As primary approaches, Ives ramps up attacks on Rauner

Posted on March 16, 2018
Jeanne Ives
State Rep. Jeanne Ives is interviewed at the WJBC studios Friday, four days before Republican voters decide whether she should replace incumbent Gov. Bruce Rauner as the GOP nominee.
(WJBC photo)

By Howard Packowitz

BLOOMINGTON – Conservative State Representative Jeanne Ives said it’s laughable that incumbent Governor Bruce Rauner is trying to link her to Democratic House Speaker Michael Madigan.

Ives is trying to unseat Rauner in Tuesday’s Republican primary.

“So they know that Mike Madigan is the boogie man,” said Ives during an appearance on WJBC’s Afternoon Report with Greg Halbleib.

“Listen, there’s two people that are prominent in state politics right now that can not win a statewide election. One of them is Bruce Rauner and the other one is Madigan. Those two actually have a lot more in common than Jeanne Ives.”

Ives said she’s challenging Rauner because he backed legislation expanding taxpayer funded abortions and he signed the Trust Act, which she said makes Illinois a sanctuary state for illegal immigrants.

She also said Rauner mishandled the nearly three year budget battle with Speaker Madigan. Ives said Rauner should not have let it go that long.

“He never used the full power of his governorship and the bully pulpit that is given to him, and the result is a complete mismanagement of all of our resources and a pile up of $16 billion in debt that led to that tax increase,” said Ives.

She pledged to vote for Rauner if he wins Tuesday’s primary.

Howard Packowitz can be reached at [email protected]

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