The editors of the Chicago Tribune reject the Illinois legislature’s argument that the state should receive a bailout from the federal government:
Give Illinois money, and the politicians will mismanage it.
It’s time to give state government its own hard lesson, for the future benefit of everyone who lives and works here, and for taxpayers around the country who shouldn’t have to pay for our mistakes: No bailout. Lots of strings attached to any federal aid. Don’t enable Illinois leaders with a blank check.
I don’t believe that the State of Illinois should receive any sort of bailout from the federal government without being required to go into a sort of receivership which removes the decisionmaking from the hands of the governor or legislature and I don’t see any constitutional way of doing that. Paraphrasing Jean-Claude Juncker I think that Illinois politicians know what they need to do. They just don’t know how to hold onto their jobs if they do it.
This is the fatal flaw of democracy isn’t it? Voting ourselves a paycheck?
If you’re going to have universal suffrage, maybe even down to 18 years old, this seems inevitable.
If you had the Feds bailout Illinois, the price should be a balanced budget amendment. But if you are not a public employee, why would you shoulder that burden?
De-fund the police? De-fund the state.
I’m sure you understand, Dave, that a Biden presidency would assure a bankrupt (Democrat) city bailout at best, and state at worst.
Illinois already has a balanced budget requirement. For some reason or other no one seems to have standing to take the matter to court.
For several years there Illinois operated without a budget at all—money was just spent (largely based on court orders).
Governance? We don’t need no stinking governance.
You know, as a guy who deals in corporate financial matters, I have quaint notions that you have to live by your legal financial obligations. Oh, that’s right, you DO have to do that, or lawyers will want to speak with you. But I guess government animals are more equal than small corporate animals.
And people wonder why I’m a government minimalist……