WASHINGTON – Four Illinois legislators, Sens. Dick Durbin and Barack Obama and Reps. Jerry Costello and John Shimkus, are urging U.S. Attorney General Michael Mukasey to review the findings of several Veterans’ Administration investigations of the Marion VA Medical Center for possible criminal violations.
The VA investigations have probed the…
WASHINGTON–Politicians manipulate the media in myriad ways, from how they frame a story to when release information to the press. A fresh example, among local lawmakers at least, is a missive we got at 9 pm Sunday night from Rep. Jerry Costello.
The…
WASHINGTON—Rep. Jerry Costello has always been an avid earmarker, snagging millions of dollars for his southern Illinois district. But he may have to trim his spending requests, if only a little, due to his wife’s new job as president of Southwestern…
WASHINGTON–Lawmakers are easing back into the legislative groove after a week-long 4th of July recess. On the agenda in the Senate are some pre-break leftovers—a housing rescue bill, terrorist surveillance legislation, and a Medicare payment fix for doctors, all items the Senate…
WASHINGTON–Just because the bi-state region’s members of Congress are all in pretty safe seats doesn’t mean they’re not busily raising and spending campaign cash.
Here’s a quick run-down of what local House members reported raising and spending in their first quarter…
