Corrupt Illinois: Patronage, Cronyism, and Criminality

Corrupt Illinois: Patronage, Cronyism, and Criminality

Authors: Thomas J. Gradel – Dick Simpson
ISBN-10: 0252078551
ISBN-13: 9780252078552
Edition: 1st Edition
Release: January 20, 2015
Paperback: 288 pages
List Price
Book Description
Public funds spent on jets and horses. Shoeboxes stuffed with embezzled cash. Ghost payrolls and incarcerated ex-governors. Illinois’ culture of “Where’s mine?” and the public apathy it engenders has made our state and local politics a disgrace.   In Corrupt Illinois, veteran political observers Thomas J. Gradel and Dick Simpson take aim at business-as-usual. Naming names, the authors lead readers through a gallery of rogues and rotten apples to illustrate how generations of chicanery have undermined faith in, and hope for, honest government. From there, they lay out how to implement institutional reforms that provide accountability and eradicate the favoritism, sweetheart deals, and conflicts of interest corroding our civic life.  Corrupt Illinois lays out a blueprint to transform our politics from a pay-to-play–driven marketplace into what it should be: an instrument of public good.