Today, Biss for Illinois released a new television ad, “Difference.” In the ad, Daniel Biss explains why, as a middle-class public school parent, he understands the stakes of this election in a way his wealthy opponents never will.
“They’ve never had to struggle to afford healthcare or pay off a student loan, so how can we ever expect the billionaires to make Illinois work for the middle class?” says Biss in the ad. “I’m Daniel Biss, and as a former teacher with kids in public schools, I’ll fight for fair taxes, fully funded schools, and healthcare for all because I understand the stakes in a way my wealthy opponents never will. That’s the difference: for me, it’s personal.”
B+. Ok message, but he should have repeated the “middle class governor” meme. Mentioning living in a two-flat would be good too — would make the image even more powerful.
Yea, because how could Franklin Roosevelt ever hope to understand the plight of ordinary Americans during the depression given his massive wealth. So tired of this absurd notion that wealth disqualifies you for office.
Indeed. The one he released today with Keegan Michael Key was enjoyable, although it’s probably not really an ad strictly speaking.
As for Biss, it’s the same ad he’s released more times than I can count. Marginally better than the last one he released, but still in the C+/B- range.
- Pot calling kettle - Wednesday, Mar 14, 18 @ 5:12 pm:
This would be an even better ad for Daiber. Too bad he has no $$$.
Frankly, the Dems have four pretty solid candidates with different strengths and weaknesses. It’s bee very interesting to see how they frame the slim differences between themselves and their opponents.
If you are going to talk about fighting, you need to sound like a fighter.
He doesn’t sound tough and that’s sort of a big deal.
I’m still undecided on this. I would like to support Biss because I’m not happy with the others, but ads like this make me wonder how well he can really due statewide.
He’s got a bit of a John Kerry/Mike Dukakis problem. He just doesn’t talk like a real leader.
- WizzardOfOzzie - Wednesday, Mar 14, 18 @ 5:19 pm:
His ads clearly haven’t been resonating… surprised they didn’t try and switch up messaging. Not exactly the most sophisticated campaign though.
Since they are running an ad they know isn’t moving voters, it’s a D.
Biss is a former instructor at a non-public university. He was unable to relate to actual public school teachers or community college or state university employees when he wrote legislation to cut their (TRS/SURS/SERS) pensions. I find his statement “former teacher” in the same sentence with “kids in public schools” to be misleading. It makes me visualize a teacher, K-12 kids, a local public school. If I did not already know his history I might have been fooled. A lot of people will probably not know his history, this ad will fool a lot of them.
DuPage beat me to it. I find it offensive that he calls himself a former teacher. Assistant Professor at a private university does not equal 5th grade public school teacher. Worlds of difference in respect from the public, pay, professional opportunities, etc. Offensive.
Couple that with crying middle class as well as pension theft bill……………..NO.
- Pot calling kettle - Wednesday, Mar 14, 18 @ 6:33 pm:
==Assistant Professor at a private university==
Assistant Professor of Mathematics at the University of Chicago with degrees from Harvard and MIT. An excellent pedigree. It’s unfortunate that our culture is so anti-intellectual that he has to skate past that.
@- Pot calling kettle - Wednesday, Mar 14, 18 @ 6:33 pm:
==Assistant Professor at a private university==
Assistant Professor of Mathematics at the University of Chicago with degrees from Harvard and MIT. An excellent pedigree. It’s unfortunate that our culture is so anti-intellectual that he has to skate past that.
Nothing anti-intellectual about it. He tries to pass himself off as a “teacher” giving the impression he was among the public school teachers who’s pensions HE tried to cut. Not many actual public school teachers are going to forget that.
–Nothing anti-intellectual about it. He tries to pass himself off as a “teacher” giving the impression he was among the public school teachers who’s pensions HE tried to cut.–
Hilarious.
How many assistant professors at U o C do you think introduce themselves as “teachers?”
As I’m sure an assistant mathematics professor knows, it’s believed the concept of “zero” as a number first appeared in India in about the 5th Century AD.
When Biss and his sidekick, Nekritz were doing local meetings about his proposal for pensions he was NOT describing himself as a former teacher. He was a math professor back then.
Suddenly his descriptors are different…..with the intent of making people think of him as a mere humble public servant, making a low salary and wishing everyone would just forget about the whole unconstitutional bill he touted so highly.
No teacher in their right mind would vote for this man—–not just because he worked tirelessly to rob them (even more) of their retirement benefits, but he is hiding behind the honest work of teachers as one who is not.
It’s not bad, I agree that his voice is a little milktoasty-he sounds much better in person. Jjust for the record, I am a state worker and am going to rely heavily on my pension and don’t think Biss’s pension reform ideas were that draconian-really it would have helped bolster pension finances for years to come including siting the future retirements of younger employees. He got taken in a bit trying to make compromises in committee maneuvers. Pritzker on the other hand, helped fund movements to decrease state pensions-you don’t hear much about that.
He and his ads mislead … at least this time the staircase to the second floor was cut out … a staircase in his small little ranch even his house misleads
Why didn’t Biss work full time? His tax returns show he only fed his family of four on his general assembly paycheck, a part-time job. In Evanston. That’s embarrassing.
I just find it amusing how many people on this site criticize Biss for voting to cut pensions for state employees, and then turn around and say they’re going to vote for Pritzker. You do realize Pritzker gave (I believe it was $10,000 at least) to a super PAC which was also pushing to cut those same pensions?
Biss ain’t perfect - he’s made some mistakes. But most people who try something new are going to make a mistake or two. I’m voting for Biss because he already made his political mistake and learned from it. Pritzker won’t own up to all of his past mistakes, and both he and Kennedy would be set up to make their own political mistakes because they’re new to it. Biss has been around the block and knows what to do and what not to do. He gets my vote easily.
- Name/Nickname/Anon - Wednesday, Mar 14, 18 @ 3:50 pm:
Cry baby, cry.
- Contract Disputin' - Wednesday, Mar 14, 18 @ 3:53 pm:
B+. Ok message, but he should have repeated the “middle class governor” meme. Mentioning living in a two-flat would be good too — would make the image even more powerful.
- Anonymous - Wednesday, Mar 14, 18 @ 3:53 pm:
probably his best (least awkward) pitch as middle class governor so far. shame it took him so long to strike this kind of balance.
- don the legend - Wednesday, Mar 14, 18 @ 4:02 pm:
…I’ll fight for fair taxes, fully funded schools, and healthcare for all…
Those might have to be some pretty high fair taxes
- jb - Wednesday, Mar 14, 18 @ 4:04 pm:
Guess this is his closer. Should be a nice third place finish for Biss.
- slow down - Wednesday, Mar 14, 18 @ 4:05 pm:
This message resonates with a lot of people and rightly so.
- Hamilton - Wednesday, Mar 14, 18 @ 4:06 pm:
ok, could be a lot better for this time in the election
- TaylorvilleTornado - Wednesday, Mar 14, 18 @ 4:07 pm:
“They’ve never had to struggle to afford healthcare or pay off a student loan”
Neither have you, Biss.
Biss is just as big of a fake as Rauner with his “accent” and Carhartt jacket.
- Anonymous - Wednesday, Mar 14, 18 @ 4:08 pm:
Ok but could be much better this time around in the election
- Hank - Wednesday, Mar 14, 18 @ 4:09 pm:
Kennedy’s are better
- Natty_Bq - Wednesday, Mar 14, 18 @ 4:10 pm:
Aren’t Evanston public schools fancier than a probably almost all private schools.
- Flat Bed Ford - Wednesday, Mar 14, 18 @ 4:13 pm:
On a scale of 1 to 10 I give it a 3.14159265359
- Anon0091 - Wednesday, Mar 14, 18 @ 4:16 pm:
Yea, because how could Franklin Roosevelt ever hope to understand the plight of ordinary Americans during the depression given his massive wealth. So tired of this absurd notion that wealth disqualifies you for office.
- Anon324 - Wednesday, Mar 14, 18 @ 4:18 pm:
==Kennedy’s are better==
Indeed. The one he released today with Keegan Michael Key was enjoyable, although it’s probably not really an ad strictly speaking.
As for Biss, it’s the same ad he’s released more times than I can count. Marginally better than the last one he released, but still in the C+/B- range.
- Rutro - Wednesday, Mar 14, 18 @ 4:19 pm:
Shoulda got Emilio Estevez
- Just Observing - Wednesday, Mar 14, 18 @ 4:21 pm:
=== Aren’t Evanston public schools fancier than a probably almost all private schools. ===
Uh… no.
- Anon35 - Wednesday, Mar 14, 18 @ 4:23 pm:
I agree, it’s a solid 3.14159265359……..
He grew up privileged.
- A Jack - Wednesday, Mar 14, 18 @ 4:27 pm:
Health Care for all except state employee retirees. He voted yes on SB1313. SB1313 was that unconstitutional bill requiring retirees to pay more.
- wordslinger - Wednesday, Mar 14, 18 @ 4:53 pm:
Is it really new? It looks and sounds like his old spot. Maybe they’re all running together for me.
- Anon - Wednesday, Mar 14, 18 @ 4:54 pm:
He…he doesn’t say he had to pay student loans.
- Pot calling kettle - Wednesday, Mar 14, 18 @ 5:12 pm:
This would be an even better ad for Daiber. Too bad he has no $$$.
Frankly, the Dems have four pretty solid candidates with different strengths and weaknesses. It’s bee very interesting to see how they frame the slim differences between themselves and their opponents.
- Gooner - Wednesday, Mar 14, 18 @ 5:14 pm:
It reads better than it plays.
If you are going to talk about fighting, you need to sound like a fighter.
He doesn’t sound tough and that’s sort of a big deal.
I’m still undecided on this. I would like to support Biss because I’m not happy with the others, but ads like this make me wonder how well he can really due statewide.
He’s got a bit of a John Kerry/Mike Dukakis problem. He just doesn’t talk like a real leader.
- WizzardOfOzzie - Wednesday, Mar 14, 18 @ 5:19 pm:
His ads clearly haven’t been resonating… surprised they didn’t try and switch up messaging. Not exactly the most sophisticated campaign though.
Since they are running an ad they know isn’t moving voters, it’s a D.
- Anonymous - Wednesday, Mar 14, 18 @ 5:45 pm:
Successful because he is still in the game and he continues to build up his name recognition. The ad was competent.
- DuPage - Wednesday, Mar 14, 18 @ 6:03 pm:
Biss is a former instructor at a non-public university. He was unable to relate to actual public school teachers or community college or state university employees when he wrote legislation to cut their (TRS/SURS/SERS) pensions. I find his statement “former teacher” in the same sentence with “kids in public schools” to be misleading. It makes me visualize a teacher, K-12 kids, a local public school. If I did not already know his history I might have been fooled. A lot of people will probably not know his history, this ad will fool a lot of them.
- Anonymous - Wednesday, Mar 14, 18 @ 6:12 pm:
DuPage beat me to it. I find it offensive that he calls himself a former teacher. Assistant Professor at a private university does not equal 5th grade public school teacher. Worlds of difference in respect from the public, pay, professional opportunities, etc. Offensive.
Couple that with crying middle class as well as pension theft bill……………..NO.
- Pot calling kettle - Wednesday, Mar 14, 18 @ 6:33 pm:
==Assistant Professor at a private university==
Assistant Professor of Mathematics at the University of Chicago with degrees from Harvard and MIT. An excellent pedigree. It’s unfortunate that our culture is so anti-intellectual that he has to skate past that.
- DuPage - Wednesday, Mar 14, 18 @ 6:57 pm:
@- Pot calling kettle - Wednesday, Mar 14, 18 @ 6:33 pm:
==Assistant Professor at a private university==
Assistant Professor of Mathematics at the University of Chicago with degrees from Harvard and MIT. An excellent pedigree. It’s unfortunate that our culture is so anti-intellectual that he has to skate past that.
Nothing anti-intellectual about it. He tries to pass himself off as a “teacher” giving the impression he was among the public school teachers who’s pensions HE tried to cut. Not many actual public school teachers are going to forget that.
- wordslinger - Wednesday, Mar 14, 18 @ 7:06 pm:
–Nothing anti-intellectual about it. He tries to pass himself off as a “teacher” giving the impression he was among the public school teachers who’s pensions HE tried to cut.–
Hilarious.
How many assistant professors at U o C do you think introduce themselves as “teachers?”
As I’m sure an assistant mathematics professor knows, it’s believed the concept of “zero” as a number first appeared in India in about the 5th Century AD.
- Lurch - Wednesday, Mar 14, 18 @ 7:29 pm:
This ad is terrible. He is terrible. He tried to take my benefits away.
- Anonymous - Wednesday, Mar 14, 18 @ 7:45 pm:
Misleading……….deceptive. Skirting total honesty.
- Morty - Wednesday, Mar 14, 18 @ 7:48 pm:
His platitudes sound like naked opportunism.
He’s the same guy who front-lined pension theft
- Anonymous - Wednesday, Mar 14, 18 @ 8:09 pm:
When Biss and his sidekick, Nekritz were doing local meetings about his proposal for pensions he was NOT describing himself as a former teacher. He was a math professor back then.
Suddenly his descriptors are different…..with the intent of making people think of him as a mere humble public servant, making a low salary and wishing everyone would just forget about the whole unconstitutional bill he touted so highly.
No teacher in their right mind would vote for this man—–not just because he worked tirelessly to rob them (even more) of their retirement benefits, but he is hiding behind the honest work of teachers as one who is not.
- Hecules - Wednesday, Mar 14, 18 @ 8:19 pm:
It’s not bad, I agree that his voice is a little milktoasty-he sounds much better in person. Jjust for the record, I am a state worker and am going to rely heavily on my pension and don’t think Biss’s pension reform ideas were that draconian-really it would have helped bolster pension finances for years to come including siting the future retirements of younger employees. He got taken in a bit trying to make compromises in committee maneuvers. Pritzker on the other hand, helped fund movements to decrease state pensions-you don’t hear much about that.
- Anonymous - Wednesday, Mar 14, 18 @ 10:08 pm:
He and his ads mislead … at least this time the staircase to the second floor was cut out … a staircase in his small little ranch even his house misleads
- Anon - Wednesday, Mar 14, 18 @ 10:31 pm:
Why didn’t Biss work full time? His tax returns show he only fed his family of four on his general assembly paycheck, a part-time job. In Evanston. That’s embarrassing.
- AngelFire - Wednesday, Mar 14, 18 @ 11:13 pm:
No spot for Letisa? Good luck.
- Lynn S. - Thursday, Mar 15, 18 @ 1:46 am:
Glad to see I’m not the only person noticing the switch from math professor to “teacher”, and being annoyed with it.
Not as bad as Rauner and his costumes, but, still…
- Techie - Thursday, Mar 15, 18 @ 8:03 am:
I just find it amusing how many people on this site criticize Biss for voting to cut pensions for state employees, and then turn around and say they’re going to vote for Pritzker. You do realize Pritzker gave (I believe it was $10,000 at least) to a super PAC which was also pushing to cut those same pensions?
Biss ain’t perfect - he’s made some mistakes. But most people who try something new are going to make a mistake or two. I’m voting for Biss because he already made his political mistake and learned from it. Pritzker won’t own up to all of his past mistakes, and both he and Kennedy would be set up to make their own political mistakes because they’re new to it. Biss has been around the block and knows what to do and what not to do. He gets my vote easily.
- City Zen - Thursday, Mar 15, 18 @ 8:28 am:
I’m not a teacher, although I play one on TV.
- anonymous 2 - Thursday, Mar 15, 18 @ 8:43 am:
===So tired of this absurd notion that wealth disqualifies you for office.===
Thank you - finally, someone with the courage to defend the billionaires.
- Anonymous - Thursday, Mar 15, 18 @ 9:00 am:
While I wouldn’t defend it, the way our system operates, only wealthy people can afford to run. So how could it be different?
- Anon - Thursday, Mar 15, 18 @ 9:33 am:
In a field where policy differences are marginal, this is his strongest distinguishing factor and is a good choice for a final push.