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* You would think there would’ve been questions about Gov. Pat Quinn’s choice to lead the Department of Corrections, Michael Randle, who raised some eyebrows back in Ohio with a special deal for an old college buddy. The AP’s bio doesn’t even mention the episode.
Ohio’s state prison industry makes and sells furniture (much like ours does here) to state agencies. But all of a sudden the corrections system decided to start selling furniture to a private company at a reduced rate - via a no-bid contract. That company then made money on sales to other facilities…
[The Department of Rehabilitations and Corrections] decided that KBK Enterprises should get furniture for the reduced price. 10 Investigates turned up an agreement that allows KBK to buy furniture for only the cost of materials along with the cost of inmate labor and supervision.
At Port Columbus International Airport, we found an example of how the relationship benefits KBK. It bought a chair from the DRC for $365. State agencies would have paid $505. KBK then sold the discounted chair for $468. That’s a $103 profit.
“How can they quote these high prices to state agencies and then lower price to private enterprise?” asked Henry Eckhart, who is with Common Cause, a government watchdog group. […]
KBK is the only company with the arrangement with the DRC and it does not even have to bid for it. The man who owns KBK and Michael Randle, the assistant director of the DRC, have a long history that goes back to a fraternity house, Aker reported.
The contract was canceled just days after the above story appeared…
The state prison system is ending a no-bid arrangement that allowed a private company with close ties to the agency’s second-in-command to sell inmate-produced furniture for less than the agency charged its government customers. KBK Enterprises, a Columbus-based company that describes itself as a multistate real-estate developer, has been notified that its 2-year-old agreement with the Ohio Department of Rehabilitation and Correction won’t be renewed when it expires next month.
“The parties have been trying to work through many issues, and for various reasons the development of the appropriate business relationship has not been accomplished,” wrote Rod B. Johnson, chief of Ohio Penal Industries, a division of the corrections department.
Agency officials said the decision to end the agreement — described in the termination letter as an “informal purchasing arrangement” as opposed to a contract — had nothing to do with any concerns about the long-standing relationship between Michael P. Randle, assistant director of the corrections department, and Keith B. Key, KBK’s founder and president.
Apparently, the state was supposed to get a share of the profits, but never got them…
“This revenue-sharing was to be paid monthly for each order during the previous month,” Johnson wrote in the termination letter, sent after WBNS requested public records detailing the agreement. “To date, KBK has not provided to OPI its share of that revenue.”
A bizarre, botched no-bid contract to an old friend of a higher-up that has to be canceled after reporters start digging. All that sounds eerily familiar, doesn’t it?
* And, even more familiar to Illinois ears, there’s apparently an investigation underway back in Ohio…
Randle leaves Ohio amid an Inspector General’s investigation into his role with a contractor who bought furniture from the Department of Corrections. […]
Randle declined to respond to e-mailed questions from 10 Investigates about the timing of his move to Illinois.
In March, Randle denied any wrongdoing or inappropriate relationship concerning the furniture deal.
* Strangely enough, Randle was chosen after a national search, unlike all of Gov. Quinn’s other agency director appontments so far…
“We looked all over the country,” Quinn said, calling Randle the “best of the best.”
posted by Rich Miller
Friday, May 15, 09 @ 11:13 am
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I am beginning to wonder if there are any honest people out there anymore. Why was Randle chosen with such a background? Surely, there must be someone better–oh I forgot for a moment, we live in IL and always get the worst of the worst.
Comment by Just a Citizen Friday, May 15, 09 @ 11:17 am
Apparently that national search didn’t include Google.
Comment by Yellow Dog Democrat Friday, May 15, 09 @ 11:19 am
Doesn’t he have to be confirmed? One would hope that the legislature would question him aggressively about this deal. Especially in this “reform” climate. And they could turn him down. Let them do their work.
Comment by Cassandra Friday, May 15, 09 @ 11:22 am
Where did they search Donnie Snyder’s old rolodex?j
Comment by 2ConfusedCrew Friday, May 15, 09 @ 11:23 am
What doyamean questions? He’ll fit right in….
Sorry, I couldn’t resist.
Comment by Greg B. Friday, May 15, 09 @ 11:23 am
Awkward…
Comment by OneMan Friday, May 15, 09 @ 11:23 am
Like I’ve said before, I don’t think being CEO play to Pat’s strengths. Run for Senate. You can pick and choose your battles there.
Comment by wordslinger Friday, May 15, 09 @ 11:28 am
“Apparently that national search didn’t include Google.”
That was a good one. lol
I am starting to believe it isn’t possible for anyone to find anyone who isn’t going to embarrass them. I don’t know what else to say. Can’t he just fire the crooks he already has so he can replace lots of employees so they won’t be so closely scrutinized. Dilute the press.
Comment by Phineas J. Whoopee Friday, May 15, 09 @ 11:30 am
Look on the bright side
It could have been “after a national search, the best qualified candidate is………my cousin”!
Comment by Hank Friday, May 15, 09 @ 11:38 am
Just another example of the Lite Guv in action.
If this guy already worked in Illinois, the calls for the “f” word would be resonating off the dome.
The Senate needs to step up and send this fellow back to the furniture shop.
Comment by Arthur Andersen Friday, May 15, 09 @ 11:40 am
Either Quinn’s staff doesn’t know how to use Google or it is business as usual in the Illinois Govenor’s Office. No matter how you look at this, it doesn’t look good for the taxpayer again.
Comment by wondering Friday, May 15, 09 @ 11:44 am
There’s just not enough corruption in Illinois…we needed to import some extra from Ohio. Sweet.
Comment by ILPundit Friday, May 15, 09 @ 11:44 am
What would Lisa do? The “best of the best”? Could Pat have “set the bar” just a little too low because he had been hanging around Rod Blagojevich for far too long? Pat Quinn was “awfully quiet” about Rod’s political antics and indiscretions until the Mighty Quinn was sure that Rod had been allowed enough rope to hang himself. Then, when he knew that Rod was about to go under water for the third and final time he runs around crying that “The British are coming.”
No offense Randle but I would prefer a set of new clothes instead of some more of the “hand me downs” that we voters in Illinois are used to getting to wear. Don’t you often wonder what it would feel like to put on a new set of duds to wear? Pat, set the bar a couple of notches higher and go out looking again.
Comment by John Doe Friday, May 15, 09 @ 11:53 am
Isn’t this how Scarlet O’Hare made her fortune in Gone with the Wind-with inmate labor? The more this resinates, the worse it sounds. Insider chain gang
Comment by Phineas J. Whoopee Friday, May 15, 09 @ 11:54 am
This is a disaster, and undermines the Governor’s credibility completely.
Who vetted this guy? The Obama Administration?
Comment by VanillaMan Friday, May 15, 09 @ 11:55 am
I would like to see who they considered for the position.
As part of his belief in opne government Quinn should release (or some investigative reporter should seek) the canidate list. Perhaps he really was the best they had to choose from.
BTW anyone ever see a posting or ad seeking applicants for the job? I am curious how they created the pool used for the search.
Comment by Ghost Friday, May 15, 09 @ 12:06 pm
Sheesh! Do your homework Governor! This does not make you look good.
Comment by one of the 35 Friday, May 15, 09 @ 12:14 pm
Quinn is in a lose-lose situation and has no one to blame but himself. Either he dumps the guy and admits he screwed up or he stands by the guy and somehow has to defend this stinky deal and whatever else might be out there.
This is what happens when you have one person (Quinn) running the entire government. His cabinet thus far is essentially made up of out-of-state rejects, 29 year old army veterans (who I admire but are not exactly over-qualified) and Blagojevich holdovers. Not the kind of record that discourages Lisa or anyone else from running against him.
Comment by Cosmic Charlie Friday, May 15, 09 @ 12:25 pm
I’m with Ghost.
I want to hear how they conducted the “nation-wide search” and who else was on the short-list.
I saw Randle is originally from Chicago, so I have to wonder if he is related to someone or has some connections.
Comment by Objective Dem Friday, May 15, 09 @ 12:47 pm
This reminds me of some 3rd world countries where corruption is so pervasive that people have just come to accept and deal with it. It just gets so overwhelming that people just shut down and give up.
A nationwide search by Mr Clean nets this guy?
Well, if we are going to appoint corrupt people I want them to be hometown boys/girls. None of this going outside the fold stuff. I want mine!
Comment by dupage dan Friday, May 15, 09 @ 12:56 pm
Yesterday I posted that this “appeared” to be a good hiring and a good process, unlike the seemingly random pluckings of hacks and friends to fill importatnt positions that we have been accustomed to in the last several years. I used the word because appearances can be deceiving sometimes. And sometimes the shine comes off rather quickly, as it did here. The point is, this could’ve been a good hiring and a good process (and against all appearances may turn out to be so)… other governments and private sector employers seem to have good hiring and vetting processes when they want to.
Comment by Six Degrees of Separation Friday, May 15, 09 @ 1:03 pm
I think a lot depends on whether Randle was vetted or not. If he was thoroughly vetted and they decided to go ahead and defend their decision, that is actually, to my mind, more encouraging than if they missed this part of his background.
That’s because I think one of the reasons Quinn’s term has been such a disaster is that he has no bench of his own…he has a few friends and cronies and he has given all of them jobs. So he doesn’t have people he trusts to do the vetting, the research, the policy reviews and debates. He just relies on a few pals and, mostly, Blagojevich holdovers. The pals, however well-intentioned, cna’t do it all. The Blago holdovers likely have their own agendas. So by default, this is really the Blagojevich administration, Part III. And we’ve got almost two more years of it.
Comment by Cassandra Friday, May 15, 09 @ 1:10 pm
VM, if he had been vetted by the Obama admin he would have had a tax issue….
Comment by OneMan Friday, May 15, 09 @ 1:11 pm
My prediction is this could be a serious problem for Quinn.
He is under fire for not moving fast enough to replace Blago appointees. One of his first appointments, Monken as head of ISP, was criticized by many as a bad choice.
If this appointee turns out to be a bad selection (and it looks that way now), it will be trouble. If Quinn lied about conducting a “nation-wide search” it will be double.
My gut from knowing the media is this story is not going away and damage control is needed. My suggestion to Quinn is to disclose how Randle was selected and vetted. If the process was significantly flawed, Quinn needs to figure out who messed up and remove them.
Comment by Objective Dem Friday, May 15, 09 @ 1:26 pm
It doesn’t seem like it is getting picked up. The MSM will realize this story a few weeks from now, act like they broke the story, give no props to Rich and then repeatedly write in follow up stories that “As first reported here, so on and so forth…”.
Comment by Cosmic Charlie Friday, May 15, 09 @ 2:08 pm
So much for reform. Quinn is fulfilling the filth quotient as set forth by Jim, George and Rod.
Comment by enrico depressario Friday, May 15, 09 @ 2:25 pm
Cosmic Charlie, You are so right. Plus give it a year and the AP will be charging Rich for posting the link to their article.
Comment by Objective Dem Friday, May 15, 09 @ 2:27 pm
He was probably the only candidate on the nationwide list who served in the military and was deployed to Iraq
Comment by Merit Comp Slave Friday, May 15, 09 @ 2:28 pm
Most of the people Quinn has appointed so far are people in Public Relations positions. I hear Detella(Right hand man to former DOC Director Snyder) is back in Illinois. If that man isn’t qualified, I don’t know who is. Then again he might not want the job. I’ll say this, he had DOC straightened out before and could probably do it agian.
Comment by WARDOG Friday, May 15, 09 @ 2:38 pm
If this guy is the best of the best, what in the world did the rest of the candidates look like?
Comment by ChampaignDweller Friday, May 15, 09 @ 2:39 pm
If Quinn would just root out and get rid of all the honest employees and politicians we wouldn’t have to suffer through these stories. There is honor amongst dem crooks - they don’t rat out each other!
Comment by A Citizen Friday, May 15, 09 @ 3:08 pm
Sounds like Gov Walker his first appointment to DOC director was not approved by the senate. He was from out of state. His second try came in and brought over 30 with him. They planned to close all prisons and forced all wardens to have at least five inmates out on furlough. This was finally stopped when the Tribune used their front page to print pictures of all the inmates and their crimes who committed the serious crimes while on furlough. One of their faviorite acts was to put murders in civilian clothers and take them to the Duquion state fair. All but one was fired. One then went to a eastern state and was responsible for the Willy Harton incident which effected the president election.The Gov. who appointed him as director was running for Pres. He lost. To the best of my knowledge this was the only time a out of stster was brought in. He was chosen by a national research. The new Gov. is definitely not a history buff.
Comment by llm Friday, May 15, 09 @ 3:20 pm
Hiring another stroke; keepin’ WAY too many of Blago’s stooges; and on and on….
So much for the hope of a new way going forward. How disappointing.
Comment by sal-says Friday, May 15, 09 @ 3:37 pm
29 year old no-law-enforcement-experience Director of the IL State Police; 50% increase in IL income tax and now this “best of the best”….
Gov Quinn is earning poor marks in Decision Making, Problem Recognition and Efficiency Under Stress. Are we seeing things that he doesn’t ?
Comment by North of I-80 Friday, May 15, 09 @ 3:39 pm
Wardog, Detella never left. He’s at the DuPage County Health Department.
Comment by anon Friday, May 15, 09 @ 4:05 pm
llm,
Great slice of history there, but doesn’t really prove your point. Multinational corporations don’t hire “only local” people to run their local offices…they put who they think is best into place, often bringing in people from out of state. Other states and municipalities hire from out of their bounds, again with the intent of putting the right people in place, not necessarily “the local people”.
Or is there something special about DOC that requires an insider to run it?
Comment by Six Degrees of Separation Friday, May 15, 09 @ 4:13 pm
I hope Randle doesn’t buy a house in Springfield that he’ll end up putting on the market in 18 months…….
Comment by Tollway Joe Friday, May 15, 09 @ 4:42 pm
Quinn was right to turn to another state for the new head of IDOC. Right now, IDOC is dominated by a culture of hate, as many of the postings on this blog reveal. Randle has already upset them by saying in public the one word that many of the old hands at the IDOC abhor: “rehabilitation.” Whether the sale of IDOC furniture to a friend’s business constitutes a scandal is so far unclear, but it sounds to me like a mere bagatelle.
Comment by moby Friday, May 15, 09 @ 5:41 pm
This does appear to be a problem for GQ. He seems to be well intentioned but just can’t get the job done. Bringing in an outsider was not a bad idea. The DOC needs to be evaluated by someone who can be objective and not worry about who is political and who is not. The problem appears to be that Mr. Randle has some ethical issues in Ohio and that is the LAST thing we need in Illinois.
Trying to hire from within may not be as easy as the general public may think. The Democrats do not have a very deep farm system of state employees. Most middle management came up during the Republican years and this makes them off limits. Also, most qualified staff are covered by a union contract or soon will be and this will remove all financial incentive to move into senior management positions.
Blagojevich has done more internal damage to state agencies than you could possibly imagine.I estimate that it will take at least 10 years to clean it up. GQ is not off to a very quick start.
Comment by southern illinoisan Friday, May 15, 09 @ 7:58 pm
You wouldn’t think it would be that difficult to find a DOC Director who meets four simple qualifications….
1. Honesty/integrity
2. Knows what they are doing
3. Not under investigation
4. Not someone’s political hack
How hard can it be? As a 20 yr. DOC vet, all I can say is the more things change, the more they stay the same.
Comment by DOC Sgt. Friday, May 15, 09 @ 9:29 pm
I work for IDOC. I was so hopeful that things would begin to improve with a new Director. Going out of state was not really a bad idea as the root of political patronage runs deep within the Department. The people who were favored under the republicans hated the democratic appointees. There seems to be amnesia about how jobs are obtained in IDOC.
However, putting someone in who is under investigation for contract mishandleing leads me to think we could just go and get Donald Snider out of prison. Better the devil you know than the one you don’t.
I am so disappointed in Mr. Quinn and Mr. Madigan. Political patronage as usual.
I now agree with many of my friends - vote all of the bums out.
Comment by Hopeful Monday, May 18, 09 @ 12:44 pm