Bernie Schoenburg interviewed US Sen. Dick Durbin this week. You should really go read the whole thing, but here’s an excerpt.

“I really believe that the governor could have handled his relationship with downstate a lot better in his first term,” Durbin said. “I hope he’s learned. People downstate, all of us, want to believe that we’re not taken for granted, and that our elected officials care about us. I think there were a couple of things that the governor did along the way which bothered people in central Illinois and downstate, and I hope, in his next term, he takes that to heart.”

Asked for specifics, Durbin noted the “big issue” developed out of the way the governor handled the Executive Mansion.

Durbin said he would never second-guess a family decision, such as the governor wanting to allow his children to continue going to school in Chicago.

“But I think he could have handled his presence downstate and his use of the mansion in a different way and had a more positive relationship with Springfield and downstate Illinois,” Durbin said.

I’ve posted this link before, but more of the interview can be found here.