The Bush Legacy

We Republicans have more bad news. Just when you think it can't get any worse, it does. The latest U.S. News and World report (27 October) compares America's five deepest financial downturns, starting with the great depression (August 1929 - March 1933). Then (November 1973 - March 1975). Then (July 1981 - November 1982). Then July 1990 - March 1991) and now today.

Now for the shocker In all five of these downturns there was one common denominator: they started with a Republican in the White House. Hoover, Nixon/Ford, Reagan, George 'H' Bush and now George 'W' Bush'. Three of these have come since we started the 'Trickle Down' theory. There may be a way for us to blame the Democrats for these downturns because we credit them for being the Party that taxes high and spends those taxes recklessly.

Before we take that route, though,we need to remember how we got out of the Great Depression combined with World War II plus rebuilding Europe and Japan we chose to pay for it rather than charge it to our children and grandchildren and great grand children. That is why that era is termed "The Greatest Generation". If any of you still have your income tax returns for 1944 or 1945, get them out and see what the taxable income rates were for those years. The tax parameters were graduated through 24 brackets; the first was $0 to $2,000 at a rate of 23% and the last was $200,000 and over at a rate of 94%. When adjusted for inflation today that would be, up to$23,340 @ 23% and over $2,334,000 @ 94%.

By today's pay standards if the CEO of XYZ corporation was receiving a salary of $2,334,000 and got fired for poor performance and was given a severance package of $5,000,000, he would have to pay $4,700,000 income tax on that package and keep $300,000 for himself. Does anyone see a downside to that?

The Republican Party that I joined sixty-some years ago is no longer recognizable when compared to the party that ruled the House, the Senate and the Presidency from 2001 to 2007. They (Bush & Co.)did exactly what President George Washington warned Americans not to do, in his farewell address, as he was quoted in our history books . . . (never think of) "ungenerously throwing upon posterity the burdens we ought ourselves to bear."

When George 'W' Bush leaves office in January of 2009, each American Citizen, 18 years and older, will have an $83,000 share of the United States of America's debt. One half or more of it to foreign Nations. It would be interesting to know how many US Citizens, 18 and older, could write a check for $83,000 if our country's creditors demanded payment.

We Americans still live in the best Country in the world, however, I believe everyone concurs that it is not nearly as good as it was 8 yeas ago. No new President can undo all of the mistakes 'W' made in just one term as Bill Clinton did behind his father16 years ago. When President Bush received his appointment to be our President, he hoped his legacy would be, 'No child left behind', instead it will be, 'No child left a dime'.

Ken Moll

Shannon, IL

Thanks For The Scare

The Spook Walk on Friday, October 31 in Savanna entertained over 100 people. The Chamber would like to thank the ghouls that wandered through the Haunted Forest: Kelly McCombie, Brandon Hatteberg, Jim Haynes, Aaron Sipe, Kim Barragan, Angela & Brian Kamper, Rocky, Grant & Ethan Mangler, Tony McCombie & Curt Hockman, Merle Haring & Alex Haring, Dustin Hayden, and Kyle Melaas. Thanks to the gatekeepers: Dennis & Erin Bowman, and Chris Lee. Special thanks to the Savanna Park District and Tom Wilkinson, Stan Schleuning, Pamida, Sullivan's County Market, WCCI, Savanna Times Journal, and Carroll County's Prairie Advocate News; Frank Brown, JD, Brenten & Brayden Reagan; Tim Sheedy, Dana, Madison & Payton Haynes; Michele Mangler; Lily Hayden, and Jack Reagan.

Many Special Thanks to our corporate sponsors: Savanna Thomson State Bank, Stout's Drug Store, THE National Bank, Carroll County's Prairie Advocate News, Savanna Woman's Club and Blue Appraisals. We all had a Haunting Good time and are dying to Spook you again next year!

Pam Brown

Executive Director of the Savanna Chamber of Commerce

Speed Zones Enforced

I would like to thank the Lanark Police Department for valuing the safety of ALL citizens of Lanark, not just the ones between the 30 mph speed zone signs. This is in response to the previous letter to the editor complaining about getting a ticket for breaking the law.

As to the publishers note, I am not law enforcement, but, if you look at the location of the 55 mph sign, the southbound lane has a 30 mph sign at the same place. Thus, between the 30 and 55 signs heading either direction, the entire zone is 30 mph. This area has residents, some with children, and business entrances that this speed limit protects.

As a former alderman, I can tell you that there is no quota, bonus, or any other incentive for our officers to write tickets, other than to make sure our citizens AND visitors are as safe as possible. Also, even our very own citizens get tickets, not just out-of-state travelers.

I am sorry to hear your pettiness will cost one of our fine businesses a couple of dollars. But then again, maybe you will help them in the long run. You may have sparked the curiosity of those who have not tried the ham loaf yet. Readers from out of town will say "let's go to that SAFE town of Lanark and try some of that ham loaf. It sounds delicious."

P.S. If you like the ham loaf, you should try the awesome potato salads and pea salad from the Lanark Food Center. They are delicious too.

Sincerely

John Huggins

Lanark, IL

Capitol Fax

Rich Miller's commentary on State Government

Two groups, one pro-choice and the other pro-life, are doing their best to bend the Illinois Statehouse to their respective wills. Let's peek in, shall we?

State Rep. Ruth Munson (R-Elgin) was defeated last week by Democratic challenger Keith Farnham. The House Democrats dumped hundreds of thousands of dollars into Farnham's campaign, and Farnham himself walked precincts like it was a full-time job.

A pro-choice group called Personal PAC also played a role in the race. Munson, who was considered pro-choice, voted against a compromise parental notification of abortion bill supported by pro-choice groups. Personal PAC vowed to make an example of her.

The political action committee pulls no punches in its aggressive campaigns. One operative running a legislative race in a district where Personal PAC was neutral privately expressed his relief a few weeks ago about not having to deal with the constant brush fires the group creates.

The group spent almost $374,000 between July 1st and election day, ranking it ahead of some heavy Statehouse hitters like the Illinois Trial Lawyers Association. It's definitely not a minor player.

Unlike most political action committees, the group does not usually contribute cash. Instead, it runs its own campaigns, and that often drives people a bit crazy. For instance, the group is infamous for putting legislators of different parties into the same mailers. This year, it paired Evanston Democratic Sen. Jeff Schoenberg with Republican Rep. Beth Coulson of Glenview in a mailer supporting Coulson, which didn't go over too well in some circles. Schoenberg was backing Coulson's Democratic opponent, Daniel Biss.

As Rep. Munson discovered, keeping Personal PAC off one's back is not easy. Unlike many organizations, Personal PAC requires purity. Most groups might endorse incumbents with 70 percent voting records (or even lower), but that won't happen with Personal PAC.

That's why the group always campaigns hard for what it considers pro-choice incumbents, even when challengers answer surveys indicating that they are also 100 percent pro-choice. This can cause problems, as it did this year when Personal PAC went all-out for Rep. Coulson. A whole lot of Democrats thought the group should've taken it easier on Coulson's pro-choice Democratic opponent, Daniel Biss. Personal PAC was not moved. It's one thing to say you're pro-choice, but it's entirely another to prove you'll stick with the organization every single time push comes to shove, as Coulson has done over and over again without exception.

Terry Cosgrove, who runs Personal PAC, said months ago that he wanted to defeat Rep. Munson so other legislators could see what happens when they stray too far from their proclaimed pro-choice beliefs.

Actually, he said he wanted to hang Munson's head on the wall (figuratively, of course). Cosgrove got his trophy.

Meanwhile, some pro-life groups threw down the gauntlet last week. The groups told the Senate Republicans to choose whomever they want to replace retiring Senate Minority Leader Frank Watson, just as long as it isn't Sen. Christine Radogno (R-Lemont).

Family PAC led the charge. The group, run by longtime conservative activist Paul Caprio, sent a letter to Senate Republicans this week expressing dismay that the pro-choice, pro gay rights Radogno was being seriously considered as Watson's replacement. Radogno, Caprio wrote, was "not in the mainstream of Senate Republican thinking on key family issues."

Caprio said that while he has degrees of differences with various members of the Senate Republican caucus, he believed that almost any other Senator in the 22-member caucus would be better as the Republican Leader than Radogno.

Caprio wouldn't discuss the list of possible alternative candidates, but he did say that he could work with another declared candidate, Sen. Kirk Dillard, even though Dillard (R-Hinsdale) had appeared in a television advertisement for Barack Obama. Caprio said it was "stupid" of Dillard to do that, but he believed Dillard would be an honest broker, unlike Radogno.

Sen. Radogno said last week that she has yet to speak with Caprio about his campaign, but she'd like to sit down with him soon. She said as leader she would try to focus on the issues that "bring Republicans together," and vowed not to impose any of her beliefs on other members.

It's not certain how much impact this move by Caprio and social conservative groups will have. The Senate Republican caucus as a whole is very conservative and pro-life groups are very influential with them. But they are also some of the most independent-minded people under the Statehouse dome.

Rich Miller also publishes Capitol Fax, a daily political newsletter, and thecapitolfaxblog.com.

Capitol Report

By Jim Sacia, State Representative, 89th District

My constituent service's office receives at least as many calls about varying gas prices as any other issue. Finally, they seem to be on their way down.

As I was leaving for Springfield on November 2nd I filled up my tank in Winnebago for $2.49 per gallon. When I stopped in Mendota, I saw gas there was priced at $2.37. In Springfield, it was $1.95 per gallon. Gas in Springfield is often 5 or 10 cents cheaper than it is here at home, but 54 cents? Why the discrepancy? We are often contacted by folks noting a significant difference in gas prices in Iowa and Wisconsin (it's cheaper there than it is here) but we don't often see such a significant difference within 200 miles inside Illinois' borders.

Much of the difference from state to state is easy to explain: tax structure. For example, Illinois is one of only 11 states that charge sales tax on gasoline. On gas priced at $4.00 per gallon that amounts to an additional 24 cents that other states don't charge.

Bill Fleischli from the Illinois Petroleum Marketers Association is a good friend, and I asked for his help in exploring some of the other variables. Reformulation requirements vary significantly from urban areas to rural, and, according to Bill, prices vary from region to region based on the availability and production levels of the specific formulation that's required there. He added that home rule communities often have an additional tax that impacts the price at the pump. Also, since petroleum is a commodity that is traded daily, market prices can swing significantly. It has been quite interesting watching oil prices rise and fall over the past 18 months from as much as $125 per barrel down to the mid $60 range now.

One of my biggest frustrations with rising gas prices is that they always seem to shoot up 20 cents overnight, and then I ask myself why I didn't fill up on my way home from work yesterday. When prices drop, however, it seems to be only one or two cents at a time. What's going on there? Bill explained the slow drop in prices by using my example of the relatively cheap gas in Springfield on November 2nd and 3rd. He said the gas stations there were actually selling at a loss of about 15 cents per gallon (their cost being $2.09 per gallon) due to a local gas price war. He said gas stations deal with a delicate balance trying to make a marginal profit on their much-needed commodity.

The high gas prices have certainly made all of us more conscious of our fuel usage. My hat is off to the ethanol and bio-fuel industries. Even when gas was in the $4.00 per gallon range, E-85 (85% ethanol) would often be selling for 80 cents to $1.00 less per gallon. Though fuel economy is slightly less with E-85 it still makes great sense to buy home-grown fuel instead of foreign oil. As the ethanol industry continues to seek alternatives to corn such as miscanthus grasses, Rentech Energy in East Dubuque continues their work locally to find more logical crops for ethanol production.

Executive Director Dennis Smith of the Northern Illinois Food Bank has once again consented to bring a truck load of food for those in need. With the aid of local social agencies and my staff it will be distributed at the Boys and Girls Club of Freeport, 511 S. Liberty Avenue, from 4:00 to 6:00 p.m. on Monday, November 17, 2008.

As always, you can reach me, Sally or Barb at 815/232-0774 or e-mail us at jimsacia@aeroinc.net. You can also visit my website at www.jimsacia.com. It's always a pleasure to hear from you.

Senate Week In Review

October 13-17, 2008, A view from the Illinois Senate Republican Press Office

SPRINGFIELD ­ The annual fall "veto session" is scheduled to begin in the Senate on Nov. 12, though State Sen. Tim Bivins (R-Dixon) said lawmakers have few veto measures to consider.

That short list prompted the House of Representatives to cancel the first of the two-week session, but the Senate has not followed suit.

The General Assembly met intermittently throughout the summer and fall, and took action on most of the vetoed legislation that would ordinarily be dealt with in November. In fact, there are only two Senate Bills ­ Senate Bill 2636 and Senate Bill 2718 ­ that could possibly be voted on during the veto session.

Both measures were altered by amendatory vetoes from the Governor. Senate Bill 2636 would regulate companies that charge fees to locate abandoned property that has been turned over to the State Treasurer. Senate Bill 2718 is a measure dealing with exemptions to hearsay evidence in criminal trials.

Meanwhile, another issue that has statewide impact is still unresolved. Lawmakers approved two supplemental spending bills in September to keep state parks and historic sites open, and to restore funding for substance abuse and other human services programs. The Governor signed the first bill (Senate Bill 790) to provide the funding, but has not signed the measure needed to release the funding (Senate Bill 1103) and may not do so before the fall legislative session ends.

According to the Illinois Constitution, the Governor has until Dec. 5 to approve or veto Senate Bill 1103, which would be after the Legislature's scheduled end of the veto session.

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