* Bruce Rauner didn’t have a press conference yesterday. Instead, he talked with individual reporters at a few media outlets. It didn’t go so well at the Sun-Times…

In an interview with the Chicago Sun-Times, a Rauner aide cut off the questioning, citing scheduling issues when a reporter attempted to pin down Rauner on whether he personally supports same-sex marriage. It was a question Rauner ultimately would not answer, likely recognizing the necessity of the far right’s support during a Republican primary. The explosive issue ultimately ousted Republican Party Chairman Pat Brady because he supported gay marriage.

“My view is irrelevant,” Rauner said. “Why does that matter? There are many issues that folks can disagree about. It’s OK. I would like the Republican family as the big family. We can disagree. We can have some fights, that’s OK. And stay unified on the most critical issues.”

He said the issue should be left up to voters in a referendum.

As pointed out here time and time again, Illinois doesn’t have binding referenda.

* Rauner’s schedule must’ve been pretty tight, because he used the same excuse when Crain’s asked questions about allegations that he clouted his kid into a Chicago magnet school…

He conceded that his child did not gain admittance to Payton through the normal testing and review process but via an alternate path in which local principals can allow some admissions on their own.

“I advocated for my kids as I always have . . . calling in to get on the principal’s discretion list, as hundreds of other parents did,” he said, arguing that he long has crusaded to make schools better for everyone’s kids.

Did he call then-schools CEO Arne Duncan for help in getting his child on the Payton principal’s discretionary admissions list?

“I’ve explained all of the facts. That’s all I’m going to talk about,” he said. “I’ve worked with execs at Chicago Public Schools for decades.”

At that point, the candidate said he had to go

* The Tribune went over much of the same ground in its interview, but was far more kind. The paper did note this factoid near the end of its story, however…

Although Rauner is seeking to portray himself as an outsider, his personal and business interests have brought him in contact with the state’s political power structure.

Government pension funds, including the financially beleaguered ones in Illinois, are a major source of capital for GTCR, a private equity firm co-founded by Rauner that declares on its website that it has invested $10 billion in more than 200 companies over more than three decades.

Among those investments was a high-profile deal for an alarm company brokered by then-investment banker Rahm Emanuel more than a decade before he became mayor. GTCR under Rauner bought SecurityLink for $479 million from SBC and flipped it to another buyer six months later for a price of $1 billion.

Rauner has since served as an unofficial adviser to the Democratic mayor and has said he regularly speaks with Emanuel. One key area of agreement is support for charter schools and criticism of the Chicago Teachers Union.

* Rauner also told Crain’s about his Reganesque tax idea…

Mr. Rauner said details of a tax-overhaul plan are being developed by a team of financial advisers he declined to name but said the Illinois sales, property, income and estate taxes all should be on the table. For the state to be economically competitive, “The critical thing is that we have to reduce the tax burden.” That means rates would go down and revenue initially would fall below today’s level, but revenue would rise as lower taxes spurred more economic growth, he said.

We had sluggish growth even with the lower rates, so I’m not sure if that’ll work. Workers’ comp needs to be addressed first, in my opinion. But that’s not very sexy.

* Rauner talked pensions with the SJ-R…

“We need very dramatic change, and we need to go beyond what was proposed in the legislative session,” where fixes put forth include cuts to cost-of-living increases and increased contributions by employees, he said.

“What we need to say is, look, from this day going forward, for our current employees and future employees, we need a new system, a different system, one that’s really focused on (a) defined contribution plan, rather than a defined benefit,” he said. “But we can offer a range of options.”

Among those options would be a 401(k)-style plan, he said, with employers contributing to an employee’s savings. He also said there could be a blend of plans and even a defined benefit plan — one that makes specified payments to retirees. But, he said, it would be under “a very different structure and economics than what’s been done historically, and it’s going to be affordable and sustainable.”

“Right now, the system is broke, and honest, hardworking retirees are not going to get their pensions (in) 20 years,” he said. He said he would outline a “very detailed” pension plan later, and it would protect benefits that retirees and current employees have earned to date.

* And Kass asked him about the Madigan family…

Rauner targeted Madigan, the chairman of the Illinois Democratic Party, and the boss’ daughter, Illinois Attorney General Lisa Madigan.

He said that “it would be terrible” for Illinois if Boss Madigan installed his daughter in the governor’s mansion.

“I firmly hope and believe that voters in Illinois would never tolerate that,” Rauner said. “And I would aggressively run against that. That would be terrible for us. I don’t want to talk about any specific person today, as a candidate or potential candidate. What I want to change — and I’m on a mission to do it — is change the culture and inside dealing and the perpetuation of that structure in Springfield. And more of that (Madigan) family, more of the existing career politicians, is status quo and that’s killing us.”

Thoughts?

…Adding… ABC7…

“I’m the kind of guy who walks parades, shakes hands and looks people in the eye,” Rutherford said. “I do understand he’s a billionaire from Chicago. And perhaps his approach in how you communicate with individuals in a campaign circuit is different than mine.”

“It doesn’t, why does that matter? I’m very successful in business. I know how to build companies,” Rauner said when asked if he were a billionaire.