McHenry County Blog

Included in the 1974 Regional Transportation Authority legislation was a 15% parking tax.

The logic advanced was that it would encourage people coming Downtown to use mass transportation.

Social engineering at work.

The problem, however, is that lots of people from the suburbs had other places that State Street to go shopping.

So add to the cost of parking and a trip to Chicago became less desirable.

The stores started closing

State Street was turned into a two-lane street.

“We’ll make it look like a suburban mall,” seemed to be the reasoning.

That didn’t work.

The millions spent to narrow State Street to two mainly bus lanes, thus preventing the relatively free flow of traffic, was undone.

As the ciost of parking gets higher in Chicago, fewer people will drive downtown. I think I learned that concept in my first economics course.

The RTA parking tax was repealed about the time the 5% RTA gasoline tax bit the dust.  (That RTA gas tax was another bit of social engineering included in the RTA Act.)

Now Mayor Rahm Emmanuel, having no idea that the idea of hiking parking taxes had negative effects on Chicago’s Loop in the past, is going to impose another parking tax.

Chicago Tribune cartoonist Scott Stantis, being new to town, doesn’t know about the RTA parking tax either, but a couple of weeks ago he came up with a delightful editorial campaign.

It has a depiction of a parking lot gate.

Upon the barrier sits the new Chicago Mayor with a big sledge hammer with the words “TAX IT” on the mallet.

He’s saying, “‘Cause I can.”

Know what, Mayor?

‘Cause we can find pretty much everything we want outside of Chicago, we can, too.

On Tuesday, the Chicago Sun-Times was the first to blow the whistle on Rahm Emmanuel's attempt to finance Chicago city government by having Red Light cameras trigger speeding tickets.

Chicago Mayor Rahm Emmanuel needs money.

When Chicago mayors need money, they look for ways to make non-Chicago residents’ pocketbooks lighter.

Think of the Regional Transportation Authority, which exported the CTA’s financial woes to the whole Chicago metropolitan area.

General Fund revenues (to be financed by the new Lottery) and gas taxes for us because the overnight Chicago Transit Authority service wasn’t paying its own way.

This Chicago mayor’s latest proposal is to pull $100 bills out of the pockets of those using Chicago streets via the already-installed Red Light cameras.

He can’t levy an income tax on suburbanites who work in Chicago. That would take legislative authority and the opposition would be immense.

Much more than for a speeding ticket system near the schools of our precious children.

Do any driving in Chicago?

Tempted to go with the traffic flow when it is moving?

Ever try to beat a red light?

If so, this legislation is aimed at you.

I remember well the rants of Danville’s State Rep. Bill Black about how his constituents got Chicago parking tickets when they had never been in Chicago.

Presumably, speeding tickets will go to the right car owners.

Jack Franks

Let’s give the technology that.

But, there are going to be a lot of very unhappy people getting $100 speeding tickets.

They will be living not only in the suburbs, but in Chicago.

Well, an idea to raise money for Chicago can’t always be financed exclusively by suburbanites.

You may remember that our own McHenry County Democrat Jack Franks was one of the sponsors of the original Red Light Camera bill.

Without those Red Light Cameras, this scheme would not be possible.

While yesterday's editorial in the Sun-Times probably did not get too much attention among legislators in Springfield, this front page article in the Chicago Tribune today will. It will give motorists a shot at beating this bill.

I wonder if he has learned the lesson that his constituents don’t like big brother pulling money out of their pockets.

Maybe these "Pay Toll 1 Mile" signs will have "and Get Your Chance at a Speeding Ticket, Too."

And, if this passes, did you know that the Tollway’s I-Pass toll tax sucker-uppers can register the speed of vehicles also.

Will this proposal give the Tollway Board, yesterday stripped of critics by Governor Pat Quinn, ideas?

The Sunday Chicago Tribune last week had a data base of Chicago Mayor-elect Rahm Emanuel’s contributors.

Just for fun, I thought I’d look up those from zip codes covering parts of McHenry County.

Here’s what I found.  They are in order of zip code with contributions within each in descending order.  Barrington, which has the most, but only a part of Barrington Hills and Barrington Shores in McHenry County is first.

Cary is next, with two people donating.  Danny Warner and Donny Fitzgerald are listed.

Crystal Lake has one contributor, John Major.

There is also one from Richmond, Dennis Hollan.

A Woodstock resident, Abigail Guzman, contributed $1,000.

Former Huntley School Board Larry Snow has found a chink in the armor of Illinois Democrats.

And from whence did it come?

From newly-elected Chicago Mayor Rahm Emanuel.

Snow picks up on an April 17, 2011, letter to the Chicago Tribune containing the following gem:

“Nothing is more critical to Chicago’s future than our children’s education. And yet for years we have cheated them.”

And, who has been running Chicago since before I was born?

That’s right.

Democrats.

The evidence?

Here’s another quote from Emanuel:

“It’s no wonder only half of Chicago Public Schools’ students graduate from high school.”

And, who was in charge of Chicago schools?

President Barack Obama’s Secretary of Education, Arn Ducan. From the Department’s web site:

“Prior to his appointment as secretary of education, Duncan served as the chief executive officer of the Chicago Public Schools, a position to which he was appointed by Mayor Richard M. Daley, from June 2001 through December 2008, becoming the longest-serving big-city education superintendent in the country.”

Read the rest of the article, if you think this might be an issue Illinois Republicans could capitalize on.

“Too Big to Fail,” by DJ Freddie Mac and The Blue State Cowboys. Hat tip to Capitol Fax Blog.

Even lyrics slow enough for me to understand.

Great satire.

I certainly remember that it is Alderman and Democratic Party Ward Committeeman Ed Burke.

Should Rahm Emanuel point the finger at Ed Burke for his being thrown off the ballot by the Appellate Court?

And that was the thought that came to mind when a friend called to tell me the 1st Appellate Court panel had ruled Rahm Emanuuel did not meet the residency requirement to run for major.

I’m being too conspiratorial, right?

= = = = =
Here are the reactions I have gotten to me conspiratorial approach.

The first is from a comment under the story in Capitol Fax Blog:

- irv & ashland – Monday, Jan 24, 11 @ 3:34 pm:

Cal,

For what it’s worth, the two judges have been on the court for quite a while. I did look at results from their most recent retention to get a sense of political support, and found no real difference between the 14th Ward and everywhere else. Not that that’s the final word on whether Burke originally sponsored them, or continues to, but at any rate I found no evidence that his support was a major recent factor in their careers.

The second comes from an attorney who has practice before one of the Appellate Court Justices when he was in Circuit Court:

To answer your question about the judges in Cook County, Hoffman is a very
intelligent and very well respected judge. I appeared in front of him when
he was an ordinary Circuit Court judge. His acumen was quickly acknowledged
and he rose quickly. If anything, I would say he is an IVI-IVO type, not a
machine hack. I would be hard pressed to come up with the name of any other
judge in the entire state that I felt was smarter and more ethical than
Hoffman. Maybe I am wrong about that but that has been my impression.

I think the decision is eminently reasonable. If you want to represent the
people of a municipality, you ought to have lived there a while. This is
different from voting, where you can qualify 30 days before an election.
That is the crux of the decision. The legislature was attempting to curb
carpet bagging when it comes to people who want to serve in office. Maybe
it’s an antiquated concept in the modern internet age, but it’s what we
have.

Taxpayers for Common Sense made it relatively painless to find the projects that Illinois congressmen claimed credit for in this year’s budget.

We have looked at Melissa Bean’s, Jerry Costello’s, Danny Davis’ and Dick Durbin’s previously.

Today we see ex-Chicago Congressman Rahm Emanuel’s, Kane County’s Bill Foster’s, Chicago’s Luis Gutierrez’ and the Quad Cities’ Phil Hare’s.

Rahm Emanuel

• HHS Health Resources and Services Administration $190,000 Emanuel – Advocate Health Care, Chicago, IL, for Facilities and Equipment
• Labor Employment & Training Administration $95,000 Emanuel, Schakowsky – Kohl’s Children’s Museum of Greater Chicago, Glenview, IL, for Educational Programs

Bill Foster

• HHS CDC $24,000 Foster – Kendall County Health Department, Yorkville, IL, for a Program to Reduce Childhood Obesity
• HHS Substance Abuse and Mental Health Administration $95,000 Foster – Henry/Stark County Health Department, Kewanee, IL, to Start a Mental Health Services Program in Henry County

Luis Gutierrez

• HHS Health Resources and Services Administration $285,000 Gutierrez – Erie Family Health Center, Chicago, IL, for Facilities and Equipment

Phil Hare

• HHS Health Resources and Services Administration $238,000 Hare – Macoupin County Health Department, Carlinville, IL, for Facilities and Equipment
• HHS Health Resources and Services Administration $666,000 Hare, LaHood – Memorial Medical Center, Springfield, IL, for the Intelligent Pharmacy Program and Automated Drug Management Electronic Medical Records Initiative
• HHS Health Resources and Services Administration $95,000 Hare, LaHood – OSF Healthcare System, Peoria, IL, for an Electronic Medical Records Initiative
• HHS Health Resources and Services Administration $285,000 Hare – Rock Island County Care Center, East Moline, IL, for Facilities and Equipment
• HHS Health Resources and Services Administration $95,000 Hare – Mercer County Hospital, Aledo, IL, for Facilities and Equipment

= = = = =
Now that President Barack Obama has signed the pork bill, there’s something important to remember about politicians.

It’s not what they say. It’s what they do that counts.

Taxpayers for Common Sense have totaled up the congressional earmarks in the budget bill being voted on this week.

I was reminded of that when I read an editorial cartoon sent to me by my Joplin, Missouri, brother-in-law. It was in the Saganaw News.

Scene: Husband and wife sitting at the breakfast table.

Husband: “Sez here they arrested a D.C. Madam for running a house of ill repute…”

Wife: “They arrested Polisi?”

Below is the list of who got what in this year’s budget, which is due to be passed only about six months after the beginning of the fiscal year. They are listed in descending order from highest to lowest dollar amount of pork projects

• Ray LaHood, 23 earmarks totaling $8,774,250
• Rahm Emanuel, 10 earmarks totaling $6,523,000
• Jerry Costello, 12 earmarks totaling $5,425,175
• Dan Lipinski, 12 projects totaling $4,451,172
• Melissa Bean, 10 earmarks totaling $3,687,314 (one in McHenry County)
• Bill Foster, 12 earmarks totaling $3,095,000
• Danny Davis, 10 earmarks totaling $3,066,014
• Tim Johnson, 8 earmarks totaling $2,806,100
• Jesse Jackson, Jr., 15 earmarks totaling $2,783,500
• Peter Roskam, 12 earmarks totaling $2,655,330
• John Shimkus, 13 earmarks totaling $2,421,750
• Bobby Rush, 8 earmarks totaling $2,073,375
• Don Manzullo, 6 earmarks totaling $2,070,500 (one in McHenry County)
• Phil Hare, 7 earmarks totaling $2,031,000
• Jan Schakowsky, 8 earmarks totaling $1,644,000
• Luis Gutierrez, 2 earmarks totaling $760,000
• Jerry Weller, 7 earmarks totaling $1,243,250

$47.8 million in total.

Eschewing pork were Republicans Judy Biggert and Mark Kirk.

Three retired members, Rahm Emanuel, Ray LaHood and Jerry Weller get credit for projects anyway.

Newly elected Congress folks Debbie Halvorson and Aaron Shock were not listed.

Tomorrow, the bacon our United States Senators brought home.

In our look at pork found in the Transportation and Housing and Urban Development part of this year’s budget, we have gotten through the letter “D” in the Illinois congressional delegation.

The congress critters don’t make it easy. There is no data base that can be easily searched.

The only way I found it was because Taxpayers for Common Sense posted such congressional earmarks.

You can see the source document here.

Today we start with now ex-5th District Congressman Rahm Emanuel’s projects, look at Quad-Cities’ Phil Hare’s, plus Chicago’s Jesse Jackson, Jr.’s and Champaign County’s Tim Johnson’s.

If more than one member of Congress’ name is listed, the rest claim credit.

Rahm Emanuel

• Surface Transportation Priorities $950,000 Emanuel – Milwaukee Avenue Rehabilitation, IL
• Surface Transportation Priorities $1,425,000 Emanuel – North Lake Shore Drive Rehabilitation, IL
• Surface Transportation Priorities $950,000 Emanuel – Village of Franklin Park Street Rehabilitation, IL
• Economic Development Initiatives $190,000 Emanuel – Women In Need Growing Stronger in Palatine, IL, for the Acquisition and Renovation of a Homeless Shelter (This is is Bean’s district.)
• HUD, Neighborhood Initiatives $190,000 Emanuel – Academy for Urban School Leadership, IL, for Improvements to Inadequate Facilities

Phil Hare

• Rail Line Relocation and Improvement Program $475,000 Hare – Quad Cities Track Improvement, IL
• Transportation, Community and System Preservation $475,000 Hare – Calhoun County 1 Resurfacing, IL
• Economic Development Initiatives $237,000 Hare, Durbin – East Moline Downtown Development, IL, for Capital Improvements and Development Projects in Downtown E. Molene, including Acquisition and Renovation of Dilapidated Structures

Jesse Jackson, Jr.

• Alternatives Analysis $285,000 Jackson, Durbin – CTA Red Line Extension, IL
• Surface Transportation Priorities $237,500 Jackson – 75th and 79th Street Improvements, IL

Tim Johnson

• Transportation, Community and System Preservation $570,000 Johnson – University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign Campus Street Extension, IL
• Economic Development Initiatives $118,750 Johnson – Chanute Air Force Museum for Construction of a New Building to House an Aircraft Display
• Economic Development Initiatives $95,000 Johnson – Illinois State University, for Development of a Research Park for Small to Medium-Sized Businesses that will Assist with Regional Business Development and Create Opportunities for New Jobs in Illinois
• FTA Priority Consideration No Dollar Amount Johnson, Durbin – Day Care/Center Park and Ride, City of Champaign, IL (for lapsed funds in previous appropriations acts)

The Chicago Tribune’s memory is getting better.

In yesterday’s article on the race to replace White House Chief-of-Staff Rahm Emanuel, Tribune reporters Don Mihalopoulos and John McCormick emphasize the fact that Emanuel won in 2002 only with the help of patronage workers from the Hired Truck Scandal gang.

That’s when he beat State Rep. Nancy Kaszak.

It was so blatant that the U.S. Attorney mentioned the intervention in a footnote in the plea agreement of Water Department’s Director of Finance and Administration Gerald Wesolowski. He was Donald Tomczak’s bag man.

Candidates assisted include

“Jeff Tomczak, mayoral candidate Richard Daley, judicial candidate Amy Bertani, United States congressional candidate Rahm Emanuel and others,”

the U.S. Attorney’s court filing read.

The Tribune did not remember this rather relevant fact in its puff piece, front page Sunday Magazine article November 12, 2006.

And, just in time to help the independent candidates, the United States Supreme Court has turned down Mayor Richard Daley patronage chief Richard Sorich’s appeal of his conviction for illegal hiring of patronage workers.