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Businesses and governments across the country are struggling to figure out how to pay their bills, Daley noted, making his point with an extended metaphor that ended up sounding like he was wishing he could sail away from it all. “I think everybody’s in the same boat. No one’s outside the boat. Everyone’s in the boat—that’s one thing they are. Your industry, government, everybody—except the federal government. They print money.”
With something of a cross between a sigh, a whine, and a boast, he added: “We have to balance our budget by law.”
MICK: So is the budget going forward now?
“The economy is bad, and you don’t get all those amenities you want because the economy is so bad, but in the final analysis you’ve got to have a budget, and one of the responsibilities of the City Council is to produce a budget … and you do the best you can with what you’ve got,” said 28th Ward alderman Ed Smith. “I’m hoping for the best, but I’m expecting the worst.”
