The status quo in IL was like a used car. Say, a 2002 Honda Civic. It got you around but never performed very well. It cost money to maintain and you probably should have traded up.
Then Bruce Rauner became your mechanic.
And on that day he made it so the car wouldn’t run and charged you 5 times more than it was worth. You told him to just keep it and now he’s billing you for storage and begging to work on your house.
Rauner is an outsider and unfamiliar with your ways and customs. Rauner’s solution is to do nothing but complain and blame others (with a huge media campaign of course).
Then here is a little news flash- the current status quo includes Rauner and his intransigence in moving away from an agenda that, by his own math, does not solve any of the states real issues and only makes them worse.
And worse is the single most apt adjective to describe the effects of his leadership.
The current “status quo” is “worse”, worse due to Rauner.
“We won’t back down to the status quo. Instead, we’ll buy it and drag it away in broad daylight and jack it up on steroids and energy drinks and exploit the daylights out of it, to our own benefit, all the while whining that we’re powerless.”
Plenty of blame to go around but Madigan was able to strike budget deals with Republican governors for years. They may not have been perfect but they could always find some solid ground to make a deal. Rauner, a guy from the private sector without political experience, can’t seem to make a deal to save the state. Speaks loudly to where most of the fault lies.
I realize this site is dominated by Democratic Party hacks and unionized government workers, but outside of your personal bubbles everyone can see that our current crisis is nearly 100% Democrat-created, having dominated both houses for all but 2 of the last 35 years.
But yeah, try to blame it on Rauner when he tries to stop the bleeding while the Democrats push for more of what got us here.
On of Reagan’s greatest accomplishments was the defeat of the Communist Soviet Union. One tactic that The Gipper used was to clearly define ones enemy. the Dems had a relatively long history of benign neglect or worse in regards the Soviets. Look at Teddy Kennedy cozying up to Andropov. Reagan’s genius was to define the Soviets as what they were, our enemies he used clear language like ” The Evil Empire”. Thus Reagan’s priorities resonated with the voters in a way that was clear and simple. Rauner needs to continue the fight against MJM and hone the message that he is the enemy of the people.
Rauner using Reagan just reminds me that he is nothing like Reagan. Reagan worked with democrats. Reagan took the best deal he could get. Reagan would actually work to get his deal. Reagan could work on finding solutions with people he disagreed with, not demonizing them to the point where negotiation became impossible. Ronald Reagan was a decent man who wanted the best for everyone. Nothing like Bruce Rauner. Nothing.
= I realize this site is dominated by Democratic Party hacks and unionized government workers, but outside of your personal bubbles everyone can see that our current crisis is nearly 100% Democrat-created, having dominated both houses for all but 2 of the last 35 years. =
So 5-term Senate President Pate Philip was a Democrat? That’s got to be news to him.
=But yeah, try to blame it on Rauner when he tries to stop the bleeding=
Rauner hasn’t tried to “stop the bleeding”. He’s made it profoundly worse. By all measures Rauner has taken the status quo and made it intentionally and demonstrably worse. Presumably he did this with the intention that the ends would justify the means. But two plus years in there’s no evidence of that.
==== I realize this site is dominated by Democratic Party hacks and unionized government workers, but outside of your personal bubbles everyone can see that our current crisis is nearly 100% Democrat-created, having dominated both houses for all but 2 of the last 35 years. ===
So piling up 14 billion in unpaid bills is stopping the bleeding? Someone is going to have to pay a lot of interest on that backlog. That person being the Illinois taxpayer.
That is the new status quo, billions in unpaid bills. Mr Reagan would be turning in his grave at the thought of being associated with such a mountain of needless debt.
President Reagan had no trouble negotiating very difficult issues with the Democrats in control of Congress, tax and immigration reform among them. Why does Rauner seem incapable of reaching agreement with Democrats who control the General Assembly?
The comparison to President Reagan is laughable on one hand, and insulting to Reagan’s legacy on the other.
I knew Bruce Rauner before he began claiming he’s a virginal governor.
- Out Here In The Middle - Friday, May 19, 17 @ 11:24 am:
Jerry - I think it’s pretty much a question of how you define “bleeding”. Starving higher ed, shutting down addiction treatment centers & homeless shelters, failing to pay vendors and healthcare providers. Those all sound like “bleeding” to me. Much more so than adding 1% or 2% to your income tax.
@JS Mill - those 3 GOP governors did exactly what you want Rauner to do - cave in to Mike Madigan and the Democrats. Keep doing that and we become insolvent.
@Blue Bayou - nice try at pigeonholing me, but no I don’t watch any of those. Do you have anything to say on which party’s policies got Illinois to where it is today? Do you enjoy being the “Mississippi of the North”? Although Mississippi actually is in far better fiscal shape than Illinois.
@AlfondoGonz - So you’re upset that he was unable to get any reforms through the Democrat-dominated legislature? Do Madigan and Cullerton have anything to do with that?
Go ahead Democratic Party hacks, do tell what the Illinois Democratic Party has proposed to get us out of the mess we’re in. Maybe my internet is defective, I’m unable to find any proposals from Illinois Democrats on how to turn our state around. Instead all I see is wanting to do the same things that created the crisis in the first place.
Not that I actually expect any of you to do anything except attack me personally, because you have nothing else right?
You lack a full grasp of history, blaming Dems, now lumping the Repubs you magically missed as complicit.
Then, you ignore Rauner blowing up deals, cheer the destruction of Illinois for a plan Rauner can’t get 60 and 30, all the while blindly say a governor is weaker than a Speaker.
We’re not attacking you, we’re attacking you’re willful ignorance or your blissful way of being unaware.
“those 3 GOP governors did exactly what you want Rauner to do” Michael Madigan and the Republican Governors he controls…
So Ryan’s “Build Illinois” (with its tax and fee hikes) was all Madigan’s idea? Do tell.
There are a lot of Raunerite sock puppets out today.
How anyone who lives in Illinois could take this tweet seriously is beyond me.
If this mess is the Democrats’ fault, explain why the state backlog of bills has tripled since Rauner took office.
Sure, maybe the Democrats are the status quo in Illinois. They got there by running a disciplined operation and delivering for their people. But the way things are looking in my home stat these days, I’ll take the status quo over this joker 200% of the time.
The big difference between Reagan create debt and Rauner created debt is that Reagan increased the debt by building up the military which served the useful purpose of bankruptcy our enemies.
Meanwhile Rauner is creating pointless debt with the which is only bankrupting ourselves. Well there may be a point since he is saving himself taxes. But the largest employers of the state don’t see his point.
Jerry - Mike Madigan caused this problem. Bruce Rauner made it worse. Bruce Rauner needs to stop making things worse. No personal attack just stating facts.
- FormerParatrooper - Friday, May 19, 17 @ 12:58 pm:
False comparison by the Governor. Reagan negotiated and reached out to the other side of the aisle. He gained respect of his political foes.
Rauner has made no such steps, and he is gaining no respect, except with the far fringes.
Shaking up Springfield was needed, but this earthquake that is destroying the State is unnecessary, and will create a larger problem than any out of balance he could have signed.
Mike and John need to fix the problem they and Republican and Democratic Governors created before Bruce became Governor. That is we need reforms to get a balanced budget and end these unbalance budgets and pension problems. Otherwise we accomplish nothing.
With due respect, while George Ryan had his own infrastructure program, “Build Illinois” was a Thompson Administration brainchild and today that child 31 years old.
I remember a time where Republicans were considered to be the party of reason and sure-footedness. Might not have liked their candidate, but one could be reasonably assured they had a toe-hold on reality.
@Oswego Willy - “You lack a full grasp of history, blaming Dems, now lumping the Repubs you magically missed as complicit.”
Here you admit that the GOP governors were complicit with the Dems in creating this mess, and yet you are demanding that Rauner do the same? Why are you criticizing Rauner for refusing to be a “go along to get along” Governor like the other GOP governors you blame for helping create this mess with the Democrats? Shouldn’t you be cheering Rauner? You aren’t being very consistent.
@Skeptic - “So Ryan’s “Build Illinois” (with its tax and fee hikes) was all Madigan’s idea?”
Without Madigan’s full support none of it would have made it out of committee.
@Pundent - ” Mike Madigan caused this problem. Bruce Rauner made it worse. Bruce Rauner needs to stop making things worse.”
And here we have another person who blames Madigan for creating the problem but then blames Rauner for making it worse. And how has Rauner “made it worse”? By not caving in to Madigan! I can’t even comprehend the mental gymnastics you must go through to have this make any sense.
See, here’s the thing. If you want to evoke a much respected, almost legendary member of your party you better be ready for the sarcastic comparisons.
No different than a Democrat evoking Kennedy.
Be very careful.
Fifteen months after the wealthy Republican private equity investor was sworn in to his first elected office, the state he was elected to lead is in worse shape by nearly every measure than the state he inherited from his Democratic predecessor.”—Eric Zorn Chicago Tribune 4/12/16
Jerry - I think others have done a nice job of showing how Rauner has “made it worse”. I’ll add a $14B backlog of bills to what they’ve already offered.
But here’s a question for you, exactly how has Bruce Rauner made things better? That is what he was elected to do right?
- PublicServant - Friday, May 19, 17 @ 10:17 am:
I know Ronald Reagan, and Bruce Rauner is no Ronald Reagan.
- RNUG - Friday, May 19, 17 @ 10:18 am:
“Do. Or do not. There is no try.”
- Oswego Willy - Friday, May 19, 17 @ 10:18 am:
No budget, 2 years and counting…
The new status quo.
- Joe Bidenopolous - Friday, May 19, 17 @ 10:19 am:
“Status quo” doesn’t mean what they think it means.
- Blue Bayou - Friday, May 19, 17 @ 10:19 am:
The status quo in IL was like a used car. Say, a 2002 Honda Civic. It got you around but never performed very well. It cost money to maintain and you probably should have traded up.
Then Bruce Rauner became your mechanic.
And on that day he made it so the car wouldn’t run and charged you 5 times more than it was worth. You told him to just keep it and now he’s billing you for storage and begging to work on your house.
- John Rawlss - Friday, May 19, 17 @ 10:20 am:
MADIGAN is stat quo
- Big Cat - Friday, May 19, 17 @ 10:20 am:
Love the Gov, love Reagan. Don’t love Madigan though. He’s the problem with the state and a big reason we’re in the mess we’re in.
- Oswego Willy - Friday, May 19, 17 @ 10:22 am:
Blowing up “bargains”, refusing to fund Higher Ed, refusing to pay social services, by not wanting a budget…
That’s Rauner’s status quo.
- MissingG - Friday, May 19, 17 @ 10:26 am:
I’ve always found this funny, because the word conservative basically means “person who wants to keep the status quo”
- From the 'Dale to HP - Friday, May 19, 17 @ 10:27 am:
May be reading in between the lines too much here… but if you’re going to Reagan, in Trump’s GOP, in 2017… is it a sign you’re losing the suburbs?
- Chicago 20 - Friday, May 19, 17 @ 10:27 am:
Rauner is an outsider and unfamiliar with your ways and customs. Rauner’s solution is to do nothing but complain and blame others (with a huge media campaign of course).
Disingenuous at best.
- JS Mill - Friday, May 19, 17 @ 10:28 am:
=MADIGAN is stat quo=
Did Rauner leave? No?
Then here is a little news flash- the current status quo includes Rauner and his intransigence in moving away from an agenda that, by his own math, does not solve any of the states real issues and only makes them worse.
And worse is the single most apt adjective to describe the effects of his leadership.
The current “status quo” is “worse”, worse due to Rauner.
- Norseman - Friday, May 19, 17 @ 10:32 am:
Willy, RNUG et al. have said it so well. Today’s mess is on Rauner!
- Linus - Friday, May 19, 17 @ 10:34 am:
“We won’t back down to the status quo. Instead, we’ll buy it and drag it away in broad daylight and jack it up on steroids and energy drinks and exploit the daylights out of it, to our own benefit, all the while whining that we’re powerless.”
- Stones - Friday, May 19, 17 @ 10:35 am:
Plenty of blame to go around but Madigan was able to strike budget deals with Republican governors for years. They may not have been perfect but they could always find some solid ground to make a deal. Rauner, a guy from the private sector without political experience, can’t seem to make a deal to save the state. Speaks loudly to where most of the fault lies.
- Christopher - Friday, May 19, 17 @ 10:43 am:
Rauner became the status quo when he was sworn in January 12, 2015.
- Rogue Roni - Friday, May 19, 17 @ 10:44 am:
When a republican can’t run on their record they have to wheel out Reagans corpse.
- Anonymous - Friday, May 19, 17 @ 10:44 am:
Rauner and Reagan - one very successful with flaws. The other unsuccessful with huge flaws.
- CharlieKratos - Friday, May 19, 17 @ 10:47 am:
Rauner’s “Art of the Deal” is a paint-by-numbers with only one number.
- Jerry - Friday, May 19, 17 @ 10:53 am:
I realize this site is dominated by Democratic Party hacks and unionized government workers, but outside of your personal bubbles everyone can see that our current crisis is nearly 100% Democrat-created, having dominated both houses for all but 2 of the last 35 years.
But yeah, try to blame it on Rauner when he tries to stop the bleeding while the Democrats push for more of what got us here.
- Donnie Elgin - Friday, May 19, 17 @ 10:54 am:
On of Reagan’s greatest accomplishments was the defeat of the Communist Soviet Union. One tactic that The Gipper used was to clearly define ones enemy. the Dems had a relatively long history of benign neglect or worse in regards the Soviets. Look at Teddy Kennedy cozying up to Andropov. Reagan’s genius was to define the Soviets as what they were, our enemies he used clear language like ” The Evil Empire”. Thus Reagan’s priorities resonated with the voters in a way that was clear and simple. Rauner needs to continue the fight against MJM and hone the message that he is the enemy of the people.
- Ratso Rizzo - Friday, May 19, 17 @ 10:54 am:
As OW says, “Governors Own.”
Pat Quinn is to failure as Bruce Rauner is to super mega failure.
- Blue Bayou - Friday, May 19, 17 @ 10:55 am:
Jerry, I’m sorry you’re worried that the world doesn’t make sense anymore.
Watching Fox and listening to Rush (Limbaugh, not the band), is not helping.
- Ducky LaMoore - Friday, May 19, 17 @ 11:02 am:
Rauner using Reagan just reminds me that he is nothing like Reagan. Reagan worked with democrats. Reagan took the best deal he could get. Reagan would actually work to get his deal. Reagan could work on finding solutions with people he disagreed with, not demonizing them to the point where negotiation became impossible. Ronald Reagan was a decent man who wanted the best for everyone. Nothing like Bruce Rauner. Nothing.
- cover - Friday, May 19, 17 @ 11:04 am:
= I realize this site is dominated by Democratic Party hacks and unionized government workers, but outside of your personal bubbles everyone can see that our current crisis is nearly 100% Democrat-created, having dominated both houses for all but 2 of the last 35 years. =
So 5-term Senate President Pate Philip was a Democrat? That’s got to be news to him.
- JS Mill - Friday, May 19, 17 @ 11:09 am:
@Jerry- Not even a good drive by.
To add on to @Cover’s comment:
George Ryan, Jim Thompson, and Jim Edgar will be curious to find out that they are not Republicans too.
- Bill - Friday, May 19, 17 @ 11:10 am:
Or the 27 straight years of Republican governors
- cover - Friday, May 19, 17 @ 11:11 am:
= George Ryan, Jim Thompson, and Jim Edgar will be curious to find out that they are not Republicans too. =
In today’s environment, they probably could not win a GOP primary.
- Pundent - Friday, May 19, 17 @ 11:12 am:
=But yeah, try to blame it on Rauner when he tries to stop the bleeding=
Rauner hasn’t tried to “stop the bleeding”. He’s made it profoundly worse. By all measures Rauner has taken the status quo and made it intentionally and demonstrably worse. Presumably he did this with the intention that the ends would justify the means. But two plus years in there’s no evidence of that.
- Rogue Roni - Friday, May 19, 17 @ 11:13 am:
Sorry snowflake. Rauner has proven unable to complete the most basic aspect of governin’.
- AlfondoGonz - Friday, May 19, 17 @ 11:14 am:
Jerry-
“But yeah, try to blame it on Rauner when he tries to stop the bleeding”
No one blames him for trying. We blame him for failing and exacerbating.
- Streator Curmudgeon - Friday, May 19, 17 @ 11:17 am:
Here’s a question: Are the posters on Cap Fax representative of the average citizen in Illinois or are they super-educated on Illinois politics?
Because the Governor’s shallow theatrics don’t seem to impress anybody here. Are they impressing Illinois voters?
- Moe Berg - Friday, May 19, 17 @ 11:18 am:
Poor Bruce. Just a helpless, impotent victim.
- Oswego Willy - Friday, May 19, 17 @ 11:18 am:
==== I realize this site is dominated by Democratic Party hacks and unionized government workers, but outside of your personal bubbles everyone can see that our current crisis is nearly 100% Democrat-created, having dominated both houses for all but 2 of the last 35 years. ===
It’s easy to be a victim.
Thompson, Edgar, Ryan, Pate, Daniels…
Keep up.
(Tips cap to - Ratso Rizzo -)
- VanillaMan - Friday, May 19, 17 @ 11:20 am:
Does the lack of consumation mean one can perpetually claim virginity?
- A Jack - Friday, May 19, 17 @ 11:22 am:
So piling up 14 billion in unpaid bills is stopping the bleeding? Someone is going to have to pay a lot of interest on that backlog. That person being the Illinois taxpayer.
That is the new status quo, billions in unpaid bills. Mr Reagan would be turning in his grave at the thought of being associated with such a mountain of needless debt.
- Oswego Willy - Friday, May 19, 17 @ 11:23 am:
- Norseman -,
I still feel bad I let you down as a write in candidate. It haunts me. Thanks for lumping in with a compliment.
===Because the Governor’s shallow theatrics don’t seem to impress anybody here. Are they impressing Illinois voters?===
Rauner last polled at 58% negative, but we’ll have to see if the Dems start really going after Rauner, daily.
We’ll see, then we’ll see fresher numbers too
- 47th Ward - Friday, May 19, 17 @ 11:23 am:
President Reagan had no trouble negotiating very difficult issues with the Democrats in control of Congress, tax and immigration reform among them. Why does Rauner seem incapable of reaching agreement with Democrats who control the General Assembly?
The comparison to President Reagan is laughable on one hand, and insulting to Reagan’s legacy on the other.
- VanillaMan - Friday, May 19, 17 @ 11:23 am:
I knew Bruce Rauner before he began claiming he’s a virginal governor.
- Out Here In The Middle - Friday, May 19, 17 @ 11:24 am:
Jerry - I think it’s pretty much a question of how you define “bleeding”. Starving higher ed, shutting down addiction treatment centers & homeless shelters, failing to pay vendors and healthcare providers. Those all sound like “bleeding” to me. Much more so than adding 1% or 2% to your income tax.
- VanillaMan - Friday, May 19, 17 @ 11:32 am:
Look!
Our “Mayflower Madam” governor since 2015 wants us to believe he’s still a Girl Scout!
Not doing your job Bruce doesn’t mean you’re not guilty when it comes to where we find our state today.
- Anonymous - Friday, May 19, 17 @ 11:33 am:
Ducky - thank you. Exactly right
- Jerry - Friday, May 19, 17 @ 11:33 am:
@JS Mill - those 3 GOP governors did exactly what you want Rauner to do - cave in to Mike Madigan and the Democrats. Keep doing that and we become insolvent.
@Blue Bayou - nice try at pigeonholing me, but no I don’t watch any of those. Do you have anything to say on which party’s policies got Illinois to where it is today? Do you enjoy being the “Mississippi of the North”? Although Mississippi actually is in far better fiscal shape than Illinois.
@AlfondoGonz - So you’re upset that he was unable to get any reforms through the Democrat-dominated legislature? Do Madigan and Cullerton have anything to do with that?
Go ahead Democratic Party hacks, do tell what the Illinois Democratic Party has proposed to get us out of the mess we’re in. Maybe my internet is defective, I’m unable to find any proposals from Illinois Democrats on how to turn our state around. Instead all I see is wanting to do the same things that created the crisis in the first place.
Not that I actually expect any of you to do anything except attack me personally, because you have nothing else right?
- Norseman - Friday, May 19, 17 @ 11:35 am:
Willy, all good.
The election was rigged! Trumpian snark
- Oswego Willy - Friday, May 19, 17 @ 11:37 am:
- Jerry -
You lack a full grasp of history, blaming Dems, now lumping the Repubs you magically missed as complicit.
Then, you ignore Rauner blowing up deals, cheer the destruction of Illinois for a plan Rauner can’t get 60 and 30, all the while blindly say a governor is weaker than a Speaker.
We’re not attacking you, we’re attacking you’re willful ignorance or your blissful way of being unaware.
“Simple”
- Skeptic - Friday, May 19, 17 @ 11:38 am:
“those 3 GOP governors did exactly what you want Rauner to do” Michael Madigan and the Republican Governors he controls…
So Ryan’s “Build Illinois” (with its tax and fee hikes) was all Madigan’s idea? Do tell.
- Ducky LaMoore - Friday, May 19, 17 @ 11:39 am:
===Not that I actually expect any of you to do anything except attack me personally, because you have nothing else right?===
Yes, everybody is a Democratic Party Hack! But you’re not attacking them personally….
- VanillaMan - Friday, May 19, 17 @ 11:40 am:
Rauner’s re-election slogan:
“Send Me Back To BEGIN The Job!”
- VanillaMan - Friday, May 19, 17 @ 11:43 am:
Rauner’s re-election slogan:
“This Time I’ll Really Try To Govern!”
- VanillaMan - Friday, May 19, 17 @ 11:46 am:
Rauner’s re-election slogan:
“Jackin’ Up Your Taxes Through Inaction”
- VanillaMan - Friday, May 19, 17 @ 11:47 am:
“Gonna Need More Hostages!”
- Dick Butka - Friday, May 19, 17 @ 11:47 am:
There are a lot of Raunerite sock puppets out today.
How anyone who lives in Illinois could take this tweet seriously is beyond me.
If this mess is the Democrats’ fault, explain why the state backlog of bills has tripled since Rauner took office.
Sure, maybe the Democrats are the status quo in Illinois. They got there by running a disciplined operation and delivering for their people. But the way things are looking in my home stat these days, I’ll take the status quo over this joker 200% of the time.
- Dublin - Friday, May 19, 17 @ 12:02 pm:
Reagan did increase the National Debt by 186%….so, there is that similarity.
- Lech W - Friday, May 19, 17 @ 12:03 pm:
=There are a lot of Raunerite sock puppets out today.=
Typical tolerance of the left, first negatively label those that disagree with you then marginalize their ideas.
- Impasse Casualty - Friday, May 19, 17 @ 12:16 pm:
“Governor is not the solution to our problem; Governor is the problem.”
-Ronald Reagan
- Mouthy - Friday, May 19, 17 @ 12:22 pm:
IMO I don’t think there’s any way Rauner will let a budget pass. He wants total capitulation, nothing less..
- A Jack - Friday, May 19, 17 @ 12:29 pm:
The big difference between Reagan create debt and Rauner created debt is that Reagan increased the debt by building up the military which served the useful purpose of bankruptcy our enemies.
Meanwhile Rauner is creating pointless debt with the which is only bankrupting ourselves. Well there may be a point since he is saving himself taxes. But the largest employers of the state don’t see his point.
- Pundent - Friday, May 19, 17 @ 12:57 pm:
Jerry - Mike Madigan caused this problem. Bruce Rauner made it worse. Bruce Rauner needs to stop making things worse. No personal attack just stating facts.
- FormerParatrooper - Friday, May 19, 17 @ 12:58 pm:
False comparison by the Governor. Reagan negotiated and reached out to the other side of the aisle. He gained respect of his political foes.
Rauner has made no such steps, and he is gaining no respect, except with the far fringes.
Shaking up Springfield was needed, but this earthquake that is destroying the State is unnecessary, and will create a larger problem than any out of balance he could have signed.
- Ahoy! - Friday, May 19, 17 @ 1:02 pm:
I think he garners a little sympathy (although not much) for having to deal with the most incompetent and useless legislature in the country.
- Cubs in '16 - Friday, May 19, 17 @ 1:07 pm:
Good stuff VMan.
How about “Allow me to finish what I never started”?
- Winnin' - Friday, May 19, 17 @ 1:17 pm:
You can all about hear him.
“You know what? We’re not backin’ down. Ha ha ha.”
- Dandy Edward - Friday, May 19, 17 @ 1:18 pm:
Mike and John need to fix the problem they and Republican and Democratic Governors created before Bruce became Governor. That is we need reforms to get a balanced budget and end these unbalance budgets and pension problems. Otherwise we accomplish nothing.
- Gold Five - Friday, May 19, 17 @ 1:28 pm:
Stay on target
- Wallinger Dickus - Friday, May 19, 17 @ 1:43 pm:
Skeptic –
With due respect, while George Ryan had his own infrastructure program, “Build Illinois” was a Thompson Administration brainchild and today that child 31 years old.
- Rabid - Friday, May 19, 17 @ 1:51 pm:
We won’t back down from the status quo of years of failed govenors
- efudd - Friday, May 19, 17 @ 1:52 pm:
I remember a time where Republicans were considered to be the party of reason and sure-footedness. Might not have liked their candidate, but one could be reasonably assured they had a toe-hold on reality.
- efudd - Friday, May 19, 17 @ 1:54 pm:
Ahoy-with his approval numbers, from whom does he garner this sympathy?
- Dick Butka - Friday, May 19, 17 @ 2:06 pm:
==Typical tolerance of the left, first negatively label those that disagree with you then marginalize their ideas.==
Looks like we’ve got ourselves a triggered right-wing snowflake!
Seriously, though. This tweet is laughable on so many levels. For one thing, 1.4 is to Reagan as Blago is to FDR.
For another, as many have noted, GOVERNORS OWN.
And I’ll gladly take the “Madigan Status Quo” if it means we fund domestic violence shelters, group homes et cetera.
- Jerry - Friday, May 19, 17 @ 2:08 pm:
@Oswego Willy - “You lack a full grasp of history, blaming Dems, now lumping the Repubs you magically missed as complicit.”
Here you admit that the GOP governors were complicit with the Dems in creating this mess, and yet you are demanding that Rauner do the same? Why are you criticizing Rauner for refusing to be a “go along to get along” Governor like the other GOP governors you blame for helping create this mess with the Democrats? Shouldn’t you be cheering Rauner? You aren’t being very consistent.
- Jerry - Friday, May 19, 17 @ 2:14 pm:
@Skeptic - “So Ryan’s “Build Illinois” (with its tax and fee hikes) was all Madigan’s idea?”
Without Madigan’s full support none of it would have made it out of committee.
@Pundent - ” Mike Madigan caused this problem. Bruce Rauner made it worse. Bruce Rauner needs to stop making things worse.”
And here we have another person who blames Madigan for creating the problem but then blames Rauner for making it worse. And how has Rauner “made it worse”? By not caving in to Madigan! I can’t even comprehend the mental gymnastics you must go through to have this make any sense.
- efudd - Friday, May 19, 17 @ 2:16 pm:
See, here’s the thing. If you want to evoke a much respected, almost legendary member of your party you better be ready for the sarcastic comparisons.
No different than a Democrat evoking Kennedy.
Be very careful.
- Oswego Willy - Friday, May 19, 17 @ 2:26 pm:
===And how has Rauner “made it worse”?===
Willfully ignorant or blissfully unaware.
“No, you choose, I’ll just laugh”
- Rabid - Friday, May 19, 17 @ 2:29 pm:
Lincoln, Reagan, who’s next Hoover?
- Oswego Willy - Friday, May 19, 17 @ 2:32 pm:
===And how has Rauner “made it worse”?===
lol, oh, and ask Crain’s while you’re at it.
- Cubs in '16 - Friday, May 19, 17 @ 2:33 pm:
===And how has Rauner “made it worse”?===
“Bruce Rauner is a failed governor.
Fifteen months after the wealthy Republican private equity investor was sworn in to his first elected office, the state he was elected to lead is in worse shape by nearly every measure than the state he inherited from his Democratic predecessor.”—Eric Zorn Chicago Tribune 4/12/16
- E7 - Friday, May 19, 17 @ 2:44 pm:
In Illinois Status Quo with Gov Beer nuts = SNAFU
- Skeptic - Friday, May 19, 17 @ 3:03 pm:
I stand corrected on the name of Ryan’s capital plan, but the point is still valid.
“Without Madigan’s full support none of it would have made it out of committee.” So who is capitulating to whom?
And one more significant difference between President Reagan and Governor Rauner…Reagan held office prior to being President.
- Oswego Willy - Friday, May 19, 17 @ 3:09 pm:
Hmm.
Who was Governor in 1999?
===The money for construction would come from funding sources approved as part of the 1999 Illinois First capital program.===
It’s referenced here.
https://capitolfax.com/2014/05/30/11-billion-mini-capital-bill-moves-through-house/
GHR had his own Illinois FIRST program…
- Pundent - Friday, May 19, 17 @ 3:57 pm:
Jerry - I think others have done a nice job of showing how Rauner has “made it worse”. I’ll add a $14B backlog of bills to what they’ve already offered.
But here’s a question for you, exactly how has Bruce Rauner made things better? That is what he was elected to do right?