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Friday, Aug 9, 2013 - Posted by Rich Miller

* John Mayer is playing Sunday night at the Illinois State Fair. I’ll see you there

There’s only one man in this world
Who gets to sleep with her by his side

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Oscar needs a job title

Friday, Aug 9, 2013 - Posted by Rich Miller

* So I thought about zipping over to the State Fair this afternoon to get my media credentials and maybe have a lemon shakeup, but then I saw this

NO PETS ALLOWED

Pets are not allowed in public areas of the fairgrounds during the State Fair. Animals used for assistance to disabled persons, authorized competitive exhibits, shows or demonstrations at the State Fair or other approved purposes will be allowed.

Oscar the Puppy was in a kennel for a couple days this week so I just can’t stand to leave him behind today.

I was thinking maybe I should “hire” him as a special State Fair Capitol Fax intern or something. Any ideas for his official title?

* I haven’t posted a picture of Oscar in a while. He was so tuckered out after his stay at the kennel that he slept most of yesterday. Here he is in his favorite outdoor spot, under a chair at the table where I do laptop blogging.,..

* His friend Katie came over last night with her daddy Grant. Here are Oscar and Katie taking a break from running around…

* And here he is this afternoon. The little guy really needs a haircut…

  50 Comments      


Question of the day

Friday, Aug 9, 2013 - Posted by Rich Miller

* Michael Sneed

Sneed hears Mayor Rahm Emanuel is in a twist over who he wants to be the next governor of Illinois.

Sneed is told:

◆ Rahm is indebted to Dem gubernatorial hopeful Bill Daley, who helped convince his brother, Mayor Richie Daley, to retire, and helped engineer Rahm’s transition into the office.

◆ Rahm is not a big booster of Gov. Pat Quinn winning re-election.

◆ Rahm is this/close to GOP gubernatorial hopeful Bruce Rauner, and their families have been known to spend holiday time together.

◆ Translation: A top source inside the Dem party tells Sneed: “Rahm’s candidate is really Rauner. He’ll never publicly back him. . . he’s a party guy. But, in his heart. . .”

I believe she’s probably right.

* The Question: Do you think Mayor Emanuel will ever endorse either one of those two? Take the poll and then explain your answer in comments, please.


survey tool

  39 Comments      


Bad move

Friday, Aug 9, 2013 - Posted by Rich Miller

* I’ve never met Treasurer Dan Rutherford’s press aide, but this is definitely a case study in how not to handle the Statehouse press corps

Don’t do that again. Seriously. Maybe you can get away with that when you’re dealing with local yokels, but not here. Deal with it.

Luckily for him, Rutherford decided to ignore his aide and agreed to answer the question, basically repeating what he recently told the Windy City Times.

* Meanwhile, Comptroller Judy Baar Topinka was her usually colorful self yesterday, gleefully blasting away at her Democratic opponent Sheila Simon and, um, over-answering some questions. Make sure to watch

Heh.

Both videos courtesy of our good friends at BlueRoomStream.com.

  38 Comments      


Durbin ain’t the only one crossing a line here

Friday, Aug 9, 2013 - Posted by Rich Miller

* Watchdog.org is run by the Franklin Center for Government and Public Integrity. The Franklin Center is not happy these days with Sen. Durbin

U.S. Sen. Richard “Dick” Durbin has some questions for Watchdog’s parent organization, asking who we know, what we know, and when we knew it.

In a letter to the Franklin Center for Government and Public Integrity, Durbin asks the nonprofit news organization whether it has given money to or ever been affiliated with the American Legislative Exchange Council, the model legislation think tank that liberals — and journalism experts like Durbin — love to hate.

“What is it he thinks he’s doing here?” asks Jason Stverak, president of the Franklin Center. “Does he think he has the authority to oversee state legislatures? Is it his job to tell citizens and groups what sort of policies they may advocate? What about tracking down all the members of that group?

“Why not just ask it: are we now or have we ever been members of the American Legislative Exchange Council?” […]

Watchdog intends to ask some questions of its own – specifically whether his letter was inspired by anti-ALEC activists meeting with the senator or his staff, and whether his staff coordinated the release of the letter with ALEC opponents.

* In a somewhat “straight” news story, the same Watchdog.org reporter actually asked about financial ties

A Franklin Center board member does sit on ALEC’s board of directors, a fact noted on Franklin’s website. But to Durbin’s inquiries, Stverak otherwise responds: “It’s none of his business.”

* And then Illinois Watchdog.org ran a story about a big Chicago protest at yesterday’s ALEC opener

The same old protestors showed up, but this time they were protesting a new boogeyman. And many among the Illinois demonstrators weren’t sure what it was.

A large crowd of union members and the professionally outraged (kids and older people bussed to the rally) marched to oppose The American Legislative Exchange Council, a group meeting this week at the Hilton Palmer House hotel.

ALEC brings local officials and business leaders together to discuss smaller government and freer markets. But to hear protestors on the street tell it, ALEC is responsible for not only conservative legislation, but all manner of evils.

It’s a free country, they can say what they want and payback can be brutal. Also, I agree with the Tribune that Durbin has crossed a line here. But, wow, that stuff sure is blatant for a supposedly “independent” news outlet. From Watchdog.org’s “About” page

Our established investigative journalists and capitol news reporters across the country are doing what legacy journalism outlets prove unable to do: share information, dive deep into investigations, and provide the fourth estate that has begun to fade in recent decades. By enhancing communication between reporters and providing a forum for published journalism, Watchdog.org promotes a vibrant, well-informed electorate and a more transparent government. […]

Franklin Center is not responsible for the information that appears on the Watchdog.org sites.

* Anyway, from the AP coverage

As meeting participants handed out awards and dined at a meal sponsored by the Texas Oil and Gas Association, picketers denouncing “corporate greed” paced the sidewalks and

The conservative organization’s 40th annual meeting comes as it is experiencing increased influence due to a growth in Republican-led legislatures and enhanced opposition from liberal-leaning groups that have successfully persuaded some corporations to drop their support of the council. Businesses provide the bulk of the financing for the association, and industry officials serve with lawmakers on closed-door, issue-oriented task forces that develop model legislation for states.

The organization has more than 600 current model bills spanning a full range of issues, from accountability in government to zoning regulations.

“ALEC is about helping public policymakers look at issues from all different sides — to gather information, to gather research,” said Republican Oklahoma Gov. Mary Fallin, a former lawmaker who delivered the group’s keynote address Thursday after being honored with its Thomas Jefferson Freedom Award.

* Common Cause Illinois executive director Rey López-Calderón talked about ALEC in Illinois

ALEC doesn’t publicly disclose its members, but López-Calderón named two Illinois legislators as key members of ALEC. One of them is Republican Sen. Kirk Dillard, who López-Calderón called one of the most active legislators in ALEC in the state. Another is Republican Rep. Renee Kosel, said López-Calderón.

  25 Comments      


Caption contest!

Friday, Aug 9, 2013 - Posted by Rich Miller

* Dave Dahl with the Illinois Radio Network is by far one of my favorite Statehouse characters. I love his pithy questions, which often make politicians uncomfortable in a very funny way. And check out Dave’s State Fair style, displayed yesterday during the parade as reporters questioned Treasurer Dan Rutherford…

Gotta love the beard.

Try to be gentle on my buddy, but the funniest commenter wins a free State Fair beverage with yours truly.

* Yesterday’s winner was 47th Ward

Governor Quinn shares a moment with White Sox great Carlton Fisk shortly before naming the Hall of Fame catcher to the CTA board.

Aides were too frightened to explain the mistaken identity to the Governor. “Carlton is one of the Governor’s heros,” said a Quinn aide who asked to remain anonymous. “We didn’t have the heart to break it to him, so we all kind of went with it. None of us saw the Metra mess coming.”

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*** UPDATED x1 *** Paranoia will destroy ‘ya

Friday, Aug 9, 2013 - Posted by Rich Miller

* The “American Thinker” ran a piece this week entitled “Destroying Football: The Left’s Endgame”

It is in this current climate of pacifism (and that is the purpose of the campaign: to turn football into a more pacific game, thus removing another layer of America’s masculinity) that Illinois Governor Pat Quinn has signed a law mandating insurance for student-athletes. […]

Even more distressing to the left is that sports started as a means of training for soldiers. That is why football is so appealing to America; it is a he-man sport, a vestige of the old America, where an association of free men stand together in battle. Yes, team effort is required, but there is also plenty of room for heroics, and the individual may make a huge difference.

But at football’s core is a physicality bordering on violence, and to the left, that is anathema — an atavistic impulse that must be squeezed out of our children.

So instead of a healthy game of tackle football at recess, liberals substitute Ritalin and maybe a good heated game of tag. […]

In the end, liberals want a world under their control — one where impulses are channeled in the direction they choose, not where nature or free will directs. Sports are an expression of values, and those values must comport with the utopian vision of the left. There can be nothing outside the collective.

This piece is an object lesson in never, ever letting ideology get in the way of the facts.

* The legislation in question was sponsored by state Sen. Napoleon Harris, a former National Football League star. Harris is a moderate to conservative Democrat on social issues and was able to get other NFL players involved in passing the bill

Harris, a former Thornton Township High School football player who went on to play in the National Football League, recalled his own playing days.

“Rocky Clark’s story could have been me,” Harris said. “I waked down this trail. I played on this field. I know what it’s like to sacrifice yourself on a Friday night or a Saturday morning.”

Also praising the law were former Chicago Bears tight end Emery Moorehead and offensive lineman Dan Jiggetts.

“This situation should not exist where you send your child out to participate and he gets tragically injured and you’ve got to fight the battle all by yourself,” Jiggetts said. “This certainly helps a great deal to … make this right within this state.”

Why did Sen. Harris sponsor the bill? This is why

The law was inspired by the late Rasul “Rocky” Clark, who played football for Eisenhower High School in the Chicago suburb Blue Island until he was paralyzed from the neck down when he was tackled in 2000 during a game. His care was provided through a $5 million insurance policy held by the school district. When that policy hit its limit, he relied on Medicaid, his mother and donations.

And then he died.

More

In a September 2000 game against Oak Forest High School, the junior was grabbed by the shoulders and tackled, and his head hit the ground. Doctors said his neck was broken in two places. Clark was hospitalized for several months and the injuries left him a quadriplegic. Despite his injuries, he later graduated from Eisenhower.

Those last two excerpts were in a story that the “American Thinker” writer actually linked to in his post, but the facts were never cited.

* A summary of the new law

Known as “Rocky’s Law,” it requires all high school districts in Illinois to purchase catastrophic injury insurance up to $3 million for each of its student-athletes by Jan. 1, 2014. Families are eligible for the money up to five years after paying the first $50,000 in medical expenses. According to the law, insurance cannot cost more than $5 per student and it is up to the school districts to pay for the insurance.

*** UPDATE *** A commenter below is absolutely right that I should’ve also pointed out the bipartisan support for Sen. Harris’ bill. Republican gubernatorial candidate Bill Brady - who is hardly involved in an international liberal conspiracy - was a co-sponsor, as was GOP state Rep. David Harris.

The bill received a strongly bipartisan 47 votes in the Senate and 71 in the House.

  46 Comments      


No Democratic rally likely at State Fair

Friday, Aug 9, 2013 - Posted by Rich Miller

* I told subscribers about this several days ago

The state fair got its start Thursday night with the Twilight parade through the north end of the capital city. It’s an annual tradition. But indications are that another tradition, a Democratic party rally, will not continue this year. […]

[Gov. Pat Quinn’s] big day at the ten-day state fair is Wednesday - Governor’s Day.

Traditionally, it’s a time for lawmakers and candidates from the Governor’s party to rally - so in this case, the Democrats.

But not this year.

“Going to the fair in the afternoon should be about kids and family and fun.” [Quinn told reporters.]

Quinn denies that the change is because Illinois Democrats are so fractured.

“Fractured” is definitely a word for it. Quinn has a serious primary challenger in Bill Daley, who obviously can’t be allowed on stage. Quinn’s own lt. governor won’t endorse his reelection bid. US Sen. Dick Durbin, who is up for reelection next year and would usually be expected to speak at the annual rally, says he’s not endorsing anyone in the governor’s race, either.

Then there’s the lawsuit filed against Quinn by the state’s two Democratic legislative leaders.

Fractured, indeed.

* I never hide the fact that I love the State Fair. Back when I was a 4-H kid in Iroquois County’s Milks Grove Township, we looked at the State Fair as the “big show.” You do well in your county competition then move up. I made it to the big show once, as an emcee for the “Share the Fun” contest, which was basically skits, often musical, performed by local clubs. I missed out on a ticket to the State Fair another time when - my granddad was convinced - somebody cheated by entering an ineligible steer. It might sound funny now, but, trust me, it wasn’t so funny back then.

* The governor loves the State Fair as well


* From a Quinn press release…

New features at this year’s fair include the Budweiser Clydesdales, who will parade through the fairgrounds every day at 4 p.m. and stay in the Gate 2 area the rest of the day; the Happy Hollow “Concert on the Hill” series, live at 5:30 p.m. daily; the Conservation World “Puddle Duck” races August 17 that challenge kids to make and race their own toy boats; a CrossFit team competition August 10; and the return of the popular Cheer Classic cheerleading competition August 17.

This year’s Grandstand concert lineup includes Billy Currington, REO Speedwagon, Styx, John Mayer, The Band Perry, Toby Keith, Ke$ha, and Journey. The Grandstand will feature two free concerts as well, one by New Odyssey and the Illinois Army National Guard 144th Army Band August 12 and another by local high school show choirs August 15. The fair also offers a wide variety of free entertainment – from magic shows to musical acts – on 14 stages throughout the fairgrounds.

I’m hoping to see The Band Perry, Toby Keith, Billy Currington and John Mayer. All good.

You?

* I’ll also be checking this out

For the third year in a row the [Rolling Meadows Brewery], based on a family farm just outside of Springfield, will have their flagship beers available including: Springfield Wheat, Lincoln’s Lager and their award-winning Abe’s Ale.

You can buy 22 oz bombers of each, to-go, for $8 apiece, get a full pour on tap for $4 or get a sample of one — or all three — for $1 each.

Rolling Meadows is on Central Avenue, across from the Miller Tent and Food-A-Rama, at the Illinois Wine Experience tent.

Lincoln’s Lager is excellent stuff.

* Of course, no State Fair visit would be complete without the butter cow, which is still under construction and will be finished during the fair

* Last night was the Twilight Parade, the annual event which opens the Fair. Treasurer Dan Rutherford was there

* As always, state Sen. Andy Manar had a big crew

* From a photo posted by Sen. Kirk Dillard

Dude, please do something about that sign. “Lard” may not be the message you intend to send, but it’s becoming the received message.

  46 Comments      


Grossman: Fahner’s action “borders on traitorous”

Friday, Aug 9, 2013 - Posted by Rich Miller

* Kate Grossman is a member of the Sun-Times editorial board. Her blog post about Ty Fahner is spot on and looks like it was written as an actual editorial. Obviously, I wish it had made it into the paper

“Regarding my comments at the Union League Club in March, I misspoke,” Fahner wrote to Miller. “First, while I may have said so, I didn’t call the ratings agencies, nor did any of our Civic Committee staff. My response to the questions was very confusing and inarticulate.”

I reached out to Fahner on Thursday but didn’t hear back.

Perhaps Fahner was exaggerating before the Union League Club. Perhaps he did make the calls and now he realizes how that looks in the light of day.

Here’s what really matters: Fahner clearly thought this was a good idea — and on that we strongly disagree.

We get the impulse. We’re as frustrated as anyone with state lawmaker’s inaction on pension reform and are always looking for a way to light a spark.

But deliberately putting your own state at risk — even if it’s a means to a more positive end — borders on traitorous.

If the Civic Committee did reach out to credit agencies, it was behind closed doors, with no public say or input. Even more importantly, the public pays for those downgrades with its tax dollars.

In his Union League comments, Fahner made clear he was trying to be responsible. Fahner said he and his colleagues backed off their push with the rating agencies because they didn’t want “to be the straw that breaks the back….We’d done all we could on that that is responsible…it would be irresponsible for the biggest employers in the state – which is who the civic committee is … - to go and basically inflict that on the people that work for them. So we’re trying to work the political process.”

We’re glad to hear they struggled with this — whatever it is they did or didn’t do.

But the bottom line remains the same: these means do not justify the ends.

Exactly right.

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So, he’s a reformer now?

Friday, Aug 9, 2013 - Posted by Rich Miller

* Buried deep in Rick Pearson’s must-read story about Bill Daley attacking Gov. Pat Quinn over, of all things, political patronage, is this nugget

…the first Mayor Daley hired a firm to inspect parking meters for the city, which quickly decided to buy its insurance from a brokerage newly formed by Bill and John Daley.

* Dan Mihalopoulos has more

Court testimony in one of the federal corruption cases that effectively dismantled Richard M. Daley’s political machine indicated that Bill Daley did not merely know what was being done for his brother’s sake. In the 2009 trial of the top Streets and San man Al Sanchez, the feds put a witness on the stand who said he saw Bill Daley take a hands-on role in helping his brother rebuild their father’s machine.

Under a grant of immunity, former city employee Roberto Medina told jurors he was at a meeting in the early 1990s in which Bill Daley and others directed him to form the North Side branch of the Hispanic Democratic Organization, whose best campaign workers got a leg up in the City Hall hiring process.

At the time, Bill Daley told me he had “no memory” of the witness, but added, “I’m not saying I didn’t meet him. Everybody meets a lot of people in politics.”

He also denied knowing how clout influenced hiring before throwing out another little caveat: “Times were different. You’re talking about 20 years ago. Even if it happened — and I’m not saying it did — things were different. There was nothing illegal about that stuff.”

* Daley, though, insists he’s a changed man. Back to Pearson’s piece

“I’m standing here as my own person. You can make judgments about past administrations or relatives or whatever you want, but I’m telling you what I believe and how I’ll be as a leader,” said Daley, who called on the Illinois Senate to vote down the appointment if Quinn refuses to pull Zuccarelli’s name from consideration.

“This is the 21st century. This is not the 1950s. This is not 50, 40 years ago. This is the time when leaders have to step forward and do things differently,” he added. […]

“Some people may say, ‘Well, this is different for a Daley to do.’ But maybe people learn that I’m not what they think I am or what they think I would be,” Daley said. In another twist, Daley indicated that he might not seek the endorsement of Democratic county slate-makers, a ritual that his father once controlled with an iron fist.

He “might not seek” the county party’s endorsement probably because he’s either trying to convince the party to not slate or to delay a slating vote or because he figures Quinn will win it anyway.

* This is not the first time the tables have been turned on Pat Quinn the outsider reformer. Here’s a March, 1996 Tom Hardy piece from that year’s US Senate Democratic primary race which pitted Quinn against Dick Durbin

During Democrat Pat Quinn’s 20 years in politics and throughout his numerous campaigns for public office, his calling card has been that of an outsider, a populist who speaks for the average citizen and doesn’t kowtow to special interests.

Pat Quinn puts the pop back into populism, he often says of himself.

Yet the sound we’ve heard from Pat the Populist this year is more of a fizzle.

To gauge just how far this unconventional, once-promising politician has fallen, look beyond the startling poll data that shows Quinn trailing U.S. Rep. Richard Durbin by a virtually insurmountable 22 percentage points in their U.S. Senate primary race.

You find that not only has Durbin’s heavy TV advertising erased the enormous advantage that Quinn, a former state treasurer, enjoyed in name recognition, but that it also usurped Quinn’s greatest political asset.

It is Durbin, not Quinn, who is considered to be more of a political outsider and more in touch with average people, according to the results of a new Tribune poll. This must have Durbin’s image mavens and the Democratic regulars who despise Quinn for his sanctimony doubled over with laughter.

* Meanwhile, Mark Brown talked to Frank Zuccarelli yesterday

Zuccarelli said the CTA appointment grew out of him telling Quinn “I was looking for another position because I was leaving the [Cook County] Employee Appeals Board.”

Asked why he wanted a second government job, Zuccarelli said: “Because I’ve always been interested in working simultaneously. Since I was fifteen years old, I’ve had more than one position.”

“And I think my position at the township adds some, not only credibility, but my ability to understand the needs of the transportation requirements of the people who live out here in the south suburbs,” he added.

Zucccarelli said he was unaware of the law prohibiting most state and local elected officials and employees from serving on the transit board when he sought a position through the governor’s office. That law does not specifically address township officials.

He said he had mentioned his interest in transportation to the governor’s office, but it was the governor’s staff that suggested the spot on the CTA Board. The part-time position pays $25,000 annually. The Thornton Township website reports Zuccarelli’s total compensation as supervisor at $186,418. He also is the unpaid chairman of South Suburban College.

Asked if he would consider foregoing the CTA salary, Zuccarelli said: “At this point, I’m taking the money. I’ve been in public service for 35 years, and I’ve got about four or five more years left and I’m looking to retire. And I don’t have anything in savings. So at this point I’m not interested in really thinking about giving back the salary.”

Discuss.

  29 Comments      


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Friday, Aug 9, 2013 - Posted by Rich Miller

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This is gonna be a heck of a primary

Thursday, Aug 8, 2013 - Posted by Rich Miller

* Gov. Pat Quinn tied Bill Daley to his brother today when responding to criticism over Frank Zuccarelli’s appointment to the CTA board

“People who are complaining about Frank Zuccarelli, they should look at their own family,” Mr. Quinn said. “The campaign manager of our former mayor was appointed to the CTA board, right after the campaign was over.”

His reference was to former alderman and Chicago Housing Authority chief Terry Peterson, who indeed was made CTA chairman in 2009.

But that was about 2 1/2 years after Mr. Peterson managed Mr. Daley’s 2007 re-election campaign, and it came at a time when the CTA was facing lots of fare-hike turbulence and the job was not considered much of a plum.

Mr. Quinn also strongly defended Mr. Zuccarelli as “a man of the people” who faces no legal impediment to joining the CTA board.

“I’m not going to allow him to be a punching bag,” Mr. Quinn said. In fact, Mr. Zuccarelli is a military veteran who came back to dedicate his life to public service, deserves the pay he gets for running “the largest township in the state” and will provide needed representation to the south suburbs on the CTA board.

As I’ve told you before, the Daley name is one of the biggest polling and focus group negatives that Bill Daley faces in this primary, so we’re likely to hear much more of this from the governor.

  40 Comments      


Tobin: “Yeah, 2015 is about right” for state bankruptcy

Thursday, Aug 8, 2013 - Posted by Rich Miller

* Taxpayers United President Jim Tobin, who believes Abraham Lincoln fought the Civil War over taxes and has long wanted to abolish the Illinois State Police also believes that Illinois will declare bankrupty in 2015

“Illinois will be the first state to go bankrupt, unless pension reforms are implemented,” said Tobin.

And Tobin’s numbers suggest it’ll be sooner rather than later.

“Yeah, 2015 is about right,” said Tobin.

Tobin totaled up lifetime salary and pension costs to assert a plan for hiring 200 new Illinois state police could cost $38 billion as he called for a state hiring freeze until the state’s pension system is reformed.

States can’t declare bankruptcy, and pension costs are projected to rise $200 million in FY 2015, a far cry from the recent billion dollars a year increases of the recent past. But, other than that, yeah, we’ll be Detroit in two years. That’s about right. For sure.

* The far more likely event, I think, is that Mayor Emanuel might “encourage” one of the city’s pension funds to declare bankruptcy. He refuses to raise taxes to make up for years of zero-funding the city’s pension systems, and a legislative solution doesn’t yet appear in sight.

  46 Comments      


Question of the day

Thursday, Aug 8, 2013 - Posted by Rich Miller

* Gov. Pat Quinn and Thornton Township Supervisor/Democratic Committeeman Frank Zuccarelli at a February event

* The Question: Caption?

Funniest commenter wins a free Illinois State Fair beverage with yours truly.

Yesterday’s winner was “Hopeful“…

“Think it’s funny? I can stop your pay too..”

The winner should contact me via e-mail.

  79 Comments      


Feds indict former IDPH chief of staff

Thursday, Aug 8, 2013 - Posted by Rich Miller

* I really don’t like the idea of federal prosecutors leaking indictment details ahead of time. Yesterday at 5:15 pm, I received this e-mail from the US Attorney’s office in Springfield…

James A. Lewis, U.S. Attorney for the Central District of Illinois, will be joined by representatives of the federal investigative agencies that comprise the U.S. Attorney’s Office’s Public Corruption Task Force: the U.S. Postal Inspection Service, Chicago Division; Internal Revenue Service, Criminal Investigation Division, Chicago Field Office; and Illinois Secretary of State Office of Inspector General to announce the indictment of the 13th defendant, to date, related to the task force’s ongoing investigation of state grant/contract fraud.

* By late last night, the Tribune and Sun-Times both had detailed stories posted about the indictment of Quinshaunta Golden, the former chief of staff to Dr. Eric Whitaker when he ran the Illinois Department of Public Health.

* But, whatever. It’s out there now, and man it’s a whole lot of alleged criminality. From the Tribune story

Golden, the niece of U.S. Rep. Danny Davis, is the 13th person to be charged in a federal task force’s ongoing investigation of state grant and contract fraud. The probe already has claimed the political career of former state Rep. Connie Howard, who pleaded guilty last month to diverting as much as $28,000 from a scholarship fund she created to benefit needy students.

According to the new indictment, starting in 2006, Golden directed grants to an unidentified security firm to do background checks on potential residents of nursing homes, which are overseen by the Illinois Department of Public Health. Under Golden, the state agency also issued grants to nonprofits run by Leon Dingle Jr.

Golden is alleged to have had Dingle hire a person, identified in the indictment only as “Individual A,” as a paid consultant. Individual A also was a paid consultant of the security firm.

The consultant collected more than $1 million in grant and contract money originally given to Dingle’s groups and the security firm, the indictment states. The consultant was supposed to kick back half of the money to Golden, who collected $433,000 in the scam, according to the indictment.

* Sun-Times

Part of Golden’s alleged scheme involved getting kickbacks from a security company that employed Roxanne B. Jackson, who worked under both Whitaker and Golden as human resources director for the health department in 2003 and 2004. Jackson then left that job and became “director of legal services” for V.I.P. Security & Detective Services, which got about $2 million in health department money starting in 2006 to do criminal-background checks on nursing home residents under a new state law.

The indictment identifies the company only as “Security Firm A,” but details within it make clear that the company is V.I.P. Security. The document also cites an unnamed “Individual A” who was “an associate of defendant Golden” and “an associate and paid consultant” to the security firm.

V.I.P. was paid $300 per background check, but “Golden required Individual A to pay Defendant Golden kickback payments of approximately $35 to $40 for each” check. All told, Golden got about $109,500 through that arrangement.

* From today’s press release…

In addition to the charges of bribery and taking kickbacks and mail fraud (five counts), the indictment charges Golden with one count of obstruction of justice. Golden allegedly met with Individual A on multiple occasions and falsely denied receiving improper kickback payments from A. Further, the indictment alleges that Golden encouraged and instructed Individual A not to tell the truth concerning the kickback scheme and to conceal the truth from Individual A’s attorney, and to create a false story by saying that Individual A used the grant and contract funds for gambling and other personal expenses.

The indictment includes one count of criminal forfeiture seeking forfeiture of property Golden derived from any proceeds obtained as a result of the alleged offenses, as well as a money judgment in an undetermined amount representing the net proceeds obtained as a result of the alleged offenses.

If convicted, for the offense of bribery and theft concerning programs receiving federal funds, the statutory penalty is up to 10 years in prison and a fine of up to $250,000. For each count of mail fraud (five counts) and for the single count of obstruction of justice, the statutory penalty is up to 20 years in prison and fines of up to $250,000 as to each count. The defendant may also be ordered to pay restitution to victims of the alleged offenses.

The U.S. Clerk of the Court will issue a summons to Golden for her initial appearance date, scheduled for Aug. 23, 2013, at 11:00 a.m., before U.S. Magistrate Judge Byron G. Cudmore in federal court in Springfield.

Whitaker is not charged, and there’s no indication yet that he knew anything, but he’s a very close friend of President Obama, and Obama wanted Whitaker appointed to the state job, so the story will probably go national.

Discuss.

  48 Comments      


A lack of interest

Thursday, Aug 8, 2013 - Posted by Rich Miller

* Yesterday was a light blogging day because I was on the road, speaking to a large group of insurance agents in Rosemont for their annual legislative/political conference.

During the speech, I asked for a show of hands of who reads the Chicago Tribune editorial page.

Just three people raised their hands, out of a hundred or so participants.

I was shocked. These were not liberals, and they’re politically engaged or they wouldn’t have taken time off from work to attend the conference.

Just for fun, I asked how many of the people who read the Trib’s editorials actually believe them. Nobody raised their hands.

Heh.

* As fun as that story is, anecdotes ain’t data. So that brings me to a Capitol Fax/We Ask America poll I commissioned back in early June. One of the questions I asked was “How would you describe the influence the Chicago Tribune’s endorsement of a candidate has on your voting?”

Just 11 percent of subscribers said the paper’s endorsement was “very influential,” while 45 percent said it had no influence and 41 percent it was somewhat influential.

Only 9 percent of non-subscribers said it was “very influential,” 62 percent said it had no influence and 18 percent said it was “somewhat influential.”

How can non-subscribers be influenced by the Trib? Well, they can buy a copy or read it online. They will also likely see such an endorsement in campaign advertising.

There were 1,489 respondents for a margin of error of +/- 2.85 percent. 41 percent of the universe were self-described Tribune subscribers.

* I also asked this question…

Recently, the Chicago Tribune endorsed a state public pension reform bill that would save taxpayers billions of dollars, but which public employee unions claim is unconstitutional and cuts too deeply into their pensions. The unions have proposed an alternative plan that doesn’t save as much as the Tribune-endorsed plan, but which they claim is constitutional. Do you agree, or disagree with the Tribune’s endorsement?

49 percent of subscribers agreed with the Trib’s endorsement, while 27 percent disagreed and 23 percent were uncertain.

Among non-subscribers, just 24 percent agreed with the Trib, while 36 percent disagreed and 39 percent were uncertain.

* So the next time you see the Tribune editorial board assert things like the failure to enact its own favored pension reform plan is “thoroughly disgusting the people of Illinois,” well, take it with a big grain of salt.

  36 Comments      


Trouble ahead

Thursday, Aug 8, 2013 - Posted by Rich Miller

* Bill Daley called today for Gov. Pat Quinn to withdraw his possibly illegal appointment of Thornton Township Supervisor Frank Zuccarelli to the CTA board. Quinn has so far refused to do so, claiming a loophole allows Zuccarelli to bypass laws prohibiting local government officials from drawing a paycheck while serving on a transit board.

From Daley’s press release…

“We all thought Pat Quinn, the self-styled reformer, would rise about this kind of politics, but when a powerful Cook County pol needed a paycheck, Governor Quinn was there for him. Today I call on the Governor to rescind this blatantly political and possibly illegal appointment, and if he continues to refuse to do the right thing, then the Senate must act to vote down this appointment,” said Daley.

Zuccarelli, who also serves as Thornton Township Democratic Committeeman, is expected to vote to endorse Quinn for re-election as governor at next week’s Cook County Democratic Party slating committee.

If and (most likely) when Zuccarelli votes for Quinn, this story could get a lot more intense.

…Adding… WLS Radio

But isn’t a patronage allegation from a Daley dripping with irony?

“You may think it’s ironic. I’m talking about what I believe, not about what others may have done or believed about patronage,” Daley said.

But in a nightmare for Daley’s image-makers, a garbage truck backed into the alley behind Daley to pick up a load when he said it.

  16 Comments      


Rutherford on gay marriage, what it is to be a Republican and the rumor

Thursday, Aug 8, 2013 - Posted by Rich Miller

* Treasurer Dan Rutherford supported the gay rights bill in the 1990s, back when the bill didn’t have nearly enough votes to pass. He also voted for civil unions just before he left the Illinois Senate and after he was elected treasurer. But he told Windy City Times that he’s still opposed to gay marriage

WCT: But you have not supported same-sex marriage.

Dan Rutherford: If you don’t mind, let me put the info in-between there. Civil unions came up, and this is one of those things that I stepped back, and I really analyzed it. The part I don’t think a lot of people understand is it’s not just for same-sex but for opposite-sex.

I voted for it, of course. I was the only Republican in the Senate to vote for it. Did I get some grief? Yeah. But it was one of those things that I thought in my heart, it was the right thing to do.

Now, we’ll go to gay marriage. The difference for me there is the religious component.

Now, I think something else has happened with regards to the bill. I think the Supreme Court’s ruling did add a very fair, debatable component in this. The tax consequences, I think that is a consideration to have weighed in. So what happens is, that has added a further component to this that lends itself to discrimination.

Now, I am what I am. I support civil unions. But the religious standpoint of marriage, it’s just not where I’m at.

WCT: But we’re talking about civil marriage, here, not religious.

Dan Rutherford: I just think that it’s just not at that point yet from a religious standpoint that I can support it.

WCT: What religion do you practice?

Dan Rutherford: I grew up as a Methodist.

WCT: It sounds like you are evolving on same-sex marriage. Is that a fair statement?

Dan Rutherford: I think that there’s a lot of things evolving out there. I think that when the Supreme Court ruled, and this is a matter-of-fact accounting sensitivity… but I think that did add a component with regards to the tax situation.

* This is a pretty good interview, so let’s excerpt some more

Dan Rutherford: …So to answer the question, yes, I think my party needs to be more tolerant. I think they need to be more tolerant of the gay and lesbian community. They need to be more tolerant to the ethnic minority community. I think they need to be more tolerant with regards to the immigrant community.

I’m not saying that to be negative on my party. I’m just saying that if we allow gay rights, guns and abortion to be the definition of the difference between a good Republican and a bad Republican, we will be the party of the perpetual minority.

WCT: So what makes a Republican a Republican?

Dan Rutherford: I’ll tell you exactly what it is; government, stay out of my wallet and out of my purse. The difference between the Democrat Party and the Republican Party needs to be about government spending and economics and maybe start to get into some of these social benefit programs.

You know what I think we got to do to help the crime rate in the City of Chicago? I think we need get the employment rate down in African American wards below 80 percent. What do we need to do about school funding? I think we broaden the tax base, get more people to work. You got a bigger tax base, then you don’t have to go out and raise taxes.

* And then there was this

WCT: Your support for the LGBT has put you in the spotlight. Conservative bloggers have speculated you are gay. How do you define your sexual orientation?

Dan Rutherford: I’m not gay.

WCT: Can you talk about your relationship to the community?

Dan Rutherford: I get it. This kind of thing happens in politics. I’ve been when I’m invited. Equality Illinois has their reception in Springfield. I’ll go to that. They hosted receptions and Republican National Conventions before. I’ll go to that. There’s an annual gala. I’ve been to it, I haven’t recently, but I’ve been to it. I haven’t been in the gay Pride Parade but I’ve been to the elected officials’ reception prior to it. I’ll go where I’m invited and be there.

Take a deep breath before you comment, folks. We don’t usually get into stuff like this here, so tread very, very carefully.

  88 Comments      


The Chicago way

Thursday, Aug 8, 2013 - Posted by Rich Miller

* When people complain how difficult it is to start a business in Chicago without the right political grease, this is what they mean. A proposed $57 million, 102,000-square-foot Ford dealership has been held up for months because of one Chicago alderman

City Council Zoning Committee Chairman Danny Solis, 25th, has twice held up a vote on a needed rezoning, requesting that Dearborn, Mich.-based Ford Motor Co. provide another dealership opportunity for a Latino — a specific Latino, who just happens to be a large campaign contributor to Mr. Solis’ ward organization. But Ford says it isn’t awarding new dealerships to anyone, and Fox, a division of Grand Rapids, Mich.-based FMG Holdings LLC, is a relatively small firm busy on the proposed 32nd Ward project.

* But the dealership company has had enough of the games and has set a deadline, according to Greg Hinz

“Oct. 1 is the final deadline,” Monica Sekulich, senior vice president and general counsel at Fox Motors, told me in a phone conversation. “This entire situation has been quite surprising to us.”

Yeah, surprising. To an outsider, these stupid games are stupefying. Chicagoans have learned to live with it, but that’s ridiculous.

Mayor Emanuel has finally stepped in and is pushing for approval, so this project should be a “go.” But why would it need the big dog’s intervention in the first place? How many other job-creating Chicago projects are being held up for political reasons that fly below MRE’s radar? I’m betting lots.

…Adding… Via a commenter, an example of how the Chicago way is not always confined only to Chicago

An effort by Gail Simpson to keep another business from selling alcohol in Ward 2 was defeated by her fellow aldermen Wednesday night.

By a 7-1 vote, the Springfield City Council approved a liquor license for Scandals at its new location at 1031 S. 11th St. in the old Touch of Class Sports Bar and Grill location. The bar/restaurant has been open only for food service for weeks.

Scandals used to be downtown.

Last week, Simpson put the brakes on the liquor license by chiding the other council members for thinking they knew better than her what’s best for her ward. […]

Brenda Protz, who identified herself as a friend of the owners, told the council she was concerned the anti-license effort was based on discrimination.

Protz pointed out that both owners of Scandals are gay.

Simpson, who is black, rejected that contention, saying her opposition had nothing to do with the business catering to gay people and was strictly about alcohol.

  39 Comments      


Rate the video

Thursday, Aug 8, 2013 - Posted by Rich Miller

* From a Sheila Simon campaign e-mail…

Last week was an amazing experience. I drove from Chicago to Springfield and then home to a rally in Carbondale with my husband Perry and my campaign team to announce my candidacy for Illinois Comptroller.

We saw many old friends and met even more new supporters. People in Illinois are ready for accountability.

You can see our first official video in the comptroller campaign by clicking the image below:

I am so fortunate to have such amazing support all across Illinois. I’ve been working hard to respond to all the messages and emails I received after the announcement - to everyone out there, thank you!

* Rate the video

* Other stuff…

* VIDEO: Bruce Rauner: 20,000 Miles

* VIDEO: State Sen. Kirk Dillard - Public Affairs - 2013-08-03

* VIDEO: Roeser: Using Social Media

  44 Comments      


Not soon

Thursday, Aug 8, 2013 - Posted by Rich Miller

* Speaker Madigan was initially opposed to creating the pension reform conference committee, saying it was “an effort by the governor to distance himself from the process.” After Gov. Quinn assured him that he would stay very involved, Madigan relented.

But the Speaker still believes that this is the governor’s baby, and as subscribers already know, the governor is gonna have to round up the votes to pass any solution that the conference committee comes up with.

ABC 7

(O)n an ominous note, he warned that if the House-Senate conference committee presents a compromise pension reform bill in the next week or so, it will not necessarily mean he’ll lead a rush to Springfield to vote on it.

“I’m prepared to go to Springfield whenever we have 60 votes in the House and 30 votes in the Senate to do pension changes,” Madigan said. “So it doesn’t make much sense to go there and to consider a bill if you don’t have the required number of votes to pass it.”

I wasn’t all that upbeat about the conference committee at first, either, but its members appear to be doing their job. The governor explained in June that while calling legislators at the end of session he’d heard over and over that there needed to be some way to find common ground between the then-deadlocked House Speaker and Senate President.

So, he should get more credit for the conference committee, especially if it succeeds in coming up with an agreement. But when Madigan says “It’s your baby,” it often means he won’t be working on behalf of the bill. He did that last year when Quinn persuaded him to hand sponsorship of the pension bill to House GOP Leader Tom Cross. The proposal crashed and burned as Madigan’s members got the hint and backed away. Quinn isn’t much of a lobbyist, so don’t expect him to find House majorities right away.

* Meanwhile

The conference committee on pension reform may be close to an agreement, according to State Sen. Bill Brady (R-Bloomington).

“I don’t see any reason that we haven’t received enough scoring to be able to come to a consensus on a reform package that we could present as early as next week to the General Assembly,” Brady said.

The big question now is whether they slow-walk the bill until they get the legislative salary veto issue resolved. Forcing the governor to put votes on the bill alone would be one way of doing that.

* Speaking of the pay veto, the Speaker wasn’t thrilled with the judge’s hearing schedule

“I would have appreciated a quicker schedule, a more expedited schedule, I would have appreciated that, but it’s the judge’s decision,” Madigan said.

That September 18th hearing date was a clear indication that this judge doesn’t want to get involved. Those who believed the case was a slam dunk because Madigan supposedly “controls” so many Cook County judges were just flat-out wrong. The mid-September hearing date for oral arguments was a big setback for Madigan’s case.

  30 Comments      


Trouble in paradise

Thursday, Aug 8, 2013 - Posted by Rich Miller

* From Monique Garcia at the Tribune

When Illinois Attorney General Lisa Madigan publicly pulled the plug on a run for governor, she announced that she “never planned to run” for the state’s top office as long as her father remained House speaker, given the inherent conflict.

On Wednesday, Speaker Michael Madigan indicated his continued presence on the political stage shouldn’t have been much of a surprise to his daughter.

“Lisa and I had spoken about that on several occasions, and she knew very well that I did not plan to retire,” the speaker told reporters before delivering remarks at a closed-door meeting of real estate appraisers gathered at the Union League Club of Chicago. “She knew what my position was. She knew.”

The comments by the powerful Southwest Side Democrat added some less-than-flattering context to Lisa Madigan’s political maneuvering. Knowing her father’s intent to stay didn’t stop her from securing $1.5 million during the first half of the year from political donors who thought she might run for governor. The attorney general didn’t tell the world that she had nixed a governor campaign until after the second fundraising quarter had ended.

The attorney general’s re-election campaign declined to comment Wednesday. Lisa Madigan has denied that she misled donors who hoped she might challenge Democratic Gov. Pat Quinn, saying she was upfront that she hadn’t yet made up her mind.

The lesson here is that if you publicly throw Mike Madigan under a bus, even if you’re his daughter, it had better be one big bus. Lisa obviously needed a bigger bus when she tried to blame her decision not to run on her father.

Also, if she had told donors and the voting public up front that she wouldn’t run for governor if her father stayed on as Speaker, then I doubt most of us would’ve believed that she’d actually make the race. He ain’t going anywhere.

* Charles Thomas

Michael Madigan would not say how long he plans to remain speaker.

Yeah. Infinity is difficult to describe.

  55 Comments      


Caption contest!

Wednesday, Aug 7, 2013 - Posted by Rich Miller

* As you already know, Gov. Pat Quinn attended yesterday’s court hearing over the challenge to his legislative salary veto. From the Trib

Keep it clean, folks.

Funniest commenter wins a free Illinois State Fair beverage with yours truly.

* Yesterday’s winner was OneMan

The winner of Governor Quinn’s I’ll appoint the person closest to me at 12:47 PM to run a state department contest celebrates her good fortune.

  151 Comments      


Question of the day

Wednesday, Aug 7, 2013 - Posted by Rich Miller

* From Kurt Erickson

In agreeing to hire a former aide to Gov. Pat Quinn to lobby on its behalf, the town of Normal on Monday joined an estimated 140 other units of local government using tax money to try and gain a toehold in the Capitol.

According to a study by the Illinois Campaign for Political Reform, local governments and public agencies in Illinois spent more than $7.4 million on outside help in 2010 to try and heighten their profiles and gain better access to the policymakers in the Statehouse.

David Morrison, acting director of the Illinois Campaign for Political Reform, said he launched the study thinking that lobbyists for local governments were unneeded because local state lawmakers would be looking out for the communities in their districts.

But, he said, there are some factors that appear to make it a reasonable expense for some local governments.

For example, a city may be represented by two Republicans at a time when Democrats control state government.

“A city may think they need to hire someone in order to get face time with the people in charge,” Morrison said.

* The Question: Do you think hiring Statehouse lobbyists can benefit many local governments, or is it mostly a waste of taxpayer money? Take the poll and then explain your answer in comments, please.


online surveys

  51 Comments      


Excuses, excuses

Wednesday, Aug 7, 2013 - Posted by Rich Miller

* Yikes

A month after reporting that Southern Illinois University had lost 257 computers in 2012, Auditor General Bill Holland found a similar situation within the state’s sprawling adult and youth prison systems.

In audits released Tuesday, Holland said 156 computers were deemed “lost” at the Illinois Department of Corrections, and another 84 were unaccounted for at the Illinois Department of Juvenile Justice.

The loss of 240 more state-owned computers within the state’s penal systems is problematic, Holland said.

* The DoC was rather blasé about the whole thing

According to a new audit,there’s a risk confidential information stored on the computers could be exposed.

But D.O.C. spokesman Tom Shaer says that’s not likely.

“We don’t believe that these computers are laying around somewhere compromising security.”

Shaer says per the audit’s recommendation, the department is working to track them down.

“We’ll show, we believe, that these computers are either still in inventory and possibly service. Or were properly wiped clean, no security risk with information, and were discarded or properly disposed of. We just didn’t complete the paperwork due to human error during a time when the department was short-staffed. And it still is short-staffed.”

Shaer’s “explanation” is what a citizen might call “typical stupid government.”


Meh, so we lost some computers. I’m sure there’s no problem. Don’t worry. Trust us, they’re around here someplace. We’ll find them, just as soon as we get more money to hire more people.

Good managers find a way to make do with less. Bad managers blame budget cuts for everything that goes wrong.

  42 Comments      


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Wednesday, Aug 7, 2013 - Posted by Rich Miller

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The juvenile banana republicans strike again

Wednesday, Aug 7, 2013 - Posted by Rich Miller

* Another day, another ill-informed, adolescent temper tantrum over pension reform from the Chicago Tribune editorial board

There’s a conference committee of House and Senate members working on a solution. If all the legislators on that committee were serious — we know some of them are — they would have crafted a bill by now to present to the public and the governor.

But they haven’t done so. Some members of the committee appear to be in no hurry, especially now that Quinn has taken away their paychecks. They’ll show him! They’ll … just … keep … stalling.

Most exasperating is the slow-walk on pension reform by the conference committee’s chairman, Sen. Kwame Raoul. Not that Raoul hasn’t been busy … sizing up a run for governor. Gov. Raoul — excuse us, Sen. Raoul — your handling of this conference committee isn’t building confidence in your case for a political promotion.

The state’s pension liability grows by $5 million every day. Debt is piling up, up, up.

The committee has to produce a substantial bill, one that comes close to the $187 billion in savings promised by the pension reform bill that passed the Illinois House but was crushed in the Senate.

What’s it going to take? We’ve even come to miss Squeezy the Pension Python, the cartoon character that Quinn created to try to prod the legislators to own up to the disaster they’ve created. Where’s Squeezy, trapped in a smoke-filled room in the Capitol? Lured to the beach for bikini gazing and Mai Tais? Maybe he joined the conference committee — a guarantee that he would never be seen again.

Only the We Are One negotiated pension plan could receive three-fifths votes in both chambers to give any pension reform bill an immediate effective date. Otherwise, we’re looking at July 1, 2014 for an effective date on a simple majority roll call But to hear the Tribune tell it, we’ll drown if something isn’t done right this very second!!!

These people write like they’re tweenie girls whose parents won’t buy them One Direction concert tickets.

Take. A. Breath.

* Also, if they’d bothered to actually check, they’d know that the conference committee is actually making lots of progress. What’s the holdup? Well, every tweak they make has to be sent off for actuarial analysis, and that takes time.

Again.

Take. A. Breath.

* And I seriously doubt that Sen. Raoul cares whether the Tribune thinks he’s gubernatorial material. Threatening the guy ain’t gonna work.

* Also, too, the Tribune has proved over and over again that it has zero concerns for the state Constitution. Perhaps their editorial board members have moved to another state. I dunno. But pension reform is made extremely difficult because of our Constitution. And the obvious separation of powers questions raised by the governor’s veto seem not to bother the Trib, either.

They just want those concert tickets, man, and they don’t care how it’s done. Missing Squeezy? C’mon. Grow up, already.

[And for my more partisan commenters, please note that the word “republicans” in the headline is not capitalized.]

  58 Comments      


RTA chairman wants Quinn to withdraw Zuccarelli name

Wednesday, Aug 7, 2013 - Posted by Rich Miller

* RTA Chairman John Gates piled on against Frank Zuccarelli’s CTA appointment late yesterday in a letter to Gov. Pat Quinn

Gates said Zuccarelli’s dual roles on the CTA board while serving as Thornton Township supervisor violate “the intent of Section 19” of the Metropolitan Transit Authority Act.

Zuccarelli makes more than $100,000 a year in his role as Thornton Township Supervisor, according to a report by the Better Government Association.

Gates urged Quinn to withdraw Zucarrelli’s nomination.

The full letter is here. Make sure to read it.

* The governor’s office is refusing to back down

Quinn’s office responded Tuesday night, saying that the state law in question wouldn’t prevent Zuccarelli from serving in both positions.

Zuccarelli has no transportation background, but his appointment could help Quinn. Thornton Township has a long history of turning out Democratic votes in Cook County.

Zuccarelli was appointed in early June. The political benefit at the time was obvious. He is a campaign powerhouse with thousands of African-American votes and Quinn desperately needed his support if Lisa Madigan decided to run.

So, Zucc got the nod.

And now… Oops.

The problem here is that Quinn loves to cover himself with a reformer’s coat. But when it comes to patronage, that coat covers something quite different. We’ve discussed this before.


…Adding…
Best comment so far

The idea that Gates — who put Madigan’s son in law on his payroll — would lecture anybody about “transparency” and “integrity” is the joke of the day.

Heh.

True.

* Meanwhile

Kane County’s representative on the Regional Transportation Authority is stepping down amid concerns he can’t legally serve both on the transit agency and a state commission.

Nabi Fakroddin sits on the RTA board and the Illinois Human Rights Commission.
Advertisement

RTA Chairman John S. Gates Jr. wrote Gov. Pat Quinn Thursday saying that an internal review turned up the dual roles. “It is my belief that according to the law, it may not be permissible for (Fakroddin) to continue to serve on the RTA and Mr. Fakroddin agreed,” Gates wrote.

Quinn appoints members of the human rights commission.

  20 Comments      


We Are One coalition responds to Fahner’s “misspoke” claim

Wednesday, Aug 7, 2013 - Posted by Rich Miller

* From a press release…

“Before a friendly audience behind closed doors in March, Ty Fahner claimed credit for driving down the state’s bond rating–and thereby raising costs to all taxpayers. Now, under growing public scrutiny, he says that wasn’t true.

“Fahner’s delayed attempt to deny that those efforts took place results in more questions than answers. If there’s nothing to hide, why is he trying to backtrack now? Why would he mislead the public in the first place?

“Did members of the Civic Committee speak to the ratings agencies — as Fahner clearly stated initially? If so, what transpired? Did any Civic Committee members profit from these actions? How did the role of Fahner’s law firm as state bond counsel and the role of many Civic Committee members as bond underwriters impact their efforts to lobby to reduce the state’s rating?

“Ultimately, which story should the public believe? Every Illinoisan deserves to know what really happened. We urge elected officials and the news media to demand answers to these lingering questions, uncover what occurred, and examine whether formal consequences are warranted.”

Investigation needed or no?

  95 Comments      


Protected: SUBSCRIBERS ONLY - Today’s edition of Capitol Fax (use all CAPS in password)

Wednesday, Aug 7, 2013 - Posted by Rich Miller

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