Because… Madigan! Or… not?
Wednesday, Jul 13, 2016 - Posted by Rich Miller
* WHBF TV…
Rauner openly admits there is a lot riding on the general election for control of the General Assembly in Springfield. A couple of candidates he supported lost their primary bids. Juliana Stratton beat Rep. Ken Dunkin (a Democrat who sided with Rauner at times) and incumbent Sen. Sam McCann beat primary challenger Bryce Benton (who Rauner supported).
“November is very critical,” Rauner said. “This is a time if the speaker and his supermajority get more power, reforms and less tax burden and balanced budget are going to be much harder to achieve. If we can have a legislature where both parties have a voice relatively more equal than completely one-sided, we have a chance to grow the economy more, protect taxpayers more, get term limits and redistricting reform done.”
News conferences from Springfield over the last 18 months would suggest there’s no love lost between the Governor and Democratic House Speaker Michael Madigan. However, there’s no denying the two need each other to get anything significant done. Rauner described that relationship.
“It’s actually on a personal level, it’s perfectly fine, very cordial,” Rauner said. “We’re very candid with each other. We’re very frank. We’re very honest and direct. There’s a lot of posturing that has to go on. The reality is we have a fundamental disagreement, an honest disagreement.”
I think this is the first time he’s ever acknowledged that Madigan is coming from an “honest” position. I doubt we’ll see him say that much more, though. We’ll see.
- wordslinger - Wednesday, Jul 13, 16 @ 11:06 am:
“….reforms and less tax burden and balanced budget are going to be much harder to achieve.”
Please, tell us more about these reforms that lead to less tax burden and a balanced budget.
Geez, does no one ever follow up with this guy? If a regular person talked crazy like that in the street they’d throw a net over him.
- Norseman - Wednesday, Jul 13, 16 @ 11:14 am:
=== I think this is the first time he’s ever acknowledged that Madigan is coming from an “honest” position. ===
That’s collectivist propaganda.
- wordslinger - Wednesday, Jul 13, 16 @ 11:16 am:
–I think this is the first time he’s ever acknowledged that Madigan is coming from an “honest” position.–
An honestly corrupt position?
- Pot calling kettle - Wednesday, Jul 13, 16 @ 11:18 am:
Word: My thoughts exactly. Every time he puts lower taxes and balanced budget together in a sentence, my head spins. Repeating something over and over does not make it true, but it does make it more difficult to convince voters that it will take more revenue to balance the budget.
- Oswego Willy - Wednesday, Jul 13, 16 @ 11:19 am:
For me, it’s the Conptroller Race, “space”, “space”… another open “space”… then just about everything else.
That said, my passion for races is grounded in statehouse races, and these races… they are going to be, collectively, fascinating to the Raunerite premise… to a POTUS voting universe… in the micro districts and their own unique “givens”
I see this quote a major realization that the $20 million and having Republican members with honest consciouses voting “Raunerite” against their districts and constituencies and in a few cases their own personal stories.
The McCann victory and “voting accordingly” became a real hurdle now seen for November?
I dunno. But this realization by Rauner as to Madigan, and if you couple it with what happened in McCann’s race, and probably(?) people like Z, whom I respect greatly, looking at the playing field and the voting records and even with unlimited cash… Rauner picking off seats… it might be real tough, real fast.
I’ll be following Munger-Mendoza first… and last… but Rauner’s stamp on Republicans forced, in some cases, transformation to Raunerites and facing the constituents with Raunerite voting records… I think Z will do very well framing the micro, but the real question will be if Democrats, Labor, and those crushed in and running Social Services aligning to win in these micros.
The campaigns will be “must watch”, and where Raunerism falls in these districts… can’t wait.
- IllinoisBoi - Wednesday, Jul 13, 16 @ 11:19 am:
Again with the fictional “supermajority.” Oh boo hoo boo hoo that mean little man in Chicago has all the power, I can’t do nothin’.
- Rabid - Wednesday, Jul 13, 16 @ 11:24 am:
Get your message out to the average voter with a public debate, with factcheck banner running the facts
- The Fool On The Hill - Wednesday, Jul 13, 16 @ 11:28 am:
November is when you get your (expletive deleted) handed to you Bruce.
- doofusguy - Wednesday, Jul 13, 16 @ 11:28 am:
=====Oh boo hoo boo hoo that mean little man in Chicago has all the power, I can’t do nothin’. ====
Right!?! That’s all he’s got is seems - ‘and his supermajority gets more power’ - what does that even mean?
- Jocko - Wednesday, Jul 13, 16 @ 11:30 am:
Translation: I keep hoping the Democrats will work around me and raise taxes…allowing me cover for my 1% agenda.
Bruce’s quotes are quickly overtaking the one’s uttered by SNL’s Tommy Flanagan.
- Precinct Captain - Wednesday, Jul 13, 16 @ 11:36 am:
Now it is just a decade or so until Rauner admits Madigan is a human being and not a cyborg from Mars!
- HistoryProf - Wednesday, Jul 13, 16 @ 11:37 am:
O.W. Could you please proofread your posts before posting? I have often learned from you in the past but lately your use of shorthand has led to garbled syntax that has made it difficult, especially for us outsiders trying to keep up.
- RNUG - Wednesday, Jul 13, 16 @ 11:50 am:
Maybe I’m missing something.
It is almost a given that, come November, the Democrats will still have either a statistical majority or gain a functional super-majority in both chambers.
If it is a statistical majority, that isn’t any different in the House from today. The Republicans can’t pass ANYTHING without Democrat support and the Democrats can’t override any vetoes without Republican support.
There is no way the Republicans can pick up enough seats to gain a majority in the House, or even prevent the Democrats from having a majority. The only way it is mathematically possible for the balance of power to change is if the Democrats pick up enough new House seats to have a working veto-proof majority. The issue then becomes will the Democrats, ie Madigan, be willing to wield that power in the face of attack ads from Rauner?
That’s a long way of saying I don’t see anything changing, so the Governor needs to learn to work with the General Assembly … and it might as well be sooner than later.
- Thoughts Matter - Wednesday, Jul 13, 16 @ 11:54 am:
There’s a lot of posturing, I will agree. But, I do NOT agree that it ‘has to go on’. Stop posturing, be honest and direct in public as well as private.
- South Central - Wednesday, Jul 13, 16 @ 11:57 am:
He has “an honest disagreement” with Madigan. Man, there must be quite an argument going on inside his brain.
If anything is standing in the way of a balanced budget and beginning real reforms, it’s Bruce Rauner’s attitude and his approach to “governing” (for lack of a better term for whatever it is he’s doing.)
- Federalist - Wednesday, Jul 13, 16 @ 12:45 pm:
Rauner can forget about making any substantive gains in the GA. Even he knows that.
- Downstate Dem - Wednesday, Jul 13, 16 @ 12:58 pm:
This Quad Cities TV show (”4 the Record”) is on after “Face the Nation” … the host does a pretty good job at getting sources to talk on the air …
- Mama - Wednesday, Jul 13, 16 @ 2:16 pm:
“I think this is the first time he’s ever acknowledged that Madigan is coming from an “honest” position.”
I’m glad I was sitting down when I read this. Wow! Rauner must have been in a good mood.
- 37B - Wednesday, Jul 13, 16 @ 2:26 pm:
“There’s a lot of posturing that has to go on.”
No. No there doesn’t.
“The reality is we have a fundamental disagreement, an honest disagreement.”
Fine, then settle it. It’s the “Art of the Possible.” Do the doable. Our least fortunate citizens are suffering while our leaders star in their own “Point/Counterpoint.” Honestly or not.
- Yellow Dog Democrat - Wednesday, Jul 13, 16 @ 5:19 pm:
RNUG:
You are missing something.
The superstars on Team Rauner are trying to manage expectations for November.
They want to define “victory” as stopping Madigan from picking up seats.
Even if the former boss of Mr. Goldberg, Mark Kirk, goes down in a ball of flames, even after Rauner personally intervened to keep him in the race.
Even if Leslie Munger, Rauner’s hand picked statewide officeholder, looses to Madigan-backed Susana Mendoza.
And even though Rauner boldly promised in 2014 that he would deliver GOP majorities in both chambers by 2022.
By my estimation, he would have to pick up 5-7 House seats this year to have even a chance of taking the House in 2022.
And he also needs to pick up 4-5 Senate seats to have a shot at unseating Cullerton.
Not sure if Willy quite agrees.
- Oswego Willy - Wednesday, Jul 13, 16 @ 6:14 pm:
- YDD -
My friend on the other side of the aisle…
I agree with quite a bit, actually.
I see Munger-Mendoza as the Rauner Referendum. If Democrats and Labor see it as such too, a Mendoza win would be a bit embarrassing. It’s unequaled as the top race in the state, bar none.
Kirk, while holding a legitimate chit that few hold against Rauner, many may just consider a Kirk loss more on Kirk than on Rauner.
Rauner, by the sheer fact there aren’t enough Republicans running for state Senate seats, only Jil Tracy losing would be considered a “loss” for Rauner, so there is a possible “add” to the SGOP overall, if Cullerton “holds serve” on the rest. I’d watch Simon-Schimpf just because of Carbondale.
The state House races? Welp, Franks’ seat will flip, and Cloonen is only mentioned by me because of how close that seat has been with her in the ballot. If Rauner “adds” with Franks and a seat, maybe 2, that actually helps Madigan get out from under the “Super-Majority” anchor, but gives Rauner his “victory”, but in reality, both state house maps are designed for Super-Majority Democratic caucuses… The GOP allowed that to occur with candidate recruitment and… well, that’s a discussion for another Post.
The ball game is the Munger-Rauner Referendum and Madigan getting below 68(?)…
Can Rauner get Raunerite majorities by 2022?
What candidates are running where? That’s my take on that question. Period.
- Oswego Willy - Wednesday, Jul 13, 16 @ 6:17 pm:
“… both state house maps are NOT designed for Super-Majority Democratic caucuses… ”
Apologies