* The Illinois Republican Party has a new web ad blasting Democratic Treasurer Alexi Giannoulias, who is running for US Senate…
* The controversy in question was in a Crains blog post this week…
Illinois families lost $85 million in hard-earned savings on his watch. Should he get the blame?
That surely is not the question that Illinois Treasurer Alexi Giannoulias wants before voters as he prepares to declare his candidacy for the U.S. Senate sometime after the weather gets warm. But the question is real and, depending on how it plays out, it could get a ton more publicity.
Mr. Giannoulias and his office are directly involved in a little-noticed aspect of the nation’s economic collapse, one involving good judgment, investment savvy and trust. While there’s plenty of blame to go around — most of it likely on others, not Mr. Giannoulias — there’s also plenty of gray area, plenty of reason to ask lots of questions.
At issue is what happened late last year to the state’s $2-billion Bright Start college savings program, administered by the treasurer’s office.
