Chicago News 01/19/2018, 04:23pm
Chris Kennedy, left, in February 2017. File Photo. | AP Photo/Charles Rex Arbogast. Gov. Bruce Rauner, center, in July 2017. File Photo. | Ashlee Rezin/Sun-Times. J.B. Pritzker, right, in July 2017. File Photo. | Rich Hein/Sun-Times
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Democratic gubernatorial hopeful Chris Kennedy said Friday he thinks Republican Gov. Bruce Rauner “should be applauded” for airing campaign commercials attacking J.B. Pritzker.
The commercials, backed by millions of dollars in Rauner campaign spending, feature an FBI wiretap recording of Pritzker talking with former Gov. Rod Blagojevich in 2008.
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Pritzker has accused Rauner of meddling in the Democratic primary to distract from his own record.
But Kennedy, who has been the more immediate beneficiary of the attacks on Pritzker, jumped to the governor’s defense when asked by reporters about Rauner’s gambit.
“I think Bruce Rauner is trying to do what he thinks is best for the state of Illinois. And we may disagree on what that is, but his willingness to speak truth to power, to take on the powers that have been strangling our economy for decades in this state is something that I think he should be applauded for,” Kennedy said.
The Pritzker campaign quickly sent out a press release asking whether Kennedy was endorsing Rauner and deriding the notion that the governor speaks truth to power.
“The Worst Republican Governor in America unleashed devastation across this state and is standing in silence as the lives of immigrant families and healthcare for children hang in the balance, but don’t worry, because according to Chris Kennedy, Bruce Rauner is just speaking ‘truth to power,’” said Pritzker communications director Galia Slayen.
Kennedy later said that he regularly calls out Rauner for his shortcoming but agrees with the governor that the tapes of Blagojevich and Pritzker need to heard by the public.
“I’ve always been honest about Bruce Rauner’s broken leadership in our state,” Kennedy said in a follow-up statement.
“Under Bruce Rauner’s administration, our state amassed $15 billion in unpaid bills. Under Bruce Rauner’s administration, our state went two years without a budget — the longest budget impasse in U.S. history. Under Bruce Rauner’s administration, 1 million people were cut off of social services.
“I’m running because Bruce Rauner has left our state in shambles. He’s a failed governor and our state is desperate for radical change.
“Taking my remarks out of context is a weak attempt from JB Pritzker to deflect from the pressure he’s under. JB is the poster child of play to pay politics in Illinois and the FBI wiretaps that feature him begging Rod Blagojevich for political favors prove it. He’s everything the Republicans want to run against.
“I believe voters have a right to know what’s on those tapes and I agree that they should’ve been released.”
Above is from: https://chicago.suntimes.com/news/kennedy-rauner-should-be-applauded-for-slapping-pritzker-over-blagojevich/
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