Category: Chicagoland

Lisa Madigan: It’s All About the Family

Posted on by TL

Lisa Madigan ruled out runs for both the United States Senate and Illinois governor yesterday, boiling it all down to one word: family.

From the Sun-Times:

In rejecting a bid for higher office in 2010, Madigan forged her own course, despite being pulled to challenge Gov. Quinn by her father, House Speaker Michael J. Madigan, and wooed by the White House, Sen. Dick Durbin and the Senate Democratic political operation to run for the Senate seat vacated by President Obama.

"There was plenty of agonizing over this decision," Madigan, 42, said at an afternoon press conference after she spent the morning phoning supporters and fund-raisers. My Chicago Sun-Times colleague Dan Rozek reports that Madigan emphasized her young children — Rebecca, 4, and Lucy, 1 — as factors in her decision.

"At the end of the day, it was a decision that I made with my husband [Pat Byrnes] about what was best for us and our family and what is best for the state. I have a job I am deeply committed to and extraordinarily satisfied by. Not everybody can say they have a job they love and have a working family situation as well," said Madigan. She did not rule out a future run for higher office.

Yeah, and if you believe her, I have a bridge to …

Well, in fact, I do believe her.

Every time I’ve seen Lisa Madigan or heard her speak, I just don’t have the sense that she’s part of the woeful Illinois Democratic Machine. I think she’s a wonderful Attorney General.

Watch the interview above with Chicago Tonight’s Carol Marin. Attorney General Madigan appears quite genuine. Marin is not one to toss softballs. She’s perhaps the best journalist in Chicago. I believe Madigan when she says this was an “agonized” decision.

I just think the story here is that clear: Lisa Madigan loves her family and enjoys her job.

Look, it’s easy to become suspicious of every pol out there. But Lisa sounds like she’s just being Lisa, and this time, it’s all about the family.

Digging Up Bodies, Selling Graves, 4 Stand Accused

Posted on by TL

The disgusting news from the Chicago Tribune:

Four people have been charged after authorities discovered that dozens of bodies had been dug up at the historic Burr Oak Cemetery in Alsip and the grave sites illegally resold.

They will appear in Central Bond Court at 11:45 a.m.

Each was charged with one count of dismembering a human body, a Class X felony.

Detectives discovered a pile of bones — from more than 100 bodies — decomposed, above ground and uncovered in an overgrown, fenced-off portion of the cemetery, Cook County Sheriff Tom Dart said.

"What we found was beyond startling and revolting," the sheriff said.

As the Sheriff’s police continued working, distraught family members began showing up, looking for loved ones’ graves.

This is not just any cemetary:

One of the first predominantly African-American cemeteries in the area, Burr Oak is home to many historic figures, including Emmett Till, blues legend Dinah Washington and heavyweight boxing champion Ezzard Charles.

Dart said he was certain Till’s remains were not disturbed, but he could not ensure the preservation of the others.

"We cannot give people definitive answers at this point," he said, adding they were working with forensic medical examiners to try to identify the remains.

None of the remains had been removed from the site, said Steve Patterson, a sheriff’s spokesman. The state’s attorney’s office and  FBI are also investigating, Dart said.

According to police, the accused probably took in around $300,000. The alleged scam has been going on for about about four years, according to police. According to Dart, other employees reported the alleged scam to the owners. Possible felony charges involve unearthing the dead, conspiracy and financial crimes, according to Dart.

I don’t even have a category for this one.

Chicago Cubs Sold for $900 Million

Posted on by TL

The  Chicago Tribune has the breaking news:

Tribune Co. has reached a deal to sell the Chicago Cubs and Wrigley Field to the Ricketts family, a source familiar with matter said this morning.

The two sides finalized a sale agreement over the weekend and have forwarded the contract to Major League Baseball, the source said.

Baseball owners must still approve the deal, and, with the Tribune Co. operating under Chapter 11 bankruptcy, the court must also approve.

$900 million.  Makes me shake my head and to consider where organized sports have gone.  Imagine, Arthur J. Rooney bought his NFL franchise, which he named the Pittsburgh Pirates, for $2500 in 1933.  Three years later he won huge at the track and paid some bills to help keep the franchise afloat. He renamed the team Pittsburgh Steelers in 1940.

I know that’s random trivia, but I think of AJR’s $2500 investment every time I hear of these “big money” sports deals.

Oh, the Cubs?  $900 million?  Will they finally be able to purchase success?

Maybe next year…

No Comment from Supt. Charles Flowers

Posted on by TL

Supt. Charles Flowers has yet to make a public statement.  Anything made public so far looks bad, very bad.

From the Chicago Tribune:

Investigators raided the home and office of the Cook County regional schools superintendent Wednesday, carting out laptop computers, cell phones and boxes of files, sources said.

Officials with the Cook County state’s attorney’s office confirmed that they have launched a criminal investigation into Supt. Charles Flowers’ office. The Westchester office handles teacher certification and safety inspections for suburban Cook County schools.

The investigation comes after a scathing state audit that found Flowers’ office was nearly $1 million in debt after, among other irregularities, he made personal charges on an office credit card and gave a $6,000 advance to a relative he hired to work for him.

The office was in such disarray that county commissioners lent it $190,000 last year to make ends meet. It has not been repaid.

Flowers, who was elected in 2006, could not be reached for comment.

Remember, innocent until proven guilty.

But this looks bad.  And you bet there’s more to this story.

From the Sun-Times:

Of 40 credit card purchases Flowers made, 16 were for personal items, the audit found. Among the purchases, Holland noted, were airline tickets to fly Flowers’ family members to Mississippi. He also withdrew $6,669 in cash advances on the credit card while in Illinois and Mississippi, ostensibly to purchase a vehicle and furniture for the regional office.

But Holland’s auditors found no evidence of the vehicle or furniture. And auditors could not verify Flowers’ claim that he repaid those advances from personal funds.

Cook County Commissioner Lawrence Suffredin said he intended to ask Alvarez’s office to “siphon off and collect any funds we can find” from the regional office to ensure repayment of the $190,000 Cook County loan.

“Anything in education and dealing with children should be our best examples of government, and obviously this is not,” Suffredin said.

We need to keep an eye on this.

Richie Daley Wants You to Guarantee the Olympics

Posted on by TL

Got money?  Are you ready to help bail out the Olympics if they fail in Chicago?

Richie Daley thinks you are, and he’s gone rogue making promises on behalf of the people of Chicago and the state of Illinois.

Perhaps the mocking tone isn’t quite appropriate.  This is Mayor Daley, after all.  For all his apparent whining at times, the man is a savvy pol, a one man governmental body, never to be dismissed or underestimated.

But I’m confused, and apparently he is also.  Just what is he promising on behalf of Chicago?  Good luck trying to interpret the Daley doublespeak.

From the Chicago Tribune, June 18:

Faced with losing the 2016 Summer Games to competing cities offering full government guarantees, Mayor Richard Daley made an about-face Wednesday and said the City of Chicago would sign a contract agreeing to take full financial responsibility for the Games.

In a worst-case situation, such as severe cost-overruns or a catastrophic event, the agreement could leave taxpayers on the hook for hundreds of millions of dollars or even more, a scenario Chicago’s bid team acknowledges but insists is far-fetched.

Bid officials said they can offer the guarantee because they plan to add another insurance policy worth a minimum of $500 million to existing guarantees, which they think creates an ample buffer for taxpayers.

The move surprised Chicago aldermen, who wondered why Daley had made a sweeping financial promise without bringing it to the City Council.

Chicago had tried to avoid the full commitment by offering to sign a modified version of the host-city contract with the International Olympic Committee. But Chicago’s package of limited guarantees has been an Achilles’ heel for the bid, since the other finalists — Madrid, Rio de Janeiro and Tokyo — are offering full government guarantees.

On Wednesday, Daley disclosed his change of heart, a move that jeopardizes his long-standing pledge to limit potential taxpayer exposure.

So Mayor Daley is apparently ready to throw in everything and the kitchen sink to see the Olympics come to Chicago.  However, Daley muddied the waters earlier today with a news conference that promised, well, we’re not sure what he promised.

From the Trib’s Clout Street:

Mayor Richard Daley today attempted to dampen the political firestorm he sparked while overseas last week when he told Olympics officials that Chicago would financially guarantee the 2016 Summer Games.

His remarks this afternoon, however, only further confused the issue.

The mayor, back in Chicago and addressing the issue locally for the first time today, seemed to contradict his own statements in Switzerland, as well as the public remarks of Chicago 2016 chief Pat Ryan and International Olympics Committee President Jacques Rogge.

“We agreed to sign a host city agreement with the provisions of the city, state and the insurance policy as added on to the host city agreement. That’s what it’s going to be and that is our protection for the taxpayers of the city of Chicago,” Daley said today with Lori Healey, Chicago 2016 president and the mayor’s former chief of staff, at his side.

But that version is markedly different from Daley’s remarks immediately after emerging from his June 17 meeting with the IOC, when he told the Tribune he had just agreed to sign the host city contract “as is.”

In a subsequent interview last week, the IOC’s Rogge confirmed that Daley had agreed to sign the standard contract without modifications.

How much are Chicago and the rest of the state at risk if all of this goes south?

From Clout Street again:

For months, the mayor and Olympic bid leaders had pledged not to sign the blanket financial guarantee that could put taxpayers on the hook if there are cost overruns beyond the $750 million level the city and state already have agreed to cover.

So, which is it?  $750 million is aweful close to $1 billion.  How much can we afford?

Make no mistake: I would love to see the Olympics come to Chicago.  Every town, village and city in Cook County would benefit, financially and otherwise.  As an added plus, the experience would be completely awesome.

Frankly, I’m suspicious of Madrid, Rio de Janeiro and Tokyo.  None of these cities can afford to make outlandish financial guarantees, and the IOC must know this.  Neither can Chicago.

Here’s the problem: Illinois does nothing efficiently, and Chicago is even worse.  We know that Patronage City will dish out completely unnecessary contracts all over the state.  If all goes well and the Olympics in 2016 are a huge success, somehow, someway, Chicago and the state of Illinois will manage to lose an incredible amount of money.

It’s inevitable.  This is Illinois.

There must be a way of landing the Olympics without promising a credit card the size of Mayor Daley’s ego.

Coming Next June: The Summer of Blagojevich

Posted on by TL

For all of you hungering for All-Things-Blagojevich, next summer you will have your fill.   For those on the 24-hour news cycle, working hard to serve us up mush all day, all the time, there will be more than enough for them to throw on screen.

The Rod Blagojevich Reality Show will be in its final season when the former governor’s trial commences June 3, 2010.

From our friends at the Southtown Star:

A federal judge on Thursday set a June 3, 2010, start date for former Gov. Rod Blagojevich’s trial on charges of scheming to sell or trade President Obama’s U.S. Senate seat and pressure potential campaign contributors.

Defense attorneys said that despite millions of pages of documents still to be read and hours of FBI wiretap tapes still to be heard, they would be ready when the curtain goes up almost a year from now on the second spectacular corruption trial in five years of a former Illinois governor.

“We have the best judge in the entire system – everyone has always told me that – and if he says to be ready by June 3 we’ll be ready by June 3,” Blagojevich’s most outspoken defense counsel, Samuel E. Adam, told reporters about U.S. District Judge James B. Zagel.

Blagojevich is charged with racketeering conspiracy and other offenses. Prosecutors say he schemed to exchange Obama’s former Senate seat for campaign money, a seat in the Obama Cabinet or a lucrative job for himself or his wife.

They say he also illegally plotted to pressure various people – a racetrack owner, a hospital administrator and even White House chief of staff Rahm Emanuel – for contributions to the Friends of Rod Blagojevich campaign fund.

Blagojevich has pleaded not guilty.

Gotta love defense attorneys, already trying to make nice-nice with the judge.

So, if you had some doubt that Illinois might drop out of the news except for reports in the national media on Chicago weather, no such luck.  As Cypher said in The Matrix, “…buckle your seatbelt, Dorothy, ’cause Kansas is going bye-bye.”

Faith Based Initiative Seeks Alternatives to Incarceration at Drug Policy Conference

Posted on by TL

Turning Left is helping to get the word out about this conference.  The organization Protestants for the Common Good is working towards the legalization of marijuana:

Chicago, IL– State-wide education and advocacy organization, Protestants for the Common Good, is hosting a drug policy conference at Roosevelt University the morning of Friday, June 12th to explore new directions for drug policy and alternatives to incarceration. A diverse group of experts will highlight strategies employed locally, nationally and internationally for coping with issues related to incarceration due to illegal drug use and abuse.

“By hosting this conference, we hope to inspire a new initiative for Illinois drug laws, one which focuses on street level intervention initiatives, no?entry strategies, and successful reentry programs, ”says Rev. Alexander Sharp, Executive Director of PCG.

“Our faith tells us that all individuals in society deserve a second chance, and current social systems are not only discriminatory, but work in exactly the opposite direction.”

The program will also bring forward the personal testimonies of two Chicagoans whose lives were altered by addiction, and will include information from Roosevelt University’s Illinois Consortium on Drug Policy Research.

Key policy alternatives such as decriminalization and legalization will be discussed, with special guest Rep. Jeffrion Aubry (D?35) from the New York State General Assembly speaking to the recently repealed Rockefeller Drug Laws. These laws enforced mandatory sentencing and lowered trigger amounts leading to mass incarceration over the past 30 years. Similar laws exist in Illinois, and have exacerbated the problem by emphasizing a punitive solution.

Featured speakers on the agenda include: Ethan Nadelmann, Executive Director, Drug Policy Alliance: Rep. Louis Lang (D?16), Illinois General Assembly: Don MacPherson, Drug Policy Coordinator, Vancouver, Canada: Rep. Arthur Turner (D?9) Illinois House of Representatives, and Pamela Rodriguez, Executive Vice President, TASC?Illinois.

The event speaks directly to crucial issues for PCG, an organization that has worked for the past decade to reform injustice where it appears in the police, judicial, and penal systems, to reestablish rehabilitative resources and services in jails and prisons, and to remove legal and employment barriers for ex?offenders so they may become productive contributors to the common good.

“We have become a prison nation in the past 30 years, and people are incarcerated with a racial disparity that is immoral. There are far better alternatives than recycling individuals through prison, with enormous cost to society and with little or no opportunity to flourish for the rest of their lives,” concludes Rev. Sharp.

Local government, community organizations, and faith leaders will be in attendance.

Source: Protestants for the Common Good

Todd Stroger is Confused About Taxes

Posted on by TL

First, Cook County Board President Todd Stroger wanted to cut taxes.  That big announcement was made around tax day 2009:

Less than a year before he seeks re-election, Cook County Board President Todd Stroger today asked commissioners to roll back part of the major sales tax increase he pushed through last year.

Under the proposal, the county’s sales tax rate would drop from 1.75 percent to 1.5 percent. At a a news conference, Stroger said federal stimulus package dollars would make it possible.

Pressed to explain how exactly stimulus dollars would replace sales tax revenue, Stroger replied that he had “no hard numbers” because the county continues discussions with federal officials.

Given Stroger’s inability to focus or clearly explain his positions, it was not surprising that Stroger had “no hard numbers.”  Much like the U.S. Senate Republican’s 2009 budget proposal — which essentially was a glorified coloring book — Stroger’s budget proposals have been erratic.

Forward one month:

Cook County Board President Todd Stroger has vetoed a 12-3 vote of the County Board to repeal his beloved sales-tax increase. Deep down, he says, he supports killing the full tax increase. But not now, and not even on a set schedule. No, he wants to roll back the tax “as funds become available.”

Right.  So that federal stimulus package that was supposed to save the day doesn’t count.

The Trib has a plan:

We figure the 12 board members who voted to kill the tax increase will vote to override. Similarly, the three who previously voted to keep the increase in place — Jerry “Iceman” Butler, William Beavers and Robert Steele — probably will vote against an override.

So Stroger’s veto brings tremendous pressure on the two members who missed that 12-3 vote. Either can be the fourth vote he needs. And both may have Democratic challengers in February’s Illinois primary precisely because of their past support for Stroger’s tax policies.

Surely they would appreciate your guidance on whether to let Stroger keep collecting his tax increase. Earlean Collins represents Chicago’s West Side and some west suburbs. Her telephone numbers are 312-603-4566 and 773-626-2184. Deborah Sims represents parts of the South Side and south suburbs. Her numbers are 312-603-6381 and 708-371-4251.

Readers, start dialing.

That’s a good plan.

Look, I know I’m naive.  I don’t get it.  I should better understand why Commissioner Deborah Sims is so loyal to Stroger in the first place — but I don’t.

The Cook County Board needs to grow some and override the veto.  Make your calls.

Gov. Quinn Supports Third Airport

Posted on by TL

Well, it’s about time.  Illinois has a governor who supports the Third Airport, and this is a governor who, like it or not, says what he means and then acts accordingly.  Quite a difference from “Governor-by-Press-Conference” Blagojevich.

This is excellent news:

Gov. Pat Quinn’s renewed commitment to building a third airport near Chicago earned praise Wednesday from lawmakers in Illinois and Washington.

“We will build a third airport in the south suburbs of Chicago, and we will build it as fast as humanly possible,” Quinn said during his budget address at the state Capitol.

Quinn said the airport – talked about for years – is part of much-needed economic development efforts throughout the state.

The proposed Will County airport has been a pet project of U.S. Rep. Jesse Jackson Jr. (D-2nd), who created the Abraham Lincoln National Airport Commission to bring the airport to an area near Peotone.

Congressman Jackson is very happy with this news.

The South Suburbs, long-ago orphaned economically by the rest of the state, and, in particular, Chicago, need an economic engine to become even more viable.

There are many reasons for companies to take their businesses out of Chicago and the South Suburbs.  Park Forest just saw a new grocery store open, there are incredible opportunities for development in Matteson and Richton Park, even Olympia Fields.

People in the South Suburbs have been traveling north to spend money for years.  The New Economy is changing all of that.  Fuel prices are keeping people closer to home, and this will show in local economies.

Personally, I’m very pleased with the new governor’s support of the third airport.  It’s time for this project to fly.