Article 2010-02-08T00:00:00Z Mike Riopell true Nation will watch Illinois races closely SPRINGFIELD -- In the nine months between now and the November election, people who like to watch and handicap federal elections could have a lot to see in Illinois. And it's not just because of the hijinks that have come to highlight the state's politics recently. The campaign for U.S. Senate between Democrat Alexi Giannoulias and Republican Mark Kirk stands to be a key race for both parties as they struggle for power in Washington, D.C. National nonpartisan groups have labeled it one of the closest races in the country, and therefore, the Illinois battle could be one of the most hotly contested. And there are at least three districts for Congress that both parties are eying closely. One is the 11th Congressional District, which includes much of the Bloomington-Normal area. That race pits freshman U.S. Rep. Debbie Halvorson of Crete against Republican Adam Kinzinger of Manteno. Another is the 14th district, which runs through northern Illinois nearly to the Quad Cities. Democratic U.S. Rep. Bill Foster is being challenged by Republican Randy Hultgren, a state senator from Winfield. The value of the seats was evident by Wednesday morning after primary election night, when both parties began issuing news releases and videos attacking the other. "The road to putting an end to the Democrats' reckless agenda began tonight in President Obama's own backyard," read a memo released by the National Republican Congressional Committee. The Democrats this week released a video trying to tie Kirk to a major lobbyist, and the Republican Party had one of its own trying to tie Giannoulias to the well-publicized problems of his family's bank. "That was the first shot fired, and this is going to be a very ugly race," said Jennifer Duffy, senior editor of the national nonpartisan The Cook Political Report. At an event this week, former Gov. Jim Edgar said the nation will be paying close attention to the race because the Republicans have a good chance to pick up a seat previously held by a Democrat. "That sets up a race that will be watched not only here in Illinois but throughout the country," Edgar. "I think it will be one of the premier Senate races." Still, to win in Illinois, the GOP will have to overcome the fact that the state has been typically blue recently and more Democrats than Republicans voted in Tuesday's primaries. "I think Democrats consider Illinois to be a pretty blue state, and they plan to put a lot of resources into it," Duffy said. Barack Obama held the seat until he was elected president. Roland Burris was appointed the position by former Gov. Rod Blagojevich before he was ousted. But Burris opted against another run. "The Republicans have probably one of the best chances in the United States of picking up a Democratic-held Senate seat," Edgar said of the Illinois race. "Kind of the icing on the cake is this is a seat that Barack Obama held." Both parties will be focused on Congress, too. Republicans are targeting the 11th district, especially, where Kinzinger, an Air Force reservist, prevailed in the primary Tuesday. Kinzinger, 31, was endorsed by the Republican Party in the primary -- an unusual move that could suggest he'll get lots more support before November. Kinzinger is young, like U.S. Rep. Aaron Schock of Peoria. And like Kirk, who is a Navy intelligence officer, Kinzinger has a military background. But Halvorson enters the race with more campaign cash than Kinzinger and has a reputation of being a hard worker. Plus, Halvorson won a decisive victory in her first race in 2008, getting nearly 60 percent of the vote in a district that had long been in Republican hands. And if Kinzinger gets help with money and campaign advertising from the national GOP, it's fairly clear the Democrats might not be far behind. "I think we're going to be very involved where we need to be," said Gabby Adler, a regional spokeswoman for the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee. Republicans also plan to target the 14th Congressional District, a seat now held by Foster, who stunned Republicans several years ago when he won the seat long held by former House Speaker Dennis Hastert. Hultgren emerged as the Republican nominee by beating Hastert's son on Tuesday. After spending money in the primary, Hultgren, like Kinzinger, is at a disadvantage so far when it comes to campaign cash. Money troubles in either race could be wiped away if the parties decide to get involved, swooping into Illinois with millions to spend blanketing the airwaves with television ads. Both parties are interested in the Illinois seats now, but that's no guarantee to any of the candidates that they'll be around as November draws closer. A lot can happen to change the campaign landscape in nine months, and both parties have races in dozens of other states that they're interested in. David Yepsen, director Paul Simon Public Policy Institute at Southern Illinois University in Carbondale, said nationally, Republicans could pick up a number of U.S. Senate seats in November. Some conservative optimists think it may be enough to tip the Senate in favor of Republicans next year. "You start adding up these Republican opportunities.all of a sudden you are starting to hear talk of Republicans saying they have a shot," Yepsen said. "You were not hearing that a couple months ago." Nation will watch Illinois races closely false 111332 Bloomington Pantagraph

Article 2010-02-08T00:00:00Z Associated Press true | CHICAGO -- Gov. Pat Quinn said Monday that anyone who wants the lieutenant governor's job should speak up. Quinn held a news conference, the day after Scott Lee Cohen stepped down after winning the Democratic lieutenant governor's nod in last Tuesday's primary. Cohen pulled out after word spread that he once was accused of abusing his ex-wife and holding a knife to the throat of an ex-girlfriend. Quinn said he already knows one person who doesn't want the job. Quinn said he's met with Comptroller Dan Hynes, who lost to Quinn in the Democratic primary. And Quinn says Hynes told him he isn't interested in the state's No. 2 job. Quinn won't say who he'd like as a running mate, but he says he wants his partner picked sooner rather than later. Democratic party leaders will chose a new lieutenant governor candidate. Quinn: Hynes not interested in Lt. Gov. nomination false 111352 Bloomington Pantagraph

Article 2010-02-08T00:00:00Z true Doctors, community leaders and editorial boards across Illinois are alerting citizens about the consequences of the state Supreme Court ruling Thursday against a medical malpractice law, according to state Rep. David Reis (R-Ste. Marie) and state Sen. John O. Jones (R-Mt. Vernon). "Here we go again," said Reis, whose 108th District includes about half of White County. "This Illinois Supreme Court decision will have a disastrous outcome for our rural hospitals and health care providers. This lone issue will once again jeopardize patients' access to medicine and emergency care." "Doctors, hospital administrators and most importantly patients advocated for a change in the medical malpractice system," said Jones, the senator from Illinois 54th District, which includes the same White County precincts as the 108th. "The legislature was able to bring that change to our constituents. I fear that our rural health care system will be on the brink of extinction like it was in 2004." Both aouthern Illinois lawmakers worked with a bipartisan coalition of legislators to help enact Public Act 94-0677 on Aug. 25, 2005. Since the landmark legislation was signed, patients have benefited from having their providers practice in-state versus moving to neighboring states like Missouri, Kentucky and Indiana, where provider insurance costs are significantly lower. "Carmi and White County are currently trying to re-open their hospital that has been shuttered since 2005. This court decision will make it very hard for the hospital foundation to recruit physicians and specialists," Reis said. "Rural hospitals like Clay County, Salem Township and Wabash General already have a tougher time staying open and maintaining staffs," Jones said. "All of our medical facilities suffer from our state's deadbeat payment cycles. "How can our southern Illinois medical community expect to survive if doctors are constantly worried about financial ruin because of run-away lawsuit verdicts and unaffordable insurance premiums?" Reis and Jones also applauded Supreme Court Justice Lloyd Karmeier of Nashville, Ill. for the dissenting opinion in the case. Both legislators indicated that they would ask legislative staff and supporters of medical malpractice to examine the dissent for options and ideas that might be available to reform advocates. Reis and Jones concerned about ruling on 'Med Mal' false 111341 Carmi Times

Article 2010-02-08T00:00:00Z Tracy Moss true DANVILLE - The Vermilion County Board could make things more difficult for the Vermilion County Health Department Tuesday night if the board does not extend a $300,000 loan the department owes the county. The loan was made to the health department last year to help with its state-caused cash flow problems. The department has been unable to pay back the loan, so the board, which has extended the loan once, now must consider whether to extend it again. The board meets at 6 p.m. Tuesday on the second floor of the Vermilion County Courthouse Annex, 6 N. Vermilion St., Danville. If the loan is not extended, the health department could be out of business. If it is extended, the hope of health department Administrator Steve Laker and county board Chairman Jim McMahon is that the department can limp along until the state comes through with full payment. The department has a priority list of programs, and jobs, to be cut in coming weeks if the state does not come through. The department has already eliminated three state-funded grant programs, 12 positions and $423,000 from the department's budget as of Jan. 31. McMahon said the department can make it until May on the money the state has sent. But there are some members of the county board who want the department to be significantly downsized now, reducing the risk that the county might be left to pay the state's unpaid bills. At last week's county board finance committee meeting, board member Terry Stal, D-District 4, proposed that the department keep only the federally funded programs and eliminate all state grant programs now. McMahon asked the committee not to support the proposal, because he wants to wait until at least April before such a significant reduction in services is considered. Stal and Chris Leigh, R-District 1, voted in favor of the deeper reduction, but the motion failed, because the other five members of the committee voted against it. At Tuesday night's full county board meeting, members will decide whether to extend the loan and whether to approve the $423,000 reduction as is. Vermilion board to weigh loan extension for health agency false 111353 Champaign News-Gazette

Editorial 2010-02-08T00:00:00Z true Illinois courts have put a hot political issue back in play with a decision striking down limits on pain-and-suffering awards. It's back to square one on the medical malpractice issue following a decision last week by the Illinois Supreme Court striking down a 2005 law that limited the size of jury awards for pain-and-suffering claims. The high court - voting 4-2 with Justice Robert Thomas not participating - found that the law limiting pain-and-suffering damages to $500,000 for doctors and $1 million for hospitals violates the inherent authority of the judiciary to handle damage issues on a case-by-case basis. Plaintiffs' lawyers, naturally, were jubilant with the victory while doctors and insurance companies were distraught. Now the issue will inevitably go back to the Illinois General Assembly for further skirmishing on an issue that has dogged legislators for nearly 40 years. The Legislature has passed bills putting limits on damage claims three times over past decades, and the Illinois Supreme Court has struck them down three times on the grounds that, basically, the size of damage awards is really none of the Legislature's business. As is the case with virtually every public issue in Illinois, the dispute over medical malpractice damages has as much to do with politics as it does law. Trial lawyers, who are major contributors to the majority Democrats, thought they had made the issue politically off limits. But a voter revolt in the Metro East area over concerns from doctors about skyrocketing insurance rates and from patients about doctors leaving the state for safer legal climes so terrified Democrats that they worked with Republicans to pass the 2005 law solely addressing medical malpractice issues. Many Democrats who supported the legislation, no doubt, were hoping that the high court would bail them out of an action they felt forced to take, and the justices complied with a lengthy decision striking down the law on Thursday. Beyond the usual legalese, the decision contained a sharp exchange between the majority - Justices Thomas Fitzgerald, Anne Burke, Charles Freeman and Thomas Kilbride, each elected as Democrats - and dissenting Justices Lloyd Karmeier and Rita Garman, elected as Republicans. Karmeier contended in his dissent that "it is critical. ... that the courts not stand as an obstacle to the legitimate efforts by the Legislature" to address issues surrounding the debate about skyrocketing medical costs. Karmeier asserted that when courts "exceed their constitutional role" they "put at risk the welfare of the people the government was created to serve." An angry Fitzgerald responded that the court should focus only on legal issues and that the "emotional and political rhetoric that peppers the dissent is ill-suited to this purpose." The specific case giving rise to the high court decision involves a horribly disabled 4-year-old girl born with cerebral palsy, leading to a lawsuit against the doctor, nurse and hospital involved in the delivery. Cases like this lead to huge awards for actual damages, not capped under the 2005 law, and often even-larger awards for pain and suffering. But it's not just extreme cases involving disabled children that drive up costs. Fearful of being sued if something goes wrong, doctors routinely engage in defensive medicine, the ordering of unnecessary tests that can fend off litigation but drive patient medical costs sky high. The circumstances create a double whammy - insurance companies raise patient premiums to cover the costs of skyrocketing medical bills caused by doctors' fear of lawsuits and insurance companies boost medical malpractice premiums to cover the cost of huge jury awards for malpractice. Further, there is the cost of defending lawsuits. Even when doctors and hospitals successfully defend themselves, they are stuck with large legal costs. To forestall paying excessive legal fees, doctors and hospitals sometimes settle a claim for less than they would pay their lawyers, but that simply creates more incentives to file lawsuits. It's a complicated issue on which the opposing sides vehemently disagree. Lawyers complain that insurance companies grossly overcharge patients and doctors for insurance coverage and that the costs of malpractice litigation have little to do with premiums. Doctors claim that the high costs have caused many of them, particularly specialists, to practice elsewhere, leaving areas of the state without access to physicians. So alienated are the opposing sides that they rarely agree on anything and routinely demonize each other as motivated solely by greed. It's the kind of dispute that calls for a negotiated settlement providing each side a system it can live with. But that's not what the courts do. They declare winners and losers. Last week, the lawyers won big and the doctors lost. As for the public, it's difficult say. But until the matter is resolved, if that's even possible, the public will pick up the costs for both sides. Lawyers dance to Supremes' tune false 111354 Champaign News-Gazette

Article 2010-02-08T00:00:00Z true Illinois regulators are visiting a Chicago nursing home following the federal government's decision to kick the facility out of the Medicaid program. Illinois Department of Public Health spokeswoman Melaney Arnold says the agency is at Somerset Place answering questions Monday. The state has plans to help residents move to other institutions or to community housing. Somerset houses more than 300 mentally ill residents. The for-profit facility received nearly $15 million in Illinois taxpayer money last year. Federal inspectors cited the institution for fights, verbal abuse and lack of supervision. Illinois is taking action to revoke Somerset's license. Julie Sznewajs (sneh-VYS') is a spokeswoman for Somerset. She says the owners aren't ready to comment on their plans. Illinois regulators visit troubled nursing home false 111351 Charleston Times-Courier/Mattoon Daily Journal

Article 2010-02-08T00:00:00Z KIM JANSSEN AND LYNN SWEET true Tearful Cohen drops out of lieutenant governor's race February 8, 2010 By KIM JANSSEN AND LYNN SWEET Staff Reporters A tearful Scott Lee Cohen, the pawnbroker who won the Democratic lieutenant governor nomination, only to have his scandalized past surface and threaten the ticket, said Sunday he would step aside, giving Democratic Party leaders a chance to pick his replacement. "For the good of the people of the state of Illinois and the Democratic Party, I will resign," Cohen said at the Hop Haus, a bar and restaurant at 7545 N. Clark, during the Super Bowl. ?? Click to enlarge image A tearful Scott Lee Cohen announced he is dropping out of the lieutenant governor's race at a press conference Sunday night. (Tom Cruze/Sun-Times) RELATED STORIES 3 aldermen were critical to Cohen's election Hynes would consider spot on ticket Cohen's ex: Nominee not fit to serve Allred also represents Tiger's girlfriends Editorial: You're not wanted Mr. Cohen The choked-up Cohen, 44, a political neophyte who poured $2 million into his campaign, was flanked by his fiancee, Karen Reisman, and two of his sons, Zachery, 17, and Jacob, 11. "It is my hope, and I pray with all my heart, that I didn't hurt the people that I love so much," Cohen said. "All I ever wanted to do was to run for office and to help the people, not cause chaos." "There is uncertainty that if I continue to run that the Democrats will win November," Cohen said. "Many people came out to support me when I announced. ''The Democratic Party didn't, but many people did. This is the hardest thing that I have ever had to do in my life." Only hours earlier, Cohen told the Chicago Sun-Times that he was not convinced that he was unelectable and was mapping strategy to test the reaction of Illinois voters in the wake of revelations about his personal life after his surprise win in the six-way Tuesday primary. "I think there is a strong possibility that I am electable," Cohen said in an interview at a Starbucks at Jefferson and Lake, across the street from his campaign headquarters. The Democratic primary for lieutenant governor received little attention. And while Cohen did not hide it, court records examined the day after the primary revealed that he was an admitted user of anabolic steroids. Cohen told the Sun-Times Sunday that he bought the steroids from a friend without a prescription. There also were accusations hanging over him of putting a knife to the throat of a former live-in girlfriend -- who turned out to be a convicted prostitute. He also was allegedly behind in child support. Under Illinois law, the winners of the primaries for governor and lieutenant governor automatically have to run together. Cohen's presence on the ticket endangered Gov. Quinn's chances of election and could have dragged down Democratic Senate nominee Alexi Giannoulias and other Democrats. After Cohen said he would drop out -- he still needs to sign withdrawal papers -- Quinn said in a statement that "he made the right decision for the Democratic Party and the people of Illinois. Now we can continue to focus our efforts on putting our economy back on track and working to bring good jobs to Illinois." A ballot vacancy is filled by the weighted vote of the 38 members of the Democratic State Central Committee. About 90 minutes after telling the Sun-Times that he was not quitting the race Sunday, Cohen received an afternoon call from House Speaker Michael J. Madigan, the state Democratic Party chairman. According to Madigan spokesman Steve Brown, Madigan called because he heard Cohen was dropping out of the race and wanted to confirm it. Cohen spokesman Baxter Swilley said Madigan made it clear to Cohen that stepping aside was the best course of action for his personal life and his career and that if he did so, he would have a chance to rehabilitate his image. During the primary, Cohen flooded the airwaves with ads that focused on jobs, while his five underfunded rivals were basically invisible. A chorus of Democrats had been calling for Cohen to step aside, but Cohen started to dig in after his win. He may have resisted their calls because they never phoned to congratulate him on his victory. Cohen told the Sun-Times on Sunday afternoon that Madigan was the only official to call him after the election. "None of my opponents called to congratulate me, not a senator, not a congressman, not one person called to congratulate me," he said. Asked if that hurt his feelings, Cohen said that lack of calls "showed me no respect. It absolutely hurt my feelings." The respect issue -- which seemed to loom over Cohen's decisionmaking--came up Sunday night in Cohen's withdrawal announcement. "I want to thank Mayor Daley for coming out, being a gentleman. I want to thank Speaker Madigan, who met with me on a personal level to give me advice, give me some reasons why it would be best for me not to be on the ballot," Cohen said. Daley was alone among Democratic officials in declining to pressure Cohen out of the contest. On Sunday, Madigan's camp disclosed that Cohen met with Madigan at his downtown Chicago law office on Friday. The meeting, which included Phil Molfese, who managed Cohen's primary campaign, was described to the Sun-Times as a "man-to-man meeting of a seasoned politician talking to a novice." Cohen was originally planning to go to the East Rogers Park restaurant and bar for a Super Bowl photo op to tell reporters about his plans to test Illinois voter sentiment and to have reporters see him in a different light. On Thursday, Cohen appeared on WTTW-Channel 11 with his former wife in a chaotic show in which he failed to put his political problems behind him. Speaking Sunday night, Cohen said, "When I decided to run for lieutenant governor, I did it with my heart and my soul. I thought that by opening up my life, I could represent the people in a fair, honest, loving, caring way. "On my election, it went crazy. The last thing I ever, ever wanted to do was to put the people of Illinois in jeopardy in any way." Tearful Cohen drops out of lieutenant governor's race false 111318 Chicago Sun-Times

Article 2010-02-08T00:00:00Z MARY WISNIEWSKI The Ride true Riders to feel steep CTA cuts Monday Union to weigh 'menu' of cuts already nixed Comments February 8, 2010 BY MARY WISNIEWSKI The Ride CTA riders for years have been warned of service cut "doomsdays," only to see them averted at the last minute through new government funding or some other rescue. But it's the worst economic period since the Great Depression. And this time, doomsday came. ?? Click to enlarge image Starting Sunday, the CTA cut 18 percent of bus service, 9 percent of rail service. (John J. Kim/Sun-Times) RELATED STORIES Metra starts taking credit cards today at 76 stations Kennedy lane closure begins Wednesday, expect delays CTA riders confront cuts RELATED PDF Routes affected by CTA cuts SUBURBAN BUS CUTS Service cuts also started Sunday on Pace, the suburban bus service. A total of 15 routes were eliminated, and 9 routes lost Saturday and/or Sunday service. Service is reduced on 9 additional routes. The cuts are the result of a budget shortfall. The 24 routes were selected because of low ridership. Pace had originally targeted 51 routes, but was able to reduce the cuts by using capital funds and efficiencies. "The impacts of the current economic crisis are the direct cause of the service reductions," said Pace Chairman Richard Kwasneski. "If the economy hadn't collapsed, we would be expanding service right now." The routes eliminated include: * 451 Southeast Homewood * 452 Northeast Homewood * 460 Hazel Crest * 535 Fox Valley Shuttle * 637 Wood Dale -- Rosemont CTA * 643/645 NW Elmhurst * 654 South Glen Ellyn * 657 Bloomingdale/Glendale Heights * 690 Arlington Heights Road * 750 Country Club Hills * 753 Matteson * 767 Congress/Douglas -- Prairie Stone * 781 N. Naperville Office Complex * 1012 Evergreen Park -- Prairie Stone THE RIDE TRIVIA QUIZ This street was once the site of a Chicago-style Boston Tea Party. Local farmers didn't like the tolls being collected on this plank road, so they dressed as Indians, chopped down the toll gates, and burned them. What's the name of this former toll road? Submit answer at our blog. The first person with a correct answer will get a Sun-Times hat. Starting Sunday, the CTA cut 18 percent of bus service, 9 percent of rail service. It eliminated 9 express bus routes and cut service hours on 41 other routes. The CTA is also cutting 1,057 jobs and closing the 102-year-old Archer Garage. The cuts were needed to make up a $95 million budget deficit, which the agency blames on low sales tax and property transfer tax revenues. Riders will start feeling the full impact of the cuts today. Expect buses and trains to be fuller and waits to be longer -- with intervals between buses expanded by as much as 15 minutes on top of current wait times late in the evening. Rush-hour waits will grow by about one to two minutes on the L and two to five minutes on buses. "It's going to affect me big time," said Brian McNiven, 32, of Lincoln Square, a bartender who takes the CTA to and from jobs like weddings. He worries that since several bus routes will stop making late-night runs, he won't be able to take the CTA home anymore. "I'd have to get a car," said McNiven. "I'd like to not have one. It's a hassle -- you can't park anywhere. This is going to be bad for the economy." CTA officials and leaders of the bus and rail unions said a meeting with Mayor Daley on Friday helped clear the air of negative feelings and got them talking again. Unions will take a "menu" of options like salary cuts and increased health costs back to their members, though these same measures have already been rejected. The CTA said it also would consider other cost-cutting ideas. The unions and the CTA have been discussing the cuts since October, so far with no result. If the CTA is able to reach any kind of deal from the unions, the first service that would be restored is late-night and early-morning service to 41 bus routes, because of the impact on workers with late or early hours, according to CTA President Richard Rodriguez. The route hardest hit is the No. 56 Milwaukee, heavily used by Polish and Hispanic workers, which lost four hours of service. If a union deal is reached, it could take a couple of weeks to get service back on line. Chicago Public Schools, worried about high-school kids waiting on corners, are working with police to make sure there's no trouble because of reduced bus service. Chicago Police Supt. Jody Weis said police are in contact with schools daily to get information on trouble spots. "I'm very confident that there will be safe passage to all the schools for those students who take CTA," Weis said. One North Side bus driver, who asked not to be named, said the government should have rescinded the free rides for seniors program started under former Gov. Rod Blagojevich. The CTA expects free rides will cost it $60 million this year. "Anybody taking the bus should have to pay," said the driver, who said he frequently carries a bus full of non-paying seniors with their shopping carts. Leonard Lloyd, a retired bus driver, said he worries about what will happen if gas prices start soaring again, or the weather gets bad. "If gas goes up again, the service can't handle the people that are on it now," said Lloyd. For details about service cuts, see transitchicago.com or call (888) Riders to feel steep CTA cuts Monday false 111319 Chicago Sun-Times

Article 2010-02-08T00:00:00Z DAVE McKINNEY true Hynes would consider spot on ticket, but not pursuing it Comments February 8, 2010 BY DAVE McKINNEY Staff Reporter dmckinney@suntimes.com Scott Lee Cohen's surprise decision to end his pursuit of the lieutenant governor's office has created a vacuum at the top of the Democratic ticket, breathing new life into the losing candidacies of his rivals and an array of others. Some in the Democratic Party would regard a Pat Quinn-Dan Hynes ticket as a salve that would quickly heal a party that was ripped apart by their contentious primary battle. But Quinn and the three-term comptroller, who narrowly lost to the governor, would have to put aside their bad blood before such a Democratic dream team might be viable. A source in the Hynes camp told the Sun-Times the comptroller isn't pursuing the opening but would consider it if asked. "He'll do whatever he can to help the Democratic Party this fall," the source said. Second-place finisher Art Turner, a West Side state representative, said Sunday he wants to be a contender. He was House Speaker Michael Madigan's endorsed candidate. Other names kicked around included the four others in the primary: Sen. Rickey Hendon (D-Chicago), Sen. Terry Link (D-Waukegan), Rep. Mike Boland (D-East Moline) and electrician Thomas Castillo. Link said he could offer more regional balance to the ticket and help attract collar county votes. "I'm not lobbying, I'm not pushing for it, but am I still interested? Yeah," Link said Sunday night. Former Deputy Treasurer Raja Kirhsnamoorthi, who narrowly lost the primary election for state comptroller, reportedly would be interested in joining the ticket to add ethnic and regional (he was raised in Peoria) balance. Also discussed was Veterans Affairs official Tammy Duckworth and Rep. Julie Hamos (D-Wilmette), who just lost a primary for Congress. The Democratic State Central Committee will choose Cohen's replacement. The group is to meet March 15 or earlier. Hynes would consider spot on ticket, but not pursuing it false 111320 Chicago Sun-Times

Article 2010-02-08T00:00:00Z FRAN SPIELMAN true Connected firm wins Metra-bus contract TIED TO DALEYS | Walsh to build transfer facility February 8, 2010 BY FRAN SPIELMAN City Hall Reporter fspielman@suntimes.com A clout-heavy company with two generations of ties to the Daley family has been awarded a $3.3 million contract to build a "transfer center" meant to make it easier for commuters at Metra's LaSalle Street station to switch to CTA buses. Walsh Construction will convert a surface parking lot at the southeast corner of Congress and Financial Place into a bus turnaround, with covered shelters, a lighted, landscaped plaza, and an elevator and staircase to the Metra station. ?? Click to enlarge image Walsh Construction, a company with ties to the Daley family has been awarded a $3.3 million contract to build a "transfer center" at Metra's LaSalle Street station. (Brian Jackson/Sun-Times) Metra passengers will be able to board CTA buses in one place, instead of walking to bus stops on Jackson, Van Buren, LaSalle or Harrison. The project will feature two new, dedicated CTA bus lanes on Financial Place. Financial Place will be converted from a two-way street into a northbound one-way street between Harrison and Congress. Non-bus traffic will still have one northbound lane. The LaSalle Street station serves Metra's Rock Island line, which goes to Joliet. "It's intended to improve the connection between Metra and CTA," said Transportation Department spokesman Brian Steele, adding that Walsh was the low bidder. Company chairman Matthew Walsh's father grew up with Mayor Daley's father, the late Mayor Richard J. Daley. Before Richard M. Daley stopped accepting campaign contributions from city contractors in the wake of the Hired Truck scandal, the Walsh family had been a reliable contributor. Walsh Construction rescued Millennium Park from cost overruns and oversaw the $200 million reconstruction of Wacker Drive. Since 1996, Walsh has been awarded $735.3 million in city contracts -- $260.9 million in just the last four years, according to the Department of Procurement Services. Last year, Walsh got a $79 million contract to build the third and final runway in Phase One of Daley's massive O'Hare Airport expansion. Five years ago, Walsh provided a landing for ousted city Buildings Commissioner Stan Kaderbek, who worked with Walsh as the city's chief bridge engineer during the Wacker Drive project. Connected firm wins Metra-bus contract false 111321 Chicago Sun-Times