Rahm Emanuel: C/D? (probably going to be a Chicago politics complaint thread too)

http://inthesetimes.com/article/17533/how_to_sell_off_a_city

http://inthesetimes.com/images/uploads/InTheseTimesPrivatizationUnderRahm.png

DISGUSTING

I ran into a coworker/friend last night who encouraged anyone interested in removing this pustule from the mayor's office to volunteer for Chuy Garcia. He gave me some compelling reasons, one of which is that Garcia's experience working with the city goes back to Harold Washington's administration, so he has a lot of experience. I dunno. I'm sure he's not ideal but he's better than gd Goldman Sachs owning our preschools.

chuy garcia is great, a few friends are working for his campaign

Works for me. I volunteered to make calls or knock on doors.

That graphic makes me angry in the pit of my stomach.

illinois, you're in for it

http://www.salon.com/2015/01/28/illinois_new_gop_governor_declares_war_on_labor/

i.e. welcome to my world

What, you got a problem?

http://abc7chicago.com/news/mayors-motorcade-caught-running-red-lights---again-/496698/

Got my vote by mail thing today! I've never done this, will make voting much more likely for me.

enjoyable article about the career and life of Chuy Garcia http://www.chicagoreader.com/chicago/jesus-chuy-garcia-rahm-emanuel-chicago-mayor-race-karen-lewis/Content?oid=16255514
worth reading even if you don't have a Chicago zip code (hell plenty of Rahm's rich friends/campaign supporters don't have Chicago zip codes either and they are very literally invested in this mayoral race)

Finally unfriended my Rahm shill friend on fb when she started deriding the League of Women Voters.

omg
what's her damage?

"spin"

lmao she's a PR hack

i guess i really don't understand the headspace those people occupy whatsoever
their pov is just so, i dunno, bleak? like people are just creatures who can be manipulated this way or that way and whatever happens next who cares.

The best was when she was doing communications for CPS... or just using it: http://www.chicagoreader.com/chicago/tensions-between-cps-fired-ceo-jean-claude-brizard-and-becky-carroll/Content?oid=7932019

i guess i really don't understand the headspace those people occupy whatsoever
their pov is just so, i dunno, bleak? like people are just creatures who can be manipulated this way or that way and whatever happens next who cares.

― groundless round (La Lechera), Thursday, February 5, 2015 5:09 PM (36 minutes ago) Bookmark Flag Post Permalink

I think people like Dan's friend are true believers. Which is also pretty bleak.

true

true believers are the ones who are the most strident defenders of the worst shit that they'd be the first to leak to the papers if an opponent did it

although i have seen true believers of one sort turn into true believers of a very different sort
those who truly don't care what happens to people scare me slightly more than believers

I think this person truly believes in whomever is paying her.

it's so depressing to think that chuy garcia has little chance. i'm stuck up here in wisconsin, but y'all should campaign for him for reals.

every time we come close to moving back to chicago and are forced to push the date i'm disappointed but also i don't know what the hell i am or would be getting myself into with this asshole running things, and i presume he will win another couple terms before he decides to quit or before there's a candidate who can take him down.

oh, most places have assholes running things, no? chicago is just a very big place.

l.a. is run by very ineffective assholes, mostly, though i guess eric garcetti is a bit of a minor emanuel in a lot of ways. rahm just seems like a very, very effective and deeply entrenched asshole.

I had dinner with some of my former state govt colleagues who had insider info on how Rauner is running things. Short answer: the same exact cronyism as every previous governor (specific example: appointing all of his people to the key political patronage jobs with a 40% raise while giving speeches about eliminating govt waste) but he's also working on getting rid of the union from the inside by telling employees they could have merit bonuses if it weren't for that darn union.

Tribune endorsed.

http://www.chicagotribune.com/news/opinion/editorials/ct-mayor-endorsement-rahm-emanuel-edit-0208-20150206-story.html#page=1

reducing the political process to sighs and lols doesn't really work for me, but here is a lol to balance it out
http://www.dnainfo.com/chicago/20150206/downtown/mayoral-candidate-willie-wilsons-city-club-speech-was-stuff-of-legends

i like "scrootened" as an abbreviation of "scrutinized"

this kinds of reminds me of rick santorum's "blah people" --remember that?

"blah people" says the wet mayor

That's a defensive word.

Well this is straight up pandering: http://chicago.suntimes.com/news/7/71/363086/rahm-emanuel-jrw-title-little-league-international

I'm still undecided in this mayoral election. Leaning towards just leaving it blank.

please vote and try to force a runoff
please?

Good Zirin piece on JRW here:

I reached out to Chicago Teachers Union Vice President Jesse Sharkey who said to me, “Mayor Rahm closed half a dozen schools in Jackie Robinson West’s part of the city, and tried to close the school, Marcus Garvey, where the founder of JRW—Joe Haley—worked. Then Chicago Public Schools cut funding for high school freshman sports, laid off a thousand teachers. CPS put 40 kids in physical education classes and doesn’t even put a librarian in most of the school libraries in [the South Side district of] Auburn Gresham.”

Yeah, I think a runoff is very possible and it would be great and so voting is important.

Still haven't paid too much attention to the candidates, but garcia seems pretty good?

I found out some bummer garcia news this weekend - firm where I work represented his son in some sort of criminal proceeding and there may have been a conflict of interest (I'm being purposely vague - feel free to giggle that on the intertubes). But - probably still going to vote for him, b/c he seems least slimy and most likely to do the job well - anyone but rahmbo for me.

vote for chuy, i would if i could

is there a good rundown of aldermanic candidates' positions anywhere?

Sign up for the aldertrack newsletter. Best source for local politics news I've found. http://www.aldertrack.com/archives/

thanks. i also found this: http://www.suntimescandidates.com/ which seems helpful altho i definitely don't trust the sun-times's endorsements

Yeah, skeptical of all endorsements basically. Even the Chicago Defender endorsed Rahm.

A little light, but there is this too. http://bit.ly/1zOOIAm

please vote and try to force a runoff
please?

― groundless round (La Lechera), Thursday, February 12, 2015 9:30 AM (2 days ago) Bookmark Flag Post Permalink

You're right. I'm just intrigued enough with Garcia to want to know more that an additional two months of campaigning would probably bring out. I'm not sure I would vote for him over Rahm in April, but a run off would be better for everyone. Well except for Rahm, but he'll get over it.

He'll get over it alright. I heard a story about the Chicago superpac on the radio the other day and they are all about the sleazy mailers -- that's totally a Rahm tactic.

Jeff! Chuy is a marathoner! I just learned this and thought you might find that interesting. He has completed ~three~ marathons, apparently.

Yeah, I saw that. Rahm is just a stupid triathlete. Screw triathletes.

Anyway, mailed my ballot today, voting for Garcia. but I will be very surprised if rahm doesn't get 50%.

http://www.chicagobusiness.com/article/20150218/BLOGS02/150219820/city-transit-hospitals-could-be-targeted-in-rauners-first-budget

If this passes, the RTA cut is going to suck.

"For transit, the Regional Transportation Authority would get a roughly $110 million cut, other sources say. Half or a bit more would come from the Chicago Transit Authority, the rest from Metra and Pace. The CTA has an overall operating budget of about $1 billlion, so something is going to pinch."

does the red line still run all night?