Mechanics

More Scenes from Monday's "Send Off"

2009-07-14T05:20:55Z

Anders Lindall, a spokesperson for the American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees (AFSCME) sent us these photos from Monday's "send off" outside Rep. John D'Amico's offices at 4404 W. Lawrence Ave.

A "Send Off," and Search for a Balanced Budget

2009-07-14T01:01:46Z

About 30 people gathered outside Representative Deb Mell's office in the 40th District at 3657 N. Kedzie Ave. in Albany Park today, chanting and circling her office in an effort to get her to support House Bill 174. The event was one of about 40 "send offs" held across the state -- three of which were held in Chicago --organized by the American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees (AFSCME), a union representing 1.6 million wokers, including caseworkers, nurses, corrections officers, child care providers, EMTs and sanitation workers, and the Illinois Coalition for Immigrant and Refugee Rights, among other groups statewide. Organizers and marchers are pushing for state representatives to sign HB174, which AFSCME believes modernizes the state's tax structure by, along with other measures, raising the Individual Income Tax rate from 3 to 5 percent, and the Corporate Income Tax rate from 4.8 to 5 percent.

Mechanics followed the protestors -- most of whom work for the Illinois Department of Children and Family Services -- outside of Mell's office from the time they started at 11:45 a.m. to the time they left about two hours later. Here are some highlights.

"What are we going to do?" asks Edward Schwartz, a child protection worker out of the DCFS' offices at 2550 W. Bradley Pl. "I need to keep kids safe. Our programs keep families together and strong." While Schwartz feels secure in his job, he's unsure of all of the services he'll be able to provide pending more state cuts. Substance abuse, mental illness, sexual assault and sexual abuse all play a key factor in child abuse cases, he says. When services that help treat these problems are in jeopardy, so is a child's well-being, Schwartz argues. In a speech in front of the crowd, he adds, "The human impact of budget cuts is devastating. Service cuts harm communities, don't cut the safety nets."

"Solidarity, keep on marching," chants Larry Spivack, a regional director for AFSCME. He supports the bill because it creates a progressive tax-base for the state and takes pressure off property tax. While he says state budget cuts are even a bigger issue downstate, no area is immune, and the budget gap could result in huge layoffs, affecting the quality of life of nearly every citizen.

Janice Ableman, a child welfare advanced specialist for DCFS, works with families on the brink of a crisis. A family in this situation may call the department's hotline, or may have been referred to DCFS by a doctor or policeman. The children in these cases aren't at the point where they will be removed from their household, Ableman says, but they're at the point where "they need help, and we can steer them towards" the right direction, she says. Ableman has noticed several of the agencies she works with, such as Youth Outreach Services, have been crippled by budget cuts. "The safety net, the lifeline, is going away," she says.

Carol Davenport and Reyna Maldonado, both child development aids for DCFS, stand outside of Mell's office in the early afternoon. Both are on their lunch break and are here to "support the cause." "We need our money, we work hard for it," Davenport says. Ableman explains that their job -- child development aid -- is one of the most important for DCFS, but unfortunately, it's also one of the most vulnerable when budget cuts hit. Development aids pick up children from dire situations to take them into DCFS care. Ableman notes that this day is probably the worst day of a child's life, and development aids are the first person a child sees, often making their role a key factor in the child's future well-being.

While Mell does not make an appearance, after about an hour of picketing outside her office, her chief of staff, Leah Pouw, opens her door to speak to everyone outside. In response to Mell's inaction regarding HB174, Pouw says raising income tax is a sensitive issue, and Mell has had community members on both sides of the issue come to her with concerns. "I think she felt more needed to be done...there needed to be more accountability," Pouw says. After about five minutes, she welcomes everyone to come inside to talk further. As people gather, filling seats and a couch, Pouw asks, "Why can't there be more accountability from the government? [The solution] should not be on the backs of the most vulnerable." One person thoughtfully responds, "We don't have time to fix it now. We need to fix it when everything is on an even keel."

Other interesting things overheard throughout the protest:
"Do the right thing, keep Illinois working."
"Save our state."
"Take the lead, keep those in need."
"Times are tough, don't cut our services, don't cut our jobs."
"Don't lay us off."
*Loud honk from a man driving a large U-Pak truck.*
"Are there people in the offices? Do they even know we're here?"
"What do we do now?"
"Tell them to cut part of their staff," as shouted from a man in his car.
"We're like the Midnight Express when they all walk around in circles."
"Excuses-none! Get the job done."
"Vote for 174. We elect you, we expect you to vote for revenue."
"Tax the rich," as written on a sign.
"Don't cut our jobs, do your job."
"Hey, hey, ho, ho, service cuts have got to go."

AP Cites Progress Illinois' Budget Impact Tracking

2009-07-13T20:33:21Z

Progress Illinois' effort to track exactly how the budget debacle in Springfield is impacting Illinoisans--both in number of individuals left unserved and number of private sector employees laid off--has gained lots of attention, and deservedly so. This effort at crowd-sourcing may just become the next tool for activists of all ideological stripes to document exactly what the state is doing and how it impacts you locally.

Progress Illinois, a website supported by the Service Employees International Union, is trying to track cutbacks at the organizations that state government uses to deliver services at the local level. As of Friday, it reported, 68 agencies had cut at least 1,420 jobs and halted services for nearly 13,500 people.

It is extremely easy (and, as is often the case with extremely easy things, wildly irresponsible) to just flog the putrid "wasteful government spending" horse corpse to win votes and sound like a good government watchdog. So it's important to make direct connections for people about what exactly we spend our money on, and how the constant assault on public goods and public spending ends up not only harming the disadvantaged but also, in the medium and long term, all of us (well, except the extremely priveleged who are never harmed by anything). At the same time, I imagine such a project flipped backwards (as with Chicago City Payments) could be a valuable way to highlight government waste where it does occur.

Kirk In; Conservative Support?

2009-07-13T20:00:29Z

Looks like Kirk will run for Senate and Illinois GOP chairman Andy McKenna, a failed Senate candidate in 2004, will not oppose him. Right wing blogger Paul Kroenke had this to say about Kirk:

Pre-Cap-and-Tax* was a time when I would have backed Kirk wholeheartedly. He talked the talk on fiscal conservatism, and at a deeper level than most. He's lost my confidence for now, but he's got some time over the next year or so to once again start walking the walk. Whether he does or not is up to him, but from where I sit, he's our next US Senator in any case. Given his tendency to follow the polling (backup in the "coward" link) I figure it's probably best to start hoping to have some effect at that level sooner rather than later.

I don't know the contours of the Illinois GOP activist base outside of Chicagoland well enough to know if Kirk's positions on social issues and Cap'n Trade will sink him with the base and keep him from raising the money and volunteers he'll need to counter Democratic support in Cook County (the most Democratic big county in the country). In Chicagoland, GOP activists tend to be anti-government, with pockets of "pro-life" activism (as differentiated from pro-Life sentiment, which is everywhere, obviously); this is also where the organized money is, so regulatory issues rate fairly highly, too. In the exurban areas--Aurora, Elgin, Joliet, Carpentersville--there is a not insignificant collection of immigration reform activism going on as well. Kirk's opponent will have to dampen support in the well-off Cook County townships by playing to support of Obama while boxing Kirk in with his positions on immigration and the environment to keep the exurban activists at home. Also, raise lots of money.

Predictions now are pretty worthless. We know one thing for sure: if the GOP nominates a moderate for the governorship, Kirk will be the "top of the ticket" and the GOP's right wing will be wholly unrepresented on the ballot.

*This is the new "framing" of what was called cap-and-trade, or what I prefer to call Cap'n Trade.

AppointmentWatch!

2009-07-13T14:22:58Z

Are you ready to confirm!? That's right folks, today and today only, except for all the other days, watch dozens of our nation's heaviest-hitter legislators ask a scrappy, aspiring young jurist convoluted baseball-metaphor-themed questions about her judicial philosophy. You won't wanna miss the strikes and balls.

UPDATE: Lindsay Graham to Sotomayor: "Unless you have a total meltdown, you will be confirmed." Come on man. Give your buddies some hope.

Homero Tristan and Scandal Fatigue

2009-07-13T13:25:50Z

A well-reasoned (and researched) post by EveryBlock (and Chicago City Payments) co-founder Daniel X. O'Neil plunges into the Homero Tristan affair, separating fact from narrative and going to the heart of exactly why we should care about things like this, even when we're all scandal fatigued. If you've read James Merriner's great book Grafters and Goo Goos, you know that the modern era's reform efforts have become institutionalized and prone to make-workism. This has the dual effect of boring the general population, and eliciting backlash from the political class who see "reform" as just a cover for political ambition by outsiders. O'Neil's exploration of what the actual ethical lapses were in the Tristan "scandal" is instructive: it was a failure of protocol as a symptom but not an example of power politics, and our reaction to it should be calibrated as such (and, we should also think about why we have these protocols in the first place).

On June 26th, the city's inspector general, David Hoffman, put out a report criticizing the behavior of Human Resources Commissioner Homero Tristan, and calling for him to be sacked. Tristan subsequently resigned. The news reports focused on the fact that a "former top aide" to Mayor Daley has resigned in a "hiring scandal". But, as always, it's important to know exactly what happened, before a scandal turns into A Scandal, where everybody knows the personalities but not the facts. Tristan's resignation and reporters' questions about it caused much Mayoral huffing and puffing, with the Mayor claiming Tristan had done nothing seriously wrong, and insinuating that the IG was running wild.

The Mayor sounding a note like that means something, and there has been a subsequent pushback against Hoffman from several quarters. Tristan's lawyer, Bill Coulson (husband to state Representative Elizabeth Coulson) wrote a publicized letter to the Mayor defending Tristan's conduct in the matter and accusing the IG of being irresponsible in making his report public and playing fast and loose with the facts (Hoffman didn't respond). Rumors of Hoffman's political aspirations, always the best way to cast doubt on a civil servant ("He just wants to be one of the cool kids, like us!") have begun to leak.

The Tribune ran an edging on asinine op-ed accusing Hoffman of being overzealous:

it seems Chicago's inspector general, David Hoffman, is intent on turning everyday networking into guilt-by-association, as well as casting clouds of suspicion on those engaged in the civic arena as if it were a criminal act. My intention here is not to defend the commissioner, but to sound the alarm on the death of civic participation.

Hoffman's most recent report is the latest example of an investigator run amok. Never mind him tarnishing the career and damaging the reputation of Tristan, his newest target. Hoffman is a reformer's reformer. Democracy be damned!

This op-ed is a good place to start, because it was written by Juan Rangel, head of the powerful and influential United Neighborhoods Organization (UNO), a once-independent voice for working class Latino neighborhoods. UNO was once a radical Alinsky-ite organization that fought the powers that be; they are now an accommodating organization that is on the forefront of privatizing public education, with Mayor Daley chairing that particular effort. UNO's privatization effort recently received $100m in public money for private-operated schools..

UNO, in other words, is an important part of the Daley coalition in Latino communities, one that thrives on its access to, rather than confrontation of, power and the status quo. So maybe Mr. Rangel's grave concern about democracy and fear of the disruption of "professional networks" has more to do with the influence and power of his organization than about providing fair and open services to the people of Chicago (in fact, he kind of says that himself). Rangel's eye-roll-inducing editorial even tries to bring President Obama's campaign into it, accusing of Hoffman of not wanting people to get involved in politics to avoid the appearance of bias. Rangel's op-ed is an example of the backlash against "reformism", characterizing it as elitist and opportunisitic, as an effort by phony moralist Borgias in cloistered institutions to attack the "people's government" while cloaking their ambition in reform-hued vestments. It's a seductive worldview that many, myself included, entertain at one point or another. But it's not a realistic one.

It is important not to play into that interpretation of reform by unreasonably blowing ethical lapses and transgressions into world-shattering "scandals". This isn't a scandal on par with Hired Truck or dozens of yet-unreported scandals we may soon learn about O'Hare contracting or in the Water Department. We joke about "scandal fatigue" but it is a real problem, and one that has probably unnaturally elongated the life of a political establishment that should have collapsed years ago.

Essentially, all Tristan is accused of doing is failing to follow a federally required protocol:

1. An alderman wrote a letter to the city's human resources to keep an employee from being reassigned;
2. Federally-mandated protocols, through the Shakman decrees, required that such contact from elected officials to the city's personnel management agents be reported to the Inspector General and the Shakman Monitor (the much-maligned Noelle Brennan, Berny Stone's arch-nemesis);
3. Tristan is accused of not reporting that contact immediately and, later, lying to investigators asking about it.

This was the breach that Hoffman's office thought merited termination. The infraction Rangel discusses in his editorial--failure to alert the monitor to (what appears to be an appropriate) contact from City Clerk Miguel Del Valle--was less serious and Hoffman only recommended a short suspension.

Tristan is obviously no patronage criminal mastermind. But these rules were put in place for a reason (Cf., last eighty years of Chicago political history) and there is more to lose by lax enforcement than by over-strict enforcement.

O'Neil's piece should be read in its entirety (if for no other reason than it will make clear what was in the IG's original report), but here's an extended excerpt (by permission of the author) to give a good sense of the subtleties of the issue:

It seems certain that a whole bunch of City employees did their jobs here

One last bit about the nature of the firestorm of defensive defense of the former Commissioner doesn't sit right with me. There's been much "but their requests were denied" talk, but no discussion of the process and people that led to those decisions. This is a long snip, but worth it:

The Monitor discovered that the job duties of Administrative Assistant III's ("AA III") in the City Clerk's Office were very different than the AA III job description. This prompted a "reclassification audit" by DHR. The DHR Analyst assigned to the audit analyzed what the AA III's did in the Clerk's Office and concluded that the proper title / job description for these positions was License Enforcement Aide, a lower-graded position. The DHR Commissioner then sent a letter to the City Clerk informing him of this conclusion. The City Clerk wrote a letter back disagreeing with the audit and arguing that the proper title / job description was closer to that of a Revenue Investigator, which would have been a slightly higher-graded position. Although the City Clerk is an elected official, this was obviously a step taken by the City Clerk as a department head and would be a typical step for a department head in this situation.

A few days later, the DHR Commissioner emailed one of his top deputies (with a cc to the DHR Analyst) stating that the Clerk "is upset regarding a reclass[ification decision]. [C]an we address it and make it happen for him, and if we can't please let me know what the problems are." Later that day, the DHR Analyst wrote a memo to the Commissioner explaining why the City Clerk's suggestion was not possible and why her original analysis was correct.

The DHR Commissioner continued to question the DHR Analyst about the findings in the audit, and the DHR analyst was asked to write another memo analyzing the pros and cons of the City Clerk's proposal. She wrote that there were no pros and explained the cons. A meeting with the City Clerk, the DHR Commissioner, and relevant staff followed. The Clerk's Office said that the AA III's were now doing additional duties which were more consistent with an equal or higher-graded position. The DHR Commissioner directed a second DHR analyst to do a "re-audit" in light of this new information. The second analyst reached the same conclusion as the first DHR Analyst. Ultimately, the DHR Commissioner sent another letter to the City Clerk reaching the same conclusion as his initial letter - that the AA III's would need to be downgraded to License Enforcement Aides.

What I see in those three paragraphs is a whole bunch of people doing their jobs:

The Shakman Monitor, reviewing the job description of an obscure but important role in City government and finding it different than the actual job duties performed in that job. This is a central role of the Monitor, since juking job duties is a time-honored method of corruption

The City Clerk, Miguel del Valle, going to bat for his employees during tough economic times

A DHR Analyst who listens to the arguments and makes reasoned decisions and is able to back them up when questioned by superiors

A second DHR Analyst doing another independent audit and coming to the same conclusion

The DHR Commissioner, Homero Tristan (credit where it's due), who accepts the analysis of his employees

Other employees of both departments spending time trying to honestly define the job for every City worker who holds it

I'm really grateful to these people for this work.

This analysis is what makes Rangel's op-ed so disingenuous and, in fact, dangerous. True, Homero Tristan shouldn't be burned in effigy as a machine hack out to clout jobs for the connected--at least, that's not what he was accused of and there's no evidence that that's what he was doing. At the same time, we shouldn't go ahead and start attacking the motives and character of an Inspector General just doing his job, and trying to make sure that the letter of the federal order is followed exactly. There's a reason the order errs on the side of less discretion for the city in these kinds of situations; it was that very discretion that allowed for shenanigans. Accusing the IG of hating democracy and holding bizarre potlucks in support of Tristan sends the message that "community groups" supposedly in the business of advocating for the people are opposed to independent oversight of government affairs.

Tearful Words from Downstate

2009-07-11T03:17:05Z

Here in Chicago, it's easy to forget how big Illinois really is, and unfortunately, how the same state budget cuts affecting us are also affecting people living 300 miles southwest of the city, in cities like Alton, Edwardsville and Collinsville, which are all considered suburbs of St. Louis but are in Illinois. This column by the St. Louis Post-Dispatch's Pat Gauen -- about state budget cuts affecting the little guy and gal -- made me get some watery eyes. As Gauen eloquently writes:

In our mind's eye, we often think of people in need of such services as looking strange and acting oddly. When we notice them, it's usually at a physically safe distance through some kind of glass -- a car windshield, perhaps, or a restaurant window or a television screen.

Looking at ordinary Sharon is emotionally dangerous, because the glass you're using could be a mirror.

*Sniffles*

Something I do like about Mark Kirk

2009-07-10T21:02:59Z

So I posted something earlier about Mark Kirk's chances in a GOP primary, and in the comments made clear the fact that I wasn't defending his vote on cap-and-trade--it's not an issue I really know much about, nor do I claim any particular knowledge about Kirk's intellectual honesty in voting for it--and stressed that I certainly wouldn't consider myself a Kirk "supporter". With each passing election cycle, in fact, I find there are fewer and fewer politicians worth straining my fingers typing in support of; a function of my advanced, jaded, late-20s worldview, I'm sure.

However, as the widely acknowledged leader of Local-Chicago-Political-Writers-Who-Are-Also-First-Generation-Iraqi-Assyrian-Americans, this will no doubt get me in trouble with my fellow Assyrian-Americans, because Congressman Kirk has been outstanding in his support of minorities in Iraq, particularly the targeted and harassed Assyrians and Chaldeans of the so-called "Nineveh Plains" region. Kirk has fought tirelessly on behalf of those minorities, taking the US ambassador to task for not acting on programs created by the US Congress to ensure local security for those populations, and championing and passing an amendment to an appropriations bill ensuring funding for local security force to protect internally displaced people (IDP).

From the Iraq Sustainable Democracy Project:

"Congressman Mark Kirk is most certainly a champion who believes we cannot allow Iraq to fail. His measure will help to ensure that Iraq remains ethnically and religiously plural by aiding IDPs in the Nineveh Plain" said Michael Youash, Project Director of the Iraq Sustainable Democracy Project (a special project of the Assyrian Academic Society). ISDP is a Washington-based policy institute providing research and analysis on the situation of Iraq's most vulnerable minorities.

Those in the know know that Kirk's district contains an enormous Chaldo/Assyrian-American population; the Chicagoland Assyrian Diaspora population is considered the largest in the world, with its roots in Andersonville, and its biggest population centers in West Ridge ("the old neighborhood"), Lincolnwood, Skokie, and the suburbs north of there. You may also know us from our many cable access television shows.

Rep. Kirk has taken his advocacy on behalf of Assyrians and internal refugees in Iraq well beyond the typical politician's talk-big pandering and actually accomplished things that have made life for the internally displaced peoples materially better.

Not that this has any bearing on whether he could survive a GOP primary or the conservative rectitude of his vote on Cap'n Trade, just something that warranted mentioning. It's only fair to point out something good about a guy you shrugged off as just another politician. Also, I don't want to get served the last bowl of kubba at our next monthly meeting; this is a mark of great shame in my culture. (Not really).

Burris Out, What About Dart?

2009-07-09T23:12:59Z

Well thank god. Roland Burris isn't going to run for reelection. It's not such big news since his polling indicated he had a steep climb to retain the senate seat. That leaves Mark Kirk as the probably Republican contender and who knows for the Democrats. Maybe Chris Kennedy? We'll see.

I actually had a crazy thought today: What about Illinois Cook County Sheriff Thomas Dart? You may recall Dart as that Sheriff from around Chicago who got fed up with evicting people from their houses. Yup, that's the guy I'm talking about. In the process he also stood up to banks who had been critical of him for not enforcing the law. In short, Dart disagreed.

So basically, this sheriff stands up to banks, he's a Democrat, he's popular, and he's a law abiding citizen. That's a pretty rare combination in Chicago and Illinois and a pretty appealing resume these days.

Roland Burris bows out of the 2010 US Senate race

2009-07-09T22:46:13Z

We've had a very surprising week as far as 2010 is concerned. The big surprise was that Lisa Madigan is staying put at Attorney General. This seems to be the week where those who were just waiting to make their moves are making them essentially.

Well depending on your perspective, this report of Roland Burris not seeking election to his Senate seat might be surprising. Perhaps some of us might believe that his ego might cause him to run for a seat many of us certain that he will not even succeed in a primary.

But since he's choosing not to run for the US Senate, then that opens the field up a little. Otherwise if Burris remained in the race, it wouldn't be difficult for me to say that the Republicans could pick up this seat.

Well now it might be a little difficult to predict. We have Mark Kirk for the Republicans and that field has yet to form. While for the Democrats we have a Kennedy, our state Treasurer who just so happens to be friends with the current President of the United States, and a Black woman who heads the Chicago Urban League. Right now the interesting field might be on the Democratic side but I won't predict who might be able to take this seat.

What say you? Who might be likely to be our next sitting Senator after 2010? Is that person in the race or have we ever heard of that prospective Senator?

Birkett versus Madigan, the Rematch

2009-07-09T18:00:30Z

...it might go a little something like this:

Birkett: She's not a prosecutor.

Madigan:
He's a loony prosecutor *cough* Rolando Cruz, war protestors *cough*.

Birkett:
She's soft on corruption *cough*dad is Mike Madigan*cough*.

Madigan:
Hey, I remember this guy; he's the guy I beat eight years ago.

Birkett:
Yeah, I remember that election; hey, who was at the top of your ticket that year?

Madigan:
You mean the guy I tried to get suspended from office?

Birkett:
Yeah, the guy who the Supreme Court laughed at you when you tried to get suspended from office.

Madigan:
Uh...All the women, who are independent, throw your hands up at me!

Birkett:
All the white dudes--uh, wait, nevermind...hey, isn't your dad Mike Madigan?

Madigan:
Sorry, I couldn't hear you over the balloon drop.

Kirk Enters Senate Race; Can He Survive Primary?

2009-07-09T12:47:15Z

Poor Mark Kirk (R-IL10). Conservatives aren't crazy about him, considering a defector on cap-and-trade and coloring him as a Democrat-lite--or worse, a "coward". But Democrats aren't exactly fond of him, as Progress Illinois argues, he's "no moderate". So which is it?

The open primary system makes the life of a moderate difficult, if not impossible. And given that Illinois' Republican Party has shrunk, particularly in the interior Chicagoland suburbs, it means that the more ideologically committed Republicans--the more conservative ones--are disproportionately (to the population) represented in the primary electorate. That's not necessarily bad; a primary isn't meant to get the temperature of the population, it's meant to get the temperature of the party. If the party's temperature is further right (or left) than that of the population, so be it. On the one hand, Kirk would probably be Republicans' best shot at taking the Senate seat; Kirk has a good reputation in his district for constituent services, and while he's no progressive he's no reactionary and probably in line ideologically with lots of Illinoisans. On the other hand, he would be instantly alienated by his party's conservative activist base, particularly the strong abortion activist organizations in the collar counties and central and downstate Illinois county organizations that may not be willing to ignore his carbon ~~cap'n trade~~ cap-and-trade vote and friendly posture to GLBT issues.

Pragmatically speaking, he's been raising federal money, which will give him an edge; and he will have instant credibility with the Republican establishment nationwide (if not their grass and netroots) and with the wealthy GOP givers in his affluent north shore and suburban district. The Illinois GOP should be focusing on capitalizing on the chaos in Springfield to take the Governor's office back; resources allocated to Kirk are resources that can be better used (what is a GOP Senator from Illinois going to accomplish in Washington, though it would be a psychological blow for Democrats.)

And GOP primaries are rough. If Kirk goes right, particularly if he's forced to constantly slam President Obama in his literature, debates, and in responses to hits from activists and opponents, it'll compromise his viability in the interior Chicagoland suburbs and some downstate population centers.

While I disagree with him on basically everything, I have to say I like Mark Kirk. He's a typical bourgeois politician; but he seems sincere, anyway. What some call his cowardice may just be his intellectual honesty. (Paul Kroenke would disagree). While I think he'd have a difficult road to beat any serious Democratic opponent (i.e., anybody but Roland Burris), he'd probably go down in noble defeat. It's the GOP primary where he'd likely get savaged (Cf. above, "coward"), and that'd be a shame.

Mechanics & Progress Illinois on the Ray Hanania Show

2009-07-09T12:42:51Z

Progress Illinois has posted the audio from my and PI publisher Josh Kalven's appearance on Ray Hanania's morning show yesterday. Please note that the Lisa Madigan news broke about 20 minutes after our appearance. Yeah, I know. We'll be on every Wednesday at 8 a.m.

Tamms Year Ten Protest at The Tribune Today

2009-07-09T03:03:25Z

Let me start by saying I went to this being rather skeptical about the issue to say the least. Walking up to the protest I felt my skepticism would be well justified, looking at the pins some of these folks were wearing and some of the signs they were holding I was confident these were folks who felt all prisons were bad and that there was no reason to put someone into a limited access prison....

Yep, these folks would never be able to appeal to my Republican law and order sensabilities...

Then I made the mistake of talking with a couple of the protesters.

it turns out they were not against all prisons. I had quite the little discusion with one of them and she made some intelligent points about how keeping someone in Tamms as long as some of these folks are kept there doesn't do the state, prisoner or the correction system any good. Not sure if I agree with her, but they are legitimate questions that need to be asked.

I suspect on most issues we would disagree and I suspect their vision of incrasaration and corrections is different than mine.

But even from my perspective some questions come up. For what we spend on Tamms are we getting our money worth? Could the same thing be done on a smaller scale at an existing jail in the system? We have a tight budget right now is this really the best way for DOC to be spending money? Why are prisoners spending years at a jail that was not intended to be used for stays over a year? I think there is a need for a prison for the 'worst of the worst' but is this the most cost effective way to do it?

I think these are the sort of questions the Tribune should be looking at with even a quarter of the vigor they are going after the U of I with right now.

OneMan

Reid's Backtracking But It Might Be Too Late

2009-07-09T02:22:18Z

Looks like Harry Reid is backtracking a story excellently reported in Roll Call today where he was reported to have told Senate Finance Committee Chair Max Baucus (D-Mont.) to ditch provisions in a healthcare reform bill that were meant to get Republicans on board. CQ has the story:

Sen. Olympia J. Snowe of Maine said Reid met privately with her and three other Republicans and assured them that the GOP would be included in negotiations with the House on a final version of the legislation.

"He said it would be a bipartisan, open conference" committee, Snowe said after the meeting.

I've got to say, it seems Reid was caught with his hands on the cookie jar here. He probably still thinks trying to attract a lot Republicans to the bill will ruin it. From the Roll Call story it sounds like Reid was trying to communicate this to his colleagues quietly so the Democrats didn't lose the votes of the moderate Republicans like Maine's Olympia Snowe who were already likely to support the bill as long as barely anyone noticed. Well, the cover's blown now.

I'm of two minds on Reid's opinion. On the one hand he's probably right that it's going to be really hard to get any but the most fence-straddled Republicans on board a healthcare reform bill. On the other hand, just because the Democrats have a 60-vote majority doesn't mean they're ever going to get all 60 votes in line on such a bill.

Reid needs these moderate Republicans and even if they want to vote for the bill, their conservative colleagues are going to pressure them hard not to, so they can't be visibly for it. Saying that they won't reach out to Republican will probably actually give interested moderate conservatives less of an opportunity to vote for the bill because if they do, it'll look like they're the left's lapdog. Reid's got himself in a tough spot.

(Crossposted)