Pennsylvania Sen. Bob Casey will endorse Barack Obama today in Pittsburgh. The extra superdelegate is surely welcome, but Casey's real impact may be in swaying voters to support the Illinois Senator. A social conservative, Casey is popular with white working class Pennsylvanians, a demographic Obama is trying to woo.
Prospects for an easier state budget process this year are looking very grim indeed. Facing a huge deficit and demands to expand services, Illinois lawmakers are caught between a rock and a hard place.
Federal employment monitor Noelle Brennan just mailed out the last of a $12 million settlement to people who were deprived jobs at Chicago City Hall because of patronage practices. One recipient got $100,000. Another was the apparently cloutless son of an alderman. But Brennan's final act in dispensing the money came with a warning: she pointed out that some of the City Hall supervisors responsible for the corrupt practice still hold high ranking positions in city government.
This Saturday from 8 to 9 PM, residents of Chicago are encouraged to turn off their lights. It's part of Earth Hour Chicago, an effort to save electricity and combat global warming. At least one other Illinois town has gotten in on the act. Gurnee Mayor Kristina Kovarik is asking citizens of her town to also spend a little time in the dark on Saturday night.
Sen. Dick Durbin is calling attention to a railroad deal that could impact train travel in Illinois. Durbin says Canadian National's plans to buy rail tracks outside of Chicago would inconvenience some travelers. Previously Durbin has expressed concern about the impact such deals might have on regional economies.
Some happy news for the Illinois High School Association (IHSA): according to a state audit the organization is doing a good job keeping its books in order. The IHSA is not a state agency but is subject to state audits. The news came on the heels of another state audit that found problems with the finances of the Illinois Department of Public Health.
More after the jump ...
Voices for Illinois Children, a state advocacy group, has released a study saying that kids in Illinois are doing better today than they were 20 years ago, but the state still has much work to do. Specifically, the report says that funding for education and mental health services is not adequate.
In related news, a funding shortage has cost the jobs of 25 special education workers in Williamson County. The Director of the special education district said the layoffs were necessary because she is receiving less state money this year.Finally ... police in Godfrey, Illinois advanced the cause of irony on Wednesday when they arrested teenager Adolphus August Busch V on charges of underage drinking. Busch is a relative of the Anheuser-Busch family. He was reportedly drinking Natural Light (a Busch product) and Rum.
Amy Kathryn on Fri, 03/28/2008 - 12:38
The Casey endorsement is also a good answer to critics who say Obama will suffer in Pa for not being part of the "establishment." The Casey family has immense standing in state politics (Bob Casey Sr. was Gov in the 90s) and should lend to the campaign the air of familiarity the press has been making so much of lately.
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