Illinois Gov. Bruce Rauner says he will not dispatch the Illinois National Guard to Chicago to stem gun violence.
The Republican on Wednesday said that “the National Guard is not for neighborhood policing.” […]
But he says state troops would only be appropriate for “a riot or some issue like that.”
* The reason why I believe the governor and not the rumor is that he’s been so consistent on this topic over the years. From August of 2016…
As Chicago capped off its deadliest month in almost 20 years, Gov. Bruce Rauner on Wednesday ruled out the idea of deploying the National Guard to help combat street violence in the city, saying that to do so would be an “emotional” reaction that “wouldn’t make sense.”
The Republican governor said he had discussed the concept with community leaders, police officers and the National Guard, but that “no thoughtful leader thinks that’s a good idea or would really provide a solution.”
Gov. Bruce Rauner doesn’t want to send the National Guard into Chicago, despite the city’s spiking violence, saying in a recent interview the extreme measure “would be a mistake.”
President Donald Trump once again brought national attention to the city’s violent crime Tuesday, tweeting that he would “send in the feds” if officials in Chicago can’t get a handle on the ongoing “carnage.”
President Trump has threatened repeatedly to “send in the feds” unless officials reduce Chicago’s bloody violence.
Governor Rauner said Friday that if the president means military units, then he’s opposed.
Bruce Rauner said experts on violent crime have told him what they’ve told us here at FOX 32: Deploying the National Guard would do little to stop the targeted, gang-related killings that plague parts of Chicago.
“National Guard troops are not trained to be community police officers,” Rauner said.
Also, there’s just no way that Mayor Emanuel will ask him to send the troops or agree to the troops if Rauner completely flip-flopped and made a unilateral move like that.
For more than a year Sean Casten’s campaign for Congress has centered on just two things, his attacks on Peter Roskam and Casten’s personal wealth, which he claims was derived from his success as a small business “entrepreneur.”
But while Casten has attempted to portray himself as a successful small businessman, he has refused to talk about the fact that he was sued by his own investors for manipulating his company’s books, committing breaches of fiduciary duty and paying his family members inflated salaries and bonuses.
The Roskam for Congress campaign today released an ad that takes square aim at Casten’s underhanded business dealings. A copy of the ad and the script is below.
“Sean Casten has held himself out as a successful businessman, but was sued by his own investors for illegal business activity, breach of fiduciary responsibility and for paying his relatives inflated incomes,” said Roskam for Congress Spokesman Veronica Vera. “Sean Casten’s attacks on Peter Roskam are designed to hide his checkered past, but voters deserve to know the truth about Sean Casten’s shady self-dealing.”
The Truth: He inherited millions and worked for his family’s business.
Casten was sued for mismanagement.
Accused of breaches of fiduciary duty.
And manipulating the company books.
Paying his family inflated bonuses and salaries.
While Casten propped up the business with unauthorized transfers.
Sean Casten’s just another shady Illinois politician who’d make things worse.
* Casten campaign response…
Today, Rep. Peter Roskam rolled out his first negative TV attack ad against Sean Casten, candidate for congress in Illinois’ Sixth District. The Casten campaign released the following statement:
“It’s pathetic and very telling that after 25 years on the public payroll, Roskam’s TV ad doesn’t even mention his own record but just throws mud at Sean,” said Greg Bales, Campaign Manager for Sean Casten. “The attacks come from a lawsuit filed during an attempted hostile takeover, which happens in business — something a career politician like Peter Roskam wouldn’t understand. Peter wants to muddy up Sean’s record as a successful green-energy entrepreneur because it contrasts so sharply with his own record of rubber-stamp partisanship — voting 94 percent of the time with President Trump.
Sean has been open and honest about his record, while Peter Roskam attempted to gut the Office of Congressional Ethics after they investigated his own.
“Peter Roskam knows that he can’t survive a campaign based on the truth about his own record, so he’s chosen to lie about Sean. The voters of the Sixth District, whom Roskam avoids at all costs, deserve far better from their Congressman than misleading negative ads. We’re confident they’ll choose ideas and independence over insults and partisanship on November 6th.”
Peter Roskam’s ad references a hostile takeover attempt of one of Sean’s businesses. The disputes were amicably resolved, allowing Sean to protect both his employees and investors.
Casten wrote about the hostile takeover attempt a few months back. Click here.
* After five days out of the public eye, Gov. Rauner spoke to the Illinois Black Chamber of Commerce today. I’ll have more on what he said either for subscribers or the blog, but let’s lighten it up a bit for right now. As I mentioned below, the governor also talked to reporters…
* All charts are from HeyJackass.com. Yearly Chicago homicides for the past 60 years, not including 2018, which so far is lower than 2017…
* Chicago homicides over the past decade, with a 2018 forecast…
* Chicago shootings resulting in wounds or death, plus other homicides in the past month…
My point here is that it’s important not to take or encourage rash actions based on what could turn out to be a one-time thing. That’s not to say nothing should be done. To suggest otherwise would be stupid. People are suffering regardless of Sunday’s spike, which was completely horrifying.
All I’m saying is people tend to overreact in the moment. And it helps in those moments to put things into some perspective.
@GovRauner to emerge from a 5-day respite tomorrow at an event in downstate Marion. Why was he laying low? Was he in the bunker to make fundraising calls? Some say he was just "catching his breath" before busy upcoming State Fair events.
He’ll also be speaking this afternoon at the Illinois Black Chamber of Commerce convention in Peoria. Neither of these are listed on his official schedule, so they’re considered campaign events, which makes the oppo file we’re about to look at more relevant.
I told subscribers about the governor’s southern Illinois event yesterday. He’s speaking this afternoon at the Illinois Basin Coal & Mining Expo. Republican attorney general candidate Erika Harold is also speaking, as well as some pro-coal Illinois congressmen and several coal industry executives.
Before we begin, the oppo file repeatedly references a federal campaign committee created by the governor and the state GOP called “Our Home, Our Fight.” The committee has raised $122K this year, with 20 percent of that coming from coal mining interests, which is significant. And these same coal execs will be speaking at today’s event. Some also contributed to the governor’s transition and inaugural committees.
* On to the oppo file. It has a predictable anti-Rauner, anti-coal slant, of course, but there’s stuff in here I did not know or had forgotten, so I think it’s useful in that context. I’ve highlighted a few things to make it easier to skim…
Bruce Rauner is appearing at the Illinois Basin Expo on August 8 in a symposium that includes Knight Hawk Coal President Steve Carter and White Stallion Energy CEO Steven E. Chancellor [Illinois Basin Expo, Accessed 8/7/2018]
Three Illinois coal companies - Knight Hawk Coal, White Stallion Energy, and Murray Energy - and the Illinois Coal Association Committee on Affirmative Leadership gave a combined $25,000 to the joint Rauner/Illinois GOP Federal fundraising committee “Our Home, Our Fight” in April 2018
Knight Hawk Coal
Knight Hawk Coal gave Our Home, Our Fight $5,000 on April 13, 2018 [FEC, Accessed 8/7/2018]
Knight Hawk Coal hosted candidate Bruce Rauner in September 2014. “Abut (sic) 200 coal miners ending the first shift or beginning the second shift at Prairie Eagle stopped to hear Carter and Rauner. Carter told them, ‘I can’t tell you how to vote, but I can tell you who–in my judgement–will help our industry.’ He got a promise from Rauner to speed up the coal mine permit process.” [Du Quoin Call, 10/1/2014]
White Stallion Energy
White Stallion Energy, LLC gave Our Home, Our Fight $2,500 on April 25, 2018 [FEC, Accessed 8/7/2018]
White Stallion Energy mines coal from five sites in Illinois. White Stallion’s CEO Steve Chancellor met with former EPA Administrator Scott Pruitt and was appointed to the Department of the Interior’s International Wildlife Conservation Council by Interior Secretary Ryan Zinke [Politico, 3/16/18]
Chancellor boasted he raised “north of a million” for the Trump campaign at a fundraiser hosted at his house. [Courier & Press, 8/16/16]
Murray Energy
Murray Energy Corporation gave Our Home, Our Fight $15,000 on April 25, 2018 [FEC, Accessed 8/7/2018]
Murray Energy is the largest underground coal mining company in America. [Murray Energy Website, Accessed, 8/7/2018]
Murray Energy gave up to $10,000 to the Rauner Transition and Illinois Inaugural Committee for Bruce Rauner’s Inauguration [Chicago Sun-Times, 1/10/2015]
In 2015, Murray Energy bought a large stake Foresight Energy, which has three Illinois mines and bills itself as a “leading coal producer in the Illinois Basin Region” [Foresight Website, Accessed 8/7/2018]
Foresight Energy gave up to $100,000 to the Rauner Transition and Illinois Inaugural Committee for Bruce Rauner’s Inauguration [Chicago Sun-Times, 1/10/2015]
Foresight recently filed to permanently close their Deer Hill Mine, which has been the site of an underground fire since 2014 [St. Louis Post Dispatch, 4/30/2018]
A Murray Energy subsidiary, Sugar Camp Energy, is threatening to force Illinois landowners to sell their land for mine infrastructure under a 1976 agreement. [Energy News Network, 3/19/28]
Murray energy subsidiary American Coal told regulators it was laying off 225 employees in Illinois last year. The layoffs were called “a move that industry sources say would likely shut one of the company’s top producing Illinois Basin mines.” [S&P Global, 4/28/2017]
The Illinois Coal Association Committee on Affirmative Leadership
The Illinois Coal Association Committee on Affirmative Leadership also gave “Our Home, Our Fight” $2,500 on April 13, 2018 [FEC, Accessed 8/7/2018]
The top donor to the The Illinois Coal Association Committee on Affirmative Leadership is Knight Hawk Coal [Illinois Sunshine, Accessed 8/7/2018]
Knight Hawk Coal currently has a mining permit pending before IDNR. This was the company Rauner told he’d speed up the permit process in 2014 [IDNR Website, Accessed 8/7/18]
Of the 5 roundtable participants, 4 have given to Rauner campaign-related vehicles either personally or via their companies.
$10,000 from Joe Craft On 10/17/14. [IL State Board of Elections, Accessed 8/7/18]
$5,000 from Steven Chancellor On 10/2/14. [IL State Board of Elections, Accessed 8/7/18]
$500 from Kemal Williamson On 10/2/14. [IL State Board of Elections, Accessed 8/7/18]
$250 from Phil Gonet, President Of The IL Coal Association, On 8/25/14. [IL State Board of Elections, Accessed 8/7/18]
$15,000 on 10/2/14 and $1,000 on 6/2/14 from The Illinois Coal Association Committee On Affirmative Leadership. [IL State Board of Elections, Accessed 8/7/18]
* The Sierra Club apparently heard I had the file, so they sent me a statement from Illinois Chapter Director Jack Darin…
Today Bruce Rauner is huddling with the same coal barons who are colluding with Donald Trump to take America backward and out of the global clean energy economy. These billionaires and corporations are funding Rauner’s re-election campaign while seeking state permits to pollute our land, air, and water supply, despite a history of violating our environmental laws.
We can’t let Bruce Rauner and his coal campaign donors dictate a dirtier future for Illinois by copying Donald Trump’s dirty energy plans. We need to embrace the clean energy investments and jobs already being created across the state, and work with historic coal communities to seize these and other new economic opportunities. Communities that used to rely on coal mining deserve real help in diversifying their economies and winning clean energy jobs, not the false promise that the coal barons will do anything but make a profit while polluting our land, air, and water.
* I’ve been telling you lately about conspiracy theorist Bill Fawell’s Republican congressional bid. Click here for a story from late May and click here for a story from Monday.
Tuesday press release…
Calling Republican candidate for Congress Bill Fawell, “a bizarre lunatic whose absurd beliefs are frighteningly dangerous for our communities,” Doug House, president of the Illinois Democratic County Chairs’ Association and Chair of the Rock Island County Democrats, is asking GOP leaders to immediately condemn and reject Fawell’s campaign.
Fawell’s social media posts show he is an unapologetic promoter of wildly far-fetched conspiracies such as the 9/11 terrorist attack in New York as a government-led tragedy. Fawell is also convinced that the 2012 mass shooting at Connecticut’s Sandy Hook Elementary School was a US-led “false flag” operation conducted by mysterious “deep state” organizers who, some claim, control a so-called shadow government. At the school, six teachers and 20 students, aged six and seven years old, were riddled with bullets in the massacre.
“Republican Bill Fawell has displayed dangerous, crazy indecency that isn’t reflective of our communities,” House said. “He promotes the belief that certain black celebrities are active in the Illuminati and that child trafficking operations are connected through tunnel systems under Washington, DC pizza shops. These demented ideas are ripped right from the pages of Alex Jones’ InfoWars, a dangerous alt-right propaganda machine. Rock Island Republicans should take the lead by withdrawing their support of Fawell and that others to do the same.”
Republican party officials are withdrawing support for 17th Congressional District candidate Bill Fawell after reviewing alleged conspiracy theories posted by Fawell on social media.
Fawell, 64, will face U.S. Rep. Cheri Bustos, D-Moline, in the November general election.
State Republican party chairman Tim Schneider, Rock Island County Republican party central committee chair Drue Mielke, and Republican state central committeeman for the 17th Congressional District, Jan Weber, removed their support of Fawell on Tuesday.
All three officials cite posts on Fawell’s campaign Facebook page, Elect Fawell, in which Fawell appears to support 9/11 conspiracy theories, and called some mass shootings “false flag” events.
LaGrange resident Justin Hanson is so incensed to see a Holocaust denier on the ballot that he’s decided to throw his hat in the ring as a write-in candidate for the 3rd Congressional District. “I’m running because I don’t believe men like Art Jones should be allowed to go unchallenged,” Hanson told POLITICO, arguing that “I’m running to give residents of this community a choice. Because as it stands now, they don’t have one.”
Hanson faces incumbent Democrat Dan Lipinski, who’s represented the Chicago-area district since 2005, and Jones, a Nazi who ran unopposed in the primary when the GOP couldn’t come up with another candidate. Republicans have denounced Jones, and Texas GOP Sen. Ted Cruz even urged residents to vote Democrat in the Chicago-area congressional district to avoid showing any kind of support to Jones’ Nazi views.
Because he’s joined the race too late to be included on the ballot, voters will have to write in Hanson’s name. “We know it will be a challenge, but this is an extraordinary circumstance and I think voters recognize that,” he said.
No reference is made in the story about whether the GOP will now back Hanson.
* Unless he wants to activate our relative small number of National Guard military police, this could turn out to be a disaster…
Little birds spreading rumor that Gov. Bruce Rauner might deploy the National Guard to help Chicago after a horrific weekend that left 12 dead and 59 others wounded in shootings. But gov's office says "no." #twill
Rauner staff denies it, but multiple sources including Dem insiders believe he has poll tested/and is considering calling #NationalGuard in response to #ChicagoViolence@GovRauner
That rumor was everywhere yesterday, but an administration official told me the idea sounded “crazy.” Even so, there is some support within GOP leadership.
* I briefly embedded with the 233rd Military Police Company of the Illinois National Guard in Iraq back in 2003. Many of the soldiers were cops back in the real world. They were also incredibly well trained and some of the lessons they taught me have stayed with me ever since. From my story back then…
“The infantry would have lit him up,” said a member of the 233rd during the patrol. The MP was referring to a night not long ago when an Iraqi teenager aimed a red laser pointer at his face.
“I found him in three seconds,” the soldier said. The teenager was immediately determined to be nonhostile, so he was given a stern warning and let go.
The differences between MPs and the infantry were repeatedly evident during the all-night patrol. The MPs, the soldiers said, are trained to clearly identify a threat before opening fire. And they are warned against firing back if it could injure any innocent bystanders. The infantry, they claimed, is just not suited to the task of policing.
Late that night, the MPs were driving up the “wrong” side of a four-lane boulevard when a dark-colored van came speeding toward them from around a curve.
The van driver, perhaps blinded by the oncoming headlights, did not stop immediately but slammed on his brakes shortly before slamming into one of the MPs’ two Hummers.
The tension was high during the split second when it appeared that a head-on collision was imminent, but the MPs calmly exited their vehicles, politely ordered the man out of his van, gently frisked him, quickly searched his car, asked why he was out after the 11 p.m. curfew, and then sent him on his way with smiles on their faces.
Activating the National Guard to deal with Chicago violence is an old idea. Some Democrats demanded it back when Rod Blagojevich was governor. Blagojevich was eventually convinced not to do it.
The Guard can be useful for things like protecting a certain piece of property, or controlling large crowds or distributing food and other aid. But if we send them out on neighborhood patrols, some bad things could happen.
*** UPDATE 1 *** The Rauner administration just reiterated to me that these rumors are not true and the governor is not calling out the National Guard.
*** UPDATE 2 *** Mary Ann is sticking by her story…
Gov’s office insists no trial balloon, multiple sources say it was poll tested/considered
* One of the reasons why I haven’t posted any candidate statements on Chicago’s violent weekend is that most of them were just empty finger-pointing. Rex Huppke’s new column takes aim at several folks on this very topic, including JB Pritzker…
I’d like to ask each and every Illinois politician and political candidate scrambling to condemn this past weekend’s outbreak of gun violence in Chicago to please shut up.
All of you. Please. You’re flapping your gums and pointing fingers and tossing out useless bromides and generally making nuisances of yourselves.
Take Democratic gubernatorial candidate J.B. Pritzker, who on Tuesday saw fit to leverage Chicago’s insanely violent weekend — 74 shot, 12 killed — to go after Republican Gov. Bruce Rauner, blaming the governor for the shootings. Pritzker said funding cuts to social service programs under Rauner’s watch have led to an uptick in gun violence across Illinois.
Please explain to me, Mr. Pritzker, how that’s helpful right now? I’m one of the last people anyone would expect to stand up for Rauner, and I agree that properly funded social service programs are a key to stemming violence in Chicago and elsewhere, but what good does a transparently political jab like that do in this moment?
I’ll answer that: None.
Rauner’s campaign called Pritzker’s comment “shameful,” and I agree. Unless your mouth is able to utter some sensible, well-thought-out, comprehensive solutions to a problem that has plagued Chicago for decades — a problem no politician or political candidate past or present has seen fit to properly address — then silence is your best option.
Pritzker said “violence interruption on the streets” is probably the quickest way to address the gun issue in Chicago. “These are all things that can be deployed if the state will have funds available and make funds available for those. Those are things that can happen this weekend, next weekend and should happen on a consistent basis,” he said. […]
“In terms of this specific weekend, it’s nothing that’s just going to be a Band-Aid approach where you can say, ‘OK. Let’s just do something, just kind of, you know, address an issue really quickly,’ ” Stratton said. “We have to make sure there’s investment and that requires a long-term vision for these communities.”
* And connecting the impasse to the violence spike is not a new thing…
In 2013 and 2014, the years before Rauner took office, the number of homicides in Chicago dropped to levels not seen since the 1960s with 420 and 415 killings in those years respectively. In 2015, Rauner’s first year as governor and the first six months of the budget impasse, the number of homicides grew to 468 before surging to 750 in 2016 — a level that had not been seen in two decades.
In 2017, there were about 650 homicides. Through the first half of this year, Chicago was on pace for a double-digit drop in the number of homicides compared to last year but still on track to far outpace the numbers in 2013 and 2014, statistics compiled by the Chicago Tribune showed.
But is it causation or correlation? According to the Tribune, Pritzker said yesterday the violence spike was “almost concurrent with the defunding.” He also said the defunding of human service progrms “has led to this problem.” And he said that when those programs are defunded, budgets are vetoed and violence interruption programs aren’t prioritized, “then gun violence will increase.”
Fair or unfair hit?
…Adding… To clarify, I meant was the hit on Pritzker fair, but I suppose we could expand this to mean was Pritzker’s hit on Rauner also fair or unfair.
The city of Chicago has cut funding for a model anti-violence program, deciding to focus instead on community policing and other strategies to combat the city’s high murder rate.
The program, CeaseFire, sends former gang members into targeted neighborhoods to defuse conflicts before they erupt into violence. FRONTLINE featured some of the CeaseFire operators earlier this year in The Interrupters, tracking their efforts to intervene in gang violence, stopping revenge shootings and curbing fights.
* I told you a couple of weeks ago that mayoral candidate Willie Wilson’s charity hadn’t filed its required annual state report. A Wilson spokesperson said at the time that the form would be filed within the week. That didn’t happen.
Willie Wilson campaign press release…
ATTORNEY GENERAL SEEKS TO INVESTIGATE
DR. WILLIE WILSON FOUNDATION BY DEMANDING DETAILED AUDIT
At the request of Rahm Emanuel, Four Alderman
looking for Class 4 Felony Charges against Wilson for helping the needy
WHO: Humanitarian Dr. Willie Wilson and The Willie Wilson Foundation
WHAT: Responding to the recent audit handed down by Attorney General Lisa Madigan that calls for the examination of foundation files and records for donation disbursements and for giving away his own money for property tax relief last week. This coming as the result of four aldermen generating a politically motivated City Council Resolution R2018-834 (attached). On Rahm’s behalf, the four aldermen are pursuing the Class 4 Felony charges.
“What we’re doing is asking for more information,” said Maura Possley, the attorney general’s office spokeswoman. “We’re not investigating anything at this point.”
Possley said Wilson’s controversial cash giveaways prompted questions, which led to the discovery that Wilson’s foundation had not filed a necessary financial form, required by the state for charitable organizations operating in Illinois, for 2017. It was not immediately clear how long the documents had been outstanding.
At a South Side church event in late July, Wilson handed out more than $200,000 in cash and checks. Gov. Bruce Rauner was at the event and later criticized the giveaway, but the state election boards said Wilson apparently did not violate any election laws. Last week, Wilson handed out more than $100,000 to Cook County residents to help pay their property taxes.
“I don’t think of it as an audit. But they need to be fully compliant with our process. We have some questions. If he is giving money from his foundation, that is a perfectly legal thing to do. We just have to make sure everything is accounted for,” Possley said. […]
“I’m going to support Dr. Wilson all the way, but we need to hold up on the giving because of the audit,” said Ricky Hendon, a former Illinois legislator turned political consultant. […]
Wilson met with the Illinois Campaign for Political Reform (ICPR) on Monday and defended his philanthropy.
The watchdog group had filed a complaint against Wilson with the state elections board, arguing that Wilson should have reported the $200,000 giveaway as an “in-kind” contribution.
After the meeting, Hendon suggested the ICPR didn’t have a problem with what Wilson did as long as the money came from the foundation and Wilson’s “personal pockets”—and not his campaign funds.
A State Board of Elections hearing next week instigated by ICPR will be held as planned, however.
Today, the Rauner Campaign is launching a new statewide TV ad titled “Tax Hiker.”
The ad tells the story of Mike Madigan’s 32% income tax hike last year, and how his handpicked candidate for governor, JB Pritzker, is calling for yet another tax hike on every single Illinoisan. The ad then cites a Chicago Tribune editorial that says Pritzker’s plan would “punish” taxpayers, the same plan that Pritzker calls the “theme” of his campaign.
The Pritzker-Madigan agenda is clear: higher taxes, more corruption.
Mike Madigan just raised your taxes thirty-two percent over Bruce Rauner’s veto. Now JB Pritzker wants to raise your taxes again. Pritzker and Madigan want to raise taxes on every middle class Illinoisan. And increase tax rates… another twenty…six… percent. The Chicago Tribune says Pritzker’s plan will punish Illinoisans. But JB Prtizker calls it the central theme of his campaign.
JB Pritzker and Mike Madigan. Higher taxes. More corruption.
