Category: Illinois

Mark Buehrle’s Magic Arm

Posted on by TL

Just the other day, Mark Buehrle pitched the 18th perfect game in the history of baseball.  The man faced 27 batters, and 27 batters went down.  No walks.  No batters hit.  No runners on the entire game.

He almost did it again.  Tonight, it wasn’t a perfect game, but Buehrle did set a major league record.

From the Chicago Tribune:

Chicago White Sox ace Mark Buehrle set a major league record by retiring 45 straight batters.

Coming off a perfect game in his last start against Tampa Bay, Buehrle retired the first 17 Minnesota Twins batters on Tuesday night to surpass the record of 41 straight set by and San Francisco’s Jim Barr in 1972 and tied by teammate Bobby Jenks, a reliever, in 2007.

Buehrle retired 27 in a row against the Rays in his last start, the 18th perfect game in baseball history, then breezed through the first five innings against the Twins to break the record.

His bid for a second consecutive perfect game — no pitcher in baseball history has ever achieved the feat — ended with a walk to Alexi Casilla on a close call with two outs in the sixth. The Metrodome crowd stood and cheered after the walk, trying to rattle Buehrle. Then Denard Span followed with a single to break up the no-hitter.

The Sox lost this one, but Buehrle’s in the books twice now.

Congratulations, Mark.

Act NOW: Urge Your Senator to Support Hate Crimes Legislation.

Posted on by TL

The Matthew Shepard Act is before the United States Senate.  The wrong-right wing, for some insane reason, is pulling an all-out campaign to bury this bill.

We need your support now.  NOW.

Matthew Shepard, that beautiful boy from Wayoming, was murdered only because he was gay.

That’s it.

We need FEDERAL legislation to let everyone know hate crimes are wrong, no matter the reason.  For some reason, some people in the United States believe it’s okay ok to murder someone because he or she is gay.

Rubbish.

Call your senator NOW.

From the Matthew Shepard Foundation:

After 10 years of continued effort, a federal act to prevent and prosecute hate crimes committed against persons due to their actual or perceived sexual orientation or gender identity is closer than ever to becoming law, with a key Senate roll-call about to take place.

The Matthew Shepard Hate Crimes Prevention Act, which passed the U.S. House earlier this year by a sizeable margin, has been offered as an amendment to the Department of Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2010 (S. 1391). Officially known as the Leahy/Collins/Kennedy/Snowe Amendment, it will be debated intermittently ahead of a crucial procedural vote as soon as Thursday afternoon, or as late as Monday, July 20.

The cloture motion (to end debate and force a vote on the amendment) will require 60 votes to pass. Support for the Matthew Shepard Act appears to be close to that threshold, though opponents of this common-sense legislation are reportedly deluging the Senate with calls and correspondence urging its defeat.

Yesterday, Matthew Shepard Foundation Governing Board President Judy Shepard joined Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid at a Capitol press conference to urge passage of the legislation.  Sen. Reid reiterated his commitment to get the Matthew Shepard Act into law this year. The Defense Department spending bill, with or without the Shepard Act attached, will need to go to a conference committee of the House and Senate that will be charged with producing a final version in September.  House and Senate leaders and the White House have again restated their commitments to get this done—this year.

But lawmakers need to hear where you stand. Call THE SENATE SWITCHBOARD at 202-224-3121, or visit http://www.senate.gov/ and make your voice heard today!

Jason Marsden
Executive Director

Call NOW.  Democratic, Republican, no matter.  Gay, straight, no matter.   For the love of God, call to show your support for your fellow human beings.  Some of whom, are gay.

Roland Burris Sees the Writing on the Wall

Posted on by TL

I’m not going to bash Sen. Roland Burris over his decision to not seek election to the United States Senate. I actually have come to believe that he just wanted to be a senator, but arrived in office entirely the wrong way. Did he permit ambition to blind his judgement? You bet.  We know he has an ego.  Many pols do.  However, having an ego is not a crime.

From Michael Sneed at the Sun-Times:

Sneed has learned that U.S. Sen. Roland Burris has decided not to seek election to a seat he fought the government to keep.

•      •      To wit: Burris, whose decision to vie for Barack Obama’s seat landed him in the midst of a federal pay-to-play corruption probe of Gov. Rod Blagojevich, decided to end his 20-year political career at the end of his term — “because he was primarily concerned about his legacy,” a source close to Burris told Sneed.

•      •      Translation: “After 20 years in government service, Burris didn’t want the last four months in office to be that legacy,” the source said.

Finances also contributed to Burris’ decision, according to Sneed.  No doubt.  I would wager there were a few behind-closed-doors conversations with Democratic congressional leaders.  Like it or not, Burris is tainted because of Blagojevich.  Illinois needs a fresh start.

Who will claim the powerful seat?

My money is on Alexi Giannoulias.  Time will tell.

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.

John Harris Pleads Guilty; Circle Closes in on Blagojevich

Posted on by TL

From the Chicago Tribune:

John Harris, the last chief of staff to former Gov. Rod Blagojevich, pleaded guilty today to a single count of wire fraud in federal court. He agreed to cooperate in the federal probe against his former boss in return for a recommended prison term of just under 3 years.

Harris was accused of aiding some of the former governor’s efforts to leverage the powers of his office in exchange for favors and campaign contributions. Among the accusations against Blagojevich is that he attempted to sell the U.S. Senate seat vacated by President Barack Obama.

From the plea agreement:

From approximately October 2008 to on or about December 9, 2008, in the Northern District of Illinois, Eastern Division, Defendant, together with co-defendant Rod Blagojevich and others, participated in a scheme to deprive the people of the State of Illinois of their intangible right to the honest services of Defendant Rod Blagojevich, in violation of Title 18, United States Code, Sections 1343 and 1346.

So the circle closes in on the former governor.

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.”

Rod Blagojevich Goes to Second City – Video

Posted on by TL

Rod Blagojevich went to Second City this evening to watch a production … about himself.

From WGN Chicago:

The show has been a hit since it opened in April. The theater company has been clamoring to get the man himself to the show and there he was, next to the stage.

Some in the audience say after the media blitz here in Chicago and New York, it wasn’t that big of a stretch to have him here tonight. With his wife in Costa Rica, he has taken a backseat.

Blagojevich said he has never seen the profanity-laced production before tonight.

How the mighty have fallen, and fallen, and fallen…

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

Illinois Civil Union Bill Moves to Third Reading

Posted on by TL

Senate Bill 1716 has moved to Third Reading, according to Illinois State Rep. Greg Harris.  The bill will establish Civil Unions in Illinois.  “Civil Union” means a legal relationship between 2 persons, of either the same or opposite sex, according to the bill.

According to the Illinois House Democrats web site, “Third reading” means the bill is read for a third and final time before the full chamber. After the sponsor explains the bill, members of the chamber can ask questions. When debate is completed, the chamber votes on the bill.

Turning Left will furnish updates as the bill continues to progress.

Gov. Quinn Honors Fallen Soldiers Throughout the Year

Posted on by TL

I have to say, I’m impressed with Governor Quinn.  Not sure how successful he’ll be convincing the Illinois Legislature to pass his budget.  Frankly, bumping up the income tax is long overdue.  If there is any fairness in taxes, the income tax comes closest.

But that’s an argument for another time.

Today, I was  impressed to learn that Governor Quinn has attended funerals for all 30 Illinois soldiers killed in Afghanistan and Iraq over the past year.

Remember when we were criticizing President George Bush because he had not attended a single funeral for a fallen soldier?  His record remains unblemished.  Bush never attended any funerals.

I suppose there was stress enough sending young men and women to their deaths.  Now, the former president is relaxing, says it’s liberating to be out of office.

Liberating for us as well.

Another digression.  Back to Governor Quinn.

From the Sun-Times:

As the Memorial Day parade was set to kick off, Quinn stood with Mayor Daley in Daley Plaza handing out Gold Star banners to families of the 30 Illinois soldiers killed in Afghanistan and Iraq over the past year. Quinn has attended every funeral.

“I know all of them,” Quinn said. “Those funerals are heartbreaking days. We have one coming up Tuesday. We had one last Monday.”

But the state needs to also be concerned about the veterans returning from service. To best help them lawmakers need to fix the state’s broken funding systems, he said.

“Some . . . men and women coming back form Iraq need post-traumatic stress disorder help and counseling,” Quinn said. “We have a wonderful program, a national model. We can’t kick that program off to the side of the road because we don’t have money for it.”

I give the guy credit for showing up, standing in to honor the fallen, again and again and again.  Quinn puts his money where his mouth is.  That counts for something.

Sunday’s Chicago Tribune asks if Quinn can close the deal.  Can he pass his budget?

Two months after Gov. Pat Quinn proposed a $26 billion public works plan, he called top lawmakers into his office and asked them to give him a few projects in the massive bill that he could call his own.

The legislature’s top four leaders, including the fellow Democrats who control the House and Senate, turned down most of his suggestions.

The quiet scene in the governor’s office last Tuesday demonstrates perhaps the most important political dynamic in state government these days: Quinn’s struggle to harness the power of his new position and the willingness of wily legislative bosses to take the lead.

Lawmakers and others with a stake in Statehouse politics cheered Quinn’s call for a new level of cooperation when he replaced the divisive Rod Blagojevich in January. But now they are questioning the untested governor’s ability to engage in the nitty-gritty of legislative dealmaking — in short, to be a closer.

So far, it looks like legislators aren’t giving an inch.  The governor needs learn to play the Springfield game.

With a week left before the General Assembly adjourns for the summer, friend and foe alike say the governor has not taken charge on his signature issues — a dramatic call to close a $12 billion budget gap with a 50 percent increase in the income tax and a blue-ribbon plan to reform state government after the Blagojevich scandal.

They question why he hasn’t lobbied harder in the Capitol for his tax plan and say that members of his special reform panel often have had to fend for themselves on ethics recommendations.

“I would like to see a lot more vigor. I think [ethics reform] should be his issue. This should be the issue he owns,” Cynthia Canary, the director of the Illinois Campaign for Political Reform, said, noting Quinn’s long activist history as a self-styled reformer.

“A lot more vigor?” So the governor needs to dance for the legislature?

No, I don’t get it either.  Springfield must be a political minefield, that place where dreams go to die.

How many funerals of fallen soldiers have legislators attended over the past year?  Perhaps that’s not a fair quesiton, but Quinn showing up at funerals shows me that he’s grounded.  A brush with reality might be good for some legislators.