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Thursday, Jan 19, 2017 - Posted by Rich Miller

President Barack Obama made his final grants of clemency on Thursday with less than a day left in office and imprisoned former Illinois Gov. Rod Blagojevich was not on the list.

Blagojevich was handed a 14-year sentence on corruption charges, with one of the most sensational his attempt to “sell” the Illinois Senate seat then-Illinois Sen. Barack Obama was vacating after being elected president in November 2008.

The Justice Department earlier confirmed that Blagojevich, in year four of his imprisonment, filed a request to have his sentence commuted. He was arrested in December 2008, a few weeks after the presidential election.

Blagojevich’s bid for clemency from Obama was always extremely unlikely because of the nature of his offense. […]

Obama cut short the sentences of 330 federal inmates convicted of drug crimes on Thursday, with Obama focused on cutting the prison time of offenders with overly harsh sentences that would not be imposed under guidelines for judges in place today.

Some people insisted for years that Obama had some sort of special relationship with Blagojevich which would lead to a pardon. They were living in a fantasy land.

…Adding… Pool report forwarded by the White House press office…

A travel/photo lid has been called at 4:10 p.m. […]

And with that, Barack Obama’s final full day as president has come to an unofficial close.

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*** UPDATED x1 *** New Thompson Center plan pushed

Thursday, Jan 19, 2017 - Posted by Rich Miller

* I’ve lost track of the number of developers who’ve promised to erect the tallest building in Chicago over the years, including, if memory serves, Donald Trump.

Aside from that, selling the Thompson Center and developing the property makes some sense to me. Downtown is full of construction cranes, so the market is hot and property like this doesn’t come around very often…

The state legislature’s GOP leaders, Sen. Christine Radogno and Rep. Jim Durkin, are once again introducing legislation that would allow the state to sell the 16-story, 1.2 million-square-foot structure and move state workers to leased space in other buildings, Durkin said.

This time around, the state’s Department of Central Management Services is providing specific estimates of how much a sale of the Thompson Center would boost the state’s finances. A sale would generate potential net proceeds of $220 million and would prevent the state from addressing $326 million in deferred maintenance on the building, according to CMS. […]

One rendering shows a 115-story, 1,700-foot-tall tower that would be the city’s tallest, topping the 1,451-foot Willis Tower. The tower would include offices, retail, residential units, a hotel and an observation deck. A second plan would have buildings of 40, 60 and 70 stories with mixed uses. […]

The estimated cost to repair the Thompson Center is more than triple the $100 million in deferred maintenance that Rauner first cited in 2015. Commercial real estate experts also say the state would be hard-pressed to get even half of its estimated $220 million net proceeds in a sale, since a buyer would still face extensive demolition costs just to clear the site and start a new development.

Putting the property into private hands would also generate a bunch of property tax revenue for the city.

*** UPDATE *** From Ald. Brendan Reilly, whose 42nd Ward includes the Thompson Center…

I stand ready to meet with the Administration to discuss zoning limitations & redevelopment parameters for the property before they market it for auction. Potential buyers will want a general sense of what can and cannot be done on that site before they would bid on the property at auction.

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*** UPDATED x2 - Rauner admin responds to SEIU *** Rauner blasts basic child care service as “institutionalized brain damage”

Thursday, Jan 19, 2017 - Posted by Rich Miller

* Tribune…

At a later stop in Springfield, Rauner noted the importance of early childhood education and blasted the current state of child care.

“Too often in Illinois and around America, especially for lower-income communities, child care has no education component,” he said. “And in fact, good child care is regarded as ‘strap a child in a car seat and turn the TV on.’ That is institutionalized brain damage. To me, it should be criminal.”

Um, OK, so maybe now we know why he cut child care program funding?

And an upgrade like what he’s talking about will not be cheap. At all. We’ll need a bigger tax hike if he wants to actually do it.

*** UPDATE 1 *** Response from Faith Arnold, SEIU Healthcare Illinois executive board, vice chair, child care division…

“Bruce Rauner’s insensitive characterization of the state of child care in Illinois shows his gross disregard for providers and the children and working parents we serve. Our choice of profession reflects our commitment to children and families and is NOT a reflection of our education. And it certainly is not a reflection of our character. However, the governor’s insulting choice of words serves as a poor reflection on HIS.

“Rauner knows better than anyone that HIS cuts to service have caused incredible damage to the Child Care Assistance Program, which at one point was among the most successful in the nation. No more. As a result of his arbitrary administrative maneuvering, and his failure to reach a fair contract with the state’s child care providers, he has engaged in a full-scale dismantling of the program which has cost jobs, slowed economic growth and harmed Illinois families.

“But more than that, his regrettable use of language to insult people like me shows someone entirely disconnected from the working families he claims to serve. It’s no wonder we enter a new year without a budget and with little hope for true leadership or compromise from Bruce Rauner, who is resorting to bully language once again.”

*** UPDATE 2 *** From the governor’s office…

Hi, Rich:

The governor and First Lady have spent more time working to improve the lives of young children than almost any couple in America. And as Governor, he has successfully increased early childhood funding by $100 million. His comments were not attacking the hardworking men and women who care for children so parents can go to work, go to school, and allow kids to flourish – but he is concerned about cases where children are placed in front of a TV with few toys and even fewer books.

The governor wants to ensure that every child arrives in kindergarten developmentally prepared. His Children’s Cabinet is working to address this very issue, bringing together state agencies to improve state credentialing and licensing programs. It is disappointing that instead of joining in those efforts, SEIU is choosing to mischaracterize the Governor’s words and intentions.

Best,
ck

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