Are You on the List?

By Amy Hart in News on May 17, 2006 3:40PM

Chicagoist isn't much for frequenting places where you have to be on a guest list to get in. The sense of feigned exclusivity usually turns us off and sends us looking for friendlier, more accepting options.

Little did we know the governor's office was keeping its own special list of preferred people. Today the Sun-Times reports that Governor Blagojevich's office kept a "clout list" of state employees who were backed by politicians, lobbyists, and fund-raisers. The list was kept off-site and used to keep track of favors Blago handed out to people in the first half of 2003. Blago's spokesperson says a similar list is now a formal tool that is housed in the personnel department to track applications, not favors. We say the list could actually keep track of applications AND favors. It's a little something we call multitasking.

This isn't to say that one needs to know the right people to get a job with the state or to get a promotion. After all, we all have those friends who aren't on the list but can sweet talk their way into the club.