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* Ever since Mayor Emanuel said he would figure out how to keep classrooms open for the fullly scheduled school year, legislators have been privately predicting that he would dump the whole thing on their heads and then shift the blame blame to them for the resulting crisis…
Mayor Rahm Emanuel on Monday offered no clues on how he will attempt to come up with the cash locally to fund Chicago Public Schools, saying he will spend the next few weeks trying to pry education money out of Springfield.
Emanuel’s comments were the latest example of his administration trying to keep the focus for CPS’ financial problems on Republican Gov. Bruce Rauner and state lawmakers. […]
“Today’s May 15th. The state of Illinois has two weeks till the end of the (legislative) session,” Emanuel said while standing in a room festooned with images of famous children’s book characters like the Cat in the Hat at the newly opened American Writers Museum downtown.
“My entire focus is making the best use of the time, in the remaining two weeks, that Springfield fulfills their obligation to the children of the state of Illinois and, therefore, the children of the city of Chicago, that the children of Chicago are not treated like second-class citizens,” he added.
He’s no Richard Daley, meaning he can’t just clap his hands and make things happen. He doesn’t have that sort of sway over legislators. But he does have a powerful bully pulpit and - like Gov. Rauner, Speaker Madigan and others - he has no qualms whatsoever about shifting blame.
posted by Rich Miller
Monday, May 15, 17 @ 2:31 pm
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A city earnings tax maybe?
Comment by blue dog dem Monday, May 15, 17 @ 2:41 pm
Well…Springfield hasn’t been doing CPS or other school districts any favors with its inaction on changing the funding formula or adjusting per pupil levels, etc. So yes, much of the blame fundamentally should rest with them.
Comment by Shytown Monday, May 15, 17 @ 3:28 pm
Who else are you going to blame when Rauner claims he has increased school funding to record levels? Break offa piece for CPS.
Comment by Peters Post Monday, May 15, 17 @ 3:43 pm
I am amazed at how amazing of a job all these individuals are doing while our state as a whole is in the crapper.
Comment by Ahoy! Monday, May 15, 17 @ 3:54 pm
Based on the existing school code for CPS, it could pretty rapidly borrow against the outstanding special education block grant money owed to CPS using a warrant or a note. But I suspect CPS has actually already leveraged this money and isn’t talking about it.
Effectively Mayor Emanuel threw Claypool to the wolfs when he put him over at CPS. He doesn’t want to know the details and wants Claypool to manage his way out of all of this. Well when you are locked up from doing pretty significant layoffs for political reasons, when you can’t just tear down abandoned schools that you are spending millions on warehousing the facilities for years, when the Mayor won’t take a strike to contain or lower labor costs, when you can’t squeeze charter schools hard to get cost savings, it gets a little difficult to manage it all. Is there any doubt that the CTU referendum on no confidence in Claypool will indicate he should take the fall? That is what happens when you become a career bureaucrat in this town, you take the fall for the Mayor.
Comment by Rod Monday, May 15, 17 @ 3:57 pm
Pure bluster. The Emanuel administration and the Teachers union are crying foul but they will never take steps to locally shore up their own finances. That would take leverage off of Springfield
Comment by Texas Red Monday, May 15, 17 @ 4:04 pm
If Emanuel wants more money for CPS he needs to think about an increase in the property tax for Chicago as the solution.
Comment by Small town taxpayer Monday, May 15, 17 @ 4:39 pm
Isn’t the city getting a piece of the action on the guns being sold out of the Water Department?
What are they selling out of Streets and San? Grenade launchers?
Hate to think about what’s being sold out of McCormick Place.
I guess if the Cellini Gang can still clout outrageous state lease deals, than certain Chicago city departments are bound to retain their traditions, too.
Comment by wordslinger Monday, May 15, 17 @ 4:59 pm
How about Rahm asking Daley to host a fund raiser at Katten and all the partners who cashed in while Daley sent the firm city business can help bail out CPS
Comment by Sue Monday, May 15, 17 @ 5:39 pm