just in case you require a stereotype to begin your day i give you chicago, old and new at once;

Another old-time corrupt Chicago politician has just been convicted on 13 counts of racketeering, bribery, and attempted extortion. Ed Burke, who represented Chicago’s 14th Ward from 1969 to 2023, will turn 80 tomorrow. If sentenced to the maximum under the law, he will spend the next 20 birthdays — if he lives that long — in federal prison.

Burke is one of the last of the Mayor Richard Daley pols. The trial for similar charges begins for another survivor of that era, former House Speaker Michael Madigan, next June, and charges are pending against former 34th Ward Alderman Carrie Austin — the second-longest serving alderman next to Burke — for similar self-dealing.

This brings to 38 the number of Chicago politicians of one stripe or another to be convicted of such various felonies since 1971, and nine just this year.

Readers are likely to remember former Illinois governors Rod “Blago” Blagojevich, Otto Kerner, and further back in history, George Ryan, each of whom considered their political positions as offering ways to enrich themselves at the expense of their electorate.

For a time Burke was considered one of Chicago’s “most powerful aldermen” (the Chicago Sun-Times) and one of the “100 Most Powerful Chicagoans” (Chicago magazine). He was also described as “one of the last of the old-school Chicago Machine pols.”

His history of milking his position as chairman of the city’s Council on Finance included “ghost payrolling” of people he was rewarding by giving them no-work jobs in exchange for favors granted. He helped arrange for millions of dollars of public subsidies to companies that then hired his law firm (Klafter & Burke) to make property-tax assessment appeals to the city. At one point, Burke had 37 law clients that did business with the city or other local government agencies, reflecting an enormous conflict of interest.

He attempted to shake down the developers of the $600 million Old Post Office renovation, as well as the owners of a Burger King restaurant in his ward who needed permits for some remodeling work.

He was the only Chicago alderman to have four full-time Chicago police officers assigned to him as bodyguards...........more.......