Wanted: Honest and Responsible Leadership

"Save us from ourselves!!" Illinois legislators, prodded by Cook County Assessor James Houlihan, enact a property tax cap for Cook County homeowners so they don't have to enact tax reform, or hold the line on spending. Three years later Houlihan wants another one. Tribune says it's a bad idea with perverse consequences here.

Meanwhile, the shift in the tax burden is driving small businesses out of Cook County or out of business. And municipalities look for other ways to squeeze revenue to finance their bloated administrative staffs, pursuing development even when it squeezes out longtime small businesses and homeowners. This has extended in Chicago to underhandedly trying to seize church land (See Mary Mitchell here), or in Evanston a few years ago to denying a thriving church use of purchased property because their tax-exempt status would "cost" the city some revenue. (The city lost and had to pay the church damages.)

Then we read of the misuse of resources. An IDOT audit shows $700,000 of taxpayer dollars unaccounted for or spent on clearly questionable activities. The Sun Times:

State road money went to purchase health insurance for an ex-state lawmaker, promotional tattoos that were delivered to a Chicago alderman, a float in the Bud Billiken parade and a consultant's time at a dinner honoring the agency's former chief of staff.

Those were among dozens of questionable state expenditures that largely involved a public relations company hired by the state to promote the massive reconstruction of the Dan Ryan and Kingery expressways.

This after the story of motorists with questions about Dan Ryan construction being incorrectly given a hotline to a sex chat line:

Three of six informational signs were planted Thursday along the 11-mile stretch of roadway that will be rebuilt during the next two years, IDOT spokesman Matt Vanover said. An IDOT worker commuting to work Thursday morning recognized the incorrect number and alerted officials, he said.

"We apologize to anyone who may have called that number and did not get the information that they were looking for," Vanover said.

This is only the latest in a series of investigations of state agencies under Governor Blagojevich. Story on Illinois Auditor General William Holland's findings in the Tribune :

Holland's audit comes days before the massive $600 million Dan Ryan reconstruction is scheduled to begin on Friday. His findings have raised concerns about whether motorists will be adequately prepared to adjust to the sharply scaled back highway during construction.

Holland's decision to turn over the audit findings to state and federal investigators also represents another blow to Gov. Rod Blagojevich's administration. Coupled with earlier damaging audits of the state lottery and the Department of Central Management Services, the IDOT audit marks the third review of the Democratic governor's administration that Holland has turned over for further investigation.

And all this with state and municipal unfunded pension laibilities hanging over us, which officials are not talking about.

"Save us from ourselves"? Enough! Is honest and responsible leadership too much to ask for? Vote the rascals out!