According to the Journal Star today (I’d link to it, but it’s not up on their site at this time):

The Illinois Sports Facilities Authority, chaired by former Gov. James Thompson, is expected to make an offer to the Tribune Co. next week to acquire and renovate Wrigley Field. That bid could include a request from the General Assembly to issue state-backed bonds, authority spokesman Doug Scofield said Thursday.

The main thrust of the article is that this is a divisive issue, as downstate lawmakers don’t see any benefit of this plan to people outside of Chicago. Gee, you think?

Forbes valued the team at $592 million in 2007. They make tons of profit every year despite not winning a World Series for 100 years. Why aren’t they making their own repairs and renovations to Wrigley Field? Why should any taxpayers be forced to give money to benefit this multi-million-dollar ball club?

What did you think of Gov. Blagojevich’s State of the State address? In case you missed it, here is the text as provided by the Governor’s office:

State of the State and Fiscal Year 2009 Budget Address
Governor Rod R. Blagojevich

In a time of economic challenge, it is our challenge to offer a way forward. Times are tough. People are worried. But there are solutions. I am here to talk about the state of the state and to present a budget. But how do you talk about the state of Illinois without first talking about the state of the nation?

Today, we are a country at war. Leading economists warn of a recession, unemployment is up, more and more Americans find themselves without health care, and many families face the very real possibility of losing their homes.

In America the promise of the American Dream is a promise that is getting harder to keep. In Illinois we are guiding a ship in the midst of a storm. But, our ship of state is on the right course to navigate through that storm.

In spite of national trends, here in Illinois, we have made real progress for people. Over the last four years, we led the Midwest in job creation; we raised the minimum wage twice, more than three quarters of a million people have gotten health care, including All Kids. We are the first state in the nation to create a fund to help families keep their homes. We put a record amount of money in our public schools without raising taxes on people and, most recently, Illinois became the only state in the nation where a senior citizen can ride the bus for free.

We have made a lot of progress for people. But make no mistake about it these are tough times. And when times are tough, I believe the best way to fight for families and fight for people is to focus on strengthening the economy.

Continue reading State of the State of Illinois 2008 →

Bring up the question of whether Illinois residents should call for a Constitutional Convention and you’re likely to get a response like this one from local blogger Brad Carter. Whenever I’ve brought the subject up on my blog, that has inevitably been the “conventional” wisdom (ha ha) from commentators.

But today in the State Journal-Register is an op-ed piece in favor of a “Con Con,” as it’s called for short. Of course, it’s written by a Chicago Democrat, which is sure to be brought up by critics as a reason to be wary. Nevertheless, I thought he made an interesting argument:

Critics from both the left and the right say that holding such a convention will open a “Pandora’s Box.” In fact, there is no doubt that various front groups will be created and funded by the very special interests that want to preserve the status quo, which has led us to our present morass.

The purpose of these groups will be to coax voters into accepting our current dysfunctional government by convincing them that they should fear the unknown outcomes of a Con-Con. I submit that the majority of Illinoisans doubt that things could get much worse.

He goes on to explain the safeguards that are in place — most notably that the final result has to be approved by the voters — and concludes by saying we shouldn’t pass up an opportunity to improve things because of fear:

We have no way of knowing what the process will bring, but fear of the unknown is no reason to shy away from debate. Doing so simply signifies an acceptance of the current system.

Indeed, there was no small amount of risk when the founding fathers decided to break ties with England. Think about the daunting task of forging a new nation from scratch. We face nothing quite so challenging here in Illinois (this would be a peaceful revising of the constitution, not a call to arms after all), yet we seem to have lost our courage even in this.

It isn’t easy reforming government, nor should we expect it to be. Yes, a Con Con would be a risk, and yes it would be a fight to improve things, and yes we might even lose some things we like about the current constitution. But is the status quo really a better option? Should we allow fear to keep us from fighting for something better for Illinois?

The Chicago Tribune ran a follow-up to their Sunday editorial where they asked readers if Illinois should amend its constitution to allow the governor to be recalled. I found it interesting that the responses the Tribune got were remarkably similar to the responses Chronicle readers left here, showing that upstate, downstate, Republicans and Democrats are all more or less united on this one.

In a remarkable outpouring of exasperation and disgust, readers lashed out against the cascade of new tax increase proposals and the failure of elected officials to cut spending or trim patronage workers from their bloated staffs. You railed about broken campaign promises, gridlock in Springfield, legislative indifference to critical needs such as education or pension reform and the uncertainty over whether we’ll have a mass transit system come Monday. Yes, you’d like the opportunity to recall Blagojevich, you said, but why stop there? Good question.

Chronicle readers weren’t the only ones who felt that recall ability should be extended to more public officials than just the Governor. Whereas Chicago readers lashed out at “[Cook County President Todd] Stroger, Chicago Mayor Richard Daley, House Speaker Mike Madigan, House Republican Leader Tom Cross and Emil Jones, ‘self-appointed King of the Illinois Senate,'” Peoria commentators did not mention any specific public officer they would want to recall. But I think it’s safe to say they each had a person or persons in mind.

What, if any, action will come out of this public pressure only time will tell.

Speaking of the Chicago Tribune, they’ve published a declaration of all the reasons Gov. Rod Blagojevich should be thrown out of office. In conjunction, they’re also gathering comments from readers (until 2 p.m. today) on whether the state constitution should be amended in 2008 to allow us to recall the governor before his term is up in 2010.

What do you think? Should we pass the necessary legislation to allow us to recall Blago and get him out of office as soon as possible?

Gov. Blagojevich, who had earlier threatened to scuttle the electric rate relief package agreed to by lawmakers and energy companies, finally signed the legislation yesterday, the Chicago Tribune reports:

Gov. Rod Blagojevich reluctantly signed a $1 billion electricity-rate relief package Tuesday that dramatically reshapes the Illinois electric market, saying the legislation provides a “good starting point” in protecting consumers against skyrocketing energy charges.

According to Ameren Illinois which services the Peoria area, eighty percent of residential customers “will realize a cut of 40 percent or more from the expected increase in their 2007 electric bill. Even residential customers using small amounts of electricity will get at least a $100 rebate this year.” More details on the rate relief package are available here.

I heard this on NPR this morning and couldn’t believe it. But here it is in the Chicago Tribune this morning:

Gov. Rod Blagojevich has sued House Speaker Michael Madigan for allegedly concocting a scheme to let lawmakers ignore the governor’s frequent calls for special legislative sessions. In the lawsuit, Blagojevich accused Madigan of acts “aimed at eradicating the governor’s constitutional and statutory powers.”

He is asking a judge to order Madigan to hold special sessions at times and dates of the governor’s choosing.

Blagojevich did not sue Senate President Emil Jones (D-Chicago), his chief legislative ally, even though few senators have shown up for the same weekend sessions.

The Governor suing the House Speaker? Can Illinois get any more dysfunctional?

I suppose it can. When the legislature didn’t pass the budget he wanted, Blagojevich essentially legislated what he wanted via veto and executive order. If the judicial branch gets in his way, will he set himself up as judge, too? This state needs a way of recalling the governor when a governor gets as out of control as this one.

Constitutional convention, anyone?