By John Dempsey, WLS-AM News
(CHICAGO) Illinois Democratic Gubernatorial Candidate Chris Kennedy was on WLS Thursday morning, denouncing incumbent Republican Governor Bruce Rauner. Kennedy told “The Big John and Ray Show” that Rauner has failed to do the job, saying “I think Governor Rauner’s failure as a leader is unprecedented in the state. I never thought he’d be a great governor but I never thought he would be this much of a failure. Not to have a budget two years in a row, the only state in the nation to do that, I think that’s a disaster.”
The state is in it’s second fiscal year without a budget because Rauner is demanding that the Democratic-led legislature enact what he calls pro-business reforms that the Democrats oppose. Rauner has blamed Democratic House Speaker Michael Madigan for the standoff.
WLS Morning host John Howell asked Kennedy “Do you define success as just going along with Speaker Mike Madigan?” Kennedy responded, “Absolutely not but I think we need to see that there are three branches of government. The governor is meant to lead. In failing to do so he’s made the legislature the only source of new ideas, and unfortunately now much of the government is run by the judiciary. Governor Rauner has not been meeting with individual legislators or even legislative leadership. We need to bring people together, and come up with a solution that works for everyone in every part of the state.”
Much of the state’s operations are continuing because of judicial orders, and Illinois is going deeper in debt as long as a budget is not passed.
Kennedy is a Democrat, the son of the late Senator Robert F. Kennedy and the nephew of President John F. Kennedy. Chicago Alderman Ameya Pawar has also announced he’s seeking the Democratic nomination, and other Democrats including billionaire J.B. Pritzker are considering bids.
The Illinois Republican Party is tying Kennedy’s run for governor to Madigan. Illinois Republican Party spokesman Steven Yaffe says Illinois House Speaker Mike Madigan has endorsed Kennedy’s run for governor “because he knows that Kennedy will never stand up to him.” The state GOP already has launched the website MadiganKennedy.com . Yaffe says of Kennedy. “The last thing Illinois needs is a Madigan lap dog in the governor’s office.”
@ 2017 WLS-AM News
