Can’t get his story straight
Thursday, Feb 20, 2014 - Posted by Rich Miller
* After telling Bernie Schoenburg last September that he never called then-Chicago Public Schools CEO Arne Duncan about getting his daughter into Payton Prep, this is what Bruce Rauner said about the clouting controversy during Tuesday night’s debate…
“Frankly, my wife and I, we have some disagreement about who talked to who when,” Rauner said. “I don’t really recall. I talked to Arne all the time. I don’t really recall talking to him about this much.”
* But this is what Rauner told WLS back in January…
On January 14th of this year, Rauner appeared on 89 WLS with Roe Conn and Richard Roeper, and said that not only did he definitely call Duncan, he remembered Duncan’s response when he told him his daughter might not get into Payton because she missed so much time in grade school because of an illness:
“So I called Arne and I said, ‘Hey Arne, she’d really like to go to Walter Payton, but I saw the criteria, she may or may not get in. Um, what do you think, should she even apply?’ And he said, ‘Bruce, if she’s as good academically as you say and it was pneumonia, she’s a great candidate because we have something called the principal’s discretionary pool.’”
* So, to sum up. In September, Rauner said he never called Arne Duncan. In January, he remembered lots of details from that phone conversation. This week, he says his memory is hazy and doesn’t recall talking to him much about this issue.
- sal-says - Thursday, Feb 20, 14 @ 9:20 am:
Reminds of the saying: ‘Tell the truth; the story never changes.’
- PublicServant - Thursday, Feb 20, 14 @ 9:20 am:
When it comes to Rauner, when his lips are moving, you’re pretty much assured that whatever he is saying is, um, a lie.
- AFSCME Steward - Thursday, Feb 20, 14 @ 9:21 am:
“Frankly, my wife and I, we have some disagreement about who talked to who when,” Rauner said. “I don’t really recall. I talked to Arne all the time. I don’t really recall talking to him about this much.”
He spoke to Arnie all the time but never talked about getting his daughter into Peyton ? Maybe the reason that a child who lived in Winnetka got into the top school in the state, a school she didn’t meet the admission requirements, or the residency requirement, is because Cousin Brucey talked with Arnie Duncaqn all the time.
- Hyperbolic Chamber - Thursday, Feb 20, 14 @ 9:24 am:
It seems hard for Billionaire Bruce to regurgitate canned talking points consistently when he knows he’s wrong.
- YO - Thursday, Feb 20, 14 @ 9:25 am:
Im pretty sure this is only the first of many “forgotten” or corrected statements to come.
- wordslinger - Thursday, Feb 20, 14 @ 9:25 am:
Nice timeline. Of the three contradictory stories, at least two of them have to be lies.
- AFSCME Steward - Thursday, Feb 20, 14 @ 9:25 am:
““So I called Arne and I said, ‘Hey Arne, she’d really like to go to Walter Payton, but I saw the criteria, she may or may not get in. Um, what do you think, should she even apply?’ And he said, ‘Bruce, if she’s as good academically as you say and it was pneumonia, she’s a great candidate because we have something called the principal’s discretionary pool.’”
I wonder how many people besides Bruce Rauner Arnie Duncan were informed about principal’s discretionary pool.
- Oswego Willy - Thursday, Feb 20, 14 @ 9:25 am:
Hmm.
The prism of Bruce Rauner is through the outright dishonesty, to being an insider, an apologetic insider willing to deny worthy children…”again, and again, and again…” and then while on a stage with the man Bruce Rauner bold faced lied to… changes his story to throw his wife… his wife … as the excuse he can’t be truthful.
Payton Prep Clouting as a defining of who Bruce Rauner is, lives, works, and his ethics, morals, his honesty and integrity…
Wish I would have been talking about this sooner. I should have said … something.
My bad.
- Westward - Thursday, Feb 20, 14 @ 9:25 am:
Wow. Move on to something new with BR. So a guy or gal who behaves in hypocritical ways cannot be a good governor? I find more of BR’s other dealings more difficult to chew on than trying to get his daughter in a good school.
For real: please tell me, at this point, which candidate really is “qualified” and has the right approach to moving Illinois forward and not backward? To me, it seems all the media is really doing at this point is pointing out all the negatives with each candidate and the candidates have no real good answers. Good grief.
- AFSCME Steward - Thursday, Feb 20, 14 @ 9:27 am:
That should read
I wonder how many people besides Bruce Rauner Arnie Duncan informed about principal’s discretionary pool.
- Wensicia - Thursday, Feb 20, 14 @ 9:28 am:
“The reality is, neither my wife or I asked for special favors,”
Another lie, he just digs himself in deeper every time he opens his mouth. No wonder he refused to speak to reporters after the debate.
- AFSCME Steward - Thursday, Feb 20, 14 @ 9:29 am:
“Nice timeline. Of the three contradictory stories, at least two of them have to be lies.”
Me thinks all 3 are lies.
- Are Ya Kiddin' Me? - Thursday, Feb 20, 14 @ 9:30 am:
As Rich said this week, It’s The Cover-up That Get’s You……In this case it’s going to be his lies….
- Wensicia - Thursday, Feb 20, 14 @ 9:31 am:
Maybe, for him, it’s not a special favor if he provides compensation in the nature of a $250,000 donation after he clouted his daughter into Walter Payton Prep.
- PoolGuy - Thursday, Feb 20, 14 @ 9:34 am:
drawing his wife into this controversy. now that reveals some true character
- Oswego Willy - Thursday, Feb 20, 14 @ 9:35 am:
Who…
Who is going to get the REAL answers to this very specific set of questions;
When did you move to Chicago, before the denial or after the denial, before or after the final acceptance?
What was the specific closing DATE of the address used for residency?
Will you release the “perfect score” test and grades, since you, Bruce Rauner, not anyone else, have said she met both the academic and test score threshold?
Can you release the attendance record, again, something YOU, Bruce Rauner, point to as THE hurdle to acceptance, to show the attendance deficiency?
What are the specific DATES of denial, and acceptance? There must be letters indicating, “Status”, so will you release the DATES?
- Grandson of Man - Thursday, Feb 20, 14 @ 9:36 am:
“Payton Prep Clouting”
When you combine this with his wanting to cut Medicaid after benefiting from it with the nursing homes, and wanting to smash unions after profiting from their pensions, you get a big steaming pile.
- Downstate - Thursday, Feb 20, 14 @ 9:37 am:
-Westward at 9:25
We can’t move on, because this is all the opposition has to talk about.
The same people that are screaming about this have never demanded to know which state politicians made calls on donor’s behalf to get them into the U of I.
In my mind - calling to get your daughter into a school, because you care about her future, is not as big of deal as calling on behalf of a donor…because they gave you money.
- Bored Chairman - Thursday, Feb 20, 14 @ 9:38 am:
Yawn…
- Upon Further Review - Thursday, Feb 20, 14 @ 9:40 am:
I am surprised that so little has been made of the allegation that Rauner applied for multiple homeowner tax exemptions on residential properties that he owns in Cook County.
Maybe it is hard to keep the details straight if you own nine or more homes as opposed to one like the commoners. Nonetheless, you are only allowed one such exemption and it is supposed to be for your primary residence. I wonder if that was or was not the Chicago address used for his daughter to apply to Walter Payton Prep?
Progressives are constantly arguing that the rich are not paying their fair share of taxes. If the allegations are true, this ought to be a scandal.
- Oswego Willy - Thursday, Feb 20, 14 @ 9:45 am:
- Downstate -,
When someone runs as a “outsider” for the Office of Governor, then you will hear me rail on that too.
That is the difference. “Bruce Rauner” despises insiders, Union Bosses and Career Politicians;
Bruce Rauner, the insider’s insider, called, personally the head of CPS, appointed by a career politician, to have his DENIED SUBURBAN LIVING DAUGHTER, take a spot in a Chicago school, to be taught by Union Teachers, and the follow up the attendance with six figure monies to the school.
Got it?
Hypocrisy is the prism.
- Jorge - Thursday, Feb 20, 14 @ 9:50 am:
Last I checked cutting a $250,000 check to your kids school that she wasn’t qualified to get into was akin to bribery. Oh silly me.
- Retired - Thursday, Feb 20, 14 @ 9:50 am:
The too bad part is that even though Rauner is a charlatan, he likely will win the primary. Why? Because even though he is a flawed candidate, his money will win out in the end.
- Joe Bidenopolous - Thursday, Feb 20, 14 @ 9:50 am:
Has anyone called Duncan on this yet? I haven’t seen it if so
- wordslinger - Thursday, Feb 20, 14 @ 9:57 am:
–We can’t move on, because this is all the opposition has to talk about.–
LOL, is WLS the opposition? They wrote a story that he has three contradictory takes on the same question.
That ain’t hardball. That’s just a dude who can’t pick a lane.
- Cassandra - Thursday, Feb 20, 14 @ 9:59 am:
As long as the subject has come up, is the Emmanuel administration continuing the use of principal’s discretion? What is it exactly, is there a formal description, how do parents apply. How many principal’s discretion admissions have been made over, say, the last five years, to competitive schools, and so on. Can the wealthy
“buy” admission to CPS schools of their choice through making gifts to the school. How often has that happen over, say, the last five years under Daley and Emmanuel.
And what did Arne Duncan, our Education Secy, do, if anything, to expedite Rauner’s kid’s admission to Payton. Has anybody asked him?
Rauner may have mishandled the public discussion of this matter (maybe he learned something) but principal’s discretion is a can of worms that Chicago Democrats might be reluctant to open as well, during the general.
- James the Intolerant - Thursday, Feb 20, 14 @ 9:59 am:
He cheated/gamed the system, and some Chicago resident who had a chance at a life altering education went to the local high school. THis is a huge deal, but very few people care.
- VictorNorth - Thursday, Feb 20, 14 @ 10:04 am:
Personally, I don’t give a fig. This is a non-issue. I don’t recall conversations that I had 6 or 7 years ago. If my wife happened to have better recall than I, then I’d need to correct the record and be done with it.
- Upon Further Review - Thursday, Feb 20, 14 @ 10:05 am:
Because New Trier High School is such an unexceptional secondary school, Rauner’s daughter deserved better.
- PoolGuy - Thursday, Feb 20, 14 @ 10:05 am:
if he cared about his daughter so much he could have sent her to some elite private school in Switzerland with all the money he has, and not denied some inner-city child the chance to go to a great school in Chicago. hurting the chances of a poor child to help your own rich child is not all about “caring” to me. my opinion of course.
- Oswego Willy - Thursday, Feb 20, 14 @ 10:08 am:
- VictorNorth -,
Do not claim high ground for Rauner shaking up the system then. Do not tell us all Rauner is “different” and will “shake things up. Do not tell us all here Rauner has honesty, integrity, ethics and morals.
You lose “that” when you don’t care.
- Soccermom - Thursday, Feb 20, 14 @ 10:09 am:
No, Bruce - -the game is “Two Truths and a Lie.” You always get that wrong…
- 61phe - Thursday, Feb 20, 14 @ 10:11 am:
W/r/t timing: CCRD shows the first Randolph St. apt. closed in August ‘08, the second in October ‘08.
Applications for freshmen entering in Fall ‘14 were due in middle December. Freshmen entering in Fall ‘09 may have similarly needed to apply by December ‘08; but this is mere conjecture. Decision letters go out in February.
- VictorNorth - Thursday, Feb 20, 14 @ 10:18 am:
-Oswego Willy-
I’m not interested in a minute detail about one of his 6 children. Clearly, they moved to the city, he or his wife made a phone call. He says his daughter had a perfect entrance exam and was a straight A student. I’d prefer to focus on the vast amount of underprivileged children he has helped via his funding of charter schools.
- YO - Thursday, Feb 20, 14 @ 10:20 am:
That BR will win the primary because of his money speaks to the ignorance and stupidity of voters. Why does anyone dare shake their heads at the number of ex-governors we have in prison when we are sweeping under the rug the “dalliances” of BR and cheering him on, charmed by his smooth talking success story. He’s been exposed as doing some very questionably legal things (or ethical, perhaps) BEFORE taking office. We would expect totally clean behavior once elected? We have strong traditions here in this state—-of electing bad boys. Here comes another one. Do we never learn?
- Oswego Willy - Thursday, Feb 20, 14 @ 10:21 am:
- 61phe -,
Funny, you can “find” that and when the Trib asked hit dates of buying a million dollar condo, Bruce Rauner can’t “remember”?
All the dates are critical.
All. “When”, when did the denial get sent, the closing, the residency, and…
If the daughter applied in February, either she LIED, in the February, because she would have been in 8th grade, on the New Trier school district, or Rauner himself was sending his CHICAGO living daughter in February to a New Trier School…
Hmm.
Why the two addresses?
If the Daughter was already living in Chicago in February, how did the Daughter get to go to New Trier junior high schools, and if the Daughter was living in New Trier in February, how can the Daughter be a Chicago resident in time to apply to a Chicago school and be denied just on attendance?
Danny Kaffee and Nathan Jessup?
- RNUG - Thursday, Feb 20, 14 @ 10:22 am:
With apologies to OW, not trying to set you off …
Yes, it is apparent Rauner lied. Yes, he’s clearly a hypocite, probably morally bankrupt and most likely the second coming of Blago.
But you know what? To me, the whole school thing just doesn’t resonate downstate. South of I-80, most the time you don’t have a choice in the public schools. If you’re in a bigger city, maybe you have a charter school or magnet school or two in the public system. But if you want to get your kid a better education, you buy your way in at the (usually) Catholic or Lutheran school nearest you. In our guts, we don’t get the whole Peyton Prep thing other than Rauner bought his kid’s way in … which translates as so what?
The bigger Rauner issues are being an insider and working the system for major dollars while pretending to be an outsider; things like milking the nursing homes and the state pension systems.
- Stop - Thursday, Feb 20, 14 @ 10:24 am:
Really… Let’s focus how he will run the State. With his income, he will not need the playoffs that this administration is receiving.
- Oswego Willy - Thursday, Feb 20, 14 @ 10:25 am:
- VictorNorth -,
There is never enough money to buy honesty and integrity or ethics.
Bruce Rauner apologists point to all this “money” given, but when character counted, Bruce Rauner DENIED a worthy child a chance, and that lacks character.
Money does not clean slime of the slimy way Bruce Rauner lives his life, and pretends to run as an outsider.
- 61phe - Thursday, Feb 20, 14 @ 10:26 am:
–million dollar condo–
$4,060,000 for the one they lived(?) in.
$1,229,000 for the guest suite.
- VictorNorth - Thursday, Feb 20, 14 @ 10:27 am:
-Stop-
I totally agree. I need to know how a candidate is going to fix this fiscal mess.
- SAP - Thursday, Feb 20, 14 @ 10:27 am:
I’m not sure what the bigger problem is, that he answers the clouting question 3 different ways or that he refuses to answer how he’ll balance the budget.
- Oswego Willy - Thursday, Feb 20, 14 @ 10:30 am:
- RNUG -,
With respect, Dillard lost the 2010 Primary by 193 votes he could have found in DuPage with a message and Ground Game, and Bill Brady lost by 4 votes a Precint in Cook with no exposure or campaigning in Cook in the General.
- RNUG -, Cook and the Collars are rich voting areas that this will resonate. You “may not” be my target fit this message - RNUG -, that is why dome don’t “get” why I am on this.
It’s about the Cook/Collar voters, who can swing this with this Prism and the overall understanding of the Baron.
- Roadiepig - Thursday, Feb 20, 14 @ 10:30 am:
My father told me many times when I was you that if you tell the truth you don’t have to remember your lies. When everything you are “selling” the people is a lie, it has to be hard to remember what the truth was after a while.
And to those of you who keep trying to tell everyone here to shrug off the complete fallacy that is your candidate? He likely will win the primary against his pathetically weak competition, but I wouldn’t bet on a majority of the general electorate punching his spot on the ballot. Time will be his biggest disadvantage .
- Oswego Willy - Thursday, Feb 20, 14 @ 10:32 am:
- 61phe -,
Well, I wouldn’t want to short-change the hypocrisy. lol
- VictorNorth - Thursday, Feb 20, 14 @ 10:35 am:
-OW-
IMO, his daughter too is “worthy”. Your vitriol about the “slimy” way he lives his life….is a gigantic and faulty generalization bordering on envy.
- Oswego Willy - Thursday, Feb 20, 14 @ 10:38 am:
Worthy kids live in Chicago.
Clout-Heavy, ethically corrupt families, lacking integrity, honesty, and morality send their denied Suburban-Living Daughter to deny a seat… to a worthy child.
- RNUG - Thursday, Feb 20, 14 @ 10:41 am:
OW,
I get that the issue could move Cook / collar voters and that, based on the last general election, they with the greater East St Louis area, pretty much decide control the state these days.
But, as they say, it won’t play well in Peoria. Need a different message there.
- Oswego Willy - Thursday, Feb 20, 14 @ 10:42 am:
- VictorNorth -,
Um , BTW, she was first DENIED.
Remember. Denied. Dad (or Mom, depending on what ‘bus story’ you choose) went around a denial. lol.
Worthy? Worthy of what, winning the genetic lotto until Dad runs for governor and then can’t tell the truth about being an insider, a corruptor of the system?
- VictorNorth - Thursday, Feb 20, 14 @ 10:44 am:
OW, they did live in Chicago at the time.
- corvax - Thursday, Feb 20, 14 @ 10:44 am:
maybe he just smokes a lot of weed?
- Oswego Willy - Thursday, Feb 20, 14 @ 10:45 am:
- RNUG -, when the “3″ meet with me this week, I will pass it on…
Since that will happen the “3rd Tuesday of… never”, I will just be the Daily Southtown and some won’t “get it”.
- Downstate - Thursday, Feb 20, 14 @ 10:45 am:
Oswego,
The Illinois president was fired because he took the calls from legislators and let their donor’s into school. But the legislators who made those calls were never named or criticized.
Isn’t Rauner the same as the legislators in that he made a call. The only difference is he called for his daughter. The Legislators called because they had been paid by donors.
- Oswego Willy - Thursday, Feb 20, 14 @ 10:47 am:
- VictorNorth -,
How did the Daughter get to go to a New Trier junior high with that Chicago address?
Questions, questions.
Can’t have both, the timetable won’t allow it.
- Oswego Willy - Thursday, Feb 20, 14 @ 10:49 am:
- Downstate -,
Please. Learn.
It’s about a man, one man specifically running for governor.
When all those “clouted ” run for Governiif as an outsider, they will get this same treatment from me.
Yikes!
- VictorNorth - Thursday, Feb 20, 14 @ 10:53 am:
OW, it’s not that difficult to discern. They moved from the burbs to the city after she was done with junior high. I did the reverse with my kids, moving from the city to the burbs. People do relocate.
- VanillaMan - Thursday, Feb 20, 14 @ 10:55 am:
This SO DOES NOT MATTER.
And OW - just let us comment, OK?
- Jake From Elwood - Thursday, Feb 20, 14 @ 11:01 am:
I am not that offended that the man tried to get his daughter into a better school. Truth is, I would do the same thing if I had the opportunity.
What I don’t like is the ever-changing story line. That raises a larger ethical question.
Oh wait, this is Illinois. Nevermind.
- Soccermom - Thursday, Feb 20, 14 @ 11:08 am:
Victor, the suburbs are VERY VERY strict about residency when it comes to school attendance. If they were living in Chicago — which you would have to be to apply to a Chicago high school — then she should not have been attending school in the suburbs. And if the Rauner’s family residence was in the suburbs, she should not have been considered for admission to a Chicago high school.
- Oswego Willy - Thursday, Feb 20, 14 @ 11:11 am:
- VanillaMan -,
If Rich wants me to stop, I will. It’s his place, I, like you, am a guest.
“With kindest personal regards, I remain.
Sincerely yours,
Oswego Willy.”
- Oswego Willy - Thursday, Feb 20, 14 @ 11:12 am:
Thank you - Soccermom- !!!
100%
Man, how is that not obvious? lol
- Raymond - Thursday, Feb 20, 14 @ 11:13 am:
I sure hope Rauner doesn’t make a habit of throwing his wife under the bus whenever he’s caught in a pickle (pardon the mixed metaphors). That’s incredibly sleazy and not becoming of a governor.
Reminds me of when Rod repeatedly used his kids as an excuse for not moving to the mansion.
- LisleMike - Thursday, Feb 20, 14 @ 11:14 am:
As always, I love the threads of discussion here. I recognize that the vast majority of you all know more than I ever will on inside details and specifics through daily contact. In full disclosure, I am the Dillard contact in our organization. I don’t always agree with Kirk and have told him so, but I think he would be better placed to beat Quinn than any other candidate. There, you can dump on me with the D-Lard stuff, but I find the discussions on other candidates interesting and reminders why I support whom I do. I think it DOES matter VM and I understand OW insistence upon accuracy and pointing out the flaws in the logic or comments of others. Thanks, all, I really do learn alot here! (no snark, for real)
- Oswego Willy - Thursday, Feb 20, 14 @ 11:16 am:
(Appreciated tap cap to - LisleMike -)
- wordslinger - Thursday, Feb 20, 14 @ 11:20 am:
Soccermom is correct.
In our district, owning a residential property doesn’t cut it. You have to prove full-time residency to get a public school spot.
OPRF 200 has kicked kids out of school and sued their parents to clawback out-of-district tuition. The family owned a condo in Oak Park, but the district alleged they lived in a house in Chicago.
- Anonymous - Thursday, Feb 20, 14 @ 11:23 am:
Rauner is proving once again he is turning into a real politician. Like all the rest he gets amnesia, as needed.
They all forget the media records everything, can
play it back. Watch your words boys.
- Oswego Willy - Thursday, Feb 20, 14 @ 11:24 am:
Thanks - wordslinger - for an example.
Can’t have both addresses concurrent, apply, attend, and residency be muddied.
- VictorNorth - Thursday, Feb 20, 14 @ 11:26 am:
Soccer mom, I agree the rules are stringent both coming to the burbs or moving to the city. You must show residency via a tax bill, real estat closing statement or some other form of proof. Clearly, the Rauner’s would have to do the same. Is it that hard for people to understand that they moved to the city for a time? They didn’t need to sell their Winnetka home,but as they stated they moved to the city after the daughter finished 8th grade in the burbs.
- dupage dan - Thursday, Feb 20, 14 @ 11:32 am:
It all depends on what the definition of “call” is.
- Oswego Willy - Thursday, Feb 20, 14 @ 11:32 am:
- VictorNorth -,
I understand.
That application, the denied application had the Daughter either going to the New Trier junior high with a Chicago address, or applying for a Chicago school while NOT living in Chicago, attending New Trier junior high legally, but applying for a school and denying a child, a worthy Chicago child, a chance on morally, ethically, corrupt beliefs of what is fair, and Clouting through Democrats, career politicians, with six figure monies to follow after the Denied Daughter denies a real worthy child.
I totally get “it”.
- dupage dan - Thursday, Feb 20, 14 @ 11:33 am:
Voter to Rauner - “we want an sincere man who is honest”.
Rauner to himself - “honesty - I think I can fake that”. Epic Fail
- Norseman - Thursday, Feb 20, 14 @ 11:59 am:
Bottom line is that the Count lies as well as any other politician. He definitely qualifies as an insider.
- Jake From Elwood - Thursday, Feb 20, 14 @ 12:04 pm:
New Trier School District must just be loving all of this publicity portrayed it as an inferior school district. Man that felt really strange to even type.
- Anon - Thursday, Feb 20, 14 @ 12:23 pm:
Reminds me of the the old axiom, “Watch out for fast-talkers.” I’m not saying he’s a bad guy, but fast-talkers usually have a penchant for saying lots of things, then they have to go back and figured out what they said, and then try to conform the two. He made a lot of money as a fast-talker.
- Cassandra - Thursday, Feb 20, 14 @ 12:42 pm:
I think you can pay tuition and attend suburban schools if you live out of district. I assume that is true of CPS as well. If there were residency issues, Rauner could have paid tuition, which he certainly could afford.
- Louis G Atsaves - Thursday, Feb 20, 14 @ 12:45 pm:
So Rauner cannot trusted to be governor because he clouted his kid into a CPS magnet school?
That means Emmanuel cannot be trusted to be Chicago’s mayor because clouting kids into CPS magnet schools still happens? That means Arne Duncan cannot be trusted to be Federal Education Secretary because he was part of this but won’t admit it. This means the entire CPS Board of Education membership also cannot be trusted.
That makes all of them corrupt. And they too pretend not to be part of this corruption.
I don’t see hundreds of bills introduced in Springfield right now to reform this clout filled system that has existed for decades. To end the “discretionary” admissions. To add a few penalties including immediate job termination, fines, criminal prosecutions? That will happen when cows learn to fly!
But only Rauner gets criticized and pounded on this issue. I don’t see Duncan and the others keeping their stories straight on this issue.
Maybe Rauner has learned his lesson about dealing with and donating to Democrats after all of this. None of them have backed up his version of events nor have they rushed to his defense.
I see all of this as measuring the ability of a candidate or political person to learn something. Maybe we should be grading based on a learning curve right about now. The smartest of the bunch involved are either not talking or give non-answers.
- Oswego Willy - Thursday, Feb 20, 14 @ 12:50 pm:
- Cassandra -,
If Rauner would have, he would have said it.
He didn’t.
Bruce Rauner blames misunderstanding questions, discussions with his wife, mid-speaking to Bernie, saying he would do it “again and again and again” with no apology…
…and nothing about out of district tuition.
It’s the clout of a Denied Daughter. Insiders denying a worthy child for a child who can call the CPS CEO to run roughshod over worthy kids.
Tuition is nothing. Residency and being denied is everything.
- Soccermom - Thursday, Feb 20, 14 @ 12:59 pm:
Cassandra - you absolutely canNOT pay tuition and attend suburban schools if you live in the city (despite what our real estate agent told us when we bought our house a block away from Oak Park.) In rare cases — as in a student whose family has moved to another district in the student’s senior year of high school — the district will grudgingly allow him/her to complete the year while paying hefty tuition. But other than that, you have to live here full-time, legally, to go to school here. The District has gone after kids when their dads live here and their moms — who have primary legal custody — live elsewhere, even when the kids actually live here full time.
As I understand it, you have to petition the Board to be allowed to pay tuition. So if the Rauners did this while living in the city, there would be a public record.
- I B Strapped - Thursday, Feb 20, 14 @ 1:03 pm:
It’s his $250 large and what he does with it is his business…..up and until he decides he wants to represent all the citizens of Illinois as Governor. Then,it’s showtime and those in question need to come clean. Coming clean is of utmost importance to all Illinois citizens(with our states history I would think this obvious) because we don’t need any more corrupt people in office-we’re pretty well flush with those now!
- CollegeStudent - Thursday, Feb 20, 14 @ 1:13 pm:
===But, as they say, it won’t play well in Peoria. Need a different message there. ===
Well yeah, but that’s because folks in Peoria move to the suburbs to get a better education.
- Demoralized - Thursday, Feb 20, 14 @ 1:44 pm:
If he had simply said, “Yes, I called. I think any parent wants what’s best for their kid.” Sure, you would still have the “clout” uproar but he could have stopped this barrage of attacks that he has solicited by constantly changing his story.
- Anonymous - Thursday, Feb 20, 14 @ 2:20 pm:
=Victor, the suburbs are VERY VERY strict about residency when it comes to school attendance…=
One and only post because I agree with the others who say this isn’t as big an issue as some would like to make it–and because I really don’t like watching e.g., the Trib editorial board folks and panelists at the debates sounding frenzied as they try to make an issue of this, too.
I believe schools do issue exceptions in instances where people move and/or have multiple homes.
- Oswego Willy - Thursday, Feb 20, 14 @ 2:31 pm:
- Anonymous -,
If Rauner could have done it, he would have.
You don’t spend close to $5 million in 2 condos if you had the option for an exception. If you do, and you claim business acumen, then Rauner is a bigger Dope than ethically or morally corrupt. Embarrassing way to explain it away.
As for all this being nothing,
Don’t in one breath talk about the unethical, immoral, “Rod”, lacking personal integrity, and think Rauner has any morality, ethics, integrity, or even honesty.
You lose the argument on character if this means nothing to you.
- Titus Lucretius Carus - Thursday, Feb 20, 14 @ 4:09 pm:
A haiku for Bruce:
His daughter got sick,
New Trier not good enough;
What’s a quarter mil?
Man, was that one price case of pneumonia…
- belmont cragin - Thursday, Feb 20, 14 @ 4:32 pm:
Selective enrollment schools are different from neighborhood schools. They are not required to accept students from within any boundary. But, only residents of the city are allowed to be enrolled. Through all of this remember that this was a selective enrollment school with thousands of Chicago residents applying for a couple hundred spots. Suburban residents have their own schools. Did Rauner ever vote from Chicago?
- Arthur Andersen - Thursday, Feb 20, 14 @ 4:35 pm:
VictorNorth is definitely the most articulate Raunerbot so far. Unfortunately, he and his ilk haven’t touched the premise of this post or what Willy has been preaching for months-Rauner clouted his kid into Payton Prep and won’t come clean about it.
At this point, though, about the only thing that might slow down the Baron’s juggernaut is a Ted Nugent statewide endorsement tour.
- Just The Way It Is One - Thursday, Feb 20, 14 @ 9:02 pm:
His response to this issue is either horrible or an absolute joke. It’s baloney. He’s running from it like a speeding bullet, ‘cuz we’ve got News for Bruce: he ain’t no Superman, and if he got hit BAD by that bullet, it’s gonna hurt, not only him, but his Flip-Floppin’ Overly-Glorified, Sickeningly EXPENSIVE Campaign for Guv, which, day by day, genuinely seems to be losing CrediBILity, which ends up ALso to be a losing Campaign when a guy like him tries to play GAMES with the Illinois Public/Voters.
Contrary to his pathetic approach to this OBviously horrendous issue for him, it ain’t gonna work, and BY not coming clean and having the auDACity to actually beLIEVE he can get AWAY with such Garbage in Illinois, Mr. “I’m gonna CLEAN-UP SPRINGfield– using his best John Wayne Voice-over Impression–WILL ultimatelypay the price in a LOT of lost votes over it, inevitably leading to his ultimate Defeat in November….