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Press Room
Illinois House Republicans, trying to bolster their numbers and relevance in Springfield, offered a seven-point legislative agenda during a town-hall meeting in Arlington Heights Tuesday night. House Republican leader Tom Cross, of Oswego, and nine Northwest suburban GOP lawmakers and legislative candidates alternated between touting their "Agenda for Action" and excoriating state Democrats for a variety of offenses. Speaking to a live crowd of about 70 at Forest View Educational Center and an Internet audience, Cross and colleagues accused Gov. Rod Blagojevich, along with House and Senate Democratic majorities, of profligate spending, misplaced priorities, veiled decision-making and failure to listen to constituents. The Republicans hit hardest at Democratic spending. "We have this mentality of spending money that we don't have," Cross said. "We don't think about the fact that some day we've got to pay the piper. Well the piper's at the door and has to be paid." State Rep. Mark Beaubien, of Barrington Hills, said Cross was generous in calling the recently passed budget $2 billion out of balance. The figure, Beaubien said, is closer to $3 billion. State Sen. Matt Murphy drew applause when he called disciplined spending only part of the solution. "The other side of the coin is growth," said Murphy, of Palatine. "Grow your way to prosperity. Stop trying to tax and borrow your way to prosperity." In introducing the House GOP agenda, Cross said his party realizes it must do more than simply criticize. "We believe people want concrete ideas," said Cross, who, with his colleagues, then presented an agenda that calls for: - Launching a capital construction program that they say will rebuild the state's infrastructure and create 700,000 jobs. - Banning the transfer of unpaid obligations from one fiscal year to the next and requiring that proposed budgets be available for public scrutiny before legislators vote. - Enacting stronger anti-corruption measures, including steps to end pay-to-play deals in which campaign donors receive state contracts. - Offering property tax relief by doubling the property tax rebate, to 10 percent from the current 5. - Making higher education more affordable by increasing student financial aid and state support for universities and by requiring state universities to accept more in-state students. - Better protecting children from online predators. - Protecting domestic violence victims by placing order-of-protection violators under electronic surveillance. The Arlington Heights session was one of three town hall meetings that House Republicans hosted Tuesday. Others were scheduled for Rockford and Mount Vernon. House Republicans, currently a 67-51 minority, head to the fall campaign season trying to either reverse recent erosion of their numbers in Springfield or recapture seats they've lost in the suburbs. Others participating in Tuesday's town hall meeting were retiring Rep. Carolyn Krause of Mount Prospect; incumbent Rosemary Mulligan of Des Plaines; and newcomers Peggy Brothman of Hoffman Estates; Anita Forte-Scott of Schaumburg; Christine Prochno of Elk Grove Village; Mike Sweeney of Arlington Heights; and James Tatooles of Northbrook. E-mail this article to a friend | Printer friendly format |
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