46 Comments - Norseman - Friday, Feb 20, 15 @ 1:06 pm: Well said Congressman. - old-pol - Friday, Feb 20, 15 @ 1:09 pm: Rodney - I think we have a “problem” Signed $20m - 47th Ward - Friday, Feb 20, 15 @ 1:09 pm: I thought Rauner felt liberated by the inauguration to finally say what he really believed about unions. If that’s true, it’s too late to walk it back now. Or maybe the union-bashing was all a part of the plan to make Rahm look like Mother Jones by comparison. Maybe Kass was right all along. Maybe there is a bi-partisan combine and we’re all a bunch of chumbalones. No, the simplest answer is Rauner hates unions. He might tone it down if he’s learned anything about politics, but unless we all develop amnesia, the damage is done. - Nearly Normal - Friday, Feb 20, 15 @ 1:11 pm: I was part of the group who interviewed Davis for the IEA recommendation process. He was very open about working with IEA on education issues. Not everyone present wanted him to get the recommendation. There were enough present who felt it is time to work with Republicans knowing there would not always be total agreement. Glad to see him be open about getting the parties together including unions. - alas - Friday, Feb 20, 15 @ 1:11 pm: Really - who cares what he says now? Already know what he thinks and plans - if somehow we didn’t know before. - Oswego Willy - Friday, Feb 20, 15 @ 1:12 pm: Good observation, great post, Rich. ===Well, every significant legislative roll call is like an election. You need 60 votes in the House and 30 in the Senate to win. So, why needlessly push people away when you know you have to get some big things done?=== Ball Game. Said it since Jump Street; The LLs and the Press Shop - absolutely critical for Rauner’s Crew. Critical. Not hyperbole. It comes down to 30, it comes down to 60. The LLs and Press Shop need to get that through the Principle’s head. To the Post, Rep. Davis, good on you for saying what needs to be said, but say it publicly, and visually too. I miss Comptroller Topinka. These are times we as a state, and when My Party, when we all, miss her most. ===Judy Baar Topinka would’ve kicked Rauner’s behind for all of his over the top union bashing.=== “Who” will be smart enough to follow Rep. Davis’ lead, as he tries to carry the baton? Any Owls wanna try? - Pot calling kettle - Friday, Feb 20, 15 @ 1:13 pm: Sorry, but I don’t care what Cong. Davis tweets. I’m more interested to know if he called the Gov. and had a chat about this. Tweets are pablum for the masses. - Rich Miller - Friday, Feb 20, 15 @ 1:17 pm: Pot, every journey begins with a first step. Take a breath and exhale some hate. - Tree Stand - Friday, Feb 20, 15 @ 1:18 pm: There’s plenty of blame to go around, but is anyone here willing to admit that unions have been part of the problem in Illinois? A too-cozy relationship with leaders over the years have gotten the balance out of whack. Let’s not just call for everyone to sing the same song and think it will change anything. - Frenchie Mendoza - Friday, Feb 20, 15 @ 1:20 pm: I suspect Rauner felt like he compromised enough to win the election. He went dark on unions because he knew he couldn’t win with flames flying high. My guess is that that was his compromise — the silence. More than once I watched him stop himself when he knew his speech would end up on YouTube. I also think Rauner is far more transparent than he thinks. He’s not an intellectual. He’s not particularly curious about stuff he doesn’t already know about. He’s simple to figure out: he hates unions. He hates the power they have. He hates the way they limit management’s flexibility. He hates the concessions they’ve won. He doesn’t understand — because he refuses to believe — that union members are taxpayers. They have families. They have kids. It’s strange. For someone spending so much time downstate — Quincy, Galesburg (especially Galesburg) — you’d think he’d get a clue and understand that unions — and union labor — make (or, in the case of Galesburg, made) these cities what they are today. Good and bad. - Rich Miller - Friday, Feb 20, 15 @ 1:21 pm: ===Let’s not just call for everyone to sing the same song=== Who says that? The idea is to tone it down, not sing the same song. Don’t read things that aren’t written. - Wading in - Friday, Feb 20, 15 @ 1:21 pm: Ever watch the television series “Intervention” and get an uncomfortable feeling when you’re not sure the intervention was going to end well? - Arsenal - Friday, Feb 20, 15 @ 1:24 pm: ” A too-cozy relationship with leaders ” Yeah, AFSCME and PQ were just two peas in a pod, weren’t they? - Ginhouse Tommy - Friday, Feb 20, 15 @ 1:26 pm: 47th Ward I think you nailed it. He needs to chill out and tone it down. He declared war and figured on total victory and the end of union influence. Big mistake. A more subtle approach was needed. It’s way too late now. Everybody might think that this is the with every problem he has. Damage done. - slow down - Friday, Feb 20, 15 @ 1:31 pm: Thank you Arsenal. The idea that Gov Quinn was too cozy with the likes of AFSCME is absurd. - Mokenavince - Friday, Feb 20, 15 @ 1:31 pm: If nothing else Rauner has stirred things up. We are only in round one. He may be feeling things out. Testing the water. Next of course he maybe eating a little crow. Now is not the time to start fighting. Madigan is a tough advisory. - Frenchie Mendoza - Friday, Feb 20, 15 @ 1:33 pm: The other issue that mystifies me — and I know this only from my own dealings in various workplaces — is that the more strident you are about anything — work environments, work hours — the more strident the opposition. This works if you want to sit in meetings and deadlock for hours on end. But in terms of reaching a compromise, it never works. The stridency is always echoed by the opposite side. Obviously, I don’t know how it applies to state politics. But it reminds me of a quest to find a recoilless gun: the idea that if the bullet goes forward, something has to go backward. It’s physics. There’s a dude that realized that if you balanced a backward explosion with a forward explosion, you’d nullify the recoil. But you also blow the gun up in the process. (Or at least a prototype.) I wonder if that’s what’s at work here — rhetorical physics and the realities of balance. - Qui Tam - Friday, Feb 20, 15 @ 1:39 pm: ” A too-cozy relationship with leaders ” Who do you mean by “leaders”? Do you define “too-cozy” when Quinn was surrounded by union members at the 2012 State Fair? Lisa Madigan, Rod Blagojevich, Mike Madigan etc., and Pat Quinn have all aggressively litigated, demonized, and legislated against the state workforce, including union employees. Examples go back to the beginning of this century. - Apocalypse Now - Friday, Feb 20, 15 @ 1:46 pm: Smart politics by Davis. Doesn’t directly bash Rauner, while saying he wants to work with unions. Nice public moderate position Let’s see, if any other of the Republican congressmen jump on this bandwagon.n. - Steve - Friday, Feb 20, 15 @ 1:46 pm: Illinois is in deep financial trouble. Bruce Rauner might not get what he wants but… he does represent a certain point of view of many voters. Yes, Mike Madigan controls the legislature but if Illinois is to gain jobs in the future, the General Assembly will have to represent more than union members who are a special interest group. If nothing is reformed , it will be much harder for Illinois to issue debt. - Now What? - Friday, Feb 20, 15 @ 1:53 pm: Too cozy? So tired of hearing this worthless, meritless statement. What data do you have, Tree, to hold your accusation together? Want to assess a “too close” relationship? Take a look at the contributions made by Ken Griffin, Sam Uhlein, and even Bruce Rauner over the years and compare them to the cozy union contributions. Take the money out of politics and maybe we can have a real conversation. - efudd - Friday, Feb 20, 15 @ 1:53 pm: As a rule, people who truly believe they are always the smartest person in the room ignore advice, regardless of how credible the person offering it is. - efudd - Friday, Feb 20, 15 @ 1:55 pm: Steve, if you think Madigan has been “representing” AFSCME members in the GA you are new here. - Ahoy! - Friday, Feb 20, 15 @ 1:56 pm: I get not rolling over for the unions like past governors have done, but he has lost site of his mission to fix the budget and make Illinois more competitive, his rhetoric is making those two things harder. He’s a smart, results oriented kind of guy, the big question now is if he’s humble enough to know that he needs to change course get the results. - Wordslinger - Friday, Feb 20, 15 @ 2:00 pm: Steve, you’re making a lot of crazy connections there. How did you choose to end up on issuing debt? Anyway, if there was a plan to Rauner’s rhetoric beyond his desire to express his contempt for a large portion of the citizenry, I think it was to raise his personal profile nationally and to throw some red meat to some of his big donors. I’ve always thought Rauner’s main motivation was to enjoy the status that comes with being governor. It’s something the other boys in the club don’t have. His rhetoric has got him some big sloppy kisses from the WSJ edit board, which is probably a good thing on the planet Plutocracy. - forwhatitsworth - Friday, Feb 20, 15 @ 2:03 pm: = There’s plenty of blame to go around, but is anyone here willing to admit that unions have been part of the problem in Illinois? A too-cozy relationship with leaders over the years have gotten the balance out of whack. = Part of the problem? Out of whack? The last hope that the middle class has lies with the unions. Why are so many people afraid to talk about the imbalance that has been created by the corporate pocket-stuffers and their lobbyists? http://www.nytimes.com/2015/02/19/opinion/nicholas-kristof-the-cost-of-a-decline-in-unions.html?_r=3 - VanillaMan - Friday, Feb 20, 15 @ 2:18 pm: Davis has proved to be a smart politician. This is what a smart GOP politician says about Governor Rauner. There you go. Confirmation that the smart political money isn’t on Bruce and his union perseverations. The smart political money is running against his POV. - A Jack - Friday, Feb 20, 15 @ 2:27 pm: Did anyone notice in the Gallup well-being poll that came out yesterday that right-to-work state Indiana was well below Illinois? Illinois is 36, while Indiana is near the bottom. Illinois is scoring pretty low on ‘Community’ which I doubt the Rauner budget will fix. But perhaps he is focusing on the wrong reasons on why people are leaving the state. - Pelonski - Friday, Feb 20, 15 @ 2:38 pm: People who think the unions are in a cozy relationship with the political leaders are either ignorant or delusional. If the relationship is so cozy, why did the political leaders pass legislation to reduce pension benefits by billions of dollars? Why is the state going to court in attempt to avoid paying contractually obligated wages to union members? Why did it take 15 months to negotiate the last union contract? The unions have had good relationships with some politicians and bad relationships with other politicians. The same can be said for every other constituency from manufacturers and wealthy individuals to minimum wage earners and the disabled. The unions have benefited from the fact that state government can’t say no about the same as all of these other groups. To try to put a disproportionate amount of blame on the unions is not only wrong, it is counterproductive to developing reasonable solutions. - Oswego Willy - Friday, Feb 20, 15 @ 2:57 pm: An additional thought; Bruce Rauner needs to realize pretty quick. Governing is a “We” thing, and its not the “Royal We”. All the talkibg about wanting to work together is very hollow when trying to rally the GA after failing in groups like the Unions, for no real End Game to the rhetoric. “We”. If not “We”, it’s going to get real lonely, and not much of any agenda is going to get done. - Juvenal - Friday, Feb 20, 15 @ 3:05 pm: And I would imagine Rodney has more higher ed employees in his district than just about any other Republican in the nation. I suspect he and Rauner have quite a few bones to pick. - truthteller - Friday, Feb 20, 15 @ 3:08 pm: Not only do they not have a cozy relationship with political leaders, but they are not overly compensated either. Who says it’s better to follow the corporate model where the CEO makes 300x the average worker? Who says politicians should raid public pension funds the way corporate America ripped off its employees? We have an economy out of whack. Private sector workers are suffering because Wall St. And corporate America are keeping all the income growth for themselves, not because teachers and state employees are overpaid. - walker - Friday, Feb 20, 15 @ 3:11 pm: Rauner should not have started his reign with the “Right To Work” grenade tossed directly at unions. That was a mistake, if his goal is to get anything solid done with the GA on the budget. Even if he always believed in attacking unions, the timing was wrong for Illinois. Perhaps for national right wing funders, it is required for future higher office — but he still was premature. With Gooner on this. He won’t be putting that genie back in the bottle at this point. - foster brooks - Friday, Feb 20, 15 @ 3:25 pm: with scott walker poised to make Wisconsin a right to work state next week look for rauner to turn the heat up on unions. - Buzzie - Friday, Feb 20, 15 @ 3:38 pm: The minute Quinn supported SB1 his chances for re-election basically disappeared. It wasn’t that the labor vote shifted to Rauner, the labor vote just stayed home and skipped the election. The post-election mistake by the Rauner supporters was that it was a pro-Republican victory; but if that is true why didn’t they gain seats in the legislature? The labor vote will not stay home at the next election—the Democrats know it and so do many of those sitting Republicans who will be up for re-election in districts where they will need labor votes. At that time the elections will not be Republican vs Democrat, but Republican vs Republican in primaries; Rauner’s $20M vs those Republican candidates who will need labor’s support. Rauner’s anti-union stance weakens his abilities while it strengthens Madigan and Cullerton. - Ginhouse Tommy - Friday, Feb 20, 15 @ 3:43 pm: Foster Scott Walker, Gov. Bruce and the rest of conservatives have got to realize that Ill. Is not Wisc. or Ind. Chicago and the collar counties have a combined population of over 7 millions people. Wisc. and Indiana don’t have anything that compares to that. Chicago also has a strong union base in it’s work force. I don’t think they will like other union bros. being abused. This is a fight he shouldn’t started. - forwhatitsworth - Friday, Feb 20, 15 @ 4:25 pm: Joseph Stiglitz notes in his book “The Price of Inequality” that when unions were strong in America, productivity and real hourly compensation moved together in manufacturing. But after 1980 (and especially after 2000) the link seemed to break and real wages stagnated. It may be that as unions weakened, executives sometimes grabbed the gains from productivity. Perhaps that helps explain why chief executives at big companies earned, on average, 20 times as much as the typical worker in 1965, and 296 times as much in 2013, according to the Economic Policy Institute. - Georg Sande - Friday, Feb 20, 15 @ 4:34 pm: Congressman Davis can say what he wants and is certainly entitled to his own view of things, but he’s without any influence in this instance. Davis is not the Governor. And just because this blog is littered with union toadies, that doesn’t make Davis smart or right on this issue … just in concert with the get-along/go-along gang that’s threatened by this Governor. #GameChanger - Oswego Willy - Friday, Feb 20, 15 @ 4:38 pm: - Georg Sande -, Sounds swell until you need 60 or 30 votes… “union toadies”? How about understanding the goal is addition, not subtraction. The only one issuing threats, is Rauner. Ask around. Dope. - Georg Sande - Friday, Feb 20, 15 @ 4:46 pm: O.W., there will be 60 and 30 votes aplenty this session; and on big votes. Sit back and watch because prognostication clearly ain’t your thing. - Oswego Willy - Friday, Feb 20, 15 @ 4:57 pm: - Georg Sande -, The way that budget is now, I don’t think Rauner could pass it… I think, no, I know, that’s the point. - How Ironic - Friday, Feb 20, 15 @ 5:17 pm: @Georg Sande “O.W., there will be 60 and 30 votes aplenty this session; and on big votes. Sit back and watch because prognostication clearly ain’t your thing.” Do tell wise sage, Mr. Georg Sande. You’re aware that Rauner can’t use GOP votes from WI, or IN in Illinois right? What Dem’s are just dying to vote for Rauners scorched earth budget as it currently stands? It appears the drinkin’ has begun at your house early today. Hope you’re doing ok tomorrow. - Georg Sande - Friday, Feb 20, 15 @ 5:20 pm: O.W. you missed your calling– comedy. Anyway, the real point is, what the Governor gave the other day was a budget address, not a budget. A budget will come in the form of multiple bills and yes, there will be 60 and 30 votes when the time is right. Which ain’t now … another “point” that is lost on you. - Oswego Willy - Friday, Feb 20, 15 @ 5:32 pm: ===O.W. you missed your calling– comedy.=== How do you know? ===Anyway, the real point is, what the Governor gave the other day was a budget address, not a budget.=== Hit the search key; he rolled out a budget, it was in all the papers, there’s even a link! ===A budget will come in the form of multiple bills and yes, there will be 60 and 30 votes when the time is right. Which ain’t now … another “point” that is lost on you.=== Hmm… QOTD, budget address; - Oswego Willy - …February 18.., So many words that said so little in explaining what this budget is going to look like. I’m going to reserve my detailed critique, for when I get a detailed budget that is up for discussion. Here is what happened. Today; Governor Rauner gave just enough information to conclude… we don’t exactly know…what his budget will exactly…be. That’s it. It’s bad as much as it is “good”. It’s honest as much as its hidden. It’s a roadmap as much as we don’t know where we end up. That’s what happened today. I’ll wait to see what we’re going to be discussing come May, but for today; “This won’t be popular, but you can’t dislike what exactly you haven’t seen”. Then there’s that pesky Constitution… Lots of work to be done by all… …but the preposin’, that’s on the Governor right now. I’ll speak for me, thank you. You. Are. A. Dope. - nixit71 - Monday, Feb 23, 15 @ 10:21 am: What message is sent by taking a picture w/ Clickna? That you side with organizations like the IEA and IFT that offload their 6-figure executive pensions, Clickna’s included, onto the backs on the common taxpayers? Taking a picture with a wealthy executive who is essentially using the same corporate loopholes derided by those very unions? I could think of better political moves. https://citizenvsmachine.wordpress.com/2015/02/03/pension-busters-playbook-union-executive-bootleg/ - tim42358 - Tuesday, Feb 24, 15 @ 6:54 am: Unions have their place. But they have become too prevalent in middle management in the state agencies. How can union people manage union people. But skilled and semi skilled positions should be able to organize. Even for government employment. Sorry, comments for this post are now closed.