Plan B? Uh, We're Working on That ...
While lawmakers haggle over the details of a $700 billion bailout of cash-strapped lending institutions, some are beginning to ask: if the U.S.
Treasury's plan to stabilize world financial markets doesn't work,
what's 'Plan B?' Aside from potentially throwing more money at the
problem, there apparently isn't one.
Suburban Chicago Lawmakers Instrumental In Finalizing Bailout Plan
U.S. Reps. from the Chicago suburbs will have considerable clout in
deciding how the government spends the proposed $700 billion bailout.
That's because five of the 70-member House Financial Services Committee,
which is charged with hashing out the proposal, are from the region.
Despite pressure to sign off on the plan quickly, most of those members
say they're still deciding where they stand on key points in the
proposal.
Immigration Down in Illinois, Nationwide
Growth in Illinois' immigrant population slowed last year, following a
national trend of declining immigration. A sour economy and increasedfederal enforcement are cited as reasons for the
decline.
Ethics Reforms On The Books
The Illinois Senate voted unanimously to override Gov. Rod Blagojevich's
amendatory vetoes on two key pieces of ethics reform legislation
yesterday. Beginning next year, companies and individuals that do upwards of $50,000
worth of business with the state are banned from making campaign
contributions to all state officeholders, candidates for
state office, and political parties.
State Senate Looks To Restore Program, Facility Cuts
With ethics reform behind them, the Senate will today look to
strike a compromise that would restore some $211 million in cuts to
social service programs and keep the gates to state parks and historic
sites open. The most popular option on the table is to tap
funds currently earmarked for acquiring parks, funding
agricultural programs, or employee pension funds. Monday afternoon,
however, new demands arose to include more money for CTA. That would be
a dealbreaker, Republican lawmakers say.
Image used under a Creative Commons license by Flickr user ifmuth.
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