79 Comments - r. - Tuesday, Jul 7, 15 @ 5:12 pm: Not my fault… r. - Anon - Tuesday, Jul 7, 15 @ 5:16 pm: Why the heck didn’t Rauner not veto state employee pay in the first place? If I were a judge this would annoy me. - Wading in... - Tuesday, Jul 7, 15 @ 5:19 pm: Is it wrong to hope he gets picked as a vice presidential hopeful, just to get him out of Illinois? - alas - Tuesday, Jul 7, 15 @ 5:19 pm: Gov, politeness impels me to advise that you have ventured out without clothes. - Mama - Tuesday, Jul 7, 15 @ 5:21 pm: “Why the heck didn’t Rauner not veto state employee pay in the first place? If I were a judge this would annoy me.” Why? Because the guv wants to the blame the Madigans for employees not getting paid. It is all about the blame game. - Newdealer - Tuesday, Jul 7, 15 @ 5:23 pm: Gag - Mason born - Tuesday, Jul 7, 15 @ 5:25 pm: Well on the plus side when june ‘16 comes around he should know better. Don’t veto payroll! ! - AC - Tuesday, Jul 7, 15 @ 5:27 pm: If Governor Rauner put half the effort in the budget that he put into deflecting blame, we’d be in much better shape. Or, is this his plan to make up for attempted tort reform by enriching lawyers in other ways? - How Ironic - Tuesday, Jul 7, 15 @ 5:27 pm: Hi All State Employees! Despite Bruce’s ongoing struggle to square fighting for your overly fat, unjustified, and union related pay, he’s decided for public relations sake to do it. He’s filed to demand you get paid now, so that it won’t sting so bad when he shafts you later. Best, ck! - Juice - Tuesday, Jul 7, 15 @ 5:28 pm: I’m glad that the Governor was able to highlight his attempt at venue shopping in St. Clair county. /s - Robert the Bruce - Tuesday, Jul 7, 15 @ 5:30 pm: Better closing: Somewhat truly yours, Bruce Rauner Governor - Wordslinger - Tuesday, Jul 7, 15 @ 5:30 pm: P.S. Sorry about vetoing that approp for your salaries. Hope my words speak louder than my actions. - Furious - Tuesday, Jul 7, 15 @ 5:31 pm: This should be a model for how not to run a state like a business, much less a country. Sheesh - Educated in the Suburbs - Tuesday, Jul 7, 15 @ 5:35 pm: ===This should be a model for how not to run a state like a business=== I have gradually become convinced that every successful businessperson who wants to bring business methods to the government should have to submit an essay of no less than 25 pages explaining in detail several ways in which governments function differently than businesses, like Due Process requirements and differences in funding models and profit not being the driving goal and services to children not being subject to economies of scale and the need for consensus building and so on. At this point I reflexively distrust any businessperson who claims their business skills will help in government. - RNUG - Tuesday, Jul 7, 15 @ 5:36 pm: My prediction that the State will spend more in legal fees under Rauner his first year than Quinn did during his entire period as Governor is coming true … - ihpsdm - Tuesday, Jul 7, 15 @ 5:37 pm: Can the State Workers pay their bills with printouts of these pathetic e-mails when they don’t get their paychecks? - Albany Park Patriot - Tuesday, Jul 7, 15 @ 5:37 pm: Dating back to the campaign we saw how this guy doesn’t take responsibility for any bad acts or bad results. Call it a gift. - Xavier Woods - Tuesday, Jul 7, 15 @ 5:38 pm: When the Governor does things that are completely opposite and against his previous rhetoric and then asks us to believe him, I take it as an extreme insult to my intelligence. Is anyone really going to buy Rauner as the savior of state workers salaries? - RNUG - Tuesday, Jul 7, 15 @ 5:39 pm: == Can we do a recall vote? == Theoretically, yes, Practically, no. The Cubs have a better chance of winning the World Series this year AND next year than the R & D parties fulfilling all of the constitutional requirements for a recall vote. - thoughts matter - Tuesday, Jul 7, 15 @ 5:41 pm: I like the ‘on behalf of all the people of Illinois’ part. These would be the same people that he told for months that we are overpaid and underworked, incompetent, ruled by union bosses, and disloyal to the people of Illinois? I’m supposed to believe the he AND the people of Illinois care about whether or not I can pay my mortgage? - How Ironic - Tuesday, Jul 7, 15 @ 5:41 pm: Recall vote? Yeah, that’s in 2018. In the next election. - thoughts matter - Tuesday, Jul 7, 15 @ 5:42 pm: that he and the people, not the he and the people. - Wensicia - Tuesday, Jul 7, 15 @ 5:42 pm: “Honest… I ran out of gas. I… I had a flat tire. I didn’t have enough money for cab fare. My tux didn’t come back from the cleaners. An old friend came in from out of town. Someone stole my car. There was an earthquake. A terrible flood. Locusts! IT WASN’T MY FAULT, I SWEAR TO GOD!” - ihpsdm - Tuesday, Jul 7, 15 @ 5:46 pm: - Xavier Woods - Tuesday, Jul 7, 15 @ 5:38 pm: When the Governor does things that are completely opposite and against his previous rhetoric and then asks us to believe him, I take it as an extreme insult to my intelligence. Is anyone really going to buy Rauner as the savior of state workers salaries? ====== I would love to meet the state worker that actually believes anything our beloved governor writes/says. I just happen to have a handful of magic beans I could sell to them. - ihpsdm - Tuesday, Jul 7, 15 @ 5:49 pm: Leader Durkin and Leader Radogno will introduce the bill in 9 to 12 months. Meanwhile, let me entertain you by playing the fiddle. - walker - Tuesday, Jul 7, 15 @ 5:52 pm: There’s something strange here. If it were all about the blame game, why not focus all your PR efforts on the public, showing concern for all those who could suffer from lack of services? This concern expressed for government employees and government union members will win him few friends. That boat has sailed. Is Rauner beginning to take his management role seriously? Reading tea leaves here, but that would be a welcome transition. - Ducky LaMoore - Tuesday, Jul 7, 15 @ 5:58 pm: @Wensicia He’s on a mission from God. - Macbeth - Tuesday, Jul 7, 15 @ 5:59 pm: Interesting. What we’re learning is that Rauner is not a problem solver. He can make problems, but he hasn’t really solved … any. - Court Watcher - Tuesday, Jul 7, 15 @ 6:05 pm: Only parties to a suit can appeal, and the determination has to be against what they asked for. Lisa Madigan brought the case, not Rauner. Further, as far as I can tell, she got what she asked for, which was a determination of what could be paid. I don’t think Rauner’s office can file anything. It will just get dismissed if it doesn’t come through Lisa Madigan, or perhaps through the comptroller if she were officially named a party. - Agency Volunteer - Tuesday, Jul 7, 15 @ 6:06 pm: Joe and Jane Citizen don’t really care if State Employees don’t get paid - they do care about disruption of services. So Rauner’s next “Friendly” step will be to sign the no lockout/no strike bill effectively neutering AFSCME’s only strong negotiating tactic that they gave away early on. And Rauner can come on TV all while smilin’ and shruggin’ because he never saw that ‘no pay thing comin'’…and then you have a captive non paid workforce with no recourse other than quitting for other employment. AFSCME is playing Go Fish while Rauner is playing High Stakes Vegas Poker. - Court Watcher - Tuesday, Jul 7, 15 @ 6:08 pm: I see in another post that Munger as a party intends to appeal. So an appeal may go forth that way. - anon - Tuesday, Jul 7, 15 @ 6:10 pm: Is over-riding the veto on this particular part of the budget an option? If so, why isn’t it being pursued? Seems like the obvious choice. Otherwise this all just seems like bluster. It is nice that the gov cares enough to send all of us little guys an e-mail once in a while. The content, however, leaves something to be desired. It feels like straight PR designed to advance his image in the press / public eye. It doesn’t feel genuine to me. - Norseman - Tuesday, Jul 7, 15 @ 6:17 pm: === We’ve just filed an expedited appeal in the First District Appellate Court seeking to overturn today’s order. === Pick the right answer. The appeal was filed: a) Through our legal representative the AG b) Through our paid legal counsel with permission from the AG c) Through our press team and I’m just messing with you d) Through our new best buddies at AFSCME? - DuPage Dave - Tuesday, Jul 7, 15 @ 6:23 pm: Here’s a hypothesis: Since becoming Governor he’s made quite a few visits to state offices. He was just at the Harris Building last week, for example. I suspect he understands a bit more about the state workers he’s demonized so often, seeing them more as human beings. Plus, he’s learned that more than a few of them voted for him. My guess is that, big-time politics aside, Rauner is taking a bit different view of the state workers. Like all born b.s.-ers he starts talking not sure what’s going to come out of his mouth. And it turns out he has kind words for those eager faces who’ve come out to meet him. - Anon2U - Tuesday, Jul 7, 15 @ 6:29 pm: Wensicia - Tuesday, Jul 7, 15 @ 5:42 pm: Wins the web today with a Blues Brothers quote. - Anonin' - Tuesday, Jul 7, 15 @ 6:32 pm: Next step… start linin’at the mansion for bobblehead bucks that we’ll be handin’out just as soon as the appeals court thumps us - Macbeth - Tuesday, Jul 7, 15 @ 6:32 pm: If Rauner had any smarts — if he was at all savvy — he’d realize that *state workers* are his best weapon. He’d realize that unions can help him. He’d realize that AFSCME is more of a help than a hindrance. Think about it: if unions — and unionized workers — get on Rauner’s side — he really can make serious changes. The sorts of changes that he wants. - park - Tuesday, Jul 7, 15 @ 6:33 pm: for clarification, I believe he vetoed the entire budget. I’ll bet he wishes he’d done it differently, but he can make it good tomorrow and appears to be offering to. - Anonin' - Tuesday, Jul 7, 15 @ 6:34 pm: But the bucks can’t be used to pay fair share or union dues - cdog - Tuesday, Jul 7, 15 @ 6:38 pm: If pay checks are not issued, there are economic effects. I am sure that several locations in Illinois would be significantly impacted by the lack of those payroll deposits into local banks. Rauner knows this. Rauner’s Shutdown has the potential to cause a spike in loan delinquencies, real estate foreclosures, auto repossessions, loss of state income tax receipts, loss of state and local sales tax receipts, all due to lack of spending by state employees. He is concerned that it could all potentially be tied by HEADLINES to him and his inability to lead opposing factions. - Wensicia - Tuesday, Jul 7, 15 @ 6:39 pm: BTW, the above email is not intended for state workers alone. It’s another PR commercial, “Hey, I’m not the bad guy; Madigan and his corrupt political supporters are.” - DuPage - Tuesday, Jul 7, 15 @ 7:11 pm: State workers: In lieu of a fair contract, I wish to thank you for your continued service. Your Boss, Your Buddy, In Solidarity, His Highness, Governor Bruce - Anonymous - Tuesday, Jul 7, 15 @ 7:19 pm: Oh, shoot! I didn’t mean for that to happen. What a stroke of rotten luck. Good luck, Bruce - foster brooks - Tuesday, Jul 7, 15 @ 7:21 pm: when rauner said he was going to shut down the state in 2014 what did everyone think of that? - Courser - Tuesday, Jul 7, 15 @ 7:25 pm: Your lead in says it all, Rich…how about approving the temporary budget that was sent to you, Governor, instead of vetoing it for purely political reasons and forcing state workers to lose pay? Actions speak louder than words…the Governor’s newly found solidarity with state employees fits him as poorly as his “common man” Carhardt jacket. - Northern pike - Tuesday, Jul 7, 15 @ 7:32 pm: It won’t be long before Rauner sends each state employee a Facebook friend request. . . . - 2113 - Tuesday, Jul 7, 15 @ 7:37 pm: Bad advise from the super stars to veto the entire budget. To many lawyers. They don’t get paid either. - Anonymous - Tuesday, Jul 7, 15 @ 7:51 pm: What about those on welfare, do they get paid? - XDNR - Tuesday, Jul 7, 15 @ 7:52 pm: This Governor (who has yet to govern) and his superstar over paid team are on a hypocritical non budget issue course which will implode and adversely impact many in the process. He simply can’t have it both ways, and he’s already burned too many (you are all corrupt, union busting mission) bridges. Yes eventually there will be compromise and maybe even reconciliation but as many have said he will own it all worse before better. - Oswego Willy - Tuesday, Jul 7, 15 @ 7:58 pm: You vetoed it, Governor. You own it Thanks! ow - Chicago 20 - Tuesday, Jul 7, 15 @ 8:04 pm: This is all so Rauner can say, “I tried to help you”. Phony Governor. - Macbeth - Tuesday, Jul 7, 15 @ 8:05 pm: Someone should tell Rauner — Trover — Shrimpf: stop spamming state employees. We don’t need the PR. All we care about is the pay for the work we’re doing for the state. We’re working. You’re not. We’re not ideologues. You are. We want Madigan to tow the line. Don’t give in. Rauner does not have any kind of a mandate, any kind of a majority. The level of derision for Rauner at my workplace is incredible. Rauner has no idea. Absolutely no idea. But Rauner: please — stop spamming us. Stop emailing us. Just pay us. That’s all we care about. We. Do. Not. Care. About. You. We. Did. Not. Vote. For. You. - Mason born - Tuesday, Jul 7, 15 @ 8:13 pm: Never assume malfeasence when simple incompetance will do. I think he believed that a judge would order payroll paid. Call it bad lawyering if you will. I don’t think they foresaw the A.G. refusing to reach a consensus and venue shopping cook county. I don’t think he realized how stubborn MJM was going to be. Now he is about to watch 70k people not get paid for work they are doing. If he actively pushes this fix I’d say it’s remorse. Now if it goes nowhere and he starts throwing stones without another attempt then I’m all wet. - Stop the Madness - Tuesday, Jul 7, 15 @ 8:17 pm: This is just a delay tactic. The law here is clear. After The pension ruling, there’s no way an appellate court comes out differently. Appealing the decision is, frankly, a waste of time. NEOGIATE A DEAL ALREADY. - Anonymous - Tuesday, Jul 7, 15 @ 8:18 pm: Rauner wants to “break Madigan” at all costs. How has that worked in the past? Im not in love with Madigan but at least he’s consistent. He does this every time. Someone please tell the Superstars that this strategy is not working. - Anonymous - Tuesday, Jul 7, 15 @ 8:24 pm: Is it just me or has my governor been abusing the judicial system? I know business and litigation go hand and hand,is this how he thinks? There is no problem that can’t be fixed in court? - Louis G. Atsaves - Tuesday, Jul 7, 15 @ 8:25 pm: The appeal was filed at 4:15 pm. Rauner’s email was sent at 4:59 pm. The “claim” is true. - Macbeth - Tuesday, Jul 7, 15 @ 8:29 pm: Again — I’m confident that Rauner — the Governor of the state of Illinois — has absolutely no intention of agreeing to a budget. For months. He’ll let state employees fend for themselves — despite the spam. He’ll let social service agencies lay off employees. He’ll let everything devolve into total, total chaos — all because he wants to bust unions. That’s it. That’s not what he ran on. That’s not what he campaigned on. But he’s now doing the bidding of the Koch’s and Griffin — and essentially grinding the state to a complete, utter halt because he wants to eradicate collective bargaining. - VanillaMan - Tuesday, Jul 7, 15 @ 8:38 pm: Ryan Blagojevich Quinn Rauner We really can’t get worse than what we’ve had and what we’ve got. - Anonymous - Tuesday, Jul 7, 15 @ 8:51 pm: Rauner: Madigan’s budgets are unconstitutional. Oh, but when it comes to paying workers with no budget, which too would be clearly unconstitutional, I somehow now don’t care about what is and is not constitutional. Talk about spinning the rhetoric. it’s unfortunate that the general public today care only for headlines and rarely have the patience or care to read the fine lines or ask the tough questions. - Mongo - Tuesday, Jul 7, 15 @ 8:51 pm: I am prepared to lend my state worker friend some cash so she can feed her kids. They should all quit working and see how long the people of Illinois will put up with it. These poor folks can’t even go out and try to find other employment to put a roof over their head. They have to show up and work for nothing. Ridiculous. - Oswego Willy - Tuesday, Jul 7, 15 @ 8:53 pm: - Louis G. Atsaves -, Honestly, respectfully… Help Rauner out of this. Give him his “outs”, before its too late Sincerely, OW - Anonymous - Tuesday, Jul 7, 15 @ 9:07 pm: And when paychecks don’t come on 7/15, the State will be per se liable under FLSA for liquidated damages to all state employees. Way to help us save money, guv’nor. - Astounding - Tuesday, Jul 7, 15 @ 9:17 pm: MJM and Mapes must be laughing their —– off tonight. Geez, talk about floundering around. And if there is a single state employee who falls for Rauner’s advocacy for them then they deserve to be shut out and laid off. - TheOtherAnonymous - Tuesday, Jul 7, 15 @ 9:24 pm: I was at the Harris building when Rauner showed up for the pep talk. At the time, he seemed sure the court would side with him on extending the terms of the expired contract, because of Lisa Madigan getting that same kind of agreement in the 2007 budget impasse. If he really believed that, he got some bad legal advice. If he didn’t believe it, it’s extraordinary hypocrisy, as he kept referring to our work (DHS) as being “God’s work,” and the Good Book this and the Good Book that … on and on. I’m a Republican and I believe in God and the Good Book. But using God talk to get people on your side, when you don’t really believe what you’re telling them, would be reprehensible. I agree with what an earlier poster said. If he’s adjusting to consequences he didn’t expect (due to someone on his legal staff not doing the political math), we’ll see a fix of some sort fairly quickly. If not, if he digs in, we’ll be able to draw a much darker conclusion. Not that I want to. But real is what it is. - XDNR - Tuesday, Jul 7, 15 @ 9:32 pm: - Macbeth - Tuesday, Jul 7, 15 @ 8:29 pm: ==But he’s now doing the bidding of the Koch’s and Griffin== With all due respect I think we can all surmise this was his plan from the get go. He fooled the body politic with his commin’ man faux down to earth Carhartt good ole boy I’m goin’ ta shake things up BS. I would say that I have to give him credit for that, good handlers, or maybe deceit just comes naturally to him in the corporate world. - Just Curious - Tuesday, Jul 7, 15 @ 9:32 pm: Everything else this governor has said he wants to give someone ends up with a qualifying kicker in the background somewhere. Wonder what the kicker will be for the approp for state employee pay? - wrangler - Tuesday, Jul 7, 15 @ 9:59 pm: How can the state employees continue to work without pay? How can the unions stand by and let this governor abuse their members? Both sides extended the union contracts with a no lockout or strike clause. So what happens now? - Jimmy Baseball - Tuesday, Jul 7, 15 @ 10:06 pm: Wensicia @ 5:42, that’s one of my all time favorite comments on this site. Well done. - Way South of I-80 - Tuesday, Jul 7, 15 @ 10:19 pm: Did he not understand what a Veto of the budget means?? He clearly looks more clueless every day. If there weren’t jobs and lives at stake if would almost be entertaining to watch. Is there anyone who can get the message across to him that his actions have major repercussions?? - RNUG - Tuesday, Jul 7, 15 @ 10:31 pm: == What about those on welfare, do they get paid? == Since that’s mostly federal money, I suspect, as long as there are staff to process the checks, the whole welfare system will just running; the Federal budget year runs until Sept 30th. - SMH - Tuesday, Jul 7, 15 @ 10:39 pm: If anyone here actually believes this current situation is the Governor’s fault, our state is in more trouble than it already clearly appears to be on the surface. - Oswego Willy - Tuesday, Jul 7, 15 @ 10:45 pm: - SMH -, Rauner vetoed the budget. Governors need budgets. Always been that way. - Former Merit Comp Slave - Tuesday, Jul 7, 15 @ 10:55 pm: What disturbs me most is the multitude of state employees who will buy into this crap, you know those same ones who were honked off at Quinn and voted for Rauner. - Bill from heaven - Tuesday, Jul 7, 15 @ 11:03 pm: Whoops - MyTwoCents - Wednesday, Jul 8, 15 @ 7:20 am: If anyone here believes the current situation is not partially Rauners fault (wasting time on the Quixotic RTW push, failing to gain trust with the Democratic members of the GA, no real desire to compromise/negotiate, etc.), then our state is in more trouble than it seems. - Anonymous - Wednesday, Jul 8, 15 @ 8:18 am: ==Everything else this governor has said he wants to give someone ends up with a qualifying kicker in the background somewhere. Wonder what the kicker will be for the approp for state employee pay?== He will still sock it to the state workers in their contract negotiations. He will say something like, for my part, I got you paid - for your part, drastic cuts in your health insurance. And spin it that he negotiated in good faith. - Omega Man - Wednesday, Jul 8, 15 @ 8:19 am: The problem is that the governor’s “Plan A” (bust unions) is not going so well and he has no “Plan B”. Everything else is just improvisational incompetence. - Just askin' - Wednesday, Jul 8, 15 @ 1:03 pm: Last I heard, the legislature could override a budget veto. If the legislature has the power and control, how can they not have the responsibility? Just askin’ Sorry, comments for this post are now closed.