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* Rachel Hinton at the Better Government Association…
The former head of the state’s Veterans’ Affairs office used her political campaign fund to write two checks totaling $50,000 to her mother last month, a move state elections officials say could be a violation of state election laws.
Linda Chapa LaVia said the checks — logged as January expenditures in her required campaign filings — were to repay a loan her mother made to help her start her political career about two decades ago.
But records at the Illinois State Board of Elections show her campaign made no disclosure of a loan to her committee, launched ahead of her successful campaign to become a Democrat state representative from Aurora in 2003. It also does not show up in the original documents creating her political fundraising committee.
State elections officials said failure to report that income accurately is a violation of the state’s campaign disclosure laws. After communication with elections officials following the BGA’s inquiries, LaVia returned the $50,000 to her campaign account Feb. 18, records show.
LaVia described the campaign snafu as an oversight.
“A lot of paperwork got lost in translation from one account to another and working on a full-blown campaign,” said LaVia, who was appointed by Gov. J.B. Pritzker to head the Illinois Department of Veterans’ Affairs in 2019.
“I’m trying to reconcile everything,” she said. “If mistakes were made in the past, a lot of it wasn’t my doing.”
LaVia said the logistics of her campaign at the time were run by the political operation of then-Illinois House Speaker Michael Madigan, who resigned last year amid a federal corruption investigation. Madigan did not return requests for comment.
“Between me opening my account and the speaker going into the account and taking it all over, I don’t even know” how the loan was never reported, she said, adding Madigan operatives handled everything. “You’re the candidate, and that’s all you’re doing.”
I am so glad the Illinois House Democrats are trying to get away from the days when Big Daddy would hold the hands of his members. They really need to learn to do things for themselves. A group of folks and I were talking about this phenomenon last night, and someone surmised that it may take as much as a decade to rid the chamber of the chronically dependent. That day cannot come soon enough.
…Adding… ILGOP…
Caught red-handed presumably laundering campaign donations through her mother, Chapa LaVia’s excuse was that it was payback for a loan that never existed and the mistake was former Speaker Mike Madigan’s, who completely controlled her account. Democrat corruption in Illinois is usually brazen, but clearly not always smart.
“The Madigan Machine created a vast network of corrupt grifters who served their master with loyalty and cashed in on state government in return,” said ILGOP Spokesman Joe Hackler. “Chapa LaVia was no different from the rest, yet Pritzker elevated her to a serious job that had deadly consequences. The Governor needs to be held accountable.”
…Adding… Going for a headline…
As former Illinois Department of Veterans Affairs (IDVA) Director Linda Chapa LaVia makes headlines in a fresh scandal, State Representative Dan Swanson (R-Alpha) is filing legislation to ensure that qualifications – rather than a rigged political appointment process – are considered when selecting a director to head the state’s veterans agency.
“Caring for our veterans shouldn’t be a political job, but unfortunately, when unqualified political appointees are put in charge, the quality of care suffers,” said Swanson, who, in addition to serving the 74th District in the Illinois House of Representatives, is also a retired Lieutenant Colonel with the Illinois Army National Guard.
Swanson’s legislation, HB 5715, would require that the Director of the Department of Veterans Affairs be a veteran who was honorably discharged from the United States Armed Forces who has experience in either a medical profession, in healthcare, or assisted living facility management.
Swanson’s legislation comes after a deadly outbreak of COVID-19 led to the deaths of 36 veterans at the LaSalle Veterans’ Home. Ultimately, a report from the Illinois Department of Human Services Inspector General found that those deaths could have been prevented. According to the report, the lack of a COVID plan and failures in leadership contributed to the deadly outbreak. It also noted that the failures started at the very top of the agency with then-Director Linda Chapa LaVia, who abdicated much of her responsibility, leaving direction and critical decision-making powers to a non-medical chief of staff.
“We owe the men and women who have served our nation in the United States Armed Forces a great debt of gratitude. Ensuring that they are properly cared for in their final years is the least we can do to show our appreciation,” said Swanson, “This legislation ensures that not only does a director have to have been an honorably discharged member of the military – they also have to be qualified to ensure our veterans receive appropriate healthcare.”
posted by Rich Miller
Wednesday, Mar 2, 22 @ 10:20 am
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Rich, well said. It can’t come soon enough.
Folks need to wake up, hold their mistakes up… Madigan’s rule is now crush and turned onto dust. They’ll just need to learn to adjust.
To the post,
This is only half the story… half…
===LaVia returned the $50,000 to her campaign account Feb. 18, records show.===
Why would she feel the need to use campaign funds if she had the $50K to pay back the money she took out?
Why not just pay your mother directly?
Comment by Oswego Willy Wednesday, Mar 2, 22 @ 10:32 am
==repay a loan her mother made to help her start her political career about two decades ago.==
Nice try, but Linda should’ve gone back to the early 80’s, when personal computing and the internet were still in their infancy.
Comment by Jocko Wednesday, Mar 2, 22 @ 10:35 am
Not sure why it’s not mentioned in the BGA story, but SBOE does show $35,000 worth of loans to her campaign in late 2002 from people and businesses named Chapa. https://www.elections.il.gov/CampaignDisclosure/ItemizedContributions.aspx?FiledDocID=DgU7rJoNLb8qcRxAAEiFBg%3d%3d&ContributionType=s7ChIjqC7c2XeFQ8biS9ffrp%2fykhYD9SUHCVUyjSsTQ%3d&T=637818139558493596
That debt showed up on her reports until the semi-annual for the last half of 2002. She listed $140k in expenditures and ended the year with zero debt, so I assume she paid the loans back. Looks like it’s too old of a report to get the itemized expenditures online. https://www.elections.il.gov/CampaignDisclosure/D2Semiannual.aspx?id=Cds8woQrPPy9ZyIZraHe2Q%3d%3d&T=637818137181455129
So BGA missed substantial evidence of a loan, though the amount wasn’t $50,000 and there’s evidence suggesting it was paid back within a year. I don’t think the errors by either party are justifiable here, all of this was online when Chapa la Via started trying to close things up and when the BGA went digging.
Comment by vern Wednesday, Mar 2, 22 @ 10:38 am
An utterly laughable excuse. Do better Linda.
Comment by Soapbox Derby Wednesday, Mar 2, 22 @ 10:43 am
Would Ms. Chapa La Via be better equipped if she majored in accounting rather than political science?
Lost in translation is not an excuse for mismanagement. The veterans under her watch suffered as she is/was not equipped to manage her office.
After Ms. Chapa La Via’s blunders in the political arena, it might be time to move along.
Comment by Rudy’s teeth Wednesday, Mar 2, 22 @ 10:44 am
Did Madigan sign her D-2 for her?
Comment by Soccermom Wednesday, Mar 2, 22 @ 10:44 am
Some Dem’s are still on the “because Madigan” train.
Comment by Cool Papa Bell Wednesday, Mar 2, 22 @ 10:49 am
“Between me opening my account and the speaker going into the account and taking it all over, I don’t even know…You’re the candidate, and that’s all you’re doing.”
I support Gov. Pritzker’s re-election, but him appointing this person to lead an important agency after a long period of scandals remains inexplicable to me. I hope he shows more candor and regret about that move as the Republicans rightly hammer him for it this year.
Comment by NIU Grad Wednesday, Mar 2, 22 @ 10:49 am
So she’s claiming Madigan folks filled out and signed her D-1 and D-2s without her knowledge even though she had an Aurora-based tax preparer as her campaign treasurer? Ok.
Comment by Joe Bidenopolous Wednesday, Mar 2, 22 @ 10:50 am
… it may take as much as a decade…
Oh it will go on longer. There will politicians who weren’t even born before Madigan left, trying to blame their mistakes on him.
Comment by Bruce( no not him) Wednesday, Mar 2, 22 @ 11:01 am
Freedom is just another word for nothing left to lose.
Comment by Amalia Wednesday, Mar 2, 22 @ 11:13 am
Mr/Ms Vern wonders why BGA “probe” did not reveal loans. Could we guess that who dropped the oppo file wanted to ding JB via Chappa LaVia? Just wonderin’
Comment by Annonin' Wednesday, Mar 2, 22 @ 11:14 am
LaVia once again shows us the kind of leadership that she also provided to our state’s veterans.
Comment by Marine Life Wednesday, Mar 2, 22 @ 11:16 am
Her initial treasurer is a lawyer and now Deputy County Clerk in Kane County.
Vern, if you’re trying to point out that someone in her campaign knew enough to record loans in campaign disclosure, you’re not helping the case. She didn’t report a $50k loan until now. From 2003.
So, she’s trying to shut down her campaign account this December and repays her mom for a $50k loan that LCV never recorded. And what is all this campaign work being done in the last quarter of 2021? She resigned in disgrace in January.
“If mistakes were made in the past, a lot of it wasn’t my doing.” That’s just classic Linda.
Comment by David Agnew Wednesday, Mar 2, 22 @ 11:16 am
Madigan has been out of office for a year now. Why are the Republicans and Democrats still stuck on this “because Madigan” theme?/s
Comment by Irony Wednesday, Mar 2, 22 @ 11:18 am
So the defense is “Madigan Learned helplessness.” Oy vey. Really lame Chapa.
Comment by New Day Wednesday, Mar 2, 22 @ 11:20 am
And she represented the 2nd largest city in IL?
…”Chapa said she has no further need for a campaign fund: “My political days are over.”
Good riddance. She never sadly took her role seriously as a legislator or as a cabinet official running the VA of all agencies!? Quiet sad.
Comment by Pizza Man Wednesday, Mar 2, 22 @ 11:23 am
David, I wasn’t trying to help her case, I called her actions “unjustifiable.” I also criticized the BGA’s attention to detail. Helps to read the whole comment
Comment by vern Wednesday, Mar 2, 22 @ 11:24 am
Typical Chapa LaVia. It is never her fault and everyone knows Madigan’s people do no make rookie mistakes like this. She should have donated the money to a veterans organization or the families who lost loved ones under her watch. There are also many who contributed to her losing Aurora mayoral bid. She could have given that money back for not making it out of the primary — even though she had the most money, was the only female and had a lot of name recognition. Then again, it was not good name ID in her hometown. She and her husband always had an ill-conceived money making schemes. Looks like they got caught.
Comment by Felix Wednesday, Mar 2, 22 @ 11:28 am
“I’m trying to reconcile everything,” she said. “If mistakes were made in the past, a lot of it wasn’t my doing.”
How Truman like/S
Comment by DuPage Saint Wednesday, Mar 2, 22 @ 11:29 am
What do Chapa and Frank Mautino have in common. Don’t know accounting and skirt the rules/lack of rules.
What do they not have in common. Frank makes $180k off the taxpayers for 10 years.
Comment by Anonymous Wednesday, Mar 2, 22 @ 11:41 am
=== What do they not have in common.===
Chapa LaVia resigned, in disgrace, and failed in the mission to protect veterans.
You forgot that part.
Pick a name if you’d like to… discuss… Director Chapa LaVia’s victimhood.
Comment by Oswego Willy Wednesday, Mar 2, 22 @ 11:47 am
Vern, the article does mention the 35k. Just not the portion that Rich quoted.
Comment by Not Vern Wednesday, Mar 2, 22 @ 11:50 am
NV, you’re right and I’m wrong, which means I’ve got a coupe of things to retract here:
- Original criticism of BGA
- my criticism of David for not reading to the end since I’m evidently struggling with that today too.
Whoops, sorry, ignore me, etc
Comment by vern Wednesday, Mar 2, 22 @ 11:55 am
I suspect many GOPers envy Mike Madigan for his knowledge of alchemy…He turned political power into cash.
Comment by Dotnonymous Wednesday, Mar 2, 22 @ 11:57 am
==This is only half the story… half…==
Well-played sir.
Comment by SAP Wednesday, Mar 2, 22 @ 12:03 pm
“I am so glad the Illinois House Democrats are trying to get away from the days when Big Daddy would hold the hands of his members. They really need to learn to do things for themselves. A group of folks and I were talking about this phenomenon last night, and someone surmised that it may take as much as a decade to rid the chamber of the chronically dependent. That day cannot come soon enough.”
Amen, but sadly this culture of financial dependency/pure laziness of electeds and/or their cowardly fear of incurring the wrath of those who mistakenly believe that it’s okay to basically strong-arm other electeds by punishing, wasteful and destructive primarying, withholding their votes/ support, loyalty/ common decency/ sense of right and wrong for the best of the party and voters boggles the mind. Dem I be, but if the people had truly sane and viable other choices, this current crop of rot within would be in the trash heap of history. IF the people only knew the willingness of their electeds to sellout for coin perhaps there would be real reforms. There is an ongoing rot, and they cannot blame it all on Madigan.
The elected, by the people, Illinois state party officials took initial steps to try and transition the party from one way strong arming hostage holding and yet all we read/hear is that for their bravery they need to turned out for daring to try and enact change. The dependent crowd just sits and plans how to undermine these initial attempts at change to get the party back into the good graces and back pocket of another Daddy Warbucks. Disgusting and shameful.
Comment by The Hills 60010 Wednesday, Mar 2, 22 @ 12:25 pm
This is a money-grab, plain-and-simple, and she got caught.
Comment by Soxfan Wednesday, Mar 2, 22 @ 12:39 pm
And I have a correction as well. The treasurer appears to have been the accountant that Vern mentioned. It was on the second page and I didn’t see it initially.
I’ll add that Madigan would send his people to run campaigns for rookies to avoid mistakes just like this. And this was a Tier One race back in 2003 when she ran in a lean R district against Alderman Bob O’Connor, a nice and well-liked fellow who didn’t campaign very hard and lost.
Comment by David Agnew Wednesday, Mar 2, 22 @ 1:16 pm
“This is a money-grab, plain-and-simple, and she got caught.”
Yup. If her mother loaned $50k to the campaign fund back in 2007, those checks are still easily available in digital form.
Comment by Downstate Wednesday, Mar 2, 22 @ 1:16 pm
Maybe we would have a similar bill for Sheriffs. They shouldn’t be voted on but hired based on law enforcement experience.
Comment by Publius Wednesday, Mar 2, 22 @ 1:22 pm
Is Madigan going to prison anytime soon??
Comment by TiredoftheMachine Wednesday, Mar 2, 22 @ 1:32 pm
== …He turned political power into cash.==
As did Pate and several legislative leaders.
Comment by low level Wednesday, Mar 2, 22 @ 1:49 pm
Could she go to jail for this?
Comment by SS Wednesday, Mar 2, 22 @ 3:20 pm