Gov. Bruce Rauner had been set to be there and, in fact, was billed as the star of the evening. But he’s now canceled. Rauner’s office says it’s because of the special legislative session on the budget that begins the day after tomorrow, but perhaps he also doesn’t want to be too closely associated with some of the health care and other votes coming down in Washington.
*** UPDATE 2 *** Pritzker campaign…
Just hours before a GOP fundraiser, Bruce Rauner abruptly canceled his appearance. Rauner was billed as a “special guest” for the event and his attendance was announced weeks earlier.
Rauner’s team cited the special legislative session as the reason behind his withdrawal from the event, but the special legislative session was scheduled last week and conveniently doesn’t start until Wednesday.
It seems that Rauner was scared off by the backlash of a failed governor attending a high-dollar cocktail fundraiser 719 days into a budget crisis of his own making, and days before important health care votes in Congress. With the planned protest outside and the fact that Rauner refuses to take a stand on the GOP health care bill that many attendees support, it is not exactly a recipe for a great evening for Rauner.
“The Illinois GOP is getting a taste of what working families across the state have been dealing with for years. When it comes to following through on commitments, Bruce Rauner will be a no show every time,” said Pritzker campaign spokeswoman Jordan Abudayyeh. “Bruce Rauner is in it for himself and when the going gets tough, Rauner gets going in the other direction. Throw in some cowardice, special interest politics, and failed leadership and you get a Rauner cocktail of destruction and devastation in Illinois.”
[ *** End Of Updates *** ]
* SEIU Healthcare…
While the healthcare and livelihoods of hundreds of thousands of Illinois citizens remain at great risk due to Republican policies, Governor Rauner and the entire Illinois Republican Congressional Delegation will gather for a fundraiser in Rosemont dubbed “Cocktails with the Congressmen.”
Illinois already is in a state of crisis after more than 700 days without a budget, but the American Health Care Act (AHCA) threatens to take the chaos to a new level, chiefly via a $40 billion cut in federal support to Illinois via Medicaid.
In May, Congressmen Roskam, Davis, Shimkus, Bost, Kinzinger, LaHood, and Hultgren all voted for the AHCA and against the interests of the health of the people of Illinois. Governor Rauner - whether it’s because he stands to gain a tax windfall of $6.6 million or he doesn’t care about damage to the Illinois budget and the 700,000 Illinoisans who will lose coverage - has remained silent. The U.S. Senate could vote on the AHCA at any moment.
Citizens from over a dozen local organizations will gather on the sidewalk outside the fundraiser to demand Governor Rauner and Illinois Congressional Republicans do their jobs and save healthcare.
* DGA…
Tonight, Governor Rauner’s reelection campaign gets a boost from a fundraiser with Illinois’ Congressional Republicans. Some would avoid the optics of fundraising with the people who brought us Trumpcare, but not Bruce Rauner. Despite repeated opportunities, Rauner never stood up in opposition to Trumpcare and never caused trouble for Congressional Republicans.
The effects for Illinois of the House Republicans health care overhaul are well known – a devastating $40 billion budget blow, 700,000 kicked off their insurance, and the threat of higher rates for people with pre-existing conditions.
Now the Senate is deep in negotiations on their own bill, but have so far refused to release details to the public. In response, a bipartisan group of governors, including three republicans, released a letter in opposition to the current health care overhaul bill. Conspicuously absent from the letter is Bruce Rauner.
With Rauner unwilling to stand up to his own party, Illinois Congressional Republicans find it easier to support Trumpcare.
For Rauner, this is politics before people.
“Bruce Rauner played a silent partner with Trumpcare supporters, and now he’s being rewarded with a reelection fundraiser,” said DGA Illinois Communications Director Sam Salustro. “While Congressional Republicans debate and debated the fate of our health care system, Bruce Rauner stayed silent, a stunning failure of leadership on his part. Illinoisans face devastating consequences from Trumpcare, but Governor Rauner chose to play the politics and sit on the sideline instead of fight for Illinois families.”
* Pritzker campaign…
On Friday, a bipartisan group of governors criticized the House GOP’s health care bill. Republican Governors John Kasich of Ohio, Charles Baker of Massachusetts, and Brian Sandoval of Nevada all signed on to a pointed letter to the Senate Majority and Minority leaders.
Absent from this bipartisan effort by governors to represent the best interests of their states? Bruce Rauner.
Rauner’s silence follows a familiar trend of the failed governor ducking and dodging the Republican health care bill, which would have a disastrous impact on Illinois.
If the House health care bill were to pass, Illinois could lose 46,000 jobs by 2026. State premiums could spike by $1,242 by 2018. Older Illinoisans would be completely devastated by the law. A 64-year-old Illinois resident with an income of $26,500 could see premiums skyrocket by over $14,000 by 2026.
This may explain why, despite celebrating the law when it first passed, even Donald Trump called the legislation “mean” last week. Given the impact this bill would have on Illinois and the governor’s continued silence, it must be asked, does Bruce Ruaner support the bill?
“Bipartisan governors are speaking out against the Republican health care bill, but Bruce Rauner is nowhere to be found,” said JB Pritzker. “This legislation is a direct attack on Illinois working families and seniors and would be devastating to a state economy already on the brink of collapse. Bruce Rauner’s silence is a stunning abdication of his responsibility to represent all Illinois families. This is cowardice and it is the most vulnerable Illinoisans that will once again have to pay the price for their failed governor.”
* This door-hanger was distributed in the Peoria area over the weekend. Notice anything missing from his priorities? A budget maybe? I mean, it’s not like it’s mid-June or anything…
Even so, it is interesting that they have people going door-to-door already - even if it is just a blitz piece.
…Adding… A Peoria-area reader just sent me pics of the same door-hanger, along with this…
Attached is the door hanger given to me by a 20-something walking my very GOP neighborhood Saturday. He asked what the biggest issue facing the state was, suggesting property taxes before I interjected the budget impasse. He said he’d heard that and asked if I thought it was mostly Rauner’s fault, Madigan’s fault or even. I declined to answer as a state employee. He then offered to put me on a mailing list for future Rauner events in the area, which I declined cuz I already get the local GOP announcements.
This is unusual for so many reasons, earliness being the most obvious. Never remember a statewide canvasser before in my neighborhood either. Just thought I’d share
*** UPDATE *** Pritzker just posted a little tweet storm on the door-hanger…
A $94 million online health insurance system has some Illinois state employees and agencies flummoxed and Gov. Bruce Rauner’s administration scampering to rid the system of bugs, according to interviews and documents reviewed by The Associated Press.
State workers have complained of a gummed-up system that has rejected coverage without notice and inexplicably stopped payroll deductions. The head of the Teachers Retirement System, where 106,000 retirees count on the program for insurance, points out that neither the specifications nor the system accounted for Medicare coverage.
Georgia-based Morneau Shepell was the only company to respond to a quickly executed November 2015 request from the Department of Central Management Services to design a web-based portal for managing health insurance options. The request was posted for only 26 days. Documents show CMS staff members were told to proceed without following guidelines for ensuring minority-owned business participation.
The state has paid the company $375,000 but owes $9.4 million for more than a year’s work. CMS hasn’t submitted a voucher for the entire fiscal year that ends June 30. Officials said that’s because of the two-year stalemate over a state budget that’s resulted in too little money to cover state bills. But from four accounts designated for covering Morneau Shepell costs, CMS has paid more than $29 million for other bills in fiscal 2017.
“For over 30 years, Congressman Gutierrez has been a fierce advocate and fighter for our immigrant communities and the most vulnerable in Illinois. I am honored to receive his endorsement and humbled to have him standing with me in this campaign,” said JB Pritzker. “As governor, I will work with Congressman Gutierrez to pass the TRUST act, ensure DREAMers can graduate and contribute to the economy, invest in quality education for all Illinoisans, and support small businesses and access to capital in the communities that need it most. Most importantly, I will partner with Congressman Gutierrez to stand up to Donald Trump and Bruce Rauner’s fear-mongering and attacks on Illinois families. Rauner refuses to stand up to Donald Trump’s hate and has decimated funding for immigrant services in Illinois. The nearly 1.8 million immigrants in Illinois deserve a governor who will fight for them and I look forward to standing with Congressman Gutierrez to be that governor.”
“I am proud to endorse JB Pritzker for governor because I know that he will bring people together and fight for what’s right in Illinois,” said Congressman Luis Gutierrez. “JB has spent his life lifting up our most vulnerable communities and fighting for Illinois families. But our current governor has failed our families and refuses to stand up to Donald Trump’s attacks. Unlike Rauner, I know that JB will be a partner and a friend to our immigrant communities in Illinois and he will never be afraid to stand up to Donald Trump. JB has the background and the values to take on Bruce Rauner and ensure that Illinois is a state that always welcomes and protects immigrants. JB will be a great governor for our state and I look forward to standing with him in the fight ahead.”
*** UPDATE 3 *** Kennedy campaign…
This afternoon, at Captain’s Hard Times Dining, longtime U.S. Rep. Bobby Rush endorsed Chris Kennedy as the next Governor of Illinois. Congressman Rush hailed that Kennedy would bring “radical change” to Illinois’ state government, with a focus on helping the middle class and poor families who have been neglected under Governor Bruce Rauner.
“Governor Rauner’s days are numbered,” Congressman Rush said. “He has been more cruel and coldhearted than any governor in our history. He has slashed the social safety net, ignored gun violence and cut funding for Chicago Public Schools. We need change. I stand with Chris Kennedy because I believe in Chris Kennedy and I know Chris Kennedy. He is the best candidate to restore the promise of the American Dream for millions of Illinois residents. He will work for those who are left out and for those who do not have access to the American Dream. Chris will bring a radical approach to state government and give us a state government that works for every family in every neighborhood.”
Congressman Rush went on to address political dynamics in this election. “The Democratic establishment here in Illinois wants to package up with ribbons and deliver the nomination to the candidate of their choice. My message to them is that you cannot gift wrap the gubernatorial nomination because it is not yours to give. It belongs to the citizens of the state of Illinois. Chris is in and Chris will win,” added Rush.
Kennedy thanked Congressman Rush for his endorsement. “I am humbled that Congressman Bobby Rush has chosen to stand with me and support my campaign. His work has not only inspired me but my whole family. He is a longtime public servant who has worked to better the lives of everyday people, hardworking middle class and poor people who deserve a government that does not push them away but instead welcomes them here. Illinois state government needs radical change and Congressman Rush has long advocated for radical change. I am honored to stand with him to ensure that we keep the promise of our state, and restore the American Dream as the dream for all Americans,” Kennedy said.
The key [Bobby Rush] quote: “You can’t gift-wrap the nomination. It’s not yours to give. It belongs to the citizens of Illinois…Chris is in and Chris will win.”
That’s a clear shot at Pritzker, who has been much more active in getting help from Madigan and others to line up endorsements. Of course, the endorsement of Bobby Rush is, um, an endorsement, but Kennedy said he won it on his own without anyone giving orders to anyone.
[Bumped up to Monday for visibility and comments re-opened.]
* I’ve been tweeting about this new Bruce Rauner TV ad and I finally got it…
They’ve got that Madigan issue and that property tax issue and they’re sticking to ‘em and I don’t blame them. The stuff works. Not gonna help pass a budget, though.
* Transcript…
Mike Madigan will do anything to keep power, even take down Illinois.
Madigan’s puppets blocked the budget, stopped property tax relief and now want to raise taxes by billions.
Madigan and his cronies reject reform, and let Illinois crumble.
We elected Bruce Rauner to reform Springfield. That’s why Rauner’s pushing a balanced budget and long-term property tax freeze to grow jobs. It’s a new path to save Illinois, because Rauner means reform.
It’s time we rebuild Illinois.
*** UPDATE 1 *** From the mayor’s office…
STATEMENT FROM ADAM COLLINS, SPOKESMAN FOR MAYOR RAHM EMANUEL
The last thing Illinois needs is the only thing we’ve gotten since Bruce Rauner took office, more TV ads and still no budget. The governor isn’t having a policy debate, he’s playing politics and the entire state is suffering as a result.
In the past six months alone he publicly said he supported a grand bargain, then privately killed it. He promised to veto an education funding bill that by his own calculations gets him 90 percent of what he wants. Then last week he called a special session to negotiate a budget with legislative leaders, and next week he’s going to launch an ad campaign attacking those same leaders.
The Governor needs to take the ad down, and finally put a budget up.
I’ve asked the mayor’s office if this applies to others running ads as well.
*** UPDATE 2 *** From the Rauner campaign…
People deserve to know the truth about what is going on in Springfield. There’s a compromise budget in front of them. Now, it’s up to Speaker Madigan.
Cullerton also said new ads from Rauner’s campaign, attacking Madigan and Democrats, aren’t helpful if the goal is to achieve a compromise deal to end the state’s historic budget impasse.
“It’s like if you and your wife are trying to make some major decision in your life about where to send the kids to school or something like that and you’re sitting down to go negotiate, you don’t really want to start out by saying, ‘You know, before we start, I just want to let you know that I always really hated your mother,’” Cullerton said.
