Blogging Blagojevich's Blunders

2006-01-09T17:10:00.000-06:00

"Would that be African or European?"

"I don't know... Aaaaaaah..."

"How did you know?"

"You have to know these things to be the king."

But what do you need to know to be the governor?

What is the state reptile? Amphibian? See Peoria Journal Star (Kelly Mahoney).

Eisendrath will not be challenged

2005-12-29T16:22:00.000-06:00

Springfield Journal-Register (Doug Finke) reports the Dem Party will not challenge Eisendrath's nominating petitions.

This explains something for me. A union guy was claiming Blagojevich had no ward organization support and that I was probably witnessing union people check sigs on Eisendrath's petitions.

But I was pretty sure they were a ward organization.

The Blagojevich campaign mustered union members while Madigan mustered the ward organizations.

"volunteers" checking Eisendrath's sigs

2005-12-21T11:32:00.000-06:00

Yesterday I was at the Cook County Clerk's office at the invitation of James T. Smith who is running against Sen. Kimberly Lightford in the Democratic primary.

In the afternoon there was a big group checking petitions of a statewide candidate. The guy in charge referred to downstate counties as "places no one will ever go". The other line that stuck in my mind was that the leader was asked about the employment status of the sig checkers. He said they were off the clock, on different shifts or "flex time".

When I came back in the evening the same guy was checking people in at the security desk. I was asked gruffly by the security personnel what campaign I was with. I used Smith's name, but asked if it mattered.

The two security guards were frustrated with having to escort people in to the building. I don't know how necessary it was. And to the extent it was a problem, the security guards were out-of-line blaming the campaigns. If the Clerk and the Board of Elections didn't plan for this when they decided to have the offices open in the evening, it's not like it was my fault.

One thing that struck me as interesting was that the security guards offered to deputize a person from the Blagojevich campaign as an authorized escort. I doubt there was a partisan political angle to this. They probably just didn't want to make all the trips and decided the checker from the Blagojevich campaign was OK. But it does show how the powerful get special consideration automatically in society.

I rode the elevator to the fifth floor. The Blagojevich guy was going to the sixth floor. He said, "So you're not going to give me the satisfaction who you're with?" When I had said I was with "James T. Smith" I did ask in a somewhat accusatory manner, "Does it matter?" I explained that James T. Smith was not my name, but the name of a state senate candidate.

When I got inside, almost all the computers were taken by a group working together. And nobody was there from the Smith campaign. I figured I'd volunteer to help the Blagojevich people check Eisendrath's petitions. I explained I would swith over to helping Smith when he showed up.

One guy referred me to a male supervisor. He explained the system and gave me a sheet with mostly Chicago sigs. The Chicago sigs had already been checked at the Chicago Board of Elections. I did one page (less that six suburban Cook sigs) but got busted when I went back for another page.

The big supervisor, a female, said, "You're not with our group." They had signed-in as "Democratic Party of Illinois". I explained my situation and told them if they preferred I would not check sigs for them. I did intend to stay at the computer I was using so I wouldn't be boxed out.

I don't know what political organization they were with, but I suspect it was a ward organization. The two people next to me were from County Commissioner Earleen Collins office. James Smith knew them. Everybody else was relatively young and there were no Blacks, Asians or Latinos.

At one point the group asked if any of the sig checkers were from the 13th Ward. The announcement was that the 13th Ward people were supposed to be upstairs.

I'm not sure when requiring "volunteer" political work becomes illegal, but it seems hard for me to believe that all those people were there because they love Rod Blagojevich and thought helping his campaign was the best use of their time five days before Christmas.

If any journalists want to investigate the story, everyone was required to sign into the Clerk's office. I expect if you run their names in the voter rolls it will be pretty clear which ward they were from.

coming out of retirement?

2005-12-20T16:26:00.000-06:00

I got a note from a blogger of some note encouraging me to cover the Blagojevich/Eisendrath race.

I also posted a comment on Eisendrath at Illinoize. Illini Pundit made a comment about Eisendrath reaching out to the netroots. I mentioned I hadn't been contacted.

Now I have been contacted.

Here's the bullets from Eisendrath's announcement speech:

• Tell us why you raided nearly $2.3 billions from the already under funded pensions of teachers and state workers.

• Tell us whether you will rescind orders to state employees forcing them to carry your promotional literature.

• Tell us how you plan on paying for the election year give aways you are announcing daily.

• Tell us if you will refrain from using contributions raised by appointees to boards and commissions that dole out lucrative contracts and investments.

• Tell us how you opened the door for Republicans to run against corruption while George Ryan is on trial.

Should I start blogging about Blagojevich again?

I'm considering it. If someone were to sponsor the effort it would help me justify the time put into the project.

Blago's hand in the cookie jar?

2005-09-16T13:38:00.000-05:00

According to the Sun-Times, Blagojevich hasn't be caught with his hand in the cookie jar, but a witness has reportedly told the feds he saw G-Rod's hand in the cookie jar.

Here's one to speculate about:

How much does this bother Michael Madigan?

Governor's Special Message on Katrina

2005-09-05T19:58:00.000-05:00

I'm inclined to give Blagojevich credit on his response to Katrina.

See Archpundit.

new blog: Proviso Probe

2005-09-01T18:11:00.000-05:00

I've created Proviso Probe to be a media outlet for Proviso Township.

There's enough shenanigans to be interesting.

You are invited to visit and comment (unless you are a spammer).

will blog for food

2005-08-31T11:15:00.000-05:00

I've been encouraged to start blogging on Blagojevich.

I want to do it, but it would be nice to be able to pay bills on-time and the like.

So, I'm curious if people want this going enough to sponsor me as a blogger.

shifting tax burden to the property tax

2005-06-03T08:20:00.000-05:00

Yesterday I ran into John Hayes, the president of the Oak Park library board.

Amazingly the conversation turned to politics.

He told me that the Oak Park libraries just got hit with a 20% increase in health costs (they were told to expect a 13% increase). He also said, IIRC, the OP libraries have to double their contributions to the pension fund.

The Pantagraph says:

Once again, Gov. Blagojevich and the Democrat-controlled Legislature have used pension funds to "balance" the state's $53 billion budget.

All should be ashamed. But they won't be held accountable because it won't immediately affect anyone. And they can go into next year's elections proclaiming, "We didn't increase your income or sales taxes."

Is the Pantagraph right that this budget is balanced by borrowing from the pension fund?

How can the state ask local gov't to contribute more to the fund if the state pols are just raiding the money to keep pledges on state income and sales taxes?

Warm Springs: HBO film

2005-05-18T12:50:00.000-05:00

I saw Warm Springs last night.

Warm Springs tells the story of Franklin Delano Roosevelt's experience being afflicted with polio. FDR is portrayed as a self-indulgent punk who is humbled and then transformed into a genuinely loving and compassionate figure through his experience helping other polio victims in rural Georgia.

Eleanor Roosevelt grows along FDR. She goes from being somewhat indifferent to his political career to someone willing to get outside her comfort zone to advance her husband's interests. She is proud, but also ambitious. Initially she sides with FDR's mother that spending FDR's trust fund to buy Warm Springs is a waste.

Leave your comments about FDR, Eleanor Roosevelt or other great American political and social leaders of the 20th Century.

Electronic Encyclopedia of Chicago

2005-05-17T13:21:00.000-05:00

Sarah Marcus is a high school friend and historian that was part of the team that created the Electronic Encyclopedia of Chicago. The website was just launched in the past few days.

It should be to bloggers that want to provide links for background information.

On the front page of Yahoo

2005-05-17T13:12:00.000-05:00

"Ill. governor's office subpoenaed on finances" is one of the top eight stories on Yahoo.

CHICAGO - Gov. Rod Blagojevich's office has received subpoenas from a grand jury investigating allegations that his chief fundraiser traded jobs for campaign contributions, a source close to the investigation said Monday.

The governor refused to say if he had been subpoenaed, insisting it would be illegal to discuss the matter while it is before a grand jury.

Since the money was going to Blagojevich's campaign it doesn't much matter if he had to testify or if he just provided records. Blagojevich is the beneficiary of the corruption.

George Ryan wanted the people of Illinois to believe his employees were breaking the law to raise him money, but he did everything on the level himself. Now Blagojevich is gonna be using the same spin.

I didn't believe Ryan and I don't believe Blagojevich.

political reform

2005-05-17T13:10:00.000-05:00

I'm a skeptic about campaign finance reform.

Ron Faucheux once told me the history of campaign finance reform is the history of incumbents enacting rules that make it harder for challengers to beat incumbents.

What political reform would benefit Illinois?

value of good government?

2005-05-17T13:08:00.000-05:00

I was good friends with Ali ElSaffar when he was township assessor for both Oak Park Township and Berwyn Township. (Yes, he was assessor in two distinct townships at once.)

Oak Park and Berwyn are about the same size. IIRC village government is considerably less expensive, but more corrupt in Berwyn.

If substantially reducing corruption actually cost more than allowing it to continue at its current level, how much more taxes would you be willing to spend to have less corrupt government?

let's draft a primary opponent for Blagojevich

2005-05-14T14:27:00.000-05:00

I'm sick of hearing Democrats bad mouth Blagojevich and in the next breath declare his warchest makes him invinsible in the Democratic primary.

I propose the grassroots hold it's own pre-primary and run some regular citizen Democrat against Blagojevich.

There could be an online forum for citizens to ask questions of the candidates and discuss real policy issues.

The nominating signatures are due in December and it will probably take over a month to get them. But that means we can have a meaningful dialogue and deliberatvie process up to about Halloween.

Vote for one
* Roderick Blagojevich
* Thoughtful citizen Democrat

My read of the polls is that "not Rod" starts with a base of about 35% in the Dem primary.

equality in education is a bad thing

2005-05-09T13:39:00.000-05:00

I'll post the full essay in the comments.

Outline

I. Striving for education equality is bad politics and policy.
II. Policy
A. It doesn't work to make education more equal.
B. It diverts resources from things that could make education better.
C. It cedes the initiative to the Right who seek to undermine public education.
III. Politics
A. People don't want education to be equal.
B. Liberals don't seek average schools.
C. Lower-middle income "Whites" realize the most likely path to equality is to reduce the quality of education for their kids to match the quality provided to Blacks, immigrants and the poor.
IV. Why does Dem Party focus on equality?
A. Teachers unions
1. Like more money for contracts.
2. Avoids uncomfortable changes.
B. Identity politics liberals
1. Avoid dealing with discipline issues.
2. Allow IPLs to feel morally superior.
V. Quality education: society's leaders should discuss what skills and experiences should be part of a quality education.

What do you think?

I need help

2005-05-09T13:25:00.000-05:00

Anybody want to be part of the Blogging Blagojevich's Blunders team?

Obviously I'm having trouble keeping up with posting.

sorry about not posting

2005-04-30T09:52:00.000-05:00

I went to the White Sox game last night with my brother, who is also a blogger.

He asked me about not posting. I didn't have a particularly good answer.

Are there any Democrats making noise about running against Blagojevich?

If not I'm thinking I should as least write an agenda for the state. (I don't like the term "platform" for some reason.) I'm curious if it would generate any enthusiasm.

Do I have to choose D or R?

2005-04-18T22:37:00.000-05:00

Archpundit sent me to this post by ILPundit.

The basics, for those of you who are new, is this: Yes, the Governor has problems. But he is well positioned because he has cut all of the low-hanging fruit from the state budget, and held the line to an almost insane degree on general tax increases. This forces a Republican opponent into one of two positions of attack against him: 1) Identify new, deeper budget cuts – which all carry heavy political risk because the low hanging fruit is gone, or 2) Raise taxes – which is unpopular with “the base”.

What if an independent runs on a sensible agenda for the state's budget woes?

If the Democratic and Republican nominees are talking complete bullshit about the state budget, the media would cover an independent candidate that told the truth, right?

do you want CN to interview challengers?

2005-04-15T09:14:00.000-05:00

I am the victim of many interesting ideas coming into my head.

Before the March, 2004 primary I attempted to interview all Dem and Republican U.S. Senate candidates on Collective Interest.

I haven't been doing much with Collective Interest this semester (I haven't done a new interview in awhile), but they still like me enough at WUIC, the Internet radio station of the University of Illinois at Chicago, that I was invited to the end of the semester function.

Does the Blogging Blagojevich's Blunders audience want me to interview candidates for governor? If there seems to be ethusiasm for the idea in the comments, I will make it happen.

BTW, I'm not gonna go easy on any of these candidates.

CTA fare increases

2005-04-14T11:20:00.000-05:00

It's lousy public policy. And it's bullshit that Rod's "no tax increase" pledge takes priority over public transportation.

But if public transit fares are gonna increase, let's pass the cost on to employers.

Employers will be required to pay for fare cards to get to and from work.

political violence in Forest Park

2005-04-13T14:56:00.000-05:00

According to the Forest Park Review (Bob Uphues) the Illinois AG was going to hold a press conference (today?) about file charges against Berwyn Public Safety Director Frank Marzullo and his crew for beating Wayne Pesek, a former North Riverside village administrator.

Why the Illinois AG instead of the Cook County States Attorney? It appears Marzullo's son, Jerry, who was present during the incident is an attorney working for Devine. There are also reports one of Marzullo's crew tried to use his badge to bully the Forest Park police when they were investigating.

Who said life in the 'burbs was boring?

Stroger and Rezko

2005-04-09T08:58:00.000-05:00

Cook County Board Prez John Stroger made Antoin "Tony" Rezko an honorary chair of a fundraiser. See Chicago Tribune (Mickey Ciokajlo and John Chase).

Does this have significance for Blagojevich?

education money

2005-04-09T08:50:00.000-05:00

Achpundit wrote about education funding.

The basic problem is that [a tax swap] hurts suburban districts that are politically powerful so any deal is unlikely to work without a general tax increase that involves some sort of hold harmless function for them in terms of state funds. This hold harmless condition is why Blagojevich won't touch it--there is no way to generate that much cash without a general increase in taxes meaning sales or income.

Here's my observation.

Liberals have been talking about making education "equal" and "closing the gap" for decades.

This pushes lower-middle income "Whites" toward the conservative camp. There's two ways to close a gap or achieve equality. One can bring the bottom up, but it's always easier to bring the top down.

Lower-middle income "Whites" know that rich kids aren't going to be brought down to the level of Black kids, but affluent liberals are willing to sacrifice the children of lower-middle income "Whites" for liberal ideology.

I would advocate a two-prong fix of education funding.

1. Health care costs. School districts are powerless to contain skyrocketing health care costs. Have the federal government protect local government, including school districts from health care costs that rise faster than inflation.
2. Vastly improve education. Society should rethink education from the point of view of serving the middle of the bell curve. In the '50s the United States started to emphasize honors/gifted education. More recently the United States has devoted vast resources to disabled students. Society should figure out what constitutes a high quality education for everybody and create a system that vastly improves education across the board. When the parents become convinced that there's a plan to improve education for their children the money will be there.

Blago vs. Bradley

2005-04-09T08:33:00.000-05:00

Read Rich Miller's post. He thinks Blagojevich is being duplicious toward Bradley. Anybody think otherwise?

overwhelming Blagojevich's brain

2005-04-09T08:28:00.000-05:00

Rich Miller gigs Blagojevich for apparently lying about a bill to divide Boone County and other counties into judicial subcircuits to make it easier to elect Democrats as judges.

I don't exclude the possibility Blagojevich is lying, but consider another option.

Maybe Blagojevich gets overwhelmed keeping track of all the details.

Let's say Blagojevich is more of a fundraiser and a campaigner than a policy wonk. Maybe Blagojevich is using up his higher thinking functions on fundraising and how to keep himself out of trouble on his shady deals. It could be enough to make him forget or temporarily forget the nuance of electing judges in Rockford.

anti-death penalty jurrors

2005-04-09T08:19:00.000-05:00

Should prosecutors be able to exclude people that oppose the death penalty for moral reasons from juries that may have to consider a request to execute the defendent?

The law seems to say that society's decision that the death penalty is OK trumps the individual's opposition, even though opposing the death penalty isn't particularly rare.

When should individual morality be able to trump society's legislative process? See Archpundit for a thoughts on the manufactured controversy about pharmacists refusing to provide physician prescribed medications.

CTA riders restless

2005-04-08T10:43:00.000-05:00

If the State of Illinois can't find more money, the CTA is threatening fair increases and/or service cuts. See the Chicago Tribune (Jon Hilkevitch).

Since fairs just increased recently ($1.50==>$1.75 and $1.80==>$2.00 for a transfer) it seems there shouldn't be another fair increase.

As someone who uses the bus less than the "L", I'm probably not as rigid about defending cuts in bus service as people who rely on the bus. However, some of the cuts that generate opposition are reasonable cuts and the objections are reactions to the symbolism.

For example, I remember the West Side generated significant noise over the CTA wanting to cut the Washington bus. The CTA figured having a parallel bus on Madison, one block away, would still meet the needs of the community. If you think about it, having six busses per hour on Madison is better than having four per hour on both Washington and Madison, unless you're in the bus driver union.

That said, the current shortfall is huge. The cuts needed to cover this will require cutting more than redundant bus lines. But transportation advocates need to be reasonable too. As the metro area changes new routes are needed and old routes become obsolete.

I stand by my earlier statement:

If the choice is

A. raise CTA fares
B. tax software

I'll support B.

But if the choice is

A. raise CTA fares
B. tax software
C. repeal Blagojevich's tax pledge
D. something else, like cancel Peotone spending

C or D seem at least as good as B.

campaign disclosure reports

2005-04-07T09:07:00.000-05:00

What are the requirements for Illinois campaign disclosure forms listing profession and employer for contributors?

I am doing research on some stuff for the Forest Park Review. (Have you seen my article on Captain Chris Miller of Naval Reserve Center Forest Park being activated as part of the U.S. military's tsunami relief effort?) I've noticed that campaigns don't do a very good job with this part of the forms.

To pick on Karen Yarbrough, Joe Ponsetto contributed to her campaign. On her D-2s it says something to the effect that the campaign made a good faith effort to determine Ponsetto's occupation and employer. I know Yarbrough knows he's an attorney that works for the Illinois Attorney General.

And another thing.

Illinois allows corporations and businesses to contribute. But sometimes this can be used to obfuscate who is actually writing the check. What are the rules on this? Should contributions from businesses be required to disclose the head of the business?

i'm not making this up

2005-04-07T08:54:00.000-05:00

I was down at one of the downtown government buildings when I overheard a young woman on a mobile phone say, "If I don't get my court date changed, I won't be able to go the Jerry Springer Show."

congrats Henderson Yarbrough

2005-04-07T08:51:00.000-05:00

Henderson Yarbrough was elected president of the Village of Maywood.

Henderson Yarbrough is one of the nicest people I've met in politics. He's also Rep. Karen Yarbrough's (D-Maywood) husband.

I mention this because I have a theory about local government.

Over time the tax burden has shifted from the income tax to the property tax. This is the same period when non-partisan local government became the rage.

I suspect that disconnecting local elections from the Democrats and the Republicans in the state legislatures and Congress made it easier for states and the federal government to pass problems down to local government without passing adequate funding along with the problems.

Thoughts?

subsidizing big business

2005-04-07T08:40:00.000-05:00

The Chicago Tribune (Bruce Japsen) has an article on the front page drawing attention to Blagojevich giving state money to pharmaceutical companies at the same time he uses them for whipping boys.

For some reason this doesn't bother me. I can see criticizing the aspects of pharmaceutical companies that are offensive, like price gouging, while working with them on job creation.

For me these are the questions:

1. Does subsidizing business actually net the government money?
2. Does government--both Democrats and Republicans--prefer large corporate businesses over small business?
3. What's it say about free market ideology that business gets so much help from government in this country?

Rauschenberger web site

2005-04-07T08:31:00.000-05:00

Rauschenberber's gubernatorial campaign is looking for volunteers.

Rumman leaves CMS

2005-04-06T09:12:00.000-05:00

Is this significant? How so?

Did Rumman promote efficiency?

State Journal-Register (May Massingale):

The director of the Illinois Department of Central Management Services is leaving that post after two years to return to the private sector.

During his tenure, Michael Rumman turned CMS into one of the state's most powerful agencies by consolidating several functions at a savings he tallies at $600 million. However, Rumman also oversaw an abandoned attempt to move toward a self-insured group health insurance system for state workers that brought legislative and apparent federal scrutiny to the bidding process.

The Tribune article (John Chase) lists some specific criticisms:

Since taking over at Central Management Services in the days after Blagojevich was sworn in, Rumman has made changes and had several proposals become the focus of controversy. Perhaps best known was his plan to mortgage the state's showcase James R. Thompson Center in the Loop, a deal shot down as illegal by Atty. Gen. Lisa Madigan hours before the papers were to be signed.

Rumman also was criticized for pushing an insurance plan for state workers without a legislative panel's approval, allowing contractors to begin work before contracts with the state were signed and, most recently, making an unprecedented request for upfront cash from vendors bidding on a multimillion-dollar office-supply contract.

Auditor General William Holland last year lashed out at Rumman's Central Management Services for allowing Mesirow Stein Development Services Inc., a politically connected company, to begin work on a $25 million contract reviewing state assets before the agreement was signed, raising questions about how the money was being spent.

Comments?

sore losers

2005-04-06T08:38:00.000-05:00

Has anybody else noticed that we've had a string of sore losers in Illinois politics?

Joe Birkett
Phil Crane
Alan Keyes

And the latest name to add to the list is Oak Park's Diana Carpenter, incumbent trustee that lost her VMA-endorsed bid for village president. From the coverage in the Wednesday Journal.

At the Carleton Hotel Tuesday night, Carpenter told a crowd of supporters that she was “shocked as could be,” and voiced bitter disappointment.

“Single issue voters and angry people will not be allowed to take over Oak Park. People have worked too hard for more than 30 years to allow lies and deceit to win,” she said. “We will continue because we are better and more knowledgeable.”

Carpenter blames her loss on "single issue voters and angry people"? Saying her opposition used "lies and deceit"? Gimme an effin break!

Carpenter was out-of-touch with Oak Park activists and voters. If she was "shocked" that she lost, she's probably the only one. Also, she's none too bright. She's got a sense of entitlement. And she's a sourpuss.

Maybe all the time the VMA devotes to training its candidates should include 30 minutes training them on losing graciously.

Highwood Mayor

2005-04-06T08:25:00.000-05:00

Forgive me for being petty, but I'm gonna slam Vincent Donofrio, who was elected mayor of Highwood yesterday. He won 553-545. I only learned he was running while browsing the web last night.

About January, 1996, Donofrio and I had a vehicle collission. He was doing something illegal, but no one was hurt, so I wasn't terribly excited about it.

I was driving from home (667 Homewood, Highland Park) to work (Ft. Sheridan). I drove north on Midlothian and east on Owentsia. The accident occurred as I was turning left onto Green Bay Road from Owentsia. See Google Maps and enter "Owentsia & Green Bay Rd, Highland Park, IL".

One block south of there is a five-way intersection with a traffic light. The traffic was backed-up past Owentsia. A truck left me through to turn left (north). As I turned onto Green Bay I looked to my right (to the south) for northbound traffic. Seeing none I entered the northbound lane where my vehicle collided with Donofrio's vehicle which was driving south.

Donofrio I presume was also on his way to work. He was a banker in Highland Park and drove a big banker type car. He was trying to get to the left turn lane at the stop light at the five-way intersection.

When the officer arrived I didn't try to argue the collission was Donofrio's fault because it was obvious. He was driving south in the northbound lane. However, after Donofrio left the scene the officer wrote me the moving violation. I was shocked, but I didn't get pissed at Donofrio until later.

I went to court to contest the moving violation. These things get dropped unless a witness appears to testify. Donofrio wasn't satisfied that he got off, he had the audacity to come to court to testify against me.

But the U.S. Constitution gives me the right to confront my accusers (unless they are from the Bush administration and I'm accused of certain anti-government activities). So I got to cross examine Donofrio.

I asked him if the officer and him knew each other before the accident. He responded "no". Now that he's been elected mayor of Highwood, I'm thinking I should have asked the question differently. "Who do you know in the Highland Park Police Department?" probably would have made my point better.

I also asked Donofrio about the large handicap placard hanging from his rear view mirror. The prosecutor objected. I explained that based on the angle of collission the placard would have obstructed Donofrio's view of my vehicle. The judge allowed my question. Donofrio became agitated and started making excuses about how it was his mother's placard and of course he didn't use it to park illegally. He was nervous enough that he certainly seemed to be lying. BTW, back then those handicap placards were much bigger and then explicitly said they were to be removed while driving.

The other thing in my favor was that the cop and the prosecutor introduced a map of the streets into evidence that showed the left turn lane at the five-way intersection. The left-turn lane did no extend through the previous intersection (duh!) nor did it extend to it. The cop and the prosecutor were trying to claim that there were two southbound lanes on Green Bay and that Donofrio was driving in the second lane.

Green Bay is a major north-south road in Lake County, so I'm sure the judge knew the prosecutor and cop were lying. Plus their claims didn't match the diagram they introduced into evidence.

Donofrio is a liar. He's a cheat. He's got no shame about having it good. And I suspect he used his connections in the Highland Park PD to arrange to get me a ticket when he was the person at fault.

Forest Park & Proviso

2005-04-06T07:48:00.000-05:00

Congrats to Cathleen McDermott, Charles Flowers and Chris Welch in Forest Park and Proviso Township.

Moraine Township Dems win

2005-04-06T07:45:00.000-05:00

Congrats to the Moraine Township Democrats that won all township races minus assessor.

(I volunteered doing door-to-door work in that campaign.)

Forest Park Park District Commissioner

2005-03-27T10:29:00.000-06:00

On Tuesday, April 5, 2005, Forest Park will elect two of the following five people to be FP Park District commissioners for six-year terms.

Michael A. Espinosa
Roy J. Sansone
Mary P. Buckley
Cathleen McDermott
Marcella "Marcy" Wozniak

I do know a little about this race, since I covered a candidate forum (with Melissa Lou) for the Forest Park Review. However, only McDermott and Wozniak participated. Part of me says that's enough to decide who to vote for. If the other candidates won't participate in the one all-candidate forum, fuck 'em.

However, Melissa--the FPR editor and my boss--speaks highly of Espinosa. She endorsed Espinosa and McDermott.

I created an online poll to gage the support of Blogging Blagojevich's Blunders readers. It uses Condorcet voting, which has the voters rank the candidates.

If anybody has a good reason to vote for or against any of these candidates, please post the reasons in the comments section.

who should be Oak Park's Village Prez?

2005-03-26T14:33:00.000-06:00

Please only vote in this poll if you are an Oak Park registered voter.

Oak Park has three candidates for village president. I'm curious how the voters would rank the candidates.

Diana Carpenter
Robert Milstein
David Pope

The poll linked above uses Condorcet voting. The Condorcet system has voters rank candidates and then compares each candidate against every other candidate in a matrix. Under Condorcet candidates A & C might get more first place votes than B, but B may still win if she gets enough second place votes.

I thought it would be useful to see which of the two candidates are the strongest so Oak Parkers can vote strategically on April 5th. I will close voting at midnight the day before the election.

Click here for more information about the Condorcet Internet Voting Service.

"Same as it ever was..."

2005-03-26T13:47:00.000-06:00

The News-Gazette (Kate Clements):

SPRINGFIELD – Gov. Rod Blagojevich on Friday appointed a new University of Illinois trustee who donated more than $83,000 to the governor's campaign....

Dear Governor Blagojevich, you created some goodwill with your appointments to the Gambling Board. But people suspect you're a "quid pro quo" guy. So you need to keep appointing squeaky clean people to the various governing bodies if you want to capitalize on the goodwill from the Gambling Board appointments.

Your father-in-law accused you of selling appointments for $50,000, right? I'm just a guy that runs a blog, and I lost my only campaign running for elected office, so you can dismiss what I'm about to say. With that caveat in mind, I'd recommend not appointing anybody that's given your campaign over $50,000. It looks bad.

Sincerely,

Carl Nyberg
creator, Blogging Blagojevich's Blunders

What would you ask the B-Team?

2005-03-25T07:53:00.000-06:00

It's Friday, so it's time for audience questions for Blagojevich and his administration.

What vision of ethics and competence does Blagojevich give to his department heads?

Under what circumstances should the state of Illinois subsidize large corporations? Small businesses?

Can the governor explain why some are concerned about ethanol consuming too much energy to produce? What technical developments does Blagojevich see as having promise to address this issue?

A number of Blagojevich advisors and fundraisers have been involved in profitable business arrangements with the government in Illinois. Does Blagojevich give his advisors and fundraisers guidelines about how they can and can’t use their connections to make money? Or does the governor try to stay ignorant of their financial dealings?

In his most optimistic vision of the future, what does Blagojevich hope to accomplish by making certain video games illegal for minors?

Approximately how many sex workers are working under slavery conditions in Illinois? If the law enforcement community wanted to make detecting and closing these brothels a priority, what keeps them from doing it? Are these brothels being run by organized crime that has bribed public officials to look the other way?

How would Blagojevich like to improve his working relationship with members of the legislature?

The Chicago Tribune ridiculed Blagojevich for blaming Mayor Daley’s lobbyists for the failure to advance gun control legislation. “[Gov. Blagojevich] might as well have criticized Daley for not telling the governor the state legislature was in session that day.” Does Blagojevich stand by his criticism? Does Blagojevich’s staff have any responsibilities to keep track of what’s happening in the legislature? Did any member of Blagojevich’s staff “screw-up” on this legislation?

Here's a link to the last set of questions.

First Amendment question

2005-03-24T17:27:00.000-06:00

Blagojevich says he wants to "[s]top private agencies like A Cherished Child Adoption Agency from advertising in Illinois", as in make it illegal.

Does this violate the First Amendment?

it's not the corruption (only); it's the incompetence

2005-03-24T17:23:00.000-06:00

Peoria Journal Star (Molly Parker):

PEORIA - Funding for the state's five crisis nurseries, which provide temporary care for young children in danger of beig abused, was accidentally eliminated from Gov. Rod Blagojevich's proposed budget and will be restored, the governor's budget office said Wednesday.

Jennie Armstrong of the Crittenton Centers in Peoria testified at a budget hearing in Peoria on Tuesday that the Department of Human Services had committed to help restore the funding, but that the organization had not heard from Blagojevich's office.

Someone, I think in a Capitol Fax discussion, said ethics was the achilles heel of Blagojevich. I disagree partially.

Blagojevich might be able to survive the appearance of impropriety that swirls around him, if he was doing a good job and people liked him.

But the evidence of incompetence and people not liking him is gonna cause him to lose in 2006.

two-party system favors big business

2005-03-24T17:16:00.000-06:00

Blagojevich is giving money away to Chrysler and he's proud of it.

If the "free market" is so great, how come government has to subsidize business so much?

But what about big business vs. small business in the two-party system?

The Republicans like big business because Republicans like consolidating wealth and power.

Democrats like big business because big businesses offer more opportunities to unionize workers and it's easier to collect taxes from big businesses.

Is there a bi-partisan consensus that small business is undesirable, inefficient and should be discouraged through government policy?

ethanol futures begin trading

2005-03-24T17:05:00.000-06:00

WQAD has the story about listing ethanol futures at the Board of Trade.

On Down Left I got into a discussion about ethanol.

The criticism of ethanol that resonates with me is that it takes most of a BTU of energy to produce a BTU of ethanol energy.

Are there any methods of producing ethanol that promise to make ethanol production more efficient?

Proviso Township (& Forest Park)

2005-03-24T16:55:00.000-06:00

I'd like to know more about my local elections before I vote on April 5, 2005.

According to the Cook County Clerk these will be the positions and people on my ballot.

Proviso Township Supervisor
Vote for 1 (Full 4-year Term)
Anthony M. Luciano
Mari Herrell
Kathy M. Ryan

Proviso Township Clerk
Vote for 1 (Full 4-year Term)
Michael A. McDermott
Grady Rivers, Jr.
Joyce Ann Eaker

Proviso Township Assessor
Vote for 1 (Full 4-year Term)
Jeanne A. Connelly
Michael A. Corrigan
Ralph W. Conner

Proviso Township Collector
Vote for 1 (Full 4-year Term)
Harriet Jackson
F. Joyce Lewis
Donna M. Contraveos

Proviso Township Trustee
Vote for 4 (Full 4-year Term)
James O. Bishop
Richard P. Rius
Imoni T. Baxter
Linda D. Stevanovich
Timothy Gillian
Jesus "Jesse" Martinez
Don Sloan
Anthony "Tony" Williams
Catherine A. Colgrass-Edwards
Steven R. Johnsen
Michael L. Sheehan
William J. Daugherty, Jr.

Forest Park Park District Commissioner
Vote for 2 (Full 6-year Term)
Michael A. Espinosa
Roy J. Sansone
Mary P. Buckley
Cathleen McDermott
Marcella "Marcy" Wozniak

Forest Park School District 91
Member of the Board of Education
Vote for 4 (Full 4-year Term)
Charles E. Marinier
Lawrence P. Buckley, Jr.
Marilyn Garapolo
Lois L. Bugajsky

Proviso Township High School District 209
Member of the Board of Education
Vote for 4 (Full 4-year Term)
Arbdella "Della" Patterson
Emanuel "Chris" Welch
Daniel J. Adams
Reatha "Sue" Henry
Guillermina "Tina" Alcaraz
Johnny Perryman
Gwendolyn Crayton
Tucker J. Ramos
Katherine Ryan
Thomas D. Dunne, Jr.
Kenneth J. Leggin
Charles A. Flowers

Triton Community College District 504
Members of the Board of Trustees
Vote for 2 (Full 6-year Term)
Donna Leoni Peluso
Merrill M. Becker
Alfonza Al McKinnor

Proviso Township Trustees of Schools, Township 39N, Range 12E
Township School Trustee
Vote for 1 (Full 6-year Term)
Jeanne A. Connelly
Brian Cross
Georgiann "GiGi" Callaway

What should I know about these people and races?

Terry Schiavo, read corndog, discuss elsewhere

2005-03-24T16:46:00.000-06:00

Here's the rules of this thread.

This is not to become a discussion of the Terry Schaivo case. However, I encourage people to start discussions at their own blogs. Or if you don't have your own blog, use one of the many blogs that want to discuss the Schaivo case.

I've left the comments thread open so you can post a link to the discussion on your site (or the site where you post your comments).

I read corndog's research and analysis of the Schiavo case and found it quite useful in debunking the lies being told about Michael Schiavo, Terry's husband and guardian.

For those of you that think Michael Schiavo, the Florida courts and the federal courts are wrong on this, I would like you to read what corndog wrote and respond in your own blogs. If Michael Schiavo is on the up-and-up, should he be allowed to fulfill his wife's desires?

Here is a list of Blogging Blagojevich's Blunders linked blogs that have come down against Terry Schaivo's desires and the court system.

* Ace of Trump
* annoyinglittletwerp
* Discursive Recursions
* IlliniPundit
* Making tomorrows Military today
* Peoria Pundit
* The TPS Report

"I hate Illinois Nazis"

2005-03-24T16:09:00.000-06:00

From the Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy:

The laden phrase “identity politics” has come to signify a wide range of political activity and theorizing founded in the shared experiences of injustice of members of certain social groups. Rather than organizing solely around ideology or party affiliation, identity politics typically concerns the liberation of a specific constituency marginalized within its larger context. Members of that constituency assert or reclaim ways of understanding their distinctiveness that challenge dominant oppressive characterizations, with the goal of greater self-determination.

Yesterday while listening to NPR I heard a piece on Jeffrey Weise killing people on the Red Lake Reservation.

One of the "experts" commented on Weise being Native American and being attracted to Nazi ideology. He claimed some individuals from the "oppressed" identify with the "oppressor" because they covet the power and acceptance.

I'm pretty sure that's not what was going on in this case.

Does Matthew Hale, his movement or other neo-Nazi organizations have any meaningful power? They are angry and critics of the larger society. They invoke the threat of violence and "talk trash" about overthrowing the existing social order and replacing it with something pure.

These are the aspects of the neo-Nazi movement Weise identified with. He hated mainstream culture. He fantasized about using violence to change it. And he wanted to establish something pure.

To suggest he was seeking acceptance by society's privileged and powerful misses the mark. Weise hated society's privileged and powerful. It wasn't like he was trying to become a jock, a businessman or a Republican.

challenge to Right-Left dichotomy

2005-03-24T15:50:00.000-06:00

I have always believed that the ultimate maturity of a democratic polity is the eradication of right-and-left dichotomy. The American people will eventually become open-mindedly selective, reasonable, and flexible in an eclectic manner when it comes to their ideological leanings, political affiliations, and social voices. The government can't do anything but respond to the people's hodgepodge clamor. Thus, it will change also and adopt an inclusive, heterogenous, and generic policy and platform. It is a good thing. We will then have a developmental politics instead of a political one- politics for the sake of politicking. Elections will no longer be about Jesus but justice.

Like Ms. Deja Vu, I favor dumping the Left-Right linear spectrum as a model for politics.

Please, visit her blog and say "hi", but be forewarned it has sexual content and adult language.

Congrats endorsed candidates in Oak Park

2005-03-24T15:20:00.000-06:00

The Wednesday Journal endorsed Robert Milstein for Village President and Sandra Sokol for Village Clerk in Oak Park. Sokol was also endorsed by the Oak Park Journal, although David Pope got the nod for Village President there.

In the interestest of full disclosure, I am a columnist and freelance contributor to the Forest Park Review which is owned by Wednesday Journal, Inc. I am also personal friends with Sandra Sokol and her family. Milstein and I share activist buddies.

And I think all the Oak Park media outlets, including the Oak Leaves, supported Bill Sullivan for Cicero Township Trustees of Schools. Bill's a good guy and I'm sure he'll do a good job at whatever the township trustee of schools does.

Dean organizer Eric Davis is running for Oak Park Township trustee as an independent. The Oak Leaves and Oak Park Journal endorsed him. I didn't see the WJ endorsement on this race. For info on Davis see the Cook County Clerk website or the Democracy for Illinois website. I know Davis less well than Sokol, Milstein and Sullivan, but he seems like a stand-up guy.

Cook County budget

2005-03-23T10:23:00.000-06:00

Reminder:

At 6:30 tonight IVI-IPO will have five Cook County commissioners to talk about the budget at Chicago Temple, 77 W. Washington.

See this post for more info.

John Wyma's profile raised

2005-03-23T10:20:00.000-06:00

Chicago Tribune (Virginia Groark; John Chase contributing):

Tollway bond firm in spotlight

The New York financial firm picked to manage a $700 million Illinois tollway bond sale this spring hired one of Gov. Rod Blagojevich's oldest and most trusted political advisers as a consultant on the deal, records show.

John Wyma, who was the chief of staff for Blagojevich when he served in Congress and was the political director of his campaign for governor, has been paid $400,000 by Lehman Brothers since Blagojevich became governor to consult on business with the tollway and other agencies connected to the state.

Joe Birkett is keeping after Blagojevich's people on this. Go Joe!

state gets $135 M from tax scofflaws

2005-03-23T10:15:00.000-06:00

State press release:

CHICAGO - The State of Illinois collected $135 million from close to 700 taxpayers and businesses who participated in the Voluntary Compliance Program (VCP) initiated by Gov. Rod Blagojevich in last year’s legislative session. The Voluntary Compliance Program allowed taxpayers who underreported their taxable income because they were using tax shelters to come forward and pay the associated Illinois Income Tax liability without incurring any new penalties. The Illinois Department of Revenue anticipated a $100 million return on the program at its inception in October 2004. One hundred million dollars goes to the state and the remaining thirty-five million will be distributed among local municipalities.

“This program not only helped the state get money it was owed but sends a clear signal to tax payers that we take evasion seriously,” said the Governor. “We are not going to raise income taxes and we are not going to balance the budget on the backs of working families. But we’re also not going to sit back and let businesses and individuals use unfair accounting techniques to avoid paying their share for education, health care, public safety and other important services.”

Comments?

Does this kind of program help on a long-term basis? Or is it just a one-time shot in the arm?

Does Blagojevich have a realistic chance of passing a budget without a tax increase?

Naval Air Station Glenview Museum

2005-03-22T09:54:00.000-06:00

According to today's Chicago Tribune the Naval Air Station Glenview Museum has six months or less at it's current location.

The museum is only open on the weekends. I want to organize a trip or trips to go visit. Hopefully, more visitors will lead to more fundraising and allow the Glenview Hanger One Foundation to afford to move the museum to an appropriate permanent location.

Who wants to go this weekend?

who should be included in governor poll?

2005-03-22T09:32:00.000-06:00

I've created a couple polls for governor.

In the first round there were twelve Republicans and thirteen candidates listed in the Democratic polls.

In the second round the fields were split into subgroups that I thought would be more digestible.

As of right now I intend to create a poll to simulate the general election with various Republicans, Blagojevich and perhaps other candidates. The point is to see which Republicans are really stronger and weaker in the general election.

I'm not going to call any candidate out by name, but a certain Republican candidate seems to have a loyal (fanatical?) following, and I don't think this candidate will do well in the general election against Blagojevich. But maybe I'm not reading the tea leaves correctly, so the poll will be a chance for me to learn too.

My question for you is, who should be included in this poll? What candidates will likely be on the ballot?

* Should there be a Libertarian candidate? Why or why not?
* Should there be a Green candidate? Why or why not?
* Should there be an independent candidate? Why or why not?
* What other parties should be included? Why?

For those of you that are new to Blogging Blagojevich's Blunders I use Condorcet voting which allows voters to rank candidates.

new Gaming Board members: pro or anti gambling?

2005-03-22T09:12:00.000-06:00

The Illinois Leader:

CHICAGO - Perhaps trying to recoup support lost when he broke his promise not to accept contributions from gambling interests, Governor Rod Blagojevich has appointed a majority of non-gamblers to the five-member Illinois Gaming Board.

While none of the appointees can be pointed to as a conservative, on gambling, liberals and social conservatives then to agree: they’re “against” it.

Later in the article there's a quote from Sheila Simon:

I'm not a fan of gambling, In fact I told the governor's people I've never been to a riverboat casino. But they told me that might make me even more qualified. Certainly gambling is a tax on the people who can least afford to be taxed. It’s not the greatest idea.

I was curious where the new members came down on gambling and this article answered the question for me.

Feel free to speculate on what Blagojevich seeks to accomplish with these appointments.

Schaivo vs. Narc

2005-03-22T09:03:00.000-06:00

Sun-Times (Maureen O'Donnell):

Gov. Blagojevich is using the roll-out of "Narc,'' a new video game set in the drug underworld, to promote legislation that would ban the sale of violent and sexually explicit games to minors.

Is Blagojevich's opposition to violent video games rooted in political opportunism? Is Blagojevich more or less opportunistic than DeLay, Frist, Bush, et al are being on the case of Terry Schaivo?

read the polling at Capitol Fax

2005-03-22T08:53:00.000-06:00

I feel lame when I merely send you to someone else's blog, but Rich Miller has detailed polling on the governor's race. The top thread is generic re-elect/someone new polling, but broken down by demographics.

The next thread is polling on abortion. Once again we see that not only are the majority of Americans in favor of abortion rights, the majority of Republicans favor abortion rights. However, the Republicans that oppose abortion rights feel much more strongly abour the issue.

Topinka for governor?

2005-03-21T11:24:00.000-06:00

Sun-Times (Lynn Sweet):

GOP state Treasurer Judy Baar Topinka is preparing to run for governor -- raising money, polling and reaching out to key state and national Republicans.

Comments?

Chamber of Commerce vs. Blagojevich

2005-03-21T11:15:00.000-06:00

The lower court ruled for the Chamber of Commerce. Will the Illinois Supreme Court back Blagojevich? Or the Chamber of Commerce and the lower court?

See the Sun-Times (Eric Herman).

fire marshal does real inspection of race track

2005-03-21T11:14:00.000-06:00

Should I be giving Blagojevich credit for reforming the practice of state inspectors going easy on racetrack and casino owners that give generously to the governor?

Sun-Times (David McKinney):

Balmoral Park Race Track has been slapped with more than 300 state fire-code violations after going years without being cited once by the state fire marshal's office, an agency under federal investigation.

Before Gov. Blagojevich's administration, fire marshal brass suggested that inspectors "accommodate" racetracks and casinos "any way you can" because they have been generous campaign donors to a long line of governors, veteran fire marshal sources said.

South Dakota is #1

2005-03-21T01:03:00.000-06:00

But it's in good company with Hawaii, Illinois, Louisiana, Maine, Montana, New Mexico, North Dakota, Oklahoma, Rhode Island, Virginia and Washington.

What do these states have in common? See this list of blogs.

how many people were at M19 Demo?

2005-03-20T09:14:00.000-06:00

The Chicago Tribune (Aamer Madhani; with Gary Gibula, Jody Paige & Sean D. Hamill contributing) makes the convoluted statement:

With protest and prayer, hundreds of Chicago-area residents marked the second anniversary of the invasion of Iraq and called on the White House to quickly find an endgame to the war.

In the city, about 1,000 peace activists gathered in Federal Plaza for an afternoon rally sponsored by the Chicago Coalition Against War and Racism. A scheduled march before the rally, which put anti-war demonstrators and police at loggerheads, went off without serious incident.

Let's leave aside the clumsy wording where the group described in the first paragraph (everyone in the Chicago area) is described as "hundreds" and a subset group described in the second paragraph (the Chicago area people that were at the Federal Plaza) were described as about 1,000. (Is it a pre-requisite for mainstream journalism that people be bad with numbers?)

I was at the Federal Plaza. My friend, Barry Romo, a national coordinator of Vietnam Veterans Against the War, asked me to help with security. So I was in front of the stage and got all the privileges that go along with that (getting my ears blasted by the speakers, sorting out who's camera was in front of whom's, keeping radicals from pushing their way on stage, etc.)

There was not just over 1,000 people in the Federal Plaza. There was way over 1,000 people there. There were so many over the 1,000 figure warrants a correction.

So I propose a little online activism. To show that there were way over 1,000 people at the demostration, people should email George de Lama, Deputy Managing Editor, News, gdelama@tribune.com and Don Wycliff, the public editor, PublicEditor@tribune.com. In your email provide the names of at least one person who can verify you were at the demostration and a phone number for the person if you know it.

BTW, the Sun-Times used the 1,000 figure too. What are the appropriate email addresses to contact at the Sun-Times?

just for fun polls

2005-03-20T08:25:00.000-06:00

Both these polls are modeled on the NCAA 64-team bracket system, but you get to vote.

Ralph pointed me to the Ultimate Chicagoan poll sponsored by the Chicago Tribune's Redeye.

And a St. Louis Republican outfit created this poll of potential GOP presidential candidates.

He ain't nothing but a hound dog--a publicity hound

2005-03-20T08:12:00.000-06:00

The Chicago Tribune (Patrick Rucker) has an article on the top of page 3 of the Metro section about Governor Blagojevich supporting a statewide effort to assist immigrants working as slave laborers, including those tricked and forced to be sex workers.

Sounds good, right? Who could be for slavery in the Land of Lincoln in the 21st Century?

Guess how much money Blagojevich is putting into the program? Up to $200,000.

To put this in perspective Blagojevich found $500,000 to help gas stations switch to E85, a blend of gasoline that contains more ethanol.

$200,000? Consider the coverage Blagojevich is getting in the media, in print, on radio and TV. If Blagojevich had to buy the space in the newspapers and buy the time on the radio and TV for "rah-rah Rod" ads, he would probably spend most or all of the $200K. Of the hundreds of slave laborers in Illinois, how many will be helped by this spending? Is the goal of this spending to detect and prevent human rights abuses or to score Blagojevich some positive publicity?

In a way you've got to admire Blagojevich's PR team. They can squeeze little stuff--either single cases, feel good legislation or pittance level spending--for the maximum positive press coverage.

If Blagojevich was able to stretch state money for the public interest as well as he does for his own interests, we'd have a great governor.

'I don't care where the governor stands'

2005-03-19T07:52:00.000-06:00

Not the most respectful way for Emil Jones to express his differences with Governor Blagojevich.

But if Blagojevich isn't respectful toward other pols, it creates a "reap what you sow" situation.

Jones was disagreeing with Blagojevich on school funding. See the Daily Southtown (Kristen McQueary).

political violence is gonna increase

2005-03-19T07:46:00.000-06:00

In the modern world people feel insecure. This makes them more prone to lash out in a violent manner.

Our politics are increasing debated with the clear inclusion of threats of violence. "If the opposition disagrees they will lead to Americans being killed by 'bad people'." (The Dems do this too. The clearest example at the national level was the NAACP's ad linking Bush to the dragging death of James Byrd. This ad used the threat of violence to influence Black voters.)

American political rhetoric has become shrill. And the Neo Con movement which controls the federal government is ideologically opposed to compromise, which the movement sees as weakness. Interest groups opposed to the Neo Cons see themselves getting steam-rolled. What they say or do doesn't matter. If one's voice is excluded from the political process with the threat of violence, he may seek other channels--outside traditional politics--to express himself.

These factors combine to produce a volatile situation that will lead to increased political violence in the next decade.

Media figures (Michael Moore, Al Franken, Ann Coulter, Michael Savage, etc.) will be targeted along with politicians and organizers (people like King and Malcolm X). And bloggers are media figures and organizers. Apparently The Inside Dope received a threatening email.

Rich Miller has a post on a man arrested for threatening Lisa Madigan.

how many ways to ridicule Rod's cynicism?

2005-03-18T08:30:00.000-06:00

Chicago Tribune (editorial):

In about the time it takes for a bullet to find its target, Gov. Rod Blagojevich moved from the bizarre to the ridiculous on gun-control legislation. It's tempting to make a case that he would do less damage if he simply went back to being silent on the matter. Gun violence was a defining issue for him when he was in Congress, but since he entered the governor's mansion, he has allowed important gun legislation to die without lifting a finger....

Blagojevich launched into an inexplicable rap on the hard-working lobbyists for Mayor Richard Daley. Blagojevich called them lethargic and criticized them for not keeping his people in the loop about various pieces of upcoming legislation.

He might as well have criticized Daley for not telling the governor the state legislature was in session that day. Lobbyists, including the governor's lobbyists, are paid to know what's going on in the House and Senate at all times. It was silly of him to shift blame....

Trying to dig out from a mountain of deserved criticism in recent weeks for being absent from the gun debate, Blagojevich has dispatched a handful of lobbyists to make it look like he's suddenly committed on guns.

As I pointed out earlier Blagojevich is gonna get hammered in the media for this type of thing over-and-over-and-over again. The Dems would be better off to euthanize him in the primary.

Casino Board

2005-03-18T08:21:00.000-06:00

Yeah, I know it's technically called the "Gaming Board", but let's cut the bullshit.

I thought the board was suposed to nix the Rosemont deal, but couldn't because it didn't have a quorum. In an earlier post I quoted a Chicago Tribune editorial:

The most important job awaiting those new members is to undo the decision of previous board members to steer the state's 10th casino license to Rosemont, in spite of lingering charges from the Gaming Board and from Atty. Gen. Lisa Madigan that the suburb has ties to organized crime.

The Sun-Times (Chris Fusco) makes it clear the new board will be voting to give a Rosemont license. The story starts with:

The Illinois Gaming Board is back in business and could be ready to consider a controversial plan to give Rosemont the state's last available casino license by mid-summer.

The Chicago Tribune (John Chase and Christi Parsons) has a more detailed story. It included this paragraph:

In Springfield, the House State Government Administration Committee voted 8-1 to send to the floor a bill that would force all Illinois casinos to close. It is highly unlikely such a measure would become law, but the action paves the way for the first wide-ranging legislative discussion of the merits of riverboat gambling since it was legalized in 1990.

The Inside Dope has more detail.

BTW, Dope had a puzzler yesterday that took me most of the day to figure out. I was kinda humiliated that a former math team guy couldn't solve it quicker.

blogger hiccups; Rezko's minority contracting

2005-03-18T08:06:00.000-06:00

Apparently I can start a thread but have trouble commenting in threads.

If I could comment I'd comment in the thread Blago's minority contracting.

It seems that the specific unlawful actions connect to the city. See Chicago Tribune (Dan Mihalopoulos & Laurie Cohen; Hal Dardick, Mickey Ciokajlo & Gary Washburn contributing). Crain's is covering the story from the perspective the issue may spread to the Cook County government. On WBEZ's Eight Forty-Eight (Antics of the County Board) they have a clip of Stroger painting himself as a Harold Washington figure besieged by disrespectful "White" board members. Stroger was a "regular Democrat" in the '80s and not part of the Harold Washington insurgency. It would be delicious payback for Stroger's righteousness if he got hammered for sending minority contracts to businesses with fraudulent ownership arrangements.

But back to Blagojevich. Even if Blagojevich and the state gov't did nothing for Rezko on these particular contracts, it's fair to ask, what kind of people does Blagojevich surround himself with.

St. Patty's Day question

2005-03-17T10:07:00.000-06:00

Last Sunday I went to the Southside St. Patrick's Day Parade.

There were a bunch of pols with entries, including Mayor Daley, Jon Daley, the Hynes', Sheahan, Lipinski and probably some others that slip my mind.

I didn't see an entry for either Madigan.

I arrived late so it's possible the Madigans were in the front of the parade. But the pols seemed to be all bunched together and there was no Madigans.

Any insights?

Blago's minority contracting

2005-03-16T07:57:00.000-06:00

Chicago Tribune (Dan Mihalopoulos & John Chase; Virginia Groark contributing):

O'Hare vendor called minority front
Top Blagojevich aide owns Panda Express outlets, city charges

City officials alleged Tuesday that a minority contractor at O'Hare International Airport acted as a front for a firm run by Antoin "Tony" Rezko, a top adviser and fundraiser for Gov. Rod Blagojevich.

The Daley administration moved to revoke the minority-business certification of Crucial Inc. City records indicate that Crucial operates two Panda Express Asian fast-food restaurants at the airport.

City officials identified Jabir Herbert Muhammad, the son of Nation of Islam founder Elijah Muhammad, as the president of Crucial. But a statement from the city's Department of Procurement Services said the firm actually is "under the management and control of Panda Express, a majority firm."

Where to go with this....

Blagojevich leveraged potential contracts for campaign contributions. I'm shocked!

Does anybody want to discuss set-asides and affirmative action in government contracting?

BTW, Jesse Jackson, Jr. got all righteous when mayor was linked to this type of problem in Chicago. Will he demostrate the same public righteousness about Blagojevich?

immature punk

2005-03-15T08:14:00.000-06:00

Remember when Mayor Daley was asked about Blagojevich? He played down the idea that there was feud or a rift between the two.

Now Rod's punk ass is publicly turfing Daley. What's Blagojevich trying to accomplish with these statements?

Chicago Tribune (Maura Kelly Lannan):

Blagojevich says Daley not well-served by his lobbyists on gun control bills

Gov. Rod Blagojevich on Monday said Chicago Mayor Richard Daley is not well-served by his lobbyists in Springfield on gun control bills because they have not asked the governor's office for help or kept it informed when such measures come up for a vote.

"I would recommend maybe the mayor needs to look and see whether or not he may want to hire some new lobbyists because they need to show a little more energy and a lot less lethargy," Blagojevich said. "They don't contact us. We only hear from them after they fail with their bills and then they call and start blaming."

If there's a failure to coordinate, how's it on Daley's side any more than Blagojevich's?

Nominally Blagojevich is working for "good" gun control too. Why aren't the Blagojevich people reaching out to their potential allies? They know who's working the issue in Springfield, right? They know how to get ahold of them right?

Does Blagojevich think anybody is gonna fall for blaming Daley's lobbyists? And how should Daley react to this public insult? Run for governor?

Cook County wonks & activists

2005-03-14T09:17:00.000-06:00

Dan Johnson-Weinberger pointed me to an upcoming IVI-IPO discussion on Cook County government's budget process.

March 23rd 6:30-8:30pm.
Chicago Temple
77 West Washington @ Clark

Cook County Commissioners Quigley, Claypool, Peraica,
Simms, Suffredin will be there discussing the Cook
County budget process and reforming Cook County
government.

Cook County government is a cesspool of patronage and low quality services.

If anybody is interested in creating a watchdog blog for Cook County government or a specific officials ("Sheahan's Shennanigans" anyone?) contact me. It seems like something that should exist.

Medicaid

2005-03-14T09:11:00.000-06:00

Rich Miller reports, Illinois [is] one of only two states, along with Maine, that is still actively expanding its Medicaid rolls. [...]

My analysis is that health care costs are choking state and local government. Expanding the state's obligation seems particularly short-sighted.

selecting judges

2005-03-14T09:05:00.000-06:00

What you think of how Illinois selects judges?

The Rockford Register Star has an editorial urging Blagojevich to veto a bill creating judicial sub-circuits, ostensibly to increase the number of Blak and Latino judges.

I don't like electing judges. It makes it too easy for organized crime to cut deals with political bosses to get judges on the bench that are sympathetic to criminal organizations. And, more importantly, it allows a number of dufuses on the bench.

The argument I hear from liberals usually centers around elections getting woman and "people of color" elected. But when you get into the specifics, the women and "people of color" elected have something in common with the "White" guys elected. They're mostly political hacks, not people of encyclopedic legal knowledge or the wisdom and temperment of Solomon.

online polls, next round

2005-03-13T10:28:00.000-06:00

These polls will close at noon next Sunday.

You are invited to vote in either the Democratic polls or the Republican polls. The polls use Condorcet voting. Under Condorcet voters rank candidates. You can't hurt your number one choice by ranking candidates below him/her. (This is unlike ranking systems used in sports that give points.)

The Democratic subgroups:

Dem Field A
* Dick Devine
* John Fritchey
* David Orr
* John Schmidt

Dem Field B
* Jack Franks
* Jay Hoffman
* Glenn Poshard

Dem Field C
* Dorothy Brown
* Lauren Beth Gash
* Corrinne Wood
* Karen Yarbrough

Dem Field D
* Rod Blagojevich
* Dan Hynes
* Lisa Madigan

The Republican subgroups:

GOP Field 1
* Joe Birkett
* Ray LaHood
* Tom McCracken
* Jim Oberweis
* Steve Rauschenberger
* Corrinne Wood

GOP Field 2
* Bill Brady
* Peter Fitzgerald
* Ron Gidwitz
* Peter O'Malley
* Dan Rutherford
* Judy Baar Topinka

Rod inspires cynicism in journalists

2005-03-13T09:36:00.000-06:00

Democrats that feel they should back Blagojevich out of loyalty or because the incumbent is the most likely way for the party to retain control should read Doug Finke's column in the Peoria Journal Star.

On a temperment level it shows how cynical journalists are about Blagojevich. If you need other reminders:

Southtown editorial about firing tax reform advocate

The Chicago Tribune hammered Blago's hypocrisy on guns and his duplicity on the gaming board

Rich Miller is cynical about his CFR plan

And Aaron Chamber of the Rockford Register Star made the B-Team look like fools in this column

The problem for Blagojevich has become that all his actions are going to get interpretted through a highly cynical lens. Some people may debate whether this is fair, but even if you think it's unfair you can see that it's happening.

The Democrats are more likely to retain the governorship with a fresh face than with Blagojevich. And at this point the money shouldn't be scaring everyone off. There's a 10-35% chance Blagojevich is gonna have to give most of it back (or to charity) anyway.

Rod shoots the messenger

2005-03-13T09:09:00.000-06:00

Daily Southtown:

Southlander dumped from school panel

THE ISSUE: South Holland businessman loses post on funding advisory board.
WE SAY: Blagojevich is telling advisers not to give advice he doesn't want to hear.

What does a governor do when one of his advisers gives him advice he doesn't want to hear?

If the governor is Rod Blagojevich, he gets rid of the adviser. That's what the governor did last week when he dumped a south suburban business leader from the state's advisory board on school funding issues.

South Holland businessman Bert Docter in recent years has become one of the Southland's leading advocates for school funding reform and property tax relief.

This editorial says darn close to everything you need to know about Blagojevich. It's got boards, intrasigence on taxes, duplicity and Blagojevich generally behaving badly.

Madigan (Michael's wife, Lisa's mom)

2005-03-13T08:57:00.000-06:00

Ralph has an informative post on Shirley Madigan.

ILPundit predicts Topinka will run

2005-03-12T12:32:00.000-06:00

ILPundit wrote:

[Challenging Blagojevich over the special purpose funds] is a heck of a fight to pick, and one that makes no sense if she is running for re-election. She opens herself up to attack for blocking state funding for any number of state needs – including education and day care.

But if she’s running against the Governor, the move makes more sense, because it allows Topinka to define the clear dividing line between herself and Blagojevich on what is probably her greatest strengths – a public reputation for straight talk and responsible management of state government finances.

I disagree with the esteemed blogger's logic.

The funds have their own constituencies. The people that care about the details of state budgeting realize Blagojevich raiding the funds is no long-term solution. With Blagojevich neither supporting HB 750 nor an alternative tax swap plan he's already antagonized the constituencies that ILPundit thinks JBT is offending with her move.

JBT may or may not run, but I don't see JBT standing against Rod the raider as proof one way or the other.

synergy

2005-03-12T12:20:00.000-06:00

Chicago Tribune (Steve L. Kent):

"I think that is disgusting," Illinois Gov. Rod Blagojevich said when told about the use of drugs in Midway's new game. "When the companies that make these games compete in the marketplace, what starts to happen is that they have a marketing arms race where in order to top the competition, your game has to be even more filled with violence and sex and drugs and criminal behavior."

Does anyone else detect synergy between Blagojevich and the game makers? They give him a foil to establish his "values" and he gives them cheap publicity.

Judge Zappa blocks raiding dedicated funds

2005-03-12T12:10:00.000-06:00

Chicago Tribune (Rick Pearson):

Judge blocks governor's money plan
Day-to-day state bills can't be paid from special funds, he says

A Downstate judge Friday issued a preliminary injunction blocking Gov. Rod Blagojevich from paying day-to-day state bills with money siphoned from special state accounts earmarked for the regulation of financial institutions.

The state has hundreds of such funds, filled by special assessments and fees, that were set up to bankroll conservation programs, scholarships, financial regulation and a variety of other narrow missions.

But Blagojevich, with legislative backing, has drawn more than $400 million out of the special accounts over the last 18 months to pay day-to-day bills of government, ease the state's cash crunch and avoid a general tax increase. In his budget for the coming fiscal year, Blagojevich proposes to tie all increases in spending for schools to the so-called fund sweeps.

The ruling by Sangamon County Circuit Judge Leo Zappa affected only three of the special funds, from which Blagojevich has taken $5 million. But it raised new questions about whether any of Blagojevich's fund diversions could pass legal muster.

The law involves some interpretation. Borrowing a little money judges could probably live with. But raiding the funds without having a plan to fix the underlying problem probably concerned the judge.

FEC regulation of blogs

2005-03-11T13:39:00.000-06:00

The Online Coalition has a petition asking the FEC to continue to treat blogs as media outlets and not try to impose regulation beyond normal disclosure of advertising.

People that publish ("maintain" or whatever the appropriate verb is) political blogs should all read the petition and sign-on if they agree.

What would you ask the B-Team?

2005-03-11T09:35:00.000-06:00

On Fridays I ask people to brainstorm questions for the Blagojevich administration.

Of Blagojevich's top transportation advisors, what is the longest any of them has gone without a car and depending on public transportation as her/his primary means of transportation?

What are the top five causes of violent crime? Where do video games rank on the list of causes?

If taking campaign contributions from contractors is wrong, why shouldn't Blagojevich return--or donate to charity--the money he's raised from contractors?

Does Blagojevich's budget continue to increase money spent on people over 50 while decreasing the money spent on people under 30?

How well does Blagojevich understand the energy efficiency argument against ethanol?

Does Blagojevich distinguish between "good gun control" and "bad gun control"? Which is the best proposal in the legislature? Which is the worst? Why?

Why is Blagojevich having so much trouble appointing people to boards?

Last week's questions.

Have a good weekend!

getting testy about raiding funds

2005-03-11T09:16:00.000-06:00

Chicago Tribune (Rick Pearson):

Budget director lashes back
Filan says Topinka endangering lives

Gov. Rod Blagojevich's budget director on Thursday accused Treasurer Judy Baar Topinka of endangering "the lives of real people" by blocking a budget maneuver used by the governor to keep the state out of the red and help pay bills for social and other programs.

The attack from John Filan followed Topinka's decision to stop Blagojevich from siphoning any more funds from special state accounts earmarked for environmental cleanup, open-space acquisition and other special purposes.

Endangering the lives of real people? Wow! Thems strong words for bean counters!

And here's what the auditor general says, KWQC (AP):

SPRINGFIELD, Ill. Governor Rod Blagojevich's handling of the state budget came under fire today from both the state treasurer and the auditor general....

Auditor General William Holland says the administration did not give agencies any documentation to show where their budgets should be trimmed.

He says the agencies ended up trimming areas that had no connection to any real savings.

And for analysis you might want to read The Pantagraph (Kurt Erickson & Phil Davidson):

SPRINGFIELD -- Gov. Rod Blagojevich has made it a point to be more conciliatory in recent months, but an observer wouldn't have known it was working Wednesday....

Analysts and potential challengers say the latest round of Blagojevich bashing centers on the continuing struggle between the governor and state lawmakers over the state's budget.

"The governor has to lead that charge, and it is clear that he doesn't have very many allies. All of that is coming home to roost," said political scientist John Jackson of the Public Policy Institute at Southern Illinois University. "Until it gets sorted out, it is going to be massive conflict from here until the end of the legislative session."

So Rod's "I'm better than you icky politicians" schtick wasn't the most effective way to govern, eh?

CTA threatens huge cuts

2005-03-10T19:36:00.000-06:00

Sun-Times (Mark J. Konkol):

With no guarantee of more state transit cash, CTA officials are set to pick from a grim menu of scenarios that could increase train fares to as much as $3.40, or cut bus and rail service severely enough to put 3,500 employees out of work.

CTA staff Wednesday outlined five choices -- all of them bad news for riders -- to fill the agency's growing $55 million budget gap if state lawmakers don't find a new way to fund transit in the Chicago area....

Gov. Blagojevich has pitched a CTA bailout that would be linked to ending a $65 million tax break given to businesses on computer software purchases.

What's this shortfall mean for Blagojevich?

blogosphere consensus "bankruptcy bill sucks!"

2005-03-10T18:29:00.000-06:00

Politology is tracking an emerging story about the Right Wing and Left Wing of the blogosphere agreeing that the bankruptcy bill is bad for consumers and a give-away to the credit card industry.

Obama and Durbin voted against the bankruptcy bill. How did Illinois House members vote?

U.S. blocks drugs sent from Canada

2005-03-10T17:19:00.000-06:00

Chicago Tribune (John Chase & Christi Parsons):

The Bush administration has begun selectively seizing prescription drugs imported under a program created by Gov. Rod Blagojevich, ratcheting up pressure to stop a practice that the governor says will save money for consumers but regulators contend is unsafe and illegal.

Did the Bush administration and federal government issue warnings about shoddy health practices in Canada before this?

The Bush administration is merely acting as a thug enforcer for the pharmaceutical industry. Is there anything more to this?

"House panel votes to let prostitutes sue pimps"

2005-03-10T17:14:00.000-06:00

Sun-Times (Ben Fischer):

"Homer X," a former pimp who got rich by selling hookers on Chicago's North Side for nearly 25 years, now believes prostitutes need help from the General Assembly.

Using a fake name to protect his identity, Homer X, 46, spoke to the House Judiciary Committee on Wednesday in support of a measure that would allow prostitutes to sue their pimps. A former Chicago prostitute, Olivia Howard, also testified in favor of the bill.

Comments?

Is this a step toward legalization?

Will the prostitutes sue for the bling-bling or the girls remaining in the stable?

Will pols be able to sue lobbyists that got them hooked on junkets are campaign contributions?

JBT: "getyo hand outa my pocket!"

2005-03-10T17:05:00.000-06:00

Chicago Tribune (Rick Pearson):

Topinka won't let governor tap state's cookie jar

In a move that could aggravate Illinois' budget crunch, Treasurer Judy Baar Topinka said Wednesday she will no longer let Gov. Rod Blagojevich pay day-to-day state expenses with money earmarked for environmental cleanup, open-space acquisition and other special purposes.

I got an email from my dad that's circulating among environment/ecology activists. They're not buying the idea that Blagojevich's proposal nets the state money without cutting into the purpose of the fund.

See this post for a link to a useful editorial.

Raiding these funds seems like a way to antagonize numerous organized constituencies all at once.

Video killed... the radio star? Kenny? somebody?

2005-03-10T16:55:00.000-06:00

Chicago Tribune (Erika Slife):

Blagojevich pulls out the stops on video game bill

SPRINGFIELD -- In an effort to pass one of his pet initiatives, Gov. Rod Blagojevich on Wednesday dispatched top aides and supporters to an Illinois House committee hearing to testify on behalf of his proposal to ban the sale of violent video games to children.

Does Blagojevich believe this bill will reduce crime? Or is this just cheap showboating?

what's good for the goose...

2005-03-10T16:50:00.000-06:00

Madigan calls out Blagojevich...

Sun-Times (Ben Fischer):

After Gov. Blagojevich promised to "rock" Springfield with a campaign finance reform package, one of his chief Democratic rivals rocked right back Wednesday by telling him to get his own house in order first.

House Speaker Michael Madigan (D-Chicago) blindsided the governor in a closed-door meeting by urging him to return campaign cash from contractors, a move that would quell the growing fuss over how the governor's donors have scored big-money contracts with his administration.

What do you say, Guvernor? Willing to give it back?

Forest Park Review online

2005-03-10T16:36:00.000-06:00

The Forest Park Review, my hometown paper, is available online. Yeah!

Now I can link to my columns. The first one online happens to be about Rod Blagojevich.

Who should pay for the mistakes of the past?

The State of Illinois created a flawed pension system that promised too much and collected too little. Who should pay to fix it?...

If it’s up to Blagojevich, he’s not going to be the one to pay for the mistakes of the past.

I promise not to make this blog about me, but the Forest Park St. Patrick's Day Parade was a strange experience for me.

I finally got around to buying a second copy of the paper to give to my parents and now its available online. Go figure.

Madigan's secret plan?

2005-03-09T16:27:00.000-06:00

Ralph and Archpundit praised this post by ILPundit.

ILPundit suggests Madigan may quietly assemble support for a veto-proof budget that includes a tax swap.

Won't that require Republicans?

ILPundit theorizes Republicans might join the effort.

First, their constituents would probably welcome property tax relief; and

Second, it would deprive the Governor of his signature issue in 2006.

Why would Madigan bail out the governor? As long as there's a problem it's Blagojevich's problem. Why not let Rod twist in the wind on cutting services and raising taxes?

The best reason for Madigan to pre-empt Blagojevich this way is that Blagojevich has a budget that's somehow unacceptable to Madigan and the Republicans.

9.5% tuition increase at Western

2005-03-09T10:59:00.000-06:00

Chicago Sun-Times (AP):

Western Illinois proposes 9.5 percent increase

MACOMB -- Western Illinois University has proposed a 9.5 percent tuition increase for new students beginning this summer, following double-digit increases each of the last three years, the university said.

Failure to address pension costs and health care costs are killing state universities.

Do voters clearly understand the tradeoffs? Students?

gas station give away

2005-03-09T10:55:00.000-06:00

JournalStandard.com (Diana Thorn-Roemer):

Governor offering grants to gas stations

As gas prices creep higher and higher, prospects improve for alternative fuels. In an effort to further tap into that potential, the governor announced Tuesday that Illinois is offering grants to station owners who want to add ethanol fuel to their lineups, saying there isn't enough of the cheaper, homegrown fuel available for sale in the state.

The $500,000 in "Opportunity Returns" funding is being offered to individuals or companies that want to construct a new refueling station or convert an existing facility so its operators can sell E85, a blend of ethanol and gasoline. A total of $2,000 is offered for conversions per existing station and $40,000 is offered for new stations, through the grant funds. Also in support of the fuel, Blagojevich signed legislation in 2003 that eliminated the state sales tax for E85 fuel, pricing it competitively with unleaded gasoline.

I'm an ethanol skeptic.

Is it weird to be handing out money during a financial crunch?

Herald & Review on pooling funds

2005-03-09T10:47:00.000-06:00

This seems like a good place to begin the discussion of Blagojevich's proposal.

Herald & Review editorial:

Governor's education 'pooling' requires care

One of the more questionable aspects of Gov. Rod Blagojevich's proposed budget is the pooling of several state funds to finance an increase in education spending.

As with many of the intricacies involving the state budget, the concerns about this proposal are in the details, and not all of the details have been released by the governor's office. But still, there is plenty of reason to keep a watchful eye on this process.

This editorial explains how Blagojevich plans to save money.

In general I'm skeptical of "money for nothing" proposals, but it seems like there could be some savings from combining the funds by reducing the need for total reserves by spreading the risk. However, if the economy does poorly they will all want to dip into the fund at the same time, right?

Also, the Blagojevich team uses some "optimistic" accounting assumptions. We should be watchful that he's not just passing the problem to the future.

conceal carry

2005-03-09T10:38:00.000-06:00

KWQC reports:

Two bills up for consideration on the Illinois House floor would allow average citizens to carry concealed weapons.

The measures were approved overwhelmingly in a House committee yesterday. The bills are similar, except one gives Illinois State Police authority to issue permits and the other would put county sheriffs in charge....

An aide to Governor Rod Blagojevich says any concealed weapon measures sent to the governor would be vetoed.

When in doubt stand for the status quo.