Letter from the CEO: How to spot the good and bad eggs

This letter was featured in the Fall 2011 edition of Compass, which arrived in mailboxes last week. The complete issue is downloadable here. Halloween is a wonderful holiday for children and grown-ups alike. You have tricks and you have treats. The same is true in policy and political debates. There are tricks and there are treats;...

This letter was featured in the Fall 2011 edition of Compass, which arrived in mailboxes last week. The complete issue is downloadable here.

Halloween is a wonderful holiday for children and grown-ups alike. You have tricks and you have treats. The same is true in policy and political debates. There are tricks and there are treats; but sometimes it’s hard to tell the difference.

As this issue of the Compass is going to press, the first week of the veto session is getting under way with another coming shortly. I don’t think too much of substance will happen in the veto session. By substance, I mean transformative legislation.

Transformation is what we need. Inside this issue you will see evidence of the ongoing Illinois jobs and fiscal crises. The good news is that it doesn’t have to be this way. We can change course if we learn how to distinguish between the tricks and the treats, as well as which politicians are the good eggs and the bad eggs.

President Barack Obama and Gov. Pat Quinn are a bit like Veruca Salt from Willie Wonka and the Chocolate Factory. They cry, “I want a golden goose, give it to me now!” But the goose, the American entrepreneur and worker, has been choked for too long. It’s suffocating and barely can produce.

When it comes to Halloween, smart moms and dads throw out the bad treats before their children get a stomach ache. They turn away the bad eggs that show up at their doorstep with nothing but tricks.

Policy changes pass through a political process. Right now, candidates for the March 2012 primary are gathering signatures to run for the General Assembly and Congress. The primary season will see vigorous competitions in both parties. The challenge for you will be to determine which candidates are Veruca Salts, who want to keep the favor factory running by dispensing unaffordable and sickening treats. Will you find those good eggs who want to champion entrepreneurs, investors and workers? Those who understand that all prosperity begins with the free enterprise system?

Go here for a reminder as to what a bad egg looks like.

The great news is that political leaders usually only jump in front of the parade once it is forming. And the parade of public opinion is forming up well for transformation. To see evidence of this, turn to page 15 to see recent poll results on the public’s growing focus on policy solutions that will lead to a more prosperous Illinois and America.

Sincerely,

John Tillman
CEO
Illinois Policy Institute