Here's one for the truth is funnier than fiction column. The Illinois Treasurer says he would call bond houses, warn against lending to Illinois

Illinois chief fiscal officer said Monday he is willing to dial up the bond houses and finance companies to alert them that lending the state more money, as Gov. Pat Quinn has proposed, would be a "major risk."



"If I need to send letters to the rating companies to tell them the treasurer of Illinois is opposed to more borrowing, I'm going to do that," said Republican Treasurer Dan Rutherford.



Rutherford says the debt from past borrowing has soared to $45 billion in recent years, which amounts to $10,000 for every household in the state. As a result, Illinois has the second-worst credit rating in the nation, above only California, he added.



The backlog of unpaid bills will reach $8 billion by July, Comptroller Judy Baar Topinka recently estimated.