As legislators who'll have to vote on a minimum wage increase began debating the issue in Springfield, Governor Pat Quinn was in Chicago promoting it.
Gov. Quinn has been relentless, lately, about increasing Illinois' minimum wage up from $8.25. His latest push, involved going shopping at The Gap, for gifts for his nieces. And invited the media to witness it.
"This would be the first grader? Yes? No ... It'll still allow them to stretch and form fit so it'll be absolutely fantastic." "Oh that's the way to go, yeah."
Quinn paid $77.49 -- cash -- for three sweaters.
The Gap's moving to pay its employees $10 an hour, and Quinn says Illinois should follow that example.
Quinn may just be a great uncle. But the shopping trip was also an opportunity to get in digs at his new opponent, Republican gubernatorial nominee Bruce Rauner.
"The very idea that that kind of a person, with nine mansions as well as all this money that he has, would then call upon taking away minimum wage workers by cutting their minimum wage, well that's not right."
Rauner had suggesting lowering Illinois' minimum wage, though he has since retracted that stance.