It’s just a bill
Wednesday, Jul 10, 2019 - Posted by Rich Miller
* WAND TV…
Legislators are calling for a repeal of the recently approved Reproductive Health Act and for new definitions of the viability of unborn children.
State Representatives Allen Skillicorn (R-Crystal Lake), Bard Halbrook (R-Shelbyville), Amy Grant (R-Wheaton), and Chris Miller (R-Oakland) are calling for the repeal.
House Bill 3850 was filed. It would create the Illinois Abortion Law of 2019 containing provisions of the Illinois Abortion Law of 1975.
The bill includes provisions defining, “viability to include when in the medical judgement of the attending physician based on the particular facts of the case before the attending physician, the unborn child has a fetal heartbeat, and defining fetal heartbeat as the cardiac activity or the steady and repetitive rhythmic contraction of the fetal heart within the gestational sac.”
* The bill is going absolutely nowhere, but Personal PAC is already fundraising off of it…
For the last 46 years, the anti-choice movement has been working tirelessly to overturn Roe one step at a time. Today, a group of State Representatives took the first step toward repealing the RHA and dismantling access to safe and legal abortion in Illinois.
The right-wingers will never give up their crusade to make birth control and abortion illegal. The only way to defend against their relentless attacks in Illinois is by electing pro-choice officials to state and local office. Help us make sure we are prepared to fight back by joining our 2019 Annual Awards Luncheon’s Benefit Committee today. The fate of the RHA rests with us in 2019!
Always in choice (no exceptions, ever!)
Terry Cosgrove
President & CEO
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* IDES website…
Temporary System Problems
7/9/19 - The agency is temporarily experiencing system problems. Our system is currently unable to process claims, certifications or access claim information. We are working diligently to resolve the issue. You may contact our call center at 800-244-5631 or visit an office near you for general information.
* Sun-Times…
Illinois is temporarily unable to pay unemployment benefits and accept any new unemployment claims or mandatory certifications through its website or mobile site.
“The department expects that the issue will be resolved by the end of the week and that most recipients of unemployment benefits will receive their payments by Friday,” the Illinois Department of Employment Security told the Chicago Sun-Times Wednesday afternoon.
The state estimates payments will be delayed for about 29,000 people.
Technology troubleshooters have been working through the night and will continue to work around the clock to fix a database error causing the problems with the website and the agency’s ability to access claim information, according to an IDES statement.
“At this time, the cause of the malfunction is not fully known,” it said.
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Question of the day
Wednesday, Jul 10, 2019 - Posted by Rich Miller
* Wirepoints…
Illinois lawmakers could soon be receiving the nation’s 4th-highest legislative salaries as a result of a lawsuit filed by two former Illinois lawmakers.
Former Sens. Michael Noland of Elgin and James Clayborne of East St. Louis, both Democrats, have sued the state to unwind years of salary freezes they say were unconstitutional. A Cook County court ruled recently that the ex-lawmakers can proceed with their case against the state. State politicians’ cost-of-living increases, commonly known as COLAs, were frozen by the legislature each year from 2009 through 2016.
The fallout from the budget impasse also resulted in no increases to lawmaker wages through 2019. As a result, the annual base salary for members of the General Assembly has been $67,836 since 2009.
If the ex-lawmakers’ lawsuit succeeds, the wage freezes between 2009 and 2016 could be reversed and entitle Illinois’ 177 state lawmakers to years of back pay and raises. And if the “freezes” of the 2017-2019 years are eventually rolled in, the total back pay could cost taxpayers up to $13 million.
The recalculated raises would grow lawmakers’ 2020 salary to more than $81,000, an increase of more than 20 percent compared to their current $67,836 compensation.
* Zorn agrees with the judge on the constitutional issue, but points out some rank hypocrisy…
High-mindedness oozed out of a May 2012 statement from the Illinois Senate Democrats.
The news release quoted then-Senate Majority Leader James Clayborne, D-Belleville: “Rejecting this pay raise is the right thing to do at a time when so many people are struggling to make ends meet,” he said. “As legislators, it’s wrong to ask our fellow Illinoisans to make responsible decisions if we are unwilling to do the same.”
The quote from Sen. Michael Noland, D-Elgin, was similarly sanctimonious: “The least we can do is cut our own pay again,” he said. “I know most working families in Illinois are not seeing raises this year, so we shouldn’t either.”
Both had added their votes to the upper chamber’s unanimous, bipartisan approval of House Bill 3188 that called for members of the General Assembly to take furlough days and forgo the regular cost-of-living raise built into state law as a show of support and solidarity with the citizenry during tough economic times.
Both have now gone back to private life, and together they are suing to get back the money that they so ostentatiously declined.
* Abdon Pallasch at the comptroller’s office…
If what’s really driving this is an overriding concern for following the state constitution, then if there’s going to be an order to pay everyone all these COLAs, the constitutional way to do this is for both houses of the General Assembly to have to convene a special session and go down there and ask taxpayers to foot the bill for per diems while everyone votes an appropriation and funding source for the back COLAs they voted earlier to decline. Just a thought.
* The Question: Should there be a vote or should the constitutionality issue be enough for a judge to order back pay? Make sure to explain your answer in comments, please.
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Strawberry Hampton released from prison
Wednesday, Jul 10, 2019 - Posted by Rich Miller
* NBC 5…
A transgender woman who was battling the Illinois Department of Corrections over alleged abuse while she was incarcerated has been released from prison, officials said Tuesday.
Deon “Strawberry” Hampton of Chicago, who was serving a 10-year sentence for burglary, was released Monday from Logan Correctional Center outside Lincoln, Illinois.
In a statement, the Illinois Prisoner Review Board said the Corrections Department recommended granting restoration of good conduct credit to Strawberry Hampton, 28, “and the Prisoner Review Board approved that recommendation, which made Ms. Hampton eligible for release.”
Hampton was incarcerated in April 2015 and the Corrections Department projected she would be released in July 2021.
Hampton was incarcerated at correctional facilities for men before being transferred last year to Logan, a facility for women. She alleged she was repeatedly the victim of sexual assault, taunting and beatings in male prisons.
* AP…
Hampton said she was due to be released from prison in February, but she said officers retaliated against her for reporting the alleged abuse by revoking her good conduct credit. She said that effectively lengthened her sentence. Hampton has two ongoing lawsuits against the Corrections Department.
Spokeswoman Lindsey Hess said the department couldn’t comment on Hampton’s allegations because of pending litigation.
“I think it was a combination of having those two lawsuits, our clemency petition, our consistent advocacy,” that led to IDOC restoring her good time, attorney Vanessa Del Valle of the MacArthur Justice Center told WBEZ. “I think it just all came together.”
* WBEZ has been all over this story and broke the news…
Strawberry Hampton was housed at four different Illinois Department of Corrections men’s facilities. She said she faced repeated physical, verbal and sexual abuse from guards and fellow prisoners. Hampton accused staff at Pinckneyville Correctional Center of forcing her to have sex with her cellmate for their entertainment, according to court filings. […]
Hampton was due to be released from an Illinois prison last February, but she said officers retaliated against her for reporting the alleged abuse by revoking what’s known as good time, and it effectively lengthened her sentence. Hampton was sentenced to 10 years in prison for burglary. She was released Monday because IDOC recommended restoring Hampton’s good time, and the Illinois Prisoner Review Board approved its request. […]
Hampton waged a legal battle to be transferred to a women’s prison, and in December 2018, IDOC transferred her to Logan Correctional Center. She was due to stay in prison until November 2019. […]
Justice Department data estimates there were over 3,200 transgender inmates in state and federal prisons as of 2012. And nearly 40% reported being victims of sexual misconduct by other inmates and guards. That compares to around 4% of the general prison reporting such abuse.
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Cassidy was right
Wednesday, Jul 10, 2019 - Posted by Rich Miller
* AP…
New research suggests legalizing recreational marijuana for U.S. adults in some states may have slightly reduced teens’ odds of using pot.
One reason may be that it’s harder and costlier for teens to buy marijuana from licensed dispensaries than from dealers, said lead author Mark Anderson, a health economist at Montana State University.
The researchers analyzed national youth health and behavior surveys from 1993 through 2017 that included questions about marijuana use. Responses from 1.4 million high school students were included.
Thirty-three states have passed medical marijuana laws and 11 have legalized recreational use — generally for ages 21 and up, many during the study years. The researchers looked at overall changes nationwide, but not at individual states.
There was no change linked with medical marijuana legislation but odds of teen use declined almost 10% after recreational marijuana laws were enacted.
The research article is here.
* So, Politifact may want to revisit this rating from May…
[Rep. Kelly Cassidy] said, “In states that have legalized, you see steady decreases in youth use if you do it right.”
She did not provide any proof to back up her statement.
Of the 10 states that allow adults to use cannabis recreationally, only four have permitted retail sales long enough to provide enough data points for a preliminary comparison. While state survey data show no spike in current marijuana use among teens, they also fall short of suggesting the downward trajectory Cassidy described.
We rate her claim Mostly False.
* In other developments…
Illinois is just months away from legalizing recreational marijuana.
Now the Adams County Board must decide if the county should allow dispensaries in the county.
Even though using recreational marijuana will soon become legal anywhere in the state, Illinois counties have the option of whether to allow dispensaries in to provide the drug.
“Let’s be honest about what we have in front of us, it is legal in Illinois,” Board Finance Chair Bret Austin said. “Let’s decide if it’s something we want in our county.”
It’s already in your county, commissioner. And criminals run the business. You can either try to put those criminals out of business with competition, or just continue along your current path.
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* Center Square Club for Men…
It’s unclear how much taxpayers will have to pay, if anything, to breach a contract with a country act that has been removed from the entertainment lineup for the DuQuion State Fair […]
[Rep. Darren Bailey, R-Xenia] said there are some questions the Department of Agriculture is going to have to answer.
“There was probably a contract signed, so what did the state of Illinois give up, what is the cost of canceling Confederate Railroad?” Bailey asked.
I asked the governor’s office yesterday and was told the cost of canceling the Confederate Railroad show was $7,500. That’s the full amount the group was promised to play the fair. In comparison, Thomas Rhett’s base contract to play the Illinois State Fair last year was $280,000. But Rhett has had hits during this century.
* The area’s Harley Davidson dealership claims to have booked the band…
Black Diamond is proud to announce the Confederate Railroad band will be on stage September 5th at the Black Diamond Event Center (Black Diamond RV building) in Marion Illinois!
But this is from the Southern’s article yesterday…
After speaking with the band’s agent, McKinney believes the band is receiving at least partial compensation from the state, and remains legally bound to some elements of its contract.
That includes an obstacle to a makeup show: a “radius clause” that prohibits the band from playing any other concerts in the Southern Illinois area within 60 days of the Du Quoin show, McKinney said, which was set for Aug. 27.
That means the soonest the band could play in the region is late October.
The governor’s office will have no objection to the show, I’m told.
* In other developments, a whole lot of people seem to be “unclear on the concept.” Let’s start with this post on the Boycott Du Quoin State Fair Facebook page…
Ok Southern Illinois, this group is for those like me that are tired of the constant censorship and liberal political correctness that is constantly being crammed down our throats. Join me in boycotting the Duquoin State Fair this year due to their canceling of the band Confederate Railroad strictly because of their name and the Confederate flag. Governor Pritzker has stated let this be a “Teachable Moment for Southern Illinois”.
Help me show his regime that we in Southern Illinois don’t need to be taught anything from Cook County or their liberal agendas.
From comments…
Boycott a fair that has been on the chopping block for two decades over a band that hasn’t had a hit single in a quarter century.
I love southern Illinois, but sometimes….
The Illinois Department of Agriculture decided last month to drop the Du Quoin Fair’s $2 daily admission price and make it free after officials heard “many complaints” from locals, according to Fox St. Louis.
So, they’re calling for a boycott of a free event which provides a huge annual economic boost to their area, while the costs are underwritten by northern Illinois taxpayers.
* From my email inbox…
You people are just an embarrassment to this great country of ours! Why must you bring politics into everything done here? I bet if the Confederate Band had a name like LGBQT Band you would have let them play. Again what an embarrassment you are and shame on you!
Um, OK.
* The AP was particularly clueless…
The flare-up in DuQuoin, about 320 miles south of Chicago, rekindles a centuries-old rift in Illinois, whose southern tip reaches far into the confines of the old Confederacy
Kentucky, just to our south, was a “border state” and never seceded. A “rump” legislature in Missouri voted to secede, but it didn’t appear to have the authority or even a quorum to do so.
Yes, southern Illinois is on the same latitude as northern Virginia, but that AP claim is still pretty odd. Also, Virginia narrowly voted for the decidedly non-southern Hillary Clinton in 2016.
* Meanwhile, the boycott page has started to implode…
Well, it sucks, but it’s time for me to leave this group. I joined when it first started to support CR and show my disapproval of the censorship/loss of freedom of speech. I wish you all well and I hope it gets back to what it was originally about. It has become a page of posts wanting to ban another act, which is just more censorship. It has become about black and white, Republican and Democrat, and people wanting to do things that just reinforce what happened and make southern Illinoisans look like a bunch of redneck racists. I hope some of you will start thinking a little more before you post and maybe do some self reflecting. Good luck to the original movement. I hope to see CR playing somewhere close soon. God bless you all.
*** UPDATE *** Tina Sfondeles…
A day after the Pritzker administration defended its decision to bar Confederate Railroad from performing at the downstate DuQoin State Fair, the Democratic governor called the Confederate flag “a symbol of murder, of kidnapping, of rape.”
“The Confederate flag is a symbol of not just slavery, but of treason agains the United States,” Pritzker said at an unrelated press conference in Chicago. […]
“That’s what happened under the banner of the Confederate flag many years ago in this country,” Pritzker said at an unrelated press conference in the Loop. “It is today the symbol of racists, of white nationalists, of the alt-right and so I do not think that the state of Illinois should be sponsoring something that is amplifying that symbol.”
But Pritzker, too, was asked to respond to a lawmaker’s claim that Snoop Dogg, scheduled to perform at the Illinois State Fair on August 16 in Springfield, also has some controversial imagery. The rapper’s latest album, “Make America Crip Again,” features Snoop Dogg standing over a corpse with a toe-tag that reads “Trump.” That comparison was brought up by state Rep. Terri Bryant, R-Murphsyboro.
“There’s a big difference between what I just described and the hundreds of thousands of people [who] died; millions, in fact tens of millions of people, were enslaved. We’re talking about a history, a terrible history in the United States,” Pritzker said. “Death and destruction that took place under that flag — and on the other side, political satire.”
* Related…
* Mystery solved: Montgomery Gentry to do Fair Grandstand show
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State trying to reduce huge Medicaid backlog
Wednesday, Jul 10, 2019 - Posted by Rich Miller
* Crain’s…
Illinois is hiring hundreds of frontline workers to resolve major delays of its Medicaid application and renewal processes.
The Illinois Department of Healthcare and Family Services, which oversee Medicaid, and the Illinois Department of Human Services are working together to fill the vacancies, the departments said in a statement today. The first positions [were] expected to be filled [last] week.
The Medicaid redetermination process, which reviews eligibility for the state’s nearly 3 million Medicaid beneficiaries, can lead to lapses in coverage. Such gaps are hard on patients, especially those managing chronic conditions, and health systems that don’t get reimbursed for medical services when claims are denied by health plans.
Backlogs, which have increased in recent years, are considered delays of 45 days or more for initial applications and 60 days or more for renewals, the statement says.
* More from WUIS…
The state of Illinois is expected to hire more than 300 training and technical staff members in an attempt to bring down a backlog of unprocessed Medicaid applications.
The General Assembly also approved a bill this spring aimed at addressing problems with the Medicaid program. Those include a high denial rate cited by providers and the application processing backlog – which has reached over 100,000.
State Sen. Heather Steans, a Chicago Democrat, the bill’s sponsor, said, “The federal government actually has outstanding problems with the state, and the state’s at risk of losing some dollars from the federal government because of the long, long backlog,” she said.
Applications are going unprocessed now for long periods, which is now in violation of federal rules. Many who do have the insurance for lower income individuals lose it because of problems with the renewal process. That’s according to Dan Rabbitt, a health polucy expert with the the Heartland Alliance.
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Question of the day
Tuesday, Jul 9, 2019 - Posted by Rich Miller
* Proft paper…
The dramatic spike in Illinois’ gas tax, which took effect just prior to the July 4 holiday weekend, has forced one Perry County activist to seek cheaper alternatives.
“I put the minimum amount of gas in my tank to get me to Missouri, Kentucky or Indiana to do my shopping, then fill up there,” Michael Phillips of Tamaroa told SW Illinois News.
The closest Missouri station I could find using Google Maps was the Conoco in Perryville, which is a little over an hour away from Tamaroa. So, that’s two hours round trip plus fill-up time.
The nearest station in Kentucky is the Marathon in Kevil, which is 1 hour and 45 minutes one way. A three and a half hour round trip without fill-up time.
The closest Indiana station appears to be the PC1 in Petersburg, which is 2 hours, 11 minutes from Tamaroa. That would be a 4.5 hour round-trip with a quick fill-up.
* The Question: How far would you drive to save money on gas?
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* WBEZ…
Starting with the 2019-2020 academic year, incoming students at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign whose families earn less than $61,000 per year will not have to pay tuition.
The new program — called Illinois Commitment — applies to in-state students below the age of 24 starting as freshmen or transfer students. To qualify, students must have attended a high school in the state, and their family’s total assets must be $50,000 or less.
* Part of the interview with Robert Jones, chancellor of the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign…
Jenn White: And what is the cost of tuition right now at U of I?
Jones: Well, it depends on the degree program. But, on average, tuition runs about $15,000 to $16,000 a year depending upon the program.
White: How did you come to that $61,000 threshold for family income?
Jones: Well, it’s based on the median income for families across the state of Illinois.
Discuss.
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Rezin files paperwork to run for US House
Tuesday, Jul 9, 2019 - Posted by Rich Miller
* Press release…
Republican State Senator Sue Rezin today filed the required statement of organization and declaration of candidacy with the Federal Elections Commission (FEC) to run for Congress in the 14th District of Illinois which Lauren Underwood won as a Democrat last fall.
Rezin’s campaign for Congress will begin organizing and raising funds immediately. A formal announcement of candidacy event will the held in the months to come.
Rezin has won every election she entered beginning with an upset victory in defeating longtime Illinois State Representative Careen Gordon who was an incumbent Democrat heavily backed by Illinois House Speaker Michael Madigan’s money and operation in a Tier One race. Previous to her race against Rezin, Gordon repeatedly won a series of tough election challenges. This is a seat Republicans have held ever since. Since then Rezin won reelection to the Illinois State Senate three times including two Tier One races against Christine Benson who is the sister of Chicago Democrat Congressman Mike Quigley.
Other GOP candidates include state Sen. Jim Oberweis and Rep. Allen Skillicorn. Rezin will be in the middle of a four-year term next year so she doesn’t have to give up her seat.
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* Sheesh…
Down goes another university president in Illinois, the fourth such casualty since 2015. […]
The latest casualty is Western Illinois University President Jack Thomas, who submitted a shotgun resignation June 30.
WIU has a lot of problems, and Thomas apparently had to make tough decisions that alienated various university constituencies. […]
Get this — he will be on leave from WIU for two years at his full annual pay of $270,528 plus benefits.
When he returns, he’ll teach two classes a year (one per semester) at a salary of far above faculty salaries — “either 75 percent of the fiscal year 2021 salary paid to his successor university president but not less than $300,000,” according to the contract he negotiated with trustees.
Further, he’ll be allowed to teach two classes a year at that generous salary for as long as he wishes as well as pursue outside employment at any salary he can negotiate.
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* Rep. Terri Bryant (R-Murphysboro) on Facebook…
I have been trying to sort truth from fiction in the issue of entertainment decisions at our two State Fairs. I know people are polarized on the issue, but it is always important to get facts. While in Chicago today to attend a hearing I was able to secure a meeting with two high-ranking members of Gov. Pritzker’s Exec. Staff.
I also asked Rep. Tim Butler to join us as he represents the State fairgrounds in Springfield.
The meeting was multi-fold. I wanted to identify for my constituents who made the call to cancel the contract with Confederate Railroad and the official reason for why it was done. I also wanted to express my absolute disagreement with the cancelation. In addition, I wanted an explanation for the booking of Snoop Dogg in Springfield considering his album cover has a picture of what appears to be a dead President Trump on a slab covered with a flag while Snoop Dogg stands over him in a defiant manner.
I wanted the Administration to know I expected Confederate Railroad’s contract to be reinstated. I argued that if Confederate Railroad is canceled, then Snoop Dogg should be canceled too.
I was informed in no uncertain terms, that the decision to cancel CR was made by the Pritzker administration, including the two people sitting with me at the table. They affirmed that the decision was not made by DuQuoin Fair officials or by Director Sullivan.
They refused my insistence that Confederate Railroad be permitted to perform. Their reasoning was that they have a hard fast rule not to permit any use of the Confederate flag in any way. When I asked what their policy was pertaining to a sitting President being depicted in the way President Trump is depicted on Snoop Dogg’s album cover, they said, they had no such policy.
In fact, I was told by one of the Governor’s staffers that I should use this case as a “teachable moment” for the people of Southern Illinois. I am serious…that is what the staffer said.
In short, the Pritzker administration canceled Confederate Railroad because the Confederate flag offends many people.
They refused to cancel Snoop Dogg even though it offends many people. I believe in very limited government censorship. I believe even less in double standards.
In light of all of this, it is understandable that many want to boycott the DuQuoin Fair. I fear that any such boycott will be a harsh blow to Southern Illinois’ economy and unfairly punish small businesses that count on the fair to keep people employed. These small businesses did nothing to cause any kind of boycott.
I told the Pritzker people to believe the boycott is real and that they will ultimately own the resulting economic damage that results from this hypocritical decision.
* Gov. Pritzker’s Deputy Chief of Staff for Communications Emily Bittner…
Dear Rich:
I wanted to respond directly to your request for information about Rep. Bryant’s Facebook post.
This administration’s guiding principle is that the State of Illinois will not use state resources to promote symbols of racism. Symbols of hate cannot and will not represent the values of the Land of Lincoln.
Unfortunately, Rep. Bryant posted incorrect information publicly about this meeting. While we had hoped to provide Rep. Bryant a better understanding of our position with a face-to-face conversation that she requested, we now need to correct her Facebook post.
Let’s start with the facts.
There were actually three senior level administration officials in the meeting. Two of them are African American. Rep. Bryant lectured them about why the Confederate flag should be acceptable based on “heritage.” The officials made a good faith effort to share with Rep. Bryant the following facts of American history and meaning of the flag:
The Confederate flag is a symbol of the hate, oppression and enslavement of African Americans. It was flown over states that committed treason and started a war - so that they could keep enslaving people. Hundreds of thousands were slaughtered in this fight over whether the nation should allow slavery or end it. Abraham Lincoln’s assassin was a disciple of the Confederacy. In short, the Confederate flag symbolizes slavery and the rebellion against the United States, and it is exactly what our state’s greatest son, President Lincoln, was fighting against. This symbol of hate, oppression and bloodshed is categorically different from political satire.
We hope that Rep. Bryant is not trying to publicly exploit themes of division and racism. Rep. Bryant told the administration officials that she wouldn’t display the Confederate flag in her own home because of its symbolism; if she would articulate her views publicly, that could be an opportunity to teach others about the flag’s meaning. She expressed hope that there wouldn’t be a boycott of the fair, but then used her social media to call the boycott “understandable.”
Rep. Bryant ended the conversation by passing along rumors about threats to the governor’s safety. When she said this, she added: “I love my people, but they’re crazy.” Given her concerns, we hoped her post would have reflected her stated desire to tone down the acrimony and the intimations of violence. We were sorely disappointed.
Best,
Emily
Oof.
* Somehow, I’m getting a bit of online blame for this cancellation because I posted a question about it. Correlation is not always causation. I mean, remember this statement by Pritzker during the blowup over an offensive Illinois Policy Institute cartoon?…
There’s only one side about racism. There’s right and wrong, and we stand on the side of right.
But that hasn’t stopped some folks from emailing me over the past few days. Here’s one…
I’ll be having the last laugh when the people get tired of pieces of crap like you and you to hide just to stay alive. People are only going to take so much before they revolt, and when they do, people like you are going to go first. Keep stirring the pot and see what happens. Sooner or later its going to bite you back.
* The Southern Illinoisan has a piece today about the founder of a Facebook group which is calling for a boycott of the fair…
As Basler sees it, the flag has been unfairly attacked — a victim of political correctness imposed by liberal regions like northern Illinois.
“History is history, you’re not going to erase it. If you want to get rid of racism why have Black History Month and bring it up year after year,” he said. “One good thing came of it: bringing slaves over your family and heritage grew up here and now you’re free. Their own people sold them to colonists. If you want to blame anyone, blame yourselves.”
* The band has also released a statement…
As many of you know, we were scheduled to perform at the Illinois State Fair in Du Quoin, Illinois on August 27, along with our friends Restless Heart and Shenandoah. We have since been removed from that show by the Illinois Department of Agriculture because of the name of our band. This was very disappointing as we have played this fair before and enjoyed it very much. The outpouring of support from Confederate Railroad fans, fans of other acts, and the public in general, has been both overwhelming and very much appreciated. I would also like to thank the actors, athletes and fellow country music artists who have spoken out in support. It has been brought to my attention that several people have asked both Restless Heart and Shenandoah to cancel their shows in protest of our cancellation. I have spoken to both acts and encouraged them to perform as scheduled. Live concerts are how we pay our bills and feed our families. I would never want to see another act lose a payday because of this. Please go out to hear these two great bands. As I have said many times onstage, I am by no means a saint but, I am a man of faith and I have faith that God will see us through this as well as whatever comes next! Thank you for your support.
*** UPDATE *** Rep. Bryant called to insist that she never said “I love my people, but they’re crazy.” She said she was only expressing concern about angry and crazy people in southern Illinois if the governor marches in the fair parade. But I spoke with two of the three Pritzker people who were in the room and they both stood firmly behind the entire story related above by Ms. Bittner.
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* Illinois Policy Institute…
Gov. J.B. Pritzker and the Illinois General Assembly went on a spending spree at the end of the recent legislative session, including a $40.6 billion operating budget out of balance by as much as $1.3 billion, a $45 billion capital plan to be partially funded through $20.6 billion of new bond debt and 21 new taxes that will take $4.7 billion from the pockets of Illinois taxpayers.
Pritzker has defended tax and fee hikes as necessary to repair “bridges and roads and highways” that are “falling apart.”
But in both the operating budget and the capital plan, Illinoisans are now obligated for spending that takes a lot of imagination to define as “necessary,” including at least $1.4 billion in waste and pork projects. Included in that tab are dog parks, snowmobile paths, pickleball courts, school playgrounds, swimming pools, arts grants to be handed out by the wife of House Speaker Mike Madigan and much more.
We’ve already talked about their $1.3 billion claim. Still not buying it.
And I think people could agree to disagree on whether some of this spending is waste or pork.
* For instance, here’s their waste in the operating budget…
$40.7 million for the development of bicycle, snowmobile, pedestrian and other recreational paths and trails
$17.3 million for outdoor recreation programs
$13.5 million for the Illinois Arts Council, an organization chaired by Madigan’s wife
Either way, 1.6 percent is pretty darned low.
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* WMBD TV…
A former Democratic candidate for Illinois governor announced his campaign for U.S. Senate in 2020 against Sen. Dick Durbin (D-Ill.)
Robert Marshall, a Vietnam veteran and licensed physician, is running as a Republican in the upcoming election.
“I am running for the United States Senate because we need someone with a public service background that will bring Health Care expertise that will bring solutions that will be pro-tax payer and be centered on the patient but we also need someone who will support President Trump’s fight to secure our border, fight for fiscal responsibility, and make the American taxpayer the top priority,” Marshall said.
Marshall said he ran as a Democrat under an anti-House Speaker Michael Joseph Madigan campaign, but noted he was always pro-life and is a member of the NRA.
*Sigh*
Marshall’s lone claim to fame during the Democratic primary was his proposal to divide Illinois into three states.
* Durbin-related roundup…
* Davis Avoids Taking Position On Citizenship Question, While Durbin Criticizes Trump
* Durbin Says Adding Citizenship Question Could Cost Illinois
* Durbin: U.S. Women’s Soccer Team Should Get Pay Parity With Men
* During East St. Louis clinic visit U.S. Sen. Durbin rails against lawsuit to dismantle ACA
* Senator Dick Durbin: “We need to find common ground, and that’s part of life and certainly part of politics”
* Senators Durbin, Duckworth Call for MLB to Mandate Extended Netting in Stadiums
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Because… Madigan!
Tuesday, Jul 9, 2019 - Posted by Rich Miller
* From the Illinois Policy Institute’s Austin Berg…
That’s why it’s so encouraging that a fair maps amendment is seeing huge bipartisan support in Springfield this year.
Senate Joint Resolution Constitutional Amendment 4 would create an independent 16-member commission to draw legislative maps in Illinois. It has attracted 37 Democratic and Republican senators as sponsors. That’s more than the supermajority vote needed to pass the amendment out of the Senate.
But it has not moved out of the Senate. And Pritzker has not endorsed it.
Why?
Ask House Speaker Mike Madigan, who also leads the Democratic Party of Illinois.
Madigan didn’t become the longest-serving legislative leader in U.S. history by letting someone else decide what’s “fair.”
* Aside from Senate President John Cullerton’s opposition, there’s a better explanation for why this didn’t move in the Senate, which doesn’t usually take direct orders from Speaker Madigan. A commenter explained this just yesterday…
Preserving African-American seats in the face of steep declines in Chicago’s black population is gonna be a huge challenge no matter who draws the map. African-American legislators are very worried about this and they trust Madigan and Cullerton to protect them way more than they trust the “Fair Maps” goo-goos. (Want proof? Check out Sen Morrison’s Con Amendment resolution. She’s lined-up a bipartisan supermajority of the chamber as cosponsors, but not a single black member and only one Latina has signed on.)
Senate President Cullerton almost never advances bills which don’t have a majority of his caucus’ support. In this case, there are 18 Democratic co-sponsors out of 40 Senate Democrats. And the Black Caucus is uniformly opposed to the proposal - which is also a sure-fire way to brick anything.
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Credit where credit is due
Tuesday, Jul 9, 2019 - Posted by Rich Miller
* Rep. Dan Brady (R-Bloomington) in the Pontiac Daily Leader…
“When you talk about the infrastructure side of things and the gas tax, it was a difficult vote to raise,” Brady said. “But on the other hand, we haven’t done this since 1990.
“When the voters approved the concept of a lock box, that will get the money to where it’s supposed to go — to our roads and bridges, etc.”
Anyone who’s driven Illinois roads understands the need to have them in the best shape possible. The four-season variance in weather creates issues on the roadways. They tend to break up in the winter and spring and get repaired in the summer months. It’s kind of a vicious cycle.
“The last time it had been raised was 1990. If we had been raising a little bit, then we would be about 19 cents for a total of 38, where we’re at now,” Brady said.
That lock box amendment was, in retrospect, a genius move. I didn’t care for it at first because it tied the state’s hands during emergency situations. But without that constitutional change, passing the capital bill this year would’ve been infinitely more difficult. The state had skimmed billions from the Road Fund and that had to be stopped before legislators could ask taxpayers to pony up more money.
So, hats off to Local 150 of the Operating Engineers and the Illinois Road and Transportation Builders Association and everyone else who got that question on the ballot and worked hard to convince voters to approve it. Well done.
Also, linking the MFT to inflation in the new law was something that should’ve been done long ago. It makes the program far more sustainable into the future.
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Todd Ricketts is in some hot tax water
Tuesday, Jul 9, 2019 - Posted by Rich Miller
* Not notifying the assessor’s office about building a new house might be excused because somebody forgot to file some paperwork or whatever. But filing a property tax appeal on taxes owed for a long-demolished house is another story…
For nearly a decade, Chicago Cubs co-owner Todd Ricketts has lived in a 5,000-square-foot North Shore house nestled on a meticulously landscaped lot complete with a Japanese-style garden.
It’s a showcase Wilmette home a short walk from Lake Michigan. But it’s not the home that Ricketts, who also is finance chairman of the Republican National Committee, has been paying taxes on.
Instead, records show, Ricketts pays property taxes based on the value of the much older and smaller house that he tore down to make way for the new one, providing him with a huge discount likely totaling tens of thousands of dollars over the years.
State law required Ricketts to notify the assessor that he had built a new home in 2010, but a spokesman for the assessor’s office said there’s no record that Ricketts ever did.
In 2013, Ricketts’ attorney had a chance to tell Cook County tax officials about the new home during a property tax appeal but instead sought a reduction based on the age and size of the old house, according to documents the Tribune obtained through an open-records request. The paperwork included a photo of the century-old home that had been demolished.
An investigation has been launched. Go read the whole thing. It’s pretty hilarious. Ricketts’ spouse wrote a letter to Wilmette school board officials complaining about high property taxes, even though the taxes they were paying were on a house they’d demolished years before.
Go Sox.
* Meanwhile, Madigan & Getzendanner is everywhere…
The City of Sandwich and Sandwich School District #430 stand to lose thousands of dollars of tax money if a property tax appeal by Illinois Speaker of the House Mike Madigan’s law firm is successful.
Madigan’s Chicago law firm represents Hall St. Lofts, LP, and the appeal was discussed at Monday’s regular meeting of the Sandwich City Council.
Madigan’s firm wants the DeKalb Co. Bd. of Review’s assessment reduced $294,788, from $581,425 to $296,637, which would reduce the Hall St. Lofts’ property tax bill by approximately $28,000.
Sandwich is in DeKalb, Kendall, and LaSalle counties.
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