Illinois is out of the running for a prized 4,000-job assembly plant that Japanese auto makers Toyota and Mazda are planning to open in the United States.
The apparent reasons: lack of shovel-ready sites and the state’s failure to adopt a right-to-work law.
Mark Peterson, president and CEO of Intersect Illinois, the state’s privately run economic development corporation, said in an interview and email that while no formal announcement has been made, his sources tell him Illinois is not among the three or four finalists for the $1.3 billion facility.
“While we showed very well, particularly in the areas of workforce, and our proposal was very well received, in the end the site readiness of some other locations took us out of the consideration set going forward,” Peterson said. […]
“Recently, we have seen very public searches taking place for HQ and manufacturing facilities,” Peterson said. “The challenges with these is that although they are public in their media exposure, they are still very protected and confidential when communicating exactly what factors weigh in on final decisions. That said, many national site consultants charged with making recommendations for corporate relocations and expansions will not even consider a state that is not a right-to-work state. In this case, the three states I am told are still in the running are all right-to-work states.”
*** UPDATE 1 *** Greg Baise, president & CEO, IMA…
“When will Illinois lawmakers wake up and realize that their actions have real life consequences? For years, the IMA has pointed out that the state continues bleeding manufacturing jobs and losing opportunities for new plant expansions because of the high cost of doing business in Illinois while other states are gaining tens of thousands of jobs. The sad fact is that the General Assembly allowed the primary incentive program (EDGE) to expire during the time that the state’s bid was submitted. Illinois has many advantages including location, workforce, colleges and universities, infrastructure, and clean water but self-inflicted wounds are damaging our state’s economy.”
*** UPDATE 2 *** Illinois Working Together…
Today, Intersect Illinois announced that Illinois is no longer in the running for the Toyota/Mazda plant expected to generate as many as 4,000 jobs. Illinois lost out despite the Rauner Administration taking the lead in recruiting the companies and Gov. Bruce Rauner himself traveling to Asia last month to pitch top executives. Illinois has lost more than 12,000 manufacturing jobs since Gov. Rauner took office.
“Today’s announcement is yet another example of the economic damage Gov. Bruce Rauner has inflicted upon Illinois,” said Illinois Working Together Campaign Director Jake Lewis. “Gov. Rauner has created widespread economic uncertainty that has caused long-lasting damage to Illinois’ business climate. While Gov. Rauner trashes’ Illinois economy, job growth has sputtered and our bill backlog has soared.
“Instead of blaming workers for his failure to recruit new businesses to the state, Gov. Rauner should invest in Illinois communities and work collaboratively to find new ways to bring new jobs to Illinois.”
*** UPDATE 3 *** DGA…
Today, Crain’s Chicago reported that Illinois will not be a contender for a new Toyota factory and, rather than take any responsibility, Governor Bruce Rauner’s team quickly pivoted to bashing the state. While running for governor, Rauner touted himself as a natural salesman due to his business background. Instead, Rich Miller wrote, Illinois voters got “two and a half solid years of Rauner running down his own state.”
Rauner’s Asia trip was supposed to be the return of Rauner the Recruiter with a new Toyota factory as the crown jewel. But after failing to land the big fish, Rauner’s team quickly returned to their normal messaging, blaming Illinois. The CEO of Intersect Illinois blamed labor laws for Rauner’s failure and even claimed that Illinois was never going to get the plant anyway. He did not mention Rauner’s two-year budget impasse which drove up debt, devastated higher education, and slowed the state’s economy.
At least Intersect Illinois got a good meal out of it.
“Over and over again Illinois voters hear how Bruce Rauner’s failures are not his fault,” said DGA Illinois Communications Director Sam Salustro. “Governor Rauner just refuses to accept any responsibility. Now, his team is bashing the state for their own failure in recruiting companies, something Rauner promised voters he would succeed at. Rauner can’t blame away the fact that Illinois’ economy is lagging behind the state’s neighbors and the nation, and his failed leadership is at fault.”
*** UPDATE 4 *** Press release…
Senator Andy Manar (D-Bunker Hill) responded today to assertions that Illinois’ failure to adopt a right-to-work law factored into a manufacturer’s apparent decision not to site a factory here:
“When you have a governor who spends a significant portion of his time publicly bashing the state he is supposed to lead, it should come as no surprise that manufacturers would look elsewhere for a more stable home for their factories.
“Contrary to what Gov. Rauner and his administration would have people believe, labor unions are not to blame for all of Illinois’ problems. Two years of a devastating budget stalemate under the governor’s watch did nothing to improve the state’s economic outlook or its reputation in the corporate world.
“Turning Illinois into a right-to-work state and lowering wages for our workers does not mean the state suddenly would become an attractive location for manufacturers. Many more factors are considered when companies make these decisions.
“Illinois will become a more attractive site for companies when its state budget is in order; when it can show a record of investing in universities, colleges and public schools; and when its governor stops bad-mouthing the state and its people.”
Gov. Bruce Rauner long has argued that one of the state’s best economic bets would be to somehow bridge the 140-mile gap that separates two of its strongest assets: the University of Illinois main campus in Urbana-Champaign and the city of Chicago. He thinks he’s got it figured out.
Joined by Mayor Rahm Emanuel and University of Illinois President Timothy Killeen, Rauner plans to announce tomorrow morning a project called the Discovery Partners Institute, which would be built on a 62-acre site along the Chicago River south of Roosevelt Road that is being developed by Related Midwest. Related calls the site “78″ in reference to hopes of becoming the city’s 78th neighborhood. The property also has been floated as a possible site for Amazon’s second headquarters, which the city and state jointly are pursuing. […]
The institute would be funded initially by as much as $200 million in private donors lined up by the governor, according to people who’ve heard the pitch. Exactly what programs will be represented is unclear, but it likely would involve both the university’s flagship campus and the University of Illinois at Chicago and both research and instruction activities. In broad strokes, the idea is to get academics and companies to collaborate on “pushing the art of the possible,” said one executive who was pitched on the idea by Rauner. It’s part of a broader innovation corridor envisioned by the governor that has multiple “nodes.”
With the clock running out on Rauner’s first term, the announcement would allow him to show some momentum on the economic-development front (along with hopes of landing Amazon and a Toyota-Mazda assembly plant, which the state also is pursuing). The question will be whether he can deliver.
Already, the proposed project has become the subject of political battles.
Rauner said project leaders have secured numerous commitments for private funding, though the governor would not identify those donors or reveal how much they planned to contribute. The governor also identified a source of public funding for the project that faces several hurdles: the sale of the James R. Thompson Center in the Loop.
Last week, Rauner said that he planned to use proceeds from the sale of the Thompson Center to help finance the institute. Rauner has said unloading the 1.2 million-square-foot building would fetch $300 million, though the state would have to pay around $60 million off the top to buy out the leases of the current tenants.
Rauner also said that though he was seeking some public funding for the initial stages of the work, over time he expected the institute to be primarily funded through private dollars.
Steve Brown, spokesman for House Speaker Michael Madigan, said Tuesday that legislative leaders were in talks about the institute but denied there had been any such accord, “in part because there was sort of a lack of detail about exactly how the state funds might be utilized.” Brown also said that the Thompson Center profits are incorporated into this year’s state budget, comprising a large chunk of new revenues.
The Democratic candidates for governor sought to sell themselves to primary voters at a Tuesday night forum in Aurora, but much of the focus was on a guy who wasn’t on the stage: veteran Illinois House Speaker Michael Madigan, who also heads the Illinois Democratic Party.
State Sen. Daniel Biss and businessman Chris Kennedy ripped Madigan, saying he’s been in office too long and wields too much power. Meanwhile, entrepreneur and philanthropist J.B. Pritzker, who has received the backing of much of the Democratic establishment, declined to say whether it’s time for Madigan to go.
“He’s been around an awful long time,” said Pritzker, who suggested that putting in place term limits on legislative leaders is “an answer to that question.”
Pritzker said he and Madigan agree on some issues, but disagree on others, such as term limits and restrictions on the influence of politics when drawing legislative boundaries. […]
Biss contended Madigan’s grip has not only hurt Illinois but also prevented Democrats from pushing for progressive policies, saying it was “time for him to go.” Kennedy raised concerns about Madigan owning a property tax appeals law firm while also overseeing laws relating to property taxes, which are the primary source of education funding in Illinois.
Pritzker, who has had to fight off ties to Madigan, said there are issues he doesn’t agree with the speaker on. He said he favors independently drawn legislative maps and leadership term limits. He called himself an “independent progressive leader” and said that wouldn’t change should he win.
Pushed on whether the speaker has been around “too long,” Pritzker pointed to term limits as the answer to the question.
“There’s no chance I’m going to be working for the speaker,” Pritzker said.
“I don’t think that what Speaker Madigan is doing is illegal, I just think it should be,” Kennedy said. “He’s a state rep and he’s a property tax appeals lawyer. The problem with that is that it leads to us holding on to a system where we fund our schools through property taxes.”
Kennedy later added, “Mike Madigan makes money on a system that’s destroying our schools.”
Biss said Madigan has “been around too long” and is “too powerful.” He said he has supported term limits for legislative leaders, including proposing state constitutional amendments. However, Biss said Madigan is one person and is not the system.
“If we get too obsessed with just one person who has manipulated the system but did not create it, and then we don’t fix the system but just get rid of him, we’re going to be disappointed by how little changes,” Biss said.
*** UPDATE *** ILGOP…
Another day, another attempt from J.B. Pritzker to cover up his close ties to Speaker Mike Madigan.
Last night at an Aurora debate with the Democrat candidates for governor, the candidates were presented with a simple question: should Madigan stay in power. Even though Democrats Daniel Biss and Chris Kennedy have their own close ties to Madigan, they took the question as an opportunity to attack him, with both saying he’s been in office too long and wields too much power.
When it came time for Pritzker to answer the same question, he balked, refusing to say whether Speaker Madigan has been around too long or if it’s time for him to leave state government, surprising no one, as Pritzker is running for governor with Madigan’s blessing.
From the Chicago Tribune’s story, Dem gov. debate: Kennedy, Biss bash Madigan; Pritzker won’t say if it’s time for speaker to go:
The Democratic candidates for governor sought to sell themselves to primary voters at a Tuesday night forum in Aurora, but much of the focus was on a guy who wasn’t on the stage: veteran Illinois House Speaker Michael Madigan, who also heads the Illinois Democratic Party.
State Sen. Daniel Biss and businessman Chris Kennedy ripped Madigan, saying he’s been in office too long and wields too much power. Meanwhile, entrepreneur and philanthropist J.B. Pritzker, who has received the backing of much of the Democratic establishment, declined to say whether it’s time for Madigan to go.
Pritzker’s silent support of Madigan’s Speakership comes after he was asked about the same issue at a recent Chicago debate with the Democratic candidates for governor.
When asked about his relationship with Mike Madigan, Pritzker repeatedly dodged the question, fumbling over his inability to change the subject. His discomfort was so plain that after being challenged on the issue by moderator Mary Ann Ahern, Pritzker’s non-answers were met with laughter from the crowd of Democrat activists.
It’s clear - J.B. Pritzker is Mike Madigan’s candidate for governor and even other Democrats aren’t buying Pritzker’s spin.
Jesse Ruiz, a prominent attorney and community leader, announced Wednesday that he is running for Illinois Attorney General.
“I became an attorney so I could use the law to protect and defend others, and be able to step in when people need a champion,” Ruiz said in a video campaign announcement released Wednesday. “For too long, many of us have felt forgotten and let down by our government. As Attorney General, I will use all of the powers of the law as a shield – and if necessary, a sword – on behalf of everyone in Illinois.”
The son of Mexican immigrants, Ruiz has been a strong advocate for the rights of minorities throughout his legal career. He said that Donald Trump’s attacks on immigrant and minority rights motivated him to run for public office.
“Donald Trump launched his campaign by saying, ‘When Mexico sends its people, they’re not sending their best…. They’re bringing crime. They’re rapists,” Ruiz recalled. “When I heard those words, I got angry. He was talking about my parents, and about the millions of hard-working, tax-paying, law-abiding Mexican immigrants who came to this country to build new lives for themselves and their families. I feel that I would dishonor my parents if I failed to do everything I can to resist Trump and to put the law on the side of people who work hard and play by the rules.”
In his announcement video, Ruiz (52) talked about growing up in the working-class Roseland neighborhood on Chicago’s South Side. “I learned so much – like the value of hard work and determination, and that if you have enough to eat, you have enough to share.”
Ruiz attended Marist High School, on Chicago’s Southwest Side – a commute that required taking three different CTA buses. To pay his way through college, Ruiz worked a number of different jobs, including stints as a sales clerk, a machine operator, a meter reader, and a handyman. “As I was growing up, my parents made sure I knew the value of hard work and determination,” Ruiz said. “The Attorney General’s job is to be the champion of hard-working people, and I will make sure everyone’s rights are protected – in the workplace and in the marketplace.”
After graduating from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign with a degree in economics, Ruiz spent four years working in the steel industry before entering law school at the University of Chicago.
While in law school, Ruiz took a seminar class on racism and law taught by then-faculty member Barack Obama. Ruiz became one of Obama’s earliest political supporters, knocking on doors with Obama and hosting one of his first fundraisers in his race for the Illinois State Senate. Years later, he worked as a volunteer on Obama’s presidential campaigns.
“As a teacher, Barack Obama always encouraged students to challenge everything, to stand up for what they believed in,” Ruiz remembers. “His example is even more important today, when so many of our nation’s fundamental principles are under attack.”
Ruiz is a partner at Drinker Biddle & Reath, a nationally renowned law firm, where he has worked for more than 20 years. He also serves as President of the Chicago Park District Board of Commissioners.
A tireless volunteer, Ruiz is best known as an advocate for public education. He served over four years as Vice President of the Chicago Board of Education and in 2015 stepped in to become Interim CEO of the Chicago Public Schools, the nation’s third-largest school district. In 2011, U.S. Secretary of Education Arne Duncan appointed Ruiz to serve on the U.S. Department of Education Equity and Excellence Commission, a post he held for two years. Previously, Ruiz served nearly seven years as Chairman of the Illinois State Board of Education (ISBE).
As the head of ISBE, Ruiz took prompt action when a school district refused to enroll an undocumented student, in violation of federal law. In an unprecedented action, Ruiz led ISBE to cut off the school district’s state funding. The very next day, school district backed down.
“I want to serve as the people’s lawyer,” Ruiz said. “As Attorney General, I will work to bring the power of government back to the people of Illinois. I will fight back whenever our government goes too far – whether that means standing up against Donald Trump’s assaults on our civil rights or speaking out against Bruce Rauner’s radical agenda here in Illinois. Every day, I will work to make Illinois a better, safer place – for all of us.”
Ruiz and his wife, Michele Ilene Ruiz, met when they were both law students at University of Chicago. Ms. Ruiz is now a partner at Sidley & Austin. The couple live on the south side of Chicago with their two young sons.
*** UPDATE *** Republican Attorneys General Association…
“This race is clearly going to be a sprint to the left and Jesse Ruiz will lead the pack. Former President Barack Obama was Ruiz’s law professor in the mid 1990s, so Ruiz learned from the best how to circumvent the rule of law and impose crippling regulations on our hardworking job creators. Illinois needs a fighter, outside the political class, who will defend the rule of law and fight public corruption.”
Campaigning against Obama in his home state? That’ll work.
STATEMENT FROM MAYOR EMANUEL ON CHICAGO’S #1 RANK IN CONDE NAST TRAVELER’S READERS’ CHOICE AWARDS
“Conde Nast readers recognize what residents of Chicago have always known: the Second City is the best big city in the U.S. This title is a testament to the innovation found in our amazing architecture, the ingenuity captured at our award-winning restaurants and 67 breweries, and the congenial character of Chicagoans. While our 77 neighborhoods each have unique cultures and characteristics, we are one Chicago, and we are proud of this distinction.”
Chicago remains the rat capital of the United States of America — at least according to a pest control company that stands to profit from the effort to fight the disease-ridden vermin.
Based on the number of residential and commercial rodent treatments ordered in Chicago’s major metropolitan areas from September 2016 to September 2017, Orkin named Chicago the “rattiest” city in America for the third-straight year.
New York and Los Angeles round out the top three, with the City of Angels moving up one spot from last year, according to Orkin.
Mayor Rahm Emanuel Friday proposed spending an additional $1.5 million in 2018 to get rid of rats.
* The Question: What is your favorite thing about Chicago and what do you despise the most?
Erika Harold isn’t running against Lisa Madigan anymore, but she still has the state attorney general’s family in her sights.
“One Madigan down means one more Madigan to go,” she said of Lisa and her father, House Speaker Mike Madigan, D-Chicago. “People said, if you run against the Madigans, be prepared. Take your car in to make sure your brakes are checked. That was advice I really got. … That’s not a great commentary on our political system.”
Harold mostly avoided partisan issues, but she said she opposes local sanctuary city designations — Chicago has named itself one, setting up a protracted battle with President Donald Trump’s administration on immigration policy — and dislikes how Lisa Madigan has opposed Trump, including suing on the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) program.
*** UPDATE *** From the Harold campaign…
Just to clarify, Erika was asked if she supported sanctuary cities and she said she believed it was a federal issue.
The reporter also wrote that Erika dislikes how AG Madigan opposed Trump on DACA. The simple fact is DACA was never mentioned at the event yesterday - a fact the reporter acknowledges. We have yet to receive an answer as to why he included that in the story.
