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The ISBE did not threaten to cut funding for non-compliant schools, and the governor’s office appears not to have threatened the Union County Fair with defunding

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Illinois

“Will not hesitate “, “cut funding “, “comply”, are words and phrases from history that we should not forget.
Illinois needs a shakeup from top to bottom!

Posted by Darren Bailey for State Senate 55th District on Thursday, July 9, 2020

* If you click the link, there’s zero mention of funding cut threats in the story. However, if you pull up the Google cached version, you’ll see this…

…”If a certain school district or individual school disobeys these measures meant to ensure safety, ISBE will not hesitate to move forward with funding cuts and additional measures to ensure that our students and faculty remain protected from COVID-19″ the statement read.

* I asked Jackie Matthews at the ISBE why the board changed its statement…

ISBE tracks all of our correspondence regarding COVID-19 to media and others. We have no record of ever providing the statement that was originally quoted in the article, and we wouldn’t have, as it did not reflect our current or any past position.

The news outlet was not able to show how, when, or from whom they sourced that statement. I reached out this morning with the accurate information and they updated their story.

Wow.

* So, I called the station and talked with the boss. He said the story was posted by a reporter he’d hired a week ago. The reporter claimed that he got a statement from ISBE. But, the executive said, “I looked back at our emails, and I’m not saying he’s lying, but I found no confirmation that he got a statement from them.”

Yikes.

Meanwhile, ISBE is being inundated with furious phone calls and emails over what is literally (and deliberately) fake news.

* In other news, this is causing a huge uproar in the Anna area. WSIL TV…

The Union County Fair Board has issued a full statement explaining why they canceled the Union County Fair.

During a special board meeting by the Union County Fair Board on July 7, 2020, a motion was made to cancel the upcoming 2020 Union County Fair. […]

The Board stated in late June they were notified that all food vendors were not being issued permits in the state of Illinois and carnival vendors received the same news in early July.

According to the Board, after trying to get permits from the state, they received a call from the Governor’s office telling them to cancel the fair. The Board told the office they were still attempting to have the annual event. Members say they were told if the fair was held, they would lose funding for the remainder of the Governor’s term.

* From the fair’s Facebook page…

With all of our dealings to the State of Illinois in the attempt to get vendors permits, we must have caught the attention of the Governor’s office. We say this because not 10 minutes after trying get permits issued, a board member received a call from Governor Pritzker’s office. The caller stated that we will need to cancel our fair. Our board member proceeded to tell him that we WOULD be having a Union County Fair one way or another. His response was quickly met with a statement that we will paraphrase for you:

If you attempt to have a fair……in any way……then your funding from the State of Illinois will be cut……not only for this year, but for the remainder of Governor Pritzker’s term and if re-elected, that term too.

* Jordan Abudayyeh at the governor’s office…

The Governor’s Office has no record of a call with Union County representatives where these alleged comments were made. Counties around the state have made the tough decision to cancel their fairs to protect the health and safety of their residents and the Governor understands how unfortunate it is to have to cancel an event that people look forward to all year because the administration was also forced to cancel the Illinois State Fair. The virus knows no borders and the Governor’s top priority is ensuring the people of this state stay healthy.

So, I called the number listed for the Union County Fair’s board. I spoke with the board’s secretary, Dale Moreland. Mr. Moreland said he did not receive the call, the board president did. Moreland didn’t have the name of the person who was allegedly from the governor’s office because the board president didn’t catch it.

We talked some more (some of my favorite childhood memories revolve around the Iroquois County Fair, so we have several things in common), and it became apparent that this probably wasn’t somebody from the governor’s office who made that call.

As you know, a lay person may just say “governor’s office” when they mean somebody at a state agency. And Mr. Moreland after a bit said, “I don’t know if he was from the governor’s office. He probably was in the permit division.”

Whatever the case, state employees shouldn’t be making these sorts of threats. Whoever it is ought to be found and harshly sanctioned.

posted by Rich Miller
Friday, Jul 10, 20 @ 12:56 pm

Comments

If Darren Bailey put half of the energy he spends riling people up on the daily maybe he could actually get a bill or two passed.

Comment by Gob Bluth Friday, Jul 10, 20 @ 1:12 pm
I look forward to Bailey’s’s condemnation of the “will not hesitate“, “cut funding“, and “comply” type of rhetoric that exists in actuality and came from the White House and federal Secretary of Education.

Comment by Zim Friday, Jul 10, 20 @ 1:14 pm
=== * So, I called the station and talked with the boss. He said the story was posted by a reporter he’d hired a week ago. The reporter claimed that he got a statement from ISBE. But, the executive said, “I looked back at our emails, and I’m not saying he’s lying, but I found no confirmation that he got a statement from them.”===

I’ll look forward to Mr. Bailey to not only retract his own phoniness, but harshly criticize

“Fake News”

(Whispers) that’s how Trumpkins do that, right?

Thanks, Rich, for following up and getting to the bottom of it.

Maybe Mr. Bailey should recycle the old tin foil hat and replace it with new tin foil…

Comment by Oswego Willy Friday, Jul 10, 20 @ 1:17 pm
Time for WFIL to part ways with that reporter now. That doesn’t sound like an error. That sounds deliberate.

If he/she does that one week in, it isn’t going to be better a month, two months, etc. from now.

Comment by Left Leaner Friday, Jul 10, 20 @ 1:20 pm
What period in history is Professor Bailey even referring to?

Comment by Excitable Boy Friday, Jul 10, 20 @ 1:25 pm
Bailey projects Trump’s words and actions onto our state government and said things need to change. Hilarious.

Comment by Ducky LaMoore Friday, Jul 10, 20 @ 1:33 pm
What is Bailey’s root problem? Did someone hurt him somewhere along the way?

Comment by JS Mill Friday, Jul 10, 20 @ 1:33 pm
===What period in history is Professor Bailey even referring to? ===

This week at the White House? /s

Comment by Rich Miller Friday, Jul 10, 20 @ 1:33 pm
I think the more important questions are: 1) is ISBE confirming COVID 19 compliance will not affect funding? So they didn’t say it, but are they planning to use it as a hammer? If not, what tool do they have to enforce their guidelines.

Same with the Fair. If the words were not said, it was certainly the boards understanding they would never see another penny from the State as long as JB Pritzker was Governor. Is the Governor not going to with hold future funding if people elect to go forward?

Comment by the Patriot Friday, Jul 10, 20 @ 1:36 pm
===Whatever the case, state employees shouldn’t be making these sorts of threats. Whoever it is ought to be found and harshly sanctioned.===

I would be quite surprised at the validity of their claim but my somewhere in the middle is I could see how a person that issues permits calling to explain why the permits cannot be issued, and then attempting to caution a person against the decision to proceed with a planned event without those permits, and why that is a bad idea could wind up being artfully interpreted in such a way that it was greatly exaggerated in their Facebook post to the point of fantasy.

Comment by Candy Dogood Friday, Jul 10, 20 @ 1:38 pm
-This week at the White House? /s-

So Hustory.

Comment by Ron Burgundy Friday, Jul 10, 20 @ 1:40 pm
Maybe the better question that needs to be ask is why are they having the fair in the first place?

The best of luck *if* they pull this off, for everyone.

Comment by Oswego Willy Friday, Jul 10, 20 @ 1:42 pm
Someone let Bailey know we already tried “shaking up Springfield” we didn’t like it.

Comment by Wut Friday, Jul 10, 20 @ 1:45 pm
“I don’t know if he was from the governor’s office“
Maybe it was that guy from down at the bait shop. I think he has a fishing license. /s

Comment by Bruce( no not him) Friday, Jul 10, 20 @ 1:45 pm
==state employees shouldn’t be making these sorts of threats==

Yes, and they know that, at least not to threaten what the Governor would do. I have real trouble believing that it was a state employee that made that call.

Comment by Bigtwich Friday, Jul 10, 20 @ 1:50 pm
===is why are they having the fair in the first place?===

I could see the value in the 4H component of the fair, live stock shows, etc, still occurring and I would believe that those could be held in such a fashion that they did make for relatively safe conditions.

Arrangements can also be made to still crown a county fair queen, etc, but like professional sports, those events may have to occur with limited audiences, or via live stream.

But in my happy little fiction, the organizers are really leaning into trying to make safe arrangements so traditions can continue unmarred by a horrific tragedy.

Comment by Candy Dogood Friday, Jul 10, 20 @ 1:51 pm
“I don’t know if he was from the governor’s office“

So it’s hearsay about hearsay.

I’d put any amount of money on a bet that this is just a local performance and nobody from the state or any state office actually had that conversation with anyone even remotely connected to the county fair.

Lets see that board members caller ID. Or if it was a cell phone, lets see his detailed billing statement showing where that supposed incoming call came from. There’s a record of it somewhere, whether these minstrels know it or not.

I’ve seen this far too many times to not seriously doubt everything that fair organizer and board member is saying.

Comment by TheInvisibleMan Friday, Jul 10, 20 @ 1:53 pm
what they would most likely do is not send inspectors to deal with issues like cry rides and such. No inspectors, no rides. hence the ability of the state to control such issues through the regulatory process of licensing

Comment by Todd Friday, Jul 10, 20 @ 1:53 pm
— No inspectors, no rides—

Just last year, plainfield fest had two severe incidents on rides falling apart, with one person suffering injuries serious enough for hospitalization.

It then came out that the operators of rides are licensed by the state, but the individual rides are not inspected by the state. That is left up to the local fire department, if they want to do it at all.

The rides in question at plainfield fest were operating the entire time with a support system thrown together on the spot made out of wood planks, to take the place of the broken steel support structures.

No local inspection was done at all, much less a state inspection.

Comment by TheInvisibleMan Friday, Jul 10, 20 @ 1:59 pm
===but the individual rides are not inspected by the state===

Not true. https://www2.illinois.gov/idol/FAQs/Pages/carnival-licensing-faq.aspx#qst1

Comment by Rich Miller Friday, Jul 10, 20 @ 2:05 pm
==Not true==

But that’s what your link says. Licensing and inspection is done once a year for the ride, not every time it is setup.

It describes this right in your link. There has to be an inspection before the first time the ride it put into use - as in a brand new piece of equipment. After that, inspections are only needed once per year.

“and shall thereafter be inspected at least once each year.”

Comment by TheInvisibleMan Friday, Jul 10, 20 @ 2:11 pm
If the Union county fair board members don’t have the stones to take ownership of cancelling the fair, while no surprise, they’re really not harming Pritzker down here. He didn’t have that much support to begin with.
I read their statement, with the usual garbage about how they valued the public’s safety and were working towards making the fair safe…blah, blah, blah.
I don’t know who they think they are kidding, one trip through the Anna Walmart proves the residents in this county aren’t taking this seriously.

But really, Union county fair board members, you knew last month this wasn’t going to happen. Instead of acknowledging it, you point fingers. What a joke.

Comment by efudd Friday, Jul 10, 20 @ 2:18 pm
Rich, I should be more specific.

The individual ride setups for a specific fair are not inspected by the state. The ride itself is inspected as part of the yearly licensing process, but not for every time the ride is setup.

I can see how my initial post could be read otherwise.

Comment by TheInvisibleMan Friday, Jul 10, 20 @ 2:19 pm
The board president “didn’t catch the name”?

“I’m sorry, I didn’t catch your name. Could you repeat it?”

See how easy that is?

Comment by JoanP Friday, Jul 10, 20 @ 2:28 pm
Sounds like dirty politics to me. Richard Nixon would be laughing in his grave.

Comment by Old Sarge Friday, Jul 10, 20 @ 2:35 pm
JoanP-

Yes, it is that simple. Which makes the question why the board president didn’t
a) get that name
b) contact someone at the Governor’s office for verification
c) wait for said verification before posting that statement
all the more suspicious.

Simple, yes, but no surprise. This is Trump country.

Comment by efudd Friday, Jul 10, 20 @ 2:41 pm
==Time for WFIL to part ways with that reporter now.==

She’s probably just auditioning for Channel 20.

Comment by Chatham Resident Friday, Jul 10, 20 @ 3:02 pm
My first question re: WSIL story; did anybody call to get response from Gov’s ofc? Ummm no. Oops. Perhaps someone should? Nah…we’re good.
Waiting to see how Bailey walks back his outrage and sheer nonsense re: ISBE - oh wait. He won’t.

Comment by DownSouth Friday, Jul 10, 20 @ 3:43 pm
===WSIL story===

WFIL

Comment by Rich Miller Friday, Jul 10, 20 @ 3:49 pm