Capitol Fax.com - Your Illinois News Radar

What did I miss?

Posted in:

Illinois

I didn’t pay a whole lot of attention to the news during break. Did I miss anything important?

posted by Rich Miller
Wednesday, Jan 4, 06 @ 3:56 am

Comments

I have three issues I would like to see commented on.

1. Sam Flood being named the Interim Director at the Illinois Department of Natural Resources.

2. Mike Madigan being linked to the challenge of Alexi Giannoulias’s petitions.

3. The new $3 billion capital projects program being proposed by Governor Blago.

I will only comment on the third item. I am not a Blago fan, but I must admit they do a good job of playing politics. That bill is going to put pressure on politicians to support it on both sides of the aisle. I just hope enough voters are educated enough to understand the poitics of this and remember all of the scandals and follow the campaign of Edwin Eisendrath as he talks about the real Blago record over the past 3 years of broken campaign promises and the gutting out of certain state agencies etc.

Comment by Ray Coleman Wednesday, Jan 4, 06 @ 5:16 am
Illinois Society of Professional Engineers has requested the Illinois Department of Transportation to reiterate the agency’s need for maintaining the role of engineers. In a letter dated Dec. 22, ISPE President Zeyn Uzman wrote IDOT Secretary Tim Martin to raise concerns that professional engineering positions were being replaced with employees without engineer licenses. Uzman said the ISPE had met with Martin in October 2003 to discuss the shift by the agency to hire “technical managers” who were not required to have a professional engineering license or an engineering degree. “You are seeing a changed agency,” IDOT spokesman Matt Vanover was quoted in a story that appeared in The Southern Illinoisan. “We are going to a new type of IDOT that is moving away from being run by engineers to one that is run by professional managers. There are a number of jobs that call for professional management. You’re not always going to find an engineer with an MBA.” Uzman said the consequences of such a policy shift could pose a safety risk to the citizens of the state.

Sorry to be so lengthy, but this is the kind of mess that IDOT has been dealing with for 3 years. How can you replace a licensed engineer with someone with no engineering background and expect the same kind of service. The engineering supervisor checks your work, looks for errors, makes judgemental decisions based on engineering knowledge and experience. The type of professional management Blago spokesman Matt Vanover is referring to would be no more than a glorified paper pusher. When Blago first got in office he complained that there were too many levels in government so why put in managers that are totally ineffective.

Comment by girl friday Wednesday, Jan 4, 06 @ 5:31 am
No

Comment by Anonymous Wednesday, Jan 4, 06 @ 5:34 am
5:34 -

Hey, Rod. Up early today.

Since you are awake, I would like to see your comment about the girl at DCEO, hired by your administration, that just didn’t bother to show up for work for more than 100 days? You know, the one who writes in emails that she just can’t believe how easy her job is. Since you don’t need engineers at IDOT to handle road construction projects, maybe you just don’t need any employees at all. Or maybe we need leadership.

VETERANS FOR EISENDRATH !!!

Comment by Anonymous Wednesday, Jan 4, 06 @ 5:58 am
Are you up on the switch from IT contractors to state IT employees? I am waiting to see how this plays out.

Comment by Shallow Pharnyx Wednesday, Jan 4, 06 @ 6:05 am
Hey how about the new investigation on Rezko?Do you think they will tie this to the Gov?Wouldn’t it be something if a bag of chips and a payday candy bar brought the governor down.Ray do you think there will be any in-fighting between Flood and Mayville to see who gets to lick the Gov.’s boots first.

Comment by Anonymous Wednesday, Jan 4, 06 @ 6:16 am
Shallow, I am also waiting to see how this plays out. So far it hasnt and its only been 2 days. They have kept some Contractors on for “training purposes” I just hope it doesnt all fall apart. it woudl look bad for the State worker, and that is not fair. The state has been under manned for too long. Now with the contractors leaving its even worse. We need some solid leadership in the state and Blago and hios cronies are not doing this.

Comment by ANON Wednesday, Jan 4, 06 @ 8:34 am
Pharnyx:

I heard that wome agencies are lookin’ for extensions to get “crosstraining” done. And, some are going to the IBM TSP, and there’s an interesting article about that at http://varbusiness.com/sections/governmentvar/govt.jhtml?articleId=169600150)

girl friday:

I heard sometime ago that a IDOT “middle manager” got rid of the only female engineer for questionable reasons.

Ah, state goevernment at its finest…

Comment by Just Wonderin' Wednesday, Jan 4, 06 @ 8:48 am
Nothing big but I just thought it was ironic that, after all the fuss about Madigan challenging Eisendrath’s petitions that Eisendrath wound up challenging Sitkowski’s (not that Madigan wouldn’t have challenged if he thought he had any chance of winning).

Comment by Anon Wednesday, Jan 4, 06 @ 8:52 am
Carol Marin in her column in today’s Chicago Trib refers to the importance of citizens paying closer attention to what goes on in government.
This is certainly true of Blago’s hiring policies.

Even though state jobs are more desirable today than they ever were in the past, because of health and pension benefits, the approach of the Blago administration has been to lower qualifications for many positions, at a time when it might be possible to attact a better qualified workforce. This has been true not only at IDOT but at DCFS and many other state agencies.

Clearly, the fewer the required qualifications for state jobs, the easier it is to slot political patronage employees into those positions. So one would expect the Blago administration to be dumbing down as many jobs as they can, as part of their campaign to turn the state of Illinois into a clone of the dity of Chicago job patronage machine.

As to the lack of engineers with MBA qualifications, that is a red herring. If engineers with MBA’s are needed and not available, send promising engineers back to school to get MBA’s. There are many state educational funds. And did the Blago admin actually try to find any engineers with MBA’s?
I doubt it.

Again, the flooding of state agencies with underqualified or unqualified patronage employees should be something we all pay attention to, because we are paying for their
inadequacy every day.

Comment by Cassandra Wednesday, Jan 4, 06 @ 9:06 am
DID ANYONE NOTICE THAT FORMER GEORGE RYAN STAFFER BRAD ROSEBERRY TESTIFIED AT THE TRIAL AND ADMITTED TO HIS ILLEGAL ACTIVITIES. I THINK IT IS INTERESTING THAT BRAD ROSEBERRY IS NOW THE DEPUTY CAMPAIGN MANAGER FOR ANTI CORRUPTION CANDIDATE JIM OBERWEIS….HMMMM

Comment by In the News Wednesday, Jan 4, 06 @ 9:33 am
5:58 -

Well Edwin, the early bird gets the worm.

Comment by Anon. Wednesday, Jan 4, 06 @ 9:55 am
I think that the “omission of a news item” is one of the more interesting items that has been left out of the media lately. With all of the media reporting of the Greyville Prison scandal with Ron Swanson and his profiting from receiving “insider information” from former governor George Ryan, why haven’t we heard anything about the “identical story” of the similar prison scandal that took place in Kankakee County with the proposed women’s prison in Hopkins Park, Illinois? This story about one of the largest political contributors to his close friend George Ryan from Kankakee, Illinois was in the July 30, 2000 Chicago Tribune. It was written by Tribune staff writers named David Mendall and Ray Gibson. It told of how the largest commercial real estate broker in Kankakee, Illinois and a close personal friend of George Ryan had been “clarvoyant” in knowing where the new proposed state women’s prison was going to be located several months before Governor Ryan publically announced it’s location. Prior to this public announcement by former Governor Ryan, commercial real estate broker Tony Perry of Kankakee, Illinois had obtained options to buy 120 acres of land in this economically depressed African-American area where these poor people just manage to barely scratch out a living. Surprise-surprise! Guess where the women’s prison was finally announced it was going to be built? You guessed it. According to this Tribune article, “Perry was slated to pocket a $33,000 commission after acquiring options to buy 120 acres that would house the prison. But when Perry’s commission became public in January, he said he would forgo the money.”
And I continue, “Since then, a contract signed by Perry and Hopkins Park mayor David Leggett surfaced showing that Perry would be paid $40,000 retroactively from the village for his work on behalf of Hopkins Park. Perry has yet to collect the fee, and the contract is not legally enforceable because the full Village Council did not authorize it.”
For some strange reason, I see very little difference between what took place in Hopkins Park, Illinois and what took place in Grayville, Illinois. Does anyone else see some very pronounced similarities between Ron Swanson and Tony Perry? Yet, Ron Swanson has been indicted but Mr. Perry has not? Does this mean that Tony Perry is not guilty of illegal “insider information” from George Ryan? Does it mean that the Justice Department and Patrick Fitzgerald simply have not yet got around to indicting him? Or, did Mr. Perry furnish the Feds with incriminating evidence on his close friend George Ryan in exchange for immunity from prosecution?
Stay tuned fun seekers for the answer to this question that “Inquiring Minds Would Like To Know”. This Hopkins Park woman’s prison “insider information” story seems to have fallen through the cracks. Perhaps it is simply because Patrick Fitzgerald is overwhelmed by his workload and understaffed and under budgeted by what he has found in the way of political and corporate corruption in Illinois? It makes you wonder, doesn’t it?

Comment by Beowulf Wednesday, Jan 4, 06 @ 10:12 am
On Christmas Day La Shawn Ford sent out an automated call to wish everyone a Merry Christmas and Happy New Year and asking for our support for his campaign.

Comment by Anon Wednesday, Jan 4, 06 @ 11:34 am
Bruce Washington at CMS taking an abrupt three month leave of absense. Paul Campbell still not confirmed. “Savings” still being questioned.

Comment by Sisyphus Wednesday, Jan 4, 06 @ 11:46 am
Speaking of LaShawn Ford, has his opponent Calvin Giles paid his heavy fines yet? If not, they’re not gonna let him run are they?

Comment by Anonymous Wednesday, Jan 4, 06 @ 12:00 pm
As someone who is familiar with the issues:

GF: Many states. like Florida, are getting rid of engineering staff, and hiring the engineering expertise they need as consultants in the private sector. There is nothing wrong with this concept as long as it benefits the citizens in the long run. The danger here is that, if there is no engineering expertise left at the state, the consultants will not have a clear sense of direction, as the state “manager” types probably won’t have the expertise to know what is needed, or to make objective management decisions. Then the state will have to hire consultants to manage the other consultants, and perhaps consultants to manage the consutants who manage the consultants. He he.

JW: There are many female engineers at IDOT, including 2 deputy directors of highways and several bureau chiefs. Are you referring to the one in Carbondale? She was replaced by a female engineer, BTW.

Cass: IDOT has hired few engineers, or MBA’s for that matter, during the last few years. I doubt if the majority of hires since 2003 have had more than a HS diploma…this would be an interesting question to pose to the agency.

B-wulf: I know a few insiders in the Kankakee area who tell me Mr. Perry was involved in the Hopkins Park situation as you describe, and also was actively involved in the real estate market in the Peotone Airport footprint. If there is a case to me made here, I’m sure Mr. Fitz will get to it, assuming he stays on the job for a few more years. One source advised me to count my fingers if I ever shook hands with him.

Comment by 6 Degrees of Separation Wednesday, Jan 4, 06 @ 12:56 pm
I thought the “donation” of Rod’s unused flu vaccines to Pakistan was an interesting story — UNTIL I saw this on your news feeds today Rich - WTF?

Sensing a possible shortage of the vaccine in the US, the state of Illinois had purchased around 256,000 doses last year from British wholesaler, Ecosse Hospital Products Limited.

But, the US Food and Drug Administration barred the vaccine’s import to Illinois, saying it couldn’t guarantee its safety, said a report in the Daily Times.

Earlier, when the expired vaccine was offered to South Africa, its government refused to permit its import because it considered the vaccine “unsafe for humans”, it added.

According to the paper, the staff of Illinois Governor Rod Blagojevich had been searching for a place to donate the vaccine, which they had ordered for in 2004. (ANI)

- Rich how come our local news sources never uncovered this before? WTF?!

Comment by Goodbye Napoleon Wednesday, Jan 4, 06 @ 12:57 pm
How about office of the Clerk of the House reorganizing and taking the Committee Clerk Supervisor of 7 years and putting her in the Journal Room to do nothing. Taking the Speaker’s receptionist that only answers phones and putting her as the new Supervisor. Top it all off having the Committee Clerk Supervior of about 8 years ago who got “laid off” from a job staffing agency train them all. Oh and she is the new receptionist for Madigan. That place is falling apart more every day. Would you like to place bets on the new receptioist and the new committee clerk not knowing how to draft a bill let alone try and enforce the proceedure of getting one through committee. Committees should be very interesting this year.

Comment by Anon Wednesday, Jan 4, 06 @ 1:00 pm
MS is up to his tricks at IDOT TS we dont know why or what but he has moved a key 3 year employee, this guy would crap in your lunch bucket 5 mins before lunch,guess thats why he had so much trouble ratting on the Teamsters, he has to be one of the worst appointments of the Govs administration.

Comment by Cen Ill Wednesday, Jan 4, 06 @ 1:02 pm
Wait a minute Cen Ill we think there are other worsts so the most he can be is tied

Comment by Big dipper Wednesday, Jan 4, 06 @ 1:44 pm
Anonymous 5:58 am: - I was wondering if you had a link or further info on this DCEO employee. I think she is probably just the first one “caught”.

Comment by Papa Legba Wednesday, Jan 4, 06 @ 3:11 pm
The gov’t is issuing yet another $1 coin

Comment by Jerry Mander Wednesday, Jan 4, 06 @ 3:15 pm
Cen Ill - Wednesday, Jan 4, 06 @ 1:02 pm:
WROTE:
“MS is up to his tricks at IDOT TS we dont know why or what but he has moved a key 3 year employee”

Could you elaborate on this? What position did this 3 year employee hold?

Comment by x-idot-ts Wednesday, Jan 4, 06 @ 3:15 pm
Do you think that the feds in Chicago wanting more agents to investigate corruption has to do with Chicago corruption or that there is so much in both the state government and Chicago that it is going to take that much additional manpower ?

Comment by DOWNSTATE Wednesday, Jan 4, 06 @ 3:29 pm
BC at ts safety, MS is up to old tricks on big ego trip and bringing the LAL(politcal appointees) under his Div, it would be ahsme if he got indicted over the powerwashing scam yes he had to be involved he was Dep Dir when the thing was signed.

Comment by Cent ill Wednesday, Jan 4, 06 @ 4:03 pm
What became of Bob Creamer’s sentencing? Was there a story I missed sometime over December; or were there no stories at all? Has his sentencing fallen off the District Court docket? If so, is he doing for the U.S. Attorney to warrant such warmth?

Comment by Wondering in Wilmette Wednesday, Jan 4, 06 @ 4:09 pm
Being familar with the MS(IDOT) fiasco at the teamsters union what do you expect he is a weasel and will always be one, and he isnt even very smart but is a master of fqalse accusations good luck Ds you can keep this guy we dont want him

Comment by Teamster Wednesday, Jan 4, 06 @ 4:36 pm
Remember Ds if it looks like a weasel talks like a weasel and walks like a weasel chances are he’s s piece of crap live with him you guys created him.

Comment by R man Wednesday, Jan 4, 06 @ 6:40 pm
Rich-

Did you hear that HOTTALK 970 replaced Mike Wilson with JACK DAVIS! I will never listen to them after 9:00 am again…

Comment by anon Wednesday, Jan 4, 06 @ 8:29 pm
Well gee, there was the subpoena of the tollway for lease records relating to Tony Rezko and his pals that the tollway accidentally confirmed because they didn’t get the memo that the administration was no longer confirming or commenting on such things.

And there was the Daily Herald story on Saturday about how pg. 17 of your state tax return booklets is an ad for All Kids and Gov. Rod Blagojevich.

And the governor unloading millions of dollars worth of flu shots that might not be his to unload.

Comment by anon Wednesday, Jan 4, 06 @ 11:01 pm
Man, sometimes when I read this, i think of that old yellow can of coffee…Chock full o nuts.

Comment by Just someone else Wednesday, Jan 4, 06 @ 11:57 pm
Girl Friday, kudos to you. Many of us veterans know the politcal created job positions for the unprofessional, untrained technical managers appointed to former PE or CE positions. Most of these political door bell ringing hacks are nothing less than Taylor Street wannabees and are really good at getting their ward voters a new garbage can or a pot hole fixed in an alley. There is little or no communication between the factions, written IDOT policy is not important, followed or enforced, safety concerns not an issue anymore, overtime money handed out the wazoo (which was easily done on regular time in the past) yada yada yada.

As the story goes… its not what you know, its who you know. Pam Zekman, where are you?

Comment by IDOT PRO Thursday, Jan 5, 06 @ 12:10 am
well, there is some new corrections news. lawrence cc has just hired a new number 3 warden. why r they hiring all these administrative staff when the front line staff is hurting? they could be opening hiring and transfers so that there would be more front line staff. any other corrections news? in the state.

Comment by fellow correctional officer Thursday, Jan 5, 06 @ 9:06 am
On the IDOT issue with MS, the person moved was not BC, it was TK as in Nissan Salesman. Stay tuned, it is sure to get uglier!!

Comment by LAC Thursday, Jan 5, 06 @ 1:07 pm
LAC who is the bad guy n this mess(TS) and it should get uglier, they cant even get along with themselves too bad. But the MS guy seems to be involved in every problem IDOT has had for the past three years

Comment by R man Thursday, Jan 5, 06 @ 4:53 pm
IDOT PRO - What do you mean by “Taylor Street Wannabees”?

Comment by Italian American Thursday, Jan 5, 06 @ 10:32 pm
Can anyone shed some light on why the Nissan salesman lost their TS position????

Comment by Anon Friday, Jan 6, 06 @ 9:12 am