http://press.senaterepublicancaucus.com/ News articles from around the state en-us Peoria Journal Star PEORIA -- Business owners hit by the June 5 tornado that ripped through Elmwood have a number of economic development tools available from local units of government and the state. The Peoria County Board is lending help in hiring a disaster coordinator for six months to help navigate the rebuilding process and prepare a disaster recovery ordinance for the board. Further, the county started the process of extending an enterprise zone to Elmwood, created temporary emergency building code provisions and waived building permit fees for damaged buildings. The county also offers low-interest loans for businesses when a financing gap exists with owner equity and bank financing. It's possible the county will alter standard terms and conditions of that program specifically for Elmwood recovery efforts, whether by further lowering interest rates or using a portion of dollars in a special fund for money Keystone Steel has repaid the county. At a County Board committee meeting Thursday, board member Jimmy Dillon said he supports the county's help in disaster recovery efforts. But he also said the county should exercise caution in offering help to Elmwood - especially in the form of a customized loan - that is not also available to other communities that also could benefit. Also available to Elmwood businesses are low-interest loans from the U.S. Small Business Administration and disaster recovery loans from the Illinois state treasurer. Elmwood has a residential tax-increment financing district, and the city is considering a second TIF covering the downtown area. Elmwood also is finalizing an application for an emergency grant of $750,000 to $1 million from the Department of Commerce and Economic Opportunity. Peoria Journal Star Fri, 30 Jul 2010 00:00:00 +0000 http://localhost:3000/news/full_article/119166 Peoria Journal Star CHICAGO -- Vote early, vote often. It's an old joke in Illinois politics, but state residents will be choosing twice in November to fill President Barack Obama's former Senate seat. Gov. Pat Quinn filed paperwork Thursday calling a special election to fill the seat, all because of a long-running lawsuit that says it should have been done almost two years ago. Lawyers headed back to court to hash out who will be on the ballot and try to minimize the confusion for voters. This much is clear: People will pick one senator to serve a six-year term in the regular election, and another to serve the final weeks of Obama's old term in a special election. The short-timer would serve from after the November election until the new senator is inaugurated in January. A dual election sets up the remote possibility that one candidate could win the regular election and another could win the special election, adding to the drama around a Senate seat that has already been in the news for much of the time since Obama was elected. Impeached Illinois Gov. Rod Blagojevich was charged with trying to sell or trade the appointment to the Senate to enrich himself. He has pleaded not guilty in a case that went to the jury this week. Federal Judge John Grady still was sorting out Thursday who would be on the ballot. He seemed to favor allowing candidates who qualified for the regular election by winning the February primary or being certified for the ballot after collecting 25,000 signatures. That would include Democrat Alexi Giannoulias, currently Illinois' treasurer, Republican Congressman Mark Kirk and the Green Party's LeAlan Jones, who all won their parties' primaries. But it would seem to exclude Democrat Roland Burris, who has held the seat since he was appointed by Blagojevich in late 2008. He didn't run in the February primary because he chose not to seek a full term. Until the judge's order is final, Burris' attorney Tim Wright held out hope that his client could get a place on the special ballot in the hopes that the only black member of the Senate could serve until January. "If he does not have the capacity to be a candidate in this race, I think you'll see a suitable response," Wright said. Assistant Attorney General Thomas Ioppolo, who represented the state, was worried about puzzled voters if there are different candidates in the special and regular Senate elections. "Even with the exact same names there's a certain amount of confusion," Ioppolo told the judge. "When you have different names on those ballot positions, you multiply the opportunities for confusion." Earlier in the week, the judge seemed to like the idea of letting political party bosses pick candidates for the special election as they have done previously when there were vacancies on the ballot. That would have given Burris a chance to make his case to party leaders. The issue is in court because a lawsuit said that under the U.S. Constitution, Illinois had to call a special election for the seat after Obama was elected. An appeals court agreed. Blagojevich's appointment of Burris also ignited controversy because he got the nod after Blagojevich was arrested on federal corruption charges. After being picked, Burris repeatedly changed his story about his contact with Blagojevich's advisers. A Senate ethics committee eventually admonished him, calling out his apparent willingness to link raising money for Blagojevich with his interest in going to the Senate. Wright said there's a risk that supporters of Burris will be upset if he's not on the special election ballot and register their anger on Election Day. Kirk has said he would work to win a special election but blasted any unnecessary costs associated with it. Jones did too, and said he also would want to be on the ballot. Giannoulias' campaign manager, Mike Rendina, said the Democrat looked forward to working with party leaders to ensure that they're in the best position to win in November. Giannoulias would maintain Democrats' numbers in the Senate if he were to win a special election and take office before January. Kirk would chip away at them if he won. Peoria Journal Star Fri, 30 Jul 2010 00:00:00 +0000 http://localhost:3000/news/full_article/119165 Peoria Journal Star PEORIA -- Bradley University will receive $400,000 to establish a training program to build new technologies, new businesses and new jobs in the green technologies industry, U.S. Sen. Dick Durbin announced Thursday. Bradley's funding is part of the $2,751,000 the Senate Appropriations Committee, which includes the Illinois Democrat, approved for projects in Illinois. According to a news release from Durbin, the Bradley training program will target existing small businesses and entrepreneurs in the development of new green technologies and implement sustainable green practices into business processes. The largest award was $450,000 to the city of Chicago to expand a workforce re-training program. Funding for Bradley and the Chicago House and Social Service Agency shared second. Peoria Journal Star Fri, 30 Jul 2010 00:00:00 +0000 http://localhost:3000/news/full_article/119164 Peoria Journal Star CHICAGO -- Employers who shortchange or don't pay workers will face stiffer penalties under an Illinois bill that's set to be signed into law. Gov. Pat Quinn is scheduled to sign it Friday. Under the law, a repeat offense will be considered a felony, not a misdemeanor. Also, employers who violate wage theft laws will have to pay workers back with interest. The legislation gives the Illinois Department of Labor more oversight in dealing with the 10,000-plus wage theft claims it gets annually. The agency would directly deal with claims of $3,000 or less. Those make up the majority of claims. The law also provides some worker protections, like anti-retaliation provisions. Workers groups have praised the law, calling it a deterrent to employers who don't treat workers fairly. Peoria Journal Star Fri, 30 Jul 2010 00:00:00 +0000 http://localhost:3000/news/full_article/119163 Peoria Journal Star CHICAGO -- Jurors at former Gov. Rod Blagojevich's corruption trial have ended their first full day of deliberations. They're expected back Friday morning to pick up where they left off. On Thursday, they asked Judge James Zagel for a transcript of one of the closing arguments in the case. But the judge denied the request, saying closing arguments are not evidence. Little is known about the six men and six women deciding the fate of Blagojevich and his brother -- co-defendant Robert Blagojevich because Zagel is withholding their names until after the verdict. Both Blagojeviches have pleaded not guilty to charges of trying to sell or trade an appointment to President Barack Obama's old U.S. Senate seat and illegally pressuring people for campaign donations. A pre-algebra teacher, a former Marine and an avid marathon runner are among the 12 jurors who met Thursday for the first full day of deliberations in the corruption trial. Jurors asked Zagel on Thursday for a transcript of one of the closing arguments in the case, but he denied the request, saying closing arguments are not evidence. Some experts believe a verdict won't come for at least several days in the complicated case. Two carts full of evidence were wheeled into the jurors' meeting room when they began deliberations Wednesday, agreeing to meet from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. on weekdays. "Since the trial has gone faster than expected, I don't think they will be in as much of a mindset of, 'let's get out of here,'" said Michael Helfand, a Chicago attorney who followed the trial but has no link to the case. And while they're deciding, they will be in a cocoon of privacy. They'll get no e-mail messages from "the King of Japan" or expletive-laden voicemail messages on their phones, like the ones Zagel has received. No chance of Facebook postings using their names, either. The ubiquity of e-mail and social networking and the Internet Age-urge for everyone to express their opinions were among the reasons Zagel cited when he prohibited the release of the 12 primary and five alternate jurors' names until after a verdict. Withholding juror names is more common in trials involving alleged mobsters or terrorists, for security reasons, and media organizations contested Zagel's ruling. But the judge maintained that the jurors' ability to impartially decide an "inarguably" high-profile case could be impaired by unsolicited interruptions. There's also the danger someone could alter a juror's ability to think clearly, Zagel said recently. If jurors "picked up a phone and heard a spewing of profanity -- that could have a mood-altering impact," he said. In the judge's final ruling, he acknowledged that inappropriate contact of jurors is not a new issue, but said the risk was greater because of the "astounding" pervasiveness of e-mail and social media. So, unlike in previous trials -- such as that of former Illinois Gov. George Ryan, Blagojevich's predecessor -- most of what's known about the jurors in Blagojevich's case is their occupations and a few details gleaned from the judge's questions during jury selection. There's an accounting major at Western Illinois University, a retired public health official and a Navy veteran. One man was born in a U.S. internment camp for Japanese-Americans during World War II, while another is a former Marine who was injured while serving in the Middle East. One woman is passionate about knitting. Eight jurors are white, three are black and one is Asian-American. Zagel says he's less worried about "crackpots" than a pervasive belief among Americans that "their opinion somehow counts" on any subject -- and that non-crackpots couldn't help trying to persuade jurors with reasoned argument. He said a bigger risk in the Blagojevich case was not only the trial's high visibility but that so many people felt a personal link to the twice-elected governor -- either as one-time constituents or as viewers who watched him as a reality TV contestant or other TV shows. "We are dealing here with perhaps millions of people who voted for the defendant, who may feel betrayed by the defendant," Zagel said. "This is not ... something that happened to someone else." The ousted governor, 53, has pleaded not guilty to 24 counts, including trying to sell or trade an appointment to President Barack Obama's vacated Senate seat for a Cabinet post, private job or campaign cash. His brother, Nashville, Tenn., businessman Robert Blagojevich, 54, has also pleaded not guilty to taking part in that alleged scheme. Peoria Journal Star Fri, 30 Jul 2010 00:00:00 +0000 http://localhost:3000/news/full_article/119162 Bloomington Pantagraph Bloomington-Normal has a right to be proud of its role in the life of Abraham Lincoln. Saturday's festival is a good way to celebrate that connection and a good way for residents to learn more about it. Events connected with the Lincoln's Bloomington Festival will be staged at several locations, including the David Davis Mansion State Historic Site, McLean County Museum of History, Bloomington Public Library, The Oaks mansion grounds and the Burr House Bed and Breakfast. Having activities at various locations is a good way to expose people to a number of Lincoln sites in the community. Be sure to read the "Looking for Lincoln" signs to learn more about where Lincoln and his cohorts spent their time while Lincoln was a circuit-riding lawyer beginning his political career. People come from across the state and beyond to tour the David Davis Mansion -- built by the man Lincoln named to the U.S. Supreme Court after becoming president. Yet how many Twin City residents have yet to visit the site -- or only do so to show it off when guests are in town. This weekend, pretend you are the tourist. Visit the mansion, museum and other sites. Sit on the bench on the east side of the courthouse and pose with the statue of Lincoln -- or photograph several of the re-enactors who will be part of the festival. You can make a real "tourist" day of it by also taking in the Downtown Bloomington Farmers Market on Saturday morning. You might consider using a bicycle to get around. The David Davis Mansion, 100 Monroe Drive, is easily accessible from Constitution Trail and the Burr House, 210 E. Chestnut, is less than a mile away. The Oaks, 301 E. Grove St., is about a half-mile off Constitution Trail, riding west on Grove Street. From there, the library, 205 E. Olive St., is a couple of blocks away. From the library, it is about four blocks to downtown Bloomington and the Museum of History, 200 N. Main St. Consider yourself the bicycle equivalent of a Lincoln-era circuit rider. Choose your connecting streets carefully, obey the rules of the road and remember that a helmet is probably a wiser choice than a stovepipe hat. For schedule of events Check last Monday's Pantagraph, Page A3 Go to www.pantagraph.com/lincolnfest. Bloomington Pantagraph Fri, 30 Jul 2010 00:00:00 +0000 http://localhost:3000/news/full_article/119161 Bloomington Pantagraph CHICAGO -- Jurors were out of sight on their first full day deciding the fate of former Gov. Rod Blagojevich. But the scene at the federal courthouse could have been far uglier for Democrats if his corruption trial had played out as expected with the party gearing up for tough elections. In the end, there was no sharp-tongued Rahm Emanuel on the stand, squaring off with Blagojevich attorney Sam Adam Jr. over the White House chief of staff's talks with a Blagojevich adviser about who to appoint to President Barack Obama's old Senate seat. There was no Alexi Giannoulias, the Democratic candidate for Obamas's old seat, being asked about how he introduced a union official to a close Obama adviser that Blagojevich considered for the senate seat. And there was no testimony from Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid, who Blagojevich's lawyers also originally subpoenaed to testify about the appointment. Blagojevich's lawyers rested their case last week without calling a single witness, not even Blagojevich himself, to defend against charges he schemed to sell or trade Obama's old seat. That not only spared Democrats any potentially embarrassing testimony but could help wrap up the trial well in advance of Labor Day, the traditional kickoff of the fall campaign. "They dodged a bullet because it would have been weeks of dragging in these high-level people and talking about the schemes and all that," Illinois GOP chairman Pat Brady said. Blagojevich's defense attorneys had plastered Washington and Illinois with subpoenas. Besides Emanuel, Reid and Giannoulias, the current Illinois treasurer, the ex-governor's lawyers also initially wanted Obama adviser Valerie Jarrett to appear, as well as Illinois Sen. Dick Durbin. They even wanted to subpoena Obama, but weren't allowed to by a judge. The fact that none of them ended up appearing doesn't mean Republicans will let voters forget that Blagojevich -- who was twice elected governor -- is a Democrat as they try to pry loose the party's grip on the senate seat and Illinois state government in the fall campaign. But how much impact it will have at the polls remains to be seen. Other issues, like Illinois' financial crisis with its $13 billion deficit, help mitigate the damage of the Blagojevich trial, said DePaul University political science professor Michael Mezey. "It's going to be yesterday's news by the time election season starts Labor Day," Mezey said. And because of Blagojevich's antics, which range from appearing on reality TV to singing an Elvis song at a street fair, some argue that he is no longer defined first and foremost as a Democrat. "I think there is often a line that you cross when you go from being associated with a party to being just your own off-kilter personality," said Democratic consultant Chris Lehane. "And wherever that line is, I think he crossed it a long time ago." But Chris Mooney, a political science professor at the University of Illinois at Springfield, said that won't keep Republicans from hammering away. "You can be crazy and a Democrat," Mooney said. Tying an opponent to corruption in his party was Blagojevich's own strategy during the 2006 campaign, when he was re-elected after repeatedly linking his Republican opponent to former GOP Gov. George Ryan, who went to prison after being convicted of corruption. Democrats could try to paint Blagojevich as someone separate from the party who ended up going rogue. Gov. Pat Quinn, Blagojevich's former lieutenant governor, is seeking a full term of his own in November after replacing his disgraced running mate when he was removed from office by lawmakers in January 2009. The two men had been on the outs for years but Republicans have still linked them. For the White House, the news coverage of top aides testifying would have been an unwanted distraction, even though none of Obama's allies were accused of wrongdoing, said Lehane, who worked for Al Gore's presidential campaign. "You obviously would not want a situation where the chief of staff at the White House or a senior adviser to the president has to raise their hand and take an oath and then testify in a criminal proceeding that at the end of the day is about whether people engage in illegal forms of politics," Lehane said. No one knows what the big-name Democrats might have said at trial but there's plenty of speculation. Emanuel, who reportedly was captured on FBI wiretaps, had been authorized by Obama to pass along to Blagojevich's office the names of potential Senate replacements, according to a report from former White House counsel Greg Craig. Craig conducted an internal inquiry for Obama shortly after the election about contacts between the presidential transition team and Blagojevich. During the trial, prosecution witnesses said Blagojevich had considered appointing Jarrett to the seat if he could get a Cabinet post from Obama. Giannoulias has said he introduced Jarrett to Tom Balanoff, an official with the Service Employees International Union. Prosecutors have said Blagojevich sent word through Balanoff that he would appoint Jarrett to the Senate if Obama would give him a top-level job. Durbin has said he talked to Blagojevich about possible Senate replacements. Blagojevich has vehemently denied doing anything improper while deciding who would be awarded the Senate seat after Obama was elected president. Prosecutors argued he was angling for money or a job because he and his wife were financially strapped. Blagojevich eventually appointed Democrat Roland Burris, although Burris didn't seek a full term. Giannoulias, Republican Congressman Mark Kirk and the Green Party's LeAlan Jones are vying for the seat in November. Bloomington Pantagraph Fri, 30 Jul 2010 00:00:00 +0000 http://localhost:3000/news/full_article/119160 Bloomington Pantagraph SPRINGFIELD -- A new law designed to improve the care and safety of residents in Illinois nursing homes has become a campaign issue in a closely watched race for state Senate. On Thursday, Democrat Tim Dudley, a Macon County Board member, slammed his Nov. 2 opponent for voting against the proposal. State Sen. Kyle McCarter, R-Lebanon, was among eight GOP lawmakers who voted "no" on Senate Bill 326 during legislative action this spring. "Sen. McCarter sent a clear message to our seniors by voting against this bill," Dudley said in a prepared statement Thursday. "If I'm elected I will fight to make sure seniors receive the care they deserve." McCarter said the changes, which include new staffing requirements, will force nursing homes to raise their rates for private pay clients. "The mandatory staffing ratios are completely unfunded," McCarter said. "My opportunity sees this as an opportunity to jab me," McCarter said. "There's more to this bill than meets the eye." Dudley's comments came as Gov. Pat Quinn signed the legislation into law Thursday while flanked by Attorney General Lisa Madigan, legislative supporters and nursing home advocates. The changes are aimed stemming at a pattern of violence in Illinois nursing homes, which has been linked to the state's practice of housing younger adults with mental illnesses in nursing homes, rather than in separate facilities. Dudley and McCarter are vying for the 51st Senate District seat that was vacated by former Senate Minority Leader Frank Watson, R-Greenville, who resigned after suffering a stroke. McCarter was appointed to fill the year left on Watson's term and is now seeking a full term as senator. Dudley said the new law will shield elderly residents from possible abuse and poor living conditions. "Our seniors have worked hard their entire lives and they deserve our support and respect," Dudley noted. McCarter said smaller nursing homes in the region will be forced to charge higher rates to non-Medicaid residents to comply with the more stringent staffing ratios outlined in the measure. "The cost of doing business will be passed on to loves ones in nursing homes," McCarter said. Bloomington Pantagraph Fri, 30 Jul 2010 00:00:00 +0000 http://localhost:3000/news/full_article/119159 Bloomington Pantagraph SPRINGFIELD -- Gov. Pat Quinn has signed a number of new laws into effect. Roadside memorials OK'd Illinois families who lose a loved one because of a fatal car accident will have a new way to memorialize the victim and the location of the crash under a new state law. The memorial marker program would allow families to purchase signs that would be installed by the Illinois Department of Transportation near the site of the accident. Families already often place informal, unofficial memorials at the site of accidents. If the memorial is small and not distracting, IDOT generally leaves it alone. The new program signed into law by Gov. Pat Quinn Wednesday, is similar to one already in place for victims of drunk driving accidents. The legislation is Senate Bill 3803. Smoking banned at private rooms in nursing homes The state's smoking ban has been extended to include private rooms at nursing homes. Legislation signed by Gov. Pat Quinn eliminates the exemption that allowed some nursing homes to offer in-room smoking to residents if certain conditions are met. Under the new law, nursing homes can have a group area set aside for smoking as long as it does not interfere with non-smoking areas of the facility. The legislation is Senate Bill 851. Law calls for bed bug task force A new law calls for a task force to plot a plan of action for attacking bed bugs. Acting in response to an increase in complaints about the pests, lawmakers called for a panel of experts to recommend how the state work to eradicate them. The group also might recommend how the state conduct an educational campaign targeting bed bug management. The work must be completed by Dec. 31, 2011. The measure was approved unanimously in the Senate, but was ridiculed by some members of the House as unnecessary. It won approval on an 84-31 vote and was signed into law by Gov. Pat Quinn Tuesday. The legislation is House bill 6439. Bloomington Pantagraph Fri, 30 Jul 2010 00:00:00 +0000 http://localhost:3000/news/full_article/119158 Chicago Sun Times Seven pens -- seven Governor of the State of Illinois ballpoint pens -- are carefully laid out on a scuffed desk in a conference room on the 15th floor of the Thompson Center. Gov. Quinn is scheduled to have his sole public event of the day -- signing legislation creating an inspector general for the Illinois Tollway Authority. The governor has been staging a flurry of bill signings around the state, and I decided to drop in on this one. Republicans accuse Quinn of grandstanding, conflating these signings into campaign events but, frankly, Quinn lacks the pizzazz to grandstand. As Harry Caray once said, you can't ballyhoo a funeral. Heading up the glass elevator, I picture myself the lone spectator. Who'd want to see Pat Quinn sign a tollway bill at 9:30 on a Wednesday? Many people, it turns out -- three television cameras, a dozen members of the media. They wait, growing increasingly unhappy. The governor is 10, 15, 20 minutes late. "I really don't have time for this today," complains one reporter, repeatedly, to no one in particular. "We've got stuff to do, and this isn't it," grouses another. Finally, at six minutes to 10 the governor lopes into the room. "Twenty-four minutes, guy," a radio reporter chides, quite loudly, a surprising display of disrespect. Then again, any harried public schoolteacher can coax a classroom of 6-year-olds into their bee costumes and giant sun outfits and shepherd them onstage to sing about good nutrition without being this late. It is not a performance that inspires confidence but then, heck, this is Pat Quinn. Confidence has left the building long ago. You think you've got bill worries I don't care about the tollway bill -- another example of government admitting that it can't control fraud and waste, then solemnizing the occasion by creating yet another level of government that is supposed to magically do what the current strata have proven themselves unable to. No, I'm here because of a bill that on Wednesday was awaiting Quinn's signature -- SB 3084, which says that anybody who ever committed a sex crime has to remain on the sex offender registry forever. It passed unanimously in both Illinois House and Senate earlier this year. Heaping new punishments on criminals is a favorite pastime of politicians -- it looks good, the electorate likes it and the criminals rarely complain. Though sometimes they do. In June, this newspaper ran an editorial calling the new sex registry bill counterproductive and unfair -- often these offenders plead guilty with the understanding they'd be on the registry for a decade then, if they stay out of trouble, they will be removed. "There is no question sexual predators pose a real danger," the paper wrote. "But the assumption behind this bill that anyone ever convicted of a sex offense remains a threat to society forever is absurd." As it is, sexual "predators" are already required to remain on the list for life. This bill would place thousands of people guilty of less serious offenses years ago permanently on the list. After the editorial ran, a Berwyn man named Ken Chiero phoned the paper. Since colleagues often direct weird stuff they'd rather not cope with in my direction, I spoke to him. "They told me if I did this, if I plead guilty, in 10 years I would be done with it," he said, his voice choking with emotion. "I did everything they asked me to do, never once tried to weasel my way out of it." "It" was solicitation of a minor in 1999. He made an indecent proposal to a 16-year-old neighbor. It would be easy to look away from a guy like Chiero. Talking with him, I suspect that his life is so filled with missteps and problems that being on the sex crime registry might not even be the most pressing. "I've done some bad things," he said. But he's also a U.S. Marine who served in Vietnam who kept his nose clean and endured the scorn of his neighbors for a decade. "It's been terrible," Chiero said. "I've been spit at, threatened." He is set to go off the registry on Aug. 28. "I am four weeks away," he said. "I did everything they asked me to do, I paid every fine, did every hour of community service. I have not broke the law." Isn't that what we want? Are sex offenders going to behave better if we keep them on the registry whether they reform or not? My concern is not with Chiero and his ilk so much as with our limited law enforcement resources. More than 21,000 Illinoisans are on the list already. Keeping people on forever means, if they don't comply, somebody has to find them and somebody has to put them in jail and a cell bunk is required. Perhaps in an ideal world we'd want to do that. But the state is broke and law enforcement overextended. Our police can't investigate all the shootings that happened last week, do we really want a new law requiring that in 20 years Chiero -- now 59 -- be arrested for not registering due to a crime he has already been punished for committing? "I can't see how he would sign something like that," Chiero said. I can, though the good news is he won't get the chance. On Wednesday, I phoned the bill's main sponsor, State Sen. Iris Martinez, (D-20th), and asked her about the bill. Late Thursday, she called me to say she had decided to pull the bill back from the governor and rework it. Maybe she will get it right this time. Chicago Sun Times Fri, 30 Jul 2010 00:00:00 +0000 http://localhost:3000/news/full_article/119157 Bloomington Pantagraph CHICAGO -- Vote early, vote often. It's an old joke in Illinois politics but state residents will be choosing twice in November to fill President Barack Obama's former Senate seat. Gov. Pat Quinn filed paperwork Thursday calling a special election to fill the seat, all because of a long-running lawsuit that says it should have been done almost two years ago. Lawyers headed back to court to hash out who will be on the ballot and try to minimize the confusion for voters. This much is clear: People will pick one senator to serve a six-year term in the regular election, and another to serve the final weeks of Obama's old term in a special election. The short-timer would serve from after the November election until the new senator is inaugurated in January. A dual election sets up the remote possibility that one candidate could win the regular election and another could win the special election, adding to the drama around a Senate seat that has already been in the news for much of the time since Obama was elected. Impeached Illinois governor Rod Blagojevich was charged with trying to sell or trade the appointment to the Senate to enrich himself. He has pleaded not guilty in a case that went to the jury this week. Federal Judge John Grady was still sorting out on Thursday who would be on the ballot. He seemed to favor allowing candidates who qualified for the regular election by winning the February primary or being certified for the ballot after collecting 25,000 signatures. That would include Democrat Alexi Giannoulias, currently Illinois' treasurer, Republican Congressman Mark Kirk and the Green Party's LeAlan Jones, who all won their parties' primaries. But it would seem to exclude Democrat Roland Burris, who has held the seat since he was appointed by Blagojevich in late 2008. He didn't run in the February primary because he chose not to seek a full term. Until the judge's order is final, Burris' attorney Tim Wright held out hope that his client could get a place on the special ballot in the hopes that the only black member of the Senate could serve until January. "If he does not have the capacity to be a candidate in this race, I think you'll see a suitable response," Wright said. Assistant attorney general Thomas Ioppolo, who represented the state, was worried about puzzled voters if there are different candidates in the special and regular Senate elections. "Even with the exact same names there's a certain amount of confusion," Ioppolo told the judge. "When you have different names on those ballot positions, you multiply the opportunities for confusion." Earlier in the week, the judge seemed to like the idea of letting political party bosses pick candidates for the special election as they have done previously when there were vacancies on the ballot. That would have given Burris a chance to make his case to party leaders. The issue is in court because a lawsuit said that under the U.S. Constitution, Illinois had to call a special election for the seat after Obama was elected. An appeals court agreed. Blagojevich's appointment of Burris also ignited controversy because he got the nod after Blagojevich was arrested on federal corruption charges. After being picked, Burris repeatedly changed his story about his contact with Blagojevich's advisers. A Senate ethics committee eventually admonished him, calling out his apparent willingness to link raising money for Blagojevich with his interest in going to the Senate. Wright said there's a risk that supporters of Burris will be upset if he's not on the special election ballot and register their anger on Election Day. Kirk has said he would work to win a special election but blasted any unnecessary costs associated with it. Jones did too, and said he also would want to be on the ballot. Giannoulias' campaign manager Mike Rendina said the Democrat looked forward to working with party leaders to ensure that they're in the best position to win in November. Giannoulias would maintain Democrats' numbers in the Senate if he were to win a special election and take office before January. Kirk would chip away at them if he won. Bloomington Pantagraph Fri, 30 Jul 2010 00:00:00 +0000 http://localhost:3000/news/full_article/119156 Bloomington Pantagraph SPRINGFIELD -- Two years after then-President George W. Bush traveled to Peoria to help Republican U.S. Rep. Aaron Schock's campaign for Congress, former First Lady Laura Bush plans to do the same. Laura Bush plans to appear at a fundraiser for Schock Sept. 13 in Peoria, said Schock spokesman Steve Shearer. The fundraiser will be a private event with tickets costing $250 and $500. A location hasn't yet been set, Shearer said. It's also unclear so far if Bush will appear at any free events in town open to the public. Shearer said the experience of former President Bush's $1 million fundraiser for Schock in 2008 helped lure Laura Bush to Peoria. "She's actually harder to get than the president was," Shearer said. The extra money will be a boost to Schock's re-election campaign against Democrat Deirdre "DK" Hirner of Springfield. Hirner said Thursday that she respects the former first lady and is focused on her own campaign. Tickets are available through Schock's campaign office by calling (309) 693-9393. Bloomington Pantagraph Fri, 30 Jul 2010 00:00:00 +0000 http://localhost:3000/news/full_article/119155 Bloomington Pantagraph CHICAGO -- Gov. Pat Quinn signed legislation Thursday that will require Illinois nursing homes to hire more staff and the state to hire dozens of new inspectors as part of a sweeping overhaul aimed at improving patient safety at the state's nearly 800 nursing homes. The law's requirements follow a governor's task force initiated after a series of news reports about assaults, rapes and murders at nursing homes. Members of the governor's staff and officials from Attorney General Lisa Madigan's office worked with advocates, legislators, nursing home operators, workers and residents to draft the legislation, they said. Quinn, surrounded by lawmakers and advocates for the elderly, said Thursday that the legislation "begins a new era of nursing home care in Illinois." Under the new law, the admissions system for nursing homes must also be revised so that only people who need 24-hour skilled care are admitted. The state's health department will also hire more inspectors -- as many as 180 new inspectors by 2013, more than doubling their current ranks. Fines and fees for nursing homes would increase. And there will be an increase in required staffing for nursing homes, from 2.5 hours of nursing care per resident each day to 3.8 hours of nursing care each day in 2014. "Thousands of nursing home residents will be able to age with dignity," said David Vinkler, AARP associate state director. The reforms are aimed at a pattern of violence in Illinois nursing homes stemming from the state's long reliance on the facilities to house younger adults with serious mental illness. Illinois has relied on nursing homes to house the young mentally ill more than any other state, an Associated Press analysis found. Elderly residents have been victimized by stronger, younger residents living in close quarters. The bill would address that potentially dangerous situation by requiring hospitals to initiate criminal background checks before transferring some patients into nursing homes. Anyone identified as a sex offender - or as having been convicted of other serious crimes - would then be required to submit to a fingerprint check. An expanded fingerprint criminal background check will operate as a pilot program in Cook and Will counties. In those places, all younger residents of facilities with both elderly residents and more than 25 residents diagnosed with serious mental illness would get extensive criminal background checks. Nursing homes would also find it more difficult to subdue residents inappropriately with psychotropic drugs. Before getting such medication, residents or their representatives would have to give their written consent and listen to a discussion of the risks and benefits of the drugs. Quinn also signed a law aimed at reducing fraud and abuse in nursing homes by broadening the definition of criminal neglect, requiring greater disclosure by nursing home owners and requiring the prompt reporting of fraud, abuse and neglect. Both laws go into effect immediately. Fred Friedman, a former nursing home resident and advocate for the mentally ill, said the legislation is a first step. "Many of us believe that no one cares about us," Friedman said. "We're going to do our best to fight for ourselves, but we know that we can't do it ourselves. I'm asking everyone ... to continue the fight." Bloomington Pantagraph Fri, 30 Jul 2010 00:00:00 +0000 http://localhost:3000/news/full_article/119154 Chicago Sun Times In his closing argument, defense attorney Sam Adam Jr. urged jurors in Rod Blagojevich's corruption trial to ask themselves a question: "What would Sam say?" Turns out what they really want to know is, "What did the government say?" Early in their second day of deliberations, jurors in the ex-governor's trial sent out a note from the jury room Thursday morning. Their request: a transcript of the prosecution's closing argument. The request will be denied, U.S. District Judge James Zagel said in court shortly afterward, because closing arguments are not evidence. The note was enough to make the three prosecutors on the case look at one another and laugh. Blagojevich's defense team also opposed the request. Still, Zagel said he understood why the jury might want the transcript. "What the government largely gave them at certain points in its closing was a roadmap," the judge said. In his closing argument Monday, prosecutor Chris Niewoehner laid out the charges against Blagojevich and his brother, clearly explaining each of the 28 counts and matching them with the evidence the prosecution believed proved their case. The indictment, on the other hand -- one of the few documents jurors may use in their deliberations -- is complicated and filled with legal jargon. Zagel said if the jury really needs the "roadmap," he would likely receive another note from them. "And I will deal with it," the judge said. Chicago Sun Times Fri, 30 Jul 2010 00:00:00 +0000 http://localhost:3000/news/full_article/119153 St. Louis Post Dispatch Southern Illinois University Edwardsville has frozen tuition rates at 2009 levels. This means for the 2010-11 academic year, Illinois freshmen and new transfer students will pay just $8,400 for tuition, fees and books, and Missouri residents with a 23 or better ACT can pay less than $10,000. "SIUE's affordability compared with other institutions, coupled with the high-quality education available, make it an attractive option for students," said Scott Belobrajdic, assistant vice chancellor for Enrollment Management. Only 20 minutes from St. Louis, SIUE offers room and board on its 2,600-acre campus at $7,800 per year. "You can have a fully accredited education on a gorgeous university campus and access to everything St. Louis has to offer for considerably less than you would pay in tuition alone at most private universities," Belobrajdic said. "That's before we apply scholarships and financial aid." He added that students can have the complete package at SIUE -- an NCAA Division I Athletics program, affordable tuition and housing and a superior undergraduate academic experience. SIUE is recognized by U.S. News & World Report as one of 77 up-and-coming universities in the United States, and among the top five in the Midwest. To learn more visit SIUE.edu or call 618-650-3705 to talk with an admissions counselor. St. Louis Post Dispatch Fri, 30 Jul 2010 00:00:00 +0000 http://localhost:3000/news/full_article/119150 St. Louis Post Dispatch Even for Illinois, the paragon of political peculiarity, this one is weird. It is virtually certain that the state's voters will elect two people to the same U.S. Senate seat in the Nov. 2 election. The winners could be the same person, or candidates from different parties or even different candidates from the same party. As required by a recent federal court decision, one will serve just until Jan. 3. The other will serve from Jan. 3 to early 2017. As crazy as this sounds, it could have been much worse. Lawyers and the judge in the middle of this mess appear to be forging a path that would spare taxpayers the cost of holding a special election, or two, at upwards of $20 million each. And despite a natural inclination to blame former Gov. Rod Blagojevich on general principle, it's not really his fault. The roots reach back two years, to the election of Sen. Barack Obama as president. The right to fill the Senate vacancy fell to Blagojevich, who would later be accused in federal court of trying to sell it for a bribe. He denies it, and the jury on that is out -- literally. Just before the tainted Blagojevich was impeached and tossed from office in early 2009, he even considering naming himself to the Senate, according to FBI surveillance recordings. Instead, the governor picked Roland Burris, a former state attorney general who reinforced his lightweight political reputation with a fawning acceptance of the appointment that other Democrats felt was too tainted to touch. Sated by the title and perhaps aware of his scant chance of election, Burris did not file for a full term in the Feb. 2, 2010, primary. Democrats nominated state Comptroller Alexi Giannoulias that day, and Republicans chose U.S. Rep. Mark Kirk. So far, so good. Lurking in the background was an activist lawsuit insisting that the 17th Amendment to the U.S. Constitution, while allowing a temporarily appointed senator, demands a special election eventually. The state fought the suit, as I presume Gov. Pat Quinn was not eager to set up the potential for $40 million worth of special primary and general elections. A federal judge ruled that the 17th Amendment does indeed require an election, and an appellate court recently affirmed it. Both sides now seem to agree on holding the special vote along with the regular election on Nov. 2, presumably adding only the cost of extra ink on the ballot. Details were still being worked out this week, but everyone also seems to lean toward letting the parties' leaders name their nominees, with independents accessing the ballot by gathering 25,000 signatures. The law is the law, but this is still folly. Although the term would be for two months, the temporary senator might not even get seated for a couple of weeks. Presumably, the chamber will be in recess through the holiday period, until new members are sworn in Jan. 3. Burris could have handled that extra month or two, and predictably is talking about seeking the nomination to do just that. But the Democratic Party surely won't support it. Although there is no incumbency advantage in winning the short term, an early inauguration would provide a winner of both elections with extra seniority, something that's big currency in the Senate. Much more significant is a potential impact on the strict per-election limits applied to financial contributions to candidates for a federal office. Would Kirk and Giannoulias, if running for two elections simultaneously, be eligible to accept double contributions from donors? At least some pundits feel pretty certain about it. Given the way those two are already bashing each other (for example, Giannoulias on discrepancies in Kirk's military record, and Kirk on claims that Giannoulias helped finance gangsters with his failed family bank), I'm wincing at how many more TV commercials that extra cash could buy. Now, you didn't hear it from me, but consider this bizarre scenario: Blagojevich is acquitted by a jury in time to pass petitions, get on the special ballot and win a month or two in the very Senate seat that was at the heart of his legal troubles in the first place. Fantasy? Of course it is. But then, is anything really too fantastic to happen in Illinois politics? St. Louis Post Dispatch Fri, 30 Jul 2010 00:00:00 +0000 http://localhost:3000/news/full_article/119149 Belleville News Democrat The Republican challenger to state Rep. Jay Hoffman outlined his plan for fixing the state's financial issues Thursday during a news conference in Edwardsville. Among candidate Dwight Kay's major points were: * Cut wasteful spending at the line-item level with a statewide audit. * Vote against any tax increase. * Cut business taxes and fees to bring jobs back to Illinois. * Support term limits. * Reform worker's compensation and pension programs. * Post all government expenditures online. "I think the people in Springfield owe us an apology," said Kay, of Glen Carbon, referring to what he called Illinois' financial "death spiral." "Politicians promise the world and deliver peanuts. ... We need to think like businesspeople, not politicians. We need public servants, not politicians." Kay stayed away from criticizing Hoffman, a 10-term Democrat from Collinsville, directly. Instead, he criticized what he called a "borrow-and-spend" atmosphere in Springfield. "You don't find jobs. You don't create jobs," Kay said. "You create an environment that grows jobs." For education, Kay said he wanted to see more money going directly to the classroom. "Had the state managed its budget correctly ... we wouldn't be talking about how we're funding schools," he said. Hoffman said he believes Illinois residents are tired of partisan politics. "I believe it's imperative in the near future that the finger-pointing stop, the accusations stop, and we begin to show accountability in Springfield and stop just going along with our party leaders," Hoffman said. Hoffman pointed out that he was one of only three Democrats to go against his party to vote against the current budget and also vote against increasing the state income tax. "I didn't think it was balanced and didn't show foresight," he said. "I've consistently stood up against the powers that be in Springfield and fought for the people in our district, whether it's for infrastructure improvements or the most sweeping ethics reforms in state history." Hoffman also said he believes fixing the state's budget woes should come before talk of raising the income tax. "I would not approve any increase in income taxes prior to getting our house in order," Hoffman said. "We need to start being fiscally responsible before we even consider asking people to give more money to the state." Kay unsuccessfully challenged Hoffman in 2008 with a heavily-funded campaign that focused on Hoffman's close ties to then-Gov. Rod Blagojevich, and the campaign got rough in the final weeks, with robocalls and television commercials accusing each other of sleazy politics. Belleville News Democrat Fri, 30 Jul 2010 00:00:00 +0000 http://localhost:3000/news/full_article/119147 Decatur Herald Review DECATUR - The proposal to place a 1 percent sales tax increase on the ballot in November will move forward. The Macon County Board's Environmental, Education, Health and Welfare Committee unanimously approved a motion to certify the measure at a short meeting Thursday. Most of Macon County's school districts approved asking for the resolution to be on November's ballot. Only Mount Zion did not approve the resolution. Those districts represent 85.2 percent of all students in the county, more than the minimum 51 percent required. The committee legally was required to send the measure forward. The county board Finance Committee will take a vote at 5:15 p.m. Monday, and the proposal is expected to go to the full county board Aug. 12. State law requires approval of the measure if the school boards meet their obligations. "Their job, basically, is to certify that fact," said Dan Winter, president of the Decatur school board. "There's no other action they could take." The additional sales tax, if approved by voters, would be shared among Macon County schools, according to enrollment. The county board will have to meet again after the election to vote on whether to implement the tax and how much of it to implement. "The rubber meets the road when the voters act on Nov. 2 and decide whether or not they accept the 1 percent sales tax," Winter said. The audience filled the county board room for the meeting and included several of the county's school superintendents. "This is a great situation because, the way government is nowadays, people feel like their legislators don't listen to them and do what they want," said Tim Dudley, D-Decatur, chairman of the Environmental, Education, Health and Welfare Committee. "The schools have come out, passed the resolution and now it goes on the ballot for the people to decide. That's great democracy when the people decide whether they want a tax increase or not instead of letting their legislators do it for them." After the meeting, Jerrold Stocks, chairman of the Macon County Republican Central Committee, e-mailed a 110-page position paper outlining the Republican opposition to the tax increase. Among its points: * Decatur's declining enrollment does not justify the need for two high schools for the projected 30-year life of new construction. * Decatur's two high schools have failed in their fundamental mission to educate based on state test scores. * The state should bear the majority of the responsibility for school funding, not local communities, and if local communities take on a greater share, the state has no incentive to meet its obligations. * Most of the improvements suggested for Decatur's high schools - for example, improved athletic and fine arts facilities - are excessive in light of economic constraints in the area. Decatur Herald Review Fri, 30 Jul 2010 00:00:00 +0000 http://localhost:3000/news/full_article/119146 Decatur Herald Review DECATUR - Decatur-area lawmakers spoke out Thursday against early news the governor's office will seek to increase the state's income tax from 3 percent to 5 percent. David Vaught, Gov. Pat Quinn's budget director, has said Quinn will try to pass the tax hike in January, after the 2010 elections. He said he estimates the move could net the state $6 billion. For Decatur lawmakers and their election challengers, opposition to the increase was unanimous Thursday. State Rep. Bob Flider, D-Mount Zion, reaffirmed his opposition to an income tax increase. "I have been consistently opposed to an income tax increase and voted against the latest attempt to raise taxes in 2009," Flider said. "I believe the governor's budget director is completely misguided in his beliefs that the legislature will support such an idea in January of 2010. Raising taxes will only hamper efforts to boost the economy." Adam Brown, the Decatur Republican running against Flider, called the move ironic in light of the 20 percent pay raise Vaught and a number of other staff members working for Quinn received. Vaught received the raise after being promoted to his current position. "I feel like balancing the budget on the backs of hardworking Illinois residents is not appropriate at this time," Brown said. "(Vaught) got a 20 percent increase in his pay just last month. Maybe he can afford this income tax increase, but I don't think the working families here in Illinois can." State Sen. Kyle McCarter, R-Lebanon said taxpayers are not going to be willing to trust state government with more money considering the state's current fiscal situation. "I think it's a bad idea and the last thing you want to do to people in the middle of a recession," McCarter said. "We need more jobs; we don't need more taxes." McCarter's electoral opponent, Democrat Tim Dudley of Decatur, said he didn't believe the General Assembly could pass such a measure in good conscience. "An income tax increase is not the answer," Dudley said. "We need to cut spending and create opportunities to grow jobs in this state - not punish the people working hard to make a living." State Rep. Bill Mitchell, R-Forsyth, couldn't be reached for comment Thursday. Decatur Herald Review Fri, 30 Jul 2010 00:00:00 +0000 http://localhost:3000/news/full_article/119145 Decatur Herald Review SPRINGFIELD - Illinois families who lose a loved one because of a fatal car accident will have a new way to memorialize the victim and the location of the crash under a new state law. The memorial marker program would allow families to purchase signs that would be installed by the Illinois Department of Transportation near the site of the accident. Families already often place informal, unofficial memorials at the site of accidents. If the memorial is small and not distracting, the department generally leaves it alone. The new program signed into law by Gov. Pat Quinn on Wednesday is similar to one already in place for victims of drunken driving accidents. The legislation is Senate Bill 3803. The state's smoking ban has been extended to include private rooms at nursing homes. Legislation signed by Gov. Pat Quinn eliminates the exemption that allowed some nursing homes to offer in-room smoking to residents if certain conditions are met. Under the new law, nursing homes can have a group area set aside for smoking as long as it does not interfere with nonsmoking areas of the facility. The legislation is Senate Bill 851. A new law calls for a task force to plot a plan of action for attacking bed bugs. Acting in response to an increase in complaints about the pests, lawmakers called for a panel of experts to recommend how the state could eradicate them. The group also might recommend how the state could conduct an educational campaign targeting bed bug management. The work must be completed by Dec. 31, 2011. The measure, House Bill 6439, was approved unanimously in the Senate, but was ridiculed by some members of the House as unnecessary. It won approval on an 84-31 vote and was signed into law by Gov. Pat Quinn on Tuesday. Decatur Herald Review Fri, 30 Jul 2010 00:00:00 +0000 http://localhost:3000/news/full_article/119144 Decatur Herald Review SPRINGFIELD - A new law designed to improve the care and safety of residents in Illinois nursing homes has become a campaign issue in a closely watched race for state Senate. On Thursday, Democrat Tim Dudley, a Macon County Board member, slammed his Nov. 2 opponent for voting against the proposal. State Sen. Kyle McCarter, R-Lebanon, was among eight GOP lawmakers who voted "no" on Senate Bill 326 during legislative action this spring. "Sen. McCarter sent a clear message to our seniors by voting against this bill," Dudley said in a prepared statement Thursday. "If I'm elected, I will fight to make sure seniors receive the care they deserve." McCarter said the changes, which include new staffing requirements, will force nursing homes to raise their rates for private pay clients. "The mandatory staffing ratios are completely unfunded," McCarter said. "My opponent sees this as an opportunity to jab me. There's more to this bill than meets the eye." Dudley's comments came as Gov. Pat Quinn signed the legislation into law Thursday while flanked by Attorney General Lisa Madigan, legislative supporters and nursing home advocates. The changes are aimed at a stemming pattern of violence in Illinois nursing homes, which has been linked to the state's practice of housing younger adults with mental illnesses in nursing homes, rather than separate facilities. Dudley and McCarter are vying for the 51st Senate District seat that was vacated by former Senate Minority Leader Frank Watson, R-Greenville, who resigned after suffering a stroke. McCarter was appointed to fill the year left on Watson's term and is now seeking a full term as senator. Dudley said the new law will shield elderly residents from possible abuse and poor living conditions. "Our seniors have worked hard their entire lives, and they deserve our support and respect," Dudley noted. McCarter said smaller nursing homes in the region will be forced to charge higher rates to non-Medicaid residents to comply with the more stringent staffing ratios outlined in the measure. "The cost of doing business will be passed on to loves ones in nursing homes," McCarter said. Decatur Herald Review Fri, 30 Jul 2010 00:00:00 +0000 http://localhost:3000/news/full_article/119143 Sauk Valley News "Make the will of the people the law of the land." - Gov. Pat Quinn With his amendatory veto, adding an open primary to House Bill 4842, Gov. Pat Quinn put those words he so often recites into action. More than four of five Illinois voters expressed their will for the open primary in advisory referendums that dozens of volunteers and I put on township ballots in Lee County and across our state in November 2006. In those referendums, Illinois voters told their elected representatives in no uncertain terms that how they vote in the primary is "none of your business." Quinn's open primary legislation would guarantee voters a secret ballot. Currently, voters must declare publicly whether they are voting Democratic or Republican in the primary, and that choice becomes part of their permanent public voting record. That's why almost no one votes in the primary. This year, 77 percent of us stayed home. Quinn clearly gets it. His opponent, Sen. Bill Brady, does not. Brady voted no when the open primary came before the Illinois Senate last year. Now that Brady is running statewide, he should get on board with the people and support the open primary. The final step in making the will of the people the law of the land is in the hands of the bill's sponsor, Rep. Barbara Flynn Currie, D-Chicago. When the Legislature returns to Springfield in November, Currie should carry out the will of her constituents and the citizens of our state by making a motion to accept Quinn's amendatory veto, and the House and Senate should vote yes, just like more than 80 percent of their constituents did. Sauk Valley News Thu, 29 Jul 2010 00:00:00 +0000 http://localhost:3000/news/full_article/119152 Sauk Valley News Some politicians hope the public judges them on what they say, not what they do. We're increasingly concerned that Gov. Pat Quinn has become one of them. Last August, Quinn signed into law sweeping improvements to the Illinois Freedom of Information Act. Among other things, the revised act requires governments to respond more quickly to information requests, creates a public access counselor to enforce the act, and opens more records to scrutiny, including performance evaluations of all public employees. At the signing ceremony, Quinn remarked: "I think the Freedom of Information Act is indispensable." The definition of indispensable is "absolutely necessary, essential or requisite." Quinn's choice of words should have been a clear signal that he would stand for no dilution or diminishment of FOIA provisions - particularly after recent scandals that plagued Illinois government. However, it's not what politicians say that matters. It's what they do. After the FOIA reforms took effect Jan. 1, Quinn quickly signed a bill to diminish them. He agreed to a new law that exempts from public inspection the performance evaluations of public school teachers, administrators and superintendents. Encouraged by Quinn's quick turnaround, freedom of information foes pushed another bill through the Legislature to exempt the performance evaluations of all public employees from release to the public. FOIA supporters, including this newspaper, urged the governor to veto the bill. On Monday, Quinn made his decision. He issued an amendatory veto that would continue to require the release of performance evaluations of non-school-related public employees, with the exception of law enforcement personnel. Quinn used these words to justify his decision: "If disclosed, these evaluations could be used by criminal suspects or defendants to undermine a police investigation or attack the credibility and integrity of a police officer." Excuse us, but Quinn's decision actually would exempt people who, more than most public employees, should receive the greatest scrutiny. Police officers are (understandably) armed with deadly force. They wield an enormous power to deprive citizens of their liberty - at least temporarily. They have, on more than a few occasions, been shown to abuse that power. If anything, performance evaluations - and disciplinary proceedings - of police officers ought to be subject to greater transparency, not less, than most public employees. That is not an insult to public safety forces. Greater transparency means greater accountability and more credibility. Hiding that information naturally leads to public skepticism about the people in which we put great trust. Now it's up to the Legislature, in the November veto session, to decide whether to accept Quinn's amendatory veto. We note that there has not been a public rush to see public employees' evaluations, and there won't be one. But there will be times in the future when public knowledge of that information, in specific instances, will be vital to the public's understanding of how elected officials and the people they employ have performed in office. Whittling away at public access to government records is the wrong approach for a corruption-plagued state. Quinn should have vetoed the entire bill and stood his ground. Sauk Valley News Thu, 29 Jul 2010 00:00:00 +0000 http://localhost:3000/news/full_article/119151 Chicago Tribune We keep reminding ourselves that this plan to have a special election for U.S. senator on the same day as the regular election for U.S. senator is all about upholding the principle that the people are entitled to elect their U.S. senator. And that this principle is important because the state's Democratic honchos saddled us with Sen. Roland Burris -- after vehemently opposing his appointment by soon-to-be-ex- Gov. Rod Blagojevich -- because they were determined not to let the people elect their own senator. But this whole tortured exercise jumped the shark Monday, when we were faced with the blessedly unlikely prospect that the winner of the special election might be ... Roland Burris. Yikes. Burris says his name belongs on the ballot. Never mind that he chose not to run in the February primary, certain that given the choice, voters wouldn't elect him. Perhaps they'll be eager to vote for him in November if they know he'll go away in January? Burris wants to run as the Democratic candidate to finish the unexpired term, which will last at most 60 days, most of it holiday recess. That puts party leaders on the spot, because they don't want to be seen as rejecting the only African-American currently serving in the Senate. U.S. District Judge John Grady, who was charged with figuring out how to run the special election after an appellate court ruled that the law required one, is inclined to skip the primary, since it would be prohibitively expensive, nearly impossible and just plain stupid. But how to pick the nominees? Attorney General Lisa Madigan had suggested the general election candidates should run in the special election as well. It has a certain Chicago-style appeal -- vote for the same candidate, twice! -- and the candidates were, in fact, chosen by voters in the February primaries. Under that scenario, voters would punch the ballot twice for Democrat Alexi Giannoulias vs. Republican Mark Kirk. Assuming the outcome was the same for both races, our next senator would simply be sworn in several weeks early. Things got more complicated after Burris got into the act. Though he hasn't made a final decision, Grady said it would be "more democratic" to have party leaders pick the candidates, because it would afford Burris the chance to lobby for the nomination. Now Democratic leaders must at least pretend to entertain the possibility of running Burris in the first race and Giannoulias in the second. Whose interests does that serve? We can think of only one person, and his initials are R.B. Wouldn't political life be so much easier if Democratic leaders had just trusted the people to choose their own senator. Copyright ?? 2010, Chicago Tribune Chicago Tribune Thu, 29 Jul 2010 00:00:00 +0000 http://localhost:3000/news/full_article/119142 Chicago Tribune "If things go south, what size suit do you wear?" asked Rod Blagojevich of his nephew in federal court in Chicago. The exchange was overheard by blogger Susan Berger covering Blagojevich's corruption trial, and I've been thinking about that line for some time now. You don't measure a man by his sleeve length or coat size. And you don't measure a state by all the elected officials who leverage our right to their honest service against their lust for power and treasure. But I've been calling him Gov. Dead Meat since the day he was arrested, and with his jury now considering his fate, it's time to step back to consider him in context. If Dead Meat is eventually hauled off to the federal cooler, will things get better in thoroughly corrupt Illinois? No. You'd need an enormous cooler to chill all the political predators in this state. And in the political predator department, Blagojevich is no lion. We've got a few of those. They have entire prides protecting them. Blagojevich was more like some lone hyena, chattering, nervously unsure with the lions out there. Even though he was governor, he was smart enough to understand he didn't have real power. House Speaker Michael Madigan has real power. He runs the legislature, and the Illinois Democrats. He dictates tax policy. He has a law practice that helps reduce taxes for the big-money real estate interests in Chicago who lean Republican, and he's said to be a wealthy man. At the same time, he is a key political ally of the hacks at the county board of tax appeals. The Tribune editorial board calls this conflict "grotesque." But most of us just call it Illinois. Mayor Richard Daley is another pride lion. Think of the guys around him who've gorged on city-related deals in the multi-multi-millions of dollars, like Bridgeport trucking bosses Fred Bruno Barbara and Mike Tadin. And what of his political brains, Tim Degnan and Jeremiah Joyce, who've made fortunes in development, construction supplies, consulting? It's obscene. And don't forget the Daley brothers. Johnny Daley runs the County Board while the ridiculous Todd Stroger gets beaten like the redheaded stepchild. Johnny has made a good living selling insurance to city contractors who sought his brother's love. And don't forget the Daley nephew who was given $70 million in city pension money to invest, even though the mayor said he didn't know about it. Governors are fall guys. But until Madigan and Daley go away, there can't be any real change in the politics of Illinois. It'll still be tribal, run by warlords. Yet we poke sticks through the cage at Dead Meat, and revel in his fall. I figure that much of this media antipathy is a function of how close Blagojevich was to President Barack Obama's real estate fairy, the convicted influence peddler Tony Rezko. Obama is the media's saint. Any one or thing that threatens his halo is suspect. And so, Blagojevich had to become our crazed Rumpelstiltskin. Though we tease and ridicule Blagojevich -- and I've done more than my share -- I find it odd, even grotesque, that Daley and Madigan are spoken of in hushed, almost respectful tones. They can bite. And Blago never had the teeth for it. Meanwhile, the state that is run by Madigan is billions of dollars in debt. The city run by Daley is broke. Compared to these two, Blagojevich is a pimple. But his own mouth is on all those federal wiretaps, and the theme of his own narrative is that he was desperate to use his office to haul in all that "(bleeping) golden" treasure. And after watching him for years, and hearing the secret recordings and other evidence, it's difficult to imagine how he wouldn't be guilty as charged. He is a lawyer, a former prosecutor, a governor, a master communicator. He knew what he was doing. And he promised that he'd change "business as usual" after the corruption of the George Ryan years. The difference between Blagojevich and the puppetmasters is that he tried to do things alone, without buffers, relying instead on strangers, amateurs, hustlers. Early in Blagojevich's term, he instigated a messy, public feud with the man who made him, his father-in-law, Dick Mell. Mell is a throwback, a North Side Democratic ward boss. He's crafty and plays old school patronage politics, but he's also a great fisherman. And he's not some lace curtain phony. So when Blagojevich reached out to his buddy Christopher Kelly to help run his politics and dumped his father-in-law, the other Democrats couldn't trust Blagojevich. He became Dead Meat right then and there. Mell described himself as some dutiful wife who'd been dumped for some hot young babe. He told this to the Sun-Times: "Now he's at the top, and he says, 'What a great man I am,' and she says, 'Wait a second, I remember when you were crying that we needed more money, or you were crying because you thought you'd fail one of the tests.' He with his gigantic ego cannot stand that anymore. So he jettisons that wife. And he gets a new trophy wife. I am the old wife. The new wife is Chris Kelly." Kelly, charged with corruption, committed suicide last summer. The mayor and Madigan still run things. And Dead Meat is alone, perhaps picking out a few nice suits to leave behind to his nephew. jskass@tribune.com Copyright ?? 2010, Chicago Tribune Chicago Tribune Thu, 29 Jul 2010 00:00:00 +0000 http://localhost:3000/news/full_article/119141 Carbondale Southern Illinoisan Our View: Considering the kind of performance we get from our state's legislator, we should be asking them to refund their pay. Have you heard the one about the lawmakers who stood idly by for years as the state marched towards bankruptcy? Or maybe the one about state lawmakers who lived high off the hog as the taxpayers suffered? Sadly, neither story is a joke. Each reflects the bitter reality of life in the once-proud state we call Illinois, which should be stripped of the title "Land of Lincoln." Are there no descendants of Honest Abe willing to launch a defamation suit against the state? Anyone who read Sunday's front page story, "Legislators paid well despite crisis," must have been discouraged by the findings of a report by the Illinois Policy Institute. The bottom line is this: Lawmakers in the most financially bungled states tend to be paid much better than their counterparts in states that are more professionally run. As reported by Mark Fitton, "the Illinois Policy Institute pointed out Illinois state senators and representatives have the fifth-best base pay in the country at nearly $68,000 annually." That's a lot more money than many state residents earn, especially in South-ern Illinois. The lawmakers' base pay is about 47 percent more than the average state resident earns. It's worth noting that average figure is skewed upward by the higher wages paid near Chicago. And this is for part-time work! As we reported earlier in the summer, our legislators spent fewer than 50 days working in Spring-field during the regular meeting of the General Assembly. Sure, there are duties in their home offices, but does anyone believe it amounts to significant toil - especially since many hold other jobs or are professionally engaged. The only states paying lawmakers better than Illinois are California, $95,291; Michigan, $79,650; New York, $79,500; and Penn-sylvania, $78,314. It's worth noting significant budget shortfalls are the common denominator among four of the high-pay states, including Illinois. California is the worst of the worst, with a budget shortfall of 64.5 percent. But Illinois is no model of stewardship with a 40.9 percent budget shortfall. In New York, the shortfall is 38 percent; Pennsylvanis, 23.3 percent; and Michigan, a less-disastrous 12.4 percent. In its report on legislative pay, the Illinois Policy Institute found that the 10 states with the lowest legislator salaries only had budget deficits of 19 percent in their general funds for the last fiscal year. In stark contrast, the 10 states with the highest legislator salaries had budget deficits for the last fiscal year that amounted to 30 percent in their general funds. It may be true that in most aspects of life that you get what you pay for, but legislative pay appears to be a significant and irritating exception. We're paying champagne prices for our lawmakers and they aren't even serving beer! Hard-working state residents, especially those in our region, must find it galling that government work somehow isn't exposed to the performance-based pay that is the standard in private business. Nobody minds paying for peak performance, but for the kind of performance we've been getting from our ruling class we really should be seeking refunds. Feedback: We want to hear what you have to say. Type your thoughts about our editorials by clicking on the "discussion" tab in the online version of this opinion at www.thesouthern.com/news/opinion/ If you want to see your comments in the newspaper, e-mail them directly to gary.metro@thesouthern.com along with your name, address and telephone number. Carbondale Southern Illinoisan Thu, 29 Jul 2010 00:00:00 +0000 http://localhost:3000/news/full_article/119140 Carbondale Southern Illinoisan CARBONDALE - The Democrat running for Illinois State Treasurer says Southern Illinois needs a local branch office. Robin Kelly, currently chief of state for state treasurer Alexi Giannoulias, joined local elected officials Wednesday morning in Carbondale, with a promise to keep the Southern Illinois State Treasurer's Office open if elected in November. Kelly said her opponent, Republican state Sen. Dan Rutherford, wants to shut it down. Rutherford has stated publicly he will close six satellite offices for the state treasurer, citing concerns that maintaining the offices cost too much for the financial times Illinois is in. "Southern Illinois has been ignored for far too long," Kelly said. "By closing our regional offices, my opponent will cut off services to everyone who lives south of I-70 and drive up the cost of doing business. My administration will keep these offices open and continue to do more with less. My opponent will do less, while costing taxpayers more." One of the officials who joined Kelly was state Rep. Brandon Phelps, D-Harrisburg. "Closing the office would be a slap in the face to Southern Illinois," Phelps said. "It is critical for our taxpayers and senior citizens to have exposure and accessibility to constitutional officers because it is tough for them to travel to Chicago and Springfield." Kelly said the satellite office offers local residents and taxing bodies valuable services and saves state taxpayers money because it significantly reduces the travel expenses of staff. The local office is in Mt. Vernon and opened in May 2007 in a rent-free space. It provides several functions, including: Cash Dash searches for walk-in traffic and at community events; support for the 2,280 regional taxing bodies that use the Illinois Funds investment pool; and outreach on interest rate reduction programs that create jobs and purchase homes. Carbondale Southern Illinoisan Thu, 29 Jul 2010 00:00:00 +0000 http://localhost:3000/news/full_article/119139 Carbondale Southern Illinoisan SPRINGFIELD - A proposal aimed at making sure dead people are purged from Illinois' voting rolls will be in legislative purgatory at least until after the November election. For the second time in as many weeks, Gov. Pat Quinn has used his veto pen to rewrite a proposed law. On Tuesday, he wrote new provisions into the dead voter bill to give citizens the opportunity to introduce ethics-related legislation into the General Assembly. "Public participation in government is a founding principle of our democracy," said Quinn, a Democrat. "This amendatory veto will help ensure that the voice of the people of Illinois does not go unnoticed in the General Assembly and at the ballot box." State lawmakers can either accept or reject Quinn's changes. They also could do nothing and the entire bill would die. State Rep. Dan Brady, R-Bloomington, who is not related to state Sen. Bill Brady of Bloomington -- Quinn's GOP opponent in the Nov. 2 election - questioned the governor's move. "I'm not sure I necessarily agree with it," said Brady, who sponsored the original measure regarding dead voters. "This is a little troublesome." As the sponsor of the bill, Brady controls whether it will be called in the fall veto session, when lawmakers gather to decide whether to approve or reject changes to bills by a governor. Brady said the original measure was supposed to make it easier for local election officials to remove deceased voters from their records. The proposal would allow them to tap into the state's electronic death certificate system and compare those names with those on their voting lists. "Most county clerks and voting authorities backed the bill because it would cut down on the amount of time they spend manually purging voter rolls," Brady said. "To me, it makes a lot of sense." His colleagues agreed: The measure was approved unanimously in both chambers. Quinn's rewrite would allow citizens to introduce bills about ethical conduct and campaign finance reform if they are able to collect 100,000 signatures. The House and Senate would then have 15 days to vote on the question. If the General Assembly rejects the idea, the language would be placed on the ballot in the next election. "Voters need a safety valve to ensure that ideas, however inconvenient or unpopular for incumbent officeholders, proceed through the legislative process," Quinn said in a statement. Brady said he could choose to take no action on Quinn's changes and start over on the death records measure with an entirely new bill. "I would like to get the original into law," Brady said. "The governor makes those decisions. Obviously, I don't agree with him." (Kurt Erickson can be reached at kurt.erickson@lee.net or 217-789-0865) Carbondale Southern Illinoisan Thu, 29 Jul 2010 00:00:00 +0000 http://localhost:3000/news/full_article/119138 Carbondale Southern Illinoisan MARION - The Southern Illinois tourism business lost a powerful ally this week, as the Southern Illinois Tourism Development Office laid off its final employee Tuesday and closed its doors. Working for years to promote tourist attractions and businesses within Illinois' southernmost 22 counties, the organization was forced to shut down operations due to major cuts in state funding, on which it heavily relied. Russell Ward, who was the office's executive director and sole employee until Tuesday, spoke on his own behalf Wednesday, saying it was a shame the office will no longer be able to support the region's developing economy. "The board is completely pleased with the job I've done, and I'm very happy with the job I've done," Ward said. "It's unfortunate that it's come to this, but there is no funding." Ward took the job just over a year ago and has put a lot of work into developing and distributing brochures and other materials advertising local events and businesses. Southern Illinois tourism, he said, has come a long way in sharing its unique opportunities without outside regions and cities. While there are several tourism bureaus and city or county-level offices, the state-funded Southern Illinois Tourism Development Office provided a promotional voice for the region as a whole, and where such offices don't exist. "To say that it will be devastating would be overstating it," Ward said. "But there are counties that are represented and they will now have one less voice to help them promote tourism." Also hurting Southern Illinois tourism businesses is the closure of several tourist information centers at interstate rest areas, which helped bring in traffic from Interstates 64, 57 and 24, Ward said. Those that will suffer most from the loss of the regional office are counties or communities without their own tourism promotion offices, he said. Ward gave Hamilton County's McLeansboro Fall Festival as an example. It saw more than 10,000 in attendance last year. Without the office, the event must rely on local advertising for promotion. Having one less voice to reach outside tourists will definitely hurt the bed and breakfast industry to some degree, said Gary Dahmer, owner of the Davie School Inn in Anna. "Any tourism agency that closes down is going to hurt, no matter who you are," Dahmer said. Dahmer's business is included in regional promotions by the Southernmost Illinois Tourism Bureau, which promotes for the southern seven counties, but the Southern Illinois Tourism Development Office helped get the word out to a greater audience, he said. "They helped everybody in the 22-county area and they will be missed, without a doubt," Dahmer said. "I hate to see it go." thomas.barker@thesouthern.com 618-351-5805 Carbondale Southern Illinoisan Thu, 29 Jul 2010 00:00:00 +0000 http://localhost:3000/news/full_article/119137 Daily Southtown Just eight months after Illinois lawmakers grudgingly granted the public formal access to public documents, elected leaders in both the state Senate and House and now, Gov. Pat Quinn, seem determined to chip away at the state's "commitment" to make records easily accessible to the average citizen. Quinn this week declared the public has no right to know whether a local or state police officer is doing his or her job, regardless of whether that officer is exemplary or a layabout, and regardless of the fact that taxpayers pay that officer's salary. Quinn added local and state police to the list of public employees who the government will protect when a taxpayer demands accountability. Quinn and a handful of state representatives and senators seem intent on poking holes in the law, and the assault on the fundamental right of the individual to access public information must stop now. The state's new Freedom of Information Act, which went into effect Jan. 1, spelled out in language even a lawmaker could understand what the law sought to accomplish: "Pursuant to the fundamental philosophy of the American constitutional form of government, it is declared to be the public policy of the State of Illinois that all persons are entitled to full and complete information regarding the affairs of government and the official acts and policies of those who represent them as public officials and public employees consistent with the terms of this Act. Such access is necessary to enable the people to fulfill their duties of discussing public issues fully and freely, making informed political judgments and monitoring government to ensure that it is being conducted in the public interest." The premise of the right to access public documents and information is based on the fact that taxpayers paid for not only the bricks and mortar of a public building, but also the computers, the desks, the files, the documents and the salaries of all the public employees who happen to oversee those public assets as a public employee. Lawmakers first determined the public was not entitled to view the performance evaluations of all public teachers, principals and superintendents when it crafted the new public access law. These individuals who interact with and are in charge of student learning can rest easy knowing all their misdeeds will be hidden from public view or scrutiny, courtesy of the state. Quinn's follow-up move to also block the release of performance evaluations of local and state police means communities with a bad apple officer could be saddled with him or her for decades. Taxpayers will continue to fund that officer, but they'll never know how well he or she actually serves and protects the public. It's clear lawmakers - and state and local police, teachers, principals and superintendents - have a high level of paranoia that the public will find out how their tax dollars are being spent. This fear is palpable and part of the fabric of the culture of Springfield. It's beyond frustrating to see the gains Illinois made toward openness and transparency receded before the first anniversary of the state's new Freedom of Information Act. What a shame. And what a sham. Daily Southtown Thu, 29 Jul 2010 00:00:00 +0000 http://localhost:3000/news/full_article/119136 Carbondale Southern Illinoisan CARBONDALE -- Closing satellite offices in Mount Vernon and five other Illinois cities has become a key component of contention between state treasurer candidates Robin Kelly and state Sen. Dan Rutherford. Kelly, a Matteson Democrat who serves as chief of staff for current Treasurer Alexi Giannoulias, spoke out against closing the offices during a news conference Wednesday morning at Carbondale Civic Center. She claims that opening the satellite offices has saved the treasurer's office $30,000 in travel costs and other expenditures by using rent-free office space and pre-owned office furniture. Rutherford, however, says his office has filed a Freedom of Information Act request asking the treasurer's office to document proof of the savings but has not received a reply. He said these offices have possibly been opened as recently as last month as way to put the treasurer's office's name out in front of voters before the November election. "I think it's a big waste of taxpayer dollars," Rutherford said, saying the treasurer's office isn't a retail-based one like the secretary of state's office, which has justifiable cause for having satellite offices throughout the state. "I have yet to find one person besides her (Kelly's) friends who has a need to go to one of the satellite offices." Rutherford said the state should not be opening treasurer's offices while closing ones for child and family services and health and human services. The state's budget problems have also caused late funding to schools and nursing homes, which could be receiving the additional money Rutherford guesses is actually being used on these new offices. Speaking alongside Kelly, state Rep. Brandon Phelps, D-Harrisburg, said his district is home to a satellite office for Comptroller Dan Hynes, and that has allowed local agencies and organizations a direct connection to state government, which he believes is essential. He supports the localization efforts of expanding the state treasurer's reach. "There's no way we'd be able to help many constituents without the offices there," Phelps said, saying Southern Illinoisans shouldn't be forced to travel to Springfield or Chicago. "To close these satellite offices, Southern Illinois people would be forgotten." Rutherford said a majority of business with the state treasurer's office can be handled online or via telephone. adam.testa@thesouthern.com 618-351-5031 Carbondale Southern Illinoisan Thu, 29 Jul 2010 00:00:00 +0000 http://localhost:3000/news/full_article/119135 Northwest Herald Illinois voters are forced to make a decision before they even cast a vote in primary elections. The state does not employ secret open primaries, which means that you must declare a party affiliation before you are handed a ballot. Your vote is private, but your selection of ballot is not. Gov. Quinn wants to change that. Quinn rewrote legislation last week, in the quest for a system that would provide voters ballots for all political parties. They would decide in private which one to use. "The choice to favor one political party over another is a personal one and should be between a voter and his or her conscience," Quinn wrote in an amendatory veto message to lawmakers, The Associated Press reported. Lawmakers can accept or reject the Democratic governor's amendatory veto. If lawmakers do nothing, the bill dies and the current primary system stays in place. Quinn's effort is positive, and it's an idea we support. Your vote isn't entirely private so long as your party preference is known. That could be a real concern if your employer has strong ties to a party, or if you work for the government. Quinn is hoping to boost voter turnout, and that's a valid point. "Voting is a sacred right, and as long as I am governor, I will do everything within my power to protect each citizen's ability to cast a ballot," Quinn said. "With my recommendation, a voter's partisan preference will no longer be known to others. The decision to cast a primary ballot for one party or another will be strictly a matter of personal choice." The plan doesn't come without a cost. If voters are bringing multiple ballots into the booths with them, that brings a concern about the price of more ballots. Also, it would become more difficult for the parties to track their potential voters. And this isn't the first time such a proposal has been made in Illinois, and it isn't clear that Quinn has support. Illinois Republican Party Chairman Pat Brady questioned why Quinn used his amendatory veto rather than pushing legislation for open primaries during the regular legislative session, the AP reported. But those concerns are outweighed by the benefits. Voters should be rewarded and protected. This would be a positive step in that direction. Northwest Herald Thu, 29 Jul 2010 00:00:00 +0000 http://localhost:3000/news/full_article/119134 Northwest Herald WOODSTOCK - The state will fall far short next year of paying its share of the salaries of the state's attorney and public defender. The Illinois Department of Revenue informed McHenry County earlier this month that "financial problems" - a historic $13 billion deficit - will eliminate a large portion of the state's salary match. The news would not be welcome any time of year, but it comes as the McHenry County Board and its administration hammer out a 2011 budget. "When you talk about erosion in state revenues, that ball rolls downhill, and we're at the bottom of the hill, folks," Finance and Audit Committee Chairman Marc Munaretto, R-Algonquin, said at a Tuesday meeting. A July 13 memo from the department of revenue said that the state can fund only 40 percent of the 87.5 percent it usually does for the state's attorney, and 40 percent of its 66.7 commitment to the public defender's salary. The state will fund 40 percent of its 50 percent share of the supervisor of assessment's salary. Associate County Administrator for Finance Ralph Sarbaugh told the committee that making up the difference for the three officials will cost the county about $176,000 next year. Salaries for both positions also are determined by state statute and based on county population, The state memo also said that it planned to slash by 60 percent the stipends it pays out annually to county sheriffs, treasurers, coroners, auditors and training for assessors and other officials. Those stipends range from $250 for training to $6,500 for holders of countywide office. While county officials Tuesday said they likely would make up the salary differences, stipends are another matter. The county does not pay any portion of them - the state pays them to elected officials to help pay for state-mandated work. Northwest Herald Thu, 29 Jul 2010 00:00:00 +0000 http://localhost:3000/news/full_article/119133 Northwest Herald An amendatory veto by Gov. Pat Quinn may allow evaluations of many public employees to remain open to the public. Quinn on Monday scaled back House Bill 5154, which sought to exempt evaluations of all state public employees, to exempt only state and local law enforcement. He said in his Monday veto message that the bill went too far, and that the new and improved Illinois Freedom of Information Act that took effect Jan. 1 needed "time to work without significant amendments." "This exemption is a departure from groundbreaking legislation that I approved just last year, making our state's open information laws among the more robust in the country," Quinn wrote. The General Assembly has the opportunity to override the veto when it convenes in November after the election. Evaluations of teachers and school administrators already are exempt - lawmakers and Quinn approved the measure within weeks of the new FOIA taking effect as part of an effort to get federal Race to the Top education funding. Lawmakers approved the new FOIA last year in the months after the arrest, impeachment and indictment of former Gov. Rod Blagojevich. The bill, drafted by Attorney General Lisa Madigan and good-government groups, strengthens an open records law that critics called weak and extremely easy to abuse. It shortens the time that governments have to respond to FOIA requests from seven days to five, empowers the attorney general's public access counselor with authority to enforce the law, and for the first time imposes civil penalties for governments that willingly violate it. The new FOIA also requires governments to get permission from Madigan's office before citing exemptions for personal privacy and preliminary drafts of reports - transparency advocates cite both exemptions as the most frequently abused. Reaction to Quinn's veto came along predictable lines. Don Craven, general counsel for the Illinois Press Association, of which the Northwest Herald is a member, called Quinn's veto "half a loaf." He said he was pleased that Quinn vetoed a blanket exemption for all public employees, but said IPA opposed exempting law enforcement. Quinn wrote in his veto message that law enforcement evaluations, if disclosed, could be used by criminal suspects to undermine investigations and attack investigating officers' integrity. "There's a strong argument to be made that the public employees who carry guns should be the ones that we know most about," Craven said. But Anders Lindall, spokesman for the American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees Council 31, said having open evaluations would degrade worker morale and allow evaluations to be misused. Council 31 represents about 75,000 public workers throughout state and local government. Lindall cited a FOIA request filed in May by the Illinois Policy Institute, a conservative think tank, for evaluations of all state employees. "This was common-sense legislation that had strong support from members of both parties and both houses of the Legislature, and would have the effect of preserving the confidentiality of personal information and private records of public service workers," Lindall said. The General Assembly would need a three-fifths majority in both houses to override Quinn's veto. House Bill 5154 passed the Senate, 45-9, and passed the House, 70-39. Seventy-one votes are needed in the House for a three-fifths majority. All three of McHenry County's state representatives, and Sen. Dan Duffy, R-Lake Barrington, voted against the bill. Sen. Pamela Althoff, R-McHenry, had voted against it in the Senate Labor Committee but voted for it on the Senate floor. Northwest Herald Thu, 29 Jul 2010 00:00:00 +0000 http://localhost:3000/news/full_article/119132 Chicago Sun Times Impeached Illinois Gov. Rod Blagojevich was lost in the labyrinth of power while projecting an image of a politician fighting for the underdog. At the end, Blagojevich resembled a Latin American caudillo in Illinois who was blinded by a parallel reality of his own creation and entangled in the trappings of political power: the state plane, the expensive clothes, the yes men carrying his briefcase, the security detail, the advisers telling him what he wanted to hear, the scheming behind closed doors. Caudillo is the Spanish term used to describe a charismatic populist leader in Latin America. It also refers pejoratively to a demagogue. Blagojevich became a tragic figure in a soap opera, complete with a very public family feud, who mistakenly believed he was untouchable and deserved greater and better things. In his last days in power, he thought he had a "f - - - - - - golden thing," the Senate seat, to transcend a reality that was crashing down on him. In a bizarre moment of the Blagojevich saga, the ex governor spoke in Spanish to a group of reporters outside his house hours after he was impeached. Blagojevich had just finished reacting to his impeachment when he climbed the steps of his home and turned to speak again to the media. "One more thing, to the people of the Latino community," he said. "Gracias por su apoyo. Juntos haremos nuestro estado mucho mejor para todos. Si se puede!" (Thanks for your support. Together we will make our state better for everyone. Yes we can!) As he did so many times for the Spanish-language media, Blagojevich delivered a populist message of optimism, finishing with a phrase coined by the legendary Cesar Chavez, the late United Farm Workers union leader. The Spanish phrase "si se puede" has become part of the national political lingo. To the end, Blagojevich continued to talk the populist talk to Latinos, ignoring the fact that he had just been impeached, acting as if he had the power to change the lives of millions of people in Illinois. He frequently presented himself to Latino audiences as "hijo de inmigrantes" (son of immigrants). He convinced Latinos -- many of them first-time voters -- to help elect him twice by running on a pro-immigrant platform that held out promises to the poor and disenfranchised. He raised the minimum wage twice and launched a free health-care program for all children in Illinois, regardless of their immigration status. Blagojevich also boasted that he hired a record number of Latinos into state positions. As a good politician, he walked in ethnic parades, posed for photos with community leaders and beauty queens and kissed many a baby in the crowd. But, as we now know, the caudillo of Illinois was spending hundreds of thousands of dollars on shirts, suits and ties while presumably fighting for the needy, the old, the young and the immigrant. Sooner, rather than later, reality overcame the image Blagojevich had worked so hard to project. As the wiretaps showed, he became frustrated with the dwindling support from the people of Illinois. The now infamous quote from the wiretaps revealed the real Blagojevich: "I f - - - - - - busted my ass and pissed people off and gave your grandmother a free f - - - - - - ride on a bus. OK? I gave your f - - - - - - baby a chance to have health care. And what do I get for that? Only 13 percent of you all out there think I'm doing a good job. So f - - - all of you." These are sharp words from a governor who pretended to be guarding the interests of the people of Illinois. Guilty or innocent of the corruption charges he faces, Blagojevich is a man who thought being governor meant looking sharp while delivering a 30-second sound bite. It's a lesson every politician, hoping for support from Latinos or any other voter, needs to take to heart. Chicago Sun Times Thu, 29 Jul 2010 00:00:00 +0000 http://localhost:3000/news/full_article/119131 Chicago Sun Times During the waning days of the Blagojevich trial, my mind flashed on an e-mail some guy sent me many months back about the street violence in the city and the problem of witnesses being unwilling to give information to police. I can't remember what prompted his e-mail, but I believe it was some column I'd written from a typical white middle-class point of view wringing my hands about how awful it was that people wouldn't step up to do the right thing and tell what they knew -- in sharp contrast to the insightful examination of the same topic provided this week by the Sun-Times' Mark Konkol and Frank Main in their "59 Hours" special report. What brought this to mind now was that the letter writer's point back then had been to ask how I could expect folks in the neighborhoods to put themselves at risk when they look around and see for themselves that nobody does the right thing any more, especially not our political leaders. Nobody steps up, he wrote. At the time, I rejected outright the notion that one had anything do with the other. Surely, the "don't snitch" street culture bore no valid comparison to even the sleazy Illinois political culture. Now I'm not so sure. It was the evidence at the Blagojevich trial that changed my perspective. This is not about the ex-governor or his co-defendant brother Robert. You know my opinions of them. I'm talking about all the other actors in this drama, from the Blagojevich team in the governor's office to his outside political advisers to the "victims" of his alleged extortion and bribery schemes. Where are the heroes of the Blagojevich investigation? Who are the individuals who stepped up voluntarily to inform federal agents of this white-collar "crime spree" that U.S. Attorney Patrick Fitzgerald so passionately spoke about on the day of the ex-governor's arrest? If there is anyone who covered themselves in glory here besides the hard-working federal agents conducting the investigation, please point them out to me. We're told it was former Blagojevich pal John Wyma who alerted federal authorities to the governor's 2008 year-end fund-raising frenzy and opened the door for wiretaps on the governor's phones and inside his political office. Does that make Wyma a hero? Hardly. Wyma made his decision to cooperate at a time he had been called before a federal grand jury investigating other aspects of the Blagojevich scandal involving the Illinois Health Facilities Authority. Wyma was a close Blagojevich friend who ran his congressional office and served as political director in his first campaign for governor. He used that relationship to become the main go-to lobbyist for those trying to influence the Blagojevich administration, making millions of dollars by exploiting his connections. Should we be thankful he cooperated when the time came? Sure. But that doesn't make him one of the good guys. You already know that the trial showed that none of the governor's top aides made any real attempt to stop his alleged extortion schemes. Nobody went to the FBI or to the Illinois inspector general. They didn't get tough with him. Either they didn't recognize his tactics had crossed the legal line, or they were more concerned about continuing to draw their state paycheck. But consider the "victims" as well. Neither racetrack owner John Johnston nor those road-building executives in search of tollway work went running to the feds to seek protection from Blagojevich's efforts to pry campaign donations from them. At the time of the governor's arrest, they obviously were still holding out hope they'd get what they wanted without coughing up the money. No sense rocking the boat. Even Children's Memorial Hospital CEO Patrick Magoon, the guy most clearly on the side of the angels in this affair, didn't go out of his way to help catch the governor in the act. Magoon consulted a criminal attorney to advise him how to handle what he perceived as an improper attempt by the Blagojevich crew to collect campaign contributions in exchange for increasing state aid to benefit the hospital. Did the lawyer advise Magoon to go to the feds? No, he told him to quit taking phone calls from the governor's team. The strategy clearly was to sit tight and see if Blagojevich came through on his promise to authorize the funding. I'm not trying to blame the victims. The point is that the no-snitch culture transcends the streets. It's in our corporate boardrooms and under the Capitol dome. And let's be honest with ourselves. If Blagojevich wasn't so obviously radioactive in November 2008, the Obama administration may very well have tried to cut a deal with him for that Senate seat. We're so lucky they didn't. Chicago Sun Times Thu, 29 Jul 2010 00:00:00 +0000 http://localhost:3000/news/full_article/119130 Belleville News Democrat SPRINGFIELD, Ill. -- Illinois state officials are urging parents to ensure their children's immunizations are updated before school starts next month. Officials for the Illinois State Board of Education and Department of Public Health say August is "National Immunization Awareness Month." Public Health Director Dr. Damon Arnold says vaccines are a cost-effective way to prevent disease and death. * Link: http://www.cdc.gov/vaccines/events/niam/default.htm * Link: http://www.idph.state.il.us/about/shots.htm Vaccines can prevent such diseases as polio, measles, mumps, whooping cough and diphtheria that cause children to miss school and parents to miss work. In serious cases such illnesses can be fatal. The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention say children get most immunizations before age 2. But kids ages 4 to 6 and entering kindergarten needs several booster shots. Boosters might be necessary between ages 12 and 15. --- Online: Illinois Department of Public Health: http://www.idph.state.il.us/about/shots.htm U.S. CDC: http://www.cdc.gov/vaccines/events/niam/default.htm Read more: http://www.bnd.com/2010/07/29/1345401/state-officials-urge-parents-to.html#ixzz0v55dOXeS Belleville News Democrat Thu, 29 Jul 2010 00:00:00 +0000 http://localhost:3000/news/full_article/119129 Belleville News Democrat Friday will be the last day for residents to complete by phone their 2010 Census questionnaire if they think they may have been overlooked. More than 130,000 interviews have been completed via the U.S. Census toll-free line at (866) 872-6868. U.S. Census Bureau Director Robert M. Groves urged residents who believe they did not receive a form, who did not mail it back or have not been contacted by a census enumerator to call the number by Friday to ensure they are included in the 2010 Census. For more than three months, individuals who believed they weren't included in the census were invited to call the toll-free assistance lines to provide their information. Staff will be answering the phone from 8 a.m. to 9 p.m. and census workers can communicate in English, Spanish, Chinese, Korean, Vietnamese and Russian. July 30 is the last day to take an interview over the toll free line to leave enough time for Census Bureau professionals to process the data and ensure that residents are counted in the right place and prepare the state population counts by the statutory deadline of Dec. 31. _________________________ Chicagoans can call 311 to be counted in Census CHICAGO -- Chicago is offering one last chance to residents who haven't yet been counted in this year's Census. Residents who call 311 by Friday can be transferred to the Census Bureau Telephone Questionnaire Assistance line. As with the paper questionnaire, callers will be asked 10 questions. According to the Census Bureau, 63 percent of Chicagoans mailed in their questionnaires by the end of April. The city's mail participation rate in 2000 was 58 percent for the same time period. Census data is used to determine how much federal funding for different programs that the city receives. Chicago officials say every resident who isn't counted equals a loss of $19,000 in funding over 10 years. Read more: http://www.bnd.com/2010/07/29/1345400/chicagoans-can-call-311-to-be.html#ixzz0v552ID00 Belleville News Democrat Thu, 29 Jul 2010 00:00:00 +0000 http://localhost:3000/news/full_article/119128 Belleville News Democrat EDWARDSVILLE -- While the Southern Illinois University president has asked the campuses to consider furloughs next year, SIUE will probably not have to implement them. SIU legislative liaison Dave Gross confirmed that President Glenn Poshard has asked all campuses of the SIU system to put together a furlough plan on paper, and to see if they will be able to balance next year's budget without furloughs or layoffs. For Edwardsville, the answer is, "probably." For Carbondale, it's "probably not." Gross called it a "contingency plan" in case of further budget cuts. It is unrelated to the cash-flow issues with the state's failure to make its payments, he said -- those issues were largely resolved with the new ability to borrow against future tax receipts. But in the current budget proposals, the university will see a 7 percent cut in its state appropriations, or about $14 million. Of that, Edwardsville's campus will lose $4.2 million. "With the state's fiscal situation, we need to be prepared and ready for further cuts," Gross said. However, SIUE is unlikely to actually need the furloughs, Gross said. While Carbondale has had decreasing enrollment for several years, SIUE's enrollment has continued to rise each year. "Any furlough action will probably wait until they see what the enrollment numbers are in the fall," Gross said. Carbondale is already negotiating with its various unions for furloughs, Gross said. Edwardsville's budget committees will meet in August to develop a plan. "At this point, Edwardsville is not planning to implement a furlough plan," Gross said. From a legal standpoint, Gross said, it is easier to lay off employees than to furlough them. Other state universities have already had furloughs: at the University of Illinois, he said, classes were canceled when professors were forced to take furloughs. Exactly how the plan would be implemented at SIU has yet to be determined, he said. "We have contemplated the idea of holiday weekends being extended by a day or two, so there would be less disruption," Gross said. "That's one of the significant problems for furloughing faculty; they need to be in the classroom." The SIU board of trustees will meet to vote on the new budget in September, at which time the furlough plans will be completed, Gross said. Contact reporter Elizabeth Donald at edonald@bnd.com or 239-2501. Read more: http://www.bnd.com/2010/07/29/1345324/furloughs-for-siue-considered.html#ixzz0v54cZWRY Belleville News Democrat Thu, 29 Jul 2010 00:00:00 +0000 http://localhost:3000/news/full_article/119127 St. Louis Post Dispatch CHICAGO (AP) -- As jurors retired to deliberate Wednesday in the corruption trial of former Illinois Gov. Rod Blagojevich, they entered a cocoon of privacy not all jurors in high-profile cases enjoy. No e-mail messages from "the King of Japan," no fake letters from President Barack Obama postmarked in Iowa, no expletive-laden voicemail messages on their phones, like the ones that Judge James B. Zagel has received. No chance of Facebook postings using their names, either. The ubiquity of e-mail and social networking and the Internet Age-urge for everyone to express their opinions were among the reasons Zagel cited when he prohibited the release of the 12 primary and five alternate jurors' names until after the verdict in the trial of the disgraced governor. Withholding juror names is more common in trials involving alleged mobsters or terrorists, for security reasons, and media organizations contested Zagel's ruling. But the judge maintained that the jurors' ability to impartially decide an "inarguably" high-profile case could be impaired by unsolicited interruptions. "His arguments for not releasing the names make perfect sense," said Chicago attorney Michael Helfand, reflecting sympathy with Zagel's decision in legal circles. "People could Google your name, call you - or connect with you on Facebook. This trial is enough of a disruption to (jurors') lives. Why disrupt it further?" There's also the danger someone could alter a juror's ability to think clearly, Zagel said recently. If jurors "picked up a phone and heard a spewing of profanity - that could have a mood-altering impact," he said. In the judge's final ruling, he acknowledged that inappropriate contact of jurors is not a new issue, but said the risk was greater because of the "astounding" pervasiveness of e-mail and social media. So, unlike in previous trials - such as that of former Illinois Gov. George Ryan, Blagojevich's predecessor - most of what's known about the jurors determining Blagojevich's future is their occupations and a few details gleaned from the judge's questions during jury selection. There's a math teacher, a retired public health official, a former Marine injured serving in the Middle East, a Navy veteran, an avid marathon runner and a man born in a U.S. internment camp for Japanese-Americans during World War II. They will decide between the Blagojevich portrayed by prosecutors as a greedy, smart political schemer determined to use his power to enrich himself throughout his administration and the man defense attorneys characterized as an insecure bumbler who talked too much and had terrible judgment - but never did anything to enrich himself. The ousted governor, 53, has pleaded not guilty to 24 counts, including trying to sell or trade an appointment to Obama's vacated Senate seat for a Cabinet post, private job or campaign cash. If convicted, he could face up to $6 million in fines and a sentence of 415 years in prison, though he is sure to get much less time under federal guidelines. His brother, Nashville, Tenn., businessman Robert Blagojevich, 54, has also pleaded not guilty to taking part in that alleged scheme. After Zagel gave jurors instructions Wednesday morning about their deliberations, two wire carts full of exhibits entered into evidence during the nearly two-month trial were wheeled into the jury room. That includes transcripts of the FBI wiretap tapes at the heart of the prosecution's case. The jury's first orders of business were to elect a foreman and organize their deliberations. They decided to deliberate 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. on weekdays, courtroom deputy Donald Walker said. What they do next is up to them. They could start by simply gauging feelings around the room, or reviewing jury instructions, or perhaps setting aside the ousted governor's case and starting with his co-defendant brother's, who face fewer counts. Media scrutiny in the Ryan case helped expose two jurors who had apparently lied on their jury questionnaires at the start of the trial, leading to their dismissals during deliberations. When an attorney representing the media alluded to that at a recent hearing about releasing the jurors' names, Zagel bristled. "I reject categorically there have been many trials like this one," Zagel shot back. "This is, I think, the largest one I have ever seen - and it's not even close." Prosecutors echoed that in urging Zagel not to release the names. "Crackpots are everywhere," said Debra Bonamici, speaking for the prosecution. "But it's the high-profile nature of this case that brings them out of the woodwork." Zagel says he's more worried about a pervasive belief among Americans that "their opinion somehow counts" on any subject - and that non-crackpots couldn't help trying to persuade jurors with reasoned argument. He said a bigger risk in the Blagojevich case was not only the trial's high visibility but that so many people felt a personal link to the twice-elected governor - either as one-time constituents or as viewers who watched him as a reality TV contestant or other TV shows. "We are dealing here with perhaps millions of people who voted for the defendant, who may feel betrayed by the defendant," Zagel said. "This is not ... something that happened to someone else." ?? 2010 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed. Learn more about our Privacy Policy and Terms of Use. St. Louis Post Dispatch Thu, 29 Jul 2010 00:00:00 +0000 http://localhost:3000/news/full_article/119126 St. Louis Post Dispatch Arizona is preparing to ask an appeals court to lift a judge's ruling that put most of the state's immigration law on hold in a key first-round victory for the federal government in a fight that may go to the U.S. Supreme Court. Gov. Jan Brewer called Wednesday's decision by U.S. District Judge Susan Bolton "a bump in the road" and vowed to appeal. Paul Senseman, a spokesman for Brewer, said Arizona would ask the 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in San Francisco later Thursday to lift Bolton's preliminary injunction and to expedite its consideration of the state's appeal. Bolton indicated the government has a good chance at succeeding in its argument that federal immigration law trumps state law. But the key sponsor of Arizona's law, Republican Rep. Russell Pearce, said the judge was wrong and predicted the state would ultimately win the case. Opponents of the law said the ruling sends a strong message to other states hoping to replicate the law. "Surely it's going to make states pause and consider how they're drafting legislation and how it fits in a constitutional framework," Dennis Burke, the U.S. attorney for Arizona, told The Associated Press. "The proponents of this went into court saying there was no question that this was constitutional, and now you have a federal judge who's said, 'Hold on, there's major issues with this bill.'" He added: "So this idea that this is going to be a blueprint for other states is seriously in doubt. The blueprint is constitutionally flawed." In her temporary injunction, Bolton delayed the most contentious provisions of the law, including a section that required officers to check a person's immigration status while enforcing other laws. She also barred enforcement of parts requiring immigrants to carry their papers and banned illegal immigrants from soliciting employment in public places _ a move aimed at day laborers that congregate in large numbers in parking lots across Arizona. The judge also blocked officers from making warrantless arrests of suspected illegal immigrants. "Requiring Arizona law enforcement officials and agencies to determine the immigration status of every person who is arrested burdens lawfully present aliens because their liberty will be restricted while their status is checked," said Bolton, a Clinton administration appointee who was assigned the seven lawsuits filed against Arizona over the law. Other provisions that were less contentious were allowed to take effect Thursday, including a section that bars cities in Arizona from disregarding federal immigration laws. The 11th-hour ruling came just as police were preparing to begin enforcement of a law that has drawn international attention and revived the national immigration debate in a year when Democrats are struggling to hold on to seats in Congress. The ruling was anxiously awaited in the U.S. and beyond. About 100 protesters in Mexico City who had gathered at the U.S. Embassy broke into applause when they learned of the ruling via a laptop computer. Mariana Rivera, a 36-year-old from Zacatecas, Mexico, who is living in Phoenix on a work permit, said she heard about the ruling on a Spanish-language news program. "I was waiting to hear because we're all very worried about everything that's happening," said Rivera, who phoned friends and family with the news. "Even those with papers, we don't go out at night at certain times there's so much fear (of police). You can't just sit back and relax." More demonstrators opposed to the law planned to gather Thursday, with the Los Angeles-based National Day Laborer Organizing Network and the immigrant-rights group Puente saying they would march from the state Capitol. Demonstrations also were planned for outside Maricopa County Sheriff Joe Arpaio's office, said activist Salvador Reza. Lawmakers or candidates in as many as 18 states say they want to push similar measures when their legislative sessions start up again in 2011. Some lawmakers pushing the legislation said they would not be daunted by the ruling and plan to push ahead in response to what they believe is a scourge that needs to be tackled. Arizona is the nation's epicenter of illegal immigration, with more than 400,000 undocumented residents. The state's border with Mexico is awash with smugglers and drugs that funnel narcotics and immigrants throughout the U.S., and the influx of illegal migrants drains vast sums of money from hospitals, education and other services. "We're going to have to look and see," said Idaho state Sen. Monty Pearce, a second cousin of Russell Pearce and a supporter of immigration reform in his state. "Nobody had dreamed up, two years ago, the Arizona law, and so everybody is looking for that crack where we can get something done, where we can turn the clock back a little bit and get our country back." Kris Kobach, the University of Missouri-Kansas City law professor who helped write the law and train Arizona police officers in immigration law, conceded the ruling weakens the force of Arizona's efforts to crack down on illegal immigrants. He said it will likely be a year before a federal appeals court decides the case. "It's a temporary setback," Kobach said. "The bottom line is that every lawyer in Judge Bolton's court knows this is just the first pitch in a very long baseball game." In the meantime, other states like Utah will likely take up similar laws, possibly redesigned to get around Bolton's objections. "The ruling ... should not be a reason for Utah to not move forward," said Utah state Rep. Carl Wimmer, a Republican from Herriman City, who said he plans to co-sponsor a bill similar to Arizona's next year and wasn't surprised it was blocked. "For too long the states have cowered in the corner because of one ruling by one federal judge." The core of the government's case is that federal immigration law trumps state law _ an issue known as "pre-emption" in legal circles and one that dates to the founding of America. In her ruling, Bolton pointed out five portions of the law where she believed the federal government would likely succeed on its claims. The Justice Department argued in court that the law was unconstitutional and that allowing states to push their own measures would lead to a patchwork of immigration laws across the nation and disrupt a carefully balanced approach crafted by Congress. Arizona argues that the federal government has failed to secure the border, and that it has a right to take matters into its own hands. For now, the federal government has the upper-hand in the dispute, by virtue of the strength of its arguments and the precedent on the pre-emption issue. The Bush administration successfully used the pre-emption argument to win consumer product cases, and judges in other jurisdictions have looked favorably on the argument in immigration disputes. "This is clearly a significant victory for the Justice Department and a defeat for the sponsors of this law," said Peter Spiro, a constitutional law professor at Temple University who has studied immigration law extensively. "They will not win on this round of appeals. They'll get a shot after a trial and a final ruling by Judge Bolton." ___ Associated Press Writers Paul Davenport and Jacques Billeaud contributed to this report. St. Louis Post Dispatch Thu, 29 Jul 2010 00:00:00 +0000 http://localhost:3000/news/full_article/119125 Carbondale Southern Illinoisan CHICAGO - Rod Blagojevich's fate was in the hands of jurors Wednesday as they began deciding whether the impeached Illinois governor tried to sell an appointment to President Barack Obama's former Senate seat and schemed to use his political power for personal gain. Jurors, weighing evidence against the second Illinois governor in a row to be charged with corruption, received lengthy instructions from the judge on how their deliberations should be conducted. Prosecutors loaded two carts of exhibits they introduced at the trial that a marshal would wheel into the jury room. "I'm not expecting" a speedy verdict, Judge James B. Zagel said before jurors entered the courtroom. After jurors left to begin their work, Blagojevich appeared relaxed. One elderly spectator walked over and hugged him, also handing him a piece of candy. He and his co-defendant brother, Robert Blagojevich, have rarely been seen speaking to each other during the trial. But they stood shoulder to shoulder in front of Zagel to say they both wanted to be exempt from having to come to court each time jurors have a question for the judge. The judge granted it. During the trial, prosecutors portrayed Blagojevich as a greedy, smart political schemer determined to use his power to enrich himself throughout his administration, and who saw the opportunity to appoint Obama's successor as the chance of a lifetime to get a lucrative and well-paying job in the administration. By contrast, Blagojevich's own attorney characterized him as an insecure bumbler who talked too much and had terrible judgment about who to trust - but never did anything to enrich himself. Jurors ended the first day of deliberations and left around 5 p.m. Wednesday, courtroom deputy Donald Walker said. He said they'll deliberate 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. on weekdays. In more than an hour of dry legal language, and without any of the passion that the attorneys displayed in their closing arguments, Zagel not only explained the charges to the jury and what factors they were to consider but laid out the hurdles they must overcome to reach a verdict. Zagel also told jurors not to guess about how a person would be punished, that it was the judge's job to sentence a defendant. The ousted governor, 53, has pleaded not guilty to 24 counts, including trying to sell or trade an appointment to Obama's vacated Senate seat for a Cabinet post, private job or campaign cash. If convicted, he could face up to $6 million in fines and a sentence of 415 years in prison, though he is sure to get much less time under federal guidelines. His brother, Nashville, Tenn., businessman Robert Blagojevich, 54, has also pleaded not guilty. Carbondale Southern Illinoisan Thu, 29 Jul 2010 00:00:00 +0000 http://localhost:3000/news/full_article/119124 St. Louis Post Dispatch Even for Illinois, the paragon of political peculiarity, this one is weird. It is virtually certain that the state's voters will elect two people to the same U.S. Senate seat in the Nov. 2 election. The winners could be the same person, or candidates from different parties or even different candidates from the same party. As required by a recent federal court decision, one will serve just until Jan. 3. The other will serve from Jan. 3 to early 2017. As crazy as this sounds, it could have been much worse. Lawyers and the judge in the middle of this mess appear to be forging a path that would spare taxpayers the cost of holding a special election, or two, at upwards of $20 million each. And despite a natural inclination to blame former Gov. Rod Blagojevich on general principle, it's not really his fault. The roots reach back two years, to the election of Sen. Barack Obama as president. The right to fill the Senate vacancy fell to Blagojevich, who would later be accused in federal court of trying to sell it for a bribe. He denies it, and the jury on that is out -- literally. Just before the tainted Blagojevich was impeached and tossed from office in early 2009, he even considering naming himself to the Senate, according to FBI surveillance recordings. Instead, the governor picked Roland Burris, a former state attorney general who reinforced his lightweight political reputation with a fawning acceptance of the appointment that other Democrats felt was too tainted to touch. Sated by the title and perhaps aware of his scant chance of election, Burris did not file for a full term in the Feb. 2, 2010, primary. Democrats nominated state Comptroller Alexi Giannoulias that day, and Republicans chose U.S. Rep. Mark Kirk. So far, so good. Lurking in the background was an activist lawsuit insisting that the 17th Amendment to the U.S. Constitution, while allowing a temporarily appointed senator, demands a special election eventually. The state fought the suit, as I presume Gov. Pat Quinn was not eager to set up the potential for $40 million worth of special primary and general elections. A federal judge ruled that the 17th Amendment does indeed require an election, and an appellate court recently affirmed it. Both sides now seem to agree on holding the special vote along with the regular election on Nov. 2, presumably adding only the cost of extra ink on the ballot. Details were still being worked out this week, but everyone also seems to lean toward letting the parties' leaders name their nominees, with independents accessing the ballot by gathering 25,000 signatures. The law is the law, but this is still folly. Although the term would be for two months, the temporary senator might not even get seated for a couple of weeks. Presumably, the chamber will be in recess through the holiday period, until new members are sworn in Jan. 3. Burris could have handled that extra month or two, and predictably is talking about seeking the nomination to do just that. But the Democratic Party surely won't support it. Although there is no incumbency advantage in winning the short term, an early inauguration would provide a winner of both elections with extra seniority, something that's big currency in the Senate. Much more significant is a potential impact on the strict per-election limits applied to financial contributions to candidates for a federal office. Would Kirk and Giannoulias, if running for two elections simultaneously, be eligible to accept double contributions from donors? At least some pundits feel pretty certain about it. Given the way those two are already bashing each other (for example, Giannoulias on discrepancies in Kirk's military record, and Kirk on claims that Giannoulias helped finance gangsters with his failed family bank), I'm wincing at how many more TV commercials that extra cash could buy. Now, you didn't hear it from me, but consider this bizarre scenario: Blagojevich is acquitted by a jury in time to pass petitions, get on the special ballot and win a month or two in the very Senate seat that was at the heart of his legal troubles in the first place. Fantasy? Of course it is. But then, is anything really too fantastic to happen in Illinois politics? St. Louis Post Dispatch Thu, 29 Jul 2010 00:00:00 +0000 http://localhost:3000/news/full_article/119123 State Journal Register Illinois' chronic budget problems have become a significant challenge in efforts to attract companies and jobs to the city, top executives at the Greater Springfield Chamber of Commerce said Wednesday. At the same time, relations with state economic development agencies have improved since the ouster of former Gov. Rod Blagojevich. "It has a very direct impact on what we're able to accomplish in attracting businesses to Springfield and Sangamon County," Chamber executive vice president Erich Bloxdorf told a meeting of The State Journal-Register editorial board. Bloxdorf said prospective companies are concerned about higher taxes, but are even more concerned the problem is getting worse. "It's one thing to have a state budget crisis if you've got a specific plan to address that. There's just too much uncertainty," he said. Chamber president and CEO Gary Plummer said relationships with state agencies have improved since the Blagojevich administration. "A lot of the things we saw the first couple of years I was here, while he (Blagojevich) was in office, seemed to be a little more political or public-relations oriented, and didn't have much substance, whereas the current administration is trying to be more responsive," said Plummer. Tim Landis can be reached at 788-1536. Copyright 2010 The State Journal-Register. Some rights reserved State Journal Register Thu, 29 Jul 2010 00:00:00 +0000 http://localhost:3000/news/full_article/119122 St. Louis Post Dispatch A clandestine team of technical advisers is in town to kick the tires on St. Louis' bid to host the 2012 Democratic National Convention. But it's an open secret to everyone -- including those who will attend a downtown concert tonight hoping to gin up possible convention volunteers. The not-so-veiled inspectors will be guided by political and business luminaries as they tour the venues, accommodations, "optics" (is it good on TV?), atmosphere, transportation and hospitality that made St. Louis one of four finalists for the DNC gathering. The convention competition is playing out in the newspapers of the would-be host cities. The Star-Tribune editorial page in Minneapolis promoted its city's cause with an air of Scandinavian-American modesty: "We're Minnesotans, after all. A wide grin and firm handshake are about as demonstrative of a hearty welcome as our innate reserve allows. Minnesotans aren't boastful people -- so visitors can safely take all the praise they heard the locals utter about the Twin Cities and double it for accuracy." The Charlotte, N.C., Observer's commentary page, on the other hand, went the "non-partisan" route. Former North Carolina Gov. Jim Martin and Charlotte Mayor Richard Vinroot wrote that they're "proud Republicans" but also "proud advocates of Charlotte and North Carolina" who "believe that bringing the 2012 Democratic National Convention to Charlotte represents an unprecedented economic development opportunity." At the Plain Dealer in Cleveland, meanwhile, a news blog took a pragmatic approach -- agreeing that a Cleveland convention would be a "symbolic statement about the need to boost the economies of older manufacturing cities that are hard hit by the recession and foreclosures." St. Louis' bid has become fodder for Politico, official Washington's inside-the-beltway newspaper and website, which reported earlier this week that the St. Louis campaign is based on "a simple theory for how to win: nothing succeeds like an excess of enthusiasm." Indeed, St. Louis' bid has solid backing from officials and leaders across the region, including St. Louis Cardinals President Bill DeWitt III, Urban League President James Buford, SEIU Vice President Nancy Cross, Monsanto CEO Hugh Grant, Washington University Chancellor Mark S. Wrighton and Post-Dispatch President and Publisher Kevin D. Mowbray. Tonight, the phantom inspection team is expected at Kiener Plaza for a rally featuring homegrown rock legend Chuck Berry and a "mystery guest" as headliners. Landing the national convention would provide a big stage on which to showcase the city's striking revitalization, to say nothing of being a nice piece of business. Denver officials estimated a regional economic impact of $266 million from the 2008 Democratic convention. In the end, national political considerations will determine the convention's site -- specifically, which battleground state represents the wisest investment of a convention buck. President Barack Obama is expected to make the call sometime after the mid-term elections. What Politico might view as "excess of enthusiasm" actually embodies the city's top qualification: St. Louis is a city of hope, a resilient community on the move even during a prolonged economic recession. St. Louis also likes a good party and knows how to throw one. No doubt Mr. Obama has heard this from Democratic Sens. Claire McCaskill of Missouri and Dick Durbin of Illinois, both members of the St. Louis host committee. Mr. Obama may recall a Saturday in October 2008, when he stepped out in front of more than 80,000 people gathered to hear him speak at the Gateway Arch grounds. "What a spectacular sight," he told the assembled. "All I can say is, 'Wow.'" "Wow" is pretty good start. St. Louis Post Dispatch Thu, 29 Jul 2010 00:00:00 +0000 http://localhost:3000/news/full_article/119121 State Journal Register Thank you for highlighting the nightmare that Randy Steidl endured because of Illinois' broken death penalty system. He was convicted with no solid evidence and then sentenced to death. I can't imagine what he went through spending 12 years on death row before the Center on Wrongful Convictions helped prove his innocence. Unfortunately, Randy's case is not the only one. There have been 20 on Illinois' death row who were exonerated because of evidence of their innocence. After 13 of these exonerations, we enacted the moratorium, but we've had seven innocent men released since then! As a citizen concerned about budgetary matters, I just can't comprehend why we continue to pay $12 million every year on the Capital Litigation Trust Fund just so we can prosecute capital cases. It's clear we aren't capable of doing so without error and those funds could be much better used on everything from crime prevention to running our schools. The frightening prospect of executing an innocent person, together with the outrageous costs Illinois taxpayers bear to maintain this system, make it crystal clear to me: We should get rid of our death penalty! Maureen Irvin, OSF Springfield State Journal Register Thu, 29 Jul 2010 00:00:00 +0000 http://localhost:3000/news/full_article/119120 Decatur Herald Review SPRINGFIELD - A proposal aimed at making sure dead people are purged from Illinois' voting rolls will be in legislative purgatory at least until after the November election. For the second time in as many weeks, Gov. Pat Quinn has used his veto pen to rewrite a proposed law. On Tuesday, he wrote new provisions into the dead voter bill to give citizens the opportunity to introduce ethics-related legislation into the General Assembly. "Public participation in government is a founding principle of our democracy," said Quinn, a Chicago Democrat. "This amendatory veto will help ensure that the voice of the people of Illinois does not go unnoticed in the General Assembly and at the ballot box." State lawmakers can either accept or reject Quinn's changes. They also could do nothing and the entire bill would die. State Rep. Dan Brady, R-Bloomington, who is not related to state Sen. Bill Brady of Bloomington - Quinn's GOP opponent in the Nov. 2 election - questioned the governor's move. "I'm not sure I necessarily agree with it," said Brady, who sponsored the original measure regarding deceased voters. "This is a little troublesome." As the sponsor of the bill, Brady controls whether it will be called in the fall veto session, when lawmakers gather to decide whether to approve or reject changes to bills by a governor. Brady said the original measure was supposed to make it easier for local election officials to remove deceased voters from their records. The proposal would allow them to tap into the state's electronic death certificate system and compare those names with those on their voting lists. "Most county clerks and voting authorities backed the bill because it would cut down on the amount of time they spend manually purging voter rolls," Brady said. "To me, it makes a lot of sense." His colleagues agreed: The measure was approved unanimously in both chambers. Quinn's rewrite would allow citizens to introduce bills about ethical conduct and campaign finance reform if they are able to collect 100,000 signatures. The House and Senate would then have 15 days to vote on the question. If the General Assembly rejects the idea, the language would be placed on the ballot in the next election. "Voters need a safety valve to ensure that ideas, however inconvenient or unpopular for incumbent officeholders, proceed through the legislative process," Quinn said. Brady said he could choose to take no action on Quinn's changes and start over on the death records measure with an entirely new bill. "I would like to get the original into law," Brady said. "The governor makes those decisions. Obviously, I don't agree with him." kurt.erickson@lee.net|789-0865 Decatur Herald Review Thu, 29 Jul 2010 00:00:00 +0000 http://localhost:3000/news/full_article/119119 State Journal Register If there is a phrase that defines Gov. Pat Quinn's message over the last three decades -- long before his back-door entry into the governor's office -- it would be these three words: "Paycheck to paycheck." Quinn has a long history in the state, mostly as an outsider in the early years of his involvement. Through it all, from successfully seeking to reduce the size of the Illinois House to running for state treasurer and lieutenant governor, he's always been an advocate for hardworking, struggling people -- "the people who live paycheck to paycheck." While I may have missed it, I haven't heard Quinn use the same phrase about some people whose livelihood he is directly affecting now -- nonunion state workers. In fact, the governor seems downright cavalier to the plight of those employees when he asks them to take 24 furlough days in a year. That's the equivalent of a 9 percent salary reduction and nearly five extra weeks away from their work, when they're already covering for the tremendous gaps left by a broke state government and positions that have evaporated. Yeah, I know some of them are politically connected and well-paid. There are fewer than in the past, but still enough that you hear gripes from the real workers in the trenches. But as the furlough issue has percolated, I've heard from state employees who sure don't seem overpaid to me. One who was bold enough to talk to me on the record about his personal situation is Michael McCambridge, a lawyer for the Pollution Control Board. His job involves regulations concerning things like hazardous waste and drinking water. McCambridge, who has been with the state since 1988, is paid $73,404 annually -- not great shakes for a lawyer who works in downtown Chicago. "I'm going to be 58 in a couple months," McCambridge said. "I'm nearing retirement, and I have nothing." He said he is "working diligently to rescue my home and honor my debts," but his home is in foreclosure and he's "on the verge of bankruptcy." In the past year, McCambridge said, "I had to work at home on my furlough days ... to get the state's work done. And the state's doing what to me?" McCambridge estimates that if he were a regular agency attorney and not on the merit-compensation pay system used by former Gov. ROD BLAGOJEVICH and now Quinn to make a show of keeping costs down, his pay would be $95,000 or so by now. But it isn't, and with furloughs, he's making about what he took home in 2003. His wife works from home doing transcription work for a law firm. They have three children, with the oldest a recent high school grad. McCambridge wonders how he'll get his kids through college. "With what the state's doing to me, it's not going to happen," he said. When their youngest was a year old, in the late 1990s, they sought a home bigger than the two-bedroom they used to live in in Lansing. The McCambridges couldn't afford the Chicago-area market and ended up buying in St. John, Ind., just across the state line, where McCambridge said prices were 15-20 percent less. He cleared the move with his agency, McCambridge said. His commute is about an hour and 20 minutes each way, he said, and the car he drives to the train station for part of that commute has 265,000 miles on it. He said he usually gets to work at 9 a.m., leaves at 8 p.m. and doesn't take a lunch break. McCambridge has had some medical problems. He admits "allowing the family to slide a little into debt, thinking the crisis was temporary." Now, with furloughs eating at his bottom line, "I'm hurting big time." "It's sad," he said, referring to his life insurance, "but I'm worth more dead than alive. That's no way for a person to be." He also laments the loss to the state of core professionals -- people who continue to do the work while political folks come and go. The situation, he said, is "not sustainable governance." "I had intended to work until I was 70 because I really am committed to public service and productivity and all that," he said, but now, he'd consider a "plan B" in a few years. With the treatment he's gotten, McCambridge added, "I would break my sons' legs rather than seeing them follow me into state employment." He also says he got his own job "off the street" with no clout. "I know that Mr. Blagojevich was a petty tyrant," McCambridge said. "I would hope better of Mr. Quinn. But so far, Mr. Quinn hasn't treated me very well, has he?" McCambridge hopes for some improvement because he is among a group of lawyers at his agency that could be allowed into a union by the end of the year. He's come around to see the need for unions, when he didn't used to feel that way. He hopes his speaking out won't derail that effort. And he feels sorry for hundreds of other state workers whose jobs don't let them get some sort of protection. "It breaks my heart that people could be treated this way," he said. And he talked to me. "Somebody has to speak up," McCambridge said, for the "2,000 people quaking in fear." That's about how many -- of more than 50,000 state workers -- to whom the mandatory furloughs would apply. He's right. Most people being treated badly won't speak publicly. I spoke to another state worker with a compelling story -- one who makes a lot less money than McCambridge and has a difficult family situation. State Sen. LARRY BOMKE, R-Springfield, said he recently spoke to a single mother who was in tears over the 24-day furlough order. Bomke shared that story with Quinn's chief of staff, JERRY STERMER. He also asked Stermer about another possible permutation of the 24-day plan -- that up to 12 unpaid days might come on what are now state holidays. According to Bomke, Stermer told him, "Our legal people are still working on it," but it's questionable whether the governor could institute that idea right away. We'll see where that goes. McCambridge looks a bit like Santa Claus, with a big white beard, and says he occasionally plays that role. "To see a small child light up, it makes it worthwhile," he said. Of course, McCambridge still makes more than a lot of state employees. Perhaps he isn't the best spokesman for state workers who feel they've been treated unfairly. I don't know McCambridge personally, though he sounded smart, sincere and frustrated. However, I also know that Quinn kicked up the length of nonunion furloughs to 24 days after bad publicity about raises averaging more than 10 percent that were given to more than 30 people on his own staff. I'd also bet that if Pat Quinn were campaigning and greeted this man in Chicago's Loop, and learned that he was someone living from paycheck to paycheck, Quinn would offer to do what he could to help. Perhaps he should remember that. Durbin praises Burris U.S. Sen. DICK DURBIN, D-Ill., was among those who didn't welcome Roland Burris into the U.S. Senate with open arms, what with Burris' appointment by Blagojevich. And a federal court now is ordering a special election to complete the last two months of the term Burris is filling, so it's not even certain how much longer Burris will have the job. But in an interview in Springfield last week, Durbin had nice things to say about Burris' tenure. "From my point of view, he has been a good U.S. senator," said Durbin, the assistant majority leader. "He loves presiding over the Senate," Durbin added. "We give what's called a golden gavel award for 100 hours of sitting in the chair. He's received his second one. He's working on his third one. So he does it a lot. "When it comes to votes," Durbin continued, "from my point of view, he's been solid. He really has supported the president, supported our caucus. He's well liked for that." Durbin said he's working with Burris on legislation involving the Small Business Administration. Burris joins Durbin at weekly town meetings in Washington where Illinois residents are invited to meet their senators, as was the case when President BARACK OBAMA had the seat now filled by Burris. "We're friendly," Durbin said of him and Burris. "A lot of people thought, 'Oh, they're going to be at war.' Never happened." Durbin said he did insist that Burris have the correct documentation from the Illinois secretary of state before being seated in the Senate. The paperwork finally came through. "It was a rocky period -- uncomfortable," Durbin said. "I don't think there are any hard feelings. Hope there aren't. Not on my side." Bernard Schoenburg is political columnist for The State Journal-Register. He can be reached at 788-1540 or bernard.schoenburg@sj-r.com. Copyright 2010 The State Journal-Register. Some rights reserved State Journal Register Thu, 29 Jul 2010 00:00:00 +0000 http://localhost:3000/news/full_article/119118 Marion Daily Republican An agency credited with helping promote southern Illinois tourism is out of business. The Southern Illinois Tourism Development Office laid off its executive director, Russell Ward, as its last remaining employee because of state funding shortages. The office worked with cities and counties to promote tourism across 22 southern Illinois counties. Without the office, counties without their own tourism-promotion efforts have little means of marketing themselves. The office's board will continue meeting, in hopes that the state funding eventually comes through for the new fiscal year. Copyright 2010 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed Marion Daily Republican Thu, 29 Jul 2010 00:00:00 +0000 http://localhost:3000/news/full_article/119117 State Journal Register I read in Saturday's State Journal-Register that Republican state Reps. Rich Brauer and Raymond Poe are threatening Gov. Pat Quinn with a class-action lawsuit if the governor does not rescind his furlough order. This threat of a class-action lawsuit gave me an idea that maybe the citizens and taxpayers of Illinois should file a class-action lawsuit for unfair practices against members of legislature for: 1.) Lawmakers not allowing citizens an open primary election system where voters can vote secretly without publicly declaring the party of their choice in a primary election. 2.) Lawmakers not allowing Illinois citizens the right to recall all elected officials instead of just the governor. 3.) Current lawmakers can get a whopping 85 percent of their last salary as their pension when they retire, while allowing current state workers only 1.67 percent of the average of their last four years' salary per year of service. 4.) Changing the pension benefits of future lawmakers to 60 percent of their last salary while changing future state workers' pension to 1.67 percent of the average of their last eight years for each year of their service. 5.) No state employee is paid per diem to get to her or his designated workplace, while lawmakers pay themselves a considerable amount of money as per diem to get to their designated workplace in Springfield even if they are in session for only 10 minutes. This is unfair to taxpayers. 6.) Ordinary state employees don't get paid extra for being members of work-related committees, while lawmakers pay themselves a hefty stipend for being members of committees. Harish G. Bhatt Springfield State Journal Register Thu, 29 Jul 2010 00:00:00 +0000 http://localhost:3000/news/full_article/119116