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Because… Madigan!!!

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* Bruce Rauner was interviewed earlier this month by Peter Robinson of the Hoover Institution. A Statehouse reporter just tweeted about it so I took a look. The full video is here and the transcript is here.

Here’s an excerpt…

Bruce Rauner: Well, there are many factors, but we were taken over in 1983 by some politicians who were really in public service for their own benefit, a lot of self-dealing, a lot of corruption. Government insiders, special interest groups that make their money from government became ascendant and really took power, and as a result, deficit spending, inside deals, corruption, cronyism, patronage. Four out of the prior nine governors to my administration, four of them went to prison. Many members of the General Assembly are engaged in very much self-dealing and selfish behavior, and the system has just broken down.

Gee. I wonder what happened in 1983? Who took over that year? Hmm. Could it be… I dunno… Madigan?!!!

* Why, yes…

Bruce Rauner: Well, we have the highest property taxes in America, right up there with New Jersey, and we have political leaders, the head of the legislature, the head of the Democratic party, also happens to have a property tax appeal law firm, where he’s become a millionaire by holding up business owners in Cook County for their property tax appeals. We have a very corrupt, self-interested regime running the system. What I said is let’s break that system up. Let’s freeze property taxes by law, and let’s empower local residents, local voters to decide themselves what their property tax levy should be by voter referendum. They want more taxes for their schools, they can vote to do it. They want their property tax levy to come down, they can vote to do that. Give power to the people, and take it away from the politicians.

He got rich by “holding up business owners”? Yikes.

* And…

Peter Robinson: We’ll get to what did happen. What did you think would happen? You say to a guy, “Here’s a club, and the moment I get elected I’m going to smack you right between the eyes.” What did you think the legislature would do?

Bruce Rauner: The good news is that many Democrats in the General Assembly know that what we’re advocating for is the right thing for the long term. The issue is getting them to vote the right away against the wishes of their leadership. The speaker is very powerful, been the speaker for 35 years.

Peter Robinson: Speaker Madigan.

Bruce Rauner: That’s correct. The issue is he’s very much focused on self-dealing and maintaining the status quo. We’ve got to convince his caucus members to vote the right way. We’re getting there, but it’s been too slow.

Sometimes, the governor sounds a lot like an Illinois Policy Institute Facebook commenter. And, notice, he didn’t say a word about the violent imagery in that question.

All emphasis was added, by the way.

posted by Rich Miller
Monday, Jun 26, 17 @ 1:12 pm

Comments

I only wish he would have been asked this question. “If the problem is Mike Madigan why blow up the grand bargain in the Senate?”

Comment by Pundent Monday, Jun 26, 17 @ 1:18 pm
Strange to see a sit down interview sound so scripted… hmmm… right down to the veiled swipes at Priztker.

Comment by One hand //ing Monday, Jun 26, 17 @ 1:22 pm
How does he figure he’s “getting there.”

Rauner always talks about this — about all the Ds who come up to him, tell him how much they love him, love his ideas, love his persistence.

So — I ask again: who are these folks? Apart from the occasional nutjobs like Dunkin (who, of course, no longer count) — who are these people? And how does Rauner figure he’s “getting there.”

Getting where? Getting the votes?

Comment by Mr. K Monday, Jun 26, 17 @ 1:22 pm
Cool story, bro. [looks around campfire. Brings voice down level]But THEN a man pure of heart and strong of wallet came ridin’ in on his totally-not-a-prop motorcycle in his totally legitimate workin’ man clothes and….

Comment by LizPhairTax Monday, Jun 26, 17 @ 1:24 pm
Rauner can’t run on his record, today, so what is happening is this securing his 35% or so approval and work to make that 58% disapproval a choice between Rauner or Madigan, but two things are going to make that a least a bit tougher…

“Bruce Rauner failed”…

… and while Madigan is at 61% disapproval and Rauner is at 58% disapproval… statewide… voters get to “feel good” and actually vote against Bruce Rauner directly.

Mendoza’s awful statewide win was generated by the groups Rauner has really turned against and now solidified against Bruce Rauner;

Labor, Democrats, Independents who may have had “enough” of Rauner’s “change”

This “Because… Madigan!” isn’t growing his base. Rauner already has those voters, lol

Comment by Oswego Willy Monday, Jun 26, 17 @ 1:24 pm
When you are a fundamental non-denominational inexperienced governor, every issue is a mission, every roadblock was created by The Devil and anyone disagreeing with you is a forked-tongued serpent that only you can handle without being bitten.

This also explains Rauner’s use of incoherent gibberish and unfathonable nonsense.

Comment by VanillaMan Monday, Jun 26, 17 @ 1:24 pm
== special interest groups that make their money from government became ascendant and really took power, and as a result, deficit spending, inside deals, corruption, cronyism, patronage. ==

Does this include people who got lucrative contracts to manage the investments of pension funds, when none of the firms has ever shown a consistent ability to outperform buying stock indexes or throwing darts at stock listings? Or is the corrupt element limited to those who used their profits from insider dealings to purchase power and influence in state and local governments?

Comment by Whatever Monday, Jun 26, 17 @ 1:25 pm
Does he meet all these Democrats that really really are Raunerites at some secrete club somewhere?

Comment by DuPage Saint Monday, Jun 26, 17 @ 1:25 pm
Once again, the guy projects his own motivations on to others to justify his actions. Maybe he does jerk the Republican caucuses around, but in his mind, it’s no worse than what the House Speaker does.

Comment by Anonymous Monday, Jun 26, 17 @ 1:27 pm
Is Madigan Bruce’s shadow?

Comment by Precinct Captain Monday, Jun 26, 17 @ 1:29 pm
The hypocrisy of this insider dealing bust-out king is staggering.

Comment by Daniel Plainview Monday, Jun 26, 17 @ 1:33 pm
When you read or watch or listen to Rauber here… Think on this, and listen to the “Because… Madigan!”, and look how Rauner wants to “believe” he is breaking Dems away from being… Dems… and agree with him (Rauner) and not with Madigan or “other” Dems…

September 18, 2012… Rauner…

===“In Illinois there’s been a long-time history of what I would call social service, social justice, a bigger role for government in the safety net than in many other states,” Rauner said at a tax policy conference sponsored by the George W. Bush Institute. “I think we can drive a wedge issue in the Democratic Party on that topic and bring the folks who say, ‘You know what? For our tax dollars, I’d rather help the disadvantaged, the handicapped, the elderly, the children in poverty. I’d rather have my tax dollars going to that than the SEIU or Af-scammy (AFSCME), who are out there for their own interests.’”===

So, keep this in mind?

Comment by Oswego Willy Monday, Jun 26, 17 @ 1:34 pm
is he accusing the Speaker of a crime?

Comment by spidad60 Monday, Jun 26, 17 @ 1:39 pm
Does Rauner see Madigan’s face over his shoulder when he looks in a mirror? This focus for all things on one person drifts between paranoia and an excuse.

Comment by zatoichi Monday, Jun 26, 17 @ 1:39 pm
“Rauber” pronounced “robber”

Freudian slip?

Comment by Huh? Monday, Jun 26, 17 @ 1:40 pm
How sad that Rauner has forgotten Governors Thompson, Edgar, and Ryan. What was he doing that whole decades of Republican governors slipped by him?

Comment by Aldyth Monday, Jun 26, 17 @ 1:41 pm
===Cool story, bro. [looks around campfire. Brings voice down level]But THEN a man pure of heart and strong of wallet came ridin’ in on his totally-not-a-prop motorcycle in his totally legitimate workin’ man clothes and….===

LOL, LizPhairTax wins comment of the day.

Comment by Boone's is back Monday, Jun 26, 17 @ 1:43 pm
Boy, he sure has his talking points down. That’s one thing he’s learned.

These statements are so divorced from reality, my first thought was “He cannot really believe these things, can he?”

Would I prefer our governor to be easily misled, or cynically misleading?

Comment by walker Monday, Jun 26, 17 @ 1:43 pm
Sometimes I really think Rauner believes that one day he and Madigan will shake hands have a good laugh about all of this.

Comment by 47th Ward Monday, Jun 26, 17 @ 1:44 pm
==people who got lucrative contracts to manage the investments of pension funds==

That would be Bruce Rauner.

==is he accusing the Speaker of a crime?==

Yes, it would appear that he is.

Comment by winners and losers Monday, Jun 26, 17 @ 1:44 pm
Voters will be going to the polls with higher income taxes, higher property taxes and higher insurance premiums. There will be more than a little voter anger to go around. Certainly can’t all be pinned on Rauner.

Comment by Downstate Monday, Jun 26, 17 @ 1:45 pm
Boone’s - agreed. I read LizPhairTax’s post in Sam Elliot’s voice.

Comment by Curl of the Burl Monday, Jun 26, 17 @ 1:47 pm
=This “Because… Madigan!” isn’t growing his base.=

Agreed. But the only way that Rauner’s narrative works is if he can rebut the “Rauner failed” narrative with “Because… Madigan”. If Rauner is re-elected and Madigan is still in control of the house then Rauner will be destined to fail four more years. He’s acknowledged that he can’t work with Madigan.

They only way that Rauner can achieve success as he defines it is by winning re-election and picking up enough seats in the House. That points to a very ugly campaign season.

Comment by Pundent Monday, Jun 26, 17 @ 1:47 pm
“Self dealing”…”corruption”….”government insider”

Would any of those terms apply to this scenario?: a hedge fund manager gives a $300,000 campaign contribution to a governor. That governor then lobbies his state’s pension board to invest millions in the campaign contibutor’s hedge fund.

Here’s a refresher:

http://articles.chicagotribune.com/2014-06-06/news/ct-rauner-pennsylvania-pension-met-0606-20140606_1_bruce-rauner-rauner-firm-gtcr-golder-rauner

Comment by Roman Monday, Jun 26, 17 @ 1:48 pm
Earlier this month? Yeah, sure, “this is the business we chose…we can put this aside….and come to an agreement”. Not.

Madigan has his faults, but this is so so over the top offensive, it boggles the mind. Rauner calls madigan nasty names, thats obviously not the demeanor of someone who respects the person he needs to negotiate with. Madigan is entitled to not trust a thing rauner does or says.

Coulda shown good faith by coming to agreement on thompson center. Or 911. Start small, but start, for gods sake.
Clearly, rauner would rather fight than win on anything. All his way, or nothing. Damage be damned. Winning. Happiest ever.

Sick

Comment by Langhorne Monday, Jun 26, 17 @ 1:48 pm
===Voters will be going to the polls with higher income taxes, higher property taxes and higher insurance premiums. There will be more than a little voter anger to go around. Certainly can’t all be pinned on Rauner.===

You should pull up the last Quinn-Rauner debate.

Nearly every chance Rauner could, the sentence began “Pat Quinn failed”… it was the closing argument within that last debate, to make “Pat Quinn failed” the lasting thought.

“Certainly can’t all be pinned on Rauner.”

Candidate Rauner proved your thought to be more than possible.

Comment by Oswego Willy Monday, Jun 26, 17 @ 1:49 pm
“Welcome to Uncommon Knowledge, shooting today in the tower room of Baker Library on the campus of Dartmouth College. “ Reason they did the interview there- Rauner’s daughter was graduating from Dartmouth.
Here are the two main reasons above all else he was excited during the interview. Illinois is just a tool for him to try and achieve these two things for a “higher power”.
Rauner- “We are going to be in front of the Supreme Court, and there is more than a 90% odds that we win that case… When we win that case, every state government, every local government, and every school district in America will no longer be able to force a union membership of the person working for the tax payers doesn’t want to be. That’s transformative for Illinois and across America.”- Union dues
Rauner- “Ours is going to get to the Supreme Court. I think we’re going to win. We got about a 70% chance… When we do, we will have many counties in Illinois, but also New Jersey, Connecticut, New York, and California, that will vote for economic freedom and competition and change the dynamic completely. That will have nothing to do with the legislature or our budget fight. These are transformative changes that we are driving.”- Right to Work
Then there was the elderly woman story… again. (Sigh) Dog years gets mentioned earlier, too. At least he didn’t relate the bullfrog story, although he ran the grandfather story again and tried to make it sound like he never inherited any money. True, not from his grandfather at least.
And then there was this, which is downright Trumpian… “I’m speaking at African American churches every Sunday morning, and I judge myself by how many standing ovations I get.”
I agree with Mark Maxwell’s impression of the interview- total softball, verging on soap bubble ball, questions.

Comment by Anon221 Monday, Jun 26, 17 @ 1:52 pm
In the last 35 years, only 3 governors (blago, Ryan, Walker) have gone to prison. However, Walker shouldn’t count because his conviction was 10 years after he left office and not related to his actions while in office.

Comment by Huh? Monday, Jun 26, 17 @ 1:54 pm
Is this really out of line with what the majority of voters think of Madigan and the appeals racket? Certainly not an exclusive viewpoint of the IPI FB page.

Comment by missing the point Monday, Jun 26, 17 @ 2:07 pm
“inside deals, corruption, cronyism, patronage…” which is why there was Rutan vs. Republican Party of Illinois.

Comment by Skeptic Monday, Jun 26, 17 @ 2:12 pm
@ Huh?

The Governor went all the way back to Governor Stratton to get to the 4th imprisoned Illinois Governor (also the ninth governor before himself). So while he is correct in the statement, he had to go back 60 years to get the point he wanted to make.

Comment by Commonsense in Illinois Monday, Jun 26, 17 @ 2:17 pm
Rauner repeats to all that after years as governor, he is nothing more that Madigan’s biggest mushroom.

Comment by VanillaMan Monday, Jun 26, 17 @ 2:42 pm
Lookin’ like GovJunk now fears there will be The Real Deal and he will be forced to raise taxes so his last chane Loopey Dewpeey move is to P* on The Speaker and derail. Wonder if that will work?

Comment by Annonin' Monday, Jun 26, 17 @ 2:47 pm
Rauner wants the Raunerite’s to believe he is fighting for them. Rauner is a sideshow fighting anecdotes and myths with hyperbole.
Rauner is on that good path, at his happy place right now and will continue to be until it’s time to raise his taxes.

And Rauner doesn’t want to raise his own taxes.

So if the rest of the GOP ever want to get re-elected in Illinois they had better get 30.

Comment by Chicago 20 Monday, Jun 26, 17 @ 2:59 pm
Jim Thompson, Jim Edgar, George Ryan, Lee Daniels and Pate Philip. All of those have led Illinois either as Gov or legislative leader…since 1983. Just sayin’.

Comment by Chicago Cynic Monday, Jun 26, 17 @ 3:02 pm
Another chapter in the GovJunk panic update. It now looks like he ssept Secretary Purvis to meet with the Higher Leanring Commission on June 21 ask that agency to write the legislature warining of “sanctions”

Comment by Annonin' Monday, Jun 26, 17 @ 3:03 pm
If Rauner actually spoke honestly, which he rarely does, he would have said ” many members of my own party disagree with what I’m doing but they know better than to vote against my wishes”.

Comment by The Dude Abides Monday, Jun 26, 17 @ 3:18 pm
>>Peter Robinson : Okay. Let’s get to what you ran on here. You ran on something you call the Turnaround Agenda. Of course we don’t have time to go into in great detail, and by the way, to your credit, it was quite detailed. It was quite a detailed agenda. People could know what they were voting for when they voted for you.

Comment by Eric Zorn Monday, Jun 26, 17 @ 4:12 pm
— In no way did Rauner run on his “Turnaround Agenda.” His campaign was very vague and almost wholly platitudinous.He gave out this action-item list on Feb. 4, 2015, three months AFTER he was elected, just in advance of his first State-of-the State speech.

Comment by Eric Zorn Monday, Jun 26, 17 @ 4:29 pm
January 27, 2015…

http://bit.ly/2sKcgKF

That was the rollout… focusing on Labor… in Decatur.

Comment by Oswego Willy Monday, Jun 26, 17 @ 4:33 pm
He actually reminds me of Trump. Wow.

Comment by BethT Monday, Jun 26, 17 @ 5:56 pm
“Gee. I wonder what happened in 1983? Who took over that year?”

Pat Quinn’s celebrated “Cutback Amendment” also took effect. One third of the legislature was eliminated and it effectively rendered Chicago area Republicans irrelevant as the “bullet vote” and minority representatives were gone.

Quinn’s publicity stunt never saved taxpayers any money as promised. It empowered the “Four Tops” and elevated Madigan to power.

Comment by Sheesh! Monday, Jun 26, 17 @ 6:06 pm
@Chicago Cynic:

Since 1983, there has been one Republican Speaker of the House and Lee Daniels held that position for a single term. The Republicans fared better in the Senate where Pate Philip was in charge for about a decade.

George H. Ryan was Speaker before the Cutback Amendment took place.

Your comments about governors are correct.

Comment by Anonymous Monday, Jun 26, 17 @ 6:10 pm
==et’s freeze property taxes by law, and let’s empower local residents, local voters to decide themselves what their property tax levy should be by voter referendum. They want more taxes for their schools, they can vote to do it.==

Local voters elect boards & councils who set property taxes to meet local needs. How is that not local control?

Governor, when you get that state budget under control THEN AND ONLY THEN should you worry about how the local folks balance their budgets!

Comment by Pot calling kettle Monday, Jun 26, 17 @ 7:12 pm