* More smart divide and conquer by striking road workers. From a press release…
Local 150, Will & Grundy County Contractors Reach Agreement
Many south suburban projects to resume
Countryside, Illinois-This morning, the International Union of Operating Engineers Local 150 and the Contractors Association of Will and Grundy Counties (CAWGC) reached a tentative three-year agreement, which will allow many projects affected by the strike to resume. The agreement calls for annual increases of 3.25 percent, which will go toward healthcare and benefits.
“This significance of this agreement cannot be overstated,” said James M. Sweeney, President-Business Manager of Local 150, “because you will see projects that have been stopped for more than two weeks start up again.”
Some of the projects that will resume include:
· Interstate 55 construction
· Interstate 55 & Route 59 Interchange
· Route 59 construction
· Larkin Avenue from Route 30 to Route 52
· Weber Road from Lily Cache Road to Interstate 55
· Olivet Nazarene University improvements and chapel construction
Another result of this agreement will be the availability of construction equipment and materials that have not been available for many projects throughout the strike. Many projects held up because of their reliance on struck MARBA contractors for this equipment and material can now look to any of the 55 contractors signed to this agreement to provide what they need.
“What we are proposing to contractors is completely reasonable,” said Sweeney. “MARBA disagrees, but they are the only ones who do. These other associations have chosen fair contracts over needless stalling.”
“MARBA has said that agreements such as this don’t affect them, but if MARBA doesn’t want to return to work, these associations represent many contractors who can take over for them.”
The Laborers District Council of Chicago & Vicinity reached an agreement with CAWGC on Tuesday.
The International Union of Operating Engineers, Local 150 is a labor union representing more than 23,000 working men and women in Illinois, Indiana and Iowa. Local 150 represents workers in various industries, including construction, construction material production, concrete pumping, steel mill service, slag production, landscaping, public works and others.
* The contractors association isn’t budging, however. From a Thursday letter to its members…
It is unfortunate that the locals are attempting to pit companies against each other, but it is transparent and does not weaken our resolve one bit. In fact, it unites us even stronger.
We are attempting to put the union men and women back to work on jobs for which we are finally getting the opportunity to bid. While we were attempting to negotiate in good faith, the unions’ leaders declared a strike.
The unions have continued to demand a nearly 14 percent increase in wages and benefits over three years—their last offer was 4.55 percent per year for three years. Meanwhile the rank and file union members are out of work, unable to earn their $53 to $66 dollars an hour, while their leaders posture for the camera.
The projects that truly are of concern to people—the Eisenhower Expressway; downtown buildings like Roosevelt University’s tower; hospitals like Silver Cross in New Lenox—are still not resuming work and the vast majority of men and women represented by the locals are still out of work.
This strike may go on for a while until the unions get serious about recognizing today’s economic realities to help us secure work and put their members back on the job, and until that happens we may have a long way to go.
* That section in the union’s press release about how materials and equipment will now be freed up relates to this story…
A two-week-old construction workers strike that halted many Chicago-area roadway projects is now forcing the Illinois Tollway to set deadlines for the total suspension of three major projects, despite a written agreement prohibiting work stoppages, officials said Friday.
Construction crews on the tollway system are showing up for work. The problem is that the construction companies they work for cannot obtain the materials and equipment they need because union drivers are honoring the picket lines of striking laborers outside asphalt plants, concrete-mix facilities and quarries, officials said.
As a result, officials at the Illinois State Toll Highway Authority have stopped the removal of concrete on pavement-patching jobs on several interstates because of difficulty receiving materials to complete the work. In some cases, other work is continuing, but at a slow pace, officials said.
The toll authority also set deadlines Friday to fully suspend all work on the Edens Spur, the Veterans Memorial Tollway and the Tri-State Tollway/Reagan Memorial Tollway interchange–likely until next construction season.
Republican Congressman Mark Kirk ranked 8th in the nation with his $2.3 million quarterly haul. Kirk raised just $100,000 less than Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid. Impressive. Giannoulias’ $900K ranked him at 28th. Kirk finished 15th in the country for his cash on hand of $4 million. Giannoulias ranked 37th.
Over in the House, Republican Bob Dold ranked 22nd in the country with his $564,000 raised last quarter. His 10th CD Democratic opponent Dan Seals was two notches below with his $556,000 total. Democratic Rep. Bill Foster ranked 21st in the nation for his $1.6 million cash on hand. Rep. Debbie Halvorson was 8 slots lower with her $1.4 million. Here’s the Illinois list…
State
District
Candidate
Party
Cash on Hand
Amount Raised in Q2
Ill.
8
Rep. Melissa Bean
Democrat
$1,200,000
$300,000
Ill.
8
Joe Walsh
Republican
$30,000
$101,000
Ill.
10
Dan Seals
Democrat
$792,000
$556,000
Ill.
10
Bob Dold
Republican
$725,000
$564,000
Ill.
11
Rep. Debbie Halvorson
Democrat
$1,400,000
$302,000
Ill.
11
Adam Kinzinger
Republican
$480,000
$325,000
Ill.
13
Scott Harper
Democrat
$198,000
$143,000
Ill.
13
Rep. Judy Biggert
Republican
$869,000
$264,000
Ill.
14
Rep. Bill Foster
Democrat
$1,600,000
$461,000
Ill.
14
Randy Hultgren
Republican
$245,000
$307,000
* Back in June, the state’s entire Republican congressional delegation held a fundraiser for three House GOP candidates, Adam Kinzinger, Bob Dold and Randy Hultgren.
House Republican Leader John Boehner was a featured guest, as were House Republican Whip Eric Cantor, NRCC Chairman Pete Sessions and Chief Deputy Whip Kevin McCarthy. Click here to watch raw video of some of the men arriving at the funder.
The money contributed at the fundraiser was supposed to be split up equally between the three candidates, with part of the bigger checks going to the NRCC. The reason for this split is that the three campaigns had formed a “Joint Federal Committee” with the NRCC called the Illinois Majority Fund.
The event was a financial disaster. It was put together in just ten days, a bunch of other Chicago fundraisers were scheduled around the same time and a mere $16,000 was raised.
Even the split got screwed up. Bob Dold didn’t get a single dime. Adam Kinzinger received $1,000. Randy Hultgren got $2,500. It cost about $1,300 to put on the event at the Chicago Club while much of the rest was split up between three consultants. The split was apparently messed up because some attendees had already maxed out to some of the candidates, I’ve been told by two people close to the disaster.
My questions about the uneven split and the botched funder were referred to the National Republican Congressional Committee. Cabell Hobbs, the NRSC/NRCC Victory Committee treasurer, is the treasurer of the Illinois Majority Fund. Here’s the NRCC’s non-response…
“I think our candidates’ stellar performances this quarter speak for themselves. Robert Dold and Adam Kinzinger were just two of the many Republican candidates outraised their Democratic opponents. Part of being a candidate is finding out what works and what doesn’t through trial and error or when it comes to raising money.” – Tom Erickson, NRCC spokesman
Apparently, bringing in just about every big gun in the world didn’t work.
* US Sen. Roland Burris actually showed up at a Chicago media event today. Mary Ann Ahern obtains our quote of the day…
Senator Burris, embattled ever since his appointment by former Gov. Blagojevich, spoke bitterly about his time in office and his inability to run for his current office again.
“You took 30 years of a great career and smashed it,” Burris said of the media. He added that if there is a special election for the seat, “I’m running.”
Burris mentioned he was upset with Congressman Mark Kirk for using Burris’ photograph in a TV ad which accuses the Democrats of being corrupt.
Burris refused to comment on the Blagojevich trial.
Yeah. He’s running. Sure. Then again, considering the flaws of the two major party candidates, he might not do too badly.
“You took 30 years of a great career and smashed it,” Burris said of the media. He added: “If there is a special election, I’m announcing my candidacy right now. I will run.”
“Why don’t you all report the truth for me?” Burris asked. “All this stuff about Burris is ‘Pay to Play,’ Burris ‘lied’ to get seated. I haven’t done anything wrong — that’s the truth.”
Would he have liked a full term in the Senate?
“I would love to spend one term in the United States Senate as I was hoping to do but your colleagues in the media made that almost impossible [with] what they put out to the public of Illinois: They took 30 years of my great career and just smashed it into ‘Burris is some type of a…’ How shall I say it? “… some type of a dishonest person.’ I’ve never been dishonest.”
*11:18 am - Subscribers already knew about this. The governor is attempting to ease the widespread and sharp criticism over his big raises for 35 staff members by doubling last year’s 12 unpaid furlough days to 24 for every non-union employee. Here’s the announcement via press release…
Governor Pat Quinn today directed his Budget Office to issue an administrative order to cut the state budget by reducing the salaries of his staff, state managers and policymakers. Administrative Order #1 requires the Governor’s staff and the state’s merit compensation employees – largely managers and policy staff – to take 24 unpaid days off.
Last year, Governor Quinn took 12 days without pay and required his staff and merit compensation employees to do the same. This year, Governor Quinn and his staff will take 24 unpaid days off.
Governor Quinn urged members of the Illinois General Assembly and their staffs to take 24 unpaid days off. He also called on the state’s union employees to take additional days off without pay.
“Today’s Administrative Order is the first directive under the Emergency Budget Act of Fiscal Year 2011 aimed at further cutting state spending,” said Governor Quinn. “We must take continued actions to reduce state spending and strengthen the Illinois economy.”
Today’s Administrative Order #1 is an across-the-board salary reduction that will result in a 9.2 percent salary cut for the Governor’s staff and state managers and policymakers. This plan will save the state approximately $18 million in fiscal year 2011.
“Unprecedented times call for unprecedented measures, and I thank our hardworking state employees for their dedication in getting Illinois back on track,” said Governor Quinn. “Today, I am calling on all state employees – not just managers and policymakers, but the Illinois General Assembly, their staffs and union members as well – to join us in taking the necessary steps to further cut the state budget.”
Governor Quinn also called American Federation of State, County, and Municipal Employees (AFSCME) – the state’s largest collective bargaining unit – back to the bargaining table to negotiate additional unpaid days off in fiscal year 2011.
…Adding… While the press release refers to the governor’s staff, state managers and policymakers, the order specifically says “All non-bargaining unit state employees.” Then again, just about everybody is in a bargaining unit these days.
The time off from work required here, and resulting reduction in compensation, is not considered a change in salary and shall not impact pension or other benefits provided to those employees.
Translation: The furloughs won’t hurt the pensions of Quinn’s staffers who just got those big pay raises.
…Adding Still More… A friend of mine tells me her sister, who makes $45K a year and is not in a union, is just about at her wit’s end right now. She simply cannot afford this new furlough order and is not allowed to join a bargaining unit. The original Quinn plan was reportedly to apply this new furlough to those making over $50K a year. No such luck for my friend’s sister.
Gov. Pat Quinn is reducing the salaries of his staff through unpaid days off, just weeks after it was revealed he’s been giving raises as high as 20 percent.
AFSCME spokesman Anders Lindall said union members have already made “tremendous sacrifice to help the state get through the tough times, including agreeing to defer $200 million in scheduled pay increases. He said the union is still willing to work with Quinn to find ways to save the state money.
“We have an obligation and we’re willing to listen to what the governor has to say, but we also know that Illinois has the nation’s smallest state work force per capita, that the demand for public services is higher than ever in this recession and that our members are working harder than ever to provide those vital services.”
Quinn is holding an afternoon news conference, where he is expected to field more questions about the pay cuts.
“Today’s fourteen hundredths of one percent reduction out of a $13 billion-budget gap shows Governor Quinn protects big government at all costs, and only responds after pressure from taxpayers and the media. After Blagojevich-style pay hikes for cronies, his bizarre canoe czar, and secret criminal releases, this is yet another slap in the face of taxpayers.”
COHEN CAMPAIGN LANUCHES STATEWIDE “LISTENING TOUR”
Cohen Plans To “Listen and Learn before Legislating”
Chicago – Scott Lee Cohen is taking his Independent Campaign for Governor of Illinois on the road. Beginning Monday, July 19, 2010; Cohen will set out to hear the voters’ concerns firsthand and what they want their governor to do about those concerns. “I firmly believe that in order to be a good and effective leader, you
have to listen, learn and then legislate the concerns and expectations of the people of this state.”
During his weeklong “Listening Tour”, that runs through Friday July 23, Cohen plans to meet with dozens of local officials and hundreds of residents in at least ten (10) Illinois counties including DuPage, Kane, Kendall, Grundy, LaSalle, Livingston, Randolph, Will, and Kankakee.
“I will meet with mayors, village managers, small business owners, military veterans, farmers and others. I look forward to what they have to say because I value their opinions,” says Cohen.
* The Question: Besides asking whether he can spell “launches,” what question(s) would you have for Scott Lee Cohen if you attended one of these events?
* Could there be a mistrial in Rod Blagojevich’s case? At least one appellate justice thinks so. An appellate court ruled earlier this month that Judge Zagel should reexamine his decision that kept Blagojevich juror names a secret. But Judge Richard Posner has since filed an opinion blasting the ruling and defending Zagel…
In his opinion, Posner quickly came to Zagel’s defense. In the first sentence, he wrote: “An experienced trial judge made a reasonable determination that the release of jurors’ names before the end of the trial would expose the jurors to the widespread mischief that is a daily if not hourly occurrence on the Internet.”
Posner then began a scathing review of Easterbrook’s decision, calling it “unsound and confusing.”
He attacked the presumption of media access. “Jurors are entitled to be treated with respectful regard for their privacy and dignity, rather than as media prey.”
He said the panel ignored the consequences of Zagel having to possibly renege on a promise made to jurors and argued that there’s no need for a further hearing. “The jurors may well be upset, concerned for their privacy, fearful of the prospect of harassment and angry at having been induced by false pretenses to agree to take months out of their life to perform jury service.”
Posner even went so far as to say that Zagel might have to declare a mistrial.
Let’s hope not.
* Judge Zagel apparently didn’t want this tape played in court, but I, for one, am quite curious about what the heck was going on…
[Blagojevich attorney Aaron Goldstein] is arguing that some of the blocked calls point to Blagojevich’s state of mind when he was allegedly bartering over the Senate seat. Zagel said he was surprised the defense would want some of the calls played to the jury.
“The state of mind he is discussing is shutting down state government and blaming somebody else,” Zagel said of one conversation. “If you tell me he wasn’t serious, I believe you.”
Goldstein said it showed what Blagojevich was dealing with in Illinois in 2008.
“We don’t have an objection to the part about shutting down state government,” Assistant U.S. Atty. Reid Schar said with a smirk to the judge, who said he would make a final decision about the call after hearing Blagojevich on the stand.
Blagojevich was planning a government shutdown and then blaming somebody else for it? Madigan? But what was the premise? Fascinating.
* Blagojevich loved to ask lobbyists if they were making lots of money back when he was governor. He made a few of his friends quite rich…
John Wyma, a chief of staff during Blagojevich’s congressional career, testified this week that he made “better than $1 million” in his first year as a Springfield lobbyist.
Alonzo “Lon” Monk, a former chief of staff to the governor, testified he got $750,000 in his first year as a lobbyist after successfully running Blagojevich’s 2006 re-election campaign. Former campaign spokesman Doug Scofield, who briefly served as Blagojevich’s first deputy governor, also took on a host of lobbying clients. […]
Though his firm wasn’t as large as Wyma’s or Monk’s, Scofield still became a lobbyist for Blagojevich’s biggest campaign donor, the Service Employees International Union, and came back to work for Blagojevich’s re-election bid in 2006. One of his first clients also was the Illinois Math and Science Academy, which state records show paid Scofield Communications more than $283,000.
Jennifer Janasie, [Green Party gubernarorial nominee Rich Whitney’s] campaign manager, says Whitney has raised about $29,000 dollars since December, but points out the campaign is significantly ahead of the $16,866 Whitney reported for the same time period last time he ran for governor.
“We have a lot more people sending in donations this time,” Janasie says. “The numbers in no way suggest we can’t be competitive.”
[Green Party US Senate candidate LeAlan Jones’] campaign manager reports only about $1,500 in the bank. He blames, in part, people he says told Jones in private they’d support him, but have been unwilling to make it official.
* The FEC quarterly filing deadline always produces more spin than a ceiling fan in August. This week was no exception (and, considering the heat, the same goes for ceiling fans). From Republican congressional candidate Adam Kinzinger’s campaign…
The Kinzinger for Congress campaign announced Thursday that the campaign raised more than $325,000 in the last three months – $20,000-plus more than incumbent opponent Congresswoman Debbie Halvorson – and has more than $480,000 on hand to invest in communicating its message and reaching out to voters in every corner of the IL-11 Congressional District.
Democrat U.S. Rep. Debbie Halvorson has about $1 million more than Republican Adam Kinzinger in their race for Congress, the campaigns reported Thursday.
Halvorson, a first-term representative from Crete, reported having about $1.4 million in the bank, money she’ll be able to spend on television ads and other expenses in the coming months.
* From Democrat Dan Seals’ congressional campaign…
In another clear show of support from Illinois voters, Democratic Congressional Candidate Dan Seals today announced a consecutive strong fundraising quarter in the race for the open seat in Illinois’ 10th District.
In the second quarter FEC reporting period that closed on June 30, Seals received $556,156 in contributions. Seals will also report having $792,000 cash-on-hand.
What isn’t mentioned is that his opponent got his own “clear show of support” with an almost identical FEC report…
Wilmette Democrat Dan Seals and Kenilworth Republican Robert Dold are neck-and-neck in campaign fundraising in their nationally-watched race for an open north suburban congressional seat.
Both candidates report having nearly $800,000 in the bank to start July in what’s expected to be a costly contest by the time 10th Congressional District voters hit the polls Nov. 2. Seals and Dold are vying to replace Republican U.S. Rep. Mark Kirk, who held the Democrat-leaning district for a decade. Kirk is now running for U.S. Senate.
Seals, who is making his third run for the seat, raised more than $550,000 from April through June, spokeswoman Aviva Gibbs said this afternoon. Dold collected about $560,000 for the same time spokeswoman Kelly Klopp said.
An NRCC press release was entitled: “Dold Outraises Seals In Obama’s Backyard.” Is the 10th CD really Obama’s back yard?
* On the other hand, Republican congressional candidate Randy Hultgren kinda/sorta admitted that his quarterly report wasn’t up to snuff…
The Hultgren for Congress campaign announced today that it raised $309,080.00 in the quarter ending June 30 and has $244,669.00 cash on hand.
“I am pleased with the strong support I continue to receive from throughout the 14th Congressional District,” said State Senator Randy Hultgren.
“I realize that we have a long way to go to match the hundreds of thousands of dollars that special interest groups have poured in to my opponent’s campaign,” said Hultgren. “Therefore, I am pleased to announce the addition of Lisa Wagner, of Lisa Wagner and Company, an expert in fundraising with a long track record of success, to my finance team.”
In the 8th CD where an underdog favorite pulled out a surprise GOP primary upset for businessman Joe Walsh, Walsh’s not been able to raise more funds than he’s spent in the second quarter, FEC filings show today.
Walsh, who raised a little over $100,000 in the second quarter, spent $114,000, leaving him with $30,292 on hand. With $88,000 in outstanding debts, the campaign committee as of this week’s reports, stands nearly $50,000 in the red, not boding well — at this point — for Walsh to run a viable campaign against Democrat incumbent Melissa Bean.
* In related news, sometimes, it’s best just to let your opponent twist in the wind.
Yesterday, Alexi Giannoulias held a press conference to slam Mark Kirk for taking corporate PAC and federal lobbyist money, but had to answer embarrassing questions about how his fundraising totals were so pathetic. As we’ve already discussed, Giannoulias raised just $900,000 raised and had $1 million cash on hand, leaving Kirk with an almost four-to-one cash advantage.
One of the stories about the Giannoulias presser included this section…
The Kirk campaign countered that Giannoulias does accept money from state lobbyists. Giannoulias, while not denying the claim, said he has barred lobbyists who solicit the Treasurer’s office from donating to his Senate campaign.
Kirk’s campaign had apparently salted the question before the presser, so it pounced via press release just minutes later…
Fact Check: Giannoulias Lobbyist Contributions
Misleading Claim: Alexi Giannoulias told reporters today he does not accept campaign contributions from state lobbyists registered to lobby the Treasurer’s Office.
Get the Facts: As of March 31, 2010, Alexi for Illinois accepted $87,626.35 from registered Illinois State lobbyists – including $28,326.35 from lobbyists registered with entities that lobby the Treasurer’s office in the same year as their contribution. (Sources: Federal Election Commission; State of Illinois Lobbying Information Search) The total as of June 30th is not yet available. Lobbyists registered with entities that lobby the Treasurer’s office who contributed to Alexi for Illinois include:
Trouble is, Giannoulias never actually said that he didn’t take state lobster cash. Video…
Female reporter: You don’t take federal money, but the Kirk folks are saying that you do take state lobbying money. Have you said ‘No’ to any kind of lobbyists who lobby for the state and especially to your treasurer’s office?
Giannoulias: And again, I understand the congressman is trying to put up smokescreens and trying to change the subject from the fact that he’s raised millions of dollars from federal lobbyists. The truth of the matter is my first day in office I ended pay-to-play in the state treasurer’s office. We don’t take money from anyone who does business with the state treasurer’s office. We don’t take money from banks. And if individuals want to donate, that’s fine. We have a complete firewall between myself and federal lobbyists.
Female reporter: What about state lobbyists? Other state lobbyists, maybe they don’t lobby your particular office, but state lobbyists. Is there a ban on those?
Giannoulias: Well, they don’t – and again, this is about the decision with regard to the U.S. Senate race, and with regards to the United States Senate. And they have no impact on that legislation.
This is basically the same policy that Barack Obama had in his presidential campaign. No federal lobster money, but he will gladly take state lobbyist donations. As I already pointed out to subscribers this week, Giannoulias is no Barack Obama. Copying Obama’s policy has cost him dearly.
Anyway, the Giannoulias campaign responded to the Kirk press release…
In a continued effort to desperately distract from Congressman Kirk’s problems with the truth, the Kirk campaign…stretched the truth. Ironic and not all together surprising, considering the source.
Like I said, sometimes it’s best just to let well enough alone.
* 4:07 pm - The striking Local 150 has split off another employer group. From a press release…
Today, the International Union of Operating Engineers, Local 150 reached a tentative agreement with the Illinois Valley Contractors Association (IVCA), the major employer association covering LaSalle, Putnam, Bureau, and Livingston Counties. The agreement, like yesterday’s tentative agreement with the Chicago Area Independent Contractors Association, would provide an annual increase of approximately 3.25 percent for three years.
“The IVCA represents small and large contractors, and historically, they have agreed to the same terms that we reach with the Mid-America Regional Bargaining Association (MARBA),” said James M. Sweeney, President-Business Manager of Local 150. MARBA has stalled negotiations with Local 150 until July 19th, calling the Union’s proposals “unrealistic.”
The Illinois Valley Contractors Association represents approximately 150 contractors, ranging from small local employers to national contractors.
“This tentative three-year contract with IVCA will protect our members’ healthcare and benefits,” said James M. Sweeney, President-Business Manager of Local 150. “Both sides sat down to negotiate and we found this to be a fair agreement that benefits the union members as well as the employers.”
“Obviously, employers across Northeastern Illinois find our proposal reasonable,” said Sweeney. “We are not looking for wage increases or to expand our benefits. We have committed $150 million of our money to stabilize our funds, and we are just asking employers to share the costs so workers can maintain what they have.”
Local 150 joined the Laborers’ District Council on strike against MARBA on July 1st in protest of unfair labor practices. MARBA has stalled negotiations once again until July 19th. “We once again repeat our offer to meet with MARBA earlier to try and work toward an agreement,” said Sweeney.
More than 100 contractors signed on to the CAICA agreement between this morning and noon, according to Sweeney. He continued that “MARBA’s stalling tactics were apparently meant not only to starve out union members, but small contractors as well. Now the contractors who are not on board with MARBA’s agenda have an alternative and they have been lined up since this morning to sign on with an association that wants to work instead of play games.”
* All the goofy hype notwithstanding, the state’s borrowing costs were actually lower than expected on yesterday’s bond offering. From the Wall Street Journal…
Illinois didn’t appear to have trouble attracting investors to a $900 million taxable municipal bond deal Wednesday, despite weak tax revenue, persistent fiscal woes and a yawning pension hole.
Investors bid up prices on the longest maturity part of the taxable Build America Bond deal, due in 2035, pushing down the risk premium to 325 basis points, or 3.25 percentage points, over the benchmark 30-year Treasury bond. Before the sale, the premium–the bonus investors demand to buy the bonds instead of extremely safe Treasurys–was forecast at 340 basis points, give or take 10 basis points.
The municipal market was unchanged to slightly firmer yesterday, amid light to moderate secondary trading activity, as Illinois launched $900 million of taxable Build America Bonds in the primary and the municipal scale stayed below 4% on the long end.
More than $2 billion in orders came in Wednesday for Illinois’ $900 million taxable Build America bond issue, a show of strong demand, said John Sinsheimer, the state’s director of capital markets. […]
The sale drew 93 investors, including 17 from overseas who bought about 29 percent of the issue.
“The fact that 17 highly sophisticated international investors made the decision that Illinois credit was worth their investment for the long term … is a true statement of their view of the creditworthiness of Illinois,” Sinsheimer said.
“The farther we traveled away from all of the noise that is in the US market on Illinois, the more focused investors were on the strength of the state’s economy and the statutory support we give our bonds,” said John Sinsheimer, head of capital markets for Illinois.
A big selling point for Illinois was that its state constitution requires that it make bond payments before any other bills, including education, public safety and entitlements.
“The whole muni sector hangs under this sovereign cloud from Europe,” said Scott Minerd, chief investment officer at Guggenheim Partners, a US money manager who bought the Illinois bonds. “If you look at how secure you are in the Illinois deal [with the priority of payments], you can pick up some bonds that are relatively cheap basically because no one wants to own them right now. The time to buy securities like Illinois is when you are being paid to take the risk.”
* None of this means that Illinois doesn’t have serious problems. It does. But investors know that bonds are absolutely the first to be paid, and I’ll bet that many believed like Minerd does that they could let the crazy hype boost earnings on an otherwise strong investment, even at the lower payoff rate.
Brady for Illinois today announced it raised $3.6 million in campaign contributions through the first half of this year.
In a report to be filed by July 20 with the State Board of Elections for the reporting period January 1st to June 30th, the Brady campaign will report contributions from every one of the state’s 102 counties. The campaign received contributions from over 4,200 individual donors, 2,500 of which were donations under $100.
Through June 30th, the campaign had approximately $2.3 million on hand.
The campaign also today announced the addition of businessman and long time Republican Party leader Ron Gidwitz as Chairman of Brady for Illinois.
That’s pretty good, and better than I think a lot of folks thought he’d be doing at this point. Thoughts?
…Adding… A search of the Board of Elections site shows Brady raised just $243,200.95 between Jan. 1 and primary day. So he’s raised about $3.4 million since then. He had about $190K in the bank as of Jan. 1st as well.
* As I’ve told subscribers, the Cedra Crenshaw campaign has kicked up a whole lot of national interest and local media is finally starting to take notice.
Crenshaw is a Republican candidate for the Illinois Senate. Actually, she was a candidate before she was knocked off the ballot. Her petitions had the wrong wording on them…
The [Will County] Electoral Board voted 2-1 to remove Crenshaw because her forms stated that signatures could be collected no earlier than 90 days before the filing deadline. A new state law requires that signatures be collected no earlier than 75 days before the deadline.
Those sorts of technicalities drive reformers up a wall. A different candidate in a different county faced the same objection, but was kept on the ballot. That drives reformers nuts as well, but we currently have two competing appellate cases on whether someone who votes in one primary can be appointed to the ballot on the other primary or run as a candidate with the other party.
Crenshaw is a tea partier, and she’s been touted nationally as a symbol of a simple mom who wants to run for the General Assembly. She’s also black, and tea party types have used her skincolor to counter claims by the NAACP and others that they are racists. As Fox Chicago reported last night, a Will County event with Gov. Quinn was interrupted yesterday by one of her white supporters, who made special mention of Crenshaw’s skin color…
Crenshaw herself has consistently claimed that the “Chicago Machine Democrats” who’ve kicked her off the ballot are racists…
I have yet to hear from the NAACP about this injustice to my campaign and the voters of Illinois’ 43rd State Senate District.
I encourage the NAACP to confront and condemn the explicit racist behavior of groups like the New Black Panther Party and to acknowledge the racial politics played by the Chicago Machine Democrats.
She’s also known for way over the top statements, like this one on Fox Chicago last night…
“Right here in the State of Illinois, the vote is being denied to the voters of the 43rd State Senate District by a frivolous challenge.”
No voters are being denied a right to vote. Just a “right” to vote for her.
These days, she’s running hard against the Chicago Machine, which seems quite afraid of her. […]
Crenshaw was bounced from the ballot, which just goes to show you how panicked the Dems are about the prospect of being held accountable in November.
“The Chicago Machine is afraid of me because I am a conservative black woman, backed by the tea party, with a winning message that is winning over typical Democratic constituencies,” Crenshaw says.
She deserves a chance to prove that. She needs to be on the ballot in November.
I don’t know a single sane Republican who thinks Crenshaw is gonna win that campaign or that the Democrats are afraid of her. Rod Blagojevich won that district in 2002 with 60 percent of the vote. John Kerry took 57 percent in 2004. State Sen.Wilhelmi took 70 percent in his last race. Only a partisan goofball would say this challenge was filed out of “fear.” They did it for the same reason Republicans and Democrats often challenge opposing candidates. They don’t want to bother with the distraction.
Crenshaw, herself, challenged a third candidate in the district. That candidate only filed one signature, but she could’ve let it slide. She objected because he’s a conservative who might take votes away from her.
* What the Democrats have done here is manage to create a massive PR headache for themselves. They could’ve just let it go, but they (like the Republicans) are what they are, and they just had to challenge those petitions. So, now they’re getting whacked by the Tribune and by at least one local columnist…
Crenshaw is a black homemaker and former accountant who is fighting for the chance to contest incumbent state Sen. A.J. Wilhelmi (D-Joliet) on Nov. 2. Wilhelmi’s 43rd District includes most of Homer Township and all of Lockport.
But as any newcomer knows, running for office often is the easy part. Getting on the ballot requires armor.
If you read this column on a semi-regular basis, you won’t be surprised at my indignation. More and more, incumbents expect to be carried through campaign season on chariots. Perhaps we can kiss their rings as they careen down the next parade route.
The Republicans are pretty sure they’ll win this on appeal. They may be right, but the red-hot racial rhetoric and the mindless Tribune rants really need to be toned down in the meantime. The Democrats didn’t challenge Crenshaw’s petitions because she was black, they challenged the petitions because she’s a Republican. Period.
* Rod Blagojevich’s attorneys are running into another brick wall with Judge Zagel. The judge is tossing their requests to play recordings out the window…
Of the 20 recordings Blagojevich lawyers asked to move into evidence Wednesday, U.S. District Judge James Zagel said he’ll allow just two to be played and gave a “maybe” on a handful of others. Another 10 new recordings are likely to be played after an agreement with the prosecution.
In all, Blagojevich is seeking to play 38 recordings secretly made by the government, but he must get an OK from the judge in hearings held Wednesday and today.
Apparently, the lawyers are trying the judge’s patience by making frivolous requests…
U.S. District Judge James Zagel at times seemed to search for new ways to call the recordings irrelevant to Blagojevich’s corruption trial.
“Excluded on the grounds of uselessness,” he said of one transcript.
Just about every lawyer I talk to figures that Zagel is gonna throw the book at Blagojevich when the jury finds him guilty. Blagojevich and his lawyers have made a mockery of this case since the beginning. At times, it has appeared that the lawyers are deliberately trying to get under Zagel’s skin so he makes a mistake that will force a mistrial or move an appellate court to overturn his conviction. The real danger for Blagojevich is that Zagel will sentence him to so many years in prison that he won’t qualify for a minimum security lockup. No Club Fed for you!
Many of the conversations Rod Blagojevich wants jurors to hear have to do with his contention that he was acting with the advice of lawyers. Zagel tossed a number of those conversations, saying they didn’t qualify as advice of counsel argument, in some cases because Zagel deemed the discussions political in nature.
Zagel said one proposed recording was akin to a man who tells his lawyer friends he thinks he’s going to poison his wife and they say nothing.
“Can you take from that the answer is to murder your wife?” Zagel said. “The answer is obviously no.”
* Meanwhile, Blagojevich’s “advice of counsel” defense is probably doomed…
An advice-of-counsel defense must demonstrate that Blagojevich approached his advisers “for the purpose of securing advice on the lawfulness of his possible future conduct” and that he provided them with all necessary facts. The prosecution has argued that Blagojevich sought political advice, rather than legal advice. He was, the argument goes, gauging how much President Barack Obama’s former Senate seat was allegedly worth, rather than seeing if it was legal to allegedly trade it for campaign donations or cabinet posts.
Heaton is not the only one surprised by the move. Zagel told the defense he has only seen one person with a law degree argue advice-of-counsel during his 23 years on the bench.
Giannoulias, the Illinois treasurer, collected slightly more than $900,000 during the quarter that ended June 30, with the bulk of the money donated in June, said Kathleen Strand, a campaign spokeswoman.
The campaign for Representative Mark Kirk, the Republican Senate candidate, said July 1 that he raised $2.3 million during the second quarter. Kirk had about $3.9 million in the bank for his Senate race at the end of the quarter, according to his campaign.
Giannoulias, 34, had about $1 million in the bank at the end of the quarter, Strand said.
Strand said Giannoulias lagged behind in fundraising because of a self-imposed pledge to reject contributions from corporate political action committees and federal lobbyists.
Giannoulias’ fund-raising was hobbled most of the last quarter because of a cloud over him because of the April failure of his family owned Broadway Bank. Giannoulias, the state treasurer, is also declining to accept donations from federal lobbyists and corporate political action committees. […]
This morning in Chicago, Giannoulias is hosting a press conference where he is expected to highlight Kirk’s opposition to Wall Street reform–a Senate vote is possible today on the overhaul bill–and on Kirk’s accepting donations from the financial services industry. Kirk voted against the House version of the main Wall Street reform bill.
Giannoulias won’t be able to sugar-coat this or excuse it. Kirk now has almost a four-to-one cash advantage over him, and there’s no sign that Kirk has slowed down. He raised more than Giannoulias in June, which should’ve been a prime fundraising period for the Democrat since Kirk was getting bashed over not telling the truth about his military record. Time’s running out to raise the big bucks necessary to compete in this state’s expensive media markets. His supporters better hope he has a plan.
* Related…
* Journal-Star: $30 million on a useless special US Senate election? No way
“It has nothing to do with race,” co-writer township clerk Steve Balich said, reports the Southtown Star. “It has to do with the law and whether or not a person is a legal immigrant.”
With a population that is 94% white, we didn’t realize the Homer Township had such a bad immigration problem.
But a rival tanker aircraft built by European Aeronautic Defence & Space Co. would create roughly the same number of jobs at six subcontractors in the state, using some of the same suppliers Boeing plans to use, such as Rockford’s Hamilton-Sundstrand, which makes onboard power generators, and the Rolling Meadows plant of Los Angeles-based Northrop Grumman Corp., which provides an anti-missile defense system.
The money, totaling about $11.4 million in Illinois, is part of $713.2 million to be pulled from about 309 “high-priority” projects that didn’t get off the ground or consume all the money earmarked by members of Congress in surface transportation bills dating to 1987.
The proposal by the county’s independent hospital board passed a County Board committee by a 9-3 vote, though some commissioners worried the strategy will shortchange some of the neediest neighborhoods by closing acute care services at Oak Forest Hospital and scaling them back significantly at Provident Hospital.
The Illinois Department of Insurance, which oversees public pension funds, has asked for a copy of the transcript of the pension board’s meeting last week, the Chicago Sun-Times has learned.
Last Thursday, the board fell one vote shy of approving the pension of longtime Melrose Park Police Chief Vito Scavo but unanimously approved the pension of his deputy, Gary Montino.
The U.S. Senate voted Wednesday to name the post office near Wrigley Field after musician Steve Goodman. U.S. Rep. Mike Quigley sponsored the resolution to rename the post office the “Steve Goodman Post Office Building.” President Obama must now sign the resolution.
