Crony Capitalism Chicago Style: Cook County Democrats Get Campaign Contributions from Companies Asking For A Favor

The Chicago Reader reports:

I applaud Springfield's gift to our financial exchanges. Sure, it's a lot of money: the tax breaks the general assembly just passed for CME Group Inc. and for the smaller Chicago Board Options Exchange will cost Illinois $85 million a year.

But running an exchange is expensive business, especially with so many hungry mouths to feed. For CME—the parent of the Chicago Mercantile Exchange and the Chicago Board of Trade—those mouths include mayor Rahm Emanuel, house speaker Mike Madigan, governor Pat Quinn, and alderman and finance chair Ed Burke, big eaters all.

Just since 2010, CME's grocery bill for these four has set it back $420,000: the exchange group has given $200,000 to Emanuel, $100,000 to Madigan, $90,000 to Quinn, and $30,000 to Burke.

CME has also contributed $25,000 since 2006 to Madigan's daughter, Lisa—the attorney general. That's a drop in the bucket for the younger Madigan, who has raised millions since she first ran for state senate in 1997—but it's a nice gesture to the speaker. It was also a nice gesture when CME gave Anne Burke—Ed Burke's wife—$2,500 in 2007 for her successful campaign for the Illinois supreme court.

The needs of elected officials don't disappear in tough times, and CME has not abandoned its children just because the economy has foundered. The elder Madigan once could count on $5,000 every year or two from the Chicago Mercantile Exchange (CME's title before it acquired the Board of Trade in 2007). Lately the speaker can count on CME for much more: it gave him $35,000 in 2008, $50,000 in 2009, and the $100,000 last year.

That's the Chicago Way!