Like most Illinois politicians, Chicago Mayor Richard Daley doesn’t trust the state’s embattled governor. This is particularly true when it comes to Blagojevich's ability to dole out stimulus dollars effectively. Yesterday, Daley intensified his efforts to engineer a political agreement with the federal government that would allow the city to receive a direct share of the federal stimulus plan being crafted by President-elect Barack Obama. Here’s what he told the Sun-Times’ Fran Spielman:

“We can’t wait. You can’t allow Springfield to take your money, hold the interest, then eventually give it to you in the middle of winter. You’ll never get the job done in the middle of winter,” Daley told reporters.

“You just go straight to the federal government and say, ‘We have all the construction ready to go. We have matching funds. Let’s go with it.’ ”

Daley's point is well taken. It’s expected that Congress will allocate much of the stimulus funding to cash-strapped state governments. But in Illinois that means the money runs through Gov. Blagojevich’s office -- a scary thought these days.

That being said, Daley’s request raises two concerns. The first has to do with matching funds. As Spielman points out, the city would need to provide matching funds to qualify for assistance, a responsibility usually shouldered by the state. Given Chicago’s own budget mess, where will those resources come from?

Daley was cagey when asked how a city struggling to survive its worst budget crisis in recent history would come up with the matching funds needed to qualify for federal grants. That’s normally where the state comes in.

“That’s how you do creative financing,” he said.

This response is a bit unsettling. There are only so many public assets the city can auction off to the highest bidder.

The other issue is Hizzoner’s own ability to manage infrastructure funds effectively. For example, while state and federal officials share blame, the CTA has been woefully underfunded for years under Daley’s watch while public funds have been poured into downtown development projects and earmarked for the Olympic bid. A blank check to the mayor’s office is no guarantee that the resulting projects will address the interests of everyday Chicagoans.