Progress Illinois

Below are our daily picks from the Illinois blogosphere and media at large:

The Power Of Organization
The aim of the Employee Free Choice Act is often mischaracterized by opponents of the labor movement. In a sharp post at DailyKos, diarist Trapper John boils down the bill to its essence and explains why it's the "key to real economic stimulus."

A Pitch For Mass Transit
The New York Times editorial board makes the affirmative case for prioritizing mass transit and calls on Barack Obama and his incoming Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood to "find and then finance the best, the most-efficient and the most-advanced ways for Americans to move around."

Getting Through Tough Financial Times
Is your family struggling financially during these lean economic months? If so, check out the University of Illinois Extensions new website dedicated to helping people rethink their money management strategies.

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Wondering how the soon-to-be sworn-in House of Representatives will pass the time before they move forward on a financial stimulus package in February? Here's your answer: by ensuring working women and people of color are protected under the law.

According to Roll Call (subscription required), the House will consider two labor-related bills next week: the Paycheck Fairness Act, sponsored by Rep. Rosa DeLauro (D-CT), and the Lilly Ledbetter Fair Pay Act, sponsored by Education and Labor Chairman George Miller (D-CA). The New York Times has more on the latter:

President-elect Barack Obama and Democrats in Congress are planning swift action to overturn a Supreme Court decision that made it much harder for people to challenge discrimination in employment, education, housing and other fields. [...]

The legislation would essentially relax the statute of limitations under various civil rights laws, giving people more time to file charges. President Bush threatened to veto the bill, but Mr. Obama is eager to sign it.

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Today, Gov. Rod Blagojevich issued a proclamation setting a March 3 primary for the special election to fill Rahm Emanuel's vacated 5th Congressional District seat (CF has a copy of the document). 

For more on the state of the race, be sure to check out this post from Prairie State Blue's "bored now" examining the declared candidates' web presence at this juncture.  Meanwhile, the Sun-Times reported over the weekend that Rep. Sara Feigenholtz says she has already raised over $300,000.  And we hear that labor lawyer Tom Geoghegan is getting closer to officially throwing his hat in the ring (an ActBlue page popped up a few days ago in support of his candidacy).

Finally, journalist Ryan Blitstein has set up a wiki where he (and all those who want to help) will be compiling information regarding the large field of candidates.

So much for "symbolic."  The Sun-Times is reporting that the U.S. Senate rejected Roland Burris' "certificate of appointment" this morning, citing the lack of Secretary of State Jesse White's signature:

Chief of staff Clayton Harris delivered the certificate around 8 a.m., eastern standard time, said Blagojevich spokesman Lucio Guerrero.

The secretary of the senate and two assistants acknowledged receipt of the document "but did not formally accept it" because it did not bear Illinois Secretary of State Jesse White's signature, Guerrero said.

So the ball is firmly in the Illinois Supreme Court's hands.  Burris said yesterday that he was hoping the high court would act today.  We'll have to wait and see if that happens ...

UPDATE: CNN just reported that Burris is planning on holding a press conference at 12:30 p.m CT.

UPDATE II:  Video of the Burris presser, via TPM:

As some of you might have noticed, the Progress Illinois YouTube channel has been disabled for the past three weeks, along with the corresponding "video wall" that is normally a fixture on our homepage.  Here's an explanation of what happened and what we're doing to hopefully remedy the situation. 

On December 10, our YouTube account was suspended after three copyright infringement complaints from FOX Television Stations for our use of news footage from WFLD, the FOX affiliate in Chicago.  It's unfortunate that rather than contact us directly about our use of their content, FOX took action that ultimately resulted in us -- and our readers -- losing access to the over 100 clips compiled on our channel over the past nine months, including over 25 original videos. Even more discouraging are the circumstances surrounding the videos in question.

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On Friday, we asked Progress Illinois readers to leave their comments about the decision by Senate Democrats to keep Roland Burris from being seated as Illinois' junior senator this week.  Here's a sampling of some of the responses, which ran the gamut.

Maurcus:

I just don't think we have a lot of choice in the matter, it was a legal move by a sitting governor. I agree with the person who suggested we seat him, get past this, and get about dealing with our crooked governor. Let's keep our eye on the ball.

Robard:

At least Jesse White has shown some backbone. Burris should take a lesson and do the right thing, as any Cubs fan would, throw the ball back and keep his dignity.

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Burris Heads To Washington
On the eve of his departure to Washington, former Illinois Attorney General Roland Burris repeatedly declared himself the state’s junior senator, even as Senate Democratic leaders insist they will refuse to seat him Tuesday. While Burris once again pledged not to create “any theater” at the nation’s Capitol, critics of Blagojevich’s appointment—including Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid—continued to assert that a cloud hangs over the appointment.

Lt. Gov. Quinn Calls For ‘Fumigation’ Of State Government
The Blagojevich scandal may finally push state lawmakers to implement comprehensive ethics reform. Today, Lt. Gov. Pat Quinn will name former federal prosecutor Patrick Collins -- the same lawyer who prosecuted former Gov. George Ryan -- to chair a panel that will draw up legislation responding to the litany of alleged wrongdoing tied to the governor. “The purpose of this commission,” said Quinn, “is to take someone of impeccable integrity as its leader, and within a short period of time … really lay out for the people a blueprint for reform.” 

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This morning, NBC 5's City Desk aired an interview with Roland Burris, who told reporter Mary Ann Ahern at the outset, "I am the senator."  Burris went on to explain how he came to accept the appointment, what his plans are for Tuesday on Capitol Hill, and whether he would be interested in running for reelection in 2010, assuming he's eventually seated.  Watch (the full eight-minute interview is currently nowhere to be found on NBC 5's website):

Ahern also asked Burris about his invitation to testify before the House impeachment hearing.  He said he would be happy to appear, but added: "I don't even know why they would bring me into the hearings.  I mean, I have nothing to do with the governor. I am no part of whatever the governor is involved in.  I don't what kind of witness I can be." 

This play-it-dumb posture is one of the more tone-deaf aspects of Burris' PR strategy.  Since being appointed, he has repeatedly implied that questions about the legiitimacy of the process are somehow irrelevant, unnecessary, or off-target.  But he should know better.  You can't accept the appointment and then say, "I am no part of whatever the governor is involved in."  That's not going to fly.

Also this morning, Sen. Dick Durbin appeared on ABC's This Week with George Stephanopolous. 

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The latest news from the Burris circus:

- Roland Burris' counsel Timothy Wright III sent a letter to top Senate Democrats yesterday, along with the "certificate of appointment" signed by Gov. Blagojevich (but not Secretary of State Jesse White).  Wright asserted that White's signature is "unnecessary to complete the appointment."

- At the same time, Burris' legal team appealed to the Illinois Supreme Court to quickly address his motion seeking a "writ of mandumus" to force White to sign the document.  (UPDATE: Read White's op-ed on the subject and watch his MSNBC appearance yesterday.

- The Sun-Times' Lynn Sweet reported today that Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid spoke to Blagojevich days before his arrest.  During the conversation he argued in favor of appointing Tammy Duckworth or Lisa Madigan to the seat and against replacing Obama with Jesse Jackson Jr., Danny Davis, or Emil Jones on electability grounds. The discussion may very well have been taped by federal investigators.

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Below are our daily picks from the Illinois blogosphere and media at large:

Can The Senate Block Burris?
Five-Thirty-Eight's Nate Silver explores the conflicting arguments from legal minds across the country regarding whether Senate Democrats have the authority to exclude Roland Burris from the Senate. 

Rush Job
The Tribune's Eric Zorn writes: "Reasonable people can disagree about whether it's important for us to be sure that there's one African-American in the U.S. Senate, but I think we can all agree that Bobby Rush is an egregious hypocrite and flagrant opportunist whose views on this matter should be not just ignored but derided."

The Debt Trap
New York Times reporter Jonathan Glater explores the troubling relationship between credit card companies and colleges and "how some student groups are starting to push back."

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There is a lot of disagreement in the progressive blogosphere about whether the Senate Democrats are doing the right thing by attempting to block (or indefinitely delay) Roland Burris' appointment to the chamber.  Some are marshalling legal arguments for or against the tactic.  Some are writing on the basis of principle.  Others have questioned whether its worth all the energy and media attention. 

We're curious to hear where Progress Illinois readers stand on this issue.  Please specify your position (for or against) and explain your reasoning in the comments section below.  If you don't feel like writing under your real name, leave a nickname.  Early next week, we'll devote a post to the most interesting responses.

The chess game continues.

Today, Secretary of State Jesse White's office sent a letter to Roland Burris' legal team informing them that Gov. Blagojevich's Senate appointment had been registered, as required under state law.  Politico's Ben Smith got a copy of the memo, which read:

This letter is to inform you that the Office of the Secretary of State, pursuant to Section 305/5(2) of the Secretary of State Act, has made a register of the appointment of Roland Burris to the United States Senate to fill the vacancy left by President-Elect Barack Obama, specifying the person appointed, the office conferred, and the date of the appointment.

That's all well and good, but Section 305/5(1) is the actual sticking point.  It requires the Secretary of State to "countersign and affix the seal of state to all commissions required by law to be issued by the Governor."  That is what White has refused to do and what the Burris is asking the Illinois Supreme Court to compel him to do.  

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Just hours after the Illinois Gaming Board awarded the state’s coveted 10th casino license to the Chicago suburb of Des Plaines last week, State Sen. Terry Link (D-Waukegan) began rallying for the state to add more.

“We will be looking into an expansion of gaming in the next session,” Link told the Lake County News-Sun. “We want to do a capital bill. This would be one of the avenues in which to do it.”

Such proposals should come as no surprise. For some time, Illinois state lawmakers have looked to gaming expansion as an easy way to fetch big bucks.

But is this smart public policy?

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Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid will appear on NBC's Meet The Press this Sunday.  An MSNBC anchor just confirmed that he'll be discussing the Roland Burris appointment, among other things.  Should be interesting ...