ALDERMEN QUESTION DALEY'S NEW OLYMPIC GUARANTEE

Following up on an earlier post about the mayor's new guarantee that we will foot the bill for any and all financial losses from the Olympic games...

With newfound boldness stemming from the parking meter mess, it seems some aldermen are continuing their interest in doing the job we elected them to do...they are actually questioning the mayor and his tyrannical quest for the Olympics. (Gasp!) Way to earn those $100K salaries guys! I am SO proud of you.

From the Chicago Sun-Times:

They argued that Daley has “no authority” to sign the host-city contract without Council approval.

“This is a big deal. He’s planning to sign an agreement that puts the city on the hook for an unlimited amount of money,” said Ald. Joe Moore (49th).

“Let them come before the City Council and explain to us why this is a safe bet for taxpayers. They can tell us they have insurance. They can make all the arguments they want to make. But, as elected representatives closest to the votes, we need to have a say in this. This is something that recent events have made all too clear. We need to exercise our authority as a check and balance on the mayor’s office.”

After the fiasco caused by Daley’s $1.15 billion decision to lease Chicago’s 36,000 parking meters, aldermen can’t afford to sit back, according to Ald. Scott Waguespack (32nd).

“They made guarantees, and none of those guarantees have come true on the parking meter deal. I don’t think the Council will buy his guarantee of, ‘Don’t worry. There’s multiple layers of guarantees here,’” Waguespack said.

“The Council needs to be part of this process. The mayor’s office and 2016 needs to show us what those guarantees are and what taxpayers are on the hook for ... .I have no information right now that proves to me these backstops are genuine.”

I'm waiting to see what - if anything - the full City Council does about this. I'm sure they will still sign on to foot the bill for the Olympics, even as we face a growing budget deficit - $300 million and counting. But it is nice to finally see some aldermen asserting their rightful position as a check on the mayor's monstrous power.

Now maybe it's our turn to let the Mayor know how we feel. Or as Ben Joravsky at the Chicago Reader put it:

I've long thought that the Olympic bid is a cruel joke Mayor Daley is playing on his constituents--to see how much nonsense we'll swallow before we throw up. It looks like our tolerance is endless. How else to explain why folks aren't taking to the streets to stop this lunacy?