McHenry County Blog

Now, we’ve got three legislators sending out their takes on what happened in Springfield last week.

Here’s is GOP House Leader Tom Cross’ report:

It’s shaping up to be a very busy legislative session this spring. I wanted to share our “Week in Review”, a recap of the week’s major happenings; a practice we intend to continue throughout the spring legislative session.

Last week featured the Governor’s annual “State of the State” address, the focal point amidst many key developments on a wide range of important issues.

Click here to watch Leader Cross’ reaction to the Governor’s State of the State Address**

Budget

Nonpartisan Commission on Government Forecasting and Accountability (CGFA) weighs in on Illinois’ botched bond sale. After the planned sale of $500 million in new State general –obligation (G.O.) debt was abruptly postponed on Wednesday, January 30, observers pointed to Illinois’ collapsing credit rating as one cause of the blockbuster move. The nonpartisan fiscal watchdog agency CGFA, which advises the Illinois General Assembly on economic and fiscal issues, agreed with this diagnosis in a summary e-mailed to legislators on Monday, February 4. A “negative outlook” is seen by the global brokerage and money-management community that further downgrades are likely or even imminent. All three bond-rating houses have told their clients that Illinois’s $96 billion in unfunded pension liabilities are a key element in their pessimistic judgment of Illinois’ fiscal future. CGFA’s management team repeated this warning in a hearing of the House Revenue Committee held on Tuesday, February 5 in Springfield.

In primarily partisan votes, House and Senate approve $2.1 billion supplemental FY13 budget bill. Scarcely one week after the market-driven collapse of Illinois’ plans to borrow an additional $500 million in G.O. debt, both houses of the General Assembly approved, on largely partisan roll-call votes of 63-52-1 (House) and 38-15-0 (Senate), a bill (HB 190) to appropriate or transfer more than $2 billion in additional spending money. These funds will be utilized by the Quinn administration and other State agencies during the remaining five months of fiscal year 2013. The current fiscal year will end on June 30, 2013.

Monies enumerated in the supplemental spending bill include funds for State employee health insurance, dollars for State road projects, additional monies for caregiving agencies such as the Department of Children and Family Services and the Department of Human Services, and some earmarked funds. Earmarks included in the legislation include monies destined for East St. Louis’s troubled local school system.

HB 190 was signed by Governor Pat Quinn on Thursday, February 7 as Public Act 98-1.

Pensions

Bloomberg says California’s pension system picture turning more optimisticdue to $55 billion cut, enacted in 2012, in state obligations to public-sector retirees. In a news story published Thursday, January 31, Bloomberg News reported to U.S. investor-readers that “California Turns Corner With Upgrade as Pensions Choke Illinois.” Portfolio manager Robert Miller, of Menominee Falls, Wisconsin, reported to Bloomberg that the Golden State was reaping benefits from “difficult decisions” they had made in the previous year. A fiscal packaged by veteran Gov. Jerry Brown enacted severe cuts in pension benefits for newly-hired California public employees. In line with improved expectations, key rating agency Standard & Poor’s last week increased California’s general-obligation (G.O.) bond rating one notch, to single-A. The move left Illinois as the holder of the lowest-ranked credit score (A-minus, one notch below single-A) among the 50 U.S. states.

Economy

More than 1,000 layoffs announced in filings with State of Illinois economic development office. The Department of Commerce and Economic Opportunity (DCEO) is the designated agency to take filings made by Illinois employers who are planning major layoffs for which prior notification is required by law. More than 1,000 additional Illinois jobs will be lost if the filings made on Tuesday, February 6 are implemented. The largest single job loss will be 456 positions to be eliminated by Lyon Workspace Products, which recently filed for bankruptcy and announced plans to close factories in Paris, Illinois and Watseka, Illinois. Lyon is also scheduled to close distribution facilities and reduce its headquarters staff in Montgomery, Illinois. Lyon is historically a manufacturer of school lockers and of steel-sheet cabinetry, shelving, and other office workspace furniture products and fittings.

Health care

Obamacare advocates prepare for push to cement Prairie State’s adherence to federal Affordable Care Act. While 11 states, including California and New York, have taken key steps to amend their statutory law so that their state Departments of Insurance will serve as “enforcers” for Obamacare, 39 other states, including Illinois, have not taken one or more of these key steps. The federal government’s Department of Health and Human Services (USHHS), which enforces the Affordable Care Act, is pressuring the remaining 39 states, including Illinois, to enact new State laws to create a seamless connection between federal law and the States’ enforcement authorities. Laws of the sort request by Washington, D.C. include statutory protections under State law for patients with so-called “pre-existing conditions.” Critics point out the significant unknowns involved in making a potentially unfunded commitment of this sort, coupled with the lack of hard evidence to estimate the fiscal impacts to state and federal taxpayers that would result from imposing a class of new mandates of this type upon all 50 states.

I hope you found this update to be informative and helpful in keeping up with the latest in state government. If you have any questions or concerns, please do not hesitate to contact me by visiting my website at www.tomcross.com.

Sincerely,
Tom Cross
House Republican Leader
State Representative, 97th District

Pretty amazing that a losing Congressional candidate would be interviewed by liberal commentator Carol Marin, but on Wednesday night, there was Joe Walsh, all alone, answering her questions on WTTW.

Under the posted interview is the following explanation:

“National star of the Republican Party, Joe Walsh, joins us to talk about the state of the GOP in Illinois, and what’s next on his agenda.”

Walsh was asked if he were running again for something.

“You wouldn’t deny that, would you?”

“Not at all,” Walsh replied in his calm TV manner.

“I don’t know if another run is in the cards. That’s in God’s hands.”

Marin interspersed comments by Walsh that made nightly news shows during the campaign.

Acknowledging the “gotcha” kind of politics we live in, Walsh replied by explaining that he had more constituent contact than any other congressman and it was impossible not to make mistakes here and there.

With regard to his lack of reaction to the attacks made on him with regard to abortion, he said that he should have pointed out that Tammy Duckworth favored using taxpayer dollars to finance abortions. [My disagreement with that approach has already been written.]

“We train our politicians to act like seals and not say anything to offend voters,” Walsh said.

Marin wanted to know if the Tea Party ship had sailed.

“Gosh, no,” Walsh replied, saying the size of government and the problem of piling debt on the back of our children was still a fervent issue.

He pointed out that Tea Party adherents came with views on social issues than spanned the spectrum, but pointed out that he was “Pro-Life without exception.”

How about the chance to be a radio talk show host on WIND syndicated by the Salem Radio Network?

“There’s an opportunity.”

“There are discussions.”

And what did he say about potential Republican gubernatorial opponents and other Republicans?

• Bill Brady – Shouldn’t run again. He’s run twice.
• Kirk Dillard – Nice man. He’s been down in Springfield forever.
• Dan Rutherford – Nice man. He’s been down in Springfield forever.
• Adan Kinzinger – You know what, not as conservative as people think, but a good congressman.
• Christine Radogno – Part of the problem. The face of the Republican Party along with Tom Cross, a Republican Party in Illinois, Carol, that has been devoid of any ideas. We haven’t stood for anything, which has enabled the Democrats to run the state into the ground.
• Judy Baar Topinka – Go to Florida and just retire and have a good life.
• Bruce Rauner – He’s a Democrat. Bruce Runner and again I know got gazillion dollars and he wants to run for governor as a Republican. He’s Rahm Emmanuel’s best friend. He’s given Democrats more money than he’s given Republicans. He gave Mike Madigan’s House candidates money. I just don’t think he’s a Republican.
• Peter Roskam – Great congressman
• Randy Hultgren – Nice man. Very good congressman.
• Mark Kirk – God, it was good to see him walk up those steps and I hope and sincerely hope and pray every day that he can stay where he is and do his job. (So you would support him?) Oh, gosh yeah. And, again, Carol, Mark Kirk and I are very different Republicans, but we’re still under that big tent.

Money continues to flow into Republican State Rep. candidate David McSweeney’s coffers.

Here’s what he got November 1st, last Thursday, which was reported yesterday:

• $5,000 – Citizens to Elect Tom Cross, Plainfield
• $2,500 – Realtor Political Action Committee, Springfield
• $1,000 – Contractors for Free Enterprise, Elk Grove Village
• $1,000 – Marilyn J. Hayden, Barrington

McSweeney and Beaubien are locking horns today at the polls.

Low rollers are invited to Algonquin’s Port Edward Monday night for a $55 fund raiserfor the McHenry County Republican Party.

High rollers are invited to October 24th dinner at Crystal Lake’s 1776.

Both the local Republican Party Chairman’s Circle Political Action Committee and the House Republican Organization will benefit from $150 a person event.

It’s being called a “Whiskey Tasting and Dinner.”

The money raised will go to help oust Mike Madigan from his Speaker-for-Life post and toward the Victory 2012 campaign effort.

Surf and turf, the invitation says.

He has no opponent, but State Rep. Mike Tryon is holding his annual fund fish boil fund raiser on August 1st at Huntley’s Parkside Pub.

The price is $40.

The details of the event are in the flyer seen below:

If you are wondering why a State Representative without an opponent needs money, perhaps the $2,500 contribution to the House Republican Organization might provide something of an explanation.

As I have explained before, Republican House leaders expect large contributions from members. The higher the position with the party hierarchy, the more money is expected.

Mike Tryon is expected to pony us $10,000 a year.

For those who want to take out Mike Madigan from the House Speakership, it has to be realized that Republican candidates in districts where Republicans might defeat an incumbent Democrat that there is not a tradition of giving money to Republican legislative candidates.

That means to have a chance of winning, money must come from somewhere else.

McHenry County is one of those “somewhere elses.”

If you would like to see how Tryon spent his money, campaign contributions for the first quarter of the year (the quarter with the primary election) here and in the second quarter Tryon gave $500 to Ken Koehler’s campaign.

Other itemized (over $150) expenditures can be found here for the first quarter of 2012 and here for the second quarter of the year.

John Kass lamented the lack of an Illinois Scott Walker last Thursday.

He certainly is asking the right question:

“Where is Illinois’ Scott Walker?”

I was tempted to prepare a sign to affix to me chest asking.

“Are you the Illinois Scott Walker?”

but didn’t get around to it.

That thought pretty much left my mind until Illinois Republican Party Chairman Pat Brady started throwing red meat to the audience at the Tinley Park Convention.

“Isn’t it nice to see courage rewarded?” Brady asked after explaining his joy at watching Walker beat back the Democrats’ recall effort.

He noted with irony and derision Pat Quinn’s reaction, “Illinois is different.”

“We are under the thumb of a controlling, vindictive, ethically challenged, self-serving leprechaun, and I mean no disrespect to leprechauns, Speaker Mike Madigan,” Brady said, setting the tone of the gathering.

Brady pointed out that a mere 5,000 votes in the right House districts could have made Tom Cross Speaker.

And just 31,000 votes would have meant Bill Brady would have been elected Governor, instead of Quinn.

A pick of six seats in the Senate and six in the House would turn control over to the GOP.

Next came speeches by elected officials.

First up was Peoria’s Aaron Schock, first elected in 2008.

He told of passing federal free trade legislation for Columbia and having received a call from the CEO of Caterpillar Corporation, based in his home town. He was congratulated and told the a new plant would be built that would create 1,400 new jobs.

But, that the plant would not be build in Illinois because of our Workers’ Comp and tort liability laws.

“If we keep the same boneheads in Springfield, we won’t get the benefits,” Schock said.

House Minority Leader Tom Cross was next.

Signaling a line of attack against Democrats outside of Chicago, he pledged opposition to Mike Madigan’s and John Cullerton’s proposal to transfer $20 billion of teacher pension burden from state taxpayers to property taxpayers.

The man whose rant against Madigan’s one-man rule spread throughout television and the internet was introduced next.

“We want Mike! We want Mike!” spread throughout the room.

“If you take one thing out of this, other states don’t have one person that has total power,” Bost emphasized. “That’s a dictatorship!”

Former State Rep. and State Senator Randy Hultgren, elected to Congress in 2010 followed former colleague Bost.

“Illinois is broke.

“Illinois is broken.

“Reduced to a punchline.”

He told of being in Indiana and talked to its Governor, Mitch Daniels.

“Being Governor in the state next to Illinois is like living next to Homer Simpson.  Anything you do looks good.

“If Wisconsin can do it, Illinois can do it,” Hultgren concluded.

Adam Kinzinger, also elected in 2010, was next up.

“America is the greatest hope for civilization,” the Air Force pilot, now in the Illinois National Guard, started out.

He observed that young folks signing up for the Armed Forces today at age 18 were only 7 on 9-11.

“America is worth defending and I will defend it,” he said movingly.

“The American DNA is a winning DNA.

“The defense of this country also extends here at home.

“We have to beat Mike Madigan.

“We have to build a brick wall in Illinois” so Nancy Pelosi’s prediction that “the route to the [Democratic Party congressional] majority goes through Illinois.,”Kinzinger concluded.

Senate Republican leader Christine Radogno  stepped to the podium.

“We need reinforcements.

“We can’t do it without you.

“You are the grass roots.

“The wave is coming and we’re going to ride it.”

Brady then introduced Congressman Joe Walsh, also in his first term.

He noted that Walsh got no help from the Republican Party in his narrow victory over Democrat Melissa Bean, but “that won’t happen again.”

“There is no person they want to beat more than Joe Walsh.”

Walsh entered to a standing ovation.

He began his speech by relating that he was a naturally smiling Irish Catholic guy.

Then there was the “but.”

“I did not go to Washington last year to smile.

“There’s very little subtle about Joe Walsh.

“When I say the President has not freaking clue what he is doing, I mean every word of it.”

Then Walsh took after Mike Madigan.

“No one person should run a state.

“He is a king.

“He is a dictator.

“He is corrupt.

“He symbolizes everything that is wrong in Illinois.

“Shame on us for not having the courage and the fortitude to say that.”

Moving on to his re-election race against Tammy Duckworth, whose name he did not mention, Walsh said, “This White House and the entire Demcoratic Party has a target on my back.

He explained that he “just goe[es] and say[s] what [he] mean[s].

“Amazing things begin to happen.”

Walsh referenced John Kass’ column:

“Where is Illinois’ Scott Walker?”

[At this point I began wondering if he was standing on the stage.]

“The Republican Party has been compliant.

“We’ve lost our way.

“Every nine minutes somebody move out of this state,” he said emphasizing it was taxpayers moving elsewhere.

“That’s terrible.

“We can’t let that happen.”

Ratcheting up the rhetoric Walsh proclaimed Illinois Republicans “must stand for everything that the Mike Madigans don’t.

“We don’t stand for making everybody dependent on government.

“We stand for the opposite.

“We’re the party of everything else.

“I’m gong to ask you to be responsible for your own life.”

[Hear Joe Walsh's speech, posted by The Prairie State Review, here.]

Another standing ovation occurred after Walsh finished his speech.

Freshman Congressman Bobby Shilling spoke next.

I didn’t get a chance to take notes, but I did get a decent close-up.

After him State Treasurer Dan Rutherford, head of the Mitt Romney effort in Illinois in 2008 and 2012, spoke.

He is widely thought to be laying the groundwork for a campaign for Governor in 2014.

A video greeting from State Comptroller Judy Baar Topinka completed the speeches.

The Chicago Tribune article by Rick Pearson failed to mention that Walsh even spoke, not to mention that he was greeted with a standing ovation and another one after he finished his speech.

He did note the attacks on Mike Madigan.

= = = = =

In the John Kass piece, the columnist mentions Walsh, but not favorably.

“I’m not talking about a Republican who’d scream with veins popping out of his or her neck and a wild angry look in the eye.  If you want someone in your face, you’ve got Republican U.S. Rep. Joe Walsh, and you can have him.  What was compelling about Walker wasn’t his in-you-face personality.  It was his ideas.”

But, as Party Chairman Pat Brady reporting Demcoratic Party Governor as saying, Illinois is different.”

From the crowd’s reaction to Walsh, I think Kass’ take on Walsh was not shared by a large proportion of the Republicans in attendance.

State Rep. Tom Cross, the Republican House Minority Leader, put a lot of pressure on State Rep. and McHenry County Republican Chairman Mike Tryon to get his budget staffer selected to fill Mark Beaubien’s shoes.

Gaffney ran a decent campaign, but was overwhelmed by the money thrown into the political arena by winner David McSweeney.

Because Gaffney lost, one could argue that Tryon and others who lent their names, if not their efforts, to the appointed State Representative’s campaign spent some political capital without getting positive results.

Something like playing the slot machines…except the campaign wasn’t even fun before the last coin was lost, that is election day.

Let’s assume that Tom Cross would rather have someone run against Democrat Jack Franks than not.

After all, no opponent for Franks means the Democrat with statewide ambitions can go campaigning for other Democratic legislative candidates around the state.

And, there is a candidate waiting in the wings.

Her name is Tonya Franklin.

Inspired by the Tea Party movement, she is ready, willing and able to send Jack Franks up the wall.

Of course, Franks or his allies will use the same last minute smear tactics that they used against John O’Neil two years ago.

But, if Mike Tryon decides to take the steps necessary to nominate Franklin in time for the collection of 500 good petition signatures–the deadline for submission is June 4th, as I read the law–Republicans trying to pick away at Mike Madigan’s income tax hiking incumbent House Democrats will have less help from Jack Franks.

Other articles that might be of interest follow:

4/29/12 Help Wanted – GOP Opponent for Labor-Lawyer-Lobbyist Democrat “Chainsaw Jack”

5/9/12 “Chainsaw Jack” Franks’ Drano Bill Makes Menards’ Shelf

5/9/12 Clock Is Running on Finding GOP Opponent for Jack Franks

5/10/12 Republican Candidate Steps Forward to Challenge Jack Franks

5/11/12 GOP Interviewing Committee Turns Thumbs Down on Woman Who Volunteered to Run Against Jack Franks

5/11/12 Jack Franks Now Free to Help Democrats Running for the McHenry County Board

5/12/12 Who Could Name a Candidate to Run Against “Chainsaw Jack” Franks?

5/13/12 The McHenry County Committee Who Interviewed Tonya Franklin for State Rep. Vacancy against Jack Franks

5/16/12 19 Days Until Jack Franks Gets a Third Free Ride from McHenry County Republicans

5/17/12 18 Days Until McHenry County Republicans Give Democrat “Chainsaw Jack” Franks Ability to Campaign Statewide with Impunity

My heavens.

Who would have thought that typing in a comment on McHenry County Blog would end up in a suspension?

Well, it was a bit more than that.

State Rep. Kent Gaffney’s campaign manager Nick McNeeley also volunteered for opponent David McSweeney’s campaign while on the state payroll.

That’s what a letter after the report from House Minority Leader Tom Cross, who initiated the probe, to Legislative Inspector General (and former State Rep.) Tom Homer says, as you can see below:

I found out from Mike Riopel post on the Daily Herald. The DH found the information from David Ormsby in this article on the Illinois Observer.

McNeeley’s punishment?

Five days suspension (April 2-6) and six months’ probation, plus conversion of all sick time from September 1 through November 15, 21011, into vacation time.  And reassignment from his position in Research and Appropriations staff “to another position.”

Read the report for yourself below:

And here is Tom Cross’ response, dated March 8, 2012:

One might note that today is almost two months after the election.

A press release from State Rep. candidate Dave McSweeney:

Republican Leader Tom Cross to Headline McSweeney Fundraiser

Candidate for State Representative in the 52nd District, David McSweeney, is pleased to announce a fundraiser featuring Illinois House Republican Leader Tom Cross.

The event will be held on June 14th from 6- 8PM at Francesca’s Famiglia restaurant in Barrington. The event is hosted by a number of local and statewide business leaders and organizations.

“I am proud to have the full support of Republican Leader Tom Cross and the nearly unanimous support of elected officials and leaders in the 52nd District.

“I am humbled by the response and I look forward to serving the people of the 52nd District and focusing on the issues that are important to them,” said McSweeney.

“I have visited thousands of homes in the 52nd District and it is clear that voters are concerned about

• the fiscal irresponsibility in Springfield,
• rising property taxes, and
• the weak Obama/Quinn economy.

I’m going to continue to focus on my message of

• lower taxes,
• less spending and
• real reform.

Tom Cross knows that my race is critical to achieving a Republican majority in the Illinois House,” said McSweeney.

Kind of tough to figure out what legal fees that State Rep. Kent Gaffney had after the election, if, indeed they were incurred after the election, but Citizens for Gaffney got an infusion of $22,776.25 for legal fees on April 4th.

It came from Citizens for Tom Cross.

Cross, of course, was Gaffney’s employer when Gaffney as the “Budget Guy” for House Republicans.

Here’s who got what:

• $8,000 – Law Office of John Fogarty
• $14,776.25 – The Foster & Buck Law Group LLC