-- Connecting the dots between our economy, government and business --
Summary and audio linked here.
Chicago’s political leadership is floating a pension buyout program as evidence it is seriously addressing the city’s thirty-six-billion-dollar unfunded pension liability, but Mark Glennon, founder of the Illinois policy research organization Wirepoints, said that the proposal moves debt from one column to another rather than reducing it, and that the broader fiscal picture facing the city continues to deteriorate across every measurable dimension. Audio here.
Expect no retraction or apology. This what they do.
The state’s existing buyout program for its own pensions is the precedent for Chicago, which should be a warning: Look out for similar exaggerated claims and shoddy analysis.
Full interview and summary linked here.
SIGN UP HERE FOR OUR FREE WIREPOINTS DAILY NEWSLETTER
The missing component of suggested reforms in this article is: Elimination of Public Sector Unions. They are the root cause of all of Illinois pension problems. Public Sector Unions bribe politicians with “contributions, votes and boots on the ground at election time. Politicians return the favor with grossly above market wages and gold plated pensions then hand the invoice to the taxpayers. This criminal cycle is inevitable wherever public sector unions exist. Cut the head off the snake.
Public sector Unions are just the symptom of the underlying cause – that problem is Democrats. The smugness, irrationality and ignorance of the blue voters in this state is something to be ashamed of. Mike Madigan took advantage of this (he’s won 20 elections in a row!) and expanded his democrat power everywhere for every cause they have. Even in Wi, the public sector unions were made weaker by Republicans (walker).