Adventures in fundraising
Tuesday, Nov 19, 2019 - Posted by Rich Miller
* Planned Parenthood, um, stretches the limits of possibility with this fundraising email…
Illinois could become the next anti-abortion state. Don’t let abortion opponents win! Make an urgent gift now to fight back!
The Reproductive Health Act (RHA) is under attack. It has only been in effect a few months, but dangerous legislation has already been introduced to repeal this critical protection for reproductive freedom.
You fought to pass the RHA, declaring reproductive health care as a fundamental human right in Illinois. But the opposition wants to steal your victory.
This new, alarming legislation will:
* Ban abortions at six weeks - before most women even know they are pregnant
* Jail doctors for providing abortion care
* Strip away people’s access to reproductive health care
You cannot let this happen. [Redacted], make an emergency gift today to support the pro-Planned Parenthood champions in Springfield, and help us fight back against this attack on our reproductive health and rights.
Your support is critical to fight this new legislation, and protect care in the Midwest.
In this together,
Jennifer Welch
Chair
Planned Parenthood Illinois Action PAC
The bill is not going anywhere and they know it and this pitch is designed to generate fear when none is warranted.
* Democratic congressional candidate Anthony Clark uses image of murdered student to raise campaign money…
Donor,
This is Michael Reese.
He was one of my students, and on Oct. 2, he was shot on a street in my district.
Five days later, he succumbed to his wounds and died.
I’ve shared with you before that in my 10 years of teaching here in the Seventh District, I’ve lost 11 students to gun violence. One of the reasons I’m running for Congress is to treat the systems that lead to violence and grief. But, here we are today—I’ve now lost 12 students to gun violence.
As I write this email, our school and our community are in mourning over Micheal’s death. We’ve mourned the loss of far too many young people.
We know these problems don’t have a single fix. They are intertwined with the systematic vehicles of oppression and marginalization. Our students, our communities, and all of us are owed opportunity. We demand a fair judicial system. We deserve fair pay. Everyone deserves the right to grow and flourish.
The system won’t change until people like US are elected to Congress. Our current leaders are too distant from the harsh realities we face on a daily basis to make effective change.
I got into this race because this is OUR community, and it deserves a voice in Congress that is connected to the roots in our neighborhoods. Someone who’s connected now to the communities of Bellwood, Oak Park, and across the district.
That’s why our campaign is 100% grassroots and doesn’t take any money from corporate PACs or special interests. I intend to serve the people, not big money, and I intend to finally put an end to the violence that has claimed 12 of my students and countless others in IL-07.
We can’t afford to lose one more life, so I’m asking you to support our campaign to root out the causes of gun violence and make this epidemic a thing of the past.
This is literally a matter of life and death.
In solidarity,
Anthony
Support Anthony’s camaign
…Adding… An eagle-eyed reader pointed out that Clark also spelled the kid’s name wrong in its second usage. “Micheal.” For crying out loud, do better.
* Rodney Davis uses the House impeachment process to appeal to his fundraising base…
Friend,
Since Nancy Pelosi gave Adam Schiff the green light to do anything he wants, he’s been turning Congress upside down and on its head. Schiff is calling up witnesses who aren’t credible, none of them have ever even met President Trump nor have they ever been in contact with him!
Schiff has no evidence to prove his politically motivated impeachment investigation, yet he continues to waste more and more of taxpayer money. More so, Democrats are polling what charges to bring against President Trump.
This entire investigation is nothing more than a political tool Democrats are trying to use to bolster their 2020 election chances.
If you agree that this entire investigation inquiry has been a complete waste of time and money, add your name to the growing list of Illinoisans who want this partisan impeachment to end!
Rodney Davis is committed to fighting for the priorities of Downstate Illinois and that means advocating on your behalf, Friend.
If you want your voice heard, click here to say NO to impeachment>>>
Help put an end to this politically motivated investigation by signing our petition today! Let Nancy Pelosi and Adam Schiff know what you think of their partisan impeachment process.
Thank you,
Team Rodney
He could also use a grammar checker.
13 Comments  
|
* The latest ProPublica/Tribune story about schools locking kids in “quiet rooms” is a very difficult read…
* From the piece…
For this investigation, ProPublica Illinois and the Tribune obtained and analyzed thousands of detailed records that state law requires schools to create whenever they use seclusion. The resulting database documents more than 20,000 incidents from the 2017-18 school year and through early December 2018.
Of those, about 12,000 included enough detail to determine what prompted the timeout. In more than a third of these incidents, school workers documented no safety reason for the seclusion. […]
But disability advocates, special-education experts and administrators in school systems that have banned seclusion argue that the practice has no therapeutic or educational value, that it can traumatize children — and that there are better alternatives. […]
Nineteen states prohibit secluding children in locked rooms; four of them ban any type of seclusion. But Illinois continues to rely on the practice. The last time the U.S. Department of Education calculated state-level seclusion totals, in 2013-14, Illinois ranked No. 1.
Although state law requires schools to file a detailed report each time they use seclusion, no one is required to read these accounts.
Several school district officials said they had not reviewed seclusion reports from their schools until reporters requested them. The Illinois State Board of Education does not collect any data on schools’ use of isolated timeout and has not updated guidelines since issuing them 20 years ago.
Go read it all, but prepare to be disgusted, saddened and enraged.
*** UPDATE *** Rep. Jonathan Carroll (D-Northbrook) says he is “filing a bill to end this practice,” adding “It’s in LRB as we speak.”
37 Comments
|
* The Tribune takes a team-coverage look at a significant aspect of suburban opposition to approving local cannabis sales…
In several suburbs, crowds of protesters — many of them Chinese Americans brought out by social media — wore identical Opt Out shirts, carried signs, signed petitions and helped convince local officials to prohibit marijuana sales. […]
Activists said they shared their concerns with a broader audience through WeChat, a China-based multilingual messaging app, similar to Facebook, which claims more than 1 billion users.
Critics complained that Opt Out consisted of the same group of protesters going from town to town. While some people attended meetings in more than one suburb, and got their identical signs and T-shirts from the same group, Asian American Advocacy, organizers maintained that protesters mainly consisted of residents of each municipality.
Many in the movement are Chinese immigrants who share conservative, family-first values, according to Cynthia Hopkins of Hinsdale, a volunteer with Asian American Advocacy. Influenced by a history that includes the drug trade related to the Opium Wars of the 1800s, she said, many parents are motivated to minimize their children’s exposure to addictive drugs. Protesters also raised concerns about rising incidents of emergency room visits and traffic accidents involving marijuana users, and the fact that the drug remains illegal under federal law.
“It’s a perfect issue to show there’s so much potential with the Asian Americans,” Hopkins said. “Once they’re organized, they’re a force, they make sure their voice is heard.”
After hearing about large Asian-American crowds at several local council meetings a couple of months ago, I reached out to some folks in the polling business who told me that some of the most intense opposition to legalization comes from older Asian-Americans.
…Adding… Hmm…
21 Comments
|
You can thank a lot of people for this
Tuesday, Nov 19, 2019 - Posted by Rich Miller
* Um…
As an aggressive federal corruption probe pursues Illinois Democrats, frustrated voters of both parties feel a sense of relief. Finally, someone is digging out the bottom of the well — and the top.
Grateful for the intervention of the feds? One person deserves kudos, and progressive Democrats especially might want a defibrillator on standby before saying it aloud: Thanks, Mr. President.
President Donald Trump, through his then-Attorney General Jeff Sessions, nominated federal prosecutor John Lausch in summer 2017 to lead the Chicago-based U.S. attorney’s office. Lausch was one of a handful of candidates considered and vetted by Illinois’ GOP congressional delegation. U.S. Sens. Dick Durbin and Tammy Duckworth signed off, too, but only after eliminating from consideration Maggie Hickey, who had served under former Gov. Bruce Rauner. Her GOP connection made Democrats nervous. Maybe they thought Lausch would go easy. How wrong they would have been.
Lausch has been on the short list for that job since at least 2012. Durbin and Duckworth both backed Lausch’s nomination after their screening committee recommended him. And they thought Lausch would go easy on corruption? Says who?
Also, the US Attorney’s office under Obama ensnared both a Chicago alderman (Daniel Solis) and an Illinois state Senator (reported to be Terry Link) who were eventually used to nab others. Link and Obama used to regularly play poker together back in the day.
The fact is, federal prosecutors and investigators have been involved in a years-long process to get to this point.
Has the Lausch appointment played a major role in this? Yep. No doubt. Does the president deserve kudos for nominating him after he was recommended by the delegation? Yep.
But that nomination didn’t come out of nowhere and neither did this widespread probe.
…Adding… Also, do you remember this case? Lots of players involved and it may have been the catalyst for some of what’s going on today…
The son of a wealthy pharmacist, Sethi was a licensed pharmacy technician in 2003 when his family were partners in a $10 million deal to buy a 122-room hotel on 2.8 acres at 8201 W. Higgins Rd., next to a Hooters along the Kennedy Expressway.
A few years later, Sethi decided to knock down the hotel and replace it with three hotels and a convention center.
He hired one of Chicago’s most politically connected zoning attorneys, James Banks, who got approval for the project from the City Council Zoning Committee which was then headed by his uncle, Ald. William Banks, a powerful member of the Cook County Democratic Party. The alderman — who later ended up working for Sethi — abstained from the January 2009 vote.
Four months later, Sethi hired Madigan’s law firm, Madigan & Getzendanner, to seek a reduction in the property taxes by appealing the value put on the hotel and the land by the Cook County assessor’s office and the Cook County Board of Review, agencies controlled by Madigan’s fellow Democrats. Over the next four years, Madigan’s firm saved Sethi and his family more than $645,000 in taxes as the family ended up tearing down the hotel to make way for the project. […]
Sethi also hired attorney Michael McClain, a Madigan loyalist who’s one of the top lobbyists in the state capital. A former state legislator, McClain once served as Madigan’s assistant majority leader. […]
Sethi settled the SEC case in March 2014, agreeing to pay a $1 million fine, sell the land and refund the money he collected from foreign investors, including the administrative fees that went to the Chinese brokers who lined up investors.
Five months later, Sethi was indicted for fraud. In January, he pleaded guilty.
24 Comments
|
The horse race begins in earnest
Tuesday, Nov 19, 2019 - Posted by Rich Miller
* If elected, and that’s not yet certain, Sen. Lightford would be the first woman and the third person of color to be Senate President…
Democratic state Sen. Kimberly Lightford of Maywood has emerged as the leading candidate to become the next Illinois Senate president after John Cullerton’s stunning resignation announcement last week.
Lightford, currently the Senate majority leader, would become the first African American woman to preside over a chamber of the Illinois legislature. […]
Two potential candidates to replace Cullerton aligned themselves with Lightford — state Sens. Andy Manar, a former Cullerton chief of staff from Downstate Bunker Hill, as well as Heather Steans from Chicago, who has family wealth to help Democratic candidates.
* More from Amanda Vinicky…
“I look at her leadership in the state senate and I see success after success in what is one of the most diverse Democratic caucus in the U.S. Not an easy task. Senate President Cullerton did it – mastered it. That’s what I’m interested in and I believe she has the skill set and the knowledge and the ability to continue that for the Senate Democrats,” Manar said.
Sen. Tony Munoz is also reportedly backing Lightford.
…Adding… I just talked to Sen. Munoz and he confirmed he’s supporting Lightford.
* But not everyone is on board…
“I am talking with my colleagues and I am assessing their concerns and interests in the caucus. I expect that I will run for Senate president but I want to keep talking to my colleagues before making any formal announcements,” [Sen. Don Harmon] said. “People are eager for change but people also want to be sure that the next Senate president has all of the attributes to be effective both inside the building in terms of having good public policy, but also in the political spectrum. Our public policy victories are only as durable as our majority.” […]
[Sen. Mike Hastings] says the next president has to be a leader who shapes policy that lawmakers from all of the state’s diverse regions can get behind while also serving as a political operator who can get Democrats elected. That requires having a political operation and the ability, “unfortunately,” to raise money.
“I have all those things,” Hastings said. “I can count … probably five senators that have legitimate political organizations – a base of volunteers to send anywhere in the state, and are able to handle their own district, with no problem taking tough political votes. If you’re going to be the leader you got to lead the whole chamber.”
Sen. Hastings was sued in September by his former district office chief of staff who claimed harassment and retaliation.
As we’ve already discussed Sens. Elgie Sims and Melinda Bush are also interested.
40 Comments
|
* Here’s one I missed the other day. From Jon Seidel at the Sun-Times…
Federal prosecutors want a judge to send a longtime Dorothy Brown worker to prison for more than two years after they said she lied to a grand jury, “threw a wrench in the wheels of justice and ground them to a halt.”
They also said the lies Beena Patel told the grand jury investigating job-selling allegations in the office of Brown, the clerk of the Circuit Court of Cook County, “directly impacted the government’s ability to charge those most culpable in the illegal activity.” […]
The feds’ investigation centered in part around a $15,000 payment by Sivasubramani Rajaram allegedly to land a job at the clerk’s office. The feds say Rajaram made a $5,000 cash payment at a meeting at the Corner Bakery across from the Daley Center. But when prosecutors asked Patel about that meeting in front of the grand jury, they said Patel gave misleading answers.
“She attempted to minimize her own involvement by stating that Rajaram slid the envelope containing $5,000 in cash directly to the Clerk,” McShain wrote in Tuesday’s memo.
Prosecutors said it was Patel who accepted the cash.
I just don’t know enough about this to say one way or another, but this piece does bring up questions about whether the feds might have possibly chased the wrong person because of Patel’s testimony.
* Tony Arnold and Dave McKinney at WBEZ…
The federal criminal probe into Commonwealth Edison is one of the most aggressive anti-corruption efforts to permeate Illinois politics in a generation.
Exhibit No. 1 is the middle-of-the-day FBI and IRS raid of Democratic state Sen. Martin Sandoval’s office in the Illinois Capitol in late September. Investigators sought information about four unidentified officials at Exelon, ComEd’s parent company, and documents pertaining to utility rate hikes.
The federal scrutiny even has extended all the way up to the state’s most powerful politician, Democratic House Speaker Michael Madigan, though the veteran lawmaker has not been accused of criminal wrongdoing.
No one has been charged with a crime. But the investigation is broad, complex — and moving fast. Here’s what you need to know to catch up.
I know I’ve been saying this a lot today, but go read the rest.
* ILGOP…
Today, the Illinois Republican Party is launching DemCorruption.com, a website to expose the Illinois Democrat Crime Ring as a wide-ranging network of lawmakers, lobbyists, and party bosses whose sole purpose is the personal financial benefit of those within the ring. Whether the public benefits from their government service is of no concern to them.
The individuals atop this network of criminals and cronies are in the most powerful positions within state government and our state’s largest city:
INDICTED on federal charges
Tom Cullerton, State Senator
Ed Burke, Chicago Alderman
Luis Arroyo, State Representative (former)
Under federal investigation
Mike Madigan, Speaker of the House & Chairman of the Democratic Party of Illinois
JB Pritzker, Governor
Martin Sandoval, State Senator
Carrie Austin, Chicago alderman
Daniel Solis, Chicago alderman
Jeff Tobolski, Cook County Board
Only in Illinois would so many elected officials be indicted or under federal investigation. Some are tied up in the same scheme; others are being investigated for their own personal insider dealings. The thing that binds them together is that they serve in high-ranking leadership roles in the Democratic Party of Illinois.
The ILGOP has created DemCorruption.com to expose the misdealings of each politician and to help keep all the ongoing scandals straight. We even created helpful nicknames to make it easier to remember all the corruption, grift, and greed. Some of the infamous members of the Illinois Democrat Crime Ring include The Velvet Hammer, Junior Blagojevich, and the Red-light Baron. Information about the rest of the crime ring can be found at the website.
“DemCorruption.com will serve as a central clearinghouse for information on Democrat corruption in Illinois,” explained ILGOP Chairman Tim Schneider. “Voters can stay up to date, learn how to fight back, and get involved in exposing the Illinois Democrat power structure for what it is: a criminal enterprise.”
…Adding… Missed this one…
* Diminished and preoccupied, indicted Ald. Edward Burke no longer a dominating presence at City Council meetings
*** UPDATE *** From Eileen F. Boyce at the Democratic Party of Illinois…
As we watch the parade of Trump administration officials who are convicted of a variety of crimes, Illinois Democrats are continuing our work to protect workers’ rights, access to affordable health care, and a woman’s right to choose from attacks by dangerous politicians in Illinois and Washington. Democrats are working to strengthen ethics laws while Illinois Republicans are simply trying to distract from their own poor record and a failed President
51 Comments
|
|
Comments Off
|
|
Support CapitolFax.com
Visit our advertisers...
...............
...............
...............
...............
...............
...............
|
   
|
Hosted by MCS
SUBSCRIBE to Capitol Fax
Advertise Here
Mobile Version
Contact Rich Miller
|
