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* Sun-Times Editorial: Student loans for illegals need to be addressed nationally

But until Congress resolves this towering problem — we hope by providing tougher security at the border and a reasonable path to citizenship — state initiatives to get around it will fuel resentment and controversy, and, in the long run, make life more difficult for good kids like Ofelia Gonzalez, not less.

* Family physician says he will run for U.S. Senate; more here

* Eric Krol: Suburban doctor taking on Durbin

Illinois GOP Chairman Andy McKenna Jr., who has been searching for a candidate to take on Durbin, said Sauerberg is a “serious and credible candidate whose experience as a family doctor provides a welcomed contrast to the tired old ideas of a career politician.”

* Editorial: TV viewers would be best served by competition

* Joseph Savage: Bill would speed video choice for consumers

* Libraries protest filter proposal; more here and here

* Illinois Review: Bye Bye electoral college

* Wind farm legislation concerns official

* CPS study shows students gain little with after-school tutoring

* FAA finds O’Hare slip ups

* Harvey faces contempt action over order to release records

* Early sales tax collection still has hope in Springfield

* Editorial: Governor needs to sign Rockford sales tax bill soon

posted by Paul Richardson
Tuesday, May 15, 07 @ 7:53 am

Comments

Is it true? The power generated by Illinois wind farms, gets sent to others states.
Probably a Rod and Emil deal…….

Comment by Flounder Tuesday, May 15, 07 @ 8:38 am
The throwing of all electoral votes to the winner of the national popular vote is preposterous.

The short statement is that it disenfranchises Illinois voters (or the voters in any state) completely. One state massively pro Dem or pro Repub can carry the union, if the remainder are very tight races.

Another jolt to the wheel of the Republic. Another crumbling of the Federalism which has served us so well.

Comment by Truthful James Tuesday, May 15, 07 @ 8:53 am
What Truthful James said.

Comment by Fan of the Game Tuesday, May 15, 07 @ 9:01 am
Truthful James,

Please explain how the popular vote proposal would make an Illinois presidential vote less relevant than it is currently.

Thanks.
– SCAM

Comment by so-called "Austin Mayor" Tuesday, May 15, 07 @ 9:11 am
Libraries are wrong on internet filters.

Most libraries are not academic research libraries; they serve the community with general reference and book lending.

If a district won’t subscribe to Hustler, why wouldn’t they want to restrict access to Hustler’s internet website?

A quality commercial internet filter costs less than the annual fees charged by an encyclopedia for its year book.

It’s no financial burden. They just don’t get it.

Comment by Blogger Formerly Known As Anon Tuesday, May 15, 07 @ 9:24 am
I hope Dr. Sauerberg realized he will need to raise/spend $15 million to run a credible campaign against Sen. Durbin.

Oh, and I hope he decides to hire some people for his staff who have won a race before!

Comment by Dieter Tuesday, May 15, 07 @ 9:26 am
I would like to keep reminding those who wish to shower Illinois and federal taxpayer money on illegals that the bulk of them are coming from countries where there is enormous wealth, including, in many cases, vast oil and gas reserves, as well as exceptionally attractive real estate, huge markets, even financial markets, and large social service networks. These countries are not poor! They are oligarchies, and that needs to change, but allowing tens of millions of their citizens to immigrate into the US illegally is hardly a solution. They need to be encouraged to make their own countries a viable place to live, just as Americans did in the past here. Showering welfare monies upon them is not going to advance this goal.

Meanwhile, we know that the US does not have an infinite need for impoverished, uneducated immigrants. All immigration should be legal and the goal should be to grant residency and citizenship to individuals (not their entire extended families) based on the skill and education sets that we need–not what they need.
Sure, there should be a separate refugee program,run in conjunction with other countries,
for those who are truly endangered in their home countries, but those should be legal immigrants and their claims should be verifiable, not economic migrants.

There is absolutely no need for illegal immigrants to receive any type of welfare services except for emergency medical and housing, which could be funded through a tax on, say airline tickets or some other tourism-related tax.

Why is it that so many Democrats insist in seeing the rest of the world as having no resources whatsoever and in need of welfare from the United States.

Comment by Cassandra Tuesday, May 15, 07 @ 9:38 am
BFKAT, my library doesn’t subscribe to Capitol Fax, does this mean the Capitol Fax Blog should be blocked?

Republican commitment to local control is once again cast in serious doubt.

Republicans like getting their way. If they think they have a better chance at the state level than the federal level, then they like the states governing the issue.

If a small library isn’t having trouble with people viewing porn why should the library be required to spend money on a non-existent problem?

BTW, it seems likely that there is more potential for mischief with chatting online than viewing porn.

Comment by Carl Nyberg Tuesday, May 15, 07 @ 10:18 am
SCAM, sometimes Republicans seem like they just don’t think about issues.

Under the current system a huge chunk of Illinois voters have their votes rendered irrelevant because all the Electoral Votes go to the winner.

Going to a straight national popular vote has one problem. What if the vote is exceedingly close? Are we going to recount every county in the country knowing that “discovering” a few new votes may tip the election?

But the arguments made that going to a straight popular vote will disenfranchise voters ignores that Electoral College does the same thing already.

Comment by Carl Nyberg Tuesday, May 15, 07 @ 10:23 am
Illinois state senator Martin Sandoval has an enlightened view of how to spend everybody else’s money other than his own. If Marty so generously wishes to allow these illegal immigrants to get state-backed student loans “because it is the right thing to do”, then I suggest that Marty Sandoval trot right down to his local bank with this student that happens to be an illegal immigrant and have Marty co-sign for the student’s educational loan. That a boy, Marty! Now we will get to see if you will put “your” money where your mouth is. It is always easy to spend somebody else’s money and Marty is quite handy at this.

This illegal immigrant issue is one that has festered and grown since Jim Oberweis self-destructed with his inept political ads about 10,000 illegal immigrants flooding into a stadium as he hovered overhead in his helicopter. Oberweis was right in his warning but his timing was atrocious and his manner of announcing the warning could have been vastly improved upon.

I am surprised at how much the issue has grown since the days of Oberweis. It is no longer a Democrat or Republican partisan issue. It cuts across Party lines. Those who back Marty Sandoval’s ill-conceived proposed legislation will have very short political careers down in Springfield. A politician is committing political suicide by backing this “free beer” political give-away in order to curry favor with certain ethnic groups. For every 1 vote they “might” pickup, they will lose 5-8 of their current constituencies votes. Sounds like a poor political Risk:Reward ratio to me.

Comment by Beowulf Tuesday, May 15, 07 @ 10:52 am
Andy McKenna, “I know tired old career politicians; tired old career politicians are friends of mine; Steve Sauerberg is no tired old career politician.”

Comment by Carl Nyberg Tuesday, May 15, 07 @ 11:39 am
Dr. Sauerberg should probably schedule a complete physical for himself. He has to be suffering from some mental illness to be willing to play McKenna’s stooge.

McKenna should just be forced to take on Durbin himself.

Comment by GOP'er Tuesday, May 15, 07 @ 11:55 am
Illinois wind farms sell their power to other states, one of them is Minnesota.
Makes sense, lets screw Illinoisians more….

Comment by Porky Tuesday, May 15, 07 @ 2:07 pm
SCAM

We are a marriage of fity states, each with its own agenda, not a single nation. We surely can express ourselves as to what is in the best interests of our state.

The 2000 and 2004 elections corrupted the system, but not in the way that you think. Take the Republican Party…please. The National Party took over the electoral process, managing all campaigns from Washington DC. The IllGOP had damn little moeny to spend. as the Senate and House Campaign Committees ran a supercharged mail contribution campaign and national figures dropped into fund raising venues and sucked all the money away.

They had a self fulfilling prophesy that Illinois was a blue state. Air Force One flew overhead to Wisconsin, Indiana, Missouri, Iowa, etc., and if the state party was lucky they caught some blue ice dropping from the lavatories on board. Republicans were marginalized in Illinois.

The democrats did not have that problem. That party had strong candidates and full warchests –not that they needed them.

It looks as though you want to junk the EC because you were on the losing side. If the situation were reversed, would you hold the same position?

The key thought is that all elections are local. Why do we even need primaries in every state? So that the voters can express their will. Let’s just take a nationwide primary, and save a whole bunch of money.

Each State differs from every other one. Even the bosses have to tend to their own local knitting.

If pre election one candidate leads another 60% to 40% nationwide why should I even take a ballot. That distorts the Illinois results, not only in the Presidential election but also in every other one.

Of course, with voting being generally under sixty percent of the supposed eligible voters, do we really have representative elections anyway?

Comment by Truthful James Tuesday, May 15, 07 @ 5:05 pm
The eletoral college is an anachroism and should be abolished. Therefore the illinois legislature’s action is sensible. The Republic needs to be jolted!

Comment by Captain America Tuesday, May 15, 07 @ 6:38 pm