Tuesday, February 13, 2007

Forrest Claypool on Budget Cutting for Dummies: Cable and Streaming

This Week's suburban edition of "Public Affairs," airing in the Chicago metro suburbs, features Cook County Commissioner Forrest Claypool [D-Chicago] discussing key Cook County Budget/Tax/Spending and patronage issues with show host and legal recruiter Jeff Berkowitz.See, below, for the Public Affairs suburban airing schedule. You may also [Watch the show with Commissioner Claypool, as well as prior shows with Comm. Claypool and Cook County Board President Todd Stroger on your computer].
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Commissioner Claypool will be the featured guest on the Monday, Feb. 19, 2007 [8:30 pm, Cable Ch. 21] City of Chicago edition of "Public Affairs."
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The "Public Affairs," cinema page gives you a choice of more than twenty-five episodes of “Public Affairs," including this week's suburban show with Commissioner Claypool and soon will have next week's suburban show with 50th Ward Alderman Berny Stone. The cinema page also has and recent shows with Sen. Garrett [D-Lake Forest], Sen. Syverson [R-Rockford], Metropolitan Planning Council President MarySue Barrett, Phantom of the City Council--Brendan Reilly, State Rep. Paul Froehlich, Eric Zorn-Dan Proft, John McCarron, Gery Chico, former State Sen. Steve Rauschenberger, Chicago Mayoral Candidate Dorothy Brown [D] and State Rep. Julie Hamos [D-Evanston], as well as interviews, discussions or remarks with or by U. S. Senators John McCain and Barack Obama, former NYC Mayor Rudy Giulianiand many, many more pols on our video podcast page[Watch here].
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Cook County Commissioner Forrest Claypool [D-Chicago; discusses and debates with show host and legal recruiter Jeff Berkowitz the Gang of 4, the Gang of 8 and Commissioner Earlean Collins, the Sandra Day O'Connor of the Cook County Board; whether Cook County is ready for reform; how Todd Stroger got to be President of the Board; Why Forrest Claypool did not endorse his fellow Democrat Todd Stroger; President Stroger's proposed "fix" of the $500 million dollar County Budget Deficit; the need for access by low income people to private healthcare in the suburbs; the need by low income people for Cook County's network of healthcare clinics; does it make sense to cut the budgets for the State's Attorney and Sheriff's Office; cutting Cook County headcount, Shakman Exempt laundering of patronage hires; high priced Cook County employees; tax increases and Finance Committee and public hearings on the budget.
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Cook County Commissioner Forrest Claypool [D-Chicago]: …penny wise and dollar foolish. It’s the type of stupid cuts that this budget [proposed by Cook County Board President Todd Stroger (D-Chicago)] consists of. I called it …budget cutting for dummies because there is no rational thought behind it—other than to protect the politicians and their relatives and cronies.
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Jeff Berkowitz: If you cut away all of those wasteful middle management, upper management jobs—either cut them away or cut them down to an appropriate salary—ballpark, what would you save?

Comm. Forrest Claypool: Well, that remains to be seen. We are, in my case, with a staff of one, working through this budget and cutting bureaucracy. We will offer amendments to restore tens and tens of millions of dollars—

Jeff Berkowitz: Tens and tens, are you saying that you might save fifty million dollars?

Comm. Forrest Claypool: Fifty, a hundred [million dollars], I don’t know.

Jeff Berkowitz: It could be a hundred million dollars?

Cook County Commissioner Forrest Claypool: …if you did it right, you could end up with [savings of] hundreds of millions of dollars. If you did it right and approached it right. With a staff of one person culling through this budget and trying to do it in a way that is effective and also responsible, we are going to go as far as we can. And, I think we can restore the clinic system in the neighborhoods which is the key to preventive and primary care. [Stroger’s proposed budget eliminates 16 of the County’s current 28 health care clinics]. I think we can restore some of these Draconian cuts in the prosecutors’ office and public defenders who are necessary in the court system…
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Commissioner Forrest Claypool (D-Chicago}, as is airing this week on Public Affairs in 35 Chicago Metro suburbs [See below for the suburban airing schedule] and as will be airing on Monday, Feb. 19, 2007 [8:30 pm on Cable, CANTV] on the City of Chicago edition of Public Affairs. The show was recorded on February 4, 2007. You may also[watch the Comm. Claypool program here].
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In twenty-five North Shore, North and Northwest suburbs, the "Public Affairs," show airs every Tuesday night in the regular weekly Public Affairs slot, 8:30 pm on Comcast Cable Ch. 19 or 35, as indicated, below.

In ten North Shore suburbs, the Public Affairs show airs three times each week in its regular slots at 8:30 pm on Comcast Cable Ch. 19, Monday, Wednesday and Friday, as indicated, below. ******************************************************
The suburban episode of Public Affairs with guest Commissioner Claypool airs Tonight :

at 8:30 pm on Comcast Cable Channel 19 in Buffalo Grove, Elk Grove Village, Hoffman Estates, parts of Inverness, Lincolnwood, Morton Grove, Niles, Northfield, Palatine, Rolling Meadows and Wilmette

And at 8:30 pm on Comcast Cable Channel 35 in Arlington Heights, Bartlett, Glenview, Golf, Des Plaines, Hanover Park, Mt. Prospect, Northbrook, Park Ridge, Prospect Heights, Schaumburg, Skokie, Streamwood and Wheeling.

and this week on Monday night, Wednesday night and Friday night at 8:30 pm on Comcast Cable Channel 19 in Bannockburn, Deerfield, Ft. Sheridan, Glencoe, Highland Park, Highwood, Kenilworth, Lincolnshire, Riverwoods and Winnetka.
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The City of Chicago edition of "Public Affairs," with guest Cook County Commissioner Forrest Claypool airs this coming Monday night at 8:30 pm on Cable Ch. 21 [CANTV] throughout the City of Chicago.
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Jeff Berkowitz, Show Host/Producer of "Public Affairs," and Executive Legal Recruiter doing legal search can be reached at JBCG@aol.com
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