Capitol Fax

Rich Miller's commentary on State Government

Gov. Pat Quinn's choice of Jerry Stermer as his new chief of staff tells us a lot about what's going to happen soon.

As the head of the advocacy group Voices for Illinois Children for the past 22 years, Stermer has been a tireless advocate for progressive tax reform and expansion of human services and education programs.

If this was anybody else working for any other governor you might think that Stermer would be the perfect choice to deliver the bad news to Medicaid providers, education lobbyists and liberals of all stripes that their agenda just wasn't affordable in the face of Illinois' horrific budget deficit mess. But almost nobody believes that will be Stermer's role. It's doubtful that Stermer, 65, took this job so he could cap his career as a bad guy after working most of his life to expand programs near to his heart.

Instead, Stermer's appointment reinforces the belief at the Statehouse that Quinn will unveil a "temporary" income tax hike of one or two points next month during his budget address, coupled with increased exemptions for individuals and families and a much higher Earned Income Tax Credit to make the tax hike more progressive. There might even be some tax relief component as well, perhaps for property taxes. Stermer and Quinn have both pushed those ideas for years. The tax hike would reportedly be followed by a constitutional amendment referendum in 2010 to institute a "true" progressive income tax.

Also, it's widely expected that Quinn will push to close numerous corporate "loopholes" that he's worked so hard to expose over the years. The General Assembly has been mostly hostile to those ideas when they were proposed by Rod Blagojevich during far more fruitful economic times. Whacking retailers over the amount of sales tax revenue they can keep for administrative expenses, for instance, probably won't go over too well during a time when retailers are closing up shop all over the state.

Stermer is much more of an advocate than an administrator, and many insiders believe that Quinn will take the actual helm of running the government himself and use Stermer more as a policy chief.

Quinn reportedly mulled acting as his own chief of staff last month, but was talked out of it by friends, sources said weeks ago. He has long been known as a micromanager, and not exactly in a good way. The governor's management history has many of his old friends worried sick about how he'll handle this new job, and they've been spilling their guts over the past four or five days about why they feel this way. I've heard horror stories about Quinn's management style that would make your hair stand on end.

That sort of behavior is no big deal in the tiny lieutenant governor's office, but it's a huge deal now that he's at the helm of a gigantic bureaucracy. Many longtime Quinn associates were hoping the governor would choose a strong administrator as chief of staff to get the bureaucracy in line and try to put the brakes on spending. Bureaucracies will mostly run themselves, but they won't do it well, particularly in times of fiscal crisis when a strong hand is needed at the top to make sure that agencies aren't overspending or straying from the program.

Every new governor faces two important tasks right off the bat. They have to figure out what sort of governor they want to be, which usually becomes apparent to the public and themselves during long political campaigns. Quinn, of course, was dropped into office without having to face that illuminating event. But new governors also have to get their heads around what, exactly, a governor needs to do to be a successful manager.

The appointment of Stermer likely shows us what kind of governor Quinn will be: A progressive who wants to expand government to help people in need and fight against the ruling class. But we still don't know quite yet if Quinn fully understands his management role.

Yes, it's early. He's only been in office a couple of weeks. But it's difficult to overstate the problems the government is facing right now, and most of the people who know Quinn the best are not even close to being convinced that he fully comprehends the task at hand. And if they're that worried, then we should all be concerned.

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

Senate Week In Review

February 9-13, 2009, A view from the Illinois Senate Republican Press Office

SPRINGFIELD ­ More than1,500 bills have been introduced to date, as Illinois state lawmakers begin the 96th General Assembly in earnest.

On Feb. 10 and 11, Senate and House of Representative committees began considering legislation, though State Sen. Tim Bivins (R-Dixon) says that lawmakers will continue to file bills until the Feb. 20 deadline.

Legislative leaders announced this week that the newly-formed Joint Committee on Government Reform will hold public meetings at the Capitol every week from Feb. 18 to March 31. Sen. Bivins has been asked to serve on the Committee, which will consider four specific topic areas during the course of seven weeks ­ open government, outside influences on government, campaign reform and procurement issues.

The Committee will receive testimony and insight from experts and the public on how to best repair Illinois' reputation ­ which has been tarnished by years of backroom deals, nepotism and pay-to-play scandals. In April, the committee will use the information gathered from the hearings to develop legislation targeting these abuses.

Though good government initiatives have received a lot of interest following Rod Blagojevich's impeachment and trial in January, the state's budget crisis continues to be a primary concern in the Capitol. Gov. Pat Quinn has begun tackling the massive task of trying to balance the state budget in the face of a deficit that some speculate could reach $9 billion by next year.

The Governor has told state agencies to reduce spending by one percent by the end of the state's fiscal year on June 30. It is estimated that the budget cut of one percent would be approximately $165 million. Quinn also said that vacant jobs will not be filled, and instructed government agencies to cut back on travel and hold off on contracts and significant purchases.

In other business this week, Gov. Quinn signed juvenile court legislation. Senate Bill 2275, which raises the age of Juvenile Court jurisdiction from 17 to 18 years for misdemeanor offenses, and also creates a Task Force on Juvenile Justice Jurisdiction.

Several Senate committees met on Feb. 10 and 11 and passed the following bills:

Allergies (SB 152): Requires the development of clear and consistent safety guidelines and policy for life-threatening food allergies to be provided to each school board for implementation.

Child support (SB 100): Adds ways of serving a child-support income withholding notice to a person as a way to ensure they are obligated to pay the child support.

IMRF (SB 153): Requires each school board employing an elected trustee of the Illinois Municipal Retirement Fund to make available 20 days of paid leave of absence per year to attend IMRF meetings.

Parental visitation (SB 101): Expands the criminal offense of unlawful visitation interference to include interference with parenting time or joint custody orders.

Pedestrian safety (SB 30): Provides that when a pedestrian is in the crosswalk, the driver of a motor vehicle must stop and yield, rather than stop and yield "if necessary."

Sick leave (SB 35): Requires school boards to grant employees 30 days of sick leave for birth and adoption.

Preschool for All (SB 79): Mandates that all Preschool for All programs collaborate with local Head Start agencies.

LETTERS TO EDITOR:

Darwin's Bicentennial: What's to celebrate?

Poor Darwin. This year is his 200th birthday, but more and more scientists say they'll be no-shows at his party. Here are some of the reasons why.

Last January, reports the Access Research Network, leading biologists released transcripts from their previous summer's "Life: What a Concept" meeting. The "irreducible complexity" of ribosomes (complexes of RNA and protein found in all cells) boggles their minds. George Church, Professor of Genetics at Harvard Medical School and Director of the Center for Computational Genetics, said "It's the most complicated thing present in all organismsso the question is, how did it come to be? If I were an intelligent design defender, that's what I would focus on."

In March, reporter Suzan Mazur revealed one of evolution's best-kept secrets Darwinism is dead. Sixteen biologists and philosophers "of rock star stature" met at the Konrad Lorenz Institute in Altenberg, Austria, last July and agreed that the theory of evolution which most practicing biologists accept and which is taught in classrooms today, is inadequate in explaining our existence. "It's pre-DNA, lacks a theory for body form and does not accommodate 'other' new phenomena," they said. Now they're searching desperately for another materialistic explanation for life.

Also, last March, Darwin's 'Tree of Life' was felled (again) in a new study in Science Daily. It's "the most comprehensive animal phylogenomic research project to date, involving 40 million base pairs of new DNA data taken from 29 animal species." It casts doubt on the very root of "the animal tree of life," which traditionally placed sponges at the base. "The fundamental problem for neo-Darwinism is that phylogenetic trees based upon one gene or characteristic often conflict with trees based on other genes or characteristics."

Remember William Paley, the 18th century naturalist theologian who said that if you found a watch in a field, you'd instinctively conclude that it was designed by an intelligent agent? Skeptics like David Hume called it mere argument from analogy.

Well, Paley's Watch was found last year, in bacteria, of all places. A review in Science last October tells what is currently known about the "circadian clock" present in cyanobacteria. Proteins are the "moving parts" of the clock. There are "cogs and gears" in the "clockwork mechanism" evident in the Kai-ABC proteins. "Each protein is made up of multiple parts, composed of hundreds of amino acids. KaiC, for instance, is a barrel mechanism with two donut-shaped rings, each made of six toothed parts that make it look like a gear wheel. The clock runs on ATP (a chemical used by cells as an energy carrier) pellets. It keeps an accurate 24-hour cycle, releasing its energy for the next round in conjunction with feedback loops from the nucleus and cytoplasm."

Imagine that. A clock with cogs, gears and ratchets that keeps accurate time! Just what Paley was talking about. No doubt about it. Darwin's time is up.

On the positive side, never forget what he said in the introduction to On the Origin of Species: "I am well aware that scarcely a single point is discussed in this volume on which facts cannot be adduced, often apparently leading to conclusions directly opposite to those at which I have arrived. A fair result can be obtained only by fully stating and balancing the facts and arguments on both sides of each question, and this cannot possibly be done here."

Darwin would be the first to condemn the pervasive discrimination that exists today in both academe and the media against those who dare to doubt and question.

As the Network says, "Freud is dead, Marx is dead, and Darwin isn't feeling well."

Richard O'Connor

Pearl City, IL

What Israelis Want

It's interesting that John Jankowski (February 11) knows that Israelis do not want "stability" in the Middle East. I wonder how many Israelis he has consulted, and how many have told him that they prefer living with the constant threat of suicide bombers and rocket bombardments to a possible "re-assessment of US policy." If stability in the region were achieved, the US would not abandon its ally. Any meaningful dialogue with Iran, Hamas or Hezbollah would have as one of its goals Israel's assurance of permanent and secure borders and the recognition of its right to exist.

The latest report of a possible cease-fire calls for Israel to re-open six border crossings into Gaza. In return Israel insists on an end to rocket fire from Gaza into Southern Israel and a stop to Hamas arms smuggling. This cease-fire, if successfully negotiated, would surely be a step toward a fair and lasting agreement.

We now have a president who seems concerned with uniting the country and with respecting all nations in the world. Stability in the Middle East, with a shrinking world and collapsing global economy, has become a necessity. "Controlled chaos" would not benefit Israel. Peace in the world will never be achieved amidst ignorance and unfounded accusations.

Pat Wemstrom

Mount Carroll

Vote For Darren!

I know the Prairie Advocate has published articles before on my nephew the race car driver, Darren Miller from Chadwick. He is affiliated with AllTel Racing and they are having a "Favorite Driver Contest." The winner gets $10,000. Fans can go to a website and vote once a day until 2/28/09 for their favorite driver. Any chance of putting a note about that in the paper with a link to the web page to vote? Darren is the only local driver in the contest.

Here it is if you want to check it out.

http://www.alltelallstar.com/index.php

Chris Kempel

Pearl City, IL

Publisher's Note: Glad to do it, Chris. Come on, PA readers . . . let's get out the vote for our Carroll County hometown boy. The $10,000 prize would be a great stimulus package for anybody. It might as well go to Darren!

Capitol Report

By Jim Sacia, State Representative, 89th District

As I continue to travel the nation, when opportunities arise to visit large dairy operations, the most amazing issue to stand out is how environmentally sound confined animal feeding operations (CAFOs) have become.

Jenny and I just returned from visiting Butler Oaks Dairy Farm in Lorida, Florida. Butler Oaks is a 2000-cow dairy operation near Lake Okeechobee, which is the wellspring for the everglades and a drinking water source for millions of Floridians. It's safe to say this is a very environmentally sensitive area, yet over twenty large dairy operations are located here.

In 2007, the well-managed Butler Oaks Dairy received the coveted Commissioners Agriculture Environmental Leadership Award. Closer to home our own Doug and Tom Block, owners of Hunter Haven Farms in Pearl City, Illinois, and the Doug Scheider Family of Scheidairy Farm, Freeport, Illinois, both should be applauded for their efficient and environmentally-sound 800-cow dairy operations.

The point is that large livestock operations can and do function well in environmentally sensitive areas.

Doug Block has personally invited our new Governor Pat Quinn to visit a large, modern dairy. To our knowledge, the Governor has never visited a large livestock operation.

There is absolutely no doubt in my mind that the Bos Dairy proposal for Nora, Illinois would be an environmentally sound project; and I am truly saddened by the bad feelings and misinformation that have been generated. Recently an opposition group published a claim that Attorney General Lisa Madigan is opposed to as the Bos proposal. My one-on-one sit down with Attorney General Madigan revealed that is untrue. On February 4th, I also spoke face to face with Speaker of the House Michael Madigan about claims he was opposed to the Bos proposal. He responded "why would I be opposed to dairy cows in a livestock area? I didn't even know about it." I could go on and on.

In the end, sensible minds must prevail. It's time to stop the "misinformation machine" that has pitted good neighbor against good neighbor. We need to reach common ground and restore harmony to our communities.

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.

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