Jan. 21--"We don't have a plan," said Democratic Rep. Ken Dunkin, D-Chicago.
"(Republican Gov. Bruce) Rauner is coming up with his suggestions, and us Democrats ... need to force a plan situation in our Democratic caucus," he said. Democrats need to say, "Look, here is our proposal, here is our solution for the Chicago Public Schools. Here is our solution for resolving the pension crisis."
Normally I don't look to Dunkin for clarity. He's become an erratic Democrat, breaking ranks with his party at several key moments in recent months as part of a flirtation with Rauner that's arguably prolonging the perilous power struggle in Springfield.
But when he tossed off this observation Tuesday during a panel discussion on WTTW-Ch.11's "Chicago Tonight," I pressed rewind on the DVR several times so I could transcribe the observation exactly.
Yes. Just so.
Dunkin publicly crystallized an idea that has been quietly nagging at me for some time: Illinois Democrats don't seem to have a plan or a vision for the state that goes much beyond thwarting Rauner and preserving the dismal status quo.
Not that I have anything against thwarting Rauner. I'm not a fan of his union-weakening aims, his insulting style, his dubious math and his willingness to inflict hardship on the neediest if it will help advance his plan.
But at least Rauner has a plan -- a list of aspirational bullet points that he calls the "turnaround agenda," and that others have taken to calling the "runaground agenda."
It includes implementation of legislative term limits and nonpartisan political maps. Elimination of local prevailing-wage standards. And enactment of business-friendly changes to tort law, workers' compensation and collective bargaining rules.
What's on a similar list for the Democrats, who control both chambers of the General Assembly? What are their bold counterproposals for getting the state budget and pension problems squared away and boosting the economy?
"It's a damn good question," said Christopher Mooney, director of the University of Illinois' Institute of Government and Public Affairs. "They're not putting forth a coherent, proactive agenda."
Mooney said this omission isn't particularly unusual. Around the country, governors tend to lay out their visions and opposing legislators tend simply to pick away at them. Here, though, "when Rauner tries to advance his agenda and doesn't force Democrats to articulate an alternative, he plays into their hands," by allowing Democrats to "make him the boogeyman," Mooney said.
