Lots of new campaign advertisements and web videos out in the past few days. Here's a rundown ...
Gov. Pat Quinn has a new ad out, titled "Finally," which hit the airwaves yesterday, according to Capitol Fax:
After yesterday's fiery debate in Rockford, the Quinn campaign also released this clip from the governor's remarks (under the title: "Quinn wins at Rockford Forum"):
You can read the Hynes campaign's take on the debate here.
In the 10th Congressional District primary, Julie Hamos is airing a new biographical spot on the cable airwaves:
U.S. Senate candidate Alexi Giannoulias also has a new web ad up today, highlighting how the treasurer's Employ Illinois program helped a Springfield child care center create jobs:
In her Sun-Times column
this morning, Carol Marin singles out Democratic Reps. Melissa Bean and
Bill Foster for their yes votes in favor of health care legislation
this past weekend:
We may disagree with one another on whether, in the end, this
legislation is good for America. Or whether we as a nation can afford
all of its provisions.
But what is harder to disagree with is that health care in this
country, at the moment, is a ragged, patched quilt of different levels
of coverage.
And for between 35 million and 45 million of us, there's no coverage at all.
That's why this vote, to my mind anyway, was historic. And why it took some moxie to say yes.
Foster told Marin that his vote was "easy," yet he's still publicly criticizing
some key planks of the legislation including the design of the public
option. Foster contends that if the government is allowed to borrow
money for start-up costs at a lower interest rate than private
companies, the insurance industry will be put at a disadvantage. Bean
isn't totally sold yet, either. She tells the Pioneer Press that she's seeking "improved cost containment measures" like the creation of an Independent Medicare Advisory Council, which would have the authority to make recommendations to the president on annual Medicare payment rates and other reforms.
Meanwhile, Rep. Debbie Halvorson has released a slick video
explaining why she supported the legislation. There aren't a lot of
legislative details in the spot, but there are three testimonials from
women in the 11th district who have faced medical and financial strains
because of inadequate health insurance coverage. "I really believe this
bill," Halvorson says to close the piece, "is going to move us into the
direction of affordable, accessible, and quality health care." Watch it:
There are two new campaign ads out this afternoon.
First up, Democratic Senate candidate Alexi Giannoulias' campaign has a new web video slamming GOP frontrunner Mark Kirk for seeking Sarah Palin's support:
On a related note, the Sun-Times editorial board criticized the North Shore Republican this morning in a piece headlined "Moving right might cost Kirk election."
Next is 10th Congressional District candidate Julie Hamos, who released her first TV spot today. Health care is the theme. "Let's not let this moment in history pass us by," she says about the prospect of reform. Watch it:
Speaking of health care, United Power for Action and Justice and the Sargent Shriver National Center on Poverty Law have published a new video featuring two physicians explaining why they believe reform is necessary. Watch it:
Just as it dominated the debate this summer, the public option has reemerged as the most-discussed provision in the Democrats' effort to reform the nation's health care system. Beginning with a closed-door meeting last Tuesday night between officials from the Senate and White House, legislative momentum seems to be building in its favor. That Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-Nevada) and the Senate Democratic leadership appear ready to write a public option into their final bill is a huge victory unto itself (this because it would require 60 votes to strip the provision from the compromise bill on the floor). The New Republic's Jonathan Cohn posted a helpful breakdown of the various moving parts Friday morning. This insight is the key takeaway: "The debate isn't over whether to include a public option," he wrote. "It's over what kind."
Now, to the specifics. On the House side, Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-California) reportedly gave members of her caucus two main options in a meeting late last week: pass a bill with a government-run plan that either reimburses doctors at five percent more than Medicare rates or that negotiates reimbursement levels with providers. The former version, which Pelosi favors, would likely save about $60 billion over 10 years, according to previous projections from the Congressional Budget Office. Politico reports that the speaker does not yet have enough support to pass that plan, but the whip count remains fluid.
In the other chamber, the discussion is focused on compromises. Today, Sen. Reid announced that the bill he will bring to the floor will include a public health insurance option that individual states could decline to participate in. Both politically and on the policy merits, this "opt-out" version is far superior to the "trigger option" favored by Sen. Olympia Snowe (R-ME), Sen. Kent Conrad's (D-ND) co-ops, or the opt-in public option. But "centrists," including Snowe, aren't too fond of it. It might take the White House's political muscle to nudge those reluctant votes along. In the meantime, there's a good possibility that the provision could survive a cloture motion, even if 60 votes aren't yet secured. (Josh Marshall has more background on the "opt-out.")
Meanwhile, 10th District congressional candidate Julie Hamos is circulating a petition in favor of a public option. Watch the accompanying video below:
This morning, Rep, Mike Quigley formally endorsed Democratic incumbent Pat Quinn in the 2010 gubernatorial primary, saying that "the best indication of future behavior is past performance." Watch an excerpt from Quigley's remarks:
The Quinn campaign has also posted some highlights from UNITE-HERE's recent endorsement, which you can watch here.
U.S. SENATE
This morning, Republican Senate candidate and congressman Mark Kirk announced a $1.6 million third quarter fundraising haul:
Five-term GOP Congressman and Navy veteran Mark Kirk, the leading
Republican candidate for U.S. Senate in Illinois, today reported his
campaign set a new single-quarter fundraising record for federal
Republican candidates in Illinois raising more than $1.6 million. That
brings the campaign’s total receipts for the election to more than $2.9
million with $2.3 million in the bank.
For years, human rights advocates have been pressing
Illinois officials to clean up one of the state's dirtiest secrets:
the human rights abuses taking place inside Tamms Correctional Center,
the state's lone supermax facility. The prison has become notorious
for locking scores of prisoners away in solitary confinement, some for
more than a decade. Moreover, Tamms inmates have no access to a review
process or adequate mental health evaluations. Worst of all, many of
those same prisoners are ultimately released back into their
communities with exacerbated psychological problems.
Today, the Department of Correction's interim director Michael Randle took an important step in acknowledging the problems at Tamms. But does his ten-point plan (PDF) go far enough?
The most vocal critics of the prison -- members of the Tamms Year Ten coalition -- don't think so. This afternoon, they put out this statement along with their own critique of Randle's plan:
We applaud the IDOC for moving in the right direction,
as some of these reforms could mitigate the psychological damage caused
by long-term isolation. However, the new plan presents no significant
change for mentally ill prisoners. Tamms Year Ten, along with other
human rights organizations, urges Gov. Quinn to institute independent
monitoring of mental health diagnosis and treatment at Tamms to prevent
the same neglect and abuse of prisoners documented in the Belleville
News-Democrat expose.
Last week, Cook County commissioners failed to override Board President Todd Stroger's veto of an ordinance to roll back some of the controversial 2008 sales tax hike -- this despite the fact that 13 of the 17 board members voted in favor of the override. In her Sunday Sun-Timescolumn, Carol Marin explained why the "all but impossible" veto override threshold is still in existence:
House Speaker Mike Madigan and Stroger are the problem.
Each is a believer in the time-honored Chicago tradition of one-man
rule. Thus, in Cook County, it's all but impossible to override a
presidential veto because the threshold is so much higher than in other
units of government across the country. Others require a three-fifths
majority to override, but not us. We're stuck with a four-fifths
requirement. [...]
And the Democratic Machine seems to like it that way. That includes Speaker Madigan.
As Marin goes on to note, two state lawmakers -- Sen. Dan Kotowski and Rep. Julie Hamos -- are hoping to pass legislation lowering the override threshold from a four-fifths majority to a three-fifths majority during the General Assembly's veto session in October. This spring, Kotowski passed a measure out of the Senate aimed at doing just that, but it stalled in the House Rules Committee (where Speaker Madigan sends bills to die). This morning, both legislators talked to reporters about their renewed effort at a Chicago press conference. Watch a few excerpts:
When asked how she planned to deal with Madigan, Hamos said she had put a call into him. She added: "I think what the speaker will learn is that there is a lot of legislative support to pass this immediately. ... And once we have the members ready to go, I think the speaker will be responsive too." This is definitely one to watch when the legislature reconvenes.
Yesterday, Swing State Project got ahold of a poll conducted for 10th Congressional District candidate Dan Seals by Anzalone Liszt. The survey shows Seals (the Democrats' IL-10 candidate in both 2006 and 2008) with much higher name identification than State Rep. Julie Hamos (83% to 18%, respectively). Not surprisingly, he is also way, way ahead of her at this early juncture:
Despite Seals' built-in advantage, Hamos has a good amount of time to introduce herself to the district -- though she'll need to raise a good amount of early money to do it. Head over to SSP to read the full polling memo, which is clearly intended to discourage her from pursuing the seat.
Speaking of which, Hamos appeared on Bill Cameron's WLS show on August 2 and had an extended conversation about her personal history, the upcoming campaign, and the issues of the day. During the interview, she noted that her campaign has so far secured $250,000 in donation pledges (up from the $200,000 figure she cited in her recent interview with Progress Illinois). Listen to the entire WLS segment here.
State Rep. Julie Hamos is ramping up her newly-announced bid
for the 10th Congressional District seat and today added a big name to
her list of endorsements and today added a big name to
her list of endorsements.
At a news conference this morning, Rep. Jan Schakowsky announced her support
for Hamos, calling her "the best of the best" and citing her record of crafting
meaningful public policy. "Given the challenges that our country and
our people are facing today," Schakowsky said, "we need real
problem-solvers in Washington." Watch some excerpts from the event:
For years, human rights advocates have 