Question of the day
Friday, Feb 19, 2021 - Posted by Rich Miller
* I have to run some errands for a bit, so I’ll be back later this afternoon. From WJBC…
On Wednesday, Gov. Pritzker unveiled his 2021 budget proposal, which did not include a tax hike. However, Senator Jason Barickman (R-Bloomington) said the speech did have unnecessary rhetoric.
“First of all, I was stunned at the harsh partisan rhetoric that I heard from the Governor in his budget address. I can’t point you to another budget address for which the person standing at the microphone took so many just over-the-top rhetorical political swings at Republicans. And for me, I’m a guy who worked with this Governor over the years. I mean, I’ve broken with the party and worked with him to try to forge bipartisan agreements.
“For him to make those attacks, I think, were totally unjustified. I think the public is fed up with that level of rhetoric, and they expect more. I tell you, I expect more out of all of us, including the Governor.”
* The allegedly offensive language…
Two months ago I asked Republicans in the General Assembly for their proposals to close this year’s budget deficit. I was met with silence. Apparently their idea of bipartisanship ends when hard choices must be made.
I won’t pretend that these tough decisions don’t have a human impact, because we are operating within one of the most bare-bones government infrastructures in the country. While the right-wing carnival barkers have used our state as a laboratory to undermine essential public investments, the fact of the matter is Illinois state government spends less money per person than the majority of states in this nation.
Twenty years ago Illinois had about 30% more employees than it does today. We had 40% more Illinois State Police to protect the 58,000 square miles of our state. Our Environmental Protection Agency had nearly 60% more people protecting our air and water. And state government’s share of spending on education has steadily dropped to the lowest in the nation – leading your cities and your counties and your school districts to impose suffocatingly high property taxes in order to maintain quality public education. Government cannot be bloated, but it must have the resources to provide for the needs of our state’s residents. […]
For decades, Illinois has been forced to send billions more tax dollars every year to the federal government than we receive back from them in support of our citizens. Federal spending is rigged against Illinois. We’ve been subsidizing public services for other states, like Iowa, Kentucky, Indiana, and Missouri.
You deserve better. I’m fighting for better. Congress must act decisively, and I urge every Illinoisan to add their voice to this demand. So far, not a single Republican Congressman from Illinois has supported you getting back what you paid for. If not in a national crisis, when will they stand up for us? Now is the time.
Let’s be clear. Congressional action will help us today, but it won’t solve Illinois’ remaining fiscal challenges. That’s why any money we receive from the federal government needs to be spent wisely, by paying down borrowing and our bill backlog. Anything remaining must be used to invest in expanding jobs and economic growth. More jobs, more businesses, more economic activity – means a higher standard of living for our citizens, a healthier budget and a healthier state government.
* The Question: Was the governor’s rhetoric justified or unjustified? Take the poll and then explain your answer in comments, please…
survey service
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COVID-19 roundup
Friday, Feb 19, 2021 - Posted by Rich Miller
* Whoa…
Around 50% of patients who have been hospitalised with severe COVID-19 and who show raised levels of a protein called troponin have damage to their hearts. The injury was detected by magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) scans at least a month after discharge, according to new findings published today in the European Heart Journal.
Damage includes inflammation of the heart muscle (myocarditis), scarring or death of heart tissue (infarction), restricted blood supply to the heart (ischaemia) and combinations of all three.
The study of 148 patients from six acute hospitals in London is the largest study to date to investigate convalescing COVID-19 patients who had raised troponin levels indicating a possible problem with the heart.
This ain’t the flu, campers. Be careful out there.
* Illinois Public Radio…
For the second year in a row, the Illinois State Board of Education is seeking a waiver from the U.S. Department of Education for standardized tests normally given during schools’ spring semester.
Earlier this month, State Superintendent Carmen Ayala sent a letter to the U.S. Department of Education asking for the waiver on assessments, noting that more than a million Illinois students are still receiving their education completely through remote learning.
“We believe that bringing students back in-person only to immediately begin state assessments will have a very harmful effect on their social-emotional wellbeing, mental health, and more importantly their re-connection with the school community,” Ayala told the Board of Education during its monthly meeting Thursday.
If the feds agree, tests like the SAT and certain graduation requirements — like high school civics — would be waived for the Class of 2021.
* Tribune live blog headlines…
Chicago Mayor Lori Lightfoot defends spending $281.5 million in federal COVID-19 relief money on police payroll, says criticism is ‘just dumb’
Chicago reports improvement in COVID-19 vaccine distribution efforts among city’s Black and Latino population
Lightfoot, city officials to give vaccine update
“In 22 minutes, everything was full”: Thousands of Chicagoans receive COVID-19 vaccine at UIC arena as dentistry, nursing and medical students pitch in.
Illinois identifies 17 more cases of U.K. coronavirus variant.
Will County approves $3 million for health department COVID-19 vaccinations.
Lan’s Old Town restaurant shut down after weekend party violates COVID-19 restrictions.
* Sun-Times live blog headlines…
More suicides by Black Cook County residents in 2020 than in any year in over a decade
Mayor’s office says about 50% of first doses going to Black, Latino residents
Africa reaches 100,000 known COVID-19 deaths as danger grows
Biden to visit Michigan vaccine plant as winter throws a curve
Chicago’s federal court to begin COVID-19 testing protocol for workers, jurors
What’s a positive habit you’ve developed during the pandemic? What Chicagoans told us.
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* AP correction…
In a Feb. 17 story about Gov. J.B. Pritzker’s budget proposal, The Associated Press erroneously reported that the proposal relied for revenue on federal COVID-19 relief money still under debate in Congress to close a $3.9 billion deficit. The budget plan does not rely on any of that money. In addition, after adjustments for recent tax revenue performance, the deficit is $2.6 billion, not $3.9 billion.
We all make mistakes. Stuff happens. Good on them for issuing a correction.
* Chicago Tribune editorial…
The two linchpins to Pritzker’s budget: D.C. and Democrats
Gov. J.B. Pritzker’s proposed budget for the fiscal year beginning July 1 depends on two main events: COVID-19 relief money from Washington and compliant Democratic lawmakers here in Illinois. He might get both.
Waiting…
*** UPDATE *** An example of a newspaper editorial board trying to be helpful, but unclear on the facts…
But critics of Pritzker’s proposal are rejecting his idea of planning on federal aid.
Arguing against the federal government sending Illinois billions of dollars in pandemic relief aid is baffling. To what end? The state won’t get style points or extra credit for rejecting federal funds.
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Caption contest!
Friday, Feb 19, 2021 - Posted by Rich Miller
* I checked with Aaron and he doesn’t remember what he asked Madigan about. So, I guess it’s up to you. Just keep it clean and out of the gutter…
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The pension front
Friday, Feb 19, 2021 - Posted by Rich Miller
* Sun-Times…
Mayor Lori Lightfoot is urging Gov. J.B. Pritzker to veto a bill boosting pensions for thousands of Chicago firefighters, arguing it would saddle beleaguered taxpayers with perpetual property tax increases and cripple a pension fund dangerously close to insolvency.
The bill, introduced by state Sen. Robert Martwick, D-Chicago, a Lightfoot political nemesis, passed in the waning hours of the lame duck session and awaits Pritzker’s signature or veto.
It removes the “birth date restriction” that prohibits roughly 2,200 active and retired firefighters born after Jan. 1, 1966 from receiving a 3% annual cost of living increase. Instead, they get half that amount, 1.5% — and it is not compounded.
Martwick has argued the “birth date restriction” already has been moved five times as a way of masking the true cost to the pension fund.
Lightfoot strongly disagreed.
Her letter to Pritzker argues that the bill amounts to ill-timed and unaffordable pension sweetener that would saddle Chicago taxpayers with up to $823 million in added costs by 2055.
There’s really nothing to strongly disagree with. The city has routinely moved the birth date restriction, but it’s been done in a way that the costs are not funded, which pushes the fund closer to insolvency. This bill would essentially take that routine practice, make it official and force the city to finally pay for it.
* Crain’s…
…That’s the utter turmoil that seems to have overtaken one of the larger public retirement systems in the state, the $11 billion Chicago Teachers’ Pension Fund, which receives a nice chunk of Chicago homeowners’ property tax payments every six months.
When I last looked at the fund in October, its executive director and other key officials had just resigned, one commissioner had been censured by other board members, and board President Jeffery Blackwell was publicly complaining of an agency “culture of intimidation, intentional misinformation, discrimination, slander, misogyny, fear-mongering, blatant racism, sexism and retaliatory actions.” But interim Executive Director Mary Cavallaro said in a statement there was no reason to worry, and that “the fund is committed to ensuring financial stability, operational efficiencies and seamless service to members.”
Well, guess who now has resigned—with a blast? That would be Cavallaro. “I can no longer tolerate the chaos and toxicity of the boardroom, along with the vile disrespect and insults directed toward me, the leadership team and the hard-working staff of the fund by certain misinformed trustees,” she said in a letter to the board. “I have grave concerns about the ability of fund operations to sustain the continued loss of key staff members because of bad trustee behavior and poor board governance.”
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Public Health Officials Announce 2,219 New Cases of Coronavirus Disease
Over 2 million vaccines administered in Illinois and highest single day total of over 83,000 vaccines administered in past 24 hours
SPRINGFIELD – The Illinois Department of Public Health (IDPH) today reported 2,219 new confirmed and probable cases of coronavirus disease (COVID-19) in Illinois, including 63 additional deaths.
- Adams County: 1 female teen, 1 female 90s
- Champaign County: 2 females 70s
- Clinton County: 1 female 60s
- Cook County: 1 male 30s, 1 male 50s, 3 females 70s, 3 males 70s, 2 females 80s, 1 male 80s, 3 females 90s, 2 males 90s
- Cumberland County: 1 female 80s
- Douglas County: 1 female 60s
- DuPage County: 1 male 60s, 1 female 80s, 1 female 90s
- Edgar County: 1 male 60s
- Effingham County: 1 male 80s
- Ford County: 1 female 90s
- Henry County: 1 male 70s
- Kane County: 1 male 30s, 1 male 80s
- Lake County: 1 female 70s, 1 female 80s, 1 male 80s
- Livingston County: 1 male 80s
- Macon County: 1 female 70s, 1 male 90s
- Macoupin County: 1 male 50s, 1 female 70s
- Madison County: 1 male 70s
- Massac County: 1 male 70s
- McLean County: 1 female 70s, 1 female 90s
- Peoria County: 1 male 70s
- Piatt County: 1 female 80s
- Pike County: 1 male 90s
- Rock Island County: 1 female 70s, 1 female 90s
- Saline County: 1 female 80s
- St. Clair County: 2 females 50s, 1 female 70s, 2 males 70s
- Stephenson County: 1 male 80s
- Tazewell County: 1 male 50s
- Union County: 1 female 60s, 1 female 80s
- Wayne County: 1 male 70s
- White County: 1 female 50s, 1 female 60s
- Williamson County: 1 female 80s
Currently, IDPH is reporting a total of 1,170,902 cases, including 20,192 deaths, in 102 counties in Illinois. The age of cases ranges from younger than one to older than 100 years. Within the past 24 hours, laboratories have reported 85,963 specimens for a total of 17,474,319. As of last night, 1,596 individuals in Illinois were reported to be in the hospital with COVID-19. Of those, 366 patients were in the ICU and 190 patients with COVID-19 were on ventilators.
The preliminary seven-day statewide positivity for cases as a percent of total test from February 12–18, 2021 is 2.8%. The preliminary seven-day statewide test positivity from February 12–18, 2021 is 3.3%.
A total of doses of 2,186,775 vaccine have been delivered to providers in Illinois, including Chicago. In addition, approximately 445,200 doses total have been allocated to the federal government’s Pharmacy Partnership Program for long-term care facilities. This brings the total Illinois doses to 2,631,975. A total of 2,060,706 vaccines have been administered in Illinois as of last midnight, including 271,142 for long-term care facilities. The 7-day rolling average of vaccines administered daily is 59,460 doses. Yesterday, 83,673 doses were administered, marking the highest single day amount of vaccines administered in Illinois.
*All data are provisional and will change. In order to rapidly report COVID-19 information to the public, data are being reported in real-time. Information is constantly being entered into an electronic system and the number of cases and deaths can change as additional information is gathered. For health questions about COVID-19, call the hotline at 1-800-889-3931 or email dph.sick@illinois.gov.
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* From Cook County Public Guardian Charles P. Golbert…
The Child Welfare Advisory Council (CWAC) is an important council that advises DCFS on all aspects of child welfare policy and practice. To the best of our institutional memory, for the entire history of the council, our office, which represents nearly half of the children and youth in DCFS’s care, has always had a representative. Until now.
Last month, Marc Smith, the Acting Director of DCFS, advised us that we would no longer have a seat at the table. In fact, there is no one on the current roster who is appointed to represent children in their Juvenile Court cases. Most of the appointees work for organizations under contract with DCFS.
This is part of a disturbing recent pattern of DCFS seeking to silence dissenting voices. Recent examples include the midnight replacement of DCFS’s outspoken Inspector General (IG) with someone with no child welfare experience. The new IG released his first annual report last month. The report is wholly lacking in substance, in fact, the shortest IG report in 20 years. Another recent example is DCFS’s attempt to stop a 17-year-old from speaking to the press about his experience being locked up in a psychiatric hospital for more than 2 months of his life because DCFS had nowhere to place him. We had to file emergency motions in court to vindicate the youth’s First Amendment rights to free speech and expression to talk about his ordeal, which the court granted.
DCFS’s widespread dysfunction will improve only if dissenting viewpoints can be heard. We call on DCFS to reverse this unfortunate decision.
* I asked DCFS for a response. Here are Child Welfare Advisory Council co-chairs Zack Schrantz, Strategic Advisor for UCAN, and Beverly Jones, Vice President and Chief Operating Officer for Lutheran Child and Family Services…
As leaders of the Child Welfare Advisory Committee, we recognize the importance of diverse voices in our committee and made a commitment to increase diversity in CWAC membership. As such, we followed a fair and inclusive process to recruit and vet new members, which resulted in an increase of 10 more diverse voices at CWAC. We doubled our African American representation and tripled LatinX representation, while also adding an alumni representative and the first parent advocates, along with a representative from the Shriver Center.
We were pleased to submit such a diverse group for our committee, and excited to note that for the first time ever, CWAC is even more diverse than the youth that we are serving. We look forward to working with all members to influence changes to DCFS systems, policies and practices. We recognize and appreciate the previous contributions all past members, including those from the Office of the Public Guardian. Even if previous members were not nominated, and do not have an official position on the committee, they are still welcome to participate and contribute to our meetings and work. It is our intent to be inclusive and not exclusive.
* DCFS Spokesman Bill McCaffrey…
DCFS has emphasized the importance of diversity to all of our advisory boards, as it is important that we listen to the broad array of voices from across the varied communities in our state. We are working to eliminate bias and achieve parity in the services we provide, and we believe the best way to make lasting, impactful change is by allowing new voices an opportunity to contribute. These voices complement, as opposed to replace, long-time advocates such as the Office of the Public Guardian, who still meet regularly with DCFS on a variety of issues.
* Meanwhile, CBS 2 has an horrific story about systemic failure of a little girl who was allegedly sexually abused by several men…
Police and child protective services are scrambling to explain why multiple men who sexually abused a 10-year-old girl remain free, even though the suspects are known.
CBS 2 Investigator Dave Savini revealed Thursday night how the system failed to protect the little girl, despite years of warnings and calls for help.
At the Grand Motel at 10022 S. Halsted St., on the top floor, in room 324, something terrible happened to a little girl just 10 years old. Not even out of elementary school yet, she was taken there by a 47-year-old man from her neighborhood and sexually exploited. […]
No one from the motel would talk about the incident. But CBS 2 Investigators obtained police records showing motel staff called 911 and told officers the man’s name and date he checked in with the girl. It has been four months, yet no one has been arrested. […]
The Illinois Department of Children and Family Services (DCFS) was alerted to these and other abuses dating back to 2016. Numerous reports called into the abuse hotline including calls from her school.
Go read the whole thing.
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“Without alienating the governor”
Friday, Feb 19, 2021 - Posted by Rich Miller
* From Chicago Magazine’s The New Power 30…
15. Sam Toia
President and CEO of the Illinois Restaurant Association
Toia was noticeably missing from the November 5 press conference where the mayor announced emergency relief grants for Chicago restaurants and bars. By then, he was on to bigger things — namely, advocating for federal restaurant stimulus funds. Early on, he’d been an optimistic team player for statewide messaging on business restrictions. When those restrictions started to bite as the COVID crisis dragged on, Toia became a consummate political tactician, pushing back against indoor dining bans without alienating the governor, with whom Toia has spoken regularly throughout the crisis, while reining in angry restaurateurs, who might have invited a harsher crackdown had they flouted the bans in large numbers, as happened in other states.
Dude brought a guy to a meeting with the governor who later tested positive for COVID.
Also, if he’s speaking regularly with the governor on behalf of his members, shouldn’t he register as a lobbyist?
* Capitol News Illinois…
Officials from the hotel, restaurant and convention industries told a state Senate panel Thursday that they need a clear plan for how they will be allowed to reopen as the COVID-19 pandemic wanes, warning that without such a plan, many will go out of business permanently.
“We need to know … a strategy, we need to know the metrics as we move forward because we cannot, we cannot lose another summer here in the state of Illinois,” Sam Toia, president and CEO of the Illinois Restaurant Association, told the state Senate’s newly-formed Tourism and Hospitality Committee during its first virtual hearing. […]
Currently, all regions of the state are under Phase 4 mitigations, which limits private gatherings to no more than 50 people. But Toia argued that many restaurants are capable of handling larger numbers of people safely, and he said there should be a more specific plan that would allow bars, restaurants and hotels to gradually move out of Phase 4 toward Phase 5, which is full reopening.
“We just want to know when we can go back to having conventions, having parties, private parties, figuring out when we can have some fans in stadiums. This is very, very unclear,” he said. “And we just want to get adjusted of what Phase 5 is going to look like. I don’t think we can wait 12 to 18 months.”
How is anyone supposed to know that for sure right now? There are international, national, state and local supply problems, distribution issues, variants popping up.
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Madigan resignation coverage roundup
Friday, Feb 19, 2021 - Posted by Rich Miller
* Most of the coverage focused on yesterday’s press releases and well-known references to the past. I figure we’ll see more retrospectives in the coming days, but here’s Brenden Moore…
Lawmakers and political observers in downstate Illinois say his first focus was ultimately Chicago, but that Madigan also had a statewide lens that he used to both pass policies that helped areas outside the city and to elect Democrats from those areas.
“He understood that for Democrats to be a vibrant force in Springfield, they needed to have some power outside of Chicago,” said John Shaw, director of the Paul Simon Public Policy Institute at Southern Illinois University Carbondale. “So I do think that he worked to advance the statewide agenda, and not just the Chicago exclusive agenda.” […]
But there are almost no Democrats left who represent mostly rural, conservative constituencies, a stark change from the early days of Madigan’s House tenure, when his best friend, the now-indicted Mike McLean, was a Democrat from Quincy. And Jim McPike, a Democrat from Alton, was his majority leader from 1983 to 1995.
Yet, just as the elder Daley — Madigan’s political mentor — worked with the opposite political party, Madigan “was willing to work with downstate Republican governors like (Jim) Edgar and George Ryan,” Shaw said.
Edgar, a native of Coles County who was the state’s moderate Republican governor from 1991 to 1999, said that “downstate probably did better off of Madigan’s speakership than they might have thought.”
* Tribune…
Even as he battled to maintain his grip on the speaker’s gavel, Madigan remained a prodigious fundraiser, bringing in more than $6 million in contributions to his Friends of Michael J. Madigan campaign fund in the final three months of 2020.
Altogether, the four funds under his control, which also include the 13th Ward Democratic Organization, the Democratic Party of Illinois and Democratic Majority, ended 2020 with more than $18.8 million in the bank.
Madigan’s main campaign fund continued to cover his legal fees related to the ongoing federal investigation, paying more than $1 million to law firm Katten Muchin Rosenman in the final three months of 2020, according to state campaign finance records. In all, his campaign fund paid Katten more than $1.7 million in legal fees last year.
State campaign finance law allows Madigan to continue covering legal expenses out of his campaign fund regardless of whether he remains in office.
* Mark Brown…
Michael J. Madigan, never one to tell anybody outside the family what he’s thinking, let us in Thursday on a surprising secret.
Not that he was resigning the Southwest Side legislative seat he has held for 50 years. No, that’s been expected since he was supplanted as House speaker last month.
The surprise was to learn that Madigan cares what the public thinks about him.
In a carefully crafted announcement laying out his accomplishments in office, the oft-maligned Democratic politician took a belated stab at reshaping his tarnished legacy.
Where many of us saw a career chiefly characterized by the shrewd accumulation and exercise of power, Madigan now asks us to see a life of public service dedicated to improving “the lives of the most vulnerable” and helping “hardworking people build a good life.”
* Related…
* PHOTOS: The career of former Illinois House Speaker Michael Madigan
* Longtime Illinois House Speaker Madigan resigns seat in legislature
* Madigan resigns state House seat ‘at peace with my decision’ — and with power to handpick his successor
* Michael Madigan resigns from Illinois House after being ousted as speaker, defends his legacy in face of ‘vicious attacks’
* Former Speaker Michael Madigan Resigns From Illinois House Seat After 50 Years in Office
* After 50 years in Illinois House, 36 years ruling it, Mike Madigan is quitting
* Many Think Speaker Mike Madigan’s Resignation From Illinois House Was Inevitable
* Local lawmakers react to Rep. Madigan’s resignation from Illinois House
* Mike Madigan resigns after 50 years in post as IL House Speaker, state representative
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House Bill 3653 Enjoys Wide Support Among Voters
Friday, Feb 19, 2021 - Posted by Advertising Department
[The following is a paid advertisement.]
9 out of 10 (91%) Illinois voters support legislative efforts that hold police accountable for misconduct.
69% of voters agree that reform is necessary now because of racial bias in policing.
Nearly 9 out of 10 Illinois voters back:
• Holding law enforcement accountable for violating individuals’ constitutional rights (89% say it should be a major priority)
• Establishing clear and consistent statewide limits surround the use of force by police, including deadly force (80% say it should be a major priority)
• Training all police to a clear and consistent standard surrounding the use of force by police, including deadly force (90% say it should be a major priority)
• Rules mandating that officers are held responsible when they use force without justification resulting in a death (88% support)
• Establishing consequences for not turning on dashboard or body cameras (88% support)
More than 3 out of 4 voters in Illinois support:
• banning chokeholds (76%)
• requiring a state agency to report when a police officer uses force (78%)
• 69% of voters want to end special protections for police officers – known as qualified immunity – that allows officers to escape from many lawsuits, denying victims of real harm a day in court.
Link: https://www.aclu-il.org/en/news/new-statewide-polling-shows-broad-support-police-reform-illinois
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* Politico…
Will County Republicans voted overwhelmingly Thursday night to censure Rep. Adam Kinzinger for his vote to impeach former President Donald Trump.
The 111 to 5 vote (and one abstention) for censure “is meant to remind the representative who he represents: the people who elected him, not his self-interests,” said Will County Republican Chairman George Pearson, adding that Kinzinger’s decision to start a PAC that “goes against other Republicans was a betrayal.” Pearson said his next task is to find a challenger for Kinzinger’s seat.
* Press release…
Following the Will County GOP vote tonight to censure the Congressman for his vote of conscience and vote to defend democracy, Adam Kinzinger released the following statement:
“Not long ago, Will County was a staunchly conservative county where Republicans controlled the board and held county wide offices. Unfortunately, the current leaders of the Will County GOP have changed that. Under their leadership, Democrats took control of the County Board and Republicans have lost all county wide offices over the course of multiple elections.
“The leaders of the Will County GOP have proven they are unable to assist Republican candidates in winning these especially important elections. As the last federal Republican official representing Will County, I have been saddened by this ineptitude.
“Maybe if the Will County GOP spent the same amount of time and energy helping local Republicans as they do with petty censure votes to go after those that vote their conscience, they might actually win a few races.
“I look forward to continuing my part in helping Republicans get elected in Will County to make up for the lack of support they are receiving on the local level. As I have long said, we need leadership—and we need it now.”
He ain’t wrong about the decline of the Will County GOP’s influence and power.
* Meanwhile…
The Iroquois County Republican Central Committee has censured Congressman Adam Kinzinger.
Committee Chairman Lyle Behrends said the committee voted on the censure Feb. 14. Kinzinger has faced criticism from Republicans since he voted to impeach President Donald. J. Trump.
In a statement from the committee sent over the weekend, committee chairman Lyle Behrends wrote, “Congressman Kinzinger, your vote to impeach President Trump has made crystal clear what many of us have known for years: You don’t represent the majority of voters in Iroquois County. When you were first elected to Congress, we were confident that you would reliably serve and advance the conservative principles of the 16th District in Washington. Unfortunately, you have chosen again and again to serve your personal and political agenda. At a time when our nation is imperiled by the left’s radical agenda, you have chosen to impeach President Trump, the foremost defender we had against the left’s obvious program to encroach on our liberties. We have made a choice as well, Congressman Kinzinger. The Republican Committeemen of Iroquois County have voted to censure you for your self-serving vote to impeach President Trump.”
And…
“While representing the hardworking constituents of Iroquois County, Congressman Kinzinger has delivered for them again and again. He delivered by supporting policies that led to Iroquois County constituents keeping more of their hard-earned money. He delivered by supporting policies that benefited the agriculture community and the family farms. Kinzinger delivered by ensuring much-needed broadband was brought to Iroquois County, and perhaps most importantly, Congressman Kinzinger prevented Iroquois Memorial Hospital from closure during a pandemic.
“Congressman Kinzinger has reliably served Iroquois County and delivered real results for his constituents. Some — not all — members of the ICRCC believe blind loyalty to one man is how best to represent the interests of Iroquois County constituents. And Congressman Kinzinger does not agree with that method.”
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Open thread
Friday, Feb 19, 2021 - Posted by Rich Miller
* Boring week, eh? Please keep it local and be polite to each other. Thanks.
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