Archive for February, 2008
February 29th, 2008
The New York Times editorial page recently took note of New Jersey’s fiscal crisis, and in doing so issued this warning to other states:
It is hard to remember when any governor used the sort of desperate language that New Jersey Gov. Jon Corzine chose this week to describe his state’s fiscal crisis. His words should be a sober warning to other states to get their fiscal houses in order before they face a crisis of Trenton’s magnitude.
The editorial went on to describe what it called a “self-destructive gimmick”:
… the state seriously underfunded its pension plan and used the money to pay for current spending programs.
And it concluded:
The Garden State’s woes should serve as a warning to other states, whose lawmakers might be inclined to use budget gimmickry to deal with shortfalls in revenue and get through immediate fiscal troubles. As New Jerseyans are learning the hard way, that is likely to lead to much bigger trouble in the years ahead.
Illinois should take note. As far as I can tell, this state is the capital of “budget gimmickry.”
Illinois for decades blew off its public pension systems, and future taxpayers will pay — big time. Believe it or not, state leaders didn’t even have a long-term plan for paying down pension debt until 1995, when they finally got around to instituting one.
No longer would the state take a “pay as you go” approach to financing public pensions — putting aside just enough each year to cover annual pension and benefit payments to retirees. Instead, the state would, once and for all, start putting aside enough money each year to cover long-term pension liability.
And by putting more money away into its public pension funds, those funds would ultimately earn enough interest — dollars going back into the funds — that the state’s annual obligation would become minimal.
Or at least that was the idea behind the 1995 plan, which established in Illinois law a formula under which the state would get its pension systems 90 percent funded by 2045 — over 50 years.
But state leaders just can’t help themselves from putting off those payments each year in order to free up cash for all their favorite projects. In 2005, they took their policy of procrastination all the way by wholesale restructuring the 50-year plan. Rod and the gang called their move a “pension holiday.”
Then there was that clever pension maneuver during Rod’s first year in office, 2003. The state borrowed $10 billion to bolster the pension systems. But rather than dumping the entire $10 billion straight into the pension funds, the state skimmed more than $2 billion off the top and used those dollars to offset the state’s mandatory annual pension contribution.
In doing so, Rod and the gang freed up more than $2 billion they could spend on other stuff.
How cool is that! Pretty cool if you’re Rod, and you’re eager to spend some taxpayer money. Not so cool, if you’re a future taxpayer.
As I explained at the time, in a previous job:
Imagine getting a home equity loan for $100,000, spending $27,000 of it on a new car and investing the rest — then counting on the interest earned to cover the interest paid, as well as the cost of the car. That’s the essence of Gov. Rod Blagojevich’s $10 billion pension bonding plan, which became law in April.
This isn’t a new idea. Buying and selling in separate financial markets in order to profit from the difference in rates is called an arbitrage. It’s commonly used by banks, which invest their customers’ money for a higher rate of return than they pay on, say, checking or savings accounts. …
But counting on the performance of any investment is risky. When the market slumps, as it did during the last two years, an arbitrage can fail; there’s a chance the rate of return on the investment could be less than the cost of the loan. Pension bonding plans can put governments on the hook for additional, unforeseen contributions to their systems — while they continue to pay the debt service on the bonds.
This state’s pension bonding plan, which doubles the state’s total bonded indebtedness and constitutes the largest such scheme to date, is no exception to the rule. And there’s an additional twist that heightens the risk. Rather than realize gains as they occur, the administration is realizing, and spending, the projected 30-year gain in the first year of the plan. Like the homeowner who spent 27 percent of an equity loan for a car, the plan dictates that some 27 percent of the bond proceeds be spent immediately.
What’s the bottom line? The state is in lousy shape financially, particularly with regard to pensions. As the state comptroller noted in a recent report:
The funding level of the state’s five retirement
systems remains among the nation’s lowest.
The five state systems — the State Employees’
Retirement System (SERS), the State Universities
Retirement System (SURS), the Teachers’ Retirement
System (for teachers outside of Chicago –
TRS), Judges’ Retirement System (JRS), and General
Assembly Retirement System (GARS) – were
funded at a 62.6% ratio at the end of fiscal year
2007 (assets vs. liabilities). Even with the infusion
of the $10 billion pension funding bond proceeds
into the system in July 2003, the funded
ratio has failed to reach the highs seen prior to the
last recession, where the systems’ funded ratio
reached 74.7%.
UPDATE 1
The Legislature’s fiscal forecasting agency has compiled a chart showing the state’s future pension liability and how it changes based on the payments made each year. I posted it here.
February 28th, 2008
The governor’s news release:
Governor Rod R. Blagojevich today named Illinois Department of Agriculture Assistant Director Tom Jennings as Acting Director of the agency. The Governor accepted the resignation of Charles “Chuck” Hartke, Director of the Illinois Department of Agriculture since 2003. Effective Monday, Jennings will take over the Director’s responsibilities for the Department of Agriculture.
“I want to thank Chuck for all of his hard work at the Department of Agriculture over the last five years,” said Governor Blagojevich. “As a family farmer and longtime state legislator, he brought unique experience and enthusiasm to the post. I wish him and his wife, Kathy, the best.”
Under Hartke’s leadership the Department of Agriculture has received federal funds to fight to keep emerald ash borer out of Illinois, created a statewide veterinary emergency response team that strengthens Illinois’ ability to contain animal disease outbreaks and increased sponsorship of the Illinois State Fair by 25 percent since 2003. Before becoming the Director for the Department of Agriculture, Hartke served in the Illinois House of Representatives and held a seat on the House Agriculture Committee, from 1985 until 2003.
The SJ-R has more on Hartke’s departure.
Chuck Hartke, who spent more than 18 years in the Illinois House before getting his dream job as director of the Illinois Department of Agriculture in 2003, is stepping down from that post.
Illinois Department of Agriculture Director Charles Hartke will be retiring from his position. In part, it’s to spend more time with his ailing wife, he said, and in part because it’s time.
February 27th, 2008
Sen. Dave Syverson, R-Rockford, objected to plans to replace Cole Hall with Memorial Hall in a press release:
Syverson supports honoring NIU victims, questions whether new building is right approach
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
February 27, 2008/bc
SPRINGFIELD, IL – State Sen. Dave Syverson (R-Rockford) agrees the victims of the Northern Illinois University (NIU) shooting should be honored in a respectful way, however he questions whether demolishing Cole Hall and constructing a new facility is the right approach.
“I think everyone agrees a tragedy of this magnitude should be recognized in some way,” Syverson said. “But razing Cole Hall and constructing a new building isn’t necessarily the right approach. It will likely be a major financial commitment in the tens of millions of dollars at a time our state budget is facing a $1 billion budget deficit. I believe we can honor the victims of this tragedy, and do it in a fiscally responsible way.”
One possibility, Syverson suggested, is the creation of scholarships in the names of the shooting victims that could be developed through private partnerships – scholarships that could last for perpetuity. Another option would be to rename Cole Hall “Memorial Hall” – the name of the proposed new building – and to create an appropriate memorial in or around the current facility.
“I am 100 percent behind paying tribute to the victims, and helping NIU move past this tragic event,” Syverson reiterated. “But let’s not rush into anything. We should take an appropriate amount of time to come up with something that balances the need for remembrance with the need to ensure our state budget remains fiscally sound.”
Syverson also noted the proposed new building comes at a time tuition costs have skyrocketed in Illinois, rising by 50 percent in a few short years. He says part of the reason is the lack of a commitment by state leaders in funding higher education.
“We need to be thinking about how we can better help college students, not just at Northern Illinois University, but around our state,” Syverson said. “Tuition is rising at alarming levels, and families are struggling to put their students through college. Let’s look at ways of alleviating this burden – and perhaps the funding being proposed for this new building could be used for that purpose.”
February 27th, 2008
Gov. Rod Blagojevich’s schedule:
**Governor’s Public Schedule**
For TODAY, Wednesday, February 27, 2008
DEKALB – Governor Rod R. Blagojevich will join NIU President John G. Peters, local legislators and students today at Northern Illinois University (NIU) to announce state funding that will enable the university to demolish Cole Hall, the scene of the tragic shooting that claimed the lives of five students and injured 17 more, and replace it with a state-of-the-art general classroom building to be named “Memorial Hall”.
WHO:
Governor Rod R. Blagojevich
NIU President John G. Peters
Jarvis K. Purnell, President, NIU Student Association
State Senator Bradley Burzynski
State Representative Robert Pritchard
WHAT:
Gov. Blagojevich and NIU announce plans for Cole Hall.
WHEN: 1:00 p.m.
WHERE: In front of Cole Hall
(Cole Hall is located in the center of campus, near the visitor parking lot on Carroll Avenue)
Northern Illinois University
DeKalb, IL 60115
UPDATE 1
There’s no question the governor’s announcement will tug at the heart strings of thousands around this state, and perhaps even the nation. It doesn’t get much more dramatic that destroying the building in which evil occurred.
But questions remain about how exactly Blagojevich will pull this off.
As you may know, seemingly every infrastructure project that’s worth doing in this state is contingent on passage of a capital plan. So the first question is: Will funding for this project depend on passage of a capital plan?
If the answer to that question is yes, the next question is: Is it fair to get everybody all excited about the prospect of a “Memorial Hall” in place of the shooting site when there is no capital plan and it’s not clear when the state might actually have one?
If this building project would not depend on a capital plan, then where exactly is the money coming from? And what bills will the state not be able to pay so that it may replace the building?
UPDATE 2
This doesn’t pertain directly to NIU or Cole Hall, but it certainly will be forefront on the minds of reporters covering the governor’s appearance today: Will Blagojevich finally acknowledge that he is “Public Official A,” a central figure in a federal corruption probe, now that a judge has outed him?
Yes, I know that may seem insensitive to mention that. But the fact is that Blagojevich went into hiding yesterday, the day after the “Public Official A” revelation, and his aides refused to answer questions about it. His visit today to NIU will mark his first public appearance since it became official that Blagojevich is “Public Official A.”
Frankly, knowing Blagojevich’s consistent track record (he and his staff work extra hard, after each of his crises, to deflect the public’s attention elsewhere), I must wonder whether his staff cooked up this event on the fly to deliberately cause a diversion from a growing media focus on the federal probe.
In any case, Blagojevich is taking a risk today. He and his staff may think that they can keep the media’s attention focused on NIU and Cole Hall. But it’s hard to imagine that questions — if Blagojevich’s staff even allows them — will turn to the federal probe before the public appearance is over. That could lead to lots of shouting by both reporters and the governor’s staff. And that, in turn, could put NIU President Peters and hundreds of mourning, everyday people in an especially awkward spot.
UPDATE 3 by AZ
The proposed demolition of Cole Hall and construction of Memorial Hall will not depend on a capital plan, lawmakers say, and that’s good news for NIU. As noted above, it’s not clear when the Legislature will ever agree on the massive construction proposal.
Sen. Brad Burzynski and Rep. Robert Pritchard said they are drafting emergency legislation that will deal specifically with the building’s construction, which could take two years to build. There would be two bills: one to authorize the sale of bonds to pay for the project and one to give NIU the authority to spend the money.
It takes a three-fifths majority in both chambers of the Legislature to authorize bonding. The lawmakers said it was not clear on Wednesday morning where the state would find the money to pay off the bonds.
Burzynski said the money to pay off the loan would probably come from the state’s general fund, but because the legislation is not drafted yet details are still unclear. The general fund is the state’s central account for operating expenses.
“I’m confident we will be able to find a revenue stream to pay for these particular bonds,” said Burzynski, R-Clare.
And if he can’t find the money in the state’s coffers?
“We will cross that bridge when we get there,” he said.
Pritchard, R-Sycamore, said he doesn’t believe the logjam in Springfield will be a problem.
“We can’t allow government just to shut down because of personalities or lack of leadership or whatever other adjectives you want to say,” Pritchard said. “We have to address the needs of the citizens of Illinois.”
Before the shooting, every NIU undergraduate had a class in Cole Hall, which was built in 1968. Prtichard said about 150 classes were held each week in the building, including several large lectures.
Pritchard said university officials have moved Cole Hall classes into other buildings, but may build temporary structures until the new building is finished.
Sadly, the university has several other schools to look for examples of how to deal with a building where a deadly shooting occurred. Fellow Register Star reporters looked at this issue here.
Pritchard and Burzynski said the university is still computing the cost of razing and constructing a new building. The NIU public affairs office could not be reached.
Pritchard said the new building likely will be modeled after NIU’s new College of Business building, Barsema Hall, which is pictured here.
UPDATE 4
Sen. Burzynski said he believes the idea to replace Cole Hall originated with NIU officials, and not with the Blagojevich administration.
February 26th, 2008
The wide-ranging federal probe of public corruption in state government creeped closer to Gov. Rod Blagojevich on Monday. Officially, that is, though not technically.
It’s been clear for months the feds were eyeing Blagojevich as a central character in their probe. But Blagojevich had previously been identified only by the pseudonym “Public Official A.” The feds did not identify him by name. On Monday, U.S. District Judge Amy St. Eve removed any doubt about the official’s identity. She identified the governor by name.
In a nine-page order pertaining to evidence the feds plan to offer in the upcoming corruption trial of Tony Rezko, a former top fundraiser and adviser for Blagojevich, St. Eve revealed that Blagojevich is one in the same as ”Public Official A.” News coverage is here, here, here, and here.
What exactly did the governor do wrong? First things first, the feds have not charged Blagojevich with a crime.
However, they have charged and/or are investigating a number of Blagojevich insiders. Next week, Rezko begins trial on charges that he used his insider clout to attempt to extort kickbacks from firms seeking business with the state. Blagojevich — previously as “Public Official A” and now by name — has repeatedly surfaced in pre-trial exchanges between the feds and Rezko’s defense team. The charges against Rezko are here and here.
In one instance detailed by the feds, Blagojevich’s campaign fund stood to gain a $1.5 million donation that Rezko and Stuart Levine, another insider cooperating with the feds, allegedly tried to extort from an investment firm. Thomas Rosenberg, also a Hollywood producer, represented that firm, which sought to invest assets held by the Illinois Teachers Retirement System. Rezko and Levine allegedly claimed they could steer investments in exchange for kickbacks.
From Judge St. Eve’s order:
In early 2004, the staff of the TRS Board had recommended that the Board allocate available funds for real estate investments among the existing TRS real estate managers, including a $220 million investment with Capri Capital. Through Levine’s arrangement, the TRS Board postponed the allocation to Capri Capital. Levine and Rezko allegedly then agreed to approach Rosenberg through an intermediary to either make a $1.5 million donation to Governor Blagojevich or pay Levine an approximate $2 million fee in order to obtain the $220 allocation. In approximately May 2004, that intermediary approached Rosenberg and informed him of Levine and Rezko’s demand. Rosenberg responded that he would not be extorted, and he thereafter threatened to inform law enforcement. Given the threat, Levine and others agreed that Capri Capital would receive the $220 million without any fees or political donations, but it would not receive any further business from the State of Illinois, including TRS. The TRS Board subsequently approved the $220 allocation to Capri Capital.
The feds alleged the same scheme in December, when they filed a document called a proffer setting forth their evidence against Rezko. The proffer used pseudonyms to describe Blagojevich and other officials:
Investment Firm 7 was a real estate investment management firm that had a long-standing relationship with TRS. In February 2004, Investment Firm 7 was supposed to receive $220 million from TRS to manage. Levine acted to stall the allocation, and planned with Rezko to approach Individual J, a principal of Investment Firm 7, with a choice: if Individual J wanted to get the $220 million for Investment Firm 7, he was either going to have to make a $1.5 million donation to Public Official A or pay Levine a 1 % fee (which would be shared with Rezko). Rezko and Levine enlisted Co-Schemer A’s help to demonstrate to Individual J that he needed Levine’s help to get the $220 million. In the course of Co-Schemer A’s efforts to prepare Individual J for Levine’s approach, Individual J realized that he was going to be extorted and threatened to expose the scheme. In light of this threat, Levine, Rezko, Co-Schemer B, and Co-Schemer A spoke on May 10 and decided that Individual J would get his $220 million without being asked for any contribution, but that Individual J would never again get any money from the state of Illinois. Investment Firm 7 did in fact receive a $220 million allocation at the May 2004 TRS Board meeting.
Rezko masterfully ingratiated himself with powerful Chicago pols. As you probably heard from national news coverage, Rezko also was a longtime supporter of Barack Obama, the community organizer turned state lawmaker turned U.S. senator turned presidential contender. More background on Rezko/Obama is here. For the identities of nearly all the characters in the upcoming Rezko trial, go here. (Separately, the feds have indicted Chris Kelly, another former top fundraiser and adviser for the governor.)
Blagojevich and his aides have steadfastly denied he is “Public Official A.” In December, when the feds described their evidence against Rezko in a document called a proffer, Blagojevich spokeswoman Abby Ottenhoff had this to say to the Associated Press:
“No such conversation ever occurred. This administration does not do business that way.”
Ottenhoff added:
“Based on the description in the filing, it is not the governor.”
Only, as the AP noted in its story at the time, the “description” in the proffer pointed directly at the governor — not away from him. In one scene, the proffer describes a plane ride to New York after “Public Official A” reappointed Levine to the Illinois Health Facilities Planning Board in the fall of 2003.
After Levine was reappointed, he shared a private plane ride from New York to Chicago with Public Official A and Co-Schemer B. Levine, Public Official A, and Co-Schemer B were the only passengers on the flight. At the beginning of the flight, Levine thanked Public Official A for reappointing him to the Planning Board. Public Official A responded that Levine should only talk with “Tony” [Rezko] or [Co-Schemer B] about the board, “but you stick with us and you will do very well for yourself.”
The fact is that Blagojevich reappointed Levine to the board. If you accept this fact, then “Public Official A” can’t be anybody other than Blagojevich.
Again, the feds have not charged Blagojevich with a crime. Moreover, the feds generally proceed upward in public corruption cases from lower-ranking players to the powers that be. They grab the little guys and squeeze until the little guys give up the big guys. Therefore, the direction of the probe likely will be affected by whether the feds win at trial against Rezko. The outcome of the case against Chris Kelly also may help determine whether the feds charge the governor.
Nonetheless, there is plenty of speculation about whether the governor’s indictment is imminent. Charlie Wheeler, a retired Chicago Sun-Times reporter who heads the public affairs reporting program at the University of Illinois at Springfield, recently analyzed the proffer and concluded that Blagojevich’s indictment “seems a certainty, based on what prosecutors say they will prove in the Rezko trial.”
That, Wheeler said, is the proffer’s “logical conclusion.”
UPDATE 1
The Cap Fax Blog notes the feds don’t have an open and shut case against Rezko. There may well be some holes.
February 25th, 2008
The nation’s governors met today for the winter meeting of the National Governors Association. To commemorate the 100th anniversary of the group, they recreated a vintage photo in front of the White House.
From the National Governor’s Association:
A century ago, President Theodore Roosevelt hosted the first meeting of the nation’s governors at the White House to discuss conserving America’s natural resources. The meeting was attended by 39 governors and several cabinet secretaries and supreme court justices. This 1908 meeting marked the beginning of the National Governors Association (NGA).
As NGA kicks-off its centennial celebration, the nation’s current governors “recreated” the 1908 photo during the annual governors’ meeting with the president.
The 1908 photo is here and it’s a must see. A century later, the governors are here. Only, where is Gov. Rod Blagojevich?
He did not show up for the photo, an NGA spokeswoman said. Nor did he attend the winter meeting, his own spokeswoman said.
Certainly, there would have been plenty at the meeting of interest to our populist governor, no?
A friend of mine who is a reporter in Washington wrote by e-mail that discussion topics included:
“coal gasification and carbon sequestration (FutureGen!) and getting an even bigger economic stimulus package. Oh, and the likely prospect of losing millions of health care dollars.”
My friend added, tongue in cheek, “Good thing none of these topics have anything to do with Illinois!”
Blagojevich spokeswoman Abby Ottenhoff responded by e-mail: “We had planned to be there, but schedule changed so he could attend the NIU memorial. We have some senior staff in attendance.”
February 22nd, 2008
Press release from Rep. Dave Winters, R-Shirland:
On Wednesday, Governor Blagojevich delivered his State of the State, or SOS, address to inform the public of the affairs of the state and his proposals for the spring legislative session. But his unusually short speech was extremely vague and provided no real picture of our state’s true financial condition. He camouflaged the fact that Illinois is facing another kind of SOS - a warning for a state drowning in debt.
The fact is that Illinois is sinking. Because of the Democrats’ insatiable appetite for spending, the budget under the Blagojevich administration is growing faster than incoming revenue. As a result, our state is behind in paying more than $1.7 billion in bills to service providers. Many of these liabilities are owed to nursing home and healthcare professionals who offer help to Medicaid participants! His failure to pay is not only sending our medical providers into debt, it is forcing some of them to deny treatment to patients.
A recent report from the Commission on Government Forecasting and Accountability found that due to a downturn in the national economy, the current Fiscal Year 2008 revenues will fall short of estimates by $600 million. To top it off, Treasurer Alexi Giannoulias announced investment income will fail to meet expectations this year by an additional $38 million to $50 million. So it seems our fiscal ship is foundering, even before we begin negotiating an FY09 budget.
Over the last 5 years, the Democrats who control all branches of Illinois government have paid for their “credit card” philosophy by raising fees and taxes, by borrowing, and by using one-time gimmicks. This has created an insurmountable structural deficit. In that time period, they have increased spending by $5.2 billion, or 23 percent. And our general obligation bond debt has risen from 7.6 billion in Fiscal Year 2002 to 19.8 billion in Fiscal Year 2007.
Unfortunately, Illinois faces even greater challenges in FY09. Early estimates show only a $500 million to $700 million growth while Medicaid needs alone will likely reach $700 million, and another $700 million is needed to fulfill our state pension obligations.
Yet the governor in his SOS message proposed more tax-and-spend initiatives for which he has become notorious. Most of the schemes he proposed were recycled from previous years, including new taxes on employers to pay for a healthcare expansion, fund sweeps, and a lease of the state lottery.
While the Governor talked about cutting taxes on businesses, the reality is the governor plans to provide a one-time tax cut of 300 M, while pushing for a $1.2 billion tax increase on employers which will last year after year. Currently, the state’s unemployment rate is 5.2 percent – the 13th worst in the nation. Raising taxes on businesses that create jobs for families will only make matters worse and contribute to a slowing state economy.
Leasing the state lottery was proposed by the governor during his address, which is a scheme that has been rejected by the General Assembly over and over again. He would use a large portion of the proceeds for the sale to pay for a capital construction program. While I am pleased the he supports the prospect of a capital plan to pay for road improvements and school construction, leasing state assets such as the Lottery is only a quick fix and will cost the state approximately $40 billion in education funding in the long run. We must explore other options to generate revenue for a capital program which is extremely important to create new jobs, boost our economy, improve state facilities, and provide better classrooms for students.
Illinois is certainly facing harsh economic times, but now is the time to confront them before the state is completely swamped by debt. The way to do that is to stop introducing new spending plans and program expansion, start paying our bills, and introduce measures to stimulate job growth and ignite the economy. I’m sending out an SOS to the governor and my Democrat colleagues in the General Assembly – help save our state. Join me and other House Republican members in choosing fiscal responsibility this spring.
February 21st, 2008
If I live to be 110 years old, I’ll never forget the day the governor of this state made me the bogeyman of his moment.
It was in May 2004, and I gathered with other reporters in the governor’s office for a news conference he called. A Chicago television reporter asked the governor a series of leading questions about tension — already apparent during the second year of his administration — he shared with lawmakers and other folks working in Springfield.
The governor deflected the question, suggesting Capitol reporters had misled the public with their stories about him. From my column at the time:
The governor was explaining Statehouse reporters to a television reporter from Chicago. As you may imagine, this was a truly comic event: The governor has generally avoided Springfield and, to a greater degree, the Statehouse press corps.
We require detail.
Nonetheless, Blagojevich saw fit to explain our nature to his fellow Chicagoan during a news conference in his Capitol office, as if the governor were leading a friend through a strange land.
The television reporter was working on a story about how people around Springfield appear angry at the governor. So the reporter tried to coax the governor to give up a sound bite by alluding to the tense mood at the news conference.
YET, THIS GOVERNOR does not miss an opportunity to look like a regular, warm-hearted, moderately intelligent guy.
“This is what they do here,” the governor told the reporter, referring to our aggressive approach. “But they’re like that. They’re really nice people. They sound angry and mad, but they’re really nice when you get to know ‘em.”
Then the governor looked at me. I was sitting on the floor in the middle of the room, between his podium and a row of television cameras. We were surrounded by reporters and his aides.
“Mr. Chambers over here is a nice guy,” Blagojevich said. “He just sounds very angry.”
The television reporter persisted. He told the governor that people in Springfield think he is rude.
“You think so?” the governor asked. “Who says that? Chambers?”
I was in no way participating in the exchange between the television reporter and the governor. I had not said a word.
Nonetheless, the governor saw fit to drag me in and paint me as the bad guy. Somehow, by the governor’s logic, I was individually responsible for the negative phenomenon captivating the television reporter.
Then there was the time in March 2005 I sought to cover a delegation of Rockford officials meeting with Blagojevich in his Capitol office. The governor’s aides said I couldn’t attend because the delegation didn’t want me there. But when I talked to delegation leaders, including then-Mayor Doug Scott, they said they had no problem with me following along.
At last, the governor’s staff relented. I joined the group in his office. And just as the meeting began, Blagojevich scolded me. As I reported at the time:
The governor shook a couple hands, then pointed at me. “Nattering nabobs of negativism, right there!” he declared.
THE ALLITERATION WAS compliments of Spiro Agnew, the GOP vice president who resigned from Richard Nixon’s administration amid scandal. Agnew used it to describe the press corps during a speech in 1970.
I suppose it was Blagojevich’s way of saying he wasn’t pleased that I attended the meeting. Or that he doesn’t care for my work.
Blagojevich is seldom without a bogeyman. When he wanted to take control of the State Board of Education, he called it a “Soviet-style bureaucracy.” When he wanted to generate more money for state coffers by imposing a new tax on businesses last year, he said the businesses weren’t paying their “fair share.” When Rep. John Bradley, D-Marion, refused to support his budget plan in 2004, the governor went on a local radio show and repeatedly called Bradley a “wallflower.”
Blagojevich has often played the role of the schoolyard bully. Just as often, he played the kid who refused to cooperate with a group’s rules, and then threw a fit when the others refused to play by his.
Vilifying adversaries has been integral part of the governor’s approach to governance, as a recent article in the St. Louis Post Dispatch pointed out.
Since early in his first term, when Blagojevich diplomatically set the tone with lawmakers by comparing their spending habits with those of “drunken sailors,” the Democratic governor’s MO has been clear to his fellow politicians.
In one major policy speech after another in the years since, Blagojevich has reliably identified a nemesis to vilify, as a way of building steam for his policy initiatives. Big business, bureaucrats, fellow politicians and his own schools chief have all worn the black hat at various times.
But the strategy arguably has not been effective. The governor simply cannot point to a string of victories following his rhetorical outbursts. Kristin McQueary remarked in the Daily Southtown on the governor’s “weasel” mentality. In a column that ran before his budget address on Wednesday, she predicted:
Blagojevich’s stature among legislators is so amputated, he’ll need an extension ladder to see over the podium. His agenda is dead on arrival unless he dramatically improves his approach.
The governor’s budget address on Wednesday was, remarkably, the most modest and conciliatory speech of his administration. There was no bogeyman. There was no super-charged rhetoric.
Instead, the governor pointed to bipartisan cooperation in Washington and suggested there’s no reason why he and lawmakers can’t work together too. He has this to say about his own position on how best to craft a capital construction plan: “I’m flexible.”
Lawmakers are suspicious of the governor’s new-found sensitivity. I can’t blame them. Any reasonable person must wonder whether the governor’s dramatically changed approach is sincere.
Then again, last year was quantifiably the worst of the governor’s administration. Lawmakers resoundingly rejected his policy agenda, from his universal health care plan to his gross receipts tax. At the same time, his approval rating sank to a low of near 20 percent. A fellow Democrat publicly called him “insane.”
Maybe this year, the governor wants to walk away with something he can call a success.
February 21st, 2008
Sieben’s press release:
SPRINGFIELD – Despite his claims of addressing an economic slowdown, Gov. Rod Blagojevich is calling for a sixth year of increased spending, higher debt and more hits on businesses that employ Illinois citizens, according to Assistant Senate Republican Leader Todd Sieben (R-Geneseo).
Blagojevich outlined his $49.7 billion budget proposal for Fiscal Year 2009 to a joint session of the General Assembly on Feb. 20. Fiscal Year 2009 runs from July 1, 2008, through June 30, 2009.
Sen. Sieben says the Governor’s financial blueprint for the coming fiscal year relies once again on record-high state debt; a record-high backlog of unpaid bills; financial gimmickry such as leasing the state lottery, yet another pension bond sale, more raids from the Road Fund; and continued attacks on business.
“You certainly have to wonder if this Governor ever reads the newspaper or watches the news,” Sieben said. “He seems to be on the same reckless financial course that has left Illinois in such bad economic shape in the first place. Even his fellow constitutional officers have recently issued strong warnings about the need to hold the line on spending. He should not be adding new programs when the state cannot meet its current financial obligations. We should, instead, work within our available resources.”
The 45th District Senator noted that past fiscal policies have resulted in several harsh financial realities:
* Illinois faces a deficit for the current fiscal year, conservatively estimated at $750 million.
* The state has a $1.7 billion backlog of unpaid bills – the highest in state history.
* The state’s Medicaid program requires at least $500 million in new dollars, just to meet existing obligations.
* The state’s unfunded pension liability is among the worst in the nation.
Gov. Blagojevich also continues to target employers and the jobs they provide, and the long-term effects of his policies show in state’s lackluster job growth. Illinois is 45th in the nation in job growth since Gov. Blagojevich took office.
According to federal jobs numbers from December, Illinois has a 2.5 percent job growth rate, while Iowa has a 5.9% rate, followed by Wisconsin at 4.3%, Kentucky at 4%, Missouri at 3.9% and Indiana at 2.8%.
The 45th District Senator says strong job growth – not huge tax increases – is a better way to address budget woes. If Illinois had kept pace with the national average in job growth, it would have more than 213,000 additional jobs today, which would mean more than a half-billion dollars in additional tax revenues.
Sen. Sieben says the Governor’s budget proposal is the first step in a long negotiation process, and he looks forward to working with his fellow lawmakers to craft a fiscal plan that reflects the spending priorities of the citizens who live and work in northwestern Illinois.
February 20th, 2008
Greg Tuite, the Rockford lawyer and Democrat running against Rep. Ron Wait, R-Belvidere, joined the conversation by e-mail:
After reading the comments of our two Senators, all I can say is hear we go again. As usual they spout their Republican Party talking points instead of proposing solutions for the problems we face as a state. Their press releases are filled with attacks on the governor, following a pattern for the past five years. They cite the dire financial situation of the State of Illinois, yet they take no responsibility for the conditions that they have created as long term legislators. Two of the biggest drains on our budget are the unfunded pension liabilities and our unpaid Medicaid bills. These are problems that have existed for over 15 years under both Democratic and Republican administrations. Our legislators should admit that this has been a long term problem, explain it to the public and resolve to solve it. The public would appreciate the truth and and effort to deal with the problems truthfully. In reading the press releases I don’t see any proposals, ideas or solutions – only attacks. No wonder we are falling behind.
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