Capitol Fax.com - Your Illinois News Radar

Tuesday, Sep 7, 2021 - Posted by Rich Miller

* This one will be for the old-timers and Illinois history buffs…

Former US Sen. Adlai Stevenson (D-IL) died yesterday after a long illness. Once came within a few thousand votes of being elected governor.

— MikeFlanneryFOX32 (@PoliticalEditor) September 7, 2021

Adlai Ewing Stevenson III, age 90, diagnosed several years ago with Lewy Body Disease. Small, private funeral planned for this weekend. Larger celebration of his life will await post-pandemic era.

— MikeFlanneryFOX32 (@PoliticalEditor) September 7, 2021

* The Question: Your memories of Adlai Stevenson III?

35 Comments

*** UPDATED x3 - Bailey questions - ILGOP explains - Rabine claims victory *** Sullivan floats gubernatorial candidacy

Tuesday, Sep 7, 2021 - Posted by Rich Miller

* Politico…

Watch for Republican tech entrepreneur Jesse Sullivan to throw his hat in the ring to run for governor this week. He’s notified friends that he’ll be announcing Thursday. Sullivan lives in Petersburg but is also founder of the Alter Global venture capital firm in San Francisco. He’s been reaching out to potential donors, telling them he has $5 million in commitments, according to a fundraising booklet obtained by Playbook. Sullivan also has pulled together a campaign team, including campaign manager Noah Sheinbaum, a management consultant who worked for Bain & Co., and Eric Wilson, a digital strategist who also worked on Sen. Marco Rubio’s campaign. Sullivan would face state Sen. Darren Bailey, former state Sen. Paul Schimpf, and business owner Gary Rabine, in a June 2022 primary.

* He has some good stories to tell. From 2010…

Petersburg native Jesse Sullivan is living in a tent during one of Washington, D.C.’s worst winters on record to help raise money to provide emergency shelter for the people of Haiti.

2012…

When Jesse Sullivan arrived in Tor Ghai, a community in the Nahr-e-Saraj district of Helmand province in southern Afghanistan, it was riddled with violence.

Gun battles were routine, and improvised explosive devices were a constant threat.

Sullivan, 27, was there as part of a U.S. Army human terrain team. Made up of civilian and military personnel, the teams are embedded with brigades to help military commanders gain a deeper understanding of the social and cultural environments in which they operate.

* Sullivan has never contributed to a state or local campaign, but he did volunteer for a Democratic congressional candidate in 2008 against Aaron Schock.

* From Sullivan’s plan to win…

• Over-perform and drive up turnout among rural and religious base voters

• Bring back the Suburbs! Message to college educated female and suburban voters with an appealing message

• Activate the youth vote with a future-focused campaign centered on economic growth and opportunity

Not sure how he does the first two at the same time. He also thinks he’ll be the early frontrunner, which he claims will avoid candidates being forced to take extreme positions, even though there’s likely no way of convincing people like Darren Bailey to get out.

Also, his campaign manager has never had any high-level campaign experience, but I’m sure this is the second coming of the “Best Team in America” ™.

* Speaking of Bruce Rauner…

Ken Griffin, the GOP megadonor and billionaire founder of the hedge fund Citadel, donated $5 million to DeSantis’ campaign in April — the largest donation he has received this year. DeSantis also raked in $500,000 in May from WeatherTech founder David MacNeil, $250,000 in March from Home Depot co-founder Bernie Marcus and $250,000 in February from former Illinois Gov. Bruce Rauner, who moved to Florida after he lost re-election.

*** UPDATE 1 *** Press release…

The results are in and Gary Rabine, candidate for Governor, was the clear winner of the Illinois State Fair Straw Poll.

The Illinois Republican Party tent conducted a straw poll during the State Fair. Fair goers had the option of putting corn in the jar of their favorite candidate and Gary Rabine was the undisputed straw poll winner.

“The results, of course, are not scientific but a win is a win,” Rabine said. “We are building momentum every day and we will continue our march to a victory not only in the primary but also against JB Pritzker. We can’t keep doing the same thing over and over again and expecting a different result. I am the outsider our state needs right now.”

*** UPDATE 2 *** Text from an ILGOP official…

We did not conduct a straw poll. The “Corn Poll” was not monitored, no one counted the corn at the end of each day and it started over new the next day as a fun thing for folks to do when inside the tent.

*** UPDATE 3 *** FRAUD AT POLLS!…

Not sure who counted the “corn poll” but the photos we had sent to us from supporters on different days sure had us way ahead…we also had the most supporters at Republican Day. Anyone else trying to claim victory is FAKE NEWS at its finest. #twill pic.twitter.com/GjVoUtI6qp

— Darren Bailey for Governor (@DarrenBaileyIL) September 7, 2021

49 Comments

*** UPDATED x1 *** Giannoulias wants to allow extra vanity pics for driver’s licenses

Tuesday, Sep 7, 2021 - Posted by Rich Miller

*Alexi Giannoulias fundraising pitch…

Dear Friends,

Let’s face it. It’s hard to find anyone who loves their driver’s license photo.

But what if you could do a retake?

Earlier today, our campaign announced a plan that would allow Illinoisans to choose the photo placed on their driver’s license.

Under our proposal, the Secretary of State’s office would allow Illinoisans to take up to three additional photos when they renew their license or state identification card at one of the Secretary of State’s facilities.

The Secretary of State’s office would charge $10 for each additional photo taken. The additional cost would only apply to those who want to have their photo retaken.

Revenue generated from the extra photos would go towards a new driver safety fund to support education, safety and training programs.

Will you help us keep our policy driven campaign going by contributing $25, $50 or $100?

There are many important policy issues involving the Secretary of State’s office that we have discussed and initiatives we’ve proposed. This isn’t one of them.

But we want to give Illinoisans a choice and have the opportunity for a more flattering photo while generating new revenue to make our roads safer.

Sincerely,

Alexi

The change wouldn’t take effect until the current long lines finally dwindle.

Your thoughts on this?

*** UPDATE *** Potential Republican challenger issues formal response…

????‍♂️ https://t.co/g8ianTYO0j

— Tom Demmer (@tomdemmer) September 7, 2021

85 Comments

Speaker Welch says talks are “moving forward” on energy, calls Thursday session

Tuesday, Sep 7, 2021 - Posted by Rich Miller

* Looks like he’s putting pressure on everyone to come to a final deal…

The Illinois House plans to return on Thursday, September 9th for the purpose of considering legislative measures related to a comprehensive energy proposal.

“I am pleased to see negotiations moving forward on a comprehensive energy proposal that prioritizes a greener future for Illinois, as well as meaningful ethics reform and maintaining our current workforce,” said House Speaker Emanuel “Chris” Welch. “I cannot thank Leaders Evans, Gabel, and Hoffman enough for their dedication and ensuring all stakeholders are heard throughout this process. I am confident that we will have a plan that Illinois can be proud of and will be viewed as a model for many other states.”

Information on the current energy proposals can be found at ilga.gov.

…Adding… CNI…

The latest House amendment is carried by Rep. Ann Williams, D-Chicago, a longtime renewable energy advocate who was the sponsor of the Clean Energy Jobs Act that provides much of the framework for the negotiated bill. It has the backing of leading environmental groups making up the Clean Jobs Coalition.

“I think the decarbonization piece, for many of us, many members of the General Assembly, is an important part of any clean energy package,” Williams said in a phone call Tuesday. “For me, it’s not good enough to do yet another utility bill without addressing the elephant in the room, which is our looming and ever-increasing climate crisis.”

11 Comments

Get your shots, please

Tuesday, Sep 7, 2021 - Posted by Rich Miller

* Too much ill-informed click-bait is a big reason for this…

“The messaging over the last month in the U.S. has basically served to terrify the vaccinated and make unvaccinated eligible adults doubt the effectiveness of the vaccines.” Neither of those views is warranted.” https://t.co/PNKiP29XV6

— Charlie Sykes (@SykesCharlie) September 7, 2021

* From that story…

In an unvaccinated person, a viral load is akin to an enemy army facing little resistance. In a vaccinated person, the human immune system launches a powerful response and tends to prevail quickly — often before the host body gets sick or infects others. That the viral loads were initially similar in size can end up being irrelevant. […]

But at least one part of the American anxiety does seem to have become disconnected from the facts in recent weeks: the effectiveness of the vaccines. In a new ABC News/Washington Post poll, nearly half of adults judged their “risk of getting sick from the coronavirus” as either moderate or high — even though 75 percent of adults have received at least one shot.

In reality, the risks of getting any version of the virus remain small for the vaccinated, and the risks of getting badly sick remain minuscule.

In Seattle on an average recent day, about one out of every one million vaccinated residents have been admitted to a hospital with Covid symptoms. That risk is so close to zero that the human mind can’t easily process it. My best attempt is to say that the Covid risks for most vaccinated people are of the same order of magnitude as risks that people unthinkingly accept every day, like riding in a vehicle.

…Adding… From comments…

As a vaccinated person you’re now far more likely to die of any number of things that have nothing to do with Covid. And if we reported on those risks the way we do breakthrough infections you’d probably never leave your house. If a 1 in 5,000 chance of getting Covid is too high of a risk for you to take on, you might want to revisit any number of activities you’re engaged in on a daily basis.

32 Comments

AFSCME flooded with vax mandate feedback

Tuesday, Sep 7, 2021 - Posted by Rich Miller

* Form response letter from AFSCME Council 31…

Thank you for your feedback regarding vaccination mandates. We’re sorry to reply with this form letter, but we have had far too many letters from members (both for and against mandates) to respond to each individually.

We wanted to be sure you know that AFSCME supports the same kind of mandate that President Biden has put in place for federal government employees and that Governor Pritzker has put in place for all teachers and other school and university personnel, as well as for hospital and nursing home employees. This form of mandate requires that employees either be vaccinated or provide proof of weekly (or even twice weekly) testing.

We believe that state employees—or city or county employees—should be treated no differently than teachers and staff in our schools or nurses and doctors in our hospitals, and our bargaining is pressing for the same treatment for all.

Council 31’s position was developed in consultation with local union leaders from across the state. It is not anti-mandate, as some in the media have implied, but against a rigid, punitive mandate that would result in the discharge of every employee who does not get vaccinated by early October.

Our position is the same that most other unions are taking, and we are coordinating with some of those unions in the bargaining now underway with various employers.

AFSCME has been and will continue to be a leading voice in promoting COVID vaccinations. We have distributed informational materials and handouts, developed videos, held webinars and posted information on the Council 31 website and Facebook page, all with the goal of encouraging members to get vaccinated—and many thousands have done so!

In addition, our union has relentlessly advocated for appropriate protective measures in the worksites where tens of thousands of union members have been working every day since the outbreak of this pandemic—measures that employers have often been all too slow to put in place.

AFSCME’s overriding priority is to protect the health of our members and the public they serve. We will continue to act with that imperative front and center.

We appreciate you taking your time to write and express your opinion.

As I told subscribers last week, AFSCME is basically asking for the status quo ante. But that hasn’t stopped outbreaks in the state’s congregate facilities and it has rewarded employees who refuse to be vaxed with unlimited paid time off.

Get your shots.

…Adding… From comments…

The difference is that a student or a parent of a student can choose to avoid unvaccinated teachers through remote learning or homeschooling. Others that rely on state services, such as those in prisons or those in veteran homes, do not have that choice. By ignoring those that are dependent on state services, AFSCME’s argument of status quo is invalid.