-- 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.
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Crain’s breathlessly cites this as if they are surprised. Yes, money drives dependence (or independence, as they ‘thought’ in this case), but organized voting constituencies matter even more than campaign money. Are they just naïve or that disconnected?
Who do you think came out in droves to ensure that Pritzker was elected?
The public unions.
It really isn’t that hard to figure out that a rookie politician with zero substance or publicly illuminated plans was leaving himself plenty of room to satisfy those very constituents.