CHICAGO - Illinois Gov. Bruce Rauner is turning to a television advertising campaign to build public support for his position in a budget impasse with the General Assembly's Democratic majority.
The Republican launched advertisements on Tuesday directly targeting House Speaker Michael Madigan, D-Chicago.
"Illinois is at a crossroads. Mike Madigan and the politicians he controls refuse to change," saying no to spending discipline, economic reforms, and term limits, the ad asserts. "All they want is higher taxes, again."
The ads to be broadcast across the state were expected after Democratic lawmakers approved a $36.3 billion budget late last month that would spend $4 billion more than Rauner's budget proposed. The ads are funded by the Rauner-created Turnaround Illinois political action committee, according to published reports. The $4.25 million fund has $4 million in donations from real-estate investor Sam Zell.
Democrats have rejected proposals on Rauner's turnaround agenda. Rauner has said those measures - including a local property tax freeze, tort and worker's compensation reforms, term limits and redistricting changes - must be adopted before he considers tax hikes.
"Change in Springfield isn't easy, but you didn't send me here to do what's easy," Rauner says in the advertisements that closely resemble campaign commercials. "With your help I'm going to keep fighting to grow our economy and fix our broken state government."
Madigan and Rauner have frequently traded barbs over the last few weeks. Madigan has accused the governor of operating in "the extreme" by linking his turnaround agenda with the budget and personal attacks and said he would work with the governor in a "professional manner."
At a news conference later in the day, Madigan said he is again pledging to work "cooperatively and professionally" with the governor and stressed his position that the governor's "advocacy of those non- budget issues in my judgment takes our work to eliminate the budget deficit to the extreme." On the television ad attacking him, he said: "That TV ad takes this to the extreme, takes away from moderation. It's just like the other non-budget issues."
Rauner's administration continues to prepare for possibility that a budget won't be in place for the start of the fiscal year July 1. On Friday, his administration announced non transportation-related capital projects would be put on hold if the impasse can't be bridged.
Rauner laid out new measures that cut a wide swath across the state to save $420 million, according to a statement. They come on top of $400 million in savings expected from a previous round of announced cuts and other management steps being undertaken or planned for July 1. The state comptroller has warned most payments will grind to a halt without a new budget in place. Debt service on state bonds would continue to be made under an ongoing appropriation.
