Uncategorized

The Audit Finally Has Legs

ArchPundit July 11, 2005 No Comments

While Holland’s audit of CMS received some press, it didn’t create a wave either , but today, almost 2 1/2 months after the Auditor General’s report, the Pantagraph runs a tough editorial with the audit and the power washing scandal front and center.

Illinois Department of Transportation executive Robert Millette is in the middle of this one because the firm doing the work, PWS Environmental Inc., is run by his brother-in-law. But the firm was hired by CMS, the governor’s supposed business arm, not IDOT. They may be different arms, but they belong to the same body.

PWS and its president, William Lologousis, have contributed more than $30,000 to the campaigns of the governor and his father-in-law, Chicago Alderman Ricahrd Mell, according to The Associated Press.

This is just one more instance of the smelly deals the efficiency experts in CMS have been involved in.

A recent audit by the independent state auditor general should have been enough for the governor to clean house at CMS. Perhaps the hesitation is because his own Office of Management and Budget also appears up to its ears in the problems pointed out by the auditor general.

Both CMS and the governor have said repeatedly that CMS efficiencies have saved taxpayers millions of dollars. Too bad the auditor general can’t substantiate the claims.

But the zinger is at the end

Gov. Blagojevich was right when he said he wouldn’t put up with the “business as usual” in Springfield’s politics. He has allowed it to get worse.

The danger of the original audit wasn’t the audit itself to the Blagojevich administration. It was that it came just as the Lege was getting out and reporters had the time to track down corruption stories. The PWS scandal is the first, and it’s causing lots of talk in political circles. If more pop-up, drastic action is going to be needed to demonstrate a significant change in attitude by the administration.

LaHood Targets August as a Decision for A Gubernatorial Run

ArchPundit July 11, 2005 3 Comments

LaHood is waiting for results of a poll he has had commissioned and says he’ll make a final decision by August.

If IL-18 opens up, the Dems top candidate is listed:

Sources say Peoria County State’s Attorney Kevin Lyons has Hastert’s office nervous. Lyons is a well-known, well-spoken area figure and widely considered the Democrats’ best shot at undoing an 80-year Republican lock on the seat.

The Gore-Bush numbers in 2000 were 43-54 and I’m guessing that hasn’t changed much, or a slight drift towards Republicans—we’ll have to wait for the 2004 numbers later this summer unless anyone has them handy. It’ll be a tough race for any Democrat, though a strong moderate with labor credentials could make a race of it. .

On the Republican side, Bomke would be formidable, though the article points out that Bomke may raise regional issues for many being from the Springfield area.

I would rate LaHood as one of the two potential frontrunners in the Republican primary. One interesting issue raised in the article is that Hastert is pushing LaHood to stay put to avoid another open seat.

UPDATE: Fixed Bomke’s name.

The Administration Bends on NCLB

ArchPundit July 11, 2005 1 Comment

Ed Secretary Margaret Spelling addressed the American Federation of Teachers and said the administration is willing to alter how states measure progress under the NCLB act. The current system is irrational at best and the administration is giving into a lot of pressure–including pressure from suburban Republicans.

While I’m very critical of NCLB, I also recognize the need to have yearly testing. While high stakes testing has many problems, there are no other objective tools to measure performance. By adjusting how that data is used, one hopes that the system will be returned to being rational.

A Different View on Rauschenberger

ArchPundit July 8, 2005 4 Comments

Dan Proft writes in:

Archpundit,

You’ve completely missed the point of what Steve meant and, frankly, said because, unlike you, I was in the room for the Aurora Beacon News sit down.

He did not blame Topinka for recruiting Keyes…how silly. Everyone knows Topinka opposed Keyes even at the end when the choice was Keyes versus Barthwell.

The blame lies in throwing Jack Ryan under the bus without a plan B…you’ll recall the Hobson’s Choice of Keyes versus Barthwell came after SIX WEEKS of the ILGOP’s inability to find an acceptable candidate to replace Jack. The issue was jumping without a parachute which is not usually the example you want set by your ostensible party leader.

And since, again unilke you, I was actually at the epicenter of the draft Keyes movement, I can say your characterization of Steve’s role is inaccurate.

If the nominee had been Barthwell, that logic still holds up fairly well.

regards,

dan proft

Dan said he was having problems with posting comments–there are technical problems right now so I apologize to Dan and everyone else who is having a problem. The simple explanation is that a new build for the underlying site build is not integrating with the databases. I’ve been assured it will be fixed shortly, but don’t know the time frame.

Dan and I agree on virtually nothing, but I do appreciate his comments.

Where Dan and I begin to disagree is over what happened with Jack Ryan. Ryan wasn’t thrown under the bus–he played a game of chicken with the press bus and lost. He knew what was in the file and would give reporters little winks and nods that it wasn’t that bad. When it did hit (as was obvious it would–the Trib had a solid case), he tried to play it down with party leaders including Jim Edgar.

I argue the blame lies with Ryan and no one else (including Proft and Pascoe who I often jab). Then you had a series of party leaders who refused to get in–remember, even when Edgar declined that took a couple days. Hell, it took a couple days to figure out if Dillard was going to run.

In terms of the version of events at the Courier News, I think Dan’s primary issue is with the Courier News. I believe the context in the story leads one to believe he’s criticizing the choice of Keyes. If that’s not the case, I’ll take Dan’s word for it.

Dan indicates that the version I present of how the draft Keyes movement is incorrect–well, then the version Rich Miller and Aaron Chambers have presented is incorrect as well.

Given Manzullo is the primary source for the Chambers article, either Manzullor or Chambers is wrong.

Pantagraph to Weller: Abstain

ArchPundit July 6, 2005 No Comments

The Pantagraph runs a strong editorial calling on Jerry Weller to abstain from the vote on CAFTA. Weller is married to Zury Rios Sosa, a Guatemalan lawmaker and the conflict of interest should be obvious.

However, it could look like his vote is influenced by his wife serving in the government of another country that is party to the pact.

We don’t know what kind of ethics laws Guatemala has or whether the Guatemalan Congress would vote on CAFTA. But it would seem Weller’s wife should excuse herself from a vote there, too.

Nearly a year ago, when Weller’s engagement to Rios Sosa became a campaign issue, Weller spokesman Telly Lovelace said, “If there is any obvious conflict of interest, Congressman Weller will do what’s appropriate.”

This is his first test.

The “appropriate” thing for him to do is sit out this vote

Where I disagree is what his first test was–shaving.

His second test was continuing his membership on the Western Hemisphere Subcommittee and continuing as Vice Chairman on that subcommittee.

His wife isn’t just any random lawmaker. She represents the Party of her father )(he founded the party) and when Rios Montt ran for President in 2003 (and the Bush administration admirably opposed him because of his genocidal history) Zury R?os Sosa spoke before him at rallies and serves in the Guatemalan Legislature under his party. During that campaign, the FRG Party rioted to have Rios Montt included in the vote after being banned for being the head of the 1982 coup.

And damn funny that her web site has her going by a different name:
http://www.zuryrios.com/: Zury Rios Montt.

Even more bizarre is that the majority of her adult career has been supporting the party of her father starting in 1989 when he founded the FRG:

1989-1990. Public Relations Secretary of the political party Frente Republicano Guatemalteco (FRG) in the presidential campaign.

Weller has tried to say she isn’t her father, which in a strict sense is true, but everything about her career is about supporting her father, a genocidal dictator and political thug. He held up his hand with purple paint to signify his solidarity to the Iraqi people–too bad he has no such solidarity those in Guatemala who faced the same kind of persecution Saddam practiced.

Tribute to James Stockdale

ArchPundit July 6, 2005 No Comments

Over at OneMan.

Ummm..Tech problems with the underlying Database function. It may be a day or two before further postings–hopefully sooner.

What Have Unions Done for You Lately?

ArchPundit July 5, 2005 1 Comment

Over at TPMCafe, Nathan Newman’s post on unions and liberal support of them is causing a ruckus. A rather weird one at that.

One of the threads of discontent is that knowledge based workers don’t get anything out of that—Bullshit. Look down to SEIU’s efforts to organize home child care workers and notice that such people take care of children, and probably the children of people who work in such businesses in the lessor paying jobs. If it wasn’t for SEIU’s work, the home child care worker would be less well paid and those at the lower end of the wage scale would either not have child care available or it would be worse quality. The state on it’s own has little reason to increase the rate, but SEIU has provided a benefit for all of us by improving pay for the home child care workers and in turn, quality will improve over time with other initiatives. Early childhood education efforts are critical to childhood development and carries one of the larger economic returns of any public investment.

Of course, often knowledge workers find many benefits from union representation.

Beyond, that there is some whining about how unions can’t help improve skills for laborers, which is one of the most ignorant statements ever uttered for those familiar with labor unions and how the apprentice systems they utilize as well as work SEIU has done to improve the quality of child care workers. Much of the skilled labor in this country is taught through union efforts including trade schools and the apprentice system.

There are many criticisms to make of unions, but for Democrats to think they are useless strikes me as an amazing ignorance of what unions do for individual workers as well as their efforts to push for better working conditions. As screwed up as OSHA is, it’s a hell of a lot better than relying on individual companies for worker safety. Unions are the ones that got it put in place.

Digby points out the importance of public employee unions:

These are middle class American workers who have not, contrary to Republican lies, become lazy, fat and opportunistic with their huge salaries that pay oh, 50k a year. These are cops, firemen, nurses and teachers who are trying to work in increasingly difficult circumstances without any hope of ever getting rich. Indeed, many of these people chose their jobs because they actually give a damn. And they tend to support Democrats for a reason — because Democrats support them. You don’t have to have a Phd from MIT to understand how this thing works.

Atrios chimes in with a very practical point:

The current model of politics is unlikely to be overturned anytime soon. The netroots may complement it and may supplement it, but they’re unlikely to replace it. Unions can do what is necessary – put bodies in position at key moments. When a candidate is running for local or statewide office, it’s absolutely vital to get bodies at events. Bodies equal audiences, audiences equal press coverage.

That certainly isn’t the only role unions play, but it’s one which is hard to duplicate.

A Confederate Memorial? In Illinois?

ArchPundit July 5, 2005 1 Comment

James Barr, the Chicago-based adjutant general for Military Order of the Stars & Bars, a Confederate organization, said a public forum is not warranted.

“I can see no reason to have a public debate on that issue,” he said. “I’m aware of no other monument erection that was done with a public debate.”

You are right, there is no reason for a public debate over a monument that has absolutely no business in the State of Illinois. I’m sure Mississippi has some nice real estate for you.

We have to organize in the environment we have now

ArchPundit July 5, 2005 No Comments

The Trib does a long article on SEIU’s efforts to organize the home child care industry.

It’s one of the reasons SEIU is one of the few unions that is relatively successful at finding new members. More later.

Can I protect a Source when subpeonaed?

ArchPundit July 5, 2005 1 Comment

If not, then why should Miller and Cooper be excused? This question is what led me to change my mind on the case. If someone gave me information on an agent and I then published it, I shouldn’t be given privilege–it would turn the law against outing classified assets into nothing more than a scofflaw that one could circumvent all too easily by finding an individual to set up a blog and then leaking it.

The Constitution doesn’t specify that the press is made up of people with credentials from a J School or backed by a large corporate media or even a printing press. It guarantees freedom of the press, but that doesn’t mean the press doesn’t have the same obligation as other citizens.

The mistake many make is thinking of the press as some institution that exists apart from the average citizen, but that’s a relatively recent and uncommon convention brought about by the rise of corporate media. Traditionally, party activists were the media. Traditionally, small town papers were guys who bought a printing press and printed away. Traditionally, the idea of an objective press that is unbiased (a very bad choice of words) was unknown.

I happen to think the professionalization of the press was very good in many ways and it still works well in large print venues. That it is good in such contexts doesn’t mean that the 1st Amendment Guarantees are limited to such press, however.

No one who understands what the press was at the time of the Founders would think only that those with ‘credentials’ would be given that freedom–especially when three guys were writing under Publius in little pamphlets that we could never imagine not being considered under the freedom of the press.

That freedom was a freedom from official sanction for what they say–such as partisan screeds against the government. Nothing in that right guarantees someone not cooperate with a legal proceeding with which every other citizen would be required to cooperate. The press can print what it likes, but it isn’t above the law.

Rant motivated by Steve Chapman’s column on the matter.