Unclear on the concept
Tuesday, Jan 12, 2016 - Posted by Rich Miller
* Senate Republican Leader Christine Radogno…
“The corruption in the police department and potentially with City Hall has taken over and has significantly weakened the mayor, who I thought would have played a much bigger role in this,” she said. […]
“He’s frankly failed the people of this city and lost the confidence of the voters,” Radogno said.
When asked by a moderator to pretend Emanuel was calling her on the phone for advice, Radogno responded: “I would tell Rahm ‘You are whistling past the graveyard if you don’t get to your Democratic brethren and get them into the room to negotiate some real long-term solutions for the city and the state.’ “
OK, wait.
The mayor has been “significantly weakened” by scandal. He’s “lost the confidence of the voters” because he’s “failed the people.”
Yet, he’s still supposed to have some sort of outsized sway over his “Democratic brethren”? Keep in mind that Emanuel has never had the sort of influence over the General Assembly that Richard M. Daley had.
- Dome Gnome - Tuesday, Jan 12, 16 @ 10:23 am:
The reason this is so murky, on both sides, is that the mayor never distinctly picked a political lane. Not a perfectly suitable Democrat. Not a perfectly suitable Republican. Plenty of swerving.
- Man with a plan - Tuesday, Jan 12, 16 @ 10:24 am:
With the rhetoric and positions she has taken up in support of the Governor, I would love to know what her post-Rauner plan looks like.
- Annonin' - Tuesday, Jan 12, 16 @ 10:26 am:
The funnier line was about the Ds have all the campaign cash. Folks had to stuff napkins in their mouths to stifle the laughs.
- Norseman - Tuesday, Jan 12, 16 @ 10:26 am:
Radogno to Rahm - let Rauner run your job and the city will be all better.
Radogno to us - there is a nice bridge in Brooklyn that is up for sale.
- VanillaMan - Tuesday, Jan 12, 16 @ 10:36 am:
Why is anyone asking her about this and printing her reply? She has about as much credibility on this issue as she does about raising edible snails.
- @MisterJayEm - Tuesday, Jan 12, 16 @ 10:38 am:
tl;dr - Concern troll is concerned.
– MrJM
- Langhorne - Tuesday, Jan 12, 16 @ 10:38 am:
Great advice from radogno to rahm. Rahm sides w rauner, galvanizing public an private unions against him to make his life even more miserable. Side w rauner against madigan and his control of his caucus, and the faint chance for the help the city and schools need vanishes. Dont know radogno would be my choice of advisor anyway
I am more concerned w radognos blithe statement we might go years wout a proper budget.
- DC - Tuesday, Jan 12, 16 @ 10:44 am:
One of two things is going on here:
Either the Raunerites are, like the Chicago media, not politically astute enough to understand that Rahm’s influence in the General Assembly is quite limited (there are very few Chicago-based House members who would side with the mayor over Madigan.)
Or, they are employing a misery-loves-company strategy and attempting to deflect some of the blame for the Springfield stalemate on Rahm, knowing the Rahm-obsessed Chicago press corps will eat it up.
Unfortunately, neither strategy gets us any closer to releasing the logjam — in fact, both make approaches make a deal harder to achieve. But this is about assigning blame, not solving problems.
- Midstate Indy - Tuesday, Jan 12, 16 @ 10:55 am:
Sen. Radogno (R-Lemont) once again demonstrating her depth of knowledge about both Democratic politics and the inner working of the City of Chicago.
- Lane Tech Lenny - Tuesday, Jan 12, 16 @ 11:00 am:
And how many Republicans are in the State Senate ?
- walker - Tuesday, Jan 12, 16 @ 11:46 am:
Republicans in this state often overestimate the power of political “bosses.”
Part of anyone’s power is what others choose to give them.
- wordslinger - Tuesday, Jan 12, 16 @ 12:07 pm:
Sen. Radogno certainly had a lot of interesting things to say yesterday.
Why don’t Emanuel and his “Democratic brethren” (seriously, brethren?) take those “hundreds of millions of dollars” they’re banking and just buy the state GOP from Rauner?
How could a smart businessman like that pass up on such an offer?
- DuPage - Tuesday, Jan 12, 16 @ 12:42 pm:
Ms. Radogno,
Politicians sometimes fail. Rahm fails Chicago,
Rauner fails Illinois, and you Ms. Radogno are
failing us by continuing to support a policy of
holding budgets hostage over UNRELATED Rauner
administration demands. Your prediction of the
non-budget continuing for several more years will
happen if YOU go along with it. You should check
with the voters in your district and see if they
support the zero funding for higher education.
Our state universities and community colleges
have been seriously damaged by zero funding this
year and will be all but destroyed if this
continues for several more years. It is time for
you to quit marching in lockstep with Rauner as
he leads Illinois over a cliff! Stop failing us!
- Metro East Transplant - Tuesday, Jan 12, 16 @ 1:25 pm:
“lost the confidence of the voters” & “failed the people.” clearly a case of Pot & Kettle. The GA has failed ALL the people in this state.
- Puzzled - Tuesday, Jan 12, 16 @ 1:40 pm:
“Keep in mind that Emanuel has never had the sort of influence over the General Assembly that Richard M. Daley had.”
That is a perfectly valid observation and I have always been baffled by Emanuel’s failure to engage the legislature as many past mayors did. His only firm friend in the legislature seems to be Representative John D’Amico, but I always put that down to Emanuel having worked with Alderman Margaret Laurino (39th) who is D’Amico’s aunt. Her ward include a substantial number of precincts in Emanuel’s former Congressional district too.
From the media, I can only recall one occasion when Emanuel went to Springfield to speak to legislators during his first term.
While he constantly asks Springfield for assistance, he seems distant and remote from the Capitol building.
- Last Bull Moose - Tuesday, Jan 12, 16 @ 1:43 pm:
In an alternative universe,Governor Rauner noted major accomplishments at the end of his first year; moving 2000 supervisory and technical positions out of the union, temporary tax increases to stabilize the State fiscal position, a Capital Bill to address infrastructure weaknesses, proposed constitutional amendments to repeal the cutback amendment and to fund individual student vouchers through dedicated revenue from a 1percent graduated income tax. He has launched a bipartisan effort to address the damaging drug industry.
With Mayor Emmanuel weakened, he is funding efforts to rebuild the Republican party in Chicago. He is also funding the Green party to attract people who emotionally cannot vote Republican.
With the collapse of the Democratic bastions in Chicago,a new day dawns!
Remember, alternative universe.
- thunderspirit - Tuesday, Jan 12, 16 @ 2:17 pm:
== But this is about assigning blame, not solving problems. ==
As it has been for both sides since last November, frankly. (And many, many times before that, certainly. But incessantly since 11/4/2014.)
- DC - Tuesday, Jan 12, 16 @ 7:18 pm:
@puzzled
D’amico is also, I believe, the last remaining city of Chicago employee in the GA. There used to be at least a dozen. This is a big reason for the decline of mayoral influence.