* Gov. Pat Quinn held a press conference today to tout his new $2,500 tax credit for each new employee hired by companies that have 50 or fewer workers. State Sen. Bill Brady has a different jobs tax credit proposal. It’s lower, $2,100, but it applies to all companies, large and small.
According to the AP, the governor accused his Republican rival of wanting to “lower the overall tax credit so he can help big businesses,” and then added…
“Big businesses we have programs for in Illinois,” Quinn said. “We don’t have to take some of the largest corporations on earth and hand out tax incentives to British Petroleum or someone like that. We want to target our tax credit in a very focused way to our small businesses that are right here in Illinois, not multi-national corporations.”
“He knows all about layoffs,” Quinn said of Brady. “He’s applied his chainsaw to his real estate development company and laid people off. He hasn’t created any jobs at all.”
Yikes. And the retort…
“It’s the ultimate hypocrisy for Pat Quinn to attack a family business for making difficult decisions when he’s been a life-long politician who’s never directly created a job in his life,” Brady spokeswoman Patty Schuh said.
Here we have a governor who has presided over a budget that has resulted in countless job losses among private human service agencies, schools, police departments, state contractors, etc., and he’s calling Brady, whose very successful company suffered because of a national economic crisis, “an expert at layoffs“?
That’s a bit much, if you ask me.
Maybe Brady should’ve just followed Quinn’s lead and given his staff huge raises instead of laying them off. Yeah. That would’ve worked.
Another Illinois lawmaker says that if the St. Louis Rams need a new home, and folks on the Missouri side aren’t willing to help, then the team should look to the east — the Metro East.
First it was State Senate President John Cullerton, now it’s Democratic State Representative Jay Hoffman of Collinsville.
“I believe that Illinois would work in conjunction with Missouri to keep the Rams,” Hoffman tells KMOX. “We need to keep them here.” […]
“And even though they only won one game last year, we’re seeing good things on the horizon,” Hoffman says, “and understand the economic tool that the Rams are, and any sports franchise is.”
* Bill Brady and others took a little heat for appearing this past Saturday on the same stage as a very controversial activist…
Chicago immigrant rights activists and religious leaders are upset that the Republican candidate for Illinois governor, state Sen. Bill Brady, and other Republican politicians are scheduled to share the stage Saturday with a woman who is the founder of the Illinois Minuteman Project and has made controversial comments about immigrants, Catholics and Muslims.
Rosanna Pulido, who unsuccessfully ran for Congress, is scheduled to speak at a Tea Party rally in Bartlett this afternoon hosted by the Tri-Count-Teas. They also have invited Republican politicians, including state Sen. Randy Hultgren, a candidate for Congress in the 14th District , Angel Garcia, a candidate for Cook County Clerk, and Cook County Commissioner Tony Peraica.
Click here for the press release announcing the event. We’ve been over this before, but here’s a sampling of Pulido’s comments…
Responding to the post by someone else: “Oh I don’t know, those pictures of dozens of men in mosques kneeling on prayer rugs with their heads down low always looks pretty funny to me,” [Pulido] says: It reminds me of my dog, smelling butts.” December 28, 2003
“Cardinal George is responsible for every illegal immigrant who dies while crossing the border coming over here because he is luring them.” March 23, 2008
Referring to the gay community: “Face it, its better to be in a meat packing town than in a fudge packing town.” (post #42), November 7, 2008
“Great! Now the gays can indoctrinate the other kids who are struggling, they will be told that they have gay tendencies and be lead along like sheep to the slaughter.” (post #3), November 18, 2008
Brady’s own speech can be seen by clicking here (Part 1) and here (Part 2). Pretty standard stuff. He didn’t address Pulido’s charges, but he entirely avoided talking about immigration.
* Meanwhile, Brady’s campaign has named state Rep. Ron Stephens chairman of Veterans for Brady/Plummer. From a press release…
Springfield, IL…On Sunday, a group of veterans and elected officials gathered at the Illinois State Fair to announce the formation of “Veterans for Brady/Plummer,” a volunteer organization of supporters who believe Bill Brady and Jason Plummer are the right choice to protect and preserve veterans’ benefits and opportunities over the next four years.
“Our fiscal problems at the state level have affected each and every person in Illinois, including veterans and their families,” said State Representative and U.S. Army Veteran Ron Stephens. “I’ve known Senator Brady for twenty years, and I assure you, veterans and their families will always be a top priority of his administration. We need a real advocate in the Governor’s office, someone who stands by his word and someone who will protect the interests of the men and women who so bravely protected our freedoms abroad.” Representative Stephens will be serving as chairman of “Veterans for Brady/Plummer.”
Really? Ron Stephens? The pharmacist who got busted for doing drugs several years ago, then nearly lost his pharmacist license after being popped for a DUI earlier this year? He has an honorable service record and I’ve always firmly believed that a simple (not aggravated circustances) DUI ought not be the end of the world. But Stephens’ misbehavior far transcends those two public sanctions, so putting him front and center ain’t exactly the best idea I’ve ever heard. Maybe the Brady campaign will help administer his random drug tests.
The revelation came after Kelly Klopp, the spokesman for 10th District congressional hopeful Robert Dold, accidentally sent an e-mail to a Daily Herald reporter Wednesday with instructions to “please get some positive comments up” in the comments section attached to a story about a Dold television commercial.
In the e-mail, Klopp suggested possible messages for the volunteers to post, including “Heard the ad and liked it” and “Nice to see the candidate talk about himself without just attacking his opponent.” […]
“Volunteers write letters to the editors for us, put up yard signs, hand out literature - we’re always encouraging supporters and volunteers to join the public debate,” [Klopp] said. […]
The Dold campaign uses college-age volunteers to post comments on the Web about the candidate, Klopp said. The team she intended to activate Wednesday is based at DePaul University, she said.
Yeah, well, there’s a fine line between encouraging supporters to join the public debate and downright deception. For instance, during the primary I posted Dold’s first TV ad. Here’s one of the comments…
- paul the blue lib - Thursday, Dec 17, 09 @ 3:09 pm:
Dold had a good ad, kinda energy like he is actually going to get some stuff done—not that I hope he gets anything done, but the ad is pretty good.
The message for politicians cuts more to the quick: When you do this, when you allow your campaigns to do this, it may just seem like standard electioneering, but it is fundamentally dishonest.
It may be a small lie, but it is a lie all the same. It tries to pretend that a testimonial is spontaneous when in fact it is orchestrated by the campaign. And that’s a falsehood.
It is fundamentally dishonest and inherently unethical.
You cannot gain the public’s trust by engaging in untrustworthy political practices.
* 10th Congressional District: Israel forum participation debated: “Dan greatly respects Protect our Heritage and shares their commitment to strengthening our special relationship with Israel. Unfortunately, the nature of the forum changed significantly from our original agreement, leading us to decline to participate in a situation that had become inherently unfair and uniquely weighted against Dan,” according to a campaign statement.
* Press release: Governor Quinn Celebrates Veterans’ Day at Illinois State Fair
Judge James Zagel has called in the attorneys from both sides for a hearing on the question. Robert Blagojevich’s attorney Michael Ettinger said neither of the defendants will come to the courthouse for this hearing.
“Not yet,” Ettinger said.
*** UPDATE 2 - 11:45 am*** From Susan Berger’s Twitter page…
Jury wants Bradley Tusk transcript in its entirety… [Blagojevich attorney Sheldon Sorosky] objects to request. Judge will give transcript to jury… Judge will inform jury that cerain portions will be blacked out - those reflect outside presence of jury… Judge calls request “less than earth-shattering”
Among other things, Tusk testified about a $2 million grant that then-Congressman Rahm Emanuel wanted for a local school, but that Blagojevich wanted to hold up until Emanuel’s brother hosted a fundraiser…
Asked by the prosecution about the $2 million grant for the Chicago Academy, Tusk delivered what amounts to the biggest smoking gun yet in witness testimony. He told the jury that in the late summer of 2006, after receiving pressure from Emanuel, Tusk spoke with Blagojevich on the phone to urge him to authorize the grant money for the school. He said he told Blagojevich that Emanuel was “very upset” that the money had yet to be disbursed. In response, Tusk testified, Blagojevich told him that before he would release the grant money, he wanted Emanuel’s brother Ari, a wealthy Hollywood agent, to host a fundraiser for him.
“I got off the phone as quickly as I could,” Tusk testified, saying that he felt the directive was both “illegal and unethical.” Ultimately, he said he never conveyed the message to Emanuel, but instead contacted Blagojevich ally John Wyma and the governor’s legal counsel and ethics chief, Bill Quinlan. He said he told Quinlan, “You need to get your client under control.”
That the jury requested Tusk’s testimony after last week’s note could be a better sign for the prosecution than the defense. Tusk’s testimony about a state grant to the Chicago Academy corresponds to one of the predicate charges in the racketeering count against Blagojevich, as well as Count 14 of the attempted extortion charge against the former governor.
More links to coverage of Tusk’s testimony are here.
Republicans have tried to link Blagojevich to Democrats running for office this year, including Governor Pat Quinn and state Treasurer Alexi Giannoulias (though both candidates stress they had little to no relationship with the ex-governor). Despite that message during the trial, [Illinois Republican Party Chairman Pat Brady] insists he doesn’t plan to make a big deal about the trial’s outcome.
BRADY: You know, we could make a lot of political hay out of it. I don’t think we will, because [I’ll] just [be] relieved it’s over.
Brady adds, though, that a hung jury or not-guilty verdicts would keep the story alive.
“Our system of justice gives Rod Blagojevich the right to remain silent. But his refusal to answer questions under oath also reveals more of the duplicity by which he campaigned and tried to govern. We shouldn’t be surprised. Rod ran as a reformer, with the full support of Pat Quinn and Mike Madigan. But it was all a sham.
Here’s a message to every Illinois political insider who’s prepared to throw up if the Rod Blagojevich trial results in a hung jury: you may hate Blagojevich, but ordinary people don’t.
From a Rasmussen Reports poll conducted July 26, 2010…
* Do you have a very favorable, somewhat favorable, somewhat unfavorable, or very unfavorable impression of Rod Blagojevich?
3% Very favorable
6% Somewhat favorable
18% Somewhat unfavorable
70% Very unfavorable
2% Not sure
The vast majority of “ordinary people” hate the guy. Period. And that’s why I find it so hard to believe that the Illinois Republican Party won’t try to “make hay” out of the verdict, whatever it may be.
* Carol Marin looks at the stark differences between the late Dan Rostenkowski and the man who replaced him in Congress two years later…
As the now-legendary Chairman of the House Ways and Means Committee from 1981 to 1994, Rostenkowski was immersed in the detail and discipline of legislation. He wasn’t a scholar, but he had a graduate degree in tax codes. Plus a respect for process and the political opposition. He and President Ronald Reagan presented a powerful picture of how bipartisanship can make something big happen.
I don’t mean to romanticize the man or his methods. He could be cutthroat about power and preferred closed-door deals to the sunshine promoted by goo-goos.
Then again, Rod Blagojevich just pretended to be a goo-goo as he stepped from Congress to the governor’s office. But behind his closed door sat sleazy wheeler-dealers like Chris Kelly and Tony Rezko hatching scams they and Blagojevich couldn’t manage to pull off for big payoffs they couldn’t make materialize. Did they not know that even corruption sometimes requires some skill?
In the meantime, Blagojevich managed to alienate almost the entire Democratic Party — of which he was allegedly a member — as well as Republicans across the aisle. The result across his six years in office was gridlock on budgets and the gaping maw of a growing deficit.
The Chairman could work the halls of Congress but the Governor couldn’t work with anyone.
One was gruff but effective. The other glib but almost goofy. Rod wanted you to like him but Rosty didn’t seem to give a damn.
Abdon Pallasch looks at another angle to this. Rostenkowski called Michael Patrick Flanagan after losing the general election in 1994, then met with him and gave him some advice. After Blagojevich won in 1996? Not a word was heard…
Contrast that with the guy who beat Flanagan after one term — Rod Blagojevich. Blagojevich never called after winning, Flanagan said.
Flanagan asked Rostenkowski if Blagojevich ever called him, either.
“Not only did he not call me, but I called him and offered to give him some advice — he didn’t have time,” Flanagan recalled Rostenkowski saying of Blagojevich. “He never asked my advice on anything, either. I don’t think he’s much of an advice-taker. That’s part of his problem.”
* Roundup…
* Brown: Hung Blagojevich jury a loss for feds — but not for long
* Brady wants him fired, but Quinn will have none of that…
Republican candidate for governor Bill Brady on Sunday called on Democratic Gov. Pat Quinn to fire the state’s prisons chief after an early-release plan was ripped in a report for saving money at the expense of public safety.
“I believe the highest obligation of any governor is to protect the interests of the public, the public safety. By allowing these releases to occur, Gov. Quinn failed to meet this obligation,” Brady, a state senator from Bloomington, said at a downtown Chicago news conference.
In Springfield, Quinn responded that he would not fire corrections chief Michael Randle, saying, “I don’t need a lecture from Sen. Brady.” […]
“I’m not going to change the director,” Quinn said during an interview Sunday at the executive mansion. “He did make a mistake. He took responsibility for it.”
All too predictable. The last time Quinn as asked about this was back in May, by my intern Barton Lorimor…
Quinn’s chief of staff, Jerry Stermer, said Friday he was present last summer and fall when the governor told Randle he was not to release violent offenders under MGT Push. Randle took responsibility for not supervising his subordinates closely enough to make sure they followed that dictum. As a result, he said, “It happened.”
That’s not what the subordinates have said. Judge David Erickson’s report did not go into any sort of detail about who actually put that MGT Push program into place. From everything I’ve been told, Randle backed it to the hilt. From Friday’s presser…
Quinn’s order conflicted with a law allowing some violent offenders to qualify for early release, and Randle said that, as director, he should have seen the conflict and suspended the program before anyone with a record of violence was released.
It all looks from the outside that Randle was a passive force. Again, that’s not what I’ve been told by the insiders.
Also, we still don’t know why Randle failed or refused to tell Gov. Pat Quinn about the program until the Associated Press broke the story. I have tried and failed to get an answer to that particular question for months. Too bad they didn’t hold Friday’s press conference in Springfield. Maybe we could’ve gotten to the bottom of things because the Chicago reporters let a lot of stuff slide Friday.
* Roundup and related stories…
* ‘Serious flaws’ in prison-release program: “MGT was a dismal failure. It was totally dysfunctional,” said Judge David Erickson, Kent College of Law… “Inmates did not have to do anything to earn their good time,” said Erickson.
* Bill Brady Wants Illinois’ Prison Chief Replaced: He said Quinn’s not removing Randle shows a lack of “moral responsibility.”
* Quinn picks new inspector general: Ricardo Meza, a former federal prosecutor, succeeds James A. Wright, whose dismissal on Friday was first reported by the Tribune. Meza is the Midwest regional counsel for the Mexican American Legal Defense and Educational Fund, a long-established Latino advocacy group.
There is no doubt whatsoever that Republicans in this state have every reason to cheer and Democrats have all the reasons in the world to grumble.
Republicans have a fired up, angry base that can’t wait to vote. The Democratic base is morose, embarrassed at its party’s failures and is in no mood to even think about voting.
Numerous pollsters and prognosticators have pointed to the eery similarities between the public’s mood now and at the same point in the huge Republican year of 1994 - the last time we had a Democratic president facing his first midterm election.
The latest national CNN/Opinion Research poll found that the “generic” congressional ballot was pretty much the same as it was in August 1994. Voters favor unnamed Republican candidates over Democrats 48 percent to 45 percent, compared with 46-44 in 1994. Public Policy Polling’s latest survey had the national generic ballot favoring Republicans at 45-42.
Half of all voters told CNN’s pollster that they likely are to vote for a candidate who would opposes President Barack Obama. Back in ‘94, 51 percent said they wanted candidates who opposed President Bill Clinton. Obama’s approval rating is also just three points higher than Bill Clinton’s was back then.
In 1994, the Illinois House Republicans rode their party’s national tidal wave to a 13-seat pickup and a long-sought majority. The House Republicans need 12 seats to take the majority away from the Democrats this time. So, there’s a lot of hope out there that they can pull it off.
Some real differences exist between now and 1994, particularly here in Illinois. For instance, back then Illinois had straight-party voting. It was pretty easy to just walk into the ballot booth, punch the Republican number and walk out. The Republicans got rid of that just after the Democrats took back the House two years later.
Also, the state legislative district map 16 years ago was drawn by the Republicans. The current map was drawn by the Democrats and is way more sophisticated because computer technology advanced so far in the intervening decade.
The national Republican landslide of 1994 took the Democrats completely by surprise. They simply had never seen anything like it. Even during the Ronald Reagan sweep of 1984, the Illinois Democrats beat a Republican U.S. Senator. Now that they’ve seen what can happen, the Democrats claim they’ve made far more preparations than they did in ‘94.
Then there’s Barack Obama. The president is from Illinois, so the state gives him a higher approval rating than just about anywhere else, and tends to support his policies in larger numbers.
Back in early August 1994, a Chicago Tribune poll had Republican Jim Edgar beating Dawn Clark Netsch by a mind-blowing 35 points. Netsch ended up losing by almost 30 points, taking the House Democratic majority down with her.
The latest statewide poll conducted by Rasmussen Reports has Republican state Sen. Bill Brady leading Democratic Gov. Pat Quinn by 13 points - 48-35. I’ve seen another internal candidate poll taken very recently that had Brady’s lead slightly higher. A Democratic poll reportedly has Quinn trailing by seven points. Let’s say it’s somewhere in the middle, but that means there’s no good news here for the governor.
So, could Quinn take everybody else down with him?
If you figure that Netsch’s 30-point loss helped intensify the 1994 GOP landslide, then maybe Quinn’s bad numbers aren’t enough. But I’ve seen some recent private polling on voter intensity that ought to frighten the Democrats right down to their bones. Their party’s biggest lead is among people who say they aren’t interested in voting.
Plus, downstate and collar county voters appear the angriest these days, and that could really hurt a lot of the state’s freshman Democratic congressmen and several legislators in tough fights. Any Democrat involved in a race that looks even a little close should be worried sick right now.
Quinn isn’t helping matters much with the campaign that he and his allies have been running. The Democratic Governors Association has spent almost $2 million on TV ads whacking Bill Brady as an extremist, but Rasmussen’s poll of 750 likely voters taken August 9th showed that more voters thought Quinn was an extremist than Brady.
According to the poll, 32 percent thought Brady’s views were “extreme,” while 38 percent thought Quinn’s views were extreme.
He’d better do something quick before he pulls a Netsch and tanks his entire party.
* And here’s another reason why it’s not totally 1994. From a Tribune poll of 800 heads of household in Chicago and the suburbs…
In a recent Tribune/WGN poll, 46 percent of suburban residents said they oppose legalizing same-sex marriage, while 40 percent approve and 14 percent have no opinion.
When asked their opinions on civil unions — which would provide same-sex couples with many of the same legal rights as marriage — the results switch: 54 percent of suburban residents favor legalizing same-sex civil unions, compared with 33 percent who would oppose such a law. When city residents are included, the results remain nearly the same.
The poll shows the Chicago area falls largely in line with national opinions on gay marriage, an issue that has received considerable attention lately after a federal judge in California declared that state’s ban on gay marriage unconstitutional. Same-sex marriages could resume as soon as Wednesday in California, and the judge’s decision is expected to make its way to the U.S. Supreme Court. […]
The overall opinion on legalizing same-sex marriage, when city respondents are factored in, is split: 42 percent oppose it, 42 percent support it and 15 percent have no opinion. The Market Shares Corp. telephone poll of 800 male and female heads of household from the six-county Chicago area has a margin of error of plus or minus 3.5 percentage points.
No owners living in the buildings, no developer or contractor to be found. In most cases, there’s nothing of value left behind, the units having been stripped. These barren buildings endure as lures for crime and as deterrents to investment in the neighborhood.
Markowski and city housing officials estimate there are 200 such buildings around Chicago, mostly on the South or West sides, representing more than 2,000 apartments. They have banded together for a program they said is unique for American cities to put them back to productive use for housing.
With a $2.5 million grant from the city, Markowski’s Community Investment Corp. is working to gain title to the condos.
Expanding the council and the number of wards would be an expensive proposition for any city, made even more difficult during these times of lost sales tax, income tax and development fees to municipalities.
Moreover, the timing proscribed in state law actually made it impossible for local government to comply. The statute says redistricting and an expanded council has to be done 180 days before the next consolidated election, April 2011.
But the earliest census data will start to become available is in January 2011, well after the deadline.
Decatur and Springfield are being added to the list of cities considering a bid to play a role in a reworked version of a $1 billion clean-coal project after another Illinois town dropped out because of changes made to the original plan.
To fill the system’s remaining $370 million deficit, Huberman early this week unveiled a budget that included raising high school class sizes, on average, from 31 to 33 students, for a savings of $30 million and a loss of 500 teaching jobs.
Ten year-round high schools opened Monday with those larger class sizes, and, as a result, fewer teachers than normal. Huberman said schools will be getting “budgetary guidance'’ soon on how to open slashed positions.
However, it was not immediately clear whether all laid-off high school teachers would automatically be called back to their old slots.
Metracide is not an official cause of death, but it refers to suicides involving Metra trains. The latest figures compiled by the commuter train agency show 14 fatalities this year involving its trains — due to all causes, not specifically suicide — as of early July, including two people in vehicles, spokeswoman Meg Reile said. At least two other deaths have been reported since then, meaning this year’s Metra-related fatality toll already exceeds the 15 recorded in 2009. The highest number on record was 34 in 2004, Reile said.
It’s been three months since former Metra Executive Director Phil Pagano killed himself while being investigated for a variety of financial wrongs. But the taint of the financial scandal still lingers and will for some time.
That’s why we agree with those who say Metra needs an independent inspector general to keep an eye on the transit agency going forward.
A right-wing New Jersey blogger was convicted at his third trial Friday of making threats against three federal judges in Illinois in retaliation for a ruling supporting gun control.
A Brooklyn jury deliberated less than two hours before finding Hal Turner guilty of making death threats.
After an independent audit by law firm Jenner & Block recommended strengthening the commission’s controls, state lawmakers drafted restructuring legislation that Gov. Pat Quinn recently signed that requires all 13 commissioners to resign on Dec. 31 and that in 2016 will eliminate a countywide sales tax that helps fund the commission.
On Thursday, commissioners voted to start negotiations on a loan extension that would buy the commission time to generate funds to pay off the loan. Commissioner Phil Suess urged the commission’s representatives — staff attorney Maureen Crowley, retired Financial Administrator Rick Skiba and Treasurer Don Zeilenga — to shop around for a lower interest rate than the 2.5 percent rate proposed by West Suburban Bank.
* Below is a list of Illinois State Fair campaign links. If you have an event which isn’t listed, use the “Contact Rich Miller” link above. Click here for the permanent link. That’s where you’ll find any updates. All events are in Springfield…
* Monday, August 16…
* 6-8 pm, Democratic state Senate candidate Josh Weger fundraiser. Alamo. 115 N. 5th St. Details here.
* Tuesday, August 17…
* 11:30 am Registration, 1:00 pm shotgun start. Friends of Dan Reitz Golf Outing. Illini Country Club. 1601 Illini Road. $1,000/person. For more information, contact Jill at 217.528.9120.
* 5-7 p.m. Sierra Club - Sangamon Valley Group. Floyds Thirst Parlor - Upstairs. $10 per ticket, live music, appetizers and cash bar. SPECIAL GUEST Lt. Governor Candidate Shiela Simon
* ADDED: 5:00 p.m. to 7:00 p.m. Sangamon County Democrats State Fair Fundraiser. D. H. Brown’s, 231 East Monroe Street. $10 per ticket. Contact Sangamon County Democrat Headquarters at 217-544-0808.
* 5:30 pm – 7:30 pm. Senator Dick Durbin, Illinois Senate President John Cullerton, Illinois Speaker Michael Madigan. An Evening to benefit the Illinois Democratic Coordinated Campaign. The Inn at 835. 835 South Second Street. $1,000/Person; $5,000/Host; $10,000/Sponsor. Special Guest Speaker: Senator Al Franken (MN). For more information, please contact Leah Israel at 847.302.0908
* 6:00 pm - 8:00 pm. Alexi’s Annual Eve of Democrat Day Celebration. The Alamo. 115 N 5th St. Free admission
* 6-9 pm. Brandon Phelps and Ed Sullivan “The North Meets the South Bar-B-Q.” 420 West Capitol. $250, $500 $1000. RSVP Jill Hanney 217-528-9120
* Wednesday, August 18…
7:30 am – approx 8:30 am. Illinois Democratic Chairmen’s Association Governor’s Day Brunch. VIP Reception. Crowne Plaza. Capital View Room, 2nd Floor. Speakers and guest only.
* 9:00 am. Illinois Democratic Chairmen’s Association Governor’s Day Brunch. Crowne Plaza Hotel. 3000 South Dirksen Parkway. $35/person, Sponsorship starts at $500. For more information, please call 217.753.3380. Featured Keynote Speaker: Senator Al Franken
* 1:00pm. Governor’s Day Rally. Director’s Lawn, IL State Fairgrounds
* 5:00 – 8:00 p.m. Judy Baar Topinka for Comptroller Fundraiser. 69 Linden Lindon Lane. $40.00 per person. Contact: 217-622-9630
* 5:30 pm - 7:30 pm. Evening of Jazz. Friends of Robin Kelly. Catch 22. 11 Southwest Old State Capitol Plaza. $25/person. For more information, contact Ryan at rvanmeter@robinfortreasurer.com or 708.382.0643.
* 7:00 – 9:00 p.m. Mark Kirk for US Senate and Illinois Republican Party Reception Honoring the 2010 Statewide Ticket. D.H. Browns. 231 East Monroe Street. Contact: Steve Ettinger. (217) 525-0011
* Thursday, August 19…
* 8:30 a.m. – 9:30 a.m. SCC and County Chairman’s Assoc. Breakfast. Northfield Inn, Suites & Conference Center. 3280 Northfield Drive . Contacts: Steve Ettinger (217) 525-0011 and Randy Pollard (618) 267-2547
* 9:30 a.m. – 11:00 a.m. County Chairman’s Association Meeting Northfield Inn, Suites & Conference Center. 3280 Northfield Drive. Contacts: Randy Pollard (618) 267-2547
* 10:00 a.m. – 3:00 p.m. Republican Day @ the Illinois State FairDirector’s Lawn / IL State Fairgrounds. Contact: Steve Ettinger (217) 525-0011.
10:00 a.m. Kids Area open (All Day)
12:00 p.m. Lunch served (Anticipated time)
12:30 p.m. Speaking Program (Anticipated time)
1:15 p.m. Live Entertainment (Concludes at 3:00 p.m.)
* 2:00 p.m. – 3:30 p.m. (Following the GOP Luncheon) Sen. Dan Rutherford, reception. Free. Franny’s Tavern, Corner of 8th & Sangamon Avenue, Outside State Fair Gate 11. Special Guests Steve Kim Candidate for Attorney General And Robert Enriquez Candidate for Secretary of State. Contact: Dan Rutherford Campaign Committee (815) 842-2475
* 3:00 p.m. – 6:00 p.m. Bill Brady for Governor Reception. Sangamon County Central Committee HQ. 1132 E. Sangamon Avenue. SE of the Main Gate to the Fairgrounds. Contact: 217-241-9830
* GOPUSA ILLINOIS / TAPROOT table at the Illinois Republican Party event at the State Fair in Springfield
* 5-7 pm. Sen. John Millner, fundraiser. Maldaner’s Restaurant. 630.251.4468.
* Friday, August 20…
* Rich Whitney will attend the Illinois State Fair on Friday, August 20th. The theme for the fair that day is “Futures for Kids Day”, so Rich will visit with families from 1 PM to 4 PM throughout the fairgrounds to share with them why a vote for the Green Party is a vote for a better future for our children. Mr. Whitney will then meet supporters at the State Fair’s Ethnic Village at 4:30 PM for dinner and to help celebrate the diverse nature of the people of Illinois. Rich will then conclude his evening by arriving at the Grandstand at 7 PM to talk with fairgoers before the attending the “Cheap Trick” and “Blondie” concert at 8 PM.
* Here’s the raw audio of Gov. Pat Quinn talking to reporters at the State Fair today. The clip includes his quip about “pinheads” who would criticize the way the fair is funded. Don’t miss it…
* Unlike some people [cough***Pinheads!***cough] I love the Illinois State Fair. One day when I’m too old to do this, I wouldn’t mind being director. Nice way to go out. And we could get some good music.
Thanks to state Sen. Dave Syverson, Cheap Trick has kinda become our official state band, so it’s only fitting that they’re playing the fair next week. Turn it up…
* Gov. Pat Quinn just called a conservative think tank “pinheads“…
Gov. Pat Quinn opened the Illinois State Fair Friday by calling the event’s detractors “pinheads.”
The fair cost $2.7 million more than it brought in last year, leading to criticism from some interest groups that the event should be scaled back in tough budget times.
“There are, you know, pinheads who think that we should cut out the state fair,” Quinn said after cutting the ribbon on the 157th running of the fair. “I think they’re all wet. I think the people of Illinois want a state fair to celebrate our agriculture.” […]
“The notion of kicking the state fair in the shins is really wrong,” Quinn said.
Texas stands in stark contrast to how Illinois has been running its state fairs, and Illinois should consider looking to Texas as a model to follow. Otherwise, it may end up having to cancel its fairs because of budgeting problems, as other states have had to do,
Texas’ state fair is held in Dallas, a major metropolitan area which has a huge nearby population base to draw from. It’s apples and oranges.
* The Ottawa paper published a story on the topic this week, and included quotes from some staunch fair defenders…
“Think about it. If we criticize everything the state loses money at, we’d never be done talking,” said Monty Whipple, La Salle County Farm Bureau president. “The Illinois State Fair is a yearly tribute to the state’s No. 1 business — agriculture — and it is an important source of education and entertainment not only for farm kids, but other (metropolitan) youths as well. I think it’s worth every penny we have to put into it.” […]
The Utica farmer said, for the small admission price, ($5 for adults, $2 for children under 12), it is a good deal for a family summertime adventure.
Vaugh Kiner, La Salle County Junior Fair president, agrees with Whipple.
“The State Fair is important for kids to meet other kids from other parts of the state where everyone has an opportunity to show off their accomplishments for the year,” Kiner said from his cell phone while walking along the Springfield fairgrounds this week. “Here young people learn things they can use the rest of their lives.”
The state fair is a big deal for rural kids. Getting chosen to exhibit there is a high honor. I made it once, and it was like going to Hollywood.
But it’s a fraud, and an expensive one. Despite the “back-to-school” label, the exemption applies to most clothing and shoes under $100, even if they are bought by adults who haven’t been inside a school in 40 years.
Will this at least give the state an economic boost? Tax holidays “do not promote economic growth or significantly increase consumer purchases,” concluded the Tax Foundation in Washington, D.C. They “simply shift the timing of purchases.”
If your kid needs a new notebook and calculator for school, after all, you don’t have much choice but to buy them, even with sales tax attached.
The brief respite helps low-income consumers only by helping lots of affluent shoppers who don’t need the break.
As the first sales tax “holiday” in Illinois heads into its final three days, retailers at suburban stores and malls are crowing that it produced Christmas-caliber crowds this week.
“It has been like the holidays here at Gurnee Mills. The only thing missing was the snow and Santa,” said Director of Marketing Michelle Rice.
Stratford Square Mall in Bloomingdale reported that traffic was up 12 percent last week compared to a year ago. […]
“People are living on a budget. The money they save through the tax break encourages them to buy that extra pair of shoes,” said Anita Blackford, senior vice president of mall operations at Stratford Square in Bloomingdale.
While retail sales figures are not available, mall officials say they are hearing anecdotally that sales at many stores are up.
“Our retailers are singing the praises. They are dancing to the sounds of the cash register,” Rice said at Gurnee Mills. Area Walmart stores are also reporting large crowds over the past week.
The Illinois Retail Merchants Association is also ecstatic.
Illinois has lost out to Texas in a bid for a new Caterpillar plant.
Caterpillar Inc. said Thursday it chose Victoria, Texas, as the site for the new factory, which will make a line of excavating equipment, including some currently built in Aurora.
The new plant will employ about 500 when it opens in mid-2012. Aurora isn’t expected to lose jobs, however, because of Caterpillar’s recently announced plans to build hydraulic mining shovels there.
It’s the second time Caterpillar has shuffled some work from Illinois to Texas. Two years ago, the company chose Seguin, Texas, to make engines that previously were manufactured in Mossville, near Cat’s Peoria headquarters.
* What happens to the 2010 campaign environment if Rod Blagojevich - God forbid - walks? For argument’s sake, let’s say it’s a couple of “not guilty” verdicts and a hung jury on the rest.
Do you favor or oppose a bill in which the federal government would provide 26 billion dollars to
state governments to pay for Medicaid benefits and the salaries of public school teachers or other government workers?
Favor 60%
Oppose 38%
No opinion 2%
I’m assuming, since this state is more liberal and more pro-Obama than average and since our budget situation is so bad, that the number is even higher here. Some are calling this a sop to the unions, but most people obviously see it for what it is: A relatively modest attempt to keep states and school districts from meltdowns.
* Bill Brady, however, thinks the bill was a mistake…
Republican candidate for governor Bill Brady said Thursday that Congress was wrong to pass an aid package that will give Illinois nearly $1 billion for teachers and health care.
Brady said the $26 billion legislation will increase the federal deficit and leave Illinois with a bigger budget hole to fill next year.
“These are just typical Washington games, digging a deeper hole,” Brady told reporters as he prepared to march in the Illinois State Fair Twilight Parade. “I don’t know where they’re going to get the money.”
But Brady also said the state should take the money to get its fair share.
Gov. Pat Quinn tamped down speculation Thursday that lawmakers would have to return to the state Capitol this summer to deal with a new influx of federal funds.
Speaking to reporters at the launch of the Illinois State Fair parade, Quinn said he doubted a special legislative session would have to be called for the state to spend more than $400 million for education.
“I don’t think there’s a need for that,” Quinn said.
I followed up with the governor’s office this morning to ask how they would appropriate the money without a special session and received this e-mail…
We are reviewing the legislation to determine our options. We hope to make a final determination shortly.
OK, so the guv says no need for a special, but his office says it hasn’t been determined yet. Great.
* Mark Kirk voted against the state aid bill because he said it added to the deficit. He has also repeatedly attacked his US Senate opponent Alexi Giannoulias for opposing an extension of the Bush-era tax cuts. But the nonpartisan Joint Committee on Taxation has just released a new report showing that extending the cuts would add $36 billion to the deficit next year alone…
A Republican plan to extend tax cuts for the rich would add more than $36 billion to the federal deficit next year — and transfer the bulk of that cash into the pockets of the nation’s millionaires, according to a congressional analysis released Wednesday.
New data from the nonpartisan Joint Committee on Taxation show that households earning more than $1 million a year would reap nearly $31 billion in tax breaks under the GOP plan in 2011, for an average tax cut per household of about $100,000.
$36 billion added to the deficit in one year for the tax cut extension that Kirk supports, compared to $5 billion or so over ten years for a bill he opposed.
WBEZ asked Kirk about his support for extending those tax cuts, which greatly benefit the wealthy. Kirk gave a short answer about trying to avoid “class warfare.” Here’s a handy graphic which shows the difference between the plan Kirk supports and the president’s proposal. A larger version is here…
Asked by WBEZ where he’d cut the budget to pay for those tax breaks, Kirk refused to be pinned down.
* Other campaign stuff…
* ADDED: Breaking News: Auchi attorneys go after Illinois Review
* ADDED: Brady Can’t Tell Us Where He’ll Cut The Budget. But That’s Quinn’s Fault
Don Wade asked Giannoulias a direct question: “Did you lend any money to anybody who was controlling a nationwide prostitution ring?” Giannoulias answered “No.”
But that answer, as is so often the case here, is only partially true. Giannoulias’ family bank loaned money to Michael Giorango to buy the Lorraine Hotel in Miami. Giorango was busted for promoting (not controlling) that prostitution ring out of the very same hotel. And Giannoulias himself flew to Miami to “inspect” that hotel, and only admitted it after the 2006 Democratic primary when he defeated a Mike Madigan-backed candidate. From an April 27, 2006 story…
Democratic state treasurer nominee Alexi Giannoulias said Wednesday he was “embarrassed” by earlier remarks he made regarding millions of dollars in loans his family’s bank gave to a convicted felon, and he tried anew to explain a relationship that has cast a shadow over his campaign.
Giannoulias, the senior loan officer and vice president of his family’s Broadway Bank, previously described convicted bookmaker and prostitution ring promoter Michael Giorango as “a very nice person” and dismissed his relationship with Giorango as someone he had met at the bank “a few” times.
But on Wednesday, Giannoulias said he traveled to Miami “about a year or two ago” to inspect property the bank had financed for Giorango and met with him there. Giannoulias declined to provide details of that meeting.
“Giannoulias declined to provide details of that meeting.” Classic.
But Giannoulias said that since he became a full-time senior loan officer, he has met Giorango at the bank “a few” times.
He described Giorango as “a very nice person” and questioned whether Giorango actually was a criminal. “Is he a crime figure?” Giannoulias asked. “I don’t know what the charges are that makes him this huge crime figure.”
Nicknamed “Jaws,” Giorango pleaded guilty in 1989 to helping direct a south suburban bookmaking ring that used threats of bombings, beatings and robbery to collect unpaid debts. Then in 1991, he was convicted of additional gambling and tax violations stemming from his role in a separate bookmaking operation overseen by Chicago Heights gambling boss Dominic Barbaro.
In 2004, federal prosecutors convicted him of promoting the Circuit, a nationwide prostitution ring, by encouraging Miami madam Judy Krueger to have prostitutes work from one of his hotels and by using the women to entertain and entice his business associates.
This is the way it usually is with Giannoulias. Wait until after the next election to clear things up and then clear those “misstatements” up after the following election. He said he was a major player at Broadway Bank before the 2006 primary. Now, he says he was a minor player. He didn’t know Giorango before the 2006 primary, afterwards he admitted he knew him and even hung out with the guy in Miami.
He has said that if he and the bank had known about the dark history of Giorango that they wouldn’t have given him the loans. But his brother has said the bank knew at least some of what was going on and went ahead with the loans anyway.
The Miami trip is the closest connection that we know Giannoulias had to a criminal. Most of the other stuff hurled against him isn’t directly traceable to Giannoulias and is way overblown. But that Miami trip is direct. Now, it may turn out to be nothing at all, but Mark Kirk is right to press this issue.
*** UPDATE 4 - 1:43 pm *** Judge Erickson’s report has now been released. Click here to read it. Other info from the press conference follows below…
* Judge Erickson at the press conference: “MGT Push was a total failure… dysfunctional.” “It failed in its basic purpose, which was to help rehabilitate, to protect the public, to deter crime.” MGT Push object was to “save more money.” “No benefit… No deterrent benefit. No benefit to the inmate whatsoever.”
* Erickson: “What push did was it took a broken system and it made it worse.”
* John Bambenek says this in comments and he’s absolutely right…
I just read the entire report… no mention of WHO came up with this idea, WHO authorized it, WHO reviewed it, WHO approved it.
It’s a process-oritented review. It’s needed, sure. But this is not the report we’ve been looking for.
* Erickson: MGT Push “presented dangers to the public safety”
* Quinn has announced a 3:30 press conference in Chicago.
* Erickson claims it wasn’t a “secret” program because a bunch of insiders knew about it. He didn’t say, however, if Gov. Quinn knew about it. Quinn has said he didn’t know.
A report released by Gov. Pat Quinn’s administration today says an accelerated early release program for prisoners was “a mistake” that failed to protect public safety. […]
In a news release, the administration acknowledged the early release program had “serious flaws.”
“The MGT Push program was a mistake. Although focused on reducing costs during a fiscal crisis, it failed to accomplish the overriding goals of the State’s Code of Corrections: protecting the public’s safety and restoring inmates to useful citizenship,” the report states.
Later, the panel concludes the program “was ill-conceived.
* Reporter questions are beginning…
* Director Randle: “The pressure to save money on DoC wasn’t any different from any other state agency… We were asked to look for opportunities to cut costs…”
* Randle said “No” when asked if the governor was aware that violent offenders were being released early. He sid “the governor was clear” that he didn’t want violent offenders released.
* Judge Erickson: “I’ve recommended no one’s dismissal… Personnel matters were not part of my charge…” He said he didn’t know who was responsible for the program.
* End.
*** UPDATE 3 - 1:34 pm *** The report is still not online. Help live-blog in comments if you can. The governor is coincidentally at the State Fair today, so he’s not at the press conference.
*** UPDATE 1 - 1:15 pm *** The press conference will start at 1:30 and live audio and the full report will be available at that time at Illinois.gov. [UPDATED LINK] We do have an advance press release. The headline reads: “Erickson Report Finds Serious Flaws in MGT Push Program, Offers Guidelines for Improved Corrections Procedures.” Click here for the full release…
The review panel’s report sets out four core objectives for any good conduct credit program:
1) Protect public safety by deterring crime, including re-offending by former inmates;
2) Recognize and respect the interests of victims;
3) Offer appropriate incentives and rewards for inmates’ positive behavior while incarcerated, and,
4) Provide inmates with access to relevant rehabilitative programs.
Judge Erickson and the review panel found that MGT Push failed to achieve these objectives. The review recommends three major areas of reform, and further advises that all meritorious credit programs remain suspended until crucial reforms are in place.
Earned and Individualized Awards. The Department of Corrections’ accelerated meritorious credit program discarded an unwritten previous policy requiring inmates to spend at least 60 days in state custody before receiving any awards for meritorious conduct. The MGT Push program also continued the Department’s longstanding practice of routinely awarding MGT credit to inmates who had done little, if anything, to demonstrate good conduct.
Accountability and Transparency. The report found that the Department of Corrections relied on unwritten rules and outdated technology and procedures in its inmate release programs, and further found that the record-keeping and policies related to release decisions varied widely throughout the system.
Some recommendations…
The report recommends a number of measures to enhance the accountability and transparency of both the program and individual meritorious credit awards. The committee calls on the Director to formally delegate authority over earned “good time” programs to the Department’s Chief Public Safety Officer. Program policies and procedures instituted under the Chief Public Safety Officer’s direction should be set forth in formal, written rules, directives, and manuals and should be developed with both notice to and input from community stakeholders.
Communication. The report found that the Department failed to notify local authorities of pending prisoner releases in a uniform and timely manner. In December 2009, Governor Quinn ordered the Department of Corrections to provide local prosecutors with at least 14 days’ advance notice before releasing an inmate with meritorious credit into mandatory supervision. Governor Quinn sought legislation to make this change permanent; this policy was made law when Governor Quinn signed Senate Bill 1013 in January 2010.
In addition to these reforms, the committee recommends that the Department institute a fully electronic advance notification process with appropriate procedural safeguards, to give local authorities time to respond to or prepare for a prisoner’s release. Additionally, updated electronic information-sharing between local authorities, the Illinois State Police, and the Department of Corrections would improve internal decisions on awarding good-conduct credit, expand communication with victims, and alert jail and prison authorities to potential inmate risks.
[ *** End Of Updates *** ]
* 11:01 am - From a press release…
MEDIA ADVISORY
**Friday, August 13, 2010**
CHICAGO - Judge David Erickson and members of Governor Quinn’s administration will release
the Report on the Meritorious Good Time and MGT Push programs.
WHO: Retired Appellate Court Justice and Criminal Trial Judge David Erickson
Jerome Stermer, Chief of Staff, Office of the Governor
John Schomberg, Acting General Counsel, Office of the Governor
Michael Randle, Director, Illinois Department of Corrections
Gladyse Taylor, Acting Assistant Director, Illinois Department of Corrections
Mark S. Prosperi, Public Safety Liaison Officer, Office of the Governor;
Michael J. McCotter, Chief Public Safety Officer, Illinois Department of Corrections
WHEN: 1:30 p.m.
WHERE: James R. Thompson Center
Hearing Room 16-503
100 West Randolph Street
Chicago, Illinois 60601
This will be broadcast live on the Internet. Come back at 1:30 for the link.
I sure hope this isn’t gonna be a whitewash.
* Background…
* December 13, 2009: Illinois prisons shave terms, secretly release inmates: Repeat drunk drivers, drug users and even people convicted of battery and weapons violations are serving less than three weeks’ total time behind bars under a secret change in policy by Illinois Gov. Pat Quinn’s prison system, The Associated Press has learned.
* December 14, 2009: Illinois Governor Pat Quinn puts prison early release program on hold - Opponents claim some inmates spent only weeks behind bars before being set free
* December 21, 2009: Gov. Quinn Appoints Former Judge To Head Meritorious Good Time Review
* December 30, 2009: Gov. Quinn Overhauls Controversial Prison Release Program, Will Bolster Law and Agency Operations
* January 04, 2010: Ill. governor says early secret prison release was a mistake - Gov. Pat Quinn reversed a secret policy that allowed more than 1,700 inmates to be released early
* January 5, 2010: Illinois Governor Pat Quinn suspends another early release program
* January 13, 2010: House OKs minimum prison term, release notice
* January 13, 2010: 130 back in prison after state’s parole crackdown
* Jan 14, 2010: Quinn stands behind corrections director
* January 22, 2010: Corrections: Wrong early release prisoners listed
* May 18, 2010: Governor blames prison board for early release
* June 23, 2010: Dozens of prisoners released early in Ill. have disappeared, some are violent
* June 28, 2010: Judge still reviewing prison-release policy: But the report has languished as Erickson, a senior law lecturer, took teaching assignments in Texas and Florida last spring. And he said officials decided to include a review of the agency’s computer system. “I’m shooting for just after the 4th of July to be done with my report,” Erickson told The Associated Press.
* The US Attorney’s office has never been quite the same since Patrick Collins left for the private sector. Collins was the heart and soul of that operation. His conviction of George Ryan was a work of art. And while I wasn’t exactly enamored with what he did in Springfield with the botched reform effort, I was in awe of his abilities as a prosecutor.
Collins is doing some TV analysis work, and here he is on WGN admitting frankly that yesterday was a “bad day for the government” in Rod Blagojevich’s trial…
The full segment is here. Let’s hope he’s right about the jury coming back fresh on Monday.
* Roundup…
* Try, try again: It’s a safe bet: The feds will retry Blago on every charge where the jury winds up being permanently deadlocked.
Days after Jim Edgar was elected governor in 1990, he walked into his Chicago office suite to see none other than Congressman Dan Rostenkowski waiting for him.
Edgar barely knew Rostenkowski, but he realized that making one of the most powerful congressmen in the nation cool his heels in his outer lobby probably wasn’t a good thing. So he immediately invited Rostenkowski into his private office, apologizing that his staff hadn’t recognized the chairman of the U.S. House Ways and Means Committee.
Rostenkowski could be a pretty gruff guy, but he seemed completely unperturbed at the slight, Edgar told me a few months ago.
Once they were inside, Rostenkowski turned quickly to business and said something like: “I was with your opponent during the campaign, but you won and now I’m with you.”
And so began a friendship and strong working relationship that lasted four years and produced numerous projects and dollars for the state.
The two men spoke often, and Rostenkowski almost always came through, Edgar said. He was true to his word and helped Edgar get through some pretty tough times.
When Rostenkowski was under federal investigation during the 1994 Democratic primary, Edgar all of a sudden started hosting ribbon-cutting ceremonies with the suddenly vulnerable incumbent. After Rostenkowski was indicted a few months later, Edgar barely said a negative word.
Almost nobody figured that Rostenkowski could lose re-election, even under indictment. And his legislative abilities, seniority and position made him so important to Illinois and to Chicago that nobody in power wanted to see him go away.
But lose he did, to a hapless, unknown, underfunded kid with no backing other than local voter anger and a national Republican tidal wave.
Edgar stuck out his neck for Rostenkowski, but he has no regrets, and it’s hard to blame him. Those were different times. Most of the corruption cases back then were of judges and lower-level types. And Edgar had such a clean reputation that what little mud splashed on him soon washed off.
We saw the same sort of thing happen when George Ryan was governor.
After the Republican was elected and the federal corruption investigation began to bear down hard, reporters would often ask Democratic House Speaker Michael Madigan for comment, and he would always say that he didn’t want to “kick a man when he was down.” Few people of either party ever spoke against Ryan, for that matter.
The reason? Mainly, Ryan had a real knack for getting things done, and he was willing to work with everybody he could to accomplish those goals.
It’s tragic for Illinois that true statesmen such as Ryan and Rostenkowski turned out to be crooked. Their nefarious behavior led directly to Rod Blagojevich’s rise to power. Blagojevich won Rostenkowski’s old congressional seat in the 1996 Democratic backlash and ran mostly against George Ryan when he defeated Jim Ryan in the 2002 gubernatorial election.
That didn’t work out so well, in case you hadn’t noticed. Let’s just keep our fingers crossed that Blagojevich’s jurors somehow find a way to put that man where he belongs.
And now here we are, stuck with an accidental governor who can’t seem to get anything done and a Republican opponent who appears unable to grasp the very real crisis we find ourselves in. And Bill Brady has never been mentioned as a statesman.
It’s enough to make me want to scream.
Isn’t there anybody left out there who can play this game who isn’t also a crook? Anybody?
* Gov. Pat Quinn talked to reporters during the State Fair’s Twilight Parade about the Blagojevich jury, whether he thinks Blagojevich is guilty, the lack of civility in the campaign so far, Bill Brady’s support for George W. Bush, Brady’s tax returns and when the federal state aid is getting to schools. Watch…
* State Sen. Bill Brady talked to reporters before the parade about the Blagojevich jury, Blagojevich’s guilt, the impact of the trial on the campaign, Quinn’s recent budget cuts, the governor’s staff pay raises, and his position on the federal aid to states bill. Have a look…
* Robert Blagojevich briefly talked to reporters as he walked out of the Dirksen Federal Building yesterday…
* And Scott Lee Cohen talks to Patrick McDonough on CAN-TV…
