Stroger Defends Aide's $54,000 Pay Raise

"It is a lot of money," lame-duck president admits

Cook County Board President Todd Stroger is defending a big pay raise he recently gave to a top aide.

Records show Stroger boosted the salary of his Chief Financial Officer, Jay Morgan Williams, by $54,000 -- to $230,000 per year.

Speaking on WGN -AM radio Friday, he said Williams was given the raise because of extra duties.  He also said she was hired at less than what she should have earned.

"It is a lot of money," he said.  "But she actually is a chief financial officer of a $3 billion corporation."

The Chicago Sun-Times reported earlier this week that Carla Oglesby, Stroger's former campaign spokeswoman, was recently hired as Deputy Chief of Staff with a salary $4,000 higher than her predecessor.  And Eugene Mullins, the board president's director of communications, recently received a 10 percent boost in pay, to $115,000.

Maybe that's where all those extra pennies were going...

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