* Bruce Rauner is holding a press conference on education reform. Click here to read it. From the twitters…
‘’
* This one also caught my eye…
* I was told early this morning that Rauner would not be calling for the end of teacher tenure. Well, according to NPR, Florida’s law essentially ends tenure for all new hires and teachers who move to new districts..
Rating teacher performance. The law requires districts to rate teachers and administrators annually, according to a legislative analysis, with half of their score based on student Florida Comprehensive Assessment Test Performance over a three-year period.
How teachers are paid. New hires will no longer have to climb the decades-long seniority ladder to earn the highest salaries. Now, the highest-rated teachers can earn the top salaries just a few years out of college. Highly-rated teachers already working can opt out of the merit pay system — but if they switch districts they would be paid on their performance, according to a United Teachers of Dade Q & A. Teachers will also no longer be guaranteed additional pay for advanced degrees.
Job security. New hires will no longer enjoy long-term contracts, but instead must be rehired on an annual basis. Those already teaching are again exempted from the new law, but teachers who switch districts would then move to annual contracts.
*** UPDATE 1 *** From the IFT…
“Bruce Rauner’s blueprint reads like a Greatest Hits of failed education experiments that penalize good teachers instead of addressing the fact that Illinois schools are some of the worst funded in the nation,” said Dan Montgomery, President of the IFT and a high school English teacher for eighteen years.
“When it comes to what ails us, teacher tenure and merit pay are red herrings. There is no evidence that giving teachers due process negatively impacts student achievement, but research overwhelmingly shows the devastating effects of poverty and under funding schools. As a teacher, I saw firsthand the heartbreaking impact on a student when a parent lost a job or struggled to pay the bills.
“If Rauner was really interested in our students, he wouldn’t advocate eliminating the minimum wage.
“If Rauner was really interested in our students, he wouldn’t propose budget ideas that would cut billions out of public education resulting in teacher layoffs, larger class sizes, and higher property taxes.
“We want great teachers for all of our students, and if the goal is to improve education, we don’t need to pit teachers and parents against each other. We need the resources to make success possible.”
*** UPDATE 1 *** Paul Vallas…
“Bruce Rauner’s education blueprint includes a lot of promises, but predictably fails to pay for any of them. In reality, Rauner’s plan will put an additional one million dollars in his own pocket while laying off 1 in 6 teachers by blowing a $4 billion hole in Illinois’ education budget.
“This is reckless and irresponsible. The outcome of Rauner’s plan - larger classroom sizes, higher property taxes and cuts up and down the line to education - will represent disaster for our public schools.
“Education is for everyone - not just the elite.
“This is just another example of Mr. Rauner looking out for people like himself at the expense of the working families of Illinois.”
72 Comments  
|
* Click here for the A-1. That’ll get some city tongues wagging.
*** UPDATE *** Lewis says it’s a loan. Sun-Times…
“It’s a sign that I’m trying to raise money,” Lewis tells Early & Often. “People have to see that we’re trying to raise money now. We have to do all kinds of other things.”
That includes getting a campaign office to operate out of.
The money comes as petition circulators have begun their work on her behalf.
“We had petition training on Saturday. It was a big drive — 500 people showed up, it was amazing,” she said.
38 Comments
|
Checkbook campaigning
Monday, Sep 8, 2014 - Posted by Rich Miller
* Sun-Times…
Gubernatorial candidate Bruce Rauner drove his 1993 van to a South Side credit union on Friday where he made a $1 million deposit aimed at helping to provide small business loans for the African-American community.
Rauner spent about 10 minutes talking to the South Side Community Federal Credit Union’s president, before depositing the money via a wire transfer. Rauner said he contributed $200,000 as a donation to the institution, and deposited $800,000 into an interest-bearing account.
Rauner pledged his support to the credit union near 54th and Wentworth in July. […]
But the Republican multimillionaire told reporters that his decision to contribute to the credit union was not political. He called accusations he’s buying African-American votes by donating the money “baloney” and “political spin.”
* Yeah, right. This is all about making an investment. The Tribune blows up that notion pretty handily…
Rauner said he would be receiving interest on his $800,000 credit union deposit at a rate he said was “small” but did not specify. “We’ll get our money back with an interest return,” Rauner said.
While Rauner described his deposit as an investment, he acknowledged the credit union had a 25 percent default rate on its loans. Records of the National Credit Union Administration, the federal agency that monitors credit unions, showed that as of June 30, the organization managed $3 million in deposits for 1,550 members.
On its website, the credit union advertises personal, auto and business loans for its members, including payroll advance loans at an interest rate of 16 percent and payday alternative loans at interest rates of up to 28 percent.
Yikes.
* Meanwhile, Phil Kadner got a tip that Rauner was meeting with African-American ministers in Harvey the other day, but he arrived too late to hear what Rauner had to say…
Rauner said he would use his contacts in the business community to encourage them to create a program that would make more jobs available to ex-cons, [David Gethers, minister of St. Mark Missionary Baptist Church in Harvey] said. […]
[J.R.] Jordan and Gethers said Rauner also spoke about his interest in improving public education. They came away with the impression that Rauner, as governor, would increase school funding.
I asked if he said how he planned to do that. Rauner has said he would cut the state income tax, meaning Illinois would have less money for education, among other things.
I was told Rauner had implied that he might dip into his personal wealth to fund some programs.
“He would use his own money?” I asked.
“That’s what he said,” Jordan replied. “He said he had been investing his own money in education for years. He said one thing he would do is make sure every teacher in Illinois is certified, and he has funded programs in the past to make sure teachers are properly trained.’
…Adding… This explains a lot…
“As my wife will say all the time, I’m pretty cheap. I don’t like to spend money I don’t have to. I invest in assets. I’ve done very well with my investments,” said Rauner, an equity investor from Winnetka.
33 Comments
|
Callis goes on the attack
Monday, Sep 8, 2014 - Posted by Rich Miller
* Democratic congressional candidate Ann Callis has a new TV ad. Last week’s ad was positive. This one’s a negative, but it’s done in a humorous way.
UPDATE: Callis has now released the new ad on YouTube, so I deleted the other code from the NRCC video and added this one…
* Script…
(GENE, FARMER)
When I first heard that Congressman Rodney Davis had spent forty grand in D.C. steakhouses, I said “well done.”
(PETE, BUTCHER)
Me too. But then I found out Davis voted to chop Medicare…
(GENE, FARMER)
But not perks for himself, like first class flights, pensions, or healthcare for life.
(PETE, BUTCHER)
Hey, steak is great, Congressman, but it’s time to trim some fat in DC.
(GENE, FARMER)
Putting yourself ahead of the middle class is a load of bull.
Pretty good. We’ll see if it moves any needles.
* From the NRCC…
Ann Callis is up on TV with an ad attacking Rodney Davis. Callis must now realize that her friends at the DCCC aren’t coming in so she will have to do her own dirty work and go negative right out of the gate.
The problem with Callis’ new ad is that she attacks Rodney on first class travel and health care for life for members. Callis didn’t do her homework because Rodney actually voted to ban first class travel for members and also voted to end health care for life for members. See for yourself HERE.
Callis also didn’t mention the perks she will receive after retiring as a judge – both a pension and health care which are paid for by Illinois families. Seeing Callis doesn’t like elected officials receiving perks, will she refuse to accept her state pension and state health care for life?
NRCC Statement: “The latest attack ad from Ann Callis is dishonest and factually incorrect. Rodney Davis has voted to end congressional perks all while Ann Callis plans to collect a state pension and health care. The only one in this race who wants to milk Illinois families is Ann Callis and this latest attack ad is just plain bull.” – Katie Prill, NRCC Spokeswoman
13 Comments
|
* If you happen to be watching today’s Bears game, you may have just seen a new ad featuring Bruce Rauner and Mike Ditka. From a press release…
Bruce Rauner just launched a new television advertisement and digital campaign featuring Mike Ditka.
Visit www.DitkaTough.com to watch the ad and learn more.
The spot aired moments ago during the Chicago Bears regular season opener against the Buffalo Bills.
* If you weren’t watching, or were channel surfing during the commercial break, here it is…
That’s one of the best Ditka ads I’ve seen in a long while.
I’ll open comments on Monday.
* Crain’s ran a story not long ago about Ditka’s broad appeal…
Seventy-one percent of sports fans in the United States know who Mike Ditka is, according to New York-based Q Scores Co., which polls 2,000 fans ages 13 to 64 nationwide every six months. That makes him the second-most-recognizable sports figure with strong Chicago ties, behind only Michael Jordan (87 percent) and more prominent than Bears quarterback Jay Cutler (68 percent), former Bears linebacker Brian Urlacher (62 percent) and Bulls guard Derrick Rose (61 percent). […]
Mr. Ditka’s agent, Steve Mandell, declines to say how much his client pulls in, but industry experts peg his annual take at $2 million to $3 million. Messrs. Jordan and Rose likely are the only Chicago sports personalities who earn more each year from product deals. In the 32 years since he became the Bears’ head coach, Mr. Ditka, 74, has made far more than he earned playing or coaching and still commands up to $250,000 per national brand endorsement, according to media buyers who have worked with him. […]
Mr. Ditka’s reputation as a hard-nosed, working-class American also stretches across generations, says Stormy Simon, co-president of Salt Lake City-based Overstock.com, which used him and former Bears quarterback Jim McMahon in a series of ads in December. The coach, her research showed, even connected with kids born after Mr. Ditka’s coaching career ended.
“They didn’t know his success from football. They knew him as ‘Juice Box,’ “ she says, a reference to his character in the 2005 movie “Kicking & Screaming.” “He’s just this guy who keeps himself relevant in various ways.”
…Adding… Pearson…
Ditka, who has licensed his name for clothing, wine, Bloody Mary mix and sausages, was not paid for the spot, Rauner spokesman Mike Schrimpf said in an email.
…Adding More… From a Democratic strategist…
I can’t recall the last time I saw polling for Ditka, but I guarantee you he isn’t a strong mover with independent women in the suburbs. It’s a dumb strategy, just like most of the TV spending in that race.
…Adding Even More… The Sun-Times points out that Ditka can’t vote for Rauner because he’s been registered to vote in Florida since 2000. But…
Rauner campaign spokesman Mike Schrimpf told Early & Often that Ditka’s voting credentials shouldn’t be issue now since they weren’t four years ago – when Ditka endorsed Quinn over Republican Bill Brady and appeared in an ad for the Democratic governor.
“Pat Quinn certainly thought he was qualified in 2010,” Schrimpf said. […]
Quinn’s campaign publicly sidestepped slamming the revered former Bears coach for not being registered to vote in Illinois and endorsing Rauner.
“Only a billionaire with a $140,000 wine club membership could afford to run such expensive ads during the Bears game,” Quinn campaign spokeswoman Izabela Miltko said in a prepared statement.
“Not to mention, if Mr. Rauner is such a Bears fan, why’s he a part owner of the Pittsburgh Steelers?” she said.
The 2010 Ditka endorsement of Quinn is here.
92 Comments
|
* In case you’re keeping track, today’s $2 million contribution brings the Republican Governors Association’s tally to $6 million since the GOP primary.
* And, of course, the DGA was out with a quick response…
Money speaks for money and now that billionaire Bruce Rauner’s plans to eliminate the minimum wage are out-of-the-bag, it’s time to circle the wagons, and the wine casks. The people of Illinois are seeing through Rauner’s phony “everyman” act and no amount of money will hide the fact that his policies favor the super-rich at the expense of working families.
…Adding… More Friday news…
…Adding More…. That A-1 Rauner filed today included a $1.5 million contribution to himself.
…Adding Still More… Just two weeks ago, Rauner’s campaign was pushing about 500 ratings points a week in Chicago. I’m told by one source that he’s now up to 1,596 points in the city, but told by another that it’s more than that.
Comments Off
|
The attacks may be working
Friday, Sep 5, 2014 - Posted by Rich Miller
* ABC7 Chicago, January 8, 2014…
“Anyone who wants to see more people going back to work should support lowering the minimum wage,” John Tilman, Illinois Policy Institute, said.
* Now, compare that tone to ABC7 Chicago’s report yesterday…
At the Conservative Illinois Policy Institute to which Rauner is a major contributor, Ted Dabrowski said raising the minimum wage does not address the state’s real problem.
“What’s the best way to help those who can’t get jobs? And what’s the best way to create jobs rather than be talking about the minimum wage per se?” Dabrowski said.
…Adding… From John Tillman…
Hi, Rich,
Hope you had a good summer. To be clear, our position has not changed on min wage. The more recent comments were in context of Rauner’s blueprint release, not an alteration of our position.
See link for our position - same as it has always been.
http://www.illinoispolicy.org/analysis-of-gop-gubernatorial-candidate-bruce-rauners-bring-back-blueprint/
John
I never said the position changed, just the tone.
25 Comments
|
* From the Bruce Rauner campaign earlier this morning…
Day 8: No Quinn Response on Illegal Hires
It’s been more than a week since Pat Quinn began dodging questions about dozens of illegally hired patronage cronies who remain in state jobs. These are the same illegal hires that denied hard-working Illinoisans – especially our veterans – the opportunity to compete for state jobs.
Who is Pat Quinn protecting? Why are dozens of illegally hired cronies still working in the Quinn administration?
* The campaign also pointed to this News-Gazette editorial…
Republican gubernatorial candidate Bruce Rauner has challenged Quinn’s enthusiasm for correcting the abuses that occurred during his tenure as well as that of his predecessor Rod Blagojevich. Rauner says “dozens” who were hired illegally remain on the IDOT payroll in contravention of Quinn’s order to clean house, suggesting that those with more clout were protected while those with less were sacrificed for public relations purposes. […]
Gov. Quinn has admitted that what occurred on his watch was inappropriate and pledged to put an end to the wrongdoing. If he does not follow through on his promise [to clean house], the damage to his credibility will be significant.
* The governor was pressed again on the matter today…
Obviously, he knows there are still “tainted” folks on the IDOT payroll. It’s a dodge, but it buys him some time.
*** UPDATE *** Rauner campaign…
Quinn Doesn’t Deny Illegal Hires Still at IDOT
“While Pat Quinn is unwilling to fire his illegal patronage hires, Illinois voters will get a chance to fire Pat Quinn in November.” – Rauner spokesperson Mike Schrimpf
Earlier this morning, Pat Quinn was confronted about dozens of illegally hired patronage cronies who remain in state jobs. Despite dancing around a series of questions, Quinn never denied the facts. Instead, he said he would ask his new transportation secretary to “review it.”
Review it? Pat Quinn told the people of Illinois he had already reviewed it and led the people of Illinois to believe that he took decisive action.
17 Comments
|
* Natasha Korecki…
Republican gubernatorial candidate Bruce Rauner, under the gun this week for admitting he belongs to an exclusive wine club that costs upward of $100,000 to join after portraying himself as the frugal $18 watch wearer, had a new everyday Joe ad teed up.
In this one, Rauner talks about his “trashcan van,” which he says he’s owned for 20 years — with “almost 200,000 miles.”
“I’ll live in Springfield, sell that state plane and drive my van to work because the Capital needs a good trash can,” Rauner says in the ad, chiding Gov. Pat Quinn for using a state plane to fly to Springfield.
* The ad…
* DGA response…
This is from the phony with a $100,000 extra parking spot. The ad is as insulting as it is incredulous. Voters beware.
*** UPDATE *** Quinn campaign…
“Mr. Rauner’s attempt to deceive voters into not thinking that he’s an out of touch billionaire with 9 homes and a $140,000+ wine club membership is offensive. But it’s not as offensive as the fact that his policies always benefit the very wealthy at the expense of the rest of us, whether it’s his heartless belief that the minimum wage should be eliminated or his plan to tax consumption of food and medicine. We don’t think voters will be fooled.”
Food and medicine taxes? A new front against Rauner appears to be opening.
*** UPDATE 2 *** The Rauner campaign responds to the food and medicine tax allegation…
This is a lie. Bruce’s growth plan only modernizes how we treat services - not goods like food and medicine. And in fact, Bruce explicitly said that he would exempt “medical services” and “day-to-day items like Laundromats, day care centers, barber shops and animal care.”
123 Comments
|
* During a hearing in Springfield today, Sangamon County Judge John Belz said the pension reform case should be fast-tracked because of the Supreme Court’s decision that government employee health insurance premiums were protected by the state Constitution and couldn’t be raised. Kurt Erickson has details…
Belz told attorneys gathered for a hearing Thursday that the court’s decision in the health insurance case was like “an elephant in the room.”
“I can’t stick my head in sand and act like it isn’t there,” Belz said. […]
“As fast as we can move it along within reason the better,” Belz said.
“This can be wrapped up by the end of this year,” said attorney John Fitzgerald, who represents a group of retired teachers.
…Adding… From We Are One Illinois…
“Our members had an encouraging day in court, and we’re hopeful that this will be resolved soon in our favor. The Kanerva decision confirmed our long held belief that the pension protection clause of the constitution is absolute and without exception.”
48 Comments
|
* I really like the visual quality of Bobby Schilling’s new TV ad…
* Script…
Bobby Schilling: “I know these roads—lived here my whole life. I know our people, our places, and our perseverance. I know our struggles—and our successes. This is my home. This is where Christie and I are raising our 10 kids. It’s where I started our family restaurant. I know first-hand how Washington makes it hard for families and workers, and I want to stop it. I’m Bobby Schilling, and I approve this message because I know we’re all on this road together.”
*** UPDATE *** From the Cheri Bustos campaign…
“Bobby Schilling’s first ad is a blatant attempt to hide the ‘Real Bobby Schilling’s’ record of putting the Tea Party first and Illinois middle class families last. In Congress, Schilling voted to protect tax breaks for corporations that ship jobs overseas, to end the Medicare guarantee for seniors and walked out of a public meeting with workers whose jobs were shipped to China. Now he’s making a six figure salary working for one of his campaign contributors helping wealthy Chinese businessmen game the immigration system. If this is what he means by ‘leading by example’ Illinois working families will reject him once again this November.”
32 Comments
|
* Cumulus, which owns several Chicago radio stations including WLS, has decided to no longer air a radio ad paid for by the New Prosperity Foundation which targeted Democratic Congressman Brad Schneider. We discussed the group’s two radio ads yesterday. The offending line was this…
Finally, last month, after promising to release his tax returns, Schneider offered the public only a one-page summary that hides his wealth and then barred reporters from obtaining the actual return, like nearly every other member of Congress does.”
* But the Schneider campaign pointed to several media stories like this one…
Both U.S. Rep. Brad Schneider (D-10th) and his Republican opponent, former U.S. Rep. Robert Dold, have released their 2013 tax returns to the Journal & Topics Newspapers.
So, the ad came down, but you can still listen to it here if you want…
No response yet from the New Prosperity Foundation.
…Adding… From Staci McCabe at the Schneider campaign…
“This false ad goes down as just another example of Republicans willing to say anything to elect their reliable Republican ally Bob Dold.”
12 Comments
|
Insidery campaign stuff
Thursday, Sep 4, 2014 - Posted by Rich Miller
* Greg Hinz takes a look at Gov. Quinn’s field operation…
Meet Nellie Sires, a “proud resident of Rogers Park since 2004″ — and the field director of Mr. Quinn’s re-election campaign. Over the next two months, her job is to ignore the daily back and forth of the brawl with GOP nominee Bruce Rauner and, using the latest analytics and tracking methods, identify millions of Quinn fans and potential Quinn fans and get them to the polls. […]
Over coffee, she told me that Mr. Quinn hopes to replicate much of the neighbor-on-neighbor style of organizing that Barack Obama used so successfully in 2008 and 2012.
The model depends on first using the state’s database of roughly 7.3 million registered voters and then figuring out which ones are most open to Mr. Quinn’s message.
To do so, the campaign is employing a variety of high and low tech, everything from working closely with Chicago political leaders, especially in African-American wards, and hiring a Chicago- and Washington-based “big data” company, Civis Analytics, which built the Quinn campaign’s model.
* Meanwhile, WBEZ has been running a series of stories about political types who are rarely profiled. From the station’s opposition research piece…
“You don’t win races by just telling people what a wonderful person you are,” said Dennis Gragert, a veteran Democratic opposition researcher based in Chicago.
Gragert and several other opposition researchers say they abide by the rules and ethics of what’s fair game. Most important, they say attacks against a candidate must be verifiably true, and they can’t be too personal or you could face a backlash, like with the hairdresser ad. Every oppo researcher contacted for this story said they had turned down work that required them to dig up information about an opponent they thought was too personal.
All in all, the opposition researchers who spoke with WBEZ say they sleep just fine at night, because all those negative ads actually work, even if voters say they hate them.
Still, even Gragert does betray a moment of empathy.
“Sometimes I think about, if that was me on the other end, would I like that?” he said. “All right, that’s not for me to like, it is - it is reality. It’s not something where you say, well that shouldn’t be the case. That is the case.”
* Voice-over artists…
“When you’re doing voice-over work, it’s almost as though you have no life, when you’re doing political campaigns,” said Wanda Christine Hudson, who has been doing voice-over work for more than four decades.
Wanda Christine - as she’s known professionally - says working campaigns is a lot different than her usual commercial or video game voice-over gigs: Political season means abruptly cancelled lunch plans, sleeping by your phone and voicing ads in the dead of night.
* Pollsters…
“Good pollsters don’t tell a candidate what to say,” McGrath said. “The political graveyard is scattered with failed candidates who try to be something they weren’t. And it’s not in our interest to use a poll to tell somebody to be something they’re not.”
McGrath says voters can sense when candidates are faking it. And dishonesty doesn’t poll very well.
I know you’re busy, but all of the above pieces are worth a full read.
…Adding… A few more stories from Campaigns & Elections…
* Is Twitter ruining young press operatives?: Far too often, operatives are lured into snarky back-and-forth Twitter duels that seem all-important and exciting, but fail the most basic test of campaigns. How does this get me votes? If it doesn’t get you votes, it doesn’t matter.
* Searching through the attack ads: When campaigns deluge television viewers with an inescapable 30-second ad, campaigns usually see a subsequent spike in searches online concerning that message. Research conducted in 2012 found that 64 percent of persuadable voters had used a search engine to fact-check claims made by political candidates.
* 5 essential practices for reaching inboxes
7 Comments
|
* From the twitters…
* Rauner campaign response…
“We didn’t know a person’s income level was a qualification for office. Pat Quinn thinks only corrupt career politicians who have screwed up Springfield for decades are qualified to lead our state. The people of Illinois know better than that.” - Rauner spokesperson Mike Schrimpf
* The Question: On a scale of one to four, with four being the best, please rate the Rauner campaign response. Take the poll and then explain your answer in comments, please.
survey services
*** UPDATE *** Vallas has walked back his comment…
Later, Vallas sought to clarify his comments, telling the Tribune in an interview that it was not Rauner’s wealth that should disqualify him as governor but that “his wealth informs his policies.”
“Whether it’s his promising to eliminate the minimum wage, or taxing consumption, or slashing funding for public schools, it’s clear who Bruce Rauner benefits in his policies,” Vallas said. “It’s that his wealth and his experiences seem to be driving and seem to be informing his policies.”
“My problem isn’t the wealth, my problem is that his policies are being driven by his wealth and driven by his private business practices. That’s my fundamental problem with Bruce Rauner and the approach he is taking and it’s in stark contrast with what drives Pat Quinn.”
77 Comments
|
* The DCCC is using clips from the infamous video of Rep. Mike Blost blowing up on the House floor against him. Pretty effective, if you ask me…
* Script…
Bost: These damn bills that come out of here all the damn time…
Announcer: Mike Bost keeps melting down in Springfield
Bost: … you should be ashamed of yourselves. I’m sick of it.
Announcer: Now Bost wants to be in Congress.
Bost: Enough! I feel like somebody trying to be released from Egypt. Let my people go!
Announcer: He’d make Washington … worse.
*** UPDATE *** RNCC response…
Nancy Pelosi’s campaign arm, the DCCC, is up on TV today with a new ad highlighting Mike Bost’s dedicated service to his constituents. As most Southern Illinois families know, Springfield is a disaster and under the Quinn-Madigan machine, folks are suffering. Thankfully, Mike Bost has been a leader in Springfield and has stood up to the Democratic cronies who try to push large tax hikes and bills that are bad for the state through with zero transparency.
Bost said enough is enough. Hopefully the DCCC will continue to run these ads which highlight Bost’s dedication and hard work.
NRCC Statement: “You can tell this TV ad was made by folks in DC who are out-of-touch with what’s really happening in Southern Illinois. While Nancy Pelosi may think Mike Bost’s dedicated service is strange, the families that have continued to vote for him throughout the years appreciate his passion and efforts to keep Pat Quinn’s toxic agenda out of Southern Illinois.” – Katie Prill, NRCC Spokeswoman
61 Comments
|
* Just imagine the TV ad this’ll inspire…
In a newly unearthed radio interview, Republican private equity investor Bruce Rauner admitted earlier this year that he once favored the outright elimination of Illinois’ minimum wage. […]
While acknowledging that he once supported an elimination of the minimum wage, Rauner said later in that Jan. 10, 2014, interview on Bloomington-based WJBC-AM that either ending or reducing the state’s minimum wage to the lower national standard, as he advocated during a candidates’ forum in the Quad Cities last December, was ill-advised on his part.
“I have said, on a number of occasions, that we could have a lower minimum wage or no minimum wage as part of increasing Illinois’ competitiveness. I’ve said that many times,”
“It’s a mistake for me to focus on lowering the minimum wage or eliminating it because there are better ways to increase Illinois’ competitiveness,” Rauner said at the time.
Yeah, he claimed his earlier position was a “mistake,” but he said what he said and it’s now fair game.
* I was out with a totally non-political friend last night who makes the minimum wage caring for the developmentally disabled at a central Illinois group home. I received a text from the governor’s campaign about the story and read Rauner’s quote aloud.
It didn’t go over well. At all. The first thing my friend said was, “That’s just great, I’m getting a pay cut.”
* Raw audio. Start listening at about the one-minute point…
*** UPDATE 1 *** From the DGA…
“This is the most revealing moment of Bruce Rauner’s candidacy. Throughout this campaign he has been a master of disguise - veiling his elitist and exploitative philosophies with flannel shirts and a cheap watch. But Rauner can’t hide from his own damning advocacy against real people living from paycheck to paycheck. By supporting the elimination of the minimum wage, Bruce Rauner has distinguished himself as the most dangerous candidate that Illinois’ working families have ever seen.”
From the Quinn campaign…
“We’re not surprised to learn that Republican billionaire Bruce Rauner advocated to eliminate the minimum wage this year.
“This is his real position, the one he’s trying to hide from voters to get elected.
“While Mr. Rauner originally said his comment about cutting the minimum wage was ‘flippant,’ this little-noticed audio clip proves otherwise. This is the real Bruce Rauner and this is what he truly believes.
“Whether he’s dropping $140,000 on a luxury wine membership or pushing to eliminate the minimum wage, Bruce Rauner is the most out-of-touch candidate for Governor in Illinois history.”
No major-party gubernatorial candidate in modern Illinois history has openly advocated for eliminating the minimum wage. Bruce Rauner is an out-of-touch Republican billionaire who got rich at the expense of the rest of us. His plan for Illinois would benefit the very wealthy like him while hurting working people. Bruce Rauner isn’t looking out for us.
*** UPDATE 2 *** Illinois Freedom PAC…
Rauner Again Caught Lying About Minimum Wage Position
Chicago, IL - This morning the Chicago Sun Times reports on billionaire Bruce Rauner’s admission he has advocated for eliminating the minimum wage on multiple occasions. Rauner made the admission during a January 10th radio interview with WBJC and also said he’d advocated for lowering the minimum wage. From today’s Sun Times …
“I have said, on a number of occasions, that we could have a lower minimum wage or no minimum wage as part of increasing Illinois’ competitiveness. I’ve said that many times,” Rauner told WJBC host Scott Laughlin.
However, he told the Chicago Sun Times at the very same time that he’d never called for cutting the minimum wage. From the January Sun Times piece…
“I never said that. I said we should tie the minimum wage in Illinois to the national minimum wage. I didn’t use numbers. I didn’t use $7.25. I didn’t say any of that,” Rauner said.
“Billionaire Bruce Rauner has been exposed once again for his blatant, repeated falsehoods and his disdain for hard working families,” said Neal Waltmire, Communications Director for Illinois Freedom PAC.
Rauner has been caught giving false and misleading statements when it comes to his budget, his outsourcing record, his Cayman Islands accounts, and the clout scandal involving his daughter’s admission to an elite public school.
*** UPDATE 3 *** IFT President Dan Montgomery…
“The more voters learn about the Real Rauner, the less we like,” said Dan Montgomery, President of the IFT and a high school English teacher of nearly 20 years. “The news that Bruce Rauner favors eliminating the minimum wage is appalling and demonstrates how completely out of touch the billionaire is with working families. He talks a good game in his empty TV commercials, but Bruce Rauner owes Illinois voters a real explanation for this extreme position and his fairy tale budget proposal, which would blow an $8-billion dollar hole in the state budget and force larger class sizes and devastating cuts to our public schools. Illinois families deserve better.”
91 Comments
|
|
Support CapitolFax.com
Visit our advertisers...
...............
...............
...............
...............
...............
...............
...............
|
   
|
Hosted by MCS
SUBSCRIBE to Capitol Fax
Advertise Here
Mobile Version
Contact Rich Miller
|
