Marko Sukovic, a Republican running to replace outgoing Rep. Carol Sente, filed a lawsuit yesterday seeking injunctive and other relief in response to certain defamatory statements made in a series of mailers the [House Republican Organization] sent to Republican primary voters on behalf of Sukovic’s primary opponent Karen Feldman.
“The content of these mailers is absolutely ridiculous, and to see that her campaign spent over $12,000 on them is concerning,” Sukovic said.
“If her campaign is willing to waste that kind of money on these mailers, imagine the kind of money she’d be willing to waste in Springfield.”
“The voters of the 59th district have a choice to make, to continue with the tax, spend, and waste policies of a candidate that has voted in two democratic primaries, or a fresh alternative willing to take on the status quo.”
“Given her refusal to denounce these tactics, we felt we had no choice but to seek legal recourse.”
Sukovic’s comments come after Feldman’s campaign reported receiving over $32,000 in contributions from HRO, over $12k of which appears to have been allocated to these mailers.
The complaint was filed with the 19th Judicial Circuit Court in Lake County, and can be viewed by visiting Lake County Public Access website. (Case # 18CH198)
Marko Sukovic is a Republican candidate for state representative in Illinois’ 59th district. Sukovic is a resident of Lincolnshire and the former political director for Republican Congressman Bob Dold. He is a fiscal conservative and social moderate, focused on political and economic reforms that will help end the exodus from Illinois.
During a private, no-press-allowed fundraising lunch Tuesday for Dem gubernatorial candidate Chris Kennedy, the wife of one his most dedicated volunteers went into labor.
Phelloneice Wade “was just days away from her due date, but the couple rarely missed a campaign event,” said a Kennedy source. “So no one was surprised they were there.”
“I kept thinking the birth would be any day now, but not any minute,” chuckled Phelloneice’s hubby, Claiborne, who lives in the Austin community. “So we rushed to Norwegian American Hospital, where daughter Chloe was born a few hours later weighing in at 6 pounds, six ounces,” he said.
A morning back injury Wednesday kept Kennedy away from Springfield and a visit to see Chloe on doctor’s orders — but he was spotted Thursday bearing flowers and a gift of Kennedy/Joy campaign onesies . . . along with a lecture on getting proper sleep.
“He’s raised four kids and now I have four kids,” said Wade. “So I know all about that sleep business. And I probably won’t get any now.”
* If these pics don’t make you go all gooey I don’t know what will…
* During a higher education funding hearing yesterday, Sen. Dan McConchie (R-Hawthorne Woods) complained that his daughter scored a 30 on her ACT and has had scholarship offers from other Big 10 schools, but no offers at all from UIUC…
“I mean, if you have 5,000 students from mainland China paying out-of-state tuition,” [Illinois Board of Higher Education Executive Director Al Bowman] said, “what’s the incentive for them to discount to an in-state youngster in order to land that resident?”
Bowman said Illinois residents make up about 90 percent of the student body at every public college in Illinois except UIUC, where they account for about 70 percent of the student body. He promised to come up with a plan that would encourage prioritization of Illinois students. […]
“I, for one, don’t have a problem with, in effect, making a profit on some students coming in from out of state or out of country,” [Sen. Jim Oberweis (R-Sugar Grove)] said, “because they help bring down our costs of educating our own students in Illinois.”
But McConchie said he wants Illinois families to have a shot getting their students into the Big 10 school that’s in Illinois.
“There is no reason why my daughter gets a better deal from a Big 10 school outside the state than a Big 10 school inside the state when I’m paying taxes to support that Big 10 school,” he said.
* The Question: Your thoughts on the in-state student disparity between UIUC (about 70 percent) and the rest of the state’s public universities (about 90 percent)?
*** UPDATE *** Sen. McConchie via text…
I used my personal story only as a method to illustrate a frequent complaint I hear from constituents - that our kids are being poached by out of state schools despite the millions being sent to our universities. Why should taxpayers subsidize state schools who can’t operate competitively with out of state schools in the same conference? What Dusty did not put in her story was some facts I started the questioning with - we send more money on a per student basis to state schools than any other Midwestern state. Yet the tuition at those schools is still significantly higher than every surrounding state. The result is we are retaining fewer kids in Illinois schools than any neighboring state. My experience is the same as many of my constituents and thousands of other Illinois families. It’s a fact that systematic change in higher education is needed to reverse the out-migration.
In the wake of another tragic mass shooting claiming innocent lives at a Florida high school, Speaker Michael J. Madigan and House Democrats will advance a package of legislation next week that includes stricter regulation of gun dealers, restrictions on the purchase of military-style assault rifles, and stronger laws to keep individuals with a history of mental illness from obtaining guns.
“Young people and families whose lives have been forever changed by tragic school shootings went to their state capital and to Washington this week to demand their local legislators and President Trump get serious about enacting tougher gun laws. Their voices need to be heard because it’s now clearer than ever that while it’s the politicians who are refusing to act, it’s our children who suffer the consequences,” Madigan said. “Here in Illinois, Democrats will act on their plea. We will pursue legislation that limits access to the military-style assault rifles that were used to make schools in Florida and Newton into war zones. We will take steps to keep firearms out of the hands of people with a history of mental illness. And we will hold gun dealers accountable to ensure they are complying with the law.”
Madigan plans to call for a vote on gun dealer licensing legislation next week. The measure will hold gun dealers to the same standard as many other licensed professions including car dealerships, real estate agencies, and even beauty salons, to ensure gun shops meet basic levels of security and training and are complying with all state and federal laws.
“The tragic loss of life we witness on a daily basis on our streets, in our state and across our nation is a moral crisis that demands action,” said Cardinal Blase Cupich. “We must hear the voices of the children whose lives are forever changed and of the families who mourn and resolve to enact strong commonsense laws to help stop this madness. It is not too much to say that innocent people are dying as much from lack of courage and political will among our leaders as from bullets. Action is overdue and urgent.”
In addition to gun dealer licensing, Madigan plans to call a vote on a measure empowering family members and law enforcement to take steps to protect loved ones and the public. The Lethal Violence Order of Protection Act will allow family members or law enforcement officers to ask a court to temporarily intervene and prevent those who are a threat to themselves or others from possessing firearms.
House Democrats will also present legislation preventing people under 21 from purchasing military-style assault rifles, and enhanced screening requirements that will prevent people with a history of mental illness from purchasing firearms.
“Illinois can—and should—enact some of the strongest gun laws in the country, but those laws will only be keeping our children, families and communities safe from gun violence if gun dealers are following them,” said Kathleen Sances, president and CEO of the Gun Violence Prevention PAC. “Holding gun shops accountable is critical to preventing people with dangerous histories from obtaining guns, tracking lost and stolen firearms, and cracking down on straw purchasers.”
* The governor has been asked a couple of times in recent days about what he wants to do about gun laws. Here his response at the Northwest Herald…
“We need to do what we can to keep guns from getting into the hands of the criminals and the mentally ill. We also need to respect our Constitution. And we need to talk together to talk, discuss what we can do.”
Asked about how the state could better protect students and teachers in the wake of the recent mass shooting at a Florida high school, Rauner said Illinois already has some of the nation’s toughest gun laws.
“We need to be respectful of our nation’s Constitution while we work together to keep guns out of the hands of criminals and the mentally ill,” he said.
“I am certainly open to ideas” on how to better prevent gun violence in schools, he added.
* This was sent to all House members in both parties…
Dear colleagues,
In light of the string of revelations about working conditions on campaigns and in politics generally, we are seeking ways to improve the culture of our industry.
In terms of the outstanding allegations, we believe it’s critically important that all the facts be aired, and that those who were engaged in inappropriate behavior and those who covered up that behavior be held accountable. We will continue to advocate for a process that is truly independent, transparent, and honest.
Meanwhile, we believe it’s important to consider the hard truth: we treat campaign workers poorly and offer them very little legal protection. We often misclassify them as contractors. We demand ceaseless hours of work with meager remuneration. And as we’re discovering, they have very little recourse when they feel they’ve been mistreated on the job.
As a proactive measure to help provide political workers institutional protections on the job, we’ve reached out to the Campaign Workers Guild, a new labor union of campaign staff. CWG has recently worked with the staff of Congressional candidate Randy Bryce in Wisconsin as they have won recognition for their union and ratified a collective bargaining agreement. They are prepared to present to members of the General Assembly, campaign and political staff about their work and the types of workplace protections campaign staff in our state could fight for.
The meeting will be Tuesday February 27th, from 5:30-7:30 at the Red Roof Inn (formerly the State House Inn) at 101 E Adams, in the Gallery Room. We urge you all to join us and to share this invitation with others who may be interested in learning more about the work of CWG. At the meeting, CWG will offer a brief overview of their work. Then, staff and candidates will break out into separate sessions in order for each group to be able to freely discuss their needs and concerns. Refreshments will be available, and limited travel funds may be available for staff outside of the Springfield area interested in attending. Reach out to one of us if that is an issue.
In this moment, it is critically important to focus on the facts of allegations that have been made. We feel it is equally important to take proactive steps to help prevent these kinds of abuses in the future. We hope CWG will provide a vision of how political and campaign workers can come together to work toward solutions to the workplace issues they face, and hope you will join us in hearing from them.
Please RSVP by replying directly to this email.
Sincerely,
Kelly Cassidy
Will Guzzardi
Theresa Mah
Christian Mitchell
I know this is serious business, but the prospect of Tim Mapes negotiating with a union is making me chuckle.
Also, Speaker Madigan was asked about a campaign workers union the other day and he kinda laughed it off.
* Mary Ann Ahern talked to congressional candidate Chuy Garcia about Speaker Madigan…
Garcia still leads in the polls, but his support of Speaker Mike Madigan has raised concerns as questions arise over the speaker’s handling of sexual harassment allegations within his office.
“If there are more findings that there are violations then I reserve the right to support anyone who is in the race to become the chairman of the Democratic Party,” he said.
That’s the big unknown. What else is out there? Lots and lots of rumors are jetting through the gossip-sphere, but nobody has yet come forward. Madigan has been in power for so long that the odds are pretty darned good that more stories are waiting to be told. But how were those cases handled? And will it matter? Will just the existence of other incidences of harassment, bullying or worse create such a firestorm that he can’t survive? We could be about to find out.
The biggest factor in Madigan’s immediate fate — the great unknown hanging over all Illinois Democrats right now — is whether more women will come forward publicly to accuse the veteran speaker or his staff of mishandling sexual harassment complaints involving his underlings.
If that happens, then Madigan quickly will find himself in uncharted waters that could defy his proven ability to stay the course and this columnist’s ability to foresee the outcome.
Four years of close combat with Republican Gov. Bruce Rauner have left Madigan a wounded leader whose negative public image has become a liability for his party and its candidates.
The question Democratic officials keep asking themselves is whether Madigan’s liabilities outweigh his value to the party as an election-winner who stands as a bulwark against the policies and politics of Rauner.
“I don’t think it helps us four weeks before an election to take the person who runs the statewide mechanism and say, `You’re out.’ We’re trying to actually win an election across the state,” said [Ald. Pat O’Connor (40th)], a Democratic ward committeeman.
“It would be like taking Eisenhower out as the troops are landing on Normandy. We just need to make sure that we win this primary. Once the primary is over, then we can figure out where we need to be as a party to take on the Republicans moving forward.” […]
O’Connor stopped short of condoning Madigan’s handling of sexual harassment and bullying allegations within his organization.
“There’s gonna be plenty of time to figure out the sequencing and how this thing worked and figure out whether they made mistakes or not and whether those mistakes rise to the level of him [having to] move away,” O’Connor said.
“I just think doing it before a primary election is just a crazy thing. Let’s get the primary over, figure out who’s gonna take the Republicans on in November, then figure out what our best strategy is to win that race.”
Eisenhower? From a top Republican…
Madigan’s allies are resorting to ridiculous metaphors and hyperbole to defend him. Might be more ridiculous than the time John Bradley compared Madigan to Benjamin Franklin and said that Madigan fits Pope Francis’ definition of a public servant.
With the exception of a few years in the 1990s, Madigan has been speaker since 1983. He’s been the chairman of the state Democratic party since 1998. Steans said it’s best practice to separate the two roles.
“I think [Madigan is] going to have to make his own decision about whether he steps down or not,” Steans said. “I certainly think best practices are that you shouldn’t wear both of those hats.”
Steans said someone like Madigan holding both positions could cause conflicts of interest, noting that no other Senate president or House speaker in the U.S. is also their state’s party chairman.
“You want somebody as party chair who’s looking out for the entire state, all races, not necessarily mixing it in with the policy of what you’re trying to accomplish in one chamber,” Steans said. “I just think there’s some inherent conflict that can come about because of that.”
Steans is a Sentor and DPI is pretty much all about the House. It’s not about party building, it’s about House building.
* These next two items were mentioned in this morning’s subscriber edition. John Kass…
Democratic Boss Madigan has been frantically trying to put out fires over recent allegations that his top political soldiers have harassed women.
And now there’s another fire for Madigan, from an old ember that’s been smoldering for years in Blue Island, and now blazes again:
State Rep. Bob Rita.
Rita, a top ally of Speaker Michael Madigan in the Illinois House, who’s from a Blue Island family that has controlled Democratic politics there for decades, as if Blue Island were a family business, has trouble in his past.
“I don’t think Mike Madigan has been sensitive to the issue of sexual harassment,” says Mary Carvlin, Democratic candidate for state representative.
Carvlin, an elementary school teacher and mother of two, is taking on one of Madigan’s strongest allies, state Rep. Bob Rita, alleging that Madigan’s support for Rita shows he’s no friend of women.
“Where was he 16 years ago, when my opponent Bob Rita was on trial for beating a woman?” she asks.
Back in 2002, Rita was charged with domestic battery and criminal trespass for allegedly beating up an ex-girlfriend. A jury found him not guilty, but the trial judge also extended an order of protection for the woman, against Rita, for two years. […]
For two days, Blakley looked around Blue Island, trying to get Rita’s side of the story – to no avail. He also did not return messages.
* From Rita’s spokesperson…
The order of protection expired with the acquittal. The judge left open a possible hearing on extending it, but prosecutors never pursued that.
By all outside appearances, 2016 was the year Revolution Messaging arrived. The upstart political firm, founded by alumni of Barack Obama’s presidential runs, was the mastermind behind the punk-rock vibe of Bernie Sanders’ campaign and helped him raise a staggering $218 million in small donations.
But inside the firm, the staff was in revolt.
Revolution forced out a female employee in early 2016, just two months after one of the company’s partners ― her supervisor ― had been accused of physically assaulting her at a company holiday function, several people with knowledge of the incident said. The firm had quickly fired the partner. But multiple Revolution employees worried that the woman’s departure was retaliatory ― and symptomatic of a workplace in which some women and people of color felt overlooked or marginalized.
An expenditure search of the Illinois State Board of Elections’ website turned up these results…
* Kennedy for Illinois ($174,429.75 from 3/28/2017 through 11/1/2017)
* Chicago for Rahm Emanuel ($12,500 in 2011)
* Citizens to Elect Karen Lewis Mayor of Chicago ($4,750 in late 2014 through early 2015.
* Chicagoans United for Economic Security PAC ($35,051.25 in 2015)
Remember that any campaign using the firm this quarter wouldn’t show up in that search.
Greg Hinz, Political Columnist for Crain’s Chicago Business, penned a column addressing the fraudulent claims Governor Rauner makes about Jeanne Ives in recent attack ads and mail pieces. The ads, which have been denounced by a coalition of state legislators, portray Ives, a conservative reform Republicans, as Democrat House Speaker Mike Madigan’s lackey.
Hinz writes:
“The governor is in full Pinocchio mode on this one too. Ives hasn’t defended Madigan, but rather said that it’s stupid of Rauner to insult the man on personal terms every 20 minutes and then wonder why he won’t bargain with you on things such as the budget, taxes and workers compensation reforms. But Rauner apparently has adopted the same approach Donald Trump has to Korean dictator Kim Jong Un: talk big, and wave a really tiny stick.
“And taxes?
“Fact is, Ives voted against the tax hike. Rauner vetoed it, but was so incompetent at dealing with the issue that his veto was overridden with help from a dozen legislative Republicans…
“You get the idea, folks. I’m sure that someone in Rauner’s camp thinks it’s really neat and cool to call Ives ‘Madigan’s lackey.’ It might even be effective with some casual voters. But for most voters, all Bruce Rauner has done is raise questions about his own integrity.
* A column published by In These Times earlier this month about the upcoming Janus v. AFSCME decision…
From the earliest court decision dealing with workers’ protest activity—the 1806 Cordwainers Trial in Philadelphia–courts have strenuously avoided applying the First Amendment to unions. Instead, conservative courts treated unions as criminal conspiracies that interfered with employers’ property and contract rights.
I have been arguing that unions and their allies should be challenging the most unequal aspects of labor law as violations of our constitutional rights. Currently, employers in the private sector have a legal right to force employees to attend mandatory anti-union presentations, on penalty of firing. Workers can also be fired for making “disloyal” statements, even in the course of otherwise protected concerted activity. Meanwhile, the government has restricted the scope of issues that unions can legally compel employers to bargain over.
All of these practices are vulnerable to First Amendment challenges as government restrictions of workers’ speech. They become more vulnerable if the Supreme Court rules in Janus that every interaction that a union has with a governmental subdivision is inherently political.
Even more vulnerable are anti-union laws in the public sector. Take Scott Walker’s Act 10, which forbids unions from making bargaining proposals over anything other than wages that don’t exceed the cost of living. Or the New Jersey case law that forbids teachers unions from even proposing restrictions on class size. How are those not explicit restrictions on workers’ speech?
* The columnist also referenced this Operating Engineers Local 150 press release on the First Amendment angle of Janus v. AFSCME…
(P)articipation in the Illinois Municipal Retirement Funds (“IMRF”) is mandatory for all IUOE, Local 150 public employees in Illinois. Our members are statutorily required to contribute 4.5% of their wages as a condition of their employment… The IMRF, in turn, uses that money, coupled with taxpayer monies, to make investments in a diversified portfolio that includes domestic and international equities, fixed income, real estate, and alternative investments. The corporations invested in by the IMRF themselves lobby the government, including the state of Illinois. Therefore, if the Janus Court agrees with the petitioner (that union agency fees inflict the same grievous First Amendment injury as would the government forcing individuals to support a mandatory lobbyist or political advocacy group) it follows that the IMRF’s forced participation mandate for public employees, and subsequent use of monies invested by the IMRF with a particular company to fund lobbying, must violate an Illinois public employee’s First Amendment rights.
* Well, Local 150 has begun filing lawsuits. Press release…
Yesterday, Lincolnshire resident Dixon O’Brien filed a federal lawsuit against the Village of Lincolnshire, claiming that his tax dollars were being diverted to organizations which lobby against his beliefs and best interests.
At issue is Lincolnshire’s membership in the Illinois Municipal League (IML), which accepts tax dollars as membership fees to support lobbying efforts to limit collective bargaining rights, reduce pension benefits, and slash wages on publicly funded construction projects. […]
The Liberty Justice Center, which represents the Village, asserted in its Janus v. AFSCME brief that union “agency fees thus inflict the same grievous First Amendment injury as would the government forcing individuals to support a mandatory lobbyist or political advocacy group.” […]
As relief, the plaintiffs request an injunction preventing Lincolnshire from using tax revenue on political or lobbying activities and a judgment that Lincolnshire’s taxpayer-funded support of the IML is unconstitutional. O’Brien is also seeking a refund of any portion of his tax dollars that have been spent on political or lobbying activities through the IML or any other organization.
Local 150 of the Operating Engineers is trying to undo unions’ legal duty to represent all workers in a bargaining unit, whether or not they join up or pay fair-share fees.
At issue is the “duty of fair representation” outlined in the Illinois Public Labor Relations Act.
Local 150 is basically saying: If the Supreme Court ends fair share, unions shouldn’t have to represent workers who won’t pay their dues.
If, however, it violates the First Amendment right of a non-member to be compelled to pay fees to the union that is required by law to provide representation and services, it equally violates the rights of the union and its members to require them to use their money to speak on behalf of the non-member. This is so because the right to speak and the right not to speak are two sides to the same coin. Hence, the right of freedom of thought protected by the First Amendment against state action includes both the right to speak freely and the right to refrain from speaking at all. Similarly, freedom of association plainly presupposes a freedom not to associate.
Thoughts?
*** UPDATE *** From 150…
Good afternoon Rich-
To clarify what appears to be some confusion in the comments, the Sweeney v. Rauner lawsuit does not seek to relinquish our status as the exclusive bargaining representative, nor does it seek to create multiple bargaining units. It would simply relieve the union of “duty of fair representation” obligations to provide additional services to workers who choose to pay nothing, including grievance processing, legal representation, etc.
Thanks!
Edward Maher
Communications Director
International Union of Operating Engineers, Local 150
* A Politico story about the lack of women at JB Pritzker’s companies from August of last year…
Pritzker Group Private Capital’s web site lists nine individuals with the titles “managing partner”, “investment partner” or “venture partner.” All are male. The investment team lists 22 people in total. Just one, a paralegal, is female. And of 15 senior advisers listed, just one is a woman.
Pritzker Group Venture Capital’s web site lists eight individuals with the titles “founder,” “managing partner”, “partner” or “venture partner.” Again, all are male. There is one woman listed as vice president and another as senior associate.
Asked about the dearth of women in top jobs at Pritzker firms, a spokeswoman referenced an industry-wide problem.
A study of women in venture capital reported in Techcrunch indicates that women make up just 7 percent of partners in the top 100 firms. That’s a low percentage, but Pritzker’s record of having no female partners still manages to fall below it.
But Pritzker’s camp also points to how the venture capital group decides to invest its money. A recent Crain’s article notes that Pritzker Group Venture Capital led the country in investing in women-run ventures. “The firm, started by J.B. Pritzker and his brother, Tony, has backed companies such as Chicago-based Eved, GiveForward, Built In and Sittercity, as well as Jessica Alba’s Honest Co. in Santa Monica, Calif.” Crain’s reported in June.
* A Tribune story about the lack of women at JB Pritzker’s companies from today…
In fact, Pritzker’s investment businesses have underperformed even according to the low diversity standards of the financial services industry, a Tribune review found. He has employed few women in senior positions at the Pritzker Group, a Chicago-based venture capital, private equity and asset management firm he co-founded with his brother.
Excluding the Pritzker brothers, of the 55 employees currently listed on the firm’s online employee rosters, just eight are women. And of the 26 employees with a senior title of vice president or above, three are women.
Pritzker said the lack of women in leadership positions is an industrywide problem for firms like his. […]
The Pritzker Group venture capital website lists 18 people among investment personnel, excluding the Pritzker brothers. Men account for 14, with four women. Among the men, eight hold titles of senior positions, and another two are listed as senior advisers. Among the women, just one holds a senior title, and none is a senior adviser.
In the asset management group, the site lists three employees: two men and a woman, and all hold senior titles.
In the private equity group, 24 team members are listed. Of the 20 men, 13 hold senior titles, while one woman holds a senior title.
Yep. It’s a problem. So far, none of the other campaigns have sent me anything about this piece, so we’ll see if anyone wants to blow this up some more.
Also, not mentioned is that the woman with a senior title at the asset management group is actually the group’s Chief Investment Officer, Terra Fuller, who has quite the resume.
* I’m sure this is merely a coincidence, but the union for a female dominated profession announced its endorsement of Pritzker today…
Today, the Illinois Nurses Association endorsed JB Pritzker for governor. At an announcement event in Chicago, JB discussed his plans to expand healthcare for working families, advocate for better working conditions for nurses, and protect collective bargaining rights for workers. The Illinois Nurses Association joins U.S. Senators Dick Durbin and Tammy Duckworth, the Illinois AFL-CIO, the Illinois Federation of Teachers, and the Illinois Education Association in their endorsement of JB for governor.
“Today, I am so incredibly proud to accept the endorsement of the Illinois Nurses Association in this campaign for governor,” said JB Pritzker. “Bruce Rauner came to Springfield and launched attack after attack on hardworking families. He is so determined to take us backwards, he is partnering with Donald Trump and trying to dismantle our labor movement at the Supreme Court. We can’t let them win. We face some enormous challenges in this state and we have a fight ahead of us, but I know we’re ready. We’re going to stand with working families, we’re going to come together as Illinoisans, and we’re going to get our state back on track.”
“INA proudly endorses JB Pritzker for governor. Society can depend on him to support maintaining healthcare when he is elected governor,” said Lorraine Wade, Director of the Illinois Nurses Association.
“JB understands that the people of Illinois need safe healthcare and he understands that means having enough nurses to provide safe care,” said Doris Carroll, Vice President of the Illinois Nurses Association.
…Adding… The Pritzker campaign sent this earlier today and I forgot about it…
Today, the JB Pritzker campaign released a digital ad “Support,” highlighting JB’s work to lift up diverse Illinois entrepreneurs.
For decades, JB has made it a priority to mentor diverse entrepreneurs and invest in women-owned businesses, identifying and taking concrete steps to address the lack of diversity across the investment and technology industries. In 2012, JB founded 1871, a nonprofit small business incubator, recognized as leading the way to help women entrepreneurs. And JB was proud that Pritzker Group was recently recognized as being the top firm in the nation for investing in women-owned businesses.
“JB is proud of his record of promoting, mentoring, and investing in women in the technology and investment industries,” said Pritzker communications director Galia Slayen. “In fact, JB’s firm was recently recognized as the top firm in the country for investing in women-owned businesses and 1871 continues to lead the way in creating more diversity in tech. In the technology world, in his business, and in the many organizations he’s involved in throughout Illinois, JB’s record of creating spaces and opportunities for diverse entrepreneurs to thrive is clear.”
“When you’re getting a business off the ground, there are always people behind the scenes. Some people are mentors and some people are sponsors,” said Suzanne Muchin, Co-founder and Principal of Mind + Matter Studio. “Mentors offer their opinions and advice, but sponsors back you, bring you into the right rooms, and make sure you have a seat at the right table. JB is a sponsor of women. He’s been a champion of mine, and for women around the country, for years. He plays this role without being asked, without any agenda other than simply wanting good people to have opportunities to succeed.”
“He has influenced my life a lot and in significant ways, but I would say JB’s influenced far more than just myself,” said Neal Sales-Griffin, CEO, CodeNow. “You can go around and talk to any entrepreneur, any aspiring entrepreneur, and they’ll know his name and they’ll know how important his contributions have been to this community, and how important they will be in years to come. JB knows there’s work to do and he’s been a big part of supporting me and others in this business.”
“I’m the CEO of a tech company in which the Pritzker Group has not invested, yet JB and his team have been there for us for years,” said Amanda Lannert, CEO of Jellyvision. “Several of his partners have provided mentorship, without any chance of any potential return. I truly think they are trying to just be helpful, and to create more wins for our community. Suffice it to say I’m a fan.”
We have a governor who thinks drinking chocolate milk proves that he’s committed to diversity and we have a candidate for governor who has proven that he doesn’t have a record of standing with women in the workplace.
JB Pritzker’s false claim that he supports women has been delivered through more than $20 million in scripted TV ads. He points to women who have endorsed him as superficial evidence to back his claims that he supports women. But the reality is, JB Pritzker has done very little to promote and empower women in leadership roles at his company, according to today’s story in the Chicago Tribune.
This reality is in line with the weak response we’ve seen from Pritzker about the allegations of sexual harassment in Speaker Mike Madigan’s political operation. JB Pritzker will put the political establishment in Springfield first, no matter what.
His scripted talking points tell us he’ll fight, but when it comes time to fight for women, JB has proven that he’d rather step to the side. We don’t need more of the same failed politics in Springfield. We need radical change and Chris Kennedy is the only one who can bring that to Illinois. He continues to show voters that he’s the only candidate in this race with integrity and courage to lead our state.
Tech entrepreneur Jimmy Odom, who went to work for Gov. Bruce Rauner to focus on minority entrepreneurship in 2015, said Monday that he’s leaving state government.
In a Medium.com post announcing his resignation as acting assistant director at the Illinois Department of Central Management Services, Odom said the state hasn’t given enough attention and resources to minority business development. […]
In an interview Monday, Odom said he’s seen routine inattention to underinvested communities that could be turned around with more economic opportunities — and didn’t put all the blame on Rauner’s administration.
“I think that we can do more. And I believe that a lack of investment has been going on for a long period of time. It’s not just this administration,” he said. “This didn’t just happen when Bruce got into office.”
A budget impasse that has left programs unfunded was also frustrating, he said.
Prior to accepting this position, I always stated I would step down in my role if I believed the Illinois’ leadership towards helping the community was no longer a genuine priority. Unfortunately, that day has come. […]
It is my belief that if Illinois had leadership and staff who truly cared about the positive impact these efforts would have on our communities, the proper attention and resources needed would be addressed and we’d experience change.
* WCIA FOIA’d Odom’s resignation letter and ran this story last night…
Achieving diversity and inclusion in state government has proven harder than stirring a glass of chocolate milk for the first term governor. In May of last year, Rauner policy advisor Jimmy Odom submitted a stinging resignation letter citing frustrations with the administration on that precise issue. […]
Odom, who was tasked with improving relations and expanding business opportunities for minority contractors, wrote to his boss at Central Management Services that “needs of the minority business programming for the state isn’t important to the administration.”
Rauner spokeswoman Rachel Bold responded in an email that “Governor Rauner and this administration are firmly committed to diversity, inclusion and providing opportunities to minority business owners.”
In a phone call, Odom says he harbors no ill will toward Rauner personally, but rather grew disenfranchised with what he described as general apathy and inefficiencies in state government. When a sensible solution presented itself, he said political opposition would routinely interfere to deny the other party a political victory. He described the challenges as petty differences born out of little more than spite.
Governor Rauner and this administration are firmly committed to diversity, inclusion and providing opportunities to minority business owners.
In 2016 the Governor signed Executive Order 2016-08 which expanded opportunities for minorities contracting with the state. It established the first sheltered market in the state of Illinois, which has been lauded as a major step forward for minority participation in state contracting.
This afternoon, Governor Eric Greitens of Missouri was indicted stemming from an alleged sexual blackmail scandal. Governor Bruce Rauner was featuring Greitens in his campaign ads when these allegations first became public and refused to call for Greitens to step down before an investigation was complete. Rauner did remove the ads, but only for scheduling purposes.
Now, a City of St. Louis Grand Jury has formally indicted Greitens on a Felony Invasion of Privacy charge.
“Governor Bruce Rauner stood by Governor Eric Greitens even as these disturbing allegations became public,” said DGA Illinois Communications Director Sam Salustro. “But now that Governor Greitens has been criminally indicted, Governor Rauner must call on him to resign immediately.”
* Pritzker campaign this morning…
Bruce Rauner-ally Missouri Gov. Eric Greitens was indicted yesterday for felony invasion of privacy related to a sex scandal, but Rauner has remained silent.
Last year, Rauner spent $1.3 million airing ads starring the Missouri governor badmouthing Illinois, and Rauner pumped $100,000 into Greitens’ campaign coffers. But now that he’s headed behind bars, will Bruce Rauner finally speak out against his pal Eric Greitens?
“After putting his face on televisions across Illinois and writing him a six-figure check, Bruce Rauner is now afraid to say Eric Greitens name,” said Pritzker campaign spokeswoman Jordan Abudayyeh. “It is time for Bruce Rauner to break his silence on his favorite TV star and make it clear where he stands.”
* DGA this morning…
Flashback Friday: Rauner Donated $100,000 to Gubernatorial Candidate Eric Greitens
Since Then, Rauner Spent $1.3 Million on Ads Boosting Greitens’ Profile
Illinois Governor Bruce Rauner has still not called for Missouri Governor Eric Greitens to resign following news he was indicted by a St. Louis Grand Jury. Greitens’ has been indicted on a Felony Invasion of Privacy charge for “taking and transmitting a non-consensual photo of his partly-nude lover.”
Rauner has long been a fan of Greitens and very generously helped out his neighbor. In 2016, Rauner was one of Greitens biggest individual donors to Greitens when he and his wife cut a $100,000 check. And Rauner’s put $1.3 million behind ads profiling Greitens and Missouri’s economic growth.
An Illinois megadonor is contributing $500,000 to the effort to make Missouri a right-to-work state.
The St. Louis Post-Dispatch reports that Richard Uihlein donated the money Tuesday to a political action committee named “Freedom to Work.” It’s raising cash to fend off a union-led attempt to kill efforts to change state labor laws.
Last year, lawmakers passed a right-to-work law barring mandatory union fees in workplace contracts. But labor unions gathered enough petition signatures to put the law on hold until a statewide referendum can be held in 2018.
Uihlein is a wealthy packaging company executive from Lake Forest who is also helping to bankroll Attorney General Josh Hawley’s bid for the U.S. Senate. Uihlein also contributed $360,000 to Gov. Eric Greitens’ maiden bid for statewide office in 2016.
Jeanne Ives (Direct) placed $8,000 on radio from 2/22-3/7. Total for the election: $1.92 million.
Bruce Rauner (Target Enterprises) revised on broadcast from 2/19-2/25 for $1.47 million in Illinois statewide. Total for the election: $15.07 million.
Chris Kennedy (A|L Media) placed $132k on broadcast from 2/19-2/25, with all of it placed in Chicago. Total for the election: $1.11 million.
Daniel Biss (Canal Partners Media) has placed $686k on broadcast from 2/21-2/27, and cable from 2/21-2/27. Total for the election: $2.64 million.
J.B. Pritzker (Shorr Johnson Magnus) placed $1.18M on broadcast from 2/20-2/26, cable from 2/20-2/26, and satellite from 2/20-3/5. Total for the election: $27.47 million.
Ives ended the fourth quarter with $404K and has reported raising about $2.7 million since then. She appears to have an ad burn rate of about $633K per week. She has overhead costs as well, so at this spending rate she doesn’t have nearly enough gas left in the tank to make it to primary day. She needs another Uihlein check within the next, let’s say, 3-10 days.
Check out how Rauner has upped his spending rate this week. At that rate, he’ll spend another $5 million or so by primary day.
Kennedy. Sheesh. He’s spent less than a Tier One state Senate candidate. And yet he’s still in the hunt.
Biss’ current spending rate means he’ll spend another $2 million or so after the end of this month. His 12/31 cash on hand plus reported contributions this year equal $4.3 million. Add in the small, unreported contributions this year, which (judging from the past rate of 10 percent) could be $100K or so. That works out to about $1.76 million available minus his overhead, which he’s kept pretty low. He’s gonna need a bigger boat if he wants to remain at this pace, but contributions tend to pick up as election day nears.
If you average all the polls taken since January, Pritzker is at about 35 percent. So, his advertisement spending equals $785,000 per percentage point. And that doesn’t count all the rest of his spending. He’s way over a million bucks per poll point.
Folks who tried to cast Democratic ballots Thursday at the city’s sole early-voting location were turned away if they lived in the Southwest Side 7th County Board district, which covers about one-tenth of Chicago.
That’s because a Circuit Court judge restored Raul Montes Jr. to the 7th District ballot for now. Election officials knocked him off, but an appeal continues.
Chicago Board of Elections officials said they were reprogramming the touch screens being used at 16 W. Adams St. so they’d be ready to go again Friday morning.
I mean, Cook County already has an assessor candidate on the ballot who was kicked off and now this.
*** UPDATE *** Sarah Brune of the Illinois Campaign for Political Reform in comments…
There are a few options as we see it (RNUG outlines them well):
- Move up the candidate filing deadline to early November so that there is more time for petition challenges to play out
- Shorten the initial 30-day judicial review for petition challenges (this would help, but not completely solve the problem)
- Determine a statewide protocol for proceeding with ballot certification when challenges are ongoing. This is something that can be discussed among election officials, but there should be just one way of handling it. Right now, some jurisdictions proceed with voting, but let voters know that their choices may not count if the ballot changes, while others turn voters away and ask them to vote later. In other jurisdictions, voters will be asked to come re-cast ballots if changes are made.
The calendar right now is set up to fail, and needs to be changed to accommodate early voting and longer petition challenges. Otherwise, this will continue to happen for every Primary and Consolidated Election in the future.
* Not the strongest endorsement I’ve ever seen, to say the least. Here’s Crain’s…
In the March 20 primary, Republican voters face a stark choice. Rauner’s mulish stewardship of the state has been very nearly disastrous, a four-year-long display of brinkmanship and ineffectual trash-talking that’s caused maximum pain for minimum gain. He’s being challenged on his right by state Rep. Jeanne Ives, a DuPage County conservative whose campaign seems largely animated by outrage over so-called sanctuary cities as well as Rauner’s decision to sign into law a controversial measure to expand taxpayer-subsidized abortions—though he’s certainly provided her with plenty of additional opportunities to heap scorn on him and his record. With backing from at least one deep-pocketed megadonor, Uline founder Richard Uihlein, Ives proves to be a real threat to the incumbent. Nevertheless, she has disqualified herself from serious consideration first by essentially arguing that the rest of the state doesn’t need Chicago and then by airing what easily are among the most appalling campaign spots in the history of political advertising.
For all his faults—and there are many—the governor deserves an up-or-down vote on his record so far. The best that voters pulling a Republican ballot this year can hope for is that Rauner can somehow do better this time around than last time, and because he’s the only reasonable option in the GOP field, he gets our endorsement.
Rauner made the dual mistakes of underestimating Madigan while also failing to acknowledge that the man represents a constituency and must be dealt with, like him or not. Pritzker risks overlearning those lessons, striking too deferential a posture toward a pol who bears as much blame as Rauner does for Illinois’ current shambolic state, if not more. If voters are to risk handing the governor’s mansion to the same party that currently controls the House and the Senate, they must be assured the chief executive is capable of acting independently with the best interests of the entire state at heart, not just those of Madigan and his minions. Between now and the general election, Pritzker must prove he’s not just another cog in the Democratic machine.
Crain’s has covered Pritzker for years, and the man we’ve gotten to know in that time is a smart and pragmatic leader. Based on that record, we’re endorsing him in the Democratic primary. It’s something of a leap of faith, especially after our failed experiment with another rich businessman who brought no political experience to the job. But among the Democratic options, Pritzker is the best choice for Chicago business.
* In other news, there’s an unusual disclosure at the tail end of a George Will column today which cheers on Illinois state employee Mark Janus’ fair share case against AFSCME…
This columnist’s wife, Mari Will, is an adviser to Illinois Gov. Bruce Rauner, who originally filed the lawsuit that became Janus v. AFSCME.
The Rauner campaign confirmed today that she is advising the governor. I asked how long she’d been with the campaign, but haven’t heard back. Her website doesn’t have a client list and I searched expenditure reports on the Board of Elections site and neither she nor her consulting firm Maseng Communications turned up any hits. So, it looks like her hiring was fairly recent.
Ms. Will previously worked for Wisconsin Gov. Scott Walker’s presidential campaign. Gov. Walker was also in that Rauner TV ad.
The Greitens thing and the Will thing aren’t at all related, of course. But, hey, I did some work on that George Will column, then realized it wasn’t enough to post on its own and then Greitens was arrested, so presto. Instant blog post.
* But, then I figured I needed something from Indiana to make this post complete. Gov. Eric Holcomb was the third governor in that Rauner TV ad. The big news in Hoosier Land today is Gov. Holcomb’s pledge to sign a Sunday alcohol sales bill.
* This was a bit weird yesterday, but people were clapping, so whatevs…
A very strange diversity demonstration today as @GovRauner celebrated Black History month. Keynote speaker Tyronne Stoudemire VP for Global Diversity at Hyatt explains what it looks like. @ABC7Chicago#twillpic.twitter.com/qIaDScybr7
In an awkward onstage appearance this week, Gov. Bruce Rauner drank a glass of chocolate milk to demonstrate his belief in diversity.
“It’s really, really good,” Rauner said after taking a sip of the sugary drink. “Diversity!” […]
[Hyatt Hotels diversity and inclusion executive Tyronne Stoudemire] told Chicago Inc. he’s been using the chocolate milk stunt for 16 years as a simple way to illustrate the lack of diversity at the top of Fortune 500 companies. He typically picks on the most powerful person in the room to be his assistant, he said, adding that Rauner “didn’t know what he was getting into.”
He declined to comment on Rauner’s efforts to improve diversity in Illinois government, but said, “I give him credit for his willingness to step up and put himself out there … he could have said, ‘No.’ ”
Rauner’s spokeswoman Rachel Bold did not respond directly when asked whether Rauner was embarrassed by the stunt, but wrote in a statement, ”This was the event moderator’s example of diversity that an audience of all ages could see and understand. It was one of two demonstrations at the event, both of which received ovations from the crowd.”
Gotta be Pritzker’s fault since it was a Hyatt guy’s idea. Then again, by logical extension it would be… Madigan’s fault? We can only guess.
* Anyway, Dictionary.com trolled the governor today…
Diversity. Noun. The inclusion of individuals representing more than one national origin, color, religion, socioeconomic stratum, sexual orientation, etc.
* I went down a bit of a rabbit hole today after seeing a typo in one of Dan Proft’s papers…
State Rep. Terri Bryant (R-Murphysboro) is portrayed as having “served up” her constituents in the 115th House District in a new Liberty Principles PAC ad on YouTube ridiculing her as a pawn of powerful House Speaker Mike Madigan (D-Chicago).
“You know Terri Bryant voted for Mike Madigan’s 32 percent income tax hike, but that’s only half the story,” a voice blares in the ad. Branding the tax hike the largest in state history, the video adds “after raising taxes, Bryant sent our money to bail out Chicago Public Schools’ pensions.”
So, you’ve got a Proft paper story that’s purely about a Proft PAC’s ad. How… 21st Century of them. Click here to watch the spot.
* Now, for the typo, scroll down to the end of the story…
Bryant is being challenged in the March 20 Republican primary by Paul Jacobs of Pomona, who is running on a platform of proposed budget reforms and spending cuts.
Citing rising taxes as one of the primary reasons for the state’s spiraling out-migration problem, Griffith has also blasted Bryant over her support for the state’s newly enacted $36.1 billion spending plan.
Griffith? Who dat?
* For the answer, read this eerily similar story about an eerily similar Proft ad written by the same author for a different Proft paper…
With just weeks remaining before the March 20 primaries, a new Liberty Principles PAC ad on YouTube blasts incumbent state Rep. Norine Hammond (R-Macomb) as doing a disservice to her 93rd House District constituents based on her constant support of powerful House Speaker Mike Madigan (D-Chicago).
“You know Norine Hammond voted for Mike Madigan’s 32 percent income tax hike, but that’s only half the story,” a voice blares in the ad. Branding the tax hike the largest in state history, the video adds “after raising taxes, Hammond sent our money to bail out Chicago Public Schools’ pensions.” […]
Hammond is being challenged in the Republican primary by U.S. Army veteran and Abingdon resident Joshua Griffith, who has repeatedly blasted her throughout his campaign over her support for the $36.1 billion budget plan enacted last year. [Emphasis added.]
So, the guy who wrote both of those stories must’ve been typing too fast and got his primary races a little mixed up. It happens, but it made me look around.
* If you click here, you’ll see the Hammond ad is almost identical to the Bryant ad. And Liberty Principles PAC produced two other nearly identical ads. One’s against Rep. Charlie Meier, the other against Rep. David Reis. One of Proft’s papers also has a story up about the Proft ad against Rep. Meier. Click here.
OK, so he does a lot of cookie-cutter stuff. No surprise.
The factory-like production standards did create somewhat of a problem because the ad claims the education funding reform bill was a “Chicago bailout” and notes that Reis voted for it. That’s true, but as Reis points out, his Proft-backed opponent is on record saying he would’ve voted for the bill as well. It’s not a real problem, though, because Proft’s ad is an independent expenditure. So, by law, he’s not supposed to coordinate with the candidate.
* But, wait, there’s more. Three of the four aforementioned Proft-backed candidates have nearly identical websites (Griffith, Moore and Jacobs).
And if you go to the “News” section of each of those sites, you’ll see that most of the posted stories are actually from… you guessed it: Proft’s papers.
Illinois voters could get a say whether the state should legalize recreational marijuana if lawmakers decide to put the question on November ballots.
A state Senate committee advanced the idea on Wednesday, but a ballot question would be non-binding. That means it would work like a statewide public opinion poll and wouldn’t legalize marijuana even if a majority of voters approve. Lawmakers who want to legalize the drug could get a political boost, though, if voters favor it. […]
In voting against the ballot question, state Sen. Chris Nybo, R-Elmhurst, named property tax reductions, redistricting reform and term limits for party leaders as questions he’d rather see on the ballot.
“Of all of the issues that we as a state are facing and that we have the opportunity to present to our citizens in terms of an advisory referendum, I would frankly put this one very low down the list,” Nybo said.
* There was an objection to the question’s language, saying it should stop at “21 years of age” and not include the subsequent mention of tobacco and alcohol, but isn’t that important?…
“Do you support the legalization of possession and use of marijuana by persons who are at least 21 years of age, subject to regulation and taxation that is similar to the regulation and taxation of tobacco and alcohol?”
Gun control advocates are renewing their push to require Illinois firearm stores to get state licenses, saying federal regulations do not go far enough to ensure sales are handled properly.
Legislation to license dealers cleared the state Senate last year, but stalled in the House amid fierce opposition from gun rights groups. They contend that licensing would drive up the price of purchasing a firearm by as much as $300.
Democrats in the Senate are hoping to calm those fears, advancing companion legislation on Wednesday to limit the cost of licensing fees to $1,000 for a five-year period.
* Press release…
State Rep. Will Guzzardi (D-Chicago) along with Attorney General Lisa Madigan and other allied organizations are pushing new legislation, the Illinois Generic Drug Pricing Fairness Act which would stop companies from making essential drug prices too high.
“News of Martin Shkreli’s Turing Pharmaceuticals buying a vital AIDS medication and raising the prices from $13.50 to $700 a tablet shocked the world,” said Rep. Guzzardi. “But the sad truth is, that kind of price gouging happens all the time. In fact, more than 400 generic drugs saw price increases of more than 1000 percent between 2008 and 2015. That’s unacceptable, and it’s time we make it illegal.”
The legislation gives the Illinois Attorney General’s office the power to put the brakes on price gouging of essential off-patent or generic drugs. Drug companies that increase prices sharply must show documentation that they are raising prices due to increased production costs. If they can’t do so, they will face civil penalties including restitution to customers and fines of up to $10,000 per violation.
Maryland passed a generic drug bill in 2017, and over half of state legislatures in the country introduced similar bills.
“Out-of-control drug prices have a profound impact on our budget, as the state spends billions each year on prescription drugs through the Medicaid program,” Guzzardi said. “This bill will curtail an egregious practice that’s exploiting the sick and the vulnerable for corporate profit, and bankrupting our state in the meantime.”
In many instances, generic drugs play an important role in keeping healthcare costs down. But a scathing, bipartisan US Senate report described the process by which some generic companies gain monopolies over essential drugs and raise the prices exorbitantly. The Generic Drug Pricing Fairness Act takes aim specifically at this behavior.
The bill, HB4900, has been assigned to the House Human Services Committee.
* Press release…
The Annie LeGere Law is another step closer to implementation as an amendment sponsored by State Senator Chris Nybo (R-Elmhurst) seeks to increase participation of medical professionals in the program that would place epinephrine auto-injectors (EpiPens) in the hands of law enforcement across the state. The amendment was approved unanimously by the State Senate on February 21.
“The EpiPen program is a vital public health measure that has a proven need, and can truly mean the difference between life and death in the case of a fatal allergic reaction,” said Nybo. “Elmhurst Police Department has already budgeted for the EpiPens and extensive device training—the only challenge presented is the hesitance from health professionals to provide the prescriptions and approve the training courses. After hearing their feedback, I believe Senate Bill 2226 will offer them the liability protection and coverage they need to join our initiative.”
The amendment specifies that any physician, physician’s assistant or advanced practice registered nurse with prescriptive authority who issues a prescription or standing order for epinephrine to an Illinois police department will not be subject to civil or professional liability for law enforcement’s misuse of the medication.
The Annie LeGere Law, effective as of January 2017, allows for Illinois police officers to carry and administer EpiPens on duty as an emergency measure to reverse life-threatening allergic reactions following proper training and procedural requirements. The legislation was inspired by Elmhurst’s own Annie LeGere, a 13-year-old who passed away from a fatal allergic reaction that could have been prevented by epinephrine.
“Pending the approval of the House of Representatives and the signature of the Governor, law enforcement officers could begin training on EpiPens and carrying them this year,” said Nybo. “We’ve suffered losses in past years from police departments being without these life-saving devices. Together with members of law enforcement, state and local government, the medical community and the public, let’s all take a step in the right direction—and as soon as possible.”
Senate Bill 2226 was approved by the State Senate, and now State Representative Deb Conroy (D-Villa Park) will sponsor it in the House of Representatives.
As we read recent headlines about the kinds of inappropriate and disgusting behavior that have been tolerated for years by the Madigan/Democrat machine, I write you today about similar behavior by a current candidate running under our Republican Party label. In particular, I’m writing you because your name has been associated with that individual, potentially without your permission.
You may have heard over the past few months about a meeting in which an unnamed Republican township chairman directed offensive questions and comments to Erika Harold, a Harvard attorney and former Miss America, who is our party’s leading candidate for Attorney General. That chairman asked Ms. Harold personal questions about her marital status, and even her sexual orientation, going so far as to inquire whether she was a “lesbo.” The chairman also used the full n-word repeatedly in front of Ms. Harold and her assistant, asking whether she found its usage offensive.
After the initial reports, it was confirmed that the chairman in question is Burt Minor, of Winfield Township. Mr. Minor later filed petitions to become a candidate for State Representative in the 42nd District, the seat currently held by Representative Jeanne Ives.
At an in-person meeting that Mr. Minor requested with me, with a witness present, Mr. Minor confirmed that he had asked Ms. Harold if she was a lesbian and that he had used the full n-word in her and her assistant’s presence. He explained this away by claiming that Ms. Harold “wanted him to ask the question” about her sexual orientation and claiming that Ms. Harold asked him to say the full n-word. Suffice it to say, this is not how the other participants to the meeting heard or understood the statements, nor how they reported those statements to others both immediately after the meeting occurred and consistently in the months since.
While this conduct is not appropriate for anyone in our Party, it is especially outrageous for a declared Republican candidate for Illinois General Assembly.
The General Assembly’s unified endorsement of “#MeToo” and “#TimesUp” isn’t just lip service–it’s a recognition and demand that the culture of sexual harassment in Springfield is, and must be, finished for good. Additionally, revelations like the FBI wiretaps of conversations between Democrat gubernatorial candidate J.B. Pritzker and disgraced former governor Rod Blagojevich demonstrate that we still have a long way to go in addressing race discrimination in Illinois politics.
Mr. Minor’s boorish behavior is beyond the pale on both fronts. I would respectfully contend to you that a person willing to engage in this sort of speech–the casual use of vile racial epithets–and line of inquiry–asking unmarried women highly personal questions about their sexual orientation–is not fit to serve in the House Republican Caucus. And I am certain that my fellow caucus members agree.
Since Mr. Minor’s actions came to light, many in our Party have urged Mr. Minor to withdraw his candidacy for state representative. However, he has continually refused to do so. And, just as with the white supremacist currently running as an alleged Republican in the 3rd Congressional District, we appear to have no means to have Mr. Minor thrown off the ballot.
The reason I bring these concerns specifically to your attention is that Mr. Minor has used your name as one of his alleged endorsers. And in numerous consultations with others whose names Mr. Minor listed in his fundraising solicitations and on his web site, I have learned that he fabricated a not insubstantial number of those endorsements, including alleged endorsements from my own colleagues in the Illinois General Assembly. Some of those individuals have since asked to be removed from his solicitations, his website, and any campaign literature.
If you fall into the category of those whose names are being used without their permission, then I would respectfully request that you contact Mr. Minor directly and instruct him not to use your name as an endorser. I know that some individuals in this category have not reached out to Mr. Minor as of yet, because they do not want to risk recrimination from him, but at this time and under these circumstances, I would urge that his unauthorized use of your name gives an impression of support for Mr. Minor that is undeserved and unwarranted.
If you did give Mr. Minor permission to use your name as an endorser on his solicitations, then I would respectfully request that you withdraw your endorsement, because he is not fit to serve as a Republican nominee for the General Assembly.
Thank you for your attention to this matter.
Very truly yours,
Peter Breen
House Republican Floor Leader
State Representative, 48th District
* Erika Harold’s campaign and Breen’s witness, Kevin Fitzpatrick, both confirmed the two conversations.
“She found [Minor’s comments] offensive when he said them and she told him at the time they were offensive,” said Ms. Harold’s spokesperson Jason Heffley.
Fitzpatrick said Minor explained to Breen during their meeting that Harold wanted to be asked about her sexual orientation because “she wanted to get it on the record” that she was straight.
Asked if Harold wanted Minor to ask the question about her sexual orientation, Heffley flat-out denied his candidate ever did such a thing.
During the follow-up meeting with Breen, Fitzpatrick said that Minor explained he used the n-word while “discussing a radio show” hosted by Joe Walsh. Heffley confirmed that Minor used the word several times in his meeting with Harold.
*** UPDATE 1 *** React is coming in. From GOP Rep. Dave McSweeney…
Minor needs to drop out of the race now! I hope that Tim Schneider, Chairman of the Illinois Rauner Party, immediately seconds my call for Minor to exit the race.
* From GOP Rep. Mark Batinick…
A few weeks ago I became aware of very troubling statements made by township chairman Burt Minor who is a Republican State Representative candidate. I have since had those statements confirmed by multiple sources and have been working with party officials in an attempt to remove him from the race. It is my understanding that those attempts have been futile. This sort of conduct does not belong in our party and will not be tolerated. He needs to immediately withdraw.
*** UPDATE 2 *** House Republican Leader Jim Durkin…
Mr. Minor’s statements are offensive and beyond unacceptable. I call on him to withdraw from the race immediately.
*** UPDATE 3 *** From GOP Rep. Grant Wehrli…
Racism in any form cannot be tolerated anywhere. Burt Minor must withdrawal from this race immediately. After learning of his disturbing comments I can no longer support his candidacy
*** UPDATE 4 *** From Gov. Rauner’s campaign spokesperson Will Allison…
Erika Harold is a star attorney and candidate who is a bright part of the future of the Republican Party in Illinois. Burt Minor’s racist and demeaning language has no place in the GOP or our society. He should drop out of the race.
*** UPDATE 5 *** Gov. Rauner and Rep. Jeanne Ives agree on something…
Based on the letter from my colleague Rep. Peter Breen and the corroboration of the accusations against Burt Minor, I join my colleagues in calling for Mr. Minor to withdraw from the primary election to be the nominee for the seat I currently hold. Mr. Minor’s alleged comments are inexcusable, indefensible and disqualifying.
*** UPDATE 6 *** Illinois Republican Party Chairman Tim Schneider…
I was appalled to learn today of Mr. Minor’s deeply offensive comments. His words do not represent the views of the Illinois Republican Party. Racial and gay slurs have no place in our political discourse and must be condemned in the strongest possible terms. Mr. Minor should withdraw from the race for State Representative in the 42nd House District and immediately issue an apology to Erika Harold and to all Illinoisans he offended by his disgusting choice of words.
“We had a meeting with [Winfield Township Republican Chairman] Burt Minor, and during the course of the conversation he asked me if I had children. I said no. He asked me if I was married. I said no. He then asked me if I had ever been married. I said no.”
Harold said Minor then asked her if she was a lesbian, using a slur.
Harold said she told him no.
“But then I also made it clear that someone’s sexual orientation should not be used to disqualify them for running for office,” Harold said.
Harold said Minor seemed “surprised” that she was standing up for herself.
Within the same conversation, Minor also asked Harold whether it was ever appropriate to use the n-word, “but he said the full word,” she said.
*** UPDATE 8 *** From Minor…
STATEMENT FROM BURT MINOR
Candidate, 42nd House District
Last October, I met with Erika Harold in my capacity as Winfield Township Republican Chairman, at her request, to discuss the challenges she might face in her campaign for the Republican nomination for Attorney General. Our meeting has been greatly misrepresented.
Not all Republican voters are comfortable discussing issues of race and sexual orientation. I wish it were different, but it is a reality those of us active in the Republican Party’s leadership confront, not infrequently.
My discussion with Erika was an attempt to point out this unfortunate reality, it was in no way meant to be offensive. I honestly left our meeting unaware that our conversation might have made Erika uncomfortable. My apologies to Erika if she was in any way offended.
Erika is a great candidate who has a bright future in the Republican Party.
Throughout my 23 years in the military, I worked alongside people of all faiths, ethnicities and backgrounds. We worked together to get the job done, and that is the way it should be. Period.
Ironically, at the 2016 Illinois Republican State Convention I was vilified for defending fellow Republicans who were advocating for a more inclusive and tolerant Illinois Republican Party Platform.
I was also upset with Gubernatorial candidate Jeanne Ives recent television advertisement. Interestingly, many of the individuals criticizing me over this misunderstanding remain silent about that disgustingly provocative television ad. The hypocrisy is stunning.
Peter Breen and Kevin Fitzpatrick, who are attempting to capitalize on this misunderstanding for the benefit of one of my opponents, tried to bribe me months ago with the offer of a government job if I were to get out of this race. They told me that they wanted another candidate to win because Peter Breen would be able to control her. When I declined the offer, they said they would support my daughter if she were ever to run for higher office. This morning, when Peter sent his letter to the media he attempted to follow through on a promise to destroy my reputation.
I completely understand the fierce reaction this misunderstanding has generated, but I wish those who rushed to judgment would have gotten all the facts first. I intend to discuss those facts and the many issues of importance to the residents of Illinois’ 42nd District in the days leading up to Election Day. So there is no further misunderstanding, let me be clear, I believe there is no place for racism or intolerance in the Republican Party and the State of Illinois.
*** UPDATE 9 *** Sen. Kwame Raoul…
I applaud the Republican leaders and others who have joined together to speak out against this incident. No one who’s putting themselves forward as a candidate - in politics or in the workplace - should be subjected to what Erika faced. Unfortunately, this incident represents a broader reality of what individuals face everyday and we all need to join together to put an end to it.
*** UPDATE 10 *** Rep. Peter Breen…
Burt Minor’s statement makes clear that he doesn’t deny the allegations against him, nor does he see any problem in his repeated use of the full n-word in conversation or his questions to an unmarried woman about whether she is a “lesbo.” He now shifts the blame to the victims of his vile actions for being “uncomfortable,” with a half-hearted apology to Ms. Harold, “if she was in any way offended.” Burt Minor should take ownership of his outrageous and offensive statements, apologize for making them, and return to private life away from any public involvement with the Republican Party.
Burt Minor lied in his fundraising solicitations by claiming the endorsements of numerous elected officials who had never given him permission to use their name, including falsely claiming an endorsement from our Republican Leader Jim Durkin. His accusations today are more lies.
At no time was any government job offered to Mr. Minor by anyone, and certainly not by me or anyone on my volunteer team. As a state representative, I have the ability to appoint a single Legislative Aide—and I have one of the most qualified and experienced Legislative Aides in the state in that position today.
Even if I had control over 1,000 jobs, I wouldn’t willingly put a person like Burt Minor anywhere near my family, my volunteers, or any of the residents of my district. As for Mr. Minor’s daughter, I couldn’t pick her out of a lineup and have never made any statement about her, whether in regards to her apparent political ambitions or otherwise.
All of his other accusations are false, and in particular, Burt Minor now insults and slanders yet another strong female candidate—respected DuPage County Board Member Amy Grant—by claiming she would somehow be “controlled” instead of serve the people of the 42nd District. Folks in the district know Amy as an accomplished community leader, wife, and mother of two great kids. She doesn’t deserve Burt Minor’s insults.
Shame on Burt Minor. He is unfit to serve in any position of public trust.
* Bernie Sanders is having a Chicago rally this afternoon, so good timing for Biss, but notice there is no endorsement by Sanders himself. He’s said he’s not making a personal endorsement in this race. Press release…
Today, Daniel Biss announced the endorsement of Our Revolution, following the endorsement of the organization’s Illinois chapter in January.
“Our Revolution is proud to endorse Daniel Biss for governor of Illinois,” said Our Revolution President Nina Turner. “Daniel will be accountable to middle-class and working families, and to people who have been ignored and pushed aside for generations. He’s committed to co-governing and will put our shared progressive vision first in everything he does.
“FBI tapes released by the Chicago Tribune have told us all we need to know about JB’s character: he views representation as a PR stunt and will only give us a seat at the table when there’s a camera around. We deserve better—we deserve leaders who will include us at every level and tear down the broken systems that hold us back. That’s why we’re joining with Daniel in this race, and why we’re working all across the country to build a powerful, grassroots movement.”
“I’m honored to receive Our Revolution’s endorsement,” said Daniel Biss. “Our Revolution was founded to mobilize the nation around an ambitious, progressive agenda that transcends a single candidate or election cycle—and that’s just what we’re trying to do here in Illinois. As we organize around a bold vision for Medicare-for-all, living wages, free higher education, we’re transforming the Democratic Party from the ground up. I’m proud to partner with Our Revolution to build a state and a nation that put middle-class and working families first.”
In endorsing Daniel Biss, Our Revolution joins other progressive leaders and organizations including Sierra Club Illinois, National Nurses United, MoveOn, BlackRoots Resistance, Reclaim Chicago, U.S. Congresswoman Robin Kelly, former Lieutenant Governor Sheila Simon, State Representatives Kelly Cassidy, Carol Ammons and Will Guzzardi, and many more.
On Tuesday, Wauconda village hall got its first phone call from somebody yelling “Wakanda Forever.”
It’s the thrilling battle cry from the smash hit movie “Black Panther,” which opened over the weekend.
“We had a guy call and [he] was shouting that. I was a little confused,” said Alise Homola, who works at the village hall in the far northwest suburb.
“He was joking around about it,’’ she said. “He just said that ‘I was searching the Wakanda from the movie, and your village came up, so I thought I’d call you and give you a hard time.’ ” […]
To be clear, Wauconda is not the futuristic vibranium-filled African utopia of “Black Panther.” It’s a town in Lake County with a landmark nature bog.
But that hasn’t stopped comic book geeks and fans from joking on social media that the smash hit film about Wakanda might make Wauconda seem cooler than it is.
* Not a bad idea…
The people have spoken, so let's get to work on creating the Wakanda Visitors Center in Wauconda. ILGA Tweeps, let's make sure this is in the next capital bill. https://t.co/4JOnOc9lTk
In the last 30 days, Stephen Schuler became Biss’ second largest donor with a $250,000 donation in that period. Schuler is an interesting donor because his company Final Finish Inc. gave $5,000 to Gov. Bruce Rauner on Feb. 6 then gave $25,000 to Biss on Feb. 7. Schuler’s also donated to other Republicans, including the Republican National Committee, Mitt Romney and John McCain.
Given Biss’ positioning as the progressive in the race, we asked: what gives?
Here’s Biss campaign’s explanation, from spokesman Tom Elliott:
“There’s no conspiracy theory. Schuler personally gives to a lot of Dems. His company, Final Finish, is a medical marijuana group so it makes sense that they would give money to the Governor who controls the outcome of their industry in Illinois.”
I don’t really care too much about campaign contributions like that. And I checked around and was told the guy is not hatching some evil plan to back both Rauner and Biss. It was apparently a chance to have dinner with the governor and he took it. So I took a pass on the opportunity.
* But… did that really come out of the mouth of a Daniel Biss person? Hasn’t Biss said time after time that this is supposed to be “an election not an auction”? Yep.
And now his campaign is rationalizing a contribution as no big deal because it’s just Statehouse business as usual? Again, it is probably no big deal and I really hope that Schuler talked to Rauner about med-mar at the dinner because Rauner has been so darned awful on the issue. But this is the holier-than-absolutely-everyone progressive campaign we’re talking about here. SMH.
Pritzker criticized Biss for voting for the 2013 pension reform legislation that was later declared unconstitutional by the Illinois Supreme Court, saying it contradicts his “middle class” governor narrative.
“Dan Biss introduced a bill that took pensions away from 450,000 workers across the state, including teachers and nurses. And I don’t think that’s good for the middle class,” Pritzker said. “It’s a contract we make with those folks, and it’s time we stand up to the plate and pay what’s owed to them.”
Biss said the vote was a mistake that he has since learned from, but shot back at Pritzker for donating money to a political action committee that also received contributions from Gov. Bruce Rauner and that pushed the pension reform bill.
“I was a legislator in early 2011 when there was a huge budget crisis,” Biss said. “I was trying my best and fell for a false choice on what this problem was. I’ve learned that lesson, and that lesson is visible in my voting record for years since that time.”
* Pritzker campaign press release during last night’s forum…
Despite using We Mean Business PAC as a talking point, Dan Biss cashed two checks totaling $15,000 from the very same organization. Those contributions came as Biss was writing and passing the unconstitutional pension bill that cut benefits for 467,000 teachers, university workers, and state employees. Since the bill was blocked by the Illinois Supreme Court, Biss has taken heat for his “flip-flop” as he tries to back away from the same bill he wrote.
REALITY CHECK:
After flip-flopping on pensions at the Crain’s editorial board, Biss was asked, “if you can so completely change your opinion on something you spent so much time and energy on, what can people trust you not to change your opinion on?”
Dan Biss received two contributions totaling $15,000 from We Mean Business PAC.
Biss “helped write” and led efforts to pass the pension bill that was ruled unconstitutional by the Supreme Court and cut pension benefits promised to over 467,000 state workers.
While Biss attacks JB for donating to We Mean Business PAC, the donation came two years before Biss authored the unconstitutional pension bill.
At tonight’s Illinois Democratic candidate forum hosted by the State Journal-Register, WMAY and the University of Illinois in Springfield, the Pritzker panic continued as JB Pritzker recycled his sloppy attacks against Daniel Biss.
Let’s check the facts.
Pritzker Panics on Pensions
JB Pritzker brought up Daniel Biss’ record on pensions. Pritzker neglected to mention that he funded the pro-business PAC that lobbied for a far more extreme bill.
Pritzker donated $20,000 to the We Mean Business PAC, which supported the passage of SB512, a bill designed to benefit wealthy business people over workers. Daniel Biss voted against this legislation despite Pritzker’s PAC’s pressure.
“Pensions are a promise, and I’ve been very open about my record on this issue, and what I’ve learned about it,” said Daniel Biss during the debate. “I was a legislator in early 2011 when there was a huge budget crisis. I was trying my best and fell for a false choice about the right way to solve this problem. I’ve learned that lesson, and that lesson has been visible in my voting record for years since that time. As governor, I’m going to pass fair tax policies to fund our pensions and make sure we can guarantee them.
“What I want to say about the breathtaking hypocrisy of JB Pritzker, my god, what was he doing? At that same time that I was doing something that I’ve said I learned a lesson from, he was funding a right wing organization that was attacking me from the right and trying to do away with pensions altogether. He hasn’t said he learned a lesson, he hasn’t acknowledged it, he hasn’t admitted it. It’s pure hypocrisy, it’s a failure of leadership.”
Daniel Biss has addressed his role in passing SB1 and acknowledged his error. He has explained his reasoning, the lessons he learned from it, and how his approach to the issue has changed. JB Pritzker has not.
* Chris Kennedy met with the Southern Illinoisan’s editorial board earlier this month and said this about Cairo’s school…
“Zero percent of kids in Cairo are college-ready. Seventy-five percent of high school graduates need remedial education,” Kennedy said. “The problem with Cairo is not with the housing authority. It’s with the school. It needs to be fully funded by the state.”
The senior class disagrees. In fact, 10 of the 24 members of the Class of 2018 are taking college classes this semester through Shawnee College Escrow Program. About half of them will graduate with a full year of college credit or close to a year. They will start college in the fall as sophomores.
In addition to their classes, several students have been accepted to SCC Phi Theta Kappa international honor society for two-year colleges and academic programs.
Cairo seniors have received scholarships and been admitted to colleges and universities across the country. Eight seniors spoke on behalf of their class. They started by talking about the colleges that accepted them.
“I’ve been accepted to SIU, SIUE, Tennessee State University, University of Nevada Las Vegas, Culver Stockton, and DePaul University. Oh, and Spartan College,” said Mack Hicks.
In fact, most of the students who spoke up on Wednesday have been accepted to several colleges and offered scholarships. Coming from a town that has seen its share of struggle, the teens said they are unfazed by the negative comments. […]
The students said they were a little confused about Kennedy’s comment because, according to the superintendent, 42 percent of the students will enter colleges and universities as sophomores, rather than freshmen. The senior class has 24 students, and 18 of those students have at least 1 college offer. So, they said something about his math doesn’t add up
“What person that is seeking the highest job in the state would even form his lips to say something like this? (It) shows us he is not ready to be our governor,” said Mayor Pro Tem Connie Williams.
“I actually want to thank him for doubting us. It’s going to push me further right now. It makes me think: If he doesn’t think I can make it, I got to prove him wrong,” said senior Shamari Smith.
Kennedy’s campaign told the local TV station that the candidate was referring to SAT scores, which are here.
* Illinois Federation of Teachers President Dan Montgomery, whose union is backing JB Pritzker, was not pleased…
“Chris Kennedy sounds more like Bruce Rauner every day, disregarding the facts and tearing people down instead of seeing their promise,” said IFT President Dan Montgomery, a high school English teacher. “As we’ve been reminded this week, high school students are stronger and smarter than some adults think, and it’s good to see them teaching Chris a lesson in Cairo. Kennedy’s defense – that he was only looking at SAT data – reveals even more. As teachers, we look at students as whole people, not just test scores. We’re proud to stand with JB Pritzker, who has spent decades fighting to expand early childhood education and supporting public school students, teachers, and staff.”
* Pritzker campaign…
“Chris Kennedy ‘applauded’ Bruce Rauner for creating a crisis for public education in Illinois and is now badmouthing the same students impacted by that crisis,” said Pritzker campaign spokeswoman Jordan Abudayyeh. “Kennedy’s comments undercut the future leaders of this state and entirely disregard the hard work these students have put in to their own education.”
*** UPDATE *** IEA President Kathi Griffin…
“Chris Kennedy needs a fact checker. During a meeting with the editorial board of The Southern Illinoisan this month, he claimed “zero percent of kids in Cairo are college-ready.” It’s not only false, it’s insulting! It’s insulting to the students and it’s insulting to the hard-working teachers and support staff of Cairo schools. The students there said it better than I could say it myself when they took to the media to defend themselves, pointing out that many of them will graduate high school with a year of college already under their belts, that many of the 24 members of the graduating class have received scholarships and been admitted to colleges and universities across the country. “Our entire class is smart. We’re going places. We will just have to show them, not tell them. We have a small town, a small school, but there is a lot of love here,” Mack Hicks said. Candidate Kennedy owes Mack Hicks, his classmates and his teachers an apology.”
To: Biss for Illinois
From: Brian Stryker
Re: February Statewide Poll Findings
Daniel Biss continues to close the gap between him and JB Pritzker, trailing Pritzker by only 8 points. He has grown his vote by 20 points and caught Chris Kennedy with only two TV ads, and there’s a clear path for Biss to victory if he has the resources to continue to get his message out and build his name ID.
Key Findings
• Biss has shot up in the polls after just more than one TV ad’s worth of airtime.
We polled in the midst of Biss’ second TV ad with major movement for Biss. It’s noteworthy that between our two polls, Daniel Biss has spent roughly less than $2 million on TV while JB Pritzker has spent more than $20 million:
• Biss has a healthy lead among voters who know all three major candidates, often a good predictor of where the race is likely to go. Daniel Biss leads by 9 points among people who can identify him, Pritzker, and Kennedy (35% Biss / 26% Pritzker / 25% Kennedy).
The following findings are based off a poll of n=500 likely March 2018 Illinois Democratic primary voters conducted February 6-11, 2018. The survey was conducted on cellphones and landlines; it has a margin of sampling error of +4.4% and higher for subgroups.
*** UPDATE *** Here’s something I didn’t take into account with the Biss poll until someone called to point it out. Biss may have deliberately sent his pollster into the field on February 6th because it’s the very same day the Tribune published a story about the Pritzker conversation with Rod Blagojevich caught on wiretap about appointing a black person to the US Senate. So, yeah, Pritzker would definitely not be doing well on that day and for several days afterward.
The We Ask America poll of 811 likely voters was taken Jan. 29-30 and shows Pritzker ahead at 29.79 percent, followed by Biss at 17.43 percent. Businessman Chris Kennedy was in third with 11.50 percent. And it shows that 37.95 percent of those polled are still undecided.
* Most of the coverage of last night’s forum centered around this topic. From a Daniel Biss press release…
At tonight’s Illinois Democratic candidate forum hosted by the State Journal-Register, WMAY and the University of Illinois in Springfield, the Pritzker panic continued as JB Pritzker recycled his sloppy attacks against Daniel Biss.
JB has been sloppy in his continued attempts to smear Daniel. Let’s check the facts.
JB Pritzker is Michael Madigan’s candidate for governor. He paid his dues for the Speaker’s support with donations from newly-formed LLCs. Then after Madigan lined up establishment support for Pritzker’s campaign he returned the favor by refusing to call for Madigan’s resignation as Chairman of the Democratic Party of Illinois in the face of his mishandling of multiple allegations of sexual harassment coming out of his office.
“I’ve called for Mike Madigan to step down as chairman of the Democratic Party of Illinois,” said Daniel Biss during the debate. “I’m a Democratic elected official and I’ve lost my faith in his ability to lead the Illinois House as well. We have an important choice to make in this election. I have a record of independence from Mike Madigan, but JB Pritzker is Mike Madigan’s hand-picked candidate in this race. It took JB Pritzker a week to get permission from Mike Madigan to even name him in talking about the sexual harassment cover-up. We need someone with independence, and I’m that candidate.”
After Pritzker continued to dodge the question, Biss responded.
“I just want to point out that when JB got done attacking me, he said he was going to answer the question but then didn’t, because he hasn’t gotten permission yet from Madigan to answer that question.
“But here’s the truth,” continued Biss. “There’s a Pritzker-Madigan wing of the Democratic Party, and there is a progressive wing of the Party that I’m a part of. And I’ll work with anybody. When I’m in office, I work with both parties and all wings of all parties to move a progressive agenda forward.”
As Pritzker flailed on the Madigan question tonight, he attempted to change the subject to Daniel Biss, criticizing Biss for voting for Madigan for Speaker, and running his PAC.
As a member of the House in 2010, Daniel Biss was presented with two options for Speaker: a Republican or a Democrat. Biss voted for the Democrat.
JB Pritzker doesn’t always support Democrats over Republicans. During President Barack Obama’s re-election campaign in 2012, Pritzker told Bloomberg that he had to wait and see who the Republicans nominated before he could decide who to support for election, calling President Obama “mediocre.” At the time, the Republican candidates who he considered supporting over President Obama were Mitt Romney, Rick Santorum, Newt Gingrich, and Ron Paul.
Daniel was offered a chance to fight against Bruce Rauner and Donald Trump’s agenda by heading the Leading Illinois for Tomorrow (LIFT) PAC, which sought to show voters the similarities between Rauner and Trump. JB Pritzker donated $900,000 to the PAC, and Chris Kennedy donated another $50,000.
* We have Biss’ full forum comments above, so let’s look at how Pritzker reacted at the event. SJ-R…
Pritzker, responding to Biss’ criticism, essentially called the state senator a hypocrite for accepting financial support from Madigan in the past while running a super PAC in 2016 that was funded heavily by Madigan allies.
Despite not doing so in his initial statement on the sexual harassment controversy, Pritzker did call out Madigan by name at the debate.
“We need to make sure that there is a fully independent investigation, something that is totally independent of Speaker Madigan’s operation and Speaker Madigan himself,” Pritzker said. “We need to make sure that we stand up for the women who come forward in workplaces across the state of Illinois and, in (running mate) Juliana Stratton and my administration, there will be a zero tolerance policy for sexual harassment.”
But Pritzker did not answer a panelist’s question of whether Madigan should give up his party chairmanship, his speaker role or both.
“He hasn’t gotten permission yet from Madigan to answer that question,” said Biss in noting the dodge.
For his part, Pritzker lashed out at Biss and labeled “utterly ridiculous” the lawmaker’s claims of independence from Madigan.
“This is a state representative who got elected with Mike Madigan’s help, who accepted tens of thousands of dollars from him, who ran Mike Madigan’s super PAC and who’s accepted hundreds of thousands of dollars from Springfield insiders, bankers and lobbyists,” Pritzker said.
Pritzker said an independent investigation that Madigan has approved will identify where blame should fall. He labeled Biss’ claim “utterly ridiculous,” contending Biss was first elected to office in 2011 with Madigan’s help and has taken “tens of thousands of dollars” from Madigan-controlled campaign committees and “from Springfield insiders, bankers and lobbyists.”
On his second try, Pritzker still avoided the question, saying an independent investigation prompted by Madigan “will determine who the perpetrators are and who is truly responsible.”
Shaw Decremer became the second Madigan operative to be dismissed this month — his exit coming just seven days after the firing of Madigan’s longtime aide Kevin Quinn after a woman came forward with allegations of unwanted and repeated advances from Quinn, the brother of Ald. Marty Quinn (13th).
“Everybody, I mean, everybody up and down the line, who is responsible should be held accountable,” Pritzker said.
Pritzker may have been lucky that Chris Kennedy couldn’t attend the forum.
*** UPDATE *** ILGOP…
As Illinois Democrats turn up the heat on Mike Madigan for his mishandling of sexual assault allegations within his political organization, one Democrat has given Madigan his tacit support - J.B. Pritzker, Madigan’s candidate for governor.
But media outlets aren’t letting Pritzker off the hook for his refusal to answer a simple question that’s on everybody’s minds - ’should Mike Madigan resign as Chairman of the Democratic Party of Illinois, House Speaker, or both?’
I already posted most of the links they included, but the party included this powerful clip of Biss after the forum that I hadn’t seen…
Biss continues calling Pritzker, “Madigan’s candidate” after debate wraps up. pic.twitter.com/PxUQpAg0Zd
* I was working on two interesting stories yesterday and they both petered out, so no Fax this morning. But we still have session, so watch it in real time with ScribbleLive…
