Two Illinois sheriffs said Tuesday that some violent felons who had faced deportation are instead being released into local communities after their prison terms end as a result of a policy change by Gov. J.B. Pritzker’s administration.
Sheriffs Mike Downey of Kankakee County and Tony Childress of Livingston County told reporters at the state Capitol that they were not given a reason for the policy switch, which they called reckless.
They said Corrections officials announced they were canceling a process under which criminals living in the country illegally were transferred to Pontiac Correctional Center. That’s where Kankakee County sheriff’s deputies picked them up and detained them under contract with the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement.
The sheriffs said they don’t have a number of how many inmates who would have faced deportation were released. Of 223 immigrants transferred from Pontiac to ICE detention in 2019, Downey said 11 were convicted of murder or attempted murder, 37 of predatory criminal sexual assault or abuse, including crimes involving children, and 33 were convicted of a crime involving a weapon.
So, they’re being released like everyone else, except they’re now avoiding deportation.
* As you might expect, the reaction has been thunderous…
State Representative Allen Skillicorn (R-Crystal Lake) says Illinois communities are unnecessarily at risk thanks to radical policies at the Illinois Department of Corrections that allows convicted felons to be released.
In 2019, there were 223 immigrants who were transferred to the Jerome Combs Detention Center in Kankakee. These individuals had all served time at an IDOC facility and all were felons. They were transferred to the Jerome Combs Detention Center at the request of ICE. Then, beginning in 2020, the notifications for these transfers stopped.
“What is essentially happening here is the Illinois Department of Corrections is releasing people directly into the community and ignoring ICE transfer requests,” Skillicorn said. “These are all felons and many of them are very dangerous people. Our communities are at risk because our own state government refuses to follow federal law. People’s lives are at stake so that Governor JB Pritzker can smile at the TV cameras and talk about how ‘compassionate’ he is. Gov. Pritzker is putting Illinois families at risk and it is wrong.”
Skillicorn said there is no warning about when the prison releases are taking place.
“There is no warning or a heads up to local enforcement about these releases; they are simply just released into the communities where they have been serving time,” Skillicorn said. “People in Illinois communities are at risk and they do not even know it.”
The Kankakee County Sheriff Office reviewed the transfers completed in 2019 and found that the individuals requested by ICE and transferred to the Kankakee correctional facility had been convicted of committing the following crimes in Illinois:
· 36 individuals were found guilty of sexual offenses against minors, including crimes against individuals as young as 5 years old;
· 11 individuals were found guilty of murder, attempted murder or intent to kill or injure;
· 19 individuals were found guilty of predatory criminal sexual assault;
· 33 individuals were found guilty of a criminal offense involving a weapon;
· 50 individuals were found guilty of drug offenses involving a substance other than cannabis;
· 55 individuals were found guilty of felony-level traffic offenses including aggravated DUI, having a fourth DUI or a DUI resulting in death.
“I am calling on the Governor and the Illinois Department of Corrections to end this dangerous policy and to work with local enforcement officials,” Skillicorn said. “Dangerous criminals whether they are citizens or illegal immigrants need to be behind bars – not roaming the streets. It is time to put the safety of our citizens and our communities first.”
* More…
State Representative Lindsay Parkhurst (R – Kankakee) issued the following statement in response to a change in Illinois Department of Corrections policy regarding undocumented convicted felons.
“Overnight – and without fanfare – there was a radical policy shift allowing undocumented convicted felons with active detainer warrants to be released from prison directly into the community without notification. Sheriff Mike Downey brought this to my attention and I am appalled there are no answers why. I want to be clear; this is not a policy for simple status offenses. This is not a policy for those deserving amnesty. These are serious dangerous criminal offenders – rapists, murderers, child molesters, and sexual predators. Last year, 223 undocumented convicted felons with active detainer warrants were safely transferred upon release from Illinois prisons. Under this radical new policy, these convicted felons with active detainer warrants are now simply released onto the streets and into our neighborhoods without notice.
I urge a statewide review of this policy and ask the governor to reverse this policy. The policy is dangerous to our children, our elderly, and all residents of Illinois.”
*** UPDATE *** Jordan Abudayyeh at the governor’s office…
“As Donald Trump continues to advance policies that tear apart families and terrorize children, the Pritzker administration is committed to using every tool at our disposal to protect immigrant families in Illinois. The governor’s office is working closely with the Department of Corrections to review current policies, build on the progress made under the bipartisan Illinois Trust Act that was signed into law in 2017, and ensure the protection of immigrant families and all Illinois communities. As this work moves forward, the Department of Corrections will pause the majority of its interactions with ICE. The governor has made it abundantly clear that Illinois will be a firewall against the president’s attacks on immigrant communities.”
Background:
Under the bipartisan Trust Act, the Illinois Department of Corrections is prohibited from detaining an individual solely on the basis of an immigration detainer or non-judicial immigration warrant.
The Trust Act does not impact the length of an individual’s lawful sentence. Those who are incarcerated serve their sentence and then are released.
* From an editorial entitled “Governor holds education funds hostage” about the governor’s budget proposal to only spend $200 million of the $350 million increase in education funding unless his graduated income tax proposal is approved by voters in November…
The need-based funding formula was a big accomplishment for the state in 2017 — a true bipartisan piece of legislation signed by GOP Gov. Bruce Rauner. It sought to fix decades of spotty fund distribution.
Pritzker’s curve ball means school districts will have to craft budget plans before a September deadline without fully understanding how much money will be coming after the November vote. Schools typically have few options in those situations, including cutting staff, eliminating programs or hiking property taxes.
Pritzker has repeatedly said he wants to address skyrocketing property taxes, one driver in the state losing population as people flee. This approach does the precise opposite.
Where you fall on the progressive tax question doesn’t matter. What does matter is that our education leaders are facing yet another budgetary hoop introduced by the state.
There has to be a better way.
* The Question: Do you agree or disagree with Gov. Pritzker’s budget decision? Take the poll and then explain your answer in comments, please…
In a 90-minute hearing, attorneys for the Illinois Attorney Registration and Disciplinary Commission took a three-member panel that will decide the status of Blagojevich’s license through his worst hits as governor, including his convictions for attempting to sell a U.S. Senate seat, shaking down the CEO of a children’s hospital for campaign cash and lying to the FBI.
“As governor, (Blagojevich) had the responsibility to do what was right for the people of Illinois,” ARDC attorney Christopher Heredia said. “Instead, he only did what was right by himself. […]
Blagojevich’s longtime attorney, Sheldon Sorosky, said the ex-governor was in a “damned if he did, damned if he didn’t” situation in defending his law license, knowing that if he showed up to defend himself he would have been accused of lying all over again.
Sorosky also trotted out familiar lines in his argument, blaming the media for overemphasizing the FBI recordings that captured Blagojevich’s schemes, and saying the governor’s campaign fundraising and political horsetrading were well within legal bounds.
He would have accurately been accused of lying all over again. Fixed it for you, Sheldon. And a federal jury, a federal appellate court and the US Supreme Court all believed his actions were well outside legal bounds.
The Illinois Attorney Registration and Disciplinary Commission issued no ruling Tuesday.
Blagojevich, 63, wasn’t at the hearing in Chicago, leading Christopher Heredia to complain about the former governor’s “dismissive attitude” toward the proceedings.
This is all a formality. He’s losing his license and he knows it.
Pet owners in Illinois that live in public housing often have to choose between keeping their pet and staying in a place they can afford. A proposed Illinois measure aims to prevent that situation from ever happening.
State Senator Linda Holmes (D-Aurora) is sponsoring a bill requiring landlords in charge of affordable housing units to allow pets. At an event in Springfield announcing the measure, she explained everyone should be able to enjoy the benefits of having a pet in their home.
“They influence social, emotional, and cognitive development in children and they promote an active lifestyle,” Holmes said. “They provide emotional support, improved moods, and contribute to overall morale of their owners, including the elderly and disabled.”
Landlords and property owners who receive tax subsidies for low-income housing would be required to allow tenants to keep common pets, which include domesticated cats and dogs, regardless of size, weight, or breed.
Cook County property owners would get an extra four months to pay delinquent taxes before their land is put up for sale under a state bill championed by county Treasurer Maria Pappas.
The bill (SB3356), sponsored by State Sen. Elgie Sims (D-Chicago) and State Sen. Laura Murphy(D-Des Plaines), would delay the county’s annual tax sale until September, 13 months after second-installment property taxes are due. The existing law requires the county to auction off delinquent properties by May, giving taxpayers a nine-month window to make late payments. […]
Pappas expects to put up approximately 57,000 delinquent properties at this year’s tax sale scheduled for May 8, which owe approximately $188 million in unpaid taxes — a more than 50 percent increase as compared with last year, Pappas said.
“This is about the most vulnerable people in Cook County, and the numbers are getting worse,” Pappas said. “Something is seriously wrong. People need an extra four months to pay.” […]
The proposed bill gives the treasurer’s office a full year after the second installment due date to ask a judge for permission to sell delinquent tax certificates, after which Pappas has 35 days to hold the sale.
A proposal before the Illinois General Assembly would overturn half a century of resistance to granny flats, coach houses and other “accessory dwelling units,” paving the way for these lower-cost housing types to flourish in towns all over Illinois.
“We want to create more options for people to create affordable housing in their communities,” said state Rep. Robyn Gabel, D-Evanston, who on Feb. 11 introduced HB 4869. The bill would prohibit any unit of local government from banning second living units on a residential property.
Advocates for accessory dwelling units, or ADUs, which went out of favor in the years after World War II, say that bringing them back would put new, affordably priced housing stock where people want it—in established neighborhoods with good schools, transportation and shopping—rather than out at the fringes of the suburbs.
Gabel’s proposed legislation “is a huge step forward,” said Steve Vance, director of urban planning for MAP Strategies, a Chicago code and permit management firm. Vance, a longtime proponent of allowing ADUs, said that enabling them on a statewide level would show that “the need for lower-cost, smaller-size housing is everywhere.”
Illinois lawmakers are considering a bill that would put mental health on a par with physical health in the state’s public schools.
Senate Bill 2473 would give students five days of excused absences per school year for mental health issues. Students would be able to make up any missed school work.
Steve Murray, director of counseling at Notre Dame Prep in Niles, said the bill was a step in the right direction.
He said the bill was a good start toward recognizing the extent to which children can suffer from issues like anxiety and depression.
“This is a recognition that these are on a par with the flu or a cold,” Murray said. “They need to be treated as real illnesses and treated as impediments to kids being successful in school.”
California, Nebraska and Illinois are the only U.S. states that can currently test for coronavirus, the Association of Public Health Laboratories told Reuters. The CDC last week said some of the testing kits sent to U.S. states and at least 30 countries produced “inconclusive” results due to a flawed component, and the CDC planned to send replacement materials to make the kits work. The CDC has increased testing capacity until new testing kits become available, said Scott Becker, the executive director of APHL, which represents public health laboratories in the United States.
Experts are increasingly concerned that the small number of U.S. cases thus far may be a reflection of limited testing, not of the virus’ spread. While South Korea has run more than 35,000 coronavirus tests, the U.S. has tested only 426 people for the virus, not including people who returned on evacuation flights.
“For the moment, we are not witnessing the uncontained global spread of this virus and we are not witnessing large-scale severe disease or deaths,” said Dr. Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, the WHO director-general. “Does this virus have pandemic potential? Absolutely it has.”
[U.S. Health and Human Services Secretary Alex Azar] said the U.S. currently has a stockpile of 30 million surgical masks, but HHS estimates suggest the country needs 300 million masks.
Up to 95 percent of surgical masks are made outside the continental United States, in places like China and Mexico, according to a 2014 briefing released by the Office of the Assistant Secretary for Preparedness and Response in the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. As the outbreak has grown, Chinese authorities have increased manufacturing lines domestically, slashed their exports and put their own orders first. As China consumes more of the protective gear it is producing, the rest of the world is fighting over what is left.
U.S. health officials and industry executives are planning how to supply enough masks to critical personnel. That plan relies on a complicated supply chain already strained by U.S.-China trade tensions and in which even the most basic information is closely held. Proprietary information makes it difficult for the health-care industry — and the U.S. government — to know how much inventory manufacturers have at any given time.
The CDC outlined what schools and businesses will likely need to do if the COVID-19 virus becomes an epidemic outbreak in the U.S. Schools should consider dividing students into smaller groups or close and use “internet-based tele-schooling,” Dr. Nancy Messonnier, director of the CDC’s National Center for Immunization and Respiratory Diseases, told reporters on a conference call. “For adults, businesses can replace in-person meetings with video or telephone conferences and increase teleworking options,” Messonnier said. She said local communities and cities may need to “modify, postpone or cancel mass gatherings.” Hospitals may need to triage patients differently, add more tele-health services and delay elective surgery, she said. “We are asking the American public to work with us to prepare for the expectation that this is going to be bad,” she said.
Needless to say, you can’t just snap your fingers and immediately set up “internet-based tele-schooling.”
The Trump administration is requesting $1.25 billion in new funding and wants to transfer $535 million more from an Ebola preparedness account that’s been a top priority of Democrats. It anticipates shifting money from other HHS accounts and other agencies to complete the $2.5 billion response plan.
Democrats said Trump’s attempt to tap existing Ebola prevention funding was dead on arrival.
The Harvard epidemiology professor Marc Lipsitch is exacting in his diction, even for an epidemiologist. Twice in our conversation he started to say something, then paused and said, “Actually, let me start again.” So it’s striking when one of the points he wanted to get exactly right was this: “I think the likely outcome is that it will ultimately not be containable.” […]
Lipsitch predicts that, within the coming year, some 40 to 70 percent of people around the world will be infected with the virus that causes COVID-19. But, he clarifies emphatically, this does not mean that all will have severe illnesses. “It’s likely that many will have mild disease, or may be asymptomatic,” he said. As with influenza, which is often life-threatening to people with chronic health conditions and of older age, most cases pass without medical care. (Overall, around 14 percent of people with influenza have no symptoms.)
Lipsitch is far from alone in his belief that this virus will continue to spread widely. The emerging consensus among epidemiologists is that the most likely outcome of this outbreak is a new seasonal disease—a fifth “endemic” coronavirus. With the other four, people are not known to develop long-lasting immunity. If this one follows suit, and if the disease continues to be as severe as it is now, “cold and flu season” could become “cold and flu and COVID-19 season.”
…Adding… Press release…
U.S. Senate Democratic Whip Dick Durbin (D-IL) today called on the Trump Administration to do more to address the coronavirus epidemic following the President’s minimal and long overdue coronavirus funding request. In a speech on the Senate floor, Durbin called out President Trump’s continued years-long efforts to cut funding for the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) and the National Institutes of Health (NIH)—two federal health agencies that our nation relies upon to respond and prepare for public health challenges. In his fiscal Year 2021 proposed budget, President Trump advocated for cutting the CDC’s budget by nine percent and the NIH’s budget by seven percent.
“When you look at the efforts that are being made here in the United States and around the world, we can and should do more. I support [Senator Schumer’s] request for a dramatic increase in funding for this purpose now before it spreads across the United States,” Durbin said.
Tuesday, Feb 25, 2020 - Posted by Advertising Department
[The following is a paid advertisement.]
If we choose a candidate who appeals to a small base, it will be a fatal error.
We know that Bernie is less popular than Trump.
We know that a Bernie nomination puts the Dems control of the House at risk.
And we know that Bernie will sink Democrats in frontline districts like Sean Casten and Lauren Underwood right here in Illinois.
For the Democratic party to succeed and defeat Donald Trump it will take a candidate that can unite a broad and diverse coalition, and who can win crucial swing states that will ultimately decide the election in November with our House majority intact.
That person is Mike Bloomberg.
Other Democrats are devolving into divisive rhetoric, with destructiveconsequences. They have proven that they cannot unite the party, they cannot expand the map, and they cannot beat Trump.
Gov. J.B. Pritzker indicated last week Illinois sportsbooks will be open for business by “March Madness,” the upcoming annual NCAA basketball tourney. The governor last year signed a massive gambling package, legalizing sports betting at retail locations and across digital platforms.
The Illinois Gaming Board issued the first three operating wire room permits earlier this month to the Rivers Casino in Des Plaines, which has a bid in for a Waukegan gaming venue, Grand Victoria Casino in Elgin and the Argosy Casino in the downstate Mississippi River town of Alton. Online sports betting license applicants need to wait 18 months after legal sports betting is underway to apply for the three gaming licenses, pegged at $20 million each, offered in Illinois.
Like the Super Bowl, the college basketball tournament draws heavy betting action from Illinoisans who think they can beat the oddsmakers. For you Illini fans, Illinois has a 77.8 percent chance of making the Big Dance, according to one sports ranking.
The Illinois Gaming Board moved the Land of Lincoln another step closer to entering the sports wagering market late Thursday afternoon when it released Phase 2 of its sports wagering rules. […]
The bill prohibits wagering on games involving in-state schools, which could be disappointing for some locals given that there are 13 Division I teams spread across eight conferences — and high-major programs Illinois and DePaul are vying for spots in the 68-team field.
The new provision allows for futures betting on events such as the NCAA tournament, covering “the final outcome of a series or combination of sports events such as a tournament or season outcome which includes both Illinois and non-Illinois collegiate teams or individuals” but also extending the prohibition on such wagers being placed on Illinois teams.
This rule is consistent with New Jersey’s prohibition on such wagers. Indiana and Iowa have no such provision regarding their college teams.
The futures of a planned casino in Terre Haute and one under construction in Gary remain up in the air as the Indiana Gaming Commission looks into allegations that a former Indianapolis gambling company and one of its officers were involved in a federal campaign finance scheme. […]
At issue is Spectacle Entertainment Group’s ownership in the gambling operations in Gary and its application for the planned Terre Haute casino. Spectacle is owned in part by former executives of Centaur Gaming, which in 2018 sold its racinos in Anderson and Shelbyville to Caesars Entertainment.
A federal plea deal that became public Jan. 23 alleged that Centaur was involved in funneling thousands of dollars in campaign contributions to an Indiana congressional candidate in 2015.
Court documents didn’t name Centaur, but the Indiana Gaming Commission confirmed it’s the company involved. The plea deal also implicated the vice president and general counsel for the company, which was John Keeler.
Keeler and former Centaur Chairman and CEO Rod Ratcliff now operate Spectacle Entertainment, which is constructing the $300 million land-based casino in Gary and is the only applicant for the Terre Haute casino license.
But, you know, if Indiana would just get rid of Speaker Madigan and reform its redistricting process, this stuff wouldn’t ever happen.
Snark aside, Indiana’s troubles are good news for the Danville casino and the south suburban casino and the Chicago casino (if it ever gets off the ground).
* And now to video gaming with Hannah Meisel at the Daily Line…
Senate President Don Harmon (D-Oak Park) raked in $95,000 in campaign contributions from six major players in Illinois’ video gaming industry, including operators, a gaming parlor chain and the umbrella association that protects video gaming interests, according to reports filed this month with the Illinois State Board of Elections. […]
“One of the downsides of becoming senate president in the middle of a General Assembly and seven weeks before a primary election is I have to raise money to defend caucus members in tough primary fights,” Harmon said.
The gaming-related contributions reported by Harmon are:
$25,000 from Accel Entertainment Gaming LLC, the state’s largest video-gaming terminal operator, based in Burr Ridge. [by far the largest single donation to an Illinois politician the company has made]
$10,000 from Fair Share Gaming, LLC, a video-gaming terminal operator based in Tinley Park. [by far the largest contribution ever from the company]
$5,000 Illinois Gaming Systems, LLC, a Naperville-based video gaming terminal operator.
$25,000 from J&J Ventures, Inc., an Effingham-based firm that operates video gaming terminals along the Illinois-Missouri border. [That contribution was the largest in J&J’s history]
$5,000 from Lucy’s Place LLC, an Elmwood Park-based chain of video gaming cafés with 25 locations in Illinois.
$25,000 from the Illinois Gaming Machine Operators Association PAC, the political action committee representing video gaming interests in Illinois.
Harmon said the contributions went to his campaign committee because he is in the process of setting up a new campaign fund for Senate Democrats, called ISDF. The fund was created last week, according to campaign records, and Harmon said he expects the fund to officially replace the Illinois Democratic Victory PAC in the coming weeks. […]
The timing of the donations comes as the industry presses lawmakers to ban a major competitor to video gaming terminals: sweepstakes machines.
Harmon has not yet said where he stands on banning those sweepstakes machines.
* Speaking of sweepstakes, we recently discussed a bipartisan fact-finding mission by Reps. Kelly Cassidy and Tim Butler that looked into those games. Bernie did a story about it…
Butler put $30 into the [sweepstakes] machine and took a loss, getting $16 from the bartender. Cassidy was a winner, getting $13 for her $10 investment.
Butler said he had been told by an industry representative that cash for sweepstakes winnings aren’t condoned, and there’s a way to go online to get merchandise. But the experience in the bar confirmed for Butler that there’s not that much difference between unregulated sweepstakes machines and video terminals that can only operate with state Gaming Board approval, and involving background checks and payment of taxes.
“If you want to participate in gaming like this, you need to go through the process that we’ve set up,” Butler said.
* Related…
* Citadel Advisors, Others Break From Hedge Fund Pack, Short Sports Betting Stocks: Currently, rosy projections range from $5 billion to $8 billion in earnings for US sports betting companies several years out — not large numbers — and an executive from MGM recently acknowledged that the company’s sports wagering operations may not be profitable until 2025.
Depositions ordered in a discrimination case lodged against JB Pritzker’s 2018 campaign for governor will be limited per the request of Pritzker and Lt. Gov. Juliana Stratton, according to a four-page order filed last week in the case by a federal judge.
Pritzker will not have to sit for a deposition, U.S. Magistrate Judge Jeffrey Cummings ruled, agreeing with the governor’s argument that he as an individual had already been dismissed from the case, and that he did not have “unique personal knowledge” of the dispute in the lawsuit.
Stratton’s interview will be limited to three hours “and to questions only related to the defamation issue,” according to the order. Stratton was sued for defamation as part of the suit brought in the waning weeks of the 2018 campaign by Maxwell Little and nine other campaign workers who alleged racial discrimination in the campaign environment.
* Looks like the plaintiffs over-reached. From the order…
The factors that govern whether a high-level official should be deposed show that Governor Pritzker should not be required to sit for an oral deposition. The record strongly suggests that Pritzker – who is no longer a party to this case – does not have unique personal knowledge of the events that plaintiffs allege. The campaign employed approximately 200 individuals across 34 offices in Illinois. The campaign’s manager Quentin Fulks states in his declaration that an email address was created to which employees could send their employment- related concerns. The address forwarded these emails to “certain” campaign employees whom Fulks does not identify but not to Pritzker or Stratton. Pritzker and Stratton also lacked daily supervisory responsibilities; instead, five non-senior campaign employees supervised the campaign’s field organizers.
Plaintiffs have made no showing of why Pritzker should be deposed given these facts. Plaintiffs claim that plaintiff Eric Chaney “attempted” to talk to Pritzker about his employment complaints at an unidentified point in the campaign but Pritzker “immediately walked off.” Pritzker’s responsiveness, however, is not relevant to the apex analysis; rather, the issue is whether he had unique knowledge of the matter in question. Plaintiffs’ claim that Pritzker “walked off” instead of listening to Chaney’s complaint suggests that he does not.
Plaintiffs have also provided an unauthenticated news article reporting that unnamed campaign staff members voiced some discrimination complaints to Pritzker and Stratton when the candidates reached out at some point to African-American campaign workers. However, not only does this article fail to identify the persons involved, the content of their communication, or the length or conditions under which the communication took place, it actually undermines plaintiffs’ argument through its incorporation of denials by both Pritzker and Stratton that anyone ever voiced to them concerns regarding racism and harassment.
* Background is here if you need it. The House Qualifications Challenge Committee met today for the first time for about ten minutes. The committee was created after two members, House Republican Leader Jim Durkin and Rep. Anne Stava-Murray (D-Naperville) challenged the qualifications of Rep. Eva Dina Delgado (D-Chicago), who was appointed to fill former Rep. Luis Arroyo’s seat with proxy votes from Arroyo’s 36th Ward organization.
Chairman Chris Welch read part of the rules during the hearing, which mirror those from the last such challenge…
Respondent [Delgado] shall have ten days from today’s hearing to respond. Petitioners [Durkin and Stava-Murray] then have seven days to respond and then respondent will be given seven days to respond.
* Here’s the schedule…
Respondent: Friday, March 6th.
Petitioners’ responses: Friday, March 13th.
Respondent’s replies: Friday, March 20.
Hearing: Tuesday, March 25th.
Both her defense and the petitioners’ responses will be released before the March 17th primary. But the hearing won’t happen until well after the primary.
* Rep. Delgado’s statement…
Rep. Delgado & her attorney didn’t take questions after the meeting but issued this statement, calling the challenges to her appointment “purely political.” pic.twitter.com/bcfQjuRvxq
I’m gonna work hard to get elected, go to Washington, and have his back. I’m gonna help him pass a conservative agenda that’s good for all of America.
Here’s what we’re gonna do: We’re gonna protect the God-given rights to bear arms in the 2nd Amendment. We’re gonna protect the sanctity of life, and we’re gonna work to strengthen and secure the southern border.
I will never be for sale to the highest bidder. Never. You can’t buy me and you can’t buy my vote.
My name is Darren Duncan and you better believe I approve this message.
The “supervolunteer” turned spokesman is now on his eighth campaign, managing communications for Rep. Yoni Pizer, who is running for a permanent seat in the Illinois House in a race that has pitted some Illinois Democrats against each other. […]
“I don’t remember the last time I got home before 8 p.m. the past three years,” the 18-year-old says. This primary will be the first election he votes in, and could fall after an all-nighter. He sometimes works on campaign to-dos until midnight, and homework until 2 a.m. “I don’t know why I did this to myself. I can’t really stop it.”
His first campaign was helping Mark Tendam in his losing 2017 bid for Evanston mayor, followed by Ald. Ameya Pawar’s gubernatorial run, then Daniel Biss. He interned in state Rep. Kelly Cassidy’s legislative office, then on state Rep. Bob Morgan’s campaign, for 46th Ward aldermanic candidate Marianne LaLonde, “then I got roped into this long-shot candidate named Lori Lightfoot’s race,” where he helped manage peer-to-peer texting. He also worked on Paras Parekh’s Lake County board race.
Stone works around his school’s block schedule—ten minutes here, an hour there during lunch and prep—and can often be spotted between classes catching up on news, Beacon’s Dean of Students Siobhan Allen says.
I’ve been working with Stone via email and I had no idea he was 18. He’s good at what he does.
Tuesday, Feb 25, 2020 - Posted by Advertising Department
[The following is a paid advertisement.]
The Illinois Credit Union League is the primary trade association for Illinois credit unions. Credit unions are not-for-profit cooperatives that focus on their members and the communities they serve. Credit unions function like other financial institutions in many ways: they offer checking accounts, savings accounts, and credit cards, as well as personal, home, and auto loans, free ATMs, and more. However, credit unions exist as member-owned cooperative institutions. This means that when you join a credit union, you are more than just a member - you’re an owner, and your voice matters. Interested in finding the credit union that’s right for you? Visit ASmarterChoice.org to discover all the advantages that membership holds.
Freshman Democratic Rep. Lauren Underwood said Monday that she thinks the influence of the party’s presidential contenders on her chances for reelection in the traditionally Republican 14th Congressional District would be “neutral at best or really difficult at worst.”
Appearing before about 150 people at the City Club of Chicago, Underwood was asked if she shared concerns among some Democratic moderates that Vermont Sen. Bernie Sanders could hurt down-ballot Democrats who won in 2018 or are in swing districts, should he win the nomination.
“Some people are neutral and some people are not and no one in my opinion that’s running on the Democratic ticket is helpful to me in my race,” Underwood replied, drawing murmurs from the crowd.
Underwood defeated three-term GOP Rep. Randy Hultgren in 2018 in an exurban district that has long backed conservative Republicans. She noted that she defeated Hultgren by 5 percentage points while J.B. Pritzker lost to Bruce Rauner in the district by 8 percentage points — though Pritzker defeated Rauner statewide by 16 percentage points.
Political consultant Jim Terman, who posed the question, told Playbook that Underwood’s answer “caught folks by surprise…but when you think about it, it made sense.” […]
Underwood’s response explains the reality of being a Democrat in a swing district, says senior adviser Ronnie Cho. “Her re-election has more to do with her than anybody else. She knows her re-election is contingent on her campaign, policies and record,” Cho told Playbook.
And if there’s any question about Underwood’s dedication to Democratic infrastructure, Cho points to the political action committee Underwood just started to help down-ballot candidates. Farm Team PAC is focused on electing Democratic candidates within IL-14.
Only two statewide Democratic candidates won Underwood’s district in 2018: Secretary of State Jesse White (who won 14 of 16 districts) and Comptroller Susana Mendoza (who won all but four districts). No statewide Dems won the district in the 2016 and 2012 presidential cycles, and only White won it in 2014.
By the way, as I told subscribers yesterday, Underwood’s Farm Team PAC had just $992.69 in the bank at the end of 2019 and hasn’t reported any contributions since then. It was created about 13 months ago.
…Adding… With thanks to a commenter, here’s a story about an Indivisible Evanston gathering for Underwood last week...
Underwood also emphasized her role as a bipartisan congresswoman who can appeal to a variety of voters. She said many Trump supporters voted for her in 2018, and hopes to continue that trend. […]
Underwood stressed to Evanston residents that they might have to speak cautiously when helping her campaign in the district. She said they should speak on shared values as opposed to a “lack of empathy for our neighbors.”
Additionally, Underwood instructed those helping the campaign to maintain “awareness and discipline” when knocking on the doors of District 14 voters, who are generally not as liberal as many Evanston residents.
“Speaker Pelosi has a lot of sayings, but one of the things that she always tells us is that the things you can say in San Francisco you can’t say Michigan, but what you can say in Michigan, you can say San Francisco; you’re San Francisco, I’m Michigan,” Underwood said.
She also said potential GOP opponent Jim Oberweis has “very well-established bigoted and racist views.”
We don’t expect any meaningful ethics changes so long as Madigan is in charge. He has to go. […]
Blagojevich was not the cause of Illinois’ corruption problem – he was only a damaging symptom. The culture of corruption that continues to plague state government will not change without a real change in attitude and leadership in the legislature.
* The Question: Agree or disagree? Make sure to explain your response. Thanks.
However, the poll, which has a margin of error of 4.5 percentage points among Democrats, relies on a methodology that raises questions about its accuracy.
The survey does not weight its results based on the demographic makeup of Illinois voters, including by gender, geography or race. For example, of the poll’s 1,000 registered voters, 56% were identified as male and 44% female. The federal census, however, shows a majority of the state’s population is female while 2016 exit polling showed the state’s Democratic electorate was 54% female.
The polling sample also did not accurately reflect the percentage of the vote that came from strongly Democratic Chicago compared with less Democratic suburbs and Downstate. Only a quarter of the poll’s Democratic results came from the city of Chicago, while actual voting in 2016 showed the city accounted for 35% of the state’s total Democratic primary turnout.
In addition, the new survey skewed heavily toward older voters, compared with 2016 exit polling that showed roughly 40% of the Democratic electorate was under the age of 45. The new poll’s racial breakdown of 60% white, 24% black and 6% Latino tracked closer to Illinois voting demographics in the last presidential primary.
The Illinois Department of Revenue announced that adult-use cannabis sales generated $7,332,058 in cannabis tax revenue during the month of January, with an additional $3,147,928.29 generated in retail sales tax revenue. Governor Pritzker’s recently released budget conservatively estimated the state would collect $28 million in cannabis tax revenue during the remainder of the fiscal year, ending June 30, 2020. Today’s announcement puts the state on track to surpass that estimate.
Once administrative fees are accounted for, 45% of the adult-use cannabis tax revenue will be reinvested in communities disproportionately impacted by the failed war on drugs and used to fund substance abuse and mental health programs. The $3,147,928.29 in sales tax revenue will be divided between the state’s general revenue fund and the local governments where purchases were made.
“Today marks another milestone in the successful launch of Illinois’ legal cannabis industry. Our goal has been to build the nation’s most socially equitable program that includes new opportunities for the communities most harmed by the failed war on drugs. Revenue raised in this first month will soon begin flowing back into those communities to begin repairing the damage done by the failed policies of the past and creating new opportunities for those who have been left behind for far too long,” said Toi Hutchinson, Senior Advisor to Governor Pritzker for Cannabis Control.
The state collects cannabis revenue in two ways: a variable excise rate dependent on THC potency and type of product, and a 7% cultivators excise tax imposed on the sale of cannabis to retailers. Earlier this month, the state announced that over $39 million in adult-use cannabis product was sold at retail stores.
Last Wednesday, Governor Pritzker released his Fiscal Year 2021 budget, which projected cannabis sales would generate $28 million in cannabis tax revenue for the remainder of Fiscal Year 2020 (ending June 30, 2020). As the industry matures, revenues are estimated to grow to $127 million in FY21, of which $46 million will go to General Funds.
More info about how the money is distributed by clicking here.
* The governor’s budget includes hiring lots more workers. Finke breaks it down…
If you are a non-state worker you are probably already moaning about padding the payroll and filling do-nothing jobs an all of the other nonsense that goes on. But the fact is state government employment has been hollowed out to the point that some jobs aren’t being done correctly anymore. FOID card renewals have gotten their share of publicity, but that’s hardly the only example. State employee unions like to point to labor statistics (not from them) that Illinois has the fewest number of state workers per capita of any state.
In the current budget, there is authorization for 55,490 workers. (It’s actually 55,490.5 but there wasn’t time to verify who was authorized to hire half a worker). As of December 31, there were 51,207 jobs filled. Pritzker’s budget calls for a headcount of 57,207.
Of the 1,646 additional workers, 700 would be in public safety positions (mainly Corrections) and 600 in human services (a good deal in the Department of Children and Family services).
Remember, though, that Pritzker said there would be a hiring freeze if the graduated income tax isn’t approved.
A bipartisan group of Illinois lawmakers has gotten behind a proposal to repeal the state’s new car trade-in tax and replace it with a different fee structure.
As of Jan. 1, Illinois’ sales tax applies to any trade-in vehicle worth more than $10,000. That means trading in a $30,000 car for one worth $60,000 will cost the customer an extra $1,200 in additional sales taxes. It’s estimated to bring the state $60 million annually, affecting what state officials insisted was a small portion of Illinois residents.
Legislation filed earlier last month would repeal the application of sales tax to trade-in value over $10,000. In turn, it would charge a tax based on the selling price of the car if it’s worth more than $15,000 or how many years old it is if valued at less than $15,000. It would take effect 120 days after it’s enacted.
Industry experts predicted the Jan. 1 change would have a profound effect on consumer buying habits and the change appears to have set in quickly.
“Last year, we had about 26 trade-ins by now from the first of the year that were over $10,001,” said Daniel Fontana, sales consultant at Mike Haggerty Buick GMC in Oak Lawn. “We’re only floating at 19 right now.”
The bill is sponsored by Sen. Tony Munoz (D-Chicago).
State Rep. TIM BUTLER, R-Springfield, has filed a bill that would allow breweries to start “mug clubs.”
A mug club is a loyalty program where bar patrons can purchase a special mug from the establishment and have it refilled at a discount over the course of a year.
Currently, such discounts are prohibited under the state’s happy hour law, which only allows the sale of drinks at a reduced price for up to four hours a day and 15 hours a week.
Under Butler’s legislation, a carve-out would be made “if a person purchases a mug, cup or other glassware” as part of a mug club program.
Butler said the idea was sparked by a conversation he had with the owners of BUZZ BOMB BREWING CO., 406 E. Adams St., who hope to bring the concept to Springfield.
Is it time to raise the speed limit again? The suburban lawmaker who six years ago pushed to boost our highway limit from 65 mph to 70 mph seems to think so.
State Sen. Jim Oberweis (R-North Aurora) has filed legislation, Senate Bill 2565, to lift Illinois’ highway speed limit to 75 mph. But where Oberweis got overwhelming support for increasing the limit to 70 mph six years ago, skeptics already are emerging for taking it up another 5 mph.
Senator Ram Villivilam said he wants to bring back a small business tax credit for $5,000 for every new position a business with fewer than 50 employees makes. The Illinois Chamber of Commerce likes the idea of the bill, but does not know if the incentives are strong enough. “We still think it has the same fundamental flaws, unless you really go ahead and get up to $10,000 or $15,000,” said Todd Maisch. “But even then, there is going to be a suspicion that what is there one year won’t be there the next, as soon as the legislature decides that they want that revenue back.”
For a business to receive the credit, the position created will have to pay at least $15 per hour.
Quashing the proposed extension of Route 53 north into Lake County may have been the easy part.
Residents who waged war against the pricey expansion rejoiced when the Illinois tollway dropped the project last July, effectively dooming it for lack of funds.
Now, however, there’s a 1,100-acre hot potato squatting in Lake County. The state spent $54.3 million over 48 years acquiring land for the defunct road.
What to do? Looks like it’s task force time.
Legislation is percolating through the General Assembly to create a task force authorized to recommend uses for the land by Dec. 31.
A retired state employee who worked at the Illinois Department of Public Health for 33 years won a state deal worth up to $80,000 to work part-time as an outside consultant after his former co-workers steered the contract to him, according to a report published by the Office of the Executive Inspector General.
State records show Don Williams, who retired from IDPH in mid-2017, received $36,040 in contract payments while simultaneously collecting his state pension and Social Security retirement benefits.
In a letter dated August 23rd, 2019, IDPH responded to the OEIG, and said it had voided the contract after someone filed a complaint, alleging a conflict of interest. […]
Governor Pritzker’s office said it had discussed the issue with the former HFSRB chairman before the board met to decide on an appropriate course of action. Pritzker’s government lawyer Ann Spillane said the Governor’s Office will “review the State’s procurement system” in response to this episode.
The Office of Executive Inspector General’s said Friday a contract for data services was too narrowly drawn to favor awarding it to a retired state worker.
However, the office also said it could not pinpoint blame for the way the contract terms were developed because multiple people were involved in the process.
Those responsible for the contract believed Williams was the only person who knew how to use the Certificate of Need database, which is used by both IDPH and the health facilities board to handle incoming applications, calculate fees and draft reports.
Williams told investigators that the only two other employees who ever used the database retired, and he was “the only one who has worked on the database since the mid-1980s,” according to the report. Williams also estimated it would take “three to four months” to train someone to use the database. […]
“[Health Facilities and Services Review Board Administrator Courtney Avery] also told investigators she estimated training a new person to use the database would have taken three months. […]
IDPH’s former Deputy Director Bill Dart told investigators that Williams’ retirement from the agency in 2017 “caught IDPH off guard, and that to keep things flowing smoothly,” the agency agreed to rehire Williams on a 75-day appointment, which was followed by a subsequent 75-day appointment in 2018.
These pictures are from yesterday [Saturday] evening. This construction warning sign has two vinyl banners - one on each side - affixed to metal poles via some plastic cable ties. Note the cones around the trailer. This was sitting at the corner of 101st and Longwood on the easternmost border of Lipinski’s district, across from St. Barnabas Church in the 19th Ward. It showed up there yesterday afternoon, right before services, and was gone this afternoon.
Last weekend an identical setup was seen near 111th and Kedzie, which is next to St. Christina Church.
Lipinski is very pro-life so this seems like an effort to get the pro-life Catholic vote.
The interesting thing is this setup is illegal since it’s sitting in a public street. The one at 101st and Longwood was blocking half the street.
Former Gov. Rod Blagojevich emerged from prison just like he went in: defiantly proclaiming his innocence and ostentatiously displaying his carefully coiffed victimhood.
If you were too young to know about Blagojevich or your memory is hazy, you’re now getting a lesson in Rod 101. He knows what reporters want, and he’s more than happy to give it to them if it serves his purposes. He will say anything, literally anything, to stay in the public eye, no matter how far from the truth it may be. And reporters are eagerly obliging him.
He once proclaimed himself “on the side of the Lord” during a budget stalemate. He repeatedly accused House Speaker Michael Madigan, the chairman of the state Democratic Party, of being a Republican. After his proposed gross receipts tax failed in the House by a vote of 0-107, he said that, overall, it had been an “up” day.
Blagojevich was late to absolutely everything, including the funeral of Sen. Vince Demuzio, a beloved Statehouse figure. Oftentimes, his tardiness was intentional. I rode on a tour bus with him in 2007 while he was promoting his gross receipts tax. As we arrived at the outskirts of a small town for yet another staged event, the governor ordered the bus driver to pull to the side of the road because, he said, we were ahead of schedule. He disappeared into the restroom to brush his hair, finally emerging to give the go-ahead to proceed to the venue, 15 minutes behind schedule.
He thrived on chaos because that kept him at the center of attention. His reign was marked by one bitter overtime legislative session after another as he did battle with his archenemy Madigan.
It got so bad at one point that then-Rep. Joe Lyons, D-Chicago, one of the most chill state legislators you will ever meet, marched up to the press box to tell reporters in all sincerity that the governor had become a “madman.” Then-Rep. Mike Bost called for his impeachment more than a year before Blagojevich’s arrest. He literally drove people crazy just by being him.
He was elected as a reformer in the wake of Gov. George Ryan’s scandals. He held a big, showy Chicago press conference with every reform group imaginable during his first term to press for changes that would box in and embarrass his nemesis Madigan. And then he was reelected by 10 points just days after his chief campaign fundraiser was busted by the feds.
Blagojevich was a populist phony. He fought for good things like universal children’s healthcare and free public transit rides for senior citizens, but it was always about him. He rode a tall white show horse.
He truly believed he could be president one day, then watched in growing horror as an obscure state legislator who practiced what he preached on reform rose to the U.S. Senate and then the White House.
After wrapping up his first overtime session (which was resolved after he agreed to skip two years’ worth of state pension payments) Blagojevich attended the 2004 Democratic National Convention but left early because the media’s focus was on keynote speaker Barack Obama and not him.
He had awe-inspiring political skills, then squandered everything. He didn’t want to be governor any longer because with Obama’s rise he finally realized the office was no longer the national springboard he’d imagined. So he said and did some stupid things to secure his future while the feds were listening and wound up in prison.
It could’ve actually been much worse. Attorney General Lisa Madigan had been investigating his administration. She ended her probe at the federal government’s request, turning over all her files to them. But then the feds took the easy route of planting bugs in his office and monitoring his phones.
Blagojevich inherited a troubled budget and then proceeded to drive Illinois into a fiscal ditch from which it has never recovered. And 19 months after his predecessor was convicted on federal corruption charges — the same predecessor whom Blagojevich had railed against for six solid years — he was arrested at his own home in an early morning federal raid.
He eschewed his pardoning power, unwilling to grant the forgiveness that he presumes will be offered up to him now. But you shouldn’t be forgiven if you don’t apologize, and he has never once said he was sorry for the damage he did to his state.
* You may have seen some stories over the weekend quoting Blagojevich about his opinion on various matters. I’m not posting those stories here and this is why…
An unrepentant convicted felon and incorrigible proven liar should not be given a free pass to say whatever comes out of his putrid mouth without even questioning it. Stop giving credence to this clown's ravings. /rant
* This poll is “new” only in that the Conway campaign decided to publish it today. The survey was completed eight days ago, so some of the numbers are eleven days old. Press release…
With three weeks left before the 2020 Democratic Primary, a new poll released today shows former prosecutor and Naval Intelligence Officer Bill Conway surging in the race for Cook County State’s Attorney. Conway is now within the margin of error (28% Foxx / 26% Conway / 6% Fioretti / 4% More), narrowing his deficit by more than 20 points after trailing Foxx by 22 in December. Additionally, in a head-to-head match-up Conway leads Foxx by 5 (41% Conway / 36% Foxx).
“Voters across Cook County are tired of Kim Foxx’s status quo, where the politically-connected get one set of justice and everyone else gets another,” said campaign spokeswoman Eliza Glezer. “It’s clear that in Bill Conway they see the change we need: someone with the independence and experience to clean up the State’s Attorney’s office so that it works for everyone regardless of who they know or where they’re from.”
Other key findings include:
By more than two to one, likely Democratic primary voters disapprove of how Foxx handled the Jussie Smollett case. With a majority 57% disapproving and only 25% approving, this promises to be a major problem for the incumbent who has refused to answer straightforward questions on how she handled the case for nearly a year and who shows no signs of stopping, despite special prosecutor Dan Webb’s decision to reindict Smollett.
Democratic primary voters are favorable toward Conway and unfavorable toward Foxx. Indeed, while nearly twice as many have favorable views of Conway as unfavorable (29%/16%), Foxx’s rating is net negative (36%/40%), a major problem for a well-known incumbent whose numbers are moving the wrong direction.
Bob Fioretti (6%) and Donna More (4%) are not major factors in this race, and like Foxx their support has trended down since December.
Frankly, I thought the Smollett disapproval would be higher, but that’s certainly not good.
The above findings are from a survey of n=600 likely Cook County Democratic primary voters conducted February 13-16, 2020. The poll’s margin of sampling error is +4.0%.
Illinois is in decent shape for a state facing a slowdown in manufacturing, poor agricultural conditions, and numerous demographic and fiscal problems. The economy is doing better than it has in some time. Several private-sector industries are strengthening, and greater fiscal certainty and growth in tax revenues have allowed the public sector to recoup some jobs. After declining for most of the year, the unemployment rate dipped to an all-time low of 3.7% in December despite a stable labor force. The tight labor market coupled with a better jobs mix is helping to preserve big gains in average hourly earnings.
Most economic gauges point to a performance gap with the Midwest and the U.S. The comprehensive count of jobs from the Quarterly Census of Employment and Wages indicates nonfarm employment growth over the past year was weaker than suggested in the survey estimates. Income growth in key industries such as healthcare, professional/business services and manufacturing was slower than average in 2019. The U.S. trade war with China has taken a toll on the industrial and agricultural parts of the state.
Falling mortgage rates and relatively high affordability have barely offset the effects of adverse changes to the federal tax code and weak population trends. Multifamily housing has propelled almost all the growth in residential construction during the current business cycle. Single family house prices have climbed just 1.5% over the last year, the smallest gain in the Midwest and half the national increase. Home sales are decreasing, and construction remains sluggish.
An array of factors that juiced industrial production and factory job growth in 2018 have all but played out, including federal fiscal stimulus, customers’ rush to stock up before tariffs took effect, and increased demand for oil extraction equipment. Illinois can keep advancing without a positive contribution from manufacturing, but the rest of the economy will have to do its part. Illinois will be hard-pressed to match the U.S. pace of growth in any industry, but the state will lean increasingly on healthcare and professional/business services to power job and income gains. Transportation/warehousing, a vanguard of job growth during this expansion, will expand more slowly in coming years. Consumer industries such as retail and leisure/hospitality will pitch in a bit less as the shrinking population weighs on demand. Population loss and troubled state finances will limit Illinois’ long-term potential.
The report warns lawmakers not to count on another “April surprise” — a $1.5 billion income tax windfall that allowed Pritzker to drop a plan to defer $800 million in pension payments and impose a bevy of new taxes last year. […]
Business leaders and conservatives frequently lament that the cost of doing business in Illinois is too high. But Moody’s said Illinois’ outlook is “tarnished primarily by its budget woes and weak population trends, not its high costs relative to nearby states.”
“Business costs in the state are lower than they are nationally and have trended downward for the past few decades,” according to the report. “Overall costs are similar to those in Ohio, lower than those in Michigan and Wisconsin, but higher than those in neighboring Indiana and Iowa.”
Moody’s analysis found that while businesses in Illinois tend to pay less in taxes and utilities, “labor is on the expensive side” in part because of the “still-high presence of unions.”
* Tom Kacich at the Champaign News-Gazette answers reader letters every week…
“With Blago out of the slammer and (former Congressman) Aaron Schock somehow avoiding prison, what’s the updated number of Illinois politicians in prison? And is this the first time in awhile that at least one of our guvs hasn’t been incarcerated?”
This is the first time since Nov. 6, 2007, that a former Illinois governor wasn’t in federal prison.
As far as the number of Illinois politicians in prison, it appears to be just one: former Chicago Alderman Willie Cochran, who was sentenced to a year in prison last June and is due to be released June 29.
But three current or former state legislators are under indictment — Sen. Tom Cullerton of Villa Park, former Sen. Marty Sandoval of Chicago, and state Rep. Luis Arroyo of Chicago. All three are Democrats.
Sandoval pleaded guilty last month.
Also, Chicago Alderman Ed Burke was indicted last May, has remained in office and has professed innocence.
* The Question: Do you think we’ll make it to June 29th and actually live to see a time period when no Illinois politicians are currently behind bars? Explain.
Illinois’ [red flag law] works like this: A family or household member can bring a complaint to a local court, alleging that a person has threatened to use his or her firearm illegally. If the court is convinced of a potential danger, it orders the person to appear in court and their weapons to be seized by the state, generally for six months up to a year, when the weapons then must be returned to the owner.
A person’s Firearm Owner’s Identification (FOID) card can also be revoked in Illinois, if they threaten or commit serious physical violence. In fact, there’s a mandatory-reporting requirement for law enforcement officials, school administrators, and physicians, who must make a report to authorities, within 24 hours of learning of any kind of threat.
Illinois’ law can also be used to keep firearms away from someone who does not yet possess them
I oppose red flag laws, or any laws that take away our God-given constitutional rights without due process. When my children were growing up, we read several biographies of people that lived in Nazi Germany or communist Russia. And they were controlled by fear. And one of the things the government did is they set up a system where the citizens could tattle on each other. And I’m highly opposed to anything that would promote that.
Friday, Feb 21, 2020 - Posted by Advertising Department
[The following is a paid advertisement.]
As Mike climbs in the polls our team in Illinois continues to grow. Today, we are proud to unveil a new slate of state, county, and local endorsements.
State Representative Andre Thapedi, Cook County Clerk Karen Yarbrough, Cook County Commissioner Scott Britton, Cook County Commissioner Donna Miller, 28th Ward Alderman Jason Ervin, and 24th Ward Alderman Scott Jr. endorsed Mike Bloomberg for president, pledging to support Mike’s national campaign to defeat Donald Trump.
One of Illinois’ most intractable problems is the underfunding of our pension systems.
We must keep our promises to the retirees who earned their pension benefits and forge a realistic path forward to meet those obligations.
The fantasy of a constitutional amendment to cut retirees’ benefits is just that – a fantasy. The idea that all of this can be fixed with a single silver bullet ignores the protracted legal battle that will ultimately run headlong into the Contracts Clause of the U.S. Constitution. You will spend years in that protracted legal battle, and when you’re done, you will have simply kicked the can down the road, made another broken promise to taxpayers, and left them with higher tax bills.
This is not a political football. This is a financial issue that is complex and requires consistency and persistence to manage, with the goal of paying the pensions that are owed.
The contracts clause argument has gotten some traction lately, but it’s not as black and white as Pritzker makes it sound. Respected constitutional scholars say a challenge based on the contracts clause could be defeated. There is U.S. Supreme Court precedent stating contract rights can be weighed against other factors, such as the duty of states to exercise police powers, or to protect the health of residents.
Um, David, first you’ll have to find 71 votes in the House and 36 in the Senate to get it on the ballot. Both of those chambers have pro-union Democratic super-majorities. Face it, man, you’re living in a fantasy world. And it’s not even guaranteed to pass at the ballot box even if it somehow makes it that far. The unions would spend every dime they have and then some and deploy tens of thousands of precinct workers to oppose it. You can’t just snap your fingers and make this all happen.
A pension amendment need not necessarily go to the Supreme Court, either. A negotiated solution with labor unions could lead to needed changes that address Illinois’ pension problems that are fair to all parties. “These benefits are all gained through collective bargaining, so they should be able to be modified through collective bargaining,” said James Spiotto, managing director of Chapman Strategic Advisors, who has written extensively on pension reform.
*facepalm*
Um, public pension benefits cannot be gained or lost as part of the collective bargaining process, David. They must be passed by the Illinois General Assembly and signed into law by a governor. And the Illinois Supreme Court has unanimously ruled that public pension benefits are an individual right, not a collective right. Unions cannot legally negotiate away their members’ pension benefits in this state.
Sheesh. This is just basic 101 stuff, dude.
And how much of a fantasist do you have to be to conjure some alternate version of Illinois where AFSCME Council 31, the IFT, the CTU, the IEA, AFFI, the FOP and SEIU all agree to put a constitutional amendment like this on the ballot and pledge not to sue if it passes? I mean, have you ever met Roberta Lynch or Jesse Sharkey? They ain’t no Arizona-style union leaders. And, in any case, it only takes one person to sue.
This is all a complete, utter fantasy unless the citizenry drastically changes the membership of the General Assembly and elects a governor willing to take up the cause and public union members elect completely different leaders. Or perhaps if a global financial meltdown of a magnitude far greater than 2008-09 (which Illinois survived) totally - and I do mean totally - tanks the budget.
Casey Urlacher, the mayor of North suburban Mettawa and brother of Chicago Bears icon Brian Urlacher, is charged along with nine others in connection with an illegal offshore sports gambling ring, federal prosecutors announced Thursday.
In an indictment alleging one count of participating in the gambling conspiracy and one count of conducting an illegal gambling business, prosecutors say Casey Urlacher worked as an agent for the “illegal gambling business” and recruited gamblers and other sub-agents to the operation.
Prosecutors allege those involved placed bets through a Costa Rican-based gambling platform identified only as “Company A.” The operation began sometime in 2016, according to prosecutors.
Prosecutors said Urlacher was in contact with the group’s ringleader, 54-year-old Vincent Delgiudice of Orland Park, also known as “Uncle Mick,” in December 2018 about setting up an account for a new gambler with a maximum bet of $500 and maximum weekly limit of $3,000.
Casey Urlacher denied any knowledge of the gambling investigation when reached Thursday by the Chicago Sun-Times, and he said he didn’t know any bookie named DelGiudice. “I don’t know nothing about it,” Urlacher said. “I don’t know who you’re talking about.”
But the indictment alleges otherwise. It says Urlacher asked Vincent DelGiudice to create a log-in and password for a new gambler on the website on Dec. 16, 2018. DelGiudice allegedly did so, setting a $500 maximum bet, a $3,000 maximum wager for the week and a $1,000 settle-up figure.
On Dec. 21, 2018, Urlacher allegedly gave an envelope filled with gambling debts owed to DelGiudice to Prassas. That same day, Prassas allegedly passed an envelope filled with Urlacher’s gambling debts on to DelGiudice with the remark, “This is Casey’s.”
Urlacher also allegedly asked DelGiudice by phone on Dec. 26, 2018, to shut down a gambler’s account until the gambler paid a debt. That same day, after the gambler wired $3,000 to Urlacher, Urlacher allegedly texted DelGiudice and told him to turn the gambler’s account back on.
Urlacher lost a Republican primary for the Illinois Senate to Dan McConchie in 2016. I’m guessing this upcoming fundraiser will be at least slightly altered…
McLaughlin is running unopposed for retiring GOP Rep. Dave McSweeney’s seat.
When an FBI raid targeted his company’s county commissioner last year, southwest suburban factory owner Zach Mottl was “ecstatic.”
“I felt like the house fell on the wicked witch,” Mottl said. “That’s what I felt like. And we were free. The munchkins were free.”
Mottl said he felt a target of the raid — Democratic Cook County Commissioner and village of McCook Mayor Jeff Tobolski — had pressured him into making a campaign contribution at the same time his company was seeking Tobolski’s backing for a critical property tax break.
And Mottl provided the Better Government Association and WBEZ with an exchange of emails that detail his story.
A son-in-law of former Cook County Assessor Joseph Berrios is being sued by the Chicago Public Schools, which says he failed to pay “no less than” $366,000 under deals that allowed his company to park cars at 10 elementary schools, mostly for baseball fans going to Cubs games last year.
According to the lawsuit filed in Cook County circuit court, James T. Weiss and his parking business stopped paying CPS last April for the right to park cars at three schools closest to Wrigley Field — but kept charging customers to park there anyway. […]
On Nov. 19, Weiss told CPS his company would no longer be parking cars on school property. That was in a phone call shortly after the Chicago Tribune reported his offices were raided as part of the federal investigation of now-former state Rep Luis Arroyo. Arroyo has since been charged in a federal bribery case involving unregulated video gambling machines.
Weiss — who also owns Collage LLC, which operates unregulated video terminals known as sweepstakes machines — has been lobbying state and city officials to legalize the machines.
* I told subscribers about this bill the other day and the huge number of hysterical opposition phonecalls Sen. Steans’ offices are receiving…
Under newly introduced state legislation, parents in Illinois would no longer be able to claim religion as a reason to refuse vaccinations for their children — a move backed by public health officials as a way to stave off outbreaks of diseases once thought to be eradicated, and shunned by groups vocal about their objections to vaccines.
The bill introduced last week would also limit the reasons allowed for a medical exemption for the immunizations required to enter all Illinois schools, and would allow students as young as 14 to obtain a vaccine without the consent of their parents. If passed, Illinois would become the sixth state to remove religious exemptions, effectively making only certain medical conditions or reactions a way for students in Illinois schools to avoid vaccination. […]
In 2016, the state tightened the rules surrounding religious exemptions, requiring that health care providers sign off and verify that they had provided vaccine education. Despite that, religious exemptions have increased for several vaccines, according to state records. Exemptions based solely on personal or philosophical beliefs are not allowed in Illinois.
Medical experts say high vaccination rates — usually 95% or more, depending on the disease — are necessary to protect those who cannot be vaccinated due to autoimmune disorders or other medical reasons. But distrust in vaccines has caused some Americans to refuse vaccines for their children despite wide availability. This, in part, is blamed for the reemergence of some diseases like measles, according to the World Health Organization, which considers vaccine hesitancy a global health threat.
The legislation has the backing of the Illinois Department of Public Health, according to spokeswoman Melaney Arnold, the Chicago Tribune reports. The department hopes the bill will increase vaccination rates in the Prairie State “and reduce the risk of severe illness among our most vulnerable populations,” according to the outlet.
Opponents of the bill vehemently disagree with the proposed changes. The Illinois Vaccine Awareness Coalition, a group which regularly advocates against the use of vaccines, posted a call to oppose the bill on its website.
“Please WITHDRAW SB3668 – this bill is unnecessary and discriminatory,” the group wrote as an example of what to say to the bill’s sponsor. “Vaccine exemptions are not the problem, schools failing to collect and submit vaccine record paperwork is the problem…Please focus on the serious record keeping issue and don’t remove religious and parental rights based on misrepresented immunization levels.”
Most of the replies to Sen. Steans’ Facebook post are just way over the top. They’re a clear demonstration of why this policy is needed. People are endangering others’ lives.
According to the synopsis of the bill, the proposed legislation would remove all language from state law that would let children attend school without being vaccinated because of religious reasons.
According to state immunization data, about 3% of all Illinois students are not vaccinated against major diseases from measles and mumps to polio and chicken pox.
It amounts to about 64,000 students statewide. Of those, about 18,000 are listed as noncompliant due to religious exemptions. About 2,300 are not vaccinated because of medical reasons. Less than 5,000 students are on approved alternate schedules.
As we’ve discussed before, some schools have huge non-compliance rates.
* From the Center for Tax and Budget Accountability…
Governor Pritzker’s approach to the state budget stands in stark contrast to that of Governor Rauner. While both emphasized the need for fiscal responsibility, Governor Pritzker is actually supporting his rhetoric about fiscal responsibility with actions. For instance, Illinois has had a “structural deficit” in its General Fund for decades. That just means revenue growth under current tax policy is insufficient on a year-to-year basis to continue funding the same level of public services, adjusting solely for inflation and assuming no changes in law. This structural deficit, coupled with the fact that Illinois has traditionally underfunded core services like education, healthcare, public safety, and social services, are some of the key fiscal realities that motivated Governor Pritzker to support raising an estimated $3.6 billion in new revenue through implementation of a graduated-rate income tax - a policy initiative that has the corollary benefit of creating more fairness in Illinois taxation - by having income tax rates comport with ability to pay.
However, as Governor Pritzker recognized in his budget address, that new revenue will only be realized if this coming November, voters ratify the amendment to the state’s constitution needed to permit a graduated rate income tax. And even if voters ratify this amendment, the state won’t implement the new, fair, graduated-rate structure until halfway through upcoming FY 2021 - meaning it will only generate $1.4 billion in new revenue during FY 2021, growing to $3.6 billion annually thereafter.
Which is why Governor Pritzker took the fiscally prudent step of proposing two separate General Fund budgets for FY 2021, forcing the state to live within its fiscal means, whether or not the amendment passes. The Governor’s “recommended” budget identifies appropriations for core services that would be made, if the amendment to the constitution permitting a graduated rate income tax is ratified. During his budget address, Governor Pritzker emphasized he will devote a portion of the new revenue a graduated rate income tax will generate to shoring up Illinois’ questionable fiscal condition, rather than to enhanced spending on services. He does this by devoting $100 million to deficit reduction, investing $50 million to build-back the state’s rainy-day fund, and contributing $100 million more to the state’s five public employee pension systems than is required under current law.
The Governor also proposed a far more stringent “base budget,” built upon the assumption the Fair Tax amendment does not pass, and hence the state has $1.4 billion less in revenue to spend in FY 2021. Because of that, and in the name of being fiscally responsible, Governor Pritzker makes numerous “hard choices” (his words) to invest less than what the Governor believes is needed to fund core services like education, healthcare and public safety. He accomplishes this by “reserving” a portion of the target appropriations made in his recommended budget proposal, that ultimately would not be made if the amendment permitting a graduated-rate income tax does not become law.
CTBA agrees with Governor Pritzker’s focus on being fiscally responsible, and applauds his efforts to reduce the accumulated deficit, build the rainy-day fund and pre-pay some of the significant debt owed to the pension systems. Indeed, any effort to prepay what’s owed to the pension systems to flatten the unaffordably back-loaded repayment schedule his administration inherited that covers the existing pension debt is sound fiscal policy. We at CTBA think he should go much further and have a full reamortization plan (click here for more info) to deal with this problem once and for all, but laud the fact that he is focusing on the issue in a rational way.
However, CTBA disagrees with his proposal to reserve up to $150 million of the $300-$350 million in Evidence-Based Funding appropriated for FY 2021. Effectively, that means K-12 funding under the base budget proposed by the Governor for FY 2021 would [grow] by only $200 million over FY 2020 levels. If that happens it would be the first time K-12 funding did not grow by the minimum amount of $300 million targeted in statute, since the Evidence Based Funding Formula was enacted in FY 2018. It also means that Evidence Based Funding for FY 2021 would barely keep pace with inflation, effectively providing little true new money for school districts to invest in providing those evidence-based practices shown to enhance student achievement over time. That’s problematic, given that according to the Illinois State Board of Education, as it stands today, overall K-12 funding is some $7 billion less than what the evidence indicates is needed for all students to receive an adequately funded education. Barely keeping pace with inflation does nothing to close that material shortfall. And by failing to reduce that funding gap in any meaningful way, the $200 million appropriation for Evidence Based Funding in the “base” budget proposal increases the pressure on local property taxes to fund schools. Considering that Illinois is already the state that is most reliant on property taxes to fund K-12 education in America, it would be far better fiscal - and education funding policy - for the state to continue down the path of boosting the state investment in K-12, thereby taking pressure off of property taxes. An alternative to a reduction in K-12 funding that still allows the state of Illinois to live within its means would be withholding a portion of the $500 million appropriated for research facility investments for the University of Illinois, as proposed by Representative Will Davis. This would allow Illinois to continue making the necessary investment in K-12 education vital for students to succeed at the college level.
I generally concur with much of the above.
The governor essentially presented a maintenance budget, dressed up with some extra funding promises if the voters approve a constitutional amendment on taxation this November. I have no real problem with that.
But a governor’s budget is essentially his list of priorities. He told reporters yesterday that education was his top priority. His official budget proposal plainly does not reflect that claim.
Rep. Avery Bourne, R-Morrisonville, said school districts are required by law to submit their budgets to the state by September. However, under Pritzker’s budget plan, they won’t know how much state assistance they can expect until months after that deadline.
“It will force their budgeting process to make difficult decisions without the certainty of knowing what the state will be sending to them at the end of the year,” Bourne said. “It means local school districts will be making decisions on hiring, on resources for their classrooms before we know the outcome of the governor’s political agenda.”
But they can only go so far before their logic falls apart. Governor’s office response…
“Governor Pritzker is a tireless and staunch advocate for education funding, which is why he fought to find a way to actually pay for substantial increases for our schools and why he strongly supports the fair tax,” Bittner said. “It is the height of hypocrisy for Republicans to demand increased spending and refuse to pay for it. The governor’s door is always open to hear ideas from both sides of the aisle on addressing our challenges.”
* Related…
* Gov. Pritzker’s budget address concerns some Illinois school administrators: Pritzker’s contingency on the graduated income tax is not ideal for Vienna Superintendent Joshua Stafford. “We can’t have political contingencies tied to education of our children of Illinois. It’s impossible for a school district to plan for next school year and have contingencies tied to our funding,” he said.
* House Republicans disagree with Gov. Pritzker’s school funding proposal: “When I was listening to the Governor’s speech and he mentioned this, I couldn’t help but think of the old line - it’s a nice funding formula you got here. It would be a shame if something happened to it,” Rep. Steven Reick (R-Woodstock) said.
In a win for the First Amendment right to circulate petitions, a federal judge has struck down the City of Chicago’s restrictive rules that did not allow First Amendment activities in Millennium Park, including circulating referendum petitions and outdoor evangelizing. The case stemmed in part from petition passers being harassed by security while collecting signatures for a referendum to term limit the Mayor of Chicago between 2016 and 2018.
Judge John Robert Blakey of the Northern District of Illinois found that Millennium Park’s rules unconstitutionally limit the free-speech rights of petition passers and those wishing to evangelize and distribute religious literature. The Court further found that the rules were unconstitutionally vague and were being enforced arbitrarily and “in a discriminatory manner,” including based on the identity of the speaker.
In his opinion, Judge Blakey stated that if the City of Chicago’s arguments in favor of the rules were to stand, “any park with a statue could lose its First Amendment protections.” The judge wrote, “The law precludes this absurd result.”
Attorneys Pat Quinn, former Governor of Illinois, and Ed Mullen represented petition passers Elizabeth Norden, Tyler Brumfield, Doris Davenport, and William Morgan in the case of Swart et al v. City of Chicago. They joined students from Wheaton College, represented by the firm Mauck & Baker, who were told they could not evangelize and hand out religious literature in Millennium Park.
Norden, Brumfield, Davenport, and Morgan testified that they were harassed and intimidated by Millennium Park personnel on the Great Lawn of the park, asked to leave the park, and threatened with arrest while circulating petitions for a term limit referendum on Chicago’s mayor.
This Court’s analysis of the other preliminary injunction factors requires little discussion. In First Amendment cases, the likelihood of success is dispositive because the loss of First Amendment freedoms—even for minimal periods of time— constitutes an irreparable injury, and protecting First Amendment freedoms always serves the public interest.
As a newly minted member of the Illinois General Assembly in 2007, Rep. La Shawn Ford of Chicago remembers his first bill: a proposal to eliminate from state job applications the question asking if someone had ever been convicted of a nonviolent crime. Then-Gov. Rod R. Blagojevich (D) vetoed it.
The veto was one of the many choices Blagojevich’s critics now cite as part of his dismal track record on criminal-justice reform while governor, an office from which he was later impeached and removed and ultimately convicted of leveraging for financial gain in a 2009 political corruption trial that led to his 14-year prison sentence. Blagojevich’s history on criminal justice is especially striking now that he’s received the mercy he rarely showed others as the state’s top executive — a commutation Tuesday from President Trump. […]
According to the Illinois Prisoner Review Board, Blagojevich took action on fewer than 25 percent of clemency petitions filed while he was governor, NBC Chicago reported in 2016 — 13 years after the backlog began. A group of Illinoisans with felony records went as far as suing Blagojevich over his inaction on clemency requests. […]
“There were ‘actual innocence’ petitions that some of our clients needed to get compensation for all the years they wrongfully spent in prison, and even those were stalled,” Drizin said. It got so bad that state lawmakers, still during Blagojevich’s tenure, created a workaround process for granting the ultimate forms of expungement because the governor’s office was so ineffective.
Illinois has done away with many of the mechanisms that other states rely on to make sure that people who can be safely returned to the community do not languish in prison.
Our state abolished parole in 1978. Eleven years later, Illinois made it extraordinarily difficult, and often impossible, for people in prison to get their sentences reduced through good behavior.
Illinois has no mechanism for releasing the terminally ill or the medically incapacitated. Our state has rendered rehabilitation, personal growth and mercy irrelevant.
In this landscape of despair, executive commutation of a sentence has remained a glimmering hope for thousands upon thousands of people who simply should not be in prison.
We are talking about people like Basil Powell, a 69-year-old man who has served more than 36 years of a natural life sentence for his role as the getaway driver in gas station robberies in which no one was hurt. He was sentenced to die in prison even though he was unarmed during the robberies, even though his armed codefendant went home after six years, and even though he has a wife, a daughter and four grandchildren at home.
Blagojevich, who yesterday was the beneficiary of executive grace, ignored the petition of Basil Powell, just as he ignored thousands upon thousands of other equally reasonable and compelling requests for relief.
Trump’s order specifically noted the president was not commuting the two-year period of supervised release imposed by U.S. Judge James Zagel. Under the conditions, Blagojevich has to meet with probation regularly, cannot leave the jurisdiction without permission and must seek employment.
If he has trouble finding a job, Blagojevich must do at least 20 hours a week of community service until he finds one, with a maximum 200 hours served.
* WBEZ FOIA’d emails between Mike McClain and the House Speaker’s office, including former Madigan chief of staff Tim Mapes, and eventually received 1,200 pages of documents. Excerpt from the station’s team coverage…
Madigan aides not only discussed ComEd jobs for loyalists. The emails show the speaker and his top staffers were taking good care of the electric company in Springfield.
In the spring of 2014, Madigan took the lead on a resolution on behalf of Exelon that warned of “dire consequences” if the company’s money-losing nuclear power plants were to shut down.
Emails between Madigan’s top advisers and McClain show how they worked in tandem to silence dissent on the pro-bailout resolution by hand-picking the lawmakers who would get to vote on it in a legislative committee.
Ahead of the vote, Exelon had identified at least six Democratic members of the committee who were likely to vote against the company’s interests. In response, Will Cousineau, a high-ranking member of the speaker’s staff, suggested a plan to remove opponents from the committee for this one vote.
The next day the opponents Exelon had identified were substituted from the committee – and the resolution passed 16 to 0. Cousineau’s tactic delighted McClain so much, he wrote him, “I love you.”
Two years after that resolution was unanimously approved by the House Environment Committee, Exelon won legislative approval for a multi-billion-dollar ratepayer bailout.
Cousineau later left Madigan’s staff and became a lobbyist. His clients included ComEd.
A clout-heavy southwest suburb has received a subpoena from federal investigators seeking documents about powerful Illinois House Speaker and state Democratic Party boss Michael Madigan, according to records obtained by WBEZ.
The village of Bridgeview – whose mayor, Steve Landek, is a Democratic state senator and longtime Madigan ally – was served with the grand jury subpoena on Friday, the records show.
The feds are asking for all of Bridgeview’s correspondences, including internal emails, that involve Madigan and four men who have close ties to the speaker […]
The feds also are demanding that Bridgeview officials turn over “all records related to” Raymond Nice, another veteran campaign worker in Madigan’s Southwest Side ward organization.
Documents obtained by WBEZ show Bridgeview paid Nice’s company $1,000 a month for “business and consulting services.”
Nice also had a $1,000-a-month deal as a “special consultant” for another southwest suburb, Merrionette Park – which received a virtually identical federal subpoena to the one Bridgeview got, on the same day Bridgeview officials were served. The Chicago Sun-Times first reported the subpoena of Merrionette Park on Wednesday.
Odelson, the Merrionette Park village lawyer, said the federal government inquiry has “zero” to do with the two mayors, and is focused on Nice and his business.
Friday, Feb 21, 2020 - Posted by Advertising Department
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