Welcome to Clout Street: Morning Spin, our weekday feature to catch you up with what's going on in government and politics from Chicago to Springfield.

Topspin

Chicago Cubs co-owner Todd Ricketts has been pressed for details about his fundraising efforts for two groups by three Democratic U.S. senators who will consider his nomination to be the No. 2 official at the Commerce Department.

The senators, Tom Udall of New Mexico, Richard Blumenthal of Connecticut and Edward Markey of Massachusetts, wanted to know more about the potential for conflict of interest through his involvement with the groups.

One group is Future45, a super political action committee that by the end of 2016 had spent nearly $25 million against unsuccessful White House candidate Hillary Clinton. The total was reported by the nonpartisan Center for Responsive Politics, which noted that Ricketts’ father, Joe Ricketts, gave the group $1 million in September. He is the founder and former CEO of TD Ameritrade.

The other organization is the 45Committee, a “dark money” group that does not list donors but spends money to advocate for the election or defeat of candidates, though not in coordination with the candidate or their campaign.

Todd Ricketts, Cubs co-owner, picked to serve as deputy commerce secretary Katherine Skiba and Kathy Bergen

Even for the scion of a billionaire family, Todd Ricketts has had an eclectic career — trader in a securities industry startup, part-owner of the Chicago Cubs, proprietor of a suburban bike shop and even guest star on a reality show.

But through it all, Ricketts has maintained unwavering devotion...

Even for the scion of a billionaire family, Todd Ricketts has had an eclectic career — trader in a securities industry startup, part-owner of the Chicago Cubs, proprietor of a suburban bike shop and even guest star on a reality show.

But through it all, Ricketts has maintained unwavering devotion...

(Katherine Skiba and Kathy Bergen)

The senators noted the 45Committee was devoting millions of dollars to TV ads to boost the prospects of President Donald Trump’s Cabinet nominees, naming Sen. Jeff Sessions, R-Ala., for U.S. attorney general and Rep. Tom Price, R-Ga., for Health and Human Services Department secretary. Sessions was confirmed Wednesday by the Senate.

The 45Committee spent more than $18 million against Clinton and more than $3 million in support of Trump, the Center for Responsive Politics said.

The senators, in a letter dated Tuesday, said many news stories and other sources indicated that Todd Ricketts led the two groups and raised funds for them.

The senators said the Commerce Department “has wide jurisdiction and power over the American economy, business and communities, from international trade to domestic manufacturing to wireless spectrum and coastal fisheries.” The department “can positively or negatively impact individuals’ jobs and companies’ bottom lines,” the senators said.

“If nominees and officials to the highest positions at this department are raising and spending money for partisan political causes without disclosing their donors, the opportunities for conflicts of interest and abuse of power are vast and far-reaching,” the senators said.

The senators said they needed to understand Todd Ricketts’ leadership roles with the two groups to evaluate possible conflicts of interest and whether he would need to recuse himself from certain matters at the department.

The senators also asked Todd Ricketts for all donations in the past five years that he or his family has made to politically active nonprofits known as 501(c)(4) groups.

A Ricketts spokesman could not be reached for comment.

Sen. Tammy Duckworth, D-Ill., also sits on the Commerce, Science and Transportation Committee, which has not yet announced when it will hold a confirmation hearing on Ricketts. (Katherine Skiba, reporting from Washington) 

 

What's on tap

*Mayor Rahm Emanuel is set to give an afternoon speech on infrastructure.

*Gov. Bruce Rauner is in Peoria for a late morning minority business event, and in Chicago for an evening celebration of the Chinese Lunar new year.

*MSNBC's Chris Hayes is scheduled to host a "town hall" discussion on Chicago violence.

*The Illinois House and Senate are in session for the last day of the week.

*The City Club of Chicago will host a lunchtime panel including Chicago Public Library CEO Brian Bannon, Chicago Housing Authority CEO Eugene Jones, Chicago Architecture Foundation CEO Lynn Osmond and Department of Planning and Development Commissioner David Reifman.

*The Illinois Campaign for Political Reform in a morning news conference will call for a system in Illinois that would give some candidates access to public money if they raise lots of small donations.

 

What we're writing

*Kennedy enters 2018 Illinois governor's race, ripping Rauner for causing 'economic chaos'.

*Fissures surface in Illinois Senate over far-reaching budget framework.

*Illinois Democrats push back against Trump on abortion.

*Preckwinkle says she's 'deeply troubled' by Trump's Obamacare stance.

*Trump blames Chicago crime on gang members 'not even legally in our country.'

*In response to firefighter's death, Emanuel pushes tighter building code enforcement.

*Republicans cry foul over CPS chief's letter to parents.

*O'Hare runway plan helped spread noise around, might be renewed.

*House bill aims to increase pharmacy safety, draws fire.

*Unions tell CTA: Port-a-potties unacceptable for bus, rail workers.

 

What we're reading

*A look at Speaker Michael Madigan's long history in Illinois (with an interesting anecdote about an index card).

*Aldi announces $1.6 billion renovation that will include Chicago-area stores.

*The Chicago Bears just had their worst record since the 1970s. Ticket prices are going up.

 

From the notebook

*State worker paychecks: House Democrats on Wednesday pushed ahead with legislation aimed at ensuring state workers continue to get paid during the budget impasse.

AG Madigan asks judge to lift order to pay state workers during impasse Monique Garcia

Attorney General Lisa Madigan wants a Downstate judge to lift a court order that's ensured state workers get paid in full during Illinois' historic budget impasse, contending it's "removed any imperative" for Republican Gov. Bruce Rauner and Democratic lawmakers to cut a deal.

Madigan's office...

Attorney General Lisa Madigan wants a Downstate judge to lift a court order that's ensured state workers get paid in full during Illinois' historic budget impasse, contending it's "removed any imperative" for Republican Gov. Bruce Rauner and Democratic lawmakers to cut a deal.

Madigan's office...

(Monique Garcia)

The plan, which cleared a committee and now goes to the full House, appropriates money for state employee salaries through June 30, the end of the budget year. Lawmakers are trying to push the bill to prevent a disruption in pay after Illinois Attorney General Lisa Madigan asked a St. Clair County judge to dissolve an order that kept paychecks going out the door despite the lack of a budget. A hearing is set in that case for next week.

Republicans questioned whether the bill appropriates enough money to cover paychecks for the rest of the year.

Sponsoring Rep. Sue Scherer, D-Decatur, acknowledged their concerns, saying some agencies did not respond to requests about how much money they would need to cover salaries. But Scherer said she would prefer to move the bill along, adding that lawmakers could come back and approve additional funding as needed.

“We can’t have people suffering because we’re holding up deadlines because an agency didn’t get back with us,” Scherer said.

But Republicans contend both parties should work together on a bill now and not rush the process.

“We need to be certain that these figures are right, and with an issue as important as this, it shouldn’t be a partisan issue,” said Rep. Sara Wojcicki Jimenez, R-Leland Grove. (Haley BeMiller)

*County email measure watered down: The Cook County Board on Wednesday approved a watered-down proposal aimed at making sure official government business done on private email accounts is subject to requests filed under Illinois’ open records law.

Gone from the ordinance proposed by Commissioner Larry Suffredin was a requirement that all county employees do official electronic business only through their county-issued email accounts. Also missing: a ban on using texts to do that business and a rule against also using social media, unless it’s “to broadcast information to the general public.”

Instead, the measure requires that elected officials and their top staff agree to provide emails about county business if it’s subject to the Illinois Freedom of Information Act. It also gives a county working group until April 17 to come up with a policy related to email, text and social media use by council officials and workers.

“We’ll see what they get on April 17 and then we’ll take appropriate action at that point,” Suffredin, D-Evanston, said after the vote.

“The whole idea here today was to make sure that people understand” what communications are subject to the requests, he said, pointing to the difficulty of setting a policy to cover thousands of officials and employees working at various locations throughout the county. “The overall goal for us to know where any governmental communication takes place and have it available if it is necessary, either for FOIA or for litigation — or for whatever else we may need.”

Suffredin first proposed the stricter policy in March, only to meet with resistance from officials who said they were worried about others seeing personal communications with family and friends. Such communications are not subject to open records requests. Suffredin said.

Nevertheless, several commissioners continued to expressed those concerns Wednesday, prompting Suffredin to say, “We’re not trying to be the mind police here.” (Hal Dardick)

*How they voted on Sessions: Illinois' two Democratic senators on Wednesday voted against the confirmation of Sen. Jeff Sessions, President Trump's pick for U.S. attorney general.

Sen. Dick Durbin said in a statement that the nation needs "an independent Attorney General willing to defend our Constitution and stand up for what’s right. I voted against Sen. Sessions because I did not have confidence he could serve as the independent attorney general."

Sen. Duckworth said in a statement that she worried Sessions' record meant he'd be a "rubber stamp for the president."

Sessions was confirmed 52-47.

 

Follow the money

*Read the paperwork Chris Kennedy filed to set up his campaign fund here.

*Track Illinois campaign contributions in real time here and here. 

 

Beyond Chicago

*Senate confirms Sessions as attorney general.

*Trump criticizes Nordstrom for dropping his daughter's clothing and shoe line.

*Supreme Court nominee Gorsuch calls Trump criticisms of judges "demoralizing," senator says.

*Yemen to U.S.: No more ground missions after last month's raid.

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