46 Comments - Maestro - Tuesday, Nov 6, 18 @ 9:15 am: I am wondering if anyone out there sees a path to victory for the Governor? - Southfarmllama - Tuesday, Nov 6, 18 @ 9:17 am: He’s like his biggest cheerleader. It’s pretty sad. - Harry Truman - Tuesday, Nov 6, 18 @ 9:17 am: Maestro….no. - Matts - Tuesday, Nov 6, 18 @ 9:18 am: In made up statements to him, Rauner casts himself as the Heroic Battler Against All Odds Doing Good for Illinois and All of America. A pure and simple loser. - Ducky LaMoore - Tuesday, Nov 6, 18 @ 9:18 am: Stay strong, don’t back down, don’t give in, enjoy Venice. It’s a beautiful city. - Juice - Tuesday, Nov 6, 18 @ 9:19 am: So Rich, did you first hit publish on the subscribers post, then come across that quote and just immediately bang your head on your desk? - Lt Guv - Tuesday, Nov 6, 18 @ 9:19 am: He’s earned what’s coming. - Retired Educator - Tuesday, Nov 6, 18 @ 9:20 am: I am sure people said things to him, just not what he is saying they said. I have a couple things I would like to say, but have not had the opportunity. - wordslinger - Tuesday, Nov 6, 18 @ 9:21 am: –And everywhere we went, people came up to me and said, ‘stay strong, don’t back down, don’t give in,’” Rauner said later at the Lisle appearance.– If his imaginary supporters could vote, Rauner would win in a landslide. - Keyrock - Tuesday, Nov 6, 18 @ 9:22 am: “Learning” has a “g” in it, so he dropped it from his public life. - slow down - Tuesday, Nov 6, 18 @ 9:23 am: He’s not capable of changing who he is. He’s spent too many years in the private equity world where he could bully others into submission. Nothing we’ve seen in his 4 years suggests he will ever be able to meaningfully compromise and accept that he can’t get exactly what he wants. - Oswego Willy - Tuesday, Nov 6, 18 @ 9:23 am: Rauner paid for his chance to do what he wanted. In the end, the mea culpa was a head fake, as Rauner wasn’t going to give in when he paid so much. Raunerism, the lesson is… was never about learning or even governing. Raunerism was, and still is, a hurtful, spiteful often times angry assault on the state’s most vulnerable and most needy to take on unions, and make the weak, in Bruce and Diana’s eyes, submit. There was nothing to learn. Illinois learned. We’ll see how Illinois responds today. - Perrid - Tuesday, Nov 6, 18 @ 9:25 am: Not really one to defend the guy, but you can “stay strong”, meaning keep pushing for reforms, and accept incremental changes as they come, right? Doubt that’s what he meant, but it’s not necessarily a contradiction. Either way, he gone, so it really doesn’t matter - Real - Tuesday, Nov 6, 18 @ 9:25 am: All those cameras and you chose not to capture any of these events? If it were all true I’m sure your campaign would be filming and showing this instead of telling us. - DuPage Moderate - Tuesday, Nov 6, 18 @ 9:25 am: I’m not sure what we did wrong to deserve this governance, but clearly we all did something very wrong. Can’t wait for four year from now when the next Republican billionaire runs against the failure that will be our soon to be Democrat billionaire failure of a governor. What a hopeless cycle… - Honeybadger - Tuesday, Nov 6, 18 @ 9:25 am: - Southfarmllama - Tuesday, Nov 6, 18 @ 9:17 am: He’s like his biggest cheerleader. It’s pretty sad. And his own best friend, unless you count Diana. - DougChicago - Tuesday, Nov 6, 18 @ 9:28 am: He did it his way. Utterly ineffective. But he’ll sail off to one of his 9 homes (all his friends will still call him governor of course) and leave the state bankrupt and at the mercy of every taxpayer known to mankind. - 47th Ward - Tuesday, Nov 6, 18 @ 9:29 am: Your Fax today was a concise and perfectly accurate analysis of how it all went wrong for Governor Rauner, the hubris, the poor decisions and mostly the lack of learning a single lesson in four plus years. He’s going to reap the whirlwind today and only has the guy in the mirror to blame. - Moe Berg - Tuesday, Nov 6, 18 @ 9:30 am: The Rauner years were not a total loss. The governor’s mansion got fixed up. - Rich Miller - Tuesday, Nov 6, 18 @ 9:30 am: Juice, yes. - Rich Miller - Tuesday, Nov 6, 18 @ 9:34 am: Maestro, yes. Four years ago. - Anonymous - Tuesday, Nov 6, 18 @ 9:34 am: “Stay strong, don’t back down, don’t give in, enjoy Venice. It’s a beautiful city.” Don’t forget your hip boots. The manure is getting deep here and Venice is underwater these days. - Anonymous - Tuesday, Nov 6, 18 @ 9:47 am: Heard a old lady state to their friend that it was the first time they’ve ever voted for a democrat for govenor. This is going to be a wipeout - Cheryl44 - Tuesday, Nov 6, 18 @ 9:52 am: Something for the governor to read on the plane over: https://lithub.com/english-tourists-in-italy-have-been-complaining-for-300-years/ - Oswego Willy - Tuesday, Nov 6, 18 @ 9:52 am: Rear Admiral Rockwell Torrey learned. After running Skyhook, the Rock knew what to do to defeat it, and changed the course of the Pacific Theatre. Rauner learned nothing running Skyhook, and by being a failure, and never learning to compromise or taking wins, or governing benevolently, Skyhook, in reverse, might defeat him. Rauner is no Rockwell Torrey - Streator Curmudgeon - Tuesday, Nov 6, 18 @ 9:58 am: ==…people came up to me and said…== Eerily reminiscent of Trump’s “Many people have told me”…”Many people are saying…” Who the %!&#* are these people? - Anon221 - Tuesday, Nov 6, 18 @ 10:04 am: If Rauner wins, he’ll be beating his chest over “stayin’ srong”. If he loses, will he be blamin’ the voters for not “stayin’ strong” for him??? Or will it just be a major rant on corruption, Madigan, unfit Pritzker, and the Chicago Machine??? And, what will he do with the rest of his term? The upcoming veto session will be really interesting. - XDNR - Tuesday, Nov 6, 18 @ 10:11 am: Start - “On election night, Republican Gov.-elect Bruce Rauner told supporters he called House Speaker Michael Madigan and Senate President John Cullerton and said to them it was a chance to work together to solve the state’s problems.” End - “And everywhere we went, people came up to me and said, ‘stay strong, don’t back down, don’t give in”. Rauner started his term with BS and ends it the same way. - Henry Francis - Tuesday, Nov 6, 18 @ 10:19 am: He’s learned nothing? More like the other way around. After four years we apparently haven’t learned anything. Most importantly, we haven’t learned from Bruce V. Rauner. And we foolishly expect him to learn from us? That’s funny. Bruce is the smartest guy in the room. Always has been. Always will be. Why would we expect a guy with superior knowledge to learn anything from the likes of us? Why would we want him to? Bruce isn’t the one who failed to learn. We are. - Seats - Tuesday, Nov 6, 18 @ 10:30 am: I’m finding myself a bit worried Jerry Long could still win. Has there ever been a case in Illinois politics where a candidate was not endorsed by their own party and they still went on to win? - Seats - Tuesday, Nov 6, 18 @ 10:31 am: Sorry post above was suppose to be on the mid morning voting comment section. - Anonymous - Tuesday, Nov 6, 18 @ 10:33 am: Rauner’s campaign was all based on the Sunk Costs Fallacy. People make that mistake in business all the time. - In 630 - Tuesday, Nov 6, 18 @ 10:37 am: Of course that’s what people are telling him at campaign events this late- the only people who would want to show up are bitter-enders. - The Dude Abides - Tuesday, Nov 6, 18 @ 10:45 am: The day Rauner gave his reset speech most of those on here hardly believed a word of it. Rauner has been serving baloney to his constituents for 4 years. - Exit 59 - Tuesday, Nov 6, 18 @ 10:47 am: In the DEEP south of the state…that could’ve happened. There are still people wearing Drain the Swamp T-shirts… There are still Democrat candidates that say they are more conservative than the Rs. Bruce coulda won if IL had just been divided into 3 states. (snark-ish ) - Grandson of Man - Tuesday, Nov 6, 18 @ 10:48 am: I hope we learned something in the last four years—vote. There are massive differences between the two political parties these days, so hopefully some of the fuzzy-headed thinking that there’s little difference between the parties has been disabused. Laws and SCOTUS decisions are hugely consequential. - James - Tuesday, Nov 6, 18 @ 11:10 am: I don’t see Italy as the Rauners’ permanent home. I envision Rauner remaining involved in US politics, not as a candidate, but as a fundraiser and PAC organizer in support of candidates who embrace his “turnaround agenda” principles. What he can’t do, he will try to buy. - Oswego Willy - Tuesday, Nov 6, 18 @ 11:15 am: - James - Here’s where I see Rauner, if he were to lose today. Sorta with ya. ===- Oswego Willy - Wednesday, Jun 27, 18 @ 10:53 am: ===“I am proud of what we started three years ago on behalf of state employees and taxpayers,” Rauner concluded. “We are grateful to Mark Janus and the Liberty Justice Center for joining with me to bring this important issue to its rightful conclusion.”=== “joining with me” The mythology… on the steps of the Supreme Court… Rauner even wore a tie… Rauner… wore a tie… Diana got HB40 to save face, Bruce is creating a mythology to shape a legacy outside being a failed governor, destroying Illinois purposely. It’s so warped… but all this is happening… and happened… for $112 million dollars. Bruce Rauner will now be forgotten for his destruction, the social services closed, the Quincy Veterans Home, the starving of higher education, no budget… … the Rauner mythology, the invitations to speak, the tee-vee appearance, the think tank invitations… the history books… and the written history is solidifying this mythology. Now, Diana, you know, “the Democrat”… business decisions outside her alleged Democratic beliefs… the sham is… Diana Rauner needed HB40 signed clean… even if it meant Bruce lied to Cardinal Cupich… Diana needed it for today… to save face… as a Democrat… she will point to HB40… as Raunerism is nether a Democratic or Republican thing… but saving face is a Bruce and Diana thing. Read above. Think. Bruce is forcing the whitewashing of three years of failure… of Raunerism… for a mythology to have a legacy built on wet sand. Read above with these past 3 years in mind… and the Raunerites that enabled in the General Assembly… not as sweet?… bittersweet?… tasty?… what price did our state pay for a legacy built on a mythology? Read. Read for comprehension, not for the hoped interpretation.=== - Lucky Pierre - Tuesday, Nov 6, 18 @ 11:48 am: Nothing better than a sanctimonious lecture from Democrats about effectively governing, balancing budgets and getting the stench out of Illinois politics so people have faith in state government again. What will they do when they figure out another record tax increase will devastate Illinois? - Louis G. Atsaves - Tuesday, Nov 6, 18 @ 12:02 pm: ===”What will they do when they figure out another record tax increase will devastate Illinois?”=== Why hit the green light button, of course. - Oswego Willy - Tuesday, Nov 6, 18 @ 12:07 pm: ===What will they do when they figure out another record tax increase will devastate Illinois?=== So you’re comceding Rauner lost? Are you Erika Harold? - Oswego Willy - Tuesday, Nov 6, 18 @ 12:12 pm: ===Why hit the green light button, of course.=== Are you conceding JB is going to win? It’s confusing you typing that if you think Rauner will win. - Huh? - Tuesday, Nov 6, 18 @ 2:24 pm: “the smartest guy in the room” Being the smartest person in the room is to know what you don’t know and who to ask for the answers and then listen to the person’s advice. 1.4% learned nothing because he thought his way was the only way. He didn’t heed the lessons of a first couple years in office. To quote Dirty Harry “A man’s got to know his limitations.” 1.4% never understood his limitations. And as a result failed as a governor. - wordslinger - Tuesday, Nov 6, 18 @ 2:28 pm: –He’s going to reap the whirlwind today and only has the guy in the mirror to blame.– 47 has his Coach Ditka on today. - Huh? - Tuesday, Nov 6, 18 @ 2:39 pm: “only has the guy in the mirror to blame.” So 1.4% was playing bloody Mary and got Madigan instead? - Yellow Dog Democrat - Tuesday, Nov 6, 18 @ 3:00 pm: The mea culpa was for the Tribune editorial board. That’s it. He didn’t actually mean it, any more than Blago meant it when he promised the IFT he wouldn’t rule out a tax hike. The Tribune needed to believe that the next four years would somehow be different so they could endorse him. The easiest lie to tell someone is a lie they want to believe. Sorry, comments for this post are now closed.