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* This Chicago Tribune editorial uses the word “reforms” four separate times…

“Speaker Madigan and the legislators he controls will leave town without a responsible, balanced budget and without any reforms while taking a pay raise for themselves,” began the communique from Rauner’s office. […]

Madigan, frantic to thwart Rauner’s reforms, instead retreats to shopworn theatrics about the dangers of the delay in passing a budget. […]

We do, though, hear from Illinoisans who don’t want to pay higher taxes until legislators accept reforms that Rauner and the voters who elected him demand. […]

Illinois is mired in slow growth in large part because other states boast reforms that Madigan stubbornly rejects.

What’s missing? Any explanation at all about what those “reforms” actually are.

* Why? Well, I dunno, but perhaps it’s because all but eliminating collective bargaining rights for teachers, killing off the prevailing wage and thereby drastically driving down the take-home pay of thousands of highly trained construction workers, and making it more difficult for the injured to qualify for workers’ compensation and sue corporations probably aren’t the most popular things wafting about the land.

I could be wrong.

But it’s odd that the editorial board spent all its time, energy and effort attacking a hugely unpopular politician instead of defending their own guy’s radical ideas. One is super-easy, the other ain’t.

* Yes, there’s undoubtedly an array of partisan and tinkling contest politics at play in this here shutdown showdown.

But there’s a reason why basically all Democratic (and quite a few Republican) legislators have balked at cutting a deal with the governor: Gov. Rauner’s “reforms,” in current form, are simply anathema to them.

More on how to address that later today.

posted by Rich Miller
Tuesday, Jul 21, 15 @ 9:17 am

Comments

That Trib editorial reads like Soviet propaganda.

Comment by Streator Curmudgeon Tuesday, Jul 21, 15 @ 9:20 am
@EditBoardChick - we are tasked to blame Madigan for everything including spelling errors in our editorials. If Rauner wanted me to think, he’ll give me that thought. #ArgueNotTheArgument #WeDoGoodBruce?

Comment by Oswego Willy Tuesday, Jul 21, 15 @ 9:21 am
Not sure what you had for breakfast today, Rich. But I’ll have some. Well said.

Comment by uptown progressive Tuesday, Jul 21, 15 @ 9:23 am
And lets change that preamble to the ISC to “Corporations rule, get used to it”..

Comment by Mouthy Tuesday, Jul 21, 15 @ 9:24 am
My Guess is if most voters had to choose between huge tax increases and reforming prevailing wage and curtailing collective bargaining for public workers they would choose lower taxes. See Wisconsin and Scott Walker winning 3 elections in 4 years in a state that has not voted Republican for President since 1984

Comment by Shoedoctor Tuesday, Jul 21, 15 @ 9:27 am
@EditBoardChick - I find it most thrilling when I write about the vague while writing around the specifics. Specifically, shills always make better vague arguments #ShallowShilling

Comment by Oswego Willy Tuesday, Jul 21, 15 @ 9:27 am
Reads like an IPI press release about Illinois ills.

A noun, a verb, and Madigan

Comment by train111 Tuesday, Jul 21, 15 @ 9:28 am
===if most voters had to choose between huge tax increases and reforming prevailing wage and curtailing collective bargaining for public workers===

Um, that isn’t the choice on the table.

It’s kill off prevailing wage and collective bargaining and then taxes will rise.

Comment by Rich Miller Tuesday, Jul 21, 15 @ 9:29 am
Showing their fall from journalistic value, the Trib doesn’t do the hard work. They like to deal in drive-bys, like small community papers who don’t have the journalistic integrity or talent on staff. Not worth consulting these days.

Comment by AnonymousOne Tuesday, Jul 21, 15 @ 9:30 am
Yes that is on the table with the property tax freeze. That only works with local governments being able to reform collective bargaining and prevailing wages. Otherwise how can they freeze property taxes?

Comment by Shoedoctor Tuesday, Jul 21, 15 @ 9:31 am
Still need clarification on how slashing wages for workers would naturally result in higher tax revenue. Sounds like a whole lot more struggling workers to me.

Comment by AnonymousOne Tuesday, Jul 21, 15 @ 9:32 am
Information is not what the editorials are for. Truth is not what the editorials are for. The editorials are to persuade people to mindlessly accept Rauner’s agenda.

Comment by Norseman Tuesday, Jul 21, 15 @ 9:33 am
In a coup, the first thing totalitarians do is take over the media, which immediately cease to be independent checks on the government and sources of trust for the people, and, instead, become mouthpieces for the oligarchs. The Trib, and many formerly independent media, have, I’m afraid, been bought and paid for, and are rapidly using up the goodwill purchased by their former independence.

Comment by PublicServant Tuesday, Jul 21, 15 @ 9:34 am
I love you, Rich Miller.

Comment by Anon Tuesday, Jul 21, 15 @ 9:37 am
Thanks for actually defining the reforms Governor Rauner wants Illinoisans to accept. I have found it frustrating that many editorial writers, political commentators, assorted panelists continue to parrot “reform” without definition. Are they afraid if most voters understood what these “reforms” entailed, Governor Rauner’s agenda would not be welcomed? If you believe Madigan’s use of the word “moderation” is obfuscation, you must also believe using the general term “reform” is more of the same.

Comment by augustar Tuesday, Jul 21, 15 @ 9:41 am
===That only works with local governments being able to reform collective bargaining and prevailing wages.===

Rauner should run Ads then;

“I want people in unions making less money. I want people to not have the ability to collectively bargain. I want no unions. It’s the workers fault they organize…

… but thank goodness overpaid Union state workers are getting paid…

Comment by Oswego Willy Tuesday, Jul 21, 15 @ 9:43 am
Truth is not what editorials are for. However, try to find much factual reporting in the Trib. Front page headlines often report editorial like reporting of the facts.

Comment by AnonymousOne Tuesday, Jul 21, 15 @ 9:43 am
“… until legislators accept reforms that Rauner and the voters who elected him demand.”

Nice sleight of hand there. Nice finesse that Rauner never actually -ran on-, nor was elected by voters on, the kind of strong anti-union address that the Trib now states “Rauner and the voters who elected him demand.”

Comment by ZC Tuesday, Jul 21, 15 @ 9:45 am
Anonymous One 9:43 am, I don’t know about the headlines but the odd thing is, a lot of the actual reporting in the CT is not bad. Rauner gets raked over the coals a fair bit and Pearson and co. still point out that his fiscal math doesn’t add up.

It really is an advanced case of Wall Street Journal-itis … not bad coverage on the front end, and then there’s the editorial board.

Comment by ZC Tuesday, Jul 21, 15 @ 9:47 am
Shoedoctor, do you have any idea what the tax rate is like in Wisconsin?

Comment by Tom Tuesday, Jul 21, 15 @ 9:51 am
Trib Ed Board is hurting Rauner by making it seem like more than 100 people want what Rauner is pushing for, though don’t think Rauner realizes that.

Trib also needs to stop pretending everything is peachy in Indiana and Wisconsin. It isn’t.

Comment by From the 'Dale to HP Tuesday, Jul 21, 15 @ 9:52 am
-Still need clarification on how slashing wages for workers would naturally result in higher tax revenue.-
See Wisconsin and Kansas, it doesn’t result in higher tax revenue. If you had a surplus it results in a deficit. If you already had a deficit, well, you fall deeper into the rabbit hole.

Comment by Bulldog58 Tuesday, Jul 21, 15 @ 9:52 am
@ ZC, spot on. Rauner wasn’t elected to bust unions, longer he and the Ed Board pretends he was, the worse this is going to be for Rauner.

Comment by From the 'Dale to HP Tuesday, Jul 21, 15 @ 9:55 am
If unions are busted, wages are decreased and tax revenue drops, does this mean Rauner’s true desire is to sock it to the 1%-ers to raise that revenue? /s

Comment by AnonymousOne Tuesday, Jul 21, 15 @ 10:00 am
Get it right, Miller. These are “pro-business reforms” that the Tribbies and Rauner don’t have the guts to speak honestly about, lol.

They’re scared to even try to sell them honestly. Hence, the weasel words.

Comment by Wordslinger Tuesday, Jul 21, 15 @ 10:15 am
I love the word REFORM. Used by any all advocates of a particular issue to sound virtuous.

What these reformers really mean is CHANGE and ‘change’ the way they want it.

Comment by Federalist Tuesday, Jul 21, 15 @ 10:22 am
Those who believe the savings to be realized by ‘reforming’ worker’s compensation and eliminating prevailing wage from construction projects will equal monies lost to school districts and others through a property tax freeze should sign up for a basic math course, if in fact there’s one available after classes have to be cut with such a freeze in place.

Comment by Tommydanger Tuesday, Jul 21, 15 @ 10:28 am
The Tribune is the voice of Corporate America and has been since it began in the 19th century. Rauner is of, by and for the 19th century Gilded Class or in today’s terms, the 1%. Everyone knows from that Gilded Class that an organized workforce means a much better society almost anywhere in the world. However, just as children tend to respond, immediate gratification Trumps (no pun intended) everything else. For the Gilded Class, it means immediate profit at the expense of everything else. Sometimes many Democrats are confused by this as well since much of the Gilded Class buys them candy.

Comment by Factory Worker Tuesday, Jul 21, 15 @ 10:32 am
===But it’s odd that the editorial board spent all its time, energy and effort attacking a hugely unpopular politician instead of defending their own guy’s radical ideas. ===

Thats the key. To paraphrase hudson sours, “who wants this bill?” Who can actually articulate rauners anti union agenda and say they are for it? Where is the support? Just because you are opposed to madigans hold on power, does not mean he is wrong on this, or that rauner is right. Not even the bought-and-paid-for GOP is out there cheering to bust the unions, term limit us, etc.

Comment by Langhorne Tuesday, Jul 21, 15 @ 10:38 am
=Otherwise how can they freeze property taxes? =

Whelp, explain to me exactly how that is going to save me as much as our district is losing through under payment from the state? I mean since you know how it all works and everything.

After six year of this nonsense the state is in arrears to the tune of millions for our little district. And we fund 75% of our costs locally! And we have slashed more than a million annually from our budget.

We would have to reduce compensation by 30% to catch up to the diminishing state support. And once we caught up it would continue to go down.

Our highest paid teacher makes $68,000. Hardly lavish income in 2015. Most of our staff live within the district. We are the second largest employer in the county. The local meatballs think the turnaround agenda is awesome. They have not done the math. It would devastate the local economy.

As Tommydanger stated- these people need to sign up for a basic math course. The math does not work.

Of course Rauner isn’t providing any math with his plan. Just like his campaign.

Comment by JS Mill Tuesday, Jul 21, 15 @ 10:43 am
I agree with ZC. Rauner did not run on union-stripping. His union attacks are not obviously something the voters wanted. Where were the anti-union voters at all the local government turnaround agenda hearings?

Union-stripping is not pushed by voters. Unions are probably not a big political priority for voters. It is a big priority for the usual super-rich individuals and organizations.

I want to see some Republicans start supporting their union constituents who helped elect them, as opposed to outside big-money special interests like Rauner and his funders.

Comment by Grandson of Man Tuesday, Jul 21, 15 @ 10:45 am
=== Um, that isn’t the choice on the table.

It’s kill off prevailing wage and collective bargaining and then taxes will rise. ===

Spot on, Rich.

Comment by Juvenal Tuesday, Jul 21, 15 @ 10:48 am
I bet Michael Madigan is responsible for my ingrown toenail!..damn him and his iron fist!

Comment by cez Tuesday, Jul 21, 15 @ 10:51 am
– It’s kill off prevailing wage and collective bargaining and then taxes will rise.–

Dinner and a show after?

Comment by Wordslinger Tuesday, Jul 21, 15 @ 10:51 am
I can’t imagine the utopian society the Tribune editorial board envisions. Probably because it’s as unrealistic as their editorials.

Comment by Wensicia Tuesday, Jul 21, 15 @ 10:52 am
==local meatballs think the turnaround agenda is awesome==

The local meatballs probably can’t count high enough to count their own toes. They probably think that if the guv is promising to cut taxes and they have an extra $20 in their wallet at the end of the month, screw everyone else. Some people can’t tune into the big picture, the wider agenda, let alone the concept of society and civic responsibilities. They never had their antenna tuned right from the start. But then again, I’m not sure you have to be a meatball to have those deficiencies.

Comment by AnonymousOne Tuesday, Jul 21, 15 @ 11:16 am
And the Governor says that there are Democratic members in the General Assembly that support these items and that they are bi-partisan ideas. What a joke.

Comment by Xavier Woods Tuesday, Jul 21, 15 @ 11:17 am
This is the biggest gripe I’ve expressed to me Dem friends about how they’ve handled this standoff. They have completely failed to express what Rich just did. Rauner’s reforms are not designed to “turnaround” Illinois. They are just about hurting workers and attacking phantom menaces.

As one legislator said to me recently, terms limits are a blunt instrument designed to remove one person - Mike Madigan. but even if you passed them today, Madigan would be probably out of the GA for health/aging reasons long before they take effect. None of this will help “turn around” the economy of Illinois. Nor will eliminating the ability of DCEO to attract businesses by cutting all their resources (which is one of the first things Rauner did).

Comment by Chicago Cynic Tuesday, Jul 21, 15 @ 12:43 pm
I got a good laugh during my lunch from your comment cez, thanks.

Comment by Kurt in Springfield Tuesday, Jul 21, 15 @ 12:52 pm