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Rauner calls First Lady “my most senior advisor”

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Illinois

* From Amanda Vinicky’s “Chicago Tonight” interview of Gov. Bruce Rauner…

VINICKY: I think this is unfortunately going to be our final question. How involved is the first lady in your day-to-day decisions in the administration?

RAUNER: Well she is my best friend, she is the love of my life, and she is my most senior advisor. She is a lifelong Democrat. She shares my passion for education, creating a better future for the children of Illinois.

VINICKY: So is she a part of the education funding? Did she help to craft the amendatory veto? In terms of education funding did she help to craft the Amendatory veto for example?

RAUNER: She is always sharing her ideas and thoughts and advice, and I value her opinion very highly.

* Politico…

Illinois First Lady Diana Rauner has long acted as a public face in her husband’s political campaign — but over the last year she has taken on an additional, behind-the-scenes role in Gov. Bruce Rauner’s administration, cranking up her own involvement outside of public view.

In the first six months of 2017, Diana Rauner corresponded at least 350 times through email alone with the governor’s then-chief of staff, according to a count by the governor’s office. That’s on top of her direct phone calls and emails with other staffers to weigh in on messaging, digital communications and strategy, those with knowledge of the interactions told POLITICO. […]

Diana Rauner’s rising role included having a hand in the governor’s staff shake-up last month. The governor fired top staffers, replacing several high-ranking employees with members of the Illinois Policy Institute, a conservative think tank. The governor wouldn’t have taken such a serious step without his wife’s backing, several people close to the administration said. […]

Rauner’s administration on Monday blocked the release of any of Diana Rauner’s emails, saying that each of the hundreds of messages falls under an exemption to the state’s freedom of information law. “The Governor’s Office conducted a search and found roughly 350 emails responsive to your request,” a denial of a request to POLITICO stated. “Please be advised that these emails have been withheld pursuant to 5 ILCS 140/7(1)(f) (“[p]reliminary drafts, notes, recommendations, memoranda and other records in which opinions are expressed or policies or actions are formulated…”) and 7 ILCS 140/7(1)(m)()(“[c]ommunications between a public body and an attorney…representing the public body that would not be subject to discovery in litigation…”) These documents consist of communications strategy, draft statements, and press releases, in which policies were formulated and opinions were expressed.”

She’s a heck of a lot more powerful than most people think. Putting her so firmly within the administration and tying her so closely to personnel and policy decisions could also undermine her status as a liberal, moderating influence on the governor. There most definitely hasn’t been much of that going on in the past month or so.

posted by Rich Miller
Tuesday, Aug 15, 17 @ 9:32 am

Comments

Bruce, you need more staff changes.

Comment by A Jack Tuesday, Aug 15, 17 @ 9:35 am
She’s a “lifelong Democrat” like a 320 pound 45 year-old in a letterman jacket is a “jock”. What you used to be ain’t what you is.

Comment by LizPhairTax Tuesday, Aug 15, 17 @ 9:36 am
“could also undermine her status as a liberal, moderating influence on the governor”

It seems to be pretty clear she had a significant role in pushing out the old crew and bringing in IPI. I think “could” is an understatement.

Comment by Montrose Tuesday, Aug 15, 17 @ 9:37 am
So they brick the FOIA request…because? Must show she sides with the IPI clown car. /

Comment by Annonin' Tuesday, Aug 15, 17 @ 9:39 am
Gee, I wonder if anyone else might have grabbed their own copies of those emails on their way out the door.

Comment by Moe Berg Tuesday, Aug 15, 17 @ 9:41 am
I respect Ms. Rauner’s early childhood education work, but it’s hard to square her history of mostly GOP political contributions with her “lifelong Democrat” claims. By all means, give to whoever you want. But if you pretend to be something you’re not, you’re going to hear about it!

Comment by Linus Tuesday, Aug 15, 17 @ 9:44 am
Every disastrous campaign I’ve ever been a part of has let the candidate’s spouse meddle. Couple failing Clinton campaigns did that, too.

Comment by Arsenal Tuesday, Aug 15, 17 @ 9:45 am
Are we all done with “Diana Rauner is a civilian” utter nonsense?

…

Comment by Oswego Willy Tuesday, Aug 15, 17 @ 9:45 am
All of what OW has been sayin’

Comment by Anonymous Tuesday, Aug 15, 17 @ 9:47 am
I hope so, OW. As I see it, she lost her civilian status mucho time-o ago.

Comment by Yiddishcowboy Tuesday, Aug 15, 17 @ 9:48 am
Rich - You’ve filed more than a few FOIA’s in your day. How does their denial stack up?

My take: If politico narrowed their scope a bit - that would clear up the (1)(f) and would reduce their exposure to (1)(m).

Thoughts?

Comment by Dee Lay Tuesday, Aug 15, 17 @ 9:49 am
It’s been a phony good-cop, bad-cop routine all along.

Diana Rauner is supposedly a “liberal, moderating influence” Democrat but she was instrumental in the purge that brought in IPI? Counter-intuitive, to say the least.

Lifelong Republicans couldn’t stomach that move and quit the administratiion over it. But the alleged goo-goo liberal thought it was the right move for “no social agenda” Bruce?”

Ridiculous, she can’t have it both ways. She chose to play a major role in Raunerism and has to live with it.

If she’s a top advisor to the governor, she’s complicit in the deliberate human destruction and fiscal recklessness of squeeze the beast.

Because that certainly was a social agenda.

It was social Darwinism.

Comment by wordslinger Tuesday, Aug 15, 17 @ 9:49 am
Yes, the gentlemen from Oswego has been on the First Lady angle from Jump Street. As to “anyone else” grabbing copies of the e-mails on the way out the door, I fear that is just too much to hope for. Anyone else was terminated with extreme prejudice…and haste.

Comment by SAP Tuesday, Aug 15, 17 @ 9:52 am
I’m sure The Ounce is excited to keep reading that Diana Rauner orchestrated the IPI takeover of the Governor’s Office, given the IPI’s budget that Rep. Ives sponsored, The Ounce must be thrilled that their President was instrumental in choosing Rauner Administration hires from IPI.

The Ounce having Diana Rauner as its President has a flip side too.

Maybe “Fake The Ounce” is thinking…

“Thank goodness for JB Pritzker. When we needed that 5 million, when Diana and Bruce Rauner wanted to hold that $7 million Bruce’s Adimistration owes us, JB and his family stepped in where Diana and Bruce failed us” - Fake The Ounce.

There are but a handful of people I email multiple times a day.

Comment by Oswego Willy Tuesday, Aug 15, 17 @ 9:52 am
Governors shouldn’t feel a need to say what Rauner has been saying about his wife over the past five years.

It’s disingenuois and creepy.

Comment by VanillaMan Tuesday, Aug 15, 17 @ 10:08 am
It’s a wonder she has any time to lead the Ounce.

Comment by Flynn's mom Tuesday, Aug 15, 17 @ 10:17 am
Netflix - “Cascading Failures” - Season 1, Episode 6

Bruce prepares for national cable news interview, spends all day getting haircut and picking out costume. Diana calls for IT help as the Internet server is down and Diana can’t email anyone. Diana’s State Employee blocks cable news networks from Bruce and Diana’s televisions. Kristina sets up interview with Chicago Public Television reporter. The Looch tweets phony school funding numbers for CPS, Brittany writes statement about undefined terms Bruce is confused about denouncing. Comedy, 73 minutes.

Comment by Oswego Willy Tuesday, Aug 15, 17 @ 10:27 am
===How does their denial stack up? ===

“Preliminary drafts, notes, recommendations, memoranda and other records in which opinions are expressed or policies or actions are formulated” is probably a good legal basis for denying at least some of them.

Comment by Rich Miller Tuesday, Aug 15, 17 @ 10:47 am
Yes, Diana is fair game and social service agencies need to take note of her complicity in the damage inflicted upon them by Rauner.

Comment by Norseman Tuesday, Aug 15, 17 @ 11:03 am
The one constant advisor throughout his winning campaign and his ineffective term to date has been Diana Rauner.

Think on that for a while.

Comment by RNUG Tuesday, Aug 15, 17 @ 11:05 am
===The one constant advisor throughout his winning campaign and his ineffective term to date has been Diana Rauner.

Think on that for a while.===

- RNUG -,

This is critical in understanding that the RaunerS are both complicit in the destruction of Illinois.

I think the most stunning admission of their complicity is the firing, sure, but that Diana (and Bruce) are so concerned what people think about the destruction at cocktail parties.

Why is that most stunning?

It’s not that Diana and Bruce Rauner were upset about what they were doing. There’s never been the issue. The issue is they are upset people notice, and they, both, Diana and Bruce, need that affirmation from those they need for their own validation.

You make the great point, Diana has been a constant, maybe the ONLY real constant. We’re seeing the real RaunerS, Diana and Bruce now, as they want repackaged, but bumbling all the way, trying to excuse their purposeful destruction of our state.

Comment by Oswego Willy Tuesday, Aug 15, 17 @ 11:12 am
I have a huge problem with this. They are obviously using her to skirt FOIA rules. I had a problem with her having a state employee when they started. Now I know why. This has got to be against the ethics rules or something.

Comment by Honeybear Tuesday, Aug 15, 17 @ 11:20 am
I think Ounce needs to be held accountable for providing Diana cover her role in the administration and avoiding FOIA laws.

Comment by Seiun Tuesday, Aug 15, 17 @ 11:39 am
Diana Rauner is not a state employee.

Emails sent by her are not protected by either exclusion to FOIA.

If staff included her as a recipient on emails, they cannot claim attorney privilege. The veil of privilege was breached when they included a non-employee on the email.

It’s like Donald Trump claiming something is top secret after he tweeted it.

Sorry gang, but the barn door was left wide open on this.

Comment by Juvenal Tuesday, Aug 15, 17 @ 12:56 pm
This seems like an appropriate time to note that the Rauners’ governorship is not only as bad as Oswego Willy, VanillaMan and Wordslinger predicted it would be, it is bad in exactly the manner that they predicted it would be.

Something worth keeping in mind as we go forward…

– MrJM

Comment by @MisterJayEm Tuesday, Aug 15, 17 @ 1:40 pm
I agree with Juvenal. It will be interesting to see what AG Madigan has to say when this FOIA is presented to her office.

Comment by Keyrock Tuesday, Aug 15, 17 @ 2:59 pm
It’s been a while since old AA had to respond to a FOIA, thank the Lord, but I think that Juvenal has a point here regarding Diana’s non-State employee status and loss of FOIA exemption.

Comment by Arthur Andersen Tuesday, Aug 15, 17 @ 4:31 pm
Related to Juvenal’s point, how can Diana Rauner even legally utilize state resources, i.e. the email system? On the surface that would appear to create some ethics issues.

Comment by MyTwoCents Tuesday, Aug 15, 17 @ 5:03 pm
What has our Lt. Governor been up to lately?

Comment by Just Me Tuesday, Aug 15, 17 @ 9:05 pm
Arthur Andersen is correct. The denial should be appealed.

Diana Rauner is not a state employee. Thus, anything said to her via email cannot be categorized as preliminary–when it goes from an employee of the government, or to an employee of the government, to someone, or from someone, who is not an employee of the government, it is fair game. Exactly the same as if a state employee sent an email, or received an email, from John Q. Public.

It should also be noted that Bruce Rauner, while on the campaign trail, said that his would be the most transparent administration in the nation. Virtually every FOIA exemption, and most certainly the one asserted in this case, is discretionary. The emails can be released without breaking any laws. By the same token, it is difficult to imagine that they legally can be withheld.

Politico should sue.

Comment by Bruce Rushton Wednesday, Aug 16, 17 @ 10:23 am
==Governors shouldn’t feel a need to say what Rauner has been saying about his wife over the past five years==
A little unusual, no? It might be more sweet than creepy if it wasn’t coming from a guy that would lie to you if you asked him for the time of day.

Comment by Da Big Bad Wolf Wednesday, Aug 16, 17 @ 11:00 am