Ex-Illinois Gov. Edgar (R), who backed Rauner, now slams him

[Gidney N Cloyd]

Kind of a fun read. Rauner's ham-fisted quest to union-bust his way to a capitalist paradise in Illinois is itself-- the mere goals-- tearing the state to pieces. Somehow I don't think the Tribune will be picking this up off the wire...
http://www.stltoday.com/news/local/govt-and-politics/kevin-mcdermott/political-buyer-s-remorse-ex-illinois-gov-edgar-who-backed/article_858ca9ee-23eb-5e70-b86d-30d190bd8896.html

Former Illinois Gov. Jim Edgar — who last year campaigned for current Gov. Bruce Rauner, a fellow Republican — comes pretty close to savaging the rookie governor in a new interview out this weekend regarding the state's budget impasse.

In the interview with the Springfield State Journal-Register, Edgar says state government is in the worst shape he's ever seen it, and he lays a big part of the blame on Rauner.

Among other things, he says, Rauner is wrong to hold the budget "hostage" over non-budgetary policy goals; that his confrontations with Democratic legislative leaders have been counter-productive and unwisely focused on "personalities"; that the impasse is having real human consequence and endangering the state's vaunted higher education tradition; and that even Rauner's stated top goal — making Illinois more business-friendly — is being thwarted by his administration's actions.

"He does not come from government," Edgar said of Rauner, a venture capitalist before winning his first-ever political campaign in November to become governor. "He doesn't even really come from mainstream business. He comes from (being an) entrepreneur where you buy a business, you tear it apart and you sell it. ... I don't think you're going to tear apart the state and sell it. He might want to, but you can't do that."

In what probably qualifies as the worst thing anyone can say about an Illinois governor these days, Edgar said Rauner's government is, in some ways, worse than the government was under now-imprisoned ex-Gov. Rod Blagojevich. While Edgar stressed in the interview than Blagojevich, a Democrat, wasn't "anything close to being a better governor" than Rauner, "at least Blagojevich ... was off doing his crazy things and state government kind of continued to move along. I don't think state government's moving along right now. I mean, I just think too many things are at a standstill."

[ChairmanAgnostic]

1. that is YUGE news.

Edgar is the one reason that so many moderates voted for Rauner, and who at that time thought that we who strongly argued against him were the crazies. Our warnings came out to be true.

Telling them I told you so does nothing except rub salt in the wound. Instead, we need to reach out to the moderates and convince Springpatch that everyone has to stand up to this dangerous loon.

[guillaumeb]

2. Rauner has attacked Edgar.

But Rauner's own appointed Comptroller, Leslie Munger, has also advised the Governor IN PUBLIC to back away from his political agenda and get down to governing. Or governin', as Bruce Ruiner would say.

[mucifer]

3. Too little too late. The damage is done.

[Cadfael]

4. I guess they're testing the waters now...

I just got off the phone with someone purportedly from "CSI research" who was conducting a push-poll asking me if I was in favor of some form of legislation to save people from unwillingly having to join a union...."forced Union membership" or some such nonsense. I told the hell no and hung up.

[Gidney N Cloyd]

5. I was surprised to see Rauner's dropped 'right to work' from his budget negotiation demand list.

That's a biggie. Workman's Comp "reform" is still there, though.

[Cadfael]

6. This guy scares me...

He motivated me to pull my first and only R ballot in a primary. I sure hope he's a "one and done". I'm getting really sick of the "issue" ads that his seemingly bottomless pockets endlessly fund.

[Gidney N Cloyd]

7. I crossed over to 'R' in the primary, too.