April 28, 2013

Think Washington's Bad? Try Illinois

By Chad Stafko
The Land of Lincoln and home state of President Barack Obama has become nothing short of a fiscal and economic disaster.  The Illinois labor market continues to weaken and the State government loses money by the truckload every day.  If you think the nation's economic and fiscal conditions are bad, and they are, then pull up a chair and consider it could be worse...you could live in Illinois. Illinois has a population of about 12.8 million, making it the fifth largest state in the Union.  It has oustanding debt of more than $153 billion or nearly $12,000 per citizen of the State.  Worse is the fact that Illinois is spending some $6 billion more than it is raking into its coffers. The massive red ink that characterizes the State government has caused Illinois to owe its public schools some $768 million.  That equates to about $1,100 per student attending public schools in Illinois. These are indeed atrocious fiscal numbers, but the woeful economic...(Read Full Article)