CTA Tattler

You know, I truly wonder about the governor's motivations. Does he really think that he can get re-elected without the votes of a city's worth of transit users? Does he believe that the republicans will be so pleased by his stalwart "refusal" to raise taxes (hah!) that they will make up for the angry democrats? Does he just not care at all about re-election? What? What is going on with this guy? Some days it seems like he's governing by random whimsy, and as usual, the governed are paying the price.

I find it humiliating that the feds have to step in and pony up cash because our state government cannot get its act together. Honestly guys, it's mass transit, we've been doing it for a hundred some odd years, and it's just not that difficult.

I believe I have said it before, but he really is acting like a spoiled little boy. "If I can't have things my way, then I'm going to make the rest of you miserable until you give in!"
We certainly seem to be electing some real dumb bunnies recently. I don't think he knows anything his handlers don't tell him.

And I have wonder what the ultimate cost of the fed bail-out will be. We may not have to give cash back, but there's always a price.

If you're so afraid of crying wolf Ronnie, then let the system shut down the next time.
On Jan 1, shut down the entire CTA until a permanent solution is passed by the children in Springfield!

Well "Unindicted Co-conspirator" I don't think Huberman has that kind of absolute power and while I agree in principle with your logic of a shutdown, his position dictates he avoid any such actions if an alternative is available.

Could it be that that the governor and cook
county board president stroger are consulting
the "same" Ouija Board and reading the same
"tea leaves" ? They are both " effing-up "
and have no clue as to reality and to what
they should be doing or who they were elected
to represent.

And a memo to Huberman, you must protect your
"Godfather" (Mayor Daley) at all costs so that no "heat" will refect back to him.

Huberman couldn't have refused the money without being accused of playing political games. He didn't have any good options.

I just wonder about everyone saying they won't re-elect Blago -- will they really remember all this in 3 years? Seems that people were saying the same thing about Daley when he ripped up Meigs but 3 years later he had no problem getting reelected. Sub-question -- did they vote for him last year and if so, why?

It was nice meeting you at the Transit rally today Kevin! I thought it went well. About 175 people, too bad it wasn't more!

Daley keeps winning because there isn't a functioning Republican Party in Cook County, let alone Chicago.
Blago won the first time because Daley supported him against Paul Vallas in the primary & he ran against Jim Ryan in the general election.
Illinois GOPer's seem to have a death wish & keep supporting guys named Ryan, even after George's scandals!
Blago got back in by getting huge contributions from state contractors & such, his primary opponent in 2004, Ed Eisendrath had almost no money.
Once again, his GOP opponent was Judy Topinka, who had no money, no real campaign & only took the job on because no one else who was credible would run. Topinka was dead meat the second Blago's campaign ran the rolling pin ad!
As much as I hate Blago, that ad was brilliant, it destroyed her candidacy!
So we're stuck with this blow dried fool that wants to be president, seriously, he believes he can, until 2010, unless the legislature gets some balls & lets us have an amendment giving us recall elections!

Blagojevich wouldn't get very far in presidential politics, because people would take a more serious look at his mental health. The guy apparently almost came to blows with a state senator over nothing - he's no sooner going to have his finger on the button than will the crazy guy with the megaphone outside the State Street Old Navy.

Anyhow, I think some of the turmoil in Illinois politics is due to the fact that as the ideological center of the state has moved closer to the fairly centrist Democrats who run that party, the Republicans are no longer a particularly potent source of competition for the powers that be. And we haven't seen any kind of organized progressive faction rise up within the Democratic Party to provide new competition. Yet. As it becomes increasingly clear that getting the Democratic nomination is all but tantamount to winning a statewide office, there's bound to be more and more serious competition in the Democratic primaries. On the city level, there is some glimmer of this happening - the city council is veering leftward a bit and even has a little "progressive and independent" caucus.

But even given all that, the lack of support for transit is puzzling. Between environmentalists, advocates for people with disabilities, and other people for whom public transit is simply an economical way to commute, there are all these potential alliances out there which really should be more politically potent than they seem to be in actuality. If anyone has insight into that, I'm all ears...

It's very simple 'post a comment'!
The road builders give huge cash contributions to the pols.
Mass transit doesn't.

As for Blago not getting far in presidential politics, we now know that, but in 2004, there were serious thoughts by some that he could be Kerry's running mate.

Now we know that Blago is mentally ill, it wasn't known in 2002.
Unfortunately the legislature won't impeach & convict [remove] him!