New gov., same mess
By CHRISTOPHER WILLS - The Associated Press
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| AP photo
Gov. Pat Quinn holds up one of Sen. Paul Simon's, D-Ill, bow ties that was given to him as a gift after Simon died, while speaking to reporters Friday outside the governor's office at the Illinois State Capitol in Springfield. |
SPRINGFIELD – Rod Blagojevich entered the Illinois governor’s office with the state budget falling apart and public confidence shaken by a spectacular scandal. Six years later, Blagojevich is gone, but if anything his tenure dug the hole deeper.
Illinois still faces a huge deficit, but all the tricks and half-measures that could hold things together have been used up. And voters already cynical about their politicians now have their fears confirmed by a governor caught on tape allegedly using his official powers to raise campaign cash.
“He leaves exactly in the same quagmire, and I think it is a terrible, wasted opportunity,” said House Majority Leader Barbara Flynn Currie, D-Chicago. “It is a terrible shame and disgrace, not only for him but for all of us.”
The new governor, Pat Quinn, faces an even tougher situation.
What Quinn has going for him is a consensus in the Capitol that the state’s problems are too big to ignore.
“I think he is prepared, and I know that the attitude of the General Assembly is we need to work together to get this thing going,” Republican state Sen. Dan Rutherford said.
When Blagojevich took office in January 2003, Illinois faced a combined deficit of about $5 billion for the budget year that was ending and the one that lay ahead. The current budget has a hole of about $3.5 billion, only part of which has been filled with spending cuts, while bills are piling up and revenue is falling.
Blagojevich had used several tools to hold the budget together, at least on paper, without having to take drastic action. He came up with a plan to borrow money at low rates, invest it and come out ahead on the interest it earned. He raised obscure fees and raided special funds.
That leaves Quinn with few options – primarily raising taxes, cutting spending or letting unpaid bills pile up even higher.
Quinn also faces the challenge of trying to convince Illinoisans that not all politicians are crooks.
