31 Comments - wordslinger - Tuesday, Jul 3, 18 @ 9:26 am: –What: Gov. Rauner joined by local legislators, educational and business leaders visits three Champaign-Urbana businesses– Let me guess: every one of them employs more than six people and has an outstanding workforce. Such an ignorance-smashing learning experience this will be for the governor of Illinois, now in his fourth year in office. - Henry Francis - Tuesday, Jul 3, 18 @ 9:27 am: I hope he wears his latest prop (his Illini cap). They’ll love that. - Oswego Willy - Tuesday, Jul 3, 18 @ 9:28 am: Wonder if Mr. Rose will be there? How fun. Both Mr. Rose and Rauner flat out refused to fully fund higher education for the entire 99th GA. They were frustrated, I was told, but taking steps to reform Illinois was more important than fully funding higher education. Rauner wants universities closed, Mr. Rose continued to oblige… for a whole GA that sat. They’ll yuk it up, Mr. Rose, Rauner, buds… ignoring how they both had zero time for Higher Ed for an entire GA. Should be a laugh riot. I hope there’s pictures. - Grandson of Man - Tuesday, Jul 3, 18 @ 9:28 am: Will Rauner wear the Howdy Doody shirt with the panderin’ U of I cap? The Pritzker campaign is slow to jump on Rauner’s phoniness. How about a TV ad on all the costumes, a Bruce Rauner thinks you’re stupid ad? - wordslinger - Tuesday, Jul 3, 18 @ 9:30 am: –I hope he wears his latest prop (his Illini cap).– Given the way he trashed C-U, perhaps an Illini helmet would be more appropriate. Why not? The dude loves his costumes. He can put on an old leather one and pretend to be Red Grange. - Oswego Willy - Tuesday, Jul 3, 18 @ 9:32 am: Rauner can’t close UIUC, so… you use that Illini cap to pander. Rauner doesn’t respect Illinois higher education, that’s the ball game, for the guy wearing the pristine ball cap. - Arsenal - Tuesday, Jul 3, 18 @ 9:33 am: Cool, keep that story going for another day, good idea, Rauney. - A guy - Tuesday, Jul 3, 18 @ 9:34 am: At least he’s there. Someone finally has influence on this schedule. - dbk - Tuesday, Jul 3, 18 @ 9:36 am: “While trashing a community may come natural to Illinois’ bad-mouther-in-chief …” It seems to me that trashing the entire state and by extension, its people, comes natural to BVR. Great name for the visit, though. I’d imagine it’s an apology tour, but maybe the D’s wanted to avoid any negative connotations. - Michelle Flaherty - Tuesday, Jul 3, 18 @ 9:59 am: Rauner goes bold. Full chief outfit. - Cubs in '16 - Tuesday, Jul 3, 18 @ 10:13 am: ===Full chief outfit.=== Thanks for that visual. - Henry Francis - Tuesday, Jul 3, 18 @ 10:15 am: ==Full chief outfit.== Great call - then he would just need the cop/sailor and he would actually be a one man Village People. - VanillaMan - Tuesday, Jul 3, 18 @ 10:31 am: Rauner plans to reveal that his grandparents were Illini speaking pro-trade union Native American drag queens. Better bring that toilet along, Bruce. - Flatlander149 - Tuesday, Jul 3, 18 @ 10:34 am: So he’s showing up at what is probably the largest Union Mechanical Contractor in Central Illinois? So clueless. - thechampaignlife - Tuesday, Jul 3, 18 @ 10:41 am: I hope he flies into the University’s airport, takes an Uber to Wolfram, rides the award winning best little transit to his next stop, Lyft to the final stop, and catches Amtrak to Chicago or Carbondale, each mode of transit taking under 15 minutes within C-U. - Langhorne - Tuesday, Jul 3, 18 @ 10:55 am: Talk about offering a perfect invitation for a protest. 3 doz noisy protesters w signs would make a great visual. It would be fun to watch bruce try to respond. - wordslinger - Tuesday, Jul 3, 18 @ 11:44 am: –Full chief outfit.– They had one at Legends on Green Street. Is it still there? - JS Mill - Tuesday, Jul 3, 18 @ 11:46 am: =Wonder if Mr. Rose will be there?= I am sure he will be there, just look down and see if he is at Rauner’s heel. Michelle Flaherty for the win. - Don Gerard - Tuesday, Jul 3, 18 @ 12:09 pm: Ha! I invited him on multiple occasions after he was sworn in, but he brushed me off with, “Downstate needs to have more manufacturing and farming” and “Champaign is only doing well because of the tax-payer funded economic engine U of I…we need to break it up and move parts around the state so everyone can benefit”. Also, “Research Park is a gimmick”, “Jimmy John is moving to Florida” and re: Kraft, Wolfram, etc. “Pfffftttt!” [dismissive hand wave]. Were it not for Twitter his GOP Pals in office down here would’ve covered him until November, but now they have no choice but to toss him under the bus to save their own skin. Also, at this point he may as well wear a Chief Illiniwek t-shirt. It could only help him (and Chapin Rose likely has a number of ill-fitting ones he could borrow in a pinch). - Anon221 - Tuesday, Jul 3, 18 @ 2:30 pm: To the Update- The whole route is 4.4 miles and takes less than 15 minutes without the stops at each business (from Wolfram to A&R) by car. By bus, it’s 10-12 minutes from Wolfram to Granular, and around 30 minutes from Granular to A&R with a change of busses halfway. (Source Google Maps) Rauner looks like he’s hanging on for dear life… literally… during this tour. - Oswego Willy - Tuesday, Jul 3, 18 @ 2:32 pm: ===He looks so happy to be there.=== Never has a person wanted his truths to be believed, and not have his fallacies proven. This shoulda been goin’ on for 3 years… but… - Oswego Willy - Tuesday, Jul 3, 18 @ 2:36 pm: Rauner likes what he likes about Illinois, and the rest can just… “Downstaters are rubes, Chicago is where things happen, I can fool people by sayin’ anythin’, no one calls me on my stuff, if i just wear a costume, drop my Gs… “ Rauner is not a fan of Illinois. Ask him. He’ll tell you. His face today shows it too. - VanillaMan - Tuesday, Jul 3, 18 @ 2:47 pm: His eyes look glazed-over. He’s not listening. He’s not laughing. He’s not having fun. Good - Greater Rockwell - Tuesday, Jul 3, 18 @ 2:58 pm: Not surprising but it definitely appears to be the Governor’s first time on a bus.Even Rahm knows only one hand is needed when he decides to stage his occasional CTA photo opps. - Real - Tuesday, Jul 3, 18 @ 3:00 pm: His eyes look glazed-over. He’s not listening. He’s not laughing. He’s not having fun. Good - Good - Anon221 - Tuesday, Jul 3, 18 @ 3:36 pm: To Update #2- So… he’s gonna create a 212st century Interurban??? https://www.smartcitiesdive.com/ex/sustainablecitiescollective/funding-transport-role-public-private-partnerships/26325/ - Real - Tuesday, Jul 3, 18 @ 3:37 pm: I’m starting to think that maybe Rauner talked mess about Champaign as a gimmick just to get attention so he can go on an apology tour and promise them all kinds of stuff. It’s like he saw how Pritzker went on an apology tour with the African American community and is trying to test it with his own apology tour. - Anon221 - Tuesday, Jul 3, 18 @ 3:37 pm: 21st, not 212st… - Oswego Willy - Tuesday, Jul 3, 18 @ 3:38 pm: ===On transportation, @GovRauner vows to start serious talks about privately funded high speed rail projects to and from Champaign-Urbana=== Mon-O-Rail… Mon-O-Rail… Mon-O-Rail… #ProfHaroldHill Oh… This also means, if you read it right… not a soul wants to live, raise a family, actually be in Champaign Urbana. They need high speed monorail to get in and out of there. Real nice. - Arthur Andersen - Tuesday, Jul 3, 18 @ 3:40 pm: Hopefully no one on the BTIA(TM) told him about C-U losing United Express air service to Chicago in September due to pilot shortage or he’ll spill that out, too. (AA will still serve Chicago. Relax, I mean American Airlines, or Eagle more precisely.) - Bruce (no not him) - Tuesday, Jul 3, 18 @ 4:13 pm: High speed rail from Champaign to Urbana will be awesome! Sorry, comments for this post are now closed.