Wirepoints founder Mark Glennon says Radicals Positioning To Destroy Illinois If Its Fiscal Crisis Doesn’t.
“Socialists win big in Chicago” was The Nation’s headline on last week’s [Chicago Mayoral] elections. Jacobin, a leading socialist publication, proclaimed that the “left’s victories in Tuesday’s Chicago elections are tangible and undeniable. Few could have imagined such an unquestionably positive night for leftist candidates.” The Chicago Teacher’s Union is headed by socialist Jesse Sharkey. Their influence on elections is huge, and their longstanding efforts in schools are now showing up in election results. “CTU knows how to put a mayor in place,” said one of its vice president’s recently.
Nationally, some Democrats are beginning to question the party’s leftward shift. Even a liberal columnist in the Washington Post asked last week if the party is committing electoral suicide.
Illinois Plans
- Progressive real estate transfer tax. It’s best seen as an exit tax on wealthier homeowners fleeing. It’s supported by both Chicago mayoral candidates who won a place in the runoff election, Toni Preckwinkle and Lori Lightfoot. The heavily Democratic City of Evanston is already implementing it.
- Rent control. Illinois politicians should be setting the rent, we’re told. A bill authorizing rent control is pending in the General Assembly and Governor Pritzker has indicated approval in concept. Preckwinkle supports rent control; Lightfoot hasn’t indicated her position.
- Universal basic income in Chicago. Just give at least $500 to every family in Chicago, no strings attached. Mayor Rahm Emanuel evidently saw enough force behind the idea that he authorized a task force to look into a pilot program. It’s leading proponent, Alderman Ameya Pawar, may well become Chicago’s new treasurer, having just won his way into the runoff election. Its cost to the city if fully implemented would be about $12.6 billion annually. Chicago’s annual budget for fiscal 2018 was $8.6 billion.
- 100% renewable energy. Both Governor Pritzker and a many Illinois lawmakers (including at least one Republican) want Illinois to commit to reaching that goal by 2050. It’s the core feature of Alexandria Ocasio Cortez’s Green New Deal for the nation, albeit with a longer deadline – 30 years instead of 10. But a Greenpeace co-founder recently wrote, “You are delusional if you think fossil fuels will end any time soon, maybe in 500 years,” and said the Cortez plan would “bring about mass death.” The Green New Deal’s price tag has been estimated as high as $93 trillion, or $600,000 per household. Illinois supporters haven’t bothered to place a price tag on meeting the goal over their longer time period. That’s a common aspect of the new left’s policy agenda – numbers mean nothing.
- Statewide $15 per hour minimum wage. Governor Pritzker made this a top priority and already signed the new law raising the minimum to $15 by 2025, statewide. That might seem reasonable around Chicago, but opposition came largely from lower income communities across the state. The Rockford Park District, for example, gives hundreds of teenagers and young adults get their first jobs at a lower wage, and the new law will open a $2 million per year hole in its budget.
Socialist Idiocy Abounds
For sure, socialist idiocy abounds in Illinois. But Glennon has the cure:
Margaret Thatcher’s famous quote needs amendment when it comes to Illinois. “The trouble with socialism is that eventually you run out of other people’s money,” she said. But in Illinois, the trouble is you run out of other people. If the fiscal crisis doesn’t ensure that Illinois’ population loss accelerates, the new left will.
Numbers Mean Nothing
Glennon accurately states “[fiscal] numbers mean nothing”.
That was the subject of a post I wrote yesterday: Ben Bernanke – The Father of Extreme US Socialism
The radical Left wants to hijack the Democratic party and perhaps they have already succeeded.
Although such actions may prevail at the state level until states like Illinois blow sky high.
However, at the national level the nomination of someone like Elizabeth Warren or Kamala Harris may very well mean four more years of Trump.
Mike “Mish” Shedlock
WOW you right wingers don’t understand the GRAY area. Honest to God, I think you people are missing some brain cells — ascribing socialism of a MARXIST nature to people’s desire to share the burden is just plain BS. Look at the job you guys have done to this country in the last 4 years. You have the Senate, the Court, the Executive branch and where are we? In financial hell. Give me a break. Stop being so childish and face the facts. No one is covered in glory!!! Tired of the right wing fascism.
People who support AOC need to be aware that her agenda will have changed by the time she becomes slated for high office. I guess she has 16 – 20 years to get through, by which time the Green agenda may look somewhat different.
green peace org put out statement exposing that “ex greenpeace co founder” saying he is a turncoat , a traitor to the cause and because of financial green betray greenpeace and now on the opposing side.
which is fine to take side opposite of greenpeace , but his obvious anti AOC hate and exisiting position as spokesman of indurstries that greenpeace oppose , made him a hypocrite.
Never trust people who admire a butcher like Che. I used to think they were too stupid to understand. These days, I realize they understand clearly. In Cuba, the monied sat by and saw their property confiscated and their loved ones tortured and killed. One wonders if we will do the same, or if we at some point will decide to fight back against this filthy, lazy vermin.
That works in RI in just one day.
None of the move out tax laws will be enforceable. California tried a clawback provision for residents who made money in California but moved to other states for retirement but it was ruled unconstitutional by the state supreme court. Anyhow you could always rent an apartment for a month and then leave Illinois.
Even the governors of California and New York think the left is nuttier by the day. Newsom and Cuomo know there is no way any of the left’s wet dream is possible. They thought they could bait and switch the left like they have for years. There will be much room for an indepedent to win the presidency in 2020 based on the extremism of both parties.
The dems have been rah-rah’ing global warming and taxing the rich to their eyeballs for decades, and now they’re having to deal with young voters who demand they actually do it.
Rhode Island has one, but it’s easy to circumvent. Stay in a hotel in RI for one day after you sell your house. I have no idea what IL has planned.
Wouldn’t a move-out tax have constitutional issues? States don’t get to wall themselves off do they?
Don’t really care if a real republican or a socialist leaning democrat wins. Either one will be better than the incompetent lets drain the swamp to make room for me crime family “running” things today becomes a distant memory of an election when the votes became totally derange.
Are you referring to the Clintons?
Sure because your orange guy is squeaky. That would be a first in the world of real state development…
Correct I am sure. But there is a big difference between a business man being involved in corruption and a politician. They are supposed to be altruistic and work for the good of the country instead of enriching themselves they betray the trust the unwitting citizens place in them. Trump may turn out to be the same as the rest.we will see.
We have passed the point at which more people are dependent on government than not. There is no way to turn back now. We must proceed forward to the inevitable collapse.
and this includes the 1%
Just remember that the giant banks and corporations that the Democrats claim that they hate fund them to the tune of billions of dollars. It will be interesting to see what happens when the real Screwball Socialist Democrats replace the Corporatist Fascist Democrats.
Exactly!
And people wonder why the Socialist East Germany built a wall to keep people from LEAVING.
This is a replay of 1968. I clearly remember being patiently lectured by fellow armchair political pundits at the time as to how Richard Nixon’s presidential campaign would never go anywhere.
If Republican strategists didn’t have Bernie Sanders, they’d have to invent him just now, for the Democrats.
I remember reading the primary difference between a socialist and non-socialist form of government is in socialism a political party is elected to run the government instead of electing individuals. Seems many cities have been socialist for a while as democrats win every election. Washington DC comes to mind. I’m guessing Chicago is the same.
NM currently has a plan that our new governor is pushing. Our lawmakers are in session and are currently passing every socialist or big spending plan they can. They like a 100% renewable energy plan and it may just happen. They have goal of it happening by 2045… Some are talking 2040. They even claim it will save us money on our electric rates. The insanity never stops.
And people laughed years ago when I said they’d start taxing you if you moved. The only thing left is to go into cahoots with other states. A long ways off but I could see it happening. Makes so there is no fiscal point in moving. Screw these people.