The Illinois state legislature does not hold summer sessions, but
this year longtime Speaker of the House Mike Madigan, a Chicago
Democrat, took the extraordinary step of bringing the Illinois House
together for one day.
Madigan’s reason was to vote on expelling
Derrick Smith, a West Side Chicago Democrat federally indicted for
bribery. House members voted on August 17 100-6 to kick Smith out, the
upper chamber’s first expulsion since 1905.
Madigan appeared to
send the message that the state now took a zero tolerance approach to
corruption, even when the subject in question was not proven guilty.
Today, Smith is favored to win election on Tuesday for the 10th district seat
he lost in disgrace. And Madigan, along with some other powerful Land of
Lincoln politicos, have done nothing to stop him. Read more »
A dispute between Gov. Pat Quinn and Illinois Republicans on the pace
of implementing a Medicaid eligibility verification system raises the
larger issue of whether the state can actually cut a total of 
Gov. Pat Quinn has decided to close
several state correctional facilities in addition to shutting down the 