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Quinn keeps pushing; a Saturday roundup; and comments are now closed

Saturday, Jan 30, 2010 - Posted by Rich Miller

* Gov. Quinn is trying his best to get that ABC7 report into the bloodstream. From the AP…

Gov. Pat Quinn and his allies say Dan Hynes is both incompetent and cold-hearted for the way he responded to problems at Burr Oak Cemetery.

They also accuse Hynes of running an “evil” campaign ad in the race for the Democratic nomination for governor.

Quinn claimed Saturday that Hynes knew years ago about bodies being dumped and desecrated at Burr Oak, a historically black cemetery. He says that as state comptroller, Hynes could have taken action but chose not to.

The “they” in the story is Congressman Bobby Rush, who called Hynes “evil” today for using the Harold Washington ad and also said Hynes was “cold and callous and uncaring.” Quinn said Rush’s allegations were “on target.”

That event really shows a lot about this governor’s character. And none of it is good.

* Eric Zorn asks a couple of questions…

1. Hynes has given plenty of “not my table!” responses to reporters and in debates — and indeed it is a somewhat persuasive point that it makes no sense for a check-writing, accounts-monitoring office like the Comptroller to be cemetery cops — but where are the campaign commercials fighting back on Burr Oak?

2. Where is the Hynes campaign commercial quoting Quinn vouching for the integrity of Rod Blagojevich during the 2006 campaign season? You want a failure of due diligence, how about the reassurances the Lieutenant Governor gave voters that, despite all the scandals swirling around Blagojevich, he was a man of integrity?

1) I’m assuming Hynes’ early release ad combined with the Harold Washington ad are a much more effective one-two punch on Quinn than the governor’s cemetery ad response. If they thought that the cemetery ad was truly effective, they’d probably do something. Also, and more importantly, a campaign can only do so many messages at a time. More messages requires much more money and results in more dilution of a campaign’s core story. Also, Hynes’ standard stump response - it’s not my job - is just not really all that wonderful. How do you put that in an ad?

2) Quinn is certainly on record saying nice things about Blagojevich, but Blagojevich is also on record time and time again saying how he loathes Pat Quinn. I heard Hynes has killer video of Blagojevich heaping praise on Quinn, but the campaign decided not to use it. The “beauty” of the Harold Washington ad is that there is legitimately divided opinion over what Washington really thought of Pat Quinn. There is no disupte that Blagojevich despises Quinn and has for some time. So, the push-back on a Blagojevich ad is far easier and far more believable. Perhaps because of this, the Blagojevich-Quinn hit has never tested well against Quinn, going all the way back to last fall. And, finally, it’s more message dilution.

* On that afore-mentioned Blagojevich topic, the national AP desks gets it wrong…

In a race tinged by scandal and turning nasty, Illinois Gov. Pat Quinn is in danger of losing Tuesday because of his association with Blagojevich, who was expelled from office. Quinn, who twice ran as lieutenant governor on the same ticket as Blagojevich, is up against state Comptroller Dan Hynes.

Quinn is in danger of losing his seat because of numerous acts of incompetence and the fact that he didn’t respond well to some very effective advertising - early release and Harold Washington.

* Meanwhile, Gov. Quinn unveiled yet another job-producing news item today…

One of the nation’s largest power generators plans to join the FutureGen Alliance, an organization developing an experimental clean-coal power plant in eastern Illinois.

Chicago-based Exelon Corp. says it wants to help build the plant near Mattoon.

Gov. Pat Quinn and U.S. Sen. Dick Durbin made the announcement Saturday in Chicago.

Two months of those events (and firing his Dept. of Corrections director) and he might not have been in this sort of trouble.

* Toni Preckwinkle’s new TV ad…

* Let’s hope this driver recovers…

Officials say one person is critically injured after an accident involving an Illinois congressional candidate’s campaign bus in suburban Chicago.

Republican Robert Dold wasn’t aboard the bus when it crashed in Glenview late Friday. He is seeking his party’s nomination for Illinois’ 10th Congressional District, which covers suburbs north of Chicago to nearly Wisconsin.

The campaign claimed a passenger car driver turned into the bus’ path.

* If you think ads here are rough and tumble, have a look at this one from New Orleans…

Yeesh.

* We’re shutting down comments until Monday because the comment section has basically just devolved into a mindless running dispute between partisans. So, here’s a video. Get up and dance…

About some useless information
That’s supposed to fire my imagination

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*** UPDATED x2 *** Alexi’s stopper? Barack’s Dillard joke

Friday, Jan 29, 2010 - Posted by Rich Miller

* Alexi Giannoulias’ campaign says it’s running a new TV ad whacking David Hoffman. I’m not sure how many points are behind this thing, but it’ll reportedly run over the weekend. Rate it…

From his press release…

The ad features a Hoffman appearance in November on ABC-7’s News Views program where he voices support for taxing health plans of individuals making as little as $61,000. In responding to a question by ABC-7’s Alan Krashesky about health care, Hoffman said “It seems fair to be taxing plans that are very, very high-end lucrative plans that are being held by people with very high salaries.”

Krashesky correctly countered that many so-called Cadillac plans actually cover union workers who make modest incomes. Hoffman responded by only limiting taxing those plans of people making $60,000 or less, opening up many teachers, police officers, firefighters and other union workers to a tax on health care benefits.

“Someone who is making $50,000 or $60,000 a year that has a solid healthcare plan, that shouldn’t be taxed.” said Hoffman.

Giannoulias opposes taxing such employer-provided insurance plans because it would result in higher costs for moderate-income workers and encourage businesses to offer less comprehensive health care plans that would lead to higher deductibles and co-payments.

*** UPDATE 1 *** An impeccable source in a different statewide campaign says their Wednesday-Thursday tracker had Giannoulias ahead by 20. It was 37-17, with Jackson in third, I’m told. Take it for what it’s worth.

[ *** End of Update *** ]

* President Obama answered questions at a gathering of congressional Republicans today. Rep. Peter Roskam asked more than a two-minute question partly about Obama’s lack of bipartisanship. The full question and Obama’s complete answer are here. I’ve clipped the most relevant part for us.

Obama joked about how Sen. Kirk Dillard is being whacked in the GOP primary for “saying nice things about me… Poor guy.” Watch…

Ironically enough, if the Illinois media picks up on this, Dillard is probably gonna be hurt badly right before the primary.

* In other developments, a group of black ministers endorsed Dan Hynes, Roger Ebert tweeted that he’s voting for Raja and Tony Peraica is tweeting about some weirdness that could - if anyone picks up on it - suck all the air out of the rest of the political world for the next few days. Oy.

*** UPDATE 2 *** One of my two interns, Barton Lorimor, asked US Sen. Dick Durbin today why he hadn’t endorsed Pat Quinn for governor. Here is Durbin’s response before he was hustled away by staff…

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Clock ticks as Quinn and Hynes duke it out

Friday, Jan 29, 2010 - Posted by Rich Miller

* Gov. Quinn is stepping up his ribbon-cutting as primary day looms…

As the Feb. 2 primary nears, Gov. Pat Quinn is embracing the power of incumbency, cutting a swath of ribbons and announcing millions worth of construction projects all in the name of the office he ascended to a year ago.

So far this week, he’s opened a children’s center and announced $10.3 million for Northern Illinois University building renovations, including more than $8 million for Cole Hall where the 2008 student shootings took place.

The governor, in the heat of a primary race, also recently announced state funding for Loop road improvements, remodeling a veterans’ home and a grant for a Chicago-based charter school to purchase an additional building. […]

“I wouldn’t say it’s an abuse. It’s an illusion. He’s cutting ribbons for buildings that don’t exist,” Hynes said.

Not everyone is happy about these events. From a Northwest Herald editorial about the NIU Cole Hall ceremony…

At the news conference Wednesday, Quinn read the names of those killed in the shooting, including Dundee-Crown High School graduate Ryanne Mace. The reminder of those who lost their lives cast a solemn shadow over an announcement that might otherwise have been laughable for its timing.

This news conference was seven months in the making, its substance a predetermined largesse, a déja vu declaration of a $31 billion capital projects measure Quinn signed into law last July.

So why all the fanfare for the announcement’s sequel? Surely we’re not so cynical as to suggest it has anything to do with a primary election that’s days away, are we?

Let’s face it, there’s not much political hay to be made in mid-July, when the capital bill was passed. Besides, there was no money available then. Now that money’s available because of a bond sale, and now that ballot booths are being dusted off, the incumbent can come to the rescue with promised money. […]

But only about $2.3 million is being released for renovation of NIU’s Stevens Building, far less than the $22.5 million highlighted for that purpose in the capital bill. Then again, the November general election is only nine months away.

* Meanwhile, the Sun-Times puts yesterday’s WVON debate in context…

Hynes stared down a political buzzsaw by agreeing to appear on “The Cliff Kelley Show” as Quinn and the former alderman-turned-talk-show-host took turns pummeling the three-term comptroller. Kelley, part of Washington’s City Council coalition, interrupted Hynes repeatedly in springing to Quinn’s defense.

The comptroller wanted to appear with Quinn on the station, which has a significant following among black voters, with some other host than Kelley, but WVON rejected that bid, representatives from both campaigns said.

Hynes relented instead of boycotting Kelley’s 38th-ranked afternoon drive-time show, which an industry source estimated has about 10,000 listeners. Not appearing could have been portrayed as a snub to an audience of voters Hynes covets on Tuesday.

That’s true. Not many people listen to Kelley’s show, but not going would’ve been much worse. Hynes did perform poorly, of course. This was the most cringe-inducing moment for me…

Cliff Kelley: You were in the commercial. Your father’s commercial.

Dan Hynes: Right, like I said, I support my father.

Cliff Kelley: Right. Right. But, you were in the commercials where he was attacking Mayor Washington.

Dan Hynes: Right, I was 18 years old and I love my father and I loved him then and I support him…

So far, the Quinn campaign has only been able to come up with footage of the younger Hynes in a positive TV ad with his father, not in the negative ones. Admitting he was in a negative ad was not a good move.

For his part, Quinn heaped praise on several of Rod Blagojevich’s African-American appointments, yet that got no coverage. But he did get out the best line of the day…

“I’d rather lose the race for governor than divide the people of Illinois along race,” Quinn said. “That’s what my opponent is doing.”

WBEZ has partial copies of Quinn-sponsored robocalls to African-American voters…

I’ve received three robocalls on my home answering machine this week from Gov. Pat Quinn supporters. Each message excoriates Comptroller Dan Hynes for invoking Washington’s image in a campaign ad. […]

Message one from U.S. Rep. Jesse Jackson Jr. “Dan Hynes has no shame.” Message two from U.S. Rep. Bobby Rush. “As a preacher, I believe in resurrection, but this ain’t no resurrection.” Message three from Jackie Grimshaw, a former Washington operative. “Legacy hijacked.”

You can hear anger in all of their voices. .

Progress Illinois has posted a couple of long excerpts from the debate on YouTube…

* Quinn and Hynes discuss Washington ad on WVON

* Quinn and Hynes compare tax plans on WVON

* CBS2 looked at union campaign cash in the race, but got it horribly wrong…

Quinn, who has received $416,000 in campaign contributions from organized labor, also got [AFSCME] to cut and delay a scheduled pay raise. But he had to promise not to lay off any more workers until the middle of next year.

Dan Hynes, Quinn’s Democratic opponent in the Feb. 2 gubernatorial primary, was invited to speak at a small get-together in North Lawndale Thursday. He has his own tight relationship with organized labor. He has received $350,000 from organized labor and released a new TV ad trumpeting his endorsements.

What? Gov. Quinn has received about $1.6 million from SEIU alone. Hynes has reported at least $375,000 from unions this week.

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