They’ve been called inhumane, immoral, a private gulag.
But for-profit prisons only meant profit for Fritz Kaegi.
Kaegi personally managed a fund that invested in nearly thirty million in private prisons. Prisons where women refused food to protest abuse of guards. Immigrant children as young as five were held and detainees died suspiciously.
But Kaegi? Only saw profits. Fritzk Kaegi doesn’t share our values.
* Earlier today, the Berrios campaign claimed this…
Fritz claims that during his tenure at Columbia Wagner Asset Management he would not have allowed investments in private prisons because he finds them morally reprehensible. He is clearly misleading voters because as a senior portfolio manager of Columbia Acorn Fund (ACRNX) he designed and executed investment strategies for the fund. Most notable are:
$29 million invested in the Corrections Corporation of America, a private prison operator that lobbied for legislation increasing incarcerations in the U.S. Such policies have been shown to unfairly target African Americans, Latinos, and undocumented immigrants.
The Berrios team’s latest statement about Fritz’s alleged investments in private prisons is replete with blatant lies–hallmarks of Assessor Berrios’ disturbing flagrant perpetuation of economic inequality. This is yet another feeble Berrios attempt to deflect public attention from the Assessor’s own scandal by lying to voters. Their statement this morning calling lifelong progressive Democrat Fritz Kaegi a ‘Wall Street Republican’ would be laughable if the ease with which Berrios’ campaign lies to voters wasn’t so troubling.
…Adding… Berrios campaign…
Hey Rich,
Fritz keeps denying that he worked at Columbia Acorn Fund. Here’s the proof. See attached prospectus and the SEC and form NQ.
The Columbia Acorn Fund (ACRNX) Invested in CoreCivic, Inc. During the Six-Month Period Ending March 31, 2017; Company Reported Its CoreCivic Stock Was Valued at $29,111,038 at the Time. According to a semi-annual N-Q disclosure document filed with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) on May 26, 2017, ACRNX owned 926,513 shares of CoreCivic, Inc. Those shares were valued at $29,111,038. [N-Q, sec.gov, filed 11/28/17; N-Q, sec.gov, filed 5/26/17; Columbia Semi-Annual Report, columbiamanagement.rightprospectus.com, 12/31/16]
*** UPDATE *** Part of a press release from the Kaegi campaign, which calls the ad “slanderous”…
“The Berrios campaign keeps pointing to Columbia Acorn Fund holdings as of March 31, 2017. But Fritz was not a portfolio manager on the Columbia Acorn Fund at this date. He provided notice of his resignation on February 28, 2017, and stepped down from the funds he managed on March 13, 2017. This SEC filing reports the change.
“There are some companies appearing on the March 31, 2017 holding statement that Fritz’s successors purchased because Fritz was no longer there to block them. CoreCivic is among these. “There is not a single document listing CoreCivic as a holding that also lists Fritz as a portfolio manager, because he never was.
“Why did Fritz block the purchase of these kinds of companies? He has always believed these were bad companies in a bad business which have a devastating impact on communities. CoreCivic, previously known as Corrections Corporation of America, changed its name a number of times to hide the nature of its business. They have opaque accounting and contracting practices. They try to change how the market views them, dressing themselves up as real estate companies.
“Additionally, Fritz understood that these companies were running up against a pronounced change of attitude of the American people, toward our country’s failing policies of mass incarceration. Private prison companies were selling something that the American people and governments increasingly did not want. All of these dynamics made for a hugely risky, unattractive investment prospect. They were morally wrong, and they were bad investments. Every time someone suggested an investment in these sorts of companies, Fritz rejected it. The Acorn Fund never owned shares of these companies while Fritz was managing it.
“Assessor Berrios tells a malicious lie that Fritz Kaegi invested in or profited from these companies. Fritz demands a retraction and personal apology from Joe Berrios for making these slanderous charges.”
The measure failed 70-39 on Tuesday. An earlier try at an override failed 70-42. Supporters needed 71 votes to override Rauner. Democratic Rep. Scott Drury of Highwood, who is running for attorney general, voted for override last time but was absent Tuesday.
He filed the receipt for his Rep in General Assembly economic disclosure with his petitions. Cases go both ways.
From another pal…
My guess is this won’t end quickly because it requires interpreting 2 statutes [Election Code and the IL Governmental Ethics Act] that have to be read together. I bet a hearing officer tosses him; state board reinstates; and a court challenge ensues.
This morning an objection was filed against Neli Rowland in the Democratic primary in #IL04. This afternoon she officially withdrew, Sol Flores is the only remaining female candidate.https://t.co/3NguqCRDYL
That could prove crucial in a crowded race. If you have some time, take a listen to the new podcast from Mike Noonan and Victor Reyes. They talk about this primary in some detail…
* In other news…
Five candidates filed for the Democratic primary in the 8th Senate district. Every one of them, including incumbent Ira Silverstein, has had an objection filed against them.https://t.co/1YYBI4bP4T
A complete list of objections is here. A list of those who’ve withdrawn so far is here.
…Adding… Hilarious. The guy has no running mate and filed zero signatures…
None of the gubernatorial candidates had objections filed against them, all will appear on the ballot unless they withdraw. That includes Terry Getz, whose filing was clearly deficient, but no one objected.https://t.co/LXBFlvqWdn
* One week after filing, candidate drops out of 57th state Senate race: St. Clair Township Supervisor Dave Barnes has dropped out of the race for the 57th State Senate District, one week after filing to run. Barnes, who sought the Republican nomination in the March 2018 primary, declined to comment or give a reason for ending his campaign. Remaining in the race for the Republican nomination is Air Force Reservist Tanya Hildenbrand and local radio shock jock Bob Romanik.
* Joe Berrios is the Cook County Assessor. His office controls property tax assessments. It does not control the actual property tax levy…
Rauner held news conference in Wheeling at the home of Michael and Marianne Murphy. The governor accused Berrios of running a rigged system that benefits tax attorneys like the governor’s political nemesis, House Speaker Michael Madigan, and wealthy property owners such as his potential opponent for governor, billionaire J.B. Pritzker. […]
Mrs. Murphy tells ABC7 that several years ago they personally appealed the property taxes and were able to get them reduced by $100. She said she does not know enough about the way the assessor’s office operates to comment on whether Berrrios should resign.
“So in the last 10 years, our property value, our assessed value has gone down 25 percent and in the last 10 years our property taxes have increased 50 percent,” Marianne Murphy said.
So… you’re saying… Berrios… did his job?
One reason this property tax issue is so great for populist politicians is that not many people really understand it.
* As the Sun-Times noted earlier today, Gov. Rauner appointed Ms. Murphy to the Illinois Health Facilities and Services Review Board late last year…
The Rauner campaign said her appointment was to an unpaid, volunteer board, which was approved by the Illinois Senate.
Pritzker campaign…
Today, Bruce Rauner held a campaign press conference at the home of one of his government appointees, Marianne Murphy, calling into question what his exiled general counsel, Dennis Murashko, would say about his overlap of government and political work.
Rauner appointed Murphy to the Illinois Health Facilities and Services Review Board in December 2016. Murashko penned an eight-page memo — which reportedly did not sit well with Rauner — detailing ethical guidelines between Rauner’s government and political operations. The question is, would Murashko find this campaign stunt unethical?
“If Bruce Rauner hadn’t already gotten rid of Dennis Murashko, then surely the general counsel would have objected to today’s campaign stunt at the home of a government employee,” said Pritzker campaign spokeswoman Jordan Abudayyeh. “Until we know why Murashko resigned, questions will continue to swirl about this failed governor and his ethical boundaries.”
She’s not really an “employee.” She’s an unpaid board member. There’s more than a little difference here.
…Adding… DGA…
“Bruce Rauner has no shame,” said DGA Illinois Communications Director Sam Salustro. “Rauner has consistently blurred the line between political and public events, and is actively trying to hide a memo from his own lawyer advising to be careful about mixing events. Now he’s using state board members he appointed to delivery his campaign message. Rauner’s hypocrisy knows no bounds.”
“Here in Cook County, we have a corrupt, abusive property tax system that is rigged to benefit political insiders. It is orchestrated by Boss Mike Madigan. He has his puppet Joe Berrios do his bidding on property tax assessments, and it’s all to benefit insiders like Pritzker who save themselves hundreds of thousands, millions of dollars through a rigged system, all of which hurts the middle class in the state of Illinois and here in Cook County.”
“Joe Berrios, Mike Madigan, and J.B. Pritzker are the unholy trinity of collusion, corruption, conflicts of interest in our property tax system. It’s given us the highest property taxes in America here, and it’s benefitting political insiders and the wealthy who get special deals from Madigan and Berrios while the middle class suffers from brutally high property taxes.”
“Every dollar that Madigan and Berrios take in savings for wealthy, connected downtown building owners is a dollar that your average working family in the state has to put in more into the system to properly fund the schools. It’s rigged, it’s corrupt, it’s wrong, and it has to change.”
Essentially what the governor and others are arguing for are higher assessments on downtown commercial properties to help out everyone else in the city and the county. It’s really hard to argue against that, unless, of course, you own commercial properties in the currently booming downtown area, or you have a business that can’t afford to pay even higher downtown rents.
You could even argue that forcing downtown properties to pay significantly higher taxes could damage downtown’s prosperity. And that area (along with O’Hare) is one of the biggest economic engines in the entire Midwest. Lots of regular folks depend on a robust, thriving downtown.
I’m just saying here that Republicans tend to use those sorts of arguments in favor of giving breaks to businesses.
* In other news…
Lottery drawing put Berrios on ballot first Kaegi second #ILMarchPrimary
A third Democratic candidate, Andrea Raila, filed on the last day and will have the third spot on the ballot. Kaegi will probably need to persuade her to get off the ticket to enhance his chances.
On Sunday, the Chicago Tribune published Jason Grotto’s fourth feature article about the mismanaged and corrupt property tax assessment system in Cook County. The headline, “Assessor’s Estimates Defy Logic, Benefit Lawyers” is stunning, yet entirely accurate. The paper’s editorial page followed up with a scathing opinion piece stating Cook County Assessor Joe Berrios is “bad at his job.” In response to the recent calls for Berrios to step down and the report itself, Republican candidate for Governor and State Representative Jeanne Ives issued the following statement:
“Governor Rauner is late to the game. His call for Berrios to step down is little more than political convenience. He is, once again, trying to hide from his record, while I stand on mine. In February, I filed legislation for a property tax task force that would evaluate our system statewide worked to expose and remedy many of the issues we are discussing today. When the Democrat leadership blocked my legislation, I approached the Rauner administration to run the task force through his executive order authority. My request was ignored. Despite his promises of property tax reform, Governor Rauner refused to take charge when he had the chance. He refused to lead on this important issue.
“I filed this legislation because I and my colleagues, including townships assessors, know how inaccurate assessments unfairly affect the school funding formula and unfairly shift the tax burden between different property owners. The fact that this is a statewide problem was revealed during a legislative committee hearing on school funding when I questioned superintendents about their property tax evaluations, one superintendent revealed that his county had not undergone a reassessment in 35 years.”
Governor Rauner looked the other way when he had a chance to effect the change Illinois homeowners desperately need. He could have taken charge in February. He didn’t.
“Today, I join Chris Kennedy in calling for Cook County Assessor Joe Berrios to step down from his position. Under his leadership the Cook County Assessor’s office has an accuracy rating three times worse than the normal range. His office has the highest appeal rate to the state property tax appeal board and the highest rate of those appeals being affirmed in favor of the property owner. His corrupt system failed to use best practices in assessing property, update their computer assisted modeling of assessments, and failed to respond to requests for transparency.
“Governor Rauner will try to tell you our Property Tax System is a ‘broken system.’ That is incorrect. Our property tax system is working exactly as intended by the Chicago Democrats who designed it. It benefits the politically connected at the expense of those in this state without their wealth and clout.
* Meanwhile, earlier today, the Berrios campaign claimed this…
Wall Street Republicans like Bruce Rauner and Fritz Kaegi have been reckless for the role they played in the financial collapse of our economy while profiting off the backs of working families.
From Rebecca Reynolds, campaign manager for the Fritz Kaegi campaign…
“The Berrios campaign has once again issued another obviously false statement. Fritz Kaegi is a lifelong progressive Democrat, and he has been endorsed by Congressional Democrats Robin Kelly, Danny K. Davis and Bill Foster, County Clerk David Orr, Cook County Commissioner Jesus “Chuy” Garcia and many other progressive democratic organizations and local leaders. Suggesting otherwise demonstrates a disregard for the truth, disrespect for the voters of Cook County, and the same lack of honesty and transparency that has plagued Mr. Berrios’ office for many years.”
“No one has made life worse for taxpayers in Illinois than Bruce Rauner, and no one has done more to worsen economic inequality. They have both done lasting damage to the economic futures of low-income communities and communities of color. They should both be relieved of their posts in the 2018 election, or sooner.”
*** UPDATE 1 *** Berrios campaign…
Fritz Kaegi denies that he is a Wall Street Republican but the donations to his campaign tell a different story. He has accepted tens of thousands of dollars from Republican donors, who have directly contributed to Trump and Rauner.
Fritz claims that during his tenure at Columbia Wagner Asset Management he would not have allowed investments in private prisons because he finds them morally reprehensible. He is clearly misleading voters because as a senior portfolio manager of Columbia Acorn Fund (ACRNX) he designed and executed investment strategies for the fund. Most notable are:
$29 million invested in the Corrections Corporation of America, a private prison operator that lobbied for legislation increasing incarcerations in the U.S. Such policies have been shown to unfairly target African Americans, Latinos, and undocumented immigrants.
$44 million invested in DeVry University, which was sued for false advertisements that target lower-income communities
$41 million invested in Celanese Corp, which was Accused of contaminating water with cancer-causing chemicals in 2014
$21 million invested in Centene Corp, Health insurer criticized for refusing to cover surgery for infant with brain tumor
$19 million invested in Navigant Consulting, a consulting firm accused of charging Long Island Port Authority exorbitant fees while assisting with response to Hurricane Sandy
$196 million invested in MB Financial, bailed out by federal government
$52 million invested in TransUnion, Credit tracking agency that settled claims from New York Attorney General that it failed to properly respond to consumer complaints about mistakes in credit reports
Fritz is a Wall Street Republican running as a progressive Democrat with strong ties to the people responsible for crushing our economy to the brink of a depression and causing the housing crisis that we are still recovering from. He will not be a good steward for Cook County residents’ hard earned savings.
We call on Fritz to return the millions of dollars he profited from the incarceration and defrauding of African Americans, Latinos and the undocumented community.
*** UPDATE 2 *** Kaegi campaign…
“The Berrios team’s latest statement about Fritz’s alleged investments in private prisons is replete with blatant lies–hallmarks of Assessor Berrios’ disturbing flagrant perpetuation of economic inequality. This is yet another feeble Berrios attempt to deflect public attention from the Assessor’s own scandal by lying to voters. Their statement this morning calling lifelong progressive Democrat Fritz Kaegi a ‘Wall Street Republican’ would be laughable if the ease with which Berrios’ campaign lies to voters wasn’t so troubling.
“Fritz’s commitment to progressive Democratic issues and his responsible and ethical investment record are all a part of the public record and can easily be found with little effort. However, the current Assessor has shown a shameless disregard for getting the facts right for the taxpayers of Cook County–so it should come as no surprise they didn’t get the facts right in their campaign attacks either.
“We understand that this has been a tough time for Mr. Berrios. Just last week, the ProPublica Illinois-Chicago Tribune analysis of tens of thousands of property records demonstrated conclusively that politically connected law firms got billions of dollars in property tax breaks from Joe Berrios on commercial real estate deals–and that Berrios, in turn, put that tax obligation directly on the backs of Cook County residents.
“Especially in this political climate, voters expect and deserve the truth. We call on Mr. Berrios and his staff to at least try to make their case honestly and treat the voters with respect.”
Over 40 groups associated with the Chicago Women Take Action Alliance on Saturday asked the [gubernatorial] candidates about how they’d address sexual harassment in the statehouse, as well as the economic and social barriers many face. The candidates largely said the answers to women’s issues, as well as curbing sexual harassment, is employing more women and protecting their rights.
Biss says that Rauner is turning everything into a personal fight between himself and House Speaker Madigan. Also said Pritzker is Madigan's candidate (to boos). Pritzker says Biss voted for Madigan to be speaker. Doesn't matter who speaker is, he's going to fight for his agenda
BISS: “First of all, what is Bruce Rauner even talking about? Why is he running for re-election, honestly, can someone explain this to me? It’s embarrassing, he’s genuinely just out there and embarrassing himself. But listen, let’s talk about Mike Madigan. He’s been there too long, he’s too powerful. I’ve said that for a long time. I’ve been fighting to limit how long someone can serve as speaker. This is fundamental, it’s important. Let’s just be really direct about what’s going on here. Bruce Rauner has chosen to be governor in the way of just turning everything into a personal fight with Mike Madigan. That’s terrible for the state of Illinois. JB Pritzker is Mike Madigan’s candidate for governor. I don’t think that’s the right way forward for the Democratic party. [Audience boos] I think we ought a have a new generation of real independence from the Speaker because I think his leadership which has gone on for a very long time, and has amassed an extraordinary amount of power that’s held the state back that’s held the Democratic party back and I think the right way forward is someone who will work with everyone, who has a record of accomplishment in the legislator, but is genuinely independent.” [Applause]
AHERN: “JB would you like to respond?”
PRITZKER: “I would like to respond. First of all, who here on this stage voted for Mike Madigan for Speaker? The guy at the end of the table. [Applause] Daniel Biss voted for Mike Madigan for Speaker, and voted for his rules, so it’s hypocrisy. Let me say that I have fought my entire life to change peoples’ lives across the state of Illinois to make their lives better. When I become governor I’m going to take that same record and go fight hard to put working families back in charge. It doesn’t matter who the Speaker of the House is, or who the President of the Senate is. It’s the agenda that I carry with me that I’m going to fight for.” [Applause]
…Adding… Biss’ retort…
“First of all, in my opinion it does matter who the Speaker of House and the Senate President are. I think it certainly matters. But I will say, yes I did vote for Mike Madigan for Speaker. He was the Democratic candidate for Speaker and I’m a proud Democrat. And I’m going to work with everyone in the legislature, including [Madigan]. I’ll work with him to elect the Democratic nominee for governor whoever that person is. You can be a loyal Democrat and be independent as well. That’s who I am.”
He’s a “proud Democrat” who spends much of his time bashing a guy he voted for and ran a super PAC with last year. It’s a free country, but I’m just sayin…
This morning, Governor Bruce Rauner will hold a press conference to call for Joe Berrios’ resignation as Cook County Assessor. This is following a report by the Chicago Tribune and ProPublica Illinois that revealed he and State House Speaker Mike Madigan have abused their power to enrich themselves and provide tax benefits for connected allies at the expense of the middle class and small businesses.
Governor Rauner will hold the press conference at the house of Michael Murphy, a homeowner in Cook County who is facing high property taxes.
* From yesterday…
Fritz Kaegi, a progressive Democrat running for the Cook County Assessor’s Office, earned the endorsement of Congressmen Danny K. Davis (D-7), Bill Foster (D-11) and Congresswoman Robin Kelly (D-2) on Sunday, adding momentum to Kaegi’s campaign to unseat embattled incumbent Cook County Assessor Joe Berrios.
During the press conference, Foster endorsed Kaegi, saying, “I am honored to endorse Fritz Kaegi to serve as our next Cook County Assessor. When elected officials fail to do their jobs fairly and honestly, or misbehave in their official capacities, it is essential that we use our democracy’s inherent capability to repair those wounds. Recent investigations by ProPublica/Chicago Tribune, the Economist Magazine, and others, have brought the failings of the Cook County Assessor’s Office into harsh light.”
Rep. Kelly said, “It’s truly an honor for me to be here to endorse Fritz in his candidacy to be the Cook County Assessor. I am very confident that Fritz will bring fresh ideas, direction and leadership to the office and that he will make a positive difference, not only in the office but also across Cook County. I represent an area that has been largely impacted by the assessment process. It’s very important that we elect someone who is going to change that process, so that taxpayers across Cook County have confidence that the Assessor is acting in their best interest.”
Rep. Davis added, “I am delighted to be here with two of colleagues as well as a number of community activists and individuals who are interested in the public interest. We are here for one purpose and one purpose only, and that is to endorse, support and convey to general public that we are supporting Fritz Kaegi for Cook County Assessor. And we’re doing so because we believe that he is going to do a better job of generating the fairness that is needed in our County and in the assessment of our taxes.”
Kaegi, whose candidacy has already received endorsements from Cook County Clerk David Orr, Cook County Commissioner Chuy Garcia, and grassroots progressive group Our Revolution Illinois among others, enthusiastically accepted the endorsements by stating, “It a tremendous honor to receive the endorsements of these great U.S. Congressional leaders today. Each of them represents communities that have been severely impacted by the rampant corruption and pay-to-play tactics that we see in the Assessor’s office.”
Kaegi continued, “As the latest Tribune/ProPublica series has uncovered, the working families of Cook County are disproportionately penalized by the willful negligence of Joe Berrios. Annually, billions of dollars shift from the pockets of Cook County residents into the hands of large, wealthy property owners like Donald Trump, creating huge tax increases for the residents of Cook County. Together, we can end the pay-to-play politics, nepotism and corruption in the office. As Assessor, I will bring honesty, integrity and fairness to the office and the residents of Cook County.”
Foster concluded, “The current property tax assessment system is clouded by corruption, pay-to-play politics and nepotism. It’s imperative to elect a new leader who will regain the trust of our residents, and our business community. Fritz has a proven track record that demonstrates his qualifications for the job, and his commitment to ethics, accountability and transparency. I am proud to support Fritz Kaegi because he brings a vision to restore fairness, integrity and honesty to the Assessor’s office.”
* Food for thought…
This chart helps show how Cook County Assessor Joseph Berrios failed at one of his most important job responsibilities — valuing property every three years Full story: https://t.co/oIdMuQnWVypic.twitter.com/AEMxymMJG5
Joseph Berrios for Assessor’s Campaign Manager Mario Lopez’s Statement on Bruce Rauner’s blatant political stunt
This attack is coming from a governor who just last week complained about being “not in charge” of the state. Like Donald Trump, Bruce Rauner relies on blatant political stunts in a bid to save his failing administration and re-election bid.
Wall Street Republicans like Bruce Rauner and Fritz Kaegi have been reckless for the role they played in the financial collapse of our economy while profiting off the backs of working families. Bruce Rauner has single-handled dedicated his tenure to attacking working families, women, and children. He has hijacked our state by preventing working families and children from receiving critical services, among other “accomplishments.”
On the other hand, Assessor Berrios has taken charge and focused on improving the assessment system he inherited by making it fair and equitable for every Cook County resident. He has increased the number of outreach events held across the county, made appeals easier, and successfully pushed for an increase in the homeowners and senior exemptions which will put more money back in the hands of homeowners statewide. The Civic Consulting Alliance is currently reviewing the County’s property assessment system, and Assessor Berrios plans to implement whatever changes and improvements are recommended to make the system even better.
It’s time for Bruce Rauner to “Shake up Springfield” by doing the people of Illinois a favor — he should admit that he has failed as governor and resign.
Calling Cook County Assessor Joe Berrios, Democratic gubernatorial candidate J.B. Pritzker and Illinois House Speaker Mike Madigan the “unholy trifecta of collusion,” Gov. Bruce Rauner stood in a suburban backyard on Monday morning in a campaign stop to call for the resignation of the longtime assessor. […]
Rauner’s example of a high property tax home, however, was a little unusual. The Wheeling home, where he held Monday’s news conference, is owned by Marianne Murphy — a Rauner appointee to the Illinois Health Facilities and Services Review Board. Murphy was appointed in December 2016 and her term expires in July 2019.
Murphy is also on ALEC’s Private Enterprise Advisory Council, serving as its first vice chair, according to her bio. The American Legislative Exchange Council is an ultra-conservative group crated to influence state lawmakers. Goals of the group include privatizing public education, cutting taxes and cutting public employee compensation. The group also opposes Obamacare.
Notice that Ms. Murphy’s first name wasn’t on the media advisory, even though the house is listed as being in her name. Instead, the campaign only mentioned her husband’s name. Heh.
If you were worried that House Republican Leader Jim Durkin wasn’t taking his primary race seriously enough, think again.
As you already may know, Leader Durkin is being challenged by Burr Ridge Mayor Mickey Straub, who has backing from conservative activist Dan Proft and Operating Engineers Union Local 150. It’s a bizarre duo teaming up in an unprecedented attempt to take out a Republican legislative leader. Durkin is the favorite, but one doesn’t want to take any chances in these trying times.
So, Durkin has brought in the highly capable Mike Zolnierowicz to handle things on his campaign. Mike Z, as he’s known in political circles, was Gov. Bruce Rauner’s deputy campaign manager, then his first chief of staff, then ran Rauner’s massive campaign apparatus until this past July. Zolnierowicz resigned during Rauner’s Great Summer Staff Purge (and eventual re-purge) of 2017 and joined Xpress Professional Services as its political director.
Z simply could not stay around after Rauner pushed out most of the people he had brought in (including his replacement as chief of staff, Richard Goldberg) and replaced them with what turned out to be incompetent ideologues.
After allowing Proft the field to himself for the past several weeks, Durkin’s campaign is now running two new cable TV ads. One is a positive spot that appears designed to address questions about his record raised by Proft’s group.
“Jim Durkin’s record?” the ad begins, “Durkin stood up to [House Speaker Michael Madigan’s] machine, his tax increase, his unbalanced budgets. Now Jim’s pushing property tax cuts. He knows we need relief. Jim Durkin, fighting for families against Madigan’s tax hikes.”
Z didn’t pioneer the use of anti-Madigan themes. That’s been around for decades. But he’s the one who made those attacks ubiquitous with Rauner’s money in the 2014 campaign and all the way through the 2016 election, when the Republicans impressively took away four seats from the House Democrats in a presidential cycle. And Z was planning to do it again until he decided to leave Team Rauner.
The second, negative TV spot against Straub also brings in Madigan, and uses Local 150’s support for Straub against the candidate.
“Ever met Mickey Straub? Don’t bother. You already know the man behind ‘Madigan Mickey,’” the narrator says as a black-and-white photo of Speaker Madigan is shown on screen.
“That’s why Madigan and his union allies are revving up the Chicago machine to grease the skids for Mickey Straub,” the narrator then says, as a reference to my syndicated column in the Sun-Times about Local 150’s support for Straub is displayed. “Say No to Madigan Mickey.”
There’s also a mailer designed to warn voters that a “Million dollar Madigan front group is backing Mickey Straub.” And the Durkin folks have started a new website, MadiganMickey.com. “Straub’s campaign is being supported by a Chicago special interest group that’s funneled more than $1 million to Mike Madigan and wants to raise your taxes even higher,” a message on the front page says.
“And it’s no surprise they want to hike Illinois’ Gas Tax by 15 cents per gallon. They even suggested that Illinois drivers should be taxed for every mile they drive…as much as $65 per month for the average family.”
I don’t know about the cost estimate, but the union has been advocating for just such a pay-by-the-mile plan during the last year or so. Ironically enough, Z worked with a coalition of road builders and Local 150 on a constitutional amendment question last year.
The website also previews some other likely attacks against Straub, including campaign fines that he allegedly didn’t pay until he decided to run for the House, and four unbalanced Burr Ridge budgets.
So, considering that Gov. Rauner funds most of Durkin’s political operation, does Z’s hiring signal that the GOP establishment in this state is finally starting to patch things up after that huge July crackup?
I wouldn’t go that far. But with Rauner’s Republican primary opponent Rep. Jeanne Ives already giving Rauner fits (just look at his bizarre “I am not in charge” press conference last week if you need proof) and Proft looking to pick off House Republican incumbents who voted for the tax hike as well as win some vacant seats, they gotta start somewhere, and Durkin’s race is a good place to do so.
But Proft isn’t backing off. His Liberty Principles PAC has been spending about $70,000 a week on cable TV ads. His latest spots feature former Chicago Bears football player Dan Hampton.
Z and Durkin’s top campaign guy Joe Woodward have had a pretty strong relationship over the years, so they ought to work together well in the coming months.
