* We finally have a new ICC commissioner, and he’s a pretty good guy. From a press release…
Governor Pat Quinn today announced the appointment of John Colgan to the Illinois Commerce Commission. Colgan had been Vice President for Public Policy for the Illinois Association of Community Action Agencies (IACAA).
“John is a lifelong public servant, dedicated to fighting for the citizens of our state,” said Governor Quinn. “I know he will serve on the Commerce Commission with integrity and provide a strong voice for Illinois’ consumers.”
Colgan has more than thirty years experience in community organizing and administration, serving for 12 years as founding executive director of the Illinois Hunger Coalition, prior to accepting a position with IACAA in 2001. At IACAA, he worked tirelessly for affordable energy for Illinois’ low-income families.
In 2004, Colgan co-authored the Affordable Energy Plan, which was used as the basis for the creation and passage of the Illinois Percentage of Income Payment Plan (PIPP), which Governor Quinn signed into law on July 10 (Public Act 096-0033). The PIPP helps low-income families, seniors and other fixed-income households pay their utility bills by modernizing of the Low Income Home Energy Assistance Program (LIHEAP).
“I am honored to serve on the Illinois Commerce Commission on behalf of the people of Illinois,” said Colgan.
Colgan also helped negotiate rate relief contracts with Ameren and ComEd and implement them for the statewide Community Action network. The adjusted contracts to aid low-income families took effect in June 2007 and saved them more than $50 million over four years. Colgan will fill the vacancy left by Robert F. Lieberman.
Not sure yet how the utilities will react, and the Senate Democrats appeared to be in the dark about this appointment late last night, so we’ll see how it plays out.
* Eliminating free rides for seniors on mass transit isn’t a universally accepted idea. Some, like Sen. Rickey Hendon, are adamantly opposed…
State Senator Rickey Hendon says he’s against a bill that would eliminate free public transit rides for most senior citizens. The measure that’s backed by some high-ranking lawmakers would allow low-income seniors to continue riding free. But Hendon demands free rides for all seniors regardless of income. Though, he might make one exception.
Lawmakers acknowledged tweaking a benefit for seniors with a primary election nearing will make some politicians squeamish.
“It’s a very serious voting group,” Bassi said. But when the policy first emerged in 2008, “in my district, the majority of people said ‘it’s ridiculous the governor has done that,’” she recalled.
* The Question: In your opinion, how politically risky is this proposal to eliminate the free rides for all seniors, give them a 50 percent discount (which they had before) and use a “means test” to give free rides to those seniors making $22,200 or less?
Try to stick to the question and only the question, please.
The every-two-year Springfield ritual that has candidates acting like anxious concert-goers starts again this morning.
But instead of lining up to get tickets for their favorite band, they line up outside the State Board of Elections to file their nominating petitions early and get a chance at top billing on the Illinois primary ballot.
* There are some holes in the filings.
For instance, as of about 11 this morning, Cook County Board President Todd Stroger has not yet filed his petitions, according to the county’s website. Congressman Danny Davis has filed for board president, but not for congress as of yet. [UPDATE: Davis claims to have filed over 50,000 signatures for board president.]
Only two candidates have filed for Cook County Assessor as of this writing, Bob Shaw and Joe Berrios.
Campaign spokesman Dan Curry says Ryan will file petitions on Nov. 2 to get on the Republican primary ballot, the last day of filing for candidates in state and federal primaries. […]
The decision to file petitions Nov. 2 is an apparent attempt to be the last name voters see on the long Republican primary ballot for governor. Candidates in line to file this morning will be subject to a lottery for the prized top spot on the ballot.
Andy McKenna also hasn’t filed, and will likely wait until the last day as well. Same goes for Dan Proft, who was offering to pay circulators a buck a signature over the weekend. The four GOP gubernatorial candidates who did file are: Andrzejewski, Brady, Dillard and Schillerstrom.
* There have been rumors that Democratic US Senate candidate Cheryle Jackson was having trouble with signatures, and she didn’t file today, either.
Conservative Republican Patrick Hughes has also not yet filed for US Senate.
* Justin Obermann is the only candidate of either party to file for treasurer so far, according to the Board of Elections’ website. Robin Kelly is the slated candidate in that party. Sen. Dan Rutherford is the GOP candidate. Rutherford is bringing Karl Rove into Illinois next month, by the way.
* Only three Democrats have filed for lieutenant governor as of yet. Sens. Rickey Hendon and Terry Link and Rep. Art Turner. Rep. Mike Boland didn’t file and neither did Ald. Sandi Jackson. Hendon filed for Davis’ congressional district as well. Four GOPs filed for LG: Brad Cole, Jason Plummer, Don Tracy and Randy White.
…Adding… Related…
* Biden, Halvorson blamed for ‘dine and ditch’: A 31-year-old U.S. Air Force pilot seeking the GOP nomination for Halvorson’s seat questioned whether taxpayers should be on the hook for the expense. “What did the city have to provide? That fundraiser had to have police and fire doing overtime in a city where they’re telling people to take furloughs,” said Adam Kinzinger, of Manteno. “She raised money at the fundraiser; she should give some of it back so people aren’t footing the bill for her campaign.”
We’ve never believed that capping campaign contributions is an effective way to subtract money from politics. Candidates and their donors will always find the loopholes, even when they aren’t as obvious as the ones that were built into the last supposed reform bill. But we agree completely that putting caps on some groups but not on others makes things worse, not better.
Lawmakers are looking for a bone to toss the watchdogs — spending limits on leaders during primary races, maybe, or sewing up a few of the remaining loopholes in the disclosure rules. None of that would redeem this.
Watch for Madigan’s members to do as they’re told, though, and pass a plan that ties everyone’s hands except party leaders. Senate President John Cullerton can tell his troops to second it, and lawmakers will go home bragging that they’ve committed reform by passing the state’s first limits on campaign contributions.
Three things…
1) There can be no caps on uncoordinated independent expenditures by special interests, so the Trib is glossing over a problem there. In essence, if the Trib got its way everybody would be capped except the special interests. Also, the leaders would still be able to do uncoordinated independent expenditures.
I’m actually for this leadership cap, but I don’t think for a minute that it’ll solve anything. I just think that they oughtta do it, appease the screamers, and move on.
2) Will they really pass something this week? Part of the bill introduced by Madigan takes effect on January 1st of next year. That means a three-fifths vote will be required for passage.
That’s doubtful unless something is changed in the bill. Madigan apparently believes the legislation will benefit his members, despite the rages of editorial boards, because some of his targets have signed on as co-sponsors, including appointed North Shore Rep. Carol Sente, and, to a lesser extent, Southland Rep. Kevin McCarthy.
A revised legislative proposal that surfaced Friday would set limits on how much money parties and caucus leaders could contribute to candidates — but only for primary elections, not for general elections. The limits would be $100,000 for House candidates and $200,000 for Senate and statewide candidates.
“We’re not in love with it,” said Cynthia Canary, director of the Illinois Campaign for Political Reform. […]
“To my mind, it would be an inadequate bill,” Canary said. “It could also be a bill with other things that are meaningful.”
That doesn’t sound like a complete, outright rejection. We’ll see how it progresses. Dividing the reformers will be key to the leaders’ strategy here. If they can accomplish that, then maybe some Republicans will be forced on board.
Sen. Don Harmon is the lead negotiator for the Senate Democrats…
“Is there even a shred of evidence that a legislator is under the thumb of a legislative leader because of campaign spending? I don’t see it,” [Harmon] said. “I see members elected from competitive districts vote in the best interests of their district, which is often counter to the way the legislative leader votes.”
Actually, they’re usually told what’s in the best interests of their districts and then they vote accordingly.
A secret hiring database kept by former Gov. Rod Blagojevich’s administration is shedding new light on a controversy over lucrative pressure-washing jobs that went to a Cicero company owned by a major Blagojevich campaign contributor.
The contributor — William Mologousis, owner of Pressure Washing Systems Environmental Inc. — helped his brother-in-law Robert Millette land a $95,000-a-year job as the Illinois Department of Transportation’s finance and administration chief in 2003, the records show.
The next year, Mologousis’ company got a $522,000 contract to pressure-wash state bridges, building facades and expressway tunnels. The deal also included a “pilot program” under which his company, known as PWS, would clean and seal a half-dozen IDOT salt storage domes.
That pressure-washing contract set off a huge political firestorm in 2005. And now we know that Mologousis got a total of 11 people hired or promoted, 10 at IDOT alone.
* The State Journal-Register’s Sunday editorial makes a very important - and valid - point about the upcoming election…
As the 2010 campaign moves forward, voters should keep one thing in mind: Those candidates who promise you no pain, those who say things can be solved by just making nips and tucks and magically creating private sector jobs — they have just lied to you.
The response of too many Democratic officials at state and local governments in Illinois? Gee, what taxes can we raise to drive away more employers and workers — because you can’t possibly ask us to change how, and how much, we spend.
For the first time since he took office, a new Rasmussen Reports poll of Illinoisans shows that more than half of all voters disapprove of Gov. Pat Quinn’s performance in office.
The poll of 500 likely Illinois voters taken Oct. 14 found that 53 percent disapproved of Quinn’s performance while 45 percent approved. That’s a six-point switch from August when Rasmussen had Quinn’s approval at 47 percent and his disapproval at 49 percent. Back in June, Quinn’s approval was measured at 57 percent, while his disapproval was 41. In April, Rasmussen had Quinn’s approval rating at 61 percent and his disapproval at just 37 percent. There’s an obvious trend.
Quinn’s disapproval rating has been climbing across all demographics this year, including among Democrats. Just 26 percent of Democrats disapproved of Quinn’s performance in June, but 38 percent of Democrats disapproved this month. Independent voters have been a lot more unforgiving. In April, 36 percent of independents disapproved of the governor’s job performance, but Rasmussen’s latest October survey has 59 percent of independents turning thumbs down.
The governor most assuredly was viewed extra positively by voters in the wake of former Gov. Rod Blagojevich’s ouster and the fresh start given Illinois politics. Quinn since unsuccessfully pushed for an unpopular tax increase, has been unable to make good on promises to enact strong campaign finance reforms and also couldn’t balance the budget. The constant crises most definitely are taking their toll, as they are with many other governors around the country.
The poll was taken near the start of the current TV advertising blitz being conducted by Quinn and his Democratic primary opponent Dan Hynes. Rasmussen rated Hynes’ favorables at 46 percent, with 28 percent saying they rated him unfavorably and 26 percent unsure. Quinn’s favorables were 50 percent, with 41 percent saying they had an unfavorable view of him and 8 percent not sure.
The Rasmussen poll also shows Illinois Democrats have a significant advantage in the “generic” gubernatorial ballot, with 43 percent saying they’ll vote for a nonspecific Democrat and 37 percent saying they’ll cast their vote for a Republican candidate for governor. Rasmussen has the national generic congressional ballot at just the opposite, with 42 percent Republican and 37 percent Democratic, but those Illinois numbers may be less strong for Democrats than you might expect in a state that has produced such gigantic Democratic majorities in the past decade.
The Republicans also have a big lead among senior citizens 65 and older, with 40 percent saying they’ll take a Republican ballot and just 33 percent saying they’ll cast their vote for a Democratic gubernatorial candidate. The Democrats have consistently won the senior vote by 10 points over the past two election cycles, so this is a very worrying result for that party and worth a closer look. The poll, by the way, has a margin of error of plus/minus 4.5 percent, but that’s higher for individual demographics.
Meanwhile, a recent Paul Simon Institute poll found that 65.5 percent opposed an increase in the state income tax from 3 percent to 4.5 percent - a proposal pushed by Quinn throughout the year. Less than a third supported the idea. Quinn’s income tax hike plan has been a focal point of Comptroller Hynes’ TV ad campaign, and the Republicans have been salivating at the chance to run against it next year.
Hynes has pushed an alternative plan to raise income taxes only on the wealthy. That proposal wasn’t polled by the Paul Simon Institute this year, but they did poll it last year.
Asked how they felt about “a proposal to add brackets to the state income tax structure so that higher-income residents pay higher taxes,” 66 percent said they favored it. Just 29 percent opposed it, and 5 percent didn’t know.
That’s the only tax hike Illinoisans supported last year, so it’s little wonder why Hynes would favor it this year.
Hynes appears to have the far better political positioning on the tax issue than Quinn and doesn’t have the baggage of incumbency, which is becoming increasingly toxic throughout the nation. But none of it means quite yet that he’ll win the primary. Democratic voters won’t speak until Feb. 2.
I really wish the Institute had polled that question this year.
* Related…
* Municipalities need pension relief: That said, we support a measure currently being negotiated in Springfield that would allow municipalities to delay funding a part of their pension obligations this year with the caveat that the cut in the obligation is no more than a one- or possibly two-year emergency measure while a more permanent solution to the funding challenge is developed.
The Chicago Sun-Times reported a drop in overall weekday circulation in the past six months — as the single-copy price jumped from 50 to 75 cents — but an increase in home-delivery subscriptions.
The company said the decline was in line with expectations because of the price increase, which took effect March 30, and industry trends.
The Chicago Sun-Times’ Monday through Friday average circulation over the six-month reporting period fell to 275,641, a decline of 12 percent compared with the same period a year ago, according to the FAS-FAX report being released by the Audit Bureau of Circulations today. The newspaper’s Sunday circulation slipped 1.8 percent to 251,260, while Saturday’s average declined 7.9 percent to 210,027.
The Chicago Sun-Times reported a 5.5 percent increase in its weekday home-delivery circulation.
Chicago’s worst budget crisis in modern history has put the brakes on plans to expand the city’s Big Brother network of red-light cameras to more than 330 accident-prone intersections by 2012.
Mayor Daley’s tough-times 2010 budget includes no money for additional red-light cameras after installing them at 50 intersections this year, bringing the citywide total to 189.[…]
The 50 cameras added this year cost $2.8 million to install and $50,000 each a year to maintain and support on the Internet.[…]
In 2008, Chicago’s network of red-light cameras pumped out 579,560 tickets at $100 a pop and generated $44.8 million in sorely needed revenue. Through the first eight months of this year, there were 501,666 tickets issued and $37.7 million million collected.
A city employee was awarded more than $1 million by a jury Friday after she claimed she was wrongfully arrested when she refused to rescind a parking ticket issued to a police officer’s car.
Marquette Park is no different from neighborhoods nationwide, he said. Durbin spoke in a downtown hotel conference room before about 500 protesters who traveled to Chicago to target the American Bankers Association’s annual meeting.
Durbin and protesters accuse the ABA of lobbying against banking reform despite the organization’s members receiving billions in federal bailout dollars.
Protesters also plan to demonstrate Monday and Tuesday. The ABA meeting began Sunday at the nearby Sheraton Hotel and ends Wednesday.
The union representing 6,000 hotel workers in downtown Chicago and 15,000 hospitality workers in the Chicago area said Friday that contract negotiations are “very, very far from settlement.”[…]
This year, as with the last contract negotiations in 2006, the union is negotiating with the large hotel chains separately rather than as a group through the Hotel Employers Labor Relations Association. John Schafer, vice president and managing director for Hyatt Regency Chicago, said Hyatt has been diligent in meeting with the union but that negotiations were taking longer because of the arrangement.[…]
Contracts proposed by the Starwood and Hyatt chains, Strassel said, would render up to 50 percent of workers ineligible for health insurance. Costs for coverage for the remaining group would increase significantly. “Our folks are housekeepers and dishwashers.”
Illinois saw two deaths due to swine flu and 66 new hospitalizations because of the virus in the last week. The Illinois Department of Public Health released the updated statistics on Friday. The updated information means that 22 people in Illinois have died of swine flu and there have been 542 hospitalizations due to the disease.
Three Illinois newspapers say they have filed a lawsuit against Logan County officials seeking search warrants and other documents, some pertaining to the deaths of five family members in the town of Beason.
* I spent some time in Beverly this week with lots of my Irish friends, so this one’s for them. Turn it up…
I sit in and dwell on faces past
Like memories seem to fade
No colour left but black and white
And soon will all turn grey
But may these shadows rise to walk again
With lessons truly learnt
When the blossom flowers in each our hearts
Shall beat a new found flame
* Americans for Prosperity has a new cable TV ad connecting ACORN, SEIU, Rod Blagojevich and Gov. Pat Quinn. It airs from October 22nd through the 28th on the Fox News cable channel in the Chicago metro region.
AFP admits this is a “small” buy, but claims they are working on raising money for future buys…
During weekdays, it will be airing 3-4 times per day, in the morning news (5AM-9AM), in other words, about once per hour.
On the 2 weekend days, the spot will be playing during prime time (for cable), 7PM-Midnight, 3 times per day.
*** UPDATE 1 *** The chairman of the St. Clair County Board just called to say that he and the Madison County board chairman requested this legislation two years ago out of concern that residents couldn’t afford the high cost of the flood insurance. That bill passed, but FEMA’s rules were such that they wanted Costello to pass another bill. So, I’ve rewritten parts of the story.
*** UPDATE 2 *** A statement from the developer in question…
“Congressman Costello’s legislation provides no benefit to the proposed University Town Center development. Plans for University Town Center as broadly discussed specify it will be constructed above the new base flood elevation of 434 feet. Given that University Town Center would be constructed above the base flood elevation contained in the new maps, suspending the flood insurance rate map update has no impact on University Town Center.”
*** UPDATE 3 *** After giving it further thought, the story about Congressman Costello linked below just isn’t up to standards, so I’ve rewritten it again to reflect that and deleted some excerpts from the Madison County Record story.
[ *** End of Updates *** ]
* Has Democratic Congressman Jerry Costello finally crossed the line? Highly improbable…
H.R. 3415: To suspend flood insurance rate map updates in geographic areas in which certain levees are being repaired.
The bill works to the advantage of John Costello, the Congressman’s son, because he belongs to a group planning a 900 acre mall along Bluff Road known as University Town Center.
As explained above, it doesn’t appear that the Costello bill and the mall are connected, so the Madison County Record probably owes the congressman an apology.
This is what I get for trying to be nice to those guys. Live and learn.
Illinois has the highest number of poorly rated black nursing homes nationwide, as rated by Nursing Home Compare, a Web site that maintains a federal database of Medicaid and Medicare-certified nursing homes.
The disparities are more acute in Chicago, where the lowest rating was given to nearly 60 percent of the 30 black nursing homes. In contrast, 11 percent of the city’s 45 white homes received the lowest rating. Thirty percent of the white homes received the highest rating, compared with none of the black homes.
Black nursing homes also averaged more violations than white homes, according to the Reporter, which focuses on issues of race and poverty. It also found residents at black facilities received less care from highly trained staff than their white counterparts. […]
“Many of these nursing homes have the same owners, yet there are disparities in the level of care. Clearly, there’s a problem here,” [said Sen. Jacqueline Collins (D-Chicago)]
James Degorski and his accomplice Juan Luna killed seven innocent people in the 1993 Brown’s Chicken massacre.
Both men got lucky after they were convicted. They got life-without-parole sentences — Luna two years ago and Degorski earlier this week — when holdout Cook County jurors refused to vote for the death penalty.
Rodney Adkins, in contrast, killed one innocent person — Catherine McAvinchey, of Oak Park, whom he stabbed to death when she interrupted him as he was burglarizing her condominium in July 2003.
But Adkins did not get lucky after he was convicted. He got a death sentence from a Cook County judge in August, 2007. All eight crimes are unconscionable, of course. But so is the disparity in the sentences.
And concludes…
If it’s not for the worst of the worst but merely for the unluckiest of the worst, then the death penalty must go.
* The Question: Should the death penalty be abolished in Illinois? Explain.
* A poll taken by the Illinois Republican Party in April at then-Chairman Andy McKenna’s behest is creating a minor uproar…
The poll, obtained recently by the Daily Herald, has sparked anger from some Republicans who question why the former party steward’s name would be included when he was vetting other bidders, especially now that McKenna has indeed decided to run for governor.
To some, the poll and McKenna’s entrance into the race reflect the state of the Illinois GOP in recent years, often viewed as a ship adrift with too many lieutenants fighting over the wheel. And the Republican primary for governor has so far shaped up likewise: a pack of moderately known politicians struggling for attention and battling over a few key fundraisers and organizers.
The party poll was commissioned by McKenna as chairman in April and his own name is in it as a possible candidate for both governor and U.S. senator. Other Republican governor hopefuls are upset McKenna has gone from party leader to primary challenger.
“Only Andy McKenna can address the many conflicts surrounding his candidacy,” said Brad Hahn, spokesman for DuPage County Board Chairman Bob Schillerstrom, who also is running for governor. “We are anxious to hear his explanation.”
* Meawhile, Greg Hinz gets right to the point about Gov. Quinn’s formal reelection kickoff announcement…
The question — still unanswered — is whether Mr. Quinn really is up to the job.
* And opponents react to Gov. Pat Quinn’s campaign announcement…
Hynes said in a statement Quinn was more interested in “placing politics and platitudes above reality” by not focusing more on budget problems and solutions.
“Until you’re serious about addressing our budget mess, you’re not running for governor of Illinois, you’re running for governor of ‘Fantasy Island,’” Hynes said.
Pat Brady, chairman of the state Republican Party, questioned why voters would keep Quinn as governor with a budget crisis ongoing, ethics reform incomplete, a high unemployment rate and a push for higher taxes.
“The people of Illinois are fed up with the dysfunctional leadership of Pat Quinn and the mess that Illinois Democrats have created under single party rule. They must be held accountable,” Brady said in a statement.
Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger’s approval rating of 27 percent is also the lowest the Field Poll has recorded for the movie-star politician.
That’s just a few points above Gray Davis’ worst showing. Oof.
And editorial boards across the country are kicking up dust…
In neighboring New York, The New York Times editorial board this week levied even harsher criticism at the state legislature, assailing it as a “national embarrassment, a swamp of intrigue and corruption, a $131 billion monster controlled by a crowd of smug officials whose main concern is keeping their soft jobs.” Unless state lawmakers make major changes to the way Albany operates, the paper said — including improving budget transparency, reforming campaign finance laws and creating an independent ethics watchdog —“it will be up to the voters to get them out, all of them.”
The last time I recall newspaper editorial boards being this furious as one was in 1994.
* Fran Spielman looks at five city services that could be privatized, including…
WATER SYSTEM: This sounds intriguing, but it’s fraught with political danger. It’s one thing to privatize the Skyway and street parking, which play to more limited audiences. But everybody uses Lake Michigan water purified and pumped through Department of Water Management facilities. Does Daley really want to put that service in the hands of a private company that might cut corners to improve its bottom line? One City Hall observer called it “a gamble I wouldn’t take.” Another complication is the condition of the city’s water mains. Like the Midway deal, a private contractor likely would be required to offer jobs to city workers. Would they pay top dollar, only to inherit employees implicated in the Hired Truck and city hiring scandals?
SEWER SYSTEM: This would probably make more sense from a political standpoint. “To put it crudely, people are less sensitive to the quality of what’s going out than they are about the quality of what’s coming in,” Schmidt said. Chicagoans pay a sewer surcharge that amounts to 86 percent of a customer’s water bill. If sewer service alone is privatized, those fees tacked on to water bills would have to be separated.
I’m generally not a fan of selling off assets. Privatizing the management of the Lottery is somewhat different because we’re using the private sector’s expertise to make more money off the asset. And I’m somewhat OK with selling off an asset if the proceeds are used to pay down long-term debt, like the pension fund. But to just sell it off and then spend the cash - as Daley has been doing - is just not right.
* Most people hate the penny increase in the Cook County sales tax, but the county isn’t considering these sorts of schemes. It would be if they didn’t have that money. Believe it…
The sales tax paid in Cook County _ now at 10.25 percent in the city _ remains the biggest blockade to development and yet the [new Cook County] budget gives no consideration to reducing it, said Laurence Msall, president of the Civic Federation, a nonpartisan government watchdog agency.
“This appears to be a status-quo budget that benefits from the sales tax,” he said, despite a push by state lawmakers and county residents to reduce the tax.
What few news outlets ever report is that the county’s portion of that sales tax is quite small.
And this column doesn’t mention a very important fact until well into the piece…
No one seems to care much about the poor of the Southland. Cook County has announced plans to shut down inpatient care at Oak Forest Hospital, which it owns and operates.
That means sick people in the Southland without health insurance will have to travel to Stroger Hospital in Chicago or, more likely, end up in the already overcrowded emergency rooms at privately owned hospitals in the area.
The “county” isn’t shutting down the inpatient care. The much-praised and ballyhooed independent board overseeing the hospital system is doing the deed.
More than a year ago, though, a new panel of health professionals took control of the system. Lo and behold, the pros are doing what the pols never would: They’re cutting the featherbedded payroll — and they’re asking taxpayers for less money.
* It’s been a really rough week. My mom suggested that I write about it, so I did. Here’s my Sun-Times column…
My best friend in the world died last week.
Brian Patrick Michael Monahan was born on the Southwest Side and raised at 115th and Western. His house was the center of almost all neighborhood activity. His mother, Pat, was and still is the second mom to more people than I’ll ever know.
Brian’s dad, Frank, worked for a labor union and made enough money to give his family a relatively comfortable life. To say Frank was a dyed-in-the-wool, South Side Democrat would be the understatement of the decade.
“I think if Jesus Christ was running as a Republican, my dad would still vote Democrat,” Brian used to joke. It was an exaggeration, of course, but not by much.
Frank passed away several years ago, but the lessons he taught Brian never faded.
The only area where Brian and his dad really parted ways was his father’s desire for stability in life. Brian moved from job to job for as long as I knew him, and he never really had a “normal” gig. Brian had a strong desire to make a quiet difference in this world, and that’s what he did, day in and day out, but in his own way.
Long ago, Brian organized college students into a strong legislative force via the Illinois Student Association. Over the years, he registered thousands of voters and supervised the registration of tens of thousands more. Among other things, he was an organizer for a couple of different unions after moving to Kansas City, Mo.
He never once sought the limelight. He had no desire for fame or fortune. He didn’t yell and scream and try to draw attention to himself. Brian just wanted to do good the only way he knew how.
Brian was the type of person I admire the most. I think a lot of others feel the same way about people just like him. That was clear when Gov. Quinn threatened to shut down funding for private social service agencies last summer.
It wasn’t just that necessary services would’ve been eliminated that bothered so many of us. People who provided those services would have been out of jobs. These are the quiet heroes of our state. And those heroes, who take care of the less fortunate, the poor, the disabled, the sick and the elderly, were being used as pawns in a political game of chicken. Brian didn’t live in Illinois, but he never would have stood for that if he had — Democratic governor or no Democratic governor.
Brian was considering a move back to Illinois the week before he died unexpectedly at 46 last week. A job opening here had caught his eye and his family and friends were overjoyed. Even though we talked on the phone as often as we could and saw him whenever possible, we still missed him terribly and we wanted him back full time.
I also wanted Brian here because his state needed him now more than ever. The multiple crises facing Illinois are greater than at any time in our lives, so we desperately need all the good, strong people we can get.
It wasn’t to be.
Brian’s friends and family have been through a wrenching week of agony. My own heart feels as if it has been shattered into a million pieces. But everyone reading this and everyone who is not is the poorer for his death. The good he could have done here, no matter how unnoticed by the naked eye, would’ve surely helped us in these horribly dark days.
And if you’re feeling generous…
The Brian Monahan Children’s Trust Fund
c/o Pat Monahan
2800 W. 111th St.
Chicago, IL 60655
Former Chicago Tribune newsroom managers have created a venture that is making its debut in local editions of the New York Times.
The Chicago News Cooperative will provide two pages of local content, primarily political news, in the Friday and Sunday editions of the New York Times starting Nov. 20.
Chicago News Cooperative is being led by Jim O’Shea, former editor of the Los Angeles Times and former managing editor of the Chicago Tribune. Jim Warren, a former managing editor for features at the Tribune, will contribute a regular column.
But for the first time in its long history, the magazine, along with its sister publication Jet, could be up for sale. The Chicago-based, privately owned Johnson Publishing Co. has not denied recent news reports that it is shopping for a buyer for the magazines.
“We are exploring a range of options to support our core media business,” spokeswoman Wendy E. Parks said in a written statement. “However, we are not in discussions with Time Inc. and Viacom.” Parks, and others at Johnson, declined to be interviewed for this story.
* The Sun-Times followed up on a poll story I wrote for subscribers this morning…
“The Mighty Quinn” played as Gov. Pat Quinn finished his speech announcing he was running for governor Thursday morning at the hotel where he launched many citizen initiatives.
But then he left the stage trying to avoid questions from reporters about polls showing his support a bit less than “mighty.” Quinn’s nine months as governor — after 33 years as a political activist, gadfly and sometimes-second-level elected official — have sometimes reinforced his image as a populist but other times left him vulnerable to charges that he’s now protecting the status quo.
A new Rasmusson poll finds 53 percent of Illinois voters disapprove of Quinn’s job performance while 45 percent approve.
The significance of the poll is it’s the first time a Rasmussen survey has ever shown more voters disapproving of Quinn’s job performance than approving.
In a generic ballot match-up for the 2010 Governor election in Illinois, a Democratic candidate holds a 43% to 37% edge over a Republican.
The latest Rasmussen Reports telephone survey in the state finds that another 20% of voters there are not sure which party’s candidate they would choose.
The plurality of voters not affiliated with either party (43%) are not sure which candidate they would choose at this time. Thirty-six percent (36%) would pick the Republican while 21% would vote for the Democrat.
He spoke before a phalanx of cameras about his plans for rebuilding Illinois, although he never mentioned his unpopular push for a state income tax increase as a method to fund his initiatives.
Quinn explained that his lack of mentioning a tax increase was because “there’s only a certain amount of things you can talk about in the course of 10 minutes,” even though his address to supporters was about twice as long.
Ken Valdiserri, who serves as president of Ditka’s Gridiron Greats Assistance Fund charity, said the endorsement could have been forgiven as a mixup, but that the finance committee situation is another matter.
“He never agreed to do it,” Valdiserri said. “Mike doesn’t have time to be on a finance committee of any politician. He doesn’t have time to be speaking and helping candidates when he’s in the middle of his busiest season,” which includes serving as an NFL analyst on ESPN.
And then a few minutes ago the Hughes campaign sent out this press release…
The campaign of Republican U.S. Senate candidate Patrick Hughes has issued the following official statement with approval of the Mike Ditka organization:
“As of October 22nd, Mike Ditka is endorsing Patrick Hughes for U.S. Senate. This statement is being issued jointly by Mike Ditka’s organization and the U.S. Senate campaign of Patrick Hughes. We have no further comment on anything that has been discussed or reported in any media.”
Due to Coach Ditka’s numerous business and personal commitments, he will not be serving on Patrick Hughes’ finance committee.
According to newly installed state Budget Director David Vaught, Gov. Pat Quinn recently brought up the idea with U.S. Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner and others at the White House. The governor got a good enough reception that “he intends to extend” his efforts, Mr. Vaught said.
A federally guaranteed bond issue could be an enormous help to Illinois in dealing with a huge fiscal 2011 budget hole that Dan Long, executive director of the Commission on Government Forecasting and Accountability, the Legislature’s fiscal research arm, now pegs at $11 billion to $12 billion.
Mr. Vaught said a federal guarantee would cut the interest rate on such a bond to “in the 3% to 4% range” from “5% to 6%.” That would make it much more profitable — and less risky — for the state, which would invest the funds in higher-yielding stocks and bonds.
Since any profits could be booked up front, at least in part, the state would be able to avoid making hundreds of millions and perhaps billions in annual contributions to worker pensions that it otherwise would have to come up with in the next few years.
* This is what passes for wisdom at the Pantagraph…
The argument for ousting statewide office-holders through term limits is not as compelling as the case for legislative term limits. All voters have the opportunity to vote against re-election of a statewide office-holder, which is not the case for individual lawmakers.
Term limits on Illinois lawmakers is an idea whose time has come.
One painful lesson we learned over and over when Rod Blagojevich was around was that the Illinois governor has too much constitutional power. Yet, the Pantagraph would weaken the General Assembly further without touching the governor’s authority.
Are the legislative leaders too powerful? Of course. But they got that power through political muscle, not the Constitution. Because they have so few powers enumerated to them, they’ve had to build their own power base with politics. That’s one reason why they are so reluctant to give up their political powers via campaign finance reform (although they are also undoubtedly loathe to cede their grand fiefdoms to the whims of a bunch of reformers and Republicans). Take away their political leverage and the governor’s constitutional powers will only be enhanced.
The same is essentially true of the Chicago mayor. Legally, the city has a “weak mayor” form of government, so the only way mayors have been able to truly govern effectively is if they had a powerful political organization. Witness Jane Byrne’s flip-flop after she defeated the Machine for a prime example, and Harold Washington’s losses to the Machine until he elected more sympathetic aldermen.
I know it sounds counter-intuitive, but it’s a fact.
What we have to decide here is what sort of government we really want, rather than just picking and choosing reforms cafeteria-style. That’s why I supported the Constitutional Convention last year. We need a thorough debate on this. Top-down.
Instead, we get endless rants from mindless editorial boards and publicity hungry politicians.
* Gov. Pat Quinn officially kicks off his campaign for governor today. Dan Hynes’ campaign issued a press release this morning claiming that “the gulf between what Pat Quinn says and what he does is wider than the Mississippi River.” The Hynes campaign then provided a few examples of why “history shows you simply can’t trust what Pat Quinn says.” Go take a look, but here’s the lead item…
“You don’t want to raise taxes on ordinary people in a recession.” – Pat Quinn in 2001. [State Journal-Register, 10/8/01]
Pat Quinn proposed raising taxes on ordinary, middle class Illinoisans during the worst recession since the Great Depression.
Expect that quote to be used in a TV campaign - if not by Hynes then certainly by the Republicans if Quinn wins the primary.
* The Tribune, by the way, asked Mayor Daley if he was endorsing anyone for governor in the Democratic primary. Daley was at the editorial board meeting to talk about the city budget. Here’s his response…
“I don’t know yet. I don’t know. I’m just here for the budget.”
* Meanwhile, Sen. Bill Brady, a top Republican gubernatorial candidate, was on the South Side yesterday touting his jobs tour…
[Sen. Brady] spoke as he stood at 83rd and Stewart on the site where Wal-Mart wants to build a store but has been blocked by the Chicago City Council.
Brady introduced legislation in May that would allow the store, and other non-union big-box retailers, to get around the pro-union City Council. Brady’s bill would need a “super-majority” in the Illinois Legislature to overrule Chicago’s home-rule powers. And it’s unclear Brady, even as governor, would be able to persuade pro-union legislators to back such a bill.
Brady also said he’s proposing: a 10 percent tax credit, up to $2,100, for businesses that create new jobs in Illinois; cutting $300 million in business taxes and fees the state currently charges; and lowering the gas tax.
Senator Brady believes the long-term solution to the state’s fiscal imbalance is bringing back the 700,000 jobs Illinois has lost in recent years, which would ultimately result in a $3 billion annual infusion of tax revenues to the state treasury. In the short term, Senator Brady, as Governor, would order a top-to-bottom prioritization of state spending to curtail programs that are outdated or underperforming.
Dreamlike.
* Related…
* Health plans coping with state payment delays: Health Alliance Medical Plans will continue to pay medical bills for state workers, retirees and their dependents, even though Gov. Pat Quinn’s administration will stop paying the state’s share of monthly premiums for 3 1/2 months.
* State finance authority lays off six: The laid-off employees include four who worked in Chicago and one each in Springfield and Mount Vernon. The authority has offices in Chicago, Peoria, Mount Vernon and Springfield.
* Republican US Senate candidate Patrick Hughes has been caught in what could easily be portrayed as a lie. Earlier this month, Hughes sent out a press release touting an endorsement by former Bears coach Mike Ditka. Hughes also claimed that Ditka had agreed to serve on his campaign finance committee.
Well, the Team America blog got in touch with Ditka’s people and the coach provided this flat-out denial…
“I never publicly officially endorsed him and certainly did not agree to serve on his finance committee.”
Oops.
The Ditka press release appears to have been scrubbed from Hughes’ website.
Hughes has been positioned as the most likely longshot primary opponent of GOP Congressman Mark Kirk. This Ditka thing, however, shows that Hughes just ain’t ready for prime time.
* Speaking of Mark Kirk, RollCall takes a look at staff hires for the two top Democrats hoping to replace him in Congress, Dan Seals and Julie Hamos…
Seals has tapped the Strategy Group to do his mail and Adelstein Liston to do the media for his third try to win the 10th district seat. Meanwhile, campaign manager Patrick Mogge is also running the show for Seals for a third time.
But Seals has also brought a few new faces to the table, including polling firm Anzalone Liszt Research and research firm Link Strategies. Also new to the campaign are Finance Director Mimi Rodman, Field Director Erik Smith, Political Director Barb Cornew and Treasurer Harry Pascal. […]
Campaign manager Julie Sweet most recently managed author Tom Geoghegan’s (D) long-shot special election bid in the 5th district, which was won by now-Rep. Mike Quigley (D-Ill.). Field Director Russell Griffin served in the same capacity for Rep. Donna Edwards’ (D-Md.) triumphant primary bid over then-Rep. Albert Wynn (D-Md.). Political Director Eric Danko is a former campaign aide for Rep. Debbie Halvorson (D-Ill.), while Finance Director Kari Lundstad-Vogt most recently served as a job bank coordinator at EMILY’s List.
They are joined by Press Secretary Christopher Lackner, who most recently worked with Sweet on Geoghegan’s special election bid. Hamos has also signed up Will Robinson and Tierney Hunt of the New Media Firm to do her media, Diane Feldman and Melissa Diemand of the Feldman Group to do her polling, Lloyd Betourney of the Public Response Group to do her direct mail and Brett Di Resta of the Maccabee Group to do her media.
U.S. District Judge John F. Grady ruled that ads offering “adult services” aren’t explicitly offering sex, and Craigslist is an “intermediary,” and is not “culpable for aiding and abetting” customers who “misuse their services to commit unlawful acts.”
“Sheriff Dart may continue to use Craigslist’s Web site to identify and pursue individuals who post allegedly unlawful content,” Grady wrote in his ruling. “But he cannot sue Craigslist for their conduct.”
Can you imagine explaining the city’s parking monopoly to a newcomer to Chicago in 2020: how the city sold all its parking meters and blew the whole bonanza in three years?
He’s not only siphoning $370 million in parking meter money and $50 million from the Chicago Skyway lease to fund day-to-day operations and hold the line on taxes, fines and fees in 2010.
He’s using $35 million of that money to provide property tax relief — by doling out $200 grants to homeowners hardest hit by the phase out of the seven percent cap on property tax assessments.
After introducing his $6.14 billion budget and delivering his budget address to the City Council today, Daley defended his decision to risk the city’s bond rating by raiding reserves he once called untouchable.
“It’s called rainy day funds. It’s called economic sadness. That’s what you have and that’s what it was prepared for. . . . Leasing public assets for a rainy, rainy day. And this is a flood day and a flood year,” Daley told the Chicago Sun-Times editorial board, using the same language he once used to declare those funds off-limits.
That would leave roughly $864 million in mid- and long-term reserves from the combined, $3 billion take from those transactions, which gave private operators the right to pocket Skyway tolls for 99 years (ending in 2104) and parking-meter fees for 75 years (through 2084).
* City plans to curb recycling program, pick up blue carts every third week
Chicago’s citywide switch to curbside recycling would hit the brakes in some neighborhoods, while pickups would be less frequent in others, under cuts tied to Mayor Daley’s 2010 budget.
The mayor’s proposed budget includes no money to continue the citywide switch to blue-cart recycling that was supposed to be completed by 2011 for all 600,000 households that get city garbage pickup.
Also, some of the 240,000 households that have blue carts will see pickups every third week instead of every other week.
After listening to Mayor Daley describe his plan to raid city reserves, the City Council was abuzz with talk about the “next big revenue source” to finance city government.
If there had been a roll call, it would have been close to unanimous: The pot of gold lies in casino gambling.
The Chicago Transit Board on Wednesday approved a three-year vending machine contract to keep Coca-Cola on its properties. The CTA estimates it will earn more than $1.4 million over the next five years under the terms of the contract, which gives the agency a 50 percent revenue split.
The CTA, which is trying to cope with a $300 million deficit for 2010, is losing some help at the top.[…]
Mooney explained in an e-mail that as CTA pensions are structured, he has maximized his earnings “and there is no financial reason in terms of pension for me to stay.”
