A letter to Harold Washington in heaven: Your buddy (ha!) Ed Burke is in trouble

harold_washington_david_orr_e1547246396720.jpg

Harold Washington (left) and David Orr, circa 1983. | Provided photo

Dear Harold,

How’s heaven?

Haven’t written to you lately because I know you’re an avid reader, and I’m sure you’re busy keeping up with the Trump scandals.

But I must tell you, your good buddy Ed Burke is facing criminal charges. Can you believe both Burke and Ed Vrdolyak are going to stand trial!?

You always said that Burke played the race card, while Fast Eddie was more about power. I know you’ll never forget the dirty deeds Burke did to you during Council Wars. It ticks me off that they held the city back during Council Wars, but you’re smiling and we’re finally going to get some justice.

SEND LETTERS TO: letters@suntimes.com. Please include your neighborhood or hometown and a phone number for verification purposes.

Funny thing though — they didn’t charge him on the incredible mess around workman’s comp, or over his tax work representing another soon-to-go-under-guy-pol (Trump). Or one of the many other outrageous acts over his 50-year term.

No, they charged him for squeezing a neighborhood fast food restaurant by playing “the driveway permit game,” so Burke could get tax business for his law firm.

Well, I’ll keep you posted, my best to your buddies in heaven. I knew you’d get a great laugh out of this.

Your vice-mayor and dear friend,

David Orr

Former Cook County Clerk

Ald. Ed Burke talks to reporters after a court hearing in 1984 about a petition he filed to oust Mayor Harold Washington from office because | File photo

Ald. Ed Burke talks to reporters after a court hearing in 1984 about a petition he filed to oust Mayor Harold Washington from office because he filed late financial statements. | File photo

Sun-Times archives

J.B.’s top staffers get extra dough. That’s rich

J.B. Pritzker, the billionaire governor in Springfield, wants to share his immeasurable wealth. But he is not investing in the impoverished South and West Side neighborhoods.

He is not helping social services that have been gutted by the state’s failure to pay its bills. And he certainly isn’t chipping away at the enormous pension debt that threatens Illinois very survival.

No, he is dropping at least half a million dollars on the salaries of his highest paid staffers.

Most of us don’t make $150,000 a year. But apparently that’s not enough for the people that will be carrying his water.

What better way to project yourself as an out of touch gazillionaire than to make wealthy people wealthier. It’s his money. He can do what he wants with it.

The trouble is, he hasn’t even assumed the oath of office and he is already treating Illinois like it is his and he can do what he wants with it. The current ruse is that he does it “with the goal of attracting and retaining top talent.”

Substitute the words “butt-kissers” for talent and he’s spot on.

Scot Sinclair, Third Lake

The Latest
Here’s how Kamala Harris and the Democratic National Convention are embracing Charli XCX’s social media post that sparked a cultural movement.
Thousands gathered in Union Park for the Pitchfork Music Festival, the Chicago Bears started training camp at Halas Hall, and Vice President Kamala Harris kicked off her presidential campaign.
Williams got in defensive end DeMarcus Walker’s face as he went after tight end Gerald Everett on Friday.
Bielema still needs to prove the Illini can win in a conference that just got even better with Oregon, USC, Washington and UCLA on board and has done away with divisions, the days of a weaker West now over.
Warner Bros. Discovery, the parent company of TNT Sports, is seeking a judgment that it matched Amazon Prime Video’s offer and an order seeking to delay the new media rights deal from taking effect beginning with the 2025-26 season.