By Dave Dahl

Gov. Bruce Rauner’s disappointed he did not win re-election, but he is looking forward to getting to know his family and friends again.

Speaking to reporters in what could be his last news conference as governor — he remains in office until Monday — Rauner said he also wanted to return to the business of building businesses.

Rauner fashions himself as a champion of education, though some leaders of the state’s public universities would dispute that, given the fact that the state spent half of Rauner’s term with no budget.

“It is unfortunate that our higher education system suffered under the budget impasse,” he said, “but we have an opportunity to correct our funding system for higher education and improve it; we have an opportunity to help our universities lower their costs with pension reform and procurement reform and mandate relief.”

Rauner said he also wanted an environment in which philanthropists feel more comfortable donating to colleges and also a “rationalization” of the university system, focusing on “centers of excellence.”

Rauner was the chief funder of the state’s Republican Party. Now, as he leaves, the Democrats hold all statewide offices and supermajorities in both chambers of the legislature.

His advice for the party?

“If you’re going to be a moderate to win elections, but you are not going to be a reformer and fix the problems, what’s the point of winning?” Rauner asked, accusing the Illinois Republican Party of being a weak subsidiary of the Democrats.

Rauner can claim this victory: he will fulfill his Constitutional duty by submitting an end-of-term report to the General Assembly. There is no evidence his two predecessors did that.