Across the Aisle: From Springfield to Washington D.C.

A compilation of news and views

“Under democracy one party always devotes its chief energies to trying to prove that the other party is unfit to rule - and both commonly succeed, and are right.”

~H.L. Mencken, 1956

AG Madigan Hands Out Pay Hikes to 57 Political Pals

Attorney General Far Outpaces Governor, Treasurer, Comptroller, Secretary of State, and Lt. Governor on pay hikes to Select Employees

September 24, 2012

Hinsdale, IL – Today Adam Andrzejewski, Chairman of For the Good of Illinois PAC, released a report showing that Attorney General Lisa Madigan gave nearly a half million dollars in raises to “exempt” employees or political hires- who are non-union and not subject to political hiring restrictions- over the past two years.

“While Illinois has $9 billion in unpaid bills to service providers including doctors, hospitals, assisted living senior centers, and women’s shelters, Attorney General Lisa Madigan gave raises of up to 44% to political pals,” said Andrzejewski.

Specifically, Lisa Madigan gave raises ranging from $1,656 to $20,004, with spikes varying from 3% to 44% percent. The salary bumps average 13.3%, which represents about $8,000 per employee.

The largest increase went to Kareem Kenyatta, who experienced a 44% increase with a double promotion during a five month period. From a Legislative Liaison to Deputy Director to Director of Legislative Affairs, Kenyatta went from $45,000 to $65,004, a $20,004 bump.

Promoted to the Attorney General’s office chief lobbyist at 30 years old, Kenyatta lacks a law degree, but formerly worked for Lisa Madigan’s father, House Speaker Michael Madigan.

The largest single raise went to Patrick J. Ryan who went from Executive Assistant to “Senior” Executive Assistant. Ryan’s salary increased from $47,820 to 65,004, a $17,184 bump.

For The Good of Illinois PAC prepared their report through internal Attorney General documents, interviews and salary histories provided by www.openthebooks.com.

For more information please contact: Adam Andrzejewski, Chairman

Phone: Email:

Poll: Three-Quarters of Voters Think Illinois is on the Wrong Track

(October 1, 2012 - Hinsdale, IL) Today, For the Good of Illinois PAC, Adam Andrzejewski Chairman, released its second in a series of findings, which discovered that 59% of voters disapprove of the job Pat Quinn is doing as Governor including 86% of Republicans and 55% of Independents. Also, the poll found that 77% of Illinois voters think Illinois is on the wrong track while only 17% say Illinois is moving in the right direction.

“Governor Pat Quinn and his policies are driving jobs and families out of Illinois. Pat Quinn is destroying the Illinois economy and this poll proves it,” said Adam Andrzejewski, For the Good of Illinois PAC Chairman.

Bustos and Quinn: An Outsourcing Duo Like No Other

EAST MOLINE, Ill.—As the state of Illinois faces an unemployment rate above nine percent, and as job creators continue to flee for other states and other nations, millionaire Alderwoman Cheri Bustos (D-East Moline) has decided that our broken state serves as the best model to solve our national problems. Bustos has embraced Governor Pat Quinn and his job-killing policies of over-taxation and over-regulation, and she has accepted the support of his administration in her bid to take those failed policies to the U.S. House of Representatives.

Governor Quinn has dispatched Lt. Governor Sheila Simon (D-Ill.) to appear at multiple endorsement events for Bustos.

In this week’s column from Rep. Jim Sacia (Sec. 1, page 4) Sacia relates a conversation with Jerry Stermer, who is the Governor’s trusted confidant, advisor, and friend.

“Jerry and I talked for some time,” Sacia reports. “He outlined how the Governor had just been to Freeport this summer to advocate for jobs moving overseas.”

Sacia also reported that the Freeport office of the Illinois Department of Employment Security (IDES) is being singled out as one of two in the entire state to be closed out of a total of fifty offices.

“The information came as a bombshell on Friday morning September 21, 2012,” said Sacia. “The irony hit me like a ton of bricks.”

The Freeport office serves an area of the state with one of the highest unemployment rates, in an area that covers one of the largest geographical areas, all of Stephenson, Jo Daviess and Carroll Counties.

Jon Schweppe, communications director for the Bobby Schilling for Congress campaign, said that Bustos and Quinn make a great team when it comes to sending jobs overseas.

“Bustos and Quinn are an outsourcing duo like no other, and now they want to take their show on the road to Washington, D.C.,” Schweppe said. “Cheri Bustos would take Pat Quinn’s failed policies of over-taxation and over-regulation and add a “Bring-Back Tax” on job-creators on top of that. We already have Pat Quinn killing jobs here in Illinois—we can’t afford Cheri Bustos.”

Schweppe said that Bustos has lost all credibility on the issue of outsourcing.

“Cheri Bustos won’t disclose how much money she made off an investment in an outsourcing company, but who could blame her? She should be embarrassed,” Schweppe said. “Cheri Bustos has lost her credibility—you can’t have it both ways. Bustos has focused her entire campaign on outsourcing, and it turns out she directly profits from American jobs being shipped overseas. How can we trust her on any issue at this point?”