Game on! Pritzker parries the 'insider' charge Kennedy lashes back
Chris Kennedy
Businessman Chris Kennedy  jumped in with  his  take: âThatâs why we have a divided government â  he  said. âFor gosh sakes  if weâre not going to call out other parts of government â if you donât see your role as governor to call out a mayor whoâs not representing the people of a certain city  if youâre not willing to call out an assessor whoâs violating the 1964 Civil Rights Act â if you donât think thatâs the proper role of government  you should go read the Constitution ...
Well  yes  Iâm all for calling politicians to account â pointing out their failings and demanding they do better. And while I understand that constructive criticism and attempts at engagement and compromise arenât politically fashionable  I donât think  Kennedy  set the table for long-term success  should  he  be elected  with  his  over-the-top accusation earlier this month that Mayor Rahm Emanuel is leading a âstrategic gentrification planâ to drive African-Americans and other minorities out of the city.
Iâd say the same thing about  Kennedy âs repeated claims  one example seen above  that successful property-tax appeals result in less money for our schools.
Thatâs not how property taxes work. Schools set an overall levy  and that amount is divvied up among all the property taxpayers in the district. When your tax bill goes down after an appeal  everyone elseâs goes up fractionally to compensate. Candidate Daniel Biss  a state senator from Evanston  explained this clearly to  Kennedy  during a similar session Wednesday before the Chicago Sun-Times Editorial Board.
[TGT] jumped in with   [TGT]   take: âThatâs why we have a divided government â   [TGT]   said. âFor gosh sakes  if weâre not going to call out other parts of government â if you donât see your role as governor to call out a mayor whoâs not representing the people of a certain city  if youâre not willing to call out an assessor whoâs violating the 1964 Civil Rights Act â if you donât think thatâs the proper role of government  you should go read the Constitution ...
Well  yes  Iâm all for calling politicians to account â pointing out their failings and demanding they do better. And while I understand that constructive criticism and attempts at engagement and compromise arenât politically fashionable  I donât think   [TGT] set the table for long-term success  should   [TGT]   be elected  with   [TGT]   over-the-top accusation earlier this month that Mayor Rahm Emanuel is leading a âstrategic gentrification planâ to drive African-Americans and other minorities out of the city.
Iâd say the same thing about   [TGT]  âs repeated claims  one example seen above  that successful property-tax appeals result in less money for our schools.
Thatâs not how property taxes work. Schools set an overall levy  and that amount is divvied up among all the property taxpayers in the district. When your tax bill goes down after an appeal  everyone elseâs goes up fractionally to compensate. Candidate Daniel Biss  a state senator from Evanston  explained this clearly to  Kennedy  during a similar session Wednesday before the Chicago Sun-Times Editorial Board.