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* The minority party is supposed to whack the majority every chance they get. But it’s also imperative that they be kept honest. And while I wholeheartedly agree that redistricting reform is an absolute must, this op-ed by House GOP Leader Tom Cross and Senate Republican Leader Christine Radogno is not a very logical argument…
For three years in a row, the majority party in the state Legislature has failed in its most basic duty, which is to pass a balanced budget without spending additional taxpayer money in overtime sessions. Rod Blagojevich is gone, but his party still can’t accomplish this core responsibility. […]
The poison at the core is a system in which legislative districts have been gerrymandered to fix election results and insulate lawmakers from voters. When politicians get to pick their voters, instead of the voters picking their representatives, there is no accountability. And, without accountability, there is no pressure to fix the problems the state faces.
As we work toward a budget solution, putting an initiative on the November 2010 ballot to end gerrymandering must be a part of the discussions. Illinois needs an independent party to draw legislative district maps — not an antiquated coin-flip system — because it is clear nothing will change so long as politicians draw their own districts.
It’s illogical because a big reason there was no income tax increase during the spring session was that lots of House Democrats were scared to death of their voters, even in Cook County.
But the two leaders stuck to their message this morning, with both pushing for reforms and Leader Radogno claiming that the budget crisis was being “manufactured”…
The deficit is all too real. So I’m not sure what’s being “manufactured.”
* Senate President Cullerton talked about the Republicans, budget cuts and their proposed constitutional amendment on redistricting during a press conference earlier this morning. Watch it…
The beginning of the presser can be watched here.
Thoughts?
posted by Rich Miller
Wednesday, Jun 17, 09 @ 11:03 am
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I fully support non partisan computer aided redistricting. I dont really think it would help the GOP but it could make the dems more accountable to there districts. As done now re election is all but assured if you do whatever Mike Madigan tells you and dont think for yourself.
Comment by FED UP Wednesday, Jun 17, 09 @ 11:10 am
Let’s repeat and I will talk slowwwwwwwly for the Circular Firing Squad. None of the Senate GOP Leader ideas put a dime in the till. None of BoxTom’s nonsense puts a dime it the till. Nothing that happened the last 3 years, the last six years really counts here. This is a national crisis brought to by the boys on Wall Street and their “regulators”
The Monday WSJ painted the national deficits among the states is about $240 billion.
Did I lay that out slowly enough? CFS get it?
TugBoat Andy? Twitterbugs?
Good. Have a nice day.
Comment by Boxing Cross Wednesday, Jun 17, 09 @ 11:19 am
I don’t quite get the redistricting push here. Rich, maybe it’s time for you to talk about your ideas. I for one like knowing that I’ll be represented by my party of choice as do my friends who live elsewhere and have different representation. We do still have a primary election process, don’t we? Also, don’t we elect people who draw the districts? Would it really be better for an unelected “nonpartisan” commission to draw districts (for instance, I’ve met a lot of independents but never a nonpartisan)? What “nonpartisan” entity will appoint these commissioners? How about the computer drawing? Who is answerable for the computer software? Watching Radogno and Cross push this clearly self-serving idea borders on farce. Sure, I like rectangles as much as the next guy, but there’s got to be more logic to this.
Comment by Big West Wednesday, Jun 17, 09 @ 11:20 am
===Rich, maybe it’s time for you to talk about your ideas===
I spent a whole lot of time on that subject during the con-con debate last year.
Comment by Rich Miller Wednesday, Jun 17, 09 @ 11:22 am
Is that the deal? Redistricting reform on the ballot for a tax increase? I’d take that.
Real revenues are down a lot, a rare occurrence, so there’s nothing manufactured. But the GOP needs something for their votes. The pressure for a capital plan still might do the trick.
Comment by wordslinger Wednesday, Jun 17, 09 @ 11:22 am
I would take redistricting reform with a computer drawing the maps for a temp tax increase as long as we have some pension reform and consolidation of state agencys. Without reform we will be in the same boat in 10 years.
Comment by FED UP Wednesday, Jun 17, 09 @ 11:26 am
Rich, point taken. I’ll hit the archives.
Comment by Big West Wednesday, Jun 17, 09 @ 11:30 am
===Also, don’t we elect people who draw the districts?===
That’s the point, BW - the elected legislators that redraw districts are redrawing the disricts as a means to ensure they’re reelected.
Granted, there will be hurdles to any new solution, but in this case, I’m not sure how it could not be better than the current system.
Comment by The Doc Wednesday, Jun 17, 09 @ 11:32 am
We’re screwed.
Comment by Deep South Wednesday, Jun 17, 09 @ 11:32 am
When a business experiences a reduction in revenues they cut costs, they don’t raise their prices.
Comment by KenoMan Wednesday, Jun 17, 09 @ 11:37 am
===When a business experiences a reduction in revenues they cut costs, they don’t raise their prices.===
They also do their utmost to bring in new revenues.
Comment by Rich Miller Wednesday, Jun 17, 09 @ 11:37 am
I did notice that if I understood him right, according to Cullerton if the income tax hike passes, they apparently have gotten the cuts down to 1 billion, from 2 billion.
No talk about giving that back to the tax payers via a lower proposed income tax hike though. I guess the Dems are gonna keep it. Porkerama.
So…what should we belive? What is the deficit?
$7 billion $9 billion? How much in cuts? $1 billion $2 billion. $0 billion (my estimate).
Shouldn’t we taxpayers be a teensy bit skeptical.
Comment by cassandra Wednesday, Jun 17, 09 @ 11:41 am
What do you think pension reform has to do with this debate???? The reason pension costs are involved in this deficit at all is because the state has repeatedly cheated the State Retirement systems out of the money it was supposed to be putting in. State employees have been doing their part to balance this budget for a long time by not receiving what is contractually and legally obligated to them. The GA hasn’t paid the bill and now they can’t pay the bill, so the bad guys are the ones who are owed the money???
Comment by lincolnlover Wednesday, Jun 17, 09 @ 11:44 am
{The poison at the core is a system in which legislative districts have been gerrymandered to fix election results and insulate lawmakers from voters. When politicians get to pick their voters, instead of the voters picking their representatives, there is no accountability. And, without accountability, there is no pressure to fix the problems the state faces.}
Just how are those legislative districts effected by the consolidation and elimination of precincts in Cook County? Why wait for re-districting, when you can simply shift voters via an exercise like this? What are the odds that the precinct consolidation and elimination effort are designed to help suburban Republicans?
Comment by Quinn T. Sential Wednesday, Jun 17, 09 @ 11:50 am
Cullerton makes it sound like Republicans are co-equal partners in the process. The Democrats could have passed a budget. They still could, with more spending cuts and smaller tax increases.
Comment by Steve Wednesday, Jun 17, 09 @ 12:08 pm
BigWest don’t waste a lot of time on Capt. Fax’s remap stuff. He largely forgot about the Voting Rights Act.
BoxedTom seemed a little queasy at his presser when he kept telling everyone the cuts could be avoided w/o a tax hike. Sounded a lot Blagoof and the CTA. I think BoxedTom will get some cuts — actually lay off notes are already going out to the not-for-profit workers. I am sure those who are losing treatment or their jobs are ready for a thoughtful discussion about redistricting.
YUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUP!
BoxedTom is toast
Comment by Boxing Cross Wednesday, Jun 17, 09 @ 12:10 pm
How precious of these two trying to distract attention w/ this irrelevancy instead of actually identifying what “costs” should be cut instead of a tax increase. I keep waiting, but I’m not hearing the alternatives and dollar figures!
Comment by Abe's Ghost Wednesday, Jun 17, 09 @ 12:11 pm
Voters don’t change, parties do. The democrats had ZERO trouble taking over A TON of BIG GOP districts at the congressional level the last several years, because the party did something to improve itself. As a gop I’d rather see them actually do some political strategy to win the voters back.
Comment by shore Wednesday, Jun 17, 09 @ 12:19 pm
My non profit (one of the largest ones in the state) has recieve lay off notes (saying the potential is there). State Subsidized Daycare is over.
Comment by anon Wednesday, Jun 17, 09 @ 12:24 pm
I’m gratified that so many legislators are lifting content whole and entire from books our op-eds I’ve written on reforming Illinois.
Comment by John Bambenek Wednesday, Jun 17, 09 @ 12:30 pm
Meeting breaking up…nothing new.
BTW BoxedTom might want to check with Lee A. Daniels about “controling” remap
Comment by Boxing Cross Wednesday, Jun 17, 09 @ 12:34 pm
Forgot mentioning the value of Twitter TeeHee
Comment by Boxing Cross Wednesday, Jun 17, 09 @ 12:37 pm
How do you spell “Hypocrite”?
T-O-M-C-R-O-S-S-dot-C-O-M
Rep. Cross’ District gets $1.6 million for local parks
DNR Grants announced this month
The Illinois Department of Natural Resources administers the competitive grant program through the Open Space Lands Acquisition and Development Program (OSLAD).
“This is a wonderful program that allows our local park districts to improve their facilities for the public’s use,” Cross said. “This grant money helps to create better facilities where Illinois families can spend time together enjoying the outdoors.”
I’m all for parks, so hold your horses, Greenies.
But I think its hypocritical of Cross to accuse the state of Illinois of having a spending problem when he’s touting the use of state dollars for parks in one of the wealthiest regions of the state.
$1.6 million would fund the investigation of about 1800 cases of elder abuse and neglect.
Comment by Yellow Dog Democrat Wednesday, Jun 17, 09 @ 12:40 pm
“When a business experiences a reduction in revenues they cut costs, they don’t raise their prices.”
Government is not a ‘business’. This is one of the stupidest, most unhelpful analogies out there. No ‘business’ is in the ‘business’ of doing what government does. The market forces on government are completely different than those on a ‘business’.
But, all right, let’s play the ‘business’ game of Cost-Benefit Analysis:
Take employees: the SJ-R has AFSCME saying our 55,000 state employees get paid $3,000,000 (billion), or $54.5K/yr on average.
Lay them all off.
You’ve added 55,000 people to the unemployment rolls.
26 weeks of unemployment will cost .5 to .75 Billion, so you’ve only saved 2.25 Bn. (Nevermind lost revenue from federal match)
You’ve added 55,000 people and their families to the ranks of the uninsured.
You’ve taken 3 billion in salaries out of the private sector economy; no groceries, no more mortgage payments, and no more municipal real estate tax payments from those employees…
You have no state police force, no guards for prisons, no DCFS caseworkers, no bouncers in the state mental wards, noone to watch over entitlement spending like welfare and medical assistance - noone to write the checks, noone to monitor fraud, noone to verify eligibility.
That’s not good ‘business’.
This and other associated cuts may be a libertarian’s wet dream, but I don’t see them turning a ’state run’ fire department away when their house is burning.
And, don’t forget that much of our revenue is from the fed. What business would cut $1 of spending that leverages $2 of revenue*? (besides the ones going bankrupt!?)
* Alternatively: cut $3 of spending, realize only $1 in savings.
We can argue all day about what the state SHOULD pay for, and HOW it should do it. The problem remains - paying for what has already been committed to, and getting it in balance with good revenue sources.
Comment by Bill Lee Wednesday, Jun 17, 09 @ 12:46 pm
=== insulate lawmakers from voters. When politicians get to pick their voters, instead of the voters picking their representatives, there is no accountability.====
Is this from the same GOP party that refuses to allow its members to vote for its canidates? Instead just letting the canidates be picked by a select few? The GOP does not operate like they internally like they care for voter choice or acountability.
Comment by Ghost Wednesday, Jun 17, 09 @ 12:47 pm
“When a business experiences a reduction in revenues they cut costs, they don’t raise their prices.”
NOPE…Bush/Cheney say cover em with a TARP
Comment by Boxing Cross Wednesday, Jun 17, 09 @ 12:57 pm
Galena, Rockford and Chicago todayabout 1 hour ago from web
Bill_Brady
Sen. Bill Brady
Very Good “Gov” Brady uses Twitter to practice reciting names of IL towns…BoxedTom get with it …Bolingbrook, Willowbrook, Oakbrook, EastSaintLouisbrook….
Comment by Boxing Cross Wednesday, Jun 17, 09 @ 1:02 pm
Would redistricting be such a big problem if we had multiple seat districts with proportional representation? In that scenario, no matter what type of district you drew, the minority would still be represented. If you go with computer redistricting, then you need to ensure the system is open source and completely transparent.
Comment by Squideshi Wednesday, Jun 17, 09 @ 1:13 pm
First, the result of redistricting, as proposed by Republicans, would be:
- Fewer liberal Democrats and Conservative Republicans
- NO chance for third party statehouse candidates running to the left or right
- Fewer chances for African American or Latino legislators to get elected
- Fewer Republicans elected in Cook County (because district boundaries couldn’t cross municipal or county lines)
- Fewer Democrats elected in Downstate
- Fewer representatives for major metro areas outside of Chicago
- MORE MONEY spent on more campaigns
- NO CHANCE of bipartisan cooperation on big statewide issues
But here’s the canard:
The “Iowa Solution” doesn’t actually solve anything, because the maps drawn by the computer still have to be approved by the GA, and if they vote it down three times, they draw their own map anyway.
What does that mean? It means that if Republicans want to use a computer to draw three different maps, they are free to do so already, they can submit it to the General Assembly in legislative form, and we can vote on it. That’s ALL this Magic Bullet reform does.
Now can we get back to closing the budget gap?
Comment by Yellow Dog Democrat Wednesday, Jun 17, 09 @ 1:23 pm
It’s true, the GOP provides lots of whining, but no real solutions.
I do agree with redistricting reform. That’s very much needed. The problem is within a few years Tom Cross’ ineptitude would quickly spoil even a pro-Republican drawn map.
It’s not the boundary lines so much, it’s the rotten leadership.
Comment by just sayin Wednesday, Jun 17, 09 @ 1:36 pm
Squid, the old cumulative voting system accomplished the goal of ensuring (political) minority representation from each district. Every House district had 3 members; with few exceptions, Democratic districts always had one Republican and GOP districts always had one Democrat. If this system were still in place, I bet there would be at least several Greens in the GA by now.
Comment by Secret Square Wednesday, Jun 17, 09 @ 2:26 pm
when does redistricting = a balanced budget?
Comment by one to the dome Wednesday, Jun 17, 09 @ 9:29 pm