DCCC poll: Schneider up by 5
Wednesday, Sep 10, 2014 - Posted by Rich Miller
* Despite spending by outside interests approaching $1.6 million in the 10th CD, freshman Democrat Brad Schneider is still apparently leading former Congressman Bob Dold. Lynn Sweet shares details…
An automated poll by the Democratic House political operation shows Rep. Brad Schneider D-Ill., ahead of former Rep. Bob Dold Ill., by five points.The survey of the north suburban 10th congressional district in Illinois was conducted in-house by the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee and found 11 percent undecided. […]
In the head-to-head, Schneider was outpacing Dold by 47 percent to 42 per cent.
From a DCCC polling memo…
“Schneider performs especially well among women voters, where he leads by 7 points (47% to 40%) and maintains especially strong personal favorabilities (+20 net positive, 38% favorable, 18% unfavorable). By comparison, women voters’ opinions of Dold are almost evenly divided (36% favorable, 31% unfavorable, 33% unsure).”
The DCCC is doing in-house automated polls, eh? Interesting.
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The race to the bottom accelerates
Wednesday, Sep 10, 2014 - Posted by Rich Miller
* Oh, for goodness sake…
Pay to Play Insiders Reward One of Their Own: Rauner
Rauner receives campaign cash at fundraiser hosted by man who voted with convicted fixer Stu Levine to give Rauner’s firm $50 million in state pension business
This morning, billionaire gubernatorial candidate Bruce Rauner was the beneficiary of a campaign fundraiser hosted by Jim Bruner, who along with convicted political fixer Stu Levine voted to give Rauner’s GTCR $50 million in state pension business in 2003. The fundraiser was held at the Sangamon County Republican Headquarters, the location where convicted felon William Cellini endorsed Rauner in April.
Um, wait. Is the Illinois Freedom PAC actually claiming that Jim Bruner was in on the alleged scam?
* We continue…
Rauner was joined at the fundraiser by scandal plagued New Jersey Governor Chris Christie, who is under fire for allegedly mixing public pension business with political fundraising.
“Bruce Rauner is the clear choice of pay-to-play insiders because he’s one of them,” said Neal Waltmire. “Rauner won’t shake up Springfield, he’ll shake down taxpayers.”
So, again, are they saying that Bruner was in on the scam? Let’s continue to find out…
According to federal prosecutors, there was an “illegal deal” involving Stu Levine, William Cellini, and then-Governor George Ryan to re-appoint Bruner to the Teachers Retirement System (TRS).
Actually, according to the US Attorney’s office: “The government notes that it does not have evidence that Bruner was aware of the deal that Cellini struck with Governor Ryan on Bruner’s behalf.” And Bruner forcefully denied any such knowledge.
* Back to the press release…
Bruner became chair of the TRS board and helped approved the deal for Rauner’s firm. Bruner also later donated $10,000 to Ryan’s legal defense fund. Ryan, Levine, and Cellini were eventually convicted on corruption charges.
Man, is that ever a stretch.
* This is truly getting ridiculous. First we have Rauner demanding that the governor sever all ties to somebody whose e-mails were subpoenaed (and who made it through the entire Blagojevich administration without suffering so much as a single, solitary scratch), and now this.
Do you know who else hosted that fundraiser? Jim Edgar. Yeah, man, that was a really corrupt little crowd.
…Adding… From commenter Arthur Andersen…
The President of the IEA made the motion to approve the TRS money for GTCR in 2003 and voted for the motion.
Quinnsters, is she corrupt, too? #SitUpStraight
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* Press release…
Illinois gubernatorial candidate Bruce Rauner today called on Governor Pat Quinn to direct his staff and agencies to cease communications with Quinn’s former chief of staff and lobbyist Jack Lavin.
“Jack Lavin is the poster boy for cronyism and corruption in Pat Quinn’s administration,” Rauner said.
“Governor Quinn should direct his staff and agency directors to cease communication with Lavin and urge legislators to do the same.”
Just today it was reported that Lavin is a lobbyist for a medical marijuana company that is part of a selection process that is neither open nor transparent. Lavin is now at the center of the criminal investigation into Quinn’s NRI slush fund but yesterday Quinn named him as the key player in the illegal hiring scandal at IDOT as well. Despite his central role in two ongoing investigations, Lavin is allowed to continue making money off his political connections and ties to Quinn.
“He is Pat Quinn’s best friend, and Quinn not only kept him on after Blagojevich went to jail, he gave Lavin a promotion and made him his chief of staff,” Rauner added. “Pat Quinn should do everything in his power to keep his closest associate away from taxpayer money. Cleaning up Springfield begins with sending the message that if you are involved in patronage or under federal investigation, you can’t profit off your connections, even when your best friend is the governor.”
Lavin previously worked for Tony Rezko, and it was Rezko who got Lavin his job with Blagojevich.
Thoughts?
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Caption contest!
Wednesday, Sep 10, 2014 - Posted by Rich Miller
* Chris Christie is in Springfield today campaigning for Bruce Rauner…
…Adding… Cullerton has his own caption via press release…
CULLERTON OFFERS TO CHAUFFEUR GOV. CHRISTIE IN EFFORT TO AVOID PARTISAN TRAFFIC JAMS
SPRINGFIELD – Illinois Senate President John J. Cullerton offered Wednesday to drive New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie around during his visit here in hopes of avoiding any partisan traffic jams like the ones Christie’s top aides created back in the Garden State a year ago.
“Governor Christie, of all people, knows how bad and unexpected traffic can be. I want to make sure he gets around safely and isn’t subjected to any politically motivated traffic shenanigans during his visit,” Cullerton said.
Cullerton, a Democrat representing part of Chicago, was also in Springfield on Wednesday working with staff on ways Illinois can continue to make its full pension payment and not short the retirement funds like the governor of New Jersey proposed while also keeping Illinois’ income taxes lower than New Jersey’s.
“I’m hoping we can learn from New Jersey’s mistakes,” Cullerton said.
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New Quinn TV ad lampoons Rauner’s van
Wednesday, Sep 10, 2014 - Posted by Rich Miller
* Have a look…
…Adding… Script…
Bruce Rauner: “Had this thing twenty years”
Voiceover: So what’s Billionaire Bruce Rauner been up to for the last 20 years?
He raked in millions outsourcing jobs to China and Mexico.
He stashed millions in the Cayman Islands, perhaps to avoid paying U.S. taxes
Now we find out he spent $140,000 to join an elite wine club.
Does all that wine fit in the van?
So the next time Bruce Rauner tells you he’s just a regular guy…
maybe, not so much.
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* From the 46:07 mark of yesterday’s debate…
QUINN: I want to say one thing. When he was at this Editorial Board, he has given money, I know, he says, to schools and education—including Payton, Walter Payton. Last time he was before this Editorial Board, he lied to you. He lied to you. The Inspector General of the Chicago Public Schools determined that his daughter did not qualify. Was not on a principal’s list. He told a falsehood. As he has today, one falsehood after another, his whole operation is based on deception, includes his education budget. You cannot have excellent schools if you cut the budget of Illinois, the state budget, for education, in half. That’s savage cuts that will hurt people who don’t have a lot of money like Mr. Rauner and who aren’t getting a million dollar tax cut because of these policies that he’s advocating.
QUESTION: Did you lie to us?
RAUNER: No. We went through the process, we followed it appropriately. It’s just like hundreds—
QUINN: [Interrupting] That’s not what the Inspector General said.
RAUNER: Just as hundreds of other families did.
Really? He did nothing different than “hundreds of families”?
* Here’s part of a long exchange with the Tribune editorial board before the primary which the governor referenced yesterday…
Rauner: At no time did we ask for a special treatment, or special deal, or special favor for our daughter. We got her name on the list just like hundreds of other families got their children’s name on the list for this Principal’s list.
Tribune: Why did you mention your daughter to Duncan?
Rauner: Oh we talk about getting his advice on what’s the process, I heard about the principal’s list, what do you do, how does it work?
* From a June 26, 2014 AP story…
Rauner has said that his daughter’s attendance record was marred by illness and hurt her overall admission score, which was the reason for the rejection. He said the family appealed through a principals’ discretionary process.
However, [outgoing Chicago Public Schools Inspector James Sullivan] told The Associated Press on Thursday that Rauner didn’t use the formalized principals’ process. CPS policy says that principals of selective high schools can use discretion for up to 5 percent of incoming freshmen.
Sullivan said Rauner contacted then-CEO Arne Duncan’s office, had at least two conversations with a chief aide, and the admission status was changed after the aide called the principal.
“She’s a very bright kid. She was close and just didn’t make it,” Sullivan said of the initial rejection.
So, he didn’t do what “hundreds of other families” did. At all.
It’s amazing to me that the edit board didn’t fully call him out on this.
* Let’s refresh ourselves on how this tale has evolved. Bernie’s column from Feb. 19, 2014…
It had been back on Sept. 3, when I spoke with Rauner by phone, that I asked about this controversy. He told me then what a good student his daughter was, and how only illness had caused her to be denied regular admission. But, he said, there was at the time a special “principal’s list” then available in such cases, and she was admitted through that process.
And when I asked in September, he said “I did not” talk to [Chicago schools CEO Arne Duncan] about it.
After his round of TV interviews in January, I asked Rauner spokesman Mike Schrimpf about the discrepancy. Schrimpf told me Rauner and his wife, Dianna, both spoke often with Duncan, and one of them had asked about the process.
* From a January 13, 2014 CBS2 story…
Rauner admits making a call to former Chicago Public Schools CEO Arne Duncan to see how he could get his daughter into Payton, despite what he calls a middle school attendance record marred by illness. He says principals have some discretion in admitting a small percentage of students, and parents have a right to make an appeal like he did.
“There’s nothing to apologize for that, there’s nothing wrong with it, and I would do it again and again,” he tells CBS 2 Chief Correspondent Jay Levine in a one-on-one interview.
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* Gov. Pat Quinn tried to simplify the fairly complicated Lason Inc. story during the debate yesterday…
[Quinn said] Rauner should be held responsible for whatever has gone wrong at businesses affiliated with his former investment firm. “You have to be accountable,” Quinn said. “You just can’t run out the door, collect the money, and leave vulnerable people suffering because of your neglect.”
* From a January 20, 2014 Tribune story…
A few months after praising its performance [as a great example of how his venture capital firm built businesses], Rauner resigned from its board of directors just as the company’s high-flying stock began to crater. Lason imploded amid allegations by investors and criminal investigators that top executives cooked the books to boost the company’s value.
Neither Rauner nor his partners at the venture firm GTCR were accused of any wrongdoing. The firm netted at least $32 million from its investment by selling almost all of its stock before the earnings scandal became public. However, records show, other investors and lenders lost about $285 million as a result of the systematic accounting fraud, and three top executives went to prison.
Mike Schrimpf, a spokesman for the first-time candidate, said Rauner and GTCR had cooperated with authorities years ago in the criminal investigation of Lason. Neither Schrimpf nor Rauner would discuss in detail the nature of Rauner’s interactions with investigators or what he did at Lason.
“I don’t know, that was a long time ago,” Rauner said Thursday in a brief encounter with a Tribune reporter. “Sounds like the stuff you want to ask about is stuff that Mike’s told you about, and I probably don’t have that much to add.”
* Lason Inc. was indeed a disastrous fraud. But, as noted above, Rauner got himself off the board and profitably cashed his firm out of the company just before it crashed and burned. Here is a timeline distributed by the Quinn campaign…
1995: GTCRauner buys 54 percent of Lason a record management services for the Big Three American automakers, for $10 million. With Rauner at the helm. Lason3nitiates a spree of acquisitions of more than 60 competitors. (SEC Filing, 1996)
1996: Just months after he was fined $200,000 by the Securities and Exchange Commission, in a case involving insider trading, William Rauwerdink is hand-picked by Bruce Rauner as Lason’s Chief Financial Officer. [Chicago Tribune 1/20/2014]
1997: Under Rauner’s oversight, Rauwerdink initiates “Tailwind,” an accounting fraud scheme so vast it would be compared to Enron. As part of the fraud, financial data from newly-acquired companies would be used to vastly inflate earnings by up to 65 percent. [SEC Release, March, 2008]
1999: Rauner is still serving on the executive committee of Lason, alongside two of the three executives who eventually were convicted. That committee was responsible for its accounting policies, including Tailwind. [Chicago Tribune 1/20/2014]
August 1999: Rauner praises Lason, and is quoted in The Wall Street Transcript, saying, “We spend a lot of time living with our companies on a week-to-week basis, understanding what’s going on, and being in the flow of information, so we can be helpful and knowledgeable about the operation.” Of Lason, Rauner says: “They represent the essence of what many of our companies do.” [The Wall Street Transcript,8/09/1999]
October 1999: Lason fabricates $13 million in earnings in a press release. [Chicago Tribune 1/20/2014]
Nov. 12, 1999: Rauner abruptly departs the Lason board, 6 months before Rauner’s term is set to expire. [Chicago Tribune 1/20/2014]
Dec. 17, 1999: Lason finally acknowledges that earnings were off, after a precipitous stock drop that was blamed on “unfounded rumors.” The reality: it was fraud. [SEC Release, March, 2008]
2001: Lason files for bankruptcy. [SEC Archives, 2002]
2003: Three Lason executives, including Rauwerdink, are federally charged with the crimes. [SEC, 5/13/2003]
2007: Rauwerdink is sentenced to four years and is ordered to pay $285 million in restitution. [Crain’s Detroit Business6/07/2007] In sentencing Rauwerdink, a federal judge said that “greed and avarice” prevailed at Lason “at the expense of Lason’s shareholder’s, banks, employees and customers.” [CFO, 6/11/2007]
Primary 2014: Rauner deflects questions about Lason and his culpability in the massive fraud, saying, “I don’t know. That was a long time ago.” [Chicago Tribune 1/20/2014]
* Rauner said before he ran for governor that his firm’s chief strategy was finding the right CEO before moving into a new industry. They usually wouldn’t make the move if their preferred candidate wouldn’t agree to do it. And Rauner served on that company’s executive committee. This is as close to a “Rauner’s personal fingerprints” story as we may get.
But finding a way to make it easy to understand and turn it into an effective slam is quite another matter. We’ll see if the Quinnsters are up to the task.
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Question of the day
Wednesday, Sep 10, 2014 - Posted by Rich Miller
* The Tribune editorialized on yesterday’s Tribune editorial board appearance by the two gubernatorial candidates…
Our hunch is that incumbent Quinn sees challenger Rauner as the smug kid who grew up to be a robber baron. Quinn swung early and hard at Rauner, so much so that he looked gassed and slumped into his chair. An aide repeatedly advised him to sit up straight; she got intermittent obedience. What did rouse Quinn was his desire to have the last words, often focused on Rauner’s alleged “deception.” Watch the video, at chicagotribune.com/tribgov, and keep track of how many times Quinn looks as if he just wants to take a whack at Rauner. […]
Our companion hunch is that Rauner sees Quinn as an undisciplined payroller who couldn’t manage a pop stand. Watch Rauner sit as erect as an admiral addressing members of Congress and judge for yourself: Is he rigorous or rigid? Rauner, too, likes to have the last words, often wrapping Quinn in “cronyism, patronage and corruption.” As for wanting to take a whack at Quinn — keep track of how many times an unflinching Rauner looks dismissively toward Quinn, as if he wouldn’t go to the trouble of making it physical.
* The Question: Who won yesterday’s debate? Take the poll and then explain your answer in comments, please.
web surveys
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Rate Dick Durbin’s first TV ad
Wednesday, Sep 10, 2014 - Posted by Rich Miller
* From the Dick Durbin campaign…
Senator Durbin’s re-election campaign has its first commercial on the air and it’s a touching testimonial of how Sen. Durbin has delivered for the people of Illinois.
The ad, entitled Captain Simone, tells the story of just one of over 17 thousand families who are caring for our wounded warriors thanks to the assistance of the Veterans Affairs’ Family Caregiver Program. The Family Caregiver Program was created by a Durbin-authored provision in the Caregivers and Veterans Omnibus Health Services Act of 2009, which was enacted May 5, 2010. This program, which is helping families across the nation, provides technical, financial, and practical support to the caregivers of those injured in the line of duty.
The ad, that will run in the Chicago and Springfield markets, can be viewed at this link: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ugdwmRETIcs&feature=youtu.be
“We’re proud to go up with a strong, positive ad that tells the story of how Sen. Durbin has delivered for the people of Illinois – specifically our veterans,” said Anna Valencia who serves as the Campaign Manager for Senator Durbin’s re-election effort.
* The ad is definitely a tear-jerker…
* Script…
Andrea Simone: “I was actually watching the news that day, and I heard a report about the Taliban claiming responsibility for the helicopter getting shot down in Afghanistan. My husband and his gunner were the only survivors. Tony suffered a severe traumatic brain injury. There’s really not much about our life that is the same.
“Senator Durbin passed a law that provided me with the resources and the training, so that I am able to take care of Tony at home. I believe that for Dick Durbin it’s not about politics’ he cares for veterans and their families.
“I believe it’s absolutely a blessing that I am able to take care of Tony in our home with our children where he feels loved. And um, that has meant the world to us.”
Senator Durbin: I’m Dick Durbin, and I’m proud to approve this message.
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A different sort of “out of touch”
Wednesday, Sep 10, 2014 - Posted by Rich Miller
* From Illinois Leaks…
With all the class warfare going in with the Governor’s race and millions being spent on attacking success (as if that’s a bad thing), I thought it would be interesting to see what kind of success the current governor has had in the private sector.
Turns out- Quinn’s private sector success is… ZERO! That’s pretty scary.
* The blogger took a look at the governor’s economic disclosure reports (which can be viewed here) and found…
* Governor Quinn claimed no business ownership in any entity doing business in the State of Illinois in excess of $5,000 or dividends in excess of $1,200
* Claimed he has no business ties to professional organizations in which he was an officer, director, associate, partner or proprietor or served in any advisory capacity which derived in excess of $1,200 during the previous year […]
* Claimed he had no capital gain of $5,000 or more in the past year […]
* Claimed he has no ties to any business entity that did business in Illinois that earned income in excess of $1,200 […]
Having absolutely no private sector experience, the contrast for governor is stark. From humble beginnings, Rauner is highly successful. Gov. Quinn has no concept of wealth creation, job creation or the fundamental principles of how capitalism has made America into the greatest nation in the history of the world.
It’s definitely an interesting twist on the current debate.
…Adding… Quinn does have some private sector business. He ran a property tax law firm for several years in between government stints.
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This needs to be changed
Wednesday, Sep 10, 2014 - Posted by Rich Miller
* Oh, this is not good…
It’s unclear if Illinois officials will release complete information about companies seeking to grow or sell medical marijuana in Illinois because the state law that legalized medical marijuana exempts prospective companies’ applications from open records laws. […]
The lack of transparency will make it difficult to determine whether state regulators will show favoritism for companies with strong political connections, former state Sen. Susan Garrett, who oversees the Chicago-based Campaign for Political Reform, told the Springfield bureau of Lee Enterprises newspapers. Nobody should be denied this information, she said.
“There should be reason to prevent the public from having access to these applicants,” Garrett said. “If this process is clout-driven, taxpayers have the right to see it.”
Lobbyists and former government officials have already begun to team up to compete for the 22 growing center licenses or 60 dispensary licenses.
* I can see why companies might want to protect trade secrets or whatever, but as Kurt Erickson points out, the politically connected are all over this thing…
Lobbyists and former top government officials have joined forces to compete for the 22 growing center licenses or 60 dispensary licenses.
Some companies have approached former lawmakers about sitting on their boards of directors as a way to curry favor with local and state regulators.
Gov. Pat Quinn’s former chief of staff, Jack Lavin, lists a medical marijuana company as one of his lobbying clients.
* From the Rauner campaign…
1) Lavin, Quinn’s long-time friend and former Deputy Treasurer, was a Tony Rezko associate who leveraged his Rezko ties to enter Rod Blagojevich’s cabinet. After Blagojevich’s impeachment, Quinn promoted him to be his chief of staff.
2) Lavin is the same ex-Quinn Chief of Staff whose emails were recently subpoenaed by a federal grand jury in connection with the ongoing federal criminal probe of Pat Quinn’s Neighborhood Recovery Initiative. […]
Key Questions for Pat Quinn
1) Why is Jack Lavin allowed to lobby the governor and state agencies that control our tax dollars?
2) Why is Jack Lavin allowed to lobby the General Assembly where our tax dollars are appropriated?
3) Why is Jack Lavin allowed to lobby the state for state contracts and franchises?
4) If Pat Quinn was serious about dumping his best friend and state lobbyist, wouldn’t he issue a statewide order not to communicate with him?
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Anti-fracker dirty tricks?
Wednesday, Sep 10, 2014 - Posted by Rich Miller
* Several landowners in Johnson County who had oil and gas leases received a letter recently which appeared to terminate their leases with Woolsey Energy Corp…
“We are writing to inform you that the Oil and Gas Lease you have signed with our company, Woolsey Energy Corp., has been terminated” the letter to the oil and gas leaseholder began. “We offer our sincere apologies for this severance of our business relationship.”
The letter, which can be read here, is a fake. But it looks real at first. It has the company’s letterhead and the hoaxters even used an official-looking envelope.
But the reasons given for terminating the leases are pretty obviously not from an oil and gas company perspective. It cites the potential for fracking-induced earthquakes, possible contamination of water supplies and even birth defects.
* The energy company’s owner was not amused…
The company was alerted to the letter after receiving a copy from one of the mineral owners, he said.
“It is outrageous and very disturbing that whoever sent the letter would be using this tactic,” Sooter said.
* And the leading anti-fracking group in the region denies responsibility…
“I have no knowledge of anyone even loosely affiliated with SAFE doing something like that,” [Annette McMichael of Southern Illinoisans Against Fracturing Our Environment] said. “We absolutely condemn the letters. Any deceitful tactic is harmful to the movement.”
* Meanwhile, fracking proponents are holding a press conference today…
COALITION FOR HYDRAULIC FRACTURING SAYS PROPOSED RULES FAIL TO MATCH CAREFULLY NEGOTIATED LEGISLATION
WHO: Mark Denzler, vice president and COO, Illinois Manufacturers’ Association
Brad Richards, executive VP, Illinois Oil and Gas Association
Jason Keller, legislative director, AFL-CIO
Tom Wolf, executive director, Energy Council, Illinois Chamber of Commerce
WHAT: Conference call with reporters and members of the GROW-IL coalition to detail their concerns with the hydraulic fracturing rules drafted by the IDNR. GROW-IL is asking the state’s JCAR committee to direct IDNR to redraft the rules guided by statute.
Ain’t nobody happy.
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* From yesterday’s Tribune debate…
Tribune - Why should people, if you are being so vague on so many issues, not assume maybe there’s another agenda there?
Rauner - I’ve been crystal clear on my agenda, crystal clear.
Tribune - Where are you on the Illinana Expressway?
Rauner - That’s one project out of many we need to do.
Tribune - Where are you on same-sex marriage?
Rauner - It’s the law. I’m comfortable with the law. I do not support advocating a change in the law.
Tribune - Two key issues you wouldn’t tell us a position on.
* Despite saying he’s now “comfortable” with the gay marriage law and doesn’t support changing it, Equality Illinois today blasted away…
Bruce Rauner again refuses to change his position on the new Illinois marriage equality law, trying to gloss over his stated preference to veto it, prompting the Chicago Tribune Editorial Page Editor R. Bruce Dold to tell him it is one of the “key issues you wouldn’t tell us a position on.”
Rauner, the Republican nominee for governor, appeared before the editorial board in a debate with his opponent, Gov. Pat Quinn, who campaigned for the Religious Freedom and Marriage Fairness Act and signed it into law last year.
Sitting beside Rauner was the Republican nominee for lieutenant governor, Evelyn Sanguinetti, an avowed opponent of the freedom to marry, who said she and Rauner are “like-minded” on issues. Stating that his agenda is “crystal clear,” Bruce Rauner refused to take back his position expressed as recently as June that he would be open to repealing the marriage equality law.
“Bruce Rauner is again trying to have it both ways, acknowledging that the freedom to marry is now the law in Illinois but not taking back his well-established and repeated opposition to it or explaining why he chose an apparently “like-minded” running mate who ardently opposes it,” said Bernard Cherkasov, CEO of Equality Illinois, the state’s oldest and largest advocacy organization for lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender Illinoisans.
“Once again he refused the opportunity to take back his opposition to the right of loving same-sex couples to be recognized equally under the marriage laws of Illinois and give their families the same access to the rights and benefits of marriage,” Cherkasov said. “That’s not the leadership that Illinoisans deserve.”
Tuesdays exchange on the marriage issue began when the Tribune’s Dold challenged Rauner why he would not answer directly on another issue, whether the Illiana Expressway should be built
Fair hit or not?
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A Rickey Hendon special
Tuesday, Sep 9, 2014 - Posted by Rich Miller
* This ad for aldermanic candidate Gabe Beukinga that slams Ald. Walter Burnett is appearing on African-American radio. As the title of this piece suggests, it’s a familiar style for longtime blog readers. And, of course, it’s a must-listen, even if an actor actually portrays the former state Senator in the spot…
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Point and counterpoint on corruption
Tuesday, Sep 9, 2014 - Posted by Rich Miller
* From today’s debate we have this coverage in the Sun-Times…
Rauner repeatedly worked to link Quinn and imprisoned former Gov. Rod Blagojevich, accusing Quinn of doing little to curb patronage and cronyism under his administration:
“The only difference between Pat and Rod is the hair,” Rauner said.
“[Quinn] is part of the same system that’s failed for decades…He, Blagojevich and Madigan, that got us into this mess. I’m gonna get us out.”
Rauner accused Quinn of expanding patronage under his administration, accusing the state’s Central Management Services agency of being a haven for political hires.
“He’s taken no action on it, Why? Because Central Management Services is a cesspool of cronyism and patronage,” Rauner said. “That’s where the machine, Springfield, Democratic patronage workers go. That organization, that bureaucracy is designed to maximize the number of people workin’ in it and the pay of the people workin’ in it. Pat Quinn won’t go after that because that’s the core of his campaign troops…that’s incredibly wasteful.”
* In response, Quinn mainly repeated what he’s already said about IDOT. It wasn’t his fault. It was the IDOT Secretary’s fault. And he mainly counter-attacked Rauner’s business dealings. Tribune…
Quinn maintained Rauner “made a fortune out of the misfortune” of everyday people in companies and nursing homes the challenger’s venture capitalist firm took over. […]
Quinn argued Rauner engaged in “pay to play” as his former firm GTCR got pension business in Pennsylvania and gave political contributions to Democratic Gov. Ed Rendell, who said earlier this year he once put in a good word to help Rauner’s private equity firm win pension business following Rauner’s $300,000 donation to Rendell’s campaign fund.
* More on that angle from the SJ-R…
Quinn said Rauner dodged responsibility with companies in which his former investment firm, GTCR, was involved. A criminal investigation found executives at a Michigan-based company falsified financial information to make the company appear more valuable. Rauner stepped down from the board and his firm sold most of its stock — making at least $32 million — shortly before the stock’s value plummeted, the Tribune reported. Investors lost about $285 million.
“This is a classic example of what was said to be one of the biggest accounting frauds in American history. … He ran out the door, took the profits and left all the shareholders and customers and workers holding the bag,” Quinn said.
Thoughts?
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Question of the day
Tuesday, Sep 9, 2014 - Posted by Rich Miller
* Press release…
Attorney General Lisa Madigan [yesterday] announced a legislative proposal that will allow nursing home residents and their families to provide video or audio monitoring devices in their rooms to ensure their safety and well-being.
The initiative stems from recent complaints Madigan has received from residents and their families who are concerned for their relatives’ care and security. Madigan’s proposal would allow residents of nursing homes and rehabilitation facilities or their family members to purchase and install video or audio monitoring devices in their rooms.
The Attorney General cited an increasing need for additional safety measures at Illinois nursing homes as the state’s population continues to age. Currently, Illinois has over 1,200 nursing home facilities with over 100,000 residents. The U.S. Census Bureau also estimates that by 2030, 22.3 percent of Illinois’ population will be aged 60 and older, an increase of more than 28 percent from 2012.
“At some point, we are all likely to face having a family member in a nursing home,” Attorney General Madigan said. “Providing residents and their families the option to install monitoring devices in their rooms will provide peace of mind that our loved ones are being cared for in the best possible manner.”
* React…
In a statement, Health Care Council of Illinois, which lobbies on behalf of the nursing home industry, did not indicate whether the group was for or against the proposal.
“We look forward to working with our elected officials in reviewing data on this issue and making sure our residents are protected,” Pat Comstock, the executive director of the group, was quoted as saying. “The safety of all our residents is of the highest priority.” Comstock added that privacy of residents is also a serious concern.
* The Question: Do you support this concept? Take the poll and then explain your answer in comments, please.
survey tool
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Ignoring undeniable realities
Tuesday, Sep 9, 2014 - Posted by Rich Miller
* From today’s debate…
Rauner was asked whether he was asking voters to take his budget and educations plans on faith since his plans to freeze property taxes and reduce income taxes so far don’t appear to add up.
“We have the money for our schools, if we put it in the schools,” Rauner began, before he was asked to come off of talking points and make his promises add up.
“We close corporate welfare loopholes, we reform our tax code, we cut wasteful spending, we put in regulatory changes to grow the economy,” Rauner offered as ways to balance the budget.
* Um, no. Unless he wants to raise taxes even higher than they are now. From the Center for Tax and Budget Accountability…
On July 17, 2014, Bruce Rauner, the Republican nominee for Governor, released his long anticipated position paper on fiscal policy, dubbed the “Bring Back Blueprint: Jobs and Growth Agenda” (the “Blueprint”). The Blueprint represents candidate Rauner’s most complete policy statement on how to resolve the very real and serious fiscal problems that have plagued Illinois state government for decades.
In summary, those fiscal problems start with a projected deficit of $6.5 billion in the General Fund budget that was enacted for the state’s current fiscal year, FY2015, which began on July 1, 2014 and will end on June 30, 2015. (CTBA’s analysis of the FY2015 budget that passed into law is at available at CTBA’s website www.ctbaonline.org or by clicking here and CTBA’s analysis of the FY2015 budget proposed by Governor Quinn which did not pass the General Assembly is available by clicking here). For context, the projected FY2015 General Fund deficit of $6.5 billion represents 26.4 percent of all spending scheduled for public services this year.1 Unfortunately, running a General Fund deficit is nothing new in Illinois. According to the state Comptroller, this is the 25th consecutive year the state has run a General Fund deficit. That is a problem because $9 out of every $10 of General Fund spending goes to education (Pre-K through higher education, 34 percent), healthcare (29 percent), human services (19 percent), and public safety (7 percent).
Moreover, without a change in law, the General Fund deficit will worsen materially in FY2016. That is because the temporary state income tax rate increases passed as part of the Taxpayer Accountability and Budget Stabilization Act of 2011 (TABSA) are scheduled to phase-down, from 5 percent to 3.75 percent for the personal income tax, and from 7 percent to 5.25 percent for the corporate. Both state income tax rates will phase-down commencing on January 1, 2015, which is halfway through the state’s current fiscal year. This means the revenue loss from the rate phase-down is somewhat mitigated this year, as it will only pertain for six months. In FY2016, however, the lower income tax rates will be fully in effect for the whole year, causing significantly greater revenue loss. The net result will be that in FY2016, the state will realize a loss of revenue of around $3 billion from FY2015 levels—on top of the extant $6.5 billion deficit. [Emphasis added.]
But there’s plenty of money to go around.
Right.
* The CTBA also analyzed Rauner’s plan to cut nearly a billion dollars out of the budget and concluded that it would save a tenth of that.
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* During today’s debate, Gov. Pat Quinn claimed that House Republican Leader Jim Durkin told him that Bruce Rauner was trying to “buy” legislative votes against the pension reform bill. Rauner adamantly denied that he had offered anyone money or campaign contributions for a “No” vote.
Well, Leader Durkin and Senate Republican Leader Christine Radogno just issued this joint response to Quinn’s “outrageous and false statements”…
“Governor Quinn has reached a new low and is so desperate to deflect from the fact he’s under federal investigation that he is now making up outrageous and unfounded claims about Bruce Rauner. The only person who bribes legislators for votes is Pat Quinn. The only candidate in this race under federal investigation for corruption is Pat Quinn.”
*** UPDATE 1 *** The governor is standing by his statement.
*** UPDATE 2 *** Last December, Leaders Durkin and Radogno talked to the media about the vote on the pension reform bill and the lack of Republican support.
“Did the Rauner campaign or his allies make this more complicated among your caucuses?” they were asked. Leader Radogno responded “Absolutely, that made it more complicated.”
Radogno was asked why…
“It’s the political influence. And obviously he’s very wealthy, and so that’s a piece of it, too. I mean, people think about campaign funding. They think about what support they’ll get when they’re running. They think about their own political futures. They think about the people that are around Bruce Rauner and how they relate to them and their campaigns.”
Listen…
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* From the Rauner campaign…
In case you weren’t watching this morning’s Chicago Tribune Editorial Board Debate, Illinois Gov. Pat Quinn was unable to complete the debate without multiple incidents of staff passing him notes and whispering in his ear. Here’s one example caught on camera: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Sai06pWsWMg&feature=youtu.be#aid=P3NZURdtn4A.
Some of you may remember a similar incident in the Florida gubernatorial race back in 2010:
Aide fired over Florida debate foul
By the CNN Political Unit
October 26, 2010 1:36 p.m. EDT
http://www.cnn.com/2010/POLITICS/10/26/florida.debate.foul/index.html
Tampa, Florida (CNN) — A campaign aide to Florida gubernatorial candidate Alex Sink has been removed after the Democratic nominee was sent a text message during a televised debate — in violation of the rules that the candidates agreed to.
Sink’s campaign did not name the advisor. But a campaign spokesman confirmed it was Brian May, who signed the rules agreement before the Monday evening debate.
The incident took place at the CNN/St. Petersburg Times Florida gubernatorial debate when Sink’s make-up artist delivered a two-sentence message on a cell phone during a break.
Republican nominee Rick Scott, who was sitting next to Sink in the nationally televised debate, noticed the violation and notified a CNN official. The CNN official approached the make-up artist and Sink, and confiscated the cell phone.
The message read: “The attorney who [w]on the Sykes suit said alex sink did nothing wrong. Tell not to let him keep talking about her.”
* There were no such rules during today’s debate, but here’s the video…
He’s the governor, so he ought to be able to debate his opponent without any help.
*** UPDATE 1 *** I just spoke with Brooke Anderson, who’s the person above whispering in Quinn’s ear. Anderson said all of her notes she passed, all of her whispers were to tell the governor one thing and one thing only: “Sit up straight.”
Apparently, the governor has a bad habit of slouching, which doesn’t look good on TV.
*** UPDATE 2 *** From the Rauner campaign…
Yikes.
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In retrospect…
Tuesday, Sep 9, 2014 - Posted by Rich Miller
* We talked about this TV ad yesterday, but here’s something I didn’t catch at first…
Rauner’s campaign is running an ad that features Rauner talking to Ditka in Ditka’s Near North Side Restaurant in Chicago. Ditka tells Rauner how to treat special interests. “You attack…Bam… Hit ‘em right in the mouth.”
The aggressive advice from the former NFL player and Super Bowl-winning coach (currently an on-air personality) is hitting some people the wrong way just now. The NFL is currently taking a massive public relations hit itself for its initially lax punishment of Ravens running back Ray Rice, who was seen on video punching his fiancee right in the mouth in an Atlantic City elevator.
* That “Hit ‘em right in the mouth” quote got even worse when Ditka talked about that disgusting Ray Rice video on ESPN…
“I don’t know Ray at all,” Ditka said before, for some reason, feeling the need to continue. “I’m sure he’s not a bad guy, but he made a bad mistake.
“Hey, two lives, are ruined,” Ditka said. “These two lives are ruined. His earning power is destroyed. That’s an important thing.”
* Sports radio went batty on Ditka yesterday, but he also said this…
“If nothing comes out of this, if nothing ever comes out of this, except as a lesson to the players and the league today, understand, this cannot be tolerated and cannot happen, then you’ve accomplished something.”
Even so, it’s probably not a good idea to run that ad again.
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Rauner distances himself from Tillman remarks
Tuesday, Sep 9, 2014 - Posted by Rich Miller
* Bruce Rauner was asked yesterday about our post on controversial, possibly racial remarks made by the Illinois Policy Institute’s John Tillman in 2011 while Rauner sat at the same dais. From the Tribune…
Tillman argued that youths on the South and West Sides are hurt by a high minimum wage that keep employers from being able to offer them jobs.
“So those kids keep walking, and they walk, and they get to the corner. And what do they find on the corner? They find a member of the gang offering them a job to be a drug runner. Is that the choice we want to make?” said Tillman, whose group advocates eliminating the minimum wage.
Quinn’s campaign sent out Cook County President Toni Preckwinkle on the governor’s behalf, and she called the comments “100 percent wrong and offensive to those of us who have worked to stem the tide of violence and drugs in our communities.”
Rauner refused to answer questions about Tillman’s comments during his education event. A spokesman later said Rauner “does not believe the minimum wage leads to gang membership.” The policy institute said criticism was a desperate political attack.
Right under the bus.
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Chicago media finally catches on
Tuesday, Sep 9, 2014 - Posted by Rich Miller
* Notice a pattern here? Tribune…
Republican governor candidate Bruce Rauner on Monday promised to pump more money into education from preschool through college should he be elected, but failed to say how he’d pay for it and keep his earlier pledges to lower the income tax rate and freeze property taxes.
The so-called “blueprint” for education follows the pattern of similar proposals the first-time candidate has released in recent months about how he’d govern, containing broad themes but few specifics. Rauner previously has called for an overhaul of business tax credits, said he’d phase out the 2011 income tax increase over four years while broadening sales taxes to include some services and talked about cutting the state budget.
* ABC 7…
Republican candidate for governor Bruce released his education plan for Illinois on Monday and it calls for more spending, but fails to say where the money would come from.
Despite promises to roll back the state income tax rate and freeze property taxes, Rauner vows to increase, not cut, education spending.
* Sun-Times…
Rauner was pressed on how he could increase education money while freezing property taxes, which right now make up the bulk of funding for local schools. Rauner vowed he would increase money in his first year in office — something at least one expert called “fantasy.”
“We will increase education funding in year one, yes, absolutely,” Rauner said. “Other programs will need to be cut,” he said, without specifying which ones. […]
“There’s no way to make the numbers work in the short term without either massive cuts or to shift to broad-based consumption taxes,” said University of Illinois at Springfield Political Science professor emeritus Kent Redfield.
“If you’ve got a deficit situation and you take out a huge source of revenue, then you can’t increase funding in one area without massive cuts to social services, higher education, mental health institutions … It’s just a fantasy to believe that this can be done and still maintain the basic level of services that we have.”
Rauner said he has pointed to ways to cut government waste in the past and to tax services. But Redfield said Rauner’s proposal to tax services was not broad enough to do all that he’s promising, in part because it excludes financial services.
* AP Chicago Bureau…
Rauner’s 26-page education plan, laced with statistics and graphs, was short on specifics of how the venture capitalist would proceed with his ideas or what exactly he wanted to do. He called for an overhaul of how the state doles out money to school districts — a contentious issue in Illinois — but didn’t say what should be in the funding formula. His plan called for changing the way Illinois schools grant tenure and cited a Florida practice allowing annual contracts, but Rauner said he wouldn’t do away with tenure completely. […]
Rauner’s campaign didn’t provide a cost estimate on the plan, saying some ideas such as the tax credits were “revenue neutral.” However, Rauner vowed to increase education spending, even in the first year of office, without extending the temporary tax increase or raising property taxes.
He said his policies would help Illinois’ economy grow so much that additional revenue would come in from new jobs and, combined with other steps such as eliminating waste in state government, Illinois would be able to close a budget hole.
* Our beloved commenter and experienced budget hand Steve Schnorf will get the final word on this aspect of the Rauner proposal…
I like it that Bruce Rauner is becoming increasingly specific with the newer position papers he is putting out. To his paper:
>much of it is simply facts about our current education system, both K-12 and Higher Ed. Many of those facts are quite damning, that is undebateable.
>many of those nasty facts can’t be blamed on Governor Quinn since they have been bad for a long time before he became Governor. However, the significant reduction in education funding over the past 6 years is owned by the person who is Governor.
>some new (to Illinois) ideas are included, and some of them are probably worth trying.
>increasing both K-12 and Higher Ed funding is, in my opinion, a good and necessary idea. Inadequate K-12 funding does drive up property taxes, and inadequate Higher Ed funding has imposed a very large hidden middle class tax increase in the past 10 years.
>most of those new ideas will cost new money.
Aye, and now we come to the rub, don’t we? Bruce Rauner simply HAS to tell us how he’s going to pay for these things. Governor Quinn can’t pay for them in FY15 (and perhaps beyond), because the legislature has chosen to reduce our state tax revenues considerably. Candidate Rauner has told us he wants to reduce our income tax rate below even what it will become Jan 1. Fine, but cognitive dissonance is starting to kill me, since I can fairly quickly back of the envelope round number what our state tax revenues will be 5 years from now, giving Rauner credit for his policies increasing tax revenue growth at rates above what I believe they will actually be, and adding in his new proposed tax on services (which I think is a good idea, just not taken far enough). So far it just doesn’t add up. I’m looking forward to what’s to come.
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Rauner, Quinn to spar at 10 this morning
Tuesday, Sep 9, 2014 - Posted by Rich Miller
* The live video stream link is here. From the Tribune…
The contentious Illinois governor campaign will be coming to the Tribune editorial board today, as Democratic Gov. Pat Quinn, Republican challenger Bruce Rauner and their running mates will appear to answer questions about their platforms and certainly take shots at one another as the race enters its final months.
The candidates will appear at 10 a.m., and the debate will be streamed on chicagotribune.com.
* Follow along with ScribbleLive…
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NRCC slams Enyart for raising debt ceiling
Tuesday, Sep 9, 2014 - Posted by Rich Miller
* From the NRCC…
“Congressman Bill Enyart has sided with Nancy Pelosi over Southern Illinois families at every turn in Washington. Instead of fighting for the folks of the 12th District, Enyart has voted alongside the most liberal in Congress to raise the debt ceiling and give President Obama a blank check. Southern Illinois families have a better choice this November and that’s proven leader Mike Bost.” – Katie Prill, NRCC Spokeswoman
* The new TV ad…
* The script…
ANNCR: Bill Enyart promised to lead, but in Washington, he fell right in line.
On almost 90% of his votes, Enyart took Nancy Pelosi’s orders.
Voting 3 times to increase the debt ceiling.
Bill Enyart’s just not who we thought.
There is a better choice: Mike Bost. Will cut the debt and balance the budget.
A firefighter, former Marine.
Mike Bost won’t back down to party leaders.
A fighter for Southern Illinois.
The National Republican Congressional Committee is responsible for the content of this advertising.
Since one of the few item on Congress’ fall plate is raising the debt ceiling, I suppose the obvious question created by this new ad is where Rep. Bost stands on a potential government shutdown.
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* It’s about the minimum wage. Surprised? You shouldn’t be. From a press release…
Republican Bruce Rauner’s belief that the minimum wage should be eliminated completely is highlighted in a new 30-second television ad released today by the Quinn for Illinois campaign.
Earlier this year, Rauner publicly advocated for lowering the Illinois minimum wage and said he was “adamantly, adamantly” opposed to Gov. Quinn’s efforts to raise the minimum wage.
Then, just last week, new video surfaced showing Rauner - THIS YEAR - admitting that he advocated for eliminating the minimum wage completely.
Bruce Rauner has put his money where his mouth is, outsourcing American jobs to countries where child labor is prevalent and wages are low. He also is bankrolling a Tea Party organization that is working to eliminate the minimum wage in Illinois.
Said Quinn for Illinois Deputy Press Secretary Izabela Miltko:
“Billionaire Bruce Rauner’s true position, that there should be no minimum wage in Illinois, illustrates exactly how out-of-touch he is with Illinois values and how his policies would hurt working families.
“Mr. Rauner does not get ‘do-overs’ when it comes to his true belief that there should be no minimum wage in Illinois. His attempts to paper over his hostility to workers are as shameful as his position itself.”
* The ad…
* The script…
Narrator: “Bruce Rauner in his own words:”
Bruce Rauner: “I am adamantly, adamantly against raising the minimum wage.”
Narrator: “Now billionaire Bruce Rauner was caught saying he wants to eliminate the minimum wage completely.
“Eliminate the minimum wage? Taking thousands of dollars out of the pockets of hard-working families.
“Did Bruce Rauner really think no one would find out?”
*** UPDATE 1 *** From the Rauner campaign…
It should come as no surprise that Pat Quinn is lying about Bruce’s position on the minimum wage as he continues lying to the people of Illinois about corruption on his watch. The fact remains Bruce is the only candidate who has a real plan to raise the minimum wage.
*** UPDATE 2 *** McKinney reports this is a $750,000 buy…
Quinn’s campaign is putting roughly $750,000 behind the ad, which is running in television markets in Chicago, Champaign, Peoria and Paducah, Ky., a source familiar with the ad buy told Early & Often, the Chicago Sun-Times’ political portal.
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