He smiled. He cracked jokes, about himself and others at the table. He looked relaxed, rested and at ease with himself—more so than in years. In fact, he looked like a man liberated.
That wasn’t what I expected when Gov. Bruce Rauner, who now is in desperate re-election trouble, stopped by to meet with Crain’s editorial board for an endorsement interview the other day. Lots of people in and around state government have noticed the same thing recently. As one knowledgeable source summarizes, “He’s made his peace with it”—”it” being losing his job in the Nov. 6 election.
I won’t throw dirt on the casket yet; Election Day is still more than a month away. But even if he does somehow pull it out, a Rauner who lately has been ruminating in public about the mistakes he made in the past four long years won’t be the same. It’s not too early to ask how a governorship that began with such promise went so horribly off track. […]
Some Republican governors have thrived in blue states, including Charlie Baker in Massachusetts and Maryland’s Larry Hogan. Others, such as Florida businessman Rick Scott, made the transition to governing after a bumpy start. Not Rauner. “It all comes down to arrogance. He had to have everything,” says one top insider. Adds another, “I don’t think he ever was willing to try to figure it out.”
Too bad. Illinois needed a good, experienced CEO who could put his ego in check. It still does.
Go read the whole thing. This could explain the governor’s renewed willingness to talk so openly about “right to work” zones.
Or, it could just be that this is his last election win or lose and he’s doing what he wants to do.
The Democratic nominee also appeared to signal the likely death of Rauner’s vaunted Discovery Partners Institute on Related Midwest’s 78-acre property at Roosevelt and Clark.
“It should have partners in private industry,” rather than just rely on a pending state grant of up to $500 million, Pritzker said. “There is no private support as best as I can tell,” despite several months of promises from Rauner, who told Crain’s that investors are willing to step forward if he is re-elected.
As a matter of practical politics, the DPI plan was the creation of Rauner and Chicago Mayor Rahm Emanuel. Rauner soon could be out of office and Emanuel will retire after his current term ends in April.
So, there are willing DPI investors but the governor is keeping their names a secret because they’re only on board if Rauner is reelected?
…Adding… I posted this Democratic Party of Illinois press release on the live coverage post, but it also fits here…
One year ago to the day, Bruce Rauner said he came back from his trip to China and Japan with “nine projects that have a good chance of success here in the state of Illinois,” but today he’s coming up empty. Rauner was speaking at the Illinois Chamber of Commerce days after returning from what he dubbed a “trade mission.” But where are the jobs governor?
As WCIA and the Chicago Tribune’s Eric Zorn exposed, Rauner’s administration has been unable to show any real success from his Asia trade mission, or his more recent Germany trip. In fact, the only news Illinoisans are seeing is Japanese companies like Takeda and Daifuku Wynright moving 1,500 jobs OUT of Illinois. Zorn connected Rauner’s overseas flop to his overall jobs record – Rauner had blasted his predecessor as a “miserable failure on jobs” and promised to “get results,” but job growth has slowed during his tenure.
“After 1,500 jobs disappeared in six days, it’s clear why Bruce Rauner is a ‘miserable failure on jobs’ by his own measure,” said DPI Statewide Communications Director Sam Salustro. “Over promising and under delivering is a recipe for disaster, and it seems to be the only one Rauner has perfected.”
It’s kinda weird that the acronym for Rauner’s project and Madigan’s party are the same.
* I sent this e-mail to all Democratic and Republican statewide campaigns and both state parties earlier this week…
As you may know, the Illinois Anti-Harassment, Equality and Access panel’s report recommends that campaigns not use non-disclosure agreements and mandatory arbitration. A panel spokesperson told me, however, that the report “isn’t calling for campaigns to not sign NDAs at all, but just when it comes to settling sexual harassment issues.” https://capitolfax.com/2018/09/26/panel-recommends-not-using-non-disclosure-agreements-and-mandatory-arbitration/
1) Does your campaign (or state party, as the case may be) utilize non-disclosure agreements that would in any way preclude, hinder or discourage campaign staff, volunteers etc. from reporting or speaking out about instances of sexual harassment? Please provide any NDA language to support your claim.
2) Does your campaign (or state party, as the case may be) utilize mandatory arbitration for sexual harassment complaints, reports, claims? Please provide any mandatory arbitration language to support your claim.
The deadline was today at noon. Responses listed in the order they were received.
* Aviva Bowen from the Kwame Raoul campaign…
1. Nothing in our NDA (attached for background) would discourage someone from speaking out or reporting sexual harassment, particularly when coupled with our sexual harassment policy (also attached) and requirement that all campaign staff take anti-harassment training, for which they receive a certificate of completion.
2. No, we do not have any mandatory arbitration provisions.
Further, as you know I am on leave from the IFT, where I serve as the Ethics Officer. I bring to the campaign my additional training and experience in this role.
The campaign’s harassment policy (which she included along with the NDA) ensures that anyone speaking out will not be subjected to retaliation. That, she explained, would negate the NDA.
* Jason Helland…
My campaign does not use any NDAs and we do not utilize mandatory arbitration.
* Will Allison at the Bruce Rauner campaign…
1. No.
2. No.
* Kara Highfill at the Michael Frerichs campaign…
All full-time staff on the Frerichs campaign including Frerichs have signed the framework policy provided by the AHEA panel. I added a clause to that policy that outlines that the Frerichs campaign does not utilize NDA agreements or mandatory arbitration clauses.
* Aaron Degroot at the Erika Harold campaign…
That’s a no on both questions for Citizens For Erika Harold.
* Travis Sterling at the Illinois Republican Party…
1. The Illinois Republican Party from time to time utilizes confidentiality agreements that seek to preserve the confidentiality of sensitive political information (plans, processes and the like) that may be disclosed to an intern or employee. In no way would (or could) such an agreement be interpreted to hinder any person from speaking out against or reporting an instance of sexual harassment.
2. No, the Illinois Republican Party does not utilize mandatory arbitration for sexual harassment complaints.
* Christie Lacey at the Susana Mendoza campaign…
No & no.
* Sam Salustro at the Democratic Party of Illinois…
Under our current policies, DPI does not use non-disclosure agreements or utilize mandatory arbitration.
* Rocco Claps at the Jesse White campaign…
No.
No.
* Galia Slayen at the JB Pritzker campaign…
1. Like most political campaigns, our campaign does have staff sign a privacy agreement to protect strategic campaign information. There is no expectation or mention of keeping information about sexual harassment private. All staff are required to receive sexual harassment training and our campaign has a zero-tolerance policy for harassment or retaliation of any kind.
2. No.
* Darlene Senger…
1) No, we don’t use NDAs.
2) No, we don’t use mandatory arbitration for sexual harassment complaints
I never heard back from Jim Dodge.
…Adding… There was an internal mixup, so here’s Dodge’s response…
We don’t use NDAs. We do not require mandatory arbitration.
* Gov. Bruce Rauner’s campaign reset speech was ready-made for editorial board meetings. Here he is with the Pantagraph…
He admitted, however, he might have pursued “smaller wins” rather than push so hard that the state went more than two years without a budget — and said he’s now better equipped to handle Madigan, a Chicago Democrat.
“What’s different is two things. One, I’ve learned to work with him and also around him. That’s how we got a lot of things done in the last year, 18 months,” said Rauner. “Two, he’s weaker in his strength in the General Assembly than at any time I’m aware of. … There are now so many more legislators who will stand up and say, ‘I’m doing this because it’s right.’”
Rauner said that approach will help grow businesses and address the state’s budget problems. He said that’s a better approach than a graduated income tax, which makes the wealthy pay more — a proposal Pritzker has made central to his campaign but Rauner opposes.
“We can all have our dreams, but we’ve got to deal with reality,” said Rauner. “More taxes are not going to give us a better future.”
As we clearly saw during the impasse, less taxes won’t balance the budget.
Also, what did he get done in the past 18 months by going around Madigan? I can’t think of anything offhand. Just the other way around, in fact. Also, those Democratic legislators who are standing up to say they’re doing something “because it’s right” are mainly liberals who have few policy agreements with the governor.
He also talked extensively about “right to work” and even claimed that the Toyota plant we lost to Mississippi will be staffed by union workers. I seriously doubt that. He claimed, as well, that factory workers in Indiana, Michigan and Wisconsin make more than factory workers in Illinois. Not true.
* Anyway, speaking of editorial boards and Madigan, the Kankakee Daily Journal’s editorial board pressed former Rep. Lisa Dugan (D-Bradley) about whether she’d be voting for Madigan for House Speaker. Dugan is trying to regain her former seat after her 2013 retirement. She’s running against freshman Rep. Lindsay Parkhurst (R-Kankakee)..
Asked whether she would vote for Michael Madigan, D-Chicago, to remain as speaker, Dugan made no commitment. She noted that much of the GOP’s advertising ties her to Madigan. And she acknowledged she voted for Madigan four times during her nearly decade as a lawmaker.
“I worked with Michael Madigan for nine-and-a-half years and fought with him for nine-and-a-half years,” Dugan said.
As an example, she said she worked against Madigan’s transit bill because it took money away from the local transit district.
“What you have to do in Springfield is work with 117 other legislators and one of them is Michael Madigan. You have to work with leadership on the Democratic and Republican sides,” Dugan said.
Parkhurst, however, said her first vote in Springfield was against Madigan. She said Dugan voted for Madigan’s proposed tax increase and pension holidays, meaning the state delayed payments into the pension systems.
“(Dugan) will vote for Mike Madigan. Don’t let her fool you,” Parkhurst said.
Dugan was no shrinking violet when she was in the House. But she was also very popular with her colleagues on both sides of the aisle. The Republicans claim the Madigan stuff is damaging this year, though. We’ll see.
Also, the process is the two caucuses privately choose their candidates for House Speaker and then there’s a formal public election between a Democrat and a Republican. I’m not sure the Daily Journal gets that.
Voters don’t do nuance. Pritzker fully understood that concept in the primary when he went after Chris Kennedy and Daniel Biss over their nuanced and limited kinda/sorta support for a maybe/possible tax on retirement income. He zapped them both with harsh TV ads and now he’s getting zapped by Rauner on the mileage tax.
* The Daily Herald, by the way, is not pleased that Pritzker is running away from the mileage tax that he suggested he could look at as a pilot project…
There’s a great irony in Pritzker calling Rauner a liar. It is Pritzker who, with our Editorial Board earlier this year, raised the possibility of a tax on vehicle mileage — and now denies that he mentioned it. Even though it’s fully recorded. Denied it outright Thursday night even when Carol Marin gave him a chance to acknowledge but downplay what he’d said.
Hours before the U.S. Senate Judiciary Committee is set to vote on Brett Kavanaugh’s Supreme Court nomination, Republican Gov. Bruce Rauner on Friday said the process should be delayed after Thursday’s testimony of Christine Blasey Ford.
“Dr. Ford’s allegations are very serious and they seem very credible. I believe they deserve to be investigated and I believe a vote should be postponed until they are fully investigated,” Rauner said on WBEZ-FM’s “Morning Shift” program. […]
On Thursday morning, Democratic governor candidate J.B. Pritzker was asked about anti-harassment policies proposed this week by a panel of women formed in the wake of allegations in longtime House Speaker Michael Madigan’s organization. In answering, he also raised the Kavanaugh case.
“I happen to think that in Washington, D.C., that the Judiciary Committee in the Senate should be handing over to the FBI the investigation of the allegations that have been made about Kavanaugh,” Pritzker said. “That’s the way to do it. I’m not sure that here in Illinois that things have been handled the way they should have, but under our administration, they will be.”
OK, everybody take a deeeeeeeeeeeep breath and then exhale fully before commenting, please. Leave your DC talking points out of the comment section. Something you saw on Facebook is also not an acceptable fact source here, so do an honest Google search.
In other words, don’t get banned for life.
...Adding… Speaker Madigan…
“Yesterday, we saw Dr. Christine Blasey Ford’s courage in standing before United States senators and a criminal prosecutor to tell her story. The allegations against Judge Kavanaugh are extremely serious, and his belligerent testimony failed to address the concerns of women and men across our country. In fact, it confirms the concerns we’ve expressed about Kavanaugh’s fitness to serve on our nation’s highest court.
“Now, even conservative newspapers, the American Bar Association and Governor Rauner have joined us in calling on senators to stop this nomination on the floor and open an FBI investigation into the very serious allegations facing Judge Kavanaugh.
“I urge senators to do the right thing and allow for a full investigation.”
*** UPDATE *** Sen. Sam McCann…
In response to Governor Rauner siding with Senator Feinstein and the Democrats Sam McCann issued the following statement:
I am following the lead of the President of the United States, and the strong conservative leadership of Senator Grasley, who are intimately involved in the details of the allegations and hearings regarding Kavanaugh. I would not base any decisions on the slanted media and conjecture. Rather, I put my faith in our commander and chief who was duly elected by our electoral process of the United States of America. Unfortunately, Bruce Rauner has shown time and again, as highlighted this morning, when he sided with Diane Feinstein and the Democrats, that he has no faith in President Trump and the Republican controlled Senate. I call on the American people to put faith back in Government.
* Former Gov. Rod Blagojevich writes about prison reform, but of course he makes it mostly about himself…
Before my arrest and retrial, my life was the American dream.
Growing up, I had shined shoes, worked in a slaughterhouse, worked on the Alaskan oil pipeline, and delivered pizzas. I went to law school, I was a prosecutor for two years, I served in the Illinois House, the U.S. Congress, and was twice-elected governor. I won 14 elections in a row.
My gubernatorial administration made historic progress in Illinois on women’s and children’s healthcare. We opened free preschool to every 3- and 4-year-old. We also reduced repeat crimes by ex-offenders. My initiative, “Inside Out,” provided better access to education, job training, substance abuse treatment and counseling services to inmates and parolees. This led to the lowest conviction rate among parolees in Illinois history; a reduction in arrests among the parolee population; and reductions in repeat incarceration among parolees with substance abuse issues. The dramatic drop in recidivism even saved the state of Illinois $64 million in incarceration costs over a four-year span from 2004 to 2008.
Today however, I am living the reverse American dream – a bad dream that I share with other inmates at a prison in Colorado where I am currently serving a 14-year sentence. So what happened?
He got caught. That’s what happened. Anyway, he does make a few good points, so click here if you’re inclined.
* Terra Costa Howard is running against Rep. Peter Breen (R-Lombard). This is a Tier 1 race and as I’ve been telling subscribers, tons of money is being pumped into it. Personal PAC is also heavily involved because Breen is totally against abortion rights…
Statement from Terra Costa Howard
Democratic nominee for 48th District State Representative
Several weeks ago, I accepted the Chicago Tribune Editorial Board’s invitation to attend an endorsement session today.
Many friends and advisors warned me that I had no chance of getting a fair hearing, much less an endorsement. However, I thought it was important to give voters in the 48th District this opportunity to hear from me directly about my positions on the issues that matter most to us.
Then on Monday, I read Kristen McQueary’s column, which insulted every Democratic woman running for office in Illinois.
Ms. McQueary said the women running in DuPage County and other suburbs were “put up” by House Speaker Michael Madigan because we “poll well.” That’s offensive.
I’ve worked as an attorney in DuPage County for two decades, standing up for people who are vulnerable and in need. I’ve worked beside my husband to build a successful small business. I spent eight years on the Glen Ellyn school board, making sure our community’s excellent public schools serve the needs of our children – while keeping our budgets balanced, every year.
By any standard, I am more than qualified to run for State Representative – and to serve. Yet Ms. McQueary makes it sound like I’m some generic “woman candidate,” a pawn in a skirt whose name was randomly pulled from a hat.
She also claimed that any candidate who accepts support from the Illinois Democratic Party has to “give up control” of her campaign and winds up “subservient” to Madigan. That is absolutely untrue.
I’m proud to be a Democrat, and I’m proud that the Democratic Party of Illinois is supporting me.
I’m up against an incumbent who is backed by billionaires Bruce Rauner and Dick Uihlein (the top donor for Roy Moore, the Republican Senate candidate in Alabama who was accused of sexually assaulting several teen girls.) Without the support of my party, I would have no chance to unseat an entrenched politician who has turned his back on our communities in favor of the wealthy special interests that support him.
But let me be clear: I am in full control of my campaign, and I am “subservient” to no one. When I get to Springfield, I will vote my district first, no matter what.
As for Ms. McQueary’s statement that Democratic women “have become adept at looking the other way” when women are abused or harassed, I will just say this: For 20 years, judges in DuPage County have chosen me to act as guardian ad litem for children, seniors, and people with disabilities. Those judges trust me to protect those vulnerable people to the absolute best of my ability – and they know I will never “look the other way” if my clients are in danger of harm or abuse. My integrity has never been for sale, and it never will be.
Every day, I grab a clipboard and walk from door to door in my district, talking to people about the issues that matter most to them and their families. I see no reason to waste precious hours of this campaign fighting to be heard in a room full of people whose minds were made up long before I walked in the door.
For these reasons, I am withdrawing from today’s meeting with the Chicago Tribune Editorial Board.
The column in question is here. I’ve asked McQueary via e-mail for comment and will post it if she sends one.
Did she do the right thing, or should she have attended the forum anyway?
Today, the Betsy Dirksen Londrigan for Congress campaign called out the Congressional Leadership Fund, Paul Ryan’s Super PAC, for lying about her record on healthcare, and sent a letter to TV stations in Illinois’ 13th Congressional District demanding that their false ad be pulled. For a detailed explanation of why the ad is blatantly false, read the Londrigan campaign’s letter HERE and attached below.
“It’s clear that Paul Ryan’s super PAC knows Rodney Davis’s disastrous healthcare record has landed him in real trouble in Central Illinois. This ad is a desperate, fraudulent attempt to distract voters from that truth,” said Emma Brown, campaign manager for Betsy Dirksen Londrigan. “While this group lies about Betsy, here are the facts about Rodney Davis: he voted for a health care repeal bill that would have left tens of thousands of his own constituents without health care, weakened protections for those with pre-existing conditions and charged older Americans more for their care. This is who Rodney Davis has shown himself to be, a career politician who will say anything to distract from his record and try to get re-elected.”
The year was 2007, and the Abraham Lincoln Presidential Library Foundation was drooling over a collection of Lincoln documents and artifacts, including a stovepipe hat that’s become famous for all the wrong reasons. The hat was owned by Louise Taper, a denizen of Beverly Hills and a foundation board member. “From the onset, when Louise talked to me in my kitchen some three years ago, the price of her total collection was $15 to $16 to $20 million to whatever,” Julie Cellini, foundation board secretary, wrote in an April 1 (yes, April Fool’s Day) email to T. Tolbert Chisum, a foundation board member. “The price bounced around. But the ‘must haves’ were always in the proposed sale we discussed.”
The “must have” to which Cellini referred was a copy of the Emancipation Proclamation signed by Lincoln. That iconic – and presumably authentic – document, despite Cellini’s insistence, wasn’t included in the final sale, but the price tag stayed at $23 million. Who’d make a deal like that? Someone with buyer’s fever, which appears to have been contagious back when the foundation agreed to buy Taper’s collection, which included a hat that Pawn Stars would reject as iffy.
Thanks to a report last week by WBEZ radio in Chicago, we know that neither the FBI nor historians from the Smithsonian and the Chicago History Museum could authenticate the hat. That’s somewhat old news. Dave McKinney, the same journalist who broke the WBEZ story, reported in 2012 that an affidavit from the 1950s, once considered proof, doesn’t hold water. That shouldn’t have been startling to either the foundation or the state, given that an appraiser hired before the 2007 sale sent an email to Tom Schwartz, then state historian, and Taper, questioning the provenance of the hat, as well as a clock that is said to have come from Lincoln’s law office, as well as a fan that Mary Todd Lincoln is supposed to have carried with her to Ford’s Theatre. The same appraiser, who was paid by the state, also spotted a fake Mary Todd Lincoln letter (it was a clerical copy) and questioned whether Lincoln had actually signed a photograph bearing his autograph and whether invitations to White House dinners really came from Mary.
That’s a fair number of flags. Nonetheless, the foundation closed the deal, thinking it would be able to raise $23 million to pay off a loan so that artifacts would forever grace display cases at the Abraham Lincoln Presidential Library and Museum.
And now the foundation can’t pay back the loan and wants a state bailout.
He was asked how he’d pay for his ambitious plan for higher education he announced Wednesday. It includes big increases in state aid.
His response, “We can help pay for that thru cuts in state government I’ve suggested. I’ve proposed investments in savings that we could have both in our Medicaid budget and our education budget by investing in early childhood education. Finally, I’ve suggested we might legalize sports betting or look at other expansion of gambling in the state. And then legalize marijuana and tax it.”
He’s suggested cuts in state government? What?
I asked him last year where he would cut and he responded by saying he’d shift people out of nursing homes and into in-home care, spend more on homeless prevention and more on community-based intervention programs to lessen juvenile crime.
That ain’t gonna save much.
And spending more on early childhood education will likely have positive long-term fiscal benefits, but I wouldn’t predicate funding higher education based on that. Same goes for legalizing marijuana. We’ll save some money, but you can’t really bank that.
Also, this almost goes without saying, but Pritzker has said many times that he wants to use gaming and pot money for capital projects. He only started talking about using it for higher ed yesterday.
An audience member asked Pritzker how as governor he would support the middle class. He said his plan is to drastically lower taxes for most residents in the state.
“We ask people like Bruce Rauner and me to pay a little bit more. It’ll help us to pay for our k-12 education system. Today we rely on property taxes mostly to pay for our schools in Illinois and that is not how most states do it,” Pritzker said.
Paying half the cost of K-12 would cost the state at least $5 billion. All while “drastically” cutting taxes for most residents in the state. Right.
Rauner, a Winnetka Republican, said company officials considered bringing a $1.6 billion joint venture between Toyota and Mazda that will employ 4,000 workers in Huntsville, Ala., to Central Illinois — but they didn’t want to deal with closed-shop rules that make employees at certain businesses join a union.
“We should be where the auto plants are coming. We’ve got the workforce and the people. You can’t get a new auto plant built in a closed-shop state,” he told the Pantagraph’s Editorial Board.
“I went to Japan to bring the Toyota-Mazda venture here to McLean County. … They said they love Illinois, they love Central Illinois, they love the workforce here.They were coming,” he continued.
“But the board members said, ‘This board of directors will not build a new plant in a closed-shop state. Can you make it so McLean County is not?’ I said, ‘I proposed it, but that’s not an option right now.’ So they said, ‘Well then, you know what, we’re going to another state,’” he said.
Mark Denzler, vice president and chief operating officer of the Illinois Manufacturers’ Association, confirmed Wednesday that Illinois is no longer in the running.
“We are certainly very disappointed that Toyota is not coming to Illinois, but we also understand the challenges that plague Illinois,” he said. “We are not a business-friendly state.”
Stability and predictability are lacking, Denzler said. He pointed to the $15 billion backlog of bills the state built up during its budget crisis, unfunded pensions and a recent income tax increase as examples. Illinois has some redeeming qualities, he said, but not enough.
Joe Hinrichs, president of global operations for Ford, said the automaker will retool the Chicago assembly plant after Taurus production winds down. There about about 4,000 workers at the Chicago assembly plant, and Ford expects demand for the new SUV lines to support the same size workforce going forward.
“We’re investing heavily in the plant, and we’re going to keep it full and everybody is going to keep their employment,” Hinrichs said Thursday.
*** UPDATE 1 *** I don’t think McLean County was on the list of sites that the state was backing for that Toyota plant. Rochelle and DeKalb were the two towns in the running.
*** UPDATE 2 *** From that article about Rochelle and DeKalb is this nugget…
Amid battles between Rauner and Democratic leaders, the state’s largest jobs incentives program —Economic Development for a Growing Economy, or EDGE, tax credits — expired earlier this year with no new legislation passed to replace it.
“The biggest challenge Illinois will face is competitiveness of incentives,” [site selection expert Bradley Migdal of Cushman & Wakefield] said. “If Illinois is competing with states like Alabama or Mississippi, at the end of the day the key tool is going to be incentives.
“To do something now would require special legislation, because right now there is no legislation in place for providing EDGE incentives.”
As districts around the state begin reaping the benefits of Illinois’ new school funding formula, Democratic lawmakers who just happen to be up for re-election gathered today to remind voters that Republican Gov. Bruce Rauner initially vetoed that funding, and likewise vetoed legislation that would raise minimum teacher salaries to $40,000 over the next five years.
State Sen. Andy Manar (D-Bunker Hill), who sponsored the legislation and is seeking re-election, says it’s possible to get enough votes to override the veto when the General Assembly convenes shortly after midterm elections in November.
“I would anticipate, just from my own experience, that the outlook on controversial bills — though I don’t know why this one is controversial — is much different during veto session than it is during spring legislative session,” Manar says. […]
Under current law, districts can pay teachers as little as $10,000 per year. No district does that; starting salaries for teachers in Illinois’ lowest-paying districts are around $26,000 per year. But in hundreds of districts, beginning teachers still earn less than $40,000 — even if they hold master’s degrees.
Sen. Andy Manar of Bunker Hill, Rep. Sue Scherer of Decatur and Rep. Christian Mitchell of Chicago all said setting a higher minimum wage for teachers in Illinois will help alleviate the teacher shortage.
They got agreement from Connie Charlesworth, who has a master’s degree and retired from teaching after 30 years, earning $45,000 a year.
“Our college students are not stupid. They know how to do the math,” she said at Wednesday’s news conference outside the Illinois Education Association building near the Capitol. “They’re taking a look at how much their education is costing them. They’re also taking a look at their starting salary as teachers. They are deciding in great numbers not to go into the profession.”
Rauner vetoed Senate Bill 2892, which would have gradually increased the minimum wage for teachers to $40,000 in the 2022-23 school year. The current minimum wage is $9,000 a year set in 1980. In his veto message, Rauner called the bill an unfunded mandate and something that would remove local control.
The National Crime Victimization Survey, released last month, estimates that people in the U.S. experienced over 320,000 incidents of rape and sexual assault in 2016. That works out to 1.2 such assaults per 1,000 people age 12 or older. […]
Only 23 percent of incidents of rape and sexual assault were reported to the police, according to the NCVS, which makes these crimes the least likely to be reported of any type of crime recorded in the survey.
* Scott Reeder offers one explanation for why these crimes are so underreported…
Regular readers of this column will remember that last December, I wrote about being assaulted when I was 12.
And it took me 40 years to talk about the attack I endured.
On a day when we were baling hay on our family farm in 1977, a man grabbed me in the barn, held me down, repeatedly kissed me and groped me. I was able to break away before worse things could happen.
For decades, it was a family secret.
Most folks who know me now think of a big man. But back then, I was slight, no match for a full-grown man. I’ve never had a more terrifying moment. Never.
At the time, I told my mother what happened. She listened quietly as we sat at the kitchen table. She told me to take a shower and then instructed me never to speak of it again.
For years, I blamed myself for what happened.
* The Cook County State’s Attorney offers more…
Because I was ashamed, blamed myself for the violation, and feared I wouldn’t be believed. —KF #WhyIDidntReport
* Background is here. The Illinois News Network interviewed Rep. Kelly Cassidy about Speaker Madigan’s recent Tribune op-ed…
A Democratic state lawmaker who filed a complaint against Illinois House Speaker Michael Madigan alleging intimidation and harassment said she hopes lessons have been learned, but she’s still not sure. […]
Earlier this year, state Rep. Kelly Cassidy, D-Chicago, alleged Madigan and several of his key allies, one of which was let go following a separate complaint, were harassing her about her former employer’s position on a bill.
Asked for her reaction to Madigan’s op-ed, Cassidy said “it was well written.” […]
Former state Sen. Karen McConnaughay, R-St. Charles, used to serve on the commission and said the body needs someone on board who’s not in the club. McConnaughay said legislative leaders can tap private citizens to serve on the commission, but haven’t.
“I think that having members of the public on the commission is one of those changes that we need to continue to look at,” McConnaughay said.
Cassidy agreed it’s a good idea.
“It seems pretty clear that we aren’t doing best practices in regards to this commission,” Cassidy said. […]
As to if things have changed under the dome, Cassidy said that remains to be seen.
“When we start to see reports out of the LIG on newer cases, maybe we will,” Cassidy said. “I hope so. I hope lessons have been learned. I don’t know yet.”
* Ms. Thome has been speaking at public events about the poisoning of her and other communities. Here’s ABC 7…
Andrea Thome sat down with ABC7’s Mark Rivera at her home just a few miles away from Sterigenics to have a frank conversation about the company she said has been slowly poisoning the community for decades and the personal costs to her family.
Thome’s passionate voice is on the front lines of a fight for clean air in her community.
“I have not been able to sleep since I heard this information in August about this company really slowly poisoning our community for the last 30 or so years without our knowledge,” she said. […]
“My mom passed away in October of 2014. She never smoked she never drank,” Thome said. “Little did she know there was a factory a mile away poisoning her. None of us knew.”
After her mother died, her father took up more outside exercise to cope.
“This Christmas he was diagnosed with a huge brain tumor that, thank God for the doctors at Rush Hospital, Dr. Burn cut out a giant tumor on Christmas Eve and saved my dad’s life,” she said.
Ms. Thome is a former TV reporter, so she knows that medium well.
“My mom liked to have her window open, half mile from Sterigenics. Coincidence? I’m not so sure,” she said. “my dad everyday worries about this tumor coming back. That’s no way to live. That’s waiting to die.” […]
“This is my new work now, to get Sterigenics out of our neighborhood,” Thome said.
It’s almost midnight, and sleep won’t come. My mind is racing. You see, our community is in crisis.
A real crisis.
We’ve been being poisoned by a company called Sterigenics, and it’s been happening without our knowledge since the mid-1980’s. Our cancer rates are disturbingly higher than the national average, but only in a several-mile radius surrounding this plant. Maybe it was more appropriate for them to be granted a permit in 1986, but we all know that this area’s population has boomed since then, and that our highly residential area is no place for them to continue to operate in present day. They burn and emit twenty-four-hours a day, seven days a week.
They’ve got to go before they kill any more of us.
No, I’m not being dramatic. They use a highly-toxic chemical called Ethylene Oxide to sterilize plastic medical equipment, burning off the residual toxic poison directly into the air from their twin smokestacks.
They are located yards away from the shopping center that houses our Target, Dunkin Donuts, Chipotle and the brand-new Marshalls everyone is so excited about.
* Related…
* Editorial: The urgent Sterigenics question in DuPage: How much cancer risk?: The Sterigenics plant isn’t isolated in some vast industrial tract. It’s next to homes, parks and schools — places where children learn, play and live, communities that people have been rooted in for years. Kelleher, of Darien, told Hawthorne, “To think the very place my wife loved, the place where we raised our children, might have killed her is devastating.”
* Residents discuss legal options after claims of cancer-causing emissions from suburban plant: One woman says she’s lived in the area for 40 years and has experienced respiratory problems amongst other ailments. “I’ve had blood in the urine and I’ve had things that I commonly don’t have. Just living in the area we loved it so much and I told my husband like a nightmare I actually was thinking of leaving,” says Kathy Scumaci.
* Last night, Speaker Madigan’s personal campaign fund reported an $835,200 contribution from the Washington, DC-based International Union of Operating Engineers.
Since September 10th, Madigan has reported raising over $4.5 million for that one fund. Madigan busted the contribution caps on his campaign fund back in mid-August.
Madigan hosted a Chicago fundraiser two nights ago, so more is coming.
The Illinois Campaign for Political Reform was founded two decades ago by the late Democratic U.S. Sen. Paul Simon and former Republican Lt. Gov. Bob Kustra to address what it calls the “corrosive role of money in politics.”
“Today we are recommitting to our original mission, and are spreading our wings to expand our reach across more communities, tackle new (and oftentimes) thorny issues and collaborate with a diverse group of partners. And we will continue to be ever-vigilant about these three words: Transparency, Accountability & Integrity,” the advocacy group told supporters in an email.
But they’ll be doing it under a new banner: Reform for Illinois. The group said it will remain nonpartisan and not take sides in elections. […]
The Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee reported another round of ad buys to back Sean Casten’s bid against Republican U.S. Rep. Peter Roskam. The latest filing brings the DCCC’s spending in the west and northwest suburban race to more than $1.1 million total. This batch includes nearly $10,000 for Facebook ads and more than $12,000 with Hulu.
* Related…
* Bill Daley gives $500,000 to his Chicago mayoral campaign: When Daley ran for governor five years ago, he quickly raised $1 million before abandoning that Democratic primary bid. This time, the former U.S. commerce secretary and White House chief of staff became the first candidate to formally enter the race after Emanuel’s departure.
Congressional Leadership Fund (@CLFSuperPAC), the super PAC endorsed by House Republican leadership, today released a new ad, “Madigan-Machine Politician,” in Illinois’ 6th Congressional District. The ad describes Sean Casten as a Madigan-machine politician who is ready to raise taxes on Illinois families. The ad will run on television in the Chicago media market and on digital platforms throughout the district.
“As a CEO, Sean Casten lined his own pockets with corporate welfare, now he’s a Madigan-machine politician who is ready to raise taxes on Illinois families,” said Michael Byerly, CLF spokesman. “Casten says he’s open to a $32 trillion government takeover of health care that would rob from Medicare and almost double the debt. Shady Sean Casten is wrong for Illinois families.”
In addition to the ad campaign, CLF previously opened a field office in Illinois’ 6th Congressional District. Each CLF field office is supported by a full-time staffer and hundreds of interns and volunteers who engage with voters on a daily basis through hyper-targeted phone banking and door-to-door canvassing.
Democrat J.B. Pritzker is open to building the long-planned, controversial “third” Chicagoland airport on state-owned land between Peotone and Beecher. Republican Gov. Bruce Rauner is not.
That’s what I learned Thursday while watching the first of three debates among the four candidates for Illinois governor. The hourlong program aired Thursday on Chicago’s NBC-5.
Moderator Carol Marin asked: “The state of Illinois has spent $97 million buying thousands of acres of land around what would be the south suburban airport… A lot of potential jobs are at stake, it’s been studied endlessly … As governor would you be for or against that project, really just a yes or no.”
As traffic rumbled along Interstate 80 in the background, Gov. Bruce Rauner joined local officials to ceremoniously break ground on a $47 million interchange improvement project at U.S. 30 Wednesday morning in New Lenox. […]
When asked where the South Suburban Airport and the shelved Illiana Toll Road fit into his plans, he said the state has to have the right financing structure and the economic growth to support it.
If the economy “keeps booming,” “we won’t be debating a third airport. We will be saying we have to have a third airport,” Rauner said.
Right today, we are evaluating a third airport in Peotone. We want to make sure we’ve got the right financing structure available and we’ve got to make sure that we’ve got the economic growth to support that so it’s highly successful. That’s a great opportunity for public-private partnership. We’ve got great airports at Midway and O’Hare and out in Rockford. But, this region, if we keep the economy strong and growing, we keep the economy booming, just the way the federal government has cut taxes and cut regulations on businesses and cut, uh, cut new trade deals to battle against unfair trade agreements with nations around the world, we keep on that track and we can continue to cut taxes and regulations here, we’ll get a booming economy and we won’t be debating a third airport, we’ll say we have to have a third airport because the construction opportunity is so big, the economic opportunity is so strong. We’re going to get there. And I’m committed to making sure we expand our transportation.
Today, JB Pritzker and Juliana Stratton unveiled their higher education plan at Illinois State University in Normal.
Bruce Rauner’s budget crisis took a toll on public colleges and universities — 7,500 higher ed-related jobs were lost, tuition spiked by an average of 7 percent, and enrollment plunged by over 72,000 students. The failed governor also proposed steep cuts to higher education, and it’s clear that real leadership is necessary to chart a new path for Illinois students. Here are highlights from JB and Juliana’s plan:
Increasing College Affordability
Increase funding for the Monetary Award Program (MAP) by 50 percent and raise the maximum MAP award each student can receive.
Using best practices from other states, establish a new state-administered student loan refinancing program.
Restore funding for community colleges and public universities to pre-Rauner levels.
Create a task force to put Illinois on a path to free college education.
Keeping Illinois Students in State
Expand eligibility for the new AIM-HIGH merit-based financial aid program so that 90 percent of Illinois households can benefit.
Create a common application process for all public universities in Illinois.
Ensure that community college credits transfer to public universities here in Illinois.
Increase promotion of Illinois’ public universities and community colleges to Illinois high school students.
Expanding Economic Opportunity and Promoting Innovation
Expand career and technical education and apprenticeship programs.
Create a new college completion program that bolsters student support services and expands bridge programs.
Launch new statewide competitions among students that reward and encourage entrepreneurship and innovation.
Provide small state-funded matching grants to university-based start-ups.
Support non-traditional students pursuing a degree or work certification.
* I’m told they’re not planning to implement all these programs in the first year, so while I don’t know how much I should include in my revenue-need “guesstimate” (which is currently at $9 billion), I’ll just guesstimate it at $150 million. That puts him at $9.15 billion, without a pension plan.
I’m also told that Pritzker wants to use marijuana and sports betting money to pay for it, but that’s probably not gonna be enough and he’s already promised that money for other stuff.
The campaign wouldn’t release a price list, but increasing MAP funding by 50 percent will cost $200 million. Increasing the size of MAP awards is unknown.
Restoring funding to pre-Rauner levels would cost $100 million.
Expanding eligibility of AIM-HIGH so that 90 percent of households qualify could be costly. Currently, the $25 million pilot program is reserved for those who do not have a family income higher than six times the national poverty rate.
Of local right-to-work zones, Rauner said he’d like to have “a few areas where’s it labor flexible,” such as some impoverished Chicago neighborhoods or suburbs as well as Downstate. He said African-American lawmakers should back such a move.
“Why does one size have to fit all? Pick 10 counties, and pick them in remote parts of the state, frankly. You watch and five years from now which counties have more jobs, which counties are running surpluses, which counties can fund their schools properly?” Rauner said.
“How about if we pick Harvey, Dolton, Blue Island? Let them do it. I will bring two manufacturing plants right there. You watch the jobs go up and the wages go up. How about it?” he said.
“We should be where all the auto plants are coming,” Rauner said, “but you can’t get a new auto plant to come to a forced-union state.” […]
The governor plugged “right-to-work zones,” an idea he’s been championing since at least 2015, as one way to lure new manufacturers. Having failed to get the state’s General Assembly to take up the idea, Rauner said he hopes the U.S. Supreme Court will rule on a pending case over whether states can bar towns from establishing themselves as union-optional zones.
In what may be a first for unions nationwide, the Illinois State AFL-CIO has drafted – and is getting state legislative candidates to sign – a “Contract with the Middle Class,” pledging support for specific workers’ rights issues.
One recent signing was in Collinsville, Ill., east of St. Louis, the day after Labor Day. Similar ceremonies occurred in Peoria and the Quad Cities, with others scheduled for Chicago and elsewhere, state federation President Michael Carrigan said.
While the AFL-CIO nationally drafted a workers’ rights agenda more than a year ago and asked congressional candidates to sign on as a condition for statewide endorsements, a check of such “contracts” on Google shows the Illinois pact is apparently the first one drafted and offered to state legislative candidates.
* A poll conducted July 3rd through August 15th of registered voters who weren’t asked all four candidates’ names has precisely zero value when discussing the September 26th campaign climate. Some of those results are almost three months old, for crying out loud. So, we’re skipping the Illinois Issues Survey’s campaign results. They never should’ve even bothered to release them.
• Term limits popular
Eight in ten (80%) of those surveyed support legislative term limits compared to just 14% who oppose them. Democratic respondents are only slightly less likely to support limits (77%) than Republicans (85%) or independents (84%).
• Many think Illinois is on the wrong track, nearly half say state is doing about the same as last year
Nearly Three-quarters (74%) of respondents think Illinois is off on the wrong track compared to 14% who say it is headed in the right direction and 11% who can’t say. But not as many respondents think things are worse now than one year ago; nearly half (47%) say that the state is doing about the same as last year while 37% say it is getting worse and 13% say the state is doing better than one year ago.
• Half say they have considered leaving, youngest most likely to say so
When asked if they have considered leaving the state in the past year, just over half (53%) of those surveyed say “yes.” Those between the ages of 18 and 34 are more likely (67%) to say so than those 35 or older (51%).
• A majority favor a graduated income tax
Overall, 57% of survey respondents say they favor a proposed graduated income tax in which those with higher incomes are taxed at a higher rate while 36% favor the current flat-rate tax system. Majorities of Democrats (69%) and independents (56%) favor graduated income tax whereas a minority of Republicans (41%) do.
• Most say immigrants help Illinois rather than hurt it
Over three times as many respondents say they believe immigrants help (63%) rather than hurt (20%) Illinois. Republicans (36%) are much less likely than Democrats (83%) or independents (62%) to say immigrants help Illinois.
• Respondents say funding higher education a priority as high cost and uncertainty of state funding drives high school grads away
Over three-quarters (76%) say that increasing state funding to public colleges and universities to keep the cost of tuition from growing is a “high priority.” Regarding high school graduates leaving the state, four in ten (40%) say the reason these individuals are doing this is because college in Illinois is too expensive while 37% say state funding to colleges is uncertain in Illinois. […]
• Respondents split on whether they trust others, the mass media Slightly fewer of those polled say they trust others (44%) than say you cannot be too careful in dealing with people (50%). The breakdown is similar regarding the media; about half (48%) of those surveyed say they trust the media either a “great deal” or a “fair amount” to report the news “fully, accurately, and fairly,” and half (50%) say they have “not very much” trust or “none at all.” Democrats (67%) are much more likely than either independents (47%) or Republicans (27%) to say they trust the mass media. […]
When asked whether things in Illinois are heading in the right direction or off on the wrong track, nearly three- quarters (74%) say things are off on the wrong track, while only 14% think things are going in the right direction. […]
The survey also asks respondents whether they think that compared to one year ago, Illinois is getting better, is about the same, or is getting worse. The survey finds that most respondents think Illinois is about the same as it was last year (47%) or getting worse (37%), while a small minority (13%) think Illinois is doing better compared to one year ago.
That 14 percent “right track” and 13 percent “Illinois is doing better” are slim pickings, indeed.
And, by the way the college is too expensive and state funding is uncertain answers are basically the same thing.
Because of the fact that the state of Illinois lost nearly 34,000 individuals from 2016 to 2017, the survey asked respondents about whether they have considered leaving the state.5 Overall, just over half (53%) of those surveyed report considering leaving in the past year and it is those who are younger who are most likely to say this. Survey respondents between the ages of 18 and 34 are more likely to say they have considered leaving (67%) than those in other age cohorts. Those who are at least 65 years old, the typical age for retirement, are the least likely to say they have considered leaving (32%).
In addition to age, other factors — such as having more income — appear to play a role in whether respondents have considered leaving Illinois. While 46% of those with household income of less than $30,000 have considered leaving, nearly two-thirds (64%) of those earning between $60,000 and $100,000 and 59% of those with income of more than $100,000 have considered leaving the state. […]
Those who say they are considering leaving were asked to provide a “primary reason” for why they have considered doing so. Many respondents (39%) mention lower taxes as the primary reason, whereas 14% cite state government or politics, 15% cite better job opportunities and 7% say the primary reason they have considered leaving is lower crime. Additionally, some say better weather elsewhere (7%) or a family or personal reason (10%) is the primary reason they’ve considered going elsewhere.
State Rep. Jerry Long, R-Streator, released an apology Tuesday to a former co-worker who said she was physically harassed, among other complaints, leading the state GOP to pull resources from his campaign and ask for his resignation.
Long said Sept. 19 he touched a former co-worker on her neck, denying any wrongdoing and vowing to stay in his race against Democratic opponent Lance Yednock, of Ottawa, for the 76th District house seat.
The House Republican Organization has said Long’s story does not match the one found in an independent investigation corroborated by a witness. The organization said it has a zero tolerance policy for harassment.
Tuesday’s apology is the first from Long regarding this incident.
“Although I feel that the non-threatening touch of my co-worker was nothing more than act of concern, and it was never conveyed to me that it was a problem, I want to say that I never want to ever put anyone in that position of being uneasy,” Long said Tuesday afternoon. “I, therefore, reach out with a sincere apology to my co-worker of the situation that I have put her into.”
I checked and he hasn’t actually apologized to the complainant, so this means almost nothing. It’s mostly just political backside-covering.
* Also, does this mean he’s saying the allegations are legitimate and that the goofy conspiracy theories he and his few remaining allies have been floating are wrong? Well, no. He’s still talking about how his support for Rep. Jeanne Ives’ primary campaign against Gov. Rauner and his fights with HRO led to his banishment…
State Rep. Jerry Long said his support of gubernatorial primary candidate Jeanne Ives led the House Republican Organization to pull its support. […]
While Long was critical of Gov. Bruce Rauner in an Oct. 14, 2017, article, I couldn’t find any record of him supporting Ives. […]
Long clarified Tuesday he was not behind the governor, and almost endorsed Ives, but didn’t do so on record. […]
Long believes his contentious relationship with the House Republican Organization played a role in either the complaint or their reaction to the complaint
Democratic congressional candidate Sean Casten has been less than fully candid about a soured business deal that apparently left dozens of investors suffering millions of dollars in losses, financial records made available to Crain’s suggest.
Letters to shareholders sent by the Casten-headed Recycled Energy Development in late 2016 indicate that while preferred interest holders in the LLC would get their principal back with 15 percent annual interest when the sale of the company closed, common interest holders would get little if any return on their investment.
In fact, the roughly three dozen common interest holders in the company lost their entire stake, according to individuals close to the privately held firm. That differs from what Casten strongly implied in an earlier blog post and statement in response to inquiries about the company.
* Roskam campaign…
While “successful entrepreneur” Sean Casten has denied his investors’ lawsuit against him citing business mismanagement and breach of fiduciary duty, Crain’s Political Reporter Greg Hinz dug deeper to find that shareholders of his failed company, Recycled Energy Development, reported the meltdown cost them millions of dollars—but while they lost it all, Casten still made millions.
Crain’s obtained financial documents and letters that show Casten wasn’t being truthful when he said the lawsuits against him were nothing more than “an attempt at a hostile takeover,” “it ended amicably,” and his investors “still made money.” […]
“Casten has been sued for mismanagement, misconduct and a breach of fiduciary duty, which he has tried to cover up repeatedly as an amicable disagreement,” said Roskam for Congress Spokesman Veronica Vera. “Amidst his energy business meltdown, Casten chose to protect himself and his money over his investors.”
Illinois PIRG Education Fund today released first-of-its-kind analysis of new data obtained from the Illinois Department of Public Health finding that 78% of suburban Cook County schools tested positive for lead in at least one water fixture. The data, acquired through a Freedom of Information Act Request, includes testing results from schools across the state that tested school water fixtures using a 2 parts per billion (ppb) standard.
Illinois PIRG Education Fund also offered a new toolkit to help parents, teachers, and administrators get the lead out of schools’ drinking water and encouraged parents and teachers to put the toolkit on their “back to school” reading list.
“Our kids deserve safe drinking water at school,” said Abe Scarr, Director of Illinois PIRG Education Fund. “We want to give parents, teachers, and school administrators the tools they need to get the lead out.”
The data, yet to be aggregated by IDPH, came in the form of hundreds of documents, using different file types and formats for presenting data. In order to complete initial analysis in a timely manner, Illinois PIRG Education Fund focused on test results for suburban Cook County Schools. Of the 155 suburban Cook County schools identified in the data set, 121, or 78%, tested above the 2 ppb threshold for at least one water fixture.
There is no safe level of lead. Lead in drinking water can result in a number of health risks such as harm to brain development and the nervous system. Exposure to lead can inhibit growth and development, damage the nervous and brain system, and can result in hearing, speech, learning, and behavioral problems.
Medical researchers estimate that more than 24 million children in America today risk losing IQ points due to low levels of lead. ADHD, anxiety and depression are also linked to exposure of even very low levels of lead.
Some schools had lead results of 50 ppb or higher. For example River Grove SD 85-5 had fixtures testing as high as 610 ppb. Stuart R Paddock School in Palatine had fixtures testing as high as 128 ppb. Thomas Jefferson Elementary School in Hoffman Estates had fixtures testing as high as 578 ppb.
Many schools also had a significant number of their fixtures test positive for lead. For example, 59 of the 155 schools had 25% or more of their fixtures test above the 2 ppb threshold.
A state law passed in January of 2017 requires testing for lead in Illinois schools built prior to 1987 within the 2017 year. Schools built between 1987 and 2000 are required to have tested by the end of 2018. IDPH requires schools take remediation action for fixtures testing positive for lead.
ARE THE DEMOCRATS’ BIG LEADS IN IL-GOV AND MI-GOV PUTTING MORE HOUSE SEATS IN PLAY?
Speaking of leading gubernatorial candidates pulling the rest of their ticket, don’t lose sight of how Democrats running ahead in the GOV contests in Illinois and Michigan are making House races in those states much more difficult for Republicans. In Illinois, think IL-6, IL-12, IL-13 and IL-14. … Just something to keep an eye on…
That would be Peter Roskam, Mike Bost, Rodney Davis and Randy Hultgren.
If that Hultgren race tightens up, watch out, GOP.
* Speaking of the Bost campaign…
End Citizens United (ECU) today launched two new TV ads in IL-12. “Crisis” shines a light on campaign contributions Rep. Mike Bost has taken from drug companies that are profiting from the opioid crisis and the tax break he gave big pharma in Congress. While “Leadership” focuses on Brendan Kelly’s record as a State Attorney in Illinois where he fought corruption and was the first attorney in the state to sue Big Pharma for its role in opioid epidemic.
The ads, titled “Crisis” and “Leadership,” are part of a $594,000 ad campaign that includes television ads, digital ads, and direct mail. […]
The $594,000 ad buy includes: $306,000 in broadcast and cable television ads, which will run from September 26-October 8; $60,000 in digital ads; and $228,000 in direct mail.
* Gov. Rauner was asked about Minnesota during his Crain’s Chicago Business interview. The state has a progressive tax structure with a high top rate and plenty of state regulations, but it’s attracting businesses at a fast clip and has a 2.9 percent unemployment rate…
“So, Minnesota,” Rauner said, “I’m sorry, they’re not doing all that well and they are not dependent, they are not dependent upon manufacturing anywhere near to the degree that we are. Manufacturing is our lifeblood in so many ways, and we are getting crushed. Minnesota is never dependent upon manufacturing like we have.”
According to the National Association of Manufacturers, manufacturing in Minnesota accounted for 14.4 percent of its gross state product and nearly 11 percent of its nonfarm employment, based on 2016 statistics.
By comparison, manufacturing in Illinois accounted for 12.7 percent of its gross state product and 9.5 percent of the state’s nonfarm employment.
Maplewood, Minn., a suburb of Minneapolis-St. Paul, is also the headquarters of 3M Co. The firm’s name came from its founding more than a century ago as Minnesota Mining and Manufacturing Co.
Oops.
* Also, this…
RAUNER: "Minnesota, I'm sorry, they're not doing all that well"
* From the Illinois Anti-Harassment, Equality and Access panel’s report…
The key to improving the culture for women in politics is to engage more women in politics and advance them to leadership positions. Even though Illinois’ percentage of female legislators at 35.6% ranks comparatively well among other states, women, particularly women of color, are still underrepresented throughout the ranks of Illinois politics, including on legislative staffs, on the local level, and in party leadership. For example, of the female legislators in Illinois in 2017, only 23% were Black women, or 8.5% of Illinois’ total number of state legislators.
The initial step toward growing the number of women involved in all of Illinois politics is committing to a concrete goal so that we can develop policies to achieve the goal, measure our progress, and hold ourselves and our parties accountable. We recommend that political leaders across Illinois come together and adopt a collective goal of increasing the number of female state legislators as well as all state, county, and municipal officeholders in Illinois to at least 50%, and towards similar goals for other diverse candidates.
To achieve this goal, we need buy-in from all the state political parties, and we need to build the pipeline of qualified female candidates by effectively recruiting them, training them, and supporting them when they run, as described with more specificity below.
On the staff level, women accounted for only 22% of staff-level research and policy positions in the General Assembly.7 On the local level, only 21% of the mayors in 2017 of U.S. cities with populations of 30,000 and above were women and only 14 of those 286 female mayors were in Illinois.8 It is well-documented that the culture and outcomes for women are improved when more women are in leadership positions. It is crucial that our male allies be equally invested in the overall mission of improving culture for women and play an active role in recruiting, developing, and supporting women to run for election.
We know women are qualified to fill elected positions and that they want the opportunity to run, but in practice, women are less likely to run for political office than their male counterparts. The reasons for this are complex and ingrained in society and women themselves. Regardless of the source of the problem, many women need to be expressly recruited and encouraged to run in order to actually enter the race. The state parties need to respond to that reality and organize targeted recruitment efforts to overcome the real and perceived obstacles that prevent women from running. Specifically, the state parties should dedicate top-level staff to working on recruitment of women and other diverse candidates, including people of color, members of the LGBTQ community, and people with disabilities.
The state parties can address the lack of support for women candidates by being cognizant of the bias women face and acting intentionally to counter it. To do so, the parties must assign a manager-level staff person to act as a Director of Diversity, who is responsible for working with the party chair and leadership throughout the ranks of the party with the goal of recruiting and developing diverse candidates, with a focus on female candidates, for General Assembly spots as well as local level elected positions. These recruitment efforts should not stop at the candidate level. The Director of Diversity should also work on recruiting diverse candidates, particularly women, for top-level staff, campaign management, and board and commission positions.
We want to increase the number of diverse people – particularly women – at every level of politics. Therefore, any political leader or staff member with the power to fill vacancies – from a position on the board of the public library or a city council vacancy to statewide commission positions to appointed positions within the state parties and everything in between – should require that the person be selected from a slate of diverse candidates. This rule should also apply to any hiring decisions for paid staff positions on campaigns and elected official’s staffs. Although similar to the “Rooney Rule” adopted by the NFL requiring a single diverse candidate to be considered for all head coaching jobs, our recommendation goes beyond that to require several diverse candidates to be considered for all hiring or appointment opportunities. This is a concrete measure for overcoming the age-old excuse of a lack of qualified female or diverse applicants. Beyond requiring a diverse pool of candidates, political leaders should also require that those handling the interview process and hiring/appointment decision are also diverse.
Each political party should establish an Advisory Board to implement the policies described above and hold the party accountable to the participation, funding, and culture goals it aspires to.
The Advisory Board should collect, retain, and monitor demographic data regarding recruitment, hiring, and promotion of employees within the party. Based on that data, the Advisory Board can assess the party’s progress towards its goals, hold the party accountable, and adjust its policies based on the actual outcomes in terms of the number of diverse candidates running for office, winning office, and holding leadership positions within political offices and campaigns.
There’s more in the report, so click here to read it all.
…Adding… House Speaker and DPI Chairman Michael Madigan…
“Addressing harassment, increasing access and ensuring equality of all forms are issues of great importance to the Democratic Party of Illinois, and the time and commitment that Comptroller Mendoza, Senator Bush and Representative Ammons showed in assembling these recommendations underscores the priority we put on getting this right. I’m truly grateful for all who shared their time, their personal experiences, and their commitment for change with the Anti-Harassment, Equality, and Access Panel.
“A great number of the Panel’s recommendations are now in place within the Democratic Party of Illinois, including adopting a new zero tolerance policy for harassment of any kind, requiring mandatory training for staff and candidates receiving financial assistance, and hiring outside counsel to conduct independent investigations of any allegations. Additional steps to curb unacceptable behavior and make our party a welcoming place for all will continue to be considered and implemented going forward.
“There is more work to be done to create legislative bodies that truly represent the diversity of our state. This has been a priority for me as a Democrat and as the leader of the House Democratic Caucus. Today, women account for more than 50 percent of our House Democratic Caucus and nearly half are women of color. But unfortunately this is a distinction no other large legislative caucus in the country can claim. In fact, no other legislative caucus in Illinois – outside the House Democratic caucus – is even 40 percent female.
“Diversity, equality and representation don’t happen by accident. It requires commitment, effort and time to make sure our governmental bodies – and our political parties – reflect the rich diversity of Illinois, and the different experiences, viewpoints and perspectives from those diverse voices. There remains work to be done, and I look forward to continuing to work with my fellow Democrats to make our party a welcoming place for all.”
* The Illinois Anti-Harassment, Equality and Access panel’s report on the “one ask” policy…
Crafting feasible and effective policies regarding consensual romantic relationships on campaigns is challenging. Consensual relationships between peers are not inherently problematic. In fact, many campaign workers are drawn to campaign work in the first place because of the close camaraderie and fellowship among co-workers. However, romantic relationships that are coerced or lack consent are always illegal, and problems can also develop when relationships involve a disparity in power positions, which is a typical feature of campaigns.
Over-regulation of this issue may discourage the friendship and camaraderie that is a hallmark of a well-run campaign and may be impossible to enforce, but ignoring the potential problem can breed poor workplace culture and may be an obstacle to women advancing in politics.
The comprehensive policies from the state parties should establish a rule or policy that is a one-invitation policy: campaign workers and volunteers are allowed to ask co-workers out one time, but if the invitation is declined, the inviter is not permitted to ask again; and strongly discourages dating relationships between superiors and direct reports. We stop at recommending an outright ban because of the fluid organizational structure that is prevalent in campaigns.
Facebook has adopted a one-invitation policy, and has clarified that if the response is “ambiguous” – like “I’m busy” or “I can’t that night” – that counts as a “no.”5 One ask policies are becoming more prevalent in corporate workplaces and are a reasonable balance between appropriate behavior and preventing harassment.
We recommend that campaigns consider the risks that alcohol consumption can present and adopt a policy acknowledging that alcohol use is not banned at work-related events or among co-workers, but prohibiting consumption to the extent it interferes with a campaign worker’s ability to perform his or her job or exercise proper judgment.
For example, Google’s Code of Conduct states “Consumption of alcohol is not banned at our offices, but use good judgment and never drink in a way that leads to impaired performance or inappropriate behavior, endangers the safety of others, or violates the law,” and it permits managers that have a “reasonable suspicion” that an employee’s alcohol use may be impairing his job performance or endangering others to request an alcohol screening.
Regardless of the exact policy language, alcohol use should never be used to justify harassing and inappropriate behavior or used to discredit a victim.
* From the Illinois Anti-Harassment, Equality and Access panel’s report…
State parties should not use themselves and should prohibit campaigns from using, non-disclosure agreements or mandatory arbitration clauses in any employment agreements. A key way to improve the workplace culture in politics and campaigns is to attack the culture of silence that keeps sexual harassment and other misconduct shrouded in secrecy, so state parties should not use non-disclosure agreements or mandatory arbitration clauses in employment agreements and should prohibit campaigns from using them as well
The recommendations came from a National Women’s Law Center report entitled “10 Ways Your Company Can Help Prevent Harassment in the Workplace.”
This could get interesting. I think I’m going to ask the statewide campaigns and parties whether they use NDAs and why.
…Adding… From a panel spokesperson…
The report isn’t calling for campaigns to not sign NDAs at all, but just when it comes to settling sexual harassment issues.
Well, that’s different. I’ll adjust my question accordingly.
Provides that each candidate for Governor, Lieutenant Governor, Secretary of State, Comptroller, Treasurer, or Attorney General shall, at the time he or she files a statement of candidacy for that position, file a Statement of Nondisclosure Agreements. Provides that the Statement of Nondisclosure Agreements shall disclose whether or not the candidate is a party to, a signatory to, or a beneficiary of any nondisclosure agreement at the time of the filing.
* From the Illinois Anti-Harassment, Equality and Access panel’s report…
We recommend that the state parties provide anti-harassment training and workplace culture training to everyone involved in the campaign, from the candidate to the volunteers; that all campaigns and candidates prioritize this training; and that the training should cover strategies for handling difficult and realistic hypotheticals as well as bystander training.
The state parties should offer these trainings on at least a quarterly basis, and should provide enhanced training for candidates and supervisors, emphasizing their reporting roles. Again, the state parties should enforce participation in training by conditioning funding on complying with the training requirement. As it becomes more commonplace for candidates and their campaigns to commit to participating in training, voters will start putting pressure on other candidates and their campaigns to do so as well. No one in a campaign apparatus should be exempt from attending the training at least once per year.
“Workers on my campaign were required to complete two sexual harassment trainings. The first was completed online and a co-worker joked about doing other tasks at home while the training was running on his computer. I found the second training, which was in person, to be more effective.”
-Paraphrased Comment From Campaign Listening Session Participant
One of the most resounding pieces of feedback from Listening Session participants and online survey respondents was the need for an improved reporting structure because misconduct often goes unreported because victims are terrified to report out of fear of retaliation. Other reasons that misconduct may not be reported include sense of loyalty to the cause/ campaign, unsure of whether the conduct is legally permissible or whether the law protects the victim, unsure of who to report to, unable to report to a neutral party, belief that conduct has already been condoned by superiors, skeptical that anything will be done, and concern about ruining victim’s own career or the career of the perpetrator.
We recommend that campaigns provide workers with multiple discrete avenues for reporting suspected policy violations. The avenues should be internal to the campaign in order to create the opportunity to report without damaging the campaign. There should be at least two internal options for reporting concerns, as some staff may not be comfortable reporting to the campaign manager or other assigned person because he or she might be close to the perpetrator.
Campaigns must post the contact information for reporting violations of the anti-harassment policy in a noticeable, accessible location at the campaign headquarters and ideally on their website. The posting should make it clear that retaliation of any kind will not be permitted.
State parties should establish an Independent Body, which is independent of party leadership, to receive complaints of misconduct, whether from their own staff or from campaigns, and to promptly investigate and resolve all complaints.
Listening Session participants described a profound lack of trust and skepticism in the investigation process and whether campaigns would do anything to address reported misconduct. To gain trust and facilitate appropriate responses to founded misconduct, we call on the state parties to establish an Independent Body to act as a reporting avenue for campaign workers and to properly investigate any reported misconduct. The Independent Body should be made of experienced leaders who are not part of party leadership and should be appointed in a way to ensure independence from the party and leadership.3 In addition to receiving complaints, the Independent Body must neutrally and fairly investigate any allegation of misconduct, regardless of the severity. The Independent Body should establish and use clear guidelines that outline the investigation process, including timelines for completing an investigation, and interim milestones.
Listening Session participants reported concerns about being smeared or discredited in the investigation process. The Independent Body should conduct investigations that are fair and thorough, and the investigations should be focused on determining the veracity of the complaint, not attempting to undermine or discredit the victim. When the allegations require interim protective measures (i.e. reorganizing duties and responsibilities to keep the victim and perpetrator apart), steps should be taken to ensure that the victim is not adversely affected.
After an investigation is completed, the state party’s Independent Body should be as transparent as possible with the complainant and the accused of the outcome of the investigation, recognizing the potential tension with defamation liability. The Independent Body should inform the individuals that a thorough investigation was completed; whether a violation of the policy was found; and if a violation was found, the remedial action that will be taken in response to the violation. […]
Where possible, all campaigns and state parties should respond to founded violations with just and fair outcomes. Sometimes a campaign or state party may not have a remedial mechanism because the offender may be a volunteer or the campaign may be over by the time the investigation is done, but where possible, offenders must be disciplined with remedial measures that are proportional to the seriousness of the offense, with repeated offenses receiving increasing discipline. These measures must be applied consistently and must be undertaken against any offender, regardless of his or her identity. Considering these parameters, the Independent Body should prepare a matrix of possible outcomes that should be used to respond to prohibited conduct, which lays out proportional responses and escalating disciplinary measures for repeated offenses. As with any interim protective measures, steps should be taken to ensure that the complainant, or any bystander reporting a violation, is not punished or retaliated against for coming forward and speaking up.
Campaigns and state parties should also provide support services for the victims of sexual harassment. As an initial step, we recommend that the Independent Body work with existing advocates like the Illinois Coalition Against Sexual Assault (ICASA) to identify and make available appropriate services.
* The Illinois Anti-Harassment, Equality and Access panel’s full report includes this line: “Campaigns have unique characteristics that can be obstacles to changing culture.”
First, campaigns rely heavily on volunteers, consultants, and independent contractors, who are not protected by federal and state employment discrimination laws, and many of the smaller campaigns do not qualify as employers under the law. The laboring force of volunteers and independent consultants often lacks power in other ways as well, due to their positions within campaigns, and sometimes age and inexperience.
The current campaign structure gives the candidate, campaign management, and key donors disproportionate power. The party culture of idolizing the favored candidates or those within the inner circle can lead to a belief that those in power have a license to prey on the more vulnerable people in the campaign. To complicate things further, individuals with significant power or authority can be volunteers or not employed by the campaign. And sometimes, campaign workers do not know who their boss is, making reporting misconduct even more difficult.
Second, campaigns are transient or temporary with limited resources. The financial reality of politics is that most campaigns prioritize their time and money on persuasion, not hiring full-time campaign employees or creating the infrastructure required for a positive workplace culture, including formal anti-harassment policies, training, reporting mechanisms, or investigation procedures. The time and money factors might also encourage taking the path of least resistance when addressing complaints about workplace culture, which may have the effect of penalizing the victim or perpetuating the problem by not fully resolving complaints and allowing other organizations to rehire the accused.
Third, campaign workers work rigorous hours pursuing a cause they believe is worthy and important. As one participant from the Chicago Listening Session put it, the intensity of a campaign makes people forget about the larger issues. Campaign workers and volunteers dedicate hours of personal time and energy to the cause. This creates a sense of loyalty to the candidate and a desire to protect him or her from any negative press. The investment and all-consuming nature of a campaign can make people singularly focus on the ultimate goal of winning the election, at the expense of other principles.
Finally, campaigns have unique geographical and environmental factors that can lead to risk. Campaign work can sometimes be isolating, giving workers little contact with co-workers or with anyone other than a direct supervisor. Communication may be performed at odd hours, on personal devices, blurring the lines between private and work communications. The social nature of campaign work may lead to an environment of tolerating or encouraging alcohol consumption.
Again, we’ll get to more of the recommendations in other posts. Your thoughts on this one?
* The Illinois Anti-Harassment, Equality and Access panel released its full report today. You can read some newspaper coverage here and here.
Press release excerpt…
The Illinois Anti-Harassment, Equality and Access (AHEA) Panel today released its report that outlines recommendations for political party leaders and campaigns to adopt in order to change the culture and behaviors that have allowed sexual harassment to pervade our political system and stunt the advancement of women for decades.
A non-partisan organization led by State Comptroller Susana A. Mendoza, State Sen. Melinda Bush (31s t District, Grayslake) and State Rep. Carol Ammons (103r d District, Champaign), the Panel sent its report to Democratic, Green, Libertarian, and Republican party leaders at the state and county level as well as all statewide and state-level campaigns registered with the State Board of Elections. The Panel is asking them to adopt the tenets of the report and offering to meet with leaders to provide feedback, guidance and input on its recommendations as well as next steps. The panel has asked county chairs to share the report with other county and municipal campaigns and party leaders.
* The full report is pretty big, so we’re going to look at it in chunks today. Let’s start with some excerpts from the panel’s model anti-harassment policy for campaigns…
We, [Name of Campaign], are committed to creating a respectful and safe working environment for every individual that works on this campaign, including campaign staff, independent contractors, volunteers, vendors, consultants, fundraisers, interns, and candidates (“Campaign Workers”). [Name of Campaign] does not tolerate harassment, bullying, or discrimination of any kind, in the workplace or in work-related situations. To achieve an environment that is free of harassment, bullying, and discrimination, it is essential that Campaign Workers feel comfortable raising complaints about harassment or other misconduct when they see or experience it. Therefore, [Name of Campaign] strictly prohibits any form of retaliation against a Campaign Worker who reports or assists in reporting a concern regarding a violation of this Policy.
I. Who is Covered
This Policy applies to all individuals that work on this campaign, including but not limited to candidates, campaign staff, independent contractors, volunteers, vendors, consultants, and fundraisers. […]
Managers, supervisors, and any other individuals with supervisory authority must report suspected violations of this Policy when they become aware of such a violation. […]
III. Prohibition Against Harassment
This Policy prohibits harassment. For the purposes of this Policy, harassment is conduct that creates a disrespectful, intimidating, hostile, degrading, humiliating, or offensive environment for a Campaign Worker based on that Campaign Worker’s protected status. […]
While not an exhaustive list, harassment can include the following types of conduct:
● Derogatory or insensitive jokes, comments, or pranks;
● Sharing the derogatory or insensitive jokes, comments, or pranks from others;
● Use of slurs or epithets;
● Inappropriate familiarity, invasive questions about personal lives or relationships;
● Unwelcome sexual or romantic advances or invitations (including asking a Campaign Worker out more than once if the Campaign Worker declines the first invitation);
● Displaying or sharing images such as posters, videos, photos, cartoons, screensavers, emails, or drawings that are derogatory or sexual;
● Comments about appearance, or other personal or physical characteristics, such as sexually charged comments or comments on someone’s physical disability;
● Comments about the appearance, or other personal or physical characteristics, even if it is about other people; or
● Unwanted bodily contact such as groping or massaging, blocking normal movement, unnecessary touching, or physically interfering with the work of another individual.
IV. Prohibition Against Bullying
This Policy prohibits bullying. Bullying is repeated behavior that a reasonable Campaign Worker would find disrespectful, intimidating, hostile, degrading, humiliating, or offensive, regardless of whether the conduct is based on a Campaign Worker’s protected status.
While this is not an exhaustive list, bullying behavior can appear as the following:
● Excessive monitoring or micromanaging of a Campaign Worker;
● Deliberately excluding a Campaign Worker or isolating him or her from work-related activities that he or she would normally be included in;
● Singling out a Campaign Worker for unfavorable work assignments or demands;
● Regularly teasing or making a Campaign Worker the brunt of pranks or practical jokes;
● Publicly reprimanding, embarrassing, or shouting at a Campaign Worker; […]
VI. Role of Bystanders
Bystanders should speak up if they see or hear something that they believe violates the Policy, or something that they think is inappropriate, including suspected instances of retaliation. Bystanders are encouraged to intervene on the spot when they see inappropriate behavior unless doing so would risk the bystander’s physical safety. If bystanders do not believe that they can safely intervene – for example, if the offender is threatening violence – bystanders are expected to call law enforcement. […]
VII. Prohibition Against Retaliation
[Name of the Campaign] strictly prohibits any form of retaliation against a Campaign Worker, who reports or assists in reporting a concern regarding a violation of this Policy. Retaliation against a Campaign Worker is a violation of this Policy and the retaliating individual will be subject to discipline under this Policy. […]
VIII. Procedures for Reporting a Violation of the Policy
If you suspect harassment, bullying, discrimination, or retaliation has occurred, you are encouraged (and supervisors are required) to promptly provide a written or oral complaint internally to your immediate supervisor, the Campaign Manager, or [another option internal to the campaign]. In addition or alternatively, you may also report the conduct to the Independent Body of the State Party which has been formed to fairly and neutrally investigate these claims from campaigns that are affiliated with the Party. […]
IX. Possible Outcomes from Violations
The Independent Body of the State Party is committed to investigations that have just and fair outcomes. If an investigation reveals that a violation of this Policy occurred, the offender will be disciplined, but the punishment will be proportional to the violation, with repeat offenses receiving increasing discipline. The Independent Body of the State Party will prepare and publish a matrix of the possible outcomes that will be imposed based on a range of behaviors and repeat offenses.
* The attorney general candidates met today at the Tribune…
Republican attorney general candidate Erika Harold acknowledged Tuesday that Democratic rival Kwame Raoul’s attack ads have turned the contest into a “referendum” over her views on same-sex marriage and abortion. […]
“The fact that this has become a referendum on views like that tells you why we’re not focusing on the issues where the attorney general can have some sort of discretion and some sort of impact,” said Harold, an Urbana attorney who used her winnings as the 2003 Miss America to pay her way through Harvard Law School.
“My views would absolutely not undermine my obligation, commitment to upholding the rule of law,” she said, contending that Raoul was attempting to stir “fear mongering among voters about trying to undermine their belief in my capacity and commitment to doing so.”
But Raoul, a supporter of abortion and gay rights, said laws can change, making the personal views of an attorney general “relevant.”
She said she considered those topics “settled law,” but, as Raoul noted, laws can always change and the US Supreme Court has lately made a habit of overturning some “settled laws.”
* Raoul campaign…
At a meeting of the Chicago Tribune editorial board today, Kwame Raoul, Democratic candidate for attorney general, focused on his plans to defend Ilinoisans’ rights as the state’s top lawyer. Meanwhile, Republican Erika Harold continued to dodge questions about whether she would use the discretion and the advocacy role of the attorney general to stand up for choice and equal rights, given her extreme views on those subjects.
“Now more than ever, state attorneys general stand as the last line of defense,” Raoul said. “From protecting a woman’s right to choose, to confronting health threats caused by pollution in our communities, to defending equal rights, I’m ready to step up on behalf of the people of Illinois.”
Raoul discussed his record of advocacy and his personal experiences as a prosecutor, policymaker, and father of two.
Harold engaged in misleading attacks while avoiding her own record of extreme beliefs:
* Harold wants voters to trust her to “enforce the law,” though she dodged direct questions that would reveal her positions.
FACT: Personal views absolutely matter, because the attorney general has broad discretion in which cases to pursue. Attorney General Lisa Madigan didn’t have to defend HB 40 against a legal challenge brought by State Rep. Peter Breen, an anti-choice crusader who recently held a fundraiser for Erika Harold. But she did. The people of Illinois also rely on the attorney general to serve as their advocate, working with the legislature to improve the law, in addition to enforcing existing law. Harold is against abortion, even in cases of rape and incest.
* When the editorial board asked Harold if she believes any Supreme Court cases were wrongly decided, Harold could not recall one.
FACT: Even though her recent statements make it clear that she opposes the outcome of Obergefell v. Hodges (marriage equality) and Roe v. Wade (a woman’s right to choose), Harold replied, “I’m not going to weigh in.” Raoul identified Citizens United v. FEC and earlier in the interview, Janus v. AFSCME.
* Harold says Raoul partnered with Madigan to raise property taxes.
FACT: Politifact already examined this claim and rated it “mostly false,” describing it as “cleverly misleading wordplay.” As he told the editorial board today, Raoul served in the Senate, not the House, and the part of the bill that would have allowed Chicago to raise taxes was never included in the Senate version of the legislation, nor did it become law. Rather, Raoul helped pass property tax reforms in 2007, and last year, he co-sponsored the HOME Act (SB 2219), which responded directly to problems identified in the Cook County Assessor’s Office by tamping down conflicts of interest, requiring assessors to publicly disclose their valuation models and establishing oversight of local assessments.
* Harold claimed she did not indicate on a questionnaire that she opposed a law protecting workers from discrimination on the basis of sexual orientation.
FACT: In 2014, Harold answered a questionnaire from the Illinois Family Institute and, according to that organization’s publicly released candidate scorecard, she opposed federal legislation that would protect workers from being fired just because they’re gay. The IFI described the piece of legislation she opposed as follows: “Employment Non-Discrimination Act (ENDA) (S. 815) grants special rights based on ‘sexual orientation’ and ‘gender identity.’”
I haven’t yet received anything from the Harold campaign.
There are two sources… of revenue that are not a direct tax hike: gaming and recreational marijuana. Okay, lets talk about those two.
Gaming is the more straightforward one. I don’t gamble. I don’t like gambling. I wish it didn’t exist. It does. It’s here. We got gaming. A lot of people like it. We’re losing massive amounts of Illinois revenue to Indiana and Wisconsin and other states. That’s a mistake. If a community wants to have more gaming I support it and we should give them local control. And generate some significant new revenue. And I am supportive of that. That’s that category.
Legalizing marijuana I realize it is very popular, especially for voters under 40. Here’s the issue: it’s a massive human experiment. It’s a massive human experiment. And it has major negative consequences. And I have done my homework. My team is doing their homework. I’ve talked to the governors of the states that have legalized it, in particular Governor Hickenlooper in Colorado. And the recommendations have come back “go slow, watch and learn from what we are experiencing because it ain’t all a pretty picture.” A lot of negative consequences. […]
DUIs, absenteeism, THC in middle school kids, lack of productivity, expanded black markets. And the tax revenue not being nearly as high as they thought from it. And costs to their society and their health care system higher than they thought. So on balance. Net, net, net, you know? Not so clear. And now Colorado is a massive exporter to the black market of illegal drugs to other states. It has ramifications. To rush headlong into it and say “hey, we want tax revenue so let’s just let the…” I think it’s a mistake. And I do not support it today.
“Weed is the more straightforward one. I don’t smoke weed. I don’t like weed. I wish it didn’t exist. It does. It’s here. We got weed. A lot of people like it. We’re losing massive amounts of Illinois revenue to other states. That’s a mistake. If a community wants to have more weed I support it and we should give them local control. And generate some significant new revenue. And I am supportive of that.”
There. Fixed it for ‘ya.
…Adding… For a good debunking of what Rauner said about Colorado, click here. I’ve posted it before, but a commenter mentioned it below.
But Rauner’s list of things he wants to get done in a second term—“my last term,” he said—sounded very much like the things he pursued in his first term. Included: legislative term limits and a legislative reapportionment system that takes remap out of the hands of existing lawmakers; more extensive changes in the workers compensation system to help Illinois manufacturers in particular; “flexibility” for local school districts on things such as contracting and labor contracts; removing health care as a mandatory bargaining issue for state unions, allowing the state to impose terms unilaterally.
Rauner conceded that the current state budget has a structural deficit of an estimated $1 billion to $2 billion. And he said the state badly needs a new capital program to fund road, bridge, transit and other construction around the state, something that would have to be paid for.
How would he do that?
Rauner said he’d save $500 million a year in health insurance costs that state workers unions so far have resisted. He wants pension reform, but said the idea of amending the Illinois Constitution to reduce such benefits likely is a political and legal non-starter. Doing that would stimulate the state’s economy and boost revenues, he said.
The governor rejected the argument that the 3-year state budget standoff proved that fiscal stability even with a higher tax rate is better than stalemate. “Boiling slowly to death is still death,” he said. If Pritzker’s plans to adopt a graduated income tax is implemented, “A lot of your readers will say, ‘we’re gone.’”
He was asked “Isn’t there a value to fiscal stability?” And he answered with the boiling to death comment.
Also, big capital construction bills require bonding and that requires a funding source. And bonding at any sort of decent rate will probably require a specific revenue source, given the state’s credit rating.
* With that in mind, Rauner said this at a different venue…
"Better credit ratings will not solve all our problems…ask your friends in New York, New Jersey, in Connecticut. We won't make progress until we take on our structural problems."
Nobody ever said that better credit ratings would solve “all” our problems. Regardless of what he says, fiscal stability has to be a goal.
Also, solving “structural problems” to him has always been about “right to work,” eliminating the prevailing wage, etc. But this ain’t Scott Walker’s Wisconsin. Focus on the things you can fix or you won’t change anything. That should’ve been the most important lesson learned during the past four years.
For instance, instead of punting to the General Assembly about what AFSCME can and can’t negotiate in their contracts, just negotiate incremental changes yourself. He took the hardest of hardest lines and got absolutely nowhere. It’s the entire story of his term.
* He also complained to Crain’s about the media not understanding him. For a guy polling so poorly, he should focus on his own job and stop telling others how to do theirs.
Even now, Democratic House candidates accepting help from Madigan and his political operation — its voter databases, staff, advice and money — have to give up control of their campaigns. His staffers can follow candidates through a phone app to make sure they’re going door-to-door. One House Democratic candidate told me Madigan’s aides wanted to observe her through a live feed while she was door-knocking, just to make sure she was on message. They also are not supposed to talk to the press or engage with the public, aside from porch steps.
See? When those of us who write about campaigns obsessively report the amount of money Madigan gives candidates, we miss the full picture. They want to say they’re independent of him, but they wind up subservient to his control. No wonder he’s a shoo-in for speaker every term.
There certainly are stories about the Illinois Republican Party also being accused of aggressive control-freakery. But I haven’t heard nearly as many complaints from that side as I have during my 20 years of covering Madigan’s office.
So spare me the mea culpa, the “woke” moment, the grasping press releases. Democratic women running under Madigan’s political umbrella have become adept at looking the other way. Any other elected official and party leader would be long gone. Instead, Madigan continues to be re-elected as party chair and House speaker.
Actually valuing women, their policy contributions and their diversity, is not really the goal of the Madigan program. Putting up female candidates in the suburbs because they poll well and have increased Madigan’s voting majority — that is the Madigan program.
Last night, CBS Chicago found that JB Pritzker has saved millions by stashing his money offshore following yesterday’s Rauner campaign digital ad “JBahamas Bank.”
Pritzker has previously said “I don’t invest offshore… It’s not part of what I do.” But the Chicago Tribune found that to be untrue, reporting on shell companies in the Bahamas that are owned by Pritzker, some founded in the last 10 years.
Illinois Governor Bruce Rauner has charged that democratic challenger J.B. Pritzker trims his tax bill by hiding millions offshore. Now that claim is the subject of a new Rauner commercial.
CBS 2’s Political Reporter Derrick Blakley fact-checked if that statement is true.
“Hide your money in the Bahamas,” Bruce Rauner’s campaign commercial sings, claiming J.B. Pritzker has been doing so for years, stashing money offshore to avoid U.S. taxes.
In the ad, Pritzker’s the head of a bank that specializes in shorting Uncle Sam.
“We can help Illinois families like yours. We’ll hide your money offshore, far from the IRS, just like J.B. Pritzker did,” the ad states.
Is the charge true? “I’d say yes,” said CBS 2’s Derrick Blakley.
For the Pritzker’s, avoiding taxes has been a family affair. J.B.’s grandfather, A.N. Pritzker, established dozens of trusts. In 2008, the New York Times declared, “The Pritzker’s were pioneers in using tax loopholes to shelter their holdings from the internal revenue service.”
J.B. Pritzker, however, insists “those entities were not created by me.”
The Chicago Tribune discovered J.B. had interests in 11 Bahamas trusts created within the last ten years, with two created specifically to benefit him.
It is ironic, said CBS 2’s Derrick Blakley, since a major theme of Pritzker’s campaign has been “everyone should pay their fair share.”
The Rauner ad also claims, “Considering our man J.B.’s plan to raise taxes on every family in Illinois, there’s no better time to open an account than today.”
CBS 2’s Derrick Blakley says that claim is false. Pritzker has pledged to raise taxes on the rich, not on every Illinois family, although he has refused to provide specifics.
Speaker Madigan receives nearly $768K from the AFSCME Illinois Council 31 PAC, which had previously only contributed a total of $163K to the Chicago Democrat. #twillhttps://t.co/Kh2L43T7AL
That is the largest single contribution AFSCME has ever made, according to a search of the State Board of Elections’ website.
I’m so old I remember when AFSCME, the IFT and the IEA were boycotting Madigan’s campaign fund, which forced him to turn to Bruce Rauner and Stand for Children Illinois for fundraising help.
Gov. Bruce Rauner’s fundraising has shown a precipitous drop in big-dollar donations this month and in the current quarter compared to four years ago.
In his 2014 initial bid for governor, Rauner reported raising $10.5 million in contributions of $1,000 or more, not counting the $4.5 million he also gave himself, from July 1 to Sept. 21. For the comparable time period this quarter, state campaign finance reports show the GOP governor raising about $1.9 million.
Also this year, Rauner raised six-figure donations each week last month, including in two weeks in which he raised more than $400,000. But by September, the big-dollar checks had fallen to five-figures a week — $39,000 for the first week of September, $44,848 in the second week and $55,789 in the third. In contrast to Rauner’s $139,637 September total, Democratic challenger J.B. Pritzker has raised $542,991 — aimed at the Democrats’ “Blue Wave” operation to assist down-ballot contests.
* Rauner’s weekly fundraising totals since the quarter began July 1st…
* By the way, the latest JB Pritzker A-1 was heavy with California contributors, including Phil Hellmuth, a champion poker player and author. Pritzker has a brother out there and the dude’s house has its own Wikipedia page. These Pritzkers don’t mess around when it comes to their homes.
As of now (and this will change), @JBPritzker has media buys in place for $2 million between now and election. For @BruceRauner , it's $1.6 million. No outside groups with future buys currently in place.
* From a letter sent to ABC 7 news director Jennifer Graves…
I am State Senator Sam McCann, Conservative Party candidate for Governor. On Wednesday, October 3, ABC 7 Chicago will partner with the League of Women Voters of Illinois Education Fund and Univision Chicago for a debate of gubernatorial candidates. However, even though I am certified on the general election ballot as a candidate for governor, as it stands currently, I have been informed that I will not be allowed to participate in the debate. To that end, I respectfully request a reconsideration of this decision.
Recently, I took part in a gubernatorial debate hosted by NBC 5 Chicago and Telemundo. There, it was clear, both live on the debate stage and through the media coverage that followed, that my message is a voice for conservative voters and an integral part of the conversation regarding Illinois’ future.
Across the country, especially in Illinois, citizens are demanding more inclusiveness, transparency and fair play in our political process. Today most voters reject an outdated approach that recognizes only franchised, establishment candidates in the competition for votes. Furthermore, one of the tenets of the League of Women Voters of Illinois, a debate co-sponsor, is the notion that informed and active participation by citizen voters is essential to building and maintaining a productive, honest, and inclusive political environment.
At a time when the candidates of both major parties are pouring hundreds of millions of dollars into this race, the people of Illinois deserve an opportunity to hear from all the candidates for governor, not just the two who can afford to hijack the TV airways. Despite their obscene spending, the two major party candidates continue to be viewed net unfavorably according to recent public polls. I proudly speak for millions of Illinoisans who believe that two billionaire candidates do not represent the interests of working people and believe we should have elections – not auctions.
Excluding any bona fide candidates would be in direct contradiction of the LWV’s mission of encouraging an informed and active citizenry and ensuring equitable competition for candidates. Therefore, I respectfully request that ABC 7 Chicago reconsider its decision to exclude me from its October 3 debate; any decision otherwise is simply a disservice to the citizens of Illinois.
Sincerely,
Sen. Sam McCann Candidate for Governor
* The Question: Should McCann be allowed into the ABC 7 debate? Take the poll and then explain your answer in comments, please.
* Gov. Rauner spoke to the Illinois Chamber the same day as his first debate with JB Pritzker and it received little to zero coverage. Rick Pearson went back and listened to the audio…
“I believe one of the reasons we have such vicious partisan disagreements and vitriol in America today is that the gerrymandering process has been carried out in most states in America to such a degree that each political party is more and more dominated by its most extreme elements,” Rauner said Thursday, hours before his first debate with Democratic rival J.B. Pritzker and two third-party candidates.
“And boy, it’s happening in Illinois. I’ve lived it through my two primaries I’ve had in my time in public service and I’ve seen it in both political parties in the state of Illinois. And for America to function effectively as a democracy, we can’t go to the most extreme elements of each of our political parties. It won’t work. It will not work well,” he said. […]
“And boy, I’ve got to tell you, holding the center, holding the center has been incredibly hard here as governor. Done my darnedest. Held it as firmly as I can. But holding the center in today’s American politics and in Illinois’ politics — tremendously difficult. But we’ll stay the course,” Rauner told the state chamber, which has backed his re-election.
“We’ll stay strong, stick to what I firmly believe is right and that’s fiscal discipline, pro-free enterprise, pro-growth, pro-taxpayer, pro-job creator and moderation in other regards, finding the center,” he said. “Moderation is the right answer and I will stay there. I believe that’s the way Illinois can be saved and we can create a better future.”
“We can’t let anybody stay home. And my offer to you is I will come to any city, any municipality, any county, anytime, any company in the state of Illinois, if you’d like to do (an) employee town hall, like to do a meeting with any of your executives, a meeting with your factory floor workers,” he said. “Anywhere, anytime.”
* A Chicago pal of mine took detailed notes a few days ago when she received a polling call. I thought you might like to see her raw notes for yourself…
Kalamata research
18 years of age registered to vote
Election for mayor, alderman, other city offices- how likely to vote?
Year you were born
How do you identify? SD, D, etc
Favorable/Non fav; very or somewhat:
· Susanna Mendoza
· Toni Preckwinkle
· Bill Daley
· Rahm Emanuel
· Jesus Chuy Garcia
· Toni Preckwinkle vs Vallas
· Toni Preckwinkle v Daley
· Toni v. McCarthy
· Susana vs McCarthy
· Toni vs. Mendoza
· Daley v Mendoza
POSITIVES:
· Toni is the current president of the board of commissioners, independent and progressive leadership. Standing up to the political machine for the people of Chicago. She worked with the board to implement major reform. Rebuilt credibility of government, cutting expenditures.
· Chuy is a leader who has spent his life working to improve the lives of all people. Took on Rahm. Experienced public servant, voice for working people
· Susannah Mendoza, first Hispanic woman comptroller, former clerk of city of Chicago, paid social service providers, passed debt transparency act so general assembly would know, Arguably most forceful combatant of Bruce Rauner, fiscal accountability
· Daley responsible for much of the growth in the city, commerce secretary, BO’s chief of staff
Head to head:
· Toni v Vallas
· Toni v Daley
· McCarthy v. Toni
· Mendoza v McCarthy
· Mendoza v Toni
· Mendoza v Daley
NEGATIVES:
· Vallas has a history of mismanaging city finances, city schools in philly were bad, $1.5 billion cover up from pension payments to pay for operation costs; Trib investigation found he didn’t stop sexual abuse in CPS
· Daley represents ward boss politics of the past, father and brother ruled Chicago for 44 years, made Chicago into the most segregated city, police torture, insider deals like sale of parking meters, hired truck, worked for giant bank, served on Rauners transition teams, Royal prince who thinks it’s his turn
· Toni- supported Berrios, raising property taxes on poor and middle class, promised to repeal sales tax but raised it, steamrolled county government into increasing soda tax, $200 million
· Susannah Mendoza does not look out for Chicago residents, illegally collected millions of dollars in ticket fines and fees, voted for red light cameras that charge large fines and impact minority communities, voted for bills and is responsible for causing state budget crisis that saddled us with pension debt
· Chuy is now a typical politician, raised his own pay, endorsed mike Madigan, hasn’t even been sworn in and is already looking to trade up, voted to raise property taxes by $100 million, gamed the property tax system to reduce his own taxes by taking an illegal exemption, tried to balance the cook county govt on the backs of the people
Head to head:
· Toni v Vallas
· Toni v Daley
· Toni v McCarthy
· Mendoza v McCarthy
· Mendoza v Preckwinkle
· Mendoza v Daley
Suburban women have been a critical factor in deciding special elections this year and, amid their dissatisfaction with President Donald Trump, Republican Gov. Bruce Rauner is reaching out in a new ad.
The ad features Anne Wedner, a former backer of President Barack Obama, who is founder of Kent Road Strategies, who has worked on Democratic and Republican campaigns with a focus on the North Shore.
Billing herself as a lifelong Democrat, Wedner touts her childhood support for the Equal Rights Amendment and her dissatisfaction with national politics — a distancing effort from Trump aimed at helping Rauner in the suburbs while he seeks Trump supporter backing Downstate. […]
“We have to fix our financial problems and Bruce Rauner is the only candidate with the courage to do it,” she adds.
OK, a simple search of the State Board of Elections found that the Rauner campaign has paid Wedner’s company $50,000 since October of last year for “Strategy consulting.”
I’m Anne Wedner, and I’m a lifelong Democrat. In 1972, I went door-to-door with my mom to support the Equal Rights Amendment. Today, I’m not happy about Washington, but I’m also heartbroken about Illinois. We have to fix our financial problems, and Bruce Rauner is the only candidate with the courage to do it. Yes, Rauner is a Republican and I’m a Democrat, but this isn’t about party politics. This is about saving our state.
…Adding… Sen. Sam McCann’s campaign…
Are we surprised that a North Shore liberal on his payroll is who he has “supporting” him in ads? As a failed limosene liberal governor, Rauner has shown money is the only thing that can buy him love. - link to Willie Wilson article.
Gov. Bruce Rauner’s campaign has a new commercial featuring a woman who says she is a “lifelong Democrat,” but Cook County records show she voted in GOP primaries in 2000, 2012, 2014 and 2018.
* We all know by now that JB Pritzker has refused to release any details whatsoever about his graduated income tax idea. Reporters have asked him over and over to say what his rates would be, or at what income level would require people to pay more than they are now.
It turns out, though, that Pritzker promised last year to issue his “full” tax plan “later in the Fall” when he was asked what his rates would be and how he would implement it during a question and answer session with voters.
