Inside Chicago Government

The collective amnesia of civic Chicago about past fiscal policy; how to uncover the actual amount of the city's TIF surplus; and county clerk Orr's TIF activism. Length 5.7 minutes.

The intended investment payoff of tax-increment financing; why CPS would misrepresent property-tax increase caps; and why it makes sense for the Vienna Beef plant to move. Length 4.8 minutes.

What motivated the administration to issue its plan; the PR plan claims investment, belied by the capital plan; and why CPS's tax levy has increased while it cuts its budget. Length 5.5 minutes.

Who really pulls the mayor's strings; why the CTU gave up its former practice of cutting a deal with the administration; and where some of the best reporting in Chicago currently comes from. Length 5.5 minutes.

Why other journalists don't report on the city's contradictory stance; the mayor's clear message that investors can still buy city assets; and the fallacy that Chicago will save on future meter true-up costs. Length 5.4 minutes.

How the General Assembly's "ladies of the lake" resisted pork; the mayor's interference in the free market of property development; and who owns the property on the land where the city wants to build an arena. Length 5.2 minutes.

How an almost-dead TIF district can rob from its younger neighbor; what makes the arena/hotel plan a tax-losing proposition; and Mayor Daley's last-minute raid on the area's TIF funds. Length 5.2 minutes.

CPS's statutory obligation to retain policy-related records; whether the Emanuel or the Daley administration responded better to records requests; and the chances of aldermanic efforts to strengthen the inspector general. Length 5.7 minutes.

How one might get one's kids into the Lab School; why Lab teachers didn't join the Chicago Teachers Union; and whether Mayor Emanuel and others involved in school policy should explain why their kids don't attend public school. Length 5 minutes.

How Lincoln Park H.S.'s diverse set of programs created an integrated student body; parents' perception of the International Baccalaureate "brand"; and when the mayor chooses to supercede a contract. Length 11.9 minutes.

The multiple freebies and discounts the Sox organization gets while using the ballpark; the nobility of rainmaker Gov. Thompson; and whether the White Sox could survive financially without taxpayer subsidies. Length 14 minutes.

Mayor Bilandic's disregard for black voters; a clear contrast in Mayor Emanuel's treatment of black and white constituencies; and citizens' attitudes about government polices based on their distance from the destructive impact. Length 15.8 minutes.

How a crowded school with low-income students can perform well; how the administration has transformed its school-closing message; and who closing schools evolved from decades-old segregation. Length 14.1 minutes.

Overcrowding at the city's remaining mental health clinics; the worst time to remove mental health services for Chicago's kids; and how aldermen cling to a greater power. Length 15.5 minutes.

At what age adults should let kids read violently or sexually explicit books; CPS curriculum professionals undermined by CPS administrators; and CPS's previous book purge. Length 16.5 minutes.

The fact or fiction of quorums in City Council committees; the lack of enlightened debate before the council enacts laws; and the repeated fall of so-called reform candidates for City Council. Length 19.8 minutes.

Taking advantage of the opportunity arising from falling enrollment; the city's education response to changing demographics; and how aldermen who talk tough on school closings could really cause problems for the mayor. Length 16.2 minutes.

Why the public should allow taxing bodies to increase their tax take each year; checking Ald. O'Connor's argument about the benefit of tax-increment financing to the board of education budget; and the public school system as an investor in TIF. Length 15.6 minutes.

How aldermen might thwart efforts to bury their legislation in the rules committee; why the powerful, seemingly in opposition, support each other; and aldermen who have reserved their check on mayoral power for Chicago's only elected black mayor. Length 11.3 minutes.

Why the public should care any more about the issue of a longer school day; administering city government by press release and press conference; and getting information from government more easily than via FOIA requests. Length 13.5 minutes.

The narrative that Rahm Emanuel perpetuates; the impact of Emanuel's aspirations on how Chicago government operates; and Chicago's brief, four-year experiment with democracy. Length 12 minutes.

Renaissance 2010 as the basis for charter schools in poor neighborhoods; the main reasons for the depopulation of public schools; and who doesn't send their kids to charters. Length 16.8 minutes.

What might have undermined a potential 2007 JJJ mayoral campaign; how constituents exercise authority over elected officials who don't show up for work; and term limits vs. truly alternative candidates. Length 15.3 minutes.

What constitutes a selective enrollment school; what the old Jones Commercial High School provided that no CPS school does today; and the long-term wisdom of selling off school property. Length 11.8 minutes.

An unexpected rebuttal to Mayor Emanuel; the proposed state legislation to tax financial transactions and where it went; and an industry dedicated to the elimination of jobs. Length 10.3 minutes.