Democracy for Illinois Forum with State Candidates in Oak Park

Found on page 19 of the February 15th Wednesday Journal,

Candidates were given two minutes to make opening remarks to the 70-plus people in attendance, then answered a question posed by DFI. That question was What would you do, it elected, to help someone in your district earing $30,000 a year?

The median household income in Oak Park is $59,183. I wonder how DFI would fare politically in a community with a median income of $30,000? My guess is the community would drive them away. Kind of wonder how they chose 30k too. If they deliberately picked theirs and halfed or what.

Update: Jim Muir's Editorial on what's Obama done for Illinois says $19k might be a better number,

According to the report, Illinois holds unflattering position of having the highest poverty rate for adults and children of eight Midwestern states, and the report also shows that 12.5 percent of Illinois residents - more than 1.5 million in all - live below the federal poverty level and nearly 30 percent of all state residents live at what the report calls "near poverty." In addition, you're more apt to have a payday-loan store in your community because the through-the-roof interest facilities now outnumber state-chartered banks.

The report also said one out of every four Illinois workers earns less than $9.28 per hour, which puts a single-income family of four below the federal poverty level. Think about that salary for a moment. Even though some people earn less, let's use the $9.28 figure, which translates to $371.20 for a 40-hour week or $19,320 annually, before taxes.

Pardon me for seeming a little cynical, but I'm sure those trying to figure out a way to feed a family of four on $19,320 per year find real comfort in the fact it took Sen. Obama only one year to become a millionaire.