Like most Illinois politicians,
Chicago Mayor Richard Daley doesn’t trust the state’s embattled
governor. This is particularly true when it comes to Blagojevich's ability to dole out stimulus dollars effectively. Yesterday, Daley intensified his efforts to
engineer a political agreement with the federal government that would
allow the city to receive a direct share of the federal stimulus plan
being crafted by President-elect Barack Obama. Here’s what he told the Sun-Times’ Fran Spielman:
“We can’t wait. You can’t allow Springfield to take your money, hold the interest, then eventually give it to you in the middle of winter. You’ll never get the job done in the middle of winter,” Daley told reporters.
“You just go straight to the federal government and say, ‘We have all the construction ready to go. We have matching funds. Let’s go with it.’ ”
Daley's point is well taken. It’s expected that Congress will allocate much of the stimulus funding to cash-strapped state governments. But in Illinois that means the money runs through Gov. Blagojevich’s office -- a scary thought these days.
That being said, Daley’s request raises two concerns.












