Last week, Capitol Confidential reported that Cook County Board President Toni Preckwinkle is considering hiking taxes on non-cigarette tobacco products in an effort to bring in more revenue from tobacco users who have apparently rejected heavily-taxed cigarettes in favor of cheaper options such as rolling their own or using products such as snuff.

On Monday, it emerged the Cook County Board endorsed Preckwinkle’s tobacco tax proposal by a 10-7 vote.  The Cook County Board is set to take a final vote on the proposed budget on Friday.

Now, it is being reported that separate to this proposed tax hike, Chicago aldermen are looking at their own tobacco tax hike. From the Chicago Trubune:

Two aldermen looking for last-minute ways to head off painful budget cuts proposed by Mayor Rahm Emanuel floated the idea Wednesday of extending the city’s cigarette tax to other tobacco products.

Ald. Matthew O’Shea, 19th, and Leslie Hairston, 5th, brought up that option at a City Council meeting in an effort to soften spending cuts at city libraries, mental health clinics and the 911 center.

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Aldermen and administration officials weren’t sure how much new money could be raised by broadening the tobacco tax — as Cook County Board President Toni Preckwinkle plans to do so she can raise $12 million for the county next year.

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Five years after Cook County, Illinois, last hiked cigarette taxes, it has emerged that revenues from cigarette taxes have substantially declined, contributing to the county’s budget challenges.

In 2006, the county collected about $200 million in cigarette tax revenue, but that dropped to about $126 million last year.

The County reportedly faces about a $300 million budget gap heading into next year. Locals say the decline in cigarette tax revenue is not the result of smokers quitting using tobacco products.  According to Sheriff Tom Dart, “There’s probably some people who have given up smoking, but I don’t think that accounts for $74 million [less].”  Rather, it seems to be the result of smokers looking to save money on tobacco however they can — including buying from sellers who offer cigarettes without relevant tax stamps, buying cigarettes in neighboring Indiana, and even rolling their own or switching to non-cigarette types of tobacco.

Cook County Board President Toni Preckwinkle is now looking to raise taxes on tobacco users who take the latter routes in an effort to keep their costs down, as well as purchasers of alcohol:

Like it or not, Cook County Board President Toni Preckwinkle says her cash-strapped county needs higher taxes on alcohol and tobacco to solve a deep deficit.

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Preckwinkle also wants to close the loophole on the current cigarette tax to include loose tobacco, rolling papers and snuff.

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Over 35 counties in Illinois missed the deadline to mail military ballots to our soldiers defending America. But in Chicago, county election officials have taken special steps to ensure that no inmates at the Cook County Jail are unable to cast a ballot.

The Chicago Board of Elections hand delivers ballots to the jail. They don’t even wait for the inmates to apply – they bring the applications with the ballots! Over 2,600 inmates have cast ballots so far – strikingly similiar to the 2,600 soldiers who will likely not recieve a ballot for the Nov 2 election.

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As we watch Obama practice Chicago-style politics, it’s time to answer the question the old media ignores. Who were the key people in the Chicago Machine who helped advance Obama to power? We’ll start at the top.

In Chicago, Mayor Richard Daley gets the spotlight while Alderman Edward Burke runs the show. Burke is Chicago’s longest serving Alderman, first elected in 1969.  He chairs the City’s Finance Committee.  He also chairs the Judicial Slating Committee for the Cook County Democrat Party. Since there are no Republican judges at the circuit level, Burke is de facto head of the Judicial Branch of Chicago’s government. Burke was an early Obama supporter.

Burke’s campaign chest is impressive. In 2008, the Chicago Sun-Times reported that Burke “has more money in his four campaign funds than the combined total of all 49 other Chicago aldermen, more even than Mayor Daley’s $2.9 million.”

The City of Chicago website acknowledges Burke’s power:

As Chairman of the City Council’s powerful Committee on Finance, Alderman Burke holds the city’s purse strings and is responsible for all legislative matters pertaining to the city’s finances, including municipal bonds, taxes and revenue matters. Alderman Burke became Chairman for the second time in 1989. He previously served from 1983 to 1987.

Anyone aspiring to a position of power in the Cook County Democrat Party must have Burke’s approval.  He’s the Machine’s gatekeeper.

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It is easy to feel a little melancholy on a rainy fall day in Chicago.  Summer is indisputably over and, while our autumn is lovely, we know too well what is right around the corner.  But today is truly a sad day in my city.   Despite the potential political fallout of losing the Olympics let’s all remember that America and one of its greatest cities was repudiated.  And that should not make any of us happy.

Chicagoans admit that we are ethically challenged when it comes to our politics.  It is important to point out that in our business and other dealings we try to espouse Midwestern values and deal fairly with others.  We are not proud of the reputation that the Cook County Democratic machine has won for us.  And many are still trying to do something about it.   But by and large, our distaste for local political habits in no way diminishes our love for our city, our state and our communities.

To my fellow conservatives who are deconstructing the implications of Chicago’s embarrassment at the hands of the International Olympic Committee and the indisputable damage it has done to the president’s reputation and image, I simply ask that you remember that there are millions of people in the Chicago area who are ordinary working people who take great pride in their community.  All of us, conservative, liberal and independent, bid supporters and even bid detractors, are hurting a little today.  We got embarrassed on the world stage as well.

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