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Neil Bluhm seems to want more than everything is revenge against two of the country’s biggest sports betting and online casino companies. His grudge against FanDuel and DraftKings has lasted for at least a decade, driven millions of dollars in political donations, and found validation from another of Illinois’ wealthiest men. Over the past five years, Gov. J.B. Pritzker has helped turn Bluhm’s personal vendetta into a nine-figure revenue stream for the state.
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.
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Rather than pass the new crushing taxes on to the customers, I’d love to see FanDuel and DraftKings stick it to Pritzker and simply leave IL.
They will only do that if it’s no longer profitable. Businesses don’t leave states (where they are required a physical presence) just to “stick it” to a governor. Imagine that board meeting. “Sure we will lose money everyone but we can stick it to JB”. Just childish thinking.