EXTRA: Blame being spread all about

Why can’t our state government officials get their act together to put together an operating budget that would permit it to conduct itself the way it’s supposed to? Largely because it seems we have government officials who are the equivalent of five-year-olds.
 

Will Bilandic bldg. have longer life than Thompson?

Illinois House Speaker Michael Madigan, D-Chicago, had a letter delivered Tuesday morning to Gov. Bruce Rauner addressing the topic of talks concerning the proposed sale of the Thompson Center state government building.

MADIGAN LET IT be known he is willing to cooperate with the governor’s staffers to try to make the deal happen, but couldn’t help but take his own fair share of potshots at Rauner. Which he thinks are fair game for the disrespect he thinks he has been shown on the issue.

“With all due respect, I think it is disingenuous of you and beneath your office to make such false statements to the media when you know or should have known that I have pledged my cooperation, that our staffs are working together on this initiative and that we are working toward the same goal … and in good faith,” Madigan wrote.

He later added, “Despite your inability to provide an accurate account of the facts or acknowledge my public and private comments, my staff will continue working cooperatively with your staff and (Central Management Services) to develop a plan to maximize the ability of the State to sell the property.”

As though Madigan is doing everybody a favor by participating in these talks. With this tone, his signature, “With kindest personal regards, I remain sincerely yours,”… might as well have contained an illustration of a middle finger protruding into the air.

ALL I KNOW is with this mentality, it will be a miracle if the sides can work out the details by which the state government building could be sold off (which includes a significant side issue in that any future development would interfere with the CTA ‘el’ station at the building).

Particularly since the governor’s people responded to the Madigan letter by telling the Capitol Fax newsletter that the esteemed Mr. Speaker “has held up every proposal to create jobs, provide property tax relief, balance the budget and improve education.”

And with us now moving into the re-election mode from now through November of 2018, it’s going to be a miserable period of nothing occurring, but everybody seeking to use that nothingness to their advantage.

While we all lose!

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