Warren Buffett on his son: 'He cares about Decatur'
(Originally ran December 2, 2018)
DECATUR — First things first: Howard Buffett isn't going away.
“Everybody thinks I’m just going to walk out on Dec. 1 and just disappear," Buffett said, "and that’s not true."
To someone unfamiliar with Buffett, whose unlikely 14-month tenure as Macon County sheriff came to a close Friday, it might be difficult to understand why the wealthy philanthropist, author, photographer and farmer wouldn't move on to some new adventure or tend to one of his numerous global projects, from border security to ending world hunger. But those people don't know Howard Buffett — or what led to this point, way back to growing up in Nebraska and learning about giving back.
“He cares about Decatur,” his billionaire father and Berkshire Hathaway founder, Warren Buffett, told the Herald & Review last week from Omaha.
A Deeper Red: Local Democrats search for answers as Republicans celebrate big gains in Macon County
(Originally ran November 11, 2018)
DECATUR — As he looked over last week’s election results in Macon County, longtime Clerk Steve Bean said there was one major takeaway.
“The biggest notice is that this is no longer a Democratic County,” he said.
While a “blue wave” helped Democrats sweep all of the statewide races, Macon County stood out as a red wall. In contested races against Republicans, only three incumbent Democrats won the county: Secretary of State Jesse White, state Sen. Andy Manar and state Rep. Sue Scherer.
Democratic candidates won re-election to the county board in two contested races. In both cases, there were two Democrats and one Republican vying for two open seats, with one Democrat and one Republican winning in each race.
It’s a marked change for what had once been a Democratic stronghold that helped secure a path for lawmakers such as U.S. Sen. Dick Durbin and the late state Sen. Penny Severns.
How many ads have Rauner, Pritzker run on Decatur-area TV stations? We crunched the numbers.
(Originally ran October 1, 2018)
DECATUR — The frontrunners in the combative Illinois gubernatorial race have aired more than 9,000 ads in the television market that includes Decatur over the past four months, according to a Herald & Review analysis, and indications are the spending spree is just getting started.
Federal Communications Commission data shows that from June 1 to Sept. 24, the campaigns of GOP Gov. Bruce Rauner and Democrat J.B. Pritzker paid for more than $2.6 million in ads on stations WAND in Decatur, WCIA in Champaign and WICS and WRSP in Springfield.
Both billionaires are spending millions of dollars of their own money on the campaigns. The contest is expected to be one of the most expensive gubernatorial races in U.S. history, and polls give Pritzker a lead. Early voting started Thursday.
The advertising has been virtually nonstop. The governor has run or has reserved more than 4,700 ads over the four Central Illinois channels, at a cost of $1.33 million. Pritzker has run or reserved a total of more than 4,300 ads over the four stations, at a cost of $1.3 million.
Jail Diagnosis: Reports reveal inadequate healthcare for Macon County Jail inmates
(Originally ran February 8, 2018)
Not enough doctors on call, inadequate medical screenings for new inmates, a failure to track medical data and no training for new employees: These are among problems highlighted in a recent expert analysis of Macon County Jail operations.
The document, provided to the Herald & Review, was commissioned by Sheriff Howard Buffett as a guide for when he was preparing to pour hundreds of thousands of dollars into the downtown Decatur facility. The county board tonight will consider accepting $1.3 million from Buffett for a spectrum of jail upgrades, from more comprehensive medical services to new software.
Howard Buffett to be sworn in as Macon County Sheriff
(Originally ran September 13, 2017)
Philanthropist Howard Buffett’s next contribution to the region will be serving out the remainder of retiring Macon County Sheriff Thomas Schneider’s term.
Schneider on Friday is expected to nominate Buffett, 62, to become the county’s top law enforcement officer until a new sheriff is sworn in next fall. Buffett, a former Archer Daniels Midland Co. executive whose foundation has donated millions of dollars to Decatur-area projects, including to the Sheriff’s Office, is an unpaid auxiliary deputy sheriff for the department.
The appointment is his first in an official law enforcement capacity. Buffett has volunteered with the sheriff’s office for five years.
Ready for more governor TV ads? Election Day is 12 months away
(Originally ran November 4, 2017)
Brace yourself. The deafening political ads and rounds of candidate appearances are coming. The race for Illinois governor is entering the final countdown – and every corner of the state is in play.
Monday officially marks one year from Election Day for what’s widely predicted to be one of the most expensive statewide races in American history, a battle royale featuring a handful of well-funded candidates focused on leading the fifth most populated state in the nation.
In most marathon election cycles, 12 months is seen as an eternity. But this isn’t a typical state. And this isn’t a typical election cycle.
Road to reality? Macon County pushes forward on $220 million beltway, despite opposition
(Originally ran October 15, 2017)
The upcoming start of construction on a piece of the Macon County Beltway has galvanized opponents of the project, a long-awaited road that would carry traffic around the city’s east side.
The proposed beltway is a 22-mile stretch of road that advocates say would help develop Decatur’s potential as a transportation hub. Nearby landowners and farmers, some of whom previously saw the project as theoretical, worry it will bring unwanted noise, safety issues and declining property values.
13 percent of Macon County bridges 'structurally deficient'
(Originally ran March 12, 2017)
One out of every seven bridges in Macon County is "structurally deficient," including some of the region’s most critical and heavily traveled transportation links, according to federal data on the safety of crossings across the nation.
The ranking from the Federal Highway Administration equates to 13 percent of county’s 346 bridges, placing it above the national average of 9.1 percent.
Deficient bridges are not in any danger to collapse, but they do require significant maintenance, rehabilitation or replacement due to issues such as a deteriorating bridge deck or its foundation, according to federal standards. Those bridges are also required to undergo frequent inspections.
Prisoner autopsies cut into Macon County budgets
(Originally ran March 11, 2017)
The Illinois budget crisis has resulted in cash-strapped Macon County not receiving thousands of dollars for autopsies performed on state inmates over the past two years.
None of those prisoners are from the area, and several were not being held within the county. Two were brought on a 45-mile trip from correctional centers in Lincoln and another traveled more than an hour from the Jacksonville Correctional Center, records show.
According to documents obtained through the state Freedom of Information Act, the county is owed $9,266 for the five autopsies done by Macon County. Since the documents were obtained, an autopsy was completed on a sixth inmate, which county Coroner Michael Day said will push the amount owed by the state to over $10,000. That does not include the time investment necessary to perform autopsies and other administrative costs.
Township Chief Admits Fund Misuse
(originally ran February 23, 2014)
Former Maroa Township Supervisor David Williams is under investigation by the Illinois State Police after admitting he misappropriated more than $30,000 of township funds over an eight-month span.
Williams, who also serves on the Macon County Board, reported himself to township attorney Erick Hubbard on Wednesday, informing the township that he has misappropriated a total of $30,390.83 in township funds from May 2013 to this January by writing township checks for his own use. In addition, Williams disclosed he had improperly distributed $2,949.36 of township relief funds.
Kurt Elling pays tribute to Frank Sinatra
(Originally ran April 10, 2015)
Kurt Elling knows he will never out-Sinatra Frank Sinatra.
But as a Grammy Award winning and internationally renowned jazz vocalist, Elling being himself is a pretty good thing.
Elling will take on the catalog of Ol' Blue Eyes himself this Saturday night at the Kirkland Fine Arts Center in a celebration of the year Sinatra would have turned 100.
Concealed-carry concerns prove to be off target
(Originally ran January 17, 2015)
Brad Sweeney did not know what to expect when concealed-carry of firearms became law in Illinois last year.
The Decatur police chief said he and his officers were hopeful that it would not cause any problems, though the thought of Decatur turning into a “wild, wild west” of gun violence did cross his mind.
A year later, the effect of the law on Decatur and the rest of Illinois has been minimal, according to many observers.
“It's been such a nonevent,” Sweeney said. “We were worried these firearms may start to turn up in cases, but I could not find any report of an incident all of last year.”
Celebration about to be Ice-d
(Originally ran August 7, 2015)
ob Van Winkle promises to bring the circus to Central Illinois when he takes the stage at Decatur Celebration.
And with his gathering of passionate fans, and a potential cameo from some mutant ninja turtles, the man more commonly known as Vanilla Ice brings an old-school energy to the stage that has helped him develop a following 25 years after “Ice Ice Baby” first planted itself into mainstream culture.