-- Connecting the dots between our economy, government and business --
The state performed poorly across key areas, including failing to get a clean review from an independent auditor, giving a distorted picture of its true financial health and missing the deadline to publish its annual report within 100 days of the fiscal year ending.
Chicago firefighters and paramedics have been waiting four years for a new contract. Pay raises in the six-year agreement — up to 20% depending on the rate of inflation — are identical to those awarded to Chicago police officers in the contract that Johnson extended and sweetened.
Education officials in Illinois expect to see a marked increase this year in the percentage of students classified as proficient in reading, writing and math…. That’s not because of any change in the way schools are teaching or how well students are learning, but rather a change in the way the state reports scores on the annual assessments students are given in those core subjects.
“Over the past month, thousands of Illinois families opened their July utility bills and got hit with a wave of sticker shock — some bills doubled, others tripled. And while Governor Pritzker offers excuses and vague promises of future reform, working families are left to absorb the consequences of his failed energy policy.”
The legislation mandates that applicants disclose personnel files from all previous departments when applying for new policing positions.
The search for Bam Bam has unleashed a wave of support from across the country. Santiago, who is blind, hasn’t stopped searching since the day Bam Bam vanished from his backyard in early June. Offers of money came pouring in, but he didn’t want another dog, he wants his dog.
“If Mr. Pritzker wants to lead his party on protecting democracy, he can prove his care for voters’ interests by ending a practice that rigs the calendar instead of the maps. Having all Illinois elections in November during federal-election years would raise turnout, broaden representation and cost the left nothing in Chicago—where Democrats win 80% of municipal races.”
“The bottom line: while state leaders claim progressive vision, the reality for many Illinois residents is one of higher taxes, deteriorating fiscal stability and continued outmigration – especially among those most capable of supporting the state’s future.”
“Chicago is putting serious money on the table for residents, small business owners, nonprofits, and developers with a vision for their neighborhoods.”
“First comes moral bankruptcy. Then comes fiscal bankruptcy. That’s the order of things, and if you’re looking for a real-time case study, look no further than the City of Chicago.”
Illinois lost 218 businesses to other states in 2023, part of an acceleration to triple the rate of what losses were before the pandemic. When adjusted for population, Illinois ranked No. 2 for the most business losses
JB Pritzker on Monday likened President Donald Trump’s call for possible National Guard troops occupying Chicago to when the Nazi Party in Germany “tore down a constitutional republic” in the 1930s.
Gov. Pritzker wants to be a national hero for the “resistance,” but there’s a problem: Illinois is far from the influential powerhouse he portrays it to be. Illinois has been bleeding people relative to the rest of the country for decades, and that can be seen clearly by the state’s collapse in Congressional representation.
Ted joined Jeff Daly to talk about Gov. Pritzker’s push to implement leftist policies at the expense of everyday Illinoisans, why the state has created so few new private sector jobs, the damage government does by picking economic winners and losers, the worsening Chicago pension crisis, and more.
“The mayor acknowledged last week that the group was dissolved without producing a report, a damning indictment both of the internal operations of City Hall and how this mayor doesn’t take seriously the cost side of Chicago’s ledger while obsessing over finding more revenue to feed the government beast.”
“This isn’t conspiracy theory or speculation; it’s a documented fact, exposed in a 2012 ProPublica article that laid bare how Obama’s early power base in Chicago wasn’t built on genuine grassroots support, but on the calculated lines of a rigged district…. John Corrigan, the Democrat who helped draw the map alongside Obama, revealed the scheme in an interview with the New Yorker back in 2008.” That New Yorker article says, “The partisan redistricting of Illinois may have been the most important event
“A loan now could trigger a spiral of rising deficits, interest payments and more borrowing, culminating in CPS being locked out of credit markets entirely. That’s exactly what happened in 1980, when the state had to step in and take over. … Importantly, when engaged, the public has been clear: Chicagoans overwhelmingly oppose CPS paying the city’s pension bill, and they oppose borrowing to cover the current gap with or without the pension expense. “
“There is a better way for schools to improve student well-being, and it’s cheaper than the nearly $3 billion Illinois already spends on mental health–oriented student-support services: academic leaders should implement policies to ensure that children consistently attend class in-person. … That type of structural reform, unlike universal screening, has demonstrated effectiveness in supporting both academic success and healthy development.”
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