U.S. Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood was happy after meeting with state transportation officials and said low bidding by companies on projects means there will be more money available for additional projects. Said LaHood:

"A lot of these bids are coming in well below what was really thought might be the cost for the projects and that will enable us, I think, to have money to spend that maybe we didn't really realize...There's a real pent up demand around the country for people who have not been able to do the kind of infrastructure that they want to do... So a lot of these firms that do this kind of work — build roads and do the construction — are coming in with fairly low bids and hopefully that will create some additional dollars and create some additional jobs."

Mayor Daley yesterday said he would stay out of the crowded 5th Congressional District race, which once included more than 20 candidates competing for the seat formerly held by Rahm Emanuel and Gov. Rod Blagojevich. Daley’s decision sets the stage for what could be an open primary on March 3, which some critics say might be disastrous with such a smorgasbord of candidates (others say it’s just democracy in action). Without the influence of an endorsement from Daley, candidates for the seat must now charm Democratic ward committeemen if they want to be the party frontrunner. Committeemen, a shadowy bunch who are elected and often members of the Chicago City Council, are charged with deciding party candidates in various races. Alderman William Banks (36) told the Sun-Times that he hopes committeemen will meet sometime in the next two to three weeks for a vote. “Right now, it seems to be fairly fragmented. If it stays every man for himself, virtually anybody could get elected. . . . It could be somebody totally unrepresentative of the district. That would be unfortunate,” he said. more ›