ILLINOIS—Illinois’ comptroller Judy Baar-Topinka is one of those perpetual government employees who apparently wants to keep the tradition going…and she’s not above crossing the political aisle to get it done.
Judy Baar-Topinka
And the gaffe that occurred on her part with a hot microphone during a bill-signing ceremony two weeks ago exemplifies that.
All the Chicago-area news services are abuzz with this thing that occurred July 7, when Jude was present with governor Pat Quinn in Washington, Illinois (Tazewell County…which the news agencies are reporting as “downstate” Illinois but which we downstaters know isn’t exactly the case) to sign into law a big chunk of money ($11.6 mil) to go to the areas of Tazewell hit by the tornadoes last November 17.
And then when all the signatures were done, Jude, who apparently didn’t know that her microphone was still live, was whispering to our beloved leader Quinn about getting her kid a job at Southern Illinois University-Carbondale: She was in the process of asking if the governor could help “… get my son to SIU? He loves to teach. He’s got the qualifications.”
“I know him, too,” Quinn whispered back.
Then Jude started chanting: “SIU. SIU. SIU,” and slapped Quinn on the shoulder for good measure.
Here’s the vid, from Early & Often, the section of the Chicago Sun-Times which is increasingly becoming one of our fave sites:
Pat Quinn
Okay, so maybe Quinn didn’t really know what Jude was saying to him at the time (since she was whispering), as he later claimed when news services began contacting him in force about it. And we get it that Jude just “wants her son closer to home,” since he’s an Afghanistan War veteran with multiple degrees. Everybody needs a chance at betterment in life, right?
But in Illinois politics, this kind of thing goes on all the time. People who are not quite as qualified as Jude’s son get promoted up and up and up—all on the taxpayers’ dime with no input from us, mind you, and remember what we continue to say about taxes; try not paying them some time and see what happens to you—and we have zero say in the matter. And if you have any doubts as to the type of people who get promoted up and up as “political favors,” you have no further to look than Eric Gregg, former Harrisburg mayor who sucked up to Quinn after that town’s February 29, 2012 tornado, and covered for Quinn’s utter screwup that caused him to cost the tornado-affected areas FEMA money that was desperately needed.
The phrase “This kind of thing goes on all the time” can be supported by what one of Jude’s mouthpieces said later about the incident:
“The comptroller recalls mentioning that her son just completed 20 years of service in the military, that he has multiple degrees, including his J.D., and is interested in returning to Illinois, preferably southern Illinois,” said Topinka spokesman Brad Hahn. “It was no different than a million other conversations she’s had about her son in the last few months. Like any mom and grandma, she would like to have her family closer to home.”
There you go: “…no different than a million other conversations she’s had about her son in the last few months.” It’s probably closer to accurate to state that it’s “no different than millions of other conversations one politician has with another politician about getting someone, anyone, in their family, or in their circle with whom they’re trying to curry favor, a job in the last few months.”
And that’s largely what the problem is. Instead of letting someone in the private sector go after a job that will support his or her family, we’ve got public officials pulling strings to enrich themselves and their own. That’s development of a “ruling class,” folks, from which more than 200 years ago we recognized our independence.
My opinion: BOTH of them should resign. But that’s just me. Both of them can be REPLACED this fall in the election, and let’s hope they are. And if those who replace them (Rauner for Quinn, and Sheila Simon for Jude) screw up like this and perpetuate the ruling class, THEY should be replaced, too. And so on and so on until a decent person gets in EVERY office, throughout the state. What say you?