Bill Goldberg

Walker chose for this position William I.Gold berg, an old friend who practiced law with him in Chicago. Bill Goldberg's duties include reviewing bills that are sent to the governor for action — a particularly important and, at times, onerous job. Drafts of executive orders also come under his scrutiny. The governor has, of course, many resources within the code departments for legal research, but in the final analysis, he leans heavily on his legal counsel.

Law dominates Goldberg's back- ground. His father is a lawyer, and following high school Bill went to Amherstand then Harvard, latermaking a law degree. He'd still be at Dan Walker's old law firm of Hopkins, Sutler. Owens, Mulroy and Davis if Walker, then legal counsel to Marcor, Inc., headquartered in Chicago, had not enlisted his help during the 1972 campaign. Friends, tennis partners, and former law partners, they knew and respected each other's ability.

Goldberg did not become deeply involved in the 1972 race until the general election campaign, for which he served as Walker's research director. He did take a hand in the primary race, however, and is proud of his part in forcing poll watchers to be accepted there "by right and not by sufferance of poll judges." Elliot Epstein. director of the Illinois Department of Finance, also played a part in this move and got himself thrown in jail for his persistence.

Goldberg began the discussion of his official duties by explaining that he is "not the 'legal counsel' to Dan." He said, "I don't even know who handles Dan's personal affairs, his will, or matters of that sort. My job is to take care of the legal matters as they impinge on the business of the State of Illinois."

Myers: "Is that all you do?"

Goldberg: "No, if there is an aspect of the executive branch of the government that needs looking at, I'm liable to be called in to look at it. But I'm not the only one."

Myers: "Is there a kind of inner circle?"

Goldberg: "There are no cliques around Dan Walker. He calls in men and women as he needs them. If I fill the bill he calls me; if another, then he calls another."

Myers: "How would you describe your relations with Dan Walker?"

Goldberg: "Well, after 10 years of working together, we understand one another and have mutual trust. It's a close, personal working relationship. We've traveled together, spent evenings together — still do when there is time — play tennis together. It's just there, that's all. But you have to remember that the origin of our friendship is work. That's mostly what we've done together.

Myers: "What does 'legal counsel to the governor' mean?"

Goldberg: "That's a misnomer for my job. As I told you I am counsel to the governor, legal and otherwise. It's broader than just legal adviser. I do check bills as they cross my desk and maintain a close relationship with the office of attorney general. Do 1 get along well with Scott's people? Sure! Forget what the papers say. Dan and Bill Scott may have their differences from time to time, but these are not allowed by them to interfere with the progress of our

April 1976 / Illinois Issues / 7

'when government is called upon to do too much, the state becomes the great big daddy in the sky overlooking all our lives'

mission. We move ahead. His men and ours work together to get the state's work done. Have to. How else could the state function? Hell, they've told me they work better with our administration than with Governor Ogilvie's."

Discussing the matter of alleged low esprit de corps in the Walker administration, Goldberg said, "Lots of people in and out of government are frustrated. And if you look hard over a man's shoulder as to how much money he spends and how he spends it, he's likely to feel uncomfortable. But that's our job. We must watch the taxpayers' money for there is not an unlimited supply of it. So we make some enemies. But most people in state government do a good job, try hard, have a good spirit. Some don't like change. Then, too, no one who came to work with Dan thought it would be easy. And it isn't."

Myers: "How large is your own staff?"

Goldberg: "As I told you, I'm only one of several charged with getting correct facts to Dan. But you saw my staff when you came in. One secretary and a part-time helper."

Myers: "Can you get along with that? No researchers, legmen, the like?"

Goldberg: "Easy. I use the legal staff of other departments, call on them for extra secretarial help if I need it. I can't stand an empire but prefer to work with a minimum of people. That way I have fewer 'people' problems and can concentrate on the issues."

Myers: "Are these problems so great?"

Goldberg: "Incredible. You can't conceive of the enormity of problems and issues the state is faced with. Millions of problems. For one thing, the people are litigious and the state gets sued quite a bit. Then there is the simple matter of keeping all the facets of government functioning. Then there are the emergencies, like the Canton tornado, unpredictable things that interrupt routine and demand quick action."

(The tornado ripped through the west central community on July 23, injuring some 70 persons and causing an estimated $20 million in damages. A political controversy later developed between Gov. Walker, who was vacationing in Florida at the time, and Lt. Gov. Neil Hartigan who visited the area at the request of Canton Mayor Richard Jennings.)

Myers: "Shouldn't the governor have cut his vacation short after he was informed about the disaster?"

At this point Bill Goldberg looked grim, turned umber in color, and said: "Dan Walker was here. Dan Walker is here 24 hours a day. The lieutenant governor has no responsibility. We have telephones today and wherever the governor is we are in direct contact with him. I had the National Guard contact the mayor. Civil Defense people and the State Police moved in. Smooth as clockwork. The real story is not the controversy with the lieutenant governor. That's just reportage to feed the papers' need for conflict. They think only conflict or scandal is newsworthy. But the real story is the great job done by the State of Illinois. The mayor had only praise for the state's help. I have yet to see an article complimenting Dwight Pitman of the State Police, Erie Jones of the Civil Defense agency and a dozen or so other agencies that did such a great job. The great story is that the system works. People knew what to do and did it. But that doesn't sell newspapers.

"I called the governor and he told me what to do. There are standing orders. Something happens. Plans go into action. We know what our response to a tornado is. All I do is make sure everything is being done. If a request comes, I call the National Guard and in they go. The governor's absence is not a problem because he is never absent. To say so is a crock. He's here — you can reach him by phone, radio. He's — never — absent."

The discussion turns to his personal goals. "You ask why I took the job? Well, Dan Walker asked me to join him."

Myers: "Sure, but you could have said no."

Goldberg: "Yeah, but it's an opportunity for public service. Here there is a variety of experience. And if I end up being a trial lawyer for 30 years rather than 35, well, that's OK. I've regularly been involved in public affairs, but never before on a full-time basis. And I do not, repeat, do not plan to run for public office."

Myers: "Would you make it a career?"

Goldberg: "Just about any lawyer in private practice who had a chance to serve in high office would. If they say no, they're kidding. I'm glad of the state experience I'm getting. I've learned a great deal. It's very broadening, this insight into how government works and how people function. What makes it, them, tick. It can only make me a better man, a better lawyer — or a better public servant."

Myers: "But aren't the pressures of your job enormous?"

Goldberg: "Sure they're great. You wouldn't believe. I should not have thought it possible that they would be so great. The problems state government has to cope with are not easy to solve. But I am called upon frequently to solve them. Problem-solving is, you might say, my primary function. And that makes the job tough but satisfying. And yet government cannot be expected to solve every problem. When that time comes, when government is called upon to do too much, the state becomes the great big daddy in the sky overlooking all our lives. Dan Walker does not believe in that.

"But it helps relieve tension to live in Springfield. It's quiet here. I like the town and its people. It's good to get in my car and be home in five or ten minutes and not have to fight traffic as in Chicago. I'm rarely gone overnight. In private practice sometimes I'd be gone for a month. Disadvantages? Not many. Nothing serious. No, I like it here. I play a lot of tennis with Dan, others, and take canoe trips down the Sangamon River when I can get away for a Sunday. I find ways to relax. And, as I said, the movement of state government is challenging, fascinating and I enjoy being part of it. And I have good help, sympathetic colleagues, and that eases the strain. But, strain there is. When the governor is charged with the welfare of eleven million people, he feels the gravity of his charge and responds to it. So do I. There is no way a man can shrug off the tensions unless he's a vegetable, and if he is, he has no right to be governor of this state."

Myers: "What are you proudest of in terms of accomplishment?"

8 / April 1976 / Illinois Issues

Goldberg: "Dan Walker's primary concern when he became governor was to restore confidence in our American way, our system of checks and balances, representational government. And I think we have begun to do that. I believe the people understand that we want responsible government, both in function and fiscal policies. But it is hard. The bureaucracy is unbelievably cumbersome. It has a life of its own, indestructible, self-generating, often arrogant and unresponsive. It's frustrating to try and upgrade quality of services. But, most employees work hard, try to do a job."

Myers: "How do you measure efficiency in government?"

Goldberg: "In industry you have the bottom line, net profit. That's their gauge of efficiency. But government has no such standard. So we get the best people for the job, work out feasible standards, agree that these can be met, then hold the administrators responsible to accomplish their mission. And all this must be done without raising taxes. You have to remember that the main dispute the governor has had with the legislature is over spending and taxes. [Goldberg laughs] You can say I give you this information as a dispassionate observer."

Throughout the interview, his secretary came in several times to bring in messages. Goldberg read them without interrupting his words or train of thought. On some of them he just nodded, turned to the phone and made a call. On others, he just added the slips to the growing pile of notes to handle later. On one call, an important one, he got word that a man he needed to talk to was on annual vacation in Wisconsin. Fishing. In twenty minutes the man was on the phone, the business transacted, decisions made, apologies given and the fellow was back in his boat. One feels certain the pile of notes on Goldberg's desk was taken care of.

As to Bill Goldberg's political philosophy, it is simple enough: "We have the best political system yet devised for man. But we have to make it responsive to the people, make it work as planned. That is Dan Walker's prime motive in being this state's governor. We cannot make life for Illinois citizens perfect. But we try. We must [and here he repeats a phrase used repeatedly during the interview], we must move toward solutions." 

April 1976 / Illinois Issues / 9