“…It’s
a tough time to be in a public union in Illinois these days. The
primaries are coming up quickly, and we are sidelined…without anyone in the
race. Without anyone to advocate for the
working class, or the middle class. It wasn’t always this way. Public unions in Illinois were able to
influence and affect political outcomes.
Legislators wanted to represent the voice of the workers, the people,
and the middle class. Now, politicians
avoid conversations about their past promises…[They] justify the further fleecing of
public sector workers with convoluted rationales like ‘then the courts can tell
us what to do.’
“…And,
of course, adding insult to injury is the latest support of Senator Kirk
Dillard of Hinsdale by the Illinois Education Association as well the Illinois
Retired Teachers Association – two organizations initially quick to jump into the
legal argument against SB1…
“Senator
Dillard was quite clear in his articulation of position at his previous
gubernatorial debate. His perception of
a revenue problem was the ‘67% tax increase’ that he ‘didn’t vote for’ and his
plan to help defeat it, despite Illinois’ serious income problems. Dillard also called for a Constitutional
Amendment for a balanced budget, not a fair tax system. He did present the possibility of a blue
ribbon panel to look at taxes in general.
Thanks a lot.
“And
although Senator Dillard did not vote affirmative in ‘this last’ SB1 pension
reform, he suggested pension reform was an answer to the problems facing
Illinois; furthermore, he believed that real money to save the state would come
from Medicaid fraud reform. ‘If you
really are looking for savings (translates money), it’s gotta come from the
Medicaid system of Illinois.’ (Click Here).
Still, public unions in Illinois are moving to endorse Dillard in the
Republican primary, the IEA even giving some $250,000 in assistance. Of course, that’s chump change for Rauner.
“According
to IEA, Senator Dillard has recently given up his position as state chairman of
the American Legislative Exchange Commission, a Koch brothers consortium which
provides opportunities for ‘member’ state legislators to journey to lovely
climes and meet with legal advisors to help craft legislation for promotion of
the Koch brothers liking: ‘Right
to work legislation. Prohibiting union dues deductions. Prohibiting release
time for union activities. Repealing minimum wage laws (Dillard’s own personal
favorite). Opposing consumer protection laws.’
“And
what does Kirk Dillard promise? Does
he promise to be different from now on? Probably
not likely, despite assurances. There
are more than 250,000 people affected by his earlier votes on bills undermining
workers in Illinois. Review Senator
Dillard’s previous positions: (It's a Sad State of Affairs when the IEA Can Endorse Any of the Current Candidates for Governor).
“Does
he promise to be the same as he has been?
An insider, as Rauner besmirches him, Dillard is a glad-hander who works
in the old-fashioned way. After all, one
of his chief bailiwicks in the gubernatorial debate is to lessen regulation and
promote business. That doesn’t sound
like a forward thinking legislator concerned with tax loopholes or revenue
answers. But IEA and IRTA still support
him.
“On
the other hand, Senator Dillard is an enemy the unions know and
understand. In likelihood, Dillard is
the first wave of Kamikaze thrown at a greater threat called Bruce Rauner, who
indeed fits nicely into the fascist/war metaphor.
“Recall,
Rauner conjured Mitch Daniels as the supreme architect of state leadership in
his bringing together big corporate interests to turn around Indiana (to make
it a right to work state). In his debate
moment, Rauner promised to gather the thirty greatest corporate people (would
that include Ty Fahner and Ken Griffin?) to redirect Illinois from
Springfield. A person without a cheap
watch like Bruce’s, and a longer perception of time, might remember Il Duce’s (Mussolini)
use of the big corporates to subjugate the political in Italy – which he later
coined a beginning of fascism. And that
helped…? Bruce Rauner, Uberleader. But I digress…
“So
where is my union, and what the heck are they doing?
A good friend of mine once admonished some of us (including me) about
the dangers of not falling into line
with my own union’s positions. Indeed,
he may be correct, although cutting deals with a variety of devils seems at
best discomforting.
“‘I
always stay with the girl I brought to the dance,’ he
finger-wagged. But in the case of Illinois (and many states), the girl
may have been dying all the way to the social. According to the Bureau of Labor
Statistics, the total number of union members fell by 400,000 last year, to
14.3 million, even though the nation’s overall employment rose by 2.4 million” (Share of the Work Force in a Union Falls to a 97-Year Low at 11.3%).
“…So,
without a winning hand, we are left to play out what cards we have? Shall we throw down a futile gesture to
counter Rauner in some way or another…and then what?
Support Quinn, of course. After
all, this is Illinois politics, not a romantic date to the dance where some
discretions might be obliquely observed, despite the sorry state of your
date. And, as one very intelligent and
hard-working young active advised me, what makes the unpalatable and inevitable
outcome less disgusting is the very ineffectiveness of Quinn, the complete
disregard by the General Assembly for whatever he champions, and the very
vagueness of his bumbling political intentions.”
For
the entire article, Click Here.
from WICS ABC Newschannel 20 News:
ReplyDeleteGOP candidates debate Illinois pension reform
February 18, 2014 18:40 CST
SPRINGFIELD, Ill. (AP) -- The four GOP candidates for governor have debated what to do if Illinois' pension reform plan is declared unconstitutional by the courts.
State Sens. Bill Brady and Kirk Dillard, businessman Bruce Rauner (ROW'-nur) and Treasurer Dan Rutherford (ROOTH'-ur-furd) debated at a forum in Springfield on Tuesday.
Rutherford says he would bring "all interested parties" to the table to forge a new agreement.
Dillard says he'd look to the courts for guidance if they reject the plan to save an estimated $145 billion over 30 years.
Rauner says he would work for a plan that moves current and future state workers into a defined contribution plan like businesses offer.
Brady is the only candidate who supports the plan approved by lawmakers. He says he also would support a defined contribution plan.