115 Comments - The Drummer - Wednesday, Aug 5, 15 @ 10:40 am: Yeah, didn’t you get the memo? It’s a plutocracy! - From the 'Dale to HP - Wednesday, Aug 5, 15 @ 10:41 am: Question: What’s Rauner’s end game with, well, everything? Cannot figure it out for the life of me. - Anon - Wednesday, Aug 5, 15 @ 10:43 am: I’m not sure he knows what the word dictator means. - Oswego Willy - Wednesday, Aug 5, 15 @ 10:45 am: Members of the Springfield Press Corp (a group I respect 1,000 times more than Edit Boards and Chicks that sit in them), ask the following question; “Governor, you make a point that all the happenings in Illinois government are about Madigan and the legislators he controls, including making that point about things that are solely at the discretion of a governor, any governor, so what do you, Governor Rauner, see as your job as governor entailing?” - Wensicia - Wednesday, Aug 5, 15 @ 10:46 am: Rauner left out: “Under my dictatorship, things will be different!!” - Tournaround Agenda - Wednesday, Aug 5, 15 @ 10:46 am: It’s good to know Rauner considers Cullerton to be his friend once again. Even when the Senate President tries to pass a “dictatorship” bill, it’s still that mean old Madigan’s fault. - The Captain - Wednesday, Aug 5, 15 @ 10:48 am: “As Governor my plan for the State of Illinois is to win the blame game.” - walker - Wednesday, Aug 5, 15 @ 10:48 am: Is he wearing jeans and boots under the suit jacket? Oh.. Did he say something? - Wordslinger - Wednesday, Aug 5, 15 @ 10:53 am: It’s a shame that the state Constitution rendered the office of governor an impotent figurehead and vested dictatorial powers in the majority leader of one chamber of the General Assembly. Seriously, an Illinois governor playing the “Chicago” card? He’s the leader of the state, not a GA mushroom. Governor — do you want the gig or not? If so, get on with it , already. - Ducky LaMoore - Wednesday, Aug 5, 15 @ 10:55 am: “Yeah, it should be a Winnetka dictatorship.” - Norseman - Wednesday, Aug 5, 15 @ 10:58 am: Just when you thought things were starting to mellow, the frat boys send out Rauner in attack mode again. Aargh. - Ducky LaMoore - Wednesday, Aug 5, 15 @ 10:59 am: ==Madigan, he said, “owns” the entire budget problem because the GA passed an unbalanced budget.== SECTION 2. STATE FINANCE (a) The Governor shall prepare and submit to the General Assembly, at a time prescribed by law, a State budget for the ensuing fiscal year. Maybe you should have done your constitutionally appointed duties??? - Frenchie Mendoza - Wednesday, Aug 5, 15 @ 10:59 am: Does Rauner ever talk publicly about anything positive? He’s governor of a big state. There’s lots of good stuff happening here. My impression was the governor was supposed to be head cheerleader. The only things I see Rauner doing — every time he’s in public — is bashing something or someone in Illinois. The state he’s supposed to lead. What’s up with that? - Jocko - Wednesday, Aug 5, 15 @ 11:00 am: Amanda’s twitter pic says it all. “Don’t look at me, blame these guys” (points left and right) - Bluefish - Wednesday, Aug 5, 15 @ 11:00 am: Hard to see how this helps. - Skeptic - Wednesday, Aug 5, 15 @ 11:01 am: “the frat boys send out Rauner in attack mode again. Aargh.” It’s time to play “Wheel of Rauner!” Spin the wheel and see what issues he’s for or against and how “extreme” it is! And if you land on the special “Phoney” square, win a prize! - Gooner - Wednesday, Aug 5, 15 @ 11:01 am: It is great seeing Rauner finally doing the hard work to build consensus and compromise for a new budget. Great job, Gov! This will get us a deal! - 47th Ward - Wednesday, Aug 5, 15 @ 11:02 am: Was Amanda lying on the floor when this pic was taken? - Hamnlet's Ghost - Wednesday, Aug 5, 15 @ 11:02 am: ==Madigan, he said, “owns” the entire budget problem because the GA passed an unbalanced budget.== Section 9 from the Illinois Constitution: (d) The Governor may reduce or veto any item of appropriations in a bill presented to him. Portions of a bill not reduced or vetoed shall become law. An item vetoed shall be returned to the house in which it originated and may become law in the same manner as a vetoed bill. An item reduced in amount shall be returned to the house in which it originated and may be restored to its original amount in the same manner as a vetoed bill except that the required record vote shall be a majority of the members elected to each house. If a reduced item is not so restored, it shall become law in the reduced amount. - Oswego Willy - Wednesday, Aug 5, 15 @ 11:03 am: I admit, I’m not good at times with The Google, and I’ve been known on occasion to not be able to find stuff… Can someone find where Speaker Madigan and the legislators he controls put on paper their, the Speaker’s and this legislators he controls, decision to layoff state workers? Did Madigan notify the workers in person? Is there a letter from the Speaker? I get confused. If the Rauner Press Shop can forward to Rich the Madigan letter detailing how Madigan, arbitrarily laid off state workers, gosh, that woukdve helpful. Thanks! ow - Juvenal - Wednesday, Aug 5, 15 @ 11:03 am: …says the guy with the Chicago business and the chicago condo, who was appointed by mayor daley to lead chicago tourism and clouted his daughter into chicago schools. - The Dude Abides - Wednesday, Aug 5, 15 @ 11:04 am: The old “Chicago controls the state at the expense of downstate Illinois” saying is nothing more than red meat to fire up the downstate conservative base. - 47th Ward - Wednesday, Aug 5, 15 @ 11:04 am: “Illinois should not be a dictatorship FROM Chicago.” That makes more sense. - Skeptic - Wednesday, Aug 5, 15 @ 11:04 am: OW: You forgot about closing the State Museum too. Obviously that’s all a Madigan ploy. - Ipso Facto - Wednesday, Aug 5, 15 @ 11:07 am: I’m confused. Rauner is advocating “local control” and highlights Chicago as a “one off.” Thus, he wants to “level the playing field.” How does he square the circle with a CPS Board that is appointed by the Mayor? - Joe M - Wednesday, Aug 5, 15 @ 11:08 am: With the Governor holding the budget hostage and he won’t even talk about the budget with the GA until his demands for his turnaround agenda are met - who is acting like a dictator? - Quizzical - Wednesday, Aug 5, 15 @ 11:10 am: Rauner’s obsessive bashing of Madigan is starting to remind me of the letter from the Blago aide who felt compelled to publicly describe the disfunction of that administration. There was one line in the letter about the dues with Madigan going ‘beyond futile into self-destruction’. - Aschockedobserver - Wednesday, Aug 5, 15 @ 11:12 am: at least he didnt say dictatorship of the proletariat - walker - Wednesday, Aug 5, 15 @ 11:13 am: Actually was impressed with how adamant he was in opposing S-1229. He clearly views arbitrators in Illinois as biased toward labor, and not to be trusted. - Wordslinger - Wednesday, Aug 5, 15 @ 11:14 am: Norse, I’m not even seeing it as an attack. He’s fleeing from responsibility and accountability, trying to convince people that the governor’s office is powerless. It’s bizarre. It’s the most powerful elected office in the state, by far. But it’s a heavy load, too, full of tough decisions that very likely will never be “perfect.” That’s democracy. I’m wondering if he had any real idea what the gig was all about before he got the big chair. Did he think it was all giving orders, speeches and ceremonial stuff? - Oswego Willy - Wednesday, Aug 5, 15 @ 11:14 am: - Skeptic -, good point, “my bad” I guess the next step is Madigan firing all Rauner’s Agency Heads and appointing his own, and for the legislators Madigan controls too, sorry. Next, Madigan, and the legislators he controls will then shred all letterhead that says “Bruce Rauner, Governor” and replace all that stationary with “Mike Madigan, and all the legislators he controls, Governor” allowing an even clearer indication that Madigan “owns” and Bruce Rauner is utterly powerless in his, whatever he’s doing, thing. Finally, Madigan, and… the legislators he controls… will begin signing legislation, possibly Amendatory Vetoing things, maybe even have signing ceremonies, like a Declaration of Independence scene with Madigan… and the legislators he controls… each stepping up and signing bills, as the helpless Bruce Rauner looks on. What a pathetic way to be seen as a Governor, Mr. Rauner. “What would you say you … DO here exactly?” - Louis XVI - Wednesday, Aug 5, 15 @ 11:21 am: Really??? To be remiss in his constitutional obligation, insist on holding up the budget for a made-up Reform Agenda, that saves nothing budgetarily, hires “super stars”, gets them Tier I retirement, then Blames the man he “just talked to” on election night for EVERYTHING. Yep, we got ourselves a Duzie here folks. - How Ironic - Wednesday, Aug 5, 15 @ 11:23 am: Morning Rich, Today Bruce is going to be introducing the newest piece of the Runaground ™ Agenda, aptly named the RTB (Right To Blame). This piece of the agenda will allow the Governor, or key players in his administration to simply cast off any responsibility for their actions, words, or proposed legislation. For too long Mike Madigan and the legislators he controls have been able to simply point to the State Constitution and show that the Gov is responsible for proposing a balanced budget, among many other mandated roles and responsibilities. When the RTB legislation passes, Bruce will be able to abnegate all of his responsibilities, and simply be seen as a decorative door stop, able to kiss babies (then take away their formula…literally) w/out repercussions. What better way to ‘Shake Up Springfield’ w/out having to answer for anything! Best, ck! - walker - Wednesday, Aug 5, 15 @ 11:26 am: 47th: “dictatorship FROM Chicago” is what he actually said. Rauner argued that if we are to make an “exception” in favor of local control for Chicago, then we should give that same power to all other local governments. That’s a sound argument — though what he is calling “local control” in the tax-freeze context, covers much more anti-union ground. Decent framing for the detail-challenged. Rauner seemingly didn’t understand how hard this job was, and is just now realizing it. - Just a guy - Wednesday, Aug 5, 15 @ 11:27 am: When rhe Governor does not get re elected he can just say it’s Speaker Madigan’s fault. What a disaster. The Governor acts like a child who gets picked on and then goes to the teacher to report him. Man up Gov. Take some responsibilty and govern and stop playing games. Step away from the podium and govern. - Oswego Willy - Wednesday, Aug 5, 15 @ 11:27 am: Maybe Bruce Rauber is Lt. Weinberg? “I have no responsibilities here whatsoever.” - From the 'Dale to HP - Wednesday, Aug 5, 15 @ 11:29 am: Thinking Out Loud: Rauner though this governing thing would me much much easier than it’s proven to be. Rauner must have thought that he could run as a centralist, but then govern differently. To the shock to many who voted for him, they’re finding that they elected someone who isn’t who he said he was. Thus, Rauner’s support is slipping. It’s not at the “EVERYONE BAIL!!!” point, but slipping is slipping. If he’s resorting to “BASH CHICAGO”, that means he’s starting to lose downstate. This is not so good for the governor. It means he’s losing overall. For the sake of Illinois (and Rauner) hopefully he understands that he’s losing right now. If he’s losing downstate, and it looks like he is, then Rauner is in big, big trouble and needs to cut a deal asap. The longer this goes on, the worse it’s going to get for him and the state GOP. If we are nearing a point where the GA believes it can override his veto, it’s over for him, he becomes a lame duck (with a lot of money). - Skeptic - Wednesday, Aug 5, 15 @ 11:30 am: How Ironic: RTB state-wide is probably illegal, he’d have to settle for local emblamement zones. - Oswego Willy - Wednesday, Aug 5, 15 @ 11:32 am: @EditBoardChick - I applaud Gov. Rauner for standing up to Speaker Madigan by deferring all the governor’s power to Madigan, and the legislators he controls #ShillSpin - Under Further Review - Wednesday, Aug 5, 15 @ 11:37 am: Rauner has had months to work on the fiscal crisis. Madigan has had decades in which to balance the books. Yeah, it is all Rauner’s fault. - Demoralized - Wednesday, Aug 5, 15 @ 11:41 am: It must be hard work for some of you to day in and day out exert energy blaming Madigan for all of the ills in the world. He certainly shares blame. But to suggest it’s all his fault is pretty pathetic and shows you lack an honest bone in your body when it comes to discussing Illinois financial situation (or are completely ignorant of the history of Illinois). Either way it’s not good for you. - Wordslinger - Wednesday, Aug 5, 15 @ 11:42 am: UFR, in your mind, what is the “fiscal crisis” and what work is being done on it? - Louis XVI - Wednesday, Aug 5, 15 @ 11:42 am: Please correct me uf I am wrong, but didn’t Madigan and the Governor’s keep balanced budgets until the Republican George Ryan administration? - How Ironic - Wednesday, Aug 5, 15 @ 11:43 am: @Under Further Review- I’m confused? Does Gov Rauner actually have any power as Gov? Or did he just run for the ceremonial crown? I don’t recall on the campaign trail where he said “After I get elected, I’m just going to give up, and let the REAL Gov of Illinois run the joint”. He needs to man up, and you know…do his job. - Oswego Willy - Wednesday, Aug 5, 15 @ 11:46 am: - URF -, With respect, what then does “Shake up Springfield” and “Bring back Illinois” actually… “mean”? - The Whole Truth - Wednesday, Aug 5, 15 @ 11:51 am: Under 11:37…. I get a kick as well reading here how Rauner “owns” the mess of a budget that is the State of Illinois. The one person who has remained a primary focus of influence and power the last 3 decades is somehow relegated to a minor role behind the new guy trying to clean up the mess. Madigan has had the biggest single hand in making the budget what we’re faced with today. That kind of “pass” is indicative of one of the major reasons behind how we got to this point. - Wildcat D - Wednesday, Aug 5, 15 @ 11:54 am: Non-post related — but can the guy at least dress the part and dress like he’s the governor of the 5th largest state, please. He’s a bi-jillionaire but he can’t find a matching suit. - Wordslinger - Wednesday, Aug 5, 15 @ 11:54 am: TWT, what are you talking about? FY16 is FY16, projected revenues and expenditures for 12 months that started July 1. That’s it. - Demoralized - Wednesday, Aug 5, 15 @ 11:57 am: ==Madigan has had the biggest single hand in making the budget what we’re faced with today. == Two words. Who. Cares. Again, what have you accomplished by placing blame? We can talk about who “owns” what forever. But guess what. The Governor now “owns” (at least somewhat) the current situation. He’s Governor now in case you weren’t aware. He’s got as much of a role to play in the budget now as anyone else. Cut the crap already about Rauner being the victim. He wanted to be Governor. He “owns” that choice. - The Whole Truth - Wednesday, Aug 5, 15 @ 12:01 pm: WS- The root causes and needs for FY16 expenditures and the lacking revenue sources to pay for them did not magically appear and become an issue this year. They developed and matured on a continuing basis for decades. - Demoralized - Wednesday, Aug 5, 15 @ 12:03 pm: Again, @The Whole Truth, so what? Identifying who is to blame helps the situation now how exactly? I think some of you need to spend less time figuring out who to blame and more time actually being constructive in a conversation. - Anonymous - Wednesday, Aug 5, 15 @ 12:03 pm: The Whole Truth @ 11:51 am The whole truth is that Madigan has never signed a budget or any other legislation into law. That is what Governors do. Governors also get to veto and reduce budget line items. - anonlurker - Wednesday, Aug 5, 15 @ 12:05 pm: WS @ 12.01 = and the lacking revenue sources to pay for them did not magically appear and become an issue this year.= Yes they did, when Rauner requested the expiration of the tax increase. - From the 'Dale to HP - Wednesday, Aug 5, 15 @ 12:10 pm: UFR and TWT, you do realize that Rauner owns FY16? We’re not talking about FY2007 or FY1999 or FY1985. We’re talking FY2016. Rauner owns *that* budget. Maybe this is the issue in a nutshell, Rauner/supporters wanna talk about the past. - Rod - Wednesday, Aug 5, 15 @ 12:11 pm: I don’t think there is any question that SB 318, the CPS bailout bill is finished. After this full scale attack on the bill it would be a waste of time for the House to vote up the bill and send it to be vetoed. But this press conference needs also to be a lesson for both President Cullerton and Mayor Emanuel you can’t get a CPS deal out of the Governor without taking out the bargaining rights of the CTU. There is no question Governor Rauner would block any additional funding to CPS if his legislation on property taxes passed and CPS did not strip the CTU of all bargaining rights that had any economic impact at all. - The Whole Truth - Wednesday, Aug 5, 15 @ 12:14 pm: Anonlurker.. The expiration of the tax increase did not cause the additional expenditures over the last 30 years. Had it not expired, we would still have the same structural problems with the budget, just more revenue to deal with it in the immediate term….in effect, allowing it to continue would have just kicked the can down the road again. Sooner or later we have to come to grips with the fact the State has to live within it’s means, and sooner is better than later. “Now” would be best. - Arsenal - Wednesday, Aug 5, 15 @ 12:14 pm: For a guy who spent so much campaign time and energy trying to convince Chicago to give him a chance (and being successful enough in doing so!) he sure has thrown that town under the bus fast. - Wordslinger - Wednesday, Aug 5, 15 @ 12:17 pm: TWT, lol, the income tax magically rolled back on Jan. 1, as the gov.-elect had wished for upon a star. Prior to that, the extra revenue had been magically allowing for current expenditures, full-boat pension contributions and paying down old bills. What is the obsession with some of you in avoiding the work of the present? A governor can’t run or hide from the issues of today. That’s the job. - The Whole Truth - Wednesday, Aug 5, 15 @ 12:18 pm: From 12:10- This is the first budget Rauner has had to deal with, but it is largely a direct result of previous years budgets. So yes, a little reflection on what went wrong in years past as far as projections for needs, revenue, debt service, investment returns, etc. would be prudent in discussing and developing this years budget. The old saw about those not learning from history being doomed to repeat it aptly applies here. - The Whole Truth - Wednesday, Aug 5, 15 @ 12:23 pm: Word- I just don’t share your view that all our problems would have gone away had the tax increase been allowed to continue. The rate of expenditures and debt and pension liabilities were/are going to outstrip the revenue stream regardless. By forcing the issue now, we may be better able to institute structural changes that will better correct the course we’re on. The status quo of throwing more money at it isn’t going to work. For what should be one of the healthiest states in the union, we’ve only become an example of what not to do. - Wordslinger - Wednesday, Aug 5, 15 @ 12:31 pm: – This is the first budget Rauner has had to deal with….– Where do you get the idea that he is dealing with the budget? Time and again, he has made it very clear that it is not yet a priority. Consequently, it’s about 80% done without his input. And what budgetary structural changes are you talking about? That’s a meaningless mantra, there’s no substance to it. - The Whole Truth - Wednesday, Aug 5, 15 @ 12:36 pm: WS- The structural changes would include, but would not be limited to, the items the Governor has proposed and Madigan and Cullerton have issue with. I’m curious…where did you get the 80% figure? - Archiesmom - Wednesday, Aug 5, 15 @ 12:41 pm: = For what should be one of the healthiest states in the union, we’ve only become an example of what not to do. = No, Whole Truth, we get that distraction when we follow states like Wisconsin in trying to fix the mess and instead rig deeper. There is plenty of blame to go around for the past, but right now there’s only one group making any constructive suggestions to get out of this stalemate and actually represent the people of this state - Cullerton and the Senate Dems. - Archiesmom - Wednesday, Aug 5, 15 @ 12:45 pm: Also a sidebar - = can the guy at least dress the part and dress like he’s the governor of the 5th largest state, please. He’s a bi-jillionaire but he can’t find a matching suit. = I think he keeps a neutral blue blazer on the back of his door and shrugs it on when he needs it for a photo op. - Relocated - Wednesday, Aug 5, 15 @ 12:55 pm: Rainer is not dealing with his first budget. Dealing with it would entail negotiating cuts, raising revenues, and prioritizing non essential functions. Instead he refuses to talk until he gets his nonstarter agenda approved, and allows partial appropriations and court rulings to prop up government. This isn’t leadership. I’ve always said governor isn’t an entry level government job. If he had even served on a public board in an official capacity he would understand that process matters. - The Whole Truth - Wednesday, Aug 5, 15 @ 1:04 pm: Sometimes leadership requires assuming the most difficult and unpopular positions (at the time) in order to advance the agenda that matters. Harry Truman comes to mind. The difficult decisions Illinois needs to make are better made now, and forcing the issue appears the only way to do it. We need to recognize that everyone is going to get a haircut sooner or later. You can get a trim now, or a burr later. - Streator Curmudgeon - Wednesday, Aug 5, 15 @ 1:04 pm: This kind of name-calling and mudslinging is campaign mode–unless Rauner thinks he’s campaigning for the hearts and minds of voters against Madigan. But as someone pointed out here recently, all Madigan needs to do is win in his district. And that seems assured. Those of us who have needed the co-operation of coworkers learned that we’re more likely to get it if we treat them with respect. But when you’ve always been the boss, you don’t learn that lesson. - Formerly Known As... - Wednesday, Aug 5, 15 @ 1:07 pm: ==Question: What’s Rauner’s end game with, well, everything? Cannot figure it out for the life of me.== If you accept that Gov Rauner believes we are facing an ==emergency== situation - an emergency that has slowly grown into a behemoth amid the petri dish of Illinois politics - it helps understand his reasoning and phrasing, even in conversation. A constructive reference is that of a cancer surgeon. He speaks in drastic terms, acts aggressively to weaken or destroy the source of illness in the body, utilizes expensive procedures, and measures successful treatment on a longer time line than one month or one year. Many challenge his methods and diagnosis, including those who do not believe they have cancer to begin with, but he sees this job as a necessary one for the health and survival of Illinois. - Left Leaner - Wednesday, Aug 5, 15 @ 1:15 pm: It’s difficult to take a guy wearing jeans with ironed creases seriously. Just saying. - Demoralized - Wednesday, Aug 5, 15 @ 1:21 pm: @The Whole Truth: The Governor isn’t going to get everything he wants. It’s a fact of life. I would suggest that he and others focus on what is possible instead of continuing to speak about things that have no chance of happening. The anti-union stuff isn’t going to happen. Until he accepts that he is wasting a lot of time. - Amalia - Wednesday, Aug 5, 15 @ 1:21 pm: @ Formerly Known As, not liking that you bring the analogy of treating a life threatening illness into this discussion. - Get a Job!! - Wednesday, Aug 5, 15 @ 1:23 pm: FKA Ok, so MJM is the cancer. Is Cullteron a tanning bed or chemo therapy, because it seems to change by the day? - Beaner - Wednesday, Aug 5, 15 @ 1:24 pm: We need to keep in mind Texas has Billions in revenue from their Petrochemical industry. Texas had no phony baloney Pension ramp where for ten years the Pension funds were deliberately shorted. Billionaire oil men make sure there is no income tax in Texas. So a lot of other wealthy people like the warm no income tax environment and retire there. Rauner statements regarding Texas and AVERAGE income and such should be taken with a grain of salt. One wonders what the Modal class average would be? Obviously with so many billionaires skewing the mean average way high, one can imagine the modal average is well below the mean average. There are other measures of a society in which Texas does not compare well. - A fed up voter - Wednesday, Aug 5, 15 @ 1:26 pm: “Illinois should not be a distatorship for Chicago”. To your average dem, those are so offensive that you should not even be allowed to think them, let alone say them in public. Of course Illinois should be under the dictatorship of the Chicago democrat machine. Anything else is just “politically incorrect” nonsence, uttered by knuckle - dragging neanderthals! - Wordslinger - Wednesday, Aug 5, 15 @ 1:27 pm: WST, give me an example of the a budgetary structural reform the governor has proposed and attach a dollar figure to it. Tne 80% is derived based what’s been reported here by the Senate Dems of what in FY16 is already in the clear: K-12, continuing approps., consent decrees and court orders including salaries and Medicaid. - Left Leaner - Wednesday, Aug 5, 15 @ 1:32 pm: Rauner: “No special deals for CPS. The only special deals involving CPS are for my daughter.” - The Whole Truth - Wednesday, Aug 5, 15 @ 1:34 pm: Beaner- Take a look at Tax Foundation data, articles by Reuters, studies by Pew Foundation, and links attached to past posts to this site. The sorry condition and comparative ranking of Illinois to other States has been noted and bemoaned by a host of sources other than the Governor. While I would not discourage partaking a little salt with any of those sources, the volume and common gist of all does give some indication of the problems we have as compared to other states. - Jack Stephens - Wednesday, Aug 5, 15 @ 1:38 pm: @whole: Since the expansion of Wealthy Welfare in January of 2015, Bruce gets a $14,000.00 check every week. In 1 month he collects more in Entitlements than the average person earns in a year. Jack - Wordslinger - Wednesday, Aug 5, 15 @ 1:39 pm: FKA, rather than using an obtuse medical analogy, how’s about offering an explanation using the real stuff? What are you talking about, anyway? The budget, the economy? They’re not the same things. Give a real “diagnosis” and then explain how the “prescriptions” will fix the problem. The analogies are so vague as to be meaningless. - The Whole Truth - Wednesday, Aug 5, 15 @ 1:41 pm: Word- I don’t have a dollar figure to attach to a Property Tax Freeze, Term Limits, Worker’s Comp reform, et al. But there is at least as much reason to believe that Illinois would benefit fiscally from them as there is to believe your 80% figure is accurate. - Formerly Known As... - Wednesday, Aug 5, 15 @ 1:49 pm: @GaJ - I don’t think Speaker Madigan is necessarily ==the== cancer in Gov Rauner’s view. Madigan may be one of the earliest and most obvious cells, but Rauner sees it as bigger than any one person. It is something that has grown and expanded for decades. - The Whole Truth - Wednesday, Aug 5, 15 @ 1:51 pm: Jack- Sounds like we need to hold whoever enacted “Wealthy Welfare” accountable. - Jack Stephens - Wednesday, Aug 5, 15 @ 2:01 pm: @whole: Hint: BR Jack - Jack Stephens - Wednesday, Aug 5, 15 @ 2:02 pm: His obsession with Madigan is making me curious if there something else involved. - Formerly Known As... - Wednesday, Aug 5, 15 @ 2:03 pm: ==What are you talking about, anyway? The budget, the economy?== ==it helps understand his reasoning and phrasing== It is not about the budget, or the economy, but a friendly reply about trying to understand Rauner’s end game and his actions. That should be abundantly clear to anyone but the most obtuse, based on the beginning of my comment in reply to a question posed by another commenter. A question which happens to be highlighted very clearly to open the comment. - The Whole Truth - Wednesday, Aug 5, 15 @ 2:05 pm: Jack- Accountable is accountable. Something that Illinois has lacked for a long time. Contrary to what some might think, I’m not political. I’m pragmatic. - How Ironic - Wednesday, Aug 5, 15 @ 2:11 pm: @ TWT, “Contrary to what some might think, I’m not political. I’m pragmatic.” When did delusional become synonymous with pragmatic? According to you, Bruce has no responsibilities, and any fiscal problems in the present are always able to be blame-shifted to MJMATLHC (MJM And The Legislature He Controls). Poor Bruce, the feckless, responsible-less, unable to govern Governor. Kinda makes you wonder why he ran. - Formerly Known As... - Wednesday, Aug 5, 15 @ 2:15 pm: @Amalia - it is the best example I have found in trying to understand - not agree with or justify, but understand - Rauner’s words and actions. @Steve Schnorf’s superb Friday comments explain similar thoughts on trying to understand Rauner. fwiw, apology for making you uncomfortable. - Wordslinger - Wednesday, Aug 5, 15 @ 2:16 pm: WST, you’re not making sense. None of the things you listed are state budget structural reforms. And, with K-12, continuing approps., consent decrees and court orders for salaries and Mediciad, about 80% of FY16 GRF is in the clear. That’s not an opinion. - Filmmaker Professor - Wednesday, Aug 5, 15 @ 2:16 pm: Say what you will about Pat Quinn, but I believe he sincerely loved the state of Illinois and tried his best to promote it. Rauner just wants to lower its status. - Jack Stephens - Wednesday, Aug 5, 15 @ 2:21 pm: @whole: What does accountable have to with Bruce’s weekly $14,000.00 welfare check? Please explain…… - Boone's is Back - Wednesday, Aug 5, 15 @ 2:41 pm: Interesting outfit choice… - Chicago parent - Wednesday, Aug 5, 15 @ 2:54 pm: The dictatorship is paying the pensions for every teacher in the state EXCEPT Chicago’s, so that ONLY Chicago has to take money from kids to fund retirement funds. Democracies try to treat people equally under the law. Dictatorships get to pick and choose who they fund and support. - Southern Illinois Hoopdee - Wednesday, Aug 5, 15 @ 2:59 pm: The Speaker has always had significant power over the budget. Even more so under Democratic administrations. It’s a team effort. To blame one side or the other is missing the point. - Frenchie Mendoza - Wednesday, Aug 5, 15 @ 2:59 pm: Rauner needs to be a man. He needs to do the job he was elected to do. He’s become whiny. There’s nothing worse than a whiny, weak politician. - Formerly Known As... - Wednesday, Aug 5, 15 @ 3:05 pm: ==It’s a team effort. To blame one side or the other is missing the point.== Bingo. Neither Rauner nor Madigan has 71 votes to act unilaterally. Simultaneously, forcing the other guy to choose between ==bad== and ==worse== is no choice at all for the Governor or the Speaker. They both need to compromise for anything to get done. - Rod - Wednesday, Aug 5, 15 @ 3:10 pm: Chicago parent lets be clear here, the CPS teachers themselves elected to have and maintain a separate pension fund other than TRS. It was originally funded directly by property taxes from Chicago and that was revoked by the GA in 1995 at the urging of Mayor Daley. SB 318 amendment 3 included a provision to restore that direct payment of property taxes into the CTPF. Given the Governor’s comments that bill that passed the Senate yesterday looks to have a weak future. The Chicago fund at certain points had so much cash it was 120% vested prior to 1995. CPS teachers had zero interest in belonging to the weakly funded TRS. So the CPS argument makes it sound like the CTPF was forced on the district, it wasn’t. It should also be noted that most CPS administrators pensions are also paid by CTPF, in the case of Claypool that will not be the case because he does not have a superintendent’s certificate. It’s all a little more complex than Chicago parent presented it. None the less I do believe CPS is too big too fail, but apparently the Governor does not. - DizzyCow - Wednesday, Aug 5, 15 @ 3:47 pm: When did he start dropping ALL of his Gs? - JS Mill - Wednesday, Aug 5, 15 @ 3:54 pm: = ONLY Chicago has to take money from kids to fund retirement funds.= Not so much. CPS is the only district in the state with the ability to fund strictly for the teacher pension. Not to mention the disproportionate amount of funding CPS receives from the state coffers. - Reformed Dem - Wednesday, Aug 5, 15 @ 4:38 pm: Other than just a few of you, do you all work for Madigan? I was once a lock step D until I spent some time in State government and then saw all of the corruption tax firsthand. Lobbyists whom are all ex staffers and electeds. Contractors and suppliers told “wink” you better hire “so and so” because he’s close to Madigan….. As the Gov said, Madigan’s been in power for much of 30 plus years and all he has to show for it is $100 billion plus in debt and unbalanced budget after another. Yes, he doesn’t totally control the state, but he has built a machine that controls senior staffers throughout government that gives him defacto control over lobbyists and the money just circles around. That’s why he doesn’t care about a balanced budget because, like Daley, all he cares about is power and the money, unions and jobs gives him power on the backs of taxpayers. Until this past year, no Republican candidate for Gov ever had the guts to call Madigan out bc they all came out of the same system and worried they may need “Mike” someday in the future. And of course, most of the R state senators and house members were beholden to the same and never stood for a darn thing. So, it has been Madigan total control The Gov did present a mostly balanced budget (at least they tried) and it was totally rejected. That’s when the D’s put together their yet again, unpaid for budget bill. What I don’t get with most of the people in this commentary is they don’t seem to realize there was an election in which Rauner won by a fairly large margin (for an Illinois race) and throughout, he campaigned for these same reforms and he said he would not go for new spending without them. People voted. Its Madigan who is hell bent on ignoring the vote. - Oswego Willy - Wednesday, Aug 5, 15 @ 4:46 pm: - Reformed Dem - The 2014 is over, it was in all the papers. The governing on what Rauner campaigned on… can start any time. ===Other than just a few of you, do you all work for Madigan?=== “… do you all …” All? No. Me? No. Your victimhood is noted, you stood up and gave your Rauberbot talking points, and tried to insult the commenters like a true enlightened soul. Congratulations. - Formerly Known As... - Wednesday, Aug 5, 15 @ 4:52 pm: @Reformed Dem - thus the opinion that Rauner views this ==cancer== as larger than just Madigan. - Formerly Known As... - Wednesday, Aug 5, 15 @ 4:54 pm: Not that the state Dem Party Chairman or Speaker of the House Supermajority has any influence or anything. /s Surely there is even less influence when one person fills both those roles as he does. - RNUG - Wednesday, Aug 5, 15 @ 7:01 pm: == Harry Truman comes to mind. == Rauner is no Harry Truman; if it is up to Rauner, the buck will NEVER stop on his desk. - Norseman - Wednesday, Aug 5, 15 @ 7:15 pm: === Rauner is no Harry Truman; if it is up to Rauner, the buck will NEVER stop on his desk. === Well said RNUG. - Oswego Willy - Wednesday, Aug 5, 15 @ 7:20 pm: You made me “laugh-laugh” - RNUG -. It was teed up, you crushed it. - The Whole Truth - Wednesday, Aug 5, 15 @ 9:09 pm: The last three commenters might want to read up on HST. His dealings with congress and habit of calling out individual Senators, Congressmen, and members of the Press Corp by name were great examples of plain talk. BR may not be a HST yet…it took years for HST to become HST… but even after this short time, he’s much closer than any recent politician Illinois has seen. - RNUG - Wednesday, Aug 5, 15 @ 9:53 pm: == The dictatorship is paying the pensions for every teacher in the state EXCEPT Chicago’s, so that ONLY Chicago has to take money from kids to fund retirement funds. Democracies try to treat people equally under the law. Dictatorships get to pick and choose who they fund and support. == -Chicago parent-, you DO understand that the State school aid formula was tilted in favor of Chicago when Chicago / CPS wanted / agreed to be responsible for the CPS pensions? They got the money but skipped making the pension payments so they could keep Chicago property taxes low. - RNUG - Wednesday, Aug 5, 15 @ 9:57 pm: - The Whole Truth - I deal in evidence. Rauner can talk the talk, but he can’t walk the walk. To date, Rauner has proven he can’t stand the heat of his decisions. When it gets too hot, he reverses course. - The Whole Truth - Wednesday, Aug 5, 15 @ 10:20 pm: Word- Sorry….couldn’t resist. Here’s a fresh Reuters story on Illinois property taxes. See if you don’t think a property tax freeze might have some desirous effects on the State budget. http://news.yahoo.com/special-report-multitude-local-authorities-soak-illinois-homeowners-130308828.html - rilt - Wednesday, Aug 5, 15 @ 10:54 pm: Rauner says he did not take any campaign funds from unions. He fails to mention he uses he own funds made from union pension fund investments. - Norseman - Wednesday, Aug 5, 15 @ 11:06 pm: The Whole Truth, I noticed the article focused on the multitude of governmental units that goes into the property tax. Too bad Rauner focused on union busting rather than consolidating these units. - Wordslinger - Wednesday, Aug 5, 15 @ 11:35 pm: TWT, how would a local property tax freeze have some “desirous effects on the state budget?” The only effects I could possibly see would be pressure for more state income tax revenues going to local governments and more state spending on K-12 to make up for the loss of locally generated revenue. Are those desirous? - burbanite - Thursday, Aug 6, 15 @ 7:59 am: @TWT this is a point I have tried to make in the past. The discussion should be eliminating duplicative services, ie. twps in urban and suburban areas, but these are republican plums so they aren’t even being discussed. You will get much more savings from eliminating duplicative gov’t services and all the layers of gov’t than “term limits” and banning collective bargaining. And pensions for part time elected officials. http://news.yahoo.com/special-report-multitude-local-authorities-soak-illinois-homeowners-130308828.html - Anonymous Redux - Thursday, Aug 6, 15 @ 11:36 am: Look up the term Task Avoidance? It’s common behavior any Teacher recognizes…when a student does not have the ability or has failed to learn how to complete that (often chosen) task…and therefore makes continuing excuses for their avoidance of the task they fear they may not be qualified to perform/solve. Sorry, comments for this post are now closed.