Democratic shots at Rauner seem lame for $2 million

Democratic shots at Rauner seem lame for $2 million

Bruce Rauner, the independently wealthy Republican businessman has everyone in a tizzy. His campaign came out of nowhere, made some smart decisions and is moving forward to headlock the Republican Party nomination on March 18.

The Democrats have invested some $2 million through PACs to target Rauner and dirty him up for the final stretch, assuming he does win the GOP Primary defeating better known rivals: Bill Brady, the Republican State Senator who is making his 3rd bid for the office after losing in 2010 to then Acting Gov. Pat Quinn; Sen. Kirk Dillard, whom most "Reagan Democrats" would have supported in 2010 had Brady not nosed Dillard out in that primary race; and the congenial Illinois Treasurer Dan Rutherford who has been dragged down by ugly attacks raising questions about his sexuality and allegations of sexual harassment.

The GOP primary mess only reinforces Rauner's certainty of winning. None of this rivals have the cash to beat him. It will be a gubernatorial version of the 2011 Chicago Mayoral election in which Rahm Emanuel moved back in to Chicago with a $14 million campaign war chest to blow away a field of veteran Chicago Democrats, former U.S. Senator Carol Moseley Braun, City Clerk Miguel Del Valle, and legal powerhouse Gery Chico, all of whom barely had $3 million in campaign funds together.

A lot of Democrats don't like Quinn. I recall Quinn as being a great outsider when I covered Chicago City Hall but when I moved to community radio, Quinn never thought I was worth spending any time on. No problem. Unfortunately, Quinn does that to a lot of people he once leaned on for support when he was the outside crusader battling the old Chicago Democratic Machine. Now, he's the insider. It comes with its privileges, of course, but Quinn brings in a lot of not-forgotten battles with his new suitors.

English: Gov. Pat Quinn making a point at Green Expo (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

While Rauner has dominated the field with more TV commercials than Personal Injury Attorney Glenn Lerner, he's focused almost entirely on attacking Quinn. His Republican challengers have been left trying to dent Rauner's image. But Rauner was smart. His first move was to lock in key Republican support. His move to win over the support and endorsement of key mainstream Republican Cook County Commissioner Elizabeth "Liz" Doody Gorman locked in his prominence with Republicans in the Democratic heavy Chicagoland region.

Rauner's strategy has to be very simple. Get through the Republican Primary without bashing his Republican Rivals, leaving the door open to their possibly rallying around him afterwards. And then do what every Republican easily does, win the downstate Republican vote by a large margin. It won't be enough to win the gubernatorial election. But Rauner needs to also win soft Democratic support in the Democratic havens in Chicagoland. If Rauner can win some of those Democrats who have long memories, or have felt burned by Quinn's attitudes over the past few years, he has a formula to take the state and be the next Governor of Illinois.

In 2010, Quinn only beat Brady by about 30,000 votes. That's not too much to expect from disgruntled conservative "Reagan Democrats" who live in the Chicagoland area who just might turn to Rauner.

Additionally, the Democrats, who have less money to spend than Rauner, are not spending it wisely. The attack ads they've funded with their last ditch burst of funds are lame, attacking Rauner for allegedly being friendly with Stuart Levine, the convicted felon who was part of the corrupt circle around former Gov. Rod Blagojevich.

English: Mug shot of Rod Blagojevich. (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

But throwing Blagojevich at Rauner is so ineffective. Voters are tired of the "use Blagojevich to dirty up an opponent" by arguing someone was close to Blagojevich. The fact is Quinn was Blagojevich's running mate, after all. Quinn was his Lt. Governor, though he quickly distanced himself from Blagojevich when the governor's federal troubles exploded in newspaper driven investigations.

If they are going to beat Rauner, the Democrats need to come up with a better attack than simply throwing Blagojevich at him.

In the end, the truth is the Democratic controlled House and Senate can just as easily work with a Republican Governor as they work with a former liberal who has joined the Democratic Party parade.

Quinn has years of experience spinning the media and can easily handle himself in a debate. But what's the real issue that voters care about? So far, no one has defined that, making it easy for Rauner to bludgeon his way into office with his bottomless financial pockets.

Of course, having a guy who knows how to make money, instead of wastefully spending it, is probably what appeals to voters the most. It's something Rauner is hammering away, unimpeded by the Democratic Pacs and consultants. And unless they can stop it with another issue, the certainty of what's going to happen in the Nov. 4 General Election is clear.

-- RAY HANANIA

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Orland's Liz Gorman -- yes, she's a fighter!

As a columnist, I always am compelled to write what I feel. And over the years I have sometimes been tough on Elizabeth Doody Gorman, the former Cook County GOP Chairman and the Orland Township Republican Committeeman and Cook County Commissioner. Well, I give her credit. She has the courage to recognize that as an elected official, part of her responsibility to the public is to take the criticism, right wrong, harsh or mild. Gorman took up my invite and came to the WJJG 1530 AM Radio "Fight the Taxation" Forum held tonight (Monday, March 30) at the Orland Park Civic Center. The forum featured a lot of speakers including a welcome from Orland Park Mayor Dan McLaughlin, and guests Rita Mullins, the mayor of Palatine, and Jim Tobin, president of the National Taxpayer's United of Illinois, one of the most effective tax fighting bodies in the state. Mullins' township of Palatine is one of five that are considering secession referenda on the local ballots. The others are Hanover, Elk Grove, Barrington and Schaumburg townships. But Gorman's participation made it an even better event because Gorman -- who I still have a few differences with on public policy -- is one of the county commissioners who had the courage to stand up to County Board President Todd Stroger's unjustified sales tax increase. Her county district runs from north to south and spans the length of the county and many of her businesses and watching as residents jump the border to make their big ticket purchases in Will, DuPage and other neighboring counties. So, I am going to say this: Liz, you impressed me. We may still have some issues. But you are welcome any time to join my radio show and talk about the issues -- those we agree on and those we have disagreement. But you will always be welcome. And as I expect your organization will chill a bit, I will too. Kindler and gentler for both of us will benefit the public more. 

TAX FORUM WAS A SUCCESS The forum drew about 75 attendees. It's a Monday night and not easy to get out these days. But we had many other officials and candidates and I would be remiss not to thank them for attending, too. Orland Park Trustees Pat Gira and Ed Schussler both came to the meeting. And that isn't surprising because they both have always been very open and accessible. Gira sat through the entire meeting listening and that's a trait more elected officials should learn. Chris Ciciora and Cindy Nelson Katsenes also attended the meeting. Both are running for the single seat on the Orland Fire Protection District. Gerald Maher, the candidate for mayor of Orland Park, also attended and greeted everyone. Although I was too busy making sure the remote radio broadcast and guests were lined up properly to try and get Maher and McLaughlin to say hello to each other. I do believe that every elected official should have a challenger and while it's not easy to defeat an incumbent, I admire Maher for running and helping to insure that voters get to hear a debate. McLaughlin has been very amiable too, understanding that the public always has concerns about government and he insists he is listening. Orland Township Trustee Joan Herman also came by. What a great lady. Real class. I haven't seen her in years but she is running on the Orland Township ticket for re-election and she definitely adds some strength to the incumbent slate led by Robert Maher, the township supervisor. She was first elected to the Township in 1973 and has been there save for one term the entire time. What a great asset to the community she is. Also coming by was Rob Willett, who is running for mayor of Tinley park against a very popular and effective mayor, Ed Zabrocki. The evening radio forum was taped and will be broadcast on Thursday morning from 8 until 9:30 am on WJJG 1530 AM Radio. I will also have it podcast, possibly before Thursday so you can hear the comments and observations from the guests, Gorman, Mullins and Tobin, and the great questions fromt he audience. And a special thanks goes out to one of the first professional journalists I met some 32 years ago, Jodi Marneris, whose mention in her column in the Southtown/Star helped get the word out about the forum and pushed the crowd. And thanks goes out to the Palos Regional News also for their ongoing publicity. Also covering the event is the Orland Park Prairie which has the largest circulation in Orland Park and most of the neighboring suburbs. The reporter there was Jamie Lynn Ferguson. Aaaannnnd! We also had FOX 32 News (Channel 12 on Comcast Cable) covering the event that evening and the next morning. Plus WBBM Radiow as there grabbing interviews ... great coverage! -- Ray Hanania http://www.radiochicagoland.com/