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McCann faces second tough primary in two years

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Illinois

* Steve McClure, a former assistant state’s attorney whose father was commerce director under Gov. Jim Thompson and whose late mother held important positions with Jim Edgar, kicked off his GOP primary bid against Sen. Sam McCann this week…

McClure said McCann made a mistake this summer when he voted for the spending plan that ended the state’s two-year budget impasse “because it came with a 32 percent income tax increase.”

McCann voted for the spending plan, but voted against the income tax increase. McClure said that didn’t excuse the vote for the budget.

“That’s typical of my opponent,” he said. “He likes to spend money, but not pay for things. In this case, I think there’s no question that for the budget, that went along with a 32 percent income tax increase.”

McCann said Tuesday he was proud of his vote for the budget “since the governor has abdicated his duty for three years in a row by failing to introduce a balanced budget. The legislature had to take matters into its own hands.”

McClure will be a tough opponent for McCann. And McCann doesn’t make it easy on himself. Lots of financial oppo.

* More on McClure…

Additionally, he said that he has seen first-hand friends and family leave the state because of the exodus of businesses. McClure said he sees the environment for businesses within Illinois as “toxic” and that the only way to bring more families into the state is to focus on attracting business through incentives.

“There are lots of things that are necessary to turn the state around,” he said. “We need to keep taxes low. We need to turn state finances around. One of the things that drives businesses away is that they want to be in a state location where the government is stabilized, taking care of bills and staying on top of debt. Right now we don’t have that. We have a government that is absolutely out of control.”

It was “absolutely out of control” when we didn’t have a budget, which he apparently opposed. It’s somewhat better now.

posted by Rich Miller
Thursday, Sep 21, 17 @ 11:27 am

Comments

Has anyone seen Sen. McCann’s petitions? I haven’t and I live in his district.

Comment by A little disgruntled Thursday, Sep 21, 17 @ 11:42 am
This will be so much more difficult for McCann, given an additional year plus of continued negativity around his own oppo and that McClure will be in a better position to take advantage, as the luxury of time is now allowing that oppo to fester longer in people’s minds.

Can Labor and moderates wanting to send Rauner a message pull off the “upset” again? (McCann is an incumbent, it’s an upset due to the challenges McCann faces)

The real question will be…

Should McCann be rewarded or disciplined for his last two years?

Add the oppo, then leave it for the voters to decide.

Comment by Oswego Willy Thursday, Sep 21, 17 @ 11:44 am
I suspect a further challenge for McCann is that unions/moderates will concentrate more on the Governor’s race.

Comment by Arsenal Thursday, Sep 21, 17 @ 11:51 am
It is sad when Rosemary Long and the wholly owned Sang Co. Repubs endorse this blank sheet over McCann who has taken the correct votes for his district. Where is the receipt?

Comment by Obamas Puppy Thursday, Sep 21, 17 @ 11:53 am
Labor is going to need all the money it can get for the Gov & GA races in November - I don’t know if they see the value in propping up McCann again

Comment by Fax Machine Thursday, Sep 21, 17 @ 11:53 am
===I suspect a further challenge for McCann is that unions/moderates will concentrate more on the Governor’s race===

- Arsenal -

In the primary?

One race at a time…

Comment by Oswego Willy Thursday, Sep 21, 17 @ 11:54 am
Would the “sore loser” law prevent Sam from running as an independent for governor if he loses a Republican primary for state senator?

Comment by Telly Thursday, Sep 21, 17 @ 11:54 am
And with respect as always - Arsenal -,

I do understand that labor may stay home in the Dem primary and assist whomever they are assisting, I dunno how many this time will cross over in the GOP primary, given the Dem’s primary is hot.

We’ll see I guess(?)

Comment by Oswego Willy Thursday, Sep 21, 17 @ 11:57 am
– the only way to bring more families into the state is attracting businesses through incentives.–

Really, commissar, that’s the only way? Centralized economic planning and chosen winners by the state Politburo?

Funny kind of Republicans they make these days.

How about good schools, safe streets, social safety net, rule of law, properly maintained infrastructure, that sort of thing?

Comment by wordslinger Thursday, Sep 21, 17 @ 11:58 am
Telly - the answer is yes.

If you file petitions to run in a primary or if you vote in a parimary you cannot run as an independent for any office in the subsequent General Election

Comment by Fax Machine Thursday, Sep 21, 17 @ 12:02 pm
Why would anyone want McCann to run for governor. We need a good candidate. Rauner is not. The Dems don’t have a good candidate. And we keep hearing McCann for governor. We need much better.

Comment by What Thursday, Sep 21, 17 @ 12:06 pm
But does he have the support of Troy McClure the voice of Springfield

https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Troy_McClure

Comment by Ghost Thursday, Sep 21, 17 @ 12:10 pm
McClure already secured the backing of the Sangamon County GOP - which is huge because Benton never had his own county party support. I believe that Sangamon has over half of the primary vote in the 50th District, and that endorsement/support could be enough for McClure to do well enough in Sangamon and nullify McCann’s big numbers elsewhere. McClure must do well in Morgan County, though.

Comment by Curl of the Burl Thursday, Sep 21, 17 @ 12:11 pm
Maybe I am wrong, but it looks like the Sangamon County GOP supports candidates who think that healthy state government is not an important part of the local economy. Interesting choice.

Comment by 100 miles west Thursday, Sep 21, 17 @ 12:13 pm
With McCann’s vulnerability, maybe Dems should find a viable challenger instead of worrying about propping him up for the second time in a row. Important races in the Dem primary may result in far less labor crossover just to support McCann.

Comment by Nick Name Thursday, Sep 21, 17 @ 12:22 pm
Nick - not in that district. Look at what happened to Tony DelGiorno last year - and he arguably outworked Rep. Jimenez.

Comment by Curl of the Burl Thursday, Sep 21, 17 @ 12:25 pm
I don’t disagree with everyone, but McCann has been surprisingly teflony; and most of Springfield has heard all this already. Won’t be a lot of shock and awe to hear McCann has some questionable spending. Next we will hear tale that there is a quonset hut that serves giant pancakes.

Comment by Ghost Thursday, Sep 21, 17 @ 12:27 pm
==I do understand that labor may stay home in the Dem primary and assist whomever they are assisting, I dunno how many this time will cross over in the GOP primary, given the Dem’s primary is hot.==

Yeah, this is what I mean. I can see AFSCME and SEIU throwing McCann another endorsement, but I don’t know how many dollars and bodies they devote to it now.

Comment by Arsenal Thursday, Sep 21, 17 @ 12:30 pm
It will be tough one for McCann. Given the Dem primary for gov, he won’t have the help of many crossover votes. Good luck to him.

Comment by Norseman Thursday, Sep 21, 17 @ 12:37 pm
Curl of the Burl- Did you write that with a straight face? Rep. Jimenez clearly out worked Tony DelGiorno and did extraordinaryly well despite constant attacks as being anti-state worker. She outworked him pure and simple.

Comment by Anonymous Thursday, Sep 21, 17 @ 12:50 pm
It will be a tough primary for Sam.

His baggage is what it is. He probably realizes that. He has been doing Facebook postings of all the mileage he racks up. That may deflect some of the vehicle reimbursement issues.

He does work his district, hard. They seem to like him for that.

Last time labor crossing over in the primary saved him. It’s all going to come down to how many GOP voters stay with him (in his district, some of those are State workers so they may stick) and how many Dems again cross over.

Right now I would guess Sam wins … but it will be super close.

Comment by RNUG Thursday, Sep 21, 17 @ 12:50 pm
McClure is already speaking Raunerese. Rauner knows how to spend but not how to pay. Ask the people, businesses, and organizations who are owed 16 Billion Dollars. McClure is going to blame McCann for helping to pay the bills and enact a budget for the first time in three years? Give me a break. McClure; you already need new talking points and it hasn’t even been a week yet. Defending the Governor and his poor policy decisions, needs to be your goal.

Comment by Retired Educator Thursday, Sep 21, 17 @ 12:59 pm
Sam’s base in not in Sangamon County, instead the base comes from the outlining counties around Sangamon.

As someone stated, the Sangamon County GOP for the most part, supported GOP members who in turn supported state workers who many came on board via the Sangamon County GOP.

A huge shift in this policy came when Rauner was elected and Long became Chair of the Sangamon County GOP. As an outside observer, she seems more concerned about keeping Rauner happy than she does supporting candidates who support state government.

All this being said, Sam’s base loves him, anyone thinking Sangamon County alone can beat him better think again.

Comment by Give Me A Break Thursday, Sep 21, 17 @ 1:01 pm
– All this being said, Sam’s base loves him, anyone thinking Sangamon County alone can beat him better think again. -
Give Me A Break is right. Bruce Rauner took his best, ugliest shot at McCann and McCann survived. There’s a lesson there.

Comment by Good thinkin Thursday, Sep 21, 17 @ 1:16 pm
I am always amazed when a party holds an office and then throws their political support behind another candidate, thus creating a divide in the party. But to throw their support behind someone who advocates not paying the State’s bills and running up additional debt, is contrary to the Republican party platform. I think this shows a lack of judgement. With a former State Legislator/Springfield Mayor and current alderman behind him for the announcement, are we to believe they agree with this platform?

Comment by NobodysAccountable Thursday, Sep 21, 17 @ 1:52 pm
==We need to keep taxes low.== I guess Mr. McClure agrees with the Governor that taxes are currently low.

Comment by SAP Thursday, Sep 21, 17 @ 2:28 pm
12:50 - yes I did. I walked for Rep. Jimenez and several of the precincts I walked in were already hit 2-3 times but Tony D. himself. I had several voters tell me Sara had never been to their neighborhood. Oh - and this was in late October, too, so the timing was more curious (and bad) than anything. I stand by my statement.

Comment by Curl of the Burl Thursday, Sep 21, 17 @ 2:29 pm
An extra 10% of the vote in Sangamon County during the primary would win McClure the race. Benton lost by a little over 2,100 votes. Flip 10% in Sangamon County and another few percentage points in the other counties and Sam is done. Sangamon provides the majority of primary votes in that district. During the 2016 primary about 55% of the primary vote came from the 99th House District portion. That is significant and cannot be ignored now that Chairman Long and countywide elected officials are OPENLY behind Sam’s opponent.

Comment by Curl of the Burl Thursday, Sep 21, 17 @ 2:39 pm
–Flip 10% in Sangamon County and another few percentage points in the other counties and Sam is done. –
It was soooo easy for Rauner to defeat McCann with millions of dollars. Oh wait, McCann won.

Comment by Good thinkin Thursday, Sep 21, 17 @ 2:44 pm
===An extra 10% of the vote in Sangamon County during the primary would win McClure the race.===

With a Dem primary for governor, I dunno how many more GOP voters will turn out, or how that will effect McCann with crossovers.

That race will be an odd dynamic by the district’s location in this state and the last primary without a POTUS turnout.

You might be a lil deep in the weeds here

Comment by Oswego Willy Thursday, Sep 21, 17 @ 2:46 pm
Good - do you have any idea as to how many crossover votes put McCann over the top? Or how many state workers who rarely (if ever) voted in the primary just to spite Rauner? Those voters made the difference.

Will there be a crossover this upcoming primary? Doubtful - unless Republicans flip over to vote in the Dem primary.

Willy - the other factor (which I noted in my post) was getting a few extra percentage points in other counties is that Mr. McClure is getting a 2.5+ month jump that Mr. Benton never had. Benton was second choice to McClure last time and as such he missed golden opportunities to visit areas outside of Sangamon and Morgan Counties before Christmas. That extra time makes a huge difference - if, of course, McClure does it right.

Comment by Curl of the Burl Thursday, Sep 21, 17 @ 2:54 pm
“I walked for Rep. Jimenez and several of the precincts I walked in were already hit 2-3 times but Tony D. himself. I had several voters tell me Sara had never been to their neighborhood. Oh - and this was in late October, too, so the timing was more curious (and bad) than anything. I stand by my statement.”

Curl- Tony was hitting hard R doors 2-3 times? Sounds like he got outworked because his staff didn’t know how to prepare a walk sheet.

Comment by Postbot 4933 Thursday, Sep 21, 17 @ 2:56 pm
Good - also, as noted above by myself and others, the Sangamon County GOP backed McCann after McClure dropped out in late 2015 and before Benton announced. That gave McCann access to all the precinct committeemen who get out and work their areas - and in Sangamon County that is a huge benefit for anyone who scores the county party’s blessing. Senator Sam will not have that luxury this time.

Also - keep in mind that Rauner may not even play in this race. He make throw Mr. McClure a few shekels and lend him a staffer or two but he may “sit this one out”, so to speak.

Comment by Curl of the Burl Thursday, Sep 21, 17 @ 2:57 pm
===Also - keep in mind that Rauner may not even play in this race. He make throw Mr. McClure a few shekels and lend him a staffer or two but he may “sit this one out”, so to speak.===

No.

Rauner will play because Rauner will want McCann out.

Good try. No.

Comment by Oswego Willy Thursday, Sep 21, 17 @ 3:00 pm
Willy - and you know this how? A couple of campaign people I trust have told me that McClure is likely not going to get much in the way of help - and I highly doubt that Leader Brady will weigh in this time around.

Comment by Curl of the Burl Thursday, Sep 21, 17 @ 3:11 pm
===…and you know this how?====

“I don’t wavy any &$@% problems”… then going after McCann last time.

Does Rauner seem like the type to give up?

lol

Comment by Oswego Willy Thursday, Sep 21, 17 @ 3:15 pm
When he has a potential $100+ million - mostly self-funded - general election race coming up then Rauner might decided to hoard (almost) everything for himself.

Comment by Curl of the Burl Thursday, Sep 21, 17 @ 3:18 pm
Willy - to be clear I can see Rauner staffers spending their nights and weekends helping McClure out. But whether Rauner is going to just cough up $2.5 million again when he has his own race is not a guarantee.

Comment by Curl of the Burl Thursday, Sep 21, 17 @ 3:20 pm
===But whether Rauner is going to just cough up $2.5 million again when he has his own race is not a guarantee.===

There’s $30 million on the table with the IPI hires… but most got let go after 37 or so days.

This idea that McCann is getting a pass is ridiculous.

Rauner promised to spend the monies for HIS caucuses, and McCann isn’t in his caucus.

Comment by Oswego Willy Thursday, Sep 21, 17 @ 3:23 pm
McClure is Rauner’s candidate.

McCann is not Rauner’s candidate.

That’s their biggest difference.

Comment by Oswego Willy Thursday, Sep 21, 17 @ 3:38 pm
- Nick Name - Thursday, Sep 21, 17 @ 12:22 pm:
“With McCann’s vulnerability, maybe Dems should find a viable challenger instead of worrying about propping him up for the second time in a row. Important races in the Dem primary may result in far less labor crossover just to support McCann.”

Could any of you see Rauner try to even recruit or support a Democrat (or Dem-leaning independent but not too cozy with unions) against McCann? (Similar to Dunkin and Donna More).

Someone who might fit this bill who comes to mind (but not speculating he might run) might be Springfield Ward 7 Alderman Joe McMenamin (who serves the ward along the MacArthur Boulevard corridor).

He’s had run-ins with public unions in Springfield since becoming alderman in May 2011–including voting against union contracts and calling for wage freezes. A couple examples:

http://www.joeforward7.com/news/aldermen-to-vote-on-union-raises-tied-to-economy/ (Dec. 16, 2011)

http://www.wnns.com/2016/10/31/alderman-mcmenamin-calls-for-city-employee-wage-freeze-to-combat-pension-liability/

Comment by Leatherneck Thursday, Sep 21, 17 @ 5:09 pm
Curl of the burl….. you are naking an assumption that those crossovers wont cross over. You say that we will be too preoccupied with the governors race. Wrong. We have every intention to continue to support Sam again. We are extremely concerned with slowing Rauners idealogy and deliberate destruction of this state. But most of all, Sam represents his constituants well.

Comment by Generic Drone Thursday, Sep 21, 17 @ 6:24 pm