A couple of thoughts came to mind as I listened to last night's debate:
1. Rich Whitney won the debate. He was the only one of the three to propose thought out plans for dealing with the state's debt and many of its other problems.
2. Rich Whitney doesn't have a chance of winning the election. Though he commented on both of the other candidates' responses, they both ignored him, focusing their responses on each other. If they viewed him as a serious threat, Brady or Quinn would have responded to his proposals.
3. I haven't watched TV so have no idea of the state of the commercial discourse but the debate was civil. There were attacks by all three men but they were attacks on each others' policies and the handling of the governor's office, rather than attacks on personal behavior and history.
Showing posts with label Rich Whitney. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Rich Whitney. Show all posts
Friday, October 15, 2010
Thursday, October 14, 2010
Liveblogging the Debate
8:55 And that's all folks.
8:50 Closing statements.Waiting for a fourth mention of Gov. Blago from Brady. Doesn't happen though.
8:48 Quinn supports a graduated income tax on earnings over $250,000. Brady does not want to see any tax income tax. Whitney supports a graduated tax as well but since it would require a constitutional amendment, refers back to Senate Bill 750.
8:47 Quinn's stance on concealed carry? He does not support it and says we should ban assault weapons. Brady says he supports concealed carry as does Whitney, who would allow any county to opt out.
8:44 How does Quinn's promise not to cut state jobs until 2012 affect govs. ability to do his job. Quinn has gotten concessions from unions to the tune of $300 million and says he inherited the contract that ties the govs' hands. Brady brings up Blago again (that's 3) and says the agreement to not cut jobs was a secret agreement between the union and the governor. Whitney says the deal sold out the people of Illinois and ASCME at the same time.
8:40 Over to farms. What happens if farm subsidies from the federal government get cut? Brady says increase biodiesal production and eliminating bureaucracy and regulation. Whitney calls ethanol a boondoggle and supports moving towards local food production for local consumption. Only 4% of the food consumed in Illinois comes from Illinois. Quinn says he has pushed for farm exports, biodiesal and touts himself as "Mr. Soybean".
8:37 What is the Gov. going to do to lift the poverty rate in southern Illinois. Quinn refers to the Put Illinois to Work program, which employs 26,000. Brady says taking taxpayer dollars to put people to work is not a viable option. Says need to build an environment in Illinois that is business friendly, providing permanent private sector jobs. Whitney wants to establish a State Bank, like that in North Dakota and create a green energy program to create green jobs.
8:33 To Whitney, question about late payments to institutions like SIUC. Refers back to his plan to dig the budget out of its hole, which would get payments back on track. Quinn says he had gotten funding to build more buildings on campuses and supports higher education. No specific references to the late payments. Brady says he won't cut higher education funding, unlike Quinn-Blago administration (2nd mention of Blagoyovich).
8:30 Rebuttals. Quinn leaps on the education issue again. Keeps attacking Brady and ignoring Whitney completely. Brady says Quinn's budget has a lot of back-room expenditures that were passed in secret. Whitney says he's the only one with a plan and that Quinn made the largest cut to education in Ill. history. Brady proposes a 10% cut in state revenue to balance the budget which requires a 40% cut to balance it.
8:26 Where are we going wrong in education? Quinn says we need accountability in education and properly paid teachers. We need more community colleges and more teachers. Brady says Quinn cut over a billion in education funding in the last budget. Whitney says we need a list of things for schools which need more funding and Illinois has one of the lowest rates of funding among the states. Refers back to Senate Bill 750 again.
8:23 Question about Medicare to Whitney, who wants a single payer system to replace the one we have now. Quinn wants to cut waste in the system and taking on insurance companies. Brady just used Reagan's "There you go again" line, says Quinn has failed to root out fraud and abuse.
8:19 Question about cutting mandatory payments i.e. pensions. Brad is pretty noncommittal as to how, and whoops, there's the first mention of Gov. Blagoyovich. Whitney says don't balance the budget by cutting promised pensions. Quinn talks about cuts he has made but no specific details about pensions. Talking about Brady and cuts in education.
8:16 Question to Whitney: how do we bring jobs to all parts of the state. Whitney refers back to his plan to provide free higher education to all citizens of Illinois that want and emphasizing green energy. Quinn brings up his support for the Jobs Recovery Bill and emphasizes the jobs brought to southern Illinois, refers to the STAR bonds program in Marion, notes that Brady voted against the Jobs Recovery Bill. Brady points out Illinois has had a net loss in jobs and that Illinois has lost 200,000 jobs during Quinn's term.
8:12 Next question from Jennifer Fuller: How do we get people back to work? Brady responds that we have to balance the budget and become more business friendly. Whitney says that the private sector does best when there is a strong public infrastructure. He wants to offer free high education to all Illinois citizens. Quinn says that jobs have actually been added during his term of office.
8:05 First question goes to Quinn, asking how he's going to balance the budget. Quinn is pretty non-specific. Brady says he will balance the budget without raising taxes. Whitney brings up actual figures and refers to Senate bill 750 as one way to start turning it around. Also proposes more taxes on riverboat gambling.
8:04 Rich Whitney has a go at it. He says that he's the only candidate with a plan to fix state government.
8:03 Bill Brady is making his statement now. He is saying that if you like the way Illinois government runs now, vote for Quinn.
8 p.m Questioning is Robert Rich, Jennifer Fuller and Rob Crowe I didn't catch. Jak Tichnor is moderator. Pat Quinn gets the opening statement.
8:50 Closing statements.Waiting for a fourth mention of Gov. Blago from Brady. Doesn't happen though.
8:48 Quinn supports a graduated income tax on earnings over $250,000. Brady does not want to see any tax income tax. Whitney supports a graduated tax as well but since it would require a constitutional amendment, refers back to Senate Bill 750.
8:47 Quinn's stance on concealed carry? He does not support it and says we should ban assault weapons. Brady says he supports concealed carry as does Whitney, who would allow any county to opt out.
8:44 How does Quinn's promise not to cut state jobs until 2012 affect govs. ability to do his job. Quinn has gotten concessions from unions to the tune of $300 million and says he inherited the contract that ties the govs' hands. Brady brings up Blago again (that's 3) and says the agreement to not cut jobs was a secret agreement between the union and the governor. Whitney says the deal sold out the people of Illinois and ASCME at the same time.
8:40 Over to farms. What happens if farm subsidies from the federal government get cut? Brady says increase biodiesal production and eliminating bureaucracy and regulation. Whitney calls ethanol a boondoggle and supports moving towards local food production for local consumption. Only 4% of the food consumed in Illinois comes from Illinois. Quinn says he has pushed for farm exports, biodiesal and touts himself as "Mr. Soybean".
8:37 What is the Gov. going to do to lift the poverty rate in southern Illinois. Quinn refers to the Put Illinois to Work program, which employs 26,000. Brady says taking taxpayer dollars to put people to work is not a viable option. Says need to build an environment in Illinois that is business friendly, providing permanent private sector jobs. Whitney wants to establish a State Bank, like that in North Dakota and create a green energy program to create green jobs.
8:33 To Whitney, question about late payments to institutions like SIUC. Refers back to his plan to dig the budget out of its hole, which would get payments back on track. Quinn says he had gotten funding to build more buildings on campuses and supports higher education. No specific references to the late payments. Brady says he won't cut higher education funding, unlike Quinn-Blago administration (2nd mention of Blagoyovich).
8:30 Rebuttals. Quinn leaps on the education issue again. Keeps attacking Brady and ignoring Whitney completely. Brady says Quinn's budget has a lot of back-room expenditures that were passed in secret. Whitney says he's the only one with a plan and that Quinn made the largest cut to education in Ill. history. Brady proposes a 10% cut in state revenue to balance the budget which requires a 40% cut to balance it.
8:26 Where are we going wrong in education? Quinn says we need accountability in education and properly paid teachers. We need more community colleges and more teachers. Brady says Quinn cut over a billion in education funding in the last budget. Whitney says we need a list of things for schools which need more funding and Illinois has one of the lowest rates of funding among the states. Refers back to Senate Bill 750 again.
8:23 Question about Medicare to Whitney, who wants a single payer system to replace the one we have now. Quinn wants to cut waste in the system and taking on insurance companies. Brady just used Reagan's "There you go again" line, says Quinn has failed to root out fraud and abuse.
8:19 Question about cutting mandatory payments i.e. pensions. Brad is pretty noncommittal as to how, and whoops, there's the first mention of Gov. Blagoyovich. Whitney says don't balance the budget by cutting promised pensions. Quinn talks about cuts he has made but no specific details about pensions. Talking about Brady and cuts in education.
8:16 Question to Whitney: how do we bring jobs to all parts of the state. Whitney refers back to his plan to provide free higher education to all citizens of Illinois that want and emphasizing green energy. Quinn brings up his support for the Jobs Recovery Bill and emphasizes the jobs brought to southern Illinois, refers to the STAR bonds program in Marion, notes that Brady voted against the Jobs Recovery Bill. Brady points out Illinois has had a net loss in jobs and that Illinois has lost 200,000 jobs during Quinn's term.
8:12 Next question from Jennifer Fuller: How do we get people back to work? Brady responds that we have to balance the budget and become more business friendly. Whitney says that the private sector does best when there is a strong public infrastructure. He wants to offer free high education to all Illinois citizens. Quinn says that jobs have actually been added during his term of office.
8:05 First question goes to Quinn, asking how he's going to balance the budget. Quinn is pretty non-specific. Brady says he will balance the budget without raising taxes. Whitney brings up actual figures and refers to Senate bill 750 as one way to start turning it around. Also proposes more taxes on riverboat gambling.
8:04 Rich Whitney has a go at it. He says that he's the only candidate with a plan to fix state government.
8:03 Bill Brady is making his statement now. He is saying that if you like the way Illinois government runs now, vote for Quinn.
8 p.m Questioning is Robert Rich, Jennifer Fuller and Rob Crowe I didn't catch. Jak Tichnor is moderator. Pat Quinn gets the opening statement.
Debate
In case you're intersted, here's a link to a livebog following the Brady, Quinn, Whitney debate this evening.
Monday, September 27, 2010
State Budgeet Proposals
Though he doesn't have a chance of winning, Rich Whitney is the only candidate to have actually proposed a budget that will close the $13 billion budget gap Illinois faces. Unless you really believe there is $13 billion worth of fraud and waste in the budget, cutting the budget isn't going to do it. Brady's plan is pretty non-specific. His proposal to cut the budget by 10% would produce about $3 billion (assuming it gets thorough the legislature), leaving the state still short by $10 billion and Quinn's website doesn't address budget issues much. The closest I could find was this.
Thursday, September 16, 2010
Whitney Campaign Cash Strapped
Green Party gubernatorial candidate Rich Whitney sent out this email/note to his supporters yesterday, basically saying his campaign is broke, lamenting that Scott Lee Cohen can:
"inundate the airwaves with his radio ads, and coat the streets with his yard signs, whe he has absolutely nothing of substance to say -- while I have plenty of substance to say, and yet am struggling to get my message OUT to where people can HEAR it, or see it."
Whitney aslo put some of the blame on his supporters saying:
Thus far, supporters have not followed through on such basic fundraising efforts as expected. I can't do it all, and you can't wait for the "campaign" to do it all. The campaign is US, collectively. I need people to step up to the plate and take some initiative.
As the Capitol Fax points out, 7 weeks before the election is not the time to deal with budget (or lack of budget) problems.
"inundate the airwaves with his radio ads, and coat the streets with his yard signs, whe he has absolutely nothing of substance to say -- while I have plenty of substance to say, and yet am struggling to get my message OUT to where people can HEAR it, or see it."
Whitney aslo put some of the blame on his supporters saying:
Thus far, supporters have not followed through on such basic fundraising efforts as expected. I can't do it all, and you can't wait for the "campaign" to do it all. The campaign is US, collectively. I need people to step up to the plate and take some initiative.
As the Capitol Fax points out, 7 weeks before the election is not the time to deal with budget (or lack of budget) problems.
Thursday, August 19, 2010
Whitney Up In Polls
A notice from the Rich Whitney campaign puts him at 11%, still 20 percent behind either Pat Quinn or Bill Brady
Tuesday, June 22, 2010
Morning Coversation
Good discussion on WSIU's Morning Conversation this morning on Illinois politics, esp. the upcoming elections and why Rich Whitney is probably a spoiler for Pat Quinn's chances for election to a full term as governor.
Thursday, April 1, 2010
Green Party and Simon
Amusing that Rich Whitney first compliments Sheila Simon for her selection at the Democratic candidate for Lt. Governor, then in the next paragraph slams the party for selecting her rather than Art Turner, who came in second in the actual primary, saying that choosing her takes for granted the African American vote.
Of course, as the Archpundit points out, the Democratic party is running three black candidates for statewide offices versus the Green Party's one. You can justifiable criticize Simon for not running for the office during the primary, or for having little experience in elected office, but to bring race into it is just silly.
Of course, as the Archpundit points out, the Democratic party is running three black candidates for statewide offices versus the Green Party's one. You can justifiable criticize Simon for not running for the office during the primary, or for having little experience in elected office, but to bring race into it is just silly.
Sunday, January 10, 2010
Headline
Interesting phrasing for the above the fold story in this week's edition of the Carbondale Times: "Cole, Whitney Fight Campaign Finance Stigma." (Sorry, you'll have to pick up a copy to read it as the Times is still available only in print) When I first spotted the headline, I thought the Times had found some problems with the campaign financing for the Cole and Whitney campaigns for lieutenant governor and governor, repsectively.
Nope, turns out the article is a look at how each candidate is treating campaign financing and contributions: Whitney refusing contributions from corporations and Cole positing contributors and amounts on his campaign website. Glad I was wrong but the headline was certianly an eyecatcher.
Nope, turns out the article is a look at how each candidate is treating campaign financing and contributions: Whitney refusing contributions from corporations and Cole positing contributors and amounts on his campaign website. Glad I was wrong but the headline was certianly an eyecatcher.
Saturday, July 18, 2009
Whitney for Governor?
Rich Whitney has again thrown his hat into the ring as the Green Party's candidate for governor of the great state of Illinois. Given the results of the 2006 election, Whitney's comment below is (unintentionally) ironic:
On the matter of the state's current budget woes, Whitney took aim at lawmakers faulting them for looking to "borrow their way out of it."
"This is more of the same," he said. "And what's the definition of insanity? Repeating the same thing over and over and expecting a different result."
The same could be said of running as a third party candidate in Illinois.
On the matter of the state's current budget woes, Whitney took aim at lawmakers faulting them for looking to "borrow their way out of it."
"This is more of the same," he said. "And what's the definition of insanity? Repeating the same thing over and over and expecting a different result."
The same could be said of running as a third party candidate in Illinois.
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