Illinois Review

Spending, Debt and an Alternate Engine (?) for F-35

by Chris Robling

The newest spending outrage I have heard is this:

Congresspeople with clout are forcing development of an unneeded and unwanted alternate engine for the F-35.

Cost? $5 billion.

F-35 has an engine. It does not need an "alternate. Who agrees? George Bush and Barack Obama, for instance.  Robert Gates (under Bush) and Robert Gates (under Obama). All three have tried to stop this to save the $5 billion, so this is not partisan.  It is just the same old story: special interests with buddies in high Congressional places.

Durbin and Burris Lose-Give Them a Call

by Susan Ryan

Talk about sucker punches. 

Seven Senators voted to continue support of ACORN. 

From the Chicago Daily Observer:

Durbin and Burris vote to protect ACORN funding

Below is the YouTube of a recent undercover interview with ACORN employees in New York City.  The two mortage application counselors give specific instructions to a pimp and prostitute on how to illegally qualify for a home mortgage. The two investigative reporters received the same type of illegal counsel from ACORN workers in Maryland. Their advice was same counsel many are beginning to believe may have led to the collapse of the mortgage industry and the historical taxpayer dollar bailout of Fannie Mae/Freddie Mac earlier this year. 

Last night in DC, the U.S. Senate voted 83 to 7 to end federal funding to ACORN, based on the concerns raised in this YouTube and the one from the Maryland ACORN office  Only seven senators voted 'NO' to protect ACORN's taxpayer funding.

Tea Party, Liberty, and Responsibility

by Sam Pierce

Tomorrow we will be celebrating our nation's independence and reflecting on the blessings we have enjoyed thanks to the vision and efforts of our founding fathers. We may wonder what the founders would think of the state of our nation as it is in modern times. I imagine their hearts would break at the sight of the encroaching soft tyranny and the apathetic willingness of citizens to become subjects.

Many communities will be hosting tea parties as a means to celebrate the greatness of this nation and call attention to the internal threats to our liberty. If you would like to attend one of these events please check out the links provided at the end of this post to find the one nearest you. If you are near Clay County, IL, you are welcome to attend the Clay County Tea Party which will be held at 2 pm at the gazebo outside the library in Flora.

Funeral directors subpoena Burris

Always wondered about Roland Burris' creepy pre-carved grave monument. Now it all makes more sense. Maybe it was a perk of being a lobbyist for the funeral directors association?

Now those Illinois funeral directors are upset about millions of dollars in pre-paid funeral expense trusts missing, Associated Press reports in the State Journal Register. They want Burris to answer some questions about the fund's management, going back to 1980:

Burris was Illinois Comptroller in that year and allowed the Illinois Funeral Directors Association to manage the trust. He later served as a lobbyist for the IFDA.

The plaintiffs, who are suing the IFDA for alleged mismanagement, say they want to know why Burris allowed the group to manage the trust, and they want records of his lobbying activities.

Yet another scandal brewing around Illinois' newest junior senator...one that might not be so easy to bury.

What's The Rush To Remove Roland Burris?

by William Jacobson

Roland Burris has offered changing accounts of his communications with emissaries of former Illinois Gov. Rod Blagojevich in the weeks leading up to Blagojevich's appointment of Burris to Barack Obama's open Senate seat. These changing accounts, including an updated Affidavit filed by Burris with the Illinois House impeachment committee, have led to accusations that Burris committed perjury at worst, obstruction of justice at best.

Based on the accusations against Burris, various politicians and newspapers have called on Burris to resign. But what's the rush? If Burris is guilty of a crime, he will be charged and convicted. As of now, he is not even charged. Lisa Madigan, the Illinois Attorney General, is investigating, and if she feels that criminal charges are warranted, I'm sure she will bring such charges.

Perjury can be a difficult thing to prove, and my initial reading of the transcripts is that it may not be so clear cut. By offering a corrective affidavit, Burris may have "purged" any perjury as a matter of law.

Roland "Tombstone" Burris' latest add

Tony Auth