September 9, 2009
NORTHWEST SIDE STATE REPS VIEW TAX HIKE AS "POISION PILL"

ANALYSIS & OPINION BY RUSS STEWART

In Chicago's whitebread Northwest Side and close-in suburbs, the specter of raising taxes is viewed as a cultural issue, not a fiscal issue.

Most area residents have an us-versus-them attitude -- the "haves" against the "have nots." They believe that there is an inverse relationship between the payers and the payees, and that those who pay more in taxes get less in government services, while those who pay less in taxes get more in benefits. They are utterly devoid of liberal guilt, which is normally expiated by spending more on the so-called disadvantaged.

On the Northwest Side, woe to the hapless politician who votes for a serious tax hike. It's a betrayal of trust, of class, and of region. It's a one-way ticket to oblivion. The May 31 vote in the Illinois House of Representatives is illustrative of area politicians' visceral fear of being labeled a "tax hiker."

Proposed by Governor Pat Quinn, Senate Bill 2252 sought to raise the state income tax from 3.0 percent to 4.5 percent on individuals, and to 7.2 percent on corporations. The measure lost 74-42, with two "present" votes; 26 Democrats joined all 48 Republicans in opposition. Customarily, Illinois House Speaker Mike Madigan dictates how every Democrat votes. Not on this bill. Survival dictated how the Democrats voted, and every Northwest Sider -- John D'Amico (D-15), Joe Lyons (D-19), Deb Mell (D-40) and John Fritchey (D-11) -- joined the anti-tax majority.

Lyons, D'Amico and Fritchey were unopposed in both the primary and the election in 2008; Mell was unopposed in the primary, and she won the election with 74.9 percent of the vote. But they all had the tax-hike jitters.

"It's like pointing a loaded gun at my head and inviting somebody to pull the trigger," said one area legislator. "I'm not going to risk doing it."

Also opposing the increase were Mike McAuliffe (R-20) of Chicago, Beth Coulson (R-17) of Glenview, Skip Saviano (R-77) of Elmwood Park and Rosemary Mulligan (R-65) of Des Plaines.

The only area incumbents supporting the bill were Toni Berrios (D-39), from a heavily Puerto Rican Logan Square district, where her father, Joe Berrios is the Democratic committeeman, and Lou Lang (D-16) of Skokie, a longtime liberal who will face no wrath from his largely Jewish constituency, which is crammed with do-gooders. Both were unopposed in the primary and the election in 2008.

Other north suburban Democrats, all liberals, backed the tax hike: Julie Hamos (D-18) of Evanston, Elaine Nekritz (D-57) of Northbrook and Kathy Ryg (D-59) of Vernon Hills. So did Lakefront Chicagoans Sara Feigenholtz (D-12), Greg Harris (D-13) and Harry Osterman (D-14). All were unopposed in the 2008 primary, and Hamos, Harris and Feigenholtz were unopposed in the election. Osterman won reelection with 85.5 percent of the vote, Nekritz with 67.9 percent and Ryg with 63.7 percent.

Coulson and Hamos are running for Congress in the 10th District.

As if to validate the Northwest Sides' stereotypical perception, all seven Hispanics and all but two (who voted "present") of the 18 black Democrats embraced the Quinn hike.

Rejecting media hype about the "necessity and urgency" of an income tax hike, and about how "vital services" would otherwise suffer, 11 suburban and Collar County Democrats and two Southwest Side Chicago Democrats opposed the tax hike. Clearly, on the Northwest Side, suburbanites from less liberal areas did not want to put themselves in the crosshairs.

Had Madigan made Senate Bill 2252 into a "Save Illinois" crusade and brought a majority (60) of Democrats on board by promising them oodles of 2010 campaign cash, the bill would have passed. But 26 Democrats feared voter reprisals, viewed 2010 as an anti-tax year, and refused to venture into harm's way.

The adjoining vote chart displays the votes of area representatives. Here's a look at their 2010 prospects:

D'Amico, age 47, is part of the 39th Ward's "Laurino Machine." His aunt, Marge Laurino, is the alderman, and his late grandfather, Tony Laurino, was the former alderman. His parents were convicted as ghost payrollers, and he still double dips as a deputy district superintendent in the city Department of Water Management. His first contest was in 2004, when he won the primary with 59 percent of the vote and the election with 66.9 percent. He was unopposed in 2006 and 2008. Avoiding the tax-hike rap, D'Amico is safe.

Lyons, age 58, is the cousin of the late 45th Ward Democratic committeeman Tom Lyons, and he has served since 1996. He is the president of the ward Democratic organization. He also is part of the Madigan leadership as one of seven assistant majority leaders. Lyons won the 2004 primary with 70.1 percent of the vote and the election with 77.8 percent. He was unopposed in 2006 and 2008. He is strong as onions, but he didn't want to be a "tax hiker."

Fritchey, age 45, embarrassed himself mightily by losing the special 5th U.S. House District primary on March 3, getting just 9,815 votes (17.8 percent of the votes cast). He began the campaign as the favorite, but he lost to Mike Quigley. Fritchey is the 32nd Ward (Wicker Park-area) Democratic committeeman, and he has been a state representative since 1996, when he replaced Rod Blagojevich. He is married to the daughter of Sam Banks, the brother of outgoing 36th Ward Alderman Bill Banks. Fritchey wisely voted against the tax increase. He was poised to run for state attorney general in 2010 had Lisa Madigan retired.

With his credibility now in tatters and his statewide path blocked, Fritchey is bailing out of Springfield to run for Cook County commissioner in 2010, seeking the open seat of Forrest Claypool. He has been endorsed by Claypool and Quigley. Fritchey is young enough and smart enough to rehabilitate himself as a county "reformer" and run for mayor or Cook County Board president in the future.

Berrios, age 32, and Mell, age 41, may not, like astronauts, have the "right stuff," but they do have the right DNA. Their fathers could pass for Daddy Warbucks, and, at the risk of being sexist, they're in Springfield because they're daddy's little girls. (There also are some daddy's little boys.)

Joe Berrios made his daughter a state representative in 2002, at age 25, and she has never faced opposition. The elder Berrios, a Board of Review commissioner, is running for county assessor in 2010; he has $846,883 in his campaign fund. When Joe Berrios becomes assessor, expect him to give his daughter his powerful Board of Review job.

Alderman Dick Mell (33rd) made his son-in-law Rod Blagojevich a state representative, a congressman and the governor. When Deb Mell decided she had a mission, the elder Mell ousted longtime incumbent Rich Bradley to make room for her in 2008. Here's some advice for the alderman: Learn how to "just say no." Count on this: When Mell, age 70, retires from the City Council, his daughter will want the job. Guess what Dick will say?

Lang, age 59, is one of the Cassandras of Illinois politics, perpetually pondering a run for statewide office but never pulling the trigger. It's too late to run for treasurer or comptroller in 2010, as the fields have formed. But Lang is an assistant majority leader, and he aspires to be the speaker when Madigan retires. When Lang votes for a tax hike, he's pandering to the minorities and liberals in the House Democratic Caucus in a vote on the next speaker. First appointed in 1987, Lang is safe.

McAuliffe, age 46, has served since 1996, when he replaced his late father, Roger, who had held the post since 1973. He can't be termed a "daddy's boy," since it was his father's organization that elevated him, and he faced -- and prevailed -- over fierce Democratic opposition, winning with 52.4 percent of the vote in 1996, 53.7 percent in 2002 and 59.4 percent in 2008. McAuliffe knows to "just say no" to any tax-hike bills. He can't be beat.