* Press release…
John R. Lausch, Jr., United States Attorney for the Northern District of Illinois, today joined Attorney General William P. Barr and President Donald J. Trump to announce the expansion of Operation Legend to Chicago.
Operation Legend is a sustained, systematic and coordinated law enforcement initiative in which federal law enforcement agencies work in conjunction with state and local law enforcement officials to fight violent crime. The Operation was first launched on July 8, 2020, in Kansas City, Mo., as a result of President Trump’s promise to assist America’s cities that are plagued by recent violence. Operation Legend is named after four-year-old LeGend Taliferro, who was shot and killed while he slept early in the morning of June 29, 2020, in Kansas City. The first federal arrest under Operation Legend was announced on July 20, 2020.
As part of Operation Legend, Attorney General Barr directed the FBI, U.S. Marshals Service, DEA, and ATF to significantly increase resources into Chicago, as well as Albuquerque, N.M., in the coming weeks to help state and local officials fight high levels of violent crime, particularly gun violence.
“A top priority as federal prosecutors is to reduce violent crime, particularly in a large urban area like Chicago,” said U.S. Attorney Lausch. “As part of Operation Legend, additional federal resources will assist our office and our federal, state, and local law enforcement partners to increase prosecutions of trigger-pullers, drug traffickers, carjackers, and those who illegally traffic, use, and possess firearms. We will use these new resources and every other available federal law enforcement tool to reduce the unacceptable level of violent crime in Chicago.”
“The most basic responsibility of government is to protect the safety of our citizens,” said Attorney General Barr. “Today, we have extended Operation Legend to Chicago and Albuquerque to protect the residents of those cities from senseless acts of deadly violence by targeting those involved in gang activity and those who use guns to commit violent crime. For decades, the Department of Justice has achieved significant success when utilizing our anti-violent crime task forces and federal law enforcement agents to enforce federal law and assist American cities which are experiencing upticks in violent crime. The Department of Justice’s assets will supplement local law enforcement efforts, as we work together to take the shooters and chronic violent criminals off of our streets.”
Chicago is currently experiencing a significant increase in violent crime, with homicides up 51% over 2019. Over the weekend of July 17, more than 60 people were shot in the city of Chicago, with 14 fatalities. Similarly, Albuquerque is currently on pace to break 2019’s record for homicides in the city. On the weekend of July 10, there were four murders in Albuquerque within a 24-hour period.
In Chicago, the Department of Justice will supplement state and local law enforcement agencies by sending more than 100 federal investigators from the FBI, DEA, and ATF to the city. Under the leadership of U.S. Attorney Lausch, these investigators will complement the work already underway by existing joint federal, state and local task forces focused on combatting Chicago’s violent criminals, gangs, and drug trafficking organizations. The investigatory efforts will be advanced by more than 100 members of the U.S. Marshals Service Great Lakes Task Force, which will direct violent fugitive apprehension operations within Chicago to identify wanted gang members, violent criminals, and firearms violators. The Department of Homeland Security’s Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) is also committing 100 agents, already stationed in Chicago, to Operation Legend. HSI agents will conduct investigations into gangs, narcotics traffickers, violent offenders, and firearms traffickers.
To further support the Chicago Police Department in reducing violent crime, ATF has deployed its national Crime Gun Intelligence Mobile Command Vehicle to assist local law enforcement with analysis of crime scenes and spent shell casings through the National Integrated Ballistic Information Network (NIBIN). ATF will also make available additional resources to assist the city of Chicago in providing timely, efficient analysis of ballistic evidence from shootings in order to quickly disrupt violent criminals and prosecute those prohibited from possessing firearms under federal law. The Bureau of Justice Assistance will make available $3.5 million in funding to reimburse the Chicago Police Department and City of Chicago for the work of local law enforcement on the federal task forces supporting Operation Legend’s violent crime reduction efforts. The COPS Office has also made $9.375 million available to the Chicago Police Department to fund the hiring of 75 officers.
I’ll post react if it comes in.
…Adding… Durbin and Duckworth…
U.S. Senators Dick Durbin (D-IL) and Tammy Duckworth (D-IL) today released the following statement regarding the Department of Justice (DOJ) announcing an expansion of Operation Legend to Chicago, Illinois. Operation Legend is DOJ’s violent crime reduction initiative with the stated goal to provide support and assistance to state and local law enforcement partners as they work to combat violent crime, and gun violence in particular. Durbin and Duckworth are set to speak with U.S. Attorney John Lausch about Operation Legend today.
“After needless threats from the President, we’re relieved the Trump Administration says they plan to work with local officials and authorities in Chicago rather than undermine local law enforcement and endanger our civil rights, as their agents have done in Portland. We will continue closely monitoring the Administration’s efforts to ensure they follow through with this commitment.
“More than three years ago, we sent President Trump a letter suggesting a range of ways in which the Federal Government could work in partnership with local officials to provide support and resources to assist in public safety, violence prevention, and economic development efforts in Chicago. While we are hopeful that today’s announcement means the Administration has reconsidered and will take a more positive approach, President Trump still has not replied to our letter nor followed through with our suggestions. We reiterate that these steps would be more effective in reducing violence in Chicago than any effort the Administration may take to replicate the destabilizing role it played in Portland.”
In their 2017 letter which they reiterated yesterday, Durbin and Duckworth recommended that the Trump Administration take steps to assist local violence prevention efforts, including:
• enhancing Department of Justice (DOJ) programs that improve community policing;
• directing DOJ to promote mentoring and job training programs for youth and formerly incarcerated individuals;
• improving mentoring and violence prevention initiatives and boosting funding for recidivism reduction programs;
• directing DOJ to abide by its commitment to help implement policing reforms recommended by the Department’s Civil Rights Division;
• closing gaps in the FBI gun background check system and in federal firearm laws that enable straw purchasers and gun traffickers to flood Chicago’s streets with illicit guns;
• prioritizing career and youth training programs to address lack of economic opportunity in neighborhoods hit hard by violence; and
• redirecting resources that are being devoted to construction of a border wall and committing those resources instead to the efforts discussed above.
The expansion of Operation Legend will consist of an increased federal law enforcement presence in Albuquerque, New Mexico, and in Chicago, Illinois. This federal law enforcement presence will consist of experienced investigative agents from FBI, DEA, ATF, U.S. Marshals, and HSI, focused on providing support to existing violent crime task forces.
*** UPDATE *** Mayor Lightfoot…
The President reached out to Mayor Lightfoot this evening to confirm that he plans to send federal resources to Chicago to supplement ongoing federal investigations pertaining to violent crime. The conversation was brief and straightforward. Mayor Lightfoot maintains that all resources will be investigatory in nature and be coordinated through the U.S. Attorney’s office. The Mayor has made clear that if there is any deviation from what has been announced, we will pursue all available legal options to protect Chicagoans.
94 Comments  
|
* Greg Hinz…
A key Illinois House committee chairman is rejecting calls from Springfield Republicans for public legislative hearings on whether ratepayers got bilked in the ComEd bribery scandal—and, if so, what to do about it.
In a statement, House Energy Committee Chairman Ann Williams, D-Chicago, said that while she voted against the “smart grid” legislation of 2011, which raised rates and is at the core of the scandal, now is not the right time for the Legislature to respond.
“A legislative committee is not the appropriate place to investigate a criminal matter currently under the jurisdiction of the U.S. attorney’s office,” Williams said. “As was the precedent during prior corruption cases, the House Energy & Environment Committee will not hold hearings that could impede or interfere with an ongoing federal investigation.”
Williams, a member of the House Progressive Caucus, which occasionally has clashed with Speaker Mike Madigan, declined to elaborate when asked whether any interference would be minimal. ComEd already has confessed in its deferred-prosecution deal with federal prosecutors to improperly giving jobs, contracts and other financial inducements to benefit Madigan.
* Others, however, are holding hearings. For instance, this is from the ICC…
In response to the Deferred Prosecution Agreement revealed by the Department of Justice on Friday, the Illinois Commerce Commission requested Commonwealth Edison executives to appear before the Commission during its Open Meeting on July 29, 2020. Since the beginning of the new administration, the Commission has been committed to fostering a culture of transparency, accountability and inclusivity at the agency. This includes holding utility companies accountable for their compliance with ethics reforms required by a law enforcement agency. At the open meeting on July 29th, the Commission will have an opportunity to ask ComEd executives about the ethics reforms that the company says it has implemented.
The Illinois Commerce Commission is the state agency charged with reviewing all utility costs on behalf of consumers to make sure those costs are allowed under the law and reasonable. Pursuant to that duty, the Commission will take action to ensure that ComEd is not paying the $200 million criminal penalty at the expense of Illinois’ electricity consumers. Additionally, under Illinois law, utilities like ComEd cannot charge consumers for the costs of the company’s lobbyists. The Commission will continue to take steps to ensure that law is followed.
* Mayor Lightfoot…
The conduct admitted to by ComEd in the Deferred Prosecution Agreement unveiled today is deeply disturbing. The Department of Justice is appropriately holding ComEd accountable for their criminal conduct. As a significant vendor for the City of Chicago, ComEd must also be accountable to the taxpayers and residents of Chicago. As Mayor, I have made transparency, reform and accountability pillars of my administration. And, as a former federal prosecutor myself, I know the thorough and meticulous work that goes into the scale of this kind of investigation and this type of agreement.
As a City, we are committed to ensuring that all Chicagoans can access high quality, reliable services at rates that are affordable for all our residents, particularly our most vulnerable. It is also critical that consumer voices are heard in response to today’s announcement, which is why the Committee on Environmental Protection and Energy will hold a public hearing on July 30th to hear directly from ComEd leadership as well as from residents. Chicagoans deserve fairness and transparency from all who are paid with taxpayer dollars, and my administration will do everything in our power to ensure that expectation is a reality.
8 Comments
|
* CBPP…
As states revisit their spending plans for the 2021 budget year, which began July 1 in most states, they are making deep budget cuts to offset huge revenue shortfalls triggered by COVID-19 and the worst economic downturn since the Great Depression. The initial state and local cuts enacted in spring and early summer caused sizable harm through layoffs, furloughs, and cuts to vital public services. Unless federal policymakers provide a new round of flexible fiscal aid, the harm will only worsen.
With business closures and layoffs sharply reducing state income and sales taxes, we estimate that state shortfalls will total about $555 billion through 2022. That’s a sharper drop than even in the worst three years of the Great Recession and its aftermath of a decade ago, and it doesn’t include the added state and local costs to confront the virus, such as more testing centers and hospital capacity. States must balance their budgets even in recessions, so state policymakers face enormous pressure to fill these shortfalls however they can, including with damaging cuts. […]
Some states have found ways to shield K-12 public schools or health services from their initial cuts, but that’s likely unsustainable. Policymakers will find it nearly impossible to protect these programs entirely over time, since education and health make up more than half of state spending nationwide. Indeed, several states have already slashed crucial health programs, such as substance use treatment and prevention.
More federal aid would enable states to reverse many of these cuts and minimize further cuts next year, when revenues likely will still be significantly depressed. That would limit further damage from the crisis, which has especially hurt people of color and economically struggling communities. It also would help lay the groundwork for state and local economies to recover more strongly.
The current crisis is simply too large for states to handle on their own. Federal aid in the Families First Act and CARES Act, both enacted in March, helped, but only about $100 billion of it is flexible enough for states to use to offset revenue shortfalls and limit cuts in services. Even after accounting for states’ “rainy day” reserves, which were a historically high $75 billion when the crisis started, about $380 billion in potential shortfalls remains through 2022.
Chart…
Note: Illinois’ rainy day fund is about 85 cents.
14 Comments
|
* Block Club Chicago…
Citing Stephen Douglas’ racist past, the Park District has moved to rename Douglas Park for Black abolitionist Frederick Douglass.
In a special meeting Wednesday, the Chicago Park District Board voted unanimously to move forward with the process to rename the West Side park for Frederick Douglass, opening up a 45-day comment period for Chicagoans to weigh in.
The long-awaited renaming could signal a tide of change as officials assess other statues, parks and street names honoring racists and controversial figures in the city.
In 2017, West Side youth began asking the city to rename their neighborhood park to honor abolitionist Frederick Douglass instead of slavery advocate Stephen Douglas. A park in a neighborhood that’s about 90 percent Black shouldn’t memorialize a white supremacist, they reasoned.
For three years, the city largely ignored their efforts.
I didn’t realize this until today, but Stephen Douglas changed the spelling of his name when he was in his 20s. He was born Stephen Arnold Douglass…
The younger Douglas would drop the second “s” from his name in 1846, the year after the publication of Frederick Douglass’s first autobiography; it is unknown if these two events were connected.
16 Comments
|
Research issues
Wednesday, Jul 22, 2020 - Posted by Rich Miller
* NRCC…
Hey –
Betsy Dirksen Londrigan’s ComEd lobbyist donors are back in the headlines.
Which raises the question: Will Betsy give back the thousands of dollars the corrupt Magidan-cronies donated to her campaign?
(See here, here, here and here.)
Or will she hold onto the dirty dollars and keep hiding in silence?
[VIEW ONLINE]
–
Carly Atchison
NRCC
Regional Press Secretary
* Champaign News-Gazette…
21 Comments
|
* The governor made a bit of news at his news media briefing today…
I also want to provide an update for our residents who are at risk of losing their housing. Because of this pandemic. Since March we’ve protected millions of Illinoisans by banning residential evictions. Today I’m extending that moratorium through August 22.
I take this step today because I want to ensure that we have support in places in place so that we have support in place for those who are most vulnerable. As many of you know, we worked with the General Assembly to put in place two programs to help those whose housing is insecure, one for renters, and one for homeowners. Each distributing $150 million.
Starting the week of August 10, applications will open for renters. And then the week of August 28 for homeowners. Through the fall recipients will be awarded grants of $5,000 for renters, and up to $15,000 for homeowners. And meanwhile we continue to explore partnerships and ways that we can provide additional support for many people their ability to weather this crisis hinges on their ability to keep a roof over their family’s heads. It’s not enough to say that we want to build a more just and equitable state on the other side of this pandemic. We have to take tangible action to get there. Today marks another step forward, though, frankly, our work is not done.
I’ll be back with the Q&A in a bit. Please pardon all transcription errors.
* Before taking questions, Pritzker said this…
Before I take questions I also want to take a moment to address the violence that too many residents are experiencing in their communities. As Governor I have and will continue to invest in communities that have been neglected for far too long.
Earlier today, I also spoke to the head of the Chicago office of the FBI to convey my long standing position I welcome legitimate resources from the federal government to reduce violence and help our residents stay safe. That can mean getting illegal guns off the street or investigating criminal enterprises, and I welcome the support for our local and state efforts to reduce crime.
But let’s be clear. That also means we must invest in our schools, in our physical and mental health services in workforce development programs that build up opportunity where years of disinvestment have hollowed it out. If you want to fix a problem, you start with the roots of the problem.
But what I will not stand for are efforts that undermine civil rights and civil liberties, like what’s happening in Portland, conducted anonymously under the cover of darkness and with no transparency. Any effort from the federal government to undermine the basic freedoms this nation has in its best moment aspired to protect will be met with resistance from this state government.
* He was then asked about the Portland issue and his conversation with DHS…
The Acting Secretary of Homeland Security did not return my phone call and said that he would not over the next 48 hours. So that’s what happened in that call ytesterday. I have worked tirelessly over the last few days, speaking with not only the mayor but the Attorney General to coordinate activities that we might engage in, if we need to push back on some force of the Federal Protective Services that might arrive, the kinds of issues that are on the ground in Portland. And so we’re, you know, we’re talking about that working that out. We are hopeful that that will not be the case. We know that the ATF the FBI, the DEA are coming to and are in Chicago, engaged in activities to help our local law enforcement, the state police are engaged in that, Chicago police departments, police departments across the state, in fact, are engaged in that and that seems legitimate activity to go after criminal enterprises, and I encourage that. We need to get violence and criminal enterprises shut down.
* What about imposing a quarantine on visits from people in surrounding states?…
So ,let me begin by by doubling down on what you just said, which is every state around us has either double or triple our positivity rate. So this is challenging for us right. And we don’t live in a country where you close the borders between states. And we’re not going to stop people who live in Illinois and work in Wisconsin from doing so.
And you can’t ask somebody who crosses the border every day to go to work, who’s following all the mitigations that we’ve asked, you know, wear a mask, wash your hands all the things we’ve asked them to do. They’re not gathering in large groups, but they go to work every day. You can’t ask them to quarantine for 14 days at a time. So that’s not something that we really can do. We have a lot of border counties in Illinois, where people on one side or the other of the border regularly cross because they have family, or because they work on the other side of the border.
So instead what we need is for Illinoisans to do, frankly, what most people have been doing. But we just need everybody to pay close close attention to this. If you’re not wearing a mask you’re doing it wrong. You have to wear a mask if I told you you could take a pill that would reduce the likelihood of you getting COVID-19 by 80%, you would do it. And that’s what happens when people wear masks, we reduce the likelihood of transmission by 80%.
* He also said this…
We’re encouraging local officials to shut down things, for example like we’re aware of a party bus company in Metro East where people get on and they go from bar to bar to bar. Well guess what happened? Somebody on one of those party buses either contracted it along the way or had it when they went to on a party bus and spread it to the locations that they went to. So the local officials have to be asking themselves, how do we cut down on the spread? Well one way to do that might be to first of all completely disinfect all the buses. Second of all, make sure you’ve got social distancing and third possibly shutting down those party buses.
Pritzker was asked about contact tracing and said tracers were currently reaching about 61 percent of people identified “within a reasonable period of time.”
* There is clearly not a flattening now, right?…
Dr. Ezike: We have seen an increase in cases and I know some people say, oh it’s just because there’s more testing. There’s a way to look at that, actually, if you do more testing your positivity should actually go down the more testing you do. So for it to even stay about flat suggests that there’s increased transmission. So yes we’re seeing increased transmission. Some of it was predictable, as we opened up more we have you know places at 25% capacity 50% capacity places that were completely closed, you know, personal services all the kind of movies and going from groups of 10 to groups of 50, of course, we can imagine that there’s more opportunity for the virus to be spread and in fact, that has been the case. And so, we needed to have the opening and the increased ability to do more things we needed that to be coupled with like 100% masking and distancing. And so I think our rates are probably high, but we really need like full hundred percent compliance to really try to keep our rates, where they were or keep them lowering so we’re in, you know, in treating or asking for the public to continue supporting us with that encourage people who aren’t doing it, why they should we need everybody to be on the same page for this.
* The governor also stepped in to warn bar owners…
There’s no doubt about it, we need to increasing masking not decrease, and we’re never going to get to 100% but that’s our goal anyway we want everybody to wear a mask, everybody who’s medically able and an old enough to be able to keep a mask on. But the other thing I’d point out is that as you open things up, what happens is some bar owners, for example, go beyond the capacity limits that we’ve allowed. And that is when you really run into trouble because it’s already difficult enough in bars. … Guess what your you know your droplets are greater because you’re drinking. And people tend to be yelling or shouting or speaking louder than they normally do because there’s music playing. And so there’s greater risk. And that’s why we’ve kept the capacity limits where they are. But when people don’t abide by those when bars don’t abide by those, it really creates a problem and that isn’t the only place I’m not just calling them out but I just want to be clear that just opening up doesn’t mean that we’re going to have a problem. It’s opening up and then having people not abide by the rules, and understand that opening up means having a greater attention to wearing a mask.
* IDPH is now reporting probable cases, not just confirmed cases. Why?…
Dr. Ezike: Yeah, the CDC started putting those metrics out there, probable cases. I lose track of dates in COVID world, but I think it’s been, I think it’s, it’s been more than three or four weeks that they were going to put up probable cases. And so they’re asking us to put forth the problem cases probable cases are people who were contacts of confirmed case that then develops similar symptoms in the timeframe that would suggest that, in fact, you know this person had covid you lived with them. We didn’t test you but you had all the symptoms and you know you had this direct epidemiologic link, you probably had it too. So those are the probable cases so if the lab wasn’t done for that second individual, but all signs point to being. This was COVID, then that’s a probable case and so the CDC has been asking us to put probable cases we’re trying to put that to be with them. We don’t have, you know, in the beginning when we didn’t have all the testing, right, we know that there were many cases where we would say yeah don’t even try to get a test, you know this person had it, you probably have it just stand out if you get sick go to the hospital, but just stay sequestered you know stay isolated. So there’s lots of probable cases that are not in our total, you are correct.
* Thoughts on President Trump encouraging the wearing of masks?…
It’s never too late to learn more, you know what the right thing to do is. And so I’m very glad that the President did that. I think there are probably a lot of people who follow his every word and now understand that this is the right thing for them to do. We want everybody safe. I don’t care what their politics are. Everybody in Illinois, I want them to wear a mask and if the president comes out in favor of wearing masks which he seemed to yesterday, then I think that can only be a good thing.
* IDES debit card fraud scheme…
So it appears and I’m just giving you what my understanding is now. It appears that in past breaches, we’ve all heard about these massive breaches of systems of corporations, and then they warn you, go get your credit report, and so on. Many people don’t do that. Many people don’t respond properly to that.
So all of that information is being held by somebody, some hacker right, who wants to use it at some point in the future, and waits a long enough period of time until they can find the right thing to do without you paying a lot of attention. And so they hold on to the information and this apparently this program the federal government set up was something that was attractive to those hackers. And so that’s the, the fraud has been engaged in by them with information that they obtained in some other capacity, and they you know that it’s not that they’re breaching our systems is they’re applying in the normal way that people apply to get these programs and payments to them. Using the names that they’ve gotten now how they would obtain them from somebody’s mailbox if it were sent to somebody. I’m not sure. There’s a lot of federal investigation going on and I’m hopeful that they’ll get to the bottom of it as soon as possible. We want to warn everybody.
23 Comments
|
* Press release…
SPRINGFIELD – The Illinois Department of Public Health (IDPH) today announced 1,598 new confirmed cases of coronavirus disease (COVID-19) in Illinois, including 23 additional confirmed deaths.
- Cook County: 1 male 40s, 1 female 50s, 1 male 50s, 3 females 60s, 1 male 60s, 1 female 70s, 1 male 70s, 2 females 80s, 1 female 90s
- DeKalb County: 1 female 90s
- DuPage County: 1 female 50s
- Kane County: 1 female 70s, 1 female 90s
- Knox County: 1 female 70s
- Lake County: 1 female 70s
- McHenry County: 1 male 50s
- Montgomery County: 1 female 100+
- St. Clair County: 1 female 70s
- Winnebago County: 1 female 70s, 1 female 90s
Currently, IDPH is reporting a total of 165,301 cases, including 7,347 deaths, in 102 counties in Illinois. The age of cases ranges from younger than one to older than 100 years. Within the past 24 hours, laboratories have reported 39,633 specimens for a total of 2,348,487. The preliminary seven-day statewide positivity for cases as a percent of total test from July 15 –July 21 is 3.2%. As of last night, 1,456 people in Illinois were reported to be in the hospital with COVID-19. Of those, 337 patients were in the ICU and 132 patients with COVID-19 were on ventilators.
…Adding… Press release…
As the state continues to build out a robust COVID-19 testing and tracing infrastructure, the Illinois Department of Public Health (IDPH) today announced a Notice of Funding Opportunity (NOFO) for public health organizations to assist with contact tracing efforts.
Through the NOFO, IDPH will award a grant to one organization in each of the nine regions outlined in Governor Pritzker’s COVID-19 resurgence mitigation plan, with Cook County and Chicago standing up their own contact tracing programs with community organizations. Each of these nine organizations will serve as coordinators in their region, awarding sub-grants to community-based organizations in their region who can most effectively conduct tracing, education and outreach in their communities. The NOFO will be available on the IDPH website on Friday, July 24, 2020.
“Today I’m proud to announce that applications for community-based organizations to obtain funding through IDPH to collaborate with local health departments will open on Friday. This opportunity – called the COVID-19 Pandemic Health Navigator Program – is geared toward organizations able to serve as coordinators for their region, sub-awarding to other agencies, across three main areas of work: education and outreach, contact tracing, and resource coordination for those who need to isolate,” said Governor JB Pritzker. “Because Chicago and its immediate suburbs are running their own community programs, these partnerships will be with regional leaders outside of Cook County. Most important to our ability to minimize outbreaks is the efforts of everyday people to do their part: if one of our statewide force of 1,600 contact tracers calls you, please answer.”
The funding will assist organizations in contact tracing efforts through the following three areas:
1. Provide education and outreach to promote everyday preventive actions to help slow the spread of COVID-19, as well as identify populations at greater risk of infection, and provide information to breakdown myths and rumors.
2. Conduct contact tracing through interviews and provide follow up information for close contacts of confirmed COVID-19 cases.
3. Coordinate resources, such as food, laundry, and even housing if needed, for cases or close contacts of cases who need to isolate or quarantine.
Expanding contact tracing efforts on a regional level will allow local organizations to serve as coordinators for their community and give them the ability to grant funds to other local agencies. To apply, an organization must be a GATA (Grant Accountability and Transparency Act) certified tax-exempt organization.
“By working with established community-based organizations, we are hoping to reach people who may be at higher risk of infection, but hesitant to talk with health officials,” said IDPH Director Dr. Ngozi Ezike. “We need people who are trusted in communities across the state to let people who have been in close contact with a confirmed case know that they need to monitor their health and take steps to potentially prevent spread of the virus to their family, friends, co-workers, and other community members. This is how we will help prevent outbreaks and the need to close businesses or institute other temporary restrictions.”
IDPH continues to work closely with local health departments in Illinois. Currently, the department has executed grant agreements with 57 local health departments across the state, about 60 percent of all local health departments, to enhance contact tracing efforts. These local health departments will receive $50 million in contact tracing funding over the next two weeks. IDPH is also finalizing agreements with the remaining 40 local health departments. In total, grants to local health departments for contact tracing amount to more than $215 million.
More than 1,600 contact tracers are currently available in Illinois. The number of staff needed to conduct contact tracing varies depending on several factors, including:
• Number of people seeking medical care or testing
• Number of new cases per day
• Amount of time that has passed from when symptoms start to positive test results
• Number of contacts identified of each confirmed case
• How quickly patients are isolated, and contacts are notified and advised to stay home, self-monitor, and maintain social distance from others
In addition to grants, IDPH has contracted with a software application platform to ensure contact tracers across the state are collecting all the same information and in the same way. A virtual call center is also being established to ensure critical call information is accurately conveyed. Additionally, IDPH has enlisted Partners in Health (PIH) as a consultant to help build the contact tracing program in Illinois. PIH has received acclaim for their contact tracing work in Massachusetts and is providing IDPH with technical assistance, including lessons learned through working with jurisdictions nationwide.
25 Comments
|
Question of the day
Wednesday, Jul 22, 2020 - Posted by Rich Miller
* If you click here and scroll through, you’ll see the 137 accounts that Gov. Pritzker follows on Twitter. State agencies, top staff, the congressional delegation, other governors and Illinois statewide electeds dominate the list. Not a lot of fun stuff. And he follows no news media accounts.
* The Question: What Twitter accounts would you recommend he follow? Make sure to explain, and yes, it is a slow state news day today. There is some stuff going on, but I’m stuck waiting for more info before I can post anything.
37 Comments
|
This is not how you want to wake up
Wednesday, Jul 22, 2020 - Posted by Rich Miller
* Mark Brown…
Just before 7 a.m. Friday, only a few hours before federal authorities took the wraps off their big investigation of Commonwealth Edison and House Speaker Mike Madigan, the doorbell rang at the McKinley Park home of state Rep. Theresa Mah.
Mah was awake but still in bed. Her husband was up and just starting to make coffee.
She assumed it was a delivery driver and shouted to her husband to get the door, but he was already on the way to answer the intercom.
“Who is it?” he asked.
“FBI,” came the answer. They asked to speak to Mah.
That will wake you up in a hurry.
I got this story directly from Mah, a Democrat completing her second term in the Illinois House. She told it in the way that only a person with a clear conscience can tell it.
Go read the whole thing, but the bottom line is Rep. Mah opposed legislation to transfer state land on behalf of a Chinatown developer, as did IDOT. The developer hired a Statehouse lobbyist, but the legislation never advanced out of Rules Committee. Madigan could’ve stuck it in the BIMP, but he didn’t do it. I’m really not sure what the heck the feds are supposed to be looking at here. I mean, there could’ve been a quid, but there is not yet a discernible quo because the developer’s bill didn’t move an inch. Stay tuned.
32 Comments
|
* This is so odd…
* From the link…
Nearly a dozen people contacted the ABC7 I-Team about receiving unemployment benefits even though they never actually applied for unemployment.
They said a debit card just showed up at their home, and they weren’t sure if it was junk mail or a hoax. But after calling the number of the back of the card, they learned they could have a big problem on their hands. […]
She called KeyBank, the company that administers the cards, and said she was told the Illinois Department of Employment Security instructed them to send her the card.
Somehow all her personal information matched what KeyBank had in their system, except her phone number, which she said they wouldn’t give out.
* The SJ-R has a good explainer…
When a person applies for unemployment, they are sent a KeyBank debit card in an inactivated state. It is up to the recipient to call KeyBank and have the card activated and set up a PIN number. It’s only then that the card would be ready to use, Salustro said.
At the same time, IDES always asks people to sign up for direct deposit of benefits because it is faster and more secure, he said. What scammers do is apply for benefits using a person’s stolen identify and then quickly convert the benefits into a direct deposit of an account that they control.
If someone gets a card or other notices that they are receiving benefits when they didn’t apply, IDES is asking people to report it as fraud. People should not activate the cards, but neither should they simply shred them and ignore what happened, Salustro said.
“In most cases, a person committing unemployment fraud in someone else’s name is, in all likelihood, using their name and identifying information, obtained through various methods and avenues, simply to receive unemployment funds,” he said. “Once this has been detected and reported, the claim is stopped and the fraudulent individuals pursued. The department is working with federal law enforcement authorities to investigate, pursue and prosecute those who defraud the unemployment insurance systems.”
Good luck getting through to IDES to report this fraud, however.
*** UPDATE 1 *** IDES…
The increase in the fraudulent unemployment claims is believed to be coming primarily out of the Pandemic Unemployment Assistance (PUA) program. Under the ambiguous federal guidelines, which were developed in haste because of the urgency of the pandemic and issued to every state without a uniform method of implementation, the potential for fraud within this system is abundant.
One of the largest vulnerabilities within PUA is the absence of an employer on the other side of the claim to contest the claim in the event the it is fraudulent or should be protested. Under regular unemployment insurance guidelines, an employer has the ability to alert IDES if a claim has been filed in the name of an employee who is currently employed, and has the ability to protest a claim if they believe the employee does not fall into the category of having lost work through no fault of their own.
This fraud scheme is in no way connected to the PUA program access issue experienced in May. The limited data access issue of the PUA system found that one PUA claimant was able to inadvertently access personal identifying information of a limited number of claimants who had already filed an unemployment claim. Out of an abundance of caution, a year’s worth of free credit monitoring was provided to any claimant whose information may have been inadvertently viewed by this one individual claimant.
*** UPDATE 2 *** This is getting ridiculous…
And check this out…
Maryland is investigating a vast operation using identity theft to commit coronavirus unemployment insurance fraud on the order of more than half a billion dollars, Maryland Gov. Larry Hogan announced Wednesday.
The Maryland operation involved more than 47,500 fraudulent claims and totaled over $501 million, according to Hogan. […]
After finding “an unusual increase in out of state, federal pandemic unemployment assistance claims,” the Maryland Department of Labor discovered the claims, “which were involving massive identity theft, attempting to utilize stolen identities and the personal information of innocent and unsuspecting individuals, which was apparently acquired from previous national data breaches,” Hogan said.
30 Comments
|
Open thread
Wednesday, Jul 22, 2020 - Posted by Rich Miller
* Please keep it Illinois-centric and polite. Thanks.
37 Comments
|
|
Comments Off
|
|
Comments Off
|
* Press release…
The Illinois Department of Public Health (IDPH) today announced 955 new confirmed cases of coronavirus disease (COVID-19) in Illinois, including 23 additional confirmed deaths.
Cook County – 1 female 50s, 6 males 60s, 2 males 70s, 1 female 80s, 1 male 80s
DuPage County – 1 female 80s, 1 male 90s
Kane County – 1 male 40s, 1 female 80s, 1 male 80s
Lake County – 1 male 60s
McHenry County – 2 males 70s
St. Clair County – 1 female 80s
Winnebago County – 1 male 50s, 1 male 70s, 1 male 80s
Currently, IDPH is reporting a total of 163,703 cases, including 7,324 deaths, in 102 counties in Illinois. The age of cases ranges from younger than one to older than 100 years. Within the past 24 hours, laboratories have reported 29,745 specimens for a total of 2,308,854. The preliminary seven-day statewide positivity for cases as a percent of total test from July 14 - July 20 is 3.1%. As of last night, 1,466 people in Illinois were reported to be in the hospital with COVID-19. Of those, 320 patients were in the ICU and 142 patients with COVID-19 were on ventilators.
The Illinois Department of Juvenile Justice’s (IDJJ) IYC St. Charles facility is reporting 16 new cases of COVID-19 in staff and 3 new cases among the youth prompting increased mitigation and infection control measures. All youth and staff have been tested for COVID-19 and the facility is implementing programming changes to reduce further spread.
This week Chester Mental Health Center in Randolph County reported 27 staff and 5 residents with newly confirmed cases of COVID-19. Shapiro Developmental in Kankakee County reported 1 resident and 6 staff of newly confirmed cases of COVID-19. Full infection control measures are in operation at these facilities for both residents and staff.
* If the bloviators in DC want the nation’s education system to get moving again, they’d better pony up…
Illinois State University President Larry Dietz has joined with the state’s other eight public university presidents in seeking more federal assistance to help meet the costs of their response to the COVID-19 pandemic as fall semester approaches.
In the letter to the Illinois congressional delegation, the presidents note that as of July 3, the combined impact of pandemic on the universities is estimated at $393.5 million. The figure includes tuition and housing refunds plus extra support for students and purchases of hardware and software for online classes and cleaning and medical supplies.
* Sun-Times…
Slightly more than half of Chicago Public Schools parents want some type of in-person instruction in the fall, and the top concern for most parents in the coming months is keeping their children’s learning on track, according to a new poll released Tuesday by an education advocacy group.
But in a sign of the sharp divide of opinions on the critically important issue of health and learning, two out of every five parents said schools should remain fully closed, with nearly all parents surveyed saying they wanted schools to be better cleaned and disinfected.
The poll, which has a 3.8% margin of error, was commissioned by Stand for Children Illinois, an education advocacy group, and conducted by Tulchin Research from July 8 to July 14, in the week leading up to CPS’ fall reopening guidance released last Friday.
The poll is here.
* Sun-Times live blog…
Kansas added to Chicago’s COVID-19 travel quarantine list
US accuses Chinese hackers in targeting of COVID-19 research
Advocates for live music work to #SaveOurStages in Chicago and across the country
COVID-19 concerns: Pritzker worries ‘our numbers should be going down,’ and warns downstate Metro East could see limits return
Guthrie’s Tavern in Wrigleyville to close, another casualty of COVID-19 restrictions
Republicans mandate at-home COVID-19 pre-convention test for attendees as cases spike in Florida
CPS could lose $10M to private schools, district says in lawsuit against Betsy DeVos over coronavirus funding
* Tribune live blog…
DuPage County health department’s COVID-19 test site closes early Tuesday as cases rise
IHSA to meet with state officials Friday for ‘guidance’ on proceeding with fall sports
Lightfoot joins Chicago sports teams to encourage young people to wear masks
Taste of Orland Park, summer concerts to move forward despite financial questions over attendance limits
Kansas added to Chicago’s travel quarantine list
Trump’s team works Capitol Hill as coronavirus aid talks deepen
Guthrie’s Tavern, a Lakeview mainstay for 34 years, closing permanently due to new coronavirus bar restrictions
Hundreds of food service workers at Northwestern University lose their jobs; company cites ongoing coronavirus impact on campus
Gary, Merrillville, Lake County mandate masks to reduce spread of COVID-19
Hurricane Harbor opens in Gurnee with coronavirus measures in place
Arlington Heights-based District 214 to start new academic year with option of in-person classes or remote learning
Metra extends free rides for medical workers
12 Comments
|
The gift that keeps on giving
Tuesday, Jul 21, 2020 - Posted by Rich Miller
* Rockford Register-Star…
City Council on Monday night agreed to drop its appeal and pay $117,836 to cover attorneys’ fees for unions that sued over Rockford’s 2015 endorsement of former Gov. Bruce Rauner’s “turnaround agenda.”
Rockford had appealed Chief Judge Eugene Doherty’s decision ordering the city to reimburse lawyers representing unions that had sued the city, claiming officials had violated the Illinois Open Meetings Act as it approved the endorsement.
City Legal Director Nicholas Meyer said the unions did not prove the majority of their case and that the city doesn’t feel it should be forced to pay attorneys fees. However, the city decided to drop its appeal because it was unlikely to win. […]
Doherty also noted that both the governor and the mayor who supported it are no longer in office and that “legislatively, the entire subject matter is a dead letter.”
* Thank the Illinois Municipal League for helping gin that one up…
The resolution was sent from the governor’s office through the Illinois Municipal League to cities and villages, along with an email from Illinois Municipal League Executive Director Brad Cole.
More…
“The governor’s office has asked that we follow up with mayors and managers on the Turnaround Agenda information and provide a resolution… that is supportive of his administration’s efforts,” Cole wrote in an email Monday.
Cole, a former mayor of Carbondale and one-time Republican candidate for lieutenant governor, attached a sample resolution to his email.
It notes, “Voters in our community should be allowed to decide via referendum whether or not employees should be forced to join a union or pay dues as a condition of employment.”
10 Comments
|
* CBS…
Claiming sending secret militarized federal agents to Chicago “would spell disaster,” Mayor Lori Lightfoot on Monday sent President Donald Trump a letter instead urging him to support new laws to help get illegal guns off the streets.
CBS News has learned the Trump Administration will be sending 175 federal agents to Chicago this week to assist police in curbing violent crime. The agents will come from Chicago, Detroit, St. Paul, Nashville, and likely Atlanta.
The agents will focus on illegal gun sales, gun violence, and outstanding warrants, according to one of the sources.
* CBS sources aside, there’s a growing worry in Chicago that the White House will try to repeat its Portland approach. From the Washington Post…
The Oregon attorney general filed a lawsuit late Friday night alleging that the federal government had violated Oregonians’ civil rights by seizing and detaining them without probable cause during protests against police brutality in the past week.
The legal action comes after days of intensifying clashes between the Trump administration and Portland officials, who have accused federal agencies of heavy-handed tactics that inflame unrest and threaten citizens.
Department of Homeland Security agents have swarmed the city in recent days, arguing that they are needed to restore order after nearly two months of demonstrations. But local officials, including Oregon Gov. Kate Brown (D) and Portland Mayor Ted Wheeler (D), have implored the agency to step down, with the mayor calling the police force President Trump’s “personal army” and suggesting its tactics are only making things worse.
* Tribune…
At an unrelated news conference Monday morning, Mayor Lori Lightfoot said she has great concerns about the general possibility of President Donald Trump sending feds to Chicago based on what has happened in Portland. […]
“We don’t need federal agents without any insignia taking people off the streets and holding them, I think, unlawfully,” Lightfoot said.
* From Lightfoot’s letter to the president…
“…What is needed more than anything in an operation to protect lives is a clear mission, a detailed operations plan, and a chain of command. Secret, federal agents who do not know Chicago, are unfamiliar with the unique circumstances of our neighborhoods and who would operate outside the established infrastructure of local law enforcement would not be effective, regardless of the number, and worse will foment a massive wave of opposition.”
“Deploying resources like we have seen in Portland,” she wrote, “does not make residents safer, particularly when gun violence plays a significant role in Chicago’s loss of life.”
In a statement, a Lightfoot spokesman said, “Should the Trump Administration foolishly try to usurp our local authority, (Lightfoot) will not hesitate to take decisive action to stop this unwanted and dangerous intrusion.”
* The governor was asked about the White House plan today at a Metro East press conference…
My job is to protect the civil liberties of the people of Illinois. This is a wrongheaded move on the part of Donald Trump, on the part of the Department of Homeland Security.
I have put a call into the Acting Secretary of the Department of Homeland Security. He’s refused to call me back telling us that he couldn’t possibly get back to me until about 48 hours from now. That’s ridiculous.
They’re thinking about sending agents in, Federal Protective Service agents into the state of Illinois. They need to answer to the governor of the state to the mayor of the City of Chicago, to the attorney general of the State of Illinois.
We’re going to do everything we can to prevent them from coming. And if they do come, we’re going to do everything we can from a legal perspective to get them out.
Take a very deep breath before commenting.
…Adding… Two things are going over peoples’ heads in comments. 1) The Federal Protective Service is not a police unit. It guards buildings. It’s not capable of police work. 2) The governor has said he doesn’t want that unit deployed in Illinois. He and Mayor Lightfoot never said they wouldn’t welcome other sorts of help from the feds. So, stop reading what you want to read and instead read the actual words in front of your face.
*** UPDATE *** Like I said, some of y’all were getting all huffy for no good reason…
President Donald Trump will be sending federal law enforcement agents to help police and the U.S. attorney’s office fight Chicago violence and the city intends to cooperate, Mayor Lori Lightfoot said. […]
Still, she was careful to say her understanding of the situation “at this point” is that the Trump administration won’t be “foolishly” deploying unidentified troops but will be sending additional agents with the FBI, Drug Enforcement Administration and the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives to Chicago.
Unlike what happened in Portland recently, Lightfoot said, the city will get resources that will plug into “existing federal agencies” that already work with Chicago.
“We welcome actual partnership, but we do not welcome dictatorship, we do not welcome authoritarianism, and we do not welcome unconstitutional arrest and detainment of our residents,” Lightfoot said.
149 Comments
|
* Press release…
The Illinois State Rifle Association and the Second Amendment Foundation today filed a lawsuit in federal court seeking to force the Illinois State Police (ISP) to comply with the mandated 30-day requirement to issue a Firearm Owner’s Identification (FOID) Card if the applicant meets all qualifications.
“We’ve been looking at this problem for a long time, gathering information for filing this lawsuit, and that day has finally come,” said Richard Pearson, ISRA executive director. “These delays have gone on long enough. We had hoped to avoid litigation, but at this moment, we have no choice.”
The lawsuit was filed in U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Illinois, Eastern Division, on behalf of D’Andre Bradley, David D. Moore and Tara D. Moore, and Brett O. Shelton. They are represented by attorneys David G. Sigale of Wheaton, Ill., Gregory A. Bedell of Chicago, and Jacob Huebert of Phoenix, Ariz. The case is supported by the Goldwater Institute. The lawsuit is known as Bradley v. Kelly.
Named as defendants are ISP Director Brendan F. Kelly and ISP Firearms Services Bureau Chief Jessica Trame, in their official capacities.
“The law requires that the Illinois State Police either approve or deny a FOID card application within 30 days,” said SAF founder and Executive Vice President Alan M. Gottlieb. “But ISP has been dragging its feet, leaving applicants in limbo for months. Sometimes the agency doesn’t act for as long as 60 or even 90 days. You can bet that if a private citizen had to comply with a legal requirement within 30 days, he or she would be in big trouble for not meeting that deadline.
“This has been going on for years,” he added, “and it has to stop. It is especially important now, with the surge in FOID applications as a response to recent civil unrest that has included looting and violence. Illinois residents expect efficiency, not excuses, and they haven’t been getting it.”
The suit is here.
*** UPDATE *** From the Illinois State Police…
The Illinois State Police agree FOID applications should be processed quickly and within the statutory guidelines. Financial instability brought on by the lack of a budget in the prior administration greatly impacted the processing of FOID applications by the Firearms Services Bureau. Gov. Pritzker’s budget and the fiscal assurance it brings will allow the ISP to continue efforts to hire at least 32 additional analysts and invest in technology upgrades. This year alone, FSB processed 65,969 new FOID applications.
Nonetheless, with an explosion of applications and firearms purchases during the pandemic and current events — 62,832 FOID applications and 65,222 FTIP applications just last month — broader legislative remedies to streamline and modernize the FOID process will be necessary to meet statutory timelines. We look forward to working with all interested parties and members of the general assembly to reach those solutions.
The Firearms Services Bureau is committed to resolving the issues and meeting our public safety mission.
Background…
The number of new FOID applications received from June 1, 2020 through June 30, 2020 totals 62,823 compared to 25,359 for the same time period in 2019 resulting in an increase of 148%.
32 Comments
|
Longshot day at the ISBE
Tuesday, Jul 21, 2020 - Posted by Rich Miller
* Illinois Public Radio…
Rapper Kanye West was among those submitting petitions for the fall ballot Illinois on the final day for independent and third party candidates to file.
West said he is running for president. But he has missed the deadline to file in several states. While he was on time in Illinois, filing does not guarantee a spot on the ballot. Pettitions can be challenged for the number of signatures and their vailidity. West did not have a vice presidential candidate file with him. […]
A judge eased signature requirements for third parties this year due to the COVID-19 outbreak. That made it much easier for the Libertarian candidates running for the legislature to get on the ballot. Steve Suess, the party’s state chairman, said that should send a message to the two major parties. […]
More than 10 Libertarians are running either for a legislative or a congressional seat in Illinois, along with the offices of President and U-S Senate. The Green Party also has several running for state legislative posts.
You can see all the newly filed candidates by clicking here.
* Fox News…
Four minutes before the Illinois State Board of Elections 5 p.m. CT deadline, two [West] representatives filed 412 petition sheets with election officials, a spokesperson confirmed to Fox News.
Election officials will be counting those signatures of registered Illinois voters, of which he was supposed to have had at least 2,500 to get on the ballot. Petition sheets usually contain 10 names per sheet.
They contain 10 lines per sheet. Those lines aren’t always filled with valid names or any names, for that matter. We shall see.
…Adding… This was an obvious rush job and they may not survive a challenge…
* Bernie…
In a central Illinois race, Angel Sides, who got less than 5 percent of the vote in a five-way, 2018 Democratic primary for the U.S. House from the 13th Congressional District, filed as a Green Party candidate in the 87th House District, where state Rep. Tim Butler, R-Springfield, has been unopposed.
In the 96th House District, John Keating II of Springfield filed as a Green Party candidate. He’s taking on Democratic state Rep. Sue Scherer and Republican Charlie McGorray, both of Decatur.
In the 100th District, where Democrat Brandon Adams of Jacksonville already was taking on Rep. C.D. Davidsmeyer, R-Jacksonville, two candidates filed Monday: Thomas Kuna of Kane, in Greene County, on the Bullmoose party; and Ralph Sides under the banner of the Pro-Gun Pro-Life party.
26 Comments
|
* Background is here if you need it. IDPH press release last night…
The Illinois Department of Public Health is closely monitoring a rise in cases in the Metro East region, COVID-19 region 4, as the region surpasses 7 percent positivity rate as of today, July 20, fueled by 7 consecutive days of positivity rate increases. Under the plan to combat a resurgence of COVID-19 announced by Governor Pritzker and the Illinois Department of Public Health last week, a region will automatically move to the first tier of mitigation steps following three consecutive days averaging greater than an 8 percent positivity rate.
Randolph and St. Clair counties are currently the primary contributors to the rise in positivity rate in region 4 of the new mitigation plan, but there are concerning trends and behaviors throughout the region, which also includes Bond, Clinton, Madison, Monroe, Randolph, and Washington counties. Several of these counties also border and are home to residents who travel frequently to Missouri where less stringent mitigations have been in place.
A number of the individuals who have tested positive have informed public health officials that they engaged in some of the same activities. Specifically, four individuals told public health officials that they participated in events or were close contacts of participants in events involving the party bus company the “Shakin’ Shuttle”
Public health officials are also concerned with reports of large gatherings without social distancing taking place in the region. Specifically, Hidden Lake Winery in Aviston is reported to have hosted several large events, contrary to public health guidance.
Public health officials are also responding to an outbreak at Chester Mental Health Center in Randolph County, where 6 residents and 41 staff members have tested positive for COVID-19 since June 25. The Department of Human Services is working closely with local health departments and officials to help prevent further spread and keep residents and staff safe.
“Businesses that disregard public health guidance are putting themselves and their communities at risk and threatening the progress we’ve made for the vast majority of businesses that are safely reopening,” said Governor JB Pritzker. “I urge county and local officials in the Metro East region to take action in response to those who refuse to help keep people safe and to consider broader mitigations before the state is required to take action. As I’ve said, local officials are our first line of defense when it comes to concerning trends in their communities, but IDPH is ready to take immediate action if the data requires it.”
“This virus is still out there and it is the responsibility of all of us, local officials, businesses, and every day Illinoisans, to take the actions we know will keep people safe,” said IDPH Director Dr. Ngozi Ezike. “We know from the data that large gatherings and groups of people in confined closed spaces can lead to a spike in cases, and we have seen some examples popping up right now. IDPH will work closely with our local health department partners to respond to these concerning trends and will not hesitate to restore mitigations to prevent a full resurgence of COVID-19.”
Under the new mitigation plan announced last week, additional mitigation steps will be reinstated in a region following a sustained rise in the positivity rate along with either a sustained increase in COVID-19 hospital admissions or a critical reduction in hospital bed capacity. A sustained rise in the positivity rate is defined as an increase in the 7-day rolling average for 7 days out of a 10-day period. In addition, if a region hits three consecutive days of an 8 percent average positivity rate, automatic action will be required.
The first tier of mitigation steps can include suspending indoor bar service, reducing indoor dining capacity, reducing elective surgeries and procedures, placing additional limits on gatherings and room capacity, expanding remote work, as well as potential further mitigation steps relating to recreational activities, retail, and salon and personal care based on data received.
As always, local officials remain the first line of defense in the fight against COVID-19. Local officials can and should enforce public health guidance from the state. Local officials are also encouraged to put in place additional public health guidance that expands upon guidance from the state and meets the needs of their unique communities. IDPH works closely with local health department across the state and is always eager to be a partner in that effort.
*** UPDATE *** That’s a big quarantine…
The Clinton County Health Department has asked at least 160 residents to quarantine after large gatherings where people did not wear face masks, according to agency officials.
Sean Eifert, the health department administrator, said people infected with the virus traveled to bars and other businesses the weekend of Saturday, July 11, but he declined to publicly identify the locations.
The health department believes it tracked down all residents who had “close contact” with the infected people at the gatherings, according to agency spokeswoman Louise McMinn. She said close contact is being within 6 feet for 15 minutes. […]
Eifert said the health department is not publicly identifying the places where the exposure occurred at this time because of the potential “economic fallout” for businesses associated with the coronavirus and liability for the health department. He said the department may decide to name the businesses if customers or workers outside of the “close contact” group test positive.
Just saying, not saying, but the above-mentioned Hidden Lake Winery is in Clinton County. The county GOP central committee meets at the winery every month.
44 Comments
|
* Media advisory…
Illinois House Republicans Call for Special Session on Ethics Reform
WHO: Illinois State Representatives Deanne Mazzochi (R-Elmhurst), Ryan Spain (R-Peoria), Dan Ugaste (R-Geneva) and Grant Wehrli (R-Naperville).
WHAT: House Republicans call on Governor Pritzker to convene special session on ethics reform.
WHEN: 10:30 A.M. on Tuesday, July 21, 2020
* Press release…
State Representatives David Allen Welter (R-Morris) and Keith Wheeler (R-Oswego) are calling for a joint hearing of the House Public Utilities and Energy & Environment Committees to investigate the lobbying and bribery practices of ComEd during the period of 2011-2019 to determine the impact on ratepayers both residential and commercial in terms of higher costs passed on to them as a result.
The United States Attorney for the Northern District of Illinois filed charges against Commonwealth Edison on July 17 that detailed corruption related to the company’s efforts to influence and reward “Public Official A”, believed to be House Speaker Michael Madigan, in order to receive passage of legislation favorable to the utility.
“While the U.S. Attorney’s Office investigated criminal activity during the time period in question related to ComEd’s efforts to influence “Public Official A” in order to get legislation they wanted passed, the issue of what impact those activities had on ratepayers and state policy needs to be fully investigated and made public,” Rep. Keith Wheeler said.
Rep. David Welter added, “ComEd employs nearly 6,300 hardworking and dedicated professionals throughout Chicago and northern Illinois who are ratepayers too. They and every ComEd customer in Illinois deserve accountability in the form of answers as to what cost the bribery allegations specified by the U.S. Attorney’s Office had on ratepayers. If you paid more for electricity because of corruption, you deserve to know all the facts about it.”
Wheeler and Welter sent a joint letter to Representative Ann Williams (D-Chicago), Chairperson of the Energy & Environment Committee and Representative Larry Walsh, Jr. (D-Joliet), Chairperson of the Public Utilities Committee requesting that the two committees hold a joint hearing to investigate the impact on ratepayers of ComEd’s activities during the period outlined in the U.S. Attorney’s court filing on Friday.
* Meanwhile, on the other side of the building, the Senate Republican Caucus issued this statement today…
Illinois House Speaker Michael Madigan exerts absolute control over what issues get a hearing and which get a vote in the Illinois House. As the US Attorney announced last week, that process allegedly comes with a price.
Illinois Democrats, who control both chambers of the Illinois legislature, should embrace reforms that will ensure all the power of legislating is not consolidated into the hands of one allegedly corrupt process. This can be done by improving transparency and enacting a fair redistricting process.
What is abundantly clear to our caucus and every concerned citizen in Illinois is the fact that Michael Madigan can no longer serve as Speaker of the Illinois House, and he should step aside from this leadership position immediately.
…Adding… Center Square…
Gov. J.B. Pritzker said Monday he has no plans to call a special session of the legislature to take up ethics reform.
During an appearance in Peoria on Monday, Pritzker would not commit to calling a special session to take up the issue even though earlier in the day he said lobbying reform was needed.
“I am hoping that in November that we will be able to take up again the work by the ethics commission that was put together in the General Assembly, a bi-partisan commission that was doing quite good work before they were cut short by COVID-19,” the governor said.
28 Comments
|
I suppose it could be worse
Tuesday, Jul 21, 2020 - Posted by Rich Miller
* Just a reminder that they have term limits in Ohio…
Federal officials arrested Ohio House Speaker Larry Householder on Tuesday in connection with a $60 million bribery case.
U.S. Attorney David DeVillers’ office would not discuss details of the case, but a source involved in the investigation confirmed Householder’s arrest to the Cincinnati Enquirer.
Four others were arrested, the source said.
Background…
Householder, a farmer and businessman in Glenford, has led the GOP-controlled Ohio House since January 2019. He previously held the speaker’s gavel 2001 to 2004 but left due to term limits. He returned to the House in January 2017 and mounted a campaign to become the first lawmaker to recapture the speakership in nearly six decades.
Dude moves fast. Busted after a year and a half.
Householder’s predecessor resigned in disgrace…
On April 10, 2018, [Ohio Speaker Cliff Rosenberger] announced he would resign effective May 1, 2018 amid an FBI investigation of his “lavish lifestyle” and “relationships with lobbyists and donors.” On April 12, 2018, Rosenberger announced he was immediately resigning
…Adding… This is apparently about a nuclear power plant bailout bill…
The investigation centers on House Bill 6, the $1 billion-plus ratepayer bailout of two Ohio nuclear power plants owned by FirstEnergy Solutions (now Energy Harbor) that Householder helped push through last year with the help of millions in dark money, according to the Toledo Blade.
Besides Householder, four others have been arrested, according to sources and media reports: former Ohio Republican Party Chair-turned-consultant Matt Borges, prominent lobbyist Neil Clark, FirstEnergy Solutions lobbyist Juan Cespedes, and Householder aide Jeff Longstreth.
…Adding… Meanwhile, in New York…
[Former NY Assembly Speaker Sheldon Silver], originally convicted on multiple counts of corruption in 2015, won a minor victory on Tuesday when the United States Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit overturned a subsequent 2018 conviction on the grounds that it didn’t identify specifically enough a quid pro quo between Silver and a Columbia University cancer researcher from whom Silver was found guilty of taking bribes. Still, the three-judge panel affirmed the bulk of the conviction, likely guaranteeing that Silver will see prison time.
…Adding… Check this out…
Ohio is giving Illinois a real run for its money.
44 Comments
|
Good luck, Tina!
Tuesday, Jul 21, 2020 - Posted by Rich Miller
* I’m proud to call Tina a friend and a colleague, and I’m going to miss her something fierce. Her departure leaves a giant hole in this state and at that newspaper, but it’s what she wants and there’s no doubt this is a great opportunity for both her and her new employer. Our loss is their gain. Go get ‘em!…
* Feder…
“Every so often, we have to say goodbye to colleagues whom we trust and treasure — and acknowledge they are making career moves that are perfect fits for them,” Sun-Times executive editor Chris Fusco told staff. “She’s been a quick study at every turn, soaking up the knowledge of her bosses and colleagues and becoming a mentor to our next generation of great journalists.”
Before joining the Sun-Times as a preps sports writer in 2007, Sfondeles was a news writer at all-news WBBM 780-AM and a production assistant for “The Steve Dahl Show.” She’s a graduate of Lemont High School and holds degrees from Loyola University and Columbia College.
She also owes her legion of fans a coffee table book about men watching construction. Man, I’m going to miss her. Just a good egg all around.
21 Comments
|
Metro East fast approaching danger zone
Monday, Jul 20, 2020 - Posted by Rich Miller
* I started warning my subscribers about the Metro East last Tuesday after I checked into why the southern region was posting higher positivity rate numbers than anywhere else. Here’s WGN…
A region of Illinois counties outside St. Louis hit health officials’ “warning” number of days with an increase in the percent of coroanvirus tests which come back positive Monday, approaching the state’s “failsafe” level where reopening measures could be rolled back.
According to the Illinois Department of Public Health, the “Metro East” region in southwest Illinois has seen an increase in test positivity rates for seven over the past 10 days, hitting the “warning” level outlined in the updated “Restore Illinois” plan.
Moreover, the region’s rate was at 7.1 percent as of July 17 and is approaching 8 percent, the point at which Governor JB Pritzker previously said reopening measures would likely be rolled back as part of a “failsafe” if cases exceed that level for three days.
The region includes Bond, Clinton, Madison, Monroe, Randolph, St. Clair and Washington counties.
The state’s numbers are lagging behind by three days. We need updated numbers, for crying out loud.
Also, the state has issued no alerts about this Metro East problem that I’ve seen. Those folks are gonna be blindsided if the state has to take action. The local governments need to step in now and get their hotspots under control. Maybe people like the Monroe County sheriff can finally order his deputies to start enforcing counter-measures while he recovers from COVID-19.
22 Comments
|
* Press release…
The Illinois Department of Public Health (IDPH) today announced 1,173 new confirmed cases of coronavirus disease (COVID-19) in Illinois, including 6 additional confirmed deaths.
Cass County – 1 female 90s
Cook County – 1 female 70s, 1 male 90s
DuPage County – 1 male 70s
Peoria County – 1 female 100+
Will County – 1 female 50s
Currently, IDPH is reporting a total of 162,748 cases, including 7,301 deaths, in 102 counties in Illinois. The age of cases ranges from younger than one to older than 100 years. Within the past 24 hours, laboratories have reported 34,598 specimens for a total of 2,279,109. The preliminary seven-day statewide positivity for cases as a percent of total test from July 13 - July 19 is 3.0%. As of last night, 1,410 people in Illinois were reported to be in the hospital with COVID-19. Of those, 308 patients were in the ICU and 133 patients with COVID-19 were on ventilators.
The governor said today that he was frustrated about how hospitalizations and the positivity rate are both staying level, rather than decreasing.
* Press release…
IFT President Dan Montgomery and educators and school staff from around the state today called for remote learning this fall in Illinois’ schools, colleges, and universities. […]
With infection rates becoming unstable and rising in some regions of the state, the union and our members are gravely concerned about the safety of students, educators, and staff. According to a recent Kaiser Foundation study, nearly 24 percent of educators are at high-risk due to underlying health conditions, which further bolsters the need to begin the year with online learning. […]
Though the union believes some types of in-person instruction can be achieved with health and safety mitigation, in the absence of a practical safety plan that includes clear guidance like the union has provided, a return to in-person instruction right now is too great a risk. Too many schools and campuses cannot currently achieve critical safety benchmarks.
Included in the IFT’s guidance for an eventual reopening of schools:
• A call for all school districts and institutions to negotiate safe, effective learning plans with their unions, students, and parents.
• The right of teachers to determine the best mode of instruction.
• Required social distancing and a limit of 15 students per classroom in PreK-12 schools.
• Temperature checks or health screenings for all students, staff, and visitors.
• Adequate testing availability, especially in rural communities.
• Required two-week quarantines for students or staff who test positive or have high-risk exposure to COVID-19.
More here.
* The Southern…
Community colleges in Southern Illinois are preparing for the start of an unusual fall semester with plans to offer a mix of online, in-person and hybrid courses. Though the formats and degree to which in-person classes will be offered vary somewhat from campus to campus, the plans that have been outlined thus far are similar.
The colleges said they are following guidance put forth by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Illinois Department of Public Health and local health departments and the Illinois Community College Board. They also noted that their plans are flexible and include the ability to rapidly shift to distance learning-only platforms if necessitated by the spread of COVID-19.
* May 15…
Illinois Gov. J.B. Pritzker is threatening to use local law enforcement and state police against businesses that reopen in defiance of his policies.
The governor gave the stern warning on the same day Madison County officials have gone against the governor’s public health orders and started to reopen.
The Monroe County Sheriff Neal Rohlfing posted this statement to the department’s Facebook page today:
“It has been very frustrating to watch this public health issue cause the many problems that we face today. I know many of our residents are struggling with the restrictions we are facing from the state. I will always side with our residents Constitutional Rights regardless to what consequences I may have. I was elected by the residents of Monroe County and I will continue to provide the highest level of public safety as long as I am Sheriff!”
* Yesterday…
A county sheriff in southwestern Illinois has tested positive for COVID-19, according to officials.
The Monroe County Sheriff’s Department said Sheriff Neal Rohlfing has been in quarantine since he had symptoms earlier this month. He received a positive test on Wednesday, according to a department statement.
“The sheriff has been lucky and has experienced very mild symptoms,” the statement said.
Glad to hear that he’s going to be OK.
* Tribune’s live blog…
Wisconsin’s largest teachers unions call for online school due to the coronavirus pandemic
Residential buildings to set guest limit at 5 as part of new COVID-19 restrictions announced Monday
COVID-19 took a big toll in Illinois. Will deaths surge again?
Opioid overdoses skyrocket in the face of COVID-19 pandemic; stronger drugs, scarce treatment blamed
The risk of drownings has rarely been higher as Chicago endures a pandemic and one of its hottest summers
Sticky notes on the bathroom door and wipes by the coffee pot. Employees find new rules as they return to the office.
* Sun-Times live blog…
UK COVID-19 vaccine prompts protective immune response in early trial
What we don’t know about how COVID-19 affects kids
‘A dangerous environment’: As churches reopen, coronavirus outbreaks are sprouting and some are keeping doors shut
Even with patrons spaced far apart, moviegoing feels safe and communal
In Arizona, more than 2,000 people went to an ER with coronavirus symptoms on a single day, July 7.
18 Comments
|
* From Gov. Pritzker’s Q&A in Peoria today…
Have you had more time to look at Speaker Madigan’s ties to the ComEd charges and do you still think of him as a political ally?
Zing.
* The governor’s response…
Only… Well, you know, let’s set apart the last point that you’re making.
I, you know, let’s just say it’s been very important to me that Speaker Madigan step forward to answer the questions that are raised in that ComEd - I don’t what it’s referred to, information, indictment, I’m not sure. Um, I, so, you know, that’s something that, that has got to get done. I, look, people who serve in public office owe a duty of integrity to the people that they serve. Um, and, and there are allegations that are, some made and some just implied in that document. It raises a lot of questions and I think the speaker is going to have to answer those questions.
40 Comments
|
The Madigan problem
Monday, Jul 20, 2020 - Posted by Rich Miller
* It’s no surprise that many suburban legislative districts don’t look too great for Republicans this year. Depending on how far the G goes, even the Madigan stuff might not break through in some races because of a heavily nationalized election. But in districts where President Trump did well, that could be a different story. HGOP press release…
State Representative candidates Amy Elik, Lisa Ciampoli, and David Friess released the following statements regarding the ongoing corruption scandal surrounding House Speaker Michael Madigan and State Representatives Monica Bristow (IL-111), Katie Stuart (IL-112), Nathan Reitz’s (IL-116), continued silence on the matter.
“This is another example – of far too many – that Illinois has a corruption problem,” said Amy Elik, state representative candidate for the 111th district. “While public officials betray the public’s trust, Monica Bristow’s continued silence is just as concerning. She is prioritizing her political ambitions ahead of her sworn duty as a state legislator while Illinois taxpayers continue to be the forgotten voices as tax dollars are mismanaged.”
“Corruption is consuming Illinois government,” said Lisa Ciampoli, state representative candidate for the 112th district. “It’s time to put Illinois on a new path, and the first step is to replace those that fail to speak out against rampant corruption in state government. Katie Stuart’s continued silence shows she is prioritizing party loyalty over taxpayers’ pocketbooks. From day one, I will push for meaningful ethics reform in Springfield.”
“Every time another state corruption investigation is announced, it’s a reminder that our tax dollars are under attack by those choosing to enrich themselves over fulfilling their duty to public service,” said David Friess, state representative candidate for the 116th district. “It’s time for Nathan Reitz to end his silence and join me in calling for Madigan to resign.”
This incident is not the first time area state representatives failed to speak out. When WBEZ covered the story alleging a “powerful former Springfield lobbyist and close friend of House Speaker Madigan” covered up a rape in Champaign and ghost payrolling of government workers, State Representatives Bristow, Stuart, and Reitz failed to hold Madigan accountable.
Alaina Hampton, the individual who sued and settled with Madigan’s operation for sexual harassment, noted in a July 26, 2019 tweet to the Democratic Women’s Caucus, saying:
“I’ve now been waiting a year & a half for you to support me publicly, or even address me by name in a statement. Where are you? What is your stance? We all want to know.”
What does it take for Representatives Bristow, Stuart, and Reitz to speak up?
Trump won Bristow’s district by 16 points, he won Stuart’s by 5.5 and he won Reitz’s by 36. Yes, 36.
* And this is from a suburban/exurban congressional race…
In light of recent news report revealing that House Speaker Michael Madigan is “Public Official A” in the federal bribery investigation of ComEd, Jim Oberweis is calling on Lauren Underwood to cut ties with funds controlled by Speaker Madigan.
The Lauren Underwood Victory Fund is a joint fund-raising committee connected to the Democrat Party of Illinois, which is controlled by House Speaker Michael Madigan. Oberweis is calling on Underwood to cut ties with the Speaker by ending her joint fundraising efforts with organizations he controls.
“It is time for Underwood to stop partnering with Speaker Madigan to raise money for her campaign,” Oberweis said. “The people of the 14th District deserve better. I urge Underwood to do the right thing and end her partnership with the Speaker and condemn his actions. Unfortunately, I suspect all we will get from Rep. Underwood is more silence.”
Underwood has a long history of silence when it comes to Speaker Madigan. She walked away from a question on leaked emails from one of Madigan’s top confidants’ suggesting a rape had been covered up. Instead of answering the question, Underwood walked away in silence. (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wy4cwRI3Gag&feature=youtu.be).
“Either she is blind to the cloud of corruption surrounding the Speaker or she is willfully choosing to ignore the truth,” Oberweis said. “Either way, her silence is unacceptable. It is time for Democrat officials at all levels of government to demand new leadership. Michael Madigan is the head of her party. Why is she content to allow a corrupt politician like Speaker Madigan to continue to lead her party? The people of the 14th District deserve answers.”
The attachment is here. Trump won that district by 3.7 percentage points.
Discuss.
23 Comments
|
Skillicorn jokes about pandemic deaths
Monday, Jul 20, 2020 - Posted by Rich Miller
* This guy…
* I reached out to his Democratic opponent Suzanne Ness for a reaction…
Over 7400 Illinoisans have lost their lives to this terrible pandemic and Allen Skillicorn chooses to make a joke about it. And while our families have made major changes in their lives to stop the spread of the virus, Skillicorn made two trips to Trump rallies in Oklahoma and Arizona, without a mask or PPE, risking bringing coronavirus back to our community from these virus hotspots. He has shown us again and again that he either isn’t taking this seriously, he doesn’t get it, or he just doesn’t care. Yet again another example of poor leadership. It’s time for a change.
30 Comments
|
* Press release…
Mayor Lori E. Lightfoot, the Chicago Department of Public Health (CDPH) and the Department of Business Affairs and Consumer Protection (BACP) announced today a re-tightening of COVID-19 restrictions for bars, restaurants, gyms and personal services as a precautionary move in response to a recent increase in community cases of the virus. Throughout the pandemic, data has guided every move made by the City, and the recent uptick in cases as well as surging COVID-19 activity in other states around the country is cause for concern and motivated this move to dial back reopening in certain high-risk environments.
The reinstatement of certain restrictions will go into effect Friday, July 24 at 12:01 a.m., in order to allow businesses time to prepare. Restrictions will include:
• Bars, taverns, breweries and other establishments that serve alcohol for on-site consumption without a Retail Food license will no longer be able to serve customers indoors.
o Restaurants that serve alcohol will be allowed to continue to operate as long as they abide by ongoing COVID-19 guidance and existing regulations.
o Establishments without food may still provide outdoor service as they did under phase three.
• Maximum party size and table occupancy at restaurants, bars, taverns and breweries will be reduced to six people.
• Indoor fitness class size will be reduced to a maximum of 10 people.
• Personal services requiring the removal of face coverings will no longer be permitted (shaves, facials, etc.).
• Residential property managers will be asked to limit guest entry to five per unit to avoid indoor gatherings and parties.
“We have made so much progress here in Chicago in containing the spread of the virus, protecting our health system and saving lives, and in general, the virus remains under control locally. But we are again seeing a steady increase in new cases,” said Mayor Lightfoot. “While we aren’t near the peak of the pandemic from earlier this year, none of us wants to go back there, and we feel these restrictions will help limit further community spread.”
37 Comments
|
* Tribune…
Federal prosecutors in Chicago are amassing records related to property tax assessments conducted under former Cook County Assessor Joe Berrios, including a tax break given to Gov. J.B. Pritzker after toilets were removed from a Gold Coast mansion he owned. […]
In all, the U.S. attorney’s office requested records related to more than 100 properties, obtaining the information through emails sent to current Assessor Fritz Kaegi. […]
In addition to seeking records on the assessments of Pritzker’s side-by-side mansions on Astor Street in the Gold Coast, the U.S. attorney’s office also requested information related to assessments and appeals filed by the Schmidt, Salzman & Moran law firm “on behalf of entities affiliated with the Pritzkers, including (the) Hyatt (hotel chain), Astor Street and Pritzker Group, from Jan. 1, 2016 to present,” according to documents provided to the Tribune through an open records request. […]
A federal source with knowledge of Blanchard’s report said it was unlikely to lead to any criminal charges. However, the source cautioned, the federal government has a number of ongoing public corruption investigations, and authorities do not know where all those efforts ultimately could lead.
Most of those 100 properties do not appear to be Pritzker-related. Go read the whole thing for more.
It’s telling that they’re only requesting public info via email instead of through grand jury subpoenas, which would be used in an actual investigation. As the source noted, one never knows where stuff like this can lead, but this is much less worrisome than the Madigan/ComEd stuff. Right now, anyway, there’s no comparison.
16 Comments
|
* Sun-Times editorial board…
But as we read the stunning “statement of facts” that prosecutors laid out Friday that implicated Madigan — but didn’t formally charge him with any crimes — our focus also sharpened on the company that admitted to a series of outrageous bribery schemes: electricity giant ComEd.
The power company admitted to using lobbyists to shower jobs, contracts and payoffs all over Springfield for the sole purpose of gaining favor with Madigan, who denies any wrongdoing but, at minimum, is standing in a bad storm.
ComEd’s criminal conduct is clear and undisputed, and almost comical in its audacity, breadth and sheer enthusiasm.
It’s a wonder — and a shame — that ComEd has only been fined — $200 million — and nobody as of now will be going to prison. The U.S. attorney’s office has deferred criminal charges against the company and its executives for three years, provided they “fully and truthfully cooperate” in the investigation of other “individuals or other entities.” The stock price for ComEd’s parent company, Exelon, closed more than 3% higher in the wake of the news.
It’s a wonder as well, we suppose, that ComEd, a pillar of the Chicago community, could try to work Springfield like a criminal enterprise so aggressively for so long. If nothing else good has come of this, the utility has served up an excellent object lesson in the dangers of tissue-thin regulations on political lobbying in Illinois.
We would hope that every big corporation calls a Zoom meeting next week with their armies of lobbyists to review basic ethical guidelines.
Go read the rest.
18 Comments
|
* Hmm…
Yeah, I’m really wondering what happens if she uses that sort of framing during a legislative committee hearing.
* From the transcript…
Mark Maxwell:
“Last week we heard from John Bouman, the head of the — formerly with the Shriver Center on Poverty Law — who now heads up a ballot initiative committee trying to persuade voters to ‘Vote Yes for the Fair Tax.’ That’s what their ballot initiative is called. Of course, it refers to the graduated income tax rate structure that would require Illinois to abolish the flat tax we have in place embedded in our Constitution right now. This week, we hear the counter argument from Cindy Neal, who was the chair of the Leadership Council for the NFIB, the National Federation of Independent Business and a business owner in Peoria helping recruit employees and find them jobs in that area. Cindy, it’s good to have you with us.”
Cindy Neal 3:03
Thank you. Thank you, Mark.
Mark Maxwell 3:05
You were at that big press conference that coordinated statewide push a week ago trying to persuade voters of the downside of this. From your vantage point, is there something fundamentally unfair with a graduated income tax rate structure? For example, should the federal government change from where they are now to a flat income tax?
Cindy Neal 3:31
I would love to see the federal government change to a flat income tax. I think that that is what a fair tax is all about. If you pay, if everybody pays the same percentage on your income, I don’t know what could be more fair than that. So if you’re a multimillionaire versus someone who’s at entry level, I think that’s fair and it mathematically is beautiful and perfect.
Mark Maxwell 3:53
It’s a round number. It’s a clean number, but there’s also the reality that the supporters of this graduated income tax — one that has been, you know, in our federal system for decades now — they point out that the people who only make 20 or $30,000 a year, once they pay their taxes and their mortgage and their rent and all that, they live paycheck to paycheck, and they have very little left over. Someone who makes $250,000 a year or a million dollars a year pays their taxes and their mortgage and they have this much bigger chunk of the pie leftover. They have more disposable income. Is that not fair for people who are doing quite well for themselves in this system to kick in a little more to the systems that they take advantage of?
Cindy Neal 4:36
You know, I think that the people that are in those higher income brackets tend to be who I call the makers, and the folks that are in the lower income brackets tend to be what I call the takers. And I do believe that as somebody starting out in life and trying to raise your family, sometimes you need help from different programs and agencies and that’s why we all pay into our tax system to help those folks. But I don’t want to take away from the makers or make them pay more because those are the folks technically, that are reinvesting in businesses, providing employment opportunities for those people that are working their way up the career ladder and are trying to support their families locally.
Mark Maxwell 5:16
I don’t know if Abraham Lincoln would have used some of that same phrase, he often referred to a labor of being worthy of their of the spoils of their labor. You’re calling them takers. These are people who work their way through life.
Cindy Neal 5:29
No, I no… I wouldn’t necessarily I… Takers because they are still needing assistance. So, maybe that’s not the greatest terminology, but it rhymes with makers. So, there are people that make opportunities for others as far as in their business. And normally the folks that are in the higher income brackets, turn around and reinvest that money in new capital equipment, hiring more workers in
Mark Maxwell 5:51
Or their bigger house or their yacht, or a boat.
Cindy Neal 5:56
Sure. As you alluded to Lincoln, why not enjoy the spoils of your labors?
Discuss.
…Adding… React…
“The so-called low income ‘takers’ are the 97% of Illinoisans, many of whom are our nurses, teachers, grocery store clerks and other essential workers, who have been unfairly carrying the tax burden in our state for far too long. The Fair Tax is our chance to finally set things right,” said Quentin Fulks, Chairman of Vote Yes For Fairness. “Cindy Neal and opponents of the Fair Tax are only out to protect the millionaires and billionaires who benefit from our current broken system: one that enables the wealthy, so-called ‘makers’ to get away without paying their fair share. This attack on low-income Illinoisans coming from someone who two weeks ago claimed to be part of a ‘grassroots’ organization opposing the Fair Tax is not only despicable, it’s pure hypocrisy.”
51 Comments
|
Can Madigan make it through again?
Monday, Jul 20, 2020 - Posted by Rich Miller
* My weekly syndicated newspaper column…
One of the most politically powerful entities in this state, ComEd, has basically admitted bribing the most politically powerful person in this state, House Speaker Michael Madigan, and agreed to pay $200 million and continue cooperating with federal investigators for at least the next three years.
And, yet, Madigan himself was not charged, although he was finally served with federal subpoenas the same day ComEd’s “deferred prosecution agreement” with the feds was announced.
If it wasn’t clear before (and it should’ve been), it’s completely obvious now that the U.S. Attorney for the Northern District John Lausch wants to take down the longest-serving House speaker in history.
But first, the prosecutor may need some folks to flip on Madigan or find a paper trail that leads directly to Madigan’s door.
Right now, the federal government has recordings or witness accounts of people close to Madigan demanding or at least soliciting favors on the speaker’s behalf — everything from internships in Madigan’s ward, to a ComEd corporate board seat for a Madigan pal.
However, as former federal prosecutor, 2018 Democratic attorney general candidate and cable TV legal analyst Renato Mariotti wrote on Twitter: “proving that ComEd was involved in a scheme to bribe Madigan is different than proving that Madigan knowingly participated in the scheme.”
Some of the folks close to Madigan may never flip. Mike McClain, Madigan’s closest confidante for decades and ComEd’s former top lobbyist/consultant, indicated to WBEZ that he won’t ever cooperate and, knowing him as I have over the years, I tend to believe him.
But others might crack under pressure.
One Madigan associate was allegedly paid millions by ComEd to hire Madigan’s pals who did little to no work. A law firm close to Madigan saw its billable hours reduced by ComEd and Madigan’s people allegedly put the arm on the company to make the firm whole.
As for Madigan, his office claimed in a statement that he has never asked anyone to hire a no-show worker, nor did he ever “expect to provide anything to a prospective employer if it should choose to hire a person he recommended.”
“He has never made a legislative decision with improper motives and has engaged in no wrongdoing here,” the statement claimed.
ComEd got some truly huge bills passed while it was providing all that largess to Madigan’s organization, but someone telling the company a request was for Madigan is different than proving Madigan ordered it to happen.
Even so, the depth and breadth of Madigan’s apparent influence over ComEd was spectacular and the lengths to which the company would go to pass its legislation through Madigan’s House was mind-boggling. I mean, who gives up a corporate board seat like that unless they badly needed something done and figured it would work?
Gov. J.B. Pritzker quickly announced that Madigan should resign if the allegations were true. But that didn’t prompt much of an outpouring by Madigan’s House Democratic members.
I reached out to three dozen of Madigan’s 73 current members to ask for comment. Most didn’t respond. Some declined to talk. A few issued non-committal statements.
But two did follow Pritzker’s line about what should happen next.
“These allegations are very serious and we must be consistent in our efforts to respect the public trust that is given to us by our residents and the people of Illinois,” Rep. Stephanie Kifowit, D-Oswego, told me. “If the allegations are true, then he must be held to the same standard we have held other former elected officials in our chamber and resign.”
“The conduct alleged is outrageous, and comes at the end of a long chain of unacceptable breaches of the public trust not unlike the pattern of ‘lather, rinse, repeat I referenced a few years ago in discussing the allegations of sexual harassment in his office,” said Rep. Kelly Cassidy, D-Chicago, about Madigan. “I agree with the Governor. If any of these allegations are true and Speaker Madigan or those closest to him are involved, then he must resign.”
But it will take more than two angry members to force Madigan out without a federal indictment.
Keep an eye on the growing ranks of young, progressive House Democrats. They held their fire the day this all came out, but they don’t rely on Madigan’s campaign or patronage help like many of his suburban, Downstate and older members do. If they do ever break against him, things could start changing in a hurry.
I wrote that column on Friday afternoon. As subscribers already know, the House Progressive Caucus sent me a statement Sunday. The caucus issued a press release this morning…
Twelve members of the Illinois House Progressive Caucus issued the following joint statement Monday morning:
On Friday, the US Attorney for the Northern District of Illinois released the deferred prosecution agreement it has reached with ComEd. The behavior alleged in this document is an unacceptable breach of the public trust. If these allegations are true, Speaker Madigan and any other elected official involved in this scheme must resign from public service.
We founded the Progressive Caucus because we believe that government can be, and must be, a force for fairness and justice in people’s lives. This kind of behavior is exactly why so many Illinoisans have lost faith in that notion. We deserve better, and we must demand better.
SIGNED,
Carol Ammons, Caucus Co-Chair
Will Guzzardi, Caucus Co-Chair
Theresa Mah, Caucus Co-Chair
Delia Ramirez, Caucus Secretary
Jennifer Gong-Gershowitz, Caucus Treasurer
Kelly Cassidy
Robyn Gabel
Lindsey LaPointe
Anna Moeller
Anne Stava-Murray
Ann Williams
Yoni Pizer
Others have also come forward.
52 Comments
|
|
Comments Off
|
|
Support CapitolFax.com
Visit our advertisers...
...............
...............
...............
...............
...............
...............
|
   
|
Hosted by MCS
SUBSCRIBE to Capitol Fax
Advertise Here
Mobile Version
Contact Rich Miller
|
