“A parent’s worst nightmare”
Tuesday, Aug 5, 2014 - Posted by Rich Miller
* Rat droppings and roaches found in an opponent’s daycare center? No background checks for staff? Open electrical outlets? Wet and soiled bedding for infants and toddlers?
Oof.
It’s not the most professionally made, but it is surely the hardest-hitting YouTube campaign video I’ve seen since the primary. And it’s from the Madison County Treasurer’s race. Watch it…
If they can improve the production and get that on cable, it’ll be a killer spot.
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Question of the day
Tuesday, Aug 5, 2014 - Posted by Rich Miller
* Gov. Quinn, speaking about Bruce Rauner, et al…
* The Question: Is the governor becoming desperate by attacking his opponent’s patriotism or should he continue with this line of assault? Take the poll and then explain your answer in comments, please.
survey solutions
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Feeling a bit peevish today
Tuesday, Aug 5, 2014 - Posted by Rich Miller
* Umm…
The time stamp on Sirota’s story is August 4th at 3:11 pm The time stamp on my own story about the video is August 4th at 11:30 am.
“Scoop” means you have something “first.” I wasn’t first because it was the IFT’s video that the union was promoting, but I was surely ahead of that guy.
* Let’s move along. Here was Rauner’s quote as a refresher…
“I apologize. We may have to go through rough times. We may have to do what Ronald Reagan did with the air traffic controllers. Sort of have to do a do-over and shut things down for a little while. That’s what we’re gonna do.”
* Now, on to the CNN story…
Critics are pouncing on remarks Bruce Rauner, the Republican nominee for governor in Illinois, made to supporters earlier this year that a government shutdown was an option to help the state deal with its financial troubles. […]
In response to the outcry, Rauner’s campaign said their candidate “has put forth a detailed plan for reviving Illinois, and shutting down state government is not among those plans.”
“But if the choice is between that and four more years of failed leadership, higher taxes, and high unemployment from Quinn and Madigan, a whole lot of Illinoisans might think less government is a pretty good idea,” spokesman Mike Schrimpf told CNN.
So, it’s not actually in the written plans that the campaign has already released, but they could still do it. And “less government” is equated with actually shutting down government? He basically said nothing, which I assume means the idea is still viable.
* Back to Sirota…
Follow the link and you get this…
Another video has surfaced today showing Rauner making a similar comment in a March 2013 speech to Illinois Republicans. In that video, Rauner says: “I may have to take a strike and shut down the government for a few weeks and kinda redo everybody’s contract. That’s a possibility…I will do it proudly.”
The video didn’t “surface” yesterday. I posted it to YouTube on March 19th last year.
If you’re gonna write about Illinois, dude, learn a little about Illinois first.
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Today’s best comment
Tuesday, Aug 5, 2014 - Posted by Rich Miller
* VanillaMan…
I’m tired of reading comments from bloggers who believe if voters don’t agree with them, it means they are low information, ignorant people.
If you want people to agree with you, if you are tired of the partisan bickering and really want government to work for all - you have to respect people.
You cannot support democracy and badmouth voters. You cannot have democracy without them.
If you can only explain your candidate’s losses by claiming voters are not smart enough to understand the issues, where the candidates stand, or that they can be fooled, bought off, they are lazy or corrupted - then you suck as a political observer. Candidates lose because they didn’t convince enough citizens to support them on an election day.
If you don’t believe in voters and election day, then you should move to a place where other people like you don’t believe in voters and election day - there are plenty of hell on Earths that will welcome your opinion with open arms and agree with you.
We’re getting more and more of this sort of crud in comments as the election nears (on both sides, actually) and it’s really been bothering me. VMan captured my feelings exactly.
I would only add that too often this loaded “low information voters” phrase is used as racial code - against poor blacks or, to a lesser extent, poor whites. Enough, already.
Deletions will commence immediately. Banishments will be next.
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Rothenberg tips race slightly to Rauner
Tuesday, Aug 5, 2014 - Posted by Rich Miller
* From Stu Rothenberger’s outfit…
Democrats’ best strategy appears to be to turn GOP nominee Bruce Rauner, a wealthy businessman, into “Mitt Romney on steroids.” It could work, but to call this race a tossup right now would be understating Quinn’s standing in the race.
We’re changing the Rothenberg Political Report/Roll Call rating of the race from pure Tossup to Tossup/Tilts Republican, giving the GOP a narrow advantage to capture the state in November.
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Nybo back in the GA
Tuesday, Aug 5, 2014 - Posted by Rich Miller
* No surprise…
Republican Chris Nybo was appointed Monday to fill a state Senate seat he unsuccessfully sought two years ago.
Nybo will replace Sen. Kirk Dillard, who resigned Sunday in order to accept his appointment as chairman of the RTA. […]
Nybo had challenged Dillard two years ago for the seat, but Dillard easily defeated him. Dillard did not seek re-election this year, choosing instead to run for governor, where he lost to Bruce Rauner in the primary. Nybo defeated state Rep. Chris Reboletti in the March primary.
“It is an honor to be succeeding Sen. Dillard. Though no one can fill his shoes, he leaves a legislative legacy to be admired and emulated,” Nybo said in a statement. “I will do my best to make the transition from this respected senator as seamless as possible.”
Shall we welcome Nybo back to the General Assembly with a caption contest?…
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Swings and misses?
Tuesday, Aug 5, 2014 - Posted by Rich Miller
* From the union-backed Illinois Freedom PAC…
Less than 2 in 10 senior level positions at Rauner’s firm are held by women. Someone who can’t see talent among women and minorities is a poor choice to the run a state as well as a business
GTCR Is 70% Male: There Are Only 25 Female Employees At GTCR Out Of The 82 Total Employees. [gtcr.com]
Almost 90% Of GTRC Male Employees Are Mid-Level Or Senior Level But Only 36% Of Female Employees At GTCR Are Mid-Level Or Senior Level. [gtcr.com]
Only 14% Of Senior Level Positions At GTCR Are Held By Women. [gtcr.com]
Only 15% Of The Combined Senior And Mid-Level Positions At GTCR Are Held By Women. [gtcr.com]
Women Hold 73% Of The Entry-Level/Administrative Positions At GTCR. [gtcr.com]
Ah, the ole war on women thing. There is a problem, though. From a March, 2014 report by Preqin…
The average proportion of senior positions held by women in North America- and Europe-based private equity firms is 11.0% and 9.7% respectively. North America saw a rise from 2013 when women held 10.3% of senior roles
So, Rauner’s firm employs women in senior level capacities at a higher than average rate.
* The campaign dispatched running mate Evelyn Sanguinetti…
“Unfortunately, females have long been underrepresented in private equity and Bruce certainly would have liked to see GTCR hire more females, but GTCR does exceed national averages for the industry.”
* Meanwhile, from the Windy City Times…
Equality Illinois and other LGBT organizations announced Aug. 4 that during Market Days they would be continuing their effort to call attention to what they call GOP gubernatorial candidate Bruce Rauner’s anti-gay activities and social conservative agenda.
Among the efforts planned for the two-day festival, which takes place on Halsted Street Aug. 9-10, are flyers, voter registration booths and a new social media campaign, according to a statement.
Equality organizations and activists say that Rauner, who has claimed not to be running on a socially conservative agenda, has contributed to anti-gay candidates, as his wife, Diana. The Market Days flyers, made up to look like voided marriage certificates, point to $95,400 in contributions the Rauners gave to anti-LGBT candidates. Among those candidates the organizations named are John D. Anthony, Sheri Jesiel, Liz Doody Gorman, Jim Durkin, Christine Radogno, Joe Sosnowski, Mark Batinick, Keith Wheeler, Heidi Holan, Neil Anderson and Margo McDermed.
Street teams will also be calling attention to Rauner’s running mate Evelyn Sanguenitti and his association with the DeVos family, who have been major funders of anti-marriage equality activities and donated $13,000 to his campaign, the statement said.
* The voided marriage certificate…
The rest of the flier…
Everyone who truly thinks that Bruce Rauner will actually void gay marriage licenses, please raise you hand.
But, hey, it’s politics and Rauner won’t come out and actually say he’d protect gay marriage rights, so he probably deserves the hit.
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* This is pretty big news. From a press release…
The Illinois Education Association’s political action committee, IPACE, the Illinois Political Action Committee for Education, and the National Education Association’s political action committee, the NEA Fund for Children and Public Education, today endorsed the reelection of United States Representative Rodney Davis.
“Congressman Rodney Davis has the right values and vision to continue to speak up in Congress for educators and students,” said Cinda Klickna, president of the Illinois Education Association. “As a lawmaker who puts Illinoisans first, he understands the pressing issues facing our schools. He knows the important role education plays in preparing students for the jobs of tomorrow so that America can compete in the global marketplace. We look forward to continuing to work with Rep. Davis in Washington.”
“Representative Rodney Davis shares our values and the values of the working families of Illinois’ 13th Congressional District,” said NEA President Dennis Van Roekel. “A proud product of Illinois’ public schools, he is a relentless advocate for students and educators and understands that the road to economic prosperity and security starts in our nation’s public schools. He’s a champion of working families, and if reelected, he will continue to work hard to make our economy work for all of us. That’s why we are proud to endorse Rep. Davis’ reelection to Congress.”
That’s a big blow to Democrat Ann Callis’ campaign. Big.
…Adding… Callis was previous endorsed by the IFT.
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Connecting some ranch dots
Tuesday, Aug 5, 2014 - Posted by Rich Miller
* A November 26, 2013 Tribune report on Bruce Rauner’s ranch on the Wyoming-Montana border…
Some of the Western sites are working farms, his campaign has said, where Rauner grows barley for a beer producer along with other crops. Rauner has dismissed some of the Western properties as little more than double-wides and old cabins.
“They’re falling down,” he told the Tribune. “It’s a good place to burn a steak and have a beer.”
* From today’s Tribune…
Sitting between two snowcapped mountain ranges, with the Yellowstone River running through wide expanses of ranchland, Bruce Rauner’s spread in Montana lies in the middle of one of the most awe-inspiring spots in the American West.
While the Republican nominee for governor owns opulent properties in several locations across the country — from the Florida Keys to Manhattan — it is the tens of thousands of acres he owns in southern Montana and northern Wyoming that most sharply define his persona as a savvy investor who knows his way around bird guns and fly tackle.
Land records show that Rauner owns land in five Montana counties and in northern Wyoming, totaling about 23,000 acres. But friends and acquaintances say he spends most of his time on the property he has assembled south of Livingston, in an area called Paradise Valley at the northern entrance to Yellowstone National Park.
His 6,000-square-foot home on the banks of the Yellowstone River, widely regarded as one of the greatest trout-fishing rivers in the world, is a showpiece property where he has entertained Mayor Rahm Emanuel and other friends from Chicago.
Yep, burn a steak and have a beer amidst falling down rubble. The very definition of roughing it, in a gorgeous, 6,000 square foot ranch mansion.
* From a November 25, 2013 Tribune story…
[Rauner’s house] has five bedrooms and four baths and is currently valued by the Park County, Mont., assessor at $2.2 million.
The front gate to the shack…
* Ah, but there’s much more to this ranch topic. From a July 02, 2014 Tribune story…
Rauner’s tax returns report a payment of $15,777 of self-employment tax in 2012 but no payments in 2010 or 2011. He said he and his wife didn’t owe the tax in those two years because it is applied to only certain types of income — in his case the category that showed multimillion-dollar losses in regular business income. […]
Asked to explain those losses, Rauner said he couldn’t recall details but speculated that a portion was likely connected with large ranching operations he owns in Montana and Wyoming. “Some of it’s farm and ranch income or losses,” he said. “That goes up and down year to year. Some of it’s operating losses from other investments that I have made.”
That shack pays some real dividends. Burn a steak, drink a beer, cut your tax payments.
* From today’s Sun-Times…
Republican gubernatorial candidate Bruce Rauner has headed to his opulent, 6,000-square-foot, $2.2 million ranch in Montana, where he will spend time away from the stump in Illinois.
The news comes after Rauner has faced questions about investments he holds in the Cayman Islands, following a Sunday Sun-Times story revealing the investments. That disclosure reignited calls for the multi-millionaire to release his 2013 tax records. Rauner has filed for an extension and his campaign said he would release them by October 15.
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* “It’s Time”…
Script…
The 2nd highest property taxes in America. And Pat Quinn wants to make his 67% income tax increase permanent. Pat Quinn he just doesn’t get it. Bruce Rauner has a plan to grow jobs not taxes. Repeal all the Quinn-Madigan tax increase. Stop corporate welfare giveaways. Freeze runaway property taxes and require voter approval to raise them. It’s time to turn Illinois around. Bruce Rauner, shake up Springfield bring back Illinois.
* “Ever”…
Script…
BRUCE RAUNER: Pat Quinn raised taxes on everyone. Took about one full week’s pay from each middle class family every year. Now he wants to make it permeant. My plan will repeal the Quinn-Madigan tax, and get rid of corporate welfare, and no taxes on social security ever.
AD: Bruce Rauner
BRUCE RAUNER: I’ll freeze runaway property taxes. No more property tax increases without voter approval period.
AD: Shake up Springfield bring back Illinois
*** UPDATE *** From the Quinn campaign…
MISLEADING AD CLAIM: Bruce Rauner says he wants to let the income tax increase expire in January.
FACT: Here is a real headline from the Chicago Tribune: “Rauner opens door to higher income tax rate.” Rauner expressed openness to raising the income tax rate this year.
MISLEADING AD CLAIM: Rauner is suddenly opposed to taxing Social Security.
FACT: Bruce Rauner has said he is open to taxing retirement income earlier this year and to this day has not ruled it out. During a GOP primary debate on WTTW, Rauner said he wouldn’t rule out taxing retirement income, according to the Chicago Tribune. Rauner said he would consider every tax before making a judgement. Other GOP candidates immediately ruled out the tax. But not Rauner. [VIDEO - at 00:32:20]
(This is not to mention the fact that he himself used exotic accounting methods to avoid paying Social Security and Medicare tax.)
MISLEADING AD CLAIM: Bruce Rauner SAYS he wants to freeze property taxes.
FACT: First, the Governor does not have the power to freeze or raise local property taxes. Second, Rauner has proposed blowing an $8 billion hole in the budget that would decimate funding for public schools, which would leave local governments with NO CHOICE but to raise property taxes to protect funding for schools. The best way to reduce property taxes is by properly funding education. That’s why Governor Quinn has proposed viable property tax relief for homeowners in addition to properly funding schools to reform the system and reduce the burden on property taxpayers.
MISLEADING AD CLAIM: Bruce Rauner is now opposed to corporate welfare.
FACT: Rauner has benefited to the tune of hundreds of millions of dollars over the years from corporate welfare. A mere few examples include, PrivateBancorp, which received $244 million in federal bailout money and Zenta Inc., which received $8.5 million in corporate welfare from the State of North Carolina. Governor Quinn by contrast has proposed closing corporate tax loopholes that Rauner has been jumping through to give himself hundreds of thousands of dollars for his own financial benefit.
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Today’s number: 51 percent
Tuesday, Aug 5, 2014 - Posted by Rich Miller
* Sun-Times…
How much worse could things get for Congress? Not only do Americans say the best way to fix Congress is to fire everyone (but it rarely happens), a new poll reveals just how fed up voters are with Congress. Specifically, they’re pointing the finger directly at their own member like never before.
The Washington Post-ABC poll shows that 51 percent of voters disapprove of their own member of Congress. In the quarter-century that the Post-ABC has been asking the question, this is the first time it’s ever eclipsed the 50-percent mark. Only 41 percent approve of their own member.
That poll is here.
* But…
A recent Pew poll, for instance, showed 69 percent of people wanted to unseat most members of Congress, but just 36 percent said the same of their own member.
Even so, that 36 percent is significantly higher than the 29 percent who said the same about their own members in 1994 and two points above the rate in 2010.
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* Carol Marin writes about Rep. LaShawn Ford…
In the Great Recession, the Obama Justice Department has sent no Big Bankers to jail for the billions they plundered, but it went after a lone black state representative for 17 counts of felony bank fraud? The charge: improperly using a $1.5 million line of credit from ShoreBank in his struggling real estate business, with some of the money going to pay personal debts.
Amazingly, not a single soul from ShoreBank responsible for lending Ford the money, nor a single other customer — many white — was charged with making bad loans or defaulting on loans.
Only La Shawn Ford was bagged by the government. What set him apart? He was an elected official, though the charges had nothing to do with his performance in office.
* I’m excerpting too much for Fair Use, but whatever. More…
First elected in 2006, Ford went up against the regular Democrats who endorsed the incumbent hack, Calvin Giles. It took Ford three tries, but he finally won.
The Machine was stunned.
Life has always been against the odds for La Shawn Ford. The son of a drug-addicted mother, he was raised by his grandmother and sent to Catholic schools. And then to the seminary.
Ultimately, his path took him to teaching and business. And politics.
At his 2012 arraignment in federal court, the lobby of the Dirksen Federal Building filled with people from his neighborhood. Unlike when fellow state Rep. Derrick Smith was indicted on bribery charges, there was an outpouring on behalf of Ford that is seldom seen in the granite courthouse.
* Sun-Times…
The surprise plea deal on Monday comes less than two months after Durkin in June accused prosecutors of unfairly targeting Ford because he is a black elected official — a charge they angrily rejected.
But evidence from a separate civil case showed that white defendants who engaged in identical behavior to Ford’s at ShoreBank were not criminally charged, Durkin argued in court papers at the time.
“There is no doubt that Defendant’s status as an African-American elected state public official drives this case,” Durkin wrote. “As counsel have argued in detail, but for his status as an African-American elected state public official, Defendant would not have been indicted.”
Though Pallmeyer refused to throw out the case on those grounds, it’s an argument that could have caused a political problem for prosecutors at trial.
Subscribers know more about that motion.
* Tribune…
Under federal sentencing guidelines, Ford could be sentenced to up to 6 months in prison, but probation is the most likely outcome in part because he is first-time offender.
In pleading guilty to the misdemeanor, Ford admitted that in his 2007 tax return he over-reported what he spent to rehab a single-family house in Chicago’s Austin neighborhood, reducing his capital gain from the sale of the home. The deception cost the Internal Revenue Service a tax loss of $3,782, according to the plea deal.
Keep in mind that those original 17 felony counts carried a maximum total penalty of 510 years in prison and $17 million in fines. But he probably won’t do any time now and just pay four grand or so to the government.
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Today’s quotable
Tuesday, Aug 5, 2014 - Posted by Rich Miller
* David Ormsby…
On Friday, Governor Pat Quinn reappointed most members of the Budgeting for Results Commission for one-year terms ending on July 31, 2015, including Lt. Gov. Sheila Simon whose relationship with Quinn has cooled on its slow descent into Hell.
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*** UPDATE *** From Rauner campaign spokesman Mike Schrimpf…
When Bruce spoke with the Tribune, he said he wasn’t aware of GTCR Funds in the Caymans - that’s because all of their main funds are indeed based in the U.S. Nonetheless, the campaign followed up twice with the Tribune making that same point and offering to help determine what the discrepancy was. They never followed up on it, despite repeated inquiries.
So, apparently, the Trib reporters were asking about Cayman Islands investments and yet didn’t circle back to hear the Rauner explanation for any discrepancies between the original comment and what the Tribune supposedly found.
If true, then this could very well be a “gotcha” story.
[ *** End Of Update *** ]
* Oops…
During a June interview, the Tribune asked Rauner about the SEC documents that listed GTCR’s Cayman investments. “I don’t think that’s true,” Rauner said at the time. “No GTCR fund that I’m aware of has its base in the Cayman Islands.”
On Sunday, however, Rauner offered a different answer when asked about the firm’s Cayman investments: “GTCR has its own structure for just a couple of investments. When they invest in overseas companies, they set up that particular structure.”
* From the Quinn campaign…
This is not the first time that Rauner has changed his story after being confronted with evidence to the contrary. Earlier this year, Rauner denied using clout and making a call to the then-head of Chicago Public Schools to get special treatment at the exclusive Walter Payton Prep High School. After Rauner changed his story several times, the outgoing Inspector General of CPS confirmed last month that special treatment is exactly what Rauner got.
In addition, Rauner is running television attack ads that feature false headlines that his campaign either made up or doctored.
* But let’s get back to the Tribune article…
The GTCR Cayman investments appear to be in financial instruments typically referred to as blocker funds or alternative investment vehicles that are legally walled off for tax purposes from related investments based in the United States. The arrangement helps non-profit institutional investors avoid taxes.
But experts say it typically provides no tax advantage for individual American investors like Rauner, who are required by U.S. law to pay taxes on all income earned worldwide.
“It’s a common structure that in my view is not abusive in the way that people might think when they see the name Cayman Islands,” explained Victor Fleischer, a professor who teaches tax law at the University of San Diego and has written extensively about tax avoidance strategies.
Even so, the New York Times reported in 2012 that Romney, who publicly released two years worth of complete tax returns during his presidential run, may have used offshore investments to avoid some special taxes in a different way. The newspaper said it involved debt financing that could have been levied against Romney’s normally tax exempt Individual Retirement Account.
We’d know a lot more if Rauner would do as Romney did and release all of his tax forms - which is probably exactly why he’s refusing to do so.
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