* Tina Sfondeles on the ongoing Bruce Rauner/Willie Wilson flap…

But even as the Republican governor moved to distance himself from the nonpartisan mayoral challenger — to whom Rauner has given $200,000 in the last year alone — a common political link surfaced. Rauner and Wilson both employ the same man to help with black voter outreach efforts, according to their campaigns and expenditure reports filed with the Illinois State Board of Elections. […]

Rauner and Wilson have described themselves as friends. And both the Rauner and Wilson campaigns are paying the same man for outreach efforts. It’s not uncommon for consultants to be paid to work for several campaigns. Chauncey Colquitt is working outreach for both campaigns.

Citizens for Rauner paid Colquitt $12,000 in two payments for consulting in late June, with the campaign also paying Colquitt’s The Crescent Group $30,000 for legal services, expenditure reports show. Wilson’s campaign also paid The Crescent Group $9,500 in two payments in late June. Colquitt is the listed agent for the group […]

The Rauner campaign did not elaborate on Colquitt’s role, only saying Colquitt is “not the outreach director for Wilson’s campaign.”

Wilson campaign manager Scott Winslow said Colquitt is a paid consultant focusing on “African-American messaging, what’s going to resonate with different populations.”

* But, wait, there’s more! Colquitt also worked for then-Rep. Ken Dunkin in 2016 (click here). Dunkin, of course, was/is a Rauner ally who lost his 2016 Democratic primary to Juliana Stratton and then failed in a comeback bid last March.

* And that’s not all!…

Colquitt’s other job (separate from the campaign) is to help secure guests for WVON talk show host Maze Jackson. Rauner appeared on Jackson’s show June 19 declaring he has done more for the black community than any governor before him. The comment raised eyebrows but it isn’t inaccurate—Rauner has established programs to make sure blacks get a share of state business.

Two days after that radio appearance, Rauner paid $30,000 to Colquitt’s Crescent Group business and $12,000 to him directly, according to campaign expenditure reports. I’m told those payments are for work done since Colquitt was hired in May.

Connecting the dots on Maze Jackson: He supported Ken Dunkin, the controversial lawmaker appointed to the Metropolitan Water Reclamation District. Jackson and Dunkin got to know each other when Jackson was a statehouse lobbyist and later when he was executive director of the Black Caucus Foundation. Jackson’s wife is Kari Steele, also a Water Reclamation District commissioner. Jackson’s good friend is Vince Bass, the director of public engagement and civic affairs for the governor’s office. Before that, Bass worked for former state comptroller Leslie Munger. She’s now the deputy governor. Jackson also owns a marketing company called The Intelligence Group, which was paid $91,000 by Munger for campaign work.

* This oppo package is huge! Take a look at this video of Gov. Rauner from a month ago attending a Maze Jackson “What’s In It For The Black People?” cookout…

WIIFTBP cookout!

Posted by Maze Jackson on Saturday, June 23, 2018

In the video, the governor tells an attendee that “Madigan wanted that impasse and now we have more money for child care.” Aside from the “AFSCME bill,” one of the votes that Rauner convinced Dunkin to skip in 2015 would have restored cuts Gov. Rauner made to child care programs.

Colquitt is present while Maze narrates. Later, Jackson takes the microphone and says, “We’ve got an election in November. Who came to see you? Hey, gov, you want to say a couple of words real quick?” Maze then expresses disappointment that no state legislators showed up.

Rauner, wearing his biker vest, touts his expansion of child care, among other things.

“Remember the people who came to see you and took your vote importantly,” Jackson says when Rauner finishes speaking.