Free Republic

SPRINGFIELD, Ill. (AP) -- Gov. Rod Blagojevich is threatening to lay off 5,000 workers if he doesn't get his way on the state budget, but he has added nearly 1,900 people to the state payroll in the past five months, state records show. Despite the governor's own hiring freeze on all but critical positions, his administration has hired a Spanish liaison for the Lottery, three people earning a combined $218,000 to improve "procurement efficiency" for the state's purchasing agency, and 29 people in the governor's own office. At least 53 percent of the new hires have been prison guards, welfare...