From the Tribune:

September 27, 2008
Politicians' playoff tix just part of game

By Ray Long
and Monique Garcia
Tribune reporters
Chicago may be the city that works. But when it comes to getting Cubs or Sox playoff tickets, this is the city that works the political angles better than any strategy Lou or Ozzie could devise between the foul lines.
As die-hard fans scratch and claw to score a pair, they can rest assured their elected officials don't have to hassle with long-shot lotteries, brokers or—say it ain't so—scalpers.
Many Chicago politicians  have plans to be safely seated in the friendly confines of Wrigley or the Cell, assuming the Sox can get it together this weekend. That’s because, in many cases, public servants only had to wait for the ballclubs to  check on their needs and desires.
They got a call or a note from the teams asking a simple question: Do you want to go?
Senate President Emil Jones, the South Side political power broker who has waited 72 of the last 100 years since the last North Side world championship, said yes and is waiting for details.
Gov. Rod Blagojevich, who once said he would like to be buried under home plate at Wrigley Field, was offered a couple of prime seats near his usual spot. He plans to take his oldest daughter, Amy.
They're among the winners in the grand tradition of making tickets available for city and state politicians known for their abundant capacity to get what they can.
Sure, the tickets aren't free. But they are face value, and the  politicians can always tap their campaign funds to cover the tab.
The Cubs are offering the chosen few two tickets that run roughly $60 to $80 each, a team official said. At StubHub, single seats averaged $490 last week for a Cubs first-round ticket with a top price of $2,500.
The Sox require purchase of two tickets for all playoff games at $3,050 for the package. At that rate, a single ticket costs $55 for the division series, $115 for the league championship series and $225 for the World Series at Cellular Field. That's much cheaper than the soaring prices in the secondary markets. StubHub was getting an average of $172 for first-round Sox tickets—and the team has yet to make the playoffs.
If it gets cold, however, the Sox will welcome their political VIPs into an indoor seating area. And get this perk: "Of course, food and beverage will be compliments of the White Sox," according to a letter from the team to aldermen.
One watchdog group suggests that paying face value may violate the spirit of the state's gift ban law that limits freebies to state officials to $100 a year.
"They can pretend that these tickets are worth face value, but in practice, they're worth far more," said David Morrison, deputy director with the Illinois Campaign for Political Reform.
Even so, one state lawmaker groused that the upper-deck Sox seats were "crappy," lamenting how Sox owner Jerry Reinsdorf invited some officeholders into his skybox for the 2005 World Series.
In the current ticket frenzy, all 50 Chicago aldermen got chances to buy playoff tickets for both teams. The Sox extended that offer to the entire Cook County Board and all 177 members of the Illinois General Assembly. Both teams also gave opportunities to the six statewide elected officials.
"It is a courtesy that we find many elected officials value and take the time to use it," said Lou Hernandez, White Sox spokesman. "If we're fortunate enough to get into the playoffs, it's a pretty historic [time] for the city and the state, and we feel offering officials this opportunity gives them the chance to be in the ballpark for a historic event."
Mike Lufrano,  the Cubs' senior vice president of community affairs, said government officials don't get the opportunities because they are political sluggers who might someday be able to do the team a favor.
"No, it's because they represent Cub fans throughout their districts," he said.
The Sox have a policy that the ticket package is not transferable, but the Cubs' looser rules mean politicians could opt to pass along tickets to constituents.
"I'll probably be giving most of them away," said Ald. Dick Mell (33rd)  of his Cubs tickets. "I'd love to go see one game, but we’ll see. They’re not what you would call choice tickets. You’re in the park, anyway. ...You're not over the dugout."
The Cubs, who are owned by Tribune Co., which also owns this newspaper, made the ticket offer to some federal lawmakers, such as U.S. Sen. Dick Durbin and that junior senator from Illinois who is making a name for himself talking about hope and change. No word on whether they’re coming, given the national financial crisis and the  Nov. 4 election.
Clout isn’t responsible for every politician clutching postseason seats, however. Some are season ticket-holders guaranteed a shot at tickets.
Mayor Richard Daley, a lifelong Sox fan with great season tickets and a cameo in the team’s ad campaign, can do a bit better than the upper-deck seats the more proletariat politicos are buying. The four Daley brothers, sources said, have season tickets for the White Sox—10 seats over two rows.
Democratic Illinois House Speaker Michael Madigan probably holds more season tickets to the Cubs and Sox than anyone in politics, having paid more than $50,000 to get them, according to campaign finance records.
Kent Redfield, who heads the Sunshine Project at the University of Illinois at Springfield, said tickets that are paid for out of campaign funds create another layer of separation between officials and the citizens they serve.
"The average guy, he's spending his own money," Redfield said. "He's living from paycheck to paycheck. The politicians are soliciting campaign funds from special interests. ... So they're using other people’s money to buy season tickets and that creates an opportunity for them to buy playoff tickets at face value."
Former Gov. James R. Thompson, a Republican, is a season-ticket-holder too. His late-night arm-twisting in the Capitol 20 years ago kept the Sox from moving to Florida as lawmakers approved a new Comiskey Park.
"I have my own seats, which I pay for," Thompson said in an e-mail. "Have had them since I built the stadium. They are four behind the third base on-deck circle. I was offered Cubs tickets, which I don’t have yet. I will pay for them—whatever face value is."
Some  are happy just to have a chance to watch both hometown clubs.
"I paid face value for both tickets to the Cubs and Sox playoff games," said Ald. Joe Moore (49th). "I took two apiece for each game."
But as the Sox struggle to the finish line, worry is setting in that both teams might not be playing next week.
"Every night I go to bed numb," said Lt. Gov. Pat Quinn, a Sox backer with season tickets who plans to match up military veterans with some playoff tickets. "It's been tough to sleep."
Tribune reporters Ray Gibson, Dan Mihalopoulos and Rick Pearson contributed to this report.