Photo of the Day - December 5, 2020

NBA Style

Rocket's Seth Gooch and Spartans' Visar Arslani battle for possession of a loose ball during fourth quarter action of their non-conference game played at Indianapolis' Conseco Fieldhouse. Now called Bankers Life Fieldhouse, the two Illinois rival programs took advantage of the opportunity to play in the NBA arena back on December 7, 2008. Unity went on to defeat St. Joseph-Ogden, 53-49. [Photo: PhotoNews/Clark Brooks]

We have an obligation to our heroes

Op-Ed by Darren Bailey

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More than two dozen Illinois veterans residing at the LaSalle Veterans’ Home have died from COVID-19. If this seems familiar, you are correct. We’ve been down this road before.

"The obligation we have to these heroes and to their families is sacred and to have that obligation so thoroughly neglected is an unconscionable moral failing. This is incompetence. It is gross mismanagement. This is what happens when a governor refuses to take charge."

This statement isn’t being made by me. It was made more than two years ago by J.B. Pritzker, who was commenting about then-Governor Bruce Rauner and the Legionnaire’s Disease outbreak at the Quincy Veterans’ Home.

To date, 30 veterans have died due to the COVID-19 outbreak at the LaSalle Veterans’ Home, with 89 percent of the residents infected. Apparently, state government hasn’t learned its lesson.

We have a moral obligation to our veterans and Governor Pritzker is failing to live up to that obligation. As J. B. previously pointed out, the buck stops at the Governor’s office.

A recent report by the U.S. The Department of Veterans Affairs, cited by the online news site The Center Square, indicated the home’s problems included ventilation problems, ineffective hand sanitizer and a Halloween party staff reportedly attended. Where were Governor’s Pritzker’s mitigation rules?

According to media reports, staff who showed positive virus test results were also allowed to work in the home’s COVID wing. It’s also been reported, it took 12 days before the Illinois Department of Public Health responded to the LaSalle Veterans’ Home outbreak. Another media report by the Associated Press indicated the outbreak first began in late October when one staff member and a resident tested positive for COVID.

Given past experience with Legionnaire’s Disease, how quickly it spread at the Quincy Veterans Home, and the rapid increase in the number of positive COVID cases statewide, state government should have been on red alert.

In fact, it was known by late May that half of the COVID deaths were in nursing homes. If these congregate living arrangements would have been a priority, the elderly vets at LaSalle Veterans’ Home could have been better protected.

I join my legislative colleagues, Senators Sue Rezin whose district is home to the LaSalle Veterans’ Home and Paul Schimpf a Marine Corps veteran of the Iraq War, who are calling for additional legislative hearings to get to the bottom of this crisis that threatens the lives of our heroes. Lessons learned could help protect other Illinoisans at nursing homes around the state.

Our veterans deserve better than the failed leadership Pritzker has showed. Real leadership is more than just lecturing people, it is about real results.

"After fatally mismanaging the Quincy Veterans’ Home, @BruceRauner is letting persistent health issues jeopardize the wellbeing of our nation’s heroes. This is a shameful display of failed leadership." – J.B. Pritzker, March 30, 2018, Twitter

Governor Pritzker is bold enough to hand out advice, following it is apparently a different challenge.

Darren Bailey is an Illinois State Representative from the 109th District.

Pandemic keeps Secretary of State offices closed until next year

The Illinois Secretary of State announced today that offices closed November 17 will now remain closed until week of January 4, according to a news release issued by Jessie White.

"As the health and safety of employees and the public are paramount, we decided to extend the closure of Driver Services facilities until Jan 4, 2021, due to the continuing COVID-19 pandemic," White said in the statement. "Unfortunately, face-to-face transactions potentially increase the further spread of the virus, and protecting the health and safety of our residents is my top priority."

Offices around the state have been closed since November 17 in anticipation of a surge in COVID-19 infections.

Locally, the Titon and Rantoul offices will remain open with limited services. The Tilton office, located at 5 Southgate Drive, and the Rantoul office at 421 S. Murray Road will continue to have drive-through license sticker renewals. In addition, the inside office will be open for commercial driver’s license (CDL) applications, and new drivers can also register at the facility.

White has expanded online services for the public, which they can take advantage of by visiting www.cyberdriveillinois.com. Some of these services include:

• Renewing a license plate sticker;
• Renewing a valid driver’s license for qualifying drivers;
• Renewing a valid ID card for those age 22-64 (seniors 65 and older have free, non-expiring IDs);
• Obtaining a driver record abstract;
• Filing Business Services documents, such as incorporations and annual reports; and
• Customers with issues involving administrative hearings may contact adminhearings@ilsos.gov.

White said expiration dates of driver’s licenses and ID cards have been extended until June 1 of next year.