State Sen. Kwame Raoul released a new TV commercial Tuesday that leaves no doubt as to who he believes is his prime opponent.
“Pat Quinn’s incompetence in illegal hiring gave us Bruce Rauner,” the ad says. “Quinn failed as governor. Why would we want to make him attorney general?”
Quinn said he doesn’t believe he failed as a governor. “I signed six straight budgets and the guy who came after me didn’t do any. I’ve been a lawyer for everyday people, I’m not a corporate guy, I don’t take campaign contributions from utility companies, or banks, or red light camera operators.”
According to Quinn, Raoul has taken donations from all three.
Pat Quinn’s incompetence and illegal hiring gave us Bruce Rauner. Jobs for friends and family, endless investigations, and now Illinois is a broken mess. Quinn failed as Governor.
Why would we make him Attorney General?
Kwame Raoul was called to fill Barack Obama’s seat. Now Kwame’s endorsed by teachers, firefighters, nurses, and the state’s pro-choice group to protect Illinois and serve us. Kwame Raoul – Attorney General
…Adding… Quinn is also running the sound from the TV ad as a radio spot. Click here.
*** UPDATE 2 *** Raoul campaign…
Quote: Pat Quinn’s incompetence and illegal hiring gave us Bruce Rauner
“Audit draft shows more mismanagement in Quinn’s anti-violence program,” Joe Mahr, Ray Long, Chicago Tribune, 4/5/2016.
Republican Bruce Rauner went on to beat Democrat Quinn in 2014 after relentlessly charging that Quinn used the grants as a political slush fund to help win votes in Democratic strongholds. Rauner’s administration declined to comment on the draft audit, citing the confidentiality of the process before an audit is released. But in the administration’s response to auditors, also obtained by the Tribune, the agency’s new leaders blame the Quinn administration for the debacle.
“Jim Dey: Investigation into illegal hiring under Quinn expanded,” Jim Dey, The News-Gazette, 5/4/2017.
Last week, a court-appointed outside monitor released a voluminous report that laid bare all the gory details surrounding five years of illegal patronage hiring at the Illinois Department of Transportation. But that report didn’t close the book on the wide-ranging conspiracy to violate state hiring rules by top officials in former Gov. Pat Quinn’s administration. Indeed, there could be more much forthcoming.
Quote: Jobs for friends and family…
“Watchdog details how top Democrats under ex-Gov. Quinn got state jobs for friends, family,” Monique Garcia, Ray Long, Hal Dardick, Chicago Tribune, 4/25/2017.
A new report issued Monday by a court-appointed watchdog charged with looking into patronage hiring at the Illinois Department of Transportation details how top Democrats clouted relatives and friends into positions under former Gov. Pat Quinn, even as many of those hired had little or no experience. “
Quinn and his administration under yet another FBI investigation!” Kirk Allen, Edgar County Watchdogs, 10/27/2014
Quote: Endless investigations and and now Illinois is a broken mess thanks to Quinn.
“Jim Dey: Investigation into illegal hiring under Quinn expanded,” Jim Dey, The News-Gazette, 5/4/2017.
Last week, a court-appointed outside monitor released a voluminous report that laid bare all the gory details surrounding five years of illegal patronage hiring at the Illinois Department of Transportation. But that report didn’t close the book on the wide-ranging conspiracy to violate state hiring rules by top officials in former Gov. Pat Quinn’s administration. Indeed, there could be more much forthcoming. Why? Federal Magistrate Sidney Schenkier on Monday signed an order directing the court-appointed monitor, Chicago lawyer Noelle Brennan, to conduct a wide-ranging examination of “all positions under the jurisdiction of” Gov. Bruce Rauner’s office and file a “preliminary status report” of her findings by July 31. The question behind all this is: If IDOT became a patronage dumping ground for politically connected job seekers under Quinn, what about the rest of the state’s executive departments and bureaus? “Editorial: Was Pat Quinn running the state of Illinois – or a job fair?” Editorial Board, Chicago Tribune, 4/28/2017 The OEIG’s 2014 investigation stopped short of blaming the governor’s office for the explosion of exempt “staff assistant” jobs created under Quinn, but Brennan’s report says Quinn staffers were “the driving force.” The report notes that of 154 staff assistants hired from 2009 to 2013, 53 had connections to Quinn’s office and another 56 were sponsored by other elected officials.
“Feds subpoena emails in Quinn anti-violence fund inquiry,” Ray Long & Monique Garcia, Chicago Tribune, 7/4/2014
federal grand jury has issued a subpoena for emails of key players in Democratic Gov. Pat Quinn’s troubled $54.5 million anti-violence program, including the former head of the program and two former ranking members of Quinn’s administration.
“Quinn and his administration under yet another FBI investigation!” Kirk Allen, Edgar County Watchdogs, 10/27/2014
“Watchdog details how top Democrats under ex-Gov. Quinn got state jobs for friends, family,” Monique Garcia, Ray Long, Hal Dardick, Chicago Tribune, 4/25/2017.
Bottom line: Fact’s don’t lie but Pat Quinn and his campaign sure do.
* Democratic Cook County Assessor candidate Fritz Kaegi put another $250K into his own primary race, bringing his self-funding total to just under $1.6 million. Kaegi says he’s a progressive, so the self-funding bit is apparently OK with folks who don’t like rich candidates in other races.
* And The JOBS PAC was just reinvigorated with $300,000 from the Illinois Manufacturers Association and is now making independent expenditures on behalf of two opponents of the Cook County pop tax, commissioners John Fritchey and Richard Boykin.
*** UPDATE 2 *** The Biss campaign just reported $270 in contributions, including $100K from Jonathan Soros, who had earlier agreed to match small donors.
Chris Kennedy, Democratic candidate for governor, called on the state of Illinois to divest from gun and weapon companies today during a news conference outside the James R. Thompson Center.
“Just like a budget is a reflection of an organization’s values, so too is an investment portfolio a reflection of an organization’s morality,” said Kennedy, who was joined by his running mate, Ra Joy. “Investing in gun manufacturers makes the companies more profitable because it drives down their cost of capital making easier for them to make money.
“Our government should not be using one hand to stem the flow of guns into our communities and, at the same time, using the other hand to subsidize the gun businesses by investing in them.”
Kennedy also highlighted the fact that State Sen. Daniel Biss benefits from these pension investments as a member of the Illinois General Assembly.
“Once again, Biss claims this is the moral issue of the day, yet finds a way to flip flop and benefit from being on opposing sides,” Kennedy said. “For Biss, what sets the issue of gun investments apart from earlier issues like pensions is that with the gun issue: there is no separation of time. Biss is on both side simultaneously.
“He speaks about the horrors of guns and benefits from investments in them at the same time.
“Biss has been in Springfield seven years and has done way too little to be a responsible steward of his investments or the investments of the people of the state.”
Sturm, Ruger & Co. and Vista Outdoor are among the gun and weapon companies the companies that the state of Illinois invests in.
* The Question: Your thoughts on this idea?
…Adding… Biss’ campaign calls the premise of the Kennedy press release “absurd” and points to the candidate’s long record on gun control.
They add that Biss called for pension investment divestiture from “dirty energy” companies in January and Kennedy remained silent, perhaps, they suggest, because Kennedy invests in some of those companies.
…Adding… Kennedy campaign…
Chris did divest last year as soon as he learned his index funds included those investments.
Speaker Michael J. Madigan issued the following statement Tuesday:
“Over the past several weeks, I have had meetings with members, staff and lobbyists to discuss issues of sexual harassment. Due to my recent meetings with staff, I felt it necessary to address some of the concerns they raised directly with the members of the House Democratic Caucus. The statement below was delivered to the caucus this afternoon:
“A handout you received during last week’s caucus detailed complaints brought to the chief of staff, directors, supervisors and the ethics officer over the last five years, including sexual harassment complaints made by staff against members. I want to be crystal clear - it is inappropriate for members to make sexual comments or sexual advances to, or engage in sexual relationships with, staff, whether that person is employed directly by you, the Office of the Speaker, or another caucus. This applies to both male and female legislators.
“It is clear from my discussions that staff view you as their superiors or supervisors, and with that you are in positions of power over them. This dynamic is ripe for potential harassment. I expect each of you to treat staff with respect and keep your relationships strictly professional. If I become aware of any complaints against a member by staff, or another member, I will personally get involved to put an end to it.”
*** UPDATE *** Alaina Hampton press release…
“Speaker Madigan now says he is committed to getting ‘personally involved’ in preventing sexual harassment. That may prove to be a step forward–but today, it rings hollow. The Speaker had three months to get ‘personally involved’ in my case, but took no action until he knew the story was about to come out.
“Perhaps my telling my own story publicly, combined with the EEOC’s notification of my right to sue last week, has caused the Speaker to have a revelation about his ethical and moral obligation to those who have been harassed and even assaulted in his own organization. More likely, he’s being driven to action by the threat of losing his grip on power–not by any personal concern for the well being of the women in the House Democratic Caucus or the Democratic Party of Illinois.
“I, and countless other victims and survivors, will be watching the Speaker’s next moves closely. We are hopeful that he will back up his words with meaningful and swift action.”
Dan Caulkins says the Democratic Victory Fund’s recent decision to contribute $55,400 to the campaign fund of Sen. Ira Silverstein (D-Chicago) should be seen as a slap in the face to women everywhere.
“It’s beyond shameful, when you consider that they portray themselves as the party of female voters,” Caulkins told the Chambana Sun. “It sends a terrible message and outweighs any statement claiming to have regard for the victims. It’s like they are trying to buy their way out of this.”
Darren Bailey views the Democratic Victory Fund’s recent move to contribute over $55,000 to the re-election campaign of Sen. Ira Silverstein (D-Chicago) as just another example of just how much Illinois politicians are intent on maintaining the status quo in Springfield.
“I think politics has easily become the biggest industry in the state,” Bailey told the SE Illinois News. “So many people involved now are just there for self-seeking reasons. They’ve entrenched themselves in telling voters whatever they need to keep things moving along.”
Dwight Kay says the State Democratic Victory Fund’s recent decision to provide more than $55,000 in campaign funds to the re-election effort of Sen. Ira Silverstein (D-Chicago) sends a clear and dangerous message to voters.
“That kind of money is not just given out because you like someone,” Kay told the East Central Reporter. “It sends the horrible message that if someone is willing to spend that kind of money on a candidate that’s not putting in that much for themselves, that candidate is essentially bought and paid for.”
Rep. Jeanne Ives (R-Wheaton) thinks the “good ol’ boy network” is alive and well in Springfield, as evidenced by the Democratic Victory Fund’s recent decision to contribute more than $55,000 to the re-election campaign of Sen. Ira Silverstein (D-Chicago).
“Democrats are only interested in maintaining power so it is no surprise they are supporting Sen. Silverstein, a longtime incumbent with plenty of name recognition,” Ives told the Prairie State Wire.
“The Democratic Victory Fund would support Silverstein after all the controversy because he has held a position of leadership for a long time, and kept his mouth shut, while he alone took the fall for the wrongdoings in Springfield that could have brought down other legislators, namely Senate President John Cullerton (D-Chicago),” Rotheimer told the Lake County Gazette on March 1. “Unless the Democrats demand that the $55,400 in campaign funds that Sen. Ira Silverstein received from the State Democratic Victory Fund are returned, the Democratic Party in Illinois consents to a Democratic senator’s unlawful behavior that was found to be in violation of the Illinois Governmental Ethics Act and conduct that is unbecoming to a legislator.”
* Today at the Statehouse…
Denise Rotheimer, a lobbyist-turned-candidate who accused Sen Ira Silverstein of sexually harassing her, says @JeanneIves is the “only champion” for her and “stood with me since the beginning.” Both pushing for HB4840, which would expand access to info from Leg Inspector General pic.twitter.com/lvrq1PkJei
A letter to Chicago Firefighters Union Local 2 members from its president, James Tracy, is sparking backlash from the Northwest Side GOP Club and some union members for Tracy’s endorsement of Democratic State Central Committee candidates Cynthia Santos and John Cullerton.
In his letter to Local 2 members, Tracy encourages members to support Santos and Cullerton in the upcoming Democratic primary, writing “they support the right to choose and will stand with Democrats at the state and federal level to protect funding for Planned Parenthood, stop extreme cuts to women’s health and demand equal pay for women.”
A recent post on the Northwest Side GOP Club Facebook page showing a snapshot of Tracy’s letter to union members is calling out the union president for using his post to take on issues such as Planned Parenthood funding and a “progressive” tax.
“This is insane,” the Northwest Side GOP Club’s Facebook post reads. “So the Local 2 Firefighters Union now takes positions on abortion? They are pro-abortion?”
Illinois residents have picked “The Blues Brothers” as the top movie in state history, making it the first item on a list of Illinois’ top 200 people, places and things.
The list is being compiled as part of Illinois’ bicentennial celebration. Every two weeks, people may cast votes online for their favorites in a new category. By early December voters will have selected 10 favorites in 20 categories.
More than 1,500 people voted on the first category, selecting the movie featuring John Belushi and Dan Aykroyd. The next movies selected were “Ferris Bueller’s Day Off” and “A League of Their Own.”
OK, I’m finally on board with this bicentennial thing.
* To me, “The Blues Brothers” is an art film. The camera’s framing of Elwood as he sits next to his SRO’s window while the L train passes by is one of my favorites in any movie…
For one of the most memorable comedy films of the late 20th century, The Blues Brothers starts grimly enough, with an arresting aerial shot of industrial Chicago, as the smoke from dark satanic chimneys smear the sunset. It’s as if director John Landis is tipping us off that what follows, a film of madcap fun and action rampage, is comic escapism from the bleak modern American life.
To obtain the seven limousines for the wedding party, my father used up his last favor with Mad Pete Trullo.
And…
Jake: You traded the Bluesmobile for this?
Elwood: No, for a microphone.
Jake: A microphone?
[pause]
Jake: Okay I can see that.
* Some of my friends have memorized the entire script…
Four fried chickens and a Coke.
I hate Illinois Nazis!
* Plus the great music and by-then-forgotten African-American stars (who even knew that Cab Calloway was still alive?), a car chase under the L tracks, SWAT teams…
No, sir, Mayor Daley no longer dines here. He’s dead, sir.
Every frame, every song, every sentence of that movie is something I hold dear. Plus it’s about a couple of misfit musicians trying to do a good deed for once. I’ve known people like that most of my adult life…
Jake, you get wise. You get to church.
The film’s back-story was even fascinating. Anyway, I have lots of work to do today and I wish I had more time, so I’ll close with this…
Monday’s hearing was called after the administration released an August 2016 report from Belleville-based consulting engineer BRiC Partnership suggesting steps to mitigate the problem, including replacing the underground water-distribution system and plumbing inside 15 campus buildings where the most susceptible residents live for $8 million.
[Illinois Department of Veterans’ Affairs Director Erica Jeffries] said in December that plumbing replacement could cost $500 million or more; in January, she told lawmakers about the BRiC report and said it put the price tag at $25 million to $30 million. She has never explained why she used estimates that at a minimum were more than four times higher than the actual number.
BRiC’s 2016 report, which cost $20,000, listed about a dozen ideas for a total of $17 million. The administration paid BRiC another $40,000 to update and expand its 2016 report. That update released last month indicated plumbing replacement for the entire campus would be $11 million; expanded options for the other ideas combined would cost no more than $24 million.
Jeffries explained Monday that the August 2016 delivery of the BRiC report was just two months after the June completion of a $6.5 million water-treatment facility and wanted to test its effectiveness before taking any more actions. But Public Health officials had confirmed two more cases of Legionnaires’ in late July, just days before BRiC’s arrival on campus.
Emphasis added for obvious reasons.
Director Jefferies, you’ll recall, said yesterday that she prefers “to speak with journalists who have journalistic integrity.” Hmm.
…Adding… Pritzker campaign…
At a hearing yesterday, Bruce Rauner’s administration announced that the Legionnaires crisis that has already lasted nearly three years and taken 13 lives will continue for at least another “three to five” years.
After 13 residents died on Rauner’s watch, the failed governor has struggled to deal with the health crisis, desperately resorting to press stunts and cover ups instead of real action to fix the problem. Now, as Rauner feels political pressure for his nearly three years of inaction, his administration is taking a page out of the Trump playbook and attacking the press instead of solving the crisis.
“Bruce Rauner has fatally mismanaged the Quincy Veterans’ home, and now he is attacking the press and covering up information instead of taking real action to fix the problem,” said Pritzker campaign spokeswoman Jordan Abudayyeh. “Our state’s heroes can’t wait three to five years for this failed governor to address a crisis he has let spiral out of control.”
Would having access to the correspondence of House Speaker Michael Madigan, D-Chicago, shed light on his handling of sexual harassment allegations by associates?
We don’t know — and it’s designed that way because the documents of Madigan, like all Illinois lawmakers, are exempt from the state Freedom of Information Act.
The legislation, enacted in 1984, is a critical tool to ensure our public bodies are transparent and that, to quote the act, “all persons are entitled to full and complete information regarding the affairs of government and the official acts and policies of those who represent them as public officials and public employees.”
That sounds good, but the General Assembly has elected to exclude one noteworthy group from disclosure rules — lawmakers themselves. The argument is legislators deal with sensitive constituent issues and share draft legislation that are negotiating documents. (Congress has a similar exemption and cites similar logic.)
That means a citizen can get, say, five years’ worth of internal emails of the local township cemetery board, the calendar of Gov. Bruce Rauner and any other documents related public business, but can’t see any paperwork for our elected citizen legislature.
For Madigan, that also means all correspondence is exempt for his two high-profile positions — as speaker, which he’s held since 1983, and as head of the state Democratic party, his position since 1998.
* It’s certainly true that the GA exempted itself. Here’s the law…
Preliminary drafts, notes, recommendations, memoranda and other records in which opinions are expressed, or policies or actions are formulated, except that a specific record or relevant portion of a record shall not be exempt when the record is publicly cited and identified by the head of the public body. The exemption provided in this paragraph (f) extends to all those records of officers and agencies of the General Assembly that pertain to the preparation of legislative documents. […]
A person whose request to inspect or copy a public record is denied by a public body, except the General Assembly and committees, commissions, and agencies thereof, may file a request for review with the Public Access Counselor established in the Office of the Attorney General not later than 60 days after the date of the final denial.
Reports and records of the obligation, receipt and use of public funds of the State, units of local government and school districts are public records available for inspection by the public according to law.
All officers of the Executive Branch shall keep accounts and shall make such reports as may be required by law. They shall provide the Governor with information relating to their respective offices, either in writing under oath, or otherwise, as the Governor may require.
There is no such language in the Legislature’s article, which is an argument legislators use when they say they were meant to be exempted. The same goes for the judicial article. The courts have also ruled that because the GA didn’t include the judiciary in the FOIA statute, the judicial branch was exempted. So, I highly doubt the folks in black robes will ever open that Pandora’s Box by prying open GA records.
Also, I have no idea how a state government could legally subject a political campaign committee to the FOIA laws.
* Look, I’d love to see the GA covered by FOIA. But unless somebody wants to go out and gather enough petition signatures to put a constitutional amendment on the ballot (and that could work because it may fall under the “Amendments shall be limited to structural and procedural subjects contained in Article IV” language) not much can be done unless GA members voluntarily do it themselves.
Fat chance of that happening.
…Adding… From an attorney…
If you look on the GA website, both the House and Senate have memos with categories of items available under FOIA. What isn’t available is personal correspondence (e.g. letters constituents send to their members). Also, the draft exemption applies to all units of government, not just the GA.
• Quorum calls for meetings of the House and House Committees
• Legislation and motions filed by members of the House, including roll call of voting
• Reports and fiscal notes filed with the Clerk
• Documents filed in House Committee hearings (roll calls, witness slips, notices of
action)
• Transcripts and audio recordings of House floor debate
• Video of House floor debate (2005 to present)
• Audio recordings of House Committee hearings
• Vouchers and documents detailing District Office expenditures
• Vouchers and documents detailing House Operations and Leadership expenditures
• Official Journals of the House
• District Office leases
• Personnel Rules adopted by each member for their District Offices
• Name, title, start date and salary for employees of the House
• Property inventories for House Operations, Leadership, and District Offices
A new Public Policy Polling survey shows political newcomer Marie Newman in a statistical dead heat with longtime Congressman Dan Lipinski. The poll, made available first to POLITICO, showed 43 percent of those surveyed supported Lipinski and 41 percent backed Newman — the two percentage points were within the margin of error. The automated poll of 648 likely Democratic primary voters was taken Feb. 27-28. […]
The numbers reflect a huge jump in Newman’s name recognition since October, when she only logged 18 percent in a Normington Petts poll. Since then, various groups, including NARAL, Planned Parenthood and SEIU have backed Newman, and a superPAC targeting Lipinski has helped drive up her name ID and his negatives. While Lipinski has more money in his account than Newman, over the last few weeks, the Citizens for a Better Illinois political action committee spent nearly $700,000 on ads attacking Lipinski. Newman had the help of veteran Democrats U.S. Reps. Jan Schakowsky and Luis Gutierrez who publicly rejected Lipinski, calling his views opposing abortion rights and votes on immigration too conservative for his district. The AFL-CIO has backed Lipinski and he has the support from dozens of mayors and village presidents in the 3rd Congressional District.
The survey was conducted from February 27-28, 2018. PPP surveyed 648 IL-03 likely Democratic primary voters. The margin of error is +/- 3.9%. This poll was conducted by automated telephone interviews.
* The breakdown of those who participated in the survey are:
o 55% women, 45% men
o 16% Hispanic or Latino, 71% white, 7% African-American, 6% other
o 31% aged 18-45, 46% aged 46-65, 23% older than age 65
During the last Census, the district was 66 percent white, 25 percent Latino and 5 percent African-American. However, that’s probably not how the actual voting breaks down.
United for Progress, Inc., has launched a new television ad, “Don’t Be Fooled,” which highlights Marie Newman’s record of fly-by-night campaign exaggerations, misstatements, poor management, and policies that will hurt Illinois workers.
“A member of Congress can’t deliver progressive change in Washington without character and experience. And Marie Newman unfortunately has neither,” said United For Progress, Inc. Treasurer Bruce Goren. “She claims to fight for workers and yet took a stand against 14,000 airline workers in her own district. She shamelessly lied about her record as a nonprofit leader and business owner. She claims to be a progressive and yet has no record of fighting for progressive change. We ran this ad because voters in the 3rd District deserve to know the truth: Marie Newman would be a disastrous choice for Congress.”
If Marie Newman has her way, subsidized foreign airlines will take away U.S. jobs. But that’s not the only thing fly-by-night with Marie Newman. She says she set up a charity for bullied children. But the IRS has no record of it. The restaurant she ran was cited for over a dozen health code violations. Her experience for public office? Dropping out of the race for Library Board. Don’t be fooled by the flimflam. Send Marie Newman and her out-of-state attack dogs packing.
* This is yet another pre-primary week when one chamber is in session while the other takes a break. It’s the House’s turn to work this week, but after its scheduled adjournment on Thursday it won’t return until April 9th. The Senate is off this week, comes back to town next week and then leaves until April 10th. Watch all the action with ScribbleLive…
* Gov. Rauner spoke at Sunday’s Effingham County Republican Lincoln Day Dinner and told the party faithful about how he envisions the fall campaign…
You guys know I went to war to get term limits. Nobody should stay in office more than about 8 years. That’s plenty of time. George Washington could’ve been king, and he only served for 8 years because he knew America should be a place for freedom and you should be a public servant and then leave. … We collected half a million signatures to get term limits on the ballot. Madigan sued me and he blocked it in the state courts, with the judges that he elects. …. But I never give up and I never give in.
We are now going to run a pledge campaign. Pledge campaign. We’re going to ask every candidate in the General Assembly statewide to sign a pledge, sign a promise to you as the people of Illinois. And that pledge says two things. Number one: “I promise you that I will vote to put term limits on the ballot so the people of Illinois can vote term limits up or down.” And number two: “I promise you that I will vote for somebody, anybody other than Mike Madigan for speaker after 35 years.”
And when the Democrats refuse to sign that pledge, we’re gonna use it against them and we’re gonna prove that they’re really working for Madigan and the machine, rather than the people of central Illinois and the people of southern Illinois. And we’re going to beat them and that’s how we are going to pick up nine seats in the General Assembly this year. This is an exciting time.
Now, look, this election cycle is going to be tough. A new president’s party has a hard time in the midterms. That’s just true, even look back 50 years. It doesn’t matter whether D or R.
But you know why we’re going to win and why I’m all-in to win? No state has a guy as corrosive and as corrupt and as destructive as Mike Madigan. And we are going to hang every candidate on the Democratic ticket with Mike Madigan around their neck and we’re going to take them down. And we’re going to beat ‘em. The people of Illinois want Madigan gone almost as much as Republicans do.
It was last year, I was shopping at a store in Springfield and an elderly woman came up to me. Slowly, she couldn’t move very, very fast. She was, she was up there in years. She slowly came up to me in the store and she grabbed me by the by the [inaudible], both hands on my left arm. And then she looked up at me. And then she started to tear up. She started to cry a little bit and I said ‘Goodness, what happened, what’s wrong here? Are you hurt? Can I, how can I help you?’ And she said, she said, ‘Governor, you’re our last hope. Don’t give up.’ And I teared up, and I gave her a hug. And I said, ‘I will never give up and it’s an honor for me to work for you.’
We will never give in. We are going to make Illinois great again. Great, proud strong state. The greatest state in the greatest nation on Earth. On to victory in November for Republicans!
You know, I had a woman, an elderly woman, come up to me last month. She couldn’t move very well, but she came up, she grabbed me by the arm. She looked me in the eyes. She teared up, and she said, “Governor, you’re our last hope. Don’t give up,” and she said, “And I’m a Democrat, and many of my friends are Democrats. We know you’re doing the right thing.” I get that every day.
Every day he gets that. Every. Day.
…Adding… Pritzker campaign…
With Donald Trump polling ahead of Bruce Rauner in Illinois, the failed governor is borrowing the president’s slogan to keep Republicans from fleeing to his primary opponent Jeanne Ives as election day nears.
“We are going to make Illinois great again,” Rauner proudly declared at an Effingham County Republican dinner yesterday where Ives was present. While Rauner has long been afraid to utter Donald Trump’s name, his insurgent primary opponent’s campaign has left him with no choice but to cozy up to this bigoted president.
“Bruce Rauner is embracing Donald Trump as he desperately clings to the Republican nomination with Jeanne Ives nipping at his heels,” said Pritzker campaign spokeswoman Jordan Abudayyeh. “This is a failed governor, fending off challenges left and right as Illinoisans prepare to hold him accountable for his damage to this state.”
In 2015, Mr. Rauner says, public-employee unions complained to Mr. Madigan that the new governor was too stubborn a negotiator. The speaker pushed through a bill to strip the governor of his authority in contract negotiations in favor of a “labor arbitrator”—an attempt, Mr. Rauner says, to “take away my most fundamental right as governor to represent taxpayers.”
Mr. Rauner vetoed the legislation. In Illinois it takes three-fifths of each legislative chamber to override a veto, and Democrats had the requisite supermajorities. Yet the House sustained Mr. Rauner’s veto. “I got one Democrat,” he says. “Boy, did we work our tails off. We got one Democrat to stay in New York at the U.S. Open during the vote override.”
There is evidence that Dunkin may have gone to the US open during that vote, so the governor could be telling the truth. But Gov. Rauner also told some of his usual whoppers to the paper’s editorial board, so you’re guess is as good as mine.
…Adding… From comments…
HOW exactly did he get that Dem to stay in New York? That’s a much more interesting question.
For his part, Rauner might have been slow to take Ives’ candidacy seriously, but once the money started pouring into her campaign, the governor quickly pivoted to an offensive strategy.
He started airing TV ads and sending out mailers that labeled Ives “Madigan’s Favorite Republican,” pointing to less than $7,000 in campaign contributions she’d received from a Madigan-allied labor union, and comments she’d made touting Madigan’s support for some of her bills.
The mailers have been effective in some parts of the state, where voters have started to associate Ives with the unpopular speaker, an Ives campaign worker said.
Ives also spent money early to try to build name recognition among voters, leaving her with less for the stretch run. In an email fundraising pitch to supporters, Ives said she needs to raise $10 million by election day to get her message out in TV ads and for get-out-the-vote operations.
* And speaking of the Madigan angle, the BGA and Politifact have weighed in…
Rauner’s campaign ad said: “Who’s really behind Jeanne Ives’ campaign for governor? Mike Madigan’s corrupt insider machine. They’ve bankrolled her campaign with thousands in shady labor union cash, turning Ives into another Madigan lackey.”
A political committee that has supported Michael Madigan and a number of other politicians of both parties gave money to Jeanne Ives. And records show the contributions to Ives total $6,900, a far cry from the $2.5 million she has received from a conservative businessman who once was a major donor to Rauner.
Ives was once a loyal supporter of Rauner in the Illinois House, but broke with the governor last year because she claimed he had become too liberal on social issues. Central to her complaint was Rauner’s signing of abortion rights and immigrant rights legislation that Ives opposed and Madigan backed.
That is hardly a portrait of a Madigan lackey. Indeed, it is the opposite.
Rauner campaign claims about Ives and Madigan turn credibility and rational argument inside out. That is why we give them our lowest possible credibility rating, Pants On Fire!
Republican state Rep. Jeanne Ives’ campaign said Sunday it is up with a new TV ad that compares Gov. Rauner to former Democratic President Barack Obama.
“Bruce Rauner lies so much he reminds us of another Chicago politician,” a narrator says. The ad then cuts to a June 15, 2009, clip of Obama talking about a concept of the Affordable Care Act that didn’t happen. “If you like your doctor, you will be able to keep your doctor. Period,” Obama says.
It’s unclear how widespread Ives’ ad will appear. No new advertising contracts for Ives have been posted by Chicago TV stations or cable since last month. [Emphasis added.]
Everybody wants to write about the hard-fought campaign as if the two candidates had equal access to messaging, but Pearson just dumped a lake’s worth of cold water on those hot takes. Ives has burned through her cash and can’t place new ads. That’s the real story here now.
I suppose the Ives campaign believes voters will read her new campaign book. She spent big bucks on that mailer, but I cannot imagine that it’ll move many numbers.
*** UPDATE *** Dan Proft pushes back against Pearson’s report. Here’s the printable part…
We had Quincy vets home all last week plus radio statewide. We’re on statewide nets plus radio this week with the “Neither Should You” spot
…Adding… More from Proft…
$300K buy delivering 560 TRPs in Chicago and another 1400 TRPs outside Chicago DMA, networks. This doesn’t include radio which is also up statewide. It may not be Rauner scale but that’s a real buy.
* Related…
* Rauner and Ives appear in Altamont, attend Lincoln Day Dinner: Rauner declined questions before leaving the dinner Sunday. In an emailed statement, Will Allison, a spokesman for Rauner’s campaign, responded to Ives’ comments, saying, “Rep. Ives is simply unelectable. She is refusing to stand up to Mike Madigan and won’t commit to rolling back his massive income tax hike. Governor Rauner has a plan to cut taxes and reform government, and that’s why he will win this primary and defeat JB Pritzker in November.”
* Ives brings ‘truth tour’ to Q-C: “It was not a hard choice getting in this race. It was hard for some of my supporters, knowing the daunting task going up against a guy who’s got millions of dollars, $100 million worth of name (recognition) behind him and three years of incumbency. How do you take a guy like this out?”
* JB Pritzker reported last night that he’s dumped another $7 million into his campaign. Sen. Daniel Biss complained, but was also rebutted…
Ugh. Just when I was getting used to talking about $56 million, @JBPritzker gives himself another $7 million to bring the total up to $63 million. (In other news, still dating checks 2017.) https://t.co/lNwbFFA5TD -DB
Some progressives say a wealthy candidate can't be progressive because they take their own money to spend - but - it's progressive to take $25,000, $100,000, and $250,000 checks from wealthy, uh, 'friends' to spend. Got it. 🤔 #twill#NoStringsAttached
* Along those lines, Biss just reported $75K from Shook Hardy & Bacon attorney Gary Elden, bringing his total Biss contributions to $200,000. Elden’s firm has represented most of the big tobacco companies and some large pharmaceutical companies.
And Chris Kennedy just reported raising $84,500, with $50K of that coming from Florida-based SOLIC Capital Advisors.
* Rep. Scott Drury reported $100,000 this weekend from Steven Miller, a Chicago venture capitalist. Drury has only reported raising about $9K for his AG race since January 1 aside from that Miller contribution. Miller (no relation that I know of) has now contributed over $230K to Drury’s campaign. Drury entered the year with $732K in the bank.
* Former Gov. Pat Quinn just put $100K of his own money into his AG campaign. Quinn has raised $465K since the beginning of the year, which he started with $278K. Sen. Kwame Raoul has raised $984K since January 1 and started out with almost $1.1 million.
* Senate President John Cullerton just kicked in $55,400 to a Cook County Board candidate’s race. Why? The candidate is Angie Sandoval, the daughter of one of Cullerton’s members, Sen. Martin Sandoval. She’s also being backed by Sen. Tony Munoz.
* As you know, Democratic House candidate Lamont Robinson is vying against former Rep. Ken Dunkin and two others to replace Rep. Juliana Stratton (D-Chicago).
Robinson has now raised $453K this quarter, far outpacing everyone else. Much of that money is coming from Speaker Madigan-related entities. Rep. Marty Moylan just contributed $40K. Other than Dunkin (who, as subscribers know, is being whacked by Robinson hard in the mail and on TV), his closest competitor is Dilara Sayeed, who has raised just $37,000 since January 1.
* Related…
* Four men dominate the turf in Illinois’ political ‘playground of the rich’: A Chicago Sun-Times analysis found that more than 25 percent of the money contributed to Illinois political campaigns in the past two years has come from the pockets of four men: Republican Gov. Bruce Rauner, Democratic challenger J.B. Pritzker, Rauner supporter Kenneth Griffin and disgruntled, former Rauner supporter Richard Uihlein.
Government is complicated, it’s weird; it’s not business. I think the notion that just being successful in business means that you’ll be effective as a government leader is frankly absurd. I know the legislators, I know the legislature, I know the agencies, I’ve sat in many of the state agencies and had detailed conversations about specifics of what they’re supposed to be doing to improve their public service.
Coming into office and not knowing that stuff just makes you an empty shell, that could be filled by anybody else. And I think if we’ve learned anything about J.B. Pritzker during the course of this campaign, it’s that indeed he is an empty shell, and right now that empty shell is being filled by whatever Mike Madigan wants to put in it. And when he becomes governor, it would be that much worse. Where the already most powerful person in state government would then, for the first time since he became speaker in 1983, have the opportunity to himself to govern.
If we are concerned with the way state government has gone since 1983, if we think that the concentration of power is too great in the state of Illinois, if we think that the fabled political machine that has screwed so much stuff up over the course of these many decades, is too powerful, electing J.B. Pritzker governor is literally the worst thing we could possibly do.
So, Pritzker would be an empty shell that Madigan would completely fill? Whew. And electing Pritzker governor is “literally” the worse thing we could do, including, oh, I dunno, mass self-immolation?
Hey, the dude said “literally.”
* Speaking of harsh Madigan-related stuff, check out Gov. Bruce Rauner’s new attack ad against Rep. Jeanne Ives…
Democratic governor candidate Chris Kennedy on Friday night escalated his attacks on Speaker Michael Madigan, saying he would not want any of his daughters to intern in Springfield following disclosures of harassment in the Illinois House leader’s political operation.
“I have three daughters, one of them interned in Washington, D.C. I don’t think I’d encourage any of the three of them to intern in Springfield,” Kennedy said. “They might do that on their own. They’re, you know, very independent. But that’s not a place I’d want a family member and I can tell you that.”
Springfield has its problems and they’re serious, but DC isn’t exactly a harassment-free zone.
One day after not knowing the price of a monthly CTA pass — Biss turns that into a Pritzker attack.
“I learned that when JB Pritzker’s campaign spends $17,000 a day, to try to buy this nomination, they’re buying slightly over $1,600 monthly CTA passes.”
Kennedy, whose campaign donations are on the rise, looks to separate himself from Biss when asked about recruiting Amazon to Chicago.
“I wouldn’t give the sweetheart deals that Daniel Biss has voted for groups like sears or the mercantile exchange,” he said.
Zing.
* The candidates were asked what they’d say if Amazon CEO Jeff Bezos was in the audience…
Businessman Chris Kennedy agreed he’d prioritize the HQ2 pitch, but he said he’d first ask Bezos why the company hadn’t announced changes to its gun sales policy as other companies had in the wake of the Parkland, Florida shooting.
“I’d have that hard conversation with him, absolutely,” Kennedy said.
In fact, Amazon does prohibit “the listing or sale of all firearms,” according to its seller guidelines, though BB and pellet guns are offered.
