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Tuesday, Nov 19, 2024 - Posted by Rich Miller

* Tribune op-ed by Dave Nayak…

The results of the presidential election were shocking, not just because of Donald Trump’s landslide victory, but also because of the seismic shift in the electorate. Almost every demographic moved to the right; most strikingly, the working class and minority voters abandoned the status quo in masses.

This should have been a neon warning sign for Gov. JB Pritzker. Yet, he continues to use divisive rhetoric instead of tackling the real issues Illinoisans face daily.

It goes on and on. Nayak, who ran for the open 20th state Senate District in the Democratic primary last spring, asked me to post his op-ed here, but I said it seemed bereft of any actual ideas.

The Tribune identified Nayak as a Democrat, but since the primary he has contributed to the Chicago Republican Party and Republican candidate for the Illinois House Gabbie Shanahan.

* The governor’s chief of staff noted how just a few short months ago, Nayak was touting his connections to JB Pritzker, which apparently didn’t actually exist…

* In what may be related, Nayak just recently loaned his campaign committee $30,000.

…Adding… Nayak recently changed his campaign committee’s party affiliation to Republican. Maybe the Trib could run an addendum.

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Unsurprisingly, Pritzker continues to bat away presidential questions

Wednesday, Nov 13, 2024 - Posted by Rich Miller

* Isabel and I were chuckling about reporters asking the governor if he plans to run for president in four years. I mean, it’s not like he’s gonna use some little press conference somewhere to make such a big announcement.

So, we thought about a better way to get at his thinking and maybe see if it knocked him off his stride a bit and made him somehow take the bait. From earlier today…

Isabel: At this moment in time, what qualities would you like to see in the next Democratic presidential nominee?

Pritzker: Well, gosh, let’s start with I’d like them to hold Democratic values. And you know, there are a lot of things about standing up for the middle class, a lot of things about making sure that we’re addressing their freedoms and protecting them that I think that the next Democratic nominee ought to hold. And so I think we’ve got quite a number of really highly qualified people on the Democratic side. I think you saw some of that the people you know during the last year or two who you know, been pushing back on the proposed agenda of the Trump potential Trump administration at that point, some of those leaders, I think, are terrific people who hold those values.

He’s not bad at this game.

* Another reporter took a crack at it…

Q: With Think Big America, with the Polis group that you put together, with the gun issue, Why should anyone think that you are not running for president in 2028?

Pritzker: [Laughs] That’s kind of funny. I mean, it’s, first of all, it’s 2024. I still have two years left to serve in the term that I’m in as governor. As you all have heard me say time and time again, I love this job and there’s an awful lot about it that I believe I can do to protect people from the problems that seem to want to come from Washington, DC, over the next two years. So I’m looking forward to doing that. And you all should - and you’ve been asking me about re election. I think that’s the relevant conversation.

…Adding… Pritzker was also asked about who he’d like to see as the new Democratic National Committee chair…

I know there are probably four or five people that I’ve heard, whose names I’ve heard. I like all the names that I’ve heard. So I’m not going to make a decision about that now, about who I might support. But I can say we need to do a lot of building across the nation, especially in states where, not just the battlefront states, but I’m talking about states where we need to lift up the Democratic party that has been less competitive than it should be. An example of that would be the Indiana Democratic Party, where there’s an opportunity in Indiana, because it appears to be, anyway, the Democrats are doing better, and the opportunity to elect more to their general assembly and potentially to statewide office.

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New rules (Updated)

Wednesday, Nov 13, 2024 - Posted by Rich Miller

* I told subscribers about this earlier today…

Security has been beefed up here at the state Capitol. The Secretary of State’s Office has added more police officers to statehouse grounds, and visitors who aren’t government employees will need to go through a metal-detection screening. The office said it just wants to make sure visitors know that “safety and security are a priority.” The changes were in the works before last week’s election.

I’m not quite seeing the relative threat posed by reporters and lobbyists compared to, say, a random state employee who doesn’t even work in the building.

Your thoughts?

…Adding… ILCA…

Dear Secretary Giannoulias,

We at the Illinois Legislative Correspondents Association appreciate your efforts to keep the Capitol Complex safe. But we were disappointed that the changes to Capitol security instituted today were made without any advance warning to our organization.

It is thus unclear to us, at this time, how the new policy came about, whether it will be permanent, and whether the needs of the press corps were considered.

Several members of our organization, including photographers and videographers, carry heavy equipment and must frequently and quickly enter and exit the building for rallies on the grounds and other job necessities.

We’d appreciate if you’d consider those needs in formulating future policy decisions, as the number of credentialed reporters are far fewer than the lobbyists who carry similar credentials, and many reporters office daily from the Capitol similarly to state employees.

If the rules rolled out today are temporary, we would further appreciate if you’d consult with our organization about to best meet the needs of the press corps while also ensuring everyone’s safety as permanent rules are finalized.

Again, we recognize changes to protocol are likely necessary to better secure the building. But we think there are better ways to do so than the process we’ve experienced thus far in the veto session.

And we stand ready to work with you to better the process in the new session.

Sincerely,

Members of the ILCA board

Dave Dahl, President
Brenden Moore, Secretary
Jeremy Gorner, Treasurer
Jerry Nowicki
Mike Miletich

32 Comments

Bears float yet another stadium location idea (Updated x2)

Tuesday, Nov 12, 2024 - Posted by Rich Miller

* Crain’s…

After publicly labeling the former Michael Reese hospital site as unsuitable for the new venue, the [Chicago Bears] team is said to be reconsidering the 49-acre property south of McCormick Place in hopes of jump-starting discussions with politicians to keep the team in Chicago, according to sources familiar with the talks. […]

While it’s unclear how far discussions have advanced, the softened stance on the property is the latest twist in the team’s stadium pursuit after previously announcing their intention to decamp to Arlington Heights before shifting their focus back to staying on Chicago’s lakefront. […]

The mayor’s office and local Ald. Lamont Robinson, 4th, said they are aware of the discussions. The potential development was also broached at a breakfast meeting between Pritzker and Cook County Board President Toni Preckwinkle last week.

Pritzker’s office said a more palatable financial request has not been discussed but declined further comment. Preckwinkle’s office did not respond to a request for comment.

Nothing in there about what sort of government money the team would seek. As far as I can tell, that’s still off the table in Springfield.

…Adding… Sun-Times…

State Sen. Robert Peters, the South Side Democrat whose district includes both Soldier Field and the Michael Reese site, said he hasn’t gotten details on the latest proposal, but he suggested it could get a warmer reception from Springfield legislators who have flatly rejected publicly financing the Bears’ lakefront aspirations.

“If they’re bringing something to the table with broad economic development benefits and affordable housing, that sure beats what the Bears had been proposing before,” Peters said.

“They were asking for billions of dollars from the state to have their own little playground next to their current publicly funded stadium, with little economic benefit to the surrounding community. Here, there is at least an argument to be made around building a community center and bringing affordable senior housing to an area that has needed development for 20 to 30 years now.” […]

[Civic Federation President Joe Ferguson] noted the Reese site is eligible for tax increment financing subsidies “to accommodate — not only the stadium, but the building of a whole new economic anchor point that is the gateway to the South Side,” Ferguson said.

He added: “It could be done as an economic development project … that includes a stadium that keeps the Bears in Chicago that involves far more creative, less taxpayer-burdensome funding sources…It actually brings back online one of the most valuable pieces of urban property that, right now, is not performing at all from a tax perspective.”

…Adding… Senate Republican Leader John Curran was asked about the new Bears development today…

I think the public has expressed their frustration with the high cost of living. They’re looking for relief. So any entity, including Chicago Public Schools and the CTU, coming to Illinois looking for dollars or surplus dollars, they are not here. We have this $3 billion deficit in front of us, and that’s what we have to focus on.

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