* 4:41 pm - Comptroller Judy Baar Topinka and Gov. Pat Quinn were both endorsed by the Illinois AFL-CIO, according to a news release from the organization.
I think this is the first time that the AFL-CIO has endorsed a statewide Republican since 1986, when Jim Thompson and Jim Edgar were given the nod, so it’s a very big deal for JBT and a major, crushing defeat for Sheila Simon.
And the nod for Quinn should put to rest the constant media speculation that all of organized labor is angry with him - although you gotta figure that AFSCME and the teachers weren’t too pleased with this move.
Additionally, the [AFL-CIO] board passed a resolution to engage union members to defeat GOP candidate for Governor Bruce Rauner. Rauner, a billionaire private equity magnate, has advocated for a minimum wage cut and made his disdain for unions a centerpiece of his campaign.
“It’s critical that we not only advocate for who we think will be the best candidates for working families, but that we also make sure workers understand who is using them as scapegoats for the state’s problems,” [Illinois AFL-CIO President Michael Carrigan] said.
* Surprise, surprise, Eden Martin uses his Sun-Times column to endorse his old friend Bruce Rauner…
Supporters of some of the establishment Republican candidates for governor and a few media commentators are now taking shots at political newcomer and present front-runner Bruce Rauner. Some say he has an “arrogant” streak, and others claim it’s hypocritical for a wealthy candidate to refer in campaign ads to wearing an old watch or driving an old van.
I’ve worked with Bruce for years on state finance and education policy, and I can understand how some who disagree with him might easily mistake self-confidence for arrogance. But I’ve found him to be smart, disciplined and focused on getting results. Full disclosure: I like and respect him, and I’ve contributed to his campaign.
He’s not only given money to Rauner’s campaign, he hooked Rauner up with a key supporter. Mark Brown has the story…
The Rev. James Meeks, a former Democratic state senator who pulled out of the 2011 mayor’s race against Emanuel, and Rev. Marshall Hatch, a lower-profile West Side minister most recently in the news for helping bring Rev. Al Sharpton to town, are actively supporting his campaign, Rauner told a Gurnee audience in November.
“They want more jobs, and they want better schools, and the Democrats aren’t delivering,” explained Rauner, who said he expects to win 25 percent of the city vote with their help, enough to keep a Republican competitive in a statewide race. […]
In a phone interview this week, Meeks confirmed he supports Rauner and said he will try to convince other African-American ministers to help him, too.
“I was with him since Day One,” said Meeks, who describes Rauner as a friend and fly-fishing buddy with a shared interest in education. “I think he will do good things for people.”
Meeks said he’d never heard of Rauner before Eden Martin, President of the Civic Committee, called on Rauner’s behalf about five years ago to request a meeting. […]
Rauner ended up paying a three-hour visit to Salem Baptist Church, the 20,000-member megachurch Meeks built in Roseland.
That led to dinners and eventually Rauner hosting Meeks for some fly-fishing at his ranch in Montana. Now he and Rauner email back and forth with photos of fish they’ve caught, Meeks said.
* The two met in 2008, when Meeks was leading protests demanding that South Side kids be allowed to enroll in New Trier. Ironically, Rauner was trying to get his New Trier daughter into a Chicago public school at the same time.
Mark is quite surprised at Meeks’ support for Rauner, but look at the history. Meeks initially fought for a Dawn Clark Netsch-like tax hike for schools, but that was blocked by House Speaker Michael Madigan and Meeks never forgave the Speaker. So, Meeks and Rauner have their distaste for Madigan in common.
* Meeks eventually soured on the whole project and in 2010 keynoted an Illinois Policy Institute school choice symposium. He launched a blistering attack on teachers unions at that event, another Rauner enemy.
* And, of course, there was this tweet from last summer when Rauner announced he was running…
Congrats @BruceRauner. I think you will make a great governor.
— Rev. James T. Meeks (@revjamesmeeks) June 5, 2013
An obscure panel of lawmakers unexpectedly shot down video gambling reforms Tuesday, leaving regulators grasping to close loopholes in the lucrative business.
Aaron Jaffe, chairman of the Illinois Gaming Board, which proposed the reforms, said he was “astounded” by the move, which came with no public discussion after a closed-door meeting by the lawmakers.
“This is an open invitation for bad people to come into gambling,” Jaffe said.
In explaining the vote, state Rep. Lou Lang, D-Skokie, said the Gaming Board “exceeded their authority.” Lang, who has long supported gambling expansion and who has often been at odds with Jaffe over regulation, received about $70,000 in campaign contributions tied to a Louisiana businessman who could be excluded by the reform.
First of all, this was a unanimous decision by the Joint Committee on Administrative Rules. The committee is only “obscure” to those who know little about it. It’s also a bipartisan committee that’s co-chaired by Democratic Sen. Don Harmon and Republican Rep. Tim Schmitz. Look at the membership list for yourself and tell me everybody on there is an ally of organized crime. Please.
The Illinois Gaming Board is demanding answers about why a panel of lawmakers this week rejected a series of proposed video gambling reforms, including blacklisting some felons..
* OK, wait a second. These rules went way beyond “blacklisting some felons.”
And maybe Chairman Jaffe or the Sun-Times could’ve just picked up the phone and called a random JCAR member. I chose Rep. Greg Harris, who said committee members had a few major concerns.
The emergency rule, Harris said, would conceivably banish far too many people from working in bars, restaurants, etc. where video gaming terminals are located. A waitress with a pot conviction 30 years ago could possibly be put on the board’s “exclusion list,” Harris said. And the same goes for people who work for vendors who supply those taverns, restaurants, truck stops, etc. and for those who aren’t even convicted of anything.
Also, the Gaming Board chose to issue emergency rules, rather than go through the normal rule-making process. There were just too many questions about whether the proposed rules went further than the law allows.
The Administrator or Board may place a person on the Video Gaming Board Exclusion List for any of the following reasons (which parallel the reasons for placement on the existing Riverboat Gambling Exclusion List established for riverboat gambling by Subpart G of 86 Ill. Admin. Code 3000):
* Conviction in any jurisdiction of a felony, crime involving gaming, crime of moral turpitude, or crime of dishonesty. […]
* Performance of any act, or notorious or unsavory reputation, that would adversely affect public confidence and trust in gaming.
Yep. Pretty darned broad, and well beyond the rules for Riverboats, which the Gaming Board claims this proposal “parallels.”
Less yellow journalism, please.
…Adding… Wordslinger makes some excellent points in comments…
Seriously, a “black book” for video gambling? Give me a break. How do you skim the machines when they’re hooked up to a state monitor and the state collects and disburses the money?
By Jaffee’s logic, shouldn’t you have a “black book” for every business that has a lottery machine?
Just like the lottery put the illegal Policy Wheel games out of business, legal video gambling will put illegal video gambling out of business. So who’s shilling for whom here?
* Do you think any of the three Republican gubernatorial candidates who are being vastly outspent by Bruce Rauner should drop out of the race? If so, which one(s)? Take the poll and then don’t forget to explain your answer in comments, please.
* I forgot to put up a link for this morning’s Republican gubernatorial debate. However, here are the tweets from three reporters on the scene, Mary Ann Ahern, Mike Riopell and Natasha Korecki. Click here if your phone can’t see the embed…
Republican governor candidate Bruce Rauner poured $3.2 million into advertising during the final three months of last year, far outraising and outspending his three rivals for the March 18 nomination, campaign disclosure reports show.
Rauner spent more than he raised, but he’s a kabillionaire and can afford it. Not so much for Kirk Dillard.
* Check out the burn rate for a campaign that has done almost nothing except, well, I’m not sure what…
Dillard, of Hinsdale, who lost the 2010 nomination to Brady by 193 votes, reported raising $328,700 in the two funds he controls during the last three months of 2013. He spent $389,555, leaving $144,866 in cash to start the year. He has raised $6,000 since Jan. 1, but he also is carrying a $50,000 personal debt in one of his campaign funds.
He barely has enough in his account to pay January’s overhead expenses. Not good.
* Dan Rutherford is the only candidate in a financial position to make a major run if Rauner stumbles or is knocked off his throne…
Rutherford brought in $393,000 during the final three months of 2013. The more than $1.37 million in his political fund as of Dec. 31, leaves Rutherford as the only other candidate positioned to purchase some TV time before the March 18 primary.
State Sen. Bill Brady, one of four Republican candidates for governor, drew in $74,000 during the last three months of 2013, his campaign revealed Wednesday.
Republican candidate for treasurer Tom Cross had shown more than $327,000 in receipts and $388,000 cash on hand in his campaign fund, and primary competitor Bob Grogan reported raising $9,749 last period, closing out his fund with a total of $21,087.
* But unless he can raise any real money, Hardiman’s campaign appears quite doomed…
Gov. Pat Quinn has banked about $4.5 million for his re-election bid.
Campaign finance reports filed late Wednesday show the Chicago Democrat raised about $1.9 million in the final quarter of last year. His biggest donations came from labor unions. […]
Tio Hardiman of Hillside is challenging Quinn in the Democratic primary. Hardiman raised about $15,000 in the same three-month period. He finished 2013 with about $550 in his campaign account.
* Bernie Schoenburg interviewed Bruce Rauner about clouting his kid into Payton Prep back in September. Bernie asked if Rauner called then CEO of Chicago Public Schools Arne Duncan about his suburban daughter’s application to the Chicago public school…
Well, that’s not what was being reported in various media outlets this week. Rauner did a round of interviews, including talking to ABC, NBC and CBS stations in Chicago, to explain himself on Monday — the day that Sun-Times story hit the streets. All three stations reported that Rauner called Duncan.
Jay Levine of CBS-Channel 2 said in his story: “Rauner admits making a call to Arne Duncan to get his daughter into Payton despite what he calls her middle school attendance record marred by illness.” […]
Mary Ann Ahern, in her story on NBC-Channel 5, said: “Bruce Rauner says yes, he made a phone call to then-Superintendent of Schools Arne Duncan, so his daughter, moving into the city from Winnetka, could get into Walter Payton College Prep.” […]
And CHARLES THOMAS of ABC-Channel 7 reported: “When his daughter’s application was rejected, Rauner admitted calling then-CPS CEO Arne Duncan to get her admitted to Payton, which had a waiting list of over 7,000 city teenagers.” […]
Rauner spokesman MIKE SCHRIMPF said this week that when Rauner told me in September he hadn’t talked with Duncan, it was because of how Rauner interpreted my query.
“They didn’t ask for him to put her into the school,” Schrimpf said of Rauner and his wife, Diana, “which I think is what the thrust of your question was.”
How can Mr. Rauner be trusted to clean up corrupt Springfield when he won’t fully explain how and why Mr. Levine made $25,000 a month trying to get government business for a company owned in part by Mr. Rauner?
As I reported last March, Mr. Rauner made his fortune as a principal in GTCR LLC, the big Chicago private-equity business. In fact, as my colleague Lynne Marek later reported, Mr. Rauner was the key “people person” in the firm, the guy who made the calls to potential clients trying to sign them up. And many of those big clients were pension funds, like the giant Teachers Retirement System of Illinois, which covers just about every public-school teacher in the state outside of Chicago.
That’s why my eyebrows went up when I discovered that in 2003, TRS initially turned down a request from GTCR to handle $50 million in its pension investments. The decision was reversed at the next TRS meeting, after Mr. Rauner personally showed up to make a pitch. And among those who voted to give the firm the $50 million was TRS board member Mr. Levine, whose legal problems hadn’t surfaced yet but who had objected at the first meeting to GTCR’s request.
Nowhere in the minutes of those meetings — and I’ve checked them for both the February 2003 meeting and for the May 2003 meeting — is a pretty pertinent fact disclosed: Mr. Levine at the time was getting $25,000 a month from a medical-bill processing company named CompBenefits that, a few years earlier, had been acquired by GTCR and three other investment companies. In other words, Mr. Rauner was seeking a favor from a guy whose bread was being very well-buttered, in part, by Mr. Rauner’s company.
* Rauner does, indeed, need to answer for this. But I checked with TRS executive director Jon Bauman about his recollections of those two meetings. Rauner claims he’s never met Levine, so I wanted to know if there was any interaction between the two men. His e-mailed reply…
They were both present at the meeting in May 2003 when GTCR got a do-over following a bad presentation at the prior meeting (I think Feb. 2003.) At that meeting, one of Rauner’s partners, a guy named Dave Donnini, showed up solo. We always encouraged money managers presenting to the Board to bring two people in case one screws up, has a bad day, or whatever. They didn’t, the presentation didn’t go well, and both Levine and John Glennon really bashed this guy’s head in. The Board almost voted it down but on the recommendation of the outside investment consultant, postponed action.
In May, Rauner came in with maybe 3 other guys and a clearly well-polished presentation. I don’t recall any controversy and few questions and the Board unanimously voted to approve the Fund.
To the Question, I don’t remember them interacting beyond a handshake or the like at that second meeting. I can tell you unequivocally that Levine never said anything to me about Rauner. He said he objected the first time because the guy was so bad and acted like the Board was a rubber stamp, in so many words.
So, maybe there’s not much “there” there, but Rauner still needs to answer questions.
Trading units of ConvergEx Group, a brokerage firm for big investors, agreed to pay more than $107 million to settle charges brought by U.S. authorities related to overcharging customers when the firm carried out their trades.
The units also agreed to admit wrongdoing, as did former employees Jonathan Daspin and Thomas Lekargeren.
Additionally, the U.S. Justice Department announced criminal charges against Messrs. Daspin and Lekargeren as well as ConvergeEx Group and a brokerage subsidiary. ConvergEx agreed to pay $43.8 million in penalties and restitution to settle those charges.
The Securities and Exchange Commission, which charged the firm with fraud, said the firms used a system that made customers “unknowingly pay more than double what they understood they were paying to have their orders executed.”
In a statement, ConvergEx said the employees were no longer with the company and that the Bermuda trading desk at the center of the alleged fraud has been shut down, while the activity in question was discontinued two years ago. […]
ConvergEx has faced volatility on other fronts, too. In 2011, a deal to sell itself to CVC Capital Partners, a private-equity firm, fell apart. The next year it managed to sell its Eze Castle Software and RealTick businesses to TPG Capital, another private-equity company, in a deal valued at $1.9 billion. In June it withdrew plans to issue stock to the public but didn’t comment on its decision.
* So how does this matter? Well, that 2011 deal which fell apart was announced thusly…
GTCR, a leading private equity firm, today announced it has entered into a definitive agreement to sell its portfolio company, ConvergEx Group (“ConvergEx”), to funds advised by CVC Capital Partners (“CVC”). The transaction is an all cash transaction expected to close in the fall following receipt of financing and customary regulatory approvals. ConvergEx is a leading technology company offering software products and technology-enabled services to hedge funds, traditional asset managers, broker-dealers, corporations and plan sponsors. […]
“I’d like to thank GTCR for their unwavering support in helping ConvergEx become an industry-leading company. They have been a true partner,” said Mr. Velli. “We have had a fantastic period of growth with GTCR and look forward to working with CVC as we continue to execute our growth strategy and build out our capabilities to provide unique technologies that today’s marketplace requires.”
Sorenson Communications, an Internet-based Telecommunications Relay Service (TRS) provider, has agreed to pay $15.75 million to settle an investigation by the Federal Communications Commission’s Enforcement Bureau into whether the company billed the TRS Fund for calls made by unregistered, unverified, or ineligible individuals, and for calls that were made by or on behalf of the provider itself.
In case you aren’t aware of it, the Telecommunications Relay Service provides services to people who are deaf, hard of hearing, deaf-blind, or who have a speech disability to communicate via the telephone.
Stung by a fortnight of miserable headlines, GOP gubernatorial hopeful Bruce Rauner is calling in some major media-relations reinforcements.
Joining Mr. Rauner’s communications shop effective next week will be Lance Trover, a longtime veteran of Illinois politics who most recently has worked for U.S. Sen. Mark Kirk, R-Ill., the state’s ranking Republican.
In a brief heads-up phone call late yesterday, Mr. Trover wouldn’t say much but insisted that his “leave of absence” to work for Mr. Rauner is not an indication of where Mr. Kirk stands. “The senator has made it clear he’s not endorsing” in the race among Mr. Rauner, Illinois Treasurer Dan Rutherford and state Sens. Bill Brady and Kirk Dillard, he said.
Trover would be the second Mark Kirk staffer to join the campaign. This is no coincidence.
The Illinois Secretary of State’s office says more than 1,200 immigrants living in the U.S. illegally have received Illinois driver’s licenses since December under a new state law. [The AP updated to correct the number.]
Immigrants can currently take license tests at 14 locations across the state. Secretary of States spokesman Dave Druker says 36 locations will offer license tests by the end of the month.
The licenses are valid for three years and may be used only for driving. They can’t be used as identification for activities like boarding a plane, voting or buying a firearm.
About one-quarter of the 23,000-plus concealed-carry applications received so far by the Illinois State Police have come from Cook County, the agency reported Wednesday. […]
So far, 5,305 applicants come from Cook County, but Bond said the agency did not have a tabulation available breaking down how many came from Chicago or the Cook County suburbs. Likewise, in other counties, no town-by-town breakdowns were available, she said.
Among Illinois’ 101 other counties, Will County had the second largest volume of concealed-carry applications with 1,759, followed by DuPage County with 1,589 and Lake with 1,164.
To round out the collar counties, McHenry County had 822 applications, while Kane County had 761 gun owners wanting permission to carry their weapons in public places.
Two major Illinois institutions today welcomed a unique partnership, as Equality Illinois announced that Chicago-based United Airlines is becoming the Exclusive Airline for the state’s oldest and largest advocacy organization for lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender Illinoisans.
The partnership makes United the first choice for air travel by Equality Illinois.
“We are the first statewide LGBT equality group in the country to enter into such an Exclusive Airline arrangement,” said Bernard Cherkasov, CEO of Equality Illinois. “That we are able to do that with United, our own Illinois-based carrier that is also an industry leader in its LGBT workplace initiatives, is especially meaningful.”
“We’re proud to launch this great partnership with Equality Illinois – an organization committed to supporting the diversity that reflects United’s customers, employees and ‘Working Together’ culture,” said Nene Foxhall, the airline’s executive vice president of communications and government affairs.
United was the recipient of the 2013 Equality Illinois Business Leadership Award at the annual Equality Illinois Gala last February, a recognition given to companies that demonstrate remarkable vision, courage, and leadership in the effort to achieve full equality for LGBT individuals in Illinois.
“United was one of the earliest U.S. corporations to prohibit discrimination and harassment based on sexual orientation and, later, gender identity,” Cherkasov said when announcing the award last February. “The company has also continually earned a perfect score on the annual Corporate Equality Index.”
Cherkasov said that under the “Exclusive Airline” agreement, Equality Illinois staff, board members and key supporters will be turning to United for flights to business meetings, and United will be supporting the ongoing work of Equality Illinois to secure full LGBT equality.
I wonder if the anti gay marriage types could score a similar corporate deal. Probably not.
Here’s a photo of the first 70mph speed limit sign going up this week in Illinois Department of Transportation District 6, which covers west-central Illinois from Springfield to Quincy. Photo courtesy of the Illinois Dept. of Transportation.
Pharmacist Joseph Friedman has a dream to open his own medical marijuana dispensary in Illinois. […]
One problem: Pharmacists’ federal licenses prohibit them from dispensing the drug.
That’s why Friedman, of Lincolnshire, is leading a push in Illinois to have pharmacists run marijuana dispensaries and to reclassify the drug as a “Schedule II” substance for medical use.
After Friedman’s presentation Tuesday before the Illinois State Board of Pharmacy, other leading pharmacists expressed interest in the board getting involved as the rules for medical marijuana distribution are sorted out.
Dan Linn, executive director of NORML Illinois, which works to legalize the drug, said some marijuana advocates fear that the big pharmaceutical industry will take over the potentially multibillion-dollar business, forcing out local growers and retailers.
Oh, please. The more “mainstream” this becomes, the better off everybody is gonna be. I, for one, would love to see Walgreens dispensing med-mar. And if Big Pharma wants to put its massive research facilities to use on this, why stop them? They’ve come up with some incredible medical advances over the years, and they should most definitely be included. This ain’t just a hippie thing any longer.
* Other business news…
* Illinois to see job growth with the help of Magic Johnson: Former NBA superstar Magic Johnson, the new controlling shareholder of Iowa-based EquiTrust, said the company would have 200 workers in downtown Chicago by the end of this year, and planned eventually to have 1,000 here. “You can’t do that in Iowa. If you’re gonna be the kind of insurance company that wants to draw the talent, you gotta look at a state that has 1,200 insurance companies, 28,000 people, a depth of professional capacity and skills that only a city like Chicago has,” Mayor Rahm Emanuel commented.
* Magic Johnson scores Iowa insurer for Illinois: Gov. Terry Branstad vigorously defended Iowa Insurance Commissioner Nick Gerhart on Tuesday when he learned that the EquiTrust move wasn’t just a paper relocation, as was initially believed. “We have a great insurance commissioner and we just had two insurance companies redomicile to Iowa,” Branstad said. Iowa is home to more than 200 insurance companies.
* Quinn seeks statewide petcoke restrictions: KCBX said it has spent $30 million upgrading its storage terminal on Burley Avenue between 108th and 111th streets, including $10 million for new dust-suppression equipment. The company is willing to enclose its petcoke piles but opposes some other requirements Quinn and Emanuel propose, including a provision in city regulations that would force storage terminals to suspend operations when wind speed exceeds 15 mph.
* I received a text message over the weekend from Oswego Willy…
Out & about and look who I have in front of me? lol
That would be Rep. Tom Cross’ car…
As most of you know, Willy wasn’t exactly Cross’ biggest fan back when Cross was the House GOP Leader. In those days, Tom might’ve thought that OW was stalking him, but Willy seems to be supportive of the guy’s statewide bid. However, he did add this…
Tom was on the phone, no hands-free. Just struck me as funny.
* Back in December, the Sun-Times ran a long piece online by Timothy Meegan entitled “Selecting charters in Chicago a rigged game.” Meegan wrote about how Neighborhood Advisory Councils (NACs) were set up to allow communities to review proposals for new charter schools…
[Neighborhood Advisory Councils] are being facilitated by members of Stand for Children, a pro charter school organization. The NW Side NAC is being facilitated by Juan Jose Gonzalez, Stand for Children’s Chicago Director, a fact he refused to reveal in public when asked at a NAC meeting. His wife facilitates the SW Side NAC. This is a glaring conflict of interest.
Mr. Gonzalez even offered one of our NAC members a job at Stand for Children, which is wholly inappropriate.
Everything done on the NAC was paid for by New Schools for Chicago, a venture philanthropy organization dedicated to charter proliferation. Their board includes CEO Barbara Byrd Bennett, Board of Education members Deborah Quazzo and President David Vitale, and Noble investor and gubernatorial candidate Bruce Rauner.
Why? Because charter schools become investment opportunities and tax shelters for the super wealthy. Intrinsic is funded by the Walton foundation, the Broad Foundation, New Schools for Chicago [which has received six-figure funding from the Rauner Family Foundation], and NextGen. Noble investors include Commerce Secretary Penny Pritzker and Bruce Rauner.
New Schools for Chicago spared no expense. They catered all meals, paid for materials and meeting space. They also brought in pro charter “experts” from all over the country to guide us in the process. New Schools hired an organizer named Chris Butler to canvass for the community meetings. On December 7 I asked Mr. Butler how many people were canvassing and for how long, and what specifically they were doing, i.e. passing out flyers, door knocking, etc.
The process was rigged from the start. The NW side [Neighborhood Advisory Council] examined two high school proposals for the Belmont-Cragin area, Intrinsic and Noble. Intrinsic currently does not have location in mind for its proposed charter; Noble wants to locate its charter across the street from Prosser Career Academy.
Immediately upon joining the NW Side NAC, we had to sign a confidentiality agreement. Conversations have been limited by a very narrow criteria, allowing for almost no qualitative analysis of the proposals. Many members were uncomfortable and voiced their concerns about being limited to the CPS rubric. For example, our decisions were limited to whether non- negotiables, such as Noble’s infamous disciplinary fines, were present in the proposal, not whether they were desirable for a school in our community.
Rules seem to be made up as they go along. Our NAC was overseen by CPS officials from the Office of New Schools and Intergovernmental Affairs. After the NAC decided by majority vote to hold a community meeting at Prosser and had made arrangements with Prosser’s principal, CPS’ John Scott and Emily Metz overruled our decision, claiming the need for a more “neutral” space.
* If people believe that the last week of negative stories about Bruce Rauner has dampened the candidate’s enthusiasm, they prolly have another think coming…
Embattled Republican gubernatorial candidate Bruce Rauner appeared energized and combative at a Republican candidates forum in Oak Lawn on Monday night.
“You know what, there’s an old saying in politics: ‘If you want a friend in politics get a dog.’ You know what, I got a couple of terrific bird dogs, and I’m ready to rumble,” Rauner said. “We’re good to go. This is going to be a very, very fun race.”
Most rich guys hate this sort of crud, but he obviously loves this stuff. More…
[Rauner] said the campaign for governor is going to be “rough and tumble,” adding that, “the Democrats are going to have a ton of money and they’re going to come and bomb us every day.
“You know what, we are going to bomb them right back. Quinn has the worst record of any governor in America, and we’re going to make sure every voter in this state knows it every week,” Rauner said. “We’re going to get him out of office, I promise you that.”
He told the audience that the “government union bosses are coming after us right now. We’re the worst-run state in America for one really powerful reason. The special interest groups that make their money from government and own Springfield.”
* And he was energized and unapologetic on Roe Conn’s show this week…
* Treasurer Dan Rutherford’s gubernatorial campaign filed its D-2 yesterday. Rutherford reported raising $392,583.25 in the quarter and had $1,369,468.52 cash on hand.
Since Rutherford was the first gubernatorial candidate to file ahead of a Wednesday deadline to file quarterly campaign-disclosure reports, it was too early to tell how his warchest stacked up against other funds in the four-way Republican primary, including that belonging to wealthy private equity investor Bruce Rauner.
Rauner has pumped $2.24 million of his own funds into his campaign as of early January.
“We have a large number of contributors, unlike Rauner, who has large contributions,” Rutherford spokesperson Brian Sterling said. “We get letters every day from people who support Dan. What he’s doing is certainly more on the grassroots level, so if you look from that perspective, we’re doing good.”
The highest individual contribution among the $392,583 that rolled in to Rutherford’s campaign during the three-month period came from the T-N-T Truck and Trailer Service, a Lincoln-based roadside assistance business, which gave $20,500. One of the company’s bus operators, Paul Smith, also contributed $10,000.
Farren’s, at 308 N. Randolph St., was listed on Rauner’s campaign itinerary as the last of seven Champaign stops Friday.
But no one had checked with Farren’s owner Carolyn Farren. She stopped Rauner from coming into the crowded restaurant.
“I introduced myself. He introduced himself and I said, ‘I’m sorry but you’re not going to be allowed to come in and campaign here. I had no advance knowledge of this event. It wasn’t cleared with me,’” Farren recalled. “I said, ‘It’s not because you’re a Republican or a Democrat. It has nothing to do with a political party. I just said that our restaurant is not a place for political campaigning.’ He was nice.”
All four Republican candidates for Illinois governor said fixing the state’s economic woes would be among their top priorities if they win — an issue they’ll be trying to distinguish themselves on in a state that’s home to one of the nation’s highest unemployment rates and a multibillion-dollar backlog of overdue bills.
In response to a campaign questionnaire from The Associated Press, the four contenders — state Sens. Bill Brady and Kirk Dillard, state Treasurer Dan Rutherford and Winnetka businessman Bruce Rauner — cited the need to cut spending, lower taxes, get people back to work by creating a more business-friendly climate — and “all of the above.” While offering only a few specifics, the four will no doubt be pressed on the issue in a series of upcoming debates leading up to the March 18 primary.
“Jobs. Jobs. And Jobs,” wrote Rutherford, of Chenoa, a former vice president for ServiceMaster Co., in response to an AP question asking for each candidate’s top three priorities if elected. “Illinois government finances are dire and our state is universally considered unfriendly to business. Building an environment that job creators are seeking and putting people back to work will help solve a lot of Illinois’ financial and social ailments.”
* I usually don’t ask our questions this early in the day, but I want y’all to put some thought into this one. I think we ought to send the gubernatorial candidates our own questionnaire. But I don’t think we ought to ask generic questions like the one above.
What I’m looking for here are questions that aren’t often asked, but that will likely be answered, so “gotcha” questions are out of the equation. Don’t bother.
* Here’s one I came up with to get the ball rolling…
What approximate percentage of blame do you believe that longtime Illinois House Speaker Michael Madigan deserves for this state’s current fiscal and economic conditions?
That could be fun.
A few more possibles…
Do you support any additional restrictions above and beyond the current Illinois concealed carry law, and/or do you favor rolling back any of the current state restrictions? Please list your proposals.
Now that gay marriage is the law of the land, do you support any further legislation to clarify, restrict or expand the new law, or do you favor total repeal? Please list your proposals, if any.
Would you favor any further pension reforms for the state, above and beyond those which have already been signed into law? Please list your proposals.
* The Question: Your questions for the gubernatorial candidates? And remember, no “gotcha” stuff and no snark. Take it seriously, please. Thanks.
…Adding… I know I asked you to take this seriously, but that doesn’t mean you can’t have any fun with your questions. Most answers so far have been super-serious. You can feel free try to lighten it up a little and add some snap without snark. Thanks.
Tuesday was the first of several forums planned in advance of the GOP primary for Illinois governor.
Three of the candidates, state Sen. Bill Brady, state Treasurer Dan Rutherford and state Sen. Kirk Dillard attended the Will County Tea Party forum in Plainfield, but the front-runner — Bruce Rauner — was a no-show.
An empty chair was placed on stage for Rauner, who asked that a surrogate read an opening statement for him, a request that was denied.
*** UPDATE *** Dillard has first-hand knowledge of being labeled as “not a Republican.” Remember this 2010 ad?…
* The AP looks at concealed carry applications and the Cook County sheriff’s determination to weed out as many as he can…
In examining 2,000 of the first 5,000 applications, the department has flagged more than 120 that it will recommend Dart object to. The law allows objections for what it calls a “reasonable suspicion” that the applicants are dangerous even if their backgrounds would not automatically result in denials of their applications. Among those flagged by the Sheriff’s Department are a gang leader who has been arrested — though never convicted — a dozen times on aggravated battery with a dangerous weapon and other charges, and a man who was arrested but not convicted of domestic battery and endangering the life of a child. […]
In Cook County, Smith said “the numbers are so high” that to keep up, the 20-person unit assigned to investigate the applications would have to be tripled in size.
But state Rep. Brandon Phelps, a sponsor of the legislation, said 30 days is long enough for local law enforcement to submit objections to the state panel made up of former prosecutors, judges and others. He also says it isn’t necessary to provide additional funds since local law enforcement isn’t involved with issuing the permits.
Further, he and others said that because applicants have already passed background checks to obtain the state’s Firearm Owners Identification cards, the state could find itself in court if the panel upholds scores of local objections.
* These are not new arguments, but this is a new story…
A coalition of business groups says that Illinois employers cannot afford another increase in the minimum wage.
Against the backdrop of minimum wage-related mudslinging in the Republican race for governor and the possibility that Democrats could push a boost in the minimum wage through the General Assembly this spring, the 18 organizations said an increase to $10 an hour is “far too drastic.”
“Illinois already has a minimum wage higher than all of our neighboring states, and we are tied for the sixth highest minimum wage in the country. If Illinois were to pass a $10 minimum wage, that amount would almost double the rate since only 2003,” the coalition said in a statement issued Tuesday.
* The Question: Should Illinois increase its minimum wage to $10 an hour, keep it as is or lower it a dollar an hour to the national rate? Take the poll and then explain your answer in comments, please.
Several aldermen continued to express concerns about the indoor ban Monday, arguing there is no clear scientific consensus that the vapor emitted from electronic cigarettes is dangerous like smoke from tobacco products.
“It is a ban, because you’re making people go outside, you’re treating it just as you would an analogue cigarette or tobacco cigarette,” said Ald. Rey Colon, 35th. “You’re lumping it together in the same category even though you don’t really have any proof that it has any harm. You’re saying ‘We’re going to regulate first and ask questions later.’ ” […]
Ald. Brendan Reilly, 42nd, suggested the City Council adopt the part of the city e-cigarettes ordinance that regulates sales while putting off a vote on the portion dealing with indoor smoking in public places until more scientific consensus has been reached on the health impact.
“I’m certainly not here to defend Big Tobacco. They’re done enough harm in this country,” said Reilly, who smokes. “But I do have friends and family members who are using (e-cigarettes) to quit, to get away from combustible tobacco that kills people.”
Tobacco has all sorts of carcinogens in its smoke. E-cigs are just nicotine and water vapor. Also, I totally agree with Reilly.
Scientists, who have come to rely on liberals in political battles over stem-cell research, climate change and the teaching of evolution, have been dismayed to find themselves at odds with their traditional allies on this issue. Some compare the hostility to G.M.O.s to the rejection of climate-change science, except with liberal opponents instead of conservative ones.
“These are my people, they’re lefties, I’m with them on almost everything,” said Michael Shintaku, a plant pathologist at the University of Hawaii at Hilo, who testified several times against the bill. “It hurts.” But, supporters of the ban warned, scientists had not always correctly assessed the health and environmental risks of new technology. “Remember DDT?” one proponent demanded.
In November, Washington became the latest state to reject a ballot proposal that would have required labeling of foods with genetically modified ingredients.
At the same time, Maine and Connecticut have passed laws requiring labels on genetically engineered foods. However, their laws won’t go into effect until other states in the Northeast also adopt GMO labeling laws.
Against that backdrop, an Illinois lawmaker said he will pursue legislation this year requiring labels on foods with genetically modified ingredients.
“I’m dealing with this strictly as a consumer right-to-know bill,” said Sen. Dave Koehler, D-Peoria. “I’m not saying yea or nay to the health risks. I’m saying consumers have a right to know and they can make up their own mind.”
* As I’ve already told you, Sen. Kirk Dillard responded to these claims by Bruce Rauner’s campaign…
“Kirk Dillard is the worst type of career politician. He’s double-talking and has more clout baggage than O’Hare during a snowstorm. The fact is Kirk Dillard and the other career politicians repeatedly clouted people into the University of Illinois and never thought twice about it. Voters know he is a hypocrite and will reject him.”
* Dillard’s retort when asked about it by Mary Ann Ahern yesterday…
“The one or two people that I have ever written letters of recommendation to for the University of Illinois are there. I think the ones that I wrot actually were rejected and you can check that out Mary Ann.”
* OK, let’s check it out. From the July 16, 2009 Tribune…
University logs obtained by the Tribune show that Dillard’s name was tied to seven students on the clout list since 2005. Three were admitted, but the state senator said his involvement rarely went beyond a formal letter of recommendation and that he never pushed to overturn an admissions decision.
Oops.
* Back to yesterday, when Dillard was asked if he saw a pattern with Rauner…
“There’s a pattern that began when Mr. Rauner hired Rahm Emanuel when he came out of the wrought iron gates of the White House even though the mayor did not have investment banking experience. He hired Rahm Emanuel and obviously it was to help him garner business in the private sector.”
But in trying to accuse Rauner of a “pattern” of clout, Dillard erroneously said Rauner “hired Rahm Emanuel when he came out of the wrought iron gates of the White House (as a top adviser to President Bill Clinton) even though the mayor did not have investment banking experience.”
Emanuel sought advice from Rauner, but Chicago’s future mayor went to work for an investment management firm, not a Rauner company. Rauner’s firm did end up doing a major deal which helped Emanuel become wealthy.
Obviously, the much bigger error was the way Dillard downplayed his involvement in the so-called admissions scandal at the U of I.
But if he wants to play in the big time, he’s got to play by big time rules.
So far, the media has been giving him a pass, mainly because it’s Rauner’s turn in the barrel. Dillard’s turn could be coming, however.
Democratic gubernatorial candidate Tio Hardiman should be allowed to remain on the March 18 primary ballot but his running mate should be barred from having her name appear alongside his, a state hearing officer has determined.
That good news/bad news recommendation disclosed Tuesday by the State Board of Elections now awaits a ruling by the eight-member state election board perhaps as early as Thursday in a decision that could ultimately wind up in the courts.
The board’s chief legal counsel, Steve Sandvoss, also has to weigh in on the case. His recommendation along with that of hearing officer Barbara Goodman will be presented Thursday to the state board. […]
Donald did not meet the requirement of a state law that dictates lieutenant governor candidates be legally registered to vote, Goodman ruled.
Nobody really knows what will happen if Donald remains off the ballot. State law requires that a gubernatorial candidate file with a running mate, but the statute is silent on what happens if that running mate is kicked off the ballot, withdraws or dies. I see lots of court time in the future, which won’t be good news for Hardiman.
A candidate for the Illinois General Assembly is accusing a former Chicago alderman of slandering him while stumping for another candidate at a West Side church last week.
Eddie Winters, a candidate for the Illinois House of Representatives 10th District seat, filed the suit against former Alderman Ed Smith (28th), claiming Smith referred to him as a “wife-beater” who “failed to pay child support and leaves his kids starving.”
The lawsuit, filed Monday in Cook County Circuit Court, alleges that Smith made the remarks while speaking in support of another 10th District candidate, Pamela Reaves-Harris, at Mt. Vernon Baptist Church on Jan. 5, 2014.
“I stand by my statement, because the record shows it to be true,” Smith said in a emailed statement. “Mr. Winters does not want the people to know his true character. The voters have the right to know who he is and his past.”
Winters is backed by Secretary of State Jesse White and Ald. Bob Fioretti. Similar allegations were made against Winters by a previous opponent, former Rep. Annazette Collins, who was also backed by Ed Smith. Winters denied the allegations at the time. Smith ought to either put up or shut up on these charges once and for all.
The incumbent in the five-way primary is indicted for bribery state Rep. Derrick Smith (D-Chicago).
* CBS2 interviewed Bruce Rauner about the renewed controversy over the alleged strings he pulled to get his Winnetka daughter into a top-flight Chicago public school ahead of other applicants…
Rauner admits making a call to former Chicago Public Schools CEO Arne Duncan to see how he could get his daughter into Payton, despite what he calls a middle school attendance record marred by illness. He says principals have some discretion in admitting a small percentage of students, and parents have a right to make an appeal like he did.
“There’s nothing to apologize for that, there’s nothing wrong with it, and I would do it again and again,” he tells CBS 2 Chief Correspondent Jay Levine in a one-on-one interview.
Rauner said he gave money to Walter Payton Prep more than a year after his daughter was admitted there. He said he and he wife have donated millions to schools.
* OK, most people would only be able to call the local principal to file an appeal. Rauner went straight to the tippety top…
So how difficult was it for an average Chicago student to be admitted into Payton College Prep the year that Bruce Rauner made a call to get his daughter in?
More than 9,000 students applied for 353 open seats in the 2008-09 academic year, according to data obtained by the Sun-Times through the Freedom of Information Act. This happened before the Chicago Public Schools system changed its policy on attendance records. That means for the thousands of students competing for 353 open seats, consideration was supposed to be based on test scores, grades, and students’ attendance when they were in seventh grade.
Mike Schrimpf, spokesman for Rauner’s gubernatorial campaign, told the Sun-Times that Rauner’s daughter “was admitted off the principal’s list, the same way many students have been admitted.”
Data shows that even by that measure, it’s an elite crowd.
Fewer than .0014 percent of Payton students were allowed in through principal discretion that year. […]
A source with specific knowledge of the admission told the Sun-Times that Rauner’s daughter was not a so-called “principal pick” but was let in following a phone call.
And he didn’t just write one check to the school. He also wrote a half million dollar check to the Chicago Public Schools Foundation.
Here are the largest donations the Rauner Family Foundation has made between Jan. 1, 2009, and Dec. 31, 2011. The foundation had assets of $50.7 million as of the end of 2011.
1. $500,000 to Donors Trust, Alexandria, Va., 2011
* From the Donors Trust “Building a legacy for liberty” website…
The founders of DonorsTrust recognized the need for philanthropic resources and services to help donors effectively manage their charitable giving. Moreover, it was clear to them that there was no infrastructure dedicated to a nationwide community of liberty-minded donors and organizations.
DonorsTrust was established as the sole donor-advised plan dedicated to promoting a free society and serving donors who share that purpose. To date, DonorsTrust has received over $400 million from these donors who are both dedicated to liberty and to the cause of perpetuating a free and prosperous society through philanthropic means. Since inception, DonorsTrust has granted out over $300 million to over 1000 liberty-minded charities.
I need to reduce the capital gains tax liability associated with my appreciated stock, closely held stock, or unexpected windfall. Can DonorsTrust help?
Appreciated Stock
You own appreciated stock and want to distribute it to a number of charities and avoid the capital gains tax. Make one transfer of stock to DonorsTrust and receive the market value for your gift. Then at your leisure, request DonorsTrust to distribute multiple gifts from the transfer.
A secretive funding organisation in the United States that guarantees anonymity for its billionaire donors has emerged as a major operator in the climate “counter movement” to undermine the science of global warming, The Independent has learnt.
The Donors Trust, along with its sister group Donors Capital Fund, based in Alexandria, Virginia, is funnelling millions of dollars into the effort to cast doubt on climate change without revealing the identities of its wealthy backers or that they have links to the fossil fuel industry.
However, an audit trail reveals that Donors is being indirectly supported by the American billionaire Charles Koch who, with his brother David, jointly owns a majority stake in Koch Industries, a large oil, gas and chemicals conglomerate based in Kansas.
Millions of dollars has been paid to Donors through a third-party organisation, called the Knowledge and Progress Fund, with is operated by the Koch family but does not advertise its Koch connections.
A Woodridge man was arrested and charged with being a fugitive from justice after police discovered he is wanted on a larceny charge in Montgomery County, Va.
Police said they stopped a car driven by Keith R.W. Matune, 21, of 5921 Jackson Drive early Friday on the 6200 block of Belmont Road for driving with bright headlights.
Matune, who was taken to Du Page County Jail, will be extradited to Virginia, police said.
* Matune is now running for the Illinois House as a Republican against Rep. Ron Sandack (R-Downers Grove). He’s expected to have lots of support from groups on the right because of Rep. Sandack’s vote for gay marriage and his years-long battle with Dan Proft (whose PAC just received a $1.5 million check from a far right businessman). The House Republican Organization found the above story with a simple Google search, I’m told. HRO has vowed to defend all challenged incumbents in the primary.
The 1991 arrest in and of itself is probably no big deal. Things happen in life. But Sandack wanted to make sure Matune knew about this, so, apparently as a courtesy, he asked for a sitdown with Matune, and the two met with one person from each camp present to talk it over.
Keith Matune, who is challenging State Rep. Ron Sandack, claimed today that the incumbent Republican legislator threatened him at a meeting the two had at Omega restaurant in Downers Grove yesterday, January 12.
According to Matune, Sandack told him the meeting was a “courtesy” to inform him that members of the House Republican Organization (HRO) will be releasing unflattering, personal information about his past. Information that could damage Matune’s reputation in the community.
The information Sandack may have been referring to is a newspaper article from 1991 that noted Matune had been arrested for larceny, was an out of state fugitive from justice, and was being extradited.
Matune said the incident was an “innocent misunderstanding” and explained that he “unintentionally wrote a $150 check that was returned for insufficient funds while attending college out of state.” While home for the summer, he was stopped by local police for a broken headlight and was notified during the stop that there was an out of state warrant issued for an insufficient check.
Matune said he was “completely surprised and unaware of the situation,” and that he was not arrested and all charges were dropped within 24 hours after he made full restitution.
Sandack totally denies that any threats of any kind were made.
And he wasn’t arrested? Well, not according to the Tribune, but maybe the paper made a mistake. Still, there’s also this little matter of what looks to be mugshots…
the said defendant after having been charged in Montgomery County, Commonwealth of Virginia with the offense of Fraud - Insufficient Funds Check, in violation of Virginia statute 18.2-181, fled the Commonwealth of Virginia with the intent to avoid prosecution of that offense. [Emphasis added.]
Meanwhile, a GOP source told The Illinois Observer that Matune had contacted the Daily Herald and asked if he “could amend his questionnaire and they confirmed he answered NO to the question: Have you ever been arrested for or convicted of a crime?”
Oof.
If Matune is now attempting to cover up his 1991 arrest, he may have compromised the value of “it was a long time ago” argument by allegedly committing a fresh transgression, a transgression that would strike at the heart of his current character. Not good.
While the original charge would haunt Matune’s campaign, if he mishandles the response – that could doom it.
All three suits allege that the law violates the Pension Clause because it makes modest reductions to annual increases in retiree benefits, commonly referred to as COLAs. The Cook County suit also alleges that the law’s increases in retirement age for some workers and its (generous) cap on pensionable salaries violate the Pension Clause.
The lawsuits’ claims don’t have merit. The COLA reduction doesn’t touch the benefits workers have already earned, but only limits increases going forward. COLAs are a way for the Illinois General Assembly to help retirees keep up with changes in the cost of living, which may fluctuate over time; by their nature, they’re not written in stone.
As for the higher retirement age, the Illinois Supreme Court has already held that the Pension Clause allows a change in workers’ retirement age even if it indirectly affects the benefits they will receive. And the pensionable salary cap – which, at more than $110,000 for participants in the Teachers’ Retirement System in 2014, is unlikely to leave anyone destitute – doesn’t violate the Pension Clause because it only affects benefits workers will earn for work done in the future, not benefits they’ve already earned.
“Anyone who wants to see more people going back to work should support lowering the minimum wage,” John Tilman, Illinois Policy Institute, said.
* From this week’s Crain’s we have Illinois Policy Institute writer Scott Reeder…
I’ve been covering politics for more than 25 years. I’ve seen politicians prevaricate, flip-flop, quibble and just about everything in between. I’m never surprised when they do it. But it’s still disappointing.
The Illinois minimum wage is $8.25 per hour; the federal rate, $7.25.
Last month GOP gubernatorial hopeful Bruce Rauner told a Moline audience that he favored rolling back the Illinois minimum wage. Now he’s saying he doesn’t want that. He says he was just being “flippant” when he made the statement.
I’m sorry. I’m not buying it.
A lower minimum wage helps low-skilled workers enter the job market because it lowers employers’ costs to hire and train them. This enables more people to be hired and start their way up the ladder toward higher wages.
That’s pretty standard free-market economics, something Mr. Rauner has expressed strong support for. But those principles seem to be butting heads with politics.
* When your allies advise you to jump off a cliff, it’s probably best to find new allies.
Throughout pretty much all of last year, Rauner favored the standard Republican Party line about opposing any increase in the minimum wage. Then, one time in December (that we know of), Rauner switched to the Illinois Policy Institute position and demanded that the minimum wage be lowered. Rauner’s move has seriously damaged his campaign and has opened the floodgates of public criticism.
Let that be today’s lesson. Those guys are politically toxic. Rauner gave the group half a million dollars, but that doesn’t mean he has to listen to them all the time.
