* Rep. Jim Sacia (R-Pecatonica) pens a weekly column for his local papers. This is from his latest…
You are all aware that for the past two months the Governor has withheld our salaries until we pass “pension reform”. Certainly the Governor’s move is “politically correct” and the citizens seem to love it. “You go Governor - stick it to those lazy legislators”. Here is the fallacy. Where has the Governor been on comprehensive pension reform? Along the way I have been involved in many of the pension discussions. I have never seen the Governor at any of them. It certainly begs the question, where is his great idea and leadership?
A short week before our mandatory adjournment on May 31, the Governor called me to his office. As we were in session, I locked out my electronic voting buttons and headed to his office. It never entered my mind that it would be anything other than pension reform. You can’t make this stuff up folks - he wanted to know what it would take for me not to vote no on the gay marriage bill. It must be restated here - I have no issue with gay people. God loves us all. In my opinion politics has no place in sexual preference. The hundreds of gay couples in the capital complex certainly made the issue “politically correct”.
My response to the Governor was less than “politically correct”. “You could install a _____ no button”. The Governor smiled and dismissed me. It was not an attempt at being clever, more out of indignation, “you mean I’m not here to discuss pensions?”
I suppose Quinn should get credit for asking pretty much everybody to vote for gay marriage, and Sacia is retiring, so he’s a lame duck. But no way was the social conservative ever going to be a “Yes” vote. That was a total waste of time.
* He’d better have a much more effective pitch when the pension reform conference committee hands him their results. Speaker Madigan has said he won’t bring the House back to town until Quinn has found the 60 votes needed to pass the bill. And, as the governor acknowledged way back in 1980, he’s no lobbyist…
“If you’ve got a bill you want passed, I wouldn’t advise hiring me as your lobbyist,” said Quinn. “I haven’t exactly endeared myself to the politicians in Springfield.”
- MrJM - Thursday, Aug 22, 13 @ 11:17 am:
Jim Sacia should hire a ghostwriter.
– MrJM
- Ahoy! - Thursday, Aug 22, 13 @ 11:21 am:
In Quinn’s defense, they weren’t going to be passing pension reform on May 31. The Gay Marriage bill probably had more of a chance.
- Fred - Thursday, Aug 22, 13 @ 11:27 am:
Holy crap! The Quinn administration thought Sacia was on the fence on gay marriage? Or that he could be “bought” because he’s a lame duck? How can they not have a better read on Jim Sacia? He’s an open book…always willing to tell you what he thinks and he’s very principled and he’s certainly not looking for a retirement gig. This shows more than anything how completely out of touch Quinn is with the GA. He couldn’t put 60 votes on a non-binding resolution declaring Lincoln a great president.
- wordslinger - Thursday, Aug 22, 13 @ 11:29 am:
Who’s Sacia trying to kid? The gay marriage issue is totally political and he has chosen a side.
Own it.
- Responsa - Thursday, Aug 22, 13 @ 11:29 am:
Quinn sounds pretty proud of himself for accomplishing—nothing. It’s a mystery how people can contemplate a second term for him.
- Small Town Liberal - Thursday, Aug 22, 13 @ 11:29 am:
Waste of time? A few minutes with a lame duck?
I’m glad Quinn was willing to waste this amount of time with Sacia, and with all of the other lawmakers he met with who still turned him down. At least he worked it hard unlike several of our other big time Democratic leaders, or wannabe leaders.
- FoxValleyPride1 - Thursday, Aug 22, 13 @ 11:31 am:
So…. If I have this right, the Governor is accused of not being involved enough in one of the items on his agenda, while simultaneously pushing too hard on another? He also seems offended that the Governor would even THINK about doing two things at one time.
C’mon… If Quinn didn’t expressly say that the meeting would be about pensions, why would you assume that it was? I’m glad to hear that the guv is approaching everyone he can about the marriage issue, and I’m glad he’s persuing a “not no” vote in addition to persuing a “yes” vote.
- walkinfool - Thursday, Aug 22, 13 @ 11:35 am:
Maybe Sacia should have taken the opportunity to propose some specifics on the pension issue, since it was so important to him.
- Small Town Liberal - Thursday, Aug 22, 13 @ 11:37 am:
- very principled -
Well, some folks want to be on the right side of history when they end their career. I guess Sacia isn’t concerned.
- Keep Calm and Carry On - Thursday, Aug 22, 13 @ 11:49 am:
“Speaker Madigan has said he won’t bring the House back to town until Quinn has found the 60 votes needed to pass the bill.”
Madigan continues acting as an obstructionist and demanding deeper cuts to pensions? That’s nice.
“My way or the highway.”
Yeah. Because that’s proven such a great strategy for progress. Especially in this case.
- Former Downstater - Thursday, Aug 22, 13 @ 11:50 am:
We’d all be surprised to find out how many dyed in the wool conservatives also have LGBT children or family members. No one should be assumed as a definite no until they press their button.
- Yossarian Lives - Thursday, Aug 22, 13 @ 12:05 pm:
I love the detail that he locked his buttons before going to meet with the governor. That’s always a smart move on May 31.
- A guy... - Thursday, Aug 22, 13 @ 12:06 pm:
Yikes Jim, try not to flatter yourself too much here. Your name was on a long list prepared by staff to have a series of “one on ones” with to see if there’s any chance of movement. More often than not, there’s little or no yield, but when votes are as close as one or two, you turn over every rock. The staff and the Governor did their due diligence on this and got their answer straight from the horse’s mouth. Not a big PQ fan, but this story makes him look a little better. And it was meant to do the opposite. Glad you’re retiring Jim, it’s time.
- David Ormsby - Thursday, Aug 22, 13 @ 12:09 pm:
Hey, Jim, “You could ____ etc.”
- Anon. - Thursday, Aug 22, 13 @ 12:10 pm:
==If I have this right, the Governor is accused of not being involved enough in one of the items on his agenda, while simultaneously pushing too hard on another?==
You don’t. He’s being accused of doing nothing but grandstanding on the matter he claims to have been put on this earth to solve, and wasting his time trying to get a vote he’ll never win. You can argue that it only makes sense to ask Sacia himself, but why is he putting that much effort into a purely symbolic bill (civil unions already give the exact same legal rights and obligations as marriages) while doing nothing go actuall work a pension bill?
- Conservative Republican - Thursday, Aug 22, 13 @ 12:11 pm:
==I suppose Quinn should get credit for asking pretty much everybody to vote for gay marriage, and Sacia is retiring, so he’s a lame duck. But no way was the social conservative ever going to be a “Yes” vote. That was a total waste of time. ==
Sometimes your “politico” instincts prevail over your “governance” instincts, Mr. Miller. Although I completely agree with Rep. Sacia’s indignation over Quinn’s actions and positioning, the Governor has the right to engage a legislator for any reason he sees fit related to legislation and governance. Who knows what positive results, unrelated to either gay marriage or pension reform, could come from it, regardless of the odds against it? Both men were doing their job, and it shouldn’t be a subject of ridicule — becoming so jaded is one step towards utter debasement of representative democracy.
- Empty Suit - Thursday, Aug 22, 13 @ 12:13 pm:
“I haven’t exactly endeared myself to the politicians in Springfield.”
..said the politician from Chicago”
- Rich Miller - Thursday, Aug 22, 13 @ 12:31 pm:
I just love it when people object to something I didn’t write.
===the Governor has the right to engage a legislator for any reason he sees fit related to legislation and governance===
Of course he does. Never said he didn’t.
===Who knows what positive results, unrelated to either gay marriage or pension reform, could come from it, regardless of the odds against it?===
Not if the meeting goes like this…
PQ: Jim, will you vote for gay marriage?
JS: Heck no!
PQ: Next!
===it shouldn’t be a subject of ridicule===
You’ve set a pretty low bar for “ridicule.”
===becoming so jaded is one step towards utter debasement of representative democracy.===
Bite me.
- Oswego Willy - Thursday, Aug 22, 13 @ 12:49 pm:
If this is Quinn’s idea of “engaging” the General Assembly, I now know why Populist Pat Quinn has no floor leaders, in either chamber, for Governor Pat Quinn.
I guess when Populist Pat Quinn did HIS nose count, it musta been like Speaker Madigan and Rep. Harris’ nose counts.
That Pat Quinn, which one of his personas nose count was “light”? Was it the Populist Pat Quinn who couldn’t say enough that votes were “there” and then vanished…
Or…
Governor Pat Quinn who seems to count noses better than Populist Pat Quinn, but lets that Populist Pat Quinn talk, even if Governor Pat Quinn knows its false?
Never let a good grandstanding be stopped by a political reality of the real counting of noses, especially if you are wrong.
Glorious Leader Quinn - counting noses, even when they don’t… add up.
- Loop Lady - Thursday, Aug 22, 13 @ 12:52 pm:
Pat worked hard on a bill that provides equal treatment of gays as far as matrimony goes and alienated himself from tea bagger GOPs, the catholic
Church, and conservative Dems. Sounds like a man that has courage of his convictions. Corporate America did not benefit from this bill, just everyday people. Way to be Pat.
- Dan Bureaucrat - Thursday, Aug 22, 13 @ 1:12 pm:
This flippant “tell-all” column makes Sacia look bad, not Pat Quinn.
- MM - Thursday, Aug 22, 13 @ 1:25 pm:
==why is he putting that much effort into a purely symbolic bill (civil unions already give the exact same legal rights and obligations as marriages) while doing nothing go actuall work a pension bill?==
Not true at all. Civil unions do not get the same federal status as civil marriage.
- cover - Thursday, Aug 22, 13 @ 1:30 pm:
Frankly, I’m surprised that Rep. Sacia didn’t further discuss the Governor’s item veto of the GA salaries. Others have already noted that Gov. Quinn or a future Governor could use this same tactic (or even just the threat of it) to pressure the General Assembly to take action on the Governor’s priority issue, which could potentially include gay marriage. I believe Sacia’s comments would have been better received, particularly outside his own district, if he had followed this path of reasoning.
- Fed up - Thursday, Aug 22, 13 @ 1:57 pm:
Quinn had no problem handing out stae jobs to retiring/ election losers to get his tax increase passed so it seems he knows how to buy votes.
- Anon. - Thursday, Aug 22, 13 @ 6:12 pm:
==Not true at all. Civil unions do not get the same federal status as civil marriage.==
Authority? The IRS stated two years ago that opposite-sex civil unions are marriages for tax purposes. Now that the SC has thrown out the DOMA’s prohibition on recognizing same-sex marriages, they qualify, too.
- Rich Miller - Thursday, Aug 22, 13 @ 6:20 pm:
===they qualify, too.===
I don’t think there’s been a definitive ruling on that yet.
- Truth teller - Thursday, Aug 22, 13 @ 8:31 pm:
So Quinn calls in legislator to discuss a vote. Shocking! And he wasted all of a minute to confirm the guy’s no vote. What a waste of precious time!
Look, I get it that Sacia’s upset with his irrelevancy in the GA, but complaining about the Governor calling him to meet doesn’t exactly help improve his position, does it?
- mokenavince - Thursday, Aug 22, 13 @ 10:30 pm:
The GA will do just fine without Sacia. As far as Madigan and his suggestion Quinn come up with 60 Senate votes , just another bullying move by Mike.
The Senate will only pass what the Unions instruct them to pass. Wait till next year or the year after never, for pension reform
- estubborn - Friday, Aug 23, 13 @ 10:08 am:
=== The Senate will only pass what the Unions instruct them to pass.
Weird, I thought people would like the fact that the Senate can’t put the hammer on some mushrooms to push through a controversial bill that changes the retirements of people across the State, not to mention said bill is likely to be found unconstitutional.