Monday, September 21, 2009

Tribune: Aldermen vs. the people

Wal-Mart is still part of the op/ed scene!
Wal-Mart's plans to build a second store in Chicago remain bottled up in the Chicago City Council. The store that Wal-Mart would like to build on the South Side at 83rd Street and Stewart Avenue, is going nowhere because the aldermen live in fear of organized labor and organized labor despises Wal-Mart.

We know organized labor wants to keep Wal-Mart from expanding in Chicago. But what do the aldermen's constituents want?

The answer is clear: They want the opportunity to work or shop at Wal-Mart.

A new Tribune/WGN poll found that 68 percent of city residents would like to see a new Wal-Mart store in Chicago, and 72 percent say Wal-Mart would be good for the community. The support is even higher with African-Americans, who stand to gain the most economic benefit from the proposed South Side store. The poll found 72 percent of African-Americans want Wal-Mart in the city and 81 percent say it would be good for the community.
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But the aldermen aren't listening to their constituents. The unions provide money and troops at election time. Apparently the aldermen have decided that keeping the labor bosses happy is more critical than following the wishes of their citizens.

Politically, that might be a savvy calculation, if they figure voters don't feel too strongly about this. They figure they won't suffer any consequences for blocking 200 construction jobs and up to 500 retail sales jobs.

Don't be so sure about that. The chamber poll asked: "Has Chicago's City Council succeeded or failed to bring job growth and economic development to Chicago?" The answer: 66 percent said the council has failed. Just 12 percent said it has succeeded.

Aldermen, you're not fooling anybody.

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