Governor Bruce Rauner and his fellow Republicans have spent years vilifying House Speaker Michael Madigan. Lately, the party has gone further… trying to sway House Democrats away from re-electing Madigan as their leader.
Republican interference in the House Democratic leadership election is not just a departure from political norms. It's also a huge departure from Illinois history.
Madigan has so far been elected speaker 16 times, but what's really interesting is that the majority of his victories were essentially unanimous. Year after year, Republicans joined with Democrats to elect Madigan in a show of bipartisan cooperation.
This year, Rauner's Republican Party has been relentlessly attacking Democrats for supporting a man who once enjoyed goodwill on both sides of the aisle.
