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*** UPDATED x1 *** Anti-union legislator thinking about leaving Illinois: “Strangled by incompetence”

Friday, Sep 4, 2015 - Posted by Rich Miller

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* As usual, it’s Erickson with the scoop…

State Rep. Reggie Phillips, a Republican from Charleston, said he has taken out options on real estate in [Florida] and made other preparations in anticipation of a possible move.

“We’re very actively looking at it,” Phillips told the Quad-City Times Springfield bureau. “I’m a practical businessman. I can’t stay here and allow myself to be strangled by incompetence.”

Phillips, who owns a homebuilding and real estate company in Charleston, took office in January and was hopeful Republican Gov. Bruce Rauner could move quickly to implement his plans to make Illinois a more business-friendly state.

But, he said, “The fight is a lot harder than what I anticipated.” […]

Phillips did not offer a timeline for when he might make a decision, but records show he has taken steps to open a business in Florida.

* You’ll remember Rep. Phillips…

* Rep. Phillips is a sponsor of a “right to work” bill, and now we know why…

State Rep. Reggie Phillips made his feelings on the proposed right-to-work resolution clear Thursday, saying AFSCME members are “like ants” and asking his members to lock arms and support towns that pass the resolution.

Phillips, R-Charleston, along with State Sen. Dale Righter, R-Mattoon, spoke at the Charleston Chamber of Commerce’s legislative update lunch at the Unique Suites hotel. Phillips pointed to right-to-work and pension reform as two of the biggest topics state legislators are dealing with.

Phillips said he will ask Charleston city officials to resurrect the right-to-work resolution, rescinded by council members after union supporters packed council meetings to speak against it, and wants his constituents to support it.

Phillips noted he attended one of the council meetings in support of the resolution.

“There’s only 38,000 members in AFSCME (represented by the contract in Illinois),” he said. “You’d think there’s 38 million. They’re mobilized, like ants.”

Phillips said he wished Gov. Bruce Rauner and Phillips’ own supporters would have stood firm on the issue. The process of change may be painful but is necessary for the state, he said.

“Trust me, it’s like spanking a child sometimes,” he said. “The child doesn’t want to be spanked, but in the end it’s going to make them a better person.”

*** UPDATE *** Press release…

Rep. Reggie Phillips announces he is running for a second term

Charleston, IL – State Representative Reggie Phillips today announced he will seek a second term as State Representative in the 110th District.

“I went to Springfield because I was tired of seeing bad policies drive jobs and opportunities away from our state,” Phillips said. “I looked at my grandchildren and I wondered what kind of future will they have? The decision to run was based on my desire to turn our state around. I think it is important to have representation in Springfield that is not beholden to campaign contributors or party leaders. I am an independent voice and I serve the people of the 110th District and I would be honored to continuing serving in Springfield for another term.”

Rep. Phillips is working with local farmers in opposition to the Green Belt Express Clean Line. He also sponsored a measure (House Resolution 173) to support the nation of Israel. Additionally, he is working with several of his colleagues to pass a measure (House Resolution 671) which calls for an investigation of Planned Parenthood in light of the recent videos exposing some horrific practices involving the sale of human body parts.

One of Rep. Phillips’ top priorities is to change the economic climate in Illinois and enact meaningful business reforms. Illinois ranked dead last in the Midwest per capita for new payroll jobs added to the economy in 2014 while Iowa ranked 14th and Wisconsin 20th, according to data from the Bureau of Labor Statistics.

“One of things I find so frustrating is that there are a few simple changes we can make to really get our economy going but we continue to ignore these simple reforms,” Phillips said. “Enacting real workers’ compensation reform, reducing excessive business regulations, and unleashing the full potential of Illinois’ natural resources would put us back on a course to economic growth and prosperity. The current policies are not working. Illinois also needs term limits and we need to take the legislative remap process out of the hands of politicians. We can turn this state around but it starts with real, meaningful reform.”

Rep. Reggie Phillips grew up in Arthur, Illinois. He and his wife Martha have four adult children and 10 grandchildren. In 1986, Reggie and Martha started a residential and commercial building business in Charleston, Illinois which now employs approximately 400 people. He was elected State Representative in the 110th District in 2014. The 110th District encompasses parts or all of Coles, Crawford, Lawrence, Cumberland, and Edgar Counties.

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Dunkin speaks

Friday, Sep 4, 2015 - Posted by Rich Miller

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* Paris Schutz caught up to Rep. Ken Dunkin by phone…

“For [Speaker Madigan] to throw me under the bus like that is foul,” Dunkin told Chicago Tonight over the phone. “I guess they took for granted that I was going to be there. I told them emphatically that I was going out of town. They knew damn well I was going to be gone.”

Dunkin confirms that he was in New York for both work and personal reasons: he first attended a work conference and then a funeral for the friend of his wife. He says he told the speaker and his staff that he was upset the bill wasn’t called a week earlier, and he sacrificed personal and family time to be at the statehouse then, and that he supported the bill at that time. But Dunkin says that his support for the bill eroded when he started asking more questions.

“This is such an unprecedented move by any union under any governor in this state’s history. I wanted to see what they were talking about,” Dunkin says. “I wanted to see the union’s position and where they were in negotiations in writing. I asked AFSCME for information on what specifically they were negotiating and they said, ‘We don’t typically share that information.’ I also asked the governor’s office and had to squeeze information out of them.” […]

When asked if Gov. Rauner did anything to persuade Dunkin to miss the vote or if he offered any sort of benefit in return, Dunkin said, “Hell no.” But Dunkin admits that the governor made the case that AFSCME had a poor record on hiring and protecting the jobs of minorities in state agencies. He says AFSCME flatly rejected that claim but offered him no evidence to the contrary. […]

“The speaker made this a super issue,” Dunkin said. “I don’t want to be a part of his political manipulations. I don’t know what he was thinking when he called the bill knowing he didn’t have 71 votes. He knew I wasn’t 100 percent on board anyway. I’m not in the pocket of Mike Madigan. I don’t work for Mike Madigan, I work with him. I don’t work for the governor. You can print that.”

“There are 47 other bodies that [Madigan] has worked with equally if not longer,” Dunkin said. “But I’m the cause of his self-manufactured defeat? Meantime, on Wednesday eight people were killed in Chicago. The schools are $480 million short. And this is the most salient thing we can talk about in Springfield? This bill meant nothing to the average person.”

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