We don't write papers, we build scrapbooks
We don't write papers, we build scrapbooks
Sorted by date Results 76 - 95 of 95
With news this past week of the Illinois State Fairs being cancelled this year due to coronavirus, along with many other county fairs, livestock shows and 4-H fairs, it is important we recognize the contributions young people have put in during these trying times. Call me biased, but young people in agriculture are some of the most well-rounded and hardest working amongst their peers. Don’t let their thick-skinned, yet respectful, exteriors fool you — these kids pour their heart and soul into t...
“The continued victimization is not just an insult to my family, but to all victims of crimes in Illinois,” said Bob Peters, Jr., who bears the namesake of his father, Bob Peters, Sr., a murder victim who was brutally murdered during a robbery Nov. 12, 1992 at his gun shop. The continued victimization Bob Peters, Jr. refers to and advocates against, along with his sister, Becky, is now dealt to their family by the State of Illinois’ correctional authorities and elected officials who continually...
When the Governor unveiled his Restore Illinois Plan on May 5th, I was, at first, optimistic. From a 30,000-foot view, the plan was regional with phases of re-opening the state for business so we can begin the critical economic recovery in Illinois. However, as they say, the devil is in the details. As I read and reviewed the plan intently over the coming hours, I quickly saw that there are many unworkable elements of the Governor’s plan. Let me start by dispelling a common notion— “Do your jo...
Over the past month, I have put Northwest Illinois Values on the forefront as we discuss our regional response to the COVID-19 pandemic. I have helped share stories of neighbors helping neighbors, businesses retooling their production lines to produce life-saving Personal Protective Equipment, encouraged opportunities to get involved and updated my COVID-19 website constantly with the latest information and resources for constituents, many of whom are suffering greatly because of the economic...
I’ve been known to attract some online criticism from time to time. However, one of the more perplexing reasons I have caught grief while serving in elected office is the reaction I often receive when mentioning a term I talk about a lot - “Northwest Illinois Values”. We don’t talk about values enough as a society, in my humble opinion. We talk about it so little, in fact, that my use of the term has often brought forth a fear that my values may not match your values and that is a reason...
You may have seen that we recently alerted the public to a very serious concern with funding law enforcement training in the State of Illinois. Without intervention by the Illinois legislature, the responsibility for paying for law enforcement training will be shifted from minor traffic offenses and criminals convicted of more serious crimes paying for this training to, instead, Illinois taxpayers picking up the tab as part of a bigger progressive push to hold criminals less accountable for...
Months before Lt. Governor Juliana Stratton cut to the front of line to be one of the first in Illinois to purchase legal marijuana on January 1st, plans were already in the works by the Pritzker Administration to extend their progressive criminal justice reform policies much further than many Illinoisans who voted for candidate Pritzker even realized. Clearly on Pritzker’s legislative agenda this spring, as highlighted in his State of the State Speech in late January, cash bail reform is a t...
Expect the drum beat on ethics reform to continue at the State Capitol as more legislators become embroiled in what is now apparently a web of corruption being unwoven by President Trump's Federal Department of Justice. While Governor Pritzker attempted to lay out his annual priorities to legislators in his State of the State speech at the end of January, the cloud of corruption and indictments dogged the Democrat Governor in delivering his second annual address the same week as it was...
Joining a chorus of fed-up legislators recognizing overburdened taxpayers deserve real property tax reform in Illinois, we must blow the whistle on the actions, and inactions, of the Illinois Property Tax Reform Task Force. Unfortunately, this Task Force, was created with 88 members, a design flaw baked into the bill to collapse the task force under its own weight. The Task Force blew past the October 31 interim report filing deadline and the December 31 deadline for sending the final report to...
It’s no secret that much of rural Illinois, the vast region of Illinois outside of Chicago and the collar counties, feels forgotten by Chicago democrats running Illinois when it comes to things like state spending priorities. We see these arguments play out every day at gas stations, coffee shops, and at nearly any gathering of rural residents throughout our state. If you live in rural Illinois, you probably even talked about it more than you’d care to admit this holiday season. However, the...
Illinois Democrats had a moment during the final week of legislative session in 2019. Some might say a rare moment; others may say a moment they can choose to take at any time. Federal investigations are swirling about multiple Democrat leaders in Chicago City Hall, the Illinois House, and the Illinois Senate. Democrats had a moment to step back, fix the immediate problems, work on the long-range problems, and attempt to persuade the public they are worthy of their continued trust running all...
Illinois Democrats had a moment during the final week of legislative session in 2019. Some might say a rare moment; others may say a moment they can choose to take at any time. Federal investigations are swirling about multiple Democrat leaders in Chicago City Hall, the Illinois House, and the Illinois Senate. Democrats had a moment to step back, fix the immediate problems, work on the long-range problems, and attempt to persuade the public they are worthy of their continued trust running all...
Four weeks ago, I called on Senator Marty Sandoval (D-Chicago) to resign from Chairmanship of the Senate Transportation Committee, after he became ensnared in a federal investigation. Later that day, Sandoval did resign his committee chairmanship, but not his Senate seat (he should do that too). Last week, legislators were to return to Springfield for Week 1 of the Fall Veto Session. The Fall Veto Session is supposed to be a time each year dedicated to considering the Governor’s vetoes of b...
Pension Reform Is The 800-Pound Gorilla You cannot address budgetary reform in Illinois without addressing pension reform. You cannot address high property taxes in Illinois without addressing pension reform. You cannot understand the push by the tax-and-spend crowd to tax retirement income without understanding the need for pension reform. You see, pension reform is the 800-pound gorilla of state government dysfunction. Illinois has a Pension Protection Clause in our State Constitution. The...
Well by now we’ve all heard the news. Another Chicago-area lawmaker ensnared in a federal investigation with search warrants served on multiple state and local government offices in Chicago, the suburbs, and even the State Capitol Office of State Senator Marty Sandoval, Chairman of the powerful Senate Transportation Committee. In total, over 70 people and entities were listed in federal search warrants. Senator Sandoval chairs one of the most influential Senate Committees, in charge of the l...
In my last column, I wrote about how priorities matter with limited time the General Assembly is in Session. One of the ways I sought to “practice what I preach” was to spend time this Spring working on several measures to protect vulnerable groups, like senior citizens. I was proud to co-sponsor and support several consumer protections that will help with important problems faced by our senior population in Northwest Illinois. One of those measures was to co-sponsor Public Act 101-264. Thi...
Priorities matter. How we spend our time is a statement of those priorities. Unfortunately, time is limited in our lives and in the government bodies influencing our lives and livelihoods. As such, with limited time and resources, it matters a great deal how we spend our time in bodies like the Illinois General Assembly. Are we making the best and ultimate use of that time, addressing priorities of our constituents, or is too much time being squandered on crass appeals that are designed to...
There are so many issues in Springfield that Democrats and Republicans are on polar-opposite viewpoints. Tax policies, how to keep businesses in Illinois, how to keep people in Illinois, how to improve our economy for a better future— all very different ideas between the two parties in Illinois. However, there are also those issues that provide rare, hopeful moments of bipartisan progress. One of those issues is enforcement of roadway safety surrounding protection of our law enforcement, e...
On Tuesday, July 30th, I was honored to be joined by over 4 dozen taxpayers for my most recent “Pizza & Politics” event at the iconic Timmerman’s Supper Club overlooking the Upper Mississippi River Valley in East Dubuque. This event included a legislative update about what really happened in Springfield during the Spring Session as well as an extended question & answer session. I strive for these events to address the state issues that citizens want to talk about and bring forward. As alway...
I talk a lot with constituents in our district about "Northwest Illinois Values." Often, when I use this term, I get questions. In society these days, whenever anyone tries to say that there are "shared values", the very concept is often met with skepticism. While it's certainly true that there are "values" that are not as widely shared by everyone else in our region, I contest that there are some "shared values" that we can almost ALL agree on. I believe that we should talk more about those...
