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* The governor’s office says it has no updates for us this morning. Let’s move along to local media coverage starting with the Elgin Courier-News…

Kane County won’t be endorsing Gov. Bruce Rauner’s Turnaround Illinois reform package, but will craft its own resolution calling for reform in Springfield.

“Kane County will play no part in the Governor’s politically motivated crusade against the working class citizens of Illinois, we will instead actively engage Springfield ’s legislative initiatives that directly impact our county’s budget and the wellbeing of our citizens,” County board member Myrna Molina said at the county’s Legislative Committee meeting Wednesday.

The county’s Legislative Committee’s Wednesday agenda included a discussion on a resolution. Rauner has been asking cities, villages and counties to pass a Local Government Empowerment and Reform resolution. He made a stop in Kane County April 7 seeking support. Rauner’s office could not be reached for comment Wednesday.

Union members from around Kane County crowded Wednesday’s meeting to speak out against the resolution.

* The Joliet Times Weekly…

Joliet Mayor-Elect Bob O’Dekirk said Tuesday he opposes the governor’s proposal to creation of right-to-work “empowerment zones” in order to entice new businesses to Illinois.

Eliminating workers’ rights to collectively bargain by asking voters to vote on the issue through local voter referendums is “not an option,” O’Dekirk said in a statement he released on the issue. […]

“While the governor says that he respects the rights of labor to organize and fight for their wages and benefits, the creation of right-to-work zones would effectively create a disadvantage for union employers to create and expand operations in municipalities that respect the right to organize,” O’Dekirk.

“Union training, union standards and union safety rules protect workers, employers and the general public from workplace accidents and disasters. A union worker may cost more, but you get more, and so does the local economy. Those union wages support every business in the city of Joliet while the additional corporate profits earned in non-union companies may never find their way back into our local economy.”

* Daily Herald…

“The governor is encouraged that communities across the state from Round Lake Beach to McHenry County to Rockford to Effingham County are embracing the turnaround agenda,” Rauner’s office said in a statement Wednesday. “The turnaround agenda resolution is a way for communities to show they embrace the governor’s plan for more voter empowerment and local control.”

East Dundee Village President Lael Miller, however, says the village’s unanimous support of the agenda is not an endorsement of one of its most controversial elements — so-called empowerment zones or right-to-work zones that could be created if municipalities were allowed to decide whether workers must join a union to be employed. Proponents of the governor’s plan say the zones will help attract jobs, but union leaders denounce them as “right-to-work-for-less” zones.

“What (the resolution) says is that we’d like to start a larger conversation with the governor,” Miller said. “We realize that Illinois has a severe fiscal crisis. We know that things have to change. This is a starting point.” […]

In Buffalo Grove, officials approved a resolution that opposes unfunded mandates and asks the state not to freeze property taxes or cut the amount of tax revenue it gives back to municipalities. But it was a far cry from what Rauner suggested.

“I didn’t feel it was appropriate for us to do deal with those types of union issues,” Village President Jeffrey Braiman said.

* Bernie…

“There are thousands of employers, manufacturers and transportation firms, foreign-owned companies, that won’t come to a closed-shop, forced-unionization state,” [Gov. Rauner] said. And he added that as local governments consider the resolutions, “the special interest groups that like big government and currently control government, they’re showing up by the hundreds. They’re shipping them from other communities by the busloads to protest.

“Stand up to the protests,” Rauner told the bankers. “The government doesn’t belong to those folks; it belongs to the local people.” He said to tell local officials to support the agenda. […]

[Bill Looby, political director of the state AFL-CIO] hadn’t heard of any busloads of out-of-towners at any of the local meetings.

“It’s false and insulting to local communities for the governor to dismiss or distort grassroots resistance to his anti-worker tactics,” [Anders Lindall, spokesman for AFSCME Council 31] said. “If he listened to testimony in town after town, he would hear teachers, caregivers, construction workers and tradespeople” protecting their “middle-class standard of living against the governor’s attacks. … The only ‘outsiders’ I’m aware of at these meetings are the governor’s own staff.”

Ouch.

posted by Rich Miller
Thursday, Apr 23, 15 @ 10:04 am

Comments

Bruce Rauner is the Johnny Appleseed of union busting.

Do any firms poll support of labor unions?

Are labor unions more or less popular b/c of Rauner’s efforts?

Comment by Carl Nyberg Thursday, Apr 23, 15 @ 10:08 am
Or Don Quixote. …

Comment by Crispy Thursday, Apr 23, 15 @ 10:09 am
But somehow we all keep talking about right to work. If Rauner’s intent is to raise a level of conscious thought about unions, he is succeeding. If people hear about union bosses enough, many of them will start to believe the message.

Comment by SkeptiCal Thursday, Apr 23, 15 @ 10:15 am
–They’re shipping them from other communities by the busloads to protest–

That would require a hell of lot more coordination than exists. No governor, the hundreds who show up are local folks. The local call trees are on full alert. The second the LOCAL finds out about a the Turnaround agenda going on a council/county meeting agenda, the call tree is activated and the LOCALS show up. Bussing people in…pssshaw! That’s funny. Carpool with union folks in your neighborhood maybe. No governor these are not folks from out of town. Face it sir, you’re getting slaughtered.

Comment by Honeybear Thursday, Apr 23, 15 @ 10:17 am
Ok, I am pretty sure that complaining about big government while pushing for right to work is a little bit silly since in form it is literally a Government restriction on what private parties are able to negotiate over. Nice sound bite though Bruce, too bad you didn’t use that kind of energy to actually govern.

Comment by Juice Thursday, Apr 23, 15 @ 10:20 am
Actually SkeptiCal, the message that is coming across is that Rauner is too busy attacking unions and cutting autism funding to actual focus on balancing the FY16 budget.

Comment by Bluefish Thursday, Apr 23, 15 @ 10:20 am
Someone needs to ask Rauner, “Without using the word ‘union’, how do you define the term ’special interest group’?”.

Comment by CharlieKratos Thursday, Apr 23, 15 @ 10:22 am
===“Stand up to the protests,” Rauner told the bankers. “The government doesn’t belong to those folks; it belongs to the local people.” He said to tell local officials to support the agenda.===

Bruce Rauner, off-script, when speaking honestly to “his people” (bankers) shows who he actually is.

I’m sorry, this is real;

If you are with Rauner, you are “smart”, you “get it”, you… understand… people, any people… they are gnats, to be waved away, squashed, ignored, or worse…they are to be broken, in every definition that broken has.

If you disagree with Rauner? You are full of baloney, probably corrupt, and deserve distain, and if possible, you should be put in “your place”…the place Rauner sees you falling.

Bruce Rauner thinks those not with him… They. Don’t. Matter.

They don’t matter. He says so…

===“Stand up to the protests,” Rauner told the bankers. “The government doesn’t belong to those folks; it belongs to the local people.” He said…===

I have yet have ever heard a governor, any governor marginalize a group (people, just people) called the general public.

Wow.

“We let a stranger in our house”

Comment by Oswego Willy Thursday, Apr 23, 15 @ 10:22 am
=“We let a stranger in our house.”=

True. Gave me chills, just now.

Comment by Crispy Thursday, Apr 23, 15 @ 10:24 am
===The governor’s office says it has no updates for us this morning.===

Coffee is for Closers, “ck”.

Comment by Oswego Willy Thursday, Apr 23, 15 @ 10:32 am
I guess Littlesville, population 1,234, and Smallstown, population 4,321, didn’t have board meetings last night.

Comment by Precinct Captain Thursday, Apr 23, 15 @ 10:33 am
Looby is right- this is not a case of Rauner paying clueless people to cheer for charter schools. If so, you’d have news clips of the people with no idea why they are there. This is a case of local teachers, tradespeople, law enforcement, etc, telling their elected members what they think. It’s democracy, and Rauner is finding that you can’t always buy it out. How Orwellian can you get when you tell bankers that the government does not belong to the locals who show up for their village council meeting.

Comment by chi Thursday, Apr 23, 15 @ 10:36 am
Joliet Mayor O’Dekirk nailed it with this: “… union wages support every business in the city of Joliet while the additional corporate profits earned in non-union companies may never find their way back into our local economy.”

Comment by Cheswick Thursday, Apr 23, 15 @ 10:42 am
Looby for the win.

Comment by Commander Norton Thursday, Apr 23, 15 @ 10:42 am
Now that Scott Walker is against immigrants of all shapes and sizes one must wonder what tact BVR will take in his ‘16 race to the WH?

Comment by Anonin' Thursday, Apr 23, 15 @ 10:46 am
So…uh…this isn’t going well, Governor. Should you change tactics?

Never! Same course, full throttle!

Comment by Illini97 Thursday, Apr 23, 15 @ 10:52 am
Stranger in the house for sure!
Wake up people this is only the beginning…

Comment by May girl Thursday, Apr 23, 15 @ 11:08 am
“There are thousands of employers, manufacturers and transportation firms, foreign-owned companies, that won’t come to a closed-shop, forced-unionization state”

They must be with all the jobs Rauner created.

“They’re shipping them from other communities by the busloads to protest.”

They’re all coming in Obama Acorn buses.

Union members who are showing up are smart enough to know how their lives will be negatively impacted if Rauner gets his way. I commend them.

Comment by Grandson of Man Thursday, Apr 23, 15 @ 11:12 am
Governor Rauner, The regular folks that have been advising you need to take the following advice to capitalize on the momentum that you have bestowed on the people of Illinois. I am, of course, thinking of inviting Shawn Hannity to do a series of town hall meetings touting your turned around agenda. All good folks love, revere and respect Mr. H.

Release the hounds!

Comment by Anonymous Thursday, Apr 23, 15 @ 11:40 am
Governor Rauner, The regular folks that have been advising you need to take the following advice to capitalize on the momentum that you have bestowed on the people of Illinois. I am, of course, thinking of inviting Shawn Hannity to do a series of town hall meetings touting your turned around agenda. All good folks love, revere and respect Mr. H.

Release the hounds!

Comment by Montgomery C Burns Thursday, Apr 23, 15 @ 11:42 am
Nice to hear some rational discussions coming out of my old home county of Kane. I was worried that Lauzen was taking them down the primrose path.

Comment by Norseman Thursday, Apr 23, 15 @ 12:04 pm
Bruce Rauner doesn’t know who “those people” are, yet he is governor for all people, banker as well as “those people”.

He is no salesman. You don’t promise citizens who are barely surviving clinging for financial support to deflate their life rafts so that they could enjoy swimming with the sharks.

Anyone with half a brain and the least bit rational knows that our economy isn’t doing well. Taking any risks during times like these is only appealing to multi-millionaire venture capitalists, and other wealthy folks with cash they can afford to lose.

I read this week that a majority of Americans feel that they are experiencing financial stress. There has been no recovery felt. Millennials aren’t finding jobs. McDonalds is shedding hundreds of stores. Sears is a memory.

Yet this governor expects citizens to bail on an important part of their earning power in order to attract businesses from out of state and country to bring in some low wage jobs?

Rauner needs to take a few of his millions and buy a few million clues on how to do his job.

Comment by VanillaMan Thursday, Apr 23, 15 @ 12:21 pm
communities across the state from Round Lake Beach to McHenry County to Rockford to Effingham County are embracing the turnaround agenda,”

McHenry County and Effingham County are communities?

Comment by btowntruth Thursday, Apr 23, 15 @ 12:46 pm
Governor Quinn cared about working people and vulnerable people. It was undeniable. It should be a qualification to be governor. I’m wondering if Rauner has a medical condition that causes him to see his own constituents as enemies.

Comment by Camera Watch Thursday, Apr 23, 15 @ 12:50 pm
“There are thousands of employers, manufacturers and transportation firms, foreign-owned companies, that won’t come to a closed-shop, forced-unionization state,” ”

Who are these companies and what are they offering? To degrade household income so we are dropping into poverty like Indiana?

When did the USA motto become more sweatshops less pay…… We are racing to fall behind china in quality of life…..

Comment by Ghost Thursday, Apr 23, 15 @ 2:31 pm
=Governor Quinn cared about working people and vulnerable people. It was undeniable.=

Please let’s not get too delusional about Quinn.

Governor Quinn and his minions lead attacks against worker safety & health, retaliated against whistle-blowers, and wanted to steal workers’ pensions.

He also went around the state blaming working folks for “squeezing” the state.

Comment by Qui Tam Thursday, Apr 23, 15 @ 2:41 pm
Jefferson county board will be vote on Bruce rauners anti work, anti labor, anti middle class agenda at the Jefferson county court house Monday night

Normal meeting starts at 7pm
They have a special meeting scheduled at 6pm
Bob white- chairman of the county board is 100% behind it.

Comment by Repealbruce Thursday, Apr 23, 15 @ 7:21 pm