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* UPDATED x1 * AFSCME, teachers give $400K to Dillard

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* There should probably be another zero on that amount to be truly effective, but Sen. Kirk Dillard’s campaign just reported $400,000 in contributions from AFSCME, the IFT and the IEA.

Jim Edgar kicked in another $50K.

I’ll have more for subscribers about this tomorrow.

*** UPDATE *** Via Fred Klonsky’s blog, AFSCME’s Henry Bayer sent this e-mail to his members today…

By channeling our dollars directly to the Dillard campaign, which can purchase crucial television time at roughly half the rate of the independent expenditure campaign, we can get that information out most effectively.

When we started the independent expenditure campaign, we had not yet endorsed a candidate. We did not know who was best positioned to defeat Rauner.

The campaign has entered a new phase.

The independent expenditure effort did a good job of slowing Bruce Rauner’s momentum.

While he is still the frontrunner, Rauner can be beaten.

That’s why it is so important that we redouble our efforts to recruit volunteers for AFSCME phone banks and encourage each of our members to cast their vote in the Republican primary for Kirk Dillard.

posted by Rich Miller
Tuesday, Mar 11, 14 @ 3:26 pm

Comments

Too little, too late.

Comment by Whatever Tuesday, Mar 11, 14 @ 3:32 pm
Is this Edgar’s first major give to Dillard for this race?

Comment by OneMan Tuesday, Mar 11, 14 @ 3:34 pm
Not sure what the point is now. A half measure.

Comment by wordslinger Tuesday, Mar 11, 14 @ 3:35 pm
there goes my dues being flushed down the toilet!

Comment by spliff Tuesday, Mar 11, 14 @ 3:36 pm
If unions were “bailing,” as some said earlier today, they wouldn’t have given this much to Dillard. This race is going down to the wire.

Comment by Pondering Tuesday, Mar 11, 14 @ 3:40 pm
The only way effective use of that money is to give it to Bill Brady in return for his withdrawal in favor of Dillard.

Comment by Percival Tuesday, Mar 11, 14 @ 3:43 pm
And the newspapers, radio and tv stations rejoiced in the streets!

Comment by Bobby Hill Tuesday, Mar 11, 14 @ 3:44 pm
Announcement that Bruce Rauner will donate another $1Million to his campaign fund in 3, 2, 1…

Comment by SAP Tuesday, Mar 11, 14 @ 3:44 pm
Have just spend that last 30 minutes looking at Edgar’s campaign account activity post-’98… interesting stuff. If you have a minute check it out. Lots of reimbursements to himself, club dues, etc. Brings in a respectable, albeit declining amount of interest every quarter.

Comment by Lucky Tuesday, Mar 11, 14 @ 3:49 pm
DILLARD: Governor.. You’re all I got. I need help.

EDGAR: You treated me like a Prop..,

EDGAR reaches into his pocket and take out a thick wad of bills. Without counting the money he puts the cash in DILLARD’S hands. EDGAR clasps DILLARD’S hands in his own.

EDGAR: (looking down while handing Kirk the $50K cash) Here. Take it.(looking up with tears in his eyes) Now I gotta turn my back on you.

CLOSE UP - DILLARD: (V.O.) Fifty thousand dollars. That’s what he gave me. Fifty thousand bucks for a lifetime. It wouldn’t have paid for any commercials.

Comment by Oswego Willy Tuesday, Mar 11, 14 @ 3:49 pm
So the Unions have that much money that can just light it on fire? Says a lot about the Unions, doesn’t it?

Comment by DuPage Moderate Tuesday, Mar 11, 14 @ 4:01 pm
Rauner/rahm/daley/rendell/ = $$$,$$$=not to be trusted, not a republican

Voted dem in 06

Stu levine

.01% boast

Put all this in 30 seconds. Repeat

But prob too late

Comment by Langhorne Tuesday, Mar 11, 14 @ 4:04 pm
Meanwhile, Rauner reported $254K in contributions today, $97K last Friday and $106K last Thursday.

He has lots of days like that.

The national GOP donor class is stone-cold trippin’ on the anti-union message.

Somehow, they’ve even got the anti-abortion groups to stand down, which is something for an Illinois GOP primary.

Comment by wordslinger Tuesday, Mar 11, 14 @ 4:11 pm
These are America’s unions. It is undignified to squirm and flounder in this manner.

Comment by Dan Bureaucrat Tuesday, Mar 11, 14 @ 4:13 pm
==Somehow, they’ve even got the anti-abortion groups to stand down, which is something for an Illinois GOP primary.==

Good point; where’s the far right disdain of anyone pro-choice?

Comment by Wensicia Tuesday, Mar 11, 14 @ 4:20 pm
Probably will make no difference in primary, but it’s important that folks become educated about the disaster that Mr. .01 will become if elected.

Comment by Norseman Tuesday, Mar 11, 14 @ 4:23 pm
Let us pray….dear Lord…PLEASE DON’T LET RAUNER WIN ! Anybody else could win just don’t let it be Rauner

Comment by Schock girl Tuesday, Mar 11, 14 @ 4:33 pm
180 turn of events.

Comment by DuPage Tuesday, Mar 11, 14 @ 4:33 pm
Mwah ha ha ha

Comment by Ghost of Blago Tuesday, Mar 11, 14 @ 4:34 pm
===180 turn of events. ===

I wouldn’t be too sure about that.

Comment by Rich Miller Tuesday, Mar 11, 14 @ 4:42 pm
I’m not sure about all unions but I know with AFSCME there is a separate fund that members can make voluntary contributions to that is used for political purposes. Dues can not be.

Comment by Retired and fed up Tuesday, Mar 11, 14 @ 4:50 pm
@DM
It’s not money to burn, it’s a calculated investment. Period.

Comment by Rufus Tuesday, Mar 11, 14 @ 4:51 pm
Edgar did a piece for Dillard that I just saw. It’s not bad.

Comment by Retired and fed up Tuesday, Mar 11, 14 @ 4:52 pm
just who is Dillard? republican for change willing to confront status quo or socialist under cloth with zero identity ? just wanting to win at all cost? maybe his staff has been watching House Of Cards?

Comment by railrat Tuesday, Mar 11, 14 @ 4:53 pm
It’s the ground game and the broad support in a primary, and not so much the money, that will make the politicos and pundits study this campaign…

Comment by Reformed Public Servant Tuesday, Mar 11, 14 @ 4:59 pm
==but I know with AFSCME there is a separate fund that members can make voluntary contributions to that is used for political purposes. Dues can not be.==

It’s the same with the AFT/IFT teacher’s union.

Comment by Wensicia Tuesday, Mar 11, 14 @ 5:01 pm
OK a “ground game” for the primary is that accepting/acknowledging tax increases to pacify the “unions” PAC’s vs. reform and the base the GOP base is trying to message across the country? It is hard to grasp a candidate that embraces the extreme right one week Anne Colter and then the extreme left the next AFSCME & IEA ? Mr. Dillard is a good person but just what path is his campaign taking for Ill. as the face of the GOP ?

Comment by railrat Tuesday, Mar 11, 14 @ 5:11 pm
–Mr. Dillard is a good person but just what path is his campaign taking for Ill. as the face of the GOP ?–

The Stop Rauner face.

The swing to the right did Dillard no good, as Rauner had already gobbled up all the money.

It’s not like Dillard had a bevy of institutional suitors courting him. The unions were the only ones that asked him to the dance. And you dance with the one that brung you.

Comment by wordslinger Tuesday, Mar 11, 14 @ 5:17 pm
==but I know with AFSCME there is a separate fund that members can make voluntary contributions to that is used for political purposes. Dues can not be.==

It’s the same with the AFT/IFT teacher’s union.

Same with IEA-NEA as well.

Comment by HM Tuesday, Mar 11, 14 @ 5:19 pm
Word on the street is that internal polls show Rauner dropping…

Comment by Uh oh Tuesday, Mar 11, 14 @ 5:19 pm
Henry Bayer overestimating impact again.

Comment by Walker Tuesday, Mar 11, 14 @ 5:31 pm
Posted earlier …

===The only last breath is a GOTV extravaganza, only matched by the “Punch 10″ orchestration, that took weeks upon weeks, and 2-3 deep in precincts for weeks upon weeks.

The FOP, Teachers’ Unions, ASCME… 5 days out… matching “Punch 10″ in scope, size, impact, and plurality?===

That is the question to Bayer, the FOP, the Teachers…

Can you have that impact to drag Dillard across?

Comment by Oswego Willy Tuesday, Mar 11, 14 @ 5:34 pm
Rufus: This race is over…they just lit millions of dollars on fire over the last two weeks. How much money do they really have? Are these the same people complaining about Citizens United?

Comment by Dupage Moderate Tuesday, Mar 11, 14 @ 6:43 pm
Now will he spend it wisely–ALL on those effective (but mainly on the INTernet only)NETwork TV Ads now (bashing br, naturally), and in the right places in Illinois between now and the 18th???

Comment by Just The Way It Is One Tuesday, Mar 11, 14 @ 7:14 pm
But-but-but
Rauner was supposed to just give us the money so we can run!

He wasn’t supposed to run!

Comment by VanillaMan Tuesday, Mar 11, 14 @ 8:22 pm
Lucky - link please?

Comment by Filmmaker Professor Tuesday, Mar 11, 14 @ 10:26 pm
I used to be an officer in an IFT-affiliated union. Yes, the moneys for political purposes were kept separate from dues. However, a fixed sum from the moneys paid by the union members was automatically put into the political fund unless members opted out, and the union did very little to inform its members on how to opt out.

Comment by aunt_petunia Wednesday, Mar 12, 14 @ 6:11 am
Talk about a waste of money.

Comment by Lunchbox Wednesday, Mar 12, 14 @ 6:42 am
In Central IL, radio and TV ads for Dillard are running constantly, far more than a week or two ago. Just sayin.

Comment by Wally Wednesday, Mar 12, 14 @ 6:45 am
Wally,
I heard the Dillard Radio ad last night. 780AM around 9:30P. It was too long. It was a man and woman almost chanting Dillard. It felt disconnected. Why Dillard isn’t personally on the ad and speaking about his accomplishments is beyond me. If you want the most public political office in the state you should be using your own voice and working to connect to the voters on a more personal level. It wasn’t endorced by KD, so maybe it wasn an anti-Rauner PAC ad.

Comment by Pete Wednesday, Mar 12, 14 @ 6:52 am
I am not a fan of a republican taking money from the unions. But it is a reality check. You aren’t getting rid of unions in IL. If Rauner can scare them into funding you, why not.

I still don’t believe the unions want Dillard to win. But they control enough votes to do it. They have to have serious meetings to members and get them to the polls.

AFSMCE has to overcome the fact a lot of members won’t vote in the primary because Blago targeted them for doing it. I know a lot of state workers and their spouses who will not vote in a primary because of it. AFMSCE has to address that now.

Dillard has to get the union leaders in each local to personally tell members to vote.

Comment by the Patriot Wednesday, Mar 12, 14 @ 7:12 am
Maybe he can pay back Gidwitz now.

Comment by Farker Wednesday, Mar 12, 14 @ 7:17 am
I really think Rauner is resonating because he has tapped into a nerve. Look at this post and many others. Rauner is rich… It’s a bad thing. Public unions that are employees paid by public funds donate to candidates with our money…to keep the train moving. Keep it it that level…Take personality or Party affiliation out of it. Then you see what many average people not die hard politicos or union memebers in Illinois see.. I’d rather have him spend his money than our money… This is why Quinn is in trouble for the General…

Comment by Walter Mitty Wednesday, Mar 12, 14 @ 7:27 am
Filmmaker Professor: http://www.elections.il.gov/campaigndisclosure/CommitteeDetail.aspx?id=110

Comment by Lucky Wednesday, Mar 12, 14 @ 11:31 am