I have received several notices from my friend in the Illinois Republican party claiming that 50,000 jobs are on the line if we do not release funds for the $33 Billion Capital Bill.  In a fit of responsibility, the same notes generally state that Republicans (and a few Democrats) want to withhold an additional $430 million, before releasing the funds for the $33 Billion.

So Comptroller Topinka, Senator Dillard, Senator Murphy, Illinois Republican Chairman Pat Brady, Candidate John Bambenek, and others, with all due respect: Illinois is Broke.  Not only do we not …

From Commenter Bessie:
Bessie said:
In the court filing 10-L-7986 Cook County Circuit Court deposition of Frawley vs. Weaver;
Page 21 Line 11;
Question (Weavers Lawyer Konicek) – “I’m assuming the information is about the PAYMENTS made by Rezko to Obama, so we know we’re talking about the right conversation, right?”
Page 21 Line 23;
Question Konicek – “So you said he withheld information. Am I correct it was about Obama being paid by Rezko?”
Page 29 Line 8;
Question Konicek – “Did you bring to Mr. Weaver in Hinsdale a statement showing payment to Tony Rezko in …

Here’s Judy Barr Topinka, the Republican Comptroller of Illinois
My message to fellow state leaders is simple: do not play games with capital projects and the jobs they bring to Illinois. These initiatives not only maintain our roads, bridges and transportation network, they also provide good jobs, and support tens of thousands of families across our state. It is one thing to limit state spending on construction, but quite another to stop payment on projects already underway.

And her crony Pat Quinn, Democratic Governor of Illinois wants a special session to spend …

Enjoying a Holiday Monday afternoon with the kids asleep, I was all set to catch up reading the Financial Times Book Review section from last week. Generally balanced, with a full set of business, political and history books, the FT has replaced the (climate quackery peddling) Economist as my default source of book reviews.

Yet, last week’s edition was very grim, for anyone who would rather read a review instead of Left Wing blather. Consider this roundup of Bob Dylan biographies by Peter Aspden, or if you want to save time, …

I’m for law and order, the way that it should be.
This song’s about the night they spent protecting you from me.
Don’t you think this outlaw bit has done got out of hand?
What started out to be a joke, the law don’t understand.

Waylon Jennings, the “Outlaw” Country legend, wrote the above in 1978, in a self examination of his public persona vs. the fact that he really didn’t like being arrested. Making himself out to be an “Outlaw” artist tended to attract not only other real outlaws, but law enforcement as …

Please join Tom Roeser as  he welcomes Clint Krislov Democratic candidate for Controller and Dan Kelley, attorney and columnist for the Chicago Daily Observer to the fastest hour on radio, Political Shootout, on AM 890 WLS this Sunday Evening at 8PM.

Listen Live here
Call in here +13125918900

In the well earned fury surrounding suspended St. Sabina’s Pastor Fr. Michael Pfleger, a more mundane but higher financial value Church issue has been sidelined in Chicago Religious news. Chicago has a new Mayor, Rahm Emanuel, coming in to office, who is looking for ways to plug holes in the City budget after years of financial mismanagement by his politcal crony, Mayor Richard M. Daley. One revenue enhancement under consideration is a forcing non-profits, including Churches and Synagogues to pay property taxes to Cook County which can then flow the revenues toward …

I have enjoyed reading Ian Fleming’s travelogues to the Thrilling Cities of 1959-60, a serialized collection from the London Sunday Times. In between visits to see Charlie Chaplin in Geneva and Hugh Hefner in Chicago, Fleming manages to visit Macau, to see (perhaps a model for Dr. Goldfinger), a mysterious Dr. P.J. Lobo, who was said to control much of the world’s trade in gold.
Fleming discovers Dr. P.J. Lobo’s trading methods
to take only the case of gold bullion it is therefore perfectly easy for anyone to arrive by ferry or …

Crain’s started scrutiny of the report, and the commenters and author of the story scorn the report
During the tortured effort to rescue failing South Side lender ShoreBank last year, Federal Deposit Insurance Corp. Chairman Sheila Bair called Wall Street banks soliciting investments in the bank, but a new report by the FDIC’s inspector general concluded the intervention wasn’t inappropriate.
I was all prepared to place a photo of the Batman Villains alongside the Inspector General’s Report about Political Influence on the FDIC at Shore Bank and call it another day …

It was Russel Long who popularized the apt ditty
Don’t tax you, don’t tax me, tax that fellow behind the tree
describing the reluctance of politicians to advertise that they must tax someone to gain government revenue. The fellow behind the tree is always the other guy: smokers, gamblers, wealthy people, tourists, anybody but one’s political constituents. Of course, politicians dole out such broad favors in search of votes. we eventually run out of fellows behind the tree.

Consider the early retirement programs offered by George Ryan and continued by Rod Blagojevich. State …