A Perfect Use for @MikeforIllinois Earmuffs!

We're guessing that they're not playing a lot of Bob Dylan around the Mike Frerichs for Treasurer campaign office these days.

One has to assume that the song "Forever Young" hits a particular open wound there down in Champaign and *has* to be on the 'do not play' list in the @MikeforIllinois Campaign Office, these days, right?

If the song happens to come on, here's a little piece of advice for campaign staff and volunteers:  go tell Mike to get his favorite pair of earmuffs out of his closet and put them on.  He doesn't want to hear this stuff.  (If you aren't familiar with Illinois Treasurer's candidate Mike Frerichs affinity for earmuffs, check out our post here!)

From the song;

May you grow up to be righteous
May you grow up to be true
May you always know the truth
And see the lights surrounding you
May you always be courageous
Stand upright and be strong
May you stay forever young
Forever young, forever young
May you stay forever young

With how they've run their campaign, we know Mike and team can't be rockin' out to this particular verse.  Might be the opposite to how they've rolled out their campaign and candidate?  Changing your position on a major issue 3 times in 2 weeks?  Not courageous.  Lying about your voting record in your announcement video?  Not 'standing upright and being strong'.

A little tip to the campaign staff at Frerichs' HQ:  if this song comes on the radio, get up quick.  Turn it off.  Or like we said earlier...put on some earmuffs.  We know Mike loves them!

Mike Frerichs Was *For* the Consolidation of the Treasurer/Comptroller Before He Was Against It. Now He's For It Again? (We think?)

There are plenty of faults one could point to about Mike Frerichs - candidate for Illinois Treasurer.  Amongst them is the apparent and desperate need to have attention paid to him via his prattling on with Facebook and Twitter.

Frerichs' posting of his whereabouts and what-have-yous on Facebook eerily reminds us a bit of how Silvio feels about Jerry in this clip.  "Love me, shower me, pay attention to me!"  That's the vibe Mike is giving off on Facebook, isn't it?



But, the vanity/ego stuff on social media isn't that big of a deal.   What is?  Well..the biggest and potentially fatal fault that voters need to understand is that Mike Frerichs can't be trusted at his word.

He'll say anything and change his position on major issues depending on the audience just to get people to 'like him'.  (Just like Jerry in his man fur...)

The latest example of Mike Frerichs having no backbone and twisting in the wind is his change of mind on the issue of consolidating the offices of Illinois Treasurer and Illinois Comptroller.

Frerichs voted for the consolidation in 97th GA, SJRCA 13 and even reaffirmed his committment to the consolidation in a Daily Herald candidate survey.

From the Daily Herald:

Should the office of treasurer and comptroller be combined? 

Frerichs: In 2011 I voted to allow the taxpayers of Illinois to decide if we should merge the office of the Comptroller and Treasurer in a statewide referendum. This measure passed the Senate but never came for a vote in the House. With over 7,000 units of government in Illinois, elected officials must always look for ways to streamline government. 

But then last week, he went on WBBM Radio and said that he was against the consolidation.  He was afraid that if we do consolidate the two offices, Illinois would end up like Dixon Illinois.

Fine.  Change your mind once.  That's called "evolving position'.  But...changing your mind back?  That's called being a liar.

Flip Flops Work on This Guy About As Well as They Do for Mike Frerichs.  Voters are smart enough to see him for what he is:  a typical say-anything politician who will do whatever it takes to get elected.

Guess what Mike Frerichs did yesterday?  He changed his mind for the 3rd time.  He is now (if you believe him?) is *for* the consolidation.

In a piece titled: Frerichs again supports combining state’s treasurer, comptroller offices in the S-JR:

In the past, Frerichs has, too. He supported a constitutional amendment to merge the two offices in 2011, when the Senate passed the measure 55-0. The House never voted on it, but Frerichs said he supported the amendment because he trusted Illinoisans to make the decision. 

It was estimated at the time that combining the offices would save $12 million a year.But during an appearance on a radio show earlier this month in Chicago, Frerichs seemed to rein in that support when he was asked if the two offices should be combined. 

“People have said to me, ‘Wouldn’t it just be a lot more efficient if we just had one financial officer?’ And I’ve said yes, we could become very efficient, efficient like the city of Dixon, Illinois, who just had one chief financial officer and she was able, from this small little town, over several years to take something like $52 million away from them,” Frerichs said.

The Details:

“Once again, Mike Frerichs contradicts himself. Both in his voting record and submissions to press outlets, he has supported merging the office of comptroller and treasurer. Yet, just two weeks ago, he switched his position. This continues a trend of inconsistent statements by the Frerichs campaign which began with his campaign launch when he misled citizens about his record on key votes to end perks for politicians.”

Democrat County Chairman React to Mike Frerichs Flip Flop (again)

This just in:  Democrat County Chairmen/women have sent us their reaction shot to Mike Frerichs' flip flop on another issue.

Sage Advice for Mike Frerichs - Candidate for Illinois Treasurer

There's plenty to be said about Democrat candidate for Illinois Treasurer Mike Frerichs pivot on a major issue in the campaign, but for now, we wanted to share a piece advice from everyone's best friend George Zimmer.

Treasurer's Candidate Mike Frerichs' Campaign Event: Zero Point Zero

A few weeks ago, Democrat Mike Frerichs - and candidate for latex salesman Illinois State Treasurer - did his typical flailing about on Facebook by posting an event for his campaign.  This time it was for one in Lewistown.

We gotta tell you:  that is one hot ticket!  After a few weeks of promoting the event, guess how many fervent Frerichs supporters are on board for the event?

Zero - Point - Zero.

Here's a screen grab of his event listing from his own Facebook wall this morning.  Zero - Point - Zero.  

How Dare They! Obama Library Starts With Shady Tricks

This is almost too rich to believe.  

There are some folks in the Illinois legislature that are pushing forward a bill that would put $100 Million of public money - our money - toward building the Barack Obama Presidential library.

Now...the merits of spending taxpayer money on the Presidential Library aren't what we're really interested in discussing here.  But what we want to talk about is the process that the Democrats in Illinois are taking to get us (us = everybody in the State of Illinois) there.

Yesterday...The House Executive Committee meeting in Chicago today voted, by an official tally of 9-0, to authorize using state money for the library.

Yep.  Nine to Nothing.  The problem?  Only five representatives were there.

From WBEZ:

Nine representatives were recorded as voting for the bill, even though there were five lawmakers in attendance at the hearing. That is because Rep. Bob Rita (D-Blue Island), who chairs the Executive Committee, employed a procedural move. 

Rita used the attendance record from a previous hearing that occurred Wednesday as the vote for the presidential library cash. House Speaker Michael Madigan, who sat in on today’s hearing, clarified Rita’s maneuver, saying the attendance would serve as nine votes in favor of the library, even though the previous committee hearing was on a possible Chicago casino and not related to a presidential library. 

No Republicans attended Thursday’s hearing on the presidential library. 

Rep. Ed Sullivan (R-Mundelein) was marked as voting yes on the measure, even though he did not attend Thursday’s hearing and was working at his non-legislative job. He had attended Wednesday’s hearing on gambling expansion. 

Sullivan said he was under the impression Thursday’s hearing was only to hear testimony about the presidential library, and no votes would be taken. 

“They’ve broken the trust and I think they’ve done something illegal,” Sullivan said of the procedural move. “The legacy of a potential Obama library shouldn’t start out as a result of an illegal act.”

 So...the Democrats want to start this whole process of getting this Library stood up with this farce?

From the Ed Sullivan:

In a stunning violation of House rules, Illinois House Democrats used a subject matter only meeting today to advance legislation aimed at steering $100 million in public funds towards luring the Obama Presidential Library to Chicago. 

“The legacy of the Obama Presidential Library shouldn’t be kicked off in a cloud of controversy,” stated State Representative Ed Sullivan (R, Mundelein). “Not only was the meeting a misrepresentation, so was the false roll call taken.”

What Does Joe Walsh Think Now? Mark Kirk To Stand With Jim Oberweis According to IR

We're thinking that Joe Walsh can come down off the ledge.  (You'll recall that Joe Walsh proclaimed that Senator Mark Kirk 'announced' that he was no longer a Republican' a few weeks back).

Why?  Well...because according to the Illinois Review, Senator Mark Kirk is saying that he's supporting the full Republican ticket.  That seems to jive with what Jim Oberweis has been saying all along.

Much ado about nothing, right?

Here's how IR covers it.  Notice the use of 'belatedly':

U.S. Sen. Mark Kirk has belatedly agreed to support fellow Republican U.S. Senate candidate Jim Oberweis. 

In a brief statement on Tuesday, Kirk told Michael Calhoun of the Illinois Radio Network “I will be campaigning for Jim Oberweis.”

A month ago Kirk said he would not campaign for Oberweis, in order to protect his working relationship with Durbin. The announcement angered many Republicans and alienated conservatives who have been suspicious of Kirk's close relationship with Durbin.

To us there's a difference between supporting/campaigning 'for' someone vs. 'against' someone else.  We're expecting that you'll see Senator Mark Kirk supporting the entire ticket, but not going out there and blasting Senator Durbin.  Which...if I were Jim Oberweis, I'd be happy with.  Mark Kirk isn't the attack dog needed in this case, in our eyes.  

Back to Walsh...we're hoping that between his NYC gig and this news, he'll back off going after Kirk here.  Mark Kirk - and now Bruce Rauner - are leading the ILGOP.  They're the path forward.

David McSweeney and Darrin LaHood: Get Rid of the Lt. Governor NOW

In an opinion piece, State Representative David McSweeney and State Senator Darrin LaHood are out this morning calling on the Illinois Senate leadership (ahem...Senate President Cullerton) to put their proposed constitutional amendment up for a vote in the Senate.

From the piece:

To say that the state's No. 2 office is not exactly essential is an understatement. 

Last year, the Illinois House approved our proposed constitutional amendment to give voters the opportunity to eliminate the office of lieutenant governor. To get the amendment on the November ballot, the Senate has to pass the proposal by May 4. 

Voters will have the option in November to consider constitutional amendments dealing with victims' rights and voters' rights. Illinois law allows the legislature to place up to three constitutional amendments covering different sections of the Illinois Constitution on the ballot in each general election. Two amendments are already on the ballot. We urge our colleagues in the Senate to make our proposal to eliminate the office of lieutenant governor the third. 

Talk about a luxury we can no longer afford: Eliminating this unnecessary position in Illinois government could save the state approximately $2 million a year. 

The fact that a former occupant of the office left the position early because he was bored and another quit — on his second try — is a clear reminder that the office is not exactly a hotbed of activity. Other than being involved in the Rural Bond Bank of Illinois, the Illinois River Coordinating Council and the Illinois Main Street program, there is little the lieutenant governor has the authority to do. 

The time has come for the Senate leadership to put the proposed amendment up for a vote. Give voters a chance to dump the office on Nov. 4.

Illinois State Taxpayers Funding Rich Miller's Capitol Fax?

Over on the Illinois Mirror (and shared broadly on the Illinois Review), Eric Kohn uncovers a nice little nugget about how much the State of Illinois is paying each year to Rich Miller and his Capitol Fax publication.

In a piece titled "Here's some government spending we can cut, Rich Miller", Kohn writes about how Miller doesn't think cuts are the answer to our problem in Illinois.

So, Rich Miller can’t find any government spending to cut, eh? I think I might have found a place to start: 

In FY2013, Rich Miller’s Ahead of Our Time Publishing received $44,000 (UPDATE/CORRECTION: $19,900 in FY2012, $41,000 in FY2013, $34,000 so far in FY2014) in taxpayer money for subscriptions to Capitol Fax. 

That’s right, your money is paying for politicos and government functionaries to read his political gossip. 

For some context, Illinois per capita income is $29,519, and the media household income is $56,853. 

Now, of course, cutting $41k in spending isn’t going to balance the budget or fix our pension crisis. But just remember that when you hear Rich Miller saying that we can’t cut spending without doing great harm, he’s talking — at least in part — about the harm that would come to his bank account.

Listen...this seems like a tempest in a teapot.  AKA:  cost of doing business in state government.  We need our government officials (elected and staff) to be informed, don't we?  That costs $40K?  So be it.

What about other media consumption?  What do the numbers look like for things like Crain's Chicago Business and the Chicago Tribune or....even Comcast cable?  Bet there are a lot of cable bills being paid by the State of Illinois from various offices.  The whole Comcast Newsmakers program is a built off the vanity of elected officials.  But...we still pay them, don't we?

Sheila Simon Crows About Something Or The Other...

Over on her website, Illinois State Comptroller candidate Sheila Simon is prattling on about how she's joining with fellow do-nothings Lt. Governor's from the Midwest to battle Asian Carp and encourage students to get to college.

From her site:

Illinois Lt. Gov. Sheila Simon (D) is backing a package of resolutions with the lieutenant governors of Indiana and Wisconsin aimed at combating the spread of nuisance species in Midwest waterways and encouraging the completion of college. 

The bipartisan resolutions backed by Simon, Sue Ellspermann (R-Ind.) and Rebecca Kleefisch (R-Wis.) was to be taken up at the National Lieutenant Governors Association’s Federal-State Relations Meeting in Washington, D.C. 

“We may be lieutenant governors from different states, but education and protecting our waterways are important to us all,” said Simon. “Good things happen when we work together. Through our continued partnerships, I believe we can make significant progress toward improving college completion and fighting the Asian carp problem.”

We have some news for you, Ms. Simon:

Do You Know This Quinnocchio Bully?

Lance Trover over on Twitter is asking if anyone knows this guy who (allegedly) tore up the anti-Pat Quinn sign.

Let the witch hunt commence!

Jack Franks Is Crazy Like A Fox. A Senior Citizen Vote-Hunting Fox

Democrat State Representative Jack Franks moved a piece of legislation that on it's face seems nice:  lower the cost of hunting/fishing licenses for senior citizens.  

There are details to who can participate and who this impacts, but the most important thing to know is this: people over the age of 75 always get out and vote.

A guy who is a Democrat running in a known Republican district with lots of outdoors areas?  We'd guess that plenty of those cranky old Republicans are gun guys.  What's a good way to get on their side - while still being true to the Democrat principles of gun control measures?

Give them a break on their licenses!  Brilliant!  Seems like a tailor-made vote-getting-opportunity.

Well played, Jack Franks.  Well played.

From the Associated Press:

A proposal that would lower the cost of fishing and hunting licenses for seniors is moving through the Illinois Legislature. 

The House passed a measure on Friday that would lower the cost of licenses by $1 for those 75 and older. Those hoping to save a little money must also be enrolled in the Benefits Access Program with the Illinois Department on Aging. 

The proposal also eliminates the fee to receive pheasant, furbearer, and habitat or migratory fowl stamps for hunters. For fishermen, the fees for inland trout and salmon stamps are eliminated. 

Marengo Democratic Rep. Jack Franks is sponsoring the legislation that he says will ensure seniors can enjoy the state's outdoors.

Big Debbie's House Gets New Look

As a fledgling member of the Illinois political blog community, we here at the Illinois Truth Team like to keep up with our fellow brothers and sisters in arms on the beat.

Looks like one of them - Big Debbie's House - the Democrat hangout in Champaign-Urbana - is getting a little bit of a facelift.  Nice work, Big Debbie.  Looks like she's moving to a responsive theme - and tailoring the experience for mobile users a bit.

Good luck, Big Debbie.  We'll be - as always - keeping up with your stuff.

In honor of the changes, we wanted to give Big Debbie her own special meme.  (we know she likes them a tiny bit...)

WJBC: Tom Cross - @JoinTomCross - Fighting Income Tax Increase

We've covered Illinois State Treasurer candidate Tom Cross and his petition to roll back the 67% income tax increase before here on the Truth Team.  

• You can read our initial coverage of Tom Cross launching his Income Tax Hike Petition Drive here.
• You can check out the Tom Cross for Treasurer Stop The Tax Hike Illinois Petition Site here.  

Now, WJBC out of Bloomington covers how Cross is now asking McLean County residents to join the fight.

State Rep. Tom Cross (R-Oswego) is asking residents of McLean County to sign an online petition aimed at stopping the proposal for a permanent tax hike. Cross said Illinois families are the losers if the increase is made indefinite. 

"We want the citizens to have input on whether or not they feel it's appropriate to raise taxes," he said. "I think as we look at the track record, there's not only an issue of credibility and broken promises but we're going in the wrong direction of what the original purpose was." 

According to Cross, people continue to ask him what can be done to combat the proposal. Cross pins his opponent, State Sen. Mike Frerichs (D-Champaign), to the tax hike.

"With the 67 percent hike we saw three years ago, we were told it would be temporary and there would be more money for education, we were going to pay down our bills, and things would get better," Cross said. "In fact, our bills have gone up, unemployment has gone up, and education funding has been cut."

If you haven't yet, head over to StopTheTaxHikeIL.com to join the fight.  

When Would They Be Able To Push Through Terrible Legislation?!?

State Senator Chapin Rose had a capital idea:  let's get rid of the lame duck sessions in the Illinois Legislature.  You know...that time in Springfield every other year right after the November elections when we, as voters, get all sorts of awfulness sent our way like the income tax hike they billed as 'temporary'.

Well...the Chicago Democrats have said: not so fast, my friend.  They don't want anyone touching their little 'playground'.

From the Illinois Review:

Republican State Sen. Chapin Rose's bill to eliminate lame duck sessions was shot down in a General Assembly committee on Thursday.

The legislation would have moved up the swear-in date to the first week of December after the General Election and would ban the Assembly from meeting until new lawmakers were in office.

Rose said the bill, which failed along party lines, was not surprising because the same people who voted for a 67 percent income tax hike during the lame duck session of 2011 would not want a change.

"I think everybody remembers that the largest tax increase in state history was brought to us by lame duck legislators after spending their whole careers telling us they were anti-tax," Rose said. "I think it's a real problem because lame ducks cause mischief, chaos, and damage at the end of the day to the taxpayers of this state."

Judy Baar Topinka Visits Southern Illinois, Goes Contrarian With Her Metropolis Pose

Illinois Comptroller Judy Baar Topinka has been moving around the State of Illinois to support her bid for re-election as the Illinois State Comptroller.  As posted on her Facebook Wall, she recently stopped in Metropolis, Illinois.

And...here at the Truth Team, we applaud her.  She didn't pose - as every other politician does - with the Superman Statue.  No.  Judy went with the billboard.  Nice.  

Dem Watch: Mike Frerichs Still Tied Up In "Dirty Money" Scandal with DNR

Democrat candidate for Treasurer Mike Frerichs continues to have the worst.campaign.rollout.ever in Illinois as he keeps getting tied up in a dirty money scandal that took place at the Illinois Department of Natural Resources.

Mike "Earmuffs" Frerichs may have donated that 'tainted' money, but he can't escape the story and the fact that he was involved.

From the News Gazette:

The News-Gazette reported in late February that Tuscola's Michael L. Woods, acting director of the IDNR Office of Mines and Minerals and head of the Douglas County Democratic Party, had taken a total of $14,000 in 2012 and 2013 from Foresight Energy Services of St. Louis. Foresight is a coal company with operations at four locations in Illinois. 

Within days of Foresight's $10,000 contribution to the Douglas County Democrats, the party distributed much of it to other Democrats and Democratic organizations, including $5,000 to Gov. Pat Quinn's re-election campaign and $250 to state Sen. Mike Frerichs, D-Champaign. 

Two days after The News-Gazette story, both Quinn's and Frerichs' campaign committees donated the money to charities. Woods resigned from the agency on Feb. 26.

Mike Frerichs doesn't seem to have a firm grasp on his campaign's finances.  Now he wants to be our Illinois State Treasurer?  Illinois can't afford Mike Frerichs as our Treasurer.  

Now We Know How The Chicago Tribune Editorial Board Really Feels

All we have to do is look at the title of the page they've given their latest piece about Speaker Mike Madigan and his "Millionaire Tax".

Have a peek at what one of our readers saw in their browser this morning.  

They sent it over with the subject line:  "Subliminal messaging from the Ed Board?!?!"

For the record, if you move things around a bit (and not have as many tabs open as we normally do), you'll see it actually says:  "Kill Speaker Madigan's Millionaire Tax".  Not just "Kill Speaker Madigan".

Join the Fight to Stop the Tax Hike, Illinois!

Illinois candidate for State Treasurer Tom Cross has started a movement that asks all Illinois residents to stand up and let the State Leadership hear that we need to put a stop to the proposed income tax hike.

You can sign the Stop The Income Tax Hike Illinois Petition here.

From the Illinois Review:

Four years ago, Illinois taxpayers were told that the state's finances were so badly in arrears that all that could salvage the mess was a short-term revenue jolt. Mom and pop drug stores, small town doctors and private nursing home owners were mortgaging their homes to front business costs and salaries while they waited months for the state to pay stacks of unpaid invoices.

The situation worsened until lawmakers were backed into a corner on a state income tax hike. The only way they could sooth irate constituents was to promise the 67% income tax hike would sunset in 2015. But the spending increased and bills weren't caught up. Now Illinois finances aren't significantly better, despite state's cash windfall.

Tom Cross and his staff will be delivering a list of Illinois voters who have signed the petition to Governor Pat Quinn, Speaker Mike Madigan, and Senate President John Cullerton.

From the Tom Cross for Illinois Treasurer site:

Three years after Governor Quinn and Senator Mike Frerichs supported Illinois’ record-setting 67 percent income tax increase, they now are seeking to extend its expiration date indefinitely. Governor Quinn has asked the General Assembly to permanently enact the tax increase that was set to expire on January 1, 2015, but before that vote happens, Tom Cross, the Republican candidate for state treasurer, is asking Illinois families to sign a petition demonstrating their opposition to the extension of the tax increase. 

“Three years after the Quinn/Frerichs 67 percent income tax increase, incomes have shrunk, poverty rates are up, job opportunities are fewer, taxes are higher, but education funding is lower and our bills are still unpaid,” said Cross. “In fact, last year alone, taxpayers paid over $318 million in late payment fees for our unpaid bills.”

Darlene Senger Calls for Audit of Obamacare Government Workers

One of the little known facets of the rollout of the Affordable Care Act - also known as Obamacare - is that the government has hired a sizeable workforce that was supposed to help consumers figure out the process and enroll in health care. 

The problem?  There's no one watching the cookie jar.  And Darlene Senger - candidate for Congress - wants to have a look at what's doin'.

In fact, she compares it to the boondogle that is Governor Pat Quinn's 2010 anti-violence program.  She's introduced a resolution in the Illinois House to audit the program, but it has a brick on it.

From the Illinois Review:

ObamaCare has created a new and massive bureaucratic infrastructure that is being used to convince people to sign up. One of the larger expenses is the navigator program that hires individuals throughout a state to – supposedly – help consumers make choices about their healthcare options.

Illinois has hired over 1,200 navigators costing taxpayers $36 million. This has all been done with limited oversight or accountability, and no performance metrics have been put into place to judge if the navigators are actually helping anyone.
So lax is the oversight that a convicted international terrorist was hired as an ObamaCare navigator here in Illinois. Rasmieh Yousef Odeh was convicted of terrorism in Israel for being involved in multiple bombings and was recently indicted for lying on her immigration paperwork. But none of that prevented her for becoming an ObamaCare navigator in Illinois entrusted with helping our citizens make important healthcare decisions.

Much like Governor Quinn’s $54.5 million anti-violence program from 2010 that a recent audit found to have “pervasive deficiencies in planning, implementation and management,” the navigator program has no oversight or transparency in its spending. It is yet another government program ripe for fraud, patronage and abuse.

It is imperative that we, as taxpayers, know where our money is being spent, and also identify and stop abuses before our tax dollars are wasted. In February, I introduced a resolution in the Illinois House to audit the navigator program in Illinois. My resolution is currently being held up in committee. This week, I submitted a letter demanding that the resolution be scheduled for a hearing. I will keep fighting until we get transparency for the ObamaCare navigator program in Illinois.

Bruce Rauner Shows Us His "Personal Side"

This morning, the Bruce Rauner for Illinois Governor campaign put up a cute, personal video featuring his wife Diana Rauner.

It shows the ying/yang in their marriage and does a nice job of humanizing him for voters.

More importantly, it is aimed at appealing to two important constituencies:  women and Democrats.

Aaron Schock: "Nobody talks about my city that way! Chairman Levin's ass is grass!"

Play that clip up there.  Go ahead.  It is only a few seconds.  We'll wait.

Ok...you're back?  Great.  

That's how we picture Congressman Aaron Schock reacting this week.

Why?  Because Congressman Schock is standing up for his hometown:  The City of Caterpillar.

From the Illinois Review:

Congressman Aaron Schock defended the biggest manufacturer in his district Tuesday after Senator Carl Levin (D-Michigan) scalded Peoria's Caterpillar during a Senate investigative panel. 

“I am unimpressed with Chairman Levin’s inquisition today, and with the partisan report he issued targeting a great American company like Caterpillar. Caterpillar’s effective tax rate of 29 percent far exceeds that paid by many other U.S. companies who escape the politicized investigations of Chairman Levin. And if compared to General Motors effective rate of zero, serious questions arise about the motive and methodology behind Chairman Levin’s one-sided investigation.

“The demonization of a great American company that is under constant IRS audit and remains in full compliance with U.S. tax law is beneath the dignity of the United States Congress, though I am thankful that Chairman Levin’s efforts do little to undermine American confidence in Caterpillar’s reputation or its more than 118,000 employees worldwide. The lasting reputation of Chairman Levin and his committee, on the other hand, may be another story.

Good for Aaron Schock.  Glad to see he's standing up for the company town.  If he doesn't, who will?

Bruce Rauner: Job One Is Less Government in Illinois

Illinois Gubernatorial Candidate Bruce Rauner has laid out one of the first initiatives he'd address if elected Governor:  Find a way to reduce the total units of government.

Tom Kacich covers the story in the News-Gazette:

One of the first things he'd do as governor, Republican nominee Bruce Rauner said Wednesday, is appoint a task force to study Illinois' state and local government structure with an eye toward reducing their numbers and size.

Rauner also said, during a brief stop at the Scott Bidner farm northwest of Champaign, that he soon will unveil "a comprehensive tax review and tax overhaul" plan.

We know that reducing government is something that makes sense for every voter - except folks who happen to be elected as Township Supervisors - and we here at the Truth Team support it.

We've covered Dan Cronin's effort in DuPage in the past.  We can't wait to hear more about Rauner's plan.

Treasurer's Candidate Tom Cross Talks About Vision for Illinois on Fox News Chicago

Illinois Treasurer's candidate Tom Cross made a recent visit to Fox News Chicago as part of his campaign where he discussed the current state of affairs in Illinois as well as how he would approach the job as State Treasurer.

From the Tom Cross for Treasurer website:

Tom Cross appeared on FOX News Chicago on Sunday to discuss Gov. Pat Quinn's broken promises on the "temporary" tax increase and also shared with viewers his plans to enforce the balanced budget requirement of the Illinois Constitution.