Leadership Problems: 8
In January, former Gov. Rod Blagojevich (D) was impeached and removed from office amid federal charges that he tried to sell the U.S. Senate seat vacated by President Obama. The former governor ran "a very dysfunctional government," said one journalist who covers Illinois politics. "He sidestepped rules, made repeated political threats for personal reasons and seemed to live in la-la land most of the time, particularly with budget conditions. He alienated most legislators within the first two years."
During the impeachment frenzy, policymaking ground to a standstill. But now that Blagojevich is gone from the governor's office, the functionality of Illinois state government has improved -- up to a point. A possible government shutdown looms, but at least the various sides are now fighting over actual policy priorities.
Gov. Pat Quinn (D), who was elevated from lieutenant governor upon Blagojevich's removal, has been engaged in a fierce battle with the legislature over the state budget. In a high-stakes game of chicken, Quinn has vetoed the legislature's preferred budget, seeking a tax increase that legislators -- led by his fellow Democrats -- are loath to support. Each side has been scrambling to propose cuts to state programs.
Mistrust between the governor and legislative leaders is growing, with Quinn accused of sudden 180s in tactics. But while Illinois is now effectively a one-party government, observers say that Illinois Republicans -- despite the golden opportunity provided them by the Blagojevich controversy -- are too divided and wounded by past ethics troubles to pitch themselves as a credible opposition party.
Criminality: 6
Illinois has a storied reputation for corrupt machine politics -- three of its eight most recent former governors have gone to jail, and Blagojevich might one day bring the average to .500. Even before the feds arrested Blagojevich in December, he had been the subject of sprawling probes into corruption within his administration.
With Blagojevich gone, the picture is much improved. Quinn is considered a straight arrow, while state Senate President John Cullerton and state House Speaker Michael Madigan are widely believed to have clean hands as well.
Statewide Challenges: 9
Illinois' budgetary challenges are as pressing as those of (almost) any other large state in the current recession. In one particularly poignant detail, the Washington Post recently reported that the state "has stopped paying $1,655 a funeral to bury the indigent dead."
"We have no money, are hopelessly in debt, have gridlock between the governor and the legislature and have a state bureaucracy that is understaffed and has extremely low morale," said Kent Redfield, a political scientist at the University of Illinois at Springfield.
Media Circus: 7
The Blagojevich arrest became a national media sensation, but despite a few aftershocks -- such as questions about what Roland Burris (D) offered to Blagojevich before the embattled governor named him to succeed Obama in the Senate -- the national media has largely lost interest in Illinois. While the budget battle has attracted notable coverage in-state, it has little of the buzz of the soap opera that was, and is, ex-Gov. Blago.
TOTAL DYSFUNCTIONALITY: 7.5
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