[T]he previous high for first-day balloting during Early Voting in Chicago was 890 ballots cast before the Nov. 2006 election. The daily average for that election was 1,378 ballots during Early Voting.
Today, the first day of Early Voting for the 2008 General Primary, an unofficial total of 3,990 ballots were cast in the City of Chicago. Historically, the lowest counts of ballots have been the very first few days and on weekends.
That sound you heard was incumbents all over the city gulping very hard. Barack Obama’s candidacy may be a blessing to some, but his very powerful “change” message might prove fatal for a few entrenched incumbents who have thought for months that their reelections are in the bag.
* 5:57 pm - The Illinois House will return at eleven o’clock on Thursday. I’m figuring the Senate comes back that day, too, to deal with the governor amendatory veto of the transit bailout bill. CBS-2’s Mike Flannery has this update…
The bill’s chief sponsor, Evanston’s Rep. Julie Hamos, warned CBS 2 that as many as six members who voted for it last week are now saying they may vote no on Blago’s rewrite.
Remember this valuable lesson: Legislators are a lot like soldiers. They grumble very loudly but, in the end, usually do what they’re told.
* 6:04 pm - Jim Oberweis goes way negative on Chris Lauzen in his new radio ad…
* 6:11 pm - Larry at ArchPundit criticizes Illinois NOW for their attack on Barack Obama in a post entitled: “Illinois NOW, the Essence of Hypocrisy“. [Note: Profanity alert.]
The essence is that I-NOW is slamming Obama and touting its refusal to endorse him when they endorsed Lisa Madigan for doing the same thing. Larry adds this bit of history…
Illinois NOW also stood by Blair Hull when information came out about domestic violence in his divorce dispute.
Present votes engineered by Planned Parenthood? Very, very bad, except when it’s somebody else making those same votes. Spousal abuse? Why, that’s no problem at all.
*** 8:38 pm *** I just got off the phone with Rep. Julie Hamos. She claimed she never said that six members might flip to “No” on the transit bill. Hamos said that was the number of people she gave to the governor’s office to flip to “Yes” last week.
Hamos said people have been “playing games” with the bill all day, but when asked whether she thought the bill would die when all is said and done, Hamos paused for a bit and said she didn’t think it would perish.
She also said there could be another chapter written this Thursday when the Legislature reconvenes. Asked if that meant the General Assembly might send the bill back to the guv with further changes, Hamos said, “Stay tuned,” and repeated the same answer when asked again.
“I’d say today that it is not going to get 60 votes,’’ [Rep. Marlow Colvin] said Monday. “But that is before the Speaker has really started working it, and asking people to come on board. And I think he is going to be doing that to avert any kind of shutdown.” […]
Though she said she doesn’t like the way the governor is trying to strong-arm the legislature into approving the free-ride program, state Rep. Rosemary Mulligan (R-Des Plaines) said she still plans to vote for the transit bill this week. But she said it’s not like her older constituents are clamoring for her support of the bill. […]
“I don’t think anybody wants to see this blow up,’’ [Rep. Julie Hamos] said. “It’s too dangerous.”
* Apparently, the Southtown-Star moved my syndicated column back a day this week. I’m not gonna wait for them to post this excerpt…
I was assured last Wednesday night that Gov. Blagojevich is definitely running for reelection. The governor’s Thursday announcement [about seniors riding free in every mass transit district in Illinois] sure looks like his first step down that road.
* The Peoria Journal-Star takes a closer look at some claims made in the three 18th Congressional District candidate bios. Here’s the first part of Aaron Schock’s biography that’s examined…
Claim #1: Graduated from Bradley University in two years with a finance degree.
Reality: Schock entered college with two years of college-level credits. He completed all his Richwoods High School credits by his junior year. As required, he took physical education his senior year, and classes during the fall semester at Illinois Central College totaling more than 20 hours. He also took more than 20 hours in the spring.
Before entering Bradley University, placement tests garnered Schock an additional 15 hours of credit. Therefore, he entered Bradley as a freshman with junior standing.
So, since Bradley University isn’t mentioned in the ad, he should change that to three years, not two. It’s still quite an accomplishment, but resume padding is always something to look out for in any candidate.
“I’m not running for President of the United States, I’m running to be a member of Congress and if our founding fathers would have designed it to be an old men’s club, they wouldn’t have set the constitutional limit at 25,” said state Rep. Aaron Schock, 26, about what to tell his detractors who claim he’s not ready for prime time in Congress.
The U.S. Constitution was adopted in 1787. At that time, the life expectancy was less than 38 years old, putting congressmen then at least above middle age. Today’s life expectancy, however, is approaching 80 years old.
To be fair to Schock, the life expectancy statistic used is a bit skewed because so many people died at birth or shortly thereafter back then. Thomas Jefferson lived to the ripe old age of 83. George Washington lived to see his 69th birthday. Ben Franklin was 84 when he died. And John Adams was 90 when he bought the farm.
* Mayor Daley asks about the governor’s amendatory veto to give free transit rides to senior throughout the state…
“Why is this thrown in at the last minute? That’s all I’m saying. Fine, I understand it; I mean, they wanted to give seniors without, you know, a free pass, fine. But again, why is it thrown in at the last minute? We’ve had all year discussing it.”
* Here’s my answer, from my weekly syndicated newspaper column….
The simple answer is: It’s all about him. It’s always all about him.
The governor loves to ride in on his big white horse and save the day, and that’s just what happened time after time on this months-long mass transit fiasco. He’s implemented two “magic money” extensions to ward off two threatened “doomsday” scenarios of layoffs and route cuts, and afterwards patted himself on the back so hard he almost severed his spine. Meanwhile, he had this trick up his sleeve that could’ve been implemented long ago if he was a “normal” leader. As we all know by now, this man is anything but normal.
Blagojevich poked his finger in the Legislature’s eye by announcing the break for seniors out of the blue. Executing it not with a joint agreement, but with the Zorro-like slash of his amendatory veto pen. Take that!
And then came the declaration that he alone had taken lemons and squeezed them into lemonade.
* And the SJ-R riffs on the governor’s drink of choice…
Governor, lemonade is much better in May than in January.
“Mayor Daley just yesterday expressed some concern that maybe the legislators won’t get back down to Springfield to bail out the CTA and give seniors free rides on buses. Well, Mayor Daley shouldn’t be so pessimistic.”
* And…
“It’s hard to be a senior citizen in Chicago these days,” Blagojevich… “Man, it’s tough. Costs are going up. The price of everything is goin’ up. Mayor Daley just raised your property taxes.” The crowd murmured agreement.
“The margin is very slim,” Daley said [of the bill in both chamber]. He added it is unknown whether legislators can return to Springfield this week to work through Blagojevich’s demand. “That’s what we’re concerned about.”
State Rep. Sidney Mathias, a Buffalo Grove Republican, said he didn’t know if he’d vote for the deal again, citing both the need to invest in road, bridge and school building and questioning the governor’s last-minute changes.
Here’s the thing: Whether you agree with the governor or not, or whether you’re even a senior citizen and don’t think this AV is fair, the simple truth is that voting against even a little senior freebie is a political risk. And this is a big one. I doubt this AV will kill the bill. Then again, legislators can be strange sometimes.
“How many of you agree with me that the right thing to do is to give your grandmother a free ride on a bus?” Blagojevich asked.
The question brought huge cheers for the governor at the House of Hope on the South Side, especially from the older generation.
“Why not help that senior citizen on a fixed income, who’s struggling to get by? Why not give her a chance to get a break for once?” the governor continued.
A sales tax windfall would spare CTA and Pace riders fare increases, but Metra leaders pledged Friday to forge ahead with a 10 percent ticket hike in February.
* Rep. Mathias, along with several other suburban Republicans (including three in the Senate), stuck their necks out on that transit bill and then Metra had the ultimate gall to do this? Ridiculous…
“I hope the increase doesn’t affect someone’s vote,” [Mathias] said. “Some (lawmakers) felt they were voting for the bill to prevent a fare increase.”
Metra officials have said previously in a House committee that they couldn’t guarantee no fare increases if the bailout bill passed. But they couldn’t have waited six months or a year?
* More transit stories, compiled by Kevin…
* Chicago-area seniors question cost, need for Blagojevich’s free-ride proposal
* Transit bill makes sales taxes even more complicated across Chicago area
* “The Democrats ought to get their act together.” [Um, what?]
* On Tony Rezko and Chris Kelly and their relationship with Blagojevich: “I made a decision very early on in the Blagojevich administration not to be associated with what they were doing.”
* Why? “Take a look at what happened.”
* On possibly selling Wrigley Field to the state: “I’ve simply read in the media that this was the governor’s idea… What I do know is there seems to be a strong market of buyers wanting to buy the Cubs.”
* On the reason for the governor’s flip-flop on tax hikes: “I suspect that his budget director Mr. Filan told him that it would be very bad for the state budget if we were to enact the governor’s choice which would have taken money out of the state treasury for the RTA.”
* On why the transit agreement took so long: “It took so long because of Gov. Blagojevich’s politics, his style of politics… it’s a politics of confrontation, conflict. It could have been resolved nine months ago.”
* “My expectation is that the Legislature will approve the governor’s proposal for free transit rides for millionaires who happen to be over 65.”
* On his crack about the governor abandoning his campaign promise and why he didn’t just call the guv a statesman and move on: “He’s not exactly a statesman. The governor may be a practicing politician, but he’s not a statesman. Had he been a statesman, this issue would have been resolved nine months ago.”
* On animus towards him from Blagojevich and his administration: “I think there are people in the governor’s office who spend the majority of their day thinking how they can one-up Mike Madigan or make Mike Madigan look bad and they’re really wasting their time. They ought to get about the business of good government policy.”
“On Friday, U.S. Rep. John Shimkus (R-Ill.) said he was worried that the Energy Department might scrap the project if its cost concerns weren’t addressed.”
* Republican candidates more likely to visit state
* Governor Blagojevich: “The General Assembly sent me a pile of horse manure to solve the CTA, and I see a pony in that by giving every senior citizen a free ride on buses and subway trains.”
* AP: A day after including free rides for senior citizens in the mass-transit bailout, the governor said Friday he’ll propose in his next budget that disabled people also ride without charge.
* Crain’s: Metra riders will still see a [ten percent] fare increase starting Feb. 1 regardless of any transit funding legislation that comes out of Springfield.
* Check back a bit later. Fox Chicago interviewed Speaker Madigan and they’ve asked that I share the link once it’s on their site.
————————————————–
Hopefully, there will be only one day of session left in January, unless the governor gets another wild hair. Anyway, that’s it for the week. It’s been… um… interesting. But aren’t they all with Rod in charge?
* And before I go, this looks like the perfect song to sum up our week. Ladies and gentlemen, I give you the Chicago Transit Authority’s “I’m a man”…
I’ve got to keep my image
While I’m standing on the floor
If I drop upon my knees
It’s just to keep them on my nose
You think that I’m not human
And my heart is made of stone
But I’ve never had no problems
‘Cause my body’s pretty strong
I’m a man yes I am and I can’t help but love you so
U.S. Rep. John Shimkus says the low-pollution FutureGen power plant planned for Mattoon could be downsized and the project changed to include several sites around the country.
Shimkus, a Republican from Collinsville, told the Mattoon Journal-Gazette he’s heard the Department of Energy is considering that scenario and others to cut the project’s $1.8 billion price.
The power and coal companies developing the plant announced last month they will build in Mattoon. But the Energy Department, providing most of the money, is concerned about the cost.
Shimkus said Thursday he believes downsizing and restructuring FutureGen make it more feasible.
“I’m afraid if we go as planned, we get nothing,” Shimkus said Thursday in a phone interview with The News-Gazette.
“The DOE is scrambling for a way to do it with the current cost escalations,” Shimkus said. “Rescoping means a lot of things. I think it could mean the ability to produce more power and sell it on the grid, (or do) limited research at one site and another aspect of the research at another site.”
* Some earlier triumphalistic background from the governor’s office is here.
With all the legitimate anger over the months-long mass transit funding crisis, Chicagoans are naturally looking for someone to blame, even if the state’s leaders took a big step toward solving the crisis Thursday.
Here’s a list of those who have caused your pain.
* Mayor Daley: Loves to blame Springfield for the CTA’s budget shortfall and service problems, but appointed a political hack to run the agency (Frank Kruesi) who made a complete mess of things and alienated just about everyone at the state capital. He claims to be a top-notch big-city manager but allowed the transit system to decay almost beyond repair. If he worked as hard on fixing the CTA as he has bringing the Olympics to Chicago, there might not be a crisis.
* Gov. Blagojevich: Held the CTA bailout (and CTA riders) hostage for months so he could win passage of a long list of other priorities. Desperately tried to shift every bit of blame from himself to the General Assembly for failing to come up with a solution. Hasn’t proposed a real solution himself.
* Senate President Emil Jones: Until this week, refused to even call a CTA funding bill for a vote. Is allied with Gov. Blagojevich and has eagerly cooperated with the governor’s scheme to hold the transit money hostage for new casinos, a capital plan and expanded health coverage.
* House Speaker Michael Madigan: Battled Jones and Blagojevich every step of the way. Insisted that the CTA and RTA bailouts not be tied to anything else, which has held up progress on everything because he has not yet agreed to any resolutions of those aforementioned issues. Madigan ignored pleas from former CTA boss Kruesi a few years ago to find a way to inject more money into the transit system mainly because he personally despised Kruesi.
* Many Downstate legislators: After Chicago legislators agreed to force Chicago-based ComEd’s parent company Exelon to subsidize lower rates for Downstate Ameren’s customers, many Downstate legislators showed their gratitude by refusing to support a mass transit proposal that is funded solely by the Chicago region yet funnels millions to Downstate mass transit districts. Some are professional Chicago haters, others wanted to force Speaker Madigan to agree to a statewide capital plan. Many simply can’t understand the importance of public transit because they’ve never used public transit and don’t know anyone who has.
* Most legislative Republicans: May have tried to create even more political and governmental chaos for Democrats by refusing to support a transit bailout. Some openly welcomed a CTA “doomsday” scenario, claiming the CTA and RTA were bluffing. Reflexively believed a sales tax increase of a penny on a $4 purchase to fund an absolutely vital service is excessive taxation.
* Rank and file Chicago legislators: Perhaps the least to blame, but who are most in danger of voter retaliation during next month’s Democratic primaries. Have been slammed by millions of dollars in taxpayer-funded advertising urging them to vote for the transit bailout even though they all supported it to begin with. Have subsequently been inundated with calls, letters and e-mails from angry constituents who don’t understand that they are on the same side. They succeeded in forcing Senate President Jones and Gov. Blagojevich to drop their gamesmanship and run the bailout bill without an agreement on more casinos or anything else.
I hope this helps.
* Question: Did I miss anyone? What would you add to the column?
* Perhaps the funniest quote to come out of yesterday’s weirdness was printed in the Sun-Times…
[After the governor announced his intentions], one of the [transit] legislation’s staunchest supporters privately called the governor a “madman” and “narcissist” for providing his legislative input in the transit bill after it had passed rather than before.
Well, that’s certainly one explanation.
* More from that article…
Some said the governor’s move was driven by an all-consuming desire to one-up the wily House speaker, who has been pushing Blagojevich for months to accept a sales tax increase to deal with mass transit, knowing full well the governor would have to retreat on his earlier anti-tax pledge.
Whatever the motivation, at the end of the day, an unpopular governor battered by corruption allegations seemed exuberant over what he and his aides viewed as a potentially rare and significant legislative win — even if it came at the expense of sacrificing what once was his most significant promise to voters.
“This is a nice, happy ending to what has been a long process,” Blagojevich said. “And as the old saying goes, all’s well that ends well.”
* So, why didn’t the Senate vote on the transit measure which didn’t raise any taxes at all? The Trib explains…
Madigan sent such a bill to the Senate. But the legislation was dead on arrival, because too many lawmakers feared the state’s precarious finances would be damaged without any clear way to fill the sudden hole in the budget.
* The Senate Dems had hoped to attract more Republican votes with this new addition to the bill…
…Jones added a key provision that would give the five collar counties more flexibility in how they could spend some of their expected windfalls from the half-cent increase. It was aimed specifically at lawmakers from DuPage County, which is asking voters to support a Feb. 5 sales tax referendum proposal to pay for police and prosecutors.
They only got three SGOP votes - but they hoped to get six.
* Sen. James Clayborne explains his switch from “Present” on Wednesday to “Yes” on Thursday…
He voted for the bill Thursday, saying it would be “irresponsible to allow services to be cut in Chicago.”
“I said all along I cannot vote for one over the other,” said Halvorson, who is running for the congressional seat being vacated by U.S. Rep. Jerry Weller, R-Ill. “I did not vote for the transit bill because we didn’t have a capital bill.” […]
Halvorson said she held her vote hostage to pressure lawmakers into discussing a capitol program. Her current district extends as far north as Chicago Heights, where the Chicago-area mass transit funding bill will have an impact. Yet, the congressional district which she is running in, extends farther south into areas that have little to do with Chicago transit.
Republicans fear the politically difficult, clunky legislation for a gaming expansion coming any time soon is “as likely as the Cubs winning the World Series,” as Sen. Kirk Dillard said during Senate floor debate. […]
Senate Minority Leader Frank Watson said he’s disappointed but that he would never tell his fellow lawmakers that they shouldn’t vote with their districts. But now they’re back to square one on capital. “I think we’ve lost an opportunity to make sure that capital, infrastructure would be a part of any solution here,” Watson said. “I think we’ve taken a step backwards”
* And what about the vote to accept the amendatory veto? Speaker Madigan says he supports the governor’s changes, but we don’t know yet when the GA will return to town…
Exactly when that vote will occur is uncertain as lawmakers adjourned Thursday and aren’t due back at the Capitol until next month, well after the “doomsday” deadline. Supporters said they expect a vote next week and the deal to be approved.
* The Tribune explains the costs and benefits of the governor’s first in the nation plan to allow seniors to take free rides on mass transit throughout Illinois 24/7…
Those 65 and older who make two round trips a week on the CTA could save $176 a year if lawmakers give the legislation final approval next week.
Similarly, seniors who ride Metra trains twice a week could save about $405 a year and those riding Pace buses could save $156 a year, according to the estimates.
t was also unclear Thursday how much the free rides would cost transit agencies. RTA Executive Director Steve Schlickman said the governor told transit officials the revenue loss would be $15 million. But a spokeswoman for the governor put the loss at $19 million. Rebecca Rausch said this figure was “being conservative” and that the lower figure might be more accurate in the final calculation.
Pace estimated it would lose $3 million a year, and Metra said it would lose about $8 million. The CTA would not release an estimate.
Remember, however, that they’re getting a whole lot more money out of this bailout bill, so the impact is minimal.
* The Sun-Times points out that the Champaign-Urbana mass transit district already provides free rides…
Tom Costello, assistant managing director of the Champaign-Urbana Mass Transit District, said the district started offering free rides to seniors six years ago as a way to cut costs on special service transit, vehicle trips for one or two people that are “incredibly expensive” to operate.
“It really created some level of mobility for seniors in town,” he said.
* I posted this yesterday, but I’ll do it again because it was buried under a whole lot of stuff. Here’s the explanation from the governor’s office on how much this plan will cost Downstate transit districts…
The bill that passed includes $50 million for downstate transit systems. The Governor’s amendatory veto will allow seniors anywhere in the state to ride for free. The total statewide cost of this change is approximately $20 million. The approximate cost for downstate transit (collectively) is about $1 million. So, $50 minus $1 million the cost of the program means downstate transit is still getting $49 million.
There are some slightly higher estimates out there, but these transit systems are getting free money from Chicago-area taxpayers, so they can hardly complain.
“Paying the 50-cent fare, that’s not a big deal with me,” she said as she stood on Fifth Street, waiting to board a bus. “But for some people, it is. I think the free fares for seniors is a great idea.” […]
“My 89-year-old aunt just moved in with me from up in the Chicago area,” she said. “We are looking forward to nice weather. The bus stop is only half a block from my house. My aunt’s in a wheelchair, and we can use the bus. That will be great.”
Sen. Christine Radogno (R-Lemont) called the idea of giving seniors free rides ridiculous without establishing some income limits or other minimum qualifications. She suggested the plan would allow a 66-year-old partner in a prestigious law firm to ride free but require a fare from a “poor working mother struggling to get to work.”
* This deserves its own post. It’s Gov. Blagojevich’s answer to a reporter’s question about how he came up with the idea to give senior citizens free rides on mass transit in exchange for breaking his campaign promise to veto every tax increase on “people.” The statement is hilarious…
“You know it’s interesting. It’s funny how these ideas come up.
“I was reading a book not long ago about Ronald Reagan’s summit with Mikhail Gorbachev and how it began a whole process of nuclear arms reductions and it was a historic second term for president Reagan in reducing the nuclear arsenal between the Soviet Union and the United States and ironic that Ronald Reagan, who several years before had declared that the Soviet Union was an evil empire, that they were the source of all that was wrong in the world, that they reserved to themselves the right to lie and cheat and all the rest that Reagan said back then.
“But then, as I was reading on, what I thought was very interesting was that he, in spite of what the state department and professional diplomats were telling him, decided to write a personal note to the Russian leadership about how he wanted to bring about dialogue and how fearful he was about the possibility of nuclear war between two powerful countries. And he had an idea to discuss that with them and he had an idea that was called star wars that ultimately didn’t get of the ground but an idea that was taken very seriously that actually led to those discussions and it was his idea, not the experts but his.
“So I thought about that and then I thought about real life circumstances, people who take public transportation, thought about my own background growing up with a mother who was a ticket agent for the CTA, thought about the story I just said about my dad when he was a senior citizen and envisioned the possibility that we could find ourselves where this was the only option I had as we approached the precipice of a scenario where there would be drastic service cuts and fare increases, and I thought why not then see what you can do, as I said, turn a lemon into lemonade and make it better, and the idea for seniors came up and that’s where it began and it’s been an idea that I’ve had since before Thanksgiving and one that we are really happy now to have a chance to be able to execute and implement.”
* If the governor continues to play games with JCAR, we’re going to see a whole lot more stories about this topic…
Confusion over the state’s new smoking ban may force lawmakers to take up the issue again, said the suburban lawmaker who sponsored it.
A state legislative panel rejected Wednesday several enforcement provisions proposed by the Illinois Department of Public Health. Those on the panel said the proposed rules were confusing or didn’t address concerns about how the ban should be enforced and citations handled. […]
State Sen. Terry Link, a Waukegan Democrat and the ban’s sponsor, said Thursday the full General Assembly might have to get involved again.
“We’re going to be introducing some follow-up on those concerns, that way … it’ll be as clear as clear can be,” said Link.
Legislators are increasingly frustrated with the governor’s excessive power grabs and, as I’ve said before, will likely want to write far more details into their bills to prevent the governor from implementing whatever rules he wants. They could even go back and try to change some statutes to stop him from promulgating new rules as he sees fit.
This is a real mess, and is a direct result of a governor who obviously rejects the notion of co-equal branches of government. Remind you of anyone?
McHenry County Republican Party Chairman Bill LeFew’s anonymous mailing of a newspaper column criticizing the incumbent state’s attorney has prompted a longtime precinct committeeman to call for his resignation.
In an e-mail sent Wednesday evening to party central committee members, Nunda Township precinct committeeman Bernie Narusis lashed out at LeFew, accusing him of political dirty tricks for mailing GOP voters a Daily Herald opinion column criticizing State’s Attorney Lou Bianchi’s $60,000 in office expenses.
Here’s the governor’s full press release announcing his actions. The guv’s press release is wrong, by the way, it’s House Bill 656, not Senate Bill 656…
Gov. Blagojevich vows to act quickly on long-term transit solution to avert CTA doomsday
Will accept Hamos-version of solution passed by legislature, but will insert change to protect seniors from impact of .25% sales tax increase approved by lawmakers
SPRINGFIELD – Soon after both chambers of the General Assembly approved a long-term mass transit funding bill today, Governor Rod R. Blagojevich was joined by transit officials and state Rep. Julie Hamos as he announced his intention to act on the bill as soon as it is certified and sent to his desk. While the Governor has been clear in his opposition to increasing the sales tax to fund mass transit, he said today he will accept the approach passed by the General Assembly in Senate Bill 656 in order to avert devastating service cuts and fare increases, but will use his amendatory veto authority to make sure seniors citizens can use public transportation for free.
“I’ve said clearly and frequently that I don’t think raising the sales tax is the right way to help the CTA and other transit agencies. People already pay too much in taxes; I believe they should pay less, not more. Even though the increase in the bill passed by lawmakers is small, people will still feel an impact. Despite my public support for an alternative bill that would address the CTA’s long-term needs without increasing taxes, lawmakers did not send me that bill. In the spirit of compromise, and with a keen awareness of what is at stake for millions of transit riders if a long-term funding solution is not in place by January 20, I will act on the bill passed by the General Assembly as soon as it reaches my desk with one important improvement,” said Governor Blagojevich. “I’m particularly concerned about seniors who live on fixed incomes and who don’t have the ability to absorb a higher sales tax without making cuts in other areas. That’s why I will rewrite the bill to allow all senior citizens in Illinois to take public transportation for free.”
The Governor’s amendatory veto will require transit agencies statewide to allow senior citizens, aged 65 and older, to use main line and fixed route public transit service for free. A senior who uses public transportation twice a week could save $176 a year on CTA fares, $156 a year on Pace fares and $405 a year on Metra fares. There are approximately 1.3 million seniors living in communities across Illinois that have mass transit service.
SB 656 provides over $494 million in new, recurring funding for the Regional Transportation Authority, which includes the Chicago Transit Authority, Metra and Pace; and another $50 million for transit agencies in other parts of Illinois. With a long-term funding plan in place, the Chicago area transit agencies have said they will not cut services, raise fares or lay-off workers on January 20, as planned. The legislation also implements important pension and oversight reforms within the RTA.
As soon as the legislature sends SB 656 to the Governor, he will submit his amendatory veto to legislators for their approval.
* 12:17 pm - The hour of 11 o’clock having finally arrived, the Senate is now in session. Listen or watch here.
* 1:10 pm - The Senate is now taking up the mass transit bill.
*** 1:25 pm *** The Senate has passed the mass transit bailout bill with 30 votes. It now goes to the House later today and then on to the governor’s desk, where an amendatory veto is expected.
* 1:42 pm -This is just the tip of the iceberg. There were more management layoffs today. Lots.
Dan Miller, the Sun-Times business editor, resigned today, telling his staff he expects the paper to be sold within a matter of months and wants to leave before he becomes a casualty of pending staff cuts.
Mr. Miller’s announcement comes days after the Sun Times Media Group began announcing newsroom layoffs as part of a $50 million cost-cutting effort.
One name circulating as a potential buyer is Denver-based MediaNews Group, led by William Dean Singleton. MediaNews Group was not immediately available to comment.
Miller is a great guy and I wish him nothing but the best. And the same goes for everyone else who got whacked today.
* 1:50 pm - Sen. James Clayborne changed his vote from yesterday’s “Present” to “Yes” today, which allowed the bill to pass. The roll call is here.
* 1:52 pm - Oops. I should’ve mentioned that the House is debating the transit bill. *** 2:06 pm *** 62 House members just voted to send the transit bill to the governor’s desk.
*** 2:19 pm *** The House has approved the governor’s changes to the BIMP bill. The Senate did so yesterday. It’s done.
* 2:25 pm - The House has adjourned. Now, all we have to do is wait and see what the governor does to the mass transit bill.
* 2:35 pm - A new day? Sen. Rickey Hendon attended a press conference with House Speaker Michael Madigan a few minutes ago. Yes, you read that right.
Both men publicly demanded that the governor sign the transit bill without changes. Hendon, who recently all but called Madigan a racist, wouldn’t disclose what the governor said to him after the Senate action today. Hendon said during debate he planned to go to Blagojevich’s office and insist that he sign the bill without changes.
By the way, there were rumors from some insiders weeks ago that Blagojevich was signaling that he could change his mind on his sales tax veto pledge if he got a capital bill and perhaps healthcare expansion. But those rumors stopped.
* 2:44 pm - Statement from Chicago Federation of Labor President Dennis Gannon…
“Organized labor strongly urges Governor Blagojevich to sign the legislation without making any adjustments to the language by use of his amendatory veto power.
“The workers, riders, and general public have suffered through this ordeal for far too long. State Senators and Representatives have listened to the people and come up with a solution. Now it’s time for the governor to do the same and put an end to the issue once and for all by signing it into law.”
* 2:56 pm - Stand by for the guv.
*** 3:24 pm *** The governor just said that he will, indeed, change the mass transit bill, but he won’t veto out the tax hike language. Instead, he will AV it to allow senior citizens to ride free statewide.
Weird, eh?
Apparently, I should have put more stock into those rumors all those weeks ago that he would not veto the tax hike. Such is life, I suppose.
The governor’s unusual move capped a frenetic 24-hour round of legislative negotiating that raised hopes of an agreement to end the months-long funding fight and avert service cuts and fare hikes scheduled for Jan. 20. But the governor’s decision will send the legislation back for further consideration in the House and Senate.
“We can’t say that all’s well that ends well, because this is not over yet,” said Rep. Julie Hamos (D-Chicago), the bill’s chief sponsor.
*** 3:57 pm *** People are wondering in comments why the governor would make such a change, rather than simply ask Senate President Emil Jones to include the language in the original bill.
One theory might be that the governor has relentlessly attempted to expand his executive authority. So, if he makes an unconstituionally excessive amendatory veto of a bill that is such a hot potato, Speaker Madigan will be put in a box. Accept it and give the governor some precedent for future AVs, or strike it down and suffer the wrath of seniors and transit riders.
Food for thought.
Madigan, by the way, is flying home at the moment and can’t be reached.
*** 4:03 pm *** From the guv’s people…
Some clarification on what the Governor’s Amendatory Veto “costs” for downstate. The bill that passed includes $50 million for downstate transit systems. The Governor’s amendatory veto will allow seniors anywhere in the state to ride for free. The total statewide cost of this change is approximately $20 million. The approximate cost for downstate transit (collectively) is about $1 million. So, $50 minus $1 million the cost of the program means downstate transit is still getting $49 million. [Emphasis added]
*** 4:47 pm *** Speaker Madigan’s spokesman, Steve Brown, just called. Brown said Madigan wants to “congratulate the governor for breaking his promise” not to raise taxes. Brown added that this was probably the last campaign promise left to be broken. Oof.
More importantly, according to Brown Madigan thinks the Legislature will accept the changes. The House staff is currently srveying members to see when they might be able to return to Springfield.
“I’m not going to adjust or change at all the funding mechanism,” he told reporters at 3:15 p.m. “The revenue source the Legislature chose. But what I will do is essentially take what I believe to be a lemon and turn it into lemonade. I’m going to sweeten the bill. I’m going to improve the bill.”
Even if all of the original “aye” votes hold firm, it will be no easy task to get both the House and Senate back to Springfield on short notice at this time of the year, [Rep. Julie Hamos] added.
“There’s logistical difficulty in getting everyone back, in the middle of winter, two weeks before an election,” she said. “I hope” it happens.
Ms. Hamos said Mr. Blagojevich’s proposed free-ride plan came as a “total surprise” to her and other sponsors.
When she heard of the plan, Ms. Hamos said she asked Blagojevich aides if such plan would be approved later in a separate, “trailer” bill — an action that would allow the subsidy bill to become law immediately.
You may have noticed that there’s a new name on Morning Shorts. Kevin Fanning, from the U of I at Champaign, started work today. He’s heading over to the Statehouse in a few minutes to cover the Senate while I write my Sun-Times column. So, it’s gonna be trial by fire on his first day.
Last year’s intern Paul Richardson, who recruited and helped train Kevin, will still be around. He’ll occasionally write pieces for the blog and for Illinoize.
Anyway, I thought you might want an opportunity to welcome Kevin to the fold and wish Paul luck.
My Treo is on its last legs. It’s been dropped too many times on the marble floors at the Statehouse, not to mention it once got caught in a ceiling fan blade and was sent hurling across a room.
I like the functions, but the Treos are big and heavy as a brick. So, I’m thinking about a Blackberry.
Question: If you’re a Blackberry user, would you recommend that I get one? Explain if you would, please.
Also, how’s your cell phone carrier’s service? I’d consider switching from Verizon if there’s something better out there.
Thanks.
…Adding… Thanks for all the suggestions so far. For those who have wondered, my requirements are:
* QWERTY keyboard (I post to the blog from my Treo during session days and need to continue doing so)
* Strong battery life (for those long Statehouse days and nights)
* Mac compatibility (That’s why I’m looking at the BBerry - there are programs to convert it to Apple)
* Camera (You just never know when that’ll come in handy)
* I don’t use the phone much for appointments or other applications. Calls, Internet, texting and e-mail make up 99.9 percent of what I do.
* I told you yesterday that the House passed two different versions of the mass transit bailout bill. A similar bill came up short in the Senate. Republicans were under severe pressure to vote against the proposal in the Senate, but three ended up voting for it. The problem in the end turned out to be Democrats…
A mass transit bill passed the Illinois House Wednesday night, but fell one vote short in the Senate. Because three senators abstained– the bill’s sponsor is expected to bring the bill back for another vote Thursday.
“We’re still working, trying to get the votes,” said Senate President Emil Jones, D-Chicago.
[Senate Majority Leader Debbie Halvorson] was not on the Senate floor to cast a vote when the Senate plan fell short of approval by one vote.
Halvorson had voted for the amendments, but took a walk on the actual bill.
* Senate President Jones blamed Republicans for the bill’s defeat, but he was obviously surprised by the result. Here’s some of his rationale…
The veteran leader said he thought he would get more suburban Republican votes on the plan—there were three—and that he couldn’t get enough votes from his fellow Democrats because so many Downstate senators held out for a statewide construction program. The legislation got 29 votes. There are 37 Democratic senators, so that means Jones got 26 of them to go along.
“I knew it was going to be difficult getting a bill out of the Senate,” Jones said. “I have a block of downstaters … who didn’t’ vote for the bill because of capital. There is nothing new.”
* Meanwhile, Sen. Hendon guaranteed that the governor would sign the transit bill last night, even though the governor has long said that he opposed any sales tax increase, which was included in the Senate proposal. Blagojevich has also said he would “improve” the bill with an amendatory veto if it contains a tax hike…
State Sen. Rickey Hendon, a Chicago Democrat who sponsored the bailout, said he believed Blagojevich would sign the sales tax plan if lawmakers could get it to his desk.
A Blagojevich spokeswoman begged to differ.
“Nothing about the governor’s position has changed,” said spokeswoman Rebecca Rausch.
* Hizzoner made a good point about those promised gubernatorial “improvements“….
…any change [Blagojevich] would make through his gubernatorial authority to rewrite legislation still would need to return to the legislature for acceptance or rejection, a risky maneuver after months of gridlock. If lawmakers couldn’t agree with the governor’s actions, they would go back to square one, leaving commuters in the lurch and literally out in the cold as they wait longer for public transportation in January.
In Chicago, Daley said Blagojevich should not stay quiet. “Why doesn’t he improve it now?” the mayor asked.
Daley is exasperated that the governor would talk about ways to use his amendatory veto power to “improve” the bills after the fact. Why not do it before, the mayor said.
“It’s unfair to everyone,” Daley said. “You don’t do business that way.”
* As I told you yesterday, a judge has ruled that Gov. Blagojevich must hand over federal subpoenas requested through the state’s Freedom of Information Act. But we’re not gonna see them for quite a while…
[Sangamon County Circuit Judge Patrick Kelley] did not order the governor to immediately hand over the documents to the Better Government Association, which sued to get them.
He will not order that as long as there is an appeal pending. Blagojevich lawyer Thomas Londrigan said an appeal was certain.
* Even so, it seems doubtful that the governor will ever prevail…
Kelley ruled that Blagojevich aides showed no ‘’competent evidence'’ that secrecy remained vital, despite a standard statement that accompanied the subpoenas saying disclosure could hamper an investigation.
* Their case stinks…
In defending Blagojevich, Londrigan said releasing subpoenas violates federal criminal laws. He said the BGA was trying to circumvent federal law by asking a judge to use state public-access law to decide the matter. But answering a question from Kelley, Londrigan acknowledged that a witness who has received a subpoena can’t be reprimanded for revealing it. And he pointed out that Blagojevich is a public official, so documents he receives become public records under the FOIA.
Oops.
* The BGA’s Jay Stewart was not pleased with the prospect of an appeal…
“If the governor actually believed any of his rhetoric about ethics, there wouldn’t be any appeal,” Stewart said. “The last thing he really wants to do is level with the public and let them know what’s going on with his administration.”
The governor’s quest for secrecy is getting expensive for taxpayers. According to the state comptroller’s office, the state has paid more than $150,000 to private attorneys who are representing the governor’s office in FOIA lawsuits aimed at prying loose the subpoenas.
The state has paid more than $33,800 to Londrigan, Potter and Randle, a Springfield law firm that is representing the governor in the BGA lawsuit. Taxpayers have paid another $124,850 to Bell, Boyd and Lloyd, a Chicago firm that is representing Blagojevich in a pending FOIA lawsuit filed in Cook County by Judicial Watch, a Washington, D.C., government watchdog group seeking the same subpoenas.
* State Rep. Aaron Schock now claims that his goofy idea to sell nuclear missiles to Taiwan was “in jest.”
On Tuesday, he told the Journal Star editorial board, “When I made the statement, the tone in which I made it was more in jest.”
After he made the comment, his campaign manager told the press that it was a “deeply thought-out policy,” but the ensuing uproar forced Schock to back down. Reaction to his latest twist in reasoning was, understandably, not favorable…
“It’s irresponsible, it’s reckless and it’s downright frightening to discuss nuclear warfare in jest,” said Matt Bisbee, spokesman for Jim McConoughey, one of Schock’s opponents. “It’s unbelievable to me that you can discuss something with such severe consequences in a campaign for U.S. Congress in jest. It just doesn’t make any sense and screams irresponsibility. That is absolute poor judgment.” […]
“It all seems a little slippery. I don’t care what he calls it, I just wish he would stick with one story,” said John Morris, who is also seeking the GOP nod for the 18th Congressional District seat being vacated by Ray LaHood. “Congress is a big job, and what you say matters and has an impact on the safety and security of the American people.”
* Regardless of the hooplah, Schock is still considered the frontrunner and scored a major endorsement this week…
The Sangamon County GOP is getting behind state Rep. Aaron Schock, R-Peoria, for the U.S. House seat in the 18th Congressional District. […]
“I guess one of the things you have to take into account is that all of the polls that we have looked at and studied indicate that he … is in the lead and will probably win the nomination,” [party chairman Tony Libri] said.
“It was a tough decision, because I’ve got to tell you, I like the other two candidates very much.”
...By the way… I should have pointed out earlier today that the reporter who wrote the “in jest” story is one I’ve criticized in the past for being too easy on Schock. This time, she did one heckuva good job. Welcome to the game.
* The Joint Committee on Administrative Rules overwhelmingly rejected the administration’s proposed rules to implement the statewide smoking ban yesterday…
At Wednesday’s meeting, members of the panel said the proposed rules neglected an important aspect of the smoking ban: the due-process rights of anyone who is accused of violating the ban.
Lang said the rules don’t spell out a process for appealing a violation of the smoking ban. An individual who stands accused of a violation has just two choices, paying the fine or fighting the matter in circuit court, he added.
“Lack of due process threatens the public interest and welfare,” Lang said.
He and other lawmakers urged Department of Public Health officials to spend another 30 days drafting the proposed rules, but agency officials said they didn’t want to do that.
So, the department refused to add due process requirements into the rules, passed on taking another crack at it, then watched as JCAR voted 9-1 against implementing its draft.
Under the law, an individual who violates the ban can be fined between $100 and $250. A business that fails to comply can be fined at least $250 for the first offense, with higher fines for additional offenses.
“The rulemaking contains no process by which an accused violator can argue that no violation occurred, appeal a finding of a violation or appeal the amount of the imposed fine. An alleged violator’s only options are to pay the fine or challenge enforcement action through the circuit court,” said Rep. Lou Lang, D-Skokie.
But Marilyn Thomas, chief legal counsel for Public Health, said the fact that violators can seek redress in the state court system does provide due process.
But lawmakers had other problems, particularly with the 15-foot, smoke-free zone.
State Sen. Brad Burzynski, a Sycamore Republican also serving on the committee, offered one example of uncertainty on violations of the 15-foot rule — smokers waiting at a bus stop outside a restaurant or business’ door.
“Is that the shop owner’s responsibility or liability?” Burzynski said.
Hultgren added he’s concerned businesses may be investing in outdoor smoking shelters, patios or beer gardens to make smoking patrons happy only to have those investments jeopardized by the uncertainty over the 15-foot zone.
* DPH can now either rewrite the rules and resubmit them to JCAR or, as it has done before, simply ignore JCAR and order the rules implemented without approval. No word yet on what will happen.
*** UPDATE 1 *** From a reader…
Overlooked in all the publicity about the smoking rules was the fact that JCAR issued ANOTHER filing prohibition yesterday against yet another HFS attempt to expand healthcare services (preventive care services for adults 21 and older) with NO explanation of how they were going to pay for it. The HFS rules coordinator indicated that the agency would take the prohibition “under advisement,” meaning, of course, they will probably ignore this one too.
About 10,000 people registered in the week leading up to Tuesday’s deadline — roughly triple the figures from past presidential primaries, said Jim Allen, a spokesman for the Chicago Board of Election Commissioners.
Daley wants to turn back the clock by 30 minutes to prevent what happened last year, when 24 Chicago Public Schools students were gunned down. Chicago’s homicide rate stands at a 40-year low. But, all too many of the 442 murder victims in 2007 were young people.
