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* George Ryan has some advice for the new governor…

Ryan… said in a telephone interview that he often made a habit of meeting with legislative leaders — sometimes every day — to identify their needs and concerns.

“Sometimes, Mike [Madigan] and I would just agree to disagree and still get done what we needed to do,” Ryan said. “We didn’t play games like some do today.”

Rauner, Ryan said, has “got to be careful.”

“It’s too early to be trying to outsmart each other,” he said.

* Jim Nowlan has an idea for the Executive Mansion…

A fan of performing arts, I suggest weekly cocktail events at the mansion, to include a break in the socializing and deal-making for 30-45 minutes in the ballroom to hear accessible musical programs by small aggregations from Illinois’ many fine college and university music departments. I think, for example, of the excellent Camerata Woodwind Quintet from Western Illinois University, the lilting sounds of the Caribbean steel drum band from the distinguished University of Illinois music school, and the great big band jazz program at Northern Illinois.

* Some folks want to drag Rauner into an old murder investigation…

A retired Illinois State Police master sergeant is adamant the decades-old slaying of a Iowa college student can still be solved, and he wants Gov. Bruce Rauner to help make it happen. […]

If Rauner takes the lead, McCarthy said he’s convinced the mystery will be solved.

“At the very least we could satisfy them that everything was done. They know for sure that everything wasn’t done,” he said.

* And The Southern wants Rauner to appoint a qualified professional to run the DuQuoin State Fair…

The region will miss Shannon Woodworth and his passion for the fair. We’ll miss his enthusiasm. And we think the manner in which he was terminated should give all of us a less than favorable impression of our new Governor’s modus operandi.

But having dispatched Woodworth, Rauner now has a wonderful opportunity to show residents of Illinois the business acumen that he touted during the campaign.

Mr. Governor, it’s time to hire the right Du Quoin State Fair manager.

Thoughts?

posted by Rich Miller
Tuesday, Jan 20, 15 @ 1:05 pm

Comments

It’s kind of tough to run as an outsider or reformer and then start the practice of hosting after hours cocktail social events at the mansion.

With all due respect to the Zywicki family (and I do recall the case well over 20 years ago) I’m not sure what authority the Governor has over the process? Wouldn’t the local States Attorney have the authority to bring the case before a Grand Jury or the Chief Judge to appoint a Special Prosecutor?

Comment by Stones Tuesday, Jan 20, 15 @ 1:12 pm
Re the Zywicki case: in one breath the retired cop says he thinks a truck driver who died in the early 2000s committed the crime (I’ve read several other articles pointing to the person in question as the #1 suspect), and in the next breath he insists that “we need a grand jury”? What for, if the guy who most likely did it is long dead?

Comment by Secret Square Tuesday, Jan 20, 15 @ 1:14 pm
Gov. Rauner;

1) Seek the counsel of Geo. Ryan when you find yourself in the midst of compromise to understand the nuances of the Executive giving, and what should the Legislative give in return.

2) Seek the counsel of Jim Edgar when you find yourself in a position on an issue you will not compromise. Edgar was masterful at saying no to the Legislative leaders without alienating the relationship and poisoning future discussions.

Given the hand you’re dealt, you should seek GHR at a 70% clip, and JE about 30% of the time.

Knowing which to seek counsel, when….that’s your call, Governor.

Comment by Oswego Willy Tuesday, Jan 20, 15 @ 1:15 pm
The Thompson Center in Chicago is an even bigger symbol of the disintegration of the State than is the Gov. Mansion. As a Springfield resident, I’m appalled every time I walk by or visit the building. It looks like a filthy disaster. Fixing that would do more to improve the image of the state than almost anything except getting the budget straight and stopping trying to dodge pension obligations.

Comment by D.P.Gumby Tuesday, Jan 20, 15 @ 1:26 pm
So far given the size and scope of transitioning government i think they are doing very well. Too much negativity and nit picking imho.

One great positive, it appears they are open to reconsidering people who were let go. They could have just stubbornly dug in, our decision is final kind of thing. Instead they seem to be open to reviewing their decisions, and not afraid to make corrections. No stubborn defiance or refusal to alter courses. Very impressive to me that is, for it is flexibility and openess to rethinking positions which makes for a strong leader.

Comment by Ghost Tuesday, Jan 20, 15 @ 1:35 pm
I was traveling Downstate in August and passed some time reading a local paper which carried a lengthy article about how poorly both Illinois State Fair (Springfield and Du Quoin) are in comparison to other Midwestern states. Both fairs were unprofitable when trying to break even was the goal. The bottom line seemed to be that everything in Illinois was political and the appointment of the fair officials was treated as a patronage reward by many governors. Pat Quinn dropped the ball here by playing politics with the appointments.

I have never understood why Illinois has two State Fairs other than former Governor Len Small supported the Du Quoin fair.

@D.P. Gumby: Your comments about the Thompson Center are on target. It is an ugly building that is poorly maintained. I pity those people employed there. It almost seems as if there is no janitorial work being performed.

Comment by Under Further Review Tuesday, Jan 20, 15 @ 1:49 pm
The only advice George Ryan should be giving future Governors: “Don’t embarrass the office like I did. Make a personal rule-no bribes, no kickbacks, and under no circumstances should you accept free vacations from wealthy landlords with sweetheart state leases, and then try to cover it up.”

Now that would be valuable advice from an expert.

Comment by Michael Westen Tuesday, Jan 20, 15 @ 1:55 pm
Michael Westen, I’m not gonna excuse what he did, but he also did his time.

Plus, in many ways, he got more done in 4 years than Thompson did in 14.

Blagojevich once asked me how he could pass a particularly tough bill with a particularly awful sponsor. I told him the only way that turkey was ever passing was if he called the president, had him pardon GHR and then put him on staff.

Comment by Rich Miller Tuesday, Jan 20, 15 @ 1:59 pm
I see GHR evolving into a Nixonian figure whose institutional knowledge and political acumen was crushed by poor judgement and hubris.

You take away the power and the avenues to use influence, Geo. Ryan is, and could be, an exceptional resource in the art of political compromise and the art of understanding the legislative processes.

Worth a cup a coffee or 9, on the QT if need be, or through representatives…

Comment by Oswego Willy Tuesday, Jan 20, 15 @ 2:02 pm
Interesting points, OW. Thanx. I hope Bruce reads this blog and takes you up on it. As I’ve said before, there is a great deal of symmetry between the public and private sectors. There is no need (hopefully) for Bruce to think he has to do this on his own.

Comment by Del Clinkton Tuesday, Jan 20, 15 @ 2:10 pm
Don’t think I advocated sending him back to prison. He indeed did his time. But he is unrepentant, and stated on his release that he didn’t do anything wrong. So any advice he may have for future Governors should be put in the proper perspective of a criminal mind. He made his own bed.

Comment by Michael Westen Tuesday, Jan 20, 15 @ 2:23 pm
- Del Clinkton -,

Thanks. The best people to ask how to work/deal with Cullerton and MJM as a governor are very few in number. It makes them even more valuable as a resource.

Comment by Oswego Willy Tuesday, Jan 20, 15 @ 2:25 pm
- Michael Westen -

Sounds a lot like Nixon.

However, president after president, Republican and Democrat alike sought out Nixon while they were in the Oval Office.

Comment by Oswego Willy Tuesday, Jan 20, 15 @ 2:28 pm
===But he is unrepentant===

It’s a free country.

Comment by Rich Miller Tuesday, Jan 20, 15 @ 2:31 pm
Have heard from many leaders that Governor Ryan knew how to deal with the legislative branch effectively. His advice is free and worth taking seriously.

Comment by walker Tuesday, Jan 20, 15 @ 2:55 pm
There are plenty of cases of murders by cops that could be solved and prosecuted if there was political will, eg the murders of Fred Hampton & Mark Clark.

As long as we’ve decided Illinois’ chief executive is Governor Cold Case…

Comment by Carl Nyberg Tuesday, Jan 20, 15 @ 3:02 pm
OW
True that on Nixon, but he didn’t go to prison and he owned up to his mistakes. George Ryan refuses to do so.

If someone wants to take advice from someone who, even after serving prison time for taking bribes and kickbacks, doesn’t believe it is wrong to do so, then Rich is right-it is a free country. It’s also a free country to criticize a public official for taking advice from an unrepentant criminal.

GR’s unrepentant stance on his corruption, in my view, taints his “advice” on anything else. It also taints any public official who embraces his “advice.”

Comment by Michael Westen Tuesday, Jan 20, 15 @ 3:05 pm
===… but he didn’t go to prison…===

Nixon got pardoned before any trial…so there’s that…

After that omission, the rest of your argument flimsy, at best.

Comment by Oswego Willy Tuesday, Jan 20, 15 @ 3:08 pm
George Ryan being unrepentant seems noteworthy.

Ryan probably could have got his sentence reduced if he did the boohoo-I-made-a-mistake routine. He didn’t go down that road.

I would hire him for legal or ethics counsel on managing government employees. But he’s obviously got his own notion of what’s right and wrong.

The media & US Attorney spend a bunch of time portraying a few people as particularly egregious offenders.

I expect it’s more realistic to envision a whole bunch of people living in the gray zone and a few of them get singled-out for scrutiny. And those few have done a few things that get a bunch of attention.

Comment by Carl Nyberg Tuesday, Jan 20, 15 @ 3:09 pm
Does anyone think Bruce Rauner got rich without spending some time in the gray zone?

Comment by Carl Nyberg Tuesday, Jan 20, 15 @ 3:10 pm
===and he owned up to his mistakes===

“when the President does it, that means that it is not illegal.”

Comment by Rich Miller Tuesday, Jan 20, 15 @ 3:15 pm
==The bottom line seemed to be that everything in Illinois was political and the appointment of the fair officials was treated as a patronage reward by many governors. Pat Quinn dropped the ball here by playing politics with the appointments.==

In one breath it is the political culture of the state going back generations and in the next it is all Pat Quinn’s fault. Wow.

Comment by Precinct Captain Tuesday, Jan 20, 15 @ 3:28 pm
Not to digress too far, but I’m sure Brucie did far worse in his business practice than either George or Blago did based upon the evidence presented in court by Feeble Fitz.

Comment by D.P.Gumby Tuesday, Jan 20, 15 @ 3:36 pm
That’s definitely digressing too far. And wide.

Comment by A guy Tuesday, Jan 20, 15 @ 3:42 pm
I am sure that all advice is implicitly solicited.

Comment by Yellow Dog Democrat Tuesday, Jan 20, 15 @ 4:09 pm
Dear Governor:

You are now responsible for proposing a balanced budget. Do one you can be proud of — no smoke and mirrors. No partisanship, if you hope to have Democrats providing half the votes to pass it.

Comment by anon Tuesday, Jan 20, 15 @ 4:35 pm
Somewhat in defense of George Ryan’s position, he was an old school pol who came up through the ranks where there was an acceptable way of “doing business” for many, many years. What happened to George, in part, is the preception of what was “acceptable” changed to “unacceptable”.

Doesn’t mean it wasn’t wrong all along, but it was condoned until it wasn’t.

Comment by RNUG Tuesday, Jan 20, 15 @ 4:35 pm
Secret Square- you hit the nail on the head, he worked the case and back then thought the deceased truck driver did it, he was a real tool.

Comment by ISP retired Tuesday, Jan 20, 15 @ 5:08 pm
Rich, the quote you cite was from recordings done while the crime was going on. Hardly the same as arguing after your sentence that taking bribes and kickbacks is not wrong.

Nixon was fully repentant. Read his autobiography.

Rauner has two former GOP Governors who got plenty done during their term without taking bribes and kickbacks. So he is not wanting for GOP Gubernatorial role models.

OW whether Nixon went to prison was not my main point, as I’m sure you knew. It was the unseemliness of an unrepentant criminal Governor trying to give advice to future Governors.

You may think it’s ok for a public official to accept advice from someone as dishonest as George Ryan. I do not.

Didn’t think you were an apologist for public corruption. Guess I was wrong.

Comment by Michael Westen Tuesday, Jan 20, 15 @ 5:16 pm
=== the quote you cite was from recordings done while the crime was going on===

Um, no.

That was from the David Frost interview.

Comment by Rich Miller Tuesday, Jan 20, 15 @ 5:16 pm
===OW whether Nixon went to prison was not my main point, as I’m sure you knew. It was the unseemliness of an unrepentant criminal Governor trying to give advice to future Governors.===

Hmm.

===True that on Nixon, but he didn’t go to prison and he owned up to his mistakes. George Ryan refuses to do so.===

Seems you made a point about that prison thingy, lol

===You may think it’s ok for a public official to accept advice from someone as dishonest as George Ryan. I do not.===

Every president after Nixon seeked his advice. Every one.

Guess I’m in good company.

I’m not an apologist, I understand what advice GHR can give to help Rauner be successful.

Things aren’t going well for you on this. You may want to sit out a few plays…

Comment by Oswego Willy Tuesday, Jan 20, 15 @ 5:22 pm
Michael Westen, you’re off your rocker about Nixon being fully repentant. You read his memoirs.

“I let you down” aint quite the same as “I feloniously obstructed justice to keep from being indicted,” much less “I illegally dropped bombs and killed ten of thousands of civilian men, women and children in Cambodia and Laos who had nothing to do with nothing.”

But way to hijack the thread in a very strange way, weirdo.

Comment by Wordslinger Tuesday, Jan 20, 15 @ 7:22 pm
Carl,
There’s nothing to be solved about the Hampton and Clark murders. The people involved were tried and acquitted. It was completely wrong, but there isn’t much to be “solved”.

Comment by Will Tuesday, Jan 20, 15 @ 8:06 pm
Well, actually someone else brought Nixon into the discussion. Nixon’s actions in Vietnam had nothing to do with his impending impeachment (talk about hijacking a thread). His quote about it’s legal if the President does it referred to national security and if you actually read the Frost interviews instead of just the highlights he compares it to Lincoln’s wartime statement that “Actions which otherwise would be unconstitutional, could become lawful if undertaken for the purpose of preserving the Constitution and the Nation.” (such as suspending habeas corpus). But you digress by bringing this up.

OW I did make the point about Nixon not going to prison, but as you know it was not my main point. Feel free to pretend otherwise.

But back to the subject at hand. JBT’s campaign for Governor was knocked off it’s rails (quite unfairly in my opinion) because of her purported close association with George Ryan. Not counting the person who actually pardoned Nixon, I can’t think of another President or candidate who suffered at the polls because of their relationship to Nixon. So, politically, connections to Nixon and Ryan aren’t the same.

I could see a candidate taking a beating at the polls (as JBT did), if they were to get too chummy with George Ryan and his “advice.”

Comment by Michael Westen Tuesday, Jan 20, 15 @ 8:10 pm
- Michael Weston -,

===You take away the power and the avenues to use influence, Geo. Ryan is, and could be, an exceptional resource in the art of political compromise and the art of understanding the legislative processes.

Worth a cup a coffee or 9, on the QT if need be, or through representatives…===

I don’t read a “public” meeting or “press release” in there.

I stand by my comment. GHR is a resource, as Rich said, Geo. Ryan got more done in 4 years than JRT got done in 14…

Comment by Oswego Willy Tuesday, Jan 20, 15 @ 8:53 pm
Ryan is no Nixon.
Nixon was never sufficiently humbled by prison, and Ryan was. Nixon was delusional. Ryan never.

My advice to Governor Rauner - spin is not enough anymore. You will be judged based on results. Set a goal, meet that goal and then announce that success. Keep it small. Step by step.

After a decade of lies and spin from two incompetents, we need to see someone successfully govern.

Ryan knows the Dome. He knows Madigan. He loved the state, its politics and governments. He would be a wise counsel.

Comment by VanillaMan Wednesday, Jan 21, 15 @ 8:58 am