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*** UPDATED x1 - Rauner campaign responds *** Pritzker wants immediate independent investigation following Cassidy allegations

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* From Galia Slayen at JB Pritzker’s campaign…

JB believes there should be zero tolerance for harassment and retaliation of any kind and he has built a campaign and will build an administration that reflects those values.

Rep. Kelly Cassidy bravely came forward with her story today, and JB believes she must be heard and that there should immediately be an independent investigation.

Women should never be forced to accept sexual harassment as the price of admission to a career in politics and JB stands with women like Rep. Kelly Cassidy who are leading the charge to change that culture.

* Rep. Cassidy was with Pritzker earlier today…

Great to start the day with our next Governor and the House Democratic Women’s Caucus. #bluewave #teamJB

Posted by Kelly Cassidy on Tuesday, May 22, 2018

Your move, Mr. Speaker.

*** UPDATE *** From Will Allison at the Rauner campaign…

Once again, Pritzker will not criticize Mike Madigan despite clear cases of sexual harassment and retaliation. It’s time for Pritzker to break his pattern of silence on Madigan and call him out for his corruption.

posted by Rich Miller
Tuesday, May 22, 18 @ 11:13 am

Comments

Well that accelerated quickly.

Comment by 47th Ward Tuesday, May 22, 18 @ 11:15 am

Pritzker was smart to move on this quickly. The photo with Cassidy was a particularly nice touch.

The dude has spent $70M and will probably spend at least another $100M to become governor. The fee-fees of the apparently dim-witted Madigan crew mean oogats. They’re getting in the way.

Comment by wordslinger Tuesday, May 22, 18 @ 11:22 am

So much for JB being in lock step with Madigan.

Comment by Anon0091 Tuesday, May 22, 18 @ 11:23 am

Gov: This is nothing more than a sham photo op

Comment by PublicServant Tuesday, May 22, 18 @ 11:24 am

Et tu, JB?

Comment by Texas Red Tuesday, May 22, 18 @ 11:25 am

Independent investigation of what? That’s not rhetorical. I’m legitimately asking what should be investigated.

Comment by driver Tuesday, May 22, 18 @ 11:25 am

Does he have some sort of condition that renders him unable to pronounce the name Madigan?

Comment by m Tuesday, May 22, 18 @ 11:26 am

There’s no way that this wasn’t coordinated with Madigan in advance.

Comment by Dome Gnome Tuesday, May 22, 18 @ 11:27 am

===There’s no way that this wasn’t coordinated with Madigan in advance.===

Tilt the tin foil to the right, your hat will get the ball game…

===Does he have some sort of condition that renders him unable to pronounce the name Madigan?===

Picture… 1,000 words. As much as the statement makes, the picture makes the larger statement…

===Your move, Mr. Speaker.===

… and that’s the statement.

Comment by Oswego Willy Tuesday, May 22, 18 @ 11:31 am

**Maybe J.B. can get her another $70,000 part time job**

You don’t like facts much, do you? From a simple search of the Cook County payroll site, Cassidy made about $25k in 2016 and $22k in 2017 from Cook County.

Comment by SaulGoodman Tuesday, May 22, 18 @ 11:31 am

===You don’t like facts much, do you?===

The deleted goon may have mistaken Cassidy for Ken Dunkin, whose new Rauner job will make him $70K a year… making this the first time Kelly Cassidy has EVER been mistaken for Ken Dunkin. lol

Comment by Rich Miller Tuesday, May 22, 18 @ 11:34 am

=Does he have some sort of condition that renders him unable to pronounce the name Madigan?=

Trump- just in case the governor has forgotten the name of our president.

Comment by JS Mill Tuesday, May 22, 18 @ 11:34 am

Major kudos to Cassidy for pushing this. It had been disappointing to watch as it was all being slid under the rug, and Madigan had been re-elected as party chair with little mention of this. Very disappointing for the party that supposedly is the bigger supporter of women’s rights. I hope this is more than just a one day presser for JB and he pushes forward with pressing for an investigation.

Comment by Smalls Tuesday, May 22, 18 @ 11:41 am

While I am concerned over our state’s budget, finances, out-migration, corruption, unemplyment, crime, lack of governing, education, infastructure and abject government failure, I’m glad Pritzker has his political priorities on the front burner of this election.

Comment by VanillaMan Tuesday, May 22, 18 @ 11:42 am

Rich was not trying to be a goon about it saw salary on another web site said info from BGA I admit I did not go to BGA site so on me here is my reference
Kelly Cassidy $73,471.84

Comment by DuPage Saint Tuesday, May 22, 18 @ 11:42 am

If your main goal is to curtail Madigan’s power/control - then JB is your candidate. He has the money, and is building the organization, to stand on his own. And he is able to give refuge/support to anyone who wants to buck the speaker.

The Guv better be careful with all his bluster about voting for him so he can take on Madigan. He’s had 3+ years to do so and has failed. And he hurt the State in his failed attempts to take him down.

JB actually has a chance of doing what the Guv so desperately wanted to do.

Comment by Henry Francis Tuesday, May 22, 18 @ 11:42 am

Oh,
I’ll also need to add that my comment wasn’t meant to be snark because some could read it that way, right?

Comment by VanillaMan Tuesday, May 22, 18 @ 11:45 am

Thanks for the clarification VMan.

Comment by Cheryl44 Tuesday, May 22, 18 @ 11:50 am

===JB actually has a chance of doing what the Guv so desperately wanted to do.===

Don’t hold your breath.

Comment by MacombMike Tuesday, May 22, 18 @ 11:50 am

“making this the first time Kelly Cassidy has EVER been mistaken for Ken Dunkin.”

May it it be the last too.

Comment by Kyle Hillman Tuesday, May 22, 18 @ 11:52 am

Madigan should refer Cassidy’s allegations to the Legislative Inspector General himself.

Boom. Done.

Comment by Thomas Paine Tuesday, May 22, 18 @ 11:57 am

=If your main goal is to curtail Madigan’s power/control - then JB is your candidate.=

I don’t necessarily disagree with your premise. Crazy world we live in. Rauner wanted to take on and weaken the unions. Now they are stronger than they were before. Rauner vows to fight Madigan. Now the best way to take on Madigan is to vote for Madigan’s candidate.

=He has the money, and is building the organization, to stand on his own.=

He is building. But the question is whether he will stand up to Madigan. If he gets elected, it will be interesting to watch the first big disagreement between the two.

=Picture… 1,000 words. As much as the statement makes, the picture makes the larger statement…=

A social media photo op and statement saying he believes that she should be heard and that there should be an independent investigation is a far cry from actually doing something to make that happen. Is he making calls to get the investigation ball moving? Is he holding a public press conference to loudly demand it?

With his money and the infrastructure he’s building, we will know when he’s ready to stand on his own. Right now he still can’t muster the courage to say the name. It’s just enough to make it looks like he cares without actually putting his neck out there.

Comment by m Tuesday, May 22, 18 @ 12:04 pm

At this point, Pritzker doesn’t need the Speaker. He’s won the nomination and unless he goes batty crazy, Pritzker will win in November in a walk.

Madigan can only hurt Pritzker at this point. And Madigan needs the Pritzker’s money more than Pritzker needs the Speaker.

Pritzker would be well-served to distance himself from Speaker Madigan as far as possible.

Comment by Anonymous Tuesday, May 22, 18 @ 12:10 pm

===A social media photo op and statement saying he believes that she should be heard and that there should be an independent investigation is a far cry from actually doing something to make that happen.===

Must’ve missed the photo taken today of Cassidy and Madigan…

Hmm.

Comment by Oswego Willy Tuesday, May 22, 18 @ 12:14 pm

Good news, and exactly what I have been hoping for from Pritzker. Madigan has made it clear he’s not leaving voluntarily, and this is a very good reason to start a concerted effort to push him out the door. Along with the blue wave funding, a major split with Madigan over this issue represent the first steps in getting an IL dem party that can finally move into this century. Cassidy, Biss, et al. will have no reason to support Madigan for speaker or party chair (although I fear they’ll come up with some cockamamie reason to do so). Billionaire dem governor and no more Mike Madigan spells doom for the ILGOP, if the circular firing squad doesn’t do it first.

Comment by Lester Holt’s Mustache Tuesday, May 22, 18 @ 12:20 pm

When Rauner quits pouring $ into his campaign, he’s done and he knows it

Comment by Anonymous Tuesday, May 22, 18 @ 12:21 pm

=saying he believes that she should be heard and that there should be an independent investigation is a far cry from actually doing something to make that happen.=

Maybe you don’t understand how government works, but candidates cannot “make” anything happen, once elected Pritzker can “make” something happen.

Until then, this is what candidates do.

Comment by JS Mill Tuesday, May 22, 18 @ 12:21 pm

–…Pritzker will win in November in a walk.–

Crazy talk. You can’t call a November election in May. Unforeseen events and revelations can always play a hand.

Comment by wordslinger Tuesday, May 22, 18 @ 12:24 pm

=Until then, this is what candidates do.=

Yep, nothing more he can do at all.

Let me know when he’s tweeting the photo. Or holding a presser. Or when Hampton is in the photo with him.

Comment by m Tuesday, May 22, 18 @ 12:28 pm

===Let me know when he’s tweeting the photo. Or holding a presser. Or when Hampton is in the photo with him. ===

And if he did all that you’d want something else, which is politics and expected. But try not to act like you’re above everyone else.

Comment by Rich Miller Tuesday, May 22, 18 @ 12:31 pm

===*** UPDATE *** From Will Allison at the Rauner campaign…===

Poor Will. If a flack screams into the internet, but no one cares enough to bother to listen, does it make a sound?

Comment by Lester Holt’s Mustache Tuesday, May 22, 18 @ 12:35 pm

“Poor Will. If a flack screams into the internet, but no one cares enough to bother to listen, does it make a sound?”

“ₘₑₑₚ”

– MrJM

Comment by @misterjayem Tuesday, May 22, 18 @ 12:53 pm

Didn’t take long for JB to learn that Madigan is a liability to his future governorship

Comment by Sue Tuesday, May 22, 18 @ 1:03 pm

Smart move JB, clear out Madigan without being the sword to do it. Madigan doesn’t strike me as going anywhere though.

Comment by 44th Tuesday, May 22, 18 @ 1:13 pm

–Didn’t take long for JB to learn that Madigan is a liability to his future governorship–

At the moment, Madigan is a millstone around Pritzker’s neck, a threat to his ever becoming governor.

How thick do your peeps have to be to come within a whiff of even the appearance of intimidation of Cassidy? It boggles the mind.

I’ve always thought Madigan’s reputation as a political mastermind was way overrated. It’s just that in the Land of the Blind, the One-Eyed-Man is King.

Comment by wordslinger Tuesday, May 22, 18 @ 1:15 pm

=Is he making calls to get the investigation ball moving? Is he holding a public press conference to loudly demand it?=

Why would he? He’s not running against Madigan, Rauner is. There’s little upside for Pritzker in calling out Madigan when he can get far more traction by pointing at a governor who claims that he’s not in charge.

Comment by Pundent Tuesday, May 22, 18 @ 1:17 pm

= There’s little upside for Pritzker in calling out Madigan when he can get far more traction by pointing at a governor who claims that he’s not in charge.=

Is that a serious statement? Rauner and the entire GOP are trying to hang Madigan around JB’s neck. One of the primary debates was almost completely dominated by the talk of who was more or less independent of the Speaker. There’s a massive amount of upside to standing up to him.

And doing so makes it easier to hammer the gov on whatever front you want because you take one of his biggest weapons away.

=And if he did all that you’d want something else, which is politics and expected.=

The pic is on Cassidy’s account. JB’s web and social media presence are absolutely devoid of anything even remotely mentioning this. He can’t even say Madigan’s name when discussing the topic.

Yes, no matter what he does on this people will ask for more. I’m not asking for anything, and so far we aren’t getting that anyway.

I’d say a statement that he’s not pushing, and agreeing to be in someone else’s twitter pic probably constitutes the absolute minimum you could do to simply appear sympathetic while doing nothing to actually bring about what his statement is calling for.

=But try not to act like you’re above everyone else.=

I didn’t think I was, but I’m also not going to act like Pritzker is standing up to Madigan.

Comment by m Tuesday, May 22, 18 @ 1:31 pm

Go away, Bruce.

Comment by Anonymous Tuesday, May 22, 18 @ 1:40 pm

-m- You seem to be suggesting that Pritzker should be following Rauner’s campaign strategy and make this all about Mike Madigan. Regardless of who Rauner was running against he would hang Madigan around their neck. Heck he even did so with Ives. It’s the only sheet of music he has to play.

Pritzker’s smart enough to know that his best chance of success is reminding everyone of Rauner’s failures not being baited into a discussion on Mike Madigan. He’s called for an independent investigation. While that may not be “enough” for you it’s more than enough to make it clear that he doesn’t tolerate what’s been done here.

Comment by Pundent Tuesday, May 22, 18 @ 1:53 pm

===The pic is on Cassidy’s account. JB’s web and social media presence are absolutely devoid of anything even remotely mentioning this. He can’t even say Madigan’s name when discussing the topic.===

(Looks at goal post… looks around… moves goal post… places it in ground, points at new goal posts)

Comment by Oswego Willy Tuesday, May 22, 18 @ 2:41 pm

==If your main goal is to curtail Madigan’s power/control - then JB is your candidate.==

Hmm. I would put it this way: Rauner has no chance of “beating” Madigan (this has been ably demonstrated), but JB might have a chance of gently coaxing him “away”.

Comment by Arsenal Tuesday, May 22, 18 @ 3:50 pm

=(Looks at goal post… looks around… moves goal post… places it in ground, points at new goal posts)=

Were your goalposts on your own 1 yard line?

Comment by m Tuesday, May 22, 18 @ 4:30 pm

- m -

My response speaks for itself.

Good luck.

Comment by Oswego Willy Tuesday, May 22, 18 @ 4:31 pm

Anonymous is spot on when he says that MJM needs JB a lot more than JB needs MJM now that the primary is over. It’s not like MJM built a strong party structure statewide JB needs. JB is spending the money and hiring the people that MJM should have spent and hired years ago to build a DPI which could do more than get MJM re-elected Speaker.
Next to more Blago-MJM tapes possibly coming out, easily JB’s biggest weakness downstate is him being tied to MJM by Rauner. Time for JB to start creating distance from the Speaker.

Comment by Way Down Here Tuesday, May 22, 18 @ 5:56 pm

Waiting on that MeToo movement heroine HRC, to come out with that Pritzker endorsement any day now.

Comment by BlueDogDem Tuesday, May 22, 18 @ 9:44 pm

–Waiting on that MeToo movement heroine HRC, to come out with that Pritzker endorsement any day now.–

Do you ever turn off the Fox? Or is it an all-day job?

Comment by wordslinger Tuesday, May 22, 18 @ 10:05 pm

Word. I don’t watch partisan cable soap operas. Do You? As an independent, I recognize hypocrisy. Do You? And Yes, Pritzker will win in a walk.

Comment by BlueDogDem Wednesday, May 23, 18 @ 3:49 am

–As an independent, I recognize hypocrisy.–

What “hypocrisy” were you recognizing here?

Comment by wordslinger Wednesday, May 23, 18 @ 6:18 am

=As an independent, I recognize hypocrisy.=

Ah yes. Because there’s nothing like introducing a completely unrelated individual to remind us of your misogyny. Duly noted.

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* UPDATED x1 - Rauner campaign responds * Pritzker wants immediate independent investigation following Cassidy allegations

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