Chicago Public Schools blasted for improper spending, use of clout

WBEZ reports:

The Chicago Board of Education was spending lavishly on such items as liquor and flowers, even as the school district was bracing for a budget crisis.

Chicago Public Schools’ Inspector General James Sullivan lists hundreds of thousands of dollars in inappropriate expenditures by the Board in a newly released report. Those included Soldier Field skybox suites, catered lunches for 50 people on days when the board held its monthly meetings, and holiday parties at a board official’s home that cost the district thousands.

The report says the board also spent $3,000 to have its offices and the CEO offices "swept for electronic eavesdropping devices." And the district gave away $750,000 to charities, some of which board members had direct ties to.

Illinois Governor Pat Quinn says spending money on education is an "investment". Your tax dollars are an "investment" for these overpaid government workers.