A solid B plus. This is a good ad. Bond ratings are a dry subject but the constant repetition is effective. Whether you support JB or not , you can’t say a better bond rating is a bad thing.
Smart viewers will know that it had nothing to do with JB but the average voter will know nothing and the explanation from the GOP will be too long winded for them to understand.
B - good message and I believe the best part, it’s all true.
My daughter came home from school yesterday stating her history teacher told the class everyone hates JB. She raised hand, not my parents, she said he then went on, don’t they know the facts, everyone leaving Illinois etc. She responded, they believe in how he’s handled Covid and helped with teachers pay. Proud of my youngster. Being a Moderate in Chatham is viewed by many folk here as being far left liberal.
- Grandson of Man - Wednesday, Jan 12, 22 @ 8:05 am:
A-
Not the biggest fan of the political ad edits that look like old TV flaws with the vertical/horizontal, between the scenes. But that’s a very minor complaint. Very good commercial in going with the previous one’s theme of fiscal improvement. It’s very important, obviously, and understandable as to why it would be a recurring topic.
A B+. He has the resources that allow him to deliver a steady stream of these types of messages. Whether the opponent is Bailey of someone of Ken Griffin’s choosing he’s getting a jump start on the messaging and his competition.
who picked that music bed? Distracting from the message. But I liked it in all other regards. Solid B. Would have been an A had the sound mixer toned it down a bit.
“Smart viewers will know that it had nothing to do with JB”
That’s like saying the downgrades had nothing to do with Ryan, Blagojevich, Quinn and Rauner. But I digress. The ad is concise, positive and factual. A-.
- Bruce( no not him) - Wednesday, Jan 12, 22 @ 8:35 am:
Is it really the message as much as the repetitive amount of times we will see this?
The millions of dollars behind his campaign will beat this into peoples heads.
B+. Another strong ad that hits the highlights, especially some of the achievements the eluded the last governor.
=My daughter came home from school yesterday stating her history teacher told the class everyone hates JB=
Sounds like right wing indoctrination. You should call the school and the media and demand that it end.
- Larry Bowa Jr. - Wednesday, Jan 12, 22 @ 9:03 am:
“history teacher told the class everyone hates JB”
But what about CRiticAL rACce ThhEOry!!?*! Kids are being indroctinated!!!
From my perspective it’s a net positive that people are leaving places like Chatham, that’s just a bit less of my decadent big city earner tax money being handed to them so they can sit on their rickety high horses and despise me for it.
==That’s like saying the downgrades had nothing to do with Ryan, Blagojevich, Quinn and Rauner.==
The causal connection isn’t direct, but politically, it’s absolutely the case that if we hammer Governors for credit downgrades- and we do- we should…err…credit them for the upgrades.
And we probably will. It’s a simple, apparently-objective metric that has certainly benefited other Governors.
==Is it really the message as much as the repetitive amount of times we will see this?==
It’s both, but mostly the latter.
To the ad: I’d give it a B. I don’t think credit upgrades are the most visceral issue, but they’re easy to understand. JB can tell a story of success, and he’s doing so, loudly, while Republicans struggle to even find a candidate.
- Proud Papa Bear - Wednesday, Jan 12, 22 @ 9:12 am:
A-
One topic Republicans get credit for (unfairly IMO) is financial responsibility. This hammers away at that notion.
F. This is the second ad out of the gate that focuses on the state’s credit rating, a totally abstract issue that no one cares about except politics nerds, a handful of statehouse journalists, and Republicans who won’t vote for Pritzker anyway. You can’t eat a credit upgrade. It’s a rerun of the failed FairTax marketing strategy. Pritzker had better pivot to the things he’s done to improve folks’ material well-being, and to contrasting his record with the GOP’s.
B+. Tells a positive story and a true one. Should appeal to the middle, not just the base. I dislike some of the repetition and cuts, and the Moodys specifics are not exactly what I would highlight myself, but good. People like competence, and this is one area of strength.
== This is the second ad out of the gate that focuses on the state’s credit rating, a totally abstract issue that no one cares about except politics nerds, a handful of statehouse journalists, and Republicans who won’t vote for Pritzker anyway.==
1) It’s not “out of the gate”, Pritzker has been running ads for months, starting with a series thart focused on the pandemic
2) I’m not sure if voters care or not,but the state’s fiscal health has been at the center of every gubernatorial election of my lifetime.
3) Most importantly, it’s a simple “success” to tell people about. “JB Pritzker has been successful” is way more valuable than any specific examination of an issue.
- Grandson of Man - Wednesday, Jan 12, 22 @ 10:17 am:
So, are the fiscal scolds politically invested in attacking opponents over debt and spending telling us fiscal improvement indicators are irrelevant? Lol.
Rate the ad a C+/B-. What are the details of the “new path” that JB speaks of? One bright spot is lots of exposure for local/national news anchors and for Moodys!
==I certainly agree that our political media centers many issues that are of dubious relevance to voters. ==
It’s a two-way street, though. Most of time, voters come to care about whatever is in the news, and partisans (Even when they don’t know they’re partisans) take their cues from major members of their parties (even if they don’t know it).
Rate the ad. Hmmm I could give it a B also. It harkens back to another candidate for Governor who also was in gov’t during tough times. While I don’t remember much of that campaign because I was too young, I’d say it’s not an unusual theme. You’re an incumbent governor showing leadership during tough times.
- 2022thoughts - Wednesday, Jan 12, 22 @ 11:18 am:
I give it an A for political honestly but a C overall because the general taxpayers have zero clue what any of that means.
=Of course everyone says it’s an A or a B as this comment section has become Illinois’ best gathering place for group think.=
The state is in a better position financially than it was when Pritzker took office. He’s using media reports to tell that story. Why wouldn’t he? It’s smart.
Now if you believe that none of the above is correct, then what’s the GOP counter narrative? Are you going to “fix” our financial problems with Darren Bailey? Is Ken Griffin’s employee going to put us right back on the same path that Bruce Rauner had us on?
I think the reason why you see these grades isn’t a reflection of the commentators. It’s an acknowledgment that it’s effective. And dismissing that view as “group think” without any elaboration only serves to prove that point.
DM, generalized hostility to other commenters will get you deleted. Try sharing your own thoughts without running literally everyone else down. If you feel you must do that, then go back to Facebook and join one of those groups where everyone truly does think alike.
- btowntruthfromforgottonia - Wednesday, Jan 12, 22 @ 11:34 am:
“Being a Moderate in Chatham is viewed by many folk here as being far left liberal.”
Just like here in Forgottonia.
And I give the ad a B.
I don’t hear anyone where I live talking about the bond rating either but that doesn’t make the ad any less true.
- Give Us Barabbas - Wednesday, Jan 12, 22 @ 11:46 am:
I think it is an ok spot. But it feels a little cut-and-paste. I would intersperse freshly shot cuts of JB talking to camera in between the clips of tv news anchors. He’d break the pitch down and make it more personal to a voters’ own self interest, and not leave it to a voice-over. Bonds are an abstract concept to the common clay, so you emphasize savings and efficiency and smart investments, and you have to connect that to how that makes my life better.
No one cares about our credit rating outside the dome. It’s important as a policy, but doesn’t resonate.
The issue this year is going to be COVID, and how close we are to getting back to normal, full stop. Concerns about crime, etc all flow from the broader sense that everything is badly messed up. People crave normalcy, and any message that doesn’t try to speak to that is a wasted opportunity.
This is a rock solid ad that is aimed squarely at suburban voters. The message is dead solid perfect at this point in the campaign. A solid A.
And btw, to the commenter who said, “Smart viewers will know that it had nothing to do with JB” I think I need to fix that for you. “Clueless viewers will think this had nothing to do with JB” when in fact it has everything to do with JB and how he’s managing the finances. Take a look at the news from the Comptroller. It’s all good.
- Back to the Future - Wednesday, Jan 12, 22 @ 2:00 pm:
I would give the commercial an A-. It makes a good point that is easy to understand.
I do think these “look at me Ads” can come back to haunt Team Pritzker.
While everyone should be happy with a ratings increase, when Pritzker was elected Governor Illinois had the worse rating amount all the states. 3 years into the Pritzker
Administration and Illinois still has the worse credit rating of all the states in the country.
=No one cares about our credit rating outside the dome. It’s important as a policy, but doesn’t resonate.=
When you’ve got the bankroll that Pritzker has not every ad has to leave a mark. I see it more as building a narrative. Not the most important piece but a positive message nonetheless.
And he needs to get ahead of what will be a very dour message from the ILGOP. It will be all about “fixing things” and “getting us on the right track.” While the race won’t be won or lost on the issue of our bond rating, it’s an opportunity for Pritzker to demonstrate that we’re on the right track.
And for me personally I see paying your bills as a good thing. And I can certainly appreciate the most recent consequences of not doing so.
==The issue this year is going to be COVID, and how close we are to getting back to normal, full stop.==
JB has already run ads on COVID. I suspect he’ll run more, bc it’s clearly an issue he cares about.
I’m actually not certain that that’s a good idea, but the point is that these campaigns are long, and, especially when you have a budget like JB’s, can cover a lot of different issues.
However all of this was done without his vaunted tax increase. No mention of that. Nor that most of this was because of FED stimulus money that helped reduced debt.
- Steve - Wednesday, Jan 12, 22 @ 7:12 am:
A solid B plus. This is a good ad. Bond ratings are a dry subject but the constant repetition is effective. Whether you support JB or not , you can’t say a better bond rating is a bad thing.
- Red Ketcher - Wednesday, Jan 12, 22 @ 7:20 am:
Checks all the Boxes:
Short , Simple, Strong , Positive, Good News = A
- Gruntled University Employee - Wednesday, Jan 12, 22 @ 7:20 am:
==Whether you support JB or not , you can’t say a better bond rating is a bad thing.==
Trust me, the Eastern Bloc will find a way.
- The Dude - Wednesday, Jan 12, 22 @ 7:25 am:
It’s a B.
Smart viewers will know that it had nothing to do with JB but the average voter will know nothing and the explanation from the GOP will be too long winded for them to understand.
- BTO2 - Wednesday, Jan 12, 22 @ 7:51 am:
B - good message and I believe the best part, it’s all true.
My daughter came home from school yesterday stating her history teacher told the class everyone hates JB. She raised hand, not my parents, she said he then went on, don’t they know the facts, everyone leaving Illinois etc. She responded, they believe in how he’s handled Covid and helped with teachers pay. Proud of my youngster. Being a Moderate in Chatham is viewed by many folk here as being far left liberal.
- Grandson of Man - Wednesday, Jan 12, 22 @ 8:05 am:
A-
Not the biggest fan of the political ad edits that look like old TV flaws with the vertical/horizontal, between the scenes. But that’s a very minor complaint. Very good commercial in going with the previous one’s theme of fiscal improvement. It’s very important, obviously, and understandable as to why it would be a recurring topic.
- Pundent - Wednesday, Jan 12, 22 @ 8:19 am:
A B+. He has the resources that allow him to deliver a steady stream of these types of messages. Whether the opponent is Bailey of someone of Ken Griffin’s choosing he’s getting a jump start on the messaging and his competition.
- Tom - Wednesday, Jan 12, 22 @ 8:21 am:
who picked that music bed? Distracting from the message. But I liked it in all other regards. Solid B. Would have been an A had the sound mixer toned it down a bit.
- Ducky LaMoore - Wednesday, Jan 12, 22 @ 8:26 am:
“Smart viewers will know that it had nothing to do with JB”
That’s like saying the downgrades had nothing to do with Ryan, Blagojevich, Quinn and Rauner. But I digress. The ad is concise, positive and factual. A-.
- Bruce( no not him) - Wednesday, Jan 12, 22 @ 8:35 am:
Is it really the message as much as the repetitive amount of times we will see this?
The millions of dollars behind his campaign will beat this into peoples heads.
- Oswego Willy - Wednesday, Jan 12, 22 @ 8:49 am:
It’s a B
It’s plain-speak by news outlets. It sets the “in 20 years” kind of reality too.
It’s a marker. It serves its purpose. It’s a B
- JS Mill - Wednesday, Jan 12, 22 @ 8:51 am:
B+. Another strong ad that hits the highlights, especially some of the achievements the eluded the last governor.
=My daughter came home from school yesterday stating her history teacher told the class everyone hates JB=
Sounds like right wing indoctrination. You should call the school and the media and demand that it end.
- Larry Bowa Jr. - Wednesday, Jan 12, 22 @ 9:03 am:
“history teacher told the class everyone hates JB”
But what about CRiticAL rACce ThhEOry!!?*! Kids are being indroctinated!!!
From my perspective it’s a net positive that people are leaving places like Chatham, that’s just a bit less of my decadent big city earner tax money being handed to them so they can sit on their rickety high horses and despise me for it.
- Arsenal - Wednesday, Jan 12, 22 @ 9:06 am:
==That’s like saying the downgrades had nothing to do with Ryan, Blagojevich, Quinn and Rauner.==
The causal connection isn’t direct, but politically, it’s absolutely the case that if we hammer Governors for credit downgrades- and we do- we should…err…credit them for the upgrades.
And we probably will. It’s a simple, apparently-objective metric that has certainly benefited other Governors.
- Arsenal - Wednesday, Jan 12, 22 @ 9:08 am:
==Is it really the message as much as the repetitive amount of times we will see this?==
It’s both, but mostly the latter.
To the ad: I’d give it a B. I don’t think credit upgrades are the most visceral issue, but they’re easy to understand. JB can tell a story of success, and he’s doing so, loudly, while Republicans struggle to even find a candidate.
- Proud Papa Bear - Wednesday, Jan 12, 22 @ 9:12 am:
A-
One topic Republicans get credit for (unfairly IMO) is financial responsibility. This hammers away at that notion.
- Cheryl 44 - Wednesday, Jan 12, 22 @ 9:15 am:
That Anon was me. Sorry.
- Quibbler - Wednesday, Jan 12, 22 @ 9:26 am:
F. This is the second ad out of the gate that focuses on the state’s credit rating, a totally abstract issue that no one cares about except politics nerds, a handful of statehouse journalists, and Republicans who won’t vote for Pritzker anyway. You can’t eat a credit upgrade. It’s a rerun of the failed FairTax marketing strategy. Pritzker had better pivot to the things he’s done to improve folks’ material well-being, and to contrasting his record with the GOP’s.
- Jibba - Wednesday, Jan 12, 22 @ 9:33 am:
B+. Tells a positive story and a true one. Should appeal to the middle, not just the base. I dislike some of the repetition and cuts, and the Moodys specifics are not exactly what I would highlight myself, but good. People like competence, and this is one area of strength.
- Amalia - Wednesday, Jan 12, 22 @ 9:50 am:
B. nice presentation of neutral assessments but the average person hearing bond rating over and over doesn’t translate as well to day to day issues.
- Rabid - Wednesday, Jan 12, 22 @ 9:57 am:
A puts GOP in their place cheer leading for no budget and downgrades
- Arsenal - Wednesday, Jan 12, 22 @ 10:10 am:
== This is the second ad out of the gate that focuses on the state’s credit rating, a totally abstract issue that no one cares about except politics nerds, a handful of statehouse journalists, and Republicans who won’t vote for Pritzker anyway.==
1) It’s not “out of the gate”, Pritzker has been running ads for months, starting with a series thart focused on the pandemic
2) I’m not sure if voters care or not,but the state’s fiscal health has been at the center of every gubernatorial election of my lifetime.
3) Most importantly, it’s a simple “success” to tell people about. “JB Pritzker has been successful” is way more valuable than any specific examination of an issue.
- Grandson of Man - Wednesday, Jan 12, 22 @ 10:17 am:
So, are the fiscal scolds politically invested in attacking opponents over debt and spending telling us fiscal improvement indicators are irrelevant? Lol.
- Donnie Elgin - Wednesday, Jan 12, 22 @ 10:26 am:
Rate the ad a C+/B-. What are the details of the “new path” that JB speaks of? One bright spot is lots of exposure for local/national news anchors and for Moodys!
- Quibbler - Wednesday, Jan 12, 22 @ 10:43 am:
== I’m not sure if voters care or not,but the state’s fiscal health has been at the center of every gubernatorial election of my lifetime. ==
I certainly agree that our political media centers many issues that are of dubious relevance to voters.
- Oswego Willy - Wednesday, Jan 12, 22 @ 10:48 am:
=== Of course everyone says it’s an A or a B as this comment section has become Illinois’ best gathering place for group think.===
Would you care to expand on what you don’t like about it or are you merely tying that do you don’t hyperventilate and pass out?
The message? The facts, using news reports?
Show your chops, what do you see you don’t like… and why.
- Arsenal - Wednesday, Jan 12, 22 @ 11:02 am:
==I certainly agree that our political media centers many issues that are of dubious relevance to voters. ==
It’s a two-way street, though. Most of time, voters come to care about whatever is in the news, and partisans (Even when they don’t know they’re partisans) take their cues from major members of their parties (even if they don’t know it).
- Arsenal - Wednesday, Jan 12, 22 @ 11:03 am:
==Of course everyone says it’s an A or a B as this comment section has become Illinois’ best gathering place for group think. ==
Or maybe just because it’s a good ad.
- Levois J - Wednesday, Jan 12, 22 @ 11:04 am:
Rate the ad. Hmmm I could give it a B also. It harkens back to another candidate for Governor who also was in gov’t during tough times. While I don’t remember much of that campaign because I was too young, I’d say it’s not an unusual theme. You’re an incumbent governor showing leadership during tough times.
- 2022thoughts - Wednesday, Jan 12, 22 @ 11:18 am:
I give it an A for political honestly but a C overall because the general taxpayers have zero clue what any of that means.
- Pundent - Wednesday, Jan 12, 22 @ 11:20 am:
=Of course everyone says it’s an A or a B as this comment section has become Illinois’ best gathering place for group think.=
The state is in a better position financially than it was when Pritzker took office. He’s using media reports to tell that story. Why wouldn’t he? It’s smart.
Now if you believe that none of the above is correct, then what’s the GOP counter narrative? Are you going to “fix” our financial problems with Darren Bailey? Is Ken Griffin’s employee going to put us right back on the same path that Bruce Rauner had us on?
I think the reason why you see these grades isn’t a reflection of the commentators. It’s an acknowledgment that it’s effective. And dismissing that view as “group think” without any elaboration only serves to prove that point.
- Rich Miller - Wednesday, Jan 12, 22 @ 11:23 am:
DM, generalized hostility to other commenters will get you deleted. Try sharing your own thoughts without running literally everyone else down. If you feel you must do that, then go back to Facebook and join one of those groups where everyone truly does think alike.
- btowntruthfromforgottonia - Wednesday, Jan 12, 22 @ 11:34 am:
“Being a Moderate in Chatham is viewed by many folk here as being far left liberal.”
Just like here in Forgottonia.
And I give the ad a B.
I don’t hear anyone where I live talking about the bond rating either but that doesn’t make the ad any less true.
- Give Us Barabbas - Wednesday, Jan 12, 22 @ 11:46 am:
I think it is an ok spot. But it feels a little cut-and-paste. I would intersperse freshly shot cuts of JB talking to camera in between the clips of tv news anchors. He’d break the pitch down and make it more personal to a voters’ own self interest, and not leave it to a voice-over. Bonds are an abstract concept to the common clay, so you emphasize savings and efficiency and smart investments, and you have to connect that to how that makes my life better.
- SpiDem - Wednesday, Jan 12, 22 @ 11:48 am:
Decent ad, but out of touch with the moment.
No one cares about our credit rating outside the dome. It’s important as a policy, but doesn’t resonate.
The issue this year is going to be COVID, and how close we are to getting back to normal, full stop. Concerns about crime, etc all flow from the broader sense that everything is badly messed up. People crave normalcy, and any message that doesn’t try to speak to that is a wasted opportunity.
- New Day - Wednesday, Jan 12, 22 @ 12:37 pm:
This is a rock solid ad that is aimed squarely at suburban voters. The message is dead solid perfect at this point in the campaign. A solid A.
And btw, to the commenter who said, “Smart viewers will know that it had nothing to do with JB” I think I need to fix that for you. “Clueless viewers will think this had nothing to do with JB” when in fact it has everything to do with JB and how he’s managing the finances. Take a look at the news from the Comptroller. It’s all good.
- Back to the Future - Wednesday, Jan 12, 22 @ 2:00 pm:
I would give the commercial an A-. It makes a good point that is easy to understand.
I do think these “look at me Ads” can come back to haunt Team Pritzker.
While everyone should be happy with a ratings increase, when Pritzker was elected Governor Illinois had the worse rating amount all the states. 3 years into the Pritzker
Administration and Illinois still has the worse credit rating of all the states in the country.
- Pundent - Wednesday, Jan 12, 22 @ 2:40 pm:
=No one cares about our credit rating outside the dome. It’s important as a policy, but doesn’t resonate.=
When you’ve got the bankroll that Pritzker has not every ad has to leave a mark. I see it more as building a narrative. Not the most important piece but a positive message nonetheless.
And he needs to get ahead of what will be a very dour message from the ILGOP. It will be all about “fixing things” and “getting us on the right track.” While the race won’t be won or lost on the issue of our bond rating, it’s an opportunity for Pritzker to demonstrate that we’re on the right track.
And for me personally I see paying your bills as a good thing. And I can certainly appreciate the most recent consequences of not doing so.
- Arsenal - Wednesday, Jan 12, 22 @ 2:45 pm:
==The issue this year is going to be COVID, and how close we are to getting back to normal, full stop.==
JB has already run ads on COVID. I suspect he’ll run more, bc it’s clearly an issue he cares about.
I’m actually not certain that that’s a good idea, but the point is that these campaigns are long, and, especially when you have a budget like JB’s, can cover a lot of different issues.
- Unconventional wisdom - Wednesday, Jan 12, 22 @ 2:48 pm:
Good ad.
However all of this was done without his vaunted tax increase. No mention of that. Nor that most of this was because of FED stimulus money that helped reduced debt.
- Flexible One - Wednesday, Jan 12, 22 @ 3:11 pm:
Good feel good piece
- Arsenal - Wednesday, Jan 12, 22 @ 4:04 pm:
== No mention of that.==
Generally speaking, politicians don’t campaign on their failures.