Illinois officially has a new governor. Republican Bruce Rauner took the oath of office in Springfield Monday while making a big show of it.
For a speech about a new beginning, Governor Bruce Rauner was really focused on the past.
"Today, Illinois is not able to compete with our neighboring states."
And the negative.
"Lifelong Illinoisans look at their future and think maybe they can achieve more outside Illinois."
And he was pretty down on the state overall.
"Illinois is not as competitive as we need to be and we cannot be as compassionate as we want to be."
Rauner took his time, picking apart the state’s problems throughout his address. He blamed both Republicans and Democrats for bad financial practices like borrowing money. He said his predecessor, Pat Quinn, made bad decisions like raising income taxes during the recession.
Already this year, because Rauner won in November, income tax rates have dropped. That received the biggest applause.
"People of Illinois are left to wonder where do they fit in. Who’s looking out for them and their families? Taxpayer money belongs to them, not the government."
Fewer taxes mean less money for the government. Rauner said he’s asking state agencies to freeze non-essential spending - without detailing what that would mean.
He didn’t talk much about other spending cuts that are coming. Instead, he used nuance, and talked of sacrifices.
"We must be united in our willingness to sacrifice and do what is right even if it is difficult."
One big criticism of Rauner has been that he wants to spend more on education and other services - but doesn’t know where it will come from. And Rauner repeated his call for better “access” to education for students.
Perhaps one way he sees sacrifice coming is by toughening people up. The whole ceremony began with a flashy 3-minute-and-40-second video with all the production values of an expensive ad made for the Super Bowl.
VIDEO: We’re tough. We’re unstoppable. And we’re ready to take on anything that stands in our way. We are the people of Illinois.
After the ceremony, Democrats said there is something that’s standing in the state’s way: a lack of certainty over Rauner’s spending plans. Senator Mattie Hunter is a Chicago Democrat. She went out of her way to say how she’s looking forward to working with Rauner.
But…
"I don’t know how they’re going to do it in terms of putting more dollars in social services and cutting taxes at the same time. That’s what I’d like to see."
Republican State Representative Patti Bellock defended the speech, saying all that negativity and uncertainty is ultimately going to take the state in a new direction.
"I think they were very frank and honest to the taxpayers of Illinois. There’s going to be a lot of shared sacrifice, but that really tomorrow will be better than today."
Whether both parties are genuine about their willingness to work with each other is yet to be seen.
Democrats have supermajorities in both the House and Senate, and could theoretically override any veto that Rauner issues. That might have something to do with why Rauner has raised 20 million dollars in his campaign account AFTER the election…
Cash to help fund his allies, or punish his enemies.