Illinois Senate Republican leader Bill Brady said Sunday that voters are seeing state elections as being separate from a national referendum on President Donald Trump.
“What I see happening are people realizing that this is not a national agenda. There’s no question that the national scene and some of the president’s tweets and other things go south on people even though I think he’s done much in terms of policy,” Brady said on WGN AM-720.
“But as people realize this isn’t a national election, it’s a state election about the future of Illinois and it’s about whether or not you want to give control and another (redrawn legislative boundary) map to (House Speaker) Mike Madigan and (Senate President) John Cullerton, they realize how important this is,” he said.
The Bloomington Republican said he is seeing renewed enthusiasm among GOP voters, particularly among core social conservatives who have been divided over Republican Gov. Bruce Rauner’s tenure and his support of laws expanding abortion, immigration and gay rights.
But, hey, Billy might be right. Who knows anymore?
* Related…
* Rauner falsely claims graduated income taxes always hurt the middle class: Rauner said that in “every state that has put in a graduated income tax, the middle class always pays more.” But 11 of the 32 states that tax income at graduated rates would tax an individual earning the national median at lower rates than Illinois. In some of those states, the rate would be significantly lower. What’s more, tax rates tell only part of the story. Many states, including some with much higher rates, also offer taxpayers generous exemptions and deductions, significantly reducing their actual tax burden.
* Rogue billionaires are giving the GOP and Democrats a migraine: In Illinois, where Uihlein resides, he backed state Rep. Jeanne Ives to the tune of $2.5 million as she challenged GOP Gov. Bruce Rauner in the primary. Rauner survived, but is considered to be one the most vulnerable governors running for re-election this fall.
I watched a couple of football games Sunday (ugh, those Bears will kill me one day) and I saw the new Pritzker ad four times, but I only saw the original Rauner spot once and have yet to see the RGA’s ad.
Anyway, what do you think of the ad?
…Adding… I suppose it’s what definition you have for “propose,” but I disagree with this take from the Rauner campaign…
Hey, Rich-
Actually, Pritzker did propose a VMT, emphasis added:
Charging gas taxes based on how many miles people drive instead of how much fuel they burn could pump up revenues to help fix Illinois’ roads and bridges, Democratic candidate for governor J.B. Pritzker told the Daily Herald editorial board.
Called a vehicle miles traveled or VMT tax, it’s an idea worth exploring, the billionaire Hyatt hotel heir said in a Thursday interview where he also pushed for a graduated income tax, but gave few specifics.
…
“In some states (such as Oregon) they have done tests recently for a VMT tax because we have more and more electric cars on the road, more and more hybrids, and because gas mileage is rising. It’s only fair if you’re on a road and traveling on that road that you should pay your fair share,” he said.
A VMT tax “is something we should look at … we have to careful how it gets implemented and that’s why it should only be a test at this point.”
* Looks like a tracker is gonna win a bonus. JB Pritzker and Speaker Madigan had always studiously managed to avoid appearing in the same photograph with each other, but check this out from a weekend event…
Not exactly embracing each other, but it’s something.
Sam McCann Introduces Bill to Repeal HB40, Ending Taxpayer-Funded Abortions
SPRINGFIELD, IL – Friday, Conservative Party gubernatorial candidate Sam McCann filed legislation to overturn House Bill 40, a law signed by Governor Rauner earlier this year that allows public funds to be used for abortions. McCann’s Bill would restrict public funding of abortions and return provisions that would bring Illinois in line with federal law in the event that Roe v. Wade is overturned.
McCann issued the following statement:
I am taking action on behalf of conservative families in Illinois to send HB40 to the trash heap, where it belongs. This abominable law is not only immoral, but fiscally reckless, and Illinois can afford neither at this critical time.
After years of failed efforts to address Illinois’ financial crisis, Governor Rauner diverted badly-needed tax dollars to fund the expansion of abortion coverage across Illinois. This law forced taxpayers not only to accept the continued deaths of thousands of innocent babies, but to finance them as well.
I am hereby calling for colleagues in both parties to support this effort to protect innocent life and end forced public funding for abortions.
* Meanwhile, a letter to the editor from a 27-year-old small business owner supporting McCann has made it into two newspapers so far. The gist…
1. He is the only pro-life candidate running for governor (Gov. Bruce Rauner stabbed conservatives in the back when he signed a bill that allowed taxpayer money to fund abortions). J.B. Pritzker and Kash Jackson support the same abortion policies.
2. Sen. McCann is strongly against Gov. Rauner’s transgender birth certificate policy. J.B. Pritzker would also support transgender policies like this. Policies like this endanger children. Sen. McCann will protect children from dangerous transgender policies.
3. Sen. McCann is strong for the Second Amendment.
4. Sen. McCann is against Gov. Rauner’s sanctuary state policy.
“Unlike Bruce Rauner who waffled on HB 40 and supports a Supreme Court nominee who could overturn Roe v. Wade, JB Pritzker has always stood up for a woman’s right to choose and will fiercely defend that right as governor,” said Pritzker campaign communications director Galia Slayen. “JB opposes this draconian rollback of reproductive rights and would veto an HB 40 repeal if it reached his desk — but the question remains: will Rauner join him or will this failed governor abandon Illinois women once again?”
*** UPDATE 2 *** Now comes Raoul…
Kwame Raoul, Democratic candidate for attorney general, opposes legislation that state Senator Sam McCann introduced last week to reverse the protections in House Bill 40, raising the question of whether Republican attorney general candidate Erika Harold supports his move. HB 40 protects a woman’s right to choose and access healthcare even if Roe v. Wade is overturned.
“We simply can’t trust Erika Harold to defend a woman’s right to choose,” said Aviva Bowen, spokesperson for Raoul. “While she tells voters she’ll ‘enforce the law,’ her anti-choice allies, like Sam McCann and Peter Breen, are working hard to repeal a critically important law protecting women and their access to reproductive healthcare. Voters deserve to know; does Erika stand with McCann or would she actually defend HB 40 in court?”
Harold opposes abortion, even in cases of rape and incest. Last month, state Representative Peter Breen, the ringleader of opposition to HB 40 who even filed a lawsuit to try to block it, hosted a fundraiser featuring Harold.
* [Adding: WBEZ actually had this scoop, so I’ve changed the lead-in]Bill Ruthhart …
Cook County Board President Toni Preckwinkle will hold an event Monday to announce she is creating a campaign committee to explore a possible run for Chicago mayor, sources familiar with her plans confirmed.
Preckwinkle has spent the last two days calling community members and potential campaign donors and asking them to stand with her at the planned news conference, which would come less than a week after Mayor Rahm Emanuel announced he would not seek a third term, the sources said. By launching a political fund and speaking publicly about a possible bid, Preckwinkle’s moves would represent the strongest signs yet of any new candidate contemplating an entry into the already crowded mayoral field.
There are close to 40 names being batted about, but it’s Preckwinkle “who can put the fear of God in people” and keep others out of the race, as one strategist put it.
The Cook County board president has the broad support from African Americans, labor unions and donors. State Comptroller Susana Mendoza and Congressmen Luis Gutierrez and Mike Quigley have similar appeal. But Preckwinkle’s decision will likely determine how the next phase of the race plays out.
During an interview Thursday with WLS-AM reporter Bill Cameron, Emanuel said higher-profile candidates are kicking the tires on getting into the race because they must not think much of the current 12-person field.
“I don’t want to play analyst, but since you asked, I’ll play analyst. Ow, my hands behind my back, ow, ow, ow, ow,” the inveterately political Emanuel said. “OK, here it is, so, look, if other candidates, just take Toni Preckwinkle, Bill Daley or Susana Mendoza, are thinking about this, it means they don’t think the other ones, who’ve been at this for five months, are a roadblock.
“They’re not — either on financial or intellectual or policy ideas – they have not created such an important speed bump to anybody else, at this point, getting in,” he said. “So that’s why I think we don’t know yet.”
Asked whether he was endorsing the possible candidacies of those three in particular, Emanuel added outgoing U.S. Rep. Luis Gutierrez to the mix.
Thousands of workers at downtown hotels went on strike Friday morning.
Workers walked out at about 5 a.m. The workers include housekeepers, servers, cooks and doormen.
“Hopefully it’s going to be difficult,” said Carolina Sanchez, a Hyatt Regency banquet server. “Hopefully the managers have to do our jobs so they know how it feels.”
Jessica Ramos has been a housekeeper for the Hyatt Regency Hotel along Wacker Drive for five years. The mother of four is fighting alongside her colleagues demanding year round health care.
* The Pritzker family owns the Hyatt, of course, so I asked the JB Pritzker campaign for a response…
JB stands with the labor movement across Illinois in the fight for better wages, benefits, and working conditions. While JB has never had a management or leadership role in Hyatt, he hopes all parties will negotiate in good faith and that a fair contract can be reached as soon as possible. As governor, JB will work to put Springfield back on the side of working families and will always defend the rights of working people to come together and demand a better future.
Hyatt has a long history of strong relations with the unions that represent its colleagues. Hyatt and UNITE HERE have already come to successful agreements this year in other markets, and we will continue negotiating in good faith in Chicago.
Union members voted on Aug. 15 to authorize a strike anytime after the end of the month, when their contracts expired. A total of 3,218 members, or 97 percent of those who participated, voted to allow the negotiating committee to call for a citywide strike, according to the union’s Twitter page.
Negotiations were scheduled to continue throughout September, according to a statement Friday morning from Hyatt’s Vice President of Labor Relations, Michael D’Angelo.
“We just completed our second negotiation meeting with Local 1 last week, where the union provided multiple proposals for the first time and indicated more will be forthcoming,” D’Angelo said. “Colleague benefits and wages remain unchanged as we negotiate a new agreement.”
Collective bargaining agreements at 30 hotels expired Aug. 31, and the union began threatening a strike weeks beforehand. Each hotel brand negotiates separately with the union.
Among workers’ demands, according to the union, are reasonable workloads, wages that keep up with the cost of raising a family and year-round health care.
“Hotels may slow down in the wintertime, but I still need my diabetes medication when I’m laid off,” Q. Rivers, a house attendant at the Palmer House Hilton, said in a union news release announcing the strike. “Nobody should lose their health benefits just because it’s cold out.”
Several hotels, including the Hyatt and Kimpton chains, have said contingency plans were in place in the event of a strike so service at hotels would not be disrupted.
The full list of hotels that have been struck and a list of those which could be in the near future are on the union’s strike website. Workers at the Park Hyatt Chicago have not yet walked out, but could.
…Adding… Oppo over the transom…
This “Super-Voting” Stock Allowed The Pritzkers To Maintain Control Over Hyatt Even If Their Ownership Of The Company’s Outstanding Shares Fell Below 50%.“Hyatt Hotels Corp. is likely to see “outsized profit growth” over the next decade, but the Pritzker family’s tightfisted control over the underachieving hotel chain should make investors wary of its initial public offering, a prominent real estate stock research firm said Wednesday. The proposed IPO could raise about $1 billion for Chicago-based Hyatt, the crown jewel of the billionaire family. Pritzker family trusts plan to sell 38 million shares for as much as $26 apiece, according to a filing last week with the Securities and Exchange Commission. But the family plans to retain its grip on the company through so-called “super-voting” stock, which would allow the Pritzkers to outvote other common shareholders even if the family’s stake falls to nearly 15%.” (Thomas Corfman, “Hyatt’s Corporate Structure Criticized In Report,” Crain’s Chicago Business, 10/29/2009)
JB Pritzker Agreed To Vote His Super Shares In Line With The Recommendations Of Hyatt’s Board Of Directors. “Until the later to occur of (i) January 1, 2015 and (ii) that date upon which more than 75% of the FD Stock is owned by Persons other than Pritzkers and Foreign Pritzkers, all Pritzkers (and their successors in interest, if applicable), but not the transferees by sale (other than Pritzkers or Foreign Pritzkers who purchase directly from other Pritzkers or Foreign Pritzkers) or by, or following, foreclosures as aforesaid, will vote all of their voting securities of Hyatt (and successor Companies) consistent with the recommendations of the board of directors of Hyatt with respect to all matters (assuming agreement as to any such matter by a majority of a minimum of three Independent directors or, in the case of transactions involving Hyatt and an Affiliate thereof, assuming agreement of all of such minimum of three Independent directors). All Pritzkers will cast and submit by proxy to Hyatt their votes in a manner consistent with this Section 3.1(c) at least five business days prior to the scheduled date of the Annual or Special Meeting of stockholders of Hyatt, as applicable.” (“Amended and Restated Global Hyatt Agreement,” Hyatt Hotels Corporation, 10/1/2009)
*** UPDATE *** Look who showed up at the Hyatt Regency…
A new poll by NYT/Siena shows Brendan Kelly, candidate for Illinois’s 12th District, trailing Mike Bost by a single point, 43 to 44 percent.
In a district where Donald Trump won in 2016, the one percent difference highlights Brendan’s–and the entire Kelly Coalition’s–incredible energy and momentum. Hundreds of people across 12 counties spend thousands of hours every week to restore faith and save Southern Illinois.
Kelly’s campaign today released their fourth ad of the cycle: “Chance.” The ad focuses on Mike Bost’s 35 years in public office and his wrong votes to scrap healthcare for 38,000 Southern Illinoisans, charge older Americans a massive age tax, cut protections for people with pre-existing conditions, and raise costs in Southern Illinois. The ad also notes Bost’s inability to stand up to Big Pharma or protect Medicare. As Brendan says in the ad: “It’s time for Southern Illinois to have a chance.”
This district was drawn for the Democrats, but the party hasn’t fielded a really good candidate since Jerry Costello retired. And Mike Bost fits that district. It was the same when Mike was in the Illinois House. The HDems tried and tried to beat Bost and couldn’t do it. Kelly, from what I can tell, is a good candidate and seems to fit the district well. We’ll see soon enough.
My opponent has been in office since I was eight years old.
He’s had a chance to fix our healthcare. But he didn’t. Instead, he voted to charge older Americans a massive age tax, to cut protections for people with pre-existing conditions, and to raise costs in Southern Illinois.
He had a chance to stand up to Big Pharma and to protect Medicare. But he didn’t.
I’m Brendan Kelly, and I approve this message because it’s time for Southern Illinois to have a chance.
…Adding… After talking it over with a friend, I’m changing my mind a bit. She pointed out that his spot follows DCCC guidelines of not saying his opponent’s name, which, she said, “I don’t get.” Good point. I’d bet that his name ID isn’t high enough for people to automatically know who he’s running against.
*** UPDATE *** Bost campaign…
After claiming he wants to change the tone in politics, Brendan Kelly has just taken the 12th District race into the gutter with a new attack ad right out of the playbook of Mike Madigan and Nancy Pelosi. In the 30-second television spot, Kelly lies about Bost’s record on health care in an effort to distract from the thousands of dollars he’s taken from allies fighting for socialized medicine.
So, let’s correct the record:
Claim: Mike Bost “voted to charge older Americans a massive age tax…”
Reality: Obamacare created an arbitrary “age-rating” regulation that increased premiums for patients of all ages. Mike Bost supported reforms that reflected realistic costs in coverage to help lower premiums and improve access for patients purchasing health care in the individual market. These reforms would encourage more young enrollees to purchase coverage and improve the market for everyone.
Claim: voted to “cut protections for people with pre-existing conditions…”
Reality: During last year’s debate on repealing Obamacare, Mike Bost made clear that those with pre-existing conditions should continue to receive coverage. Bost voted for an amendment which ensured that patients could not be denied coverage because of a pre-existing condition.
Claim: voted to “raise costs in Southern Illinois… ”
Reality: Nancy Pelosi and Washington Democrats promised that Obamacare would lower premiums and increase health care access. Instead, Obamacare resulted in many counties in Illinois’ 12th Congressional District having only one option for insurance, and that plan’s premiums skyrocketed by 70 percent in a single year.
* NBC News updates us on what Illinois has done since 2016, when Russian hackers stole data on 76,000 voters…
From a strip mall office here in the state’s capital, [Steve Sandvoss, executive director of the Illinois State Board of Elections] and his team are coordinating staff training in more than 10,000 voting precincts on how to implement a new Cyber Navigation Program meant to strengthen defenses, including a multistate information sharing program.
Illinois Board of Elections IT Director Matt Emmons also said cooperation between the FBI and the Department of Homeland Security and his state has improved greatly since the last federal election.
“Nobody in this job would ever give you a 100 percent guarantee about anything,” said Emmons, “but I will tell you we are in a much better position that we were in 2016 — both internally, and I believe, as a country.”
Right now, however, only about 25 percent of the state’s more than 100 voting districts and 10,000 precincts are fully signed on to the Cyber Navigation Program, according to Emmons.
Will it be 100 percent by the election?
“Well, that’s our goal,” said Emmons.
Election day is just eight weeks from this coming Tuesday.
*** UPDATE *** From Matt Dietrich at the state board…
Rich – a couple points about your post on the NBC Nightly News segment on cybersecurity here. While the written story that accompanies the video attributes the 25 percent participation figure to our IT director, the quote actually came from Executive Director Steve Sandvoss in the interview (at the 2:28 mark) and was not a reference to participation in the Cyber Navigator Program. It was in answer to a question of how many local jurisdictions at that time had signed up to get notices from the Multi-State Information Sharing Program (MS-ISAC). Participation in MS-ISAC will be one of the requirements for Cyber Navigator Program members but we had already begun encouraging local election authorities to participate in it (and in EI-ISAC, the Elections Infrastructure Information Sharing Program) even before the Cyber Navigator Program was established in the state budget.
Second, that interview was done here on Aug. 1, the day we held the second public hearing on the Cyber Navigator Program to establish the rules of the program for forwarding to JCAR. We are now working with DoIT to complete the hiring of the nine Cyber Navigators who will go to the local election authorities to conduct risk assessments. Once the program is fully formed, we will begin signing local authorities onto it. We have been in contact with the local jurisdictions to encourage their participation and, especially, to make sure they know that their participation is required for them to receive any grants from the federal HAVA grant that remain after the Cyber Navigator Program is up and running. (We are required by the state budget to spend at least half of the total $13.9 million in federal/state HAVA funds on the Cyber Navigator Program).
If sampling error were the only type of error in a poll, we would expect candidates who trail by one point in a poll of 512 people [533 in the Bost poll] to win about two out of every five races. But this probably understates the total error by a factor of two.
…Adding… I think this is true. I thought that claimed MoE was too high for polls of 500+ people. From comments…
More precisely, the MOE is +/- 4.7 for IL-6 and +/- 4.6 for IL-12. That actually is about right for a sample of ~500 voters.
* On to the polls. Republican US Rep. Peter Roskam leads Democrat Sean Casten 45-44 with 11 percent undecided. Republican US Rep. Mike Bost leads Democrat Brendan Kelly 44-43 with 13 percent undecided. Two-thirds of respondents in both surveys were reached on their mobile phones.
In Roskam’s suburban district, President Trump’s job approval rating is just 36 percent while 57 percent disapprove. The president is slightly above water in Bost’s rural/blue collar district 48-46.
51 percent in the Roskam poll said they preferred Democrats to take control of the US House, compared to 44 percent who wanted the GOP to stay in power. Those numbers went the other way in Bost’s district, with 46 picking the GOP and 43 choosing the Democrats.
* The Roskam poll is here. The Bost poll is here. Tell us what you think.
