 "I don't think the word 'negotiate' is appropriate," Quinn said at a
Chicago news conference. "I have laid out a framework. They know
what it is. It's crystal clear. If the General Assembly wants to
take that guideline and use it to guide their work, so be it."The
General Assembly has approved a plan to add five new casinos and
slot machines at horse racing tracks statewide.
Quinn will accept the five casinos, but not the slot machine
expansion.
Quinn's hard line on gambling is the latest example of his
take-it-or-leave-it style, and legislators say that style soon could
make the governor irrelevant.
Even with Democrats in control of the Statehouse, Quinn, a
Democrat himself, has had a difficult time working with legislators.
State Rep. Lou Lang, D-Skokie, points to the governor's preference
for bombastic public statements over one-on-one conversations with
lawmakers as an example.
"There was a thought that once (Quinn) became governor ... , he
would grab on to the job and the gravitas that comes with it," said
Lang. "He's tried in his way to do that, but in some issues, it's
not working too well."
Lang is the House sponsor of the gambling legislation.
"We need an engaged governor," Lang said. "Not one that says,
'Don't pass that. It's going to get vetoed.'"
Mike Lawrence, a longtime Statehouse journalist and press
secretary for former Gov. Jim Edgar, said Quinn's inability to work
with lawmakers could make him irrelevant.
"There have been times when the governor and the General Assembly
have had strained relations, but I don't think we've seen anything
like we're seeing now," Lawrence said.
Only during the end of Rod Blagojevich's tenure as governor can
Lawrence remember lawmakers and the governor simply ignoring each
other, Lawrence said.
"There is a lack of trust of Gov. Quinn for a different reason
than there was a lack of trust in Gov. Blagojevich," Lawrence said.
"The lack of trust in Quinn stems from the belief from lawmakers
that the administration doesn't have its act together."
Blagojevich is awaiting sentencing following his convicting on
federal charges.
State Sen. Mike Jacobs, D-East Moline, said Quinn never once
called him as Jacobs was shepherding the "smart grid" legislation
through the Senate. The governor opposed the proposal, allowing the
state's two largest utility companies, Commonwealth Edison LLP and
Ameren Corp., to raise consumer rates for infrastructure
improvements. Lawmakers overrode Quinn's veto during the first week
of the veto session.
[to top of second column] |
"You can't just keep calling people names and pointing fingers,"
Jacobs said. "You get along with people, and you work with people by
sitting down and talking with them."
Jacobs said many lawmakers like Quinn, but are growing tired of
his behavior.
"Gov. Quinn needs to reach beyond his small base and become
governor for the entire state," Jacobs added.
Quinn won the 2010 race by carrying the vote in four of Illinois'
102 counties: Cook County, home to Chicago, and Madison, Jackson and
Union counties in southern Illinois.
A poll conducted by the Paul Simon Public Policy Institute at
Southern Illinois University in early October has the governor's job
approval hovering around 35 percent. The telephone poll of 1,000
voters has an error margin of 3 percentage points. It was conducted
Oct. 11-16.
Jacobs said Quinn is close to "Blagojevich territory," where he
would become ignored and ineffective.
"It's a legitimate conversation in the General Assembly," Jacobs
said. "You already see he's having trouble getting legislation
passed or support for his ideas."
In Blagojevich's second term, the General Assembly made the
former governor a nonfactor by passing a number of measures with
veto-proof majorities to avoid any interference from Blagojevich. It
takes 71 votes in the House and 36 votes in the Senate for lawmakers
to ensure legislation is veto-proof.
Lawrence said the legislature has bypassed Quinn, particularly
during last year's budget-making process, in which the House
dictated to the governor how much the state would spend and where
the money would be spent.
"Last year's budget was a total dismissal of Gov. Quinn's
proposal," Lawrence said. "And the gambling legislation was put
together without any input from the governor's office. This is
highly unusual when you see major issues being decided without the
governor's involvement."
[Illinois
Statehouse News; By BENJAMIN YOUNT]
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