September. He said he wants to wait until several key events have passed: the Republican National Convention next week in Tampa, Fla., the Democratic National Convention the week after in Charlotte, N.C., and the anniversary of the Sept. 11, 2001 attacks.
He declined to say what his plan will specifically include, aside from hinting that it’ll involve technology and likely social networking.
“I’ll wait to announce our plan … but it will be a good plan. It will involve everyday people. It will use the powerful electronic democracy to wake up legislators that we’re not going to give up on our children. That’s what pension reform is all about,” Quinn said. “I don’t want to be competing with the national conventions when all of America will be watching.”
Quinn has been blaming Republicans for the failure to pass legislation that kills off future legislative pensions and reforms the General Assembly’s pension system. But a whole lot of Quinn’s fellow Democrats voted against that bill, including some of his closest legislative allies, and he ought to be pressed on that topic.
About 30 American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees wearing green T-shirts criticizing Gov. Quinn sought a word with him. Many said they will lose their jobs with the Illinois Department of Children and Family Services because of the governor’s proposed cuts.
Gov. Quinn talked to the group before leaving for an event in Peoria.
“I thank you for what you’re doing,” he told them. “You’re on the front lines for our children.”
His next sentence, however, was interrupted by DCFS child welfare advocate Terra Fairburn who held up a sheet of paper in front of Gov. Quinn.
“The children are going to suffer,” said Ms. Fairburn. “Here’s my layoff notice.”
Noise grew as the governor said, “I know,” and tried to defend himself, saying the General Assembly cut the DCFS budget by $50 million.
“My budget did not include that,” Gov. Quinn said.
“But you hired the director, sir,” Ms. Fairburn responded. “And the director (Richard Calica) is doing all this stuff, and he doesn’t even know what he’s doing.”
“I regret my earlier comment regarding former President Ronald Reagan. I have been outspoken on the failure of the War on Drugs to end illegal drug use or sales in this country. However, this is too complicated to lay all of it out on President Reagan’s doorstep and inflammatory language only distracts from the larger issue.”
The conversation I hoped to have with Preckwinkle was about how even a politician who is normally quite circumspect in her public utterances can get in trouble in the blink of an eye these days where everything is recorded and ready for dissemination on YouTube.
But except for allowing that “usually I’m more careful about my language,” Preckwinkle wasn’t about to oblige me by going off-script, having already done so once in the day, with unpleasant results.
Instead, she took each of my questions and spun them back into some version of her scripted talking points, emphasizing that her “inflammatory language” about Reagan had only served to distract from her larger point — that we can’t continue to treat drug use more as a criminal justice issue than a public health problem.
While Preckwinkle may have an image as a rather bland policy wonk in the style of the teacher she once was, the truth is that she has a sharp tongue on occasion and can be particularly outspoken and blunt about the issues on which she is most passionate — the nation’s long-running war on drugs being right at the top of that list.
* And Illinois Republican Party Chairman Pat Brady issued a press release blaming Speaker Madigan…
We all knew that the Chicago Democrat Machine was capable of being the most ruthless and negative campaign operation in the country. President Obama and his political advisors were all trained in Chicago, but remarks made Tuesday by Cook County Board President Democrat Toni Preckwinkle reached a new low.
Preckwinkle, who used to be Obama’s Alderman in the Chicago City Council, remarked at a conference at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign that President Ronald Reagan deserves “a special place in hell.” While she is now trying to backtrack her comments because she didn’t realize there was a reporter in the room, it says a lot that right after she made her comment, the audience gasped, and she asked, “What? You didn’t like that?”
Just like most people, I was shocked when I heard this news, and disappointed that it was said by the elected leader of the largest county in the state that President Reagan was born and raised in. But the more I think I about it, I’m not really surprised she said it.
Comments like this symbolize what Illinois Republicans are up against this fall. The Democrats in Illinois, led by Illinois House Speaker/Illinois Democratic Party Chairman/Father of the Illinois Attorney General Michael J. Madigan, will stop at nothing - including trashing Ronald Reagan - on their quest to divide this country to win the upcoming November elections.
* The governor issued this press release on Sunday…
Governor Pat Quinn today joined the Muslim community to observe the completion of the Holy Month of Ramadan at the Eid-ul-Fitr prayer service in Bridgeview. During the occasion, the governor renounced recent incidences of violence against Muslim places of worship and signed a new law to foster religious tolerance.
“To the more than 400,000 Muslims across our state, ‘Eid Mubarak!’” Governor Quinn said. “Ramadan is a time of fasting, sacrifice and self-reflection. We honor your commitment to your faith and will vigorously protect your right to practice it without fear of intimidation.”
Ramadan is observed during the ninth month of the Islamic calendar and is considered the holiest month of the year in the Islamic faith. During Ramadan, Muslims fast each day from sunrise to sunset. Ramadan ends with a three-day festival known as “Eid”, which means “the feast of the breaking/to break the fast”.
Following the recent massacre at the Sikh temple near Milwaukee, gunfire at a Morton Grove mosque, a bomb thrown at a Lombard Islamic school and the desecration of a Muslim gravesite at Evergreen Cemetery, Governor Quinn issued a call for respect, tolerance and harmony.
* The reaction on some right-wing blogs was pretty ugly. For instance…
Now we have a governor who claims to be Roman Catholic who is videoed praying with Muslims as they chant, “Allahu Ackbar.” This is the same phraseology shouted by the Ft. Hood terrorist Nadal Hasan when he opened fire on our troops!
The video of the governor praying with Muslims is disgusting and sickening. Political pandering as though what he’s doing means nothing except political expediency, but it does. It means that we are heading for Sharia law in this country unless we have men of conscience and backbone take a stand.
By the way, for you people in Illinois who put him into office. You can remove him in 2014. America would be grateful.
* Some of the comments were even worse on most of those blogs. For instance…
Freedom of speech is a great liberty, isn’t it?
Our Founders thought, however, we would be smart enough to distinguish true enemies of this nation. Islam is an enemy. The governor is an idiot.
There must be money in it for Quinn…… some people will do anything for buck!
Islam is not a “religion” in the true sense. Islam is about TOTAL POWER, it is a political ideology. It is a system which controls every aspect of the lives of those who have the misfortune to be subjected to it. It’s a totalitarian political, economic, military, social and legal system; it masquerades as a religion, like soviet communism. Their goal is incorporating our Country into a global Islamic caliphate. Quinn, Stop pretending that Islam is a religion you dufus!
“These are un-American acts.” Governor, you will probably live long enough to want to eat those words. You will look on those words and realize that those acts just might have been the most patriotically American acts you ever witnessed. The proof is in the pudding, sucking up to Islam will get you absolutely no where with Muslims.
Tolerance does not mean acceptance of evil. Quinn is doomed to hell for taking part in the worship of a false god..he has broken one of the 10 commandments and has disgraced all catholics by his sacriledge! He is a Judas betraying Jesus and the American people!
Ramadan celebrates the commencement of the revelation of the Qur’an. Eid il-Fitur celebrates the end of the month of fasting. By endorsing and joining the festivities, the Governor endorsed everything in the Qur’an including the verses of hatred, execration and perpetual genocidal terrorism.
* Quinn also used the occasion to sign a bill into law. Back to his press release…
In addition, he signed Senate Bill 2949, to protect college students who miss a class or exam due to their observance of a religious holiday.
“No student should be disciplined, penalized or fined for observing a sacred day,” Governor Quinn said. “This new law celebrates our nation’s basic principle of ‘freedom of religion, as well as the notion that diversity makes us stronger.”
What the hell is going on here. Obama is a muslim and now the Illinois muslims get special treatment form that idiot Quinn.
* Let’s go back to the press release to see who sponsored the bill Quinn signed…
The new law, sponsored by Sen. Ira Silverstein (D-Chicago) and Rep. Sidney Mathias (R-Arlington Heights), passed both chambers unanimously with the support of the Federation of Independent Illinois Colleges and Universities (FIICU). The law is effective Jan 1, 2013.
Those are both Jewish legislators.
This was no Muslim bill.
* And some people still complain when I strictly police comments here.
Preckwinkle was defending the recent move by city officials to decriminalize possession of small amounts of marijuana, saying out of whack drug laws unfairly lead to more minorities behind bars.
Republican state Rep. Chapin Rose questioned whether such an approach includes drug treatment for those who are ticketed. Preckwinkle said no, arguing that drug treatment should be part of health care system, not criminal justice. She said Reagan deserves a “special place in hell” for his involvement in “making drug use political.”
“What? You didn’t like that?” Preckwinkle said after members of the audience gasped.
Um, she was speaking Downstate and this is Reagan’s home state. Not a good thing.
And it was Nixon who was really responsible for the War on Drugs. Reagan just amped it up, which, at the time, was a pretty popular thing to do. I opposed it, but I was in a very small minority back then. It’s a horribly failed program, but saying a former president deserves a “special place in hell” for his part in it is way over the line.
If she wants to run statewide (subscribe to find out more), then Preckwinkle will have to learn how to speak to groups which aren’t always full of hardcore Chicago Democrats. Champaign-Urbana is a pretty liberal place, but it isn’t the 4th Ward.
* In his latest online video, Democratic congressional candidate David Gill tries to use an alleged GOP money laundering scheme allegedly involving his Republican opponent. I’m not sure it works all that well…
I just don’t see how that video works on any level.
* From a Gill press release…
The Gill campaign released a letter sent from Dr. Gill to State Republican Chairman Pat Brady requesting that Brady disgorge funds channeled to the party in a scheme cooked up by 19-year political insider and George Ryan protege Rodney Davis to evade campaign fundraising laws implemented following the Ryan and Blagojevich scandals.
In his letter to Brady, Gill says, “As you know, billionaires Ken and Anne Griffin funneled more than $200,000 to local Illinois Republican groups and several of those organizations soon thereafter channeled approximately $140,000 of that money back to the Illinois Republican Party via purchases of tickets to an event with Karl Rove, among other routes. Rodney Davis freely admits that, as Acting Executive Director of the Illinois Republican Party, he helped the Griffins find local Republican entities to receive the Griffin’s largess. Many of the targeted local Republican entities had rarely, if ever, received such large donations. Yet, instead of holding onto the surprising windfall to assist their programs and efforts, these local entities almost immediately funneled the money back into state Republican party coffers.”
Gill further asks Brady to work with him “to ensure that the corruption that was rampant in Illinois politics during the George Ryan and Rod Blagojevich-eras will one day become a distant memory.”
Thus far, Davis has refused to answer questions about the dubious financial transactions he orchestrated — donations that enriched the Illinois Republican party shortly before party officials hand-picked Davis to replace Rep. Tim Johnson on the November ballot.
Gill Campaign manager Michael Richards noted, “Rodney Davis is a lifetime political campaign operative who’s been paid by taxpayers like us for 19 years. He serves his politician bosses, not the public who pays him.”
This was actually a serious issue that ought to be looked at by somebody in power. So far, nothing.
* By the way, the Democratic tracker assigned to monitor Davis showed up at a Champaign County Republican Party Central Committee meeting last night. She was recognized from the video I posted online and was asked to leave.
* Will Caskey compares the Illinois Democrats’ 2010 Scott Lee Cohen debacle to the current national uproar over Missouri Republican Senate candidate Todd Akin, a US congressman who recently said that women who are raped rarely get pregnant: “First of all, from what I understand from doctors, that’s really rare. If it’s a legitimate rape, the female body has ways to try to shut that whole thing down”…
The general consensus was that Cohen had to drop out for the high crime of winning a primary no one previously cared about or paid attention to. Now of course this isn’t exactly the same situation as that facing Missouri Republicans regarding Rep./U.S. Senate nominee Todd Akin- after all, U.S. Senators generally accomplish much less than any random Lieutenant Governor. Nevertheless we can take some general lessons from the Cohen incident to advise my Republican colleagues to the south: […]
Cohen won the primary on February 5, 2010. He dropped out the following week. In between he endured an astonishing lashing from every conceivable constituency in the Democratic party (with the occasional exception of politicians he had given $10,000 contributions). The thing is that brain damaged crazy people such as Cohen and Aiken don’t properly understand how not-fun even normal, competitive campaigns are. These sorts of spotlights provide a harsh object lesson. Yes, they usually have an inner circle of yeasayers- Cohen had his willing consultant, Aiken had his familymembers running his campaign (and seriously, NRSC: great job letting that happen). But continuing to campaign means continuing to talk to people who aren’t in your inner circle, and it gets really tedious after a while when every single one of these people hates you.
It can actually sort itself out. Yes, Cohen wreaked a considerable amount of havoc during his brief time as Democratic nominee for lieutenant governor of Illinois. When he dropped out he did so from a bar, drunkenly sobbing, during the Superbowl half time show (I’m not making this up). And Gov. Pat Quinn was in a considerable amount of trouble, particularly when Cohen decided to run for Governor as an independent in a bizarre spite campaign. But he did drop out, and the press moved on to other things (like yelling at Quinn). And in the end, Quinn didn’t win pretty and he didn’t win a majority, but he held on to the governor’s mansion in a year when Democrats got massacred and even Illinois ejected four of its Democratic House members.
So cheer up, Missouri GOP. Yes, your nominee in a state you absolutely must win accidentally broadcast that you all think somewhat more highly of fetuses than rape victims, and yes he’s apparently determined to ride his nomination through 5pm today. But McCaskill was trailing him on Saturday, and you might yet pry her out of her seat.
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Illinois Republican Party Chairman Pat Brady is calling for a Federal investigation of the acceptance of nearly a quarter of a million dollars in labor union money by Illinois House Speaker/Illinois Democratic Party Chairman/Father of the Illinois Attorney General Mike Madigan and Illinois Senate President John Cullerton just before a Special Session of the Illinois General Assembly called primarily to address the state’s pension crisis.
Illinois State Board of Elections records show that on Aug. 17 – the same day as the Special Session – Service Employee International Unions (SEIU) gave $47,000 and another $50,000 to the Democratic Majority (a committee chaired by Madigan to elect Democratic State House members); on Aug. 13 it contributed $50,000 to Cullerton; on Aug. 10, $45,000 to the Senate Democratic Victory Fund, and on Aug. 6, $50,000 to the Democratic Party of Illinois (chaired by Madigan).
“Mike Madigan might as well hang a ‘For Sale’ sign from the Dome of the State Capitol,” said Illinois Republican Party Chairman Pat Brady. “This clearly does not pass the smell test and it merits investigation by federal authorities.”
* I asked SEIU for a response. Here it is…
The allegations levied today by the GOP are baseless election year rhetoric.
The facts are that the SEIU contributions coincide with our July 23rd endorsement session.
The contributions reported are in line with our political donations over the past decade.
These contributions have no relationship to the special session called by Governor Quinn. Fewer than 10 percent of our 170,000 members statewide have pensions administered by the State of Illinois.
* OK, so let’s look back two years to see how the giving went. Cullerton got his SEIU money around this very same time in 2010…
* Madigan’s Democratic Majority fund didn’t exist two years ago, but here are his other two funds…
Those contributions to Madigan came a bit later in the cycle, perhaps because public employee unions in general were quite upset at Madigan two years ago. AFSCME and others boycotted giving to his fund altogether. Whatever the case, since the endorsement session was in July, the union makes a pretty good argument that there was no direct quid pro quo here.
* Is this really worthy of a federal probe? House Republican Leader Tom Cross thinks something smells bad. From WJOL radio…
It was this past Friday that state legislators accomplished ABSOLUTELY NOTHING during a special session called by Governor Quinn to deal with the “pension reform issue.”
But House Minority Leader Tom Cross announced Monday morning on 1340 WJOL that it was discovered over the weekend that INTERESTING POLITICAL DONATIONS WERE MADE…..on THURSDAY….the day before the special session. With the “48 hour rule” concerning how quickly political donations need to be reported, it was on SATURDAY that Cross and others noticed that 100 thousand dollar contributions were given last week to House Speaker Mike Madigan, and Democrat Senate President John Cullerton. Cross says these contributions were made by the SERVICE INDUSTRY EMPLOYEES UNION, one of pension reform’s BIGGEST OPPONENTS. Cross says that EVEN IN ILLINOIS, with its corrupt reputation, this should have looked AWFULLY BAD.
When no progress was made on pension reform Friday, Cross says he simply thought….WELL….Madigan once again GETS WHAT HE WANTS…..or in this case DOESN’T GET what he DOESN’T WANT.
The House Democrats dismissed the allegations as pure politics.
Her union represents 2,450 employees in Secretary of State Jesse White’s office and 525 toll collectors and other workers employed by the Illinois State Toll Highway Authority, all of whom had pensions that would be affected by the outcome of Friday’s special session.
A union spokesman late Monday insisted that the contributions actually were given to Madigan’s fund several weeks ago but that the campaign committee merely got around to reporting them to the State Board of Elections last Friday.
…Adding… From the Senate Democrats…
This is just political theater from the Republicans.
* I wanted to take a closer look at one of the IEA’s poll results…
Now I am going to read you possible ways to close the deficit in the pension systems in Illinois and I would like you to rate each one using a scale from 0 to 10. A 0 on this scale means you think that proposal is a VERY BAD idea. A 10 on this scale means you think that proposal is a VERY GOOD idea.
Click the pic for a better look at the responses…
* What I’ve done below is combined the 0-3 and 7-10 responses to give us a better idea of where the opposition and support is…
* Laying off teachers and college faculty - 59% (Bad) 13% (Good)
* Raising property taxes - 72% (Bad) 11% (Good)
* Allowing new casinos to be built in Illinois - 32% (Bad) 41% (Good)
* Raising the income tax rate in Illinois for people making more than $100,000 a year - 29% (Bad) 45% (Good)
* Forcing Illinois to put the money into the pension fund - 14% (Bad) 59% (Good)
* Cutting benefits to current retirees - 70% (Bad) 10% (Good)
* Cutting pension benefits for teachers who have not retired yet - 49% (Bad) 24% (Good)
The public clearly does not want anything bad to happen to anybody except corporations which take advantage of tax loopholes. I’m not sure they really understand the consequences of what “Forcing Illinois to put the money into the pension fund” would do. And, notice, that even though a strong plurality supports raising the tax rate on people making over $100K a year, it’s not a majority by any means. And property tax hikes? Forget it, man.
There was no question about raising income taxes again on everyone. I doubt it would be all that popular.
* And people wonder why it’s so difficult to pass a pension reform bill. It’s not just the General Assembly which doesn’t want to make tough, grinding choices. The people don’t want to do it, either.
I think the General Assembly and the governor need to find another way to do this. It’s probably time that they take a good, long look at Rep. Mike Fortner’s pension proposal. If Fortner’s numbers work, it appears to be a whole lot more doable politically than anything else out there, and it’s a whole lot more humane that what’s on the table right now.
* From a press release by Illinois Education Association President Cinda Klickna…
A new scientific statewide poll shows that, despite years of hostile editorials, a well-funded public relations campaign and the non-stop efforts of anti-union “think tanks” to turn the public against education employees, more than two-thirds of Illinois voters (68%) believe that teachers should receive their pensions as they were promised, even when pressed about the state’s budget problems.
The percentage siding with teachers receiving their full pensions increases (71%) when voters learn that teachers are ineligible for Social Security and rises higher still (75%) when they hear that Springfield politicians failed to put money into the pension systems and spent it on their own priorities instead.
These data show the public understands that education employees are being reasonable when they argue that public employees should not be made to bear sole responsibility for fixing the pension mess.
A majority (58%) of voters believe the legislature is most to blame for the current pension deficit with only 5% laying blame at the feet of teachers.
When it comes to solutions, a majority (58%) considers cutting benefits to current retirees a very bad idea. Most think closing tax loopholes for corporations (54%) is a better solution.
* From the poll…
Which point of view do you agree with more: [RANDOMIZE]
IEA, the teachers’ union, helps the public schools by advocating for better education policies and helping teachers and staff.
IEA, the teachers’ union, hurts the public schools by protecting the jobs of bad teachers.
(WAIT FOR RESPONSE) Do you feel that way strongly or somewhat?
TOTAL HELPS ………………………………………….. 51%
TOTAT HURTS …………………………………………. 40%
* On to pensions…
As you may know, over the long run, there is an $83B deficit in Illinois for the pension systems. Who do you think is mostly to blame for most of the current pension systems deficit [RANDOMIZE] Governor Quinn, the Illinois legislature or the teachers and college faculty?
QUINN …………………………………………………….. 12%
LEGISLATURE …………………………………………. 58
TEACHERS AND COLLEGE FACULTY ………… 5
(ALL THREE) ……………………………………………. 13
(NONE OF THESE) …………………………………….. 5
(DON’T KNOW) …………………………………………… 7
* The public appears to support the teachers in this pension fight…
As we mentioned before, Illinois currently has a pension debt of $83B in unfunded pension liabilities for teachers and college faculty. Which statement comes closer to your point of view [RANDOMIZE]
Teachers and college faculty contributed to their pension from every paycheck, and should receive the pensions they were promised, despite these deficits.
Given the state’s budget problems, we just cannot afford to pay the full pensions of teachers and college faculty.
(IF CHOICE:) And do you strongly or somewhat agree with that statement?
TOTAL RECEIVE PENSION ………………………. 68%
TOTAL CAN’T AFFORD …………………………….. 24%
And which of these statements comes closer to your point of view [RANDOMIZE]
Teachers and college faculty have done their part, never missing a payment of their share into the pension system. Plus, Illinois teachers do not get Social Security. They should receive the pensions they were promised, despite these deficits.
Given the state’s budget problems, we just cannot afford to pay the full pensions of teachers and college faculty.
(IF CHOICE:) And do you strongly or somewhat agree with that statement?
TOTAL RECEIVE PENSION ………………………. 71%
TOTAL CAN’T AFFORD …………………………….. 21%
One last time. Which of these statements comes closer to your point of view [RANDOMIZE]
It is the politicians in Springfield who failed to meet their obligation by taking the money that should have gone to the pensions systems and spending it on their own pet projects. Teachers and college faculty should not be penalized and should receive the pensions they were promised.
Given the state’s budget problems, we just cannot afford to pay the full pensions of teachers and college faculty.
(IF CHOICE:) And do you strongly or somewhat agree with that statement?
TOTAL RECEIVE PENSION ………………………. 75%
TOTAL CAN’T AFFORD …………………………….. 18%
* The public is initially opposed to the cost shift idea, but opponents come around when it’s phased in…
One other proposal that people have mentioned is to make local school districts, rather than the state, responsible for teacher pension plans, which are currently paid for by the state. [RANDOMIZE]
SUPPORTERS of this idea say that it would help the state address its pension crisis, and that local school districts should be responsible for teacher pensions since they negotiate the teacher contracts in the first place.
OPPONENTS of this idea say that the state has been responsible for teacher pensions for decades, and shifting that burden to local school districts would be an unfunded mandate that would result in much higher local property taxes or cuts to education at the local level.
After hearing both sides of the issue, do you strongly favor, somewhat favor, somewhat oppose, or strongly oppose making local school districts, rather the state, responsible for teacher pension plans?
TOTAL FAVOR …………………………………………. 32%
TOTAL OPPOSE ………………………………………. 59%
[IF OPPOSE Q18=3-4]
And what if the change to make local school districts, rather than the state, responsible for teacher pension plans was phased in over ten years so that each year local school districts took more responsibility? Thinking again, do you strongly favor, somewhat favor, somewhat oppose, or strongly oppose making local school districts, rather the state, responsible for teacher pension plans?
TOTAL FAVOR …………………………………………. 45%
TOTAL OPPOSE ………………………………………. 45%
* But the cost shift would still cost legislators votes…
Now I want to ask you abut your vote for state legislature. If a candidate for the Illinois legislature voted to change the pension system for teachers and college faculty so that the costs were shifted to local school districts would you be MORE or LESS likely to vote for that candidate? [IF MORE/LESS] And would you be much [MORE/LESS] or somewhat [MORE/LESS] likely to vote for that candidate?
MUCH MORE …………………………………………… 11%
SOMEWHAT MORE ………………………………….. 20
SOMEWHAT LESS ……………………………………. 20
MUCH LESS …………………………………………….. 31
(DON’T KNOW) ………………………………………… 18
TOTAL MORE …………………………………………… 31%
TOTAL LESS ……………………………………………. 51%
* Methodology…
(T)elephone survey conducted among 600 frequent voters in Illinois. Interviews were conducted August 6-13, 2012. The sampling error for this survey is plus or minus 4.0 percentage points.
Gov. Pat Quinn and Mayor Rahm Emanuel will address the Democratic National Convention in Charlotte, N.C., next month.
Emanuel is scheduled to speak Sept. 4, the first night of the three-day convention, a Democratic source said. Democratic officials did not say what day or time the governor and mayor will speak. Emanuel spokeswoman Sarah Hamilton declined to comment. As President Barack Obama’s first White House chief of staff, Emanuel is well-versed in the early successes and failures of the administration. […]
Quinn’s name was not listed among the latest wave of speakers, but he’s got a speaking role, according to campaign staff.
* The Question: What do you think will be the theme of Gov. Pat Quinn’s convention speech?
