Remember, in socialism, all animals are equal. But some animals are more equal.

California has much the same problem. CA's fit won't the shan as soon as IL's, but CA's hit will be bigger.

https://www.forbes.com/sites/adamand.../#371921d91141

Illinois is broke and continues to flirt with junk bond status. But the state’s financial woes aren’t stopping 63,000 government employees from bringing home six-figure salaries and higher.

Whenever we open the books, Illinois is consistently one of the worst offenders. Recently, we found auto pound supervisors in Chicago making $144,453; nurses at state corrections earning up to $254,781; junior college presidents making $465,420; university doctors earning $1.6 million; and 84 small-town “managers” out-earning every U.S. governor.


20,295 teachers and school administrators – including superintendents Joyce Carmine ($398,229) at Park Forest School District 63, Troy Paraday ($384,13 at Calumet City School District 155, and Jon Nebor ($377,409) at Indian Springs School District 109. Four of the top five salaries are in the south suburbs – not the affluent north shore.

10,676 rank-and-file workers and managers in Chicago – including $216,200 for embattled Mayor Rahm Emanuel (D) and $400,000 for Ginger Evans, Commissioner of Aviation – including a $100,000 bonus. Timothy Walter, a deputy police chief, made $240,917 – that’s $146,860 in overtime on top of his $94,056 base salary. Ramona Perkins, a police communications operator, pulled down $121,318 in overtime while making a $196,726!

9,567 college and university employees – including the southern Illinois junior college power couple Dale Chapman ($465,420) and Linda Terrill Chapman ($217,290). The pair combined for a $682,000 income at Lewis and Clark Community College. Fady Toufic Charbel ($1.58 million) and Konstantin Slavin ($1.04 million) are million-dollar doctors at the University of Illinois at Chicago.

8,640 State of Illinois employees – including $258,070 for Marian Frances Cook, a “contractual worker” at the newly created Dept. of Innovation and Technology. Further, there are the “barber” and “teacher of barbering” positions in the state prisons making $100,000+. Loreatha Coleman made $254,781 as a nurse at the Dept. of Corrections.

8,817 small town city and village employees – including 84 municipal managers out-earning every U.S. governor at $180,000. These managers include Lawrence Hileman (Glenview – $297,98; Michael Ellis (Grayslake – $264,486); Robert Kiely (Lake Forest – $255,247); Kevin Bowens (Libertyville – $254,42; and Richard Nahrstadt (Northbrook – $250,24.

Private associations, nonprofits, and retired lawmakers

All kinds of entities are jumping on the gravy train. Private associations, nonprofit organizations and former lawmakers have gamed the system for personal gain. All of this is legal, although it shouldn’t be:

Former state representative Roger Eddy (R) currently makes $334,433 – that’s $303,953 as Executive Director of Illinois Association of School Boards (IASB) and $30,500 from his lawmaker’s pension. Eddy is double dipping for a second government pension, and his employer (IASB) – a private nonprofit – is further burdening an underfunded Teacher’s Retirement System.

Two of the highest earners within the municipal pension system work for private associations – not government. Brett Davis, Executive Director of Park District Risk Management Agency, makes $319,404, while Peter Murphy, Executive Director of Illinois Park District Association, brings in $309,972. These private nonprofits muscled their way into the government system and their huge salaries will mean lavish taxpayer-guaranteed pensions.

Former Gov. Jim Edgar (R) took $2.38 million in compensation from the University of Illinois (2000-2013) and has received at least $2 million in pension payments earned from his 20-year career as legislator, secretary of state and governor. Today, Edgar receives $241,272 ($20,106 per month) per year from two pension systems: the General Assembly Retirement System ($161,016) and the State University Retirement System ($80,256).

Highly Compensated Locals

County bosses are getting in on the action. In three of the 102 counties – DuPage (201), Lake (237) and Will (190) – 628 employees earned $100,000+. Lake won top honors with 237 six-figure employees. In DuPage, Tom Cuculich, the “Chief of Staff” to DuPage Board Chair Dan Cronin (R), made $201,750.

Even “water district” employees are tapping into the taxpayer largess with 1,432 employees making $100,000+. Across Illinois, 348 highly compensated “park district” employees make over $100,000.

Illinois, like many states, is in serious trouble. Policymakers are exploring desperate measures. Two weeks ago, ten Republicans voted with Democrats to override Governor Bruce Rauner’s veto of a permanent 32-percent income tax hike. Without reforms the tax hike will only feed a culture of waste and abuse.

Rauner was right to veto the income tax hike but he hasn’t shown serious resolve to curtail spending. In fact, he created a personal assistant position for his wife – who has no official state duties – for $100,000 a year at taxpayer expense.

But, hey folks, it’s Illinois!

I met a guy yesterday that was a District School Superintendent in northern Illinois. He retired in 1982. He has drawn a pension of 12K a month every month since 1982. And he is low on the list of district school superintendents pension payouts. Some are up to almost 20K a month.

Here in Illinois we hear stories all the time about meg abuse of the pension system. The two most popular are someone gets promoted to a much higher paying job last year before they retire or they are given all the overtime they want because their pension is based off their last year of income. What a crock to screw the tax payers and abuse the pension system.

My BIL just retired as a fire fighter/paramedic and was telling me about a person who has been on disability for almost a decade with full pay/benefits because of a wrist injury.

quote:

Originally posted by grumpy1:
Here in Illinois we hear stories all the time about meg abuse of the pension system. The two most popular are someone gets promoted to a much higher paying job last year before they retire or they are given all the overtime they want because their pension is based off their last year of income. What a crock to screw the tax payers and abuse the pension system...

For a goodly chunk of CA public service they have what I once heard labeled as the "20-50-90" plan. Work for the agency for 20 years, turn age 50, and retire at 90% of your top salary. My neighbor did that. And I understand there were some grumblings when the CA Highway Patrol was doing exactly what you describe above. But there were more grumblings from bureaucrats who wanted the same deal for themselves than from the public who disapproved of the abuse.

A city council in the Bay Area works only part time, gets paid for their services. But they voted for themselves that after one 4 yr term, the city will pay for their health insurance for the rest of their lives. A county agency to promote low income housing received a $16 Million grant from the Obama admin to assist the needy. The whole amount went to pad their own pensions. A complaint was filed with the Obama admin who said they trust the agency will use the money appropriately.

I believe the abusive public pensions will be a key component of many state and local defacto bankruptcies. As I posted above, all animals are equal, but many bureaucrats and public servants are more equal.

Why Illinois Is In Trouble - 63,000 Public Employees With $100,000+ Salaries Cost Taxpayers $10 Billion

http://www.zerohedge.com/news/2017-0...yers-10-billio

Authored by Adam Andrzejewski via Forbes.com,

The 'Big Dogs' of local government in Illinois.

Illinois is broke and continues to flirt with junk bond status. But the state’s financial woes aren’t stopping 63,000 government employees from bringing home six-figure salaries and higher.

Whenever we open the books, Illinois is consistently one of the worst offenders. Recently, we found auto pound supervisors in Chicago making $144,453; nurses at state corrections earning up to $254,781; junior college presidents making $465,420; university doctors earning $1.6 million; and 84 small-town “managers” out-earning every U.S. governor.

Using our interactive mapping tool, quickly review (by ZIP code) the 63,000 Illinois public employees who earn more than $100,000 and cost taxpayers $10 billion. Just click a pin and scroll down to see the results rendered in the chart beneath the map.

Here are a few examples of what you’ll uncover:

20,295 teachers and school administrators – including superintendents Joyce Carmine ($398,229) at Park Forest School District 63, Troy Paraday ($384,138) at Calumet City School District 155, and Jon Nebor ($377,409) at Indian Springs School District 109. Four of the top five salaries are in the south suburbs – not the affluent north shore.

10,676 rank-and-file workers and managers in Chicago – including $216,200 for embattled Mayor Rahm Emanuel (D) and $400,000 for Ginger Evans, Commissioner of Aviation – including a $100,000 bonus. Timothy Walter, a deputy police chief, made $240,917 – that’s $146,860 in overtime on top of his $94,056 base salary. Ramona Perkins, a police communications operator, pulled down $121,318 in overtime while making $196,726!

9,567 college and university employees – including the southern Illinois junior college power couple Dale Chapman ($465,420) and Linda Terrill Chapman ($217,290). The pair combined for a $682,000 income at Lewis and Clark Community College. Fady Toufic Charbel ($1.58 million) and Konstantin Slavin ($1.04 million) are million-dollar doctors at the University of Illinois at Chicago.

8,640 State of Illinois employees – including $258,070 for Marian Frances Cook, a “contractual worker” at the newly created Dept. of Innovation and Technology. Further, there are the “barber” and “teacher of barbering” positions in the state prisons making $100,000+. Loreatha Coleman made $254,781 as a nurse at the Dept. of Corrections.

8,817 small town city and village employees – including 84 municipal managers out-earning every U.S. governor at $180,000. These managers include Lawrence Hileman (Glenview – $297,988); Michael Ellis (Grayslake – $264,486); Robert Kiely (Lake Forest – $255,247); Kevin Bowens (Libertyville – $254,428); and Richard Nahrstadt (Northbrook – $250,248).

In total, there is roughly $12 billion in cash compensation flowing to six-figure government workers when counting the 9,031 federal employees based in Illinois.

So, who are the biggest culprits in conferring six-figure salaries? We ranked the top 15 largest public pay and pension systems in Illinois:

Illinois’ largest pay and pension systems conferring $100,000+ cash compensation
Corruption in Chicago

Rahm Emanuel’s Chicago now pays out more six-figure incomes than the state government. We found city truck drivers, tree trimmers, and street light repair workers earned six-figures. But, really, the problem is the overtime. Last year, the city paid out $283 million in overtime to 1,000 employees who pocketed more than $40,000 apiece.

Chicago paid out $283 million in overtime (2016) - here are the top 10 city departments.
Taxpayer-Expensive Educators

Some of Illinois’ K-12 schools are spiking salaries and padding pensions. Data reveals nearly 30,000 teachers and administrators earned $100,000+ incomes. However, just 20,295 of those educators are currently employed; the other 9,305 are retired, resting on six-figure pensions.

Here’s how it breaks down in two of 900 school districts. Just 1,236 of the 2,147 educators with $100,000+ incomes are currently working.

In Township High School District 214, there were 500 retirees receiving six-figure annual pensions in addition to 640 working educators.

In Palatine Township High School 211, while 596 educators earned a six-figure salary, 491 retirees received six-figure lifetime pensions.

Private associations, nonprofits, and retired lawmakers

All kinds of entities are jumping on the gravy train. Private associations, nonprofit organizations and former lawmakers have gamed the system for personal gain. All of this is legal, although it shouldn’t be:

Former state representative Roger Eddy (R) currently makes $334,433 – that’s $303,953 as Executive Director of Illinois Association of School Boards (IASB) and $30,500 from his lawmaker’s pension. Eddy is double dipping for a second government pension, and his employer (IASB) – a private nonprofit – is further burdening an underfunded Teacher’s Retirement System.

Two of the highest earners within the municipal pension system work for private associations – not government. Brett Davis, Executive Director of Park District Risk Management Agency, makes $319,404, while Peter Murphy, Executive Director of Illinois Park District Association, brings in $309,972. These private nonprofits muscled their way into the government system and their huge salaries will mean lavish taxpayer-guaranteed pensions.

Former Gov. Jim Edgar (R) took $2.38 million in compensation from the University of Illinois (2000-2013) and has received at least $2 million in pension payments earned from his 20-year career as legislator, secretary of state and governor. Today, Edgar receives $241,272 ($20,106 per month) per year from two pension systems: the General Assembly Retirement System ($161,016) and the State University Retirement System ($80,256).

Highly Compensated Locals

County bosses are getting in on the action. In three of the 102 counties – DuPage (201), Lake (237) and Will (190) – 628 employees earned $100,000+. Lake won top honors with 237 six-figure employees. In DuPage, Tom Cuculich, the “Chief of Staff” to DuPage Board Chair Dan Cronin (R), made $201,750.

Even “water district” employees are tapping into the taxpayer largess with 1,432 employees making $100,000+. Across Illinois, 348 highly compensated “park district” employees make over $100,000.

Illinois, like many states, is in serious trouble. Policymakers are exploring desperate measures. Two weeks ago, ten Republicans voted with Democrats to override Governor Bruce Rauner’s veto of a permanent 32-percent income tax hike. Without reforms the tax hike will only feed a culture of waste and abuse.

Rauner was right to veto the income tax hike but he hasn’t shown serious resolve to curtail spending. In fact, he created a personal assistant position for his wife – who has no official state duties – for $100,000 a year at taxpayer expense.

What do you get when you have too much government, too many government employees, too many government pensions to support?

Here's what:

Illinois Had The Worst Personal Income Growth In The U.S. Over The Past Decade

Illinois’ jobs growth was worse than every neighboring state, and half the neighboring state average from June 2016 to June 2017, according to a new report. Data released July 27 by the Illinois Department of Employment Security, or IDES, reveals Illinois’ jobs growth from June 2016 to June 2017 was 0.9 percent, compared with a national average of 1.5 percent.



The greater Chicago area fared far better than the rest of Illinois with 1.2 percent jobs growth, but still lagged behind the national average. The rest of the state saw just 0.2 percent jobs growth.

The new IDES release also contained data by metropolitan statistical area, or MSA. Of Illinois’ 14 MSAs, eight saw jobs growth of less than 1 percent. Only five of Illinois’ MSAs saw jobs growth higher than the national average: Springfield, Kankakee, Lake County-Kenosha County, Bloomington and Carbondale-Marion.

The Decatur MSA experienced no jobs growth over the year. Rockford and Danville each lost 200 jobs over the year, on net.

The IDES data underscore a lack of economic reforms in the budget passed by state lawmakers earlier this month, which included the largest permanent income tax hike in state history.

Take Decatur, for example. Moody’s Analytics revealed earlier this year that the former manufacturing titan was one of four Illinois metro areas where the recession recovery was at risk of “coming undone.” Researchers also included Danville on that list.

Decatur residents are in dire need of healthier incomes. Even the hope of decent jobs growth would be a vast improvement.

Instead, the tax hike will force the average Decatur resident to send $580 more each year to state government, according to the Decatur Herald & Review. That’s money that could have been spent locally at struggling small businesses, put toward college savings or spent on household essentials. Instead, it will vanish into Springfield’s sinkhole of debt.

Illinois’ sickly economy doesn’t just show itself in poor jobs numbers, but in paychecks as well. The Land of Lincoln is home to the worst personal income growth in the United States over the Great Recession era.

http://www.zerohedge.com/news/...-us-over-past-decade

This could get interesting. According to the Mega Millions website, the sole winning ticket tonight was sold in Illinois, so we'll see what happens in terms of a payout.

By the way, I'm not the winner.

Yep. The employee to retiree ratios are staggering in areas. As are the pensions. so they are broke indeed. Wouldn't you think something like a lottery would collect funds to pay winnings from a fiduciary-protected account?

This post https://sigforum.com/eve/forums...860039724#2860039724 is a real winner on Illinois financial issues.

Even with the massive income tax increases Illinois debt keeps growing and now is over $16 BILLION. Nothing has been done to slow down rise in debt and the democrats want to borrow $5 billion more to pay for bills with no money budgeted to make the bond payments. Illinois is like a person who lives paying only interest on multiple charge cards to maintain their lifestyle and now wants more charge cards.

Working people are leaving Illinois in record numbers as they see the writing on the walls and it is really really bad news. Property values are suffering big time even in nicer neighborhoods while the property taxes keep going up much faster that the rate of inflation. The democrats in charge refuse to even consider any sort of meaningful reform to get spending under control. They could easily learn from Wisconsin and Indiana about fiscal control but aren't interested and seem they could care less about the problem as long as they have almost absolute power over the state.

http://www.msn.com/en-us/news/...rd?OCID=ansmsnnews11

"Illinois' pile of unpaid bills topped $16 billion for the first time as the state deals with the fallout of an unprecedented two straight fiscal years without complete budgets, the state comptroller's office reported on Tuesday.

The bill backlog is growing despite the enactment of a fiscal 2018 spending plan and income tax increase in July that ended a budget impasse between Illinois' Republican governor and Democrats who control the legislature.

"What is going to take this backlog down is the borrowing," said Abdon Pallasch, spokesman for Democratic state Comptroller Susana Mendoza.

A provision in the budget enacted by lawmakers over the vetoes of Governor Bruce Rauner authorized the sale of up to $6 billion of general obligation bonds to pay bills from vendors and service providers that are accruing late payment penalties of as much as 12 percent.

Rauner signaled earlier this month that his administration will move forward with the bond sale, saying "it’s better to have Wall Street carry our debt than Main Street Illinois.”

But on Monday, the governor told reporters that the bonds do not solve any problem because lawmakers failed to set aside money to make principal and interest payments over the 12 years the debt would be outstanding.

"We need to come up with roughly half a billion (dollars) of cuts just to be able to service a bond offering," he said, adding that he planned to meet with legislative leaders for discussion.

Pallasch said school aid and pension payments this week will lower the bill backlog into the $15 billion range as the Dec. 31 deadline for issuing the bonds looms.

"The ball's in their court now and we are working with them to make this happen," he said.

Illinois, which has the lowest credit ratings among the 50 states, evaded downgrades to junk with the budget enactment. Yields on its debt in the U.S. municipal bond market also fell due to the action. The state's so-called credit spread over Municipal Market Data's benchmark triple-A yield scale for 10-year bonds has dropped to 175 basis points from a 335 basis-point high in June."

Crackheads who swear one last fix will be all they need.

US Govt - DO NOT bail this state out. Let them fix it themselves without added assistance.

quote:

Originally posted by AZSigs:
US Govt - DO NOT bail this state out. Let them fix it themselves without added assistance.

The US Government will (in fact) bail them out. They will find covert ways to do it under the guise of many names, but they WILL do it. Evidence; look at what that same government recently did for Puerto Rico, which is NOT a US state.

http://www.nationalreview.com/...-bailout-puerto-rico

"Puerto Rico burned through the $6.4 billion in Medicaid money it was given through Obamacare more than two years ahead of schedule. They expanded Medicaid eligibility and increased provider-payment rates with the money without any attempt to be good stewards of taxpayers’ money."

Solution to too much debt:

Borrow another Five billion!!

WTF??

So how is that Constitutional requirement for a balanced budget working for Illinois?

Democraps!!!!

Sadly this will fall on deaf ears as far as the democrat "leadership" in the state. They continue their out of control spending and there only solution is to continue jacking up taxes, create new taxes, and fees as if there is no where else for people to live.

Chicago area housing market sucks big time.

http://www.chicagotribune.com/...-20170919-story.html

Fed-up Illinois homeowners consider moving: 'It’s not just the property taxes on my home; it’s all of them'

"Even after watching Hurricane Irma wreak havoc on Florida, Rik Mallin is sticking to his plan.

Mallin is fixing up his Villa Park home so that he can sell it, move to the Florida Panhandle and escape Illinois’ rising taxes.

“I’m getting out,” said Mallin, 67. “It’s not just the property taxes on my home; it’s all of them.” He figures his taxes in Florida, where there is no personal income tax, will be about a quarter of what he’s paying now.

Mallin’s not the only one leaving the state. In 2016, Illinois lost 37,508 people, putting the state’s population at its lowest level in nearly a decade, according to U.S. census data. It was the third consecutive year the state lost more residents than any other state. The state’s population count for 2017 won’t be released until December.

Some of those who are leaving Illinois say they’re frustrated with their tax burden and the state’s financial situation. After going more than two years without a budget, Illinois lawmakers passed a spending plan over the summer, one that involved a 32 percent income tax hike for residents. The state is still digging itself out of the financial disarray that accumulated during the budget impasse. A Forbes listing of the best and worst states for taxes in 2016, before the tax hike, ranked Illinois 46th, signifying a heavier tax burden.

But demographers aren’t ready to chalk the outmigration up to tax pressures entirely.

Brookings Institution demographer William Frey said that when people move, it’s usually for employment, and not necessarily because of taxes. Most of the people moving are in their 20s and 30s, are establishing themselves in careers, and are relocating for job opportunities.

“When you have more people moving out than in, it means the employment is somewhere else,” Frey said.

Regardless of whether or not they are the primary factor behind relocations, high tax rates still affect the housing market by cutting into the amount of money residents have to spend.

Lance Ramella, president of Housing Trends, a Chicago-based housing market consultant, said weak growth in the Chicago economy, unresolved government fiscal issues and high taxes are all tied together, and are resulting in a “stagnant” housing market.

“Entry-level buyers shop based on what they can afford monthly,” Ramella said.

Ultimately, if those shopping for homes can’t afford the mortgage payments plus taxes, they’ll settle for lower-priced residences. They may even skip buying a home altogether if there aren’t enough affordable homes on the market. This could cause a deterioration in housing prices, he said."

Bankruptcy is not just a fiscal event, it's also moral.
Illinois is broke.... but will still be paying for late-term abortions.

October 5, 2017

Governor Rauner Sells Out the Pro-Life Movement

Bruce Rauner was Donald Trump before Donald Trump was cool. He was a wealthy businessman who was going to throw the rascals out and drain Illinois’ swamp of career politicians through term limits and a pro-growth agenda. He was going to be Scott Walker 2.0, unshackling Illinois from union control and returning power to the people. But that was then and this is now.

Now, Bruce Rauner is just another politician more interested in keeping his job than doing his job, willing to sell out his most ardent supporters to save his political hide. He has proven politically powerless, both to change the makeup of the Illinois legislature, a wholly-owned subsidiary of the Democratic Party and their union bosses. But also to block their big-spending budget in a bankrupt state with junk status bonds.

He also is morally clueless, embracing the Democratic mantra that abortion is health care, and breaking a promise, despite his own personal pro-abortion views, to veto a bill that not only says Illinois will be a pro-abortion state even if Roe v. Wade gets overturned, but the Illinois taxpayers will be on the hook for these abortions:

The bill Rauner has signed into law was advertised as a measure to ensure that abortion would remain legal in Illinois in the event the Supreme Court should strike down Roe v. Wade. But it does a great deal more than that: It secures a longtime goal of the abortion lobby by putting state taxpayers on the hook for funding abortions throughout all nine months of pregnancy. Under this law, not only could a child be put to death an hour before it would otherwise be born -- which is monstrous enough on its own -- the people of the state of Illinois would be implicated in that crime by underwriting it with their tax dollars.

As Chicago Tribune columnist John Kass observes, Rauner is political burnt toast, a prime target of Democrats and an albatross for what’s left of the Republican Party in Illinois:

"The Rauner experiment is over," state Rep. Peter Breen, a Republican from Lombard, told me after Rauner signed the bill. "He lied to us, he lied to the people, he even lied to Cardinal Cupich. And now, as far as re-election, I don't think he has a chance. It's done."

Breen is not alone. From the moment Rauner with his long sad expression said he would sign the bill, Republicans were calling him out for betrayal and saying they could not support his re-election.

One is state Sen. Tim Bivins, R-Dixon.

"Several months ago he (Rauner) promised over 23 legislators he would veto the bill," Bivins said in a statement. "Today he said he has to stand by what he believes is the right thing to do. Today I will also stand on what I believe is the right thing to do. I will not support this governor for re-election."

And after Rauner's news conference, Cupich tweeted -- yes, tweeted -- a response by the Catholic Conference of Illinois.

It marked the governor as an oath breaker and said he had committed a "grave moral error."

"We are deeply disturbed that Governor Rauner has broken his word and firm public promise to veto HB 40," the statement read, adding that the bill would "now force Illinois taxpayers to pay for the taking of human life, in this case of a defenseless child in the womb."

Later, Cupich told the Tribune that he had spoken to Rauner and reminded him of his promise to veto the bill.

Rauner has apparently bought the line that abortion, which kills unborn women, is health care which is sometimes necessary to save the life or preserve the health of the mother. The “health of the mother” is a loophole you could drive the proverbial truck through. It includes factors beyond physical health, but also including psychological, emotional and familial considerations. In other words, you can kill a preborn child if you fell being a mom is too much of a hassle.

As Dr. Nancy Romer, clinical professor of obstetrics and gynecology at Wright State University; Pamela Smith, director of medical education in obstetrics at Mount Sinai in Chicago; and Dr. Joseph Cook, a specialist in fetal medicine at Michigan State, stated in the Wall Street Journal on Sept. 19, 1996:

“Contrary to what abortion activists would have us believe, partial-birth abortion is never medically indicated to protect a woman’s health or fertility. In fact, the opposite is true: The procedure can pose a significant threat to both the pregnant woman’s health and her fertility.”

Even if Roe V. Wade is overturned, abortion will not be outlawed. Abortion will return to status quo ante, once again being a matter for states to decide. That part is fine. Requiring taxpayers to compromise their religious liberty and religious conscience to pay for it is not.

Liberals and RINOs are right to be worried. We may be only one or two more Supreme Court justices away from the fetus’ right to life being guaranteed in law, for Roe V. Wade to be tossed on the ash heap on wrongly decided decisions just like Dred Scott. When President Trump issued an executive order restoring the Mexico City policy on funding of organizations that provide abortions, we got a clear message on his view of the humanity of the unborn. As The Hill reported:

President Trump on Monday reignited the war over abortion by signing an executive order blocking foreign aid or federal funding for international nongovernmental organizations that provide or "promote" abortions.

The so-called Mexico City policy, established by Republican President Ronald Reagan in 1984, blocks federal funding for international family planning charities that provide abortions or actively promote the procedure…

I think the president, it’s no secret, has made it very clear that he’s a pro-life president,” White House Press Secretary Sean Spicer told reporters at his first briefing Monday afternoon.

“And I think the reinstatement of this policy is not just something that echoes that value, but respects taxpayer funding as well, and ensures that we’re standing up not just for life of the unborn, but for also taxpayer funds that are being spent overseas to perform an action that is contrary to the values of this president.”

On the wall of the Jefferson Memorial are the words: “God who gave us life gave us liberty.” The two are inseparable. Slaves were once considered something less than human, as the unborn currently are. The Supreme Court, which gave us Roe V. Wade, once gave us the Dred Scott decision. A new one may soon correct another gross injustice.

Meanwhile the state of Illinois and its governor have proven to be politically, financially and morally corrupt.

Daniel John Sobieski is a freelance writer whose pieces have appeared in Investor’s Business Daily, Human Events, Reason Magazine and the Chicago Sun-Times among other publications.

http://www.americanthinker.com...rolife_movement.html

Sell Cook County to the Canadians

Pay the debt off all in one lump sum

Go and sin no more