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Hot points and airplanes

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Illinois

* Without actually saying so, Molly Parker put her finger on the most likely pressure point that could force an end to the overtime session: Moving the primary date up to February. Doing so moves up the petition circulation date to August 7th…

Thanks to the change, Illinois candidates will begin circulating petitions on Aug. 7, as opposed to Sept. 18, which means serious contenders are likely to start piecing together campaign strategies this summer. […]

Candidates will be allowed to file petitions between Oct. 29 and Nov. 5, compared to the Dec. 10-17 filing dates that would have existed under the March primary date, according to the Illinois State Board of Elections. […]

“You want to start right now,” said Peoria County Democratic Party Chairman Billy Halstead. “It’s the end of June, so you have one month to get ready and to gear up and get your campaign going.”

Halstead said he met with a candidate for office late last week, though he wouldn’t say who it was or what office was in discussion.

Incumbent legislators are gonna get awful nervous when they hear about activity in their districts while they’re stuck in this goofy overtime session.

* Meanwhile, Bernie Schoenburg remembered a tidbit from the 2002 Democratic gubernatorial primary race that seems apt today…

One of [Rod Blagojevich’s] campaign attacks against primary rival Paul Vallas was that the former CEO of Chicago Public Schools had used “chauffeur-driven limousines” in that education job. At the time, a spokesman for Vallas had said there were six sedans for top administrators of the district of nearly 600 schools, and Vallas reluctantly accepted the service at the request of Chicago police because he was often working long hours in blighted neighborhoods.

So I asked Blagojevich - then a member of Congress and a former state representative - if he would use a state police driver when governor.

“I don’t know,” he said then. “Do you get one? I never even thought about that.”

“I hope not,” he added about having a driver. “I’d like to be my own person.”

Bernie also asked Paul Vallas about the current airplane controversy…

“That wouldn’t have been a problem with me,” he said. “You know I hate to fly.”

* I’ve been joking about this possibility for years in private, but Judy Emerson put it into print today…

Since Gov. Rod Blagojevich isn’t using the Executive Mansion, it makes sense to turn it over to somebody who will. […]

We could turn the governor’s mansion into a casino and really cash in. We have the Grand Victoria in Elgin. How about the Grand George in Springfield? The historic 16-room modified Georgian style manor, completed in 1855, is listed on the National Register of Historic Places. According to the state’s Web site, it is the oldest historic residence in the state and the third oldest governor’s mansion in the country.

* Related stories…

* Politics seems at play in Rockford early tax collection veto

* Giving Rockford a jump on collecting the higher sales tax wouldn’t be fair to many retailers, state-revenue leaders say.

* Opinion: Fix school funding now

* Statehouse Insider

* Herald-Whig: llinois will change how it pays for services provided to people with mental illness or developmental disabilities starting July 1, but apparently will continue to underfund those services.

* Tribune editorial: Wake us when it’s over

posted by Rich Miller
Monday, Jun 25, 07 @ 9:06 am

Comments

I think the key word here is “incompetence”. SECTION 10. GOVERNOR - REMOVALS
The Governor may remove for incompetence, neglect of
duty, or malfeasance in office any officer who may be
appointed by the Governor.
(Source: Illinois Constitution.)

Comment by dan Monday, Jun 25, 07 @ 9:16 am
Please disregard my previous post as I misread the constitution. I thought it was referring to removeing the Governor. Sorry for the mistake.

Comment by dan Monday, Jun 25, 07 @ 9:21 am
Way to start the week on a high note, Dan

Comment by Buck Naked Monday, Jun 25, 07 @ 9:45 am
I wonder how many state legislators actually have to compete for re-election as opposed to running unopposed or with token competition. Many, I suspect, are pretty sure of their status. This is not good for us taxpayers, of course, because it means that they don’t care about their constituents–only campaign contributions, lobbyists and the party leaders who decide who gets support. I suspect that August 7 is not a big deal for a large number of our legislators.

As to Rufus Williams’ (he is Chicago School Board chief) clamor for more money for schools, what he means is, more money for Chicago schools. Chicago is a city of huge wealth, yet its Dem pols want to pour more money into city schools by taking money from the suburbs, the collars, and Downstate via the state tax system. Even though the population growth is in the collars and Chicago’s school age population is actually declining. It’s called–get somebody else to pay for it. And not a mention of property tax relief, I might add.

Comment by Cassandra Monday, Jun 25, 07 @ 9:47 am
I remember Blago’s bashing of Vallas for his limosine ridership. I’m sure that when he was a Congressman he was driven around the district in an SUV and probably had a D.C. staffer drive him from the Capitol to Dulles or Reagan. Congressional cars are often paid for with the office budget, and D.C. staffers typically make squat. What a hypocrite.

Comment by Team Sleep Monday, Jun 25, 07 @ 9:48 am
Check this out… HB 4114, filed today by Rep. Bill Mitchell.
“Provides that if appropriations for the entire upcoming State fiscal year have not been made, by law, by May 31 immediately preceding that fiscal year, then all airplanes owned or leased by the State of Illinois are grounded, for the purposes of providing air transportation for the Governor and the legislative leaders, until those appropriations have been made, by law. This prohibition does not apply in emergency situations. Effective immediately.”

Comment by Lainer Monday, Jun 25, 07 @ 12:02 pm
!!!!Bill Mitchell for Governor!!!!

I like the way this guy thinks on many topics.

Comment by Kevin Highland Monday, Jun 25, 07 @ 12:22 pm
Blago cannot miss an opportunity to “stick it” to Rockford. Face it, Elvis, your good buddy Doug Scott lost the mayor’s race, and lost big! Get over it!

Comment by Criminal Enterprise Called Illinois Tuesday, Jun 26, 07 @ 1:46 am