The Will County Health Department has confirmed an outbreak of mumps, a contagious disease caused by a virus, on Lewis University’s Romeoville campus. According to university, one case has been confirmed and seven more probable cases have been reported among students. As a result of the outbreak, starting Dec. 10, all students, faculty and staff who cannot provide evidence of immunity are barred from the campus by Illinois Health Department mandate.
Lewis announced the outbreak on Tuesday and canceled several events scheduled on campus.
News of Lewis’ mumps outbreak comes as health officials nationwide are confirming the resurgence of measles in 27 states, including Illinois. […]
“The best defense from the mumps is MMR (measles, mumps, rubella) vaccination, which is available at many healthcare facilities, including major pharmacies, clinics, doctor’s offices, immediate care facilities or local health departments,” Lewis said in a press release.
Measles, a childhood disease that was all but wiped out by 2000 due to widespread vaccination, is making a comeback worldwide, including in Illinois. The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said this week that 220 cases of measles have been confirmed in 26 states and the District of Columbia. […]
The CDC said the rise in measles in the United States can be traced to outbreaks in countries to which Americans often travel — including England, France, Germany, India, the Philippines and Vietnam.
Also, the agency said, measles is spreading in the United States in communities with unvaccinated people. For example: In 2017, 75 people were sickened in a Somali-American community in Minneapolis with poor vaccination coverage. A multi-state measles outbreak in 2015 — 147 cases — was tracked to an amusement park in California and further back to a large measles outbreak in the Philippines in 2014. Unvaccinated Amish communities in Ohio were disproportionately sickened in a 2014 outbreak associated with the outbreak traced to the Philippines.
Measles can be prevented with vaccination. A 1978 goal by the CDC to eliminate measles from the country by 1982 fell short, widespread vaccination programs caused the agency to declare measles eliminated in the United States by 2000.
The Illinois Board of Higher Education has approved a fiscal year 2020 budget that would include $314 million new dollars, or a 16.6 percent increase in funding, for higher education operations in Illinois. “This next fiscal year is beyond critical for the future of higher education in our state,” said Tom Cross, chairman, IBHE. “The board believes that a $2.208 billion budget request will mean reinvestment in higher education, and a commitment to ending the pattern of outmigration of Illinois students.” The board action was taken Tues, Dec. 4.
“For the public universities, we feel that a ten percent increase, or $110 million in additional revenue, is reasonable and will allow those institutions to start to heal after 16 years of budgets below the benchmark of fiscal year 2002,” explained Cross. “Universities still haven’t come close to recovering from the worst blow, which was the stopgap budget of fiscal 2016.” The chart above shows the appropriations for higher education as adjusted for unfunded mandates and inflation.
In the budget request, IBHE is asking for additional money for grant programs. IBHE Executive Director Dr. Al Bowman said, “If Illinois wants more of its high school graduates to attend Illinois colleges and universities, an important incentive is the availability of grants. This budget request will go a long way toward keeping more students here.”
The new or increased grant lines include:
• Monetary Award Program (MAP) $100 million
• AIM HIGH $20 million
• Veterans and National Guard $26 million
• Assistance for Nonpublic Institutions $25 million
“It’s important to note that even with a 16.6 percent increase, next year’s budget would still be lower than the $2.417 billion amount approved by lawmakers for fiscal year 2002,” said Cross.
Bowman told the board that there is a clear connection between tuition increases and the woefully inadequate budgets for higher education. “Revenues for public universities used to come primarily from the state budget, at 72 percent of the total in fiscal 2002. That meant that only 28 percent came from tuition and fees. That ratio has flipped, so that students are largely responsible for almost 65 percent of university revenue.”
* The 2018 Golden Horseshoe Award for best political bar goes to JP Kelly’s…
I recall at one point early in Rauner’s term there were two bottles of Jameson, from Rauner and Cullerton. That’s the kind of crowd it is during session: mixed, but not in a contentious way. As long as you don’t start filming. That’s another good reason it’s my nominee: it produced one of the stranger campaign stories.
* The 2018 Golden Horseshoe Award for best political restaurant goes to Augie’s Front Burner…
If you want to eat and talk I pick Augie’s. Great food, nice atmosphere, and a “How YOU doin’” or two.
* The 2018 Golden Horseshoe Award for best Statehouse-area bartender goes to Dennis at the Sangamo Club…
Might be one of the only bartenders in town that knows your name, drink and when you need another. Takes great care of those that have bizness to do.
* The 2018 Golden Horseshoe Award for best Statehouse-area wait staffer is Tony at the Sangamo Club…
He is retiring at the end of December after 35 years. He knows his customers and always brings me an iced tea when I sit down. Super friendly and all around wonderful person. If all wait staff modeled themselves on Tony they would be successful. Tony! Tony! Tony! I’ll miss him.
Congratulations to everyone.
* OK, let’s move along to today’s categories…
* Best House Secretary/Admin. Assistant/District Office Director
* Best Senate Secretary/Admin. Assistant/District Office Director
I’ve added district office director this year just to see if we get any nominations.
Please explain your nominations. Try to nominate in both categories if you can, but I will understand if you only or mostly deal with just one chamber. Thanks.
Jason Barickman is confident recreational marijuana use will be legal in Illinois in two years — but a lot of details remain undecided.
“It’s rather inevitable that Illinois will (act to) legalize cannabis next year,” said Barickman, a Republican state senator from Bloomington, “and I think it’s incredibly important that, if that be the case, we sit at the table and make sure it’s done in an appropriate way.”
Barickman hopes to let local areas opt out of legalizing marijuana; allow employers to impose zero-tolerance policies for use; direct some sales proceeds to law enforcement; and use revoking driver’s licenses as a deterrent for underage violators under a recreational marijuana law if passed.
The way that local opt-out part is written isn’t what’s actually being discussed, from what I’m told. Local communities will be allowed to opt out of siting dispensaries and grow centers. But if they don’t want those facilities in their areas they won’t qualify for any grants that will come out of legalization. Private use and possession will be legalized throughout the state. You just might have to travel to another town to purchase the products. That’s basically the same route the state took immediately after Prohibition. Those “blue laws” have faded over time.
It’s still somewhat up in the air, but regulated public use ought to be allowed, in my opinion. It should be treated more like alcohol. If you ban it in all public accommodations, people will smoke it in the street and then we’ll have another law enforcement problem. Plus, allowing regulated use in some public accommodations will create more business opportunities and, therefore, more jobs. We need more of both in this state, so let’s not get too nannyish over this.
According to the Illinois State Board of Education, in 2017 state funding comprised 24.4 percent of school funding, with 7.5 percent coming from the federal government, and the majority – 68.1 percent – coming from local sources.
There were 4,635,541 ballots cast this year with a registration of 8,099,372 for a statewide turnout of 57.23%. Turnout was up everywhere but it was highest in Chicago. pic.twitter.com/FcBC87Vjry
Pretty impressive across the board for an off-year election.
* The Republicans have a very real problem in the collars and 2020 isn’t going to be any better for them…
In the last two cycles we've had 8 statewide races. In the combined total of the 5 traditional collar counties (DuPage, Lake, Kane, McHenry & Will) the Democratic statewide candidate finished with more votes than the Republican statewide candidate in 7 of them. pic.twitter.com/qJExKnYKvj
Also, not to belabor the point, but GOP SoS candidate Jason Helland not only got smoked in the collars, he also lost his home county of Grundy, even though he’s the local state’s attorney. And as a commenter pointed out yesterday, he was the only statewide Republican candidate to lose Grundy. Gov. Rauner, Erika Harold, Darlene Senger and Jim Dodge all carried the county. President Trump won Grundy by 23 points two years ago.
The final vote totals for the Nov. 6 midterm elections released Monday by the Illinois State Board of Elections show that Democrats won 61 percent of the votes cast in U.S. House races in the state, yet they won 72 percent of the seats — 13 out of 18, instead of the 11 out of 18 that would have almost exactly reflected the Democrats’ share of the vote. […]
All 118 seats in the Illinois House of Representatives were up for election this year (as they are every two years) and Democrats won 62 percent of those seats with 59.8 percent of the overall popular vote. […]
In the Wisconsin midterm elections, Republicans won just 46 percent of the overall popular vote for the U.S. House, but 63 percent of the seats — 5 out of 8. The weekly Isthmus newspaper based in Madison reports that Democrats won 54 percent of the popular vote for Wisconsin State Assembly but, due to the Republican-friendly map, only 36 percent of the seats.
In the Ohio midterm elections, Republicans won 52 percent of the overall popular vote for the U.S. House, but 75 percent of the seats — 12 out of 16. The Cleveland Plain Dealer reports that Republicans won 50 percent of the popular vote in state House elections, but 63 percent of the seats.
In the North Carolina midterm elections, Republicans won 50 percent of the overall popular vote for the U.S. House, but 77 percent of the seats — 10 out of 13 — though one apparent Republican victory has yet to be certified due to allegations of fraud. The Washington Post reports that North Carolina Democrats won 51 percent of the popular vote in state House elections, but just 45 percent of the seats.
Keep in mind that the Republicans hold two Illinois congressional seats which were originally drawn for Democrats (Mike Bost and Rodney Davis) and the Democrats picked up two this year in districts that were packed with Republican voters to keep them away from Democratic districts (Peter Roskam and Randy Hultgren).
Zorn’s conclusion is that Gov.-elect Pritzker should abandon his pledge to veto any map that isn’t a “fair” map until the federal government takes some action. I suppose I wouldn’t argue too strenuously about congressional maps because of the national situation, but state legislative maps need to be a lot more fairly drawn.
Cook County commissioners voted to appoint former colleague Edward Moody to serve as the recorder of deeds for the next two years before the office is folded into the county clerk’s operation in what’s been billed as a cost-saving measure.
Moody is a longtime political operative for Democratic House Speaker Michael Madigan. The dissolution of the recorder’s office was spurred by a November 2016 referendum in which voters opted to merge the office with the clerk’s by the end of 2020. Karen Yarbrough was sworn in as clerk Monday after running to succeed David Orr, and Moody was appointed Tuesday to fill her vacancy.
With Moody as the new recorder and Yarbrough as the new clerk, Madigan allies are now in charge of streamlining the two offices and eliminating highly paid but duplicative administrative jobs. Yarbrough once served in the House under Madigan’s leadership and is currently vice chairman of the Illinois Democratic Party that Madigan leads.
The Moody brothers, Ed and Fred, are two of Madigan’s best captains. They could talk a dog out of a meat truck.
It didn’t take long for former Cook County Assessor Joseph Berrios’ sister and one of his close friends to land new government jobs, though they did have to take a major pay cut.
Carmen Berrios and Victoria LaCalamita started work Monday with the Illinois secretary of state. That office is led by Jesse White, who cut a campaign radio ad for Berrios, the former chairman of the Cook County Democratic Party and an unabashed defender of old-school patronage politics.
The secretary of state’s office, which has around 3,700 jobs, has long been known as a patronage haven under both Democrats and Republicans. The two women will each make $37,992 a year as public service supervisors in the Vehicle Services Department, said Dave Druker, White’s spokesman.
Druker said the two were hired to fill open positions after going through an application process and were “graded based on experience and training.”
Both were making six figures at the assessor’s office, so it wasn’t all great.
Ed Burke has not yet officially landed on the feds’ “naughty” list, but Santa Claus himself joined over a thousand others bearing gifts Tuesday to support Chicago’s most powerful alderman despite the cloud of a federal investigation.
The St. Nick lookalike rode past the Sheraton Grand atop a firetruck bearing a sign declaring “I’m for Ald. Ed Burke,” as the Friends of Edward M. Burke showed themselves to be friends indeed.
They turned out in mass for Burke’s annual holiday fundraiser supporting one of his political committees, just five days after federal investigators raided the alderman’s City Hall and 14th Ward offices.
Hundreds arrived at the ritzy hotel more than a half hour early to wait in a long receiving line to demonstrate their support for Burke, who already has more than $12 million in the three campaign funds he controls.
* A little video…
Here it is: The "I'm For Ald. Ed Burke" Christmas fire truck with "Run Rudolph Run" blasting & Santa Claus waving, which drove past his annual holiday fundraiser tonight at the Sheraton.
* And, finally, if you click here you’ll see a Chicago Teachers’ Union notice that its executive board is recommending 13th Ward Alderman Marty Quinn for a formal endorsement by the union’s House of Delegates, which meets today. That’s Speaker Madigan’s ward and that’s the alderman whose brother is alleged to have sexually harassed a campaign worker in Madigan’s office. Ald. Quinn is known as “The General” in Madiganland.
The CTU’s executive committee is also recommending the endorsement of Toni Preckwinkle for mayor. Preckwinkle, as you know, chairs the Cook County Democratic Party.
* Secretary of State Jesse White won reelection this year by a margin of 1,784,128 votes. Yes, you read that right. White scored 3,120,207 votes to Republican Jason Helland’s 1,336,079 and Libertarian Steve Dutner’s 114,556. That was good enough for a 68-29-2.5 win for White.
Whew.
The only county Helland won with at least 10,000 votes on his side of the table was Adams County, in western Illinois. Otherwise, they were all smalls…
It looks like Wayne County may have been Helland’s best. The Republican scored 68 percent in the southern Illinois county. But, again, that’s a small county and Helland only came out of it with a 2,200-vote margin over White.
By contrast, White received a whopping 82.1 percent of the vote in Cook County (including Chicago) and emerged with a 1,176,491-vote margin over Helland.
Bryce Anderson, chief agriculture meteorologist for DTN, said influences from two different oceans came together to create the storm system.
“This latest event that we had featured a real strong surge of spring-type moisture and warmth out of the Gulf of Mexico,” he told the RFD Radio Network®.
An upper-air pattern led to energy coming out of the Pacific Ocean, which helped bring in moisture, warmth and, ultimately, 22 reported tornadoes throughout central Illinois on Saturday.
“The reason why we had the circumstances we had was because we had this kind of unseasonable round of warmth and the moisture flow with the seasonal chill that led to this kind of severe weather outbreaks,” Anderson said. […]
“There’s just been a lot of volatility, obviously, in our late-fall and early-winter trends,” Anderson said.
* Yikes!…
Falling ice outside Chicago’s Willis Tower smashed this rear windshield on Franklin, just east of the Tower. pic.twitter.com/VAGeDTxtkk
For several days after one of Chicago’s worst November snowstorms, downtown workers were on the lookout for melting snow and ice falling from buildings across the area, with what seemed like more ice than usual falling from skyscrapers and offices. […]
David Kristovich, a scientist with the Illinois State Water Survey at U of I’s Prairie Research Institute, said the Chicago area experienced a bit of a warm-up on Nov. 29 after several days of post-snowstorm coldness, low clouds and periods of precipitation. He said temperatures briefly rose above the melting point.
“The abundant moisture in the air and temperatures near and below freezing may have allowed ice to form and remain on the sides of buildings,” Kristovich said.
The temperatures recorded at O’Hare International Airport were a high of 25 degrees and a low of 19 degrees on Nov. 27, compared with a high of 38 degrees and a low of 27 degrees on Nov. 29, according to the Midwestern Regional Climate Center.
Teachers for the Acero charter schools network began picketing Tuesday morning, canceling classes for thousands of students, and marking a historic event that charter founders believed they’d never have to face: the nation’s first-ever strike by charter school educators.
Picket lines shut down 15 government-funded campuses operated by the privately-managed Acero, which used to be known as the UNO Charter School Network. Acero teachers were bolstered by support from the Chicago Teachers Union and national labor leader Randi Weingarten.
“We’re going to stay on strike until we get educational justice for the people who work in Acero charter schools,” Jesse Sharkey, president of the Chicago Teachers Union, said during a press conference ahead of the early-morning picket line. “Our teachers are here to do the right thing by their students.”
In all, some 550 teachers and paraprofessionals aren’t showing up for classes at one of the largest charter networks in Chicago, forcing Acero’s management to close its doors to the 7,500 students enrolled.
Bargaining ended without a deal shortly after midnight, CTU said in a statement, with teachers and paraprofessionals saying management has “failed to move” on isses including class sizes, special education staff, resources and more.
The union wants a contract that supports a higher wage for paraprofessionals, with CTU leaders saying they make about $13,000 less per year than the union’s members at Chicago Public Schools.
The teachers also want additional resources for their classrooms and students, claiming that the school network spent $1 million less in staff salary costs for program services than in 2017, wants to keep class sizes at 32 students, and won’t provide educators with more lesson planning time, among other issues.
Acero schools CEO Richard Rodriguez posted a Youtube video after the bargaining was over expressing his disappointment in the decision.
“The sad fact is that interests from outside our community are using our students and our schools as a means to advance their national anti-charter school platform,” Rodriguez said. “They don’t want our schools to succeed because it doesn’t serve their agenda.”
In a statement, Helena Stangle, chief external affairs officer of Acero, told Chalkbeat that the company would do its best to avoid a strike: “We have worked in earnest to reach an agreement that provides a reasonable and competitive compensation package to our teachers and staff, while maintaining the best possible educational outcomes for our students.”
The Illinois Network of Charter Schools released a statement saying that it was “disappointed with the breakdown of contract negotiations, prompting charter public school teachers who are unionized to strike.” It also said that the organization has “always honored the contribution of charter teachers, who work daily to create safe and productive learning environments for all students,” but it went on to attack the Chicago Teachers Union for failing to partner with the charter community.
Acero officials have argued that any proposal to reduce classroom size will take away educational opportunities from students.
In the final stages of negotiations, union leaders said they received financial documents detailing Acero revenue increases in 2018. That revenue, union leaders say, should go into classrooms instead of higher salaries for top school administrators.
Acero officials have said the increase in funding is the result of a change in Illinois law that modified the formula used to calculate charter schools funding. Those funds, Acero officials say, have been going toward hiring and costs for facilities. The funds were also going to the proposed new contract with the union, Acero said.
Management has been denying resources from its schools, and ended 2018 spending $1 million LESS in staff salary costs for program services than in 2017, according to an audit that management provided Friday morning—months after educators first began asking for it. As of June 2018, ACERO had $24 million in unrestricted cash in its accounts, plus a separate reserve of $4 million in cash as part of its requirements to its bond holders.
Yet they remain unwilling to provide a penny more in compensation to paraprofessionals, their lowest wage workers. Management has also refused to move on a host of other critical issues that would improve the quality of education for students and reduce staff turnover rates, which are currently averaging over 30% in a two-year cycle. […]
Overall, ACERO’s cash position increased by $10.6 million in just one fiscal year—yet they have said that they cannot give paraprofessionals ANY wage increase—even an increase that allows their wages to keep pace with inflation. Management also tendered a salary ‘increase’ for teachers so paltry that CTU members describe it as laughable. That move, say bargaining team members, was designed to pit teachers against paraprofessionals—a strategy educators reject.
* Toni Preckwinkle…
As a former schoolteacher, I know how important it is for educators to have access to the resources necessary to give all children a bright future and the best possible education. Today, I stand in support of the more than 500 Chicago Teachers Union members on their historic strike at UNO/Acero schools in Chicago.
In my campaign for Mayor, ensuring students from every community has the resources to succeed is one of my core values. I will ensure the voices of all educators are heard and work towards ending the bad practices of the charter school industry. I support these educators in their fight for fair wages, smaller class sizes and the inclusion of sanctuary school language in their contracts.
After years of growth, Chicago’s charter school movement is facing growing turbulence.
Illinois’ new governor has pledged to hold off on charter expansion, citing “challenges” the independently operated campuses have brought to the education ecosystem.
Chicago’s pro-charter mayor is stepping down, raising the prospect of a new direction for the city’s enormous school district. The Chicago Board of Education is expected to deny three new charter applications and close two low-performing schools this week.
Now hundreds of educators at the city’s Acero charter school network walked off the job Tuesday, halting classes for 7,500 predominantly Latino students and launching the nation’s first strike over a contract at the publicly funded schools.
The charter school strike offers a vivid illustration of how growing union influence and new political leadership might signal big changes for how charter schools operate in Chicago.
The action is the latest mass teacher protest in a year when educators have closed ranks in places where organized labor has historically been weak — first in six conservative or swing states where teachers walked out of classrooms, and now in the charter school sector, where unionization is sparse.
All of the picket lines have formed out of a dispute over public dollars — whether education funding is adequate, and what percentage of the money should go toward educator pay and classroom resources versus other costs.
* Yesterday’s voting was very light, so please click here and register your choices because I don’t have quite enough responses to declare a winner. Those two particular categories (bartender and wait staff) have been dropping off over the past couple years, so maybe this will be the last year if we don’t see more voting.
Our next category…
* Best political bar in Springfield
* Best political restaurant in Springfield
Please nominate in both categories if you can and don’t forget to explain your vote. This is more about intensity than raw numbers. Thanks!
* The Illinois State Board of Elections has posted the election’s final totals online. Click here. And click here to see the races by county if you so desire.
McCann didn’t make it to the coveted 5 percent threshold, but the Conservative Party will be an established political party in a whole lot of counties and likely in a bunch of legislative districts.
Today, Governor-elect JB Pritzker and Lieutenant Governor-elect Juliana Stratton announced the formation and members of the transition’s Restoring Illinois’ Infrastructure Committee.
The committee is the tenth of several working groups of the transition made up of subject-matter experts who will advise and guide the incoming Pritzker-Stratton administration. The Restoring Illinois’ Infrastructure Committee will be chaired by Congresswoman Cheri Bustos, Congressman Dan Lipinski, Congressman-elect Jesús “Chuy” Garcia, state Sen. Martin A. Sandoval, and state Rep. Jay Hoffman and consists of 45 members.
“Illinois’ role as a transportation hub for the nation is a critical component of our economy,” said Governor-elect JB Pritzker. “My administration will prioritize a comprehensive 21st Century Capital Bill to build the infrastructure we need to restore Illinois’ place as an economic leader.”
“The Restoring Illinois’ Infrastructure Committee will focus on the surface, rail, water, broadband and community infrastructure improvements that will benefit every corner of the state,” said Lieutenant Governor-elect Juliana Stratton. “It is time to capitalize on the boundless potential of our state and move forward.”
“We may be in the 21st Century, but some parts of Illinois still don’t have access to broadband internet that businesses and entrepreneurs need to succeed,” said Congresswoman Cheri Bustos. “This committee will make sure the incoming administration can start building up our high-speed broadband infrastructure and make access throughout the entire state a priority.”
“Roads and bridges across Illinois are in desperate need of attention, and this committee will take a serious look at how to leverage federal dollars to repair our crumbling infrastructure,” said Congressman Dan Lipinski. “As Illinois’ senior member of the House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee, I know investments in our roads, public transit, and airports pay dividends, and I’m ready to get to work.”
“Transportation is critically important to the country and to industry, and that’s why I campaigned on securing more federal funding for public transit,” said Congressman-elect Jesús “Chuy” Garcia. “Rebuilding our infrastructure, especially investing in public transit projects, is essential for urban economic development and to ensure minorities have access to jobs and services.”
“As the chair of the Senate Special Committee on Supplier Diversity, I work to ensure public and private sector institutions offer opportunities for business and job growth for minority-, women- and Veteran-owned businesses, and I’ll do the same on this transition committee,” said state Sen. Martin A. Sandoval. “This work will build on the incoming administration’s commitment to building a state government that is representative of the people of Illinois, and I can’t wait to get started.”
“Illinois hasn’t passed a comprehensive capital bill in almost a decade, so it’s time we looked at investing in horizontal and vertical infrastructure improvements that will help our state thrive,” said state Rep. Jay Hoffman. “I’m excited to get to work on this committee to start identifying the infrastructure needs of communities across Illinois and crafting a bipartisan plan to rebuild our state.”
RESTORING ILLINOIS’ INFRASTRUCTURE COMMITTEE MEMBERS
Congresswoman Cheri Bustos co-chairs the transition’s Restoring Illinois’ Infrastructure Committee and represents Illinois’ 17th district in the U.S. House of Representatives. Bustos serves as a co-chair of the Democratic Policy and Communications Committee and was just elected to head the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee. She also serves as a Senior Whip in the Democratic Caucus and on the House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee. Bustos helped lead The Broadband Connections for Rural Opportunities Act, which seeks to close the digital divide by awarding grants for rural broadband projects. She also worked with members of both parties to pass the first long-term highway bill in more than a decade.
Congressman Dan Lipinski co-chairs the transition’s Restoring Illinois’ Infrastructure Committee and represents Illinois’ 3rd district in the U.S. House of Representatives. Lipinski is the most senior member from Illinois on the Transportation and Infrastructure Committee, serving on three subcommittees: Aviation; Railroads, Pipelines, and Hazardous Materials; and Highways and Transit. During his first term, he secured $100 million in federal funding to initiate the CREATE rail modernization program, a public-private partnership that is easing congestion on the road and rails in northeastern Illinois. Over the past few years, he has authored important provisions in critical bills covering all aspects of transportation, including the long-term federal funding bill to fix our roads and bridges, the Water Resources Reform and Development Act, and the most recent FAA reauthorization.
Congressman-elect Jesús “Chuy” Garcia co-chairs the transition’s Restoring Illinois’ Infrastructure Committee and will represent Illinois’ 4th district in the U.S. House of Representatives. Garcia campaigned on securing more federal funding for public transit. He previously served as Commissioner for the 7th District on the Cook County Board, a legislative body that allocates the county’s $3.5 billion budget. He was named floor leader by Board President Toni Preckwinkle and helped enact legislation that protects low income families, Veterans, and people with disabilities.
State Senator Martin A. Sandoval co-chairs the transition’s Restoring Illinois’ Infrastructure Committee and represents Illinois’ 11th Senate district in the Illinois General Assembly. Since 2009, Sandoval has served as chair of the Senate Transportation Committee, where he has brought federal transportation dollars to Illinois, and a first-in-the-nation bipartisan Special Committee on Supplier Diversity. He has worked to leverage federal stimulus funds to repair bridges and roads and is working to expand public transportation systems such as Amtrak. Sandoval has also focused on developing high speed rail and bring much-needed infrastructure improvements to areas around the state.
State Representative Jay Hoffman co-chairs the transition’s Restoring Illinois’ Infrastructure Committee and represents Illinois’ 113th House district in the Illinois General Assembly. He serves as an assistant majority leader in the House and as the chair of the Labor and Commerce Committee. Hoffman worked on Illinois’ previous infrastructure bill and has fought for capital construction projects, bringing back much needed state funding to build new roads, schools and the new McKinley and Mississippi River Bridges in the past. Hoffman is a former prosecutor, law enforcement official, state legislator, small businessman and public policy advocate.
Ralph Affrunti, President, Chicago Building Trades
Jimmy Akintonde, President and CEO, UJAMAA Construction
Luis Arroyo, State Representative, Illinois General Assembly
MarySue Barrett, President, Metropolitan Planning Council
Dave Bender, President and CEO, American Council of Engineering Companies
Tom Benigno, Chief of Staff, Office of Secretary of State Jesse White
Hardik Bhatt, Leader of Digital Government, Amazon Web Services
Tom Carper, Board Chair, Amtrak
Dorval Carter, President, Chicago Transit Authority
Leslie Darling, Executive Director, Chicago Infrastructure Trust
* Daniel Cain and Patrick Murphy were two of the FBI agents who arrrested Rod Blagojevich ten years ago this coming Saturday. Their Chicago Magazine article about that arrest is an absolute must-read. Excerpts…
That afternoon, we went over the plan step by step. We would arrest the governor — whom we had code-named Elvis because of his fascination with the King — and Harris early in the morning at their homes, then dispatch agents to conduct interviews with 10 other people who we determined would be key to the investigation. Other agents would conduct searches of Blagojevich’s campaign office on the North Side and Deputy Governor Bob Greenlee’s office at the Thompson Center downtown. Surveillance teams had photographed the homes of Blagojevich and Harris so that we could get a sense of their layouts. We also had agents drive by to get a firsthand look. Members of the interview teams had reviewed witnesses’ files and gone over what questions to ask. We knew preparation was key to this operation going down without a hitch.
A tech-savvy agent provided the arrest and interview teams with audio clips of some of the “greatest hits” of conversations captured on the wiretaps. These were put on agents’ smartphones. Our hope was that those being approached would cooperate once they heard what we had. These included Robert Blagojevich, the governor’s brother; Tom Balanoff, head of the local Service Employees International Union; Deputy Governor Greenlee; Blagojevich’s friend and adviser Doug Scofield; and road construction executive Gerald Krozel. […]
At 4 a.m., we met Rob, the special agent in charge, in the basement parking lot of the Chicago office. We all got into Rob’s car and headed to a downtown hotel. There, waiting outside for us, was Chuck Brueggemann, a trusted high-ranking member of the Illinois State Police, the agency in charge of the governor’s security detail. The officers assigned to protect Blagojevich had no idea what was about to happen. Chuck had already been briefed and would serve as our liaison with them. This was critical. The last thing we needed was a standoff with the governor’s security detail in front of his house. […]
The governor picked out a blue Nike jogging suit, white socks, and running shoes to wear. As we prepared to leave, he turned and asked: “How does my hair look?”
“You look fine,” we told him, astonished by the question. It was as if he were preparing for a press conference.
A giant Christmas tree, nativity scene and menorah have been fixtures in the rotunda at holiday time for years. More recently, the Statehouse has become host to a few less conventional displays.
A pole commemorating the holiday Festivus, invented by the character Frank Costanza in a 1997 episode of “Seinfeld,” now is part of the display. Considering that the main activity of Festivus is the “airing of grievances,” perhaps it’s appropriate that this made-for-TV holiday is recognized in the seat of Illinois government. If you’re not familiar with the Festivus tradition, here’s all you need to know:
Also among the decorations is a placard from the Freedom From Religion Society. It’s not exactly in keeping with the spirit of the season. It “celebrates” the winter solstice by informing onlookers that, “Religion is but a myth and superstition that hardens hearts and enslaves minds.”
And why are all these displays allowed? Another placard explains that the First Amendment requires the state to allow “temporary, public displays in the state capitol so long as these displays are not paid for by taxpayer dollars.”
* The Festivus pole wasn’t around when I was there during the veto session. But we do have something new…
A display from The Satanic Temple-Chicago has been placed in the Statehouse rotunda, joining the Nativity scene to mark the Christmas season and the Menorah to mark Hanukkah.
According to the Satanic group’s application to the secretary of state’s office to allow the display, the sculpture is called “Knowledge is the Greatest Gift,” and it depicts the forearm of a young woman extended, with her hand holding an apple.
The whole structure, including the base, is about 4 1/2 feet tall, and the arm and apple statue is about 18 inches long. […]
According to the group’s application, it is “a non-theistic organization, the mission of which is to encourage benevolence and empathy among all people, reject tyrannical authority, advocate practical common sense and justice, and be directed by the human conscience to undertake noble pursuits guided by the individual will.”
Of the more than 8,000 bills set to expire at the close of the 100th General Assembly, more than half will die in House Speaker Michael Madigan’s Rules Committee.
The 100th General Assembly has two more days of lame-duck session in 2019 before the next class is seated. In the past two years, lawmakers in the House and Senate filed more than 9,300 bills. They passed nearly 1,300 bills.
Of the 9,300 bills filed, nearly 5,400 are set to expire in the Rules Committee. Madigan is expected to continue in as House Speaker next year. The position affords him broad powers to control which bills advance, who votes on them and when they are called for a vote.
Outgoing Republican state Rep. Jeanne Ives, R-Wheaton, said lawmakers passed many bills but failed to address “the big stuff that needs to be accomplished in the state of Illinois.”
* Reality check…
~2,300 of these were filed as shell bills, the overwhelming majority of which never had substantive language attached.
Whether *that* is good process is another question but the raw numbers don't tell you much. https://t.co/YuNsl6DzQ1
And a whole lot of those shell bills were filed by Speaker Madigan himself. Click here for that list and click here for the list of all bills that are now in Rules.
* Politico interviewed Kwame Raoul’s campaign manager Joe Duffy, who is now on Raoul’s transition team…
RAOUL’s COMPELLING STORY. “His family has lived the American dream,” Duffy said of Raoul’s immigrant parents building a life on the South Side. Fast forward to Raoul being named to the state Senate seat vacated by Barack Obama when he was elected to the U.S. Senate. “We focused on that story whenever we could. It resonated with voters.”
THE ERIKA FACTOR. Facing Republican Erika Harold in the general election proved a greater-than-expected challenge. She join the race with little name recognition but also offered a compelling story—entering a beauty pageant to use the cash award to pay for her Harvard Law School education. She’s a poised speaker and tough debater.
THE JUICE. For every $10,000 plugged in to Raoul’s race by J.B. Pritzker or billionaire Neil Bluhm, Harold got her own infusion of cash from Gov. Bruce Rauner and billionaire Ken Griffin. In the end, Raoul more than doubled Harold in fundraising. Raoul took in $13 million to Harold’s $5.5 million. Republicans say a better funded GOP campaign could have swung the race Harold’s way. Maybe.
MEDIA MATTERS. Buzz grew in the media and in some political circles that this was the race to watch—in part because of the successful messaging from Republicans who saw the seat within reach. Or maybe it was just more interesting than the governor’s race. Harold also found a perfect talking point: that electing Raoul would create an all-Democrat leadership in Springfield.
RESOURCES. Unlike the hundreds employed for Pritzker’s statewide race, Raoul had three staffers in the primary and six in the general election. “People were saying this is closer than it is. Or that Kwame is in trouble,” said Duffy, who continued to rely on inside polling that showed otherwise. “We had a plan and stuck to it. We blocked out the noise.”
The inaccurate “buzz” probably helped him and the rest of the Democratic ticket by motivating voters. In the end, Raoul narrowly out-polled Pritzker, although Harold out-performed Rauner (keep in mind, those are preliminary results, before mail-in and provisional ballots were fully counted).
Also, while Harold is a good debater, she failed at provoking any sort of anger from Raoul. The big question about him was always whether he’d become angry during a debate and she poked and prodded him at every one, to no avail. If anything, she came off looking more angry than he did.
Hundreds of Chicago murder cases from as far back as 2014 have DNA evidence from the crime scene: it just hasn’t been processed yet by Illinois’ Forensic Science Lab. State senators met in Chicago on Monday to find out why.
An investigative report from a Chicago TV station revealed about 750 DNA samples had been sent to the state crime lab, but were never touched. That’s led to delays in solving murder cases from as far back as 2014.
Carmia Tang of Chicago is with The Sisterhood, a gun violence advocacy group. She told the Senate Public Health committee about her son Jeremy, who was murdered in September 2017. More than a year later, the DNA in his case is still sitting in a crime lab.
“Just to know that my child wasn’t even worth processing his DNA is an insult to me as a taxpayer,” she fumed.
Representatives from the Illinois State Police, which runs the crime lab, say staff shortages and changes in how DNA samples from sexual assault cases are processed is to blame. They say Illinois’ nearly three year budget impasse also played a small role; a few private vendors that help process DNA samples no longer do business with the state. Still, gun violence advocacy groups have called that answer “unacceptable.”
Lt. Colonel Sean Cormiere, with the Division of Forensic Sciences, said the problem started in 2010, when a new law was passed that requires quicker processing of DNA for sexual assault cases.
So, the problem isn’t the backlog, the problem is the law requiring quicker processing. Right. Stick with that.
Crime lab officials said it could take up to five years to reduce the current backlog of over 13,000 cases. […]
State police told Senator Patricia Van Pelt that the latest crime lab numbers statewide show an overall backlog of 13,390. Those are cases which have been at the lab for over 30 days. Three-thousand-six-hundred and ninety-one of those are waiting for DNA analysis. The others include drugs or weapons analysis.
Last Fall, when FOX 32’s Mike Flannery raised questions about the backlog, state police downplayed the problem. On Monday, they admitted that budget and hiring issues have helped create the backlog.
“We did have a period of time with the budget impasse that made it a little more challenging to get things done. Vendors did shut off. We found ways around it. We had to work very closely with vendors. Did we have any vendors that did shut us off? Yes,” said Col. Sean Cormier.
After answering questions from the committee for more than an hour, Cormier said he wanted to make it clear that the State Police was not trying to pass the buck.
“This is not an effort to make an excuse for where we are right now,” he said. “We are absolutely not happy with the backlog and turnaround time.”
This problem is not new. It goes back many years. It’s part of the hollowing out of Illinois government and, like every other fiscal problem, was exacerbated by the impasse.
Last month, Carmia Tang said her son Jeremy’s case has still not been processed. He was murdered in September 2017 and she said that the “The DNA may give justice.”
On Monday, she echoed those concerns to state leaders.
“It started about Jeremey and I wanted to fight for Jeremy but it’s so much bigger than that now. It’s about everybody,” Tang testified.
Reginice McBride lost her son, 36-year-old Ronald James, last year. The father of five was shot in the head during a robbery near the United Center while he was in his car.
“They told me they have the DNA from a mask a young man wore,” McBride said through tears. “I want justice for my child. I want justice for my grandchildren.”
During his campaign for governor, J.B. Pritzker said Illinois' minimum wage should be raised to $15 an hour. On Monday he stopped short of saying just how much wages should increase, @alexarriaga__ reports. https://t.co/tuVZqm6kMz
Reporter: How about a higher minimum wage? When do you see that happening? First five months?
Pritzker: That’s very important to me. I think it’s probably something, since it passed in the last legislature, it’s probably something we’ll be able to get done in the first six months in office.
Reporter: And to $15 an hour?
Pritzker: Yeah. We’re going to work with all of the - again, we’ve got the various constituents and stakeholders that are at the table, the Illinois Retail Merchants, the entrepreneurs, and the labor unions, all at the table - and we’re trying to make sure we implement a raise in the minimum wage while also making sure there are small businesses who are not ill-effected by it and that large businesses are implementing it in as rapid fashion as we can make happen
As I told subscribers earlier today, I confirmed with the Pritzker transition team that the governor-elect still supports a $15 an hour minimum wage. I was also told to expect that the increase up to $15 will not be all at once.
Just weeks after spewing insults at each other during a divisive election, Gov. Bruce Rauner and Gov.-elect J.B. Pritzker thanked each other and voiced optimism for Illinois Monday evening during what was dubbed a “joint appearance” at the state’s bicentennial celebration in Chicago.
While both were in attendance, Pritzker and Rauner did not appear on stage together during the Navy Pier show. And both left before the event concluded.
The event celebrating Illinois’ 200th birthday marked the first time both appeared at the same event since the contentious election nearly four weeks ago.
Rauner spokeswoman Patty Schuh said both attended a veterans and VIP reception prior to the event. They chatted during the meeting with veterans, she said.
Democratic Gov.-elect J.B. Pritzker on Monday thanked Republican Gov. Bruce Rauner for his service and tried to sound an optimistic tone at Illinois’ 200th birthday party.
“On this occasion, I want to express all of our deep gratitude to Gov. Bruce Rauner, to Lt. Gov. (Evelyn) Sanguinetti and first lady Diana Rauner. Thank you,” Pritzker said.
“We should all celebrate the 200 years of progress that we’ve made,” Pritzker said. “But I want to say how important it is for us to look forward in this state. Our best days are yet to come in Illinois.” […]
On Monday night, Rauner acknowledged Pritzker from the birthday celebration’s stage and said it’s been a humbling honor to be governor.
“Never will we give up trying to serve the people and make our system work for all of us so our children and our grandchildren can have a better future,” he said.
We’re confident that we’ve got the signatures necessary to get on the ballot, full stop.
Petition challenges are the old Chicago way—and so is Toni Preckwinkle. Preckwinkle lacked the courage to take on Emanuel and aligns herself with the likes of Berrios and Burke, so it’s no surprise that she’s trying to take out the only independent reform candidate in this race. It won’t work. While Preckwinkle plays the political games of the past, I’m looking towards the future and working hard every day to build a transparent and accountable City Hall.
…Adding… Daley…
The campaign of Mayoral Candidate Bill Daley announced that it is not filing any petition challenges in the upcoming mayoral election. Campaign manager Jorge Neri released the following statement:
“We went through a rigorous process to verify our signatures and feel confident with what we filed. Given Bill’s desire for greater access to the ballot, we chose not to file challenges against any candidate.”
In response to the petition challenge filed by the Jerry Joyce campaign, Neri said, “We have not seen the Joyce challenge. However, we are looking into questionable tactics surrounding the Joyce campaign’s challenge and our team will take appropriate action with the proper authorities as necessary.”
…Adding… Joyce…
The campaign of mayoral candidate Jerry Joyce on Monday filed a challenge against the petitions of William Daley, citing the lack of sufficient valid signatures.
Meanwhile, the Joyce campaign remained confident in the quality of its own submission, with some 30,000 signatures collected over months from all corners of the city by a team that was unpaid and 100 percent volunteer.
“This was the first real test of this campaign and our success demonstrates the strong desire for new leadership in this city,” Joyce said.
“We no longer have a governor to lead us, so it’s up to us and it’s up to me to lead this party forward,” [Illinois Republican Party Chairman Tim Schneider] said. “You’re never going to have to fire me. Because if I can’t do this job, I’m going to quit. But I’m not going to quit because we can win and we can achieve victory and we can do great things as an Illinois Republican Party.”
It was about then that outgoing State Rep. Jeanne Ives (R-Wheaton), who narrowly lost to incumbent Gov. Bruce Rauner in the March primary running far to the right of the governor, picked up her belongings and exited the room.
“I’ve got better things to do with my time to listen to that,” Ives told The Daily Line when asked why she was leaving the meeting only an hour in.
* From the Illinois Conservative Union…
Almost one month has passed since the November 6th midterm elections. Many have analyzed the losses suffered by the Republican Party in Illinois. To the base of the Party – Conservatives who stand firmly on the adopted Republican Party platform – the causes are abundantly clear. Party leadership made no attempt to unify the Party, failed to support good candidates and failed to effectively communicate to voters the principles of the Republican Party. Due to this failure of leadership and lack of accepting any responsibility for the losses, Illinois Conservative Union (ICU) calls for Tim Schneider to step down from his position as Chairman.
“It’s obvious that some of those in Party leadership are out-of-touch with mainstream grassroots Republicans. The grassroots want leadership to support the Party platform; support candidates approved by the Party base—not those hand-picked by leadership; support and defend the Constitution of the United States and support the policies of the President”, said Babette Holder-Youngberg, Communications Director for ICU.
“They [IL GOP leadership] need to know we will work with them and be a force multiplier or we will work around them, but we are the workers in the Party, from every corner of the state,” said Jeanne Ives, Senior Fellow, ICU.
The group was founded by the West Suburban Patriots. It has no active political action committee, but it does have a Facebook page with 420 “likes” and several conspiracy theories.
* WGLT aired a heartbreaking story last week of a mentally ill teenage girl who had trouble finding a local psychiatrist and eventually committed suicide. Her case was not isolated…
McLean County Center for Human Services (CHS) Executive Director Tom Barr said struggles to find a child psychiatrist is common throughout all of McLean County.
“That’s a real challenge in McLean County, particularly for youth, because there aren’t any child psychiatrists in McLean County practicing at this point in time,” Barr said.
CHS has one psychiatrist and two advanced practice nurses on staff who can prescribe medication to youth age 12 and older. But, that is only a small slice of their full caseload, which is mainly focused on adult care.
Barr said CHS prioritizes services to individuals with the greatest need and the fewest resources in McLean County. To qualify as a client, they have to be on Medicaid.
A lot of times, they refer those in need to alternate providers.
“Oftentimes it’s out of the community. And that’s one of the great challenges at this point in time is the proximity to where the youth live and trying to provide services that, particularly when looking at the population that we serve who may not have the financial resources to travel a great distance,” Barr said. “Oftentimes the youth may end up being unserved or being seen by a pediatrician, or another primary care physician.”
“Fewer and fewer physicians are specializing in psychiatry, much less child psychiatry. And this is a nationwide phenomenon. It’s not unique to McLean County, and it’s not unique to Illinois,” Barr said. “What is unique to Illinois is some of the significant cuts that agencies like mine have received, particularly for psychiatric services.”
In 2015, the state cut psychiatric funding for mental health centers. For CHS, that meant a $350,000 cut.
From 2016 to now, Barr said, the United Way also cut $100,000 in contributions to the CHS psychiatric program because of fundraising challenges.
McLean County’s mental health agency — which serves people with the greatest needs and fewest resources — has suspended accepting new clients into its psychiatric program because of declining support from the state and United Way of McLean County.
“We are not going to be accepting new referrals into the psychiatric program, effective immediately, until further notice,” Tom Barr, executive director of the Center for Human Services (CHS), told The Pantagraph on Monday.
The psychiatric program, which serves people age 12 and older with severe and persistent mental illness, prescribes medicine to low-income clients and works with them to access the medicine because the vast majority don’t have insurance or are on Medicaid or their deductibles are so high that they can’t afford the medicine, Barr said.
Out-migration of residents from Illinois has accelerated in recent years, but is part of a near century-old trend that has not hurt the state’s economic growth, Fitch Ratings Inc. said in a report released Monday. […]
The issue of people leaving Illinois became part of the campaign that saw Democrat J.B. Pritzker defeat one-term Republican Gov. Bruce Rauner. Rauner contended taxes pushed by Democrats, including Pritzker’s call for a graduated-rate income tax to replace the state’s mandated flat-rate tax, would further an exodus of residents.
The report said since 2010, 400,000 more people left Illinois for other parts of the country than located within the state from other parts of the United States.
“This domestic net out-migration trend has accelerated in recent years, though it continues a nearly century-old trend. Illinois’ net domestic migration rate based on annual (federal) Census population estimates has almost doubled from an annual loss of five people per 1,000 residents in 2011 to nearly nine people per 1,000 residents in 2017,” the report said.
Still, Fitch said even with the recent acceleration in out-migration, it is a “long-established phenomenon that has not prevented the state’s economy from continuing a long pattern of overall growth.” The report said one research study that compiled migration data going to 1900 said the state has seen “virtually uninterrupted” out-migration since the mid-1920s with rates in the late 1970s and early 1980s comparable to what Illinois is currently seeing.
A credit-rating agency used a post-election report to reminded Illinois Democrats poised to retake control of state government about the party’s track record of “poor fiscal decisions.”
Fitch Ratings already had a negative outlook for Illinois’ credit, which is a notch above junk status. In report released Monday, the agency noted that the “return of single-party control to Springfield does not signal an end to the state’s credit challenges.”
It noted a laundry list of mistakes Democrats made last time and the ongoing cost of some of those decisions.
“Between 2003 and 2014, the state operated under single-party control with two different Democratic governors and sizable Democratic majorities in the General Assembly,” the report said. “Over that span, the state’s credit quality deteriorated considerably. In that 11-year span, Illinois made various poor fiscal decisions.”
* The full report also noted this…
The state of Illinois’ ‘BBB’ Issuer Default Rating (IDR) reflects an ongoing pattern of weak operating performance and irresolute fiscal decision-making. […]
Under Fitch’s “U.S. Public Finance Tax- Supported Rating Criteria,” the assessments of three of Illinois’ four key rating drivers (revenue framework, expenditure framework and long-term liability burden) imply an IDR at least in the ‘A’ category, if not for the operating performance weakness. […]
Significant governance weakness primarily distinguishes Illinois from even those other U.S. states with similarly sized long-term liability burdens. Absent the governance concerns, Illinois’ fundamental credit profile implies a rating at least one category above the current IDR.
The accompanying chart…
In other words, better fiscal stewardship at the top could lift the state’s credit rating.
I have lived in this state for all but about four years of my life. As a college student, I chose to move back here from Germany when my parents were transferred back to the states. My late friend Brian Monahan once told me during a period of transition for both of us that I needed to find a place to make my stand. I chose Illinois. I would choose it again. Despite all the problems here, I love this state.
* From the governor’s daily public schedule…
What: Gov. Rauner hosts the Illinois Bicentennial Birthday Party
Where: Navy Pier, Aon Grand Ballroom, 840 E. Grand Ave., Chicago
Date: Monday, December 3, 2018
Time: 7:30 p.m.
In contrast to Indiana [which spent $55 million on its bicentennial] and Mississippi, which allocated about $90 million to build both a Civil Rights and History museum to mark its bicentennial in 2017, Illinois’ Bicentennial Commission raised only $1.4 million for events and programs, according to deputy Gov. Leslie Munger. […]
In 1868, the state’s 50th anniversary, construction began on the current Illinois State Capitol. For the state’s centennial in 1918, the Centennial Building (later renamed the Michael J. Howlett Building) was dedicated along with the statues of Abraham Lincoln and Stephen A. Douglas in front of the Statehouse.
And for the state’s sesquicentennial in 1968, the Old State Capitol building was rebuilt brick-by-brick and restored to become one of the state’s premier historic sites.
“Those were done with state funds,” said state Rep. Tim Butler, R-Springfield, a co-chair of the Bicentennial Commission. “Obviously, in today’s budget climate, it’s a different situation. We’re not going to build a building. But, certainly, the way that communities have stepped up across the state is probably the best thing that I’ve seen to help celebrate.”
On one hand, that’s disappointing. As we were told more than 40 years ago, when the United States was marking its bicentennial, these kind of celebrations only come once in a lifetime.
On the other hand, maybe the people who would be attending a celebration like the bicentennial party are instead working on things that will be as significant when the 300th birthday comes around.
* Related…
* Illinois Marks Bicentennial With Celebration at Navy Pier: There will be appearances from Illinois leaders in entertainment, sports, and politics - including joint appearances by Gov. Bruce Rauner and Governor-elect J.B. Pritzker.
* Illinois gears up for 200th birthday party Monday: Three-time Olympic track and field gold medalist Jackie Joyner-Kersee of East St. Louis will lead a celebration of championships won by Chicago’s football Bears, basketball Bulls, hockey Blackhawks and baseball Cubs and White Sox, along with remembering championships won by the Rockford Peaches of the All-American Girls Professional Baseball League, whose heyday was during and just after World War II. Miguel Cervantes, who plays the title role in the Chicago version of the Broadway smash “Hamilton,” will perform “All People are Created Equal,” a rap rendition of Lincoln’s immortal words at Gettysburg, accompanied by high school musical theater award-winners, and Buddy Guy, the “King of Chicago Blues,” will cap the night.
* Chicago’s Eli’s Cheesecake created the party’s bicentennial birthday cake. The “Honest Abe Apple Cheesecake” is shaped like the state capitol dome. It will be served to party guests after the Chicago Symphony Orchestra plays “Happy Birthday” and Rauner and Pritzker cut the cake. Ingredients include: 575 pounds of cream cheese, 90 pounds of sugar, 65 pounds of sour cream, 65 dozen eggs, 2 pounds of vanilla, a 60 pound shortbread cookie crust, 53 pounds of fondant and 75 pounds of apples.
* Watches made by Lincoln allies still ticking at Illinois’ bicentennial: The Bunns, meanwhile, were benefactors of Lincoln’s campaign for president, according to Ian Hunt, chief of acquisitions at the Abraham Lincoln Presidential Library and Museum. “When Lincoln almost entirely quits the practice of law in 1860… it was realized pretty quickly that he would amass expenses incidental to the campaign,” he said, cautioning that the men were important but don’t own sole responsibility for Lincoln’s presidency. “Ten Republican leaders, including both John and Jacob Bunn, each pledged $500 dollars to what became known as the Sangamon County Finance Committee.”
* Slavery in early Illinois: The untold battle to keep the state free: When the call for a convention was made, Birkbeck wrote letters to the Illinois newspapers under the pseudonym Jonathan Freeman to speak out against this. In these letters, he argued against slavery and against a constitutional convention by making the case that white people in Illinois should consider the threat of black people living in their state. This sounds incredibly racist on face value, but my research suggests that Birkbeck was trying to push the anti-slavery movement by appealing to the mindset of southern Illinois citizens at the time, or put another way, he was trying to write to the people in terms they would understand.
* Happy birthday, Illinois: In honor of Illinois becoming a state on this date in 1818, let’s take a look at what we Illinoisans voted as the “Illinois Top 200.”
State Comptroller Susana Mendoza got her political start with Burke’s backing and considers him a friend, even celebrating with him as a guest at her wedding. She declined to discuss his federal heat.
City Hall veteran and attorney Gery Chico worked at Burke’s Finance Committee as a young researcher and long has considered him a close friend and mentor. He declined an interview.
Bill Daley is the son and brother of two former mayors who navigated the halls of power with Burke, the two families’ 11th and 14th wards rooted in the Southwest Side. For decades, each represented separate pillars of power with their own fiefdoms within the city’s political structure. He wouldn’t talk about Burke, who has made at least $30,000 in contributions to Daley family political funds over the years.
Neither would Cook County Board President Toni Preckwinkle, a fellow party leader who has benefited from Burke’s support in the past.
Former Chicago Public Schools CEO Paul Vallas and former Chicago police Superintendent Garry McCarthy also wanted no part of discussing how their desire to make City Hall more efficient and businesslike would intersect with Burke’s potential departure.
Rather than settle on one challenger to take Burke on, Garcia and his allies are attempting to give themselves options should Burke try to knock anyone off the ballot. Garcia says he wants to wait and see who emerges as the strongest possible challenger that can raise the most money before deciding on an endorsement.
I don’t believe that there’s an agreement yet for everybody else to drop out once Garcia’s organization makes its choice. Chuy might just be trying to put the best spin on this situation.
“I think it’s important that we give the community options,” says one of the candidates, Jaime Guzman, who worked as a staff member for Garcia on the Cook County Board. “It’s been a long time since the community has had a viable option. He’s lost touch with the community. His politics don’t resonate with the community; his relationship with Donald Trump doesn’t resonate with the community.” […]
“The community wants a progressive, reform candidate that’s going to change the way politics is going to be done,” said candidate Jose Torrez, a community organizer who has worked on multiple political campaigns for Garcia. “Not the way Ed Burke has been doing it. The community feels that this is the time. With this – hopefully – investigation, they feel that it’s time for Burke to go.” […]
Tanya Patino, a civil engineer for People’s Gas, is a third Garcia-aligned candidate. She’s also a youth soccer coach and mentor who has worked on Garcia campaigns, as well as campaigns for state Rep. Ortiz. She too jumped on Thursday’s raid to highlight her dissatisfaction with the way Burke has conducted himself as alderman, and said the federal investigation could be focused on a number of possible misdeeds.
Patino has close ties to Rep.-elect Ortiz, who defeated Rep. Dan Burke. Irene Corral is the fourth candidate and there’s not much info out there about her.
* Related…
* Chance the Reporter: Rapper takes jabs at Ed Burke, incumbent aldermen: The “Al Duhrman” character is a thinly veiled reference to Ald. Ed Burke, whose City Hall and ward offices were raided by the FBI Thursday. Based on the clothing worn by several interviewees, the video has been in the works for months. Bennett goes on to ask Duhrman if he believes “age factors in your position in City Council?” “Nah,” Duhrman says with a shrug. “I’m 75, and I’ve been in office since the ’60s. The people voted for my dad, he croaked, then the mayor appointed me. I just keep winning elections, baby.”
* What is the motive behind the raid on Ed Burke’s office?: Rick Pearson is joined by WTTW Ch.-11 correspondent, Paris Schutz, to discuss the law enforcement raid on Ed Burke’s offices. Paris shares his opinions as to what led to the raid and the political impact the raid could have.
After lingering for more than two years, Illinois Gov.-elect JB Pritzker said Friday he intends to settle 12 negligence lawsuits brought by the families of those who died of Legionnaires’ disease at the state-run Quincy veterans’ home.
Pritzker’s comments come after state legislators this week approved raising the potential limit that the state could have to pay out in damages to $2 million.
“I think there’s the opportunity now for fair settlements to be reached, and there’s no doubt we’re gonna move forward and try to get justice for all the families affected,” Pritzker said. “There were mistakes made, and I think we’re gonna have to work out going forward on a settlement basis likely what each family will receive.” […]
“It’s incredibly refreshing to see that a governor will acknowledge mistakes occur,” said Steven Jambois, who represents the family of Korean War veteran Valdemar “Roy” Dehn. “The first step into preventing those in the future is acknowledging that they did occur and then make sure they don’t occur in the future.”
As Pritzker opened the door to settlement talks with the families, he was unclear on whether the state would continue to deny negligence in its handling of the outbreaks because he said there’s still a lot of information left out of the public eye.
This case should’ve been settled a long time ago.
*** UPDATE *** As it turns out, both JB Pritzker and I are unclear on the concept. The governor can’t settle these cases. Only the attorney general can do so. A “friendly” attorney general might have settled the Quincy cases early on to keep the nasty particulars out of view and protect the administration’s backside with confidentiality agreements. A not so friendly AG would allow the discovery process to advance until all the bad bits were known. So, it’ll be up to either AG Madigan in her final days or AG Raoul to get this thing settled.
Now for some good news: [SIU System President J. Kevin Dorsey] said next year’s state budget is rumored to be very favorable to Illinois public universities.
“People are talking about an 8 percent increase or more,” in the state’s contribution to public universities, Dorsey said. In Fiscal Year 2019, the state funded SIU Carbondale at about $87 million.
If a state budget is approved in early summer and Dorsey’s projections are confirmed, the university could receive a $7 million budget bump for next school year.
But don’t expect a spending spree, Dorsey said.
SIUC must still repay over $20 million in loans it received from the greater SIU system during the 2016 budget impasse. SIUC sought the loans from other SIU institutions to cover the massive $73.4 million dollar cut in state funding between Fiscal Year 2015, a fully-funded state budget, and FY 2016, when Illinois was budgetless.
An eight percent increase for higher ed would equal about $143 million. The GOMB projected a mere 1 percent hike, despite the governor’s late campaign promises of cranking up the spending.
I’m not saying an 8-percent hike isn’t going to happen, but everybody probably needs to look at reality first.
As always, keep in mind that this is about the intensity of your nominations, not the number of nominations, so make sure to fully explain your votes. And do your very best to nominate in both categories. When lots of people focus on just one award, I figure it’s an organized conspiracy and discount those votes.
Today, Governor-elect JB Pritzker and Lieutenant Governor-elect Juliana Stratton announced the formation and members of the transition’s Job Creation and Economic Opportunity Committee at 1871, the non-profit small business incubator JB founded that has created over 7,000 jobs.
The committee is the ninth of several working groups of the transition made up of subject-matter experts who will advise and guide the incoming Pritzker-Stratton administration. The Job Creation and Economic Opportunity Committee will be chaired by Hispanic Information Technology Executive Council President Omar Duque, Director of Research Park at the University of Illinois Laura Frerichs, Illinois Medical District CEO and Executive Director Dr. Suzet McKinney and Chicago Federation of Labor President Bob Reiter and consist of 37 members.
“Illinois’ promise and potential outweigh any challenge we face, and together, I know we can capitalize on our strengths and build a thriving economy,” said Governor-elect JB Pritzker. “It’s time to realize we can be pro-labor and pro-business, to create real prosperity by ensuring capital is available for small business owners and entrepreneurs, and to build an economy that works for everybody in every county of our great state. I’m ready to get to work. I know this committee is, too.”
“For all of the strategic advantages our state has, job growth has been too slow and economic opportunity has been shut out for far too many, but this committee will work to change that,” said Lieutenant Governor-elect Juliana Stratton. “Like a rising tide lifts all boats, our plans to create jobs must be inclusive and make Illinois work for every family. Our committee members represent the diversity of our great state and together we’re going to put forward real ideas to begin rebuilding our economy on day one in office.”
“The Job Creation and Economic Opportunity Committee will help shape the incoming administration’s policy on helping small businesses expand and giving them the tools to grow,” said Omar Duque, President of the Hispanic Information Technology Executive Council. “Proposals like expanding access to capital, rebuilding small business development centers, and guaranteeing truth in lending for small business borrowers will help jumpstart the Illinois economy and benefit residents and businesses across the state.”
“Our work will focus on identifying statewide opportunities that grow downstate and urban communities through innovation, small business growth, and workforce development,” said Laura Frerichs, Director of Research Park at the University of Illinois. “Illinois has a vibrant economy with technology and entrepreneurship hubs throughout the state that can generate new economic growth. JB has been a leader in supporting these initiatives and creating catalytic locations such as 1871. I look forward to working on plans with the Job Creation and Economic Opportunity Committee to embrace the diversity of Illinois, create job growth, and build true economic prosperity.”
“What innovation districts like the Illinois Medical District prove is that with intentional effort and leadership at the top, we can spark robust economic growth in communities that desperately need it,” said Dr. Suzet McKinney, CEO and Executive Director of the Illinois Medical District. “This committee will work together to promote our state’s strengths, lift up the economy in every region of Illinois, and build a business climate that both supports small businesses and attracts large corporations.”
“We know that creating jobs and raising wages is a top priority for Governor-elect Pritzker, and the labor movement is confident in his ability to grow our economy,” said Bob Reiter, President of the Chicago Federation of Labor. “We are excited to have a pro-union governor who is focused on raising the standard of living for working families across our state.”
JOB CREATION AND ECONOMIC OPPORTUNITY COMMITTEE MEMBERS
Omar Duque co-chairs the transition’s Job Creation and Economic Opportunity Committee and is the president of the Hispanic Information Technology Executive Council (HITEC). HITEC is the premier global executive leadership organization of senior business and technology executives who have built outstanding careers in information technology. For the past 11 years, Duque was the President & CEO of the Illinois Hispanic Chamber of Commerce (IHCC). He is passionate about technology and entrepreneurship and the role they play in building community and in creating a better world. Under his leadership IHCC developed initiatives to connect more Latinos to the innovation economy. IHCC has partnered with 1871 Chicago to develop a first-of-its-kind incubator program for Latinx tech startups. Since launching in late 2016, 39 Latinx founders have completed the program. Cohort companies have raised millions of dollars in early stage capital, secured contracts with Fortune 100 firms and gone on to notable accelerators including Techstars. He is the co-founder of the Latinx Founders Collective, an initiative to build a community of more than 100 venture-funded Latinx startups by 2020.
Laura Frerichs co-chairs the transition’s Job Creation and Economic Opportunity Committee and oversees the University of Illinois Research Park, entrepreneurship activities at EnterpriseWorks technology incubator, and supports the University’s economic development efforts. There are 120 companies at the Research Park in a development including 17 buildings on the University campus. EnterpriseWorks incubator clients have raised more than $1Billion in venture capital and capture 25% of the state’s SBIR/STTR federal small business awards annually. Laura helped attract large corporate centers including innovation centers for AB InBev, Abbott, Abbvie, ADM, Caterpillar, Yahoo, Synchrony, John Deere, Capital One and more. She is on the board of the Association of University Research Parks, Champaign County Economic Development Corporation, the Illinois Technology Association, and the Illinois Science and Technology Coalition. She is a member of the Chicago Economic Club, the ChicagoTech Initiative of the Civic Committee of the Commercial Club in Chicago, and the ChicagoNEXT council.
Dr. Suzet M. McKinney co-chairs the transition’s Job Creation and Economic Opportunity Committee and is the CEO and Executive Director of the Illinois Medical District. The Illinois Medical District (IMD), a 24/7/365 environment that includes 560 acres of medical research facilities, labs, a biotech business incubator, universities, raw land development areas, four hospitals and more than 40 healthcare related facilities, is one of the largest urban medical districts in the United States. Dr. McKinney is the former Deputy Commissioner of the Bureau of Public Health Preparedness and Emergency Response at the Chicago Department of Public Health (CDPH), where she oversaw the emergency preparedness efforts for the Department and coordinated those efforts within the larger spectrum of the City of Chicago’s Public Safety activities, in addition to overseeing the Department’s Division of Women and Children’s Health. Dr. McKinney previously served as the Sr. Advisor for Public Health and Preparedness at the Tauri Group, where she provided strategic and analytical consulting services to the U.S. Department of Homeland Security’s (DHS), BioWatch Program. Her work at DHS included providing creative, responsive and operationally-based problem-solving for public health, emergency management and homeland security issues, specifically chemical and biological early detection systems and the implementation of those systems at the state and local levels.
Bob Reiter co-chairs the transition’s Job Creation and Economic Opportunity Committee and is the president of the Chicago Federation of Labor, the third largest central labor council of the national AFL-CIO. He previously served two terms as Secretary-Treasurer of the CFL from July 2010 to May 2018. For Bob, the labor movement has always had an influence on his life. His parents instilled the values of solidarity and social justice in Bob from a young age, and as he got older, he realized that everywhere he went and everything he did kept bringing him back to the labor movement. Bob’s appreciation for the history of labor informs his understanding of the need to reposition the labor movement in light of its history. He is a third-generation member of the International Union of Operating Engineers Local 150. Throughout his career, he has worked as a labor attorney, an organizer, a negotiator and a lobbyist. When the opportunity to run for elected office of the Chicago Federation of Labor presented itself in 2010, Bob saw this as an opportunity to bring the values that his parents taught him to a bigger stage, allowing him to affect people’s lives in a way he could not do at his local.
Richard Ashworth, President of Operations, Walgreens
Tom Balanoff, President, SEIU Local 1
Dr. Byron T. Brazier, Pastor, Apostolic Church of God
Robert Bruno, Director of Labor Education Program, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign
Heidi Capozzi, Senior Vice President of Human Resources, Boeing
Cristina Castro, State Senator, Illinois General Assembly
Steve Collens, CEO, Matter
John Conrad, President and CEO, Illinois Biotechnology Innovation Organization
Teresa Córdova, Director, Great Cities Institute at the University of Illinois at Chicago
Katie Davison, Executive Director, Innovate Springfield
Pat Dowell, Alderman, City of Chicago
Dale Fowler, State Senator, Illinois General Assembly
Bishop Simon Gordon, Senior Pastor, Triedstone Church of Chicago
Will Guzzardi, State Representative, Illinois General Assembly
Mike Halpin, State Representative, Illinois General Assembly
Calvin Holmes, President, Chicago Community Loan Fund
Emeka Jackson-Hicks, Mayor, East St. Louis
Rob Karr, President and CEO, Illinois Retail Merchants Association
Allen Mayer, Chief of Staff, Illinois Treasurer’s Office
Brad McConnell, CEO, Accion Chicago
Bruce Montgomery, Co-Founder, Urban Innovation Center
Jim Nowlan, Retired Senior Fellow, University of Illinois Institute of Government and Public Affairs
Adam Pollet, Managing Director, 9 North Capital
Elliot Richardson, Founder and CEO, Small Business Advocacy Council
Dr. David Sam, President, Elgin Community College
Chris Setti, CEO, Greater Peoria Economic Development Council
Alicia Slocomb, Belleville Main Street Manager, Belleville Chamber of Commerce
Michael L. Tipsord, President and CEO, State Farm
Sam Toia, President and CEO, Illinois Restaurant Association
Arthur Turner, State Representative, Illinois General Assembly
Anna Valencia, City Clerk, City of Chicago
Betsy Ziegler, CEO, 1871
Andrea Zopp, President and CEO, World Business Chicago
I never thought I’d see the day when Rob Karr and Will Guzzardi would be on the same committee, but that day has come.
On the surface it looked a lot like past campaigns for mayor, with Richard Daley touting his record in office and declaring his passion for the job and the city. But while Daley was talking Monday about seeking a sixth term, his aides were filing nominating petitions with fewer than 25,000 signatures.
That figure was far from the political power plays of the past, when Daley’s campaign filed as many as 200,000 signatures.
Daley filed fewer than twice the minimum number of signatures that year and it was a big story.
The mayor needs 12,500 valid signatures, but he already starts with 9,050 — the number that Walls’ allies did not challenge, said board spokesman Tom Leach.
That means the board must throw out more than 80 percent of the 19,830 that Walls contested for Walls to succeed in his challenge.
Cook County Board President Toni Preckwinkle plans to challenge more than 14,000 of fellow Chicago mayoral candidate Susana Mendoza’s petition signatures, setting up a high-stakes fight over whether the state comptroller will have enough valid names to get on February’s city election ballot.
If the signatures that the Preckwinkle team says have problems get removed, Mendoza would have the names of only around 10,400 “unique valid voters” on the petition forms, far below the 12,500 needed, Preckwinkle campaign lawyer Keri-Lyn Krafthefer said.
So, Mendoza is actually starting with more presumed valid signatures than Daley started with in 2007. And Preckwinkle’s challenging success rate will have to be above 85 percent to knock Mendoza off the ballot, while the unsuccessful Walls relied on an 80 percent rate to succeed.
Daley ended up with something like 13,300 valid signatures and Walls’ challenge went away when it became apparent that even if he won all of his remaining challenges he still couldn’t succeed. Daley also went on to win in the first round with 71 percent of the vote.
* But Mendoza is no Rich Daley and she won’t be getting the benefit of the doubt that Hizzoner did in ‘07. So, Shia is right…
Casting doubt on opponents’ signatures also has another value: it can influence supporters and donors. Though Mendoza’s camp says that hasn’t been the case. She’s reporting $160,000 in A-1 donations today.
Maybe Preckwinkle gets super lucky and forces Mendoza off the ballot. In the meantime, Mendoza will remain on the defensive as the media takes its shots and as Preckwinkle uses this petition kerfuffle to claim Mendoza isn’t up to the task of being mayor because she can’t even get her election filing act together.
And this could all easily drag into February with possible (even likely) court cases, appeals, etc. Mendoza’s campaign claims she has an expert legal team. But so does Preckwinkle. And Mendoza is being attacked by several other candidates over her petition issues, so she also has a serious media perception problem that she needs to deal with ASAP.
“Rauner turning his back on the entire organized labor community hurt. There is no doubt about it,” said Greg Baise, the recently retired head of the Illinois Manufacturers’ Association after 27 years at its helm.
“Illinois has a deep strain of trade unionism that goes back throughout the entire state, not just in the Chicagoland area. You need to understand that,” Baise opined, though at times, the political positions supported by members of his own group were directly opposed by organized labor.
“Many in the labor movement are Republican,” Baise said. “They have conservative values on social issues. They are pro-gun. So many of those folks naturally vote Republican. You cannot turn your back on them and you can’t say I’m going to attack the core values that you as somebody in organized labor wants to reflect.” […]
“As a politician in Illinois, to win, you have got to put these coalitions together to be able to get enough people to vote, because Democrats start out with a natural advantage in this state.
All true, but Rauner is a “right to work” guy at his very core. The most popular Statehouse parlor game for the past four years has been “What if Rauner had tried pitting the trade unions against the public employee unions?”
Well, there was an attempt to get him to do just that during the 2014 primary cycle and Rauner rebuffed it. He only wanted to talk about how gutting collective bargaining rights and prevailing wage laws would be so much better for all unions, and that sent the trades running to the publics to form a coalition against him.
This is, however, a lesson for the future. While union leaders may not always endorse Republican candidates, those candidates can still win union members’ votes with the right pitch. Rauner had the right pitch in the fall of 2014 by greatly downplaying his anti-union beliefs against an incumbent despised by many public employee union members. But he could no longer hide the ball by 2018. It was crystal clear who he was. And that goes for all factions of the Democratic Party, not just the unions.
A cleanup effort expected to last months began Sunday after one or more tornadoes producing winds of at least 120 mph hit the Taylorville area Saturday night, damaging more than 500 homes and injuring 26 people — two of them critically.
No one has died because of the storm that cut through this Christian County community of 11,000 people, on its way from the St. Louis area and through parts of Christian, Macoupin, Montgomery and McLean counties.
But thousands of people in the Taylorville area woke up to see the full extent of devastation visited upon their neighborhoods on a dreary, overcast Sunday. Several of them said the shock and stress caused by the rare late-fall tornadoes on an unusually warm Saturday afternoon — in the 50s and 60s — may last longer than the cleanup. […]
The storm broke more than 100 power poles, Ameren spokesman Tucker Kennedy said.
More than 300 total structures were assessed. According to Joe Gasparich, assistant emergency management director of Montgomery County, fifty-three of those showed major damage, 29 were destroyed, and 219 were damaged but inhabitable
[Christian County Emergency Management Coordinator Mike Crews] said help had poured into Taylorville for both initial search and rescue for people trapped and injured and for the aftermath and cleanup. Fire departments from Assumption, Edinburg, Midland, Moweaqua, Mount Auburn, Morrisonville, Owaneco, Pana and Nokomis had lent a hand.
Other help came from many and varied organizations including “Team Rubicon,” which is what Crews described as a veteran-led disaster response organization. And Crews said the Southern Baptist Response Team and the Lutheran Ministries Early Response team had also arrived to help, along with many state and local resources.
Taylorville Police Chief, Brian Hile, said Sunday evening that the offers of help had been so overwhelming some had to be turned away “because we had more than we could handle.”
He said the clean-up and repair crews heroic efforts had transformed the chaotic scene of destruction that he had seen at first light Sunday morning.
[Jared Maples of the National Weather Service] said the tornadoes [in Taylorville] reached speeds of up to 86 mph.
“In general, it there were brief tornadoes and cycling that would pick up and drop again elsewhere and it did that repeatedly,” Maples said. “Unfortunately those came together at the right time to direcly impact Taylorville.”
The National Weather Service says peak months for tornadoes in much of the Midwest are April and June.
* The Daily Line’s Hannah Meisel attended an Illinois Republican Party State Central Committee meeting in Bolingbrook over the weekend. From her report…
The main takeaway from the presentation was that Republicans actually did quite well bringing out their own voters. The problem for the GOP, the presenters said, was that the Democrats did much better.
Precisely 912,979 more Illinoisans voted on Nov. 6 than did when Rauner was first elected in 2014, the presenters said. Rauner only lost 61,232 votes compared with his vote total in 2014, but Pritzker gained 794,763 more votes than Gov. Pat Quinn received in 2014. It’s this gap, the presenters said, that the GOP should focus on.
If the Republican presenters are right and 913K more voters cast ballots this year than four years ago and Rauner’s total dropped by 61K, then that’s pretty darned horrible for the GOP.
Also, maybe first focus on the votes Rauner lost from four years ago before going after all those new voters who went for Pritzker? You know… walk before running?
Anyway, go read the rest because there are some pretty good anecdotes in there.
“Is that the guy from the Policy Institute?” House Speaker Michael Madigan asked his press secretary after an Illinois News Network reporter recently tried to ask Madigan a question at the Statehouse.
The Illinois Policy Institute transferred ownership of the network to the Franklin Center for Government and Public Integrity back in January. But they all share the same street address. “Same difference,” Madigan’s press secretary said in response to his boss’ question.
“When are you guys gonna fold your tent?” Madigan asked the reporter.
It’s true that the Policy Institute is currently in a very weak spot. Before Bruce Rauner ran for office, the institute was the go-to source for fiscally conservative talking points. Rauner was a dream candidate for an advocacy group that bills itself as a think tank. The anti-union tax-hater was a perfect fiscal and ideological match for them. The Institute backed him throughout the long governmental impasse and helped gin up rabid opposition to an income tax hike, then unleashed a furious response against the legislative Republicans who crossed Rauner and voted for that tax increase.
But then the group helped engineer Rauner’s staff purge in July of 2017, and everything went downhill from there.
Rauner abruptly fired all of his loyal top staff without helping them find other employment, which is just not done in this business. He fired the people who knew where all the bones were buried. And, man, were they ever hungry for revenge.
The former Rauner staffers who’d been with him since the 2014 campaign were replaced in large part by Illinois Policy Institute staffers and other people of that ilk. Those folks proved to be a disaster and almost all were forced out. Rauner not only hurt his own “brand” by associating his government with the institute, but the institute hurt its brand by associating itself so closely with an unpopular governor.
When Rauner signed HB40 into law, he drove another wedge between himself and the institute. The group’s chief executive officer, John Tillman, who had worked closely with Rauner during the first few years of the governor’s tenure, lashed out and called him “Benedict Rauner” for previously telling Republican legislators and others that he would veto the bill, which paid for abortions of Medicaid recipients. After the Sun-Times and ProPublica Illinois published an investigation into the institute’s intricate web of not-for-profit and for-profit activities, Rauner publicly vowed to not give the group “another nickel.”
And then Rauner got thumped like a drum in the November election, scoring just 39 points while losing by 15. Rauner is soon to be gone, but can the Illinois Policy Institute come back?
Throughout the campaign, Democrat J.B. Pritzker brushed aside questions about “reforming” the state’s pension systems, a major priority for the Illinois Policy Institute. Pritzker flatly refused to entertain any ideas for lowering pension payments to current government workers and retirees, saying a pension is a promise and he intended to keep that promise. He’s on the opposite side of the institute. The same goes for his support for union rights and increasing the minimum wage.
But right at the very top of the Illinois Policy Institute’s priority list is an issue that was also one of Rauner’s most important missions as governor: Stop a graduated income tax. The group is funded, after all, by people like Rauner. They want to keep as much of their piles of money as they possibly can, and they hate giving it to the government.
Pritzker openly campaigned for a progressive income tax. He can be seen as the Illinois Policy Institute’s ultimate nightmare: A wealthy liberal Democrat with massive legislative super-majorities.
There’s another way of looking at this, however. Pritzker could also be seen as the institute’s dream. They no longer have to defend a badly flawed governor, and eventually the richest Illinoisans will be energized when Pritzker begins to move his agenda through the legislature, particularly the graduated income tax. The Illinois Policy Institute will be a ready-made receptacle for their mad money.
Expecting Tillman and his crew to glumly pack their bags and move to Italy with the governor is not how this works. If he plays it right, Tillman could eventually rebuild his group even bigger than it was.
The unions didn’t go away when Rauner won, after all. They strengthened their political hand more than ever before because they had such a “perfect” ideological foil.
So, instead of folding their tent, Rauner’s loss just might be Tillman’s gain.
* We talked about the first part of my Crain’s Chicago Business column last Wednesday, when the governor released a letter to Senate President John Cullerton. What I didn’t tell you last week was that a high-level person in the governor’s office pushed back. Here you go…
Gov. Bruce Rauner demonstrated for perhaps the last time the other day that he has still not learned how to pass a bill.
Rauner sent a letter to Senate President John Cullerton on Nov. 28 about a House amendment he supported in late May. That proposal was designed to stop Andrew Hamilton, the executive director of eight of the 10 regional development authorities in Illinois, from profiting off his lucrative side businesses that help companies with economic development assistance, including tax breaks and government loans.
The Illinois House deleted all of the language of an unrelated Senate bill with its amendment, then unanimously passed the amendment with the new language May 31, the last day of the spring legislative session. Almost six months later, the Illinois Policy Institute published a story noting that the bill hadn’t advanced in the Senate during the first week of the fall veto session, which began Nov. 13.
I happened to run into the bill’s Senate sponsor, Sen. Melinda Bush, D-Grayslake, at an event not long after the IPI story was published, and I showed it to her and asked why she hadn’t moved the bill.
Bush’s original bill, before the House amended it, was predicated on the passage of two other bills. One of those bills didn’t pass, so she had simply stopped following its progress and didn’t even know that the House had amended it and had no idea about the story behind the House’s amendment.
Basically, the bill just got lost in the shuffle.
Cue Rauner. The governor fired off a letter to Cullerton on the final afternoon of the Senate’s veto session claiming the amended bill had been “buried” in committee, which, Rauner said, “gives the appearance of backroom deals cut by insiders in Springfield.” That letter was emailed to me by Mischa Fisher, the state’s chief economist and an adviser to the governor, before it was sent to Cullerton.
Rauner had met with Cullerton the day before. Maybe Rauner didn’t see the IPI’s story until afterward, but instead of just picking up the phone and asking Cullerton to move the bill, Rauner sent him an insinuating letter after first releasing it to the media.
Also, the governor’s office employs a large number of people who get paid to lobby legislators. If this issue was so all-important to Rauner, then why not have one of his liaisons contact Bush in the months before the veto session began?
I made similar remarks on my blog, and Fisher reached out to say it was
When Illinois was applying for statehood, the borders had to be clearly defined, Wheeler said. An initial application had the northern border about 50 miles south of where it is now, which would have put what now is Chicago and the Lake Michigan coastline outside the state, he said.
Nathaniel Pope, the Illinois territory’s delegate in Congress, saw opportunity in moving the border north to include the lead-rich mines of Galena, as well as waterway access. He redrew the state, Wheeler said.
“He knew access to Lake Michigan was profound,” he said. “If (the border) wouldn’t have been moved … the state would’ve developed so much differently.”
The population in the northern part of the state (and Chicago) with its access to other parts of the country through Lake Michigan and connecting waterways is due to that shift in boundaries, Wheeler said.
The fix was orchestrated by Nathaniel Pope, Illinois’ congressional representative when it was not yet a state. His nephew Daniel P. Cook was a newspaper publisher and a leader in the movement for statehood. Cook County would be posthumously named for him, though he probably never set foot there.
Cook got the honor because he used his paper to lobby members of the local legislature to pass a resolution asking that Illinois become a state. It was sent to Washington, where Pope was in a good position to shepherd it through Congress. He was on the committee that considered Illinois’ application for statehood.
But Cook and Pope had a problem. Illinois didn’t meet the requirements for statehood.
A territory was supposed to have 60,000 inhabitants before being bumped up, and Illinois was a thinly populated slice of the western frontier. There was a loophole: Congress could set a lower bar, and Pope persuaded his fellow legislators to grant Illinois that exemption. Pope seems to have claimed there were 40,000 Illinoisans, though a special census could only find 34,620 of them. And even that number might have been inflated by counting migrants who were just passing through Illinois on their way farther West.
In an effort to protect the privacy and reputation of individuals in Illinois, state Rep. La Shawn K. Ford, D-Chicago, has introduced a measure that will allow people with low-level charges to see their day in court before their police photograph or mug shot is posted online.
“In our communities, too many people are falsely arrested and later have charges against them dropped. Posting their arrest photo online creates a false narrative and paints these individuals as criminals, even if they are never proven guilty,” said Ford. “An online mug shot of an innocent person can ruin a person’s life and destroy families. This practice is unfair and unjust, and must be changed.”
Ford introduced House Bill 5998 on Thursday. This corrective measure will make it unlawful for a mug shot to be shared publicly unless an individual is convicted, providing privacy for innocent individuals as they navigate the criminal justice system. The bill also works retroactively and would require current mug shots to be taken down if a person was not guilty or had their charges dropped. There is also a caveat in the legislation that would require websites to take down photos of people who provide an order to expunge or seal their criminal information.
“This measure allows people to truly be innocent until proven guilty, and not simply tried in the court of public opinion,” said Ford. “Information posted online can be accessed by millions of people instantly and once it is on the internet it can be captured and used forever. This history can cause huge hardships on innocent individuals who are searching for employment, housing, and many other necessary things in life. This legislation will prevent people from continually facing discrimination for a crime that they did not commit.”
* The Question: Agree or disagree with the sponsor? Take the poll and then explain your answer in comments, please…
U.S. District Court Judge Jorge Alonso today appointed a special master to oversee the Illinois Department of Children and Family Services’ implementation of the BH v. Walker consent decree. The ACLU of Illinois requested the court take this action back in June, and now the Court has accepted the ACLU recommendation.
The parties were in court today to address the crisis of Chicago Lakeshore Hospital, where patients, including children, have made allegations of sexual assault and abuse. This follows other well-documented problems plaguing DCFS, including children remaining in psychiatric hospitals beyond medical necessity, facility closures due to inadequate funding, and a growing intake in response to the ongoing opioid epidemic.
“It’s been apparent to us for a long time that the Illinois child welfare system is in crisis. The child welfare system is charged with stepping in to keep children and youth safe and stable when there are allegations of abuse or neglect, and to work expeditiously to address the child’s trauma, and either stabilize the family so they can be reunified, or identify a permanent loving home for that child,” said Andrea Durbin, Chief Executive Officer of the Illinois Collaboration on Youth. “For the past 20 years, we have seen a systematic disinvestment in the child welfare system that has led to this crisis today. The State of Illinois has done little to turn this around, refusing to provide adequate resources to support the most basic levels of service. As a result, children and youth languish in care, and Illinois ranks worst in the nation for permanency rates.”
“The situation is not sustainable. Illinois has a legal responsibility to address the complex needs of children who have suffered trauma, abuse, and neglect, and today the Court recognized that extreme measures are needed to ensure that children and youth receive the services they deserve,” Durbin added.
ICOY providers stand ready to assist in rebuilding the Illinois child welfare system so that children and youth are safe, healthy, and living with loving families that are able to care for them.
Also, Illinois has more than just a “legal responsibility to address the complex needs of children who have suffered trauma, abuse, and neglect.” It has an absolute moral responsibility. These are some of the most vulnerable people in our state.
Today, Governor-elect JB Pritzker announced the formation and members of the transition’s Restorative Justice and Safe Communities Committee at Safer Foundation, one of the nation’s largest nonprofit organizations that provides employment, educational, and supportive services for individuals with criminal records.
The committee is the eighth of several working groups of the transition made up of subject-matter experts who will advise and guide the incoming Pritzker-Stratton administration. The Restorative Justice and Safe Communities Committee will be chaired by Cook County State’s Attorney Kim Foxx, State Rep. Jehan Gordon-Booth, and Congresswoman Robin Kelly and consist of 42 members.
“Across our country – including here in Illinois – our criminal justice system is broken, and throughout the campaign, I listened to Illinoisans impacted by this broken system and witnessed how it’s harmed communities,” said Governor-elect JB Pritzker. “If we’re committed to economic justice, let’s be committed to criminal justice reform and public safety. These problems are not separate from each other. They’re intertwined with each other. It’s time to bring real prosperity to every community, tear down the barriers that block people from opportunity, and move away from a system of imprisonment and build a true system of justice.”
“A core promise of our campaign was the creation of the Office of Criminal Justice Reform and Economic Opportunity,” said Lieutenant Governor-elect Juliana Stratton. “It will build a system of justice that reflects the values of Illinois and listens to the people of Illinois. That’s a system that diverts youth and adults from incarceration in the first place, a system that modernizes sentencing, a system that encourages rehabilitation, and a system that works to reduce gun violence and creates economic opportunity. I know we can achieve meaningful, lasting progress and opportunity and justice that we all believe in – but only if we act together.”
“The state of Illinois needs to reimagine our criminal justice system,” said Cook County State’s Attorney Kim Foxx. “This committee will work to challenge and transform the ways our state deals with systemic issues that leave communities of color behind. I look forward to JB and Juliana’s leadership statewide to address gun violence and a more holistic approach to public safety.”
“It’s no secret that Illinois’ criminal justice system has failed communities across our state, and it’s time to fix it,” said state Rep. Jehan Gordon-Booth. “We can start by making our state agencies more accountable to the people they serve, and we can build collaboration across agencies to bring interconnected services into communities that need them most.”
“Governor-elect Pritzker and Lieutenant Governor-elect Stratton are ready to reinvent our criminal justice system so every Illinoisan has a chance to reach their full potential,” said Congresswoman Robin Kelly. “They recognize that gun violence is a public health epidemic and have real prevention and intervention plans that will keep our communities safe.”
RESTORATIVE JUSTICE AND SAFE COMMUNITIES COMMITTEE MEMBERS
Kim Foxx co-chairs the transition’s Restorative Justice and Safe Communities Committee and is the first African American woman to lead the Cook County State’s Attorney’s Office. She was elected in 2016 with a vision for transforming the office into a fairer, more forward-thinking agency focused on rebuilding the public trust, promoting transparency, and being proactive in making all communities safe. During her first two years in office, Foxx has revamped the office’s Conviction Integrity Unit, resulting in overturned convictions in over 60 cases, led bond reform efforts, and prioritized resources away from low-level offenders. Prior to being elected state’s attorney, Foxx served as an Assistant State’s Attorney for 12 years and as a guardian ad litem advocating for children navigating the child welfare system.
Jehan Gordon-Booth co-chairs the transition’s Restorative Justice and Safe Communities Committee and serves as state representative for Illinois’ 92nd district. In 2014, Gordon-Booth and her husband, Derrick, lost their son, DJ, to gun violence. Two years later, she introduced and passed the “Neighborhood Safety Act” — the most comprehensive and impactful criminal justice bill in Illinois history. The law aimed to address over incarceration and the needs of crime victims by eliminating over 1,000 mandatory minimums and expanding judicial discretion, incentivizing rehabilitation for inmates and establishing trauma recovery centers for victims of crime. She is the first African-Americanwoman ever elected to the Illinois legislature from Central Illinois, the youngest woman to serve in leadership in the House and is a 2013 Edgar Fellow.
Robin Kelly co-chairs the transition’s Restorative Justice and Safe Communities Committee and serves as congresswoman for Illinois’ 2nd district. Since being elected in 2013, she has worked to expand economic opportunity, community wellness, and public safety across the state, championing numerous initiatives to generate job growth, reduce health disparities, and end gun violence. A staunch champion of common-sense gun reforms and responsible community policing, Congresswoman Kelly is a co-chair of the Congressional Gun Violence Prevention Taskforce, was tapped to sit on the House Task Force on Community-Police Relations and is the author of the 2014 Kelly Report on Gun Violence in America, the first-ever Congressional analysis of the nation’s gun violence epidemic that offers a blueprint for ending the crisis.
Phillip Andrew, Director of Violence Prevention, Archdiocese of Chicago
Brian Asbell, Sheriff, Peoria County
Charles Bachtell, CEO and Co-Founder, Cresco Labs
Kathy Bankhead, Ombudsperson, Illinois Department of Juvenile Justice
Deanne Benos, Former Assistant Director, Illinois Department of Corrections
Walter Burnett, Alderman, City of Chicago
Annalise Buth, M.R. Bauer Foundation Fellow, Center on Negotiation and Mediation at Northwestern Pritzker School of Law
Kelly Cassidy, State Representative, Illinois General Assembly
Kahalah Clay, Circuit Clerk, St. Clair County
Colleen Daley, Executive Director, Illinois Council Against Handgun Violence
Victor B. Dickson, President and CEO, Safer Foundation
Arne Duncan, Managing Partner, Emerson Collective
Michael Frerichs, Treasurer, State of Illinois
Dr. Nneka Jones Tapia, Leader in Residence, Chicago Beyond
The David Lynch Foundation is working with schools, community organizations, partner foundations and Chicago leaders to:
Improve school climate and academic outcomes
Bring the healing effects of the [Transcendental Meditation] technique to mothers and their families who have lost loved ones to violence
Bring the benefits of the TM technique to non-custodial African American fathers, to better help them connect with their children
Heal the trauma and side effects of PTSD among veterans
Help our youth in juvenile detention centers
New numbers Thursday from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention show that drug overdoses killed more than 70,000 Americans in 2017, a record. […]
Since 2013, the number of overdose deaths associated with fentanyls and similar drugs has grown to more than 28,000, from 3,000. Deaths involving fentanyls increased more than 45 percent in 2017 alone. […]
The recent increases in drug overdose deaths have been so steep that they have contributed to reductions in the country’s life expectancy over the last three years, a pattern unprecedented since World War II. Life expectancy at birth has fallen by nearly four months, and drug overdoses are the leading cause of death for adults under 55. […]
The trends in overdose deaths vary widely across the country. The epidemic has been strongest in Northeast, Midwest and mid-Atlantic states. In the West, where heroin is much less likely to be mixed with fentanyls, overdose rates are far lower. Data from the C.D.C. indicate that a state’s overdose trend closely tracks the number of fentanyl-related deaths.
Despite the sharp recent increases in drug-related deaths, some early signs suggest that 2017 could be the peak of the overdose epidemic. Preliminary C.D.C. data show death rates leveling off nationally in the early months of this year, though there is still a lot of local variation. Several states and cities have embarked on ambitious public health programs to reduce the deadliness of drug use and connect more drug users with treatment, and some of those changes may be bearing fruit, for instance in Dayton, Ohio, where local officials have worked hard to push down the overdose rate. And in a ruling with implications for prisons and jails nationwide, a federal judge in Massachusetts this week ordered a jail to offer an addicted man access to methadone.
Rauner also complained about a bill that says people entering medical facilities like nursing homes are presumed to be eligible for Medicaid benefits until the state determines otherwise.
“That has the likelihood of costing tens of millions and potentially hundreds of millions of dollars that cannot be recouped,” Rauner said. “It is a huge mistake on the part of the General Assembly.”
Rauner had proposed changes to the bill that he said would help control costs. However, the House and Senate voted to reject those changes without any dissenting votes.
Lawmakers passed the bill in the first place because the state is far behind in determining if someone is eligible for Medicaid assistance. They were concerned that nursing homes were assuming costs for patients who should have been covered by Medicaid but weren’t because the state was behind in its work.
Since taking office, Comptroller Mendoza, as the state’s chief fiscal officer, has prioritized payments to programs serving the state’s most vulnerable populations, including the roughly 55,000 Medicaid long-term care (LTC) program participants, many of whom reside in nursing homes and supportive living and hospice care facilities.
But now the failure to process millions of dollars in bills for critical services and a spike in enrollment delays is threatening care providers’ ability to cover basic costs like medicine, food, and payroll, Comptroller Mendoza said. […]
The Comptroller’s report, which uses Department of Healthcare and Family Services (HFS) data, found that the number of pending Medicaid eligibility determinations for LTC over 90-days-old rose 143 percent between December 2017 and May 2018. HFS has reported it can only process 60 percent of new, incoming applications in a timely manner and, as of the end of last month, there were 16,378 pending admissions. According to the Associated Press, the estimated cost of these pending admissions is up to $300 million.
These problems are occurring at the same time the Rauner Administration continues to dump tax dollars into a failed technology solution meant to streamline Medicaid eligibility processes. The state has committed $288 million to Deloitte, the global consulting firm, for an Integrated Eligibility System (IES) to modernize enrollment in benefit programs like LTC or the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP), commonly known as food stamps.
HB 4771 enshrines into law the decision made in Koss v. Norwood, which requires the State to grant “provisional eligibility status to any applicant whose application is more than 46 days old.” Additionally, the bill requires the Department of Healthcare and Family Services to submit a voucher to the Office of the Comptroller within 10 business days of being granted provisional eligibility.
As noted above, the bill unanimously passed both chambers and then the governor’s veto was overridden without dissent. It had bipartisan sponsors, including Republicans with experience dealing with Medicaid issues.
The GA stepped in to fix something because Rauner couldn’t or wouldn’t. Legislative fixes opposed by the executive are never optimal. But they become necessary in these sorts of situations. And the time to influence legislation is during the spring session, not with a long amendatory veto in August.
Federal agents mysteriously raided a former Trump attorney’s office: what we know - Ed Burke represented Trump on property tax issues between 2006 and 2018
* Experienced in-town reporter…
The national media narrative is interesting. We have it on multiple sources that today's FBI raid is not related to the work Burke did for Trump. Purely focused on his role as alderman and chair of City Council's Finance Committee https://t.co/cNxvyG0edW
Nationally, media outlets and websites were quick to note that Burke once served as the attorney who appealed property taxes on behalf of President Donald Trump’s Chicago tower before cutting those ties earlier this year. And the raids on Burke’s office came on the same day the president’s former attorney Michael Cohen pleaded guilty to lying to Congress about a Trump project in Moscow as part of special counsel Robert Mueller’s investigation into Russian meddling in the 2016 election.
The timing of that development and the raid on Burke’s offices led to rampant speculation that the searches were related to work Burke’s law firm did for Trump. The Burke investigation, however, was being conducted in conjunction with the U.S. Attorney’s Office in Chicago, not Mueller’s office, said Joseph Fitzpatrick, a spokesman for U.S. Attorney John Lausch.
Authorities did not search Burke’s law office Thursday, a law enforcement source told the Chicago Tribune. The investigation involves recent allegations and no arrests were made or are imminent, according to the source.
“For the FBI and the U.S. Attorney’s office to be executing search warrants at his government offices, that had to be approved at a very high level of the Department of Justice in Washington. This is not something you do on a notion,” [mayoral candidate Lori Lightfoot, a Burke nemesis and former federal prosecutor] said.
“A magistrate judge had to sign off on the particulars of the search warrant to show there was a credible allegation that a federal crime was committed and that evidence of that federal crime would be found in these locations. That means this is a very, very serious matter.”
Lightfoot predicted that there would be “a very bare bones charging document, probably a criminal complaint” issued relatively soon. A search warrant laying out the probable cause and an inventory of items taken, is likely to come later after all of it is presented to a grand jury, she said.
“It doesn’t always happen that way. … Sometimes search warrants are issued and nobody gets charged. But it would surprise me if that happened here,” she said.
“This is a very high-profile elected official. A search of his government offices very close to an election, which they would be mindful of and the consequences of that. This is not a nothing. This is a very serious action.”
It does look very serious, but Dorothy Brown has been under federal investigation for years and nothing has ever happened to her, even after the G seized her mobile phone three years ago.
It’s the way the feds went about it that makes me so curious. This was a very public raid. They didn’t go the quiet subpoena route like they did in 2012, when a grand jury subpoenaed records from Burke. This time, they made their presence known. When they seized Brown’s phone, they just quietly showed up at her home with a warrant. They didn’t put brown paper over her office windows and dispatch a legion of federales in full view of reporters.
Burke has been in office for nearly 50 years and is the powerful chairman of the Finance Committee, which oversees the administration of the $100 million Workers Compensation Fund for city workers injured on the job.
In 2012, the City Inspector General sought to review the records, but was rebuffed by Burke. The Legislative Inspector General, which oversees the City Council, then tried to intervene. […]
The statute of limitations for any corruption charges that could stem from that investigation is five years. But a source familiar with these kinds of cases said if the feds can show in an investigation that there are continuing crimes, the statute runs from the last crime.
Thursday’s federal search warrants also come a few months after a federal lawsuit was filed in Chicago challenging the legality of Burke’s control of city workers’ compensation and alleging that the South Side alderman commands a dozens-strong patronage army under the cover of his Finance Committee. The suit, filed by several former and injured city employees, claims that Burke falsifies his committee budget, understates his staff size and hides information from the public. According to an amended complaint filed this month, Burke allegedly hires unqualified employees who have “worked as a dog groomer, dog walker, hairstylist, waitress, and other jobs unrelated to the administration of Workers’ Compensation.”
Oddly, there was a scheduled status hearing on the lawsuit in federal court at the same time the raids were underway in Ald. Burke’s City Hall and ward offices. Attorney Michael Greco, who represents the plaintiffs in the case, said he was “curious about the document raids” but had no information on them or comment.
At one point an agent who identified himself as FBI removed an odd fluorescent green rod from his vehicle and took it inside. A sign in the window was marked Chicago Police Narcotics Task Force.
What?
I did a quick Google search and couldn’t find anything. Anybody know what that green rod might be?
The raids happened as Burke’s wife, Ann Burke, was being sworn in for another term on the Illinois Supreme Court. Mariotti thinks that is not mere coincidence. […]
“What I think is interesting is the timing of this was the day that his wife was getting sworn in. It seems like a very good day to conduct a search if you want to be able to talk with (Burke’s) employees without him being around.”
As FBI agents rummaged through his offices, the alderman attended a luncheon at the Chicago Yacht Club celebrating his wife, Anne Burke, who on Thursday was sworn into her second 10-year term on the Illinois Supreme Court.
* Uh-oh…
The Mendoza campaign may have taken down the page but here’s a screengrab from earlier. “She calls fellow Democrats Ed Burke…and Mike Madigan political mentors…” pic.twitter.com/iKtDAi16uR
Susana Mendoza is taking a long-planned family vacation next week. A source close to the campaign says Mendoza and her husband didn’t have the heart to cancel the trip they planned with their 6-year-old son—a trip that was in the works long before Mendoza thought she’d be running for mayor.
“Long-planned.” (Update: I was shown a receipt that clearly indicates she booked that trip months ago. Also, the link has been restored to her website.)
Rauner was asked why he was handily dispatched by Pritzker after one term in office. Instead of answering that question, he issued a warning over Democratic control of state government.
“I am very scared for the people of Illinois. I believe that the folks who put Illinois into a financial quagmire are now back in complete control of the government,” he said. “The policies that have created the financial mess for the state of Illinois are now the policies that will be dominating completely without any resistance whatsoever.”
Contrasting with his call for unity in his postelection concession speech, Rauner on Thursday predicted a future of “deficit spending, tax increasing, overregulating, self-dealing” by Democrats with “no voice pushing back.”
Rauner said Thursday was not the day to discuss whether it was a mistake to have made opposition to House Speaker Michael Madigan, D-Chicago, a key component of his campaign and that of other Republican candidates. Rauner said simply, “We worked hard and ran the best campaign that we could and we did not prevail.”
Though he criticized Democrats, Rauner also said his own party needs to take a look at itself post-election. When asked who should lead the Illinois Republican Party, Rauner did not give a direct answer.
“Well, we have a chairman, Tim Schneider and a co-chairman,” Rauner said, referring to the newly ousted Cook County Commissioner, whom he handpicked to lead the party, and conservative Lake County GOP Chairman Mark Shaw, who led a quasi-coup of the party leadership in May.
“We have some wonderful elected officials who are Republicans,” the governor continued. “We have major donors and funders who are proud Republicans and I think it’s going to be an appropriate process for the Republican party to do some reflection and some discussion about where we go as a party and where we go as a state and lay out a vision for the future. Clearly, changes are needed. Clearly, improvements are needed.”
As he prepares to leave government, Rauner said he hasn’t talked to Pritzker personally since conceding the election not long after the polls closed on Nov. 6. But he said his staff has worked closely with Pritzker’s transition team to help the incoming Democrat get started.
“My immediate predecessor did the exact opposite,” Rauner said of former Democratic Gov. Pat Quinn. “I learned what not to do.”
Yeah. Quinn did not leave office on a particularly noble note.
Despite his stated misgivings about the incoming administration, Rauner said his office is “making every effort to make sure the transition is smooth and very effective. It’s the right thing for the people of Illinois.”
Pritzker’s office agreed that the Rauner administration has been cooperating in making a smooth transition of power.
I spoke with a high-level member of Pritzker’s transition team yesterday and was told the same thing.
Quinn did not attend Rauner’s inauguration in January 2015, but Rauner said he’ll be at Pritzker’s, saying “it’s the appropriate thing to do.” Up until the moments before Rauner was sworn in, Quinn also signed four bills, amendatorily vetoed two, granted 43 clemency petitions and denied 119 and released 102 new appointees to state boards and commissions.
Asked Thursday whether Rauner intended to do any last-minute business like executive orders, the governor laughed and said that “At the moment I don’t foresee that.”
In one of his first acts as governor, Rauner rescinded seven of Quinn’s executive orders signed in the Democrat’s last week in office, alleging the orders “were not wholly motivated by serving in the public’s interest.”
In addressing reporters Thursday, Rauner also spoke out against some pieces of legislation that lawmakers passed over Rauner’s vetoes. In particular, he singled out a bill that would raise the caps on legal payouts for anyone who sues the state.
“Now, the incentive for the trial bar, the plaintiffs bar, to go look for problems, challenge, try to find problems, sue — the risk-reward for them to spend some time proactively suing now that the balance is on the side of, ‘Yeah, go ahead and sue.’”
The push to raise the limit from $100,000 to $2 million came after 11 families sued the state for neglect in the deaths of their loved ones at the Quincy veterans’ home who died during a 2015 Legionnaires’ outbreak. A twelfth lawsuit — filed earlier this year — stemmed from a 2017 Legionnaires’ death at the same home.
“This is going to be a massive invitation for lawsuits,” Rauner said. “Our taxpayers could be on the hook for many millions, hundreds of millions of dollars.” […]
Rauner said the bill was “falsely sold as a Quincy veterans bill” even though it will apply to all lawsuits filed in the Court of Claims.
“I view this as a major sop, a major giveaway to the trial lawyers who are major funders of many legislators’ campaigns,” he said.
He also said the General Assembly should’ve just passed stand-alone legislation that specifically applied to the Quincy veterans home.
*** UPDATE *** Tim McLean at the Illinois Trial Lawyers Association…
Let’s re-visit the outgoing governor’s record on the handling of the Legionnaire’s crises that occurred at the Quincy Veteran’s Home, which caused 14 unnecessary deaths and sickened 70 other residents and staff:
Delay—his administration delayed notification of the outbreak, which denied families access to potential life-saving information about the well-being of their loved ones, and possibly contributed to the illness and death toll.
Deny—The governor repeatedly claimed that “our administration did everything right,” despite documented evidence from industry experts and his own staff that the claim is untrue.
Deflect—The governor tried to blame this tragedy on the weather, on a local river, and on a former director that is now a U.S. Senator from the opposing party.
Veto—instead of finally seizing the opportunity to begin the healing process for the victims’ families, Rauner AV’d this bill, which was a product of bi-partisan agreement with all stakeholders.
The Governor has clearly learned nothing over the four years of his massively failed tenure, and his sour grapes press conference yesterday only further solidifies his dissonance from voters, and the bi-partisan supermajorities that overrode his reckless veto. It was clear from the outset to all parties that this legislation was prompted by the tragedies in Quincy, but would be applicable to claims brought by other victims as well; that issue was fully vetted in negotiations, and was made abundantly clear in floor debate. If the governor felt so strongly that it should have applied only to the Quincy tragedy, why did his AV not reflect that position?
The truth is that Illinois was an outlier (tied for the lowest among all states) for damage caps at the Court of Claims, and the families of our heroes in Quincy would have been denied access to justice as a result of that antiquated law–as would future victims of the state’s negligence. This law rectifies that issue, and gives Illinoisans a reasonable opportunity to pursue justice when they are harmed. Remember, seventeen (over 1/3) of states have no cap at all.
This month, the voters of Illinois roundly rejected Governor Rauner’s slash-and-burn, political hackery approach to governing with a 15-point defeat. Instead of holding rambling press conferences and vilifying his perceived political enemies (which proved to be a failed approach for 4 years), the governor should embark on an apology tour with victims’ families.
Friday, Nov 30, 2018 - Posted by Advertising Department
[The following is a paid advertisement.]
To help celebrate National Caring Month, Home Warranty of America and Direct Energy employees from the Buffalo Grove office have given back to the community by holding a coat drive and packaging nutritious meals.
Over the past two months, employees gathered more than 30 coats to be donated to Palatine Assisting Through Hope, or PATH, to help those in need keep warm this winter. PATH’s mission is to provide food, clothing, and other basic needs for families in crisis in the greater Palatine area.
On November 7, employees took a break from the office and spent more than 60 hours collectively packing bags of food at Feed My Starving Children, a nonprofit focused on providing nutritious meals.
