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CPS students sent home with letter blasting Rauner

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Illinois

* WGN…

Intense rhetoric between Chicago democrats and Illinois’ republican governor is nothing new, but some parents are upset it is now being played out in a letter sent home with their kids. Chicago Public Schools officials sent home a letter with all 381,000 students blasting Gov. Bruce Rauner and ignoring any role democrats may have played in the state’s budget woes.

The “Dear Parents” letter begins by stating “Governor Bruce Rauner, just like President Trump, has decided to attack those who need the most help.” Twice the letter accuses Gov. Rauner of “cheating” children. Once it says the governor “stole” from kids. The letter goes on to cite Chicago Public Schools CEO Forrest Claypool’s often repeated claim that the governor broke a promise by blocking Chicago from receiving $215 million for city schools.

One CPS parent who contacted WGN wrote: “This is so inappropriate. How can he send political propaganda home?” The letter, paid for by taxpayers, does not mention democrats who have been in control of the city and state legislature for decades.

Government watchdog groups questioned the district’s decision to use such strong partisan language in a letter sent home with kids. “Invoking partisan politics – especially at the national level – is not the most effective way to build trust with parents and students,” said Sarah Brune of the Illinois Campaign for Political Reform.

We’re arrived at a whole new level of weirdness, campers.

posted by Rich Miller
Tuesday, Feb 7, 17 @ 3:39 pm

Comments

Time to program the kiddies…..

Comment by Wylie Coyote Tuesday, Feb 7, 17 @ 3:41 pm
Vetoes hurt Chicago students.

Governors own.

The letter IS over the top, but $50 million in the back will force different “avenues” to be explored.

That veto will haunt Rauner until he makes it “right” in a budget.

Comment by Oswego Willy Tuesday, Feb 7, 17 @ 3:44 pm
No. just no. A kid at my house gets something like that and I would be livid. Not appropriate. Not smart politics.

Comment by Amalia Tuesday, Feb 7, 17 @ 3:44 pm
Relax. Most of those letters probably turned into paper airplanes or never made it home.

Comment by Biscuit Head Tuesday, Feb 7, 17 @ 3:47 pm
“Where’s Arne Duncan when we need him?!” - Fake Bruce Rauner.

Comment by Oswego Willy Tuesday, Feb 7, 17 @ 3:48 pm
Classy. So very classy.

Comment by Anonymous Tuesday, Feb 7, 17 @ 3:50 pm
Sounds like every letter sent to state workers from the Rauner administration. Also sounds like every press release sent with taxpayers dollars from Rauner.

Comment by Dupage Bard Tuesday, Feb 7, 17 @ 3:51 pm
Kids shouldn’t be used to ferry messages between divorced parents and they shouldn’t be used to ferry messages to their parents from an upset school administration.

Leave the kids out of it.

Comment by Tommydanger Tuesday, Feb 7, 17 @ 3:54 pm
Wildly inappropriate use of the schools and public funds for political propaganda purposes. Not a close call, as I’m sure Claypool knows.

Does Claypool want to get fired? Because if Emanuel doesn’t fire him after this, it’s on him.

Comment by wordslinger Tuesday, Feb 7, 17 @ 3:54 pm
That has to be an ethics violation.

Comment by MSIX Tuesday, Feb 7, 17 @ 3:56 pm
What’s the big deal?!? I don’t see anything wrong with the letter. Glad I read it here because my two HS age sons won’t remember to give it to me. I think Claypool wants CPS parents to understand the gravity of the situation. While I hope the senate grand bargain passes, I have no faith that it will. If CPS parents don’t start making noise in Springfield then expect cut after cut after cut to our schools.

Comment by CPS Mom Tuesday, Feb 7, 17 @ 3:59 pm
This is the new reality in politics. Such a shame on both sides.

Comment by Anon Tuesday, Feb 7, 17 @ 4:01 pm
The gratuitous swipe at President Trump makes it clear that the CPS is more interested in promoting the Cook County Democratic Party line than in educating their students.

Comment by Anonymous Tuesday, Feb 7, 17 @ 4:10 pm
Herein lies a problem. …Mr. Schnorf says significant cuts in spending. I say freeze K-12 and start with CPS. I will lobby my state rep and senator accordingly.

Comment by Anonymous Tuesday, Feb 7, 17 @ 4:10 pm
Ck

Comment by Blue Dog Dem Tuesday, Feb 7, 17 @ 4:14 pm
I hold no brief for Rauner, but this is inappropriate.

Comment by JoanP Tuesday, Feb 7, 17 @ 4:15 pm
=I say freeze K-12 and start with CPS. I will lobby my state rep and senator accordingly.=

He won’t be listening. Everyone loves them some K-12 funding.

Comment by JS Mill Tuesday, Feb 7, 17 @ 4:18 pm
==Once it says the governor “stole” from kids.==

Now that you mention it, taking kids’ lunch money bears an uncanny resemblance to his business model, and he did promise to run the State like a business.

Snark aside, this kind of language is not called for. It may fire up the people who already see the governor as evil incarnate, but it will also cause the other side to dig in harder and turn off people in between the extremes.

Comment by Whatever Tuesday, Feb 7, 17 @ 4:19 pm
“Mr. Schnorf says significant cuts in spending. I say freeze K-12 and start with CPS”. CPS was already frozen out of 215 million in December. Your school district is next. Remind your Senator and Rep to cut their own districts next.

Comment by Peters Post Tuesday, Feb 7, 17 @ 4:19 pm
I will. They are guilty as well.

Comment by Blue Dog Dem Tuesday, Feb 7, 17 @ 4:21 pm
Look, no one should deny that Rauner is going after Chicago to rev up his base and try to leverage his own political agenda. That’s not even debatable.

And does he think that CPS is going to go under without a fight? Past CPS mismanagement doesn’t justify hurting kids in the middle of the school year. And it doesn’t justify defense of a funding system that gives Chicago kids a lot less, because downstate and suburban district don’t have to pay a dime in teacher pension costs, which are going through the roof.

Comment by School Parent Tuesday, Feb 7, 17 @ 4:24 pm
This is absurd even for Illinois standards. Claypool should be fired over this

Comment by downstate hack Tuesday, Feb 7, 17 @ 4:24 pm
Arm the kids! The Bears are coming.

Comment by 340 E Randolph Tuesday, Feb 7, 17 @ 4:24 pm
–And does he think that CPS is going to go under without a fight? Past CPS mismanagement doesn’t justify hurting kids in the middle of the school year. –

So let Emanuel tap his campaign fund to send out a mailer. This is obviously over the line for misuse of public funds.

Comment by Anonymous Tuesday, Feb 7, 17 @ 4:26 pm
No.
Just no.

Using CPS students as carrier pigeons is vastly inappropriate, regardless of who is doing it.

Comment by thunderspirit Tuesday, Feb 7, 17 @ 4:27 pm
Pardon, 4:26 was me.

Comment by wordslinger Tuesday, Feb 7, 17 @ 4:27 pm
Using kids as messengers is a new low even for a guy who sat on a video so he could get reelected

Comment by Sue Tuesday, Feb 7, 17 @ 4:30 pm
The more interesting question (although I admit this letter is pretty interesting) is why thinks innocent of all this?

Why shouldn’t he be blamed? And why shouldn’t it be a partisan blaming?

The country’s divided. That’s a fact. Rauner’s on one side, lots of folks are on the other. If Rauner thinks he’s going to “take the arrows” — well, here’s one.

Man up, Bruce.

Comment by Anonymouse Tuesday, Feb 7, 17 @ 4:37 pm
Not all that different than the Governor spending day after day visitin’ schools and twitterin’ his pictures with the students.

Comment by northsider (the original) Tuesday, Feb 7, 17 @ 4:38 pm
I don’t think any schoolchildren will suffer as a result of bringing this letter home to their parents. They may be victims here, but not as a result of the letter.

Comment by Henry Francis Tuesday, Feb 7, 17 @ 4:46 pm
On the bright side, that’s about 10,000 less letters CPS would’ve had to send home last year due to declining enrollment.

Comment by City Zen Tuesday, Feb 7, 17 @ 4:46 pm
Claypool ought to be fired for this. I’m not sure if there is a prosecutable offense here, but there should be.

Comment by Irritated Tuesday, Feb 7, 17 @ 4:49 pm
Can suburban and downstate folks send Claypool the bill for 20 years worth of CPS block grants?

Comment by City Zen Tuesday, Feb 7, 17 @ 4:52 pm
Wait. Claypool should be fired for this? And what, you’re gonna give Terranova a raise?

Letters home are the best way to communicate with families. If emails to state employees inviting them to quit the union, using the state email system and the mail list is okay, then there’s nothing wrong with sending notes home with kids.

Comment by Springfieldish Tuesday, Feb 7, 17 @ 4:57 pm
Given the 2017 world we live in…

Is it out of line? Probably. Beyond “bad form”, actually questionable.

We now are 2 plus years without a budget, a governor that loves the photo ops in schools, and vetoes ways to help students too.

Given this framing, yikes, but comically appropriate yikes.

It’s not Rauner is a champion of CPS, unless you count clouting his denied Winnetka-living daughter into Payton Prep as an endorsement of CPS…

… so, we’ll see the “fallout”

Comment by Oswego Willy Tuesday, Feb 7, 17 @ 4:57 pm
Great.
Now Katrina McQueary is hopping back on her high horse again.

Comment by btowntruth from forgottonia Tuesday, Feb 7, 17 @ 5:11 pm
From Katrina And The Waves….errr I mean the Tribune Editorial Board….
That drew a furious reaction from Rauner administration officials. On Tuesday, Illinois Secretary of Education Beth Purvis lashed Claypool in an open letter to district parents, calling Claypool’s announcement “curiously timed and unfortunate.” Purvis asserted that the district was “arbitrarily” creating a crisis to “help justify a campaign to raise taxes in Springfield.”
===============================================
Creating a crisis,eh?
” Crisis creates leverage to change … and we’ve got to use that leverage of the crisis to force structural change.”
That golden oldie from the Guvnah ring a bell?

Comment by btowntruth from forgottonia Tuesday, Feb 7, 17 @ 5:19 pm
—Arm the kids! The Bears are coming.—

The Chicago Bears often do come to CPS schools. They aren’t that fierce tho. The kids should be able to handle them.

Comment by Anonymous Tuesday, Feb 7, 17 @ 5:19 pm
Wierdness? Howzx this?

Proposal: Change the name of the state from ILLINOIS to DYSFUNCTION
Then we can have:
“Me? I come from Dysfunction. No, not my family; my State”
“I live in the State of Dysfunction.”
Springfield: The State Capitol of Dysfunction
I live in Chicago, Dysfunction.
Rauner: “I am the Governor of Dysfunction.”
Rauner: “I am the Governor of the Great State of Dysfunction.”
Dysfunction: THE laughing stock State in America that has NO-Real-Budget!

Comment by Anonymous Tuesday, Feb 7, 17 @ 5:44 pm
I blame Dianna Donaker

Comment by Betsy Whip It Good DeVos Tuesday, Feb 7, 17 @ 5:44 pm
== That has to be an ethics violation. ==

Really? Who wants to start counting this ‘administrations'’ ethics vios?

Comment by Anonymous Tuesday, Feb 7, 17 @ 5:47 pm
== This is obviously over the line for misuse of public funds. ==

But terranovies multiples are just fine? Wonderin’.

Comment by Anonymous Tuesday, Feb 7, 17 @ 5:51 pm
== I’m not sure if there is a prosecutable offense here, but there should be. ==

Really? Howz about the gov’s failure to do his Constituitionally & State law mandate to present as balanced budget to the GA annually?

Put him in jail, or like some comments here, fire him. He’s way over the line for 2 years running.

Comment by Anonymous Tuesday, Feb 7, 17 @ 5:58 pm
—But terranovies multiples are just fine? Wonderin’.—

According to the labor relations act the employer can communicate facts with the employees. AFSCAMMY says they aren’t facts but have they filed a ULP?

Comment by Anonymous Tuesday, Feb 7, 17 @ 6:00 pm
Claypool is in a tough spot, between Karen Lewis and Rauner, but this is inappropriate and offensive. It is also dishonest and needs to stop.

Comment by CPS Parent Tuesday, Feb 7, 17 @ 6:22 pm
The practically bankrupt school district prints a bunch of partisan political letters, hands them out to students, and sends the students home to show their parents. Unbelievable.

Comment by BK Bro Tuesday, Feb 7, 17 @ 6:51 pm
Claypool is doing his job, glad to see the effort was made to inform folks. All the rage? It’s okay to use the kids to fundraisers for everything now days, but letter home about how this will effect the school system. That’s hilarious someone reached out to WGNnover this. You see, reality TV is the way to.

Comment by Gust Tuesday, Feb 7, 17 @ 6:53 pm
== That has to be an ethics violation.

Really? Who wants to start counting this ‘administrations’’ ethics vios?==

So it’s agreed to be an ethics violation.

Comment by OldIllini Tuesday, Feb 7, 17 @ 6:59 pm
Well Terranova and Rauners message to state employees was sent to all state reciptiants of which some were children.

Comment by Generic Drone Tuesday, Feb 7, 17 @ 7:11 pm
I don’t believe Claypool sent this out without the Mayor’s approval. I believe the Mayor controls CPS messaging.

Comment by Anonymous Tuesday, Feb 7, 17 @ 7:58 pm
CPS CEO Claypool was ordered by Mayor Emanuel to take the job, after Barb Bennett went down due to the Feds investigation. He walked into this nightmare, he should have never accepted this doomsday job. But after the defeat of Ms Clinton he had no federal appointment opportunities. He is a career bureaucrat and this is his lot in life.

Comment by Rod Tuesday, Feb 7, 17 @ 8:17 pm
Let’s see the entire letter first, then we can get outraged. We may just be seeing one small part.

But yeah, does not look smart. It’s fair to ask parents to advocate for more funding, but not to lobby on a specific issue.

Comment by Not It Tuesday, Feb 7, 17 @ 8:27 pm
—Let’s see the entire letter first—

Comment by use the link that says WGN Tuesday, Feb 7, 17 @ 9:25 pm
== - Sue - Tuesday, Feb 7, 17 @ 4:30 pm:

Using kids as messengers is a new low even for a guy who sat on a video so he could get reelected ===

Bingo.

Comment by Cadillac Tuesday, Feb 7, 17 @ 9:43 pm
Retribution from the Secretary of Ed letter earlier demonizing CPS- that Sec of Ed letter was paid for with taxpayer money too, and lots of it. The secretary of education is a newly created position that cost taxpayers $250k per year plus staff…and the position is being used to respond to the governor’s enemies at CPS. It all depends on the spin.

Comment by Elliott Ness Tuesday, Feb 7, 17 @ 10:10 pm
What did that cost the people of chitown in paper and printing? poor use of public funds, poor managemnt decision at the least.

Comment by NorthsideNoMore Wednesday, Feb 8, 17 @ 4:15 am
Defending this is pronouncing a sincere weakness.

If you’re defending this, ask yourself; what’s your next step?

Comment by A guy Wednesday, Feb 8, 17 @ 8:46 am