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Phil Kadner biography

Phil Kadner’s column appears five times a week on Page 2 of the print edition of the SouthtownStar.

He believes columnists should advocate for readers …

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Kadner: Riot at CCA prison may kill Crete plan

A Mississippi congressman is calling for an investigation of an inmate riot this week at a prison owned by Corrections Corporation of America. CCA, the largest owner of privately operated prisons in the United States, has proposed building a 750-bed immigration detention center in Crete. …

Kadner: ‘Ashford House Five’ make court appearance

The Ashford House Five looked like a group of punks and thugs. That was my first impression as I stared at the five men who stood before Circuit Court Judge Terence B. Smith Monday afternoon at the Cook County courthouse in Bridgeview. My judgment may …

Kadner: Crete detention hearing to include ICE officials

Crete residents for the first time will have a chance Monday to question federal immigration officials about plans to build a 750-bed detention center in their village. U.S. Reps. Jesse Jackson Jr. (D-2nd) and Luis Gutierrez (D-4th) are hosting a town hall meeting on the …

Kadner: Illinois should place bet on Internet poker’s future

State Senate President John Cullerton (D-Chicago) wants Illinois to become the first state in the nation to legalize online poker. Earlier this week, Cullerton announced he would introduce a bill creating a Division of Internet Gaming within the state lottery. I’ve been critical of the …

Kadner: When office lottery pools end up in the courts

It’s the nightmare of anyone who has been asked to participate in an office lottery pool. Your co-workers buy a ticket that wins millions and you’re left out. Well, the nightmare is reality for two men who work at the Pita Pan bakery in Chicago …

Kadner: DeLuca can’t pass buck on Crete detention center

It seemed strange that a decision not to vote on something would be interpreted as a “yes” vote. But that’s what state Rep. Anthony DeLuca (D-Chicago Heights) told me during a telephone call. If the Crete Village Board failed to take a public position on …

Kadner: Madigan plan takes cash from suburbs and schools

Confusion. Panic. Division. It seems those are the goals of Illinois House Speaker Michael Madigan as he leads the Legislature toward teacher pension reform. On Monday, groups representing suburban mayors and school districts were in a state of panic because of three legislative amendments that …

Kadner: Why one man cared about burials for the poor

“What we do about the dead says more about the living than the dead.” Those are the words, spoken to me many years ago, of the Rev. Joseph Ledwell. Ledwell, the longtime pastor of Homewood First Presbyterian Church before his death in 2008, presided over …

Kadner: Orland Metra lot has parking but no handicapped access

I’m going to call this the Metra Challenge for the Handicapped. That’s because I recently visited a Metra station in Orland Park that has handicapped parking, but where everything but a climbing wall has been installed to make access impossible for disabled commuters. Located near …

Kadner: GOP leaders almost oppose pension shift

Republican leaders in the Legislature oppose shifting the cost of suburban and downstate teacher pensions from the state to local school districts. Sort of. Kind of. Not exactly. Senate Minority Leader Christine Radogno (R-Lemont) and House Minority leader Tom Cross (R-Oswego) participated in a conference …

Kadner: Kirk talks about tax cuts due to quality health care

U.S. Sen. Mark Kirk (R-Ill.) on Tuesday released a brief videotape of his recovery process from a severe stroke he suffered Jan. 21. He speaks in a halting voice, thanks his nurses and doctors at the Rehabilitation Institute of Chicago and then sends a message …

Kadner: Senior struggles to pay his property tax bill

There’s no tax as unfair or more harmful than the property tax. Tony Ruffalo, 74, understands that in a way he never did before. Ruffalo, who lives in Crete Township, has an income of about $29,000 a year. He’s been trying to sell his home …

Kadner: Trying to get insight from a fill-in lawmaker

There seems to be a disconnect between state lawmakers and their constituents that baffles me. I was hoping that Charles “Chuck” Krezwick might be able to bridge the gap. Krezwick in February was named to fill the unexpired term of state Rep. Kevin McCarthy in …

Kadner: Where the local florist buys Mother’s Day flowers

Tucked inside an industrial park in Alsip, surrounded by belching smokestacks, is the sweetest-smelling place you’re likely to find in the Southland. Vans Floral Products supplies flowers, plants, vases, ribbons, baskets, statuary and just about everything else they might need to 1,200 retail florists in …

Kadner: Debt and taxes grow, Cook County treasurer reports

Cook County Treasurer Maria Pappas believes that if people find out how local governments are spending their tax money they will do something about it. So Pappas has accumulated an impressive amount of financial data on 489 of the 553 government bodies that collect property …

Kadner: Local voters trust leaders to buy cheap electricity

It could be considered a poll on how much voters trust their suburban governments. Cook County Clerk David Orr isn’t making that kind of judgment, but he has gathered some statistics on the March primary election that are interesting, if not especially revealing. Of 62 …

Kadner: Unincorporated areas exist for a reason

Cook County Board President Toni Preckwinkle wants to eliminate unincorporated areas to cut her budget. After a failed attempt to persuade municipalities to take control of these areas last year, she appointed a task force to study the issue. On Monday, the task force, after …

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