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| Trading problems under the Capitol dome? |
Almost
like a late-season trade between slumping baseball clubs who get rid of problem
ballplayers in hopes that someone else’s athletic refuse will be less stinky
than the ones currently wearing their uniform.
FOR
THE RECORD, an Illinois House committee gave its support to a pension reform
proposal that has the support of the high-and-mighty Illinois House Speaker
Michael Madigan, D-Chicago.
Yet
that measure includes provisions that have failed to make it through the
Illinois Senate in the past, and state Senate President John Cullerton,
D-Chicago, is reluctant to say he could support it now.
Has
pension reform merely gone from the House to the Senate so nothing can happen
in the end?
Anything
is possible, particularly when one takes into account the issue of expanded
gambling opportunities in the state. So much for the idea of our state Legislature's Democratic domination creating an atmosphere where ideas just get rammed through the process into law!
A
BILL MEANT to approve creation of a new casino in Chicago, along with four more
casinos in south suburban Cook County, in Lake County near Waukegan, in
Rockford and in Danville, got final approval on Thursday from the Illinois
Senate.
Yet
now it goes to the Illinois House, where leadership there who constantly tout
the concept of more casinos in Illinois (so the state can tax them as yet
another source of revenue) say that more changes will be necessary before
anything can get final approval.
Of
course, the REAL final approval on any new state law is a signature of approval
from Gov. Pat Quinn – whose aides told the newspaper reporter-types that this
bill is “moving in the right direction” to their ideal, but isn’t quite there
yet!
I’m
sure there are some people who seriously believe that political progress was
made in the past couple of days toward these issues – although I still expect
that nothing of significance will happen until May 31 in those final hours
before the Legislature adjourns “sine die” for a summer break.
IF
EVEN THEN, to be honest.
Because
these are the ongoing issues that perpetually crop up on the Legislature’s
attention span, but never actually get acted on. Even the pension reform, which
has had so many “Must be acted upon Now!” deadlines that I’m sure legislators by
now are immune to such rhetoric.
Particularly
since there are so many interest groups out there that have threatened to take
legal action against Illinois if certain elements of pension reform get passed,
that all the actual final vote and gubernatorial signature means is that the
lawsuits can now begin!!!
That
alone may discourage some legislators from daring to vote “aye.” Why bring on a
lawsuit – particularly since some future political opponent can distort it into
a charge of “Rep. __________ voted for a measure that cost Illinois countless
dollars in legal fees” and “Only the attorneys get rich with Rep. ____________ in
office!”
THEN,
THERE’S GAMBLING, where I’m amused about the rhetoric that says any money
derived from a Chicago casino would have to go toward improving schools.
“It’s
all for the children,” they’ll say. Which makes it sound like all the cheap
rhetoric we’ve heard for decades about how the Illinois lottery games benefit
public education.
It
does! But at the expense of other money that might have been put toward public
education being shifted toward other government responsibilities. Will we
eventually get to the point where all of public education funding will come
from gambling activity?
Personally,
I could care less if somebody wants to piss away a paycheck at a local casino.
But if the only way for “Junior” to gain something at school is for “Daddy” to
blow his salary while playing slot machines, then something is serious askew.
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