KATHY POSNER CAN'T JUSTIFY RAHM EMANUEL
Kathy PosnerIn October 2010, Chicago Inspector General Joseph Ferguson released a report from his office listing budget options for the city. In the report Ferguson said the city’s actual annual budget deficit, for the fiscal year ending July 2011, is more than $1 billion and not the shortfall of $650 million which City Hall magically erased by using proceeds from the sale of city assets like parking meters and the Skyway. That is because $363 million, needed to adequately fund employee pensions, was not addressed. So if you were the incoming Mayor of an almost bankrupt city, how would you handle your May 16th inauguration? With a simple bow or a blow out party and concert? How can Chicago Mayor-elect Rahm Emanuel justify raising millions in private donations to pay for such a gala?
As a reminder, when Richard Daley took office in 1969 he held a black-tie diner for 1500 where the tickets cost $250. All the proceeds were donated to three Chicago-area children's hospitals.
The invitation that the Chicago 2011 Inaugural Committee sent out has seven co-chairs who must have committed to giving $50,000 since the invitation lists that price to attain co-chair status. Besides the title, one receives four concert tickets, access to the dinner and reception.
The other categories are:
Sponsor For $25,000, you can get four tickets to the concert, the inauguration and the Venue 1 reception, but unlike co-chairs, sponsors only are entitled to a maximum two tickets to the dinner.
Supporter For $10,000, they will receive two concert tickets, four tickets to the Venue 1 event and two VIP tickets to the inauguration.
Friend. This $5,000 package buys two concert tickets, two reception tickets and two “reserved” tickets to the inauguration.
There are a few restrictions on who can give and that includes City Hall lobbyists, anyone who has “done over $10,000 of business within any 12 consecutive months during the four preceding years” with the city or any of the sister agencies such as the Chicago Board of Education, Chicago Transit Authority, etc.
My favorite restriction is the line-- “Chicago 2011 Inaugural Committee will not accept a cash contribution in excess of $50,000 from any donor.” Notice it says CASH donation in excess of $50,000, so does that mean checks in excess of that amount are allowed?
The Chicago Tribune described the original
seven co-chairs in a story on March 1st:
"Desiree Rogers, CEO of Johnson Publishing Co. and President Barack Obama's former White House social secretary. She's known for her party-planning prowess. Rogers worked with Emanuel, who was Obama's chief of staff, but left after she came under criticism when two uninvited guests crashed the Obamas' first state dinner.
John T. Coli, longtime president of Teamsters Joint Council 25, which gave $25,000 to Emanuel's mayoral campaign. The Teamsters gave more than $100,000 to the 2002 election of ex-Gov. Rod Blagojevich, who then tried to name Coli to the state tollway board before the union leader withdrew.
David Herro, chief investment officer at Harris Associates, which manages equity portfolios for individuals and institutions. Herro has been a major player in national and local politics for years, contributing to both Republicans and Democrats. He gave more than $165,000 to various city candidates this time out, including $65,000 to Emanuel and $5,000 to For a Better Chicago, a pro-business political action committee.
Antonio J. Gracias, founder and CEO of Valor Equity Partners LP, a private equity investment firm. He was a member of the Chicago 2016 Olympic Committee, serves on the board of electric-car maker Tesla Motors and has served on the board of the Grand Victoria Foundation, a charity offshoot of the Elgin casino. Gracias gave $10,000 to Emanuel's campaign.
Melinda Kelly, executive director of the Chatham Business Association, which gets tens of thousands of dollars a year in city economic development money. Kelly's comments praising Emanuel's pro-business plans were featured on his campaign website.
Eric Lefkofsky, a venture capitalist who co-founded Groupon, the Chicago-based Internet sensation. Lefkofsky also is a founder of LightBank, which invests in technology businesses, and Blue Media LLC, a private equity and consulting firm.
Tim Mullen, an investor, was one of the elite fundraisers for Obama's presidential campaign. He bundled contributions totaling between $200,000 and $500,000, according to the Washington-based Center for Responsive Politics. Mullen gave Emanuel $105,000 for his mayoral campaign and also contributed to several aldermanic candidates."
Eric Lefkofsky is from Groupon and they received a $3.5 million handout from Governor Patrick Quinn last October yet the company can spend $50,000 on a party invite. Groupon has done business with Navy Pier in a coupon deal for Winterfest last winter that was worth more than $10,000, but I guess that McPier does not count as a sister agency. All of the other co-chairs have connections to the city that makes me feel distrustful about their reasons for serving on the committee.
So who would spend this kind of money just to attend a party with Rahm? A company that wants to do business with Chicago in the future! That was the restriction missing from the invitation. Maybe if they had added the line that anyone who contributes to the inaugural can not do business with the City of Chicago for 12 consecutive months in the upcoming four-year period, I would not be so suspicious.
Unlike the naked ruler in the Hans Christian Anderson fairy tale, “The Emperor’s New Clothes,” who believed the cloth used in his outfits had the special capability that it was invisible to anyone who was either stupid or not fit for his position, I can see how the city will be run in the future. I am not that dumb.
Read more from Planet Posner Here....
As a reminder, when Richard Daley took office in 1969 he held a black-tie diner for 1500 where the tickets cost $250. All the proceeds were donated to three Chicago-area children's hospitals.
The invitation that the Chicago 2011 Inaugural Committee sent out has seven co-chairs who must have committed to giving $50,000 since the invitation lists that price to attain co-chair status. Besides the title, one receives four concert tickets, access to the dinner and reception.
The other categories are:
Sponsor For $25,000, you can get four tickets to the concert, the inauguration and the Venue 1 reception, but unlike co-chairs, sponsors only are entitled to a maximum two tickets to the dinner.
Supporter For $10,000, they will receive two concert tickets, four tickets to the Venue 1 event and two VIP tickets to the inauguration.
Friend. This $5,000 package buys two concert tickets, two reception tickets and two “reserved” tickets to the inauguration.
There are a few restrictions on who can give and that includes City Hall lobbyists, anyone who has “done over $10,000 of business within any 12 consecutive months during the four preceding years” with the city or any of the sister agencies such as the Chicago Board of Education, Chicago Transit Authority, etc.
My favorite restriction is the line-- “Chicago 2011 Inaugural Committee will not accept a cash contribution in excess of $50,000 from any donor.” Notice it says CASH donation in excess of $50,000, so does that mean checks in excess of that amount are allowed?
The Chicago Tribune described the original
seven co-chairs in a story on March 1st:
"Desiree Rogers, CEO of Johnson Publishing Co. and President Barack Obama's former White House social secretary. She's known for her party-planning prowess. Rogers worked with Emanuel, who was Obama's chief of staff, but left after she came under criticism when two uninvited guests crashed the Obamas' first state dinner.
John T. Coli, longtime president of Teamsters Joint Council 25, which gave $25,000 to Emanuel's mayoral campaign. The Teamsters gave more than $100,000 to the 2002 election of ex-Gov. Rod Blagojevich, who then tried to name Coli to the state tollway board before the union leader withdrew.
David Herro, chief investment officer at Harris Associates, which manages equity portfolios for individuals and institutions. Herro has been a major player in national and local politics for years, contributing to both Republicans and Democrats. He gave more than $165,000 to various city candidates this time out, including $65,000 to Emanuel and $5,000 to For a Better Chicago, a pro-business political action committee.
Antonio J. Gracias, founder and CEO of Valor Equity Partners LP, a private equity investment firm. He was a member of the Chicago 2016 Olympic Committee, serves on the board of electric-car maker Tesla Motors and has served on the board of the Grand Victoria Foundation, a charity offshoot of the Elgin casino. Gracias gave $10,000 to Emanuel's campaign.
Melinda Kelly, executive director of the Chatham Business Association, which gets tens of thousands of dollars a year in city economic development money. Kelly's comments praising Emanuel's pro-business plans were featured on his campaign website.
Eric Lefkofsky, a venture capitalist who co-founded Groupon, the Chicago-based Internet sensation. Lefkofsky also is a founder of LightBank, which invests in technology businesses, and Blue Media LLC, a private equity and consulting firm.
Tim Mullen, an investor, was one of the elite fundraisers for Obama's presidential campaign. He bundled contributions totaling between $200,000 and $500,000, according to the Washington-based Center for Responsive Politics. Mullen gave Emanuel $105,000 for his mayoral campaign and also contributed to several aldermanic candidates."
Eric Lefkofsky is from Groupon and they received a $3.5 million handout from Governor Patrick Quinn last October yet the company can spend $50,000 on a party invite. Groupon has done business with Navy Pier in a coupon deal for Winterfest last winter that was worth more than $10,000, but I guess that McPier does not count as a sister agency. All of the other co-chairs have connections to the city that makes me feel distrustful about their reasons for serving on the committee.
So who would spend this kind of money just to attend a party with Rahm? A company that wants to do business with Chicago in the future! That was the restriction missing from the invitation. Maybe if they had added the line that anyone who contributes to the inaugural can not do business with the City of Chicago for 12 consecutive months in the upcoming four-year period, I would not be so suspicious.
Unlike the naked ruler in the Hans Christian Anderson fairy tale, “The Emperor’s New Clothes,” who believed the cloth used in his outfits had the special capability that it was invisible to anyone who was either stupid or not fit for his position, I can see how the city will be run in the future. I am not that dumb.
Read more from Planet Posner Here....
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