Capitol Fax.com - Your Illinois News Radar

Quinn adds chairs to DoC deck, Hynes lays out the case

Posted in:

Illinois

* The governor just announced a new bureaucrat for the Department of Corrections. From a press release…

January 6, 2010. Governor Pat Quinn today announced that Michael J. McCotter, a 37-year law enforcement veteran, has been named to the recently announced position of Chief Public Safety Officer at the Illinois Department of Corrections (IDOC).

McCotter, whose experience includes a number of high-ranking positions in the Chicago Police Department, will evaluate and oversee implementation of IDOC’s statutorily-sanctioned meritorious good time and electronic home-detention programs.

Notice the ever so subtle dig at the General Assembly. What the release doesn’t mention is that these are not legally mandatory early outs. This is a discretionary program. And the director and the administration thoroughly screwed it up.

Quinn is also putting one of his most trusted guys in charge of watching the day to day operations…

Governor Quinn has designated Sean Vinck to be a special administrator for IDOC, where his primary task will be to assist in the day-to-day management of the agency. He will report to Governor Quinn and Jerome Stermer, Chief of Staff to Governor Quinn. Vinck will retain his position as Chief of Intergovernmental Affairs for the Office of the Governor.

In other words, Quinn will essentially have his own set of eyes over there at DoC.

I certainly hope the governor doesn’t think that these personnel moves are enough. Heads absolutely have to roll.

* Meanwhile, Dan Hynes gave a speech today at the City Club that is the most powerful case I’ve yet seen for why he decided to run against Quinn. You can read all the provided excerpts by clicking here, but here’s some of it…

While I do not begrudge [Gov. Quinn] the circumstances under which he assumed office, I do not accept that those circumstances prevented him from doing what’s right for the people of Illinois. In fact, I believe the circumstances presented a unique opportunity, and now one that is lost.

Think about it. After Rod’s departure, never before have the people and institutions of Illinois wanted so much for one man to succeed. The right leader might have taken advantage of the situation to get things done – to be the leader who could shepherd through the hard choices that have too long been ignored.

The people of Illinois were rooting for Pat Quinn. And Pat Quinn struck out.

This isn’t a critique of Governor Quinn as a person. It’s an indictment of his leadership, and it is based in fact.

When you have the opportunity to lead – when leadership is what is needed most - You don’t make your signature priority a 50 percent tax increase on the middle class, particularly in a recession.

You don’t change your position two, three, or even four times on that same tax hike, in the process sowing doubts about your sincerity.

You don’t tell the people of Illinois that nothing matters more than a jobs bill, so you would never play politics with it – and then hold up its passage for a month to try and pressure lawmakers into supporting your tax hike, losing a construction season in the process.

You don’t call a watered-down ethics bill a “landmark,” and then turn around and veto it.

You don’t continue to rely on a government full of Blagojevich appointees, including a budget team that makes AIG look savvy.

You don’t try to negotiate in public a plan to borrow half a billion dollars, and then deceive us about the details to try and browbeat a political opponent.

You don’t brazenly put off addressing the budget crisis until after an election, when it costs us money every single day.

And you certainly don’t, at the very same time, secretly release 1,700 dangerous criminals at any cost; then offer vague, contradictory explanations for what you knew and when you knew it; and then stonewall the people you serve.

All the while, the people of Illinois have lost jobs, seen their children’s futures further mortgaged, and watched their streets become less safe.

Now ask yourself if you deserve another year – or 4 more years — like that.

To those who will somehow say that raising these issues is negative – or a naysayer? I say it’s just the opposite. Because this is the reality that we’re living, and what I believe is that we can do better. In fact, what’s negative is to condemn this conversation as somehow inappropriate — because that says that we – you and I — should be happy with what we’ve got and ask for nothing more.

That’s what it says to all of us who care about Illinois. Who are concerned about what will be left for our kids. And who believe that we do deserve better, and that better needs to start – right now.

I think that all we’re looking for are good ideas – and leadership that reflects our own common sense and responsibility. Because that’s how we’re going to mend the wounds of the past few years, solve the problems of this decade, and respond to the challenges of our times. […]

But to make any of these things reality – to bring sanity and fairness to our budget, to restore jobs and grow our economy, and yes, even to ensure that our government is ethical and working for us, the people it serves – we need new leadership

Thoughts?

* Related and other stuff…

* Illinois’ $5.1 billion in unpaid bills endangers state, says Comptroller Hynes

* Gov Candidate Says Corrections Chief Must Go

* A State-Level Step Toward Health Insurance Reform

* State Capitol Q&A: Arbitration could lead to deal in state layoff lawsuit

* Quinn: All of state government must economize

* Meeting on proposed prison sale

* Thomson deal splits local lawmakers

* Attorney general adds staff, contacts on open records law

* Lobbyist registration system shut down

* Madigan: Asian carp injunction request is invalid

* Illinois agencies question science behind Asian carp fears

* To fight carp, think outside the locks

* University of Illinois orders furloughs, other cost-cutting measures

* U. of I. schools’ furloughs expected to save $17 mil.

* U of I Employees to Take Furlough Days

* Budget woes forces U of I to start furlough plan

* Waiting for Cash in Illinois

* Illinois Set For $3.5B GO Issue: After spending the week in a heavy marketing campaign that includes international buyers, Illinois on Thursday or Friday will price nearly $3.5 billion of taxable general obligation bonds with a five-year maturity to help cover its fiscal 2010 pension payments.

* Wednesday Illinois political docket: State panel to vote on prison sale for Gitmo detainees

* Illinois begins disaster preparedness efforts

* Federal funds ease anxiety at South Side mental health agency

* Report: Illinois youth prisons lack staff, services

posted by Rich Miller
Wednesday, Jan 6, 10 @ 12:03 pm

Comments

I’ve been saying for a while that Hynes has been too shrill and strident, and he’s been turning people off as a result. His best approach would have been to portray Quinn as well-intentioned but just not up to the job - sort of a nice, friendly lovable guy who is trying as hard he can, but just isn’t the right fit. That would vibe with how people already view Quinn. His shrillness paints a picture of Quinn as a bad guy that doesn’t resonate with the image people have of him, which is why he hasn’t been able to sell it.

This closer, but it is probably too late now.

Comment by Don't Worry, Be Happy Wednesday, Jan 6, 10 @ 12:17 pm
Rich, your cheerleading for Hynes is getting tiresome…do you really think that things would be measurably better if say the Comptroller assumed the Governor’s role 12 months ago?
I’d love to see a list of how an insider like Hynes would have made a difference…have at it…

Comment by Loop Lady Wednesday, Jan 6, 10 @ 12:18 pm
The road to hell is paved with good intentions and Quinn has traveled that road for too long. Hynes summed up Quinn’s botched management execution, but the question remains whether “Dan Can” deliver better results when managing a 56,000 state employee enterprise. It’s a tough job, and there are no easy answers. The early release program suffers because Quinn wasn’t up front about the consequences of a $12 billion deficit.

Comment by Louis Howe Wednesday, Jan 6, 10 @ 12:20 pm
Did Quinn mention who he is moving out of IDOC to make room for McCotter on the payroll? Or is this a net new hire for the budget to absorb?

Comment by Responsa Wednesday, Jan 6, 10 @ 12:21 pm
Here’s my take on Dan Hynes: he’s a rigid person and something of a control freak.

Hynes wants to begin a project with a plan and then to implement the plan step-by-step.

The Hynes approach is admirable and effective if one is conducting a project in a fixed environment. But in a dynamic environment Hynes’ approach is much less effective.

If I’m right about Hynes, his style and skill set is better suited to a job like comptroller, treasurer, secretary of state than it is to mayor, governor or attorney general.

The justification for running Hynes provided the Tenth Dems sounded good. He said he had become disillusioned with politics and thought of retiring. He said he didn’t care if he got re-elected governor. He said he was disgusted by Rod Blagojevich.

The problem with Hynes’ pitch is that if it was all true, it seems like he would have run against Blagojevich in the Dem primary in 2006. But he didn’t.

Hynes’ approach to politics is very much about lining-up support from entities that are known quantities, like committeemen and unions. Hynes understands this kind of power.

Hynes is much less comfortable with abstract power like using an idea to motivate people to change their government. If Hynes can’t attach a number to a campaign technique he’s not comfortable with that technique.

I suspect Hynes has spent less energy courting progressive organizations, like IVI-IPO and Northside DFA, because it’s hard to quantify their influence. And Hynes also embarrassed himself with his heavy-handed attempt to rig the IVI-IPO endorsement in 2004. Again, he didn’t trust the abstract ideas part of politics, but tried to rely on having patronage workers buy up IVI-IPO memberships.

So, Hynes brings some strengths to the table, but some pretty significant weaknesses too.

Comment by Carl Nyberg Wednesday, Jan 6, 10 @ 12:21 pm
Sean Vinck . . . are you kidding me? He has no experience just arrogance. He’s the one Quinn relied on when Quinn thought he could get the votes in the GA for a tax hike last year. Vinck is clueless. In other words, a perfect choice.

Comment by yipes Wednesday, Jan 6, 10 @ 12:22 pm
I wish Quinn would let Randle out of the freezer so he could tell us what was behind the decision-making on the early releases. Who made the decisions, what criteria, and so on. I believe both Michigan and Wisconsin, among other states, have implemented successful early release programs. Why can’t Illiinois get it right. Our state bureaucrats are certainly as well paid or better than the above states.

Even if Randle ends up leaving, which seems more likely with each news alert, given that he’s already been replaced (de facto) by McCotter and Vink, we would learn something about an area of state government that is costing us big money (even more, with McCotter’s and Vink’s salaries now).

Comment by cassandra Wednesday, Jan 6, 10 @ 12:27 pm
BTW, I think an important message for Hynes to deliver is that Pat Quinn isn’t really at his best when he’s worried about re-election. When Quinn is worried about re-election he morphs into what he thinks he needs to be to get re-elected.

To get back the Pat Quinn who is a passionate advocate for the little guy, Quinn supporters need to do something counterintuitive. To get the good Pat Quinn as governor Quinn supporters need to vote for Hynes in the Democratic primary.

If Quinn loses the primary he’ll have almost a year as governor to enact progressive policies and appoint progressive people.

The alternative is to get the somewhat lame politician Quinn thinks he needs to be to get re-elected.

Delivering this kind of message may be too much of an abstraction for Team Hynes. But if Dan Hynes can’t beat Pat Quinn in the primary with the economy sucking and state in crisis, then probably Dan Hynes shouldn’t be governor.

Comment by Carl Nyberg Wednesday, Jan 6, 10 @ 12:29 pm
Lets enjoy the irony that the ‘public safety officer’ and the DoC has a lot more law enforcement experience than the head of the state police.

Comment by OneMan Wednesday, Jan 6, 10 @ 12:29 pm
–Heads absolutely have to roll.–

Looks to me that if Randle takes the hit quietly, he’s safe. If he gets canned, he might have some other things to say about who knew what when.

Comment by wordslinger Wednesday, Jan 6, 10 @ 12:29 pm
===he might have some other things to say about who knew what when. ===

Don’t be so sure about that. But as long as Quinn dithers, that impression will surely remain.

Comment by Rich Miller Wednesday, Jan 6, 10 @ 12:32 pm
Randle was Quinn’s appointee, and a slightly controversial one to boot. Quinn lost some political capital shoving Randle’s appointment through. If Randle is canned by Quinn, not only does the Governor look foolish regarding public safety and incarcerations, Quinn will have to once again read about how Randle was appointed by Quinn within the past few months, over objections. Then the Governor gets to read all about Randle’s controversy regarding Ohio, which will give Quinn another taste of Blagojevichian-styled scandal.

Quinn is going to need to fire someone else to contain this well-earned disaster.

Comment by VanillaMan Wednesday, Jan 6, 10 @ 12:42 pm
yipes - You have no idea what you’re talking about. Sean is the sharpest attorney working for Quinn and this is probably the sharpest decision Quinn has made during this whole fiasco.

Comment by Small Town Liberal Wednesday, Jan 6, 10 @ 12:47 pm
Word,

It has been my belief that Randle was not fired because Quinn is concerned that Randle, disgruntled and angry, may spill the beans and tell the truth about the early release programs.

Sen. Bill Brady has transcripts of Randle saying months ago that the early release programs were top-down decisions, not down-top, or at least that is what Brady claims.

Also, I found reporters’ descriptions of Randle during last week’s press conference where the Governor blamed him for the early press programs very interstering.

He was described as looking “shell-shocked” and “puzzled.” I wish I couldv’e seen it because body language and facial expressions are often more telling than words.

This all reminds of how the Secret Service fell on the sword for the White House Social Secretary. Only, it appears to me that Randle feel on the sword last week for his boss, or attempted to fall on the sword.

Why am I suspecting that “leaks” about Randle will start happening? It reminds me of what someone recently wrote about Paul Vallas and how leaks from City Hall came about him, sealing his fate.

If I’m Michael Randle I’m growing a pair of eyes in the back of my head ASAP because the knives/shivs. In prisons I understand the knife/shiv attacks are quite typical and the most common way to go.

Comment by Will County Woman Wednesday, Jan 6, 10 @ 12:52 pm
Hynes has an excellent speechwriter.

Comment by Indy Wednesday, Jan 6, 10 @ 12:52 pm
So we can’t fire Randle, instead we’re going to leave him doing… …what exactly, whiles this ever-growing team of overseers takes over his functions?

This is taking a long time to pull the band-aid off, when it could have been done quick and clean in one fast tug, fire the guy and start fresh with a clean sheet of paper. Now, it is no longer a bandaid, its a zipper, unzipping steadily, and letting all the ugly incompetence spill out on the floor.

Hyne’s speech is nothing I haven’t said since shortly after Quinn’s inauguration. Pat has let me down quite a bit from my early expectations. Mostly, I blame his ambition to run for the election; I think that took his eye off the ball of just getting the job done and forced too many compromises to try and be a candidate instead of the janitor that was his lot. It used to be about the music, man.

But though his speech is right on, Hynes has done and said nothing to convince me he can do any better. Looking more and more like a Republican or Independent ballot for me this year.

And I don’t care much for the picking over there, either.

Comment by Gregor Wednesday, Jan 6, 10 @ 12:58 pm
Hynes has infuriated dems across the state with rhetoric like this. Quinn will beat Hyney in February, but Hynes’ criticisms will provide fodder for the republicans in November. When this over, I doubt that Dan Hynes will have many friends left in govt.

Comment by anon Wednesday, Jan 6, 10 @ 1:01 pm
Has everyone forgotten that Hynes was going to run for AG until Lisa decided to stay?

Comment by chitownhv Wednesday, Jan 6, 10 @ 1:05 pm
This message from Hynes would have been great in August.

Comment by Anonymous Wednesday, Jan 6, 10 @ 1:07 pm
Where have those speeches been? He better start yelling them from the rooftops, because it’s falling upon deaf ears.

Comment by Bring Back Boone's Wednesday, Jan 6, 10 @ 1:31 pm
So….how many pairs of eyes does Quinn need to do a job?

Appoint a ‘head’;
Appoint a ‘watcher’;
Appoint a ‘day-to-day administrator’;
Appoint a ‘watcher-watcher’?
Appoint….and on and on.

Maybe he just needs to hire the right dude the first time?

Comment by sal-says Wednesday, Jan 6, 10 @ 1:47 pm
For whatever reason Hynes message does not seem to be getting out to the masses.

Comment by Ghost Wednesday, Jan 6, 10 @ 2:02 pm
All legitimate criticisms.

But where has Hynes been when all these issues came to a head? Where are his detailed (and real) plans to balance the budget? What has he done in 12 years in office to create any kind of meaningful sense of why he’s different from other run of the mill pols?

Comment by Dem observer Wednesday, Jan 6, 10 @ 2:06 pm
Quinn is scapegoating Randle for a program that Quinn approved and was started before Randle came to Illinois. This is another case of Quinn blaming someone else for his mistakes!!!!

Comment by HUH Wednesday, Jan 6, 10 @ 2:12 pm
I’m in agreement with Carl’s assessment of Hynes. And reading it just reminded me of why I have prefered one over the other.

For me it all goes back to the social service providers and organizations that were led astray last year and suckered into going down to Springfield in dangerous 100+ degree heat, by someone wanting to use and exploit them.

By that point the decision was made that there was not going to be a income tax increase, so protesting over a moot point did NO ONE any good.

At the time that fear and pandemonium were being instilled in the social service providers and organizations there were ONLY two democrats who stood up and said that inciting fear and pandemonium was wrong and that it was totally insensitive to use and treat people that way: Dan Hynes and Lisa Madigan. Both of them made comments independent of each other. Hynes made those comments well before Lisa Madiagn made clear her intention to seek re-election as AG.

So when Dan Hynes began to emerge as likely challenger to Quinn, the question for me became a question of temperament, credibility and character.

Unfortunately Quinn’s incessant flip-flopping undermined his credibility for me. On temperament I didn’t want someone as governor who resorts to inciting fear and pandemonium as a way of trying to get things done. I prefer someone who appeals to calm and makes rational, rather than emotionally- charged, arguments and decisions. On the issue of character, in either case neither Quinn nor Hynes has scadal-plagued or corrupt political pasts. In that respect they were pretty much equal, but that’s not to suggest that Quinn is without character flaws, particularly when it comes to his leadership style. From what I have seen of him in the past year, he’s not focused, results-driven, disciplined, and he has a tendency to make excuses rather than accept responsibility and his leadership style. Also he is very by -the-seat-of-his-pants, he just kinda makes stuff up/decisions as he goes. At the governor’s office level that’s dangerous.
So, in my opinion, based on that he does not exemplify good leadership character.

I’m not trying to knock him as a person because I do think that he is bsically a good person, but he and his leadership style are just not suited for the governor’s office. Leadership is very much situational, and Illinois’ situation is a crisis. So, for the next 4-8 years Illinois very much needs a leader capable of managing in crisis. In truth Illinois needed that last year.

Comment by Will County Woman Wednesday, Jan 6, 10 @ 2:17 pm
I was at the City Club luncheon today and Dan was great. I think hw should sharpen this line of attack on Quinn and drive the message that Quinn is erratic and a bumbler. It is very effective– and from what I have seen true.

Comment by Reality Wednesday, Jan 6, 10 @ 2:27 pm
===a program that Quinn approved and was started before Randle came to Illinois===

Not according to the information out there now.

Comment by Rich Miller Wednesday, Jan 6, 10 @ 2:32 pm
I got a ticket from a friend and tagged along to the city lunch too. Dan Hynes is a nice guy and his speaking has definitely improved, but the crowd didn’t seem to to receptive to the negative tone of the speech. It was a good speech. Q & A had nothing to deal with prisoners or the funeral trust though. Reporters did go after Hynes on the funeral trust afterwards though. Hynes mainly talked about budget issues, protecting social services and how he would use the “art of persuasion” to deal with Madigan- which I got a kick out of. Hynes also did not take a position on if he was outright against the idea of letting people out of jail early, rather he said it was something to sit down with the legislature and discuss.

Comment by Big Policy Nerd Wednesday, Jan 6, 10 @ 2:43 pm
Is this Michael McCotter the same Commander McCotter from the 25th Chicago police district from a few years back? The community leaders in the 25th District hated his treatment of Latinos and African-Americans, his harrasment of vendors in Riis park and Hanson park, and the manner in which he spoke to residents. I’m hoping the McCotter Quinn appointed isn’t the same one.

Comment by 31st Warder Wednesday, Jan 6, 10 @ 2:58 pm
Hynes makes some good points, obviously. That’s some pretty fertile ground he’s tilling.
At the same time, he mentions “the hard choices that have too long been ignored,” then proceeds (at least in the excerpt shown) to avoid mentioning what any of those hard choices might be. Of course, four weeks before a Dem primary is hardly an optimal time to provide much detail about proposed budget cuts. I guess we’re supposed to trust him.
As other bloggers have mentioned, he’s been comptroller for three terms. Where was he on the budget before he decided to run for guv?
One can at least say that this race is a contrast in styles. At this point Hynes has evidently decided that he needs to get people’s attention and is setting about trying to do that.

Comment by Rambler Wednesday, Jan 6, 10 @ 3:20 pm
when will there be some debates? are there any scheduled..

Comment by quinn fan Wednesday, Jan 6, 10 @ 3:30 pm
If I Randle I want to communicate via e-mail only, and I would foward all email excahnges between myself and the gov’s office to my personal e-mail for safe keeping.

Also, if I have any e-mails that address the early release program from back in the summer, I’m fowarding them to my private e-mail now, if I hadn’t already.

Re: Sen. Brady’s claims…Surely Randle knew that the hearing held over the summer to which Sen. Brady is referring would be recorded or someone would take minutes, so it just doesn’t seem likely to me that he would lie back then. He had to have known that someone was keeping record of what he said. The more I think about it the more plausible it seems that Randle is being scapegoated now.

Comment by Will County Woman Wednesday, Jan 6, 10 @ 3:56 pm
Justice David Erickson was dropped into the DOC mess a couple of weeks ago. Is his inquiry continuing? Or OBE?

Comment by Ivory-billed Woodpecker Wednesday, Jan 6, 10 @ 4:21 pm
I was at the City Club luncheon and can say that Hynes was excellent. In my opinion, he didn’t come across as negative, but instead made the the case for why he is a better choice than Quinn. At several times, I thought you could hear a pin drop because the crowd was so attentive.

I’ve heard Hynes speak many times and never have been impressed. Today, he hit it out of the park.

I went in undecided and left as Hynes supporter.

I agree with much of what has been said. I wish he was able to articulate this earlier in the campaign. And, he does have an excellent speech writer.

Comment by Just wondering Wednesday, Jan 6, 10 @ 4:44 pm
I was very disapointed in Quinn hanging Randle in the wind. Randle was told by Quinn to find a way to do early release. MGT has been around for decades and Randle simply used it to accomplish the request. I disagree with calling the early release offenders violent. Yes, some committed crimes upon release. They would have no matter how long they stayed in prison. They can not be held indefinitely as state law mandates their release. Due to the micro management of the legislature, sentencing laws are very complicated and few in DOC understand how sentencing calculation is done. I didn’t agree with the early release program, (Randle’s or Quinn’s), but I think the public has over reacted in wanting heads to roll. Until the public allows a paroled or discharged felon to have a job or place to live, recividism is going to continue.

Comment by docworker Wednesday, Jan 6, 10 @ 5:26 pm
Rich the mgt and smgt have been out there for years in IDOC. Why not eliminate all of this early release, paorole etc… hold all criminals until they max out date and then release them. Instead of hiring all of this staff to “oversee” IDOC and this problem. Hire the frontline and supervisory staff and let them do what DOC
was designed to do. You cannot put your political career in a convicted felon’s hands and expect them to get out of the joint and “act” right, and not make your programs look bad. Bad bad bad combination. I cannot believe they cannot see this.

Comment by dumb ol' country boy Wednesday, Jan 6, 10 @ 5:45 pm
Qinn’s answer to everything is to hire to hire someone. He should have hired the right people from day one. The most important decision a new governor makes are his top one or two people. He failed miserably on both. Bad policy advise and bad political advise. Nobody to blame…

Comment by Ghostwriter Wednesday, Jan 6, 10 @ 5:45 pm
The Quinn solution is to add another payroller to the rolls, great. If it is the DOC heads fault, fire him. But the program was a Quinn creation, let him wear the shirt.

Comment by Jimmy Joe Wednesday, Jan 6, 10 @ 6:30 pm
The first heads to roll in DOC would be the bean counters! That is where all this blame should lay- Small- Marshall- Kerr - Gilson. That’s where all the “bright” ideas come from. Look not only at the top, but look at the “idea” guys!

Comment by Anon Wednesday, Jan 6, 10 @ 6:43 pm
Wow never knew he had it in him to sound so stern. Good for him. Nothing he said is false. My first thought was to vote Quinn but this prisoner fiasco makes me crazy. Even Blago and ryan knew better. You don’t try risky manuevers like letting felons out of jail early six weeks before a primary. What a mistake.

Comment by regular democrat Wednesday, Jan 6, 10 @ 7:59 pm