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* My weekly newspaper column…
The Democratic Party of Illinois has sent out what could wind up being the most unintentionally hilarious campaign mailer of the season.
“Mica Freeman’s Plan: No Budget, No Pay,” the DPI mailer blares on behalf of the Democratic candidate challenging Rep. Mark Batinick (R-Plainfield).
“If politicians in Springfield don’t do their job and balance the budget, they shouldn’t get paid. Period,” the mailer claims. “Mica Freeman is outraged Governor Bruce Rauner and Springfield politicians continued collecting taxpayer-funded paychecks while failing to balance the budget for more than 700 days, putting critical services like breast cancer screenings and domestic violence shelters at risk.”
The other side of the mailer has a photo of a bespectacled, cross-armed Freeman staring at the camera. “If you don’t do your job, you don’t get paid. Even my kids understand that. But Springfield politicians who fail to pass a budget still collect a paycheck. I say that’s wrong and I’m going to stop it.”
Wait. What?
House Speaker Michael Madigan’s top attorney Mike Kasper filed a lawsuit on behalf of several of Madigan’s House Democratic members in 2016 against Comptroller Leslie Munger for withholding legislators’ paychecks during the two-year budget impasse. The Republican Munger’s special election campaign that year centered around her “No budget, no pay” slogan, and she got backup from Gov. Rauner, who, by the way, doesn’t accept a salary.
So, I about died laughing when I saw that Democratic Party mailer.
Rep. Batinick himself co-sponsored legislation in 2015 that would’ve repealed a state law enacting a continuing appropriation for legislator salaries and General Assembly operations. That 2014 law was pushed by Madigan after Gov. Pat Quinn vetoed legislator salaries out of a budget bill in a failed effort to force the GA to take up a pension reform bill. Madigan himself sued Quinn over the paychecks and won in 2013.
Rep. Batinick also sent a letter along with several of his colleagues to incoming Comptroller Susana Mendoza in December of 2016 offering their advice on how to counter the Madigan-backed lawsuit. Batinick even owns the NoBudgetNoPayIL.com website.
The issue definitely polls well, which is why the Democrats are using it. Munger received far more votes than the other two statewide Republican candidates in 2016 (President Donald Trump and Sen. Mark Kirk). “They’re hurting Illinois, so why should they get paid?” Munger asked in a TV ad focusing on the issue. And it was extremely telling that Madigan’s members waited until after the election ended to file their lawsuit. Madigan’s side prevailed in court, however, and the issue was dropped after the appellate court ruled it moot.
I asked Madigan’s spokesman Steve Brown if this meant Madigan was now in favor of the concept. “As I recall,” Brown wrote in an e-mail, “Madigan opposed efforts to block pay because it was being used as an economic weapon.”
OK, but that issue would be weaponized yet again if Rep. Batinick and now his Democratic opponent have their way.
“It’s sad that candidates are so far from policy and at a place where some do anything to win,” Rep. Batinick said. “It’s a big reason we are in the mess we are in.”
The Democratic Party of Illinois is also using the “Invest in Kids Tax Credit” program to bash a Republican House candidate.
The 75 percent tax credit on donations to a fund to help lower-income families send their kids to private or out of district schools was passed as part of the school funding reform bill. It was hotly opposed by teachers unions, but backed to the hilt by folks like Chicago Cardinal Blase Cupich.
So far, contributions have not met expectations. Less than $41 million has been donated, even though the program is capped at $100 million. Democratic gubernatorial candidate JB Pritzker has said he will end the program if elected.
“Tonia Khouri’s extreme agenda would strip millions in funding from our schools,” the mailer blares. Khouri “supports a plan to strip 75 million dollars from our public schools in a voucher-style scheme that diverts tax money to private schools,” according to the mailer.
The mailer is interesting mainly because this plan was supposed to be popular with suburbanites, and Khouri is vying to replace retiring suburban Rep. Mike Fortner (R-West Chicago). But, apparently, the polling works on this hit.
As usual with these things, it’s also more than a bit misleading. The “extreme” plan was backed by DPI’s chairman Speaker Madigan, passed by both Democratic-controlled legislative chambers and signed into law a year ago.
posted by Rich Miller
Monday, Aug 20, 18 @ 8:56 am
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How about no budget you get kicked out of office? No budget, no pay only hurts the legislature that has little other income. It does nothing to hurt the top leaders who are usually millionaires and have other sources of income.
Comment by Real Monday, Aug 20, 18 @ 9:11 am
So if Rauner wants to play a budget game there should be some type of law or something where removal from office begins.
Comment by Real Monday, Aug 20, 18 @ 9:13 am
So if you have a group of legislators who are trying their damnedest to reach an agreement, and another group who want to take their ball and go home, nobody gets paid?
The idea smacks of punishing the whold class because one kid threw a spitball at the teacher.
Comment by JoanP Monday, Aug 20, 18 @ 9:15 am
It’s not just Democrats attacking Republican opponents.
A group calling itself the”Illinois Integrity Fund” sent attack pieces with blatantly false information prior to the Republican Primary last spring.
The targeted candidates were those who have criticized Democratic Party McHenry County Chairman Jack Franks.
The Illinois Integrity Fund did not reveal who was behind the mailing. The address on the mailing led to a dead end in Hoffman Estates.
A suit up this Thursday seeks subpoena power against Breaker Press, the company who printed the mailings against five GOP candidates.
Comment by Anonymous Monday, Aug 20, 18 @ 9:16 am
So I guess it is time to point out once again that the one culprit in this budget mess was the courts. No budget no government should have been the result of all the litigation. No one should have been paid and no government services funded. We would have had a budget within 12 hours.
Comment by HL Mencken Monday, Aug 20, 18 @ 9:22 am
Pretty much agree with HL. Court should never have given a blank check to this administration…any administration…when there’s no budget. Could have capped spending at the prior year’s appropriation and made the parties come back if they wanted more money.
And I wonder how that FLSA classifying is coming along so we can avoid this next time. partial /s
Comment by Original Rambler Monday, Aug 20, 18 @ 9:52 am
All these ads depend on one thing … most people don’t really pay attention to the specifics of any issue until something like 30 to 45 days before an election. Even then, they don’t look back and realize all the nuances of a given issue. All they pick up on are the broad brushes, things like Madigan Bad, Legislature Shouldn’t Be Paid, Quincy Veterans Killed by Rauner Inaction … those kinds of things.
I’m becoming even more convinced this election is going to be a real outlier and totally unable to be predicted. Last week my mother-in-law, a died in the wool Democrat and government retiree, mentioned she didn’t like JB’s ads and was thinking of voting for Rauner. So it’s official, nothing can be taken for granted this election cycle.
Comment by RNUG Monday, Aug 20, 18 @ 10:04 am
Clearly the Democratic party knows by now that it’s faithful electorate is too prejudiced and ignorant to recognize the irony. For once, the party is spot on correct.
Comment by Skirmisher Monday, Aug 20, 18 @ 10:31 am
Don’t read the political flyers that are sent to my house. Automatic deposit into recycling bin.
Comment by Huh? Monday, Aug 20, 18 @ 10:51 am
Speaking of the “Invest in Kids” program, a must read from WBEZ this weekend:
https://www.wbez.org/shows/wbez-news/12-things-we-should-have-known-about-illinois-new-private-school-scholarships/9110669f-7800-442c-beda-2d2537b12fa0/amp?__twitter_impression=true
Comment by Roman Monday, Aug 20, 18 @ 3:57 pm