Compare and Contrast

The big corruption story out of New Jersey last week sounds, in broad strokes, eerily familiar -- lots of people, in and out of government, in a state famous for corruption, rounded up on charges of cheating the public. I can't think of a public corruption case in Illinois involving religious leaders and kidney traffickers, but the point isn't to see which state is worse, but rather to ensure good government. Neither state is doing well on that score.

What struck me were the follow-up stories. From New Jersey came widespread condemnation of the alleged corruption. One story quoted Gov. Jon Corzine as saying, "The scale of corruption we're seeing as this unfolds is simply outrageous and cannot be tolerated."

Compare that with the normal reaction from Chicago Mayor Richard Daley when corruption is found in his town. Rather than broadly condemning corruption, he has tended personalized the response, blaming "a few bad apples," or blaming the people who were convicted for “disgrac[ing their own] name.”

This focused response results in public messaging which is ambiguous at best, or tolerant at worst, as when Robert Sorich, head of Daley's Office of Intergovernmental Affairs, was convicted in 2006, and Mayor Daley announced, "I am saddened by the verdict for these men and their families," while his brother and top political advisors feted Sorich with a fundraiser at a local Bridgeport church.

Clarity counts for a lot. Even, especially, from those in charge, in a position to set the tone by saying clearly and simply what's right and what's wrong.

Twenty Ways to Stop Corruption

Join us for Twenty Ways to Stop Corruption in Illinois
Tuesday, February 3, 2009, 6-9 p.m. at the Chicago Temple First United
Methodist Church

ICPR is co-sponsoring this panel discussion with the Better Government
Association, Business Professionals for the Public Interest,
Crossroads Fund, League of Women Voters, MALDEF, Wieboldt Foundation,
and Woods Fund of Chicago


Event Information

Twenty Ways to Stop Corruption in Illinois: A Panel Discussion

Tuesday, February 3, 2009, 6-9 p.m.

Chicago Temple First United Methodist Church Sanctuary, 77 W. Washington Street

The recent arrest and pending indictment of Governor Rod Blagojevich
have cast national and international attention on our state, leading
to the charge that Illinois is the most corrupt state in America.
While Blagojevich's actions may seem extreme to a wider audience, for
those of us who live in Chicago his shenanigans read more like
business as usual.

It's up to the citizens of Illinois to end the culture of corruption.

The featured panelists will share concrete ideas to eliminate
political corruption in Chicago and Illinois and offer tangible
actions for citizens and activists to take in order to gain control of
our government.

Panelists:
Cindi Canary, Illinois Campaign for Political Reform
Patrick Collins, Attorney and Chair of an Ethics Commission charged
with making recommendations to reform state government
Miguel Del Valle, Chicago City Clerk
Dick Simpson, Professor of Political Science at UIC and former Chicago Alderman
Art Turner, State Representative (invited)

To register, contact Lisa Avila at 773.227.7676 or
lisa at crossroadsfund dot org by Friday, January 30th

Illinois Residents See Broad Corruption in State Government and Seek Action for Change

A majority of Illinoisans (58%) believe Governor Rod Blagojevich’s alleged corrupt behavior is common among public officials in Illinois, and an even larger percentage believes a series of reforms, including limits on campaign contributions, would make a difference and lead to better government. The findings are contained in a new statewide poll released Thursday by the Illinois Campaign for Political Reform (ICPR) and are available at www.ilcampaign.org. The poll itself is here (PDF) and the analysis is here (PDF).

About three-quarters of Illinois residents say an overhaul of Illinois’ weak system of campaign regulation would help make state government work better. According to the survey, 78% of residents say a ban on campaign contributions by corporations will make a difference, and 76% say a similar ban on labor union contributions would make a difference.

Similar sentiment (74%) was expressed for setting limits on the amount of contributions that could be given by individuals.

“The Blagojevich scandal and the other cases of corruption in state and local governments have taken their toll on voter confidence in public officials,” said Cynthia Canary, Director of ICPR. “Changing governors will not be enough to fix the system and restore the public’s faith in government.

“Illinois should join the federal government and 46 other states that limit the size of contributions, and our campaign finance, lobbying and ethics laws should be strictly enforced,” she said. “The public does not have much faith in state government, but voters do believe reform efforts are worthwhile. Legislators should give the public the change it deserves.”

Opinions of the state legislature have sharply worsened in recent months (49% of residents now believe the legislature is doing a “poor” job compared to 26% who said so in April-May 2008). Concerns about corruption and the influence of money in politics are deeper than the current scandal and are likely to continue even if the governor is removed.

“These survey results transcend political parties and all regions of the state,” stated Sheila Simon, a professor at the Southern Illinois University School of Law and a member of the ICPR Board. “Illinois residents are united in their views that our political system must be reformed.”

Even during tough economic times, Illinoisans are sending some strongly negative messages to officeholders across the state. Two-thirds support the creation of a new state agency to vigorously enforce Illinois’ campaign finance laws (66% support) and spending more tax dollars on stronger enforcement of laws to keep money out of politics (65%).

Underscoring the strong views of residents is another key finding: six in ten (61%) Illinois residents are “extremely” concerned about corruption in state government and more than half (54%) about the influence of money in state politics. Concerns of corruption exceed concerns over the economy (50%), jobs (45%), and the state budget (46%).

Other findings of the poll included:

• 71% of Illinois residents support a law limiting the amount of campaign money party leaders of the legislature are allowed to contribute to other legislative candidates;
• 89% of registered voters say their legislator’s support for legislation to reduce money in politics would be important to their decision to re-elect their legislator with half (50%) saying it would be “very important;”
• Eight in ten Illinois residents (78%) say the state is on the wrong track, an increase from the 68% who thought so in April-May 2008.

The poll was conducted by Belden, Russonello & Stewart (BRS), an independent
research firm located in Washington, DC. A random telephone survey of 802 adults in Illinois on attitudes toward government and political reform was conducted January 8 – 11, 2009. The margin of sampling error is plus or minus 3.5 percentage points at the 95% level of tolerance. Some questions in the survey track attitudes from BRS surveys on political reform conducted in 2006 and 2008. The survey was commissioned and funded by The Joyce Foundation.