Bob Crawford Audio Archive

An inventory of the collection at the University of Illinois at Chicago



Collection Summary

Creator:Crawford, Bob
Title:Bob Crawford Audio Archive
Dates:1970-2000
Abstract: The Bob Crawford Audio Archive consists of roughly a hundred tapes of interviews, radio programs and City Council proceedings collected by Crawford over the last thirty years. The tapes have been digitized, and are available on the web as streaming RealMedia files.
Quantity: 1 linear ft.
Identification: Crawford

Biographical Sketch

Bob Crawford covered Chicago politics for local radio station WBBM-AM for over forty years. Crawford attended the University of Illinois, and earned his journalism degree in 1959. He began his work in the broadcast industry working for WILL, WPGU Radio and WCIA-TV. He began working for WBBM in 1968, and remained there until 2001. He is perhaps best known for WBBM's public affairs program "At Issue." He recieved a number of awards during his career, including being inducted into the Chicago Journalism Hall of Fame in 1995.

As WBBM's political editor and Chicago City Hall reporter, Crawford's coverage of Chicago politics spanned six mayoral administrations and included the many achievements and scandals of Chicago's City Council. He also covered a number of national stories, including a stint with CBS in 1980 covering the end of the Iranian hostage crisis and the transition between the Carter and Reagan administrations. Even after his retirement, Crawford continues to appear on the local media, providing local political analysis for outlets including WBBM, Chicago Public Radio, and WTTW.

Scope and Contents

The Bob Crawford Audio Archive consists of over 58 hours of audio spanning almost forty years of Chicago political history. Beginning with the mayoralty of the first Mayor Daley and extending to 2001, the archive includes interviews and audio clips with all of the Chicago mayors since 1968, as well as many other local, state and national political figures.

The audio links in this finding aid point to streaming RealMedia files. In order to play these audio clips, you need to have a copy of RealPlayer installed on your computer. A free version of RealPlayer can be downloaded for Windows, Macintosh and Linux computers at Real.com.

This finding aid is currently a work-in-progress. While all of the audio files are currently available through this page, Crawford's descriptions of these tracks are still in the process of being posted online.

The descriptions of the clips included in this finding aid were all written by Bob Crawford, and do not necessarily represent the opinions of the University of Illinois.

Detailed Description/Tape and Track Listing

Richard J. Daley

TapeTrack
RJDaley01a01A biographical piece by reporter Bob Crawford on Richard J. Daley's sense of humor. Contains a funny passage of the Mayor telling a labor audience about the luncheon meeting he had with maverick independent Democratic Governor Dan Walker right after Walker's election. (1:20) undated Listen.
02A biographical piece by reporter Bob Crawford on one of Richard J. Daley's biggest setbacks, his ouster along with other Chicago delegates from the 1972 Democratic National Convention. Contains a passage of Daley bitterly attacking federal judges after the courts ruled against him and his delegation. (1:25) undated Listen.
03A biographical piece by reporter Bob Crawford on the corruption, vote fraud and other scandals that marred the tenure of Richard J. Daley. Contains a passage of Daley boasting to party leaders that he never violated the public trust or "they would have had me ten years ago." (1:30) undated Listen.
04A biographical piece by reporter Bob Crawford on Richard J. Daley's controversial handling of the anti-war riots in Chicago during the 1968 Democratic National Convention. Contains a passage of Daley telling an audience later that the demonstrators "were sick." (1:48) undated Listen.
05A biographical piece by reporter Bob Crawford on Richard J. Daley as the last of the big city bosses. Talks about the power of the political machine he ran in Chicago and contains a passage of Daley defending his troops at a party meeting. (1:32) undated Listen.
06A biographical piece by reporter Bob Crawford on the "Shoot to Kill" order Richard J. Daley issued to Police against arsonists who set fires on Chicago's west side in the wake of the assassination of Doctor Martin Luther King. Contains a passage of Daley informing reporters of the order he had just issued to the Superintendent of Police and which drew world wide condemnation. (1:30) undated Listen.
07A biographical piece by reporter Bob Crawford on the vote fraud that dogged the Machine throughout the tenure of Party Chairman and Mayor Richard J. Daley. Contains a passage of Daley at a Party meeting mocking critics who accuse the Machine of stealing votes. He calls it "mental fraud on themselves." (1:38) undated Listen.
08A biographical piece by reporter Bob Crawford on the political patronage and nepotism that Richard J. Daley presided over to maintain the bond of loyalty that kept the Machine united. Contains a passage of Daley angrily defending his appointment of the son of his City Council leader Tom Keane to a lucrative job. (2:00) undated Listen.
09Mayor Daley elaborates on the shoot to kill order he issued to Police to deal with arsonists who set fires on Chicago's west side. He says looters should have been shot, too, and that Mace should have been used on them. He says an arsonist is a murderer and anyone who throws a Molotov cocktail into a home should be shot "right on the spot." (0:30) 20 April 1968 Listen.
10In the same speech, the Mayor says that men caught with Molotov cocktails, incendiary devices or fire bombs of any kind are the same as the assassins that pulled the triggers on the guns that killed the Reverend Martin Luther King Jr. and the late President John F. Kennedy. He says we cannot resign ourselves to the proposition that civil protests must lead to death and devastation (0:28) 20 April 1968 Listen.
11In the same speech, the Mayor says certainly a police officer should do everything in his power to prevent a crime and make an arrest by utilizing the minimum force necessary, but not when an arsonist is carrying out a dangerous, murderous, mission where such minimum force would not deter him. (0:56) 20 April 1968 Listen.
12In one of his most memorable speeches ever, the Mayor defends the appointment of the son of his City Council Majority Leader Thomas Keane to a lucrative post in the face of criticism from Alderman Dick Simpson (a college professor) that it was blatant nepotism. This speech is an excellent example of how Richard J. Daley was always quick to defend the system of political patronage and nepotism which was the bond of loyalty that kept the Machine together. (4:20) 21 August 1971 Listen.
13The Mayor licks his wounds and turns humble after his Machine suffers rare losses in the 1972 Democratic primaries for Governor and Cook County State's Attorney. He says the people have spoken and as the loyal Democrat that he is he shall support thecandidacy of Ed Hanrahan (the incumbent he tried to unseat as States Attorney) with vigor and enthusiasm. (0:35) March 1972 Listen.
14In the same exchange with reporters, the Mayor reveals what he said to State's Attorney Ed Hanrahan in a phone conversation. He then goes on to say that when you win you do it with humility and when you lose you do it with courage. (0:24) March 1972 Listen.
15In the same exchange with reporters, the Mayor tries to put the best spin on the Machine's losses in the primary. He says a primary fight is a family fight and that it proves the value of the primary system, itself. (0:51) March 1972 Listen.
16March of 1972. In the same exchange with reporters, the Mayor makes it clear he will support maverick, independent Democrat Dan Walker for Governor (even though he did not support him in the primary). He says his view is that you are bound to support the nominee of the Party because the majority rules. He says he does not walk away, that he does not take any walks. (0:44) March 1972 Listen.
17March of 1972. In the same exchange with reporters, the Mayor responds to a question about whether the Democratic Machine in Chicago might be losing it's power. He says he doesn't think the Party ever had the power. He says that was just the view of the journalists and people in TV and Radio. He says the power belongs to the people and they demonstrated it clearly and loudly today. (0:20) March 1972 Listen.
18The Mayor talks to members of his family, friends, staff members and the news media on the occasion of his 70th birthday. He talks about his family and says the Lord has been very good to him. (4:26) 15 May 1972 Listen.
19The Mayor attacks the so-called "Singer 59" group that was holding caucus meetings to select an independent slate of delegates to replace Daley's Chicago delegates at the 1972 Democratic National Convention. He responds to media accounts of how his forces tried to disrupt the caucus meetings. He says lets find out the truth. He says there were no fist fights. He says his people had a right to be there and to ask questions. And referring to the fact the caucus sessions were closed he asks, "what is this, the Singer Machine?" And he accuses the caucus chairman of being on the State Republican payroll. (2:00) 26 June 1972 Listen.
20The Mayor talks about how unfair he thinks the "Singer 59" caucus meetings are. He says a Republican employee on a state payroll is calling a meeting of Democrats in a district in which he does not live to select candidates to replace the candidates who were elected by the people. (0:21) 26 June 1972 Listen.
21In the same exchange with reporters, the Mayor grows angry over the play the news media gave to his allies trying to disrupt the caucus meetings of the "Singer 59". He says the charge by the Singer forces that his people were using "Gestapo tactics" to try and sabotage the caucus meetings was "the concoction and the imagination...the deceit and deception of the writers who wanna write it the way they think it happened, not the way it happened." He insists there was not a hand put on anyone by any of his people and he tells reporters "if you say it, you lie." (0:17) 26 June 1972 Listen.
22The Mayor delivers a speech to a labor rally in support of Democratic Presidential candidate George McGovern. He talks about the marriage of the Democratic Party and Labor and he praises the unions for helping him, the city, the state and the country. He says there shouldn't be any turning back in 72 (he means temptation by Party regulars to retaliate against McGovern after his forces got the Chicago delegation thrown out of the Democratic National Convention). He says there shouldn't be any Party division and he's confident the people will support McGovern. (6:00) 10 October 1972 Listen.
23The Mayor addresses a rally of Democratic Party precinct captains on the eve of the March primary elections to build "concerned with issues." enthusiasm for an all out effort on election day. He cautions the party faithful against apathy. He says the Democratic organization has no apologies to make. He says all our meetings are in the open. We have nothing to hide. He mocks the media for speculating the Machine might be in decline. He talks about a series of election victories that were just won and says all of them were won by you the declining organization. He says we won't go around apologizing. He says we won some and we lost some and he says we stand along side of those who stand with us. (8:40) March 1974 Listen.
TapeTrack
RJDaley0101A biographical piece by reporter Bob Crawford on the stroke Mayor Richard J. Daley suffered on May 6, 1974. Contains a passage of the Mayor talking to members of the Cook County Democratic Organization about his illness and how he prayed he would not be left crippled because he didn't want to be a burden to anyone. (2:50) undated Listen.
02A biographical piece by reporter Bob Crawford on Mayor Richard J. Daley "The Great Builder", focusing on Daley's massive public works achievements. Contains a passage of the Mayor fending off charges from critics that he put too much emphasis on building downtown high rises and not enough on rebuilding neighborhoods. (1:35) undated Listen.
03A biographical piece by reporter Bob Crawford on how Mayor Richard J. Daley nearly ran for Governor of Illinois in 1960. Contains a passage of Daley telling reporters in an interview how he could have been the candidate for Governor in 1960 and why he chose to not run. He says you couldn't have an Irish Catholic on the ticket for President (John F. Kennedy) and an Irish Catholic for Governor and expect to carry the State of Illinois. (1:32) undated Listen.
04A biographical piece by reporter Bob Crawford on Mayor Richard J. Daley's election history. He ran six times for Mayor. Contains a passage of the Mayor telling reporters the secret to winning elections is to have a good organization and good candidates and loyal precinct captains who will go door to door delivering the message. (1:41) undated Listen.
05A biographical piece by reporter Bob Crawford focusing on Richard J. Daley's power as Boss of Chicago. Contains a passage of the Mayor offering his view of power and how it ought to be exercised. (1:25) undated Listen.
06A biographical piece by reporter Bob Crawford focusing on Richard J. Daley's power as Boss of Chicago. Contains a passage of the Mayor offering his view of power and how it ought to be exercised. (1:31) undated Listen.
07A biographical piece by reporter Bob Crawford on Richard J. Daley's love of sports. Contains a passage of Daley talking about his love of the White Sox, a team that played all of it's home games within the shadows of his boyhood and adult homes in Bridgeport. (1:34) undated Listen.
TapeTrack
RJDaley0201On the occasion of his 19th anniversary in office, the Mayor talks about his love for Chicago and how he tries to make decisions for the people, not on the basis of partisan politics. Says he thinks his Administration has made tremendous progress in most areas but not in some areas, such as housing. (1:35) 20 April 1974 Listen.
02During the same discussion with reporters in his City Hall Office, the Mayor talks about the importance of his powerful Democratic organization. He says you couldn't pass many of your programs without a strong organization. He says if your a leader and you have no votes behind you how can you pass your programs? He says many people believe they do it all by themselves but that is a serious mistake. (0:44) 20 April 1974 Listen.
03During the same discussion with reporters, the Mayor talks about one of his biggest disappointments, not rebuilding a lot of older neighborhoods. He says there is too much vacant land in the city. (0:36) 20 April 1974 Listen.
04During the same discussion with reporters, the Mayor offers interesting insights on his personal power. He says if you can use the power to do some good, if you can use what you have in the way of power to help people then you try to do whatever you can in the exercise of that power. He says power in itself is meaningless unless it's directed at a good cause. He goes on to say he doesn't consider himself powerful. He describes himself as an ordinary mayor trying to do the job all mayors try to do. (0:43) 20 April 1974 Listen.
05During the same discussion with reporters, the Mayor talks about what he considers to be the secret of a good political organization. He says its to have the right candidates with good issues and then have a dedicated and devoted people (he means precinct captains) who will go door to door to talk to voters about the candidates and the issues. (0:48) 20 April 1974 Listen.
06During the same discussion with reporters, the Mayor talks about how he nearly ran for Governor of Illinois in 1960. He says he could have been the Democratic candidate but he realized that having an Irish Catholic candidate for President (John F. Kennedy) and an Irish Catholic candidate on the ticket for Governor (him) would not have worked if you expected to carry the State of Illinois. He goes on to say some of his friends also wanted to put his name in as a possible Vice Presidential candidate but he asked them not to do it. (0:52) 20 April 1974 Listen.
07During the same discussion with reporters, the Mayor boasts that Chicago's Model Cities Program did much to combat poverty in the City. He says he thinks we (his Administration) take care of the poor better than any other city in the United States, despite criticism. Note: Critics frequently charged that Daley's Model Cities Program was a haven for more political patronage paid for by the Federal Government. (0:49) 20 April 1974 Listen.
08During the same discussion, the Mayor talks about the frequently heard charge that his Administration and political organization are riddled with institutional corruption. He says you find corruption where there isn't a strong organization. He goes on to contend that corruption in Chicago is individual, not general, and he says he has made it clear time and time again that if we find out (about corruption) we change things and get rid of the people who are doing it, if there's enough evidence. (0:27) 20 April 1974 Listen.
09Mayor Richard J. Daley addresses the State Street Council's annual meeting. The speech provides a window to Daley's thinking on several subjects. He credits the initiative of business leaders with helping to build Chicago. He talks about his vision for a walkway along the Chicago River and says he hopes to see the day when people can fish in the river, cook their catch on an outdoor barbecue and have a cold bottle of beer. He talks about plans for the new State Street Mall and jokes about the Picasso statue in the civic center plaza. He says he thinks it's a woman. He talks about wanting to take down the CTA elevated train system in the loop, that it's been up long enough. He says he makes no apologies to those who say he has done too much for downtown. He says the loop is a neighborhood, too, like all neighborhoods and provides thousands and thousands of jobs. He says "whats good for State Street is good for Chicago." He says we (in the Administration) pay no attention to people who call us a lot of names. He calls them harping critics, most of who have never built anything in their lives. He says they think the Sermon on the Mount should be corrected. (22:00) 28 January 1975 Listen.
10The Mayor addresses members of the Cook County Democratic Organization three weeks before the mayoral primary. He raps the news media for failing to do stories on all the ethic groups from around the city that attended an open house at Party Headquarters(this is meant to counter the charge he doesn't pay attention to the neighborhoods). He says we have no apologies to make to anybody, that our record is one of performance not promises. He says we are not better than anyone else but don't tell us we're worst than anyone else. He boasts that there are some good performing schools (despite a system filled with problems). He says the school board isn't perfect but don't tell us they haven't tried. He blames the State for shortchanging the City on school aid. He decries the age of permissiveness ushered in, he says, by people like Doctor Spock who said "let your children be permissive. You throw a brick through a window its alright." Again defends his shoot to kill order and raps media for allegedly saying he gave orders to shoot down children. He says he never said that. Says the Police Department was condemned all over the world for it's rough handling of the 1968 convention riots but "we have a good police department. (25:34) [This track was originally divided over tapes 2 and 3] 3 February 1975 Listen.
TapeTrack
RJDaley0301Mayor addresses another rally of Democratic Party precinct captains. He says his record is based on performance, not promises. He says he has tried to do the best he could. He concedes he has not succeeded on all issues. He talks about the song that says "Give me some stout hearted men" and says thats what we have in this organization. He goes on to list what he considers the most important problems...employment, spiraling inflation, and the plight of senior citizens. He says he wants to improve housing and public health and boasts about having the 4th budget in a row without a property tax increase. He talks about the "super-doopers" with their striped pants from Madison Avenue trying to create false images for candidates but says they don't know Chicago, that they've never encountered an organization like Chicago's. He says no image maker will be able to turn around the good work of his Administration. He concedes the public schools are not perfect but says he'll put the city's 27-thousand teachers against anyone. He talks about the media and critics "twisting the facts" on his record, says some have suggested it's time to pass the torch. He says he considered it but then said if he can still contribute something, he will do it. (20:52) 10 February 1975 Listen.
02During a news conference, the Mayor tells a group of reporters not to believe everything they read in the newspaper. He goes on to rap reporters for taking the testimony of his Fire Commissioner Robert Quinn (which he delivered in connection with a lawsuit against the Fire Dept) out of context. (3:17) February 1975 Listen.
03The Mayor addresses a big labor rally on the eve of the mayoral primary where he asks for the help of the unions and "support....cheering." one leader in the audience can be heard responding "you've got it!" He talks again about his top priorities...jobs, dealing with inflation, helping senior citizens, improving public health, better housing, doing something about water and air pollution. Continuing the speech, the Mayor tells his audience how he told a TV station General Manager he didn't want his endorsement because he didn't believe stations should be allowed to do that. He says can you imagine what would happen if the networks endorsed a candidate and then all their stations got behind t candidate. He says you might as well not have an election. He then goes on to question dual ownership of newspapers and TV stations and says he has no apologies to make about his standing up for big labor. (13:20) [This track was originally divided over tapes 3 and 4] 7 February 1975 Listen.
TapeTrack
RJDaley0401Addressing a meeting of the Chicago Convention and Tourism Bureau, the Mayor complains about the mood of doom and gloom in the country. He says there is nothing wrong with America and it's people. He says we are not witnessing, as the great journalists are anticipating, the decline of Rome. He says all we need is confidence in one another and an Administration in Washington that will move the country ahead. He says we have to increase production. He raps the huge profits of the corporations. He goes on to allude to corruption (mainly Watergate) saying we've had some sorry spectacles but all the men in public life are not thieves. He says no matter what the profession, there are people who don't carry out their responsibilities. But he says there has been a saturation of bad publicity that has come from sources that should know otherwise. And he says let the media start talking about whats good in this country and we'll get this thing movin again. (This speech was delivered against the background of a lingering economic recession). (3:19) March 1975 Listen.
02The Mayor talks about his favorite day of the year, St. Patrick's Day, during a holiday gathering in his City Hall Office reception area. He says it's a day to forget all the doom and gloom. He then launches into a discussion about violence in Northern Ireland and says all of Ireland should be united one day. (1:32) March 1975 Listen.
03The Mayor responds to protests accusing the Chicago Police Department of engaging in illegal spying by it's so-called "Red Squad." The testy exchange with reporters begins with Daley objecting to a question from a reporter about why the police were spying on law abiding groups that dared to criticize City Hall. He says it's not a fair question. He then delivers an impassioned defense of police surveillance activities saying to reporters you all know what happened in 1968 (the riots during the Democratic National Convention) and later when SDS (Students for a Democratic Society) was threatening to fire bomb businesses in Chicago. He says its ridiculous to say the police should not conduct surveillance like the Feds (the FBI) do. He says police have a right to conduct surveillance but he insists he had nothing to do with what the "Red Squad" was doing, that it was all under the Police Department. He says the complaints of illegal spying are political propaganda. Says he stands behind the Police Department but if they did anything wrong will be corrected. (2:23) 25 March 1975 Listen.
04The Mayor responds to the release of internal Police Department documents showing police carried out an aggressive campaign of spying on individuals and groups that appeared to violate civil rights laws. He tells an audience there has never been any secret about the Police Department gathering information on groups and individuals who either announced openly a policy of disruption or demonstrated over and over again a strategy of physical confrontation. He says he has always opposed illegal spying but the rights of citizens have to be protected. He says it's regrettable that the names of some innocent people were put in police reports but he says you shouldn't worry about that if you did nothing wrong. And he says they've been investigating me for 30 or 40 years. He says "as far as I know" the surveillance was done to gather information only, nothing else. He says everything should be done to protect the personal liberties and private lives of citizens from encroachment by any official agency. But he says the police must have basic knowledge of organizations and individua to determine what their objectives are and whether they intend to use public disorder to achieve their objectives. (3:07) 26 March 1975 Listen.
05Richard J. Daley delivers a victory statement after winning election to a 6th term as Mayor of Chicago. He says with the help of God he will do everything he can to make Chicago a better city. (2:04) 1 April 1975 Listen.
06The Mayor raps the Democratic National Committee for turning the site selection process for national "convention." party conventions into a bidding process. He says he would be happy if the Party chose Chicago as it's convention site in 1976 (despite what happened in 1968) but he says we're not gonna turn it into a commercial auction. Note: Many felt Daley adopted this stance as an excuse to take Chicago out of the competition for the national convention at a time when he knew many Democrats were still upset over what happened in 1968 and would quickly reject Chicago as a site, dealing another embarrassment to him. (1:05) 15 April 1975 Listen.
07During the same news conference, the Mayor says as a personal matter he would like to see the Democratic National Convention come to Chicago again, but not on a bidding proposition. (0:20) 15 April 1975 Listen.
08During the same news conference, the Mayor says he doesn't think the Chicago Bears will move to Arlington Heights. But he insists that if they do, they won't be able to call themselves the Chicago Bears any longer. In blunt terms he says "like hell they will." He says they'll be a lot of objections from the Mayor of Chicago. Note: These remarks were prompted by reports the Bears were considering moving into a new stadium in Arlington Heights, perhaps next door to the Arlington Park Race Track. (1:04) 15 April 1975 Listen.
09During the same news conference and still on the subject of the Bears possibly moving to the suburbs, the Mayor says they (the Bears) are talking about a closed stadium and he says "what the hell, we don't need a closed stadium in Chicago!" He says we like to sit out in October and November and inhale that fine breeze from the Middle West...pure air from Chicago. Everybody laughs. Note: Daley is alluding here to the fact that, as the price for remaining in Chicago, the Bears wanted the Mayor to sign on to the building of a new domed stadium. (0:20) 15 April 1975 Listen.
10The Mayor attacks the federal courts for injecting themselves into the remapping of Congressional districts after the parties could not agree. He accuses the courts of drawing a partisan map that built a Chinese wall around Chicago. (1:22) 15 April 1975 Listen.
11Richard J. Daley delivers his inaugural address after being sworn in as Mayor of Chicago for the sixth time. The Mayor renews his pledge to the people to do his best. He says he will begin carrying out his mandate in an atmosphere of uncertainty. He says it has become easier to put a man on the moon and to cure a heart than it is to clear a slum (in Chicago and other major cities). He goes on to recite a laundry list of accomplishments and says in the future we must be careful not to state our goals as if they are programs. He says that would create expectations that are too high. And he ends the address by quoting his favorite Irish prayer. (16:55) 18 April 1975 Listen.
12The Mayor defends the Board of Education in the wake of a report by Chicago United, a respected business group, which says the public schools in Chicago are bad and getting worse. He says the school board has been subjected to heavy criticism "violently unfair" in the press and on TV. He says everybody is an expert but in many cases the "experts" on TV don't have the facts and don't know what's going on. (0:52) 22 January 1975 Listen.
13During the same appearance, the Mayor stresses that 20 years ago he said he wouldn't inject politics into the schools. He says I have no right to do that. It's too sacred to me. He says the school kids don't need political leadership. He says they need leadership from the Board. Note: Daley is reacting to criticism during the mayoral campaign from opponents and critics that he has injected politics into the public schools by loading the system with wasteful patronage and sweetheart contracts. (0:42) 22 January 1975 Listen.
14During the same appearance, the Mayor insists he is not angry about anything. But he says he resents anyone making erroneous and inaccurate charges. He says the school board is open to criticism and he claims he welcomes it. He says all criticism is not erroneous but much of it is and he says we should have an admission from the media that it is erroneous. (0:40) 22 January 1975 Listen.
15During the same appearance (a news conference) the Mayor rejects the suggestion of a reporter that conditions in the public schools are a legitimate campaign issue. He tells the reporter that if he thinks the schools should be dragged into a campaign then he better get out of bed. (0:20) 22 January 1975 Listen.
TapeTrack
RJDaley0501At a news conference, the Mayor demands to know where the evidence is to prove the Father of his son John's bride to be is linked to organized crime. (0:24) 23 April 1975 Listen.
02At the same news conference, the Mayor responds to a reminder from a reporter that the Father of his son John's future bride once took the 5th amendment against self incrimination before a grand jury investigating mob activities. Daley says everyone has a constitutional right to do that without anyone implying they have done wrong. (0:21) 23 April 1975 Listen.
03The Mayor talks about his ambitious plan to try and form a not for profit corporation to rehabilitate and replace housing in poor neighborhoods. He says he is going to ask the banks, savings and loans, and major businesses to put their money where their mouths are. Note: Daley used this proposal to try and deflect criticism he spent too much time building downtown high rises and was not giving enough effort to rebuilding old neighborhoods. (1:35) 23 April 1975 Listen.
04At the same news conference, the Mayor says the sons and daughters of public officials are not private. He means it isn't possible to shield them from the criticism the public official gets. He talks about how his daughters were forced to endure stories and editorials in the newspapers back when he was first running for Mayor in 1955 which predicted that if he were elected he would open the city up to prostitution and thugs. (0:38) 23 April 1975 Listen.
05Addressing delegates to the State Democratic Party Convention, the Mayor talks about the important lesson Democrats learned from the 1972 national convention.. He says the McGovern forces used stealth to win a great victory in Miami in 1972 but went on to lose the election after depriving over a million people from Chicago from being represented (when Daley's elected delegation was thrown out of the convention). Why? (did they lose the election). He says it was because the people will not stand for anyone usurping their right to elect delegates. (0:41) 6 June 1975 Listen.
06Talking with reporters, the Mayor says he doesn't know all the facts but is inclined to believe that reports police are continuing to spy on law abiding citizens and groups are over blown. And he says if the police can't do some surveillance what's going to become of our police departments in the country? Note: The Mayor's comments came in the wake of disclosures the police were still engaged in overly aggressive spying activities despite a pledge to stop such activities. (0:46) 6 June 1975 Listen.
07Talking with reporters, the Mayor says they've (he apparently means federal authorities like the FBI) have been spying on him for 20 years but says he doesn't worry about it. He says why would you worry if you did nothing wrong? (0:22) 6 June 1975 Listen.
08During remarks at a resolutions committee meeting at an annual U.S. Conference of Mayors Meeting in Boston, the Mayor steps into his role as the leading spokesman for all of the nation's major cities with a speech in which he declares the cities are in an emergency (because of the impact of an economic recession) and he says the cities have been neglected for too long. (0:58) 5 July 1975 Listen.
09During a news conference, the Mayor gives reporters a humorous account of how he went out to O'Hare Airport to greet President Nixon in the late stages of the Watergate Scandal and he ended up being a one man reception committee (because Republicans were distancing themselves from the damaged President). He insists it's true, that he was the only official out there. (0:30) 10 July 1975 Listen.
10During a news conference, the Mayor accuses Governor Dan Walker of failing to fulfill his constitutional responsibilities to properly fund public schools by vetoing a series of school funding bills. (0:48) 27 August 1975 Listen.
11Mayor Daley addresses a joint session of the Illinois General Assembly, urging lawmakers to override Governor Dan Walker's veto of school aid spending bills. Says the state constitution makes it clear primary responsibility for funding schools rests with the state. Says credibility of state and it's officials at stake. You were the ones who called for full funding of schools. (continuing) The Mayor mocks some lawmakers for contending that 125 or 130 million dollars more for public school aid is gonna throw the budget into an unstable position. Says Governor Dick Ogilvie shouldn't have been defeated for reelection after proposing a state income tax because it was meant to provide full funding for schools. And he says people without that kind of courage (he means Governor Walker) shouldn't be holding public office. He says this is not a partisan issue. This is no confrontation. He insists he's not appearing before the legislature for partisan purposes. (15:33) 23 October 1975 Listen.
12Fielding questions from members of the General Assembly, the Mayor says he has never equivocated on raising taxes to take care of the needs of the people. He says the trouble with too many people in politics today they haven't got enough guts to stand up and tell the true story. He says if we need an increase in taxes (to fully fund public schools) then they should be enacted. He says the corporate portion of the state income tax is the lowest in the country. And he says it's a fraud on the school children of Illinois to increase state spending by 10 million and then say you can't save 145-million (for the schools). (1:11) 23 October 1975 Listen.
13The Mayor gets into a heated exchange with downstate Republican Roscoe Cunningham. The Senator begins the exchange by saying this (fight over school funding) boils down to a struggle between you (Mayor Daley) and that other guy( Gov Dan Walker) for control of the Democratic Party, so why don't we just let the matter.....At this point the Mayor starts yelling.."no...no" and replies "Senator don't kid me. There's no control of the Party." He says we're talking about the needs of the school kids in Illinois. He accuses Senator Cunningham of trying to put words in his mouth. He says we're not talking about struggling for control of the Party. Pounding the podium in anger, Daley says he's not a candidate for any office, he won and won six times (in races for Mayor) and he insists he's down here talking for the kids of Illinois and he doesn't give a damn (who thinks differently). (1:00) 23 October 1975 Listen.
14Still arguing with Senator Roscoe Cunningham before a joint session of the Illinois General Assembly, the Mayor says the problem today is that too many lawmakers hide behind referendums and they should have the guts to vote yes or no on the question that's presented (overriding Gov. Walker's vetoes). "In your body there's.." (0:48) 23 October 1975 Listen.
15Before the same meeting of the Illinois General Assembly, the Mayor goes after a suburban Republican lawmaker who refers to a Chicago United business group study contending the City's public school system is loaded with waste. Daley says to the lawmaker..."in your body (the Legislature) there's a lot of waste..lets be kidding anyone." (he means lets not be kidding anyone). He suggests waste is a natural part of the democratic system. (0:18) 23 October 1975 Listen.
16Responding to the suggestion of another GOP lawmaker that he ought to lay some people off at the Chicago Board of Education because the payroll is bloated with patronage, the Mayor says he's not for laying people off at the Board of Education or anywhere else. He says there's 12 million people out of work (in the country) and in the name of God we should be doing something to put people to work, not laying them off. Note: Mayor Daley's effort to win a legislative override of Gov. Walker's veto of school aid bills failed and some Daley allies would later privately concede it was a mistake for the Mayor to go to Springfield to lobby legislators face to face because his appearance polarized the General Assembly. (0:13) 23 October 1975 Listen.
17The Mayor responds at a news conference to sensational newspaper disclosures that Illinois Bell was tapping the telephones of City Hall politicians. The Mayor says all of us are entitled to know if there are certain people tapping your wires. He says this is a very serious violation of the constitutional right to privacy. He goes on to say he knows his phones have been tapped. He says they've been tapping them for a good many years. He is referring here to federal authorities, probably the FBI. (0:50) 20 November 1975 Listen.
18At the same news conference, the Mayor says the wire tapping of phones is not only illegal but he says at the very least people who's phones are tapped should be told by authorities at the end of an investigation that their phones were tapped. Note: The Mayor does not mean that all wire tapping is illegal. (0:35) 20 November 1975 Listen.
19At the same news conference, the Mayor says what he does is an open book, that he is no saint and no sinner. He says anyone can listen to his phone conversations, that he doesn't care about surveillance. (0:15) 20 November 1975 Listen.
20Responding to a reporter who says there has been a suspicion for years that the phones in the City Hall Press Room were tapped, the Mayor says "they probably were...especially when they're betting on the horses down there.....laughter." (0:07) 20 November 1975 Listen.
21The Mayor blasts the interference of the courts in the fight over which Chicago delegation would be seated at the Democratic National Convention in 1972. He says the federal judges (who ruled against his delegation) were not elected. They are appointed and appointed for life and in many instances they are not familiar with the dispute because they don't live in the community. (0:24) 11 December 1974 Listen.
22During the same news conference, the Mayor says he hopes the National Democratic Party won't do in 1976 what it did at the 72 convention on delegate selection. He says we lost the election in 1972 by barring people (his Chicago delegation) and says we ought to be opening the door, not barring people. (0:26) 11 December 1974 Listen.
23During a labor luncheon address, the Mayor talks about the luncheon meeting he had with Governor-elect Dan Walker after his victory in 1972. It's a humorous account in which Daley suggests he could hardly believe his ears when Walker said he had no program and was gonna cut the state budget by 25%. The Mayor says Walker then shocked him by saying Roosevelt, Kennedy and Johnson had promised the people too much. Daley says he responded by saying..."My God, you were on the wrong ticket!" The crowd roars with approval. (1:30) 11 February 1976 Listen.
24During the same speech, the Mayor says we shouldn't take anything for granted (in the upcoming primary in which he slated Secretary of State Mike Howlett against Gov. Walker). In a shot at Walker, Daley says we need leadership for all the people, not from Montgomery Ward (where the Governor was chief counsel before leaving to run for Governor in 1972). (0:30) 11 February 1976 Listen.
25Addressing a rally of Democratic Party precinct captains, the Mayor accuses incumbent Governor Dan Walker of hiding behind top aides instead of coming out and defending his decisions (including his veto of school aid spending bills that angered Daley). The Mayor says there has been no answers (from the Governor). He says it's a question of trying to fool people again and again. He says you know what Lincoln said about that, not all the time, and he adds..."and Governor, not all the time this time!" The crowd erupts with applause. (0:20) 20 February 1976 Listen.
26The Mayor addresses members of the Cook County Democratic Party on the occasion of his reelection as Chairman. He says they can say all they want about this organization but one thing they can't say about me..".I've never betrayed the public trust or they would have had me ten years ago. And I never will!" (0:15) 29 March 1976 Listen.
27The Mayor gets a bit emotional and his voice cracks as he talks about his stroke and surgery. He says they say your sick. I was sick. I was very sick. And he says he was praying ," like you would, that I wouldn't remain a cripple because I didn't want to be a burden to anyone." (0:28) 29 March 1976 Listen.
28He calls the charges of fraud (vote fraud) against the Democratic Machine He says it's as evident today as it "on themselves." was 30 or 40 years ago. (He means the allegedly phony charges are not new) and he says "they haven't found a damn thing." He says they (media critics and reformers) hollered fraud in 1960 on Kennedy and when we offered to pay half the costs of counting all the ballots in Illinois "we were turned down by the Republican Party." He then says..."Is that fraud? What kind of fraud is it? It's mental fraud on themselves." (0:35) 29 March 1976 Listen.
29In the same speech, the Mayor says of the Democratic Machine, "we're not perfect. We've made a lot of mistakes." But he says: "I say one thing to you. Morally, family wise, man for man, I don't care what race it is, what religion, what nationalistic group, man for man I'll take the people of Chicago before I will any place in the entire world." (0:35) 29 March 1976 Listen.
30In the same speech, the Mayor says "there was great trepidation" when he first became Democratic Party Chairman back in 1953. He says he was told by Party allies at the time that it was as far as he would go because as Chairman of the Party he would be charged with all the sins and faults of the Party. He said he told his allies, "that challenge I will take and that charge I will take and that possibility I will take." (0:31) 29 March 1976 Listen.
31In the same speech, the Mayor says "there's nothing wrong with being a member of this Party." He says in some places in the country it's looked upon as if there's something wrong with you. He says the great urge is to be an independent. And he says, "independent of what?" He says the Lord even said, "your either with me or against me." He says "why don't they (the so-called independents) start their own Party if they wanna be independent!" (0:30) 29 March 1976 Listen.


Michael Bilandic

TapeTrack
Bilandic0101Mayor Michael Bilandic reacts to the decision of a Federal Grand Jury to not return indictments after an investigation into the way his office and the City Council handled taxicab fare increases. He notes that from the very beginning he contended there was nothing wrong with the process. And in response to a question from a reporter, he refuses to say if his mayoral challenger, Jane Byrne, has lost credibility after charging the process was dominated by corruption. (0:26) 22 January 1979 Listen.
02Mayor Bilandic defends the performance of his Administration in attempting to deal with the Blizzard of 79. He says what his Administration faces is a challenge analogous to an earth moving operation. He says none of the snow has melted due to subzero temperatures so it all has to be picked up and dumped in the river or at other locations. (0:25) 15 January 1979 Listen.
03During the same news conference, the Mayor says he has found that a lot of citizens are not utilizing all of the parking lots that the City has cleared. Note: the Mayor had asked motorists to move their cars off the streets and into plowed lots so crews could get the streets cleared but the problem was that a lot of lots the Mayor thought were cleared had not been plowed. (0:30) 15 January 1979 Listen.
04The Mayors boasts that his Administration has the best snow removal operation going in the history of the City. And he says he is very proud of the employees of the City of Chicago. Note: This boast would soon come back to haunt the Mayor as snow removal operations became bogged down and highly disorganized and public anger began to rise, setting the stage for Bilandic's reelection campaign defeat. (0:17) 16 January 1979 Listen.
05During the same exchange with reporters, the Mayor says he hasn't concerned himself with the costs of snow removal. He says the delivery of services (getting the huge amount of snow off the ground and getting things back to normal) is the primary concern and costs are secondary. (0:30) 16 January 1979 Listen.
06Mayor Bilandic finally concedes after a lot of public boasting about how well snow removal was allegedly going that the City is not in the kind of shape he'd like to have it in. But he blames the situation on the size of the storm, not inefficiency and bungling by his Administration, and he says you don't get out from under a storm of that size that quickly. (0:11) 16 January 1979 Listen.
07The Mayor admits that there were some parking lots (where he told motorists to put their cars while side streets were being cleared) which were not plowed despite notice from the City that they had been cleared for use. In effect, the Mayor is making a reluctant apology to motorists here saying there was no justification for putting out the wrong information. (0:25) 18 January 1979 Listen.
08The Mayor says there will never again be an announcement made by his office that is incorrect. He says that disciplinary action will be taken against anyone who reports something inaccurately (in a way that results in the City putting out the wrong information to the public). Note: The newspapers and TV stations heaped embarrassment on the Bilandic Administration by showing parking lots the City claimed were open for use still untouched and full of snow or rendered unusable because plows had piled up snow at lot entrances after they were cleared blocking motorists from entering. (0:20) 18 January 1979 Listen.
09During the same exchange with reporters, the Mayor says he issued strict orders to employees involved in snow removal during the Blizzard of 79 that there is to be no more misinformation and that anybody who does that again won't be on the job. He says people who engage in such behavior are better off going home and sleeping. (0:18) 18 January 1979 Listen.
10During the same exchange with reporters, the Mayor responds to the public furor and media criticism over the misinformation that was put out about parking lots by blaming the problem on employee fatigue. He says this was an unprecedented ordeal the City was facing (a record snow storm) and that people had been working on snow removal since New Year's Eve. Note: The Mayor's opponent Jane Byrne blamed snow removal problems on bureaucratic bungling and the public seemed to agree. (0:20) 18 January 1979 Listen.
11Mayor Bilandic defends his Administration's handling of the Blizzard of 79 during a City Council meeting in which that performance is brought under attack by Council independents. The Mayor begins by reminding aldermen of the task his Administration faced, a record blizzard that dumped more than 24 million tons of snow on the City. As he seeks passage of emergency legislation allowing the Administration to contract with trucking and construction firms from all over the country to aid in snow removal efforts, independent alderman Martin Oberman demands to hear from the City Corporation Counsel on whether the ordinance is legal. Alderman Ed Vrdolyak seeks a point of order as he tries to defend the Mayor by saying the Corporation Counsel has already reviewed the legislation. An angry and defensive Mayor Bilandic then interjects that another City faced with heavy snow declared marshal law and shut the city down (Meaning that, at least, didn't happen in Chicago). At that point, Alderman Oberman is heard saying to the Mayor that the people of Chicago don't want his statistics (on how much snow fell) they want more efficient snow removal. Note: Members of the Council, including Administration supporters, were under pressure at this point to get snow removal back on track after numerous foul ups and so frustration dominated this meeting of the Council. (2:26) 19 January 1979 Listen.
12Mayor Bilandic defends a contract that was given to one of his former aides Ken Sain (who became a consultant) to design a new snow removal plan for the City (before the Blizzard of 79 took place). When it was learned Sain had not turned anything over to the Bilandic Administration before the record storm hit, the contract was branded a useless "sweetheart deal" by Administration critics but the Mayor denies that in this passage and suggests it was logical to hire Sain for the snow study because he had performed a lot of good service when he was an administrative assistant in City government. (0:25) 29 January 1979 Listen.
13During the same news conference, the Mayor concedes the City was slow in some aspects of snow removal but he goes on to boast that the City was not shut down despite the federal declaration of an emergency, suggesting his Administration had done the job of keeping the City open and functioning. And he says the citizens know it (meaning he doesn't think they will retaliate against him at the polls). (0:20) 29 January 1979 Listen.
14In an exchange with reporters, Mayor Bilandic reacts to charges that his Snow Command Chief Peter Schivarelli has ties to organized crime. He says those charges were merely allegations and that he (Schivarelli) is entitled to the same constitutional privileges as anyone else. Pressed by reporters, the Mayor says he discussed the charges with Police Superintendent James O'Grady but he is vague on whether he will order an investigation by his Office of Professional Review saying the office doesn't need to be told that when something has appeared in the paper...everyone is looking into it. (0:35) 30 January 1979 Listen.
15In an exchange with reporters, the Mayor continues his defense of former top City Hall administrative aide Ken Sain in the face of accusations Sain got sweetheart contracts from City Hall after he went into private consulting work to do studies on snow removal and arson that yielded little or no useful information and which appeared to rely on older studies already done by others. Bilandic notes that when Sain left City Government, everybody, including the newspapers, praised him for his work and said his valuable services should be utilized. (0:20) 31 January 1979 Listen.
16Mayor Bilandic gets into a testy exchange with reporters on the issue of why he retained former top City Hall aide Ken Sain to do a study on arson after a task force had already been formed a year earlier to deal with the same problem. He says there needed to be an ongoing look at the arson problem to resolve some jurisdictional disputes between city departments. And when a reporter asks for a copy of the Sain Study so a judgment could be made on the quality and quantity of the work he performed, the Mayor walks away without answering. (0:25) 31 January 1979 Listen.
17Mayor Bilandic kicks off his reelection campaign in a speech to supporters and reporters. He says of his time in office that his Administration has had a measure of success and some disappointments (alluding to the failures that marked his snow removal efforts during the Blizzard of 79 and which his challenger Jane Byrne was using against him). He says there are always successes and disappointments no matter what your calling or profession is and he says you have to learn to live with adversity and not let it get you down. (0:22) 8 February 1979 Listen.
18Mayor Bilandic finally admits at a news conference that the highly controversial study Ken Sain did on snow removal and which critics had branded a "sweetheart contract" was not perfect. But he claims Sain did the best job he could in the time that was given to him. Note: During the botched snow removal efforts after the Blizzard of 79, reporters discovered Sain had not yet given City Hall a work product on his snow study. As charges of a "sweetheart deal" increased, Sain literally threw together a report and issued it to reporters late one night. The report, still warm to the touch after being hastily run off on copier machines, turned out to be mostly a repeat of previous studies and recommendations the City had already been following (but not very well). Critics branded the study worthless. (0:16) 5 February 1979 Listen.
19Mayor Bilandic invokes the name of the late Mayor Richard J. Daley and praises him in what was viewed as a desperate attempt to halt the rapid decline in his own voter approval ratings. He calls Mayor Daley a wonderful man who was like a father to him and says he never tried to merchandise him (for his own benefit). But, in a reference to his opponent Jane Byrne and her expressed love for Daley, the Mayor says it is "really unusual how suddenly for political purposes and for commercial purposes and for their own personal aggrandizement people will suddenly wrap themselves around Mayor Daley." (0:25) 5 February 1979 Listen.
20During the same exchange with reporters, the Mayor seeks, again, to fend off criticism of former City Hall aide Ken Sain by mentioning how he was one of six pall bearers when the late Mayor Richard J. Daley was taken to his final resting place. So he says, obviously, the Mayor and his family had high regard for Ken Sain's professional competence. (0:22) 5 February 1979 Listen.
21With his job approval ratings sinking, Mayor Bilandic goes before a luncheon meeting of Democratic Party precinct captains and for the first time attempts to carry the fight to his opponent Jane Byrne (instead of playing defense) with a bizarre speech in which he compares criticism of him and the Party Machine to the Crucifixion, the persecution of Poles and blacks, and the fall of foreign governments due to communist subversion. Note: The speech was not well received and the Mayor's use of overkill was widely ridiculed as desperation tactics. (12:40) 14 February 1979 Listen.
22Mayor Bilandic finally admits the obvious, that he made mistakes during his Administration's critical snow removal efforts after the Blizzard of 79. "He says we all learn from our mistakes. I've made them and I freely admit it." But he says he is determined his Administration will learn from these mistakes. Note: In the view of Bilandic's allies and in the view of independent political analysts, this speech only 5 days before the crucial Democratic Primary for Mayor came too late to help Bilandic turn his faltering campaign around. (0:26) 22 February 1979 Listen.
23On the evening of the Democratic Primary for Mayor of Chicago, incumbent Mayor Michael Bilandic concedes defeat to his upstart challenger Jane Byrne. He notes the difference between him and Byrne was approximately one percent of the total vote cast. He says it appears Mrs. Byrne will be the nominee of the Democratic Party as a chorus of boos springs up from supporters. And he says he and his wife Heather extend their congratulations to her. (2:00) 27 February 1979 Listen.
24George Dunne, Cook County Democratic Party Chairman, talks to reporters about the stunning defeat of Mayor Bilandic. He says in reference to his prediction Bilandic would win with 68% of the vote that he now has to eat a little crow but it's not so bad if you put salt on it. (0:12) 28 February 1979 Listen.
25George Dunne, Cook County Democratic Party Chairman, says in same interview that it would do the Party no good to fight with the the upstart winner of the Democratic mayoral primary, Jane Byrne. He is suggesting the Party should swallow it's loss and endorse her. (0:20) 28 February 1979 Listen.
26George Dunne, Cook County Democratic Party Chairman, says in the same interview that Jane Byrne has a right to pick her own cabinet if she is elected Mayor in April. He is reacting to Byrne's remark that, if elected, she would dump many current cabinet members. (0:17) 28 February 1979 Listen.
27George Dunne, Cook County Democratic Party Chairman, says in the same interview that it was more than the shoddy snow removal efforts in the "Blizzard of 79" that beat Mayor Bilandic. Note:These Dunne cuts placed here for purposes of continuity. (0:17) 28 February 1979 Listen.
28The Mayor delivers a tearful farewell to members of the City Council after his primary defeat at the hands of underdog candidate Jane Byrne. A touching portrait of a defeated politician after one of the most stunning election upsets in Chicago political history. (0:50) 28 March 1979 Listen.


Jane Byrne

TapeTrack
Byrne0101During the general election campaign for Mayor, Byrne explains how the patronage system would work under her if she is elected and she says pointedly she would not expect to have any payroller forced down the throat of any of her commissioners. (0:25) 8 March 1979 Listen.
02During the same exchange with reporters, Byrne goes on to explain how the patronage conduit would work, saying the Chairman (Party Chairman) will pass on job recommendations made by the ward committeemen. (0:25) 8 March 1979 Listen.
03In the same exchange with reporters, Byrne offers her understanding of how the patronage system worked under the late Mayor Richard J. Daley and she gets irritated over criticism from some committeemen that she keeps changing her story on how patronage would work under her. (0:21) 8 March 1979 Listen.
04Byrne elaborates here on her contention that there may be a 150-million dollar deficit in outgoing Mayor Michael Bilandic's budget. She says she has been hearing about deficits on snow removal costs and in other areas (of the budget). (0:26) 19 March 1979 Listen.
05State Senator Richard M. Daley reads a formal resolution putting the Democratic Party on record endorsing Jane Byrne for Mayor in the general election. Daley reads the resolution at a Party rally. Note: The political peace between Daley and Byrne was to be short lived. (2:10) 12 March 1979 Listen.
06As the Democratic Party gets behind upstart Jane Byrne for Mayor after she defeated Mayor Bilandic in the primary, one of the late Mayor Richard J. Daley's longest serving ward bosses, 25th Ward Alderman Vito Marzullo, moves to bury the hatchet with Byrne. He says we had a lot of fun in the primary (trying to defeat Byrne) but now we have to put away our hammers and take out our horns. Note: Marzullo was the one who, while once describing how the Machine's patronage system worked, uttered the famous line "Don't send nobody nobody sent." (0:22) 12 March 1979 Listen.
07The veteran ward committeemen and former Chicago Congressman concedes that Jane Byrne beat our ears off. He says she won fair and square. (0:26) 12 March 1979 Listen.
08Another crusty veteran ward boss from the Richard J. Daley era who represents one of the so-called river wards where vote fraud ran rampant makes no apologies for the way the fraud ridden skid row areas of his ward deliver votes and he says they will deliver again for Jane Byrne. (0:26) 12 March 1979 Listen.
09Jane Byrne tells members of the local Democratic Party it's been a long fight and she says she wants nothing more than to be a good Mayor. (0:15) 12 March 1979 Listen.
10In an exchange with reporters during the general election campaign, Byrne is questioned closely about new contracts for policemen and firemen. She says she thinks raises would be less than they are under the current contracts and she is non committal on the issue of strikes between contracts. (0:38) 16 March 1979 Listen.
11Sounding a lot like the late Mayor Daley, Byrne talks to the party faithful about the importance of winning the April 3rd general election big. (0:24) 26 March 1979 Listen.
12At the same rally she says she doesn't agree with the scare tactics that contracts for policemen and firemen would lead to a rape of the City Treasury. (0:14) 26 March 1979 Listen.
13At the same rally on the same issue she says she wants binding arbitration with policemen and firemen and a no strike clause in new contracts. (0:22) 26 March 1979 Listen.
14During a campaign rally at Roosevelt University, Byrne says teachers ought to be required to live in the City just like City employees are. (0:45) 22 March 1979 Listen.
15Jane Byrne delivers her inaugural address after being sworn in as the first woman Mayor in the history of Chicago. She talks about the betrayal of the neighborhoods, a key issue in her campaign, and says she won't let them decay. (0:21) 16 April 1979 Listen.
16In the same inaugural address, Mayor Byrne pledges her Administration to a new "renaissance" in the City's neighborhoods. (0:20) 16 April 1979 Listen.
17At her first news conference during her first day on the job, Mayor Byrne tells reporters that in a meeting she warned ward superintendents in the Streets and Sanitation Dept. to get neighborhoods cleaned up or they will, in effect, be fired. She says if the neighborhoods don't show marked improvement, we're gonna need new superintendents. (0:31) 17 April 1979 Listen.
18Still at her first news conference, the Mayor talks about possibly increasing the five dollar fine for littering to make people cooperate in keeping the City clean. (0:20) 17 April 1979 Listen.
19In an exchange with reporters, the Mayor says she has not changed her mind about a new Police Superintendent. She says she definitely wants an outsider for the job and says she thinks that blacks (who want Deputy Supt. Sam Nolan appointed to the post) understood that (her position) when they voted for her. (0:14) 19 April 1979 Listen.
20In the same exchange with reporters, the Mayor explains why she wants an outsider for Police Superintendent. She says it would free him from traditional ties. She also says she will assure any candidate for the post that he will have a free hand. (0:19) 19 April 1979 Listen.
21Jane Byrne delivers her victory speech on the night she becomes the first woman Mayor in Chicago history. She says it wasn't just the snow (the big storm that defeated incumbent Mike Bilandic failed to handle) that won it for her and she goes on to pledge a renaissance for Chicago. Supporters cheer. (0:45) Listen.
22This is the rallying song that was composed for Jane Byrne and which was sung often at campaign gatherings during her successful underdog campaign for Mayor. This rendition of the song was sung at an 11th Ward rally near the end of the general election campaign. (1:00) 27 March 1979 Listen.
23At the same 11th Ward rally near the end of the general election campaign for Mayor, Democratic candidate Jane Byrne reveals the sentimental side of her personality which no one had previously seen as she comes close to tears in remembering how much she owes to the late Mayor Richard J. Daley. She says it wasn't easy challenging the Machine he built (in the primary against incumbent Mayor Michael Bilandic). (1:00) 27 March 1979 Listen.
24Mayor Byrne offers her version of how Sharon Gist Gilliam was fired as Consumer Services Commissioner (the job Byrne was the first to hold under Mayor Richard J. Daley). The Mayor quotes Gilliam as telling two investigators: "They can go screw themselves. Get screwed!" Note: What the Mayor was suggesting here was that, by her own behavior, Gilliam sealed her own fate. Gilliam would later tell reporters she knew Byrne wanted her out and figured the investigators were there only to tell her she had been fired. (1:15) 20 April 1979 Listen.
25At a news conference, the Mayor startles reporters with a claim that records in her office and in the office of former political patronage chief Tom Donovan were gone (when she took over at City Hall). She claims the filing cabinets were empty. Note: The Mayor would later acknowledge to her embarrassment that the records had simply been misplaced, not removed from City Hall. (0:32) 20 April 1979 Listen.
26Mayor Byrne declares war on Latin street gangs. She says she wants to assure frightened citizens she won't tolerate violence. (0:21) 23 April 1979 Listen.
27The Mayor backs off of her promise to pick an outsider as her new Police Superintendent saying it would now be silly to make the Police Board pick a new list of candidates after nobody who made the initial list of finalists was an outsider. (0:11) 23 April 1979 Listen.
28The Mayor backs off of her promise to pick an outsider as her new Police Superintendent saying it would now be silly to make the Police Board pick a new list of candidates after nobody who made the initial list of finalists was an outsider. (0:15) 23 April 1979 Listen.
29In the same exchange with reporters, the Mayor plays fun with reporters and says "beat yuh" meaning she was able to get the word out about the suspension before they discovered and reported it. (0:15) 23 April 1979 Listen.
30During the same exchange with reporters, she talks more about the suspension of the Deputy Street Commissioner and she says workers who were not showing up had better be there tomorrow if they want a job. (0:14) 23 April 1979 Listen.
31At a news conference, the Mayor says times have changed and that she is going to shake up the Board of Health (as part of her pledge to bring about some changes). (0:25) 24 April 1979 Listen.
32At the same news conference, the Mayor says she has ordered that the pay checks of between 100 and 150 employees be held up, that the people involved were added to the city work force in the last weeks of the Bilandic Administration under illegal circumstances (for political reasons, she thinks). She says the situation involved both people who were improperly hired or who were improperly promoted. (0:19) 24 April 1979 Listen.
33The Mayor talks about the alleged bad manners of a reporter who allegedly told her to leave at the end of a news conference but to leave her Controller behind to answer questions. A check of the tape of the news conference involved revealed the reporter, Harry Golden of the Sun Times, never said that but this passage reveals how highly sensitive Mayor Byrne was to criticism or perceived shows of disrespect. (0:14) 1 May 1979 Listen.
34The Mayor angrily defends her appointment of the live in girl friend of her top aide Paul McGrath to her staff and she blasts the headline treatment given the appointment by the Tribune as scurrilous. (0:24) 2 May 1979 Listen.
35The Mayor claims that long time Chicago Park District Superintendent Ed Kelley had no quarrel with all future Park District patronage appointments going through her office when the two met privately the day before. Note: Kelley would later deny he agreed to surrender control over District patronage to Mayor Byrne. (0:19) 2 May 1979 Listen.
36At the same news conference, the Mayor questions why there is such a big push in the City Council for an insider as the next Police Superintendent. She implies there are political motives at work and suggests the Council isn't giving the Police Board a fair chance to recommend candidates. (0:19) 2 May 1979 Listen.
37At the same news conference, the Mayor says she will veto any attempts by the City Council to expand the Police Board by stacking the Board with aldermen. (0:11) 2 May 1979 Listen.
38The Mayor responds to the claim of Park District Superintendent Ed Kelley that he never agreed to funnel future patronage appointments through her office, as she had claimed. The Mayor says if Kelley wants to act like a child he can act like a child. (0:10) 3 May 1979 Listen.
39The Mayor hints that she will raise some issues to build a case against Park District Superintendent Ed Kelley and then stack the Park Board with her own appointees to force him out. (0:21) 3 May 1979 Listen.
40After making the above statement, the Mayor expresses resentment over a reporter's question about whether she is implying that she will stack the deck against Kelley. (0:35) 3 May 1979 Listen.
41The Mayor tells reporters she doesn't get in to name calling. She says in reference to a flap over her removing police commander Victor Vrdolyak from the scene of an air hijacking that, "you know I lived through his brother (Alderman Ed Vrdolyak) suggesting menopause and I guess that runs in the family." The Mayor is referring to a wise crack the Alderman made to describe her unpredictable behavior. (0:10) 22 June 1979 Listen.
42The Mayor explains why police commander Victor Vrdolyak jumped to the conclusion that she ordered his removal from the hijacking scene when in fact, she claims, she didn't. Note: This flap over Victor Vrdolyak came at a time when the Mayor was involved in an early political tug of war with his brother and Alderman Ed Vrdolyak over who was going to occupy the center of power in City government. (0:18) 22 June 1979 Listen.
43The Mayor denies she meant to be critical of President Jimmy Carter at a U.S. Conference of Mayors meeting when she called the Carter Administration insensitive. She claims she meant that only if wrong things continued to happen. Her backpedaling occurred with White House aide Jack Watson standing at her side after a private City Hall meeting. Note:The Mayor's remarks here appear at odds with her original criticism of the President which appears later in the Byrne collection. (0:10) 20 June 1979 Listen.
44The Mayor tells reporters, in effect, that President Carter is going to have to come to her (for an endorsement of his reelection bid), that she will withhold an endorsement until she finds out how much Mr. Carter "cares" about Chicago. Note: This was Mayor Byrne's first attempt to occupy a position on the national political stage. (0:16) 22 June 1979 Listen.
45During an appearance on WBBM's At Issue program, the Mayor declares beyond doubt that Pat Murphy is her choice for Police Superintendent. (0:10) 10 June 1979 Listen.
46The Mayor attacks Illinois Democratic House Speaker William Redmond and Majority Leader Mike Madigan for failing to muster the necessary votes for her transit compromise with GOP Governor Jim Thompson. She says she will call the resulting fare increase by the RTA the "Madigan-Redmond" fare hike. (0:22) June 1979 Listen.
47In the same exchange with reporters, the Mayor also blasts members of the State Legislature for not using their brains to get a transit package that would hold off a fare increase. (0:19) June 1979 Listen.
48In the same exchange with reporters, the Mayor takes a shot at Democratic House Majority Leader Mike Madigan. She accuses him of sitting on his hands rather than getting her transit package approved. (0:07) June 1979 Listen.
49The Mayor explains why she stripped former Mayor Michael Bilandic and his family of police bodyguard protection. She says lots of other people would like such protection, too, but she claims the Police Department can't afford it. And she says Heather Bilandic (the former Mayor's wife) should have thanked her for the short time she had bodyguards instead of criticizing their removal. (0:28) 13 July 1979 Listen.
50The Mayor rejects the charge of former Mayor Bilandic and his wife that the removal of their police protection was vindictive. She says thats just a display of chauvinism. She says Mike Bilandic acts like the Shah of Iran. He thinks he'll have bodyguards for himself and other family members till they die. (0:20) 13 July 1979 Listen.
51The Mayor says in stern terms that she will not tolerate the unions trying to interfere with her plans to eliminate jobs in her first budget. She says if they do, there will be no collective bargaining. (0:14) 13 July 1979 Listen.
52The Mayor discusses some threats which had been made against Sis Daley. (0:44) undated Listen.
53The Mayor reacts in a very luke warm manner when asked to assess the performance of Deputy Police Supt. Sam Nolan. (0:15) 13 July 1979 Listen.
54The Mayor criticizes the City Hall press corps. She claims some reporters are still heavily aligned with the past. (0:24) 13 July 1979 Listen.
55During an exchange with reporters, the Mayor defends the costly renovation of her office in light of threats of layoffs and austerity moves to deal with a threatened deficit. (3:30) 1 August 1979 Listen.
56On a very sensitive issue with big labor, the Mayor says she may end the old Richard J. Daley policy of paying city trade union employees the same high pay rates as trade members in outside industry earn because of shoddy work performance. (0:14) 2 August 1979 Listen.
57During the same exchange with reporters, the Mayor expands on her criticism of city trade union employees. She says they don't show up for work and they think they have it made because of union and political backing. Note: There were about 10-thousand trade union members on the City payroll at this time. (0:15) 2 August 1979 Listen.
58The Mayor offers justification for putting Taylor Pouncy back on the job as a foreman in the City Streets and Sanitation Department after she had stripped him of his job as a Ward Superintendent. Note: This move led to criticism that the Mayor was caving in to political heat and backtracking on her promise to get rid of political hacks. (0:55) 2 August 1979 Listen.
59The Mayor promises to put stronger spending controls in her first budget. She says she inherited a grave problem from her predecessor Michael Bilandic that it will take two years to solve. 1 August 1979 Listen.
60During the same exchange with reporters on her first budget, the Mayor says we are not a New York or a Cleveland but there will be cutbacks, austerity and layoffs. (0:15) 1 August 1979 Listen.
61During the same exchange with reporters, the Mayor explains why there will be layoffs in her first budget. She claims there has been a lot of payroll padding. (0:20) 1 August 1979 Listen.
62During the same exchange with reporters, the Mayor says she is not looking forward to a property tax increase in her first budget. (0:19) 1 August 1979 Listen.
63During the same exchange with reporters, the Mayor says clearly that some city executives should get pay increases to stay even with the outside market. (0:12) 1 August 1979 Listen.
64During the same exchange with reporters, the Mayor hints at going to a system of select merit pay raises rather than sticking with the cost of living approach because the latter system, she contends, gives rewards to people who loaf. And she contends a merit system would boost morale. (0:15) 1 August 1979 Listen.
65The Mayor bitterly complains about the leak to the press (which she thinks came from former Mayor Bilandic) about the gambling debts of her Revenue Director Tim Degnan. She says the man was tortured. (0:30) 30 July 1979 Listen.
66The Mayor says that Deputy Police Superintendent Sam Nolan will be the new Public Safety Director over both the Police and Fire Departments. But she goes on to say the Police Superintendent and Fire Commissioner will report to her (meaning the Public Safety Director won't have much authority). (0:12) 30 July 1979 Listen.
67The Mayor makes a surprise remark that women (including her) change their minds. It was her way of saying she is now leaning toward an insider as Police Superintendent. (0:12) 30 July 1979 Listen.
68The Mayor denies she booted Sam Nolan up to the post of Public Safety Director in order to get rid of him as a candidate for Police Superintendent. (0:45) 30 July 1979 Listen.
69The Mayor denies that her appointment of Mike Sneed as her Press Secretary amounted to blatant nepotism even though she is the wife of her Chief of Staff Bill Griffin. She accuses a reporter of chauvinism for suggesting nepotism. (0:30) 21 August 1979 Listen.
70The Mayor accuses the former Bilandic Adm. of having no organization, no record keeping. She says it was "just spend, spend, spend." She makes this remark after an audit turned up a deficit in two City funds. (0:12) 21 August 1979 Listen.
71The Mayor declines to hold the Board of Education responsible for poor school conditions. She says it's more than that. (0:17) 22 August 1979 Listen.
72In connection with supporting School Superintendent Joe Hannon and calling for renewal of his contract, the Mayor dismisses criticism of Hannon's school desegregation efforts. (0:21) 22 August 1979 Listen.
73Only hours after the Mayor declined to hold the School Board responsible for poor school conditions, the Mayor switches gears and does hold the Board responsible. (0:29) 22 August 1979 Listen.
74The Mayor levels sharp criticism at the School Board. She says we just let them(members) sit there and take up space and she says if they are not to blame for poor schools then who is? (0:12) 23 August 1979 Listen.
75Mayor Byrne threatens to strong arm landlords if they increase rents to the point of gouging tenants. The remark drew sharp criticism because it recalled the days when the old Daley Machine would use inspectors to muscle landlords into obeying City Hall. (0:15) August 1979 Listen.
76The Mayor strikes a populist tone while explaining why she wants city inspections centralized. She says it would keep people from passing the buck. (0:22) August 1979 Listen.
77Talking with reporters on the same subject of the city inspections process, the Mayor opposes the use of surveillance tactics to catch inspectors taking payoffs. She calls spying the "lowest form of government." (0:17) August 1979 Listen.
78Mayor Byrne delivers a very important statement in support of neighborhood schools in the face of a massive school busing proposal that was put forward by the U.S. Department of Health, Education and Welfare to promote school integration. The Mayor thinks neighborhood schools would be threatened by busing. (0:35) August 1979 Listen.
TapeTrack
Byrne0201On the same subject of the Government's school busing proposal, the Mayor says children should not be bused. She says they are being shipped all over and at what point do they enjoy the benefits of being a child? (0:18) August 1979 Listen.
02During a head on clash with the trade unions, the Mayor tells reporters she told union leaders there would be layoffs (of their members from the city payroll) if the higher prevailing wage rate was to be paid to city tradesmen. And she says, "I repeat that." (0:19) 17 September 1979 Listen.
03The Mayor offers her argument on why she thinks Chicago Federation of Labor President Bill Lee and Building Construction Trade Unions President Tom Nayder don't really want collective bargaining. (0:12) 17 September 1979 Listen.
04During a feud with the trade unions, the Mayor suggests she doesn't need the support or money of big labor, that she won the primary election over Mayor Bilandic without it. (0:26) 13 September 1979 Listen.
05The Mayor attempts to put city trade union employees (about 10-thousand of them) in their place with a stern reminder that they didn't exercise very much influence in the mayoral primary that she won. And she says there is a message for labor there. (0:13) 13 September 1979 Listen.
06The Mayor declares her support for the much criticized political patronage system in Chicago. Her support comes in the wake of Federal Judge Nicholas Bua's decision against patronage hiring, known as Shakman II. Note: This defense of the old Machine patronage system was a clear sign to critics that Jane Byrne wasn't quite the reformer many had thought she would be. (0:14) 26 September 1979 Listen.
07The Mayor engages in a display of anger over unflattering column items that appeared in local newspapers concerning her husband Jay McMullen. She says if certain people wanna play games and engage in Peyton Place journalism then she won't talk to them, period. (0:13) 26 September 1979 Listen.
08The Mayor takes First District Police Commander Paul McLaughlin to task for his high visibility with the news media. Note: Critics saw this outburst as a character flaw in Jane Byrne, that she could not permit anyone to share the spotlight with her. (0:28) 12 October 1979 Listen.
09This is a good example of how Mayor Byrne often created confusion by appearing to be on all sides of an issue. Despite an earlier comment on WBBM's At Issue that she definitely wanted Pat Murphy as her new Police Superintendent, then favored Joseph DeLeonardi, she now says in this passage that she supports no one while praising DeLeonardi's First Deputy Jim Reardon. (0:15) 12 October 1979 Listen.
10The Mayor tells reporters she will respect the wishes of the Democratic Party Organization and not back a slate of delegates committed to a particular candidate for President at the 1980 National Convention. Note: The Chicago Democratic Organization remained at odds with the national party at this point in time and Jane Byrne agreed with Party leaders it would be a good idea to not commit to a candidate early, giving the Chicago delegation more leverage at the National Convention. It was not a popular decision with many national party leaders considering the incumbent President, Jimmy Carter, was a Democrat. (0:29) 12 October 1979 Listen.
11The Mayor looks ahead here to what she says will be the creation of a merit pay plan in 1981 that will eliminate the system of granting automatic longevity raises to employees on top of cost of living pay increases. (0:26) 12 October 1979 Listen.
12This is Mayor Byrne in another facetious snit with the press again, this time saying she will be silent from now on because two commentators had advised her to keep quit to avoid putting her foot in her mouth. Note: She was referring to Walter Jacobson of Channel 2 and John Madigan of WBBM-AM. (0:26) 10 October 1979 Listen.
13A reporter laughs later the same day when Mayor Byrne jokingly tries to keep her promise to remain silent by just nodding her head yes or no in response to questions. (0:12) 10 October 1979 Listen.
14In a speech at a big Democratic Party fundraiser, the Mayor warns Senator Ted Kennedy that if he gets into the race and challenges President Jimmy Carter for the 1980 Democratic Party nomination there will be a party blood bath. (0:40) 15 October 1979 Listen.
15The Mayor stops short of a formal endorsement of President Jimmy Carter in a speech but then goes on to give him a kind of qualified endorsement. Note: The Mayor would later break with the President and endorse Senator Ted Kennedy for the Democratic presidential nomination. (1:30) 10 October 1979 Listen.
16The Mayor defends the hiring of her daughter Kathy to a 17-thousand dollar a year job at the Chicago Transit Authority. She says there is nothing wrong with nepotism so long as the people who are hired aren't hacks. (0:48) 15 October 1979 Listen.
17The Mayor emphatically denies reports that she tried to coerce a city worker into running against Richard M. Daley (the eldest son of the late Mayor Richard J. Daley) for 11th Ward Democratic Committeeman in exchange for saving his job. She promises to not get involved in races for committeemen. Note: The Mayor and Richard M. Daley were already enemies after Daley suggested Byrne wasn't up to the job of being Mayor and Byrne began a purge of 11th ward Daley allies from some city jobs. (0:35) 10 October 1979 Listen.
18Mayor Byrne boasts that half the new subway she is proposing to place under the Stevenson Expressway will be up and in operation before she runs again for reelection. Note: The subway was never built. (0:15) 12 October 1979 Listen.
19The Mayor denies that she is systematically purging 11th ward residents from the City payroll in retaliation against Richard M. Daley, who started an effort to override Gov. Jim Thompson's veto of sales tax relief against her wishes. She doesn't deny a lot of 11th ward residents are involved in layoffs she ordered but says that is only because they hold so many jobs. (1:10) 16 October 1979 Listen.
20During the same exchange with reporters, the Mayor says she makes "no bones about it." She will continue acts of nepotism like putting her daughter on the CTA payroll as a 17-thousand 500-dollar a year staff writer and putting her daughter's college roommate on her staff at City Hall. Note: The Mayor took a lot of heat over nepotism, not just because of the favoritism involved, but because the hirings took place in the midst of a wave of austerity layoffs in City government. (0:25) 19 October 1979 Listen.
21The Mayor again defends the hiring of her daughter Kathy at the Chicago Transit Authority. She says she isn't going to put Kathy on the Moon while she is the Mayor. (0:32) 19 October 1979 Listen.
22The Mayor tells reporters how she overheard a conversation between police officers about her complaints on traffic not moving well during the Chicago Marathon. The Mayor apparently wanted to send a message to all city employees that she was in touch with everything and was monitoring performance closely. (0:30 22 October 1979 Listen.
23The Mayor once again finds herself having to defend nepotism in the face of a disclosure that a second friend of her daughter Kathy's has been hired as a mayoral aide at 12- thousand dollars a year. Note: Another friend of Kathy's was previously placed on the Mayor's staff at a salary of 18-thousand dollars a year, on top of Kathy, herself, being hired at the CTA with a salary of 17-thousand 500-dollars a year. (0:15) 23 October 1979 Listen.
24The Mayor tells reporters how she tried to help President Jimmy Carter "rev" up his standing in the polls but that it didn't work. Note: The Mayor gives Mr. Carter's low standing in polls as the reason why she endorsed Senator Ted Kennedy for the 1980 Democratic Presidential nomination. (0:15) 29 October 1979 Listen.
25The Mayor tells reporters in the same exchange that President Carter tried to move and help the cities and himself but that he moved too late. (0:14) 29 October 1979 Listen.
26The Mayor tells reporters she doesn't think that President Carter will retaliate against her or the City of Chicago because of her endorsement of Senator Ted Kennedy for the 1980 Democratic Presidential nomination. She says he's a nice guy, not a vindictive guy, but things just aren't working. (0:14) 29 October 1979 Listen.
27The Mayor tells reporters why she thinks the decision of Senator Ted Kennedy to challenge President Carter for the 1980 presidential nomination will not split the Party. (0:19) 29 October 1979 Listen.
28The Mayor explains why she does not agree with those critics who say Chappaquiddick exposed character flaws in Senator Ted Kennedy. . She contends that notion is "silly." (0:30) 29 October 1979 Listen.
29The Mayor says the local Democratic Party "got left at the gate" in two previous election years because it (Mayor Richard J. Daley) endorsed a candidate too late. She says it's time to ditch that strategy and take early stands because the days of power brokering are over. (0:44) 26 October 1979 Listen.
30The Mayor says the last Democratic National Convention was a waste of time. She says we spent a good deal of money to go out there and ended up taking up seats. (0:12) 26 October 1979 Listen.
31The Mayor says to make the Chappaquiddick incident a campaign issue against Senator Ted Kennedy would amount to mud slinging. (0:12) 26 October 1979 Listen.
32The Mayor blurts out President Carter's remark that he would "whip" Kennedy's "ass." (0:12) 26 October 1979 Listen.
33In the same exchange with reporters, the Mayor says it smacks of too much control to force National Democratic Convention delegates to remain uncommitted when in fact they may think strongly about a candidate. In other words, she is saying the Cook County Democratic Party should get rid of the old policy instituted by the late Mayor Richard J. Daley. (0:18) 26 October 1979 Listen.
34The Mayor gets into a testy exchange with a reporter on the issue of nepotism. She says don't start that silly argument that it's the taxpayer's money. She insists the taxpayers are not being cheated (by her hiring of her daughter and two of her friends). (0:52) 26 October 1979 Listen.
35The Mayor tells reporters that letters of political backing are no longer required to get a job in her Administration. But she says those letters are not ignored either and goes on to say that a letter won't hurt somebody (their chances of getting a job). (0:41) 25 October 1979 Listen.
36The Mayor makes the startling claim that she is not really at odds with Park District Superintendent Ed Kelley (this after her highly publicized battle with Kelley over who would control Park District patronage). She claims she and Kelley are good friends and that the press has lost another issue. And she says her previous threat to merge the Park District into City government is now something that should simply be studied. (0:25) 25 October 1979 Listen.
37The Mayor praises Democratic ward committeemen saying they have been most kind on her dinner (in selling and buying tickets) and that she doesn't plan to get involved in many races for committeemen in 1980. (0:12) October 1979 Listen.
38Prior to her later claim that she and Park District Superintendent Ed Kelley were not really at odds, the Mayor says the parks need new leadership, that the condition of the parks is the issue, not who controls patronage. (0:28) September 1979 Listen.
39The Mayor makes the claim here that the Mayor of Chicago should take precedence over the Superintendent of the Parks. She means the Mayor has the right to assert control over the parks and whoever runs them. (0:20) September 1979 Listen.
40Mayor Byrne rises to the defense of Bill Hart, a Street Department Ward Superitendent with plenty of political clout, claiming he did a good job of snow removal in his ward during the Blizzard of 79 even though he was in a hospital bed. Note: This defense was used by critics as an example of the Mayor's inconsistency in getting rid of old Machine types. (0:23) September 1979 Listen.
41This is City Controller Clark Burris directly refuting Mayor Byrne's claim that the City had a deficit. He claims it is not a deficit, just a temporary cash shortfall. Note: This cut is included in the Byrne years file because it was the start of a trend in which a number of officials and experts in a position to know questioned the Mayor's knowledge of budgeting. (0:34) 27 April 1979 Listen.
42The Mayor vows not to have a repeat of the winter chaos of 1978 and early 1979 which set the stage for her upset victory over then Mayor Michael Bilandic in the Democratic mayoral primary in February of 1979. (0:29) 1 November 1979 Listen.
43The Mayor tells reporters she never felt people wanted to leave their cars on the streets (during a big snow storm) and so she says it follows they will obey her strict ban on no winter parking on 100 miles of priority snow routes. (0:17) 1 November 1979 Listen.
44During the same exchange with reporters, the Mayor warns motorists that the City will start towing cars off the streets that have parking bans December lst. She says it's going to be done. (0:26) 1 November 1979 Listen.
45In the same exchange with reporters, the Mayor says she wants to make it very clear that although the City will announce parking areas she is not guaranteeing those areas will be plowed out. In other words, she has no intention of making promises her Administration can't keep. (0:43) 1 November 1979 Listen.
46During the same exchange with reporters, the Mayor says she expects the public to cooperate by pitching in and helping (if there should be a major snow storm again). Note: There was much criticism of Byrne's predecessor Michael Bilandic for not urging the public to help with the Blizzard of 79 when City services were overwhelmed by heavy snow accumulations. (0:42) 1 November 1979 Listen.
47During the same exchange with reporters on her Administration's winter snow removal plans, the Mayor says there are places for people to put their cars for the winter if they look hard enough. She means rather than leaving them on main streets in violation of the winter parking ban. (0:20) 1 November 1979 Listen.
48During the same exchange with reporters, the Mayor says she has received assurances that the Chicago Transit Authority will be ready for winter and she says she expects the CTA to work and to function ( after struggling through the Blizzard of 79). Note: This passage and the six that precede it are good examples of how Mayor Byrne learned the hard lessons of the Blizzard of 79 that led to the political downfall of her predecessor Michael Bilandic. (0:15) 1 November 1979 Listen.
49Mayor Byrne talks about the lack of public support for the Carter White House as she endorses Senator Ted Kennedy for the 1980 Democratic presidential nomination. (0:30) 30 October 1979 Listen.
50During the same news conference endorsing Senator Ted Kennedy for President, the Mayor praises the Senator, talks about her ties to the Kennedy family, and then goes into her official endorsement of the Senator, making a pledge to work for the Senator. (2:05) 30 October 1979 Listen.
51During the same news conference, the Mayor is pressed by reporters for details on the nature of the poll she claims to have taken that was the basis of her decision to abandon her support for President Carter and to endorse Senator Kennedy. She closes with a promise to release the poll to reporters. (0:52) 30 October 1979 Listen.
52This is the Mayor snidely suggesting that what she can't stand is inconsistency (the very behavior she was accused of when she first said she would support President Carter for reelection and then abandoned him to back Senator Ted Kennedy for the Democratic presidential nomination. (0:14) 30 October 1979 Listen.
53Mayor Byrne fires her Revenue Director Jerry Cannon one day (less than 24 hours) after his political boss, State Senator Richard M. Daley, refused to join the Mayor in endorsing Senator Ted Kennedy for President. The passage is Cannon telling it like it is about his political firing by Byrne. (0:25) 6 November 1979 Listen.
54This is fired City Revenue Director Jerry Cannon still talking to reporters about what happened to him and saying he thinks it is improper for Mayor Byrne to ask him for help in selling tickets to her fundraising dinner and then stick it right up his rear end. Note: Cannon's firing was to be one of many, many personnel changes either made or forced on the Mayor and which led critics to accuse her of running a "revolving door" Administration. (0:07) 6 November 1979 Listen.
55In the face of much criticism over the rocky performance of her Administration, the Mayor defends and gives a vote of confidence to her budget director Don Haider, her Corporation Counsel William Quinlin, her Streets and Sanitation Commissioner Jim Donovan, a top aide John Surane, and Police Chief Joe DeLeonardi. (2:00) 8 November 1979 Listen.
56In the same exchange with reporters, the Mayor accuses President Jimmy Carter of trying to scuttle Party endorsement of Senator Ted Kennedy by offering patronage jobs. (0:12) 8 November 1979 Listen.
57In the same exchange with reporters, the Mayor launches into another attack on the Press. She says if I were you I'd get awfully sick of being wrong all the time. Note: The Mayor was angry over suggestions by reporters she had no proof President Carter was dealing out patronage jobs and that she had treated the President unfairly by endorsing Senator Kennedy. (0:50) 8 November 1979 Listen.
TapeTrack
Byrne0301This is Senator Ted Kennedy's national campaign manager Steve Smith telling reporters that Mayor Byrne will be calling the shots in the Illinois primary campaign. (0:12) 13 November 1979 Listen.
02During the same meeting with reporters, Mayor Byrne defends the use of contributions from her political fundraiser, where President Carter spoke, for Senator Ted Kennedy's campaign. She says Mr. Carter never raised a dime of the money. She says the commitments were in before the President accepted the invitation to speak. (0:30) 13 November 1979 Listen.
03After Mayor Byrne endorses Senator Ted Kennedy for the 1980 Democratic presidential nomination, this is State Senator Richard M. Daley speaking out against an early endorsement of Kennedy by the Cook County Democratic organization at a party meeting. This was the speech that prompted Mayor Byrne to retaliate by firing Daley's pal Jerry Cannon as City Revenue Director. (0:28) 5 November 1979 Listen.
04Mayor Byrne fires a broadside at major banks in the City and why they like President Jimmy Carter. The attack was aimed at First National Bank President A. Robert Abboud after his Vice President, Neil Hartigan, endorsed Mr. Carter. (0:12) 12 November 1979 Listen.
05During the same exchange with reporters, the Mayor trains her sights on Neil Hartigan and his performance in his Ward as a Democratic Party regular. Critics saw this as a rather refreshing example of speaking out after the loyalist reticence of the Richard J. Daley and Michael Bilandic years. (0:15) 12 November 1979 Listen.
06In another exchange with reporters, the Mayor makes the public claim that she never, ever gets involved in political slatemaking, this at a time when she was known to be maneuvering behind the scenes to try and find a candidate to oppose her enemy Richard M. Daley in the race for Cook County State's Attorney. (0:10) 21 November 1979 Listen.
07In the same exchange with reporters, the Mayor claims that the criticism being heard of her Latino appointments is motivated by racial dislike for Latinos. (0:17) 21 November 1979 Listen.
08Mayor Byrne makes it clear she will demand full financial disclosure from the Board of Education before guaranteeing any loans to the Board. The Mayor won praise for refusing to take the Board's word for anything at a time when the school system was in deep financial difficulty. (0:17) 20 November 1979 Listen.
09This is Vice President Walter Mondale taking note of Mayor Byrne's absence from a big political fundraising dinner in Rosemont for President Jimmy Carter. Note: Byrne, of course, was supporting Senator Ted Kennedy for the 1980 Democratic presidential nomination. (0:12) 6 December 1979 Listen.
10The Mayor says she welcomes a criminal investigation into the possible misuse of funds at the Chicago Board of Education. (0:22) 6 December 1979 Listen.
11Mayor Byrne tells it like it is, saying the Board of Education betrayed the public trust (by hiding the true financial crisis in the public schools behind accounting gimmickry). (0:24) 6 December 1979 Listen.
12The Mayor tells reporters how public schools Superintendent Joe Hannon allegedly "lied" to her about the depth of the school board's financial crisis. (0:22) 6 December 1979 Listen.
13The Mayor candidly admits that the City of Chicago is not the city that works (as Mayor Richard J. Daley and his supporters often claimed). She says the city has just "been clanking along." (0:16) 6 December 1979 Listen.
14The Mayor tells reporters that the school board financial crisis was the product of a ten year cover up, meaning the roots of the crisis reach back to the Administration of Richard J. Daley. (0:20) 6 December 1979 Listen.
15The Mayor tells reporters that if she had known about the secret 25-thousand dollar a year salary the late Mayor Richard J. Daley was getting from the local Democratic Party she would have used that as an issue against Mayor Bilandic because of the support the Daley children were giving to h im. Note: Critics suggested Byrne never would have risked doing that because she was using her ties to Richard J. Daley as a strategy to win support in the mayoral primary. (0:10) 6 December 1979 Listen.
16Mayor Byrne breaks with the policy the late Mayor Richard J. Daley used of entering labor disputes between public agencies and unions to win settlements quickly. She says she won't do that because it would mean caving in and selling out to the unions ( something Daley was often accused of doing when he mediated management-union disputes in the public schools and at the Chicago Transit Authority).. Byrne breaks with past policy here as a union goes on strike against the CTA. (0:26) 17 December 1979 Listen.
17Mayor Byrne's Deputy Corporation Counsel Dan Pascalle reveals that Controller Ray Coyne had proposed the City not wipe a 29-million dollar property tax error off the books because the City could use the money. Critics saw this behavior as a bilking of the taxpayers ordered by the Mayor. Pascalle made the revelation during a meeting of the City Council's Finance Committee and it triggered an uproar of Council criticism against the Mayor. (0:28) 17 January 1980 Listen.
18The Mayor says that that her task force proposal to close more than 10% of the public schools (about 65 in all) would not result in more layoffs of teachers. She says it would simply involve more transfers of teachers. (0:18) 5 February 1980 Listen.
19The Mayor says there is no way the City will cave in to the 10% pay increase demand of the Firefighters Union. She says there is no room for compromise and she goes in to how the union allegedly changed the rules of the game. Note: This rigid stand by the Mayor would set the stage for the first ever strike by firemen in Chicago history nine days later. (0:14) 5 February 1980 Listen.
20Angry members of the Chicago Firefighters Union chanting in front of Mayor Byrne's City Hall office waving fists and placards in the face of a strike threat. (0:30) 31 January 1980 Listen.
21More of the demonstration by angry Chicago firefighters in front of Mayor Byrne's City Hall office. This time the firemen are chanting "no more lies, no more lies!" (0:30) 31 January 1980 Listen.
22On the second day of the historic strike by Chicago's union firefighters, the Mayor argues with one striker on the picket lines in front of City Hall about the no strike and binding arbitration issues. (2:17) 15 February 1980 Listen.
23At a news conference on the first day of the Chicago firefighters strike, Mayor Byrne assures the people there is enough manpower available to adequately protect the City. (which later turned out to be a false claim). (0:32) 14 February 1980 Listen.
24During the same news conference, the Mayor claims lunches were ordered for 11-hundred firemen and that half the equipment is out (available to fight fires). Note: Fire officials would testify in court three days later that only 225-men were in the fire houses on the first day of the strike, meaning the Mayor had downplayed the impact of the strike on public safety. (0:10) 14 February 1980 Listen.
25During the same news conference, the Mayor talks about the telegrams that were being sent to striking firemen saying they will have charges placed against them the following day aimed at suspensions or firings. (0:10) 14 February 1980 Listen.
26During the same news conference, the Mayor declares with emphasis that she will not yield to a contract with striking firemen without arbitration and a no strike clause. (0:24) 14 February 1980 Listen.
27During the same news conference, the Mayor expresses the hope that striking firemen will go back to work and she calls it a "sad, sick day for Chicago." (0:20) 14 February 1980 Listen.
28Mayor Byrne's husband Jay McMullin tells reporters it's true that his wife has been talking too much to reporters. He says she wanted to cooperate but it just got out of hand. (0:22) 18 January 1980 Listen.
29Loyal Fire Lieutenant Kevin King and Battalion Chief William Foran (who refused to join strikers on the picket lines) let it all out during a City Hall interview with reporters on why they don't want strikers back in the fire houses. Their comments came after a deal was worked out in a Circuit Court for striking firemen to return to work while negotiations on a new contract continued. The deal later fell through. Foran was angry over being harassed by strikers. (5:00) 22 February 1980 Listen.
30On the second day of the strike by Chicago firefighters, the Mayor tells reporters of her intention to fill the jobs of strikers with quickly trained recruits. (0:28) 15 February 1980 Listen.
31During the same news conference, the Mayor talks about how goon squads from the firefighters union allegedly roam about the City trying to create the impression they have more support than is really there. (0:12) 15 February 1980 Listen.
32During the same news conference, the Mayor says she will never again talk to Firefighters Union President Frank Muscare. (0:15) 15 February 1980 Listen.
33During the same news conference, the Mayor claims the core of strikers is only 600 strong, that a lot of other firefighters are not on the job because of threats. She says they are not really strikers and she tells of alleged beatings, telephoned threats, and goon squads. (1:01) 15 February 1980 Listen.
34During the same news conference, the Mayor attempts to substantiate her claim that firefighters union goon squads were engaging in terrorist tactics. But the evidence is rather weak. (0:34) 15 February 1980 Listen.
35Mayor Byrne defends her controversial decision to keep a 29-million dollar property tax error on the books as a basis of what she calls "enrichment" (increased revenues) and she claims the City had no other choice but to go ahead and levy the extra taxes caused by the error (to avoid a deficit). Note: This decision drew widespread criticism of the Mayor and began to plant doubts in the minds of experts and voters alike as to whether Jane Byrne had the right stuff to run a city the size of Chicago. (0:25) February 1980 Listen.
36More from the news conference in which the Mayor talks about the historic firefighters strike. In this passage, the Mayor vows her Administration will not return to the bargaining table with the union because Union President Frank Muscare has turned it into what she calls a kangaroo table. (0:12) 15 February 1980 Listen.
37During the same news conference, the Mayor tells union firefighters to get somebody else as Union President because she won't deal with current President Frank Muscare. (0:15) 15 February 1980 Listen.
38During the same news conference, the Mayor talks about the hard core band of 600 firefighter strikers who will not be coming back to their jobs (because they allegedly were engaging in all kinds of threats, intimidation, etc.). (0:11) 15 February 1980 Listen.
39Mayor Byrne weaves a web of intrigue in which she accuses Richard M. Daley of being behind the hard core of striking firemen who she things are keeping other firemen on the picket lines. (1:30) 3 March 1980 Listen.
40During the same exchange with reporters, the Mayor speaks to the issue of hiring firemen through the patronage system of the Democratic organization by asking the Party's ward committeemen to round up recruits. She justifies the move on the grounds she has asked others to find recruits, too, to replace the striking firemen who won't go back to work. (0:44) 3 March 1980 Listen.
41A crowd of unruly striking firemen yells at aldermen after a City Council special session to deal with the ongoing firefighters strike breaks up. The Council's majority block, at the urging of Mayor Byrne, had just scuttled attempts by minority block aldermen for a full scale public hearing on the strike. (1:00) 26 February 1980 Listen.
42Mayor Byrne objects to her newly appointed school board meeting to elect a President (who is not her choice) before members have even been sworn in. She challenges the legality of that action. (0:25) 16 May 1980 Listen.
43The Mayor says she doesn't know why the School Board went and sat down prior to being sworn in. She says it's such a silly thing, there's no great rush. (0:10) 16 May 1980 Listen.
44At the same news conference, the Mayor says something that holds true for her "revolving door" Administration. She says nothing is ever possible or impossible in this building (City Hall). (0:03) 16 May 1980 Listen.
45Mayor Byrne stakes out a formal policy position in favor of the Mayor officially getting involved in the running of the public schools. She says the Mayor must now have official input on school affairs because the City now has it's full faith and credit on the line (as part of a financial recovery plan). She says the Mayor must have a say in school policy. Note: Richard M. Daley always had a hand in the operation of the schools behind the scenes but never admitted it. Jane Byrne was the first Mayor to say the Mayor should be involved in the schools as a matter of public policy. (1:07) 19 May 1980 Listen.
46This is Mayor Byrne's outspoken husband Jay McMullin during the height of the scandal over alleged mob influence in the Chicago Police Department. Responding to newspaper disclosures that the mob has patronage jobs in the police motor maintenance department, Jay says what else is new. And he says those people were not put there by his wife, Mayor Byrne. (0:10) 24 April 1980 Listen.
47Mayor Byrne's husband Jay McMullin continues his colorful tirade against the Chicago Tribune allegations of mob influence in the Police Department. Referring to the reporter who wrote the articles, Jay says that when it's over he thinks Bob Wiedrick is gonna have so much egg on his face that he'll look like a Spanish omelet rather than a hot dog. Note: McMullin was once the long time City Hall reporter for the Chicago Daily News and his complaint about the Tribune articles was that they contained old news and that the newspaper dredged up the information to try and damage Mayor Byrne. The Tribune denied it. (0:10) 24 April 1980 Listen.
48Amid suggestions in the media and from some allies of Mayor Byrne that he ought to quit his City job because he was a lightening rod and hurting the Mayor with his outspoken remarks, the Mayor's husband Jay McMullin says he can't resign because he's married to the Mayor. He says he would have to get a divorce and that's messy. (0:11) 24 April 1980 Listen.
49Mayor Byrne tells reporters the charges of alleged mob influence in the Police Department don't phase her. She says what hurts her is how it's hurt the City. (0:22) 25 April 1980 Listen.
50During the same exchange with reporters, the Mayor explains why she will not talk about politics until after the November elections. (0:25) 25 April 1980 Listen.
51The Mayor tells reporters she doesn't think Bill Griffin and Mike Bradey, her two top staff aides, had dirty hands in the police department/mob influence controversy generated by Chicago Tribune columnist Bob Wiedrick. (0:15) 23 April 1980 Listen.
52The Mayor says she is not going to let race be the sole determining factor in who she picks for membership on the Board of Education. She is responding here to the demands of southwest side aldermen for a white ethnic appointee to the Board. In connection with her selection of Ruel Via Lobos to the Board, the Mayor says his wife (who is Polish) should satisfy the demand. (0:19) 5 June 1980 Listen.
53In the same exchange with reporters, the Mayor makes a very strong statement saying she refuses to inject racial considerations into her school board appointments. She says only the kids would be hurt by that kind of breaking it down (breaking down the board's membership into white, blacks, Hispanic, etc. (0:27) 5 June 1980 Listen.
54In the same exchange with reporters, the Mayor says members of the Board of Education are more than welcome to use her offices to negotiate spending cuts with the unions but that she will not get directly involved. (0:21) 5 June 1980 Listen.
55In the same exchange with reporters, the Mayor says she is more than willing to provide the impartial piece of ground for the school board to do it's work. (0:24) 5 June 1980 Listen.
56Mayor Byrne gives her views on what the value of Cable TV service in Chicago would be. The comment comes at a time when major cable companies were expressing an early interest in providing service to the City. (0:20) 11 June 1980 Listen.
57During the same exchange with reporters on the same subject, the Mayor raises the possibility that the City may use some channels in a cable system to promote City programs and services. (0:16) 11 June 1980 Listen.
58In the same exchange with reporters, the Mayor alludes to her decision to have a member of the former evil cabal in the City Council head the cable committee that would supervise the awarding of cable contracts. And she says she could put another member of the cabal on that panel, too. She says even the Lord said people change. Note: The Mayor is talking here about Aldermen Ed Vrdolyak and Ed Burke. She had once branded them part of an evil cabal in City government but then made peace with them. (0:08) 11 June 1980 Listen.
59In the same exchange with reporters, the Mayor won't say if she supports safeguards in a cable TV ordinance to to keep politicians connected with City Hall from secretly dealing themselves into a lucrative cable franchise deal. (0:10) 11 June 1980 Listen.
TapeTrack
Byrne0401In the same exchange with reporters, the Mayor shows her sense of humor as she talks about why she will permit a talking sculpture of her, husband Jay McMullin and daughter Kathy to be put on display in the Daley Center. (0:10) 11 June 1980 Listen.
02This is a lengthy exchange between the Chicago Tribune's City Hall Reporter Bob Davis and other reporters on the day he was supposed to leave City Hall after Mayor Byrne had ordered him out of the Press Room. The Mayor issued the order after becoming incensed over a series of articles in the Tribune that she thought unfairly smeared the City. (2:30) 23 June 1980 Listen.
03This is Tribune reporter Bob Davis again, this time seated at his desk and calling in to the newspaper to say that nobody had tried to evict him from the Press Room. Then he tells reporters he was told by his superiors to go to work and to conduct business as usual. (1:05) 23 June 1980 Listen.
04On the day that Chicago Tribune reporter Bob Davis was supposed to be evicted from the City Hall Press Room, the Mayor's husband Jay McMullin tells reporters the Mayor may eventually charge the Tribune rent for it's space in the Press Room. (0:22) 23 June 1980 Listen.
05The Mayor's husband Jay McMullin tells reporters he is not going to pick Tribune reporter Bob Davis up and carry him out of the Press Room. He calls Davis a rent free squatter. (0:34) 23 June 1980 Listen.
06Backing off the eviction order, the Mayor's husband Jay McMullin says no attempt will be made to harass Bob Davis as he does his job at City Hall. (0:12) 23 June 1980 Listen.
07Jay McMullin explains what the Mayor's position is in her war with the Tribune. She says she can't stop the Tribune from smearing the City but she doesn't have to provide the paper with rent free space in which to do it. (0:20) 23 June 1980 Listen.
08This is Chicago Tribune City Hall reporter Bob Davis after all is said and done saying it looks as if the Byrne Administration is going to leave him alone and that it will be business as usual. (0:20) 23 June 1980 Listen.
09This is the Mayor's husband and Press Secretary Jay McMullin admitting the day after the flap over the threatened eviction of Chicago Tribune City Hall reporter Bob Davis from the Press Room that the whole purpose of the confrontation was to attract public relations attention to the Mayor's case against the Tribune. He says the Tribune (as the Mayor sees it) is on a vendetta. (0:20) 24 June 1980 Listen.
10This is the Mayor's husband and Press Secretary Jay McMullin in the same exchange with reporters claiming the Mayor was justified in her threat to oust the Tribune from the City Hall Press Room. And he says the stunt worked, that it attracted as much press attention as the release of the hostages in Iran would have gotten. Note: The Byrne "stunt" did, in fact, draw national attention and stories also appeared in newspapers in London. (0:26) 24 June 1980 Listen.
11Mayor Byrne describes for reporters what she considered to be the worth of having her husband Jay McMullin serve as her Press Secretary. She claims that despite all of the controversy he created, Jay also straightened out her relations with the press. (0:22) 2 July 1980 Listen.
12The Mayor claims there are "hundreds" of neighborhoods in Chicago clamoring for public housing and she can't see any of them wanting to turn it down (because of racial fears). (0:12) 10 July 1980 Listen.
13The Mayor makes a rare admission that she broke one of her campaign promises by granting a consulting contract to a firm that had donated more than one thousand dollars to her political fund, in this case to her political fund raising dinner the previous year. During the campaign, the Mayor had promised to deny city business to any consultant who gave more than a thousand dollars to her political fund. (0:22) 15 July 1980 Listen.
14Mayor Byrne gets into another clash with the news media. She tells reporters that if they don't start reporting the positive aspects of her Administration then she is going to quit holding news conferences. (0:15) 2 October 1980 Listen.
15The Mayor denies she retaliated against Richard M. Daley by firing two cabinet members who reportedly were supporting his campaign for Cook County States Attorney. (0:25) 1 October 1980 Listen.
16Mayor Byrne says that all the federal aid President Carter poured into Chicago during the campaign should help him in the City but that it will take a lot of hard work to win the State anyway. Note: After supporting Senator Ted Kennedy in his failed attempt to seize the Democratic nomination away from Jimmy Carter, the Mayor's support for the President in the 1980 campaign was suspect. (0:37) 29 September 1980 Listen.
17In the same exchange with reporters, the Mayor says it's going to be close and she thinks President Carter can pull it off in Illinois (win the State) providing there is a lot of hard work and unity, working together. "Is the party together?" she asks. "I don't know." (0:25) 29 September 1980 Listen.
18Mayor Byrne tells reporters during a news conference that she wants an open and free election on union representation in the Police Department. (0:55) 14 October 1980 Listen.
19During the same news conference, the Mayor pledges to move forward with collective bargaining legislation in the City Council if policemen vote in favor of union representation in the second round of balloting. (0:17) 14 October 1980 Listen.
20At a news conference, the Mayor refuses "to stick her neck out" and predict that President Carter will carry Illinois or win reelection on November 4th. (0:20) 7 October 1980 Listen.
21This is Mayor Byrne's husband and Press Secretary Jay McMullin branding Senator Richard M. Daley's charges that the Mayor and incumbent Republican States Attorney Bernard Carey have formed a tag team against him "sick and paranoid." Note: Daley was running against Carey at the time. (0:14) 9 October 1980 Listen.
22This is Mayor Byrne's husband and Press Secretary Jay McMullin in the same exchange with reporters explaining why the Mayor attacked Senator Richard M. Daley in the first place. He says it was only to defend herself against his charges. (0:35) 9 October 1980 Listen.
23In the same exchange with reporters, the Mayor's husband and Press Secretary Jay McMullin says he doesn't know what is going on in Senator Daley's mind but he thinks there are "woolly caterpillars" in there somewhere. (0:10) Listen.
24In the heat of the battle between Republican Cook County States Attorney Bernard Carey and his Democratic challenger Senator Richard M. Daley (whom Mayor Byrne was trying behind the scenes to defeat) this is County Democratic Party Chairman George Dunne showing reluctance to take action against a ward boss who openly backed Carey for reelection (probably under pressure from the Mayor). (0:56) 13 October 1980 Listen.
25Mayor Byrne launches a surprise attack against her arch enemy Senator Richard M. Daley in the heat of the campaign in which Daley was trying to unseat Republican Bernard Carey as Cook County States Attorney. During a news conference, the Mayor details charges that Senator Daley is allegedly using the powers of the City Building Department to keep blacks, Hispanics, and other minorities out of Daley's home 11th Ward. In this passage, the Mayor talks about threatening letters that allegedly went out to landlords renting to minority families after she stopped a racist scheme in the Department to block permits. (0:18) 21 October 1980 Listen.
26During the same news conference, the Mayor asserts that nobody could do anything in the 11th and 19th wards in the City without having it go through the powers of those wards. She is talking about the ward bosses of those wards, Senator Richard M. Daley and through Daley Tom Hynes. (0;20) 21 October 1980 Listen.
27During the same news conference, the Mayor charges that Senator Richard M. Daley had complete control of who would be allowed to live, work and breathe in the 11th and 19th wards. (0:26) 21 October 1980 Listen.
28During the same news conference, the Mayor finally gets to the point of her attack. She charges straight out that Senator Richard M. Daley was engaged in racist practices. Note: The Mayor stunning attack on Senator Daley was greeted with widespread skepticism because of the shortage of evidence to back up her charges. She would later be roundly criticized for appearing to engage in smear tactics in the heat of a political campaign. (0:10) 21 October 1980 Listen.
29During the same news conference, the Mayor charges that Mat Danaher, the son of the late Circuit Court Clerk and 11th ward close friend of the late Mayor Richard J. Daley, was arrested for attacking Latino undercover cops who were looking into racism in the 11th Ward. Note: This appeared to be a guilt by association attack on Senator Richard M. Daley, who was a pal of the younger Danaher, and it backfired because it later turned out the Mayor had the wrong Danaher, that it was a nephew, not the son, of the late Circuit Court Clerk. (0:25) 21 October 1980 Listen.
30Standing behind her accusation that Senator Richard M. Daley was engaged in racist tactics, the Mayor responds to media demands for more proof by offering up a shopping center development she claims Daley killed in the Stockyards area (of the 11th Ward) as an example of how he blocks permits for racial reasons. (0:45) 23 October 1980 Listen.
31During the same exchange with reporters, the Mayor accuses Senator Richard M. Daley of playing the role of a martyr trying to take control of City Government. She says he is not a Democrat. (1:20) 23 October 1980 Listen.
32During the same exchange with reporters, the Mayor claims to have evidence to prove in a higher court that her firing of Building Department employees who won back their jobs under Shakman (the federal court ban preventing political hirings and firings) was not political. She claims the firings were related to a skimming scandal, not to politics (namely her war with Senator Richard M. Daley). She says she is tired of the game being played that the firings were political. Note: The Mayor lost the case in a lower court, which reversed the firings, but Byrne appealed the ruling and ended up losing. (0:20) 23 October 1980 Listen.
33During the same exchange with reporters, the Mayor, still hammering away at alleged racist tactics in the 11th and 19th wards, zeros in on 19th Ward Alderman Mike Sheahan. She accuses him of threatening her Chief of Staff Tom Geary in an attempt to keep a black-owned firm, R&R Construction, from putting up homes for black families in the 19th Ward. Note: The charge blew up in the Mayor's face when it was learned that the builder in question was, in fact, a white slumlord. (0:19) 23 October 1980 Listen.
34During a news conference, the Mayor begins with a rather humorous aside in which she tells her husband and Press Secretary Jay McMullin to stay out of an exchange between her and a reporter in which she was scolding the reporter for not raising his hand before asking a question. The Mayor goes on to defend herself against the charge that she threatened to fire two Democratic Party ward bosses from their City jobs, Ed Nedza and John Geocaris, because they failed to defend her against charges leveled at her by Senator Richard M. Daley. (0:37) 29 October 1980 Listen.
35At a news conference, the Mayor defends herself against charges by L. Patrick Green that he was the only Deputy Commissioner denied a pay raise in her new budget because he was a cousin of "Sis" Daley, the mother of her arch enemy Senator Richard M. Daley. Green had filed a complaint under Shakman that he was a victim of political harassment but the Mayor claims lots of deputy commissioners didn't get raises and that she had not made a final decision on that anyway. (0:22) 24 November 1980 Listen.
36In an exchange with reporters, the Mayor refuses to offer justification for her planned expansion of the City Department of Investigations in the face of criticism that it looked as if she was preparing to go after more political enemies. She says only that the expansion is necessary to root out corruption. (0:24) 14 November 1980 Listen.
37In the same exchange with reporters, the Mayor defends the major pay raises she gave to her two chief bodyguards on the vague grounds that their duties will increase. (0:35) 14 November 1980 Listen.
38During the same exchange with reporters, the Mayor says the press had a ball with it's predictions that she would dump Ed Kelley (Superintendent of the Park District) and then saying she wouldn't. She says the fact is it will be up to the Park Board (the membership of which she appoints). And she claims she has spoken to no one about Kelley (about dumping him). (0:36) 14 November 1980 Listen.
39During the same exchange with reporters, the Mayor says that some day she will run for Democratic ward committeeman but that she has not yet decided just when. She doesn't say she will try to dump incumbent Party Chairman George Dunne but it was widely believed that was her plan. (0:12) 14 November 1980 Listen.
40During the same exchange with reporters, the Mayor denies reports in newspaper columns that she accumulated a large number of parking tickets and then got them non suited(a legal term for having them dismissed). The accusation was that she got all the tickets while allegedly parking overnight outside of her husband Jay McMullin's apartment before they were married. The Mayor does concede, however, that she paid off 700-dollars worth of tickets for herself and her daughter Kathy. (1:51) 14 November 1980 Listen.
41During the taping of WBBM's At Issue program, the Mayor says that stealing on the City's Building Department Permit Desks is now up to eight or nine million dollars, three million on one desk alone. (1:50) 25 November 1980 Listen.
42During the same At Issue program, the Mayor admits she is keeping on 600 unneeded firefighter recruits to have a strike breaking force present in the event of another union strike. (0:27) 25 November 1980 Listen.
43State Senator Richard M. Daley responds to Mayor Byrne's charge that he was engaged in racist tactics with the help of allies in the City Building Department. He accuses the Mayor of engaging in McCarthyism against him in his campaign for Cook County States Attorney. (0:52) 28 October 1980 Listen.
44During the same response to Mayor Byrne's charges of racism, Senator Richard M. Daley tells reporters he is not running for Mayor in 1983. Note: Daley would later jump into the race against Mayor Byrne setting the stage for a three way fight that paved the way for Harold Washington's historic primary victory and subsequent election as Chicago's first black Mayor. (0:34) 28 October 1980 Listen.
45During the same response to Mayor Byrne's charges of racism, State Senator Richard M. Daley accuses the Mayor of using her power ruthlessly. (1:45) 28 October 1980 Listen.
46Mayor Byrne insists to reporters that the City did have deficits as she had claimed since taking office even though her auditors discovered that what she thought was a 20-million dollar deficit in the corporate fund was really a six million dollar cash shortfall. And the Mayor says she hopes to cut taxes. (2:06) 3 December 1980 Listen.
47The Mayor responds to a newspaper poll showing a decline in her popularity. She suggests the newspapers deliberately time their polls to bad times to try and make her look bad. (0:25) 9 December 1980 Listen.
48During the same exchange with reporters, the Mayor denies that she cut off Patrick Green ( Sis Daley's cousin) from a pay raise that other deputy commissioners got because of his ties to the Daley family. She says Green has a neurosis. (0:29) 9 December 1980 Listen.
49During the same exchange with reporters, the Mayor belittles Patrick Green as "one little employee." She says Green's charges (that she politically harassed him in violation of the Shakman ban on political hiring and firing) amount to extortion and blackmail; you better give me a raise or I will embarrass you. (0:16) 9 December 1980 Listen.
50During the same exchange with reporters, the Mayor denies that her Office of Municipal Investigations harassed a City inspector because he leaked information on code violations at Navy Pier to Channel 2. (0:12) 9 December 1980 Listen.
51Mayor Byrne denies having knowledge of a city ordinance dumping the civil service system and she challenges the claim that the ordinance will give her a chance to flood the city payroll with political patronage. (0:22) 14 January 1981 Listen.
52During the same exchange with reporters, the Mayor says she thinks the City Council had a right to dump the merit employment system and that she agrees with complaints that tests based on merit are unfair in many cases. (0:40) 14 January 1981 Listen.
53During the same exchange with reporters, the Mayor says she is not "panicked" over what the City Council did (dumping the civil service system) the way some reporters were. (0:25) 14 January 1981 Listen.
54During the same exchange with reporters, the Mayor says the City Council's action dumping the civil service system was not about patronage, it was a question of fairness on tests. She says there was not a chance of an orange grower in Alaska that some employees could pass the tests. (0:32) 14 January 1981 Listen.
55During an appearance on WBBM's At Issue program, Mayor Byrne attacks Cook County Assessor Tom Hines, blaming him for rising taxes because of rising property assessments. Note: Byrne was on the outs with Hines as well as with his key ally, now Cook County State's Attorney Richard M. Daley. She had accused both Daley and Hines of trying to keep blacks out of their 11th and 19th wards. (0:24) 13 March 1981 Listen.
TapeTrack
Byrne0501During the same appearance on WBBM's At Issue program, the Mayor tells Cook County Assessor Tom Hynes to quit poking his nose into the City's business. Note: This attack came only a few days after Hynes had accused the Mayor of using property tax increases to build a reelection surplus into the City Budget. (0:17) 13 March 1981 Listen.
02Mayor Byrne staunchly defends her controversial Senior Budget Advisor Edwin Yeo in the fact of strong accusations that he was running up big expense accounts in New York while not devoting much time to his duties in behalf of the City of Chicago. Note: It was Yeo who talked Byrne into hiking taxes to provide for what he called "an enrichment" of the budget. The move subjected the Mayor to widespread criticism. (0:24) March 1981 Listen.
03In connection with her master stroke public relations decision to move into one of Chicago's crime-ridden public housing projects to dramatize a crackdown on gang crime, the Mayor tells a community meeting at Cabrini Green that she is going to make a start toward creating a better life there. (0:18) 3 April 1981 Listen.
04In the same speech, the Mayor says that she is going to reclaim the streets of Cabrini Green (by moving into an apartment there to lead a fight against crime in public housing). Note: This decision by Byrne to move into public housing generated nationwide publicity and for a time her beefing up of police protection at Cabrini Green showed some results. But as soon as she moved out, the street gangs that had been lying low went back to their old violent ways again. (0:32) 3 April 1981 Listen.
05Mayor Byrne speaks out against a Board of Education school desegregation plan and it's forced busing component that was unveiled that day. This was a very important sequence of comments by the Mayor which clearly demonstrated her understanding that it was the white vote which played the most important role in electing mayors in Chicago at a time when whites were overwhelmingly opposed to busing. (3:00) 3 April 1981 Listen.
06Mayor Byrne talks about how the School Board, in her judgement, has failed to improve it's financial cash flow through the sale of Midway Airport land and taking full advantage of federal aid as partial justification for her opposition to the Board's proposal for a property tax hike pending before the Illinois Legislature. (0:25) 7 April 1981 Listen.
07Mayor Byrne fires back at School Superintendent Ruth Love for saying the School Board hadn't asked for City money to finance forced busing. The Mayor says nobody asked for help during the school financial crisis either, that it was just dumped in her lap and she says her letter of the day before ruling out the use of City funds for busing was meant to tell Superintendent Love and the School Board that if they had in mind dumping something in her lap again they could forget it. (0:15) 7 April 1981 Listen.
08The Mayor tells reporters that a study of 1980 census tracts by the City Planning Department suggests the need to create one and maybe two Latino wards in the City, one in Humboldt Park and another on the near southwest side. (0:24) 7 April 1981 Listen.
09The Mayor tells reporters how she will use her apartment at the Cabrini-Green public housing project and how she has also established apartments at other housing projects. She also explains her strategy of wanting to come and go on a surprise basis as a way of keeping everybody honest and keeping up the services at Cabrini-Green. (1:20) 23 April 1981 Listen.
10During the same exchange with reporters, the Mayor reacts to a disclosure by School Superintendent Ruth Love that the bugging of her office and car was all a hoax. The Mayor says it's "unfortunate" and "rather disgusting." (0:15) 23 April 1981 Listen.
11During the same exchange with reporters, the Mayor suggests that School Superintendent Ruth Love has lost credibility, that everyone had been looking forward to leadership with integrity and beyond reproach (but haven't gotten it). (0:15) 23 April 1981 Listen.
12During the same exchange with reporters, the Mayor blames the bugging hoax involving School Superintendent Ruth Love ultimately on the School Board for having chosen Love as Superintendent in the first place. (0:17) 23 April 1981 Listen.
13Mayor Byrne endorses the second school desegregation plan presented to a federal judge. She says some very strong steps were taken to comply with federal law while maintaining as much as possible the neighborhood school system. Her endorsement comes in a telephone address to the Executives Club of Chicago. (0:15) 1 May 1981 Listen.
14In the same speech, the Mayor criticizes outgoing U.S. Attorney Thomas Sullivan for saying Chicago was one of the most corrupt cities in the world. (0:48) 1 May 1981 Listen.
15The Mayor puts forth her argument on why she won't accept less than an oil tax to fund mass transit. She says Chicago already gets back less in taxes than it pays so she won't stand for the Republicans (in the Legislature) demanding more in concessions. And she adds to the mix the threat to have the City take over the CTA if agreement is not reached by lawmakers in Springfield and the Regional Transit Authority collapses. (0:56) 27 May 1981 Listen.
16The Mayor explains how her proposed 4% service tax to fund a City run CTA would be applied if the City were to take over the CTA. (0:23) 10 June 1981 Listen.
17During the same news conference, the Mayor says she can foresee a fare increase of 10 cents on the CTA plus service cuts if the City takes over the CTA. (0:16) 10 June 1981 Listen.
18During the same news conference, the Mayor says it is the goal of her Administration to take over the CTA now even if the Legislature comes up with a bailout plan for mass transit before it's June 30th scheduled adjournment. Note: The Mayor will later retreat from this position when the RTA proposes a compromise. (0:26) 10 June 1981 Listen.
19The Mayor offers justification for using a 4% service tax as the vehicle to finance the CTA if the City takes over the agency. This argument also stands for her disclosure that she is studying a 1% service tax to shore up city finances in 1982. (0:20) 17 June 1981 Listen.
20During an appearance on WBBM's At Issue program, the Mayor says that she thinks the public will accept her three proposed taxes to help the CTA. She asks, "what choice did we have? (0:14) 10 July 1981 Listen.
21During the same appearance on WBBM's At Issue program, the Mayor says she does not fear a political backlash against her in 1983 (when she will be up for reelection) because of all the taxes she has proposed since taking office. (0:38) 10 July 1981 Listen.
22The City Council gets involved in the debate over Mayor Byrne's effort to win more State aid for the CTA. Alderman Ed Vrdolyak, President Pro Tem of the Council, defends the Mayor's push for aid by blasting those who said take what you can get from the Legislature and negotiate for more later. He says that's cowardice. (0:10) 20 July 1981 Listen.
23During the same City Council meeting, Alderman Ed Vrdolyak continues his speech on the CTA, charging that downstate lawmakers in the State Legislature don't care about Chicago. (0:21) 20 July 1981 Listen.
24During the same City Council debate, independent Alderman Martin Oberman delivers a stinging attack on Mayor Byrne. He lists all the taxes the Mayor has put through in her first two years in office and charges that she is breaking the backs of taxpayers. (1:25) 20 July 1981 Listen.
25The Mayor defends her decision to make Tony Frato her new City Controller even though she had once blasted a snow report he co-authored (during the previous Bilandic Administration) as a fraud and waste of the taxpayer's money. (0:15) 24 September 1981 Listen.
26The Mayor gives reporters an early glimpse of the strategy she will use in her campaign for reelection. She says it will involve going out into the neighborhoods (just the way she did when she upset incumbent Mayor Mike Bilandic in 1979). (0:25) 24 September 1981 Listen.
27In the same exchange with reporters, the Mayor explains why she wants to throw out the provision in state law that permits a referendum on competing ward redistricting plans. She says her position is not a power grab, that she just thinks a referendum would be too costly. (0:21) 24 September 1981 Listen.
28The Mayor insists to reporters that she never expressed an interest in running for Cook County Democratic Party Chairman. She claims she was misquoted on that and that she does not intend to seek the post of Chairman "at this time." (0:50) 23 October 1981 Listen.
29In the same exchange with reporters, the Mayor claims that Joe DeLeonardi, a well known Police Department figure, was not demoted from his job at O'Hare Airport. She says he was moved to the high crime Marquette District because of his expertise in fighting crime. (0:25) 23 October 1981 Listen.
30During the same exchange with reporters, the Mayor claims her press staff is smaller than the "hidden one" that the late Mayor Richard J. Daley had and that it does more work. Note: The Mayor's reference to the hidden press staff Daley had refers to the fact that at that time Daley had a habit of hiding a lot of public relations people in scattered departments under titles which suggested they did other work. (0:50) 23 October 1981 Listen.
31Mayor Byrne, in a speech to the Chicago Television Academy, tells her audience she thinks she is being treated fairly by the news media but that what she hates is media negativism. (1:45) 29 October 1981 Listen.
32During the same speech, Mayor Byrne denies that employees in the City's Manpower Office are shaking down other employees for ticket purchases to her political fund raising dinners. Note: The Mayor was reacting to a newspaper report that a federal grand jury was investigating complaints that employees in the Manpower Office were pressured into buying tickets to her 1.7 million dollar fund raiser in 1980. (0:50) 29 October 1981 Listen.
33After Mayor Byrne and her close allies drew up their version of a ward redistricting plan, this is Cook County Democratic Party Chairman George Dunne saying that party leaders (meaning ward bosses) should have had more input into the drawing of the map. (0:30) 11 November 1981 Listen.
34In the same exchange with reporters, Cook County Democratic Party Chairman George Dunne complains that he doesn't have very much input on party affairs because Mayor Byrne runs the show herself. But he says that's okay with him. (0:15) 11 November 1981 Listen.
35During her Budget Message to the City Council, Mayor Byrne says that there will be no property tax increase in her 1982 budget. (0:12) 12 November 1981 Listen.
36Mayor Byrne tells a special U.S. Conference of Mayors meeting in Chicago that President Reagan's policies should be given a chance to work but she cautions that she is not endorsing the Reagan domestic program. (0:21) 13 November 1981 Listen.
37During an appearance on WBBM's At Issue program, the Mayor backs away from the idea of a surcharge on suburban riders of the CTA after she, herself, had said it was needed. She now says she is afraid it will chase away riders. (0:25) 22 January 1982 Listen.
38On the same At Issue program, the Mayor says she is working with suburban mayors on other costs they might pick up for the CTA. (0:24) 22 January 1982 Listen.
39On the same At Issue program, the Mayor endorses a ban on the consumption of food and beverages on CTA buses and trains. (0:10) 22 January 1982 Listen.
40On the same At Issue program, the Mayor again ducks formal recognition of the Guardian Angels (a New York based volunteer group dedicated to improving security on mass transit). She says her concern is that they will get hurt. (0:19) 22 January 1982 Listen.
41On the same program, the Mayor admits that there is back biting against Fire Commissioner Blair but says that's because he is an outsider and she says Blair has her support. (0:22) 22 January 1982 Listen.
42During the same program, the Mayor refuses to endorse the reelection of George Dunne as Cook County Democratic Party Chairman. (0:25) 22 January 1982 Listen.
43The Mayor complains to reporters that the news media are making an event out of the weather. She says that since former Mayor Bilandic messed up in the big snow of 79 there has been a mood of over expectation, that people actually act as if her Administration ought to catch the snow before it hits the ground, and that's not possible. (0:42) 2 February 1982 Listen.
44The Mayor makes an unprecedented appearance before the City Council's Police Committee to lobby for her handgun control proposal in the face of strong opposition from the public and some committee members. (0:50) 3 February 1982 Listen.
45The Mayor continues her testimony before the City Council's Police Committee. (0:33) 3 February 1982 Listen.
46Mayor says she doesn't think a smaller hotel in the north loop would hurt development there, that what Hilton had in mind was still a big hotel. (0:25) 4 February 1982 Listen.
TapeTrack
Byrne0601At a news conference, Mayor Byrne says she thinks her snow plan is a good one but she does some clever hedging on the issue of side street plowing, contending the City would do it only if it could (Which is not what the plan says). (0:22) 4 February 1982 Listen.
02During the same news conference, the Mayor says she doesn't think the flap over the handling of side street plowing is that great an issue. She claims the news media blew it out of proportion. She says she never made any flat promises (that under her control, the City would plow side streets as a matter of regular policy). Note: Going back to the beginning of the Richard J. Daley years, the City never had a policy that said it would plow all side streets unless they became totally impassable. During the Blizzard of 79, the Bilandic Administration was so overwhelmed it did not get to side streets in a timely manner, leaving motorists to fend for themselves. It became an issue that helped lead to Mayor Bilandic's downfall and that is why Mayor Byrne was reluctant to make any promises because the City never had enough equipment to plow both main and side streets at the same time. (0:25) 4 February 1982 Listen.
03During the same news conference, the Mayor vows that the CTA will be safe and that she means to crack down on the teenaged hooliganism on buses and trains. Note: The Mayor made this promise as she announced the assignment of 230-extra cops to patrol the CTA on their days off. (0:20) 4 February 1982 Listen.
04The Mayor concedes to reporters that she has a problem with side street plowing and she says time sheets of the people who worked (on snow removal) are being checked to see who worked and who didn't. Note: The Mayor was under criticism for sloppy handling of side street snow removal after a storm. City Hall had promised to focus on side streets as soon as main arteries were cleared but the work went very slowly. (0:10) 9 February 1982 Listen.
05During the same news conference, the Mayor goes after a reporter for his persistent questioning on the problem her Administration had with side street snow removal. She says the attention given the matter made her a little sick, it was silly frivolity. (2:10) 9 February 1982 Listen.
06During the same news conference, the Mayor defends the state law that empowers her to temporarily fill City Council vacancies by appointment even though a federal judge found the law unconstitutional. She says it saves on costs for special elections. (0:27) 9 February 1982 Listen.
07Mayor Byrne attends the St. Valentines Day Ball for senior citizens at the Conrad Hilton Hotel and joins them in singing a hilarious rendition, off key, of "Let Me Call You Sweetheart" and "You Made Me Love You." Note: The Mayor got a kick out of singing along with seniors even though she wasn't very good at it and, of course, it delighted those audiences. (1:32) February 1982 Listen.
08Mayor Byrne claims in an exchange with reporters that two thirds of the political money she has raised "from day one" of her tenure in office went to charity. Note: Documentation of the spending from the Mayor's political fund would show this claim to be false. (2:20) 4 March 1982 Listen.
09The Mayor stands firm in support of Chicago Housing Authority Chairman Charles Swibel in the face of demands from the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development that he be dumped for mismanagement of the CHA. HUD was threatening to cut off federal aid if Swibel did not go. (0:20) 19 March 1982 Listen.
10In the same exchange with reporters, the Mayor contends there has been "slippage" in the strength of the local Democratic Machine under the leadership of Chairman George Dunne. (0:11) 19 March 1982 Listen.
11In the same exchange with reporters, the Mayor steps up her criticism of Cook County Democratic Party Chairman George Dunne. She charges that women are being denied a leadership role in the Party under Dunne. (0:14) 19 March 1982 Listen.
12During the same exchange with reporters, the Mayor says the local Democratic Party was very active when women were playing a leading role but she contends Chairman George Dunne stopped all that. (0:31) 19 March 1982 Listen.
13During the same exchange with reporters, the Mayor refuses to reveal her own intentions regarding seeking the Chairmanship of the Cook County Democratic Party. She says she is having too much of a ball (being Mayor). Note: Those close to Byrne would say later that she fully intended to seek the Chairmanship of the Party to broaden her power as Richard J. Daley did when he held the twin positions of Party Chairman and Mayor. But Byrne's defeat in her bid for reelection as Mayor in 1983 would short circuit that plan. (0:14) 19 March 1982 Listen.
14The Mayor once again defends Chicago Housing Authority Chairman Charles Swibel and other members of the CHA Board in the face of the demand by the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development that they be let go for alleged mismanagement of the CHA. She contends HUD offered no proof. (0:20) 25 March 1982 Listen.
15The Mayor reminds reporters that she was the one who originally exposed most of the problems at the CHA which were outlined in a HUD study of the agency and that she even took some of the blame for those problems. (1:10) 25 March 1982 Listen.
16The Mayor tells reporters that public housing in Chicago is never gonna be a country club but that the CHA and Chairman Charles Swibel do the best they can with what money the Government gives them. (0:20) 25 March 1982 Listen.
17In the same exchange with reporters, the Mayor uses the issue of malfunctioning elevators in CHA buildings as an example of bad conditions in public housing and says that unless the Government wants to put up the money to repair them, then it (HUD) should not complain about bad conditions (as HUD did in the study which demanded the firing of Chairman Charles Swibel and other members of the CHA Board). (0:22) 25 March 1982 Listen.
18During the same exchange with reporters, the Mayor contends that the Reagan Administration is operating in a very duplicitous manner on public housing. (0:20) 25 March 1982 Listen.
19The Mayor alludes to "fat cat realtors" who, she claims, just want to sell of public housing and put the poor out on the streets. Note: The Mayor is referring to Donald Hovde, the Undersecretary of the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development, who has a background as a realtor. She makes the comment during an appearance on WBBM's At Issue program. (0:25) 2 April 1982 Listen.
20During the same program, the Mayor claims that HUD is preparing to put 140-thousand people (in Chicago public housing) out on the street and she isn't going to let that happen. (0:17) 2 April 1982 Listen.
21During the same program, the Mayor says she has no reason to think she should not trust Alderman Ed Vrdolyak as the new Cook County Democratic Party Chairman. She says this in response to reports that Vrdolyak was the kind of sleazy operator she had better not turn her back on. (0:13) 2 April 1982 Listen.
22Mayor Byrne issues an Executive Order barring People's Gas Co. from getting City permits to shut off the service of customers who haven't paid their bills. The Mayor spells out her legal authority to do this. Note: This action said something about the confrontational way the Mayor often ran city government. Instead of talking to People's Gas and getting them to delay customer shutoffs, she just hit them with an executive order. (0:26) 31 March 1982 Listen.
23During the same news conference, the Mayor says People's Gas Co. isn't hurting financially and should allow more grace time to families to pay overdue bills considering the high rate of unemployment. (0:21) 31 March 1982 Listen.
24Mayor Byrne charges that the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) is seeking consultant studies to find ways for the Government to get out of public housing and she says this is the reason for the attack by HUD on Chicago Housing Authority Chairman Charles Swibel. She says the attack is a smoke screen to cover up HUD's big plan. (1:25) 1 April 1982 Listen.
25Mayor Byrne charges that the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) is seeking consultant studies to find ways for the Government to get out of public housing and she says this is the reason for the attack by HUD on Chicago Housing Authority Chairman Charles Swibel. She says the attack is a smoke screen to cover up HUD's big plan. (0:21) 1 April 1982 Listen.
26Mayor Byrne defends a "sweetheart" contract she awarded to her two former top aides, Bill Griffin and Mike Bradey. They were given a 98-thousand dollar contract to study the public relations arm of the City Health Department after the department had laid off over 300-people and slashed some health services because of federal aid cutbacks. Note: Under pressure, Griffin backed out of the contract the day after the Mayor defended it. (1:16) 21 May 1982 Listen.
27Mayor Byrne once again sternly defends her involvement in public school affairs and says she will continue to do it so long as the full faith and credit of the City are behind the financial bailout of the Board of Education. Note: The Mayor made this comment as part of her defense against charges that one of her aides, Phil Mix, threatened the Board's Chief Financial Officer, Joseph Mahran, while trying to get him to go along with making John Milanify and Associates the new real estate department of the Board. The firm was a contributor to the Mayor's political campaign fund. (0:48) 17 May 1982 Listen.
28Mayor Byrne denounces the rejection of the Equal Rights Amendment by the Illinois House as a disgrace. She asks how would the men like it if a female legislature denied them full rights? (0:26) 23 June 1982 Listen.
29During the same exchange with reporters, the Mayor says the passage of the Equal Rights Amendment is important to Governor Thompson's political future and he knows that. (0:25) 23 June 1982 Listen.
30During the same exchange with reporters, the Mayor says Congress ought to keep granting extensions on the ratification process until the Equal Rights Amendment passes muster with enough states. (0:17) 23 June 1982 Listen.
31Mayor Byrne reveals to reporters that one of her political rivals, 17th Ward Alderman Alan Streeter, is under federal investigation by the FBI. The disclosure was designed to cause Streeter's defeat in a June 29th runoff election but the strategy backfired when Streeter won anyway. (0:45) 11 June 1982 Listen.
32Responding to a question at a meeting of newspaper editorial writers, the Mayor lays out her case on how she has been treated as Mayor. She suggests the Democratic Party Machine is chauvinistic, so are reporters, and that reporters try to drag her into politics even though she now claims to have no desire to be County Democratic Party Chairman. (3:20) 24 June 1982 Listen.
33The Mayor flashes her wit at a City Hall news conference as she tries to disarm possible controversy over how she will handle the plowing of side streets during the coming winter after confusion reigned on that question the previous winter. She says the snow isn't gonna stop coming down and the policy will be to pick it up. (0:35) 9 November 1982 Listen.
34Mayor Byrne uses the strategy of trying to pretend she is not a candidate in reelection mode as she releases part of a new budget containing goodies to attract votes. (0:50) 8 November 1982 Listen.
35Mayor Byrne defends her three new white appointees to the Chicago Housing Authority Board to oversee a public housing system that is 95% black. These appointments created widespread resentment in the black community and played a key role in helping Harold Washington muster the minority support needed to narrowly unseat Byrne in 1983. (1:55) 24 July 1982 Listen.
36Mayor Byrne unveils her reelection year budget for 1983. She calls it the first Jane Byrne budget because it is the first budget that is free of past deficits she claims she inherited from predecessors. The Mayor tries to justify her claim that the City was just about "bankrupt" when she took over as Mayor. She talks about the trouble she had just meeting payrolls. 12 November 1982 Listen.
37Mayor Byrne announces that she is a candidate for reelection and she claims that she inherited almost a billion dollars in debt when she first took over in 1979, a claim that was widely disputed by financial experts. (0:24) 22 November 1982 Listen.
38In the same candidacy announcement, the Mayor talks about other cities in trouble but says that's not happening to Chicago under her leadership. (0:26) 22 November 1982 Listen.
39In the same announcement, the Mayor talks about the importance of having the endorsement of the Democratic Party organization even though she bucked the Machine in 1979. (0:35) 22 November 1982 Listen.
40In the same announcement, the Mayor challenges her opponents to a series of campaign debates. Note: This would prove to be a tactical mistake because the debates ended up giving Harold Washington, a gifted speaker, the public forum he needed to rally support and give credibility to his campaign. (1:02) 22 November 1982 Listen.
41Under questioning by reporters at her reelection campaign announcement, the Mayor says she doesn't want to be splitting hairs over whether Chicago had a deficit, was bankrupt, or had a shortfall when she came into office. Note: The Mayor is trying to fend off accusations that she overstated the size of Chicago's financial problem to justify over 400-million dollars in new taxes and fees she pushed through the City Council. (0:34) 22 November 1982 Listen.
42At the same announcement, the Mayor tells reporters that her controversial, outspoken husband Jay McMullin will be out of the way in this campaign after having embarrassed her on a number of occasions when he was Press Secretary. (0:14) 22 November 1982 Listen.
43At the same announcement, the Mayor defends her decision to take campaign donations from people who do business with the City. She says it's okay to do that because most of the money goes to charity. (1:09) 22 November 1982 Listen.
44At the same announcement, the Mayor says she has no intention of increasing taxes over the next four years if she is elected to a second term. (0:34) 22 November 1982 Listen.
45Mayor Byrne addresses Democratic Party slatemakers on the day she won endorsement in a split vote, capturing the support of 33 of the City's 50 ward bosses. In reference to the boycotting of the session by her two primary opponents, Cook County State's Attorney Richard M. Daley and Congressman Harold Washington, the Mayor says that she never "shirked" her responsibility to the Party the way they did. (0:34) 23 November 1982 Listen.
46During an appearance on WBBM's At Issue program, the Mayor says she considers discussions about her hiring of an outside consultant to change her image a "phony image" and act of chauvinism . (0:15) 24 November 1982 Listen.
47During the same program, the Mayor says that the boycott of Democratic Party slatemaking by her rivals, Richard M. Daley and Harold Washington, betrays some kind of weakness or fear (on their party). (0:16) 24 November 1982 Listen.
48During the same program, the Mayor denies States Attorney Richard M. Daley's charge that she has misused her patronage powers as evidenced by all the Shakman suits that were filed against her by City employees. Note: Shakman refers to the federal court ban on political hiring and firing. (0:26) 24 November 1982 Listen.
49During the same program, the Mayor says she is willing to take responsibility for the higher taxes that were proposed by her and approved to deal with the Board of Education's deficits as well as the City's 406-million dollar "deficit." (0:22) 24 November 1982 Listen.
50At a news conference, Mayor Byrne says that she has told the School Board to get moving and sell off the 21 properties it owns to generate the money needed to rehabilitate schools that are still in use. (0:18) 4 January 1983 Listen.
TapeTrack
Byrne0701During the same news conference, the Mayor blasts the proposal of opponent Richard M. Daley for an urban institute like New York's Urban Academy to provide better fiscal management. She notes that New York again faces a billion and a half dollar deficit and says the Academy was responsible for that. (0:16) 4 January 1983 Listen.
02At a news conference, the Mayor says that the Reagan Administration's plan is to take care of unemployment last. She says unemployment is part of the Reagan strategy to eliminate deficits. This was her strongest criticism of President Reagan to date. (0:28) 10 January 1983 Listen.
03In the heat of her reelection campaign, the Mayor denies that street gang members are working for her (campaign). She says the charge is just baloney. (1:00) 4 February 1983 Listen.
04On the campaign trail in the 17th Ward, the Mayor tells a black audience her opponents have no issues to talk about so they get personal. (0:28) 9 February 1983 Listen.
05In the same speech, the Mayor says some people don't like the fact that we opened up government. She is talking about States Attorney Richard M. Daley not liking the way she ended 11th Ward domination of the City payroll. (0:22) 9 February 1983 Listen.
06In the same speech, the Mayor tells black voters she needs their help because she doesn't think they think that one sector or one neighborhood or one group is to control their lives. (0:13) 9 February 1983 Listen.
07Mayor Byrne launches an attack on the Sun Times for allegedly engaging in personal, vitriolic, attacks against her and her husband. She says the paper has sunk to a new low. (2:30) 16 February 1983 Listen.
08Mayor Byrne concedes defeat in the primary election to Congressman Harold Washington during a news conference at City Hall. (0:59) 23 February 1983 Listen.
09Mayor Byrne stuns the political world by announcing that she will run for Mayor in the general election as a write-in candidate. Note: The Mayor would abandon this effort one week to the day later when none of the leaders in the Democratic Party would support her effort. The write-in was widely perceived as a sour grapes initiative propelled by racial considerations. (0:59) 16 March 1983 Listen.
10In conceding defeat for the third time since her election as Mayor in 1979, this time in the primary for Circuit Court Clerk, Jane Byrne says the people have not only spoken, they shouted, and that she can take the hint. She goes on to say it was her last shot at elected office, that now she will go on with her life. (0:58) 15 March 1988 Listen.


Harold Washington

TapeTrack
Washington0101Washington says during a mayoral campaign appearance on WBBM's At Issue program he would replace most, if not all, of the top (cabinet) people in City government (the Byrne Administration) but that there would be no wholesale purge of the payroll. (0:30) 18 February 1983 Listen.
02During the same program, he says the Democratic Machine is like the Holy Roman Empire. He says it's gone. It's just a shell now. (0:28) 18 February 1983 Listen.
03At his first news conference after winning the Democratic Mayoral Primary two days earlier, he appeals to the press to play down the issue of race. (0:15) 24 February 1983 Listen.
04Washington says he is in favor of an elected school board in Chicago because the current appointive system has turned the schools into a battle ground. (0:27) 24 February 1983 Listen.
05Washington says the Rev. Jessie Jackson is a supporter of his but had no part in his campaign and would have no part in his Administration. (0:46) 24 February 1983 Listen.
06Still at the same news conference, Washington says he would still be able to get his programs through the City Council even if he eliminated patronage because the aldermen would still have to look to the Mayor (for help). (0:20) 24 February 1983 Listen.
07Washington delivers a forceful statement at the same news conference in which he tells reporters to quit beating the race issue over the head. (0:26) 24 February 1983 Listen.
08He takes a shot at former Vice President Walter Mondale for endorsing then Cook County State's Attorney Richard M. Daley in the three way Democratic mayoral primary. (0:41) 24 February 1983 Listen.
09Washington says during the general election campaign for Mayor that he supports the concept of Chicagofest (the enormously popular summer food festival originated by former Mayor Jane Byrne) minus the emphasis on city funds (the city putting up a lot of the money) and attracting suburbanites. But, he says that Festivals Inc. (the politically connected firm Byrne chose to run the festival) should go. (0:50) 4 March 1983 Listen.
10Washington says Governor Thompson's budget is a "scare budget" designed to get the Legislature to act on his tax package and he says the spending cuts chosen by the Governor are inhumane. (0:17) 3 March 1983 Listen.
11During the general election campaign for Mayor, Washington says he promised a group of business leaders in a private meeting that he would not use Home Rule to hike local taxes if the Legislature failed to vote for an increase in the state income tax. He says he told the leaders he would cut spending first. (0:12) 3 March 1983 Listen.
12During the general election campaign for Mayor, Washington sets out his stand against patronage. He says it's the law (the federal court decision striking down the political patronage system) and those "birds" in the Machine had better understand that he's not gonna be a party to the way they have tried to subvert Shakman (the decree outlawing patronage). (1:30) 8 March 1983 Listen.
13Addressing an audience of women during the general election campaign for Mayor, Washington turns on the charm. This cut is a good example of the wit and warmth that won him a lot of support from women voters. (0:50) 8 March 1983 Listen.
14During the same speech, he says it is his goal to set a standard for women in government so high that after the 20 years he's been there (in office) (the crowd roars) no successor would detract one bit from it. Note: By standard he means he intends to bring a lot of women into his new Administration, if elected. (0:25) 8 March 1983 Listen.
15At a labor breakfast during the general election campaign for Mayor, Washington sends out a blunt message to the Machine (what's left of it) that he expects an endorsement without having to beg for it. (0:32) 9 March 1983 Listen.
16During the same speech, he says he will walk into office with an agenda for labor that will include City Council passage of a collective bargaining ordinance. (0:50) 9 March 1983 Listen.
17At a labor union luncheon rally during the general election campaign for Mayor, Washington delivers a controversial attack on what's left of the old Democratic Machine. He says he wants to remove that negative, brow beating Machine. (0:20) 30 March 1983 Listen.
18During the same speech, Washington jokes about disclosures that he hasn't paid back bills and that he once had his wages in the Legislature garnished to satisfy bills for a Springfield clothier and from Commonwealth Edison. (0:45) 30 March 1983 Listen.
19In what most observers would later call the best and most important speech of the general election campaign for Mayor, Washington blasts hate literature which surfaced late in the campaign suggesting he was a child molester. This speech took place at a rally at Mundelein College. Note: the hate literature outraged many voters and helped draw much more white voter support to Washington at a time when the election campaign was creating more racial polarization. Washington's speech attracted national media attention. (0:50) 7 April 1983 Listen.
20During the same speech, Washington says in reference to the appearance of hate literature that he'll fight his Republican opponent Bernard Epton all over the city if he wants the job so badly that he would stoop to such dirty tactics. Note: Epton denied he was the source of the hate literature but with his campaign slogan of "before it's too late" was unable to erase the perception he was running a racist campaign. (0:45) 7 April 1983 Listen.
21Harold Washington delivers his victory speech to a crowd of enthusiastic supporters at Donnelly Hall after winning election as the first black Mayor in Chicago history. (9:35) 12 April 1983 Listen.
22Harold Washington delivers his inaugural address after being sworn in as the first black mayor in the history of Chicago. He spells out the City's financial situation in blunt terms, saying the year end deficit will be a possible 150-million dollars. And with outgoing Mayor Jane Byrne seated on stage, he rips the last minute wave of hiring Byrne carried out to try and lock allies into city jobs. (0:38) 29 April 1983 Listen.
23In the same inaugural address, Washington declares a freeze on hiring and pay raises and says he will fire all the people his predecessor Jane Byrne put on the payroll in her last minute spree of political hiring. (0:42) 29 April 1983 Listen.
24During the same inaugural address, Washington asks for help in his drive to bring about reform and says business as usual will not be tolerated by the people or this Mayor. (0:40) 29 April 1983 Listen.
25During the same inaugural address, Washington says the City's books (finances) will be open and that he will run an open Administration. (0:25) 29 April 1983 Listen.
26Mayor Washington explains his position on the May 2nd City Council meeting he abruptly adjourned but which the rival Vrdolyak 29 majority block then took over to pass it's own reorganization plan. The Mayor claims what the Vrdolyak forces did was all illegal. Note: The Illinois Supreme Court would later rule that what the Vrdolyak 29 did was, in fact, legal. (0:26) 6 May 1983 Listen.
27During the same news conference, the Mayor says he resents some members of the Vrdolyak 29 charging him with using Gestapo tactics because he sent out cops the night before to hand deliver messages to them warning the May 6th City Council meeting would be illegal. (0:22) 6 May 1983 Listen.
28The Mayor denounces the Vrdolyak 29 Majority refusal to alter the City Council committee structure it passed into law and which froze out Washington allies from leadership posts. He says that's no compromise at all. (0:24) 6 May 1983 Listen.
29During the same news conference, the Mayor argues that the key is not the fact that the Vrdolyak faction has a majority of 29 votes. He says the key is that everything Ed Vrdolyak's group has done is illegal. And he says the rules changes Vrdolyak and his allies pushed through is proof of that. He says the changes were designed to strangle the Administration. (0:34) 6 May 1983 Listen.
30During the same news conference, the Mayor defends his attempt to get involved in City Council reorganization. He says the founding fathers gave a role to the Mayor, that he is not a bump on a log. (0:30) 6 May 1983 Listen.
31The Mayor tells reporters he has shed his big Cadillac limousine in favor of a smaller Oldsmobile 98 because it's just not right to ride around in that monstrosity. (0:14) 16 May 1983 Listen.
32During a City Council Committee of the Whole hearing on the Mayor's Community Development Program, the Mayor tries to get things off to a civil start by delivering the invocation himself. (0:20) 26 May 1983 Listen.
33As he unveils his Transition Team report on reform of city government, the Mayor says Chicago is not only ready for reform but is crying for it. (0:28) 3 June 1983 Listen.
34During the same news conference, the Mayor says his plan to use executive orders to bring about some reforms won't usurp the powers of the legislative branch or put him on a collision course with it. (0:56) 3 June 1983 Listen.
35During the same news conference, the Mayor says that based on the view of the transition team that Chicago has a 19th century government trying to cope with 20th century problems, it is clear no one person can run this monstrosity, that there must be change. (0:25) 3 June 1983 Listen.
36During the same news conference, the Mayor says in a certain sense the City has always been ungovernable, that it never really worked...but that Daley (Richard J. Daley), because of his talent, managed to get the most out of a bad system. But he says now that must change. (0:30) 3 June 1983 Listen.
37This passage demonstrates Mayor Washington's love affair with the English Language. He says he plans to hold no holds barred news conferences once and a while to allow everything to fly. However, he puts all this in a very colorful way. (0:19) 6 June 1983 Listen.
38In an exchange with reporters, the Mayor sets forth a more cautious view on collective bargaining than he offered while seeking union support during the election campaign. He says he is still for collective bargaining rights for city employees but that the legislation has to be structured in a way that won't leave the City powerless. (0:23) 7 June 1983 Listen.
39During the same exchange with reporters, the Mayor says the fight between his City Council minority faction of 21 and the Vrdolyak 29 majority block was needed, that it will all be for the good. (0:31) 7 June 1983 Listen.
40The Mayor changes his position a bit on cutting back on executive salaries. He says there are some top salaries that can't be cut, like the post of Corporation Counsel. (0:34) 7 June 1983 Listen.
41On the occasion of his endorsement of Labor Leader Charles Hayes to succeed him in Congress from Chicago's First District, he says he is not a political boss and isn't going to put the heat on for Hayes. (0:20) 15 June 1983 Listen.
42The Mayor tells reporters he is not prepared to accept the layoff of policemen and/or firemen to balance the City Budget (this at a time when he was struggling to resolve a projected year end shortfall of 138-million dollars.) (0:25) 15 June 1983 Listen.
43The Mayor tells a group of black protesters who marched on City Hall in search of jobs with Cable TV companies that he will issue an executive order "insisting" that private firms which do business with the City have affirmative action programs that are working. (0:24) 17 June 1983 Listen.
44On the day the Illinois Supreme Court rules in favor of the City Council's Vrdolyak 29 Majority in it's disputed May 6th reorganization of committees and rules, the Mayor says a federal civil rights suit will be filed because there was a "conspiracy" by the Vrdolyak 29 to deny the Council's black members and their constituents an equal voice in Council affairs. (0:15) 22 June 1983 Listen.
45During the same news conference, the Mayor says he intends to use his veto power judiciously, not as a tool for retaliation against the Vrdolyak 29 majority block. (0:25) 22 June 1983 Listen.
46During the same news conference, the Mayor says the central issue in the fight over control of the City Council is and always has been race and he raps the press for getting so involved in the numbers game that it didn't stress that point. Note: There was ample evidence that race was less an issue to most white members of the Vrdolyak 29 block than power and who was going to get to wield it over jobs, contracts, etc. (0:50) 22 June 1983 Listen.
47The Mayor unveils a "Budget Reform Ordinance." He says there has been too much secrecy and reform is overdue. (0:48) 22 June 1983 Listen.
48The Mayor says that despite a campaign pledge opposing higher property taxes, he will study a tax increase now after the Legislature refused to go for a tax package that would have given Chicago substantial revenue. (0:25) 30 June 1983 Listen.
49The Mayor says a graduated city income tax would be, to him, the fairest tax because it falls on people in line with their ability to pay. Note: a city income tax would need the prior approval of the Illinois Legislature. (0:28) 30 June 1983 Listen.
50The Mayor gets a bit out of step with members of his budget negotiating team when he opposes an expansion of City Council committees to give his own supporters more chairmanships. He says we don't even need the 29 committees the Vrdolyak 29 majority put in place. (0:40) 30 June 1983 Listen.
51The Mayor raps Chicago Democrats from the northwest and southwest sides who voted against permitting higher property taxes for public schools in the State Legislature (without a public referendum). The lawmakers involved included House Speaker Mike Madigan. (1:25) 30 June 1983 Listen.
52The Mayor says he supports the City's residency requirement despite what Mr. VD (Ed Vrdolyak) said to the contrary about him allegedly wanting to get rid of the rule. (0:23) 30 June 1983 Listen.
53The Mayor unveils an Executive Order providing for public access to city records. He says it will tear down the walls of secrecy. (0:19) 5 July 1983 Listen.
54In an interview marking his first 100 days in office, the Mayor says he is looking into the possibility of casino gambling for Chicago to raise revenue. He says he is not opposed to public sponsored gambling as such. (0:21) 9 August 1983 Listen.
55In the same interview, the Mayor expands on his call for the dumping of Ed Vrdolyak as Cook County Democratic Party Chairman. He calls Vrdolyak, in effect, a racist naysayer. (0:22) 9 August 1983 Listen.
56In the same interview, the Mayor shows his true dislike for Ed Vrdolyak in explaining why he should be forced out as Cook County Democratic Party Chairman. He says Vrdolyak turned his back on him after he (Washington) won the primary. (0:24) 9 August 1983 Listen.
TapeTrack
Washington0201The Mayor says he would never consider moving into Cabrini Green public housing project the way Mayor Jane Byrne did to lead the fight against gangs. He says he doesn't go for "crass, cheap" publicity. (0:12) 11 August 1983 Listen.
02The Mayor explains why he is vetoing an ordinance backed by the Vrdolyak 29 that sought to give civil service protection to some eight thousand trade union and laborers union city employees. (0:14) 18 August 1983 Listen.
03The Mayor explains to reporters why he objects to a furlough plan backed by the Vrdolyak 29 to take the place of the layoffs Washington proposed. (0:20) 18 August 1983 Listen.
04In the same exchange with reporters, the Mayor says he doesn't think the City has done a good job of selling the idea of closing down some outmoded fire and police stations to the public. So, he says those stations just sit there and are a drain on the taxpayers. (0:19) 18 August 1983 Listen.
05The Mayor signals an important shift in Administration policy by saying that unlike his three immediate predecessors he will not mediate the teachers union-school board contract dispute even if he is asked to do so. He says mayoral intervention breaks down the process (of collective bargaining.) (0:30) 14 September 1983 Listen.
06The Mayor expands on his call for the dumping of Ed Vrdolyak as Cook County Democratic Party Chairman by saying he (Vrdolyak) shouldn't be assuming he'll be around to lead the Chicago delegation to the Party National Convention in 1984. (0:23) 15 September 1983 Listen.
07In the same exchange with reporters, the Mayor says a shift in the makeup of the Democratic Party Central Committee can be expected that will shape or reshape the power in the Party. Note: He is talking about the Central Committee of the Cook County Democratic Party. (0:17) 15 September 1983 Listen.
08The Mayor says there will no longer be any handshake deals with the trade unions on prevailing wage rates. He says from now on pay scales will be determined through collective bargaining on union contracts. Note: To maintain the loyalty of big labor, a string of Chicago mayors had agreed to pay city union workers the same higher rates of pay that union workers got in the private sector, even though those city workers were guaranteed 12 months of employment. Critics said the policy was unreasonable and costly. (0:26) 15 September 1983 Listen.
09The Mayor tells reporters he will continue to speak out against the Vrdolyak 29 majority in the City Council because of what he calls their senseless antics. He denounces leaders of the Vrdolyak 29 for attempting to push through another furlough plan for employees (instead of layoffs) after he had already vetoed an earlier plan. He calls it "the same old do do." (0:48) 15 September 1983 Listen.
10A real strong statement from the Mayor on why Ed Vrdolyak must go as Cook County Democratic Party Chairman or the 1984 Democratic County ticket "will go down in flames." (1:10) 29 September 1983 Listen.
11During the same statement, the Mayor says Mr. Vrdolyak has got to go. He says if he doesn't go, the 84 ticket will lose. "It's just that simple." (0:11) 29 September 1983 Listen.
12During the same exchange with reporters, the Mayor talks about his proposal to phase out the city sales tax and what is left of the city head tax by getting the General Assembly to approve a city income tax. He says he is opposed to all sales taxes. (0:22) 29 September 1983 Listen.
13In the same exchange with reporters, the Mayor says he thinks the attitude in the General Assembly about giving Chicago permission to levy a city income tax is changing. He says the legislators now know the City is in trouble and heeds it. (0:29) 29 September 1983 Listen.
14In the same exchange with reporters, the Mayor says Ed Vrdolyak's style is the back alley, the pool room, the bar room brawler. But he says if that's what Vrdolyak wants, he'll get down there with him. (0:19) 29 September 1983 Listen.
15The Mayor says tongue in cheek he wants to apologize for saying the day before that Ed Vrdolyak came out of a pool room and shot dice in an alley. He wants to apologize to crap shooters and pool players, that is, for linking them with Vrdolyak. (0:16) 30 September 1983 Listen.
16In a speech to a group of minority businessmen, the Mayor makes a highly controversial remark that whites won't be getting as much as they used to. Note: The Mayor would later say he only meant to be facetious. (0:25) 7 October 1983 Listen.
17During the same speech to the group of minority businessmen, the Mayor talks about the patronage system being gone, gone, gone. Note: This passage is a good example of how Harold Washington could be serious and witty at the same time. (1:00) 7 October 1983 Listen.
18The Mayor says that his effort to bring more Blacks and Hispanics into City government will not be at the expense of whites. He says what he is interested in is talent. (0:40) 20 October 1983 Listen.
19The Mayor says he was stunned that the Vrdolyak old guard forces would get up and admit to the existence of a long standing policy of letting smaller projects go through (the City Council) if the aldermen of the affected wards wanted them. The Mayor says he won't go along with this rubber stamp, divide up the pie approach. (0:34) 20 October 1983 Listen.
20During the taping of WBBM's At Issue program, the Mayor denounces former Police Superintendent Richard Breczyck's candidacy for Cook County State's Attorney. He charges that Breczyck violated his public trust (when he was Police Superintendent) and people will laugh his candidacy off the ballot. (0:37) 18 November 1983 Listen.
21The Mayor defends the 6% tax he proposed on business rents to help shore up his first (1984) budget. He says it isn't an onerous tax and it's not unfair to ask business to help the City shoulder the burden of paying public bills. Note: The Mayor would later abandon this proposed tax in the face of heavy protests from the business community. (0:44) 15 November 1983 Listen.
22The Mayor endorses a 1992 world's fair in Chicago but carefully spells out conditions that the City will shoulder no cost burdens and will receive extra profits after all costs have been satisfied. Note: The Mayor was responding to a movement in the business community to try and bring the next World's Fair to the City. (1:15) 31 October 1983 Listen.
23The Mayor summarizes for reporters the key off the record remarks he made to nearly one thousand business leaders at a closed meeting of the Economic Club of Chicago. The Mayor says he called on business to get behind his drive for reform. (0:20) 16 January 1984 Listen.
24During the same remarks to reporters, the Mayor warns that if businessmen opt to sit on the sidelines and not back his reforms, then they will get what they get. He says we won the Mayor's office and are entitled to have business support in running the City. (0:25) 16 January 1984 Listen.
25In a speech to the Broadcast Advertising Club, the Mayor voices a complaint that broadcasters in Chicago are not doing enough to bring minorities into top jobs. (0:37) 19 January 1984 Listen.
26In the same speech, the Mayor likens his battle with the Vrdolyak 29 majority in the City Council to a mandate from the people to "bell that cat." (he means putting a bell around the necks of the members of the Vrdolyak 29 so you can keep an eye on what those "untrustworthy" people are up to. (0:47) 19 January 1984 Listen.
27The Mayor defends his top political advisor Clarence McClain even though he resigned after his arrest record on vice charges was made known. (0:16) 23 November 1984 Listen.
28After his top political advisor Clarence McClain comes under repeated attack and the Mayor comes under attack for keeping McClain as a confidant (despite his resignation from his city job) the Mayor backs off on calling him a worthy advisor. Now, he says, Clarence is just "a friend." Note: McClain's arrest record on vice charges was what prompted Alderman Ed Burke, a fierce rival of Mayor Washington, to publicly denounce him as a "Pimp." (0:20) 1 December 1984 Listen.
29The Mayor attacks Ronald Reagan for doing a bad job as President. He says it's amazing that the standard for retention of the President should be how well he reads someone else's speech. Note: Harold Washington and other big city mayors were furious with the Reagan Administration for doing away with a popular program called "Revenue Sharing." The cities lost a lot of federal aid when that decision was made. (0:20) 1 February 1984 Listen.
30The Mayor tells reporters it is true that there is a downside to the probability that more city employees will join unions as a result of the state's new collective bargaining law, that downside being more pressure for wage hikes. But he says it's a fact of life that the City has to face up to. (0:22) 6 February 1984 Listen.
31The Mayor talks about what he perceives as racism in the Police Department as evidenced by the behavior of white cops when he was running for Mayor. He says that kind of thing has to be dealt with. Note: The Mayor is talking here about the behind the scenes role white members of the police union played in the campaign of Washington's general election opponent Bernard Epton. (0:25) 6 February 1984 Listen.
32In the same exchange with reporters, the Mayor jokes about his marriage plans or lack of them in response to questions about when he plans to end his status as a single man. (0:40) 6 February 1984 Listen.
33In a speech to the Chicago Crime Commission, the Mayor charges that there is an between some "and yours." forces in the Democratic Machine and street gangs. (1:25) 9 February 1984 Listen.
34In a speech to a predominately black student audience at the University of Illinois Circle Campus, the Mayor says black voter apathy of the past wasn't really apathy at all. He says it was withdrawal from a process that blacks felt they couldn't influence. (0:18) 21 February 1984 Listen.
35In the same speech, the Mayor says the news media, as an institution, just don't understand where black leaders like him are coming from. He says they can't relate. (0:30) 21 February 1984 Listen.
36In the same speech, the Mayor says that the police have traditionally been an institution of resistance to black leadership and he says that is true in Chicago. (0:15) 21 February 1984 Listen.
37In the same speech, the Mayor says the business community is holding back on supporting a black Mayor and for no good reason, except ignorance. (0:33) 21 February 1984 Listen.
38In the same speech, the Mayor says three groups...blacks, latinos, and women...have got to overcome and demand involvement in the existing political process, not beg for it. He says: "You don't have to say open sesame. Break the damn door down!" (1:00) 21 February 1984 Listen.
39The Mayor defends his choice of a Japanese bank for involvement in a new 259-million dollar borrowing plan and raps some aldermen for bringing up memories of WWII and Pearl Harbor in expressing their opposition to the bank. (1:00) 27 February 1984 Listen.
40The Mayor rules out any chance of peace with Ed Vrdolyak after the March Primary in the interests of trying to deliver Illinois into the Democratic column in November. He says you can't talk peace with Vrdolyak (the leader of the Vrdolyak 29 City Council majority that fought the Washington Administration tooth and nail from day one). He says he's beyond redemption. (0:57) 1 March 1984 Listen.
41The Mayor tells a group of Chinese American businessmen that he is disturbed that someone (old Machine ward boss Ed Kelly) would even imply that there is a conspiracy to block the Park Board appointments he'll be sending to the City Council. He says if the Vrdolyak 29 majority throws down the gauntlet, he'll take up the fight. Note: the Mayor's appointments were the first step in a fight to force out Kelly as Park District Supt. and to bring about reforms at the District. (1:10) 13 March 1984 Listen.
42The Mayor defends his order to city employees that they must work at their city jobs on primary election day, March 20, 1984. The order was widely perceived as an effort by Washington to hamper the election day efforts of eight thousand Machine precinct workers who hold city jobs but the Mayor denies it. (1:00) 13 March 1984 Listen.
43In a speech to a mostly black student audience at the Loop College four days before the primary election, the Mayor once again attacks President Reagan, calling him "ancient." (0:14) 16 March 1984 Listen.
44In the same speech, the Mayor offers a better version of his often repeated line about visiting the grave of patronage and finding it dead, dead, dead! (0:27) 16 March 1984 Listen.
45In the same speech, the Mayor talks about how nobody trusts Democratic Party Chairman Ed Vrdolyak. (0:28) 16 March 1984 Listen.
46Reflecting on his first year in office, the Mayor says what surprised him most when he came in to office was how much control the old Machine forces had of things. (1:25) 11 April 1984 Listen.
47In the same remarks, the Mayor says there is being laid in this city the groundwork for an insidious campaign to discredit his Administration. (0:20) 11 April 1984 Listen.
48In his first "State of the City" address to the League of Women Voters, the Mayor calls for an end to racial polarization. (1:00) 12 April 1984 Listen.
49In the same address, the Mayor says the political fight between him and the opposition Vrdolyak 29 in the City Council will not end and he says nobody should ask for it to end. He says he didn't become Mayor to waste his time, that he came into office radiating good will but, apparently, that wasn't good enough so he'll fight on. (1:20) 12 April 1984 Listen.
50In connection with a dispute over how to apply the Shakman ban on political hiring and firing to some 900-middle management jobs in city government, the Mayor says he moved to get rid of some junior executives, not because of politics, but because of incompetence and sabotage. (0:25) 27 April 1984 Listen.
51At the same news conference, the Mayor says that Federal Judge Nicholas Bua's freeze order on city hiring was a violation of his executive authority to get middle management people who are qualified and who are loyal to his leadership. (0:25) 27 April 1984 Listen.
52The Mayor jokes about the attempt by Alderman Ed Burke to oust him from office for filing his ethics statement three weeks late. The Mayor says Sears Tower is still standing, the garbage is being removed, and he's comfortably ensconced in office for the next 20 years. (0:24) 25 May 1984 Listen.
53In an interview with WBBM marking the anniversary of his first year in office, the Mayor talks candidly about what he sees as the racist opposition he faces. (0:31) 2 May 1984 Listen.
54In the same interview, the Mayor opposes a public referendum on a proposed 1992 World's Fair. (0:11) 2 May 1984 Listen.
55In the same interview, the Mayor defends his handing of city business (legal contracts) to some of his allies, namely State Senator Dick Newhouse and Carol Mosely Braun, after he had denounced such awards to so- called "inside dopesters" during his campaign. (0:36) 2 May 1984 Listen.
56The Mayor says his Administration has done well on the whole so far considering that he was forced to inherit a payroll populated with an inordinate number of saboteurs, those who had lost their vim and vigor and who don't give a damn....the Peter Principle gone crazy. (0:35) 1 June 1984 Listen.
57After saying he takes the blame for failing to file his ethics statement on time, the Mayor denies that the failure is part of a disturbing pattern of personal carelessness that has dogged him all his public life (a pattern that drew him a short jail term for failing to file federal income tax returns for over a dozen years and which saw his wages garnished when he was in the state legislature for non- payment of utility and personal clothing bills). (0:34) 1 June 1984 Listen.
58In a speech, the Mayor goes after Alderman Ed Burke for trying to oust him from office for failing to file his ethics statement on time. He says that behavior harmed the reputation of the City. (0:26) 1 June 1984 Listen.
59The Mayor makes it clear he would not favor a boycott of the 1984 national elections by blacks if, as demanded by the Reverend Jessie Jackson, they don't win major concessions at the Democratic National Convention in San Francisco. (1:55) 9 June 1984 Listen.
60The Mayor denounces the City Council's rival Vrdolyak 29 majority block for seeking to assert control over public works contracts in excess of 50- thousand dollars. (0:25) 10 July 1984 Listen.
TapeTrack
Washington0301On the same subject, the Mayor calls the effort by the Vrdolyak 29 in the City Council to win over- sight on major public works contracts an "executive steal." He suggests the members of the Vrdolyak 29 want such control so they can hand city business to cronies "standing in the wings." (0:40) 10 July 1984 Listen.
02At a news conference, the Mayor says that if he's forced to veto the airport and southwest rapid transit projects because the majority Vrdolyak 29 won't repeal the oversight controls they forced through on public works contracts, then he can't be blamed for it. (0:15) 10 July 1984 Listen.
03During an appearance on WBBM's At Issue program, the Mayor raps City Council Finance Committee Chairman Ed Burke for declaring that the Vrdolyak 29 majority block will hold up mayoral appointments to keep the Mayor from putting his cronies into jobs now held by the cronies of majority block aldermen. (0:23) 4 October 1984 Listen.
04During the same program, the Mayor defends his plan to not propose the hiring of more police. He says we don't have the money. Note: the budget the Mayor proposed 12 days later provided for 500 fewer policemen, down a thousand since he took office. The drop was caused by retirements, resignations, etc., not by layoffs. (0:09) 4 October 1984 Listen.
05At a luncheon meeting of the Chicago TV Academy, the Mayor says everybody had gotten used to being in Hell (a corrupt city) and just accepted it. He says before he came into office it was like Mussolini Italy. (0:32) 3 October 1984 Listen.
06During the same luncheon speech, the Mayor raps the Chicago Tribune column for it's "it's irritating." alleged loose disregard for the truth. (0:22) 3 October 1984 Listen.
07During the same luncheon speech, the Mayor takes the news media to task for not demanding that the City Council's Vrdolyak 29 majority block quit blocking the conduct of government by blocking his appointments. (0:34) 3 October 1984 Listen.
08In announcing his second plan to fight street gang violence, the Mayor says that Police Supt. Fred Rice will enforce the law to the hilt but that people shouldn't ask for sweeps (police engaging in widespread blanket arrests in gang infested areas) because the courts have said no to that. (0:35) 3 December 1984 Listen.
09At the same news conference, the Mayor says there are no panaceas on ending gang violence so stop looking for them. He says it's gonna take hard work. (0:33) 3 December 1984 Listen.
10Appearing on WBBM's At Issue program, the Mayor challenges the City Council's Vrdolyak 29 majority block to cut "living, breathing, bodies" from the payroll in addition to just cutting job vacancies to balance the city budget. (0:18) 7 December 1984 Listen.
11The Mayor denounces an alternative city budget developed and passed in the City Council by the Vrdolyak 29 majority block as he vetoes the substitute on the day it was passed. (0:24) 12 December 1984 Listen.
12As he unveils a new court ordered city hiring plan to comply with the Shakman ban on political hiring and firing, the Mayor claims the plan to theoretically end patronage in hiring is "air tight" against political influence. (0:09) 7 February 1985 Listen.
13The Mayor says an ethics law for the City should preclude any city official from putting wives and other relatives on the payroll. But he says that elsewhere in government is another question (meaning it may be okay for an alderman, lets say, to get his wife on the state payroll) (0:24) 22 January 1985 Listen.
14On the same issue, the Mayor says he's not engaging in a "full court press" against wives. He says he is simply saying it's wrong to hire somebody who lives with you (on the same payroll you are on). (0:25) 22 January 1985 Listen.
15At a news conference, the Mayor talks negatively about the proposal to bring a World's Fair to Chicago. He says he hasn't found any group that wants to pay for it. (0:10) 22 January 1985 Listen.
16At the same news conference, the Mayor says the World's Fair idea didn't start with him and if proponents can't answer all questions then it should go the way of all concepts. (0:12) 22 January 1985 Listen.
17At the same news conference, the Mayor says the City would not suffer a lot of negatives if the 1992 World's Fair was never held in Chicago but he says some would make a lot of charges to that effect. (0:17) 22 January 1985 Listen.
18At the same news conference, the Mayor says he hasn't considered running as a political independent when he seeks reelection again in 1987. He says he welcomes all to run and he defends former Mayor Jane Byrne against charges she owes money to debtors from her last campaign. (0:50) 22 January 1985 Listen.
19In an exchange with reporters, the Mayor says the involvement of the Vrdolyak camp in leaking a bugging tape to the Chicago Tribune of a conversation he had with a 3rd Ward aldermanic candidate proves Vrdolyak and his allies are just fumblers and bumblers. (0:27) 25 February 1985 Listen.
20In the same exchange with reporters, the Mayor says it is not possible for Ed Vrdolyak to improve his image enough to run for Mayor, short of quitting and going into a monastery. (0:24) 25 February 1985 Listen.
21In the same exchange with reporters, the Mayor contends that the whole bugging incident backfired on the Vrdolyak 29, that it will actually draw more public support to him from people who are turned off by such dirty tricks. He claims he will be stronger in 1987 (when he runs for a second term) as a result of what happened. (0:24) 25 February 1985 Listen.
22In the same exchange with reporters, the Mayor offers a better version of the point he made that people are turned off by that stuff (the bugging of his private conversations) and he says to reporters if you were writing a scenario to improve the Mayor's popularity you couldn't compose a better one than a bugging that backfires. (0:36) 25 February 1985 Listen.
23The Mayor takes a shot at Illinois Senate Republican Minority Leader James "Pate" Philip after the Senator had publicly criticized his Administration. The Mayor says Pate is a died in the wool Republican. He is the Peter Principle gone crazy. "He is osmosis gone wild!" (0:30) 4 March 1985 Listen.
24The Mayor takes a shot at Alderman Ed Burke and all the city business he has gotten in response to Burke wanting to subpoena records on O'Hare contracts and city business going to black-owned firms based in Atlanta. The Mayor also mentions Burke's wife getting legal business. (0:25) 18 March 1985 Listen.
25During an appearance on WBBM's At Issue program, the Mayor takes a shot at Brad Reynolds, head of the U.S. Justice Department's Civil Rights Division, for urging the City to do away with police and fire hiring quotas. He says Reynolds doesn't understand the law and doesn't identify with the problem. (0:36) 22 March 1985 Listen.
26During the same program, the Mayor tells Brad Reynolds, head of the U.S. Justice Department's Civil Rights Division, to "get lost." He says Reynolds hasn't even bothered to see if quotas are working in the police and fire departments. (0:16) 22 March 1985 Listen.
27On the same program, the Mayor accuses arch enemy Alderman Ed Burke of lying when he contended that he ( Washington) had hired former U.S. Attorney Dan Webb to investigate O'Hare contracts. He says Burke just shoots from the hip like John Wayne. And he goes on to explain why he thinks Burke allegedly lies. (0:42) 22 March 1985 Listen.
28During the same program, the Mayor comes out strongly against an elected school board (a complete reversal of the position he took shortly after winning the Democratic mayoral primary in 1983). He says the argument that an elected board would take politics out of the school system is insane. (0:30) 22 March 1985 Listen.
29During the same program, the Mayor denies the existence of a so-called Atlanta connection (even though some Atlanta-based firms and people have gotten business with the City). He says the charge is phony. (0:32) 22 March 1985 Listen.
30During the same program, the Mayor says he welcomes anyone who wants to run against him in 1987. A humorous cut. (0:25) 22 March 1985 Listen.
31The Mayor takes another shot at one of his political enemies, Alderman Ed Burke, and what he says is the Alderman's downbeat attitude about the City. The Mayor says he doesn't understand that because everything Burke has he owes to the City. He says every dime Burke ever made was from the City. He says his daddy got him on the Police Department and then willed him a City Council seat. (0:35) 28 March 1985 Listen.
32The Mayor fires a broadside at New York Mayor Ed Koch for having said that in Chicago race relations are so bad that whites and blacks don't talk to each other. The Mayor says that's obviously not true and says that just because Koch got into a spat with Jessie Jackson is no reason to take it out on Chicago. (0:52) 28 March 1985 Listen.
33While announcing an executive order to award 30% of city contracts to firms owned by minorities and women, the Mayor says that the old days of giving city business just to politically connected inside dopesters who paid hidden taxes in the form of campaign contributions are gone. (0:28) 3 April 1985 Listen.
34During the same news conference, the Mayor says the old way of doing city contract business was an inside closed shop run by the Machine to the exclusion of minorities, women and others without clout. (0:57) 3 April 1985 Listen.
35During the same news conference, the Mayor explains in greater detail what he means by the "same thing there.." that a lot of people had to pay to get business from the City. (0:40) 3 April 1985 Listen.
36During the same news conference, the Mayor defends the use of quotas as a concept to end racial discrimination. He argues quotas are fair and that they have worked. He says quotas are right, so long as the people who get jobs under them are qualified. (1:09) 3 April 1985 Listen.
37The Mayor responds to an attack by former Mayor Jane Byrne calling the "Truth Squads" his political ally Alderman Tim Evans is gonna have follow Byrne around "goon squads." The Mayor says if anyone ever needed a truth squad it's Byrne. Note: the so-called truth squads were a tactic Washington's allies developed to dull the impact of Byrne's challenge to the Mayor in the upcoming 1987 mayoral campaign. (0:24) 29 April 1985 Listen.
38The Mayor attacks the Vrdolyak 29 in the City Council for once again trying to assert control over policy changes in the police and fire departments. He says it's another attempt to try and hurt him but it won't work. (0:32) 23 May 1985 Listen.
39The Mayor colorfully chides Republican Governor Jim Thompson for failing to produce the GOP support needed to bring a World's Fair to Chicago in 1992. (0:35) 21 June 1985 Listen.
40The Mayor fires an opening attack at the mayoral candidacy of former Mayor Jane Byrne. He charges there is a deal between Byrne and Ed Vrdolyak for her to back Machine backing. (1:00) 9 September 1985 Listen.
41Mayor Washington says he is is satisfied that, in the main, the bidding process on the O'Hare people mover system was handled properly. (0:20) undated Listen.
42Mayor Washington insists while talking about the same subject that there was nothing legally or morally wrong with the way the people mover bids were handled. (1:15) undated Listen.
43The Mayor defends a litmus test of loyalty his political operatives are requiring candidates to meet which says that to get the Mayor's support a given candidate must repudiate the support of Washington's arch rival Ed Vrdolyak. The Mayor says it's nothing new, that the Machine does it and that anyone who doesn't understand it must realize that politics isn't beanbag. (0:58) 10 November 1985 Listen.
44The Mayor blasts the demand of Ald. Ed Burke for City Council oversight controls on the big O'Hare expansion program as "gangsterism" and "blackmail." He calls it insane. (0:16) 14 November 1985 Listen.
45The Mayor challenges his arch rival Ed Vrdolyak to run against him for Mayor in 1987. He calls Vrdolyak a "four bit hustler." (0:29) 15 November 1985 Listen.
46The Mayor hotly denies that a former campaign aid, Lee Miller, has enough influence to steer contracts to pals. He says the media has been taken in by this kind of three card monte man.Note: the denial came in the wake of a report Miller played a role in denying an O'Hare snow removal contract to an Elk Grove firm because the owner refused to hire Miller's fiance as a minority sub- contractor. (0:38) 15 November 1985 Listen.
47In the same exchange with reporters, the Mayor admits he knows Lee Miller but repeats the claim that he has no influence on his Administration. (0:25) 15 November 1985 Listen.
48In the same exchange with reporters, the Mayor once again denies that his long time friend and former top political aid Clarence McClain is still wielding clout over city contracts (despite being forced to resign after his vice arrest record became known). (0:15) 15 November 1985 Listen.
49The Mayor attacks Alderman Ed Vrdolyak for pushing a resolution that demands the Mayor denounce Minister Louis Farrakhan for his statements about Jews. The Mayor says it's a waste of time, that the Minister has nothing to do with city government. (1:04) 18 November 1985 Listen.
50On the same subject, the Mayor accuses Alderman Ed Vrdolyak and his allies of trying to "bamboozle" the public on Farrakhan, playing voters for a bunch of saps. (0:10) 18 November 1985 Listen.
51At a news conference, the Mayor says the Chicago Sun Times should have apologized for having accused his Administration of mishandling bids on the people mover project at O'Hare Airport, now that a Circuit Court Judge has found nothing wrong. (0:48) 21 November 1985 Listen.
52During the same news conference, the Mayor says the charges his people mishandled the people mover bids was nothing more than an extension of the harassment the City Council majority block has engaged in for two and a half years and he says the press falls for it every time. (0:44) 21 November 1985 Listen.
53The Mayor claims during a briefing on the U.S. Attorney's Operation Incubator corruption probe that he never met undercover FBI mole Michael Raymond. (0:13) 7 January 1986 Listen.
54During the same briefing, the Mayor says that when he was first told about money John Adams got back in September of 85 nobody told him it came from Raymond. He says the word was it came from Clarence McClain (his former top political advisor) as a loan and he calls that bad judgment, but not a crime necessarily. (0:21) 7 January 1986 Listen.
55During the same briefing, the Mayor goes after undercover FBI mole Michael Raymond. He says this man is totally without credibility. (0:32) 7 January 1986 Listen.
56During the same briefing, the Mayor says he doesn't think that he can be blamed for corruption. He says the only way you can blame an administrator of a 40- thousand member payroll is if he doesn't take action after the corruption surfaces. (0:15) 7 January 1986 Listen.
57During a City Council meeting, the Mayor joins the "Refrigerettes" in a cheer as the Mayor and aldermen pay tribute to the Chicago Bears for winning the National Football Conference crown. Note: This was before the Bears went on to win the Super Bowl. Members of the Bears cheerleading squad were called the "Refrigerettes." (0:25) 16 January 1986 Listen.
58In yet another briefing on the U.S. Attorney's Operation Incubator corruption investigation, the Mayor says he has no reason not to believe his Chief of Staff Earnest Barefield (who was questioned by the FBI in the corruption probe). (0:12) 7 February 1986 Listen.
59During the same briefing, the Mayor vows to deal with anybody in his Administration who is found to have behaved wrongly in the corruption scandal, regardless of rank. (0:24) 7 February 1986 Listen.
60The Mayor deplores the leaks in the U.S. Attorney's Operation Incubator corruption probe. He seems to think the FBI is behind the leaks. He calls the FBI a "sieve" and suggests due process is going out the window. (0;25) 10 February 1986 Listen.
61During an appearance on the Channel 2 Newsmakers program, the Mayor says he's not afraid to discuss suggestions of a cover up (of alleged corruption in his Administration) but that there was none and he's done a lot to prevent one. (0:14) 14 February 1986 Listen.
62On the same program, the Mayor says he doesn't know if the FBI tapped his phones but he says they wouldn't have learned much if they did because he has nothing to hide. (0:18) 14 February 1986 Listen.
63The Mayor accuses Alderman Ed Burke and the City Council Finance Committee he chairs of trying to obstruct the goals and will of his new Council majority. Note: This comment comes after a special session of the Council that followed the Mayor finally taking control of the Council when allies won special elections in some wards. (0:15) 9 May 1986 Listen.
64The Mayor comments to reporters on his political goal in the wake of winning narrow control of the City Council by virtue of his tie- breaking vote. He says he does expect the Council to be fluid, with issues in doubt. He says he will try to control the day on issues but he vows not to destroy the democratic process as he claims all previous mayors did. (0:20) 7 May 1986 Listen.
65The Mayor says he doesn't see any real massive public backlash occurring against the record 80- million dollar property tax increase he engineered a week earlier with his tie-breaking vote. He says the voters understand there was nothing else he could do. (0:23) 21 May 1986 Listen.
66Expanding on his comments about the record property tax increase, he says his philosophy is that if you go to the people and honestly explain the situation, they won't sweep you out of office for putting through higher property taxes. (0:20) 21 May 1986 Listen.
67The Mayor tells reporters that any Democrats who do not support his call for a city income tax down in Springfield can't count on his political support at election time. (0:28) 24 May 1986 Listen.
68The Mayor denies that his seizing of control of City Council committees in a meeting just ended was a power grab ( of the sort he complained about when the old Vrdolyak 29 majority took control of committees right after Washington was elected Mayor). The Mayor says it was just the will of the majority prevailing. (0:20) 6 June 1986 Listen.
69The Mayor comes out against mandatory drug testing for city employees. He says he is not gonna get in to those kinds of blunderbuss tactics. (0:26) 14 August 1986 Listen.
70During the same exchange with reporters and on the same subject of drug testing city workers, the Mayor says you wanna know something? Nobody knows what the hell they are doing in this field (of drug testing and prevention). He says everybody is still searching for answers. (0:11) 14 August 1986 Listen.
71The Mayor defends his right to fight a referendum backed by rival Machine regulars to change the rules for mayoral elections. He says it is not thwarting the rights of voters, that the law says he can do it. (0:15) 18 August 1986 Listen.
72In the same exchange with reporters, the Mayor says the referendum being backed by rival Machine regulars sends out an odor (of racism) that is not healthy for this city after he spent three and a half years trying to erase the city's negative image toward minorities. (0:38) 18 August 1986 Listen.
73In the same exchange with reporters, the Mayor blasts what he considers the motive behind the referendum (namely to get rid of a mayor who happens to be black). He asks why Chicago is the most segregated city. (0:23) 18 August 1986 Listen.
TapeTrack
Washington0401The Mayor says he should be praised for ordering the internal Sullivan anti corruption investigation "being dismissed." of his Administration. (0:29) 23 October 1986 Listen.
02The Mayor calls on the press to quit quoting his arch rival Ed Vrdolyak on Ethics legislation. He says he (Vrdolyak) is a fine one to be talking about ethics. He says Jesus Christ, quote Aristotle but not Vrdolyak. (0:30) 26 October 1986 Listen.
03The Mayor talks about his new revised ethics ordinance. He concedes it can't rule out all wrong- doing any more than the press can rid itself of all liars. He alludes to the libel finding against TV anchor Walter Jacobson. (1:15) 6 November 1986 Listen.
04During an appearance on WBBM's At Issue program, the Mayor says that while he is not happy about his political opponents bringing up his past tax conviction and law license suspensions in the mayoral campaign, he has to take the heat or get out of the kitchen. (0:26) 14 November 1986 Listen.
05On the same program, the Mayor proves he can dish out personal attacks as well as take them. He mentions challenger Ed Vrdolyak's younger brother, Peter, who has been in trouble with the law. He says he doesn't like to campaign like this but has to because Ed Vrdolyak keeps doing it (by trying to constantly tie him to his former top political aid Clarence McClain, who had vice convictions). (0:38) 14 November 1986 Listen.
06During a speech to students at Northeastern University, the Mayor defends the big vote totals he gets from blacks. He says Dick Daley (Richard J. Daley) always got big votes, too. (0:28) 15 January 1987 Listen.
07The Mayor talks to reporters after signing ethics legislation into law. He says he respectfully submits that everyone ought to thank him for getting the job done. (0:15) February 1987 Listen.
08Just before his expected victory in the April 7th General Election, the Mayor makes no apologies over reports he plans to dump rival Machine types from City Council committee chairmanships when he reorganizes the Council. He says it's winner take all in Congress, so why not in the Council? (0:36) 3 April 1987 Listen.
09After winning a clear mandate in the General Election and becoming the first Mayor to win reelection to a second consecutive term since Richard J. Daley, Harold Washington shuns the title of "Boss", saying they're aren't any bosses any more. (0:38) 8 April 1987 Listen.
10The Mayor denies he dumped southwest side aldermen like Ed Burke, Mike Sheahan, and John Madrzyk from leadership posts (committee chairmanships) because he ran badly in their wards. He says it was because they refused to cooperate and seek accommodation. (0:24) 16 April 1987 Listen.
11After the City Council approves 30 million dollars in emergency aid to the Chicago Housing Authority, the Mayor refuses to accept blame for admitted mismanagement at the CHA. He claims the fault rests largely with the Reagan Administration for cutting back aid to public housing. He contends the CHA would be in trouble even if it's management was perfect. (0:52) 6 May 1987 Listen.
12The Mayor criticizes Roosevelt University urbanologist Pierre deVise for charging that the Mayor's hiring policies are too heavily weighted in favor of blacks, that they make a mockery of fairness and constitute a violation of civil rights law. The Mayor says deVise's study is junk. (2:11) 26 May 1987 Listen.
13The Mayor blasts the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development for a report which sharply criticizes the management team he sent to the Chicago Housing Authority to reform the agency. He says that just because HUD says something doesn't mean that it's right. He says HUD is not sacrosanct, that the agency is composed of politicians. (0:58) 28 May 1987 Listen.
14The Mayor takes Governor Jim Thompson to task for failing to line up Republican support behind his tax program and then trying to blame him for the program's lack of support. The Mayor goes on to say that if he couldn't round up votes in his party he would resign and give back his salary. Note: Washington's program, which called on the Legislature to increase a number of key taxes, was unpopular from the start. The consensus in both parties was that the program was dead on arrival, with or without Governor Thompson's help. (0:18) 18 June 1987 Listen.
15The Mayor says the decision of his arch rival Ed Vrdolyak to switch to the Republican Party after resigning as Cook County Democratic Party Chairman is of no consequence, that he was defeated, brought the Party down, and now has abandoned ship, or was pushed over. (0:18) 19 June 1987 Listen.
16The Mayor scoffs at suggestions that he go to Springfield to lobby in person for tax increases. He says it's not necessary for a Mayor to use such tactics, that he can use the phone just as well. (0:23) 19 June 1987 Listen.
17The Mayor defends his decision to fire Patrick Quinn as City Revenue Director. He says the department requires somebody with an iron butt to run it, not a pretty face seeking media attention. Note: The outspoken Quinn had clashed with the Mayor on the issue of reform. (0:15) 26 June 1987 Listen.
18The Mayor fires back at critics who say his criticism of the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development is not helping to bring about a compromise that would prevent a HUD takeover of the CHA. He says he is not about to sit by and let HUD or "MUD" or anyone else run over this city. (0:15) 22 July 1987 Listen.
19The Mayor blames the failure of the City Revenue Department to make a crackdown on parking ticket scofflaws work on Circuit Court Clerk Morgan Finley. He points to part of a criminal indictment against Finley which alleges he deliberately withheld information on parking tickets from the Revenue Department in an effort to discredit the company that had a collections contract with the City. (0:22) 13 August 1987 Listen.
20The Mayor denies that he and his budget aides used phony inflated estimates of gas tax revenues to show the city budget was balanced when the Mayor was seeking reelection. He says the estimates were off the mark but that was because estimating is often not on the mark. (0:18) 25 August 1987 Listen.
21The Mayor criticizes aldermen who voted against a school property tax levy for playing games and says it won't get more school aid out of the Illinois General Assembly. Note: State Law requires the City Council to approve the school property tax levy (the amount of property tax dollars the school board says it needs to run the public schools) whether aldermen like the proposed levy (request) or not. (0:20) 30 October 1997 Listen.
22The Mayor says he opposes a total kind of full blown decentralization of the public school system as part of any school reform plan. He says parents should have more input in the selection of principals, and some say in the curriculum, but that full blown decentralization hasn't worked in other areas where it has been tried. (0:50) 9 October 1997 Listen.
23During a briefing on his record 2.7 billion dollar budget for 1988, the Mayor says he will defend the record 84-million dollar property tax increase he proposed by telling people that if they want more services they have to pay for them. (0:18) 15 October 1987 Listen.
24During the same briefing, the Mayor says he thinks the City Council should go on an austerity kick and cut the number of it's committees. But he says he will leave the decision up to them. (meaning he won't twist arms to cut committee waste). (0:32) 15 October 1987 Listen.
25The Mayor again blames higher local taxes on federal aid cuts by the Reagan Administration. He says he has no choice but to propose increases in taxes to pay for services. (1:10) 15 October 1987 Listen.
26The Mayor defends his decision to allow the Cubs to play 18 night games at Wrigley Field. He says the process has dragged on and nobody can say they were not heard (he is referring to outspoken Wrigleyville residents who opposed the night game decision). (0:16) 13 November 1987 Listen.
27Mayor Washington address Cook County Democratic Party leaders for only the second time since being elected Mayor in 1983. The occasion was a show of unity behind the party ticket for the 1988 county elections, which appeared to be a turning point for the Party after five years of political division in which the white old guard had battled Washington. (0:30) 18 November 1987 Listen.
28The Mayor responds to attempts by arch rival Ed Vrdolyak as a Circuit Court Clerk candidate on the Republican ticket to make the race a referendum on the Mayor. He says the last time that occurred, he "beat Eddie's butt" (in the 1987 mayor's race). (0:15) 19 November 1987 Listen.
29During the 1987 campaign for mayor, Washington mocks Democratic challenger and former Mayor Jane Byrne for wishing for another snow storm so he will be defeated. And he mocks Republican challenger Ed Vrdolyak for allegedly wanting Lake Michigan to rise. They are hoping for miracles, he says. They must want this job bad. (0:47) undated Listen.
30During the 1987 campaign for mayor, Washington defends his attacks on his opponents. He calls it "truth squad material" to counter the "bomb throwing" by the opposition. (0:20) undated Listen.
31During the 1987 campaign for mayor, Washington says he wouldn't call his Democratic challenger and former mayor Jane Byrne desperate. But he says the techniques she is using are like gnats flying around your head. He contends that just about everything she says is skewed, warped, twisted, and mostly untrue. (0:24) undated Listen.
32During the 1987 campaign for mayor, he denies he was behind the heckling of challenger Jane Byrne at one of her campaign appearances. He says politics is not bean bag. You hope people conduct themselves in a proper manner. But, he says, if they don't you don't get all upset and start throwing charges at everybody. (He is referring to Byrne's accusations that he had ordered the heckling as a dirty campaign tactic). (0:33) undated Listen.
33During the 1987 campaign for mayor, Washington says the prognosticators and analysts had it all wrong back in 1983 when they said he would only run for Mayor if there were two white candidates (who would split the white vote and give him a chance to win). He claims he always intended to run against only one candidate (incumbent Mayor Jane Byrne). He insists he wasn't afraid to take on Byrne one on one. He says the notion that he was afraid was "hocus pocus." He says he won the primary and won by a bigger percentage against Epton (Republican challenger Bernard Epton) in the general election. (0:44) undated Listen.
34During the 1987 general election campaign for Mayor, Washington, speaking at a campaign rally, attacks his Republican opponent Ed Vrdolyak for trying to hold himself out as Mr. Pure and Mr. Clean. He says this kind of duplicity, this kind of conflict of interest, will not be tolerated in my city. "I won't stand for it" and the crowd roars with approval. (0:35) undated Listen.
35During a question and answer session with a mostly black student audience at Loop College, the Mayor says he will be tough in cracking down on crime and street gang violence. He says we gotta arrest people who violate the law. No disagreement with that. And he says they will be arrested and they are gonna go to jail. Then he says: "Don't call me brother if you steal my television set. That don't fly!" (0:18) 21 February 1985 Listen.
36Mayor Washington speaks to students at Loop College in observance of Black History Month. In one of his best speeches as Mayor, he presents his views on how blacks have been "excised" from the history books and the negative impact he believes that had on young blacks growing up (they were made to feel inferior because they thought they couldn't compete). He touches on the point that being pro-black doesn't mean your anti-somebody else. He says being for blacks is no different than the same pride that Jews express in Jews and the Irish express in the Irish, etc. The Mayor complains in this speech that nobody wants to really study the phenomenon of blacks rising to prominence in politics. he says people simply resign themselves to saying: "Gee, black folks must be angry!" (19:30) 21 February 1985 Listen.
TapeTrack
Washington0501Mayor enthustically sings the song "Chicago" along with the band at the celebration of his reelection to a second term. (0:24) 4 April 1987 Listen.
02The Mayor delivers his victory speech on the night of his election to a second term. He congratulates his opponents for doing a commendable job and he calls his victory "a mandate for a movement." (8:10) 4 April 1987 Listen.
03Mayor Washington delivers his second inaugural address after winning a second term. Against the backround of deepening financial problems in the City, he says we are living in a time of challenge. He cites some of the accomplishments of his first term and says the word is out that "Chicago works together." He says the nation's cities are losing ground, blaming that on a lack of federal help and failed national policies. He says the dropout rate in the public schools in unacceptable and he says if there is one lesson we have learned it is that "bossism is not leadership and leadership is not bossism." Striking a tone of cautious optimism, he says we can turn this thing around by working together. He lists jobs, attacking problems in the schools, and resolving poor housing problems as the top priorities for his second term. And he claims he has brought people together (despite all the political battles with the Vrdolyak 29) and asks citizens to "roll up their sleeves." (21:00) 4 May 1987 Listen.


Eugene Sawyer

TapeTrack
Sawyer0101At his first news conference after being elected Acting Mayor by the City Council in a stormy all night session, Eugene Sawyer says there was truth to the reports that he hesitated about going ahead with the Council vote because he had more white support than black support. (0:20) 3 December 1987 Listen.
02During the same news conference, Acting Mayor Sawyer says the Washington legacy will not be sold out, that he supported Harold Washington and will do his best to deliver on his agenda. (0:32) 3 December 1987 Listen.
03During the same news conference, Sawyer addresses two touchy subjects. He says he favors night games at Wrigley Field and is rethinking his previous opposition to a gay rights ordinance. (0:22) 3 December 1987 Listen.
04During the same news conference, Sawyer admits to having relatives in some political patronage jobs but says the hiring took place before patronage died (before it was declared unconstitutional by the federal courts) and nobody ever said the relatives involved were not qualified. He admits to writing letters of sponsorship for them and says that probably got them their jobs, that he understands it gave them an advantage they probably shouldn't have had. (1:25) 3 December 1987 Listen.
05During the same news conference, Sawyer says he takes Rev. Jessie Jackson at his word that when he stuck his nose into the battle over the selection of an Acting Mayor it was to keep blacks united, not to take sides in favor of helping Alderman Timothy Evans get the job. He says he still supports Rev. Jackson for President. (0:25) 3 December 1987 Listen.
06At a luncheon meeting of about 500 Catholic businessmen, Acting Mayor Sawyer defends the 66-million dollar property tax hike he supported in the late Mayor Harold Washington's 1988 budget. He says the increase was nominal and you must consider the good services people get in return. (0:51) 8 January 1988 Listen.
07In the same speech Sawyer says that after only a little over a month in office he has learned you are really a prisoner in the job, that somebody is always following him. He means members of his security detail. (0:22) 8 January 1988 Listen.
08In the same speech, Sawyer gives the first public indication that he intends to run in the special election for Mayor in 1989. He says the job has humbled him but he likes it and wants to keep it. (1:05) 8 January 1988 Listen.
09During an appearance on WBBM's At Issue program, Sawyer refers to the name that critics have given him "mumbles" because of his speaking style. He says he is low key but that doesn't mean he doesn't have a handle on things. (0:20) 29 January 1988 Listen.
10During the same program, Sawyer says with a rare show of irritation that the flap over the 30-thousand dollar finder's fee he took ten years ago is behind him, that now it's the press's problem and he wishes they (reporters) would quit beating a dead horse. Note: The Acting Mayor had been accused of a conflict of interest by taking a finder's fee to help a client get a zoning change while he was an Alderman. (0:12) 29 January 1988 Listen.
11During the same program, Sawyer warns that black leaders who oppose Aurelia Pucinski for Circuit Court Clerk are inviting a white backlash against black Recorder of Deeds candidate Carol Moseley Braun. (0:48) 29 January 1988 Listen.
12At a news conference, Sawyer vows to put the court ordered Shakman protections against political patronage hiring into the City Personnel Code. This statement came after the Acting Mayor had asked the federal court to void the Shakman ban on political hiring so the City could escape payment of hefty legal fees in the long running court fight. (0:15) 3 February 1988 Listen.
13At the same news conference, Sawyer denies he discussed a devious plan with allies to get rid of the Shakman ban on political hiring. (0:14) 3 February 1988 Listen.
14At the same news conference, Sawyer says he no longer believes that political patronage hiring is right and fair after once admitting to using patronage to get relatives and friends on various government payrolls. (0:12) 3 February 1988 Listen.
15Acting Mayor Sawyer says that Paul Simon could face retaliation from black voters when he seeks reelection to the Senate in 1990 because of his decision to keep control of his delegates to the Democratic National Convention rather than urging them to support Rev. Jessie Jackson for the presidential nomination. (0:55) 12 April 1988 Listen.
16Sawyer declares his opposition to the proposed home equity program because he says it carries an aura of discrimination and must be made citywide before he could support it. Note: This was the position the late Mayor Harold Washington took on the proposal, too. The proposal was championed by white community groups in changing neighborhoods as a way to prevent a decline in home values as minorities, mainly blacks, moved in. (0:35) 12 April 1988 Listen.
17Sawyer explains why it took him so long to fire aide Steve Cokely in the wake of revelations that Cokely was delivering anti-semetic, anti-christian lectures to supporters of Minister Louis Farakhan. (0:15) 5 May 1988 Listen.
18In an interview on radio station WVON, Sawyer says he won't tolerate another teachers strike, that he will break with the Washington Administration policy of not getting involved in union negotiations. He says he will intervene to prevent a strike if one is threatened. (1:08) 1 June 1988 Listen.
19Sawyer defends a meeting at which pledges to raise money for his campaign were extracted from members of his cabinet. He says he has a right to demand loyalty from executives who are exempt from the ban on political hiring. (0:22) 5 January 1989 Listen.
20During the same appearance on WBBM's At Issue program, Sawyer declares again that he listed a controversial 30 thousand dollar finder's fee from a zoning case 10 years earlier on his income tax return and he vows to match the tax return disclosure his opponent Richard Daley has made. Note: The Acting Mayor never followed through on the promise to make his tax returns public. (0:21) 5 January 1989 Listen.
21Sawyer defends his shakeup of the City Council's leadership saying he had to put some people in power who were going to advance his agenda. (0:16) 13 July 1988 Listen.
22Sawyer says the City Council reorganization he carried out was not a political purge. He says he just can't have people trying to sabotage what he's doing. (0:11) 13 July 1988 Listen.
23Acting Mayor Eugene Sawyer delivers his first public statement after losing the primary election in a landslide to Richard M. Daley. He says he will remain neutral in the general election campaign and wants no part of a write-in being pushed by some of his supporters. He also says he will work to assure a smooth transition. (2:20) 13 March 1989 Listen.
24Acting Mayor Eugene Sawyer brings his brief 16 month tenure to a close with a farewell speech to the City Council at his final meeting. He says he did the best he could. (3:30) 29 March 1989 Listen.


Richard M. Daley

TapeTrack
RMDaley0101Daley announces his candidacy for Mayor in a speech before a crowd of 11th ward supporters. He blasts incumbent Mayor Jane Byrne. (15:00) 4 November 1982 Listen.
02Daley says on WBBM's At Issue, his first panel show appearance, that Jane Byrne was the one who attacked the Sain snow report done for Mayor Bilandic as phony and then she turns around and hands out phony contracts. (0:17) 6 January 1983 Listen.
03On the same program, Daley says that if he is elected he will roll back the high salaries given by Mayor Byrne to some 390-top city executives. (0:25) 6 January 1983 Listen.
04On the same program, Daley says that if he was elected Mayor, he would slash the city payroll in key areas where there is waste, such as public relations and special events. (0:25) 6 January 1983 Listen.
05On the same program, Daley says he hopes he would not have to hike taxes if he becomes Mayor. He says utility taxes are too high. (0:20) 6 January 1983 Listen.
06On the same program, he explains where he would cut spending to make up for an expected revenue gap. He says 40-million dollars in consulting contracts and 20 million in executive pay could be cut, etc. (0:30) 6 January 1983 Listen.
07On the same program, Daley says he would have no intention of seeking the posts of 11th ward committeeman or Democratic Party Chairman if he was elected Mayor. (0:10) 6 January 1983 Listen.
08On the same program, Daley says he would not support Ed Vrdolyak continuing as Democratic Party Chairman if he (Daley) "was elected Mayor and would expect that Vrdolyak would understand and would just move on (quit). (0:10) 6 January 1983 Listen.
09Daley accuses Mayor Jane Byrne of breaking her word to take part in a political campaign debate sponsored by the Sun Times and that now he doesn't trust her word anymore. (0:18) 11 January 1983 Listen.
10At a campaign news conference, Daley vows to revamp the Corporation Counsel's Office if he is elected Mayor. He says the hiring of outside counsel would be limited, there would be training programs, and there would be restrictions (a ban) on double-dipping by city attorneys involved in outside practice. (0:48) 26 January 1983 Listen.
11Daley says if he is elected Mayor he will introduce legislation to restrict campaign contributions by individuals and corporations to candidates. And he says to prevent a candidate from walking away a millionaire, he would require candidates to return what contributions they don't use. He also proposes limits on campaign spending. (0:55) 26 January 1983 Listen.
12Daley accuses Mayor Jane Byrne of "double crossing" members of the Firefighters Union back before the big strike. He charges that Byrne promised union members a contract and collective bargaining rights, then renegged and then came the strike. (0:50) 3 February 1983 Listen.
13Daley blasts CHA Chairman Charles Swibel after Adlai Stevenson III claimed Swibel sought his endorsement of Mayor Byrne in exchange for substantial contributions to his campaign for Governor. Daley says Swibel wouldn't be a part of his Administration if he was elected Mayor. (0:40) 7 February 1983 Listen.
14At same news conference, Daley roars as he jokes about an attempt by the Byrne Campaign to get a 200-thousand dollar loan despite a record campaign war chest of over 9-million dollars in four years. (0:18) 7 February 1983 Listen.
TapeTrack
RMDaley0201Daley delivers his victory speech at his election night headquarters after winning the General Election for Mayor, defeating third party candidate Timothy Evans and Republican Ed Vrdolyak. (6:30) 4 April 1989 Listen.
02Daley takes the oath of office as Chicago's 45th Mayor from Federal Judge Abraham Lincoln Marovitz, who swore in Daley's father six times. (0:22) 24 April 1989 Listen.
03Daley's first inauguration speech as Mayor of Chicago. He calls for unity and cooperation and pledges to run an Administration of new ideas with a healthy dose of common sense. (12:15) 24 April 1989 Listen.
04As he announces 22 of his key Cabinet members, Daley says he reached out to get the best and the brightest from all parts of the city and he says that is what you have to do. (0:20) 21 April 1989 Listen.
05Daley vows to stay out of the business of trying to dictate choices for other elective offices like a political boss. He says he will have enough problems just taking care of the city. (0:13) 20 April 1989 Listen.
06After presiding for the first time over a meeting of the City Council, Daley defends his decision to eliminate only one Council committee after having promised more drastic cuts in his campaign and he says the fact that he is moving to cut a million dollars from committee spending is at least a good start. (0:14) 26 April 1989 Listen.
07Daley says the City faces a serious budget shortfall that he inherited from former Mayor Eugene Sawyer but he says it is manageable and that he is prepared to make the tough decisions. (0:14) 27 April 1989 Listen.
08At the same news conference, he says that unfortunately for far too long somebody was not saying "no" to additional spending. Says unless you do that there is going to be a real serious crisis. (0:25) 27 April 1989 Listen.
09Daley says his first task will be to look at the layers upon layers of bureaucracy in City Government and to to something about cutting back on that (the waste). (0:25) 27 April 1989 Listen.
10Daley says he doesn't want the new 50-thousand dollar stretch limo that was purchased for the Mayor before he took office. He says its just too big and armor plated...that he would be the only one to survive a nuclear war (laughter follows remark). Note: He makes these comments as he announces a 50% cut in city cars and a cut in mobile phones as a waste of the taxpayer's money. He thinks status symbols have to go. (0:34) 1 May 1989 Listen.
11In talking about the need to collect 44-million dollars in delinquent water bills, Daley says you can't just turn off the water if people don't pay because you may hurt tenants in buildings where the landlords, not them, are at fault. He says the landlord just sits there and taxpayers are being ripped off. (0:36) 1 May 1989 Listen.
12During an appearance on WBBM's At Issue Program Daley says he thinks the race issue was settled in the election campaign...that his opponents tried to bring it up but it didn't work. He goes on to rap the New York press for constantly bringing up the issue of race in Chicago while not wanting to talk about New York's festering problems. (1:17) 5 May 1989 Listen.
13On the same program, Daley says that the basics of school reform have to be put in place before more aid is sought from Springfield. Says costs and the bureaucracy have to be cut. (1:00) 5 May 1989 Listen.
14On the same program, Daley expresses serious reservations about mandatory at random drug testing for all city employees. He says we have such testing now in selected public safety areas but doing it more broadly is not the answer to the drug problem. (0:34) 5 May 1989 Listen.
15On the same program, the Mayor says that as a matter of public policy he supports using public tax dollars to build sports stadiums for privately owned teams because it means a lot of jobs and tax revenues. (0:21) 5 May 1989 Listen.
16On the same program, the Mayor says he opposes another parking ticket amnesty program to get scofflaws to pay up. He says if he did that nobody would ever pay up. (0:26) 5 May 1989 Listen.
17The Mayor defends his decision to bring in outsiders to head the Streets and Sanitation and Economic Development Departments. He says Chicago is not a small city and he can't believe that a news media which brings in outsiders all the time would question that. (0:48) 8 May 1989 Listen.
18Daley speaks out in opposition to proposed legislation that would impose a two dollar a month head tax on suburbanites who work in Chicago. He suggests that would invite retaliation in the form of a tax on Chicagoans who work out in the suburbs. (0:54) 8 May 1989 Listen.
19Mayor offers a glimpse at his management style. He says his new Streets and Sanitation Commissioner Ray Cachares is gonna have a free hand and will rely on his deputies for help...that he won't be running around catching every snowflake (after a big winter storm) the way John Halpin (Jane Byrne's Commissioner did). (0:25) 8 May 1989 Listen.
20At a news conference announcing the dumping of the entire Board of Health and signaling a new direction for health care, Daley says one thing that is needed is to keep city health clinics open 24 hours, not 9 to 5. He offers all this as an example of how he intends to take an innovative approach to doing things differently, not being satisfied with business as usual. (0:38) 9 May 1989 Listen.
21In connection with the need to help prevent the spread of AIDS, the Mayor says he is opposed to the New York approach of distributing free needles to drug users to prevent the spread of the disease. He says we need more drug rehabilitation, not handing out needles. (0:37) 9 May 1989 Listen.
22The Mayor defends his offering of tax breaks to Sears to encourage the company to stay in Chicago and keep six thousands jobs in the City when the Sears Tower is sold. He says, frankly, other cities are giving everything, even City Hall, to try and get Sears to move and the competition is very tough and must be met. (0:34) 9 May 1989 Listen.
23On the Sears tax incentive issue again, Daley says what you have to keep in mind is what Sears means to Chicago from an economic standpoint. He says it would be devastating if the world's largest retailer left the City. (0:36) 9 May 1989 Listen.
24At a news conference to announce his drive to create an Inspector General with the power to investigate all city employees, including aldermen, the Mayor gets miffed when reporters start to call off a list of various types of employees to be sure he means every employee. He says with emphasis that he means all employees....A-L-L. (0:13) 11 May 1989 Listen.
25The Mayor predicts there will be overwhelming support in the City Council for his Inspector General plan even though aldermen have traditionally balked at giving the Executive Branch the power to investigate wrongdoing by Council members. Note: Daley would later be forced by Council opposition to narrow the investigative powers of the IG to exclude aldermen and members of their staffs. (0:32) 11 May 1989 Listen.
26Daley explains the basis for his move to create an independent Inspector General to root out corruption. He says he wants to combat the cynicism that the public now exhibits toward public officials by showing he is serious about dealing with any wrongdoing in city government. (0:21) 11 May 1989 Listen.
27Daley talks about how filthy dirty the City Hall Building was when he first came to work as Mayor. He says it was a clear sign of a lack of sound management and accountability...that City Hall should not be a pig pen. (1:15) 11 May 1989 Listen.
28Daley says he discovered so many contracts that were let out (awarded) previously that he has become exhausted going through them and he says a lot of them deserve the Golden Fleece Award (meaning they were taxpayer ripoffs). He says some of the deals make you hold your nose. (0:50) 11 May 1989 Listen.
29As he announces a unique agreement with the private sector to have an Arthur Anderson executive serve as Revenue Director for one year on loan, Daley says let the word go forth that deadbeats who owe the city money must pay up or face an audit and possible legal action. (0:28) 2 May 1989 Listen.
30Daley defends his decision to not renew a policy of allowing the City Council's Finance Committee to review major city contracts. He claims that such a policy, in effect, is a violation of executive powers. Note: The committee was Chaired by Alderman Ed Burke, a long time Daley rival. (0:45) 24 May 1989 Listen.
31Daley explains why he made the choices he was announcing for the Interim School Board that would be charged with getting school reform implemented. He says he picked them not to tinker at the margins but to make real changes. (0:21) 25 May 1989 Listen.
32Daley delivers a strong statement in support of the racial makeup of the Interim School Board. He says people should not be concerned with that....that they should be concerned with helping the children wherever they live. (0:26) 25 May 1989 Listen.
33In announcing a crackdown on loafing by city workers, Daley says let me make this clear: that people who don't do their jobs won't have their jobs to do. (0:11) 1 June 1989 Listen.
34Daley says city employees who don't do their jobs are costing the city money and its time we got rid of the notion that this is acceptable behavior. (0:23) 1 June 1989 Listen.
35Daley says the teams of budget analysts he is sending out to check on work crews are not spy teams. He says they are just making sure that everybody is working. He says thats all we ask because these are good jobs. (0:14) 1 June 1989 Listen.
36Tapping the podium for emphasis at a news conference, Daley says he is putting all employees and their supervisors on notice right now (that he expects a full day's work for a full day's pay). (0:13) 1 June 1989 Listen.
37Daley mocks the ownership of the Chicago Bears for suggesting they might move the team to Arlington Heights to become part of the Arlington Park Race Track complex. He then grows serious and says people are tired of threats from sports teams. (1:00) 29 June 1989 Listen.
TapeTrack
RMDaley0301Mayor says he is personally opposed to abortion but he believes that the final decision should be left up to a woman in consultation with her doctor, that the doctor/patient relationship should govern. He goes on to urge caution in controlling locations of abortion clinics and refuses to take a position on controls pending before the General Assembly. (3:00) 10 July 1989 Listen.
02Daley supports the use of wiretaps and eavesdrop devices to try and catch violations of the law by politicians and others. (His comments were prompted by the discovery of a hidden FBI camera and microphones at Counselor's Row Restaurant across from City Hall, all the hardware focused on the corner table where First Ward political bosses, most with mob connections, hang out) (0:30) 13 July 1989 Listen.
03Daley says his philosophy is that he can and will work with anyone to help the City. He says it doesn't matter whether the Governor or the President is a Democrat or a Republican. He says that when he was Cook County States Attorney he got more money from Pres. Reagan than any other Democrat got. (0:25) 13 July 1989 Listen.
04Daley explains why he made his cabinet members go through a seminar on problem solving with him at Northwestern's School of Business. He says he is trying to get all departments working together and wants to cut out the kind of infighting and bureaucratic rivalry that often occurs among departments. He says he just wants the potholes filled. (0:40) 13 July 1989 Listen.
05In the most controversial remark of his new Administration to date, Daley says if the CHA (Chicago Housing Authority) won't pay off it's overdue water bill then maybe meters should be installed to limit residents to a shower a day. Note: On Aug 15th, the Mayor would issue a public apology after African American leaders accused him of being insensitive. He claimed he only meant the remark as a joke. (0:32) 9 August 1989 Listen.
06Daley says it would be hard to justify using taxes to build a stadium for the Bears because the team only plays about 11 or 12 home games. He says if there were two teams to play, that would be a different story and he thinks Chicago could support two pro football teams. (0:55) 9 August 1989 Listen.
07The Mayor says he will apologize to anyone who was offended by his Aug 9th remark about limiting CHA residents to one shower a day if the CHA won't pay its water bill. He says he meant the remark as a kind of joke during what he called a "rock and roll" (freewheeling news conference). (0:32) 14 August 1989 Listen.
08Daley says it is unfortunate that so many people are still so sensitive about things that they took his shower remark as being political when it wasn't intended that way. He says he is obviously going to have to watch it from now on. (0:11) 14 August 1989 Listen.
09Daley lashes out at his critics in the black community who claim that racially motivated police brutality has been on the increase since he was elected Mayor. He says all of a sudden he gets elected and everybody says there is brutality. He says that kind of criticism didn't happen under Gene and Harold (mayors Eugene Sawyer and Harold Washington). (0:28) 11 September 1989 Listen.
10Daley criticizes the Bush Administration's strategy l on drugs for shifting too much responsibility to the states and the cities. He says he told drug tsar William Bennett to his face the Federal Government needed to do more. (0:42) 6 September 1989 Listen.
11Daley defends a controversial deal to give United l Airlines 20 acres of prime land at O'Hare Airport at bargain rates because the reservations center the Airline plans to build will mean 13-hundred more jobs. He says if he didn't do that, the press would be all over him for not doing enough to keep United's reservation service in the City. (0:45) 29 September 1989 Listen.
12Daley says that..."yes"...he is very disturbed by the findings of an exhaustive study which shows that ethnic isolation in Chicago is feeding a racism that is threatening to destroy the economic vitality of Chicago neighborhoods. He says all of us have to end it, not just City Hall. (0:40) 29 September 1989 Listen.
13The Mayor says that for the City to survive, the problem of racial and ethnic isolation in Chicago has to be dealt with. (0:45) 29 September 1989 Listen.
14Daley rejects a call by City Council reformers to twist some arms to get back into his legislation proposing an Inspector General the provision he agreed to drop that would allow the IG to investigate corruption by aldermen and members of their staffs. He claims he doesn't like to twist arms...that it is a form of threat and he says he is not into that stuff. (0:40) 2 October 1989 Listen.
15Daley attacks black groups for saying Police Supt. Leroy Martin is doing a good job of rooting out police brutality but his boss (the Mayor) isn't. He implies that such logic doesn't make sense and it leads him to suggest that while there is some legitimate concern over brutality a lot of it is political rhetoric. (0:55) 2 October 1989 Listen.
16Daley says a letter from the Board of Ethics declaring employees in six sensitive departments couldn't take part in school council elections because of a ban on political activity was the silliest thing he ever saw. (0:20) 2 October 1989 Listen.
17Daley chides critics of local school advisory councils for suggesting that not many candidates would run in council elections. (that didn't turn out to be the case). And Daley says the nation's largest experiment with decentralization and parent control had better work because if it didn't the kids will end up getting hurt. (0:55) 10 October 1989 Listen.
18At a news conference, Daley vows to keep politics out of contracts and jobs at O'Hare Airport. As he unveils the model for the much delayed international terminal he says if politics gets into the project it will never be completed.(0:15) undated Listen.
19Daley reacts to the arrest of a man accused of l making a threat on his life in a phone call to 911. He says he is not going to change his schedule or run and hide but that it is scary to get a threat and no public official should have to face that. (0:15) 31 October 1989 Listen.
20Daley outlines a new ordinance giving the Consumer Services Department more power to deal with deception and fraud in the market place. He says this is what the people want. They want the City to act, not tell people to take their complaints to the States Attorney or Attorney General. (0:15) 25 October 1989 Listen.
21Speaking in support of putting metal detectors and l sniffer dogs in public schools to keep out drugs, Daley says the costs do have to be considered, but if one life is saved it would be worth it because how else are you gonna get the stuff out of the schools. (0:10) 25 October 1989 Listen.
22Daley says the concept of using dogs to sniff out drugs in schools is a good one. He says you can't fly pigeons around to find drugs. He says we are just talking about protecting the children. (0:14) 25 October 1989 Listen.
23Daley insists he will stay out of the primary elections to avoid being seen as a Boss. (0:40) 23 October 1989 Listen.
24Daley talks to kids at a west side grade school about 1 gangs and drugs and in this cut he says he has a solution. He wants to provide for a mandatory life sentence without parole for anybody who smuggles five pounds or more of hard drugs into the country. He says , right now, the maximum sentence of 15 years isn't tough enough. (0:58) 24 October 1989 Listen.
25Mayor declares his opposition to a proposal by Ald. Bill Henry to require food sellers to show proficiency in English the way cab drivers are required to demonstrate it. He says that he remembers when people said he couldn't speak English during his campaign for Mayor. (0:25) 12 December 1989 Listen.
26Daley responds to union policemen triggering a ticket-writing slowdown job action because they felt the Mayor was dragging his feet on getting contract arbitration moving. Daley says these policemen are only hurting themselves and the public. (0:25) 15 November 1989 Listen.
27As he reveals that he will begin negotiations after Jan. l, l990 with Bears President Mike McCaskey on a new stadium, Daley says Mike will have to take a domed stadium or else he will get nothing. Note: Because of costs, he would later change his position in favor of a renovation of Soldier Field. (0:15) 21 December 1989 Listen.
28Daley tells the School Board to drop the red herring tactics of threatening deficits to get more help from Springfield. He says everybody is tired of that and that the Board should concentrate on cutting. (0:45) 19 January 1990 Listen.
29Daley says he is determined to collect on overdue parking tickets under the new system of adjudication...that this is revenue owed the city and if it's not collected the city will have financial problems. (0:32) 14 February 1990 Listen.
30Daley says he will accept responsibility for any shortcomings on snow removal performance after a big 10-inch storm that occurred the day before. He says he is not gonna hide. He will take the heat because he is the Mayor. (0:12) 15 February 1990 Listen.
31Daley concedes he was upset with the way some things went on snow removal, too. He says lets face it I'm the Mayor of the City but he says he is not going to run away and hide. But he also thinks that what happened won't cost him his job. (0:20) 15 February 1990 Listen.
32Daley insists that his proposed plan for a third major airport, larger than O'Hare, in the Lake Calumet region is for real... that he's serious. He admits he had misgivings at first but says now he believes the plan would lead to economic recovery of the south side. (0:31) 15 February 1990 Listen.
33Daley admits to saying during his election campaign that he was against uprooting people with big projects but he says his third airport plan is different...that a whole new community would be built for the 67-hundred homeowners who would have to make way for the airport. And he says there will be jobs, jobs, jobs. (0:30) 15 February 1990 Listen.
34Daley responds to criticism from former Mayoral opponent Ed Vrdolyak on his third airport plan. He says it is only a concept and he is not the kind of person who promises to open up Wisconsin Steel and put a chicken in every pot...that he (Daley) plans to make things happen. Note: Daley is talking in this cut about a public vow Vrdolyak once made to get Wisconsin Steel reopened and claiming he had a plan to do that. Nothing happened. (0:12) 22 February 1990 Listen.
35Daley says he intends to guarantee that the homeowners displaced by his third airport plan will not suffer from declining property values in the Lake Calumet area. He says no one is gonna lose. (0:30) 22 February 1990 Listen.
36Daley says with reference to his third airport plan that he does not intend to jam anything down the throats of thepeople in the Lake Calumet region. (0:15) 22 February 1990 Listen.
37Daley explains why he decided to take the political risk of proposing a third airport before his run for reelection in 1991. He says you have to make bold plans to move the City. (0:36) 22 February 1990 Listen.
38Daley voices reservations about proposals to ban cigarette advertising on billboards. He says that would have a chilling impact on First Amendment rights. (0:35) 22 February 1990 Listen.
39Daley rejects a call by three state legislators for a public referendum on his third airport plan. He says he doesn't see them calling for referendums on their decisions. (0:32) 23 February 1990 Listen.
40Daley concedes that for his third airport plan to fly, he is going to have to convince the residents of the area that the economic benefits would be worth the sacrifices involved in being displaced. (0:35) 23 February 1990 Listen.
41Daley says we (his Administration) has to get out there and sell this project (his third airport plan) and he says that if you did everything by referendum government would come to a standstill. (0:18) 23 February 1990 Listen.
42Daley criticizes the waste, inefficiency, and mismanagement in the City's health care insurance program, which he contends is costing the taxpayers needless millions every year. He says he is going to crack down...that this is not freebie heaven. (0:52) 26 February 1990 Listen.
43Daley explains why he refuses to get involved in Democratic Party primaries by saying that in the case of the 1990 primaries candidates wanted him to get involved so they could use him as an issue and that he wasn't going to let that happen. (0:30) 22 March 1990 Listen.
44Daley defends his decision to not get involved in primary fights. He says people are missing the boat if they think a Mayor can still swing elections by saying he wants this or that candidate. He says those days are over. (0:22) 22 March 1990 Listen.
45Daley offers some insight here on why he doesn't rely on Party support to win elections. He says the voters don't identify with a Party ...a donkey or the elephant anymore. He says that now voters listen to TV and the Radio, not the precinct captain who knocks on their door. (1:25) 22 March 1990 Listen.
46Daley says that if landlords don't fulfill their responsibility and obey the city building code then he is gonna go after them. (0:20) 27 March 1990 Listen.
47Daley defends his Education Deputy Lourdes Monteagudo and her decision to enroll her daughter in a suburban private school, saying in effect that no public school in the City was good enough for her child. He says she has that right...she can send her daughter to Timbuckto if she wants to. (0:22) 27 March 1990 Listen.
48Daley says...the decision by Mongeagudo doesn't send the wrong message to parents. He repeats his "education." contention that Lourdes can send her daughter to Timbuckto if she wants. (0:25) 27 March 1990 Listen.
49Daley concedes that his Education Deputy Lourdes Monteagudo should apologize for saying there wasn't a single high school in Chicago good enough for her daughter to attend. (0:15) 27 March 1990 Listen.
50The Mayor again defends Lourdes Monteagudo in the face of demands for her resignation because she allegedly lied about her daughter not being accepted at any high schools in the City when in fact two agreed to take her. Daley says, look, she apologized and he goes on to accuse the media in a jesting way of wanting blood....and then he growls. (0:26) 27 March 1990 Listen.
51Daley says Lourdes Monteagudo is outspoken, there is no doubt about that, and thats why he picked her as his top aide on school reform. He says she had been fighting the bureaucracy that was against reform. Note: Monteagudo would later leave her post as Daley moved to quell the fire storm she created. (0:22) 27 March 1990 Listen.
52In a speech to the Economics Club of Chicago, Daley again defends his plan for a third airport in the Lake Calumet area saying the same criticism being heard about it was heard when his Father wanted to build the U of I Circle Campus, which turned out to be a great thing. (1:04) 12 April 1990 Listen.
53In the same speech, Daley says he is working hard to root out government corruption. He says he will fire those who get caught. (0:35) 12 April 1990 Listen.
54In the same speech, Daley says the problem of education crosses all racial lines. He says when kids drop out of school, then all of us have a problem. (0:35) 12 April 1990 Listen.
55In the same speech, Daley says we have to change public attitudes about drugs just as MADD changed attitudes about (applause) drunken driving and Mothers Against Rape changed attitudes about rape. (2:30) 12 April 1990 Listen.
TapeTrack
RMDaley0401Daley attacks a Sun Times article which claims that minority hiring in higher positions in his Administration is down by 25% since the previous November. He claims that is not true. (0:24) 11 April 1990 Listen.
02Daley reluctantly concedes that he has had trouble getting blacks to serve in his Administration in posts that are exempt from the protections of the Shakman ban on patronage hiring and firing. But he says you have to just keep trying. (0:22) 11 April 1990 Listen.
03While encouraging local TV stations to accept ads in a city campaign against AIDS which mention condoms, Daley says condoms are a part of American life and he asks "What do I have to do, educate the reporters now on condoms?" The remarks draw a roar of laughter from reporters. (0:15) 3 May 1990 Listen.
04Daley defends the extensive background checks he is conducting on school board nominees and which delayed the appointments. He says if he made mistakes critics would denounce him for that so you have me in a Catch 22 here. (0:20) 11 May 1990 Listen.
05In the face of criticism from black activists, Daley defends the slow pace of selecting school board appointees. He "not lightly." says if his critics don't like it then they should go down to Springfield and change the law that gives him authority to make those appointments. (0:25) 8 May 1990 Listen.
06Daley says on the day he announces 7 of his 15 school board appointments that he will not allow himself to be browbeaten into hastily filling the other board seats on the basis of definite racial quotas (meaning 9 blacks and 4 Hispanics). But he says he will take the racial makeup of the schools and the city into account. (0:23) 11 May 1990 Listen.
07Daley explains why he is opposed to a constitutional l amendment that would require a 60% vote in the Illinois Senate and House for the approval of tax measures. He says changing the whole structure of government just to get tax relief is the wrong way to go. He says it could end up stalemating government. (0:03) 1 May 1990 Listen.
08Daley says he will support extension of the temporary two year 20% increase in the State Income Tax only if is tied to property tax relief. (0:30) 21 May 1990 Listen.
09Daley says you have to be in the real world on this business of extending the state income tax, that the only way it can happen is to tie it to property tax relief. He says there are no sacred cows, that if it involves sacrifice then all must share in it. (0:55) 21 May 1990 Listen.
10Pressed on whether his Father could have done more to steer city contracts to firms owned by minorities and women, Daley gets testy. He says sure anybody could have done more but then says that he's dead..he's dead (meaning his Father) and he goes on to contend there were few minority contractors in his Father's day so it wasn't race that kept them from getting city business. (0:17) 22 May 1990 Listen.
11Daley contends that the denial of city contracts to minority firms when his Father was Mayor was more a case of greed than it was racial discrimination. (0:10) 22 May 1990 Listen.
12Daley reacts to a newspaper story that the City is no longer bothering to ticket dog owners for failing to pick up the poop left by their animals. He says its up to the owners to do that. He says he doesn't want city employees going around all day picking up "sh..poop." (0:11) 30 May 1990 Listen.
13Daley blurts out in reply to a question that he left a City Council meeting before a debate on South African sanctions not to duck the issue but because he, in his words, "had the shits." Then he adds for emphasis..."yeah I did!" Very funny blooper. (0:10) 2 July 1990 Listen.
14In a moment of frustration over the refusal of the Bush Administration to provide more funding for the war on drugs, he says the City doesn't have the power to stop drugs. He says we can't build a wall around Chicago or hire battleships to take the lakefront. He says all the city can do is try to protect the residents (from drug-related violence). (0:20) 4 June 1990 Listen.
15Daley tells reporters not to blame him for a racially motivated incident that occurred in a tavern called Fat Albert's just because the tavern happens to be in his Bridgeport neighborhood. He says the incident doesn't reflect the whole community there. (0:25) 31 August 1990 Listen.
16Daley says the black postman who had a dog sicked on him in Bridgeport by a resident who turned out to be Hispanic was not his mailman, as a newspaper reported. And he says it was not a racial thing. He mocks suggestions that it was racial by asking tongue in cheek if the dog was black, white, etc. A funny cut. (0:25) 31 August 1990 Listen.
17Daley accuses the news media of preparing to do a hatchet job on him for being at his Grand Beach, Michigan summer home when a major power blackout occurred on the City's west side. He says when he suddenly showed up at City Hall, the media had to drop the plan and were apparently disappointed. Note: This cut demonstrates Daley's sensitivity even to potential criticism. (0:17) 30 July 1990 Listen.
18Daley responds to a question asking how he knew the media were preparing to do a hatchet job on him. He says it was instinct. He says he has instincts and could tell it was gonna happen. (0:24) 30 July 1990 Listen.
19At the same news conference, Daley complains that news media distorted the west side power blackout by leaving the impression there was chaos from widespread looting. He says no wonder people were calling and asking if there was a riot. (0:41) 30 July 1990 Listen.
20At the same news conference Daley sounds very much like his Father as he complains that the alleged media overplay of the power blackout is another case of how Chicago so often gets a bad rap it doesn't deserve. (0:25) 30 July 1990 Listen.
21At a Chicago TV Academy luncheon, Daley says the press is right...that he is very protective of his family. He says he doesn't want them in the public eye (just like his Father). But he says he doesn't mind being asked questions about his Dad. (0:25) 24 May 1990 Listen.
22Daley gets into a testy exchange with his defeated challenger in the last Mayoral election, Alderman Timothy Evans, at a City Council hearing on the city's high murder rate. The cut is an exchange between the Mayor and Evans after Evans demanded that Daley cut bureaucratic waste to free up money to hire more police. The Mayor says he'll cut if Evans won't complain about racial discrimination. He also says he'll decide who gets cut, not Evans, because he won the race (for Mayor). (0:54) 26 September 1990 Listen.
23On the eve of the execution of convicted murderer Charles Walker at Stateville Prison, Daley says he is a proponent of the death penalty, not because it deters but because it's appropriate punishment. (0:20) 11 September 1990 Listen.
24At the same news conference, Daley complains about the way relatives and friends of victims have to keep going back to hearings to fight parole for mass murderer Richard Speck (who was spared from the death penalty when the state law was found unconstitutional). Daley says its a disgrace to have to do this, that relatives of the victims are being put through the criminal justice system. (0:31) 11 September 1990 Listen.
25Daley says most people (who commit murders) never get the death penalty and that is what frustrates him. He says he is definitely pro-death. He is for the death penalty. (0:21) 11 September 1990 Listen.
26Daley says we should all go out to the cemetery and start praying for the victims of violent crime instead of worrying about those who killed them. He says most victims are young or old, the defenseless members of society. (0:35) 11 September 1990 Listen.
27Daley responds to the indictment of long time First Ward Alderman Fred Roti and other First Ward political figures and whether this proves there is a link between organized crime and City Hall. He says no and claims the mob has no voice with him. (0:15) 19 December 1990 Listen.
28At the same news conference, Daley says corruption surfaces all over because of one simple thing...money. He suggests that factor is what is involved in the City Council corruption that keeps cropping up. (0:12) 19 December 1990 Listen.
29Daley opposes radical changes in the City Council to prevent corruption by striping aldermen of certain powers. He says you cannot condemn the whole system. He says some (aldermen) are corrupt but most are not. And he says the national Savings and Loan scandal is much worse. (0:45) 19 December 1990 Listen.
30At the same news conference, Daley says the indictments don't enhance Chicago's reputation as the home of the Mob. He says what they show is that authorities are rooting out corruption and deserve credit for it. (0:20) 19 December 1990 Listen.
31In announcing that he will run for reelection, Daley denies being afraid to debate his more articulate challengers, Jane Byrne and Danny Davis. He takes the press to account for saying he couldn't talk or think. He says he proved he could. He thinks he is a good debater but that leadership is his strength. (0:58) 10 December 1990 Listen.
32Daley defends the social service part of his record and rejects criticism that, like his Father, he is just a bricks and mortar Mayor. He says he has a human side. (0:48) 10 December 1990 Listen.
33Daley rejects criticism from his opponents that he l lacks vision in his leadership of the City. He asks...how about his third airport plan? He claims that's vision and he lists some other things as well. (0:20) 10 December 1990 Listen.
34Daley relates something about his own philosophy in running government. He says he is not a quitter and doesn't let anything get him down. He says his son Kevin, who died at a very young age, taught him how to be a fighter. He learned not to give up when he flunked the bar exam twice. (1:06) 10 December 1990 Listen.
35Daley says he takes nothing for granted in political campaigns and doesn't listen to the talk that he will win the 1991 election in a cakewalk. (0:20) 10 December 1990 Listen.
36Daley explains why he opposes City Council hearings on taxicab industry corruption. He says he thinks the Council should give his Administration a chance to complete it's investigation and to make recommendations. He claims it was his Administration that uncovered the bribe taking in the first place, not the Feds. (0:15) 11 January 1991 Listen.
37Daley explains why he thinks a proposal to limit the Mayor of Chicago to two consecutive four year terms is a bad idea. (0:31) 11 January 1991 Listen.
38Daley says he thinks the City Council ought to change the policy of paying the legal fees of aldermen under criminal investigation up to the point of indictment. He says it is not an appropriate use of taxpayer's money. He makes the comment during an appearance on WBBM's At Issue program. (0:38) 21 December 1990 Listen.
39On the same program, Daley says that the 20% l State Income Tax Surcharge will not be renewed next June unless it is linked to property tax relief. He says under follow up questioning that the plan should call for 20 to 25% of the surcharge revenue to be used by local governments to rebate property taxes. (0:15) 21 December 1990 Listen.
40Daley tells members of the Rotary Club that he will fight the efforts of Governor Jim Edgar to shift more general welfare costs to the City. He says such a move would bankrupt Chicago and he says it's the State's job to handle welfare. (0:46) 12 March 1991 Listen.
41Daley defends his controversial intervention into the dispute over who should be the next Chancellor of the the University of Illinois at Chicago. He says his lobbying to steer the job to Paula Wolff, a former top aide to Gov. Jim Thompson, (which failed) was proper. He says he had a right to make a recommendation and that he does not stick his head in the sand when it comes to controversy. (2:00) 7 March 1991 Listen.
42After winning a landslide victory and reelection to a four year term, Daley says in his victory speech that the victory was a milestone because it shattered the myth that with an election must come bitterness and name calling. (0:45) 2 April 1991 Listen.
43In a question and answer session with reporters after his election victory speech, Daley says it's unfortunate that some people portray him as somebody with fangs and a whip and a chain (meaning political boss like his Father was). (0:40) 2 April 1991 Listen.
44Daley insists the investigation his office launched into the loafing scandal in the First Ward Sanitation Department has been thorough and that it shows the commitment he made to protect the taxpayers and their money. (0:18) 30 May 1991 Listen.
45Daley insists he has respect for the Laborers Union which represents the 37 sanitation workers who were disciplined in the First Ward scandal and that all he is trying to do is go after individuals who have not fofilled their obligation to the taxpayers. (0:32) 30 May 1991 Listen.
46Daley rejects reports that what he is trying to do in his handling of the First Ward scandal is lessen the influence of the Mob at City Hall, (an influence it has exercised through the Laborers Union over the years). He says he is simply trying to make sure that the taxpayers are getting their money's worth. (0:13) 30 May 1991 Listen.
47Mayor Daley takes the oath of office for the second time from Senior Federal Judge Abraham Lincoln Marovitz, who swore in Daley's Father as Mayor six times and once before that for Country Clerk. (0:30) 6 May 1991 Listen.
48In his inaugural address, Daley says that his goal in the next four years is to mold a government smaller in size but greater in performance. He says what works we will keep and what doesn't we will scrap. (0:35) 6 May 1991 Listen.
49In the same address, Daley says there are miles to go on school reform. He criticizes the schools that are still a failure and warehousing kids. He says demands for more money will not fly and the pace of reform is too slow. And he says school bureaucracy is still standing in the way of reform. (0:55) 6 May 1991 Listen.
50Daley blasts the Detroit Pistons for refusing to l shake hands after losing four straight in the playoffs to the Chicago Bulls and he rips Dennis Rodman's behavior toward Scottie Pippen, one of the stars of the Bulls. (0:22) 31 May 1991 Listen.
51Daley says the proposed domed stadium for the Bears cannot be built now because the McDome Board has failed to show how it could be marketed for more than just a dozen Bear home games (ten games he says, actually). He says you cannot build a stadium and then pray that your gonna be able to lease it. (0:34) 10 April 1991 Listen.
52In discussing the controversy over the proposed renewal of the Civil Rights Act in Congress and the issue of racial quotas, the Mayor says he supports racial quotas, that you have to have them to remedy past discrimination. (0:12) 6 June 1991 Listen.
53This is a cut of natural sound of bagpipes playing "When Irish Eyes Are Smiling." This sound can be used with any biographical or obit pieces on Mayor Daley. The sound bite goes into another Irish tune. (2:00) undated Listen.
54Daley defends his much criticized strategy of operating quietly behind the scenes in the protracted negotiations over a state budget compromise instead of speaking out and saying what he wants. He says jumping up and down and screaming and yelling for a piece of the pie doesn't get anything done. (0:10) 18 July 1991 Listen.
55Daley raps the Illinois General Assembly for refusing to make the municipal (local) share of the State Income Tax Surcharge permanent. He says renewing it for only two more years is unrealistic because governments have to have stability and be able to plan for longer than two years. (0:28) 18 July 1991 Listen.
56At the same news conference, Daley says you cannot plan for only two years. He says renewing the State Income Tax Surcharge for just two more years just puts cities like Chicago back on the merry-go-round...the shoots to shoot all over again and it really doesn't solve anything. It just creates more problems. (0:10) 18 July 1991 Listen.
57Responding to critics who say he is not exercising leadership in a Springfield stalemate over a new State Budget, Daley says he's Richard M. Daley,not Richard J. Daley and he suggests that any stronger role would again raise accusations that he is trying to be a Boss. He says the media wrote all about that when his Dad was the Mayor. (0:12) 18 July 1991 Listen.
58Daley responds to charges from some gay activists that his Administration has not done enough in the war against AIDS. He says sure we should also do more but that to lay the problem off on him is ridiculous. He says he has done a lot and takes a back seat to no one on that, whether people like him or not. (0:16) 8 August 1991 Listen.
59Daley insists he has no secret remap plan of his own on remapping City wards to comply with the 1990 Census. He says critics who say he does are jumping out front for publicity. He says he will let the City Council decide on ward boundaries, that he will advice and assistance but will not pinpoint (dictate) ward lines. (0:31) 9 August 1991 Listen.
60Daley says he will not deviate from his plan to take Sundays off to be with his family. He says he and his wife talked it over and he is not going to change his position. (0:17) 9 August 1991 Listen.
61At the same news conference, Daley says the School Board has to face reality in closing a shortfall. He says the school population is down, yet they (school board members) vote against closing any schools. He says they must think money is gonna come down from heaven but there's no money up there. (0:22) 9 August 1991 Listen.
62Daley says he firmly believes that if property taxes are raised it will move more middle class taxpayers out of Chicago as well as more businesses. He says this happens every time property taxes are raised. (0:08) 14 August 1991 Listen.
TapeTrack
RMDaley0501Daley says that although drug sweeps by police are a losing battle that accomplishes little, we have to keep doing it. He says he does not intend to run up the white flag and just surrender the streets to drug dealers. (0:43) 14 August 1991 Listen.
02Daley says the City is not gonna use land it wants from the military at O'Hare Airport to build additional runways. He says the City is asking the Defense Department to move it's military facilities out of O'Hare because it wants the 260 acres involved for economic development, not runways. (0:25) 14 August 1991 Listen.
03Daley says he warned the School Board members when he appointed them that it was going to be a very tough job that would require them to make very difficult decisions. And he says they have to make those decisions. (0:22) 16 August 1991 Listen.
04Daley says when he was States Attorney nobody wanted to listen to him when he warned that gangs were a criminal, not a social problem. He says, now look at what we have on our hands. Note: In this cut, Daley is criticizing the liberals of the 60's and early 70's who said prosecutors should go easy on gang bangers because they are not criminals). (0:50) 29 August 1991 Listen.
05In a remark that would prove highly controversial, Daley says the drug violence in Chicago is getting just like Columbia. (the comment caused controversy because critics said it was an overstatement that would drive business out of the City or discourage new business from coming to Chicago. They contended the remark could cause panic). (0:25) 29 August 1991 Listen.
06In the same interview, Daley takes off again after people who say the drug problem is a social problem. He says it is a criminal problem but he says we are afraid to attack drugs at the source, in Columbia, Bolivia, etc. (0:36) 29 August 1991 Listen.
07At a news conference to reveal the results of a probe into the City's mounting health care costs, Daley says millions of dollars were lost to the taxpayers because of fraud, mismanagement and sloppy procedures. (0:09) 3 October 1991 Listen.
08Daley says there is plenty of blame to go around on why the City's health care system was out of control prior to 1990. (0:25) 3 October 1991 Listen.
09At a news conference to release a study of the Police Department, Daley gets upset and loses his temper after a reporter suggests that he is intending to study the Department's problems to death with a phase 2 and phase 3 study (this after the initial study he is releasing showed problems everyone has known were there for at least two years including abuse of sick time by cops and cops answering too many non-emergency 911 calls. (0:17) 9 October 1991 Listen.
10At the same news conference, Daley mocks a TV reporter for suggesting the policy study he just released on the Police Department is just rearranging the deck chairs on the Titanic. He says the Police Department is not a Titanic the way CBS is. He then goes on to say reporters get thin skinned when you mention their problems and he tells the reporter not to call the Police Department the Titanic. (0:45) 9 October 1991 Listen.
11Daley says he has no regrets over having sought to win the power to remove the City Treasurer from pension boards even though he lost the fight to Treasurer Miriam Santos when Governor Edgar vetoed that part of a pension reform bill. (0:15) 7 November 1991 Listen.
12Daley says with sarcasm in his voice that he doesn't believe reports about Miriam Santos' poor attendance at pension board meetings and he says it shows what a dedicated public official she is. Note: At this point in time, Daley is locked in a public feud with Santos. (0:07) 8 November 1991 Listen.
13Daley says if there is anything wrong with any pension deals then City Treasurer Miriam Santos should take the evidence right over to the U.S. Attorney's Office and make no bones about it. Note: Daley is challenging Santos to put up or shut up after she suggested there was wrongdoing inspired by the Mayor's top allies. (0:07) 8 November 1991 Listen.
14Daley suggests that City Treasurer Miriam Santos l has been ungrateful, that he is the one who made her the political success she is and now all of a sudden she is making him out to be the evil one (what he calls "Mr. evil"). (0:05) 6 November 1991 Listen.
15Daley concedes while announcing a new controversial franchise agreement with Commonwealth Edison that he agreed to it even though it did not contain the rate relief he promised because the City needed the 70-million dollars in annual franchise fees to keep the city budget balanced. (0:06) 22 October 1991 Listen.
16Daley says electricity rates have to come down but despite his promise to do that he concedes the City doesn't have the power to force ComEd to lower rates, that it's up to the Illinois Commerce Commission. (0:25) 22 October 1991 Listen.
17Daley suggests that City Treasurer Miriam Santos was looking for publicity with her charge that his top aides were interfering in the operations of her office. He says he has more important things to worry about. (0:30) 1 November 1991 Listen.
18In a funny moment, Daley jokes that he is wondering where his Father is to help him get out of the dilemma of a threatened school strike. He says he is looking at his Father's notes to see how he used to mediate settlements (between the School Board and the Teachers Union. (0:15) 14 November 1991 Listen.
19Daley talks about all the problems he is facing at a particularly troubling time in his tenure and says that is why the Mayor's job is the hot seat of America and he says, frankly I don't know how my Father lasted as long as he did. (0:20) 5 November 1991 Listen.
20Daley comments on his decline in the popularity polls. He says it's because he is facing and making the tough decisions, like layoffs and more taxes in his budget. He says you can be popular if you duck decisions but he got elected to make them. (1:00) November 1991 Listen.
21In justifying his willingness to seriously consider gambling as a new source of revenue, Daley tells members of the City Club he is gonna grab revenue wherever he can get it because the Federal and State governments are saying no to more aid and gambling appears to be the only way to go. He also says other states are doing it. (0:20) 5 November 1991 Listen.
22Daley says the spread of gambling all over the country is the reason why he is looking at it for Chicago. He says the argument that it is ethically and morally wrong has fallen apart in the face of a recession and a need for revenue and in the face of the notion by taxpayers that government keeps taking money out of their pockets. Note: When he was States Attorney, Daley opposed gambling on the argument it would increase crime and be an open invitation to organized crime. (0:35) 5 November 1991 Listen.
23Daley angrily rejects the charge of the Legislative Black Caucus (in Springfield) that his effort to give the School Finance Authority more oversight authority over the School Board was a racially motivated power grab. He says that's baloney.He says the charge is a political ploy by caucus members to divert attention away from their vote against a plan to save the schools from a strike. (0:42) 8 November 1991 Listen.
24In his Budget Message to the City Council, Daley says his spending plan and the bad news it contains on taxes and layoffs is a wakeup call, that it is time to jolt the bureaucracy and demand accountability. (0:25) 15 October 1991 Listen.
25In the same Budget Message, Daley explains why he is opposed to Governor Edgar's proposals to put caps on property taxes. He says the argument that caps keep taxes down is a myth he refuses to peddle. (0:25) 15 October 1991 Listen.
26In the same Budget Message, Daley goes on record for the first time in favor of substituting income taxes for property taxes. He says the swap should be done on a dollar for dollar basis. Note: What Daley was endorsing here was the concept of higher income taxes in exchange for lower property taxes. (0:30) 15 October 1991 Listen.
27In the same Budget Message, Daley says that politicians have made too many promises about taxes and that it's time the truth was told about where the City stands and what it's going to cost to provide services people want. Listen.
28Daley criticizes City Council members who resorted to personal attacks and charges of racism in opposing the dumping of a strong affirmative action amendment from a new franchise agreement with Commonwealth Edison. He says some aldermen play to the race issue to further their own political agenda. (0:55) undated Listen.
29Commenting on the same debate, Daley says the people are tired of public officials who use race and personal attacks and he warns the City Council members they better watch what they are saying. (0:10) undated Listen.
30Daley reacts to the warning from Governor Edgar that he will propose even more spending cuts because of the poor economy and declining revenues. He says hold on to your pants and everything else you've got. He says the City cannot pick up mandated programs...we don't have the money. (0:20) undated Listen.
31Daley puts in another pitch for his proposed third airport in the Lake Calumet region. He says if you don't build it there then what are you gonna do to provide jobs to all the people on the southeast side who are out of work. He says there will be a crisis and he has no magic formula and can't put them on the City payroll. (0:25) 12 December 1991 Listen.
32Daley says the boast made on undercover tapes played in a federal court trial that he halted a subpoena to Joey Auippa when he was the States Attorney as a favor to the Mob is "bullshit." Note: The boast was made by another mob leader on trial, Rocky Infalece. (0:15) 8 January 1992 Listen.
33Daley breaks down during an availability in his City Hall conference room as he talks about the unauthorized party his` son Patrick held at the family Grand Beach, Michigan summer home which resulted in the bat-swinging melee that seriously injured a young Hispanic youth. (2:00) 2 March 1992 Listen.
34Daley blasts the news media for spending more time reporting on his son's party than they did on a cop who was killed in the line of duty. He says TV is only interested in sensationalism. (0:26) 9 March 1992 Listen.
35Daley continues his tirade against the press for playing up his son's party. He says for five days the TV stations ran away with the story about a 15-year old kid's party and enjoyed every minute of it. (0:12) 2 March 1992 Listen.
36Daley says the moral question about whether Chicago should have gambling has been decided. He says we already have it in the form of the lottery, off-track betting, the riverboats, and so forth. (0:21) 2 April 1992 Listen.
37During a briefing on the big flood that struck the downtown area when a tunnel under the Chicago River was compromised, Daley says he is proud of the fact that nobody was injured or killed in the mass evacuation of the loop and he blasts the news media for not playing that up and for hoping that something would have gone wrong. (0:37) 17 April 1992 Listen.
38Daley talks about the anti-gang initiatives being proposed in the City Council in the form of legislation to arrest gang members for loitering, to regulate outdoor pay phones gangs allegedly use for crime, and to ban the sale of spray paint. He says what is behind it all is frustration from taxpayers who say they can't walk down the streets any more. (0:24) 20 May 1992 Listen.
39Daley denies he called National Democratic Party Chairman Ron Brown and pressured him into denying City Treasurer Miriam Santos a delegate seat at the National Party Convention. He says he is not that petty. (0:11) 27 May 1992 Listen.
40Daley responds with irritation to a vote by the U.S. Senate to ban sports betting in most states, including Illinois, at a time when it was being considered as part of the mix for a casino plan Daley supported. He accuses the Senate of cow towing to special interests (professional sports teams) and says it's nuts. (1:06) 3 June 1992 Listen.
41Daley says the violence and looting that accompanied the Bulls' championship celebration was a sign of the times but 99% of the people do not do that. (0:21) 15 June 1992 Listen.
42Daley says its a joke to let lawbreakers who caused trouble during the Bulls celebration out on I bonds. He says they should be hit with stiff fines and should be required to clean up the streets. (0:07) 16 June 1992 Listen.
43Daley reacts to the U.S. Supreme Court decision in the Pennsylvania abortion case. He says he agrees with the refusal of the Court to overturn Roe vs. Wade, that the courts have already interfered enough in the lives of people. (0:25) 29 June 1992 Listen.
44On the day the Mayor and Governor Edgar announce an agreement on a proposed third airport in the Lake Calumet region, Daley defends his willingness to give up control of O'Hare and Midway by saying you have to make concessions to get things done. Note: Daley would face much criticism for being shortsighted in agreeing to give up control of O'Hare and Midway just to get Edgar to agree to a third airport and the deal would later collapse. (0:20) 21 February 1992 Listen.
45On the day he endorses the concept of a gambling casino/ entertainment complex in Chicago, Daley tells a reporter he's got a nerve for suggesting he might have ties, through allies, to riverboat gambling in Galena. He says it is not true. (0:30) 24 March 1992 Listen.
46In the same exchange with reporters, Daley gets hot when one reporter suggests that the General Assembly will probably balk at approving casino gambling in Chicago. He asks "Why not?" He says it would mean jobs and no tax money is involved. (0:19) 24 March 1992 Listen.
47In the same exchange with reporters, Daley says you have to live on the edge (take some chances) and go for things like a third airport and casinos to move the City ahead. (0:25) 24 March 1992 Listen.
48Daley announces the firing of the City's Acting Transportation Commissioner John LaPlante for failing to take emergency action to repair a deep tunnel leak that led to the so- called "Great Chicago Flood." (0:21) 14 April 1992 Listen.
49As he reveals the report of his special gaming commission endorsing casino gambling, Daley contends the project will not lead to another Las Vegas or a neon nightmare. He says people who say that are engaged in scare tactics. (0:18) 10 June 1992 Listen.
50Daley says Governor Edgar, who opposes casino gambling, should read the report of his Special Gaming Commission instead of unfairly insulting the commission by calling it a rubber stamp. (0:40) 10 June 1992 Listen.
51Daley says he can only do so much so if the General Assembly wants to kill his proposed Lake Calumet Airport and his plan for a casino in Chicago then let them put the stake in it (both projects) and let them tell the people they are killing jobs. (0:25) 10 June 1992 Listen.
52Daley blasts minority Republicans in the Illinois Senate for killing his Lake Calumet airport plan. Now he says he is not going to waste any more time and money on the project. He blames the defeat specifically on Senate Republican Minority Leader James "Pate" Phillip. (1:05) 1 July 1992 Listen.
53Daley raps the Republicans for not having the courage to support his controversial third airport plan before the November election. He says the voters should know that this business of wait until after the election won't fly, that they (the Republicans) don't plan to ever vote for his plan. (0:35) 1 July 1992 Listen.
54Daley accuses Governor Jim Edgar of not doing enough to get Republican votes for a third airport in the Lake Calumet region even though he had endorsed the project. He suggests that Edgar acted like he was never really for it. (0:45) 2 July 1992 Listen.
55Daley says the State cannot proceed alone on a third airport (anywhere) because it doesn't have the money and the City is not going to contribute it's 90-million dollars in airport taxes. He says that money is going to stay in the City. (0:35) 2 July 1992 Listen.
56Daley responds to skeptics who don't believe he is serious in killing a third airport for good (because he refuses to fight for it any more). He says they (Republicans in the Legislature) have his word and can go to the bank on it. (0:25) 2 July 1992 Listen.
57Daley insists he has no plans to run for Governor in 1994. He says he likes being the Mayor of Chicago. (1:00) 22 September 1992 Listen.
58Daley announces sweeping reform of the Police Department based on a study and recommendations made by the consulting firm Booze-Allen. He contends the reform will put more cops on the streets. (0:22) 22 July 1992 Listen.
59Daley raps Governor Edgar for vowing to veto any casino gambling bill that he (Daley) proposes. The Mayor says he has now come up with two proposals, a third airport plan and a casino, to generate jobs and the Governor had come up with nothing....zero. (0:25) 25 September 1992 Listen.
60Daley belittles Governor Edgar saying that in place of land based casinos (which Edgar opposes) he is willing to consider a land based theme park but only in conjunction with riverboat casinos. He says he doesn't want putt, putt boats going up the river. (0:36) 1 December 1992 Listen.
61As he announces a new plan to crack down on gang violence at Cabrini Green and in public housing in general, Daley says it has to be a war because gangs have a total disregard for human life. (0:23) 19 October 1992 Listen.
62At the same news conference, Daley rejects the declaration of a truce by street gangs. He says there is no such thing as a truce, that they are simply lying low because the heat is on. (0:21) 19 October 1992 Listen.
63At the same news conference, Daley urges the media to not fall into the trap of believing that the gang bangers are ready to give up violence and change their way of life. (0:12) 19 October 1992 Listen.
64At the same news conference, Daley says the gang- bangers don't care who you are. They just have a total disregard for human life. (0:24) 19 October 1992 Listen.
65Daley defends his leadership after a year of setbacks that included the loop flood, a bridge disaster, and his failure to get a third airport and gambling casinos. He says these setbacks were not defeats, that he had the courage to propose things and says the airport and casino plans were defeats for Governor Edgar, not him. (1:10) 16 December 1992 Listen.
TapeTrack
RMDaley0601Daley reacts to the conviction of former First Ward Alderman Fred Roti, the 18th present or former Alderman to be convicted on federal corruption charges since 1970. He says you can't blame the whole City Council. That would be unfair. (1:15) 15 January 1993 Listen.
02This is a song that was recorded about Mayor Daley's frustrating fight to bring casino gambling to Chicago. The song ridicules the plan Daley was supporting at the time (and which later died). (2:05) undated Listen.
03Daley says he loves his job. He concedes there are ups and downs and he defends how emotional he sometimes gets over problems that arise. (0:40) 10 February 1993 Listen.
04Daley endorses a new runway at O'Hare Airport as part of a major expansion plan even though anti-noise groups oppose it. He says people shriek up when they think about congestion at O'Hare. (0:07) 23 March 1993 Listen.
05Daley defends his proposal to create cul-de-sacs to wall off certain neighborhoods from violent crime. He says the move will cut crime, that drive by shooters and armed robbers now use open areas as escape routes. (0:13) 22 February 1993 Listen.
06Daley unveils a proposal to impose a 5% cap on property tax increases or to limit increases to the rate of inflation, whichever is less. (This proposal marks a flip-flop from his earlier position opposing tax caps and he makes it when announcing a tax hike to cover police raises, a hike that would later be rescinded). (0:25) 25 January 1993 Listen.
07Daley refuses to take sides in the property tax feud between Alderman Jim Laski and Laski's political boss Cong. Bill Lipinski. He says both men are like Father and son and he needs them both. (0:17) 19 February 1993 Listen.
08Daley unveils his experiment in community policing, describing it as nothing less than reinventing the Police Department to create a constant presence in the neighborhoods. (0:20) 2 February 1993 Listen.
09At the same news conference, Daley puts in a pitch for his legislation to tax the manufacture of weapons and then put the revenue into a fund to help gunshot victims. He complains that we tax liquor and cigarettes, but not guns. (0:33) 2 February 1993 Listen.
10At the same news conference, Daley says that under Community Policing, cops will no longer be judged solely on the number of arrests that they make. The remark is followed by applause from a group of community leaders gathered at the news conference in the Rogers Park Community, one of the five test areas for the new experimental program. (0:34) 2 February 1993 Listen.
11Daley responds to reports that a lot of cops are not volunteering for community policing because they oppose it. He says the City is going to go ahead with it anyway and he believes most officers are for it. (0:16) 24 March 1993 Listen.
12At a City Hall news conference, Daley backs off under City Council pressure from a 12-million dollar property tax increase to pay for a new police contract. But he insists he would have had the votes to pass the plan even though it was a hard sell. (0:15) 19 February 1993 Listen.
13At a joint news conference with Governor Edgar, Daley contends that he and Edgar actually do agree on a lot of issues despite the popular perception that they are virtually at war because of differences on major issues like casinos and a third airport. (0:20) 12 March 1993 Listen.
14Daley explains why he didn't dump City Clerk Walter Kozubowski from the ticket in 1991 when rumors were flying he was under investigation by the Feds. Asked why he believed Walter when he claimed he did nothing wrong, only to be embarrassed when Walter later entered a plea of guilty, Daley says well, he denied everything (in a private chat the two had) and he can't call a priest (to force him to confess). (0:15) 6 April 1993 Listen.
15On the key question of why he did not, as a former prosecutor, check further with his sources at the U.S. Attorney's Office to determine if the charges being probed against Kozubowski were serious enough to warrant dumping him from the ticket, Daley says to do that would violate grand jury secrecy. (0:50) 19 April 1993 Listen.
16Daley defends his decision to plan for a move out of Bridgeport to more upscale surroundings, despite his long family history there. He says it's a personal decision, a family decision and he doesn't worry about the media publicity and speculation about possible negative political ramifications. (0:19) 2 April 1993 Listen.
17On the question of whether Bridgeport residents might resent his move out of the area causing him political problems in his home base, Daley says if he has to start worrying about that, that will be the day he is not a Father any more. He says when it comes to family he is a husband and Father first. That's the legacy his Dad left to him. (0:52) 2 April 1993 Listen.
18Daley says it serves no purpose for some state legislators and others to go around (he meant "against Chicago." browbeating) Chicago schools. He says he never criticized downstate or suburban schools when he was a Senator. He says Chicago has unique problems that will not go away, so you can't pit Chicago against the rest of the state. (0:35) 21 April 1993 Listen.
19Daley defends his reform proposals on teacher union work rules. As the first Mayor to bite the bullet on the issue, he says to the Teachers Union that he took the heat for supporting their pay raises so now it's time for them to give...that in effect it's payback time. He denies in the first part of this passage that he is inviting a teacher's strike. (0:22) 21 April 1993 Listen.
20Daley says he hopes suburban and downstate GOP lawmakers and Governor Edgar are not fighting more aid for Chicago schools because so much of the system is black. He says they would be kidding themselves because it will end up costing the State more money. (0:15) 22 April 1993 Listen.
21Daley warns the Teachers Union and School Board there is no pot of gold down in Springfield to bail out the schools. He says they have to face reality. (0:17) 30 April 1993 Listen.
22Daley blasts the Chicago Crime Commission's opposition to his plan for up to 5 riverboat casinos in Chicago due to fears of more crime. He says the Commission doesn't make that case in other riverboat areas. They think crime only occurs in Chicago. Besides, he says, Chicago's plan is totally different. It has a theme park. (0:20) 10 May 1993 Listen.
23Daley refuses to even discuss tradeoffs in exchange for Governor Edgar and the Republicans signing on to his floating casino plan. He says no tradeoffs were demanded for downstate riverboats so there shouldn't be any here (in Chicago). (0:13) 3 June 1993 Listen.
24Daley defends the pay scales for Chicago public school teachers in the face of a study which shows teachers are among the highest paid but least worked in the nation. He says teachers deserve good pay and that a lot of people think reporters are overpaid. (0:24) 15 June 1993 Listen.
25With rumors flying that Cong. Dan Rostenkowski may be indicted and may have to step down as House Ways and Means Committee Chairman, Daley talks about his importance to Illinois. He lists a number of things Dan got for Chicago. (0:38) 20 July 1993 Listen.
26In the same interview, Daley says that, of course, Dan Rostenkowski is a personal friend but also he has been very important not only to him but to the City. And he says Dan helped him not only as Mayor but when he was Cook County State's Attorney, too. (0:15) 20 July 1993 Listen.
27Daley appoints Federal Prosecutor Tom Scorza as interim City Clerk to clean up an office marred by scandal. (His nomination would later go down the tubes on July 12, 1993 when Scorza withdraws under fire). (0:27) June 1993 Listen.
28In a major speech to the Chicagoland Association of Commerce and Industry, Daley blasts Governor Edgar and Republicans in the General Assembly for treating Chicago unfairly in the riverboat gambling debate. He complains Chicago is being held to conditions others don't have to meet, calling it a where's mine mentality. (0:52) 29 June 1993 Listen.
29In the same speech, Daley broadens his complaint about the anti-Chicago mentality in Springfield. (0:55) 29 June 1993 Listen.
30After seeing his brother Bill get snubbed for a Cabinet post by President Clinton, Daley lets it be known that he is dissatisfied with the job Clinton is doing. He says the Clinton Administration has major problems. (0:25) 16 June 1993 Listen.
31In the same Q and A with reporters, Daley warns that if Bill Clinton keeps backing off in the face of opposition the voters will no long perceive him as a strong leader, which is what they want. (0:19) 16 June 1993 Listen.
32Daley raps the Phoenix Suns and team star Charles Barkley for belittling his police security preparations in the event of street trouble if the Bulls won another championship. He says the City had to do that and millionaire ballplayers ought to understand that. (0:45) 23 June 1993 Listen.
33On the 25th anniversary of the 1968 Democratic National Convention Riots, Daley defends what the Police did and says everybody always blames the Police. But, he says they weren't the only ones at fault. (0:30) 26 August 1993 Listen.
34Daley concedes that the borrowing plan he proposed to bail the Chicago schools out of trouble again is one nobody likes, not even him. But he says no Brinks truck is gonna pull up with the money to keep the schools open. (0:15) 7 September 1993 Listen.
35This cut is of protesters singing outside of Mayor Daley's City Hall Office as they demand more action by Daley to resolve a budget crisis and keep the schools open. (0:58) 13 September 1993 Listen.
36Daley rejects Republican demands for a Chicago referendum in 1995 on increasing property taxes for the public schools. He says the voters will surely say no so why spend all the money on such a vote. (0:35) 20 September 1993 Listen.
37Daley rips an attempt by street gangs to use a new movement called to move into the political "all they did." arena. He scoffs at the suggestion the group is trying to uplift gang members to a better life by saying the El Rukens never lifted anybody up...they put people in graves. (0:20) 13 October 1993 Listen.
38In the same exchange with reporters, Daley says if gang bangers are serious about going straight there are lots of other groups to associate with that are legitimate and not interested in the drug and gun selling the gangs get into. (0:12) 13 October 1993 Listen.
39In the same exchange with reporters, Daley is asked for his view about the strategy gang bangers are using to try and get into the political arena. He says sure they are trying that. They want to be where the money is. (0:29) 13 October 1993 Listen.
40Daley criticizes teachers at Julian High School who walked off the job, causing a shutdown of classes, because of dislike for a new teachers contract. He says you don't just walk out on the kids. (0:28) 19 October 1993 Listen.
41Daley says a decision by the Principal and Assistant Principal at Englewood High School to let the school be used for a gang leader awards ceremony shows you what's happening in our schools. He says it's like honoring John Dillinger. (0:26) 27 October 1993 Listen.
42Daley raps Governor Edgar's record on the day Edgar announces for reelection. He says the Governor has to answer for problems in the Department of Children and Family Services and more people on welfare and a loss of jobs. And he accuses Edgar of boosting taxes (by passing on burdens to local governments). (0:54) 9 November 1993 Listen.
43On the day he goes against big labor and endorses the North American Free Trade Agreement, Daley responds with anger to suggestions that he owed it to labor to oppose NAFTA after all the support the unions gave to his Dad over the years. He says it was a two way street. (0:50) 10 November 1993 Listen.
44While campaigning for the reelection of of Cong. Dan Rostenkowski, Daley criticizes how long the federal grand jury investigation into Rosty's personal and campaign finances has gone on and he decries grand jury leaks in the case. He says it's not a leak anymore, it's basically a huge sewer system. (1:15) 15 February 1994 Listen.
45In the same exchange with reporters, Daley is asked for reaction to reports that Alderman Terry Gabinski's wife was cited for contempt for refusing to testify before the grand jury on charges she was a Rostenkowski ghost payroller. He says that is the kind of leak he's talking about. He says it's unbelievable how the former prosecutor in the case, Jay Stevens, talks about the jury's testimony. (0:31) 15 February 1994 Listen.
46Daley criticizes a front page series of articles in the Chicago Tribune documenting why families are fleeing to the suburbs. He says the Tribune doesn't do an article on people fleeing Palatine after the mass murders there and he says the paper is implying that flight from crime is only a Chicago problem. (0:20) 1 December 1993 Listen.
47At the same news conference, Daley says he doesn't mind constructive criticism on how problems like violent crime can be solved but he says to the Tribune don't try to say we should give up on Chicago. He calls that Jim Edgar's kind of rhetoric. (0:17) 1 December 1993 Listen.
48During a speech on his anti-crime package, Daley decries the soft treatment given to juvenile offenders who then boast that they beat the system. He says you just give them a piece of paper and you are teaching them the way to the penitentiary. (0:50) 11 January 1994 Listen.
49Daley says it's time for the IRS to step in and start investigating drug dealers who are able to come up with a million dollars for bond. He asks where all that money comes from and why didn't they pay taxes on it? (0:24) 11 January 1994 Listen.
50During an appearance at a school in the Robert Taylor Homes area, he says the ACLU and it's Legal Director Harvey Grossman have to understand that police sweeps of CHA housing are necessary if your gonna get the guns out. (0:23) 30 March 1994 Listen.
51Daley raps the failure of the system to hold judges accountable for bad performance. He says when he was the State's Attorney there were judges sleeping in court...not showing up (for work). (0:17) 10 February 1994 Listen.
52Daley criticizes the so-called feeding frenzy of speculation about whether Cong. Dan Rostenkowski might agree to a plea bargain deal and resign. He says it's like somebody learning your sick and they treat you as already dead and want your job. He also displays irritation here about the speculation over who might succeed Rosty if he does quit. (0:39) 5 June 1994 Listen.
53Daley criticizes the media for engaging in a frenzy of speculation about successors to Cong. Dan Rostenkowski before it is even known if he would resign as part of a plea bargain. He accuses the media of treating serious charges against Rosty as entertainment. (0:43) 5 June 1994 Listen.
54Daley reveals for the first time in a Q and A with reporters that he got controversial gifts from Dan Rostenkowski that the Feds allege were illegally charged to taxpayers and that the FBI interviewed him about that and his relationship with the Congressman. (0:58) 3 June 1994 Listen.
55Reacting to a federal grand jury indictment of Cong. Dan Rostenkowski, Daley answers a question on whether Dan can win reelection under indictment. He says a man is innocent until proven guilty and he thinks voters will give the Congressman a chance to prove his innocence. (0:15) 31 June 1994 Listen.
56Daley says Dan Rostenkowski is a friend of his and he is not gonna walk away. He says he stands by Danny...he is his friend. (0:07) 31 June 1994 Listen.
57Daley triggers controversy with the statement that scattered site public housing has to be moved out to the suburbs, not just built in the city. He says the suburbs are where the jobs are going so it's a fact of life public housing will have to go there, too. (0:16) 19 April 1994 Listen.
58Daley claims his Father fought the original Federal Court decision ordering the scattering of public housing into mostly white neighborhoods because it applied only to the City when it should have included the entire metropolitan area. Note: This argument was false. Daley's Father opposed the decision because the conservative white voters who formed his primary base of political support feared it would bring unwanted minorities into their neighborhoods. (0:15) 19 April 1994 Listen.
59Daley angrily defends the Police Department after a west side Alderman Dexter Watson turned a drug bust news conference into criticism of the Department. Daley says too much is asked of cops and he is sick and tired of it. He says its about time we get on the side of cops. He says too many kick the cops for political motives, then they don't hesitate to ask for their help. (0:30) 2 June 1994 Listen.
60For the first time, Daley openly expresses reservations about President Clinton's health plan saying the employer mandates Clinton wants could cost the nation jobs. (1:07) 28 June 1994 Listen.
61Daley defends President Clinton in the face of declining voter job approval ratings. He says the reason his ratings are lower is because he has dared to deal with controversial issues that matter. He says he is the first President in 25 years to do that. (0:35) 16 June 1994 Listen.
62Daley defends the job that National Democratic Party Chairman Dave Wilhelm has done in the face of criticism that he's to blame for Party defeats in off year elections. He says Dave is a victim of the Washington ways. (0:35) 22 June 1994 Listen.
63Daley attacks Bob Woodward's book on Bill Clinton as gossip. Noting a passage in which Clinton reportedly blew his top because his staff didn't arrange a meeting with him (Daley), the Mayor says he often blows his top, too. He says there is nothing wrong with doing that. (0:40) 16 June 1994 Listen.
64Daley sarcastically congratulates Indiana riverboat interests and the state's Governor for doing their jobs well and getting riverboats there. He says Illinois will now lose another three hundred to 400-million dollars in taxes as the result of inaction on a Chicago riverboat plan and that's about it. (0:15) 30 June 1994 Listen.
65Daley denies that his lobbying efforts on behalf of Chicago riverboats were half-hearted and a case of too little too late. He claims he has been regularly in touch with the Governor, the leaders in the legislature and that it doesn't take a rocket scientist to understand Chicago's position on gambling. (0:20) 7 July 1994 Listen.
66Daley raps Governor Edgar for a lack of leadership on the issue of Chicago riverboats. He says, again, the Governor is saying no to the children of Illinois, no to children and a billion dollar program to help schools, he is saying no to manufacturers, no to economic development and jobs, etc. But he says the Governor is saying yes to Indiana. (0:25) 7 July 1994 Listen.
67Daley claims the Governor renigged on an agreement to seek a Senate vote on a Chicago riverboat gambling bill right after the primary. He says instead the Governor caved in to Senate President Pate Phillip who said to Edgar, no way, you go sit in a corner Governor. And Daley says Edgar did just that. (0:34) 12 July 1994 Listen.
68Daley denies his moral leadership was called into question by his original decision to funnel job funds to a group linked to gangs and his later flip-flop under public criticism and pressure from the City Council. (0:24) 3 August 1994 Listen.
TapeTrack
RMDaley0701Daley defends his support for a jobs contract with the Chicago Urban League that will funnel funds to a group with ties to street gangs (21st Century Vote). He says he can't tell the Urban League who to choose as their sub-contractors. He says he can't order people around like that, that it's wrong. Note: The deal was later rescinded by the City Council in an amendment that removed 21st Century Vote from the deal. (0:25) 20 July 1994 Listen.
02As he looks ahead to Chicago hosting the 1996 Democratic National Convention, Daley defends the City on what happened back during the last riot-torn convention in Chicago in 1968. He says that was a very turbulent time in America and to blame Chicago is unfortunate. (0:25) 20 July 1994 Listen.
03Daley rips White House Deputy Chief of Staff Harold Ickes for working behind the scenes to force out National Democratic Party Chairman David Wilhelm (a close Daley ally.) The Mayor asks who is Harold Ickes? Nobody ever heard of him. What is he now, some kind of political guru? (0:20) 20 July 1994 Listen.
04On the day of the official announcement that Chicago has been chosen as the site for the 1996 Democratic National Convention, Daley bristles at reminders of 1968 and says the City doesn't need to erase that chapter in it's history. (In other words, the City has no apologies to make). (0:47) 4 August 1994 Listen.
05Daley talks about the shocking case of an 11 year old boy who is wanted for shooting three people, one fatally, while involved in a gang initiation. Noting his long past record of crime and abuse in a broken home, Daley says if this kid was taken care of five years ago you save two people, him and the victim who died. But he wasn't. He fell through the cracks. (0:11) 31 August 1994 Listen.
06Daley lashes out at U.S. Senator Paul Simon for his criticism of the law and order provisions in the new federal anti-crime bill. He mocks Simon for, in effect, being insulated from the real world because he gets all the security he needs in Washington. (0:18) 31 August 1994 Listen.
07Daley says Senator Paul Simon could be out of touch with what society wants on crime (tougher laws). He says the Senator needs to come home and talk to people. (0:20) 31 August 1994 Listen.
08Daley says he did not like the painting of Harold Washington in women's underwear either but you can't just go and take it. He means he disagrees with a group of black aldermen who went over to the Art Institute and took the painting down. (0:15) 21 September 1994 Listen.
09Daley asks reporters to please tell Governor Edgar that Chicago is still part of Illinois. (He is complaining here that Edgar always finds excuses to not help Chicago). (0:30) 21 September 1994 Listen.
10Daley says when the Party conventions come here (to Chicago) they (the Republicans) all want that money. He says Governor Edgar has to understand Chicago is not gonna float into Lake Michigan (He is saying Edgar should be willing to help Chicago). (0:20) 21 September 1994 Listen.
11Daley defends Democratic Gubernatorial candidate Dawn Clark Netsch in the face of charges from Governor Edgar that she is allegedly soft on crime. He says it's a phony argument. (0:18) 26 September 1994 Listen.
12Daley denounces suburban pleasure boat owners for wanting the City to open bridges for their boats at any hour of the day or night. He says the City cannot do it. (0:22) 29 September 1994 Listen.
13Daley says the School Board should look at the idea of privatizing management of schools as has been done elsewhere (in Baltimore and Hartford). (1:05) 5 October 1994 Listen.
14Daley raps Governor Edgar for making light of Dawn Clark Netsch's opposition to the death penalty (during the campaign for Governor). He says the death penalty is not the answer to high crime rates in this country (even though he supports it). (0:36) 5 October 1994 Listen.
15Daley says current lax sentencing rules are actually more costly than the tougher one he proposed in his crime package (to the Illinois General Assembly). He claims tougher rules end up saving money in the long run. (0:31) 9 November 1994 Listen.
16Daley says if we get tougher with the criminals at the beginning, instead of after they commit more crimes, it will save the State more money. (0:19) 9 November 1994 Listen.
17Daley says the message to President Clinton from the landslide Republican victory in the off year elections is clear. He says the voters want less bureaucracy, red tape, and they want to make government accountable. He says it's a simple message and voters are fed up with violence. (0:26) 19 November 1994 Listen.
18Daley says in the wake of the off year elections that it was the indictment that triggered Cong. Dan Rostenkowski's defeat but he is my friend. He says he doesn't run south on a friend and he says Rosty has had a long, distinguished career. (1:05) 19 November 1994 Listen.
19Daley reacts to having to deal with GOP majorities in Congress and the State Legislature. He says, yes, they (the Republicans) have control but Chicago is not gonna disappear, we will stay strong. (0:25) 9 November 1994 Listen.
20Daley says the Republicans can do whatever they want in Springfield. He says they can hurt Chicago if they want but I doubt it because our problems (in Chicago) are their problems. (0:22) 9 November 1994 Listen.
21Daley says he takes every single election seriously. He says that he takes no election for granted. (This comment comes during his reelection campaign). (0:12) 9 November 1994 Listen.
22Daley describes himself as a political moderate. He says he doesn't like the left or the right. He is a moderate and that's what the voters want. (0:17) 9 November 1994 Listen.
23Daley rejects the proposal for more frequent garbage collections to attack dirty alley problems. He says we don't need that. He says just put the garbage in the cans and you don't have rat problems. Note: The proposal was made by some aldermen. (0:15) 1 November 1994 Listen.
24Daley says when Democratic leaders told him his crime legislation program in Springfield lacked an emphasis on prevention, he turned the tables and told them..."you get the programs. Do your job!" (0:15) 16 November 1994 Listen.
25Daley responds to the controversy over the way Connie Chung of CBS sandbagged the mother of U.S. House Speaker Newt Gingrich in an interview. He says it was nothing but sleaze. (Connie had gotten Newt's Mom to say her son thinks Hillary Clinton is a Bitch). (0:50) 6 January 1995 Listen.
26Daley says the Contract With America that the Republicans came up with is great (as a winning campaign strategy in the 94 off-year elections). He says the GOP captured the thinking of voters, forget about the parties, they (the voters) are saying this is our money and we want accountability. (1:22) 6 January 1995 Listen.
27Daley says what the Republicans came up with was a very unique idea and it has been very effective (He is referring to the Contract With America strategy). (0:20) 6 January 1995 Listen.