Who the hell knows what kind of kabuki just transpired down in Springfield, but for now SB512 is stopped. I know the organizations I work with were able to send out almost 300 faxes alone, in addition to phone calls and emails. So, there's a future in micro-lobbying, if you asked me.
The IEA has pointed out the weirdness of the statement signed by Madigan and Cross and the unelected Tyrone Fahner. Apparently Robin Steans wasn't available. What has long been true, and is apparently truer than ever, is that
there's a money train that stops in Springfield, and that everyone's on it, and ultimately this has to corrupt the system.
Also, there's
this little nugget in the Madigan/Cross/Fahner statement.
I feel like they got a whiff of Ken Swanson's offer to sit down and roll up his sleeves during the committee hearing and they thought
we can get them to ram it through themselves.
I'm would recommend that people inside the two main organizations start communicating with the leadership to figure out who's strong, who's wobbly, and who's going to be content to sit at the table, as a certain Logan Square activist has cautioned against time and again.
Also, I would recommend following up with Elaine Nekritz (D-57), who was left holding the bag by Madigan and Cross. Her schizophrenic "yes" vote on the committee should be pinned on her lapel by the residents in her district. She should be questioned specifically about what kind of ideas
she would have proposed--- she referred to these ideas while caving to Madigan. She should also be asked if she's familiar with the Constitution.
Also, SB 512 should be referred to as the "pension phase-out bill" because that's exactly what it was and is-- it came out during the questioning by Daniel Biss (D-17), who showed his hand as a privatizer during his questioning and should be asked very specific questions about his positions. Back in the day, the people representing Evanston educators would have had a van load of activists dispatched to his office for some serious chit-chat. I don't know anyone there these days.
As for Kevin McCarthy (D-37), I have no idea. I'm not familiar with him, and I don't know where Orland Park even is. All I know is that he's a Democrat that voted in committee to phase out public pensions and he should be held accountable for that. Karen May (D-58) should be visited by a deputation of residents and given every kind of support for her wise committee vote.
The work is just starting. We're way, way past the point where we can rely solely on the centralized communication system that has us frantically sending postcards every time a disaster looms. We need to be aware of who is represented by whom so that we can build an actual grass roots. Wouldn't it be great if someone were able to directly contact that hundreds of educators living in Nekritz' district and arrange a little sit-down with her? There's no mechanism for that, currently.
I'm going to take a few days off here; I'll be turning the place over to some of the big aggregators just to see how that works out.
DianeRavitch
coopmike48
leoniehaimson
mikeklonsky
fklonsky
