Illinois Gov. Bruce Rauner says state will take control of Chicago schools

Darryl Grant

Chicago Political Buzz Examiner

In the latest tug of war between Illinois Gov. Bruce Rauner and the city Chicago, he announced at a press conference on Tuesday that he was prepared to give state control of Chicago Public Schools, the nation’s third largest school system, and the he had directed the State Board of Education to begin looking for an interim superintendent.

Against the background of a press conference, where he announced in a change of the the Illinois procurement process, he said, “The state’s going to be ready to step in and take action.”

According to the Chicago Sun-Times, Rauner said, “I asked our administration. I believe it’s coming. I believe a state takeover is appropriate,” also noted that, “The teachers union on Monday unanimously voted to reject a four-year contract offer, citing a lack of trust and concerns about long-term school funding. The union’s decision to reject the agreement is likely to affect Mayor Rahm Emanuel’s attempts to salvage an $875 million borrowing plan announced last week.”

Drawing Mayor Rahm Emanuel into the fray, Rauner remarked, “I hope the rejection by the Chicago Teachers Union is a wake up call for the mayor and the taxpayers in Chicago and around the state. The mayor proposed an unaffordable contract. It was unaffordable. It was more kicking the can and just getting by and he was pushing off the day of reckoning and the teacher’s union still rejected that.” Observers suggest that Rauner feels that he can do a better job at the contract negotiations, than Emanuel and CPS can.

Adding to the contract rejection was an announcement from CPS chief, Forrest Claypool, who The Chicago Tribune reported on Tuesday saying, that “the district will unilaterally institute a key provision in the offer and stop picking up pension contributions for teachers,” and and that further administrative cuts of by $100 million, affecting support staff, will also begin. In his letter, also dated Tuesday, Claypool states that these steps are being taken,“for the financial health of the district, and are being implemented because we no longer have a choice but to implement them.”

In swift response, the Chicago Teacher’s Union, practically within minutes of Claypool’s announcement, said that they will file an unfair labor practice complaint. And, the Tribune also reported CTU President Karen Lewis saying that “the district's moves represented its ‘latest act of war,’” and furthermore that “union members would take to the streets this week to protest.”

“We are certain everyone who works in our public schools is facing a clear and present danger,” Lewis remarked, and also said that the news from Claypool was “forcing someone to agree to a bad deal by threatening them, we're not going to be bullied.”

In an emailed statement, the CTU said, “The Governor’s fantasy that he will invade the Chicago Public School system is a distraction from the real issues facing teachers and the students they serve. Mr. Rauner is unable to maintain control of the state’s fiscal health, let alone, take over a school district with severe revenue problems of its own making.Does he plan on sending in the Illinois National Guard to teach our children, take the chalk away from teachers and prepare school lunches? His idea is ridiculous and doesn’t pass the smell test.”

Hovering in the background are the financial moves that Emanuel and CPS say must happen before further cuts, and according to Crain’s Chicago will continue “as early as tomorrow with plans to sell as much as $875 million of bonds after the deal was postponed last week by investors asking for more time to evaluate the securities. "We have good momentum with our investors," Claypool said.

On the legislative side, there are no plans, or even existing legal provisions, by the Illinois General Assembly, for a takeover of CPS and according to the local CBS affiliate, CBS Chicago, “Illinois Senate President John Cullerton and House Speaker Michael Madigan already have made it clear Rauner’s plan is going nowhere with the Democratic-controlled legislature. Cullerton said the governor’s CPS takeover plan “is not going to happen,” and Madigan said it is “not the path we want to follow in Illinois.”

The contract negotiations rejected by the larger CTU bargaining group, and not Lewis’ executive negotiating group, were based on a cited lack of trust, are not in and of itself, unknown in contract negotiations. Yet, the ensuing drama, consistent with Rauner’s anti-union stance are seen, by some, as political theater, with Lewis saying as much, in Tuesday’s news conference: “Please don’t pay any attention to the ravings of a madman because that’s what he is.”

ABOVE IS FROM;  http://www.examiner.com/political-buzz-in-chicago/darryl-grant

Koch brothers network ready to oppose Trump

 

By Jonathan Swan - 02/01/16 03:13 PM EST

INDIAN WELLS, Calif. – Donald Trump is so fiercely opposed by the Koch brothers network that some donors believe the powerful group will intervene to stop the billionaire if it looks like he could win the Republican presidential nomination.

"They are always very hesitant to get involved in a primary, but I think if they were going to do it, this would be the time because they just hate the guy,” said a donor who attended the Koch network’s winter retreat, held over the weekend at a luxury resort on the edge of Coachella Valley.

Both officials and donors within Charles and David Koch's powerful group hope the real estate tycoon's White House bid dies a natural death so the group can avoid spending a penny of its $889 million 2016 cycle budget against him. But the Koch network's conversations over the weekend concerning what to do about Trump were more detailed than previously revealed.  

On the eve of the Iowa causes, Koch network officials referred in a private meeting with donors  to focus group research that included a range of questions including some that identify Trump’s vulnerabilities. 

And some influential figures in the group — which held its largest gathering ever, with 500 donors attending the weekend gathering — believe that action against Trump would be needed if he emerges dominant out of the Feb. 9 primary in New Hampshire, where he holds a commanding lead in polls.

During a private planning session on Sunday morning, a senior Koch official ran through every presidential candidate, analyzing each one's strengths and weaknesses, said a source who attended the session.

When the official got to Trump, the tone shifted. Trump, the official said, has been on the opposite side of nearly every issue the Koch group cares about, such as taxes, trade and corporate welfare. 

“There's also a constitutional piece,” the same donor added. “The president's job isn't to go up there and be a Caesar-like figure.”

The Koch official shared for the first time focus group research showing that Trump’s popularity falls when voters are shown how working people have suffered as a result of his bankruptcies and business dealings in Atlantic City, N.J. Stories of Trump's efforts to enrich himself by hurting ordinary people proved most effective at generating negative views of Trump, donors were told.

Several older donors spoke passionately against Trump in the private session, and only one donor in the room made a half-hearted attempt to defend him.

Making an enemy of the Koch network is dangerous for any Republican politician. The group, founded by the billionaire industrialist brothers, comprises about 700 donors who give more than $100,000 annually to maintain their membership. 

The network has resources and technology rivaling the Republican Party's infrastructure and spent close to $400 million in 2015 on its goals to minimize the role of government in people's lives. But it also intervenes in electoral politics and will play a multimillion-dollar role in the 2016 presidential and Senate races.

The Koch network is holding off on endorsing a 2016 presidential nominee, though has narrowed its preferences down to five acceptable candidates: Marco Rubio, Ted Cruz, Jeb Bush, Rand Paul and Carly Fiorina.

A number of donors have been turned off of Bush recently, though, angered by the former Florida governor’s super-PAC, which spent some $20 million attacking Rubio, who aligns with the Koch network on many of its issues. 

These donors wonder why the super-PAC didn’t spend more of its record fundraising haul attacking Trump.

Some Koch donors are refreshed by Trump's style and his willingness to reject political correctness and speak his mind. But his past support for tax increases, universal healthcare and other liberal issues means, they say, he cannot be trusted.

“You have to judge Trump on his past statements, and while it's clear he's been on two sides of nearly every issue, the one side he's never been on is our side,” said the donor who attended the session but asked not to be named. The conversations were held in a setting that was closed to the small number of press allowed into the resort, which the Koch network rented out in its entirety and stocked with heavy security to prevent infiltration.

Six news outlets, including The Hill, agreed to ground rules in order to cover the event, including not naming donors unless without their permission.

Trump's support for ethanol subsidies is a particular sore point. A Koch official said that Trump filled out a network policy form saying he opposed ethanol subsidies but has since told audiences in Iowa that he thinks the Environmental Protection Agency should work to increase the amount of ethanol blended into the nation’s gasoline supply. In Iowa, the federal policy boosting ethanol production is politically sacred.

Trump's campaign did not respond to a request for comment.

And given the Koch group's libertarian philosophy, many donors are appalled by what they see as Trump's vision of himself as a king-like figure who believes that he alone can rescue America.

Summing up the general mood was Republican Nebraska Sen. Ben Sasse, who was applauded when he said in a dinner speech, “The way to make America great again is not by abandoning the Constitutional limits and saying to some guy, ‘Would you be our king?’ ”

“We can’t give Trump a pass when we don’t know what he stands for.”

Yet the dangers of attacking Trump are keenly understood — he is famously retaliatory — and a number of sources within the Koch network stressed that if an attack against Trump can be avoided, it will be. 

This is not the first time the Kochs and Trump have been at odds.

The Kochs declined to invite Trump as one of the presidential candidates to attend a donor gathering last summer. The attendees were Rubio, Bush, Cruz, and Fiorina.

In response, Trump unloaded on Twitter. "I wish good luck to all of the Republican candidates that traveled to California to beg for money etc. from the Koch Brothers. Puppets?" the billionaire wrote.

Donors and officials worry that a large-scale assault against Trump could encourage him to run as a third-party candidate, which could result in Hillary Clinton winning the White House in a way similar to how her husband did in 1992. That year, another populist billionaire, Ross Perot, ran as an independent and peeled a large number of voters away from the Republican incumbent George H.W. Bush.

There is also a concern that spending a large amount of money against Trump could help him sell his narrative of being a populist lined up against the establishment and special interests

Conversations over the weekend suggested that there are a small number Koch figures who remain hopeful that even if Trump does become the nominee, he can be persuaded to adopt more free market policies.

Luke Hilgemann, the CEO of Americans For Prosperity, the main activist group of the Koch network, told The Hill, “If Donald Trump becomes the nominee he’s going to need a lot of help with establishing what his platform is and I think we have that platform." 

“You’re going to see the nominee and the party come on board with the fact that our network is the one that’s setting the agenda for the American people, because we have actually talked to them and asked them what their priorities are.”

Koch donor Doug Deason told The Hill that while he doesn't support Trump he thinks the billionaire could ultimately stand up for "free enterprise." 

“I like him OK," said Deason, a Texas businessman who supported his state's former Gov. Rick Perry’s failed presidential bid but says he is now on the verge of donating to Cruz. 

"He’s a successful man." 

ABOVE IS FROM;  http://thehill.com/homenews/campaign/267766-koch-brothers-network-ready-to-oppose-trump

Pension bill on hold despite Rauner, Cullerton agreement

• SARA BURNETT The Associated Press
• Updated 10 hrs ago

 

CHICAGO — Democrats are unlikely to address Illinois's worst-in-the-nation pension crisis until the state has a budget, despite a rare agreement between Republican Gov. Bruce Rauner and Senate President John Cullerton and calls from the governor to send him a bill "right away."

Rauner announced last month that he's backing a Cullerton plan to give workers a choice in retirement benefits as a way to chip away at Illinois' $111 billion unfunded pension liability. He struck an optimistic tone in last week's State of the State speech, calling it one of the most critical steps lawmakers can take to save taxpayers money.

But Cullerton, a Chicago Democrat, says it will be even tougher than usual to pass pension legislation this year because of upcoming elections, opposition from labor unions, an Illinois Supreme Court ruling that declared a previous law unconstitutional and the ongoing state budget saga. A pension bill could be part of a broader deal between Rauner and majority Democrats on a budget and other issues, he said — a process that's likely to take several months, if not longer.

+1 

Cullerton

"With the union opposition and without 100 percent of Republicans on board, it's going to be difficult," Cullerton said. "Just like everything else this year, people want to know what the big picture is."

Rauner's office said Monday that "there should be no good policy reason to delay moving the bill" once it's drafted, noting the governor has agreed to use language written by Cullerton's staff.

"Failure to act swiftly on pension reform could be a signal the legislature is putting politics ahead of good policy, so we expect both Chambers to act on it right away," Rauner deputy chief of staff Mike Schrimpf said in an emailed statement.

Cullerton called Rauner's support "very important," but said it's not as simple as the governor seems to think.

"Passing a bill is something I've had more experience at that than he has," he said.

Illinois is providing only about 40 percent of what's needed to pay pension benefits, due largely to lawmakers who for years skipped making the state's contributions. As a result, its annual payments have ballooned to about $7 billion — roughly one-fifth of Illinois's general funds budget.

Lawmakers approved legislation in 2013 that cut pension benefits, but unions sued, saying the Illinois Constitution prohibits retirement benefits from being reduced. In May, the Illinois Supreme Court agreed.

AFL-CIO President Michael Carrigan, a spokesman for a coalition of unions that's led the fight to protect pensions, said they believe Cullerton's plan also is unconstitutional.

He said the unions are willing to discuss other options, but "the phone hasn't rung in a long, long time."

"Our (public employees) worked long and hard to battle for their pension benefits, and there is no appetite to sit down and discuss legislation that's going to diminish those benefits," Carrigan said, adding that getting a budget is unions' top priority.

Cullerton said he believes his approach is constitutional and he plans to sit down with union officials to discuss both the "legal side" and the "political side." He also will present the legislation to Democratic House Speaker Michael Madigan once it's drafted.

Schrimpf said Cullerton's attorneys are expected to send their legislative language to Rauner's office by the middle of this week.

Rauner and majority Democrats have been at odds over how to close a roughly $5 billion budget deficit, leaving Illinois without a spending plan for the fiscal year that started July 1 and causing deep cuts to social services and other programs. Rauner wants pro-business changes before he will sign off on a tax increase, but Democrats say his agenda would hurt the middle class.

Cullerton said he's hopeful a budget deal could be reached by May, adding he doesn't think the stalemate will last through the November elections.

"I hope not," he said. "I can't imagine it."

ABOVE IS FROM:  thesouthern.com/news/local/govt-and-politics/pension-bill-on-hold-despite-rauner-cullerton-agreement/article_e2186959-c43e-54db-ae4d-5c200c123b66.html