Senate President Emil Jones presented Mayor Daley on Wednesday with a quick fix for the state’s budget crisis: Print money.
“That should make everyone happy,” Jones said.
If that could be done, Daley suggested, the machine shouldn’t be turned off.
“We keep it plugged in,” Daley said.
The lighthearted banter in Jones’ Capitol office belied the seriousness of the mayor’s pitch to pump up funding for city schools and mass transit as part of a Chicago agenda that included re-instating a 7 percent cap on property tax assessments and his long-stated quest to pass tougher gun-control laws.
The meeting, like ones the mayor had with Gov. Blagojevich, House Speaker Michael Madigan (D-Chicago), Republican leaders and the Chicago delegation of lawmakers, took place during the mayor’s visit for the biennial “Taste of Chicago in Springfield.”
Daley acknowledged Blagojevich’s priority this spring has been to push through a broad health-care system.
But failing to address school funding needs “would be a sad comment,” Daley said.
In Chicago, Daley said, “everything should be on the table” in an attempt to reach a budget compromise in Springfield. He said “most people favor the income tax.”
Blagojevich has vowed to veto a sales or income tax increase, and Daley’s appearance in Springfield came as lawmakers are in turmoil over how to reach common ground with the governor.
Blagojevich’s concept of a $7 billion tax on business revenues went down in flames on a vote last week in the House. In the Senate, Jones has struggled to win support for the governor’s tax and health-care plans.
Before hitting the festivities at the “Taste of Chicago,” Daley warned again of fair hikes at the CTA without help. The Chicago region’s needs for mass transit operating expenses is as much as $400 million. Transit officials also hope they can persuade lawmakers to endorse billions of dollars more for construction needs.
