"Mr. Obama also recently pointed to his work on the Illinois pension issue as a model for what he would do as president..."  The New York Times, 2007."Nineteen states were rated as meriting serious concerns. Illinois-the worst-performing state-was one of eight to earn zero points toward its pension grade... The state's pension plans are underfunded (at 54 percent), have high unfunded liabilities (340 percent of covered payroll) and have insufficient contributions (less than 60 percent of the actuarially required contribution was paid in 2008)."  The Trillion Dollar Gap, a report by the Pew Center on the States on state pensions and retiree benefits.(Read Full Post)