Quinn formally announces candidacy
Gov. Pat Quinn, who often reminds people he took over in a crisis, did so again Thursday when he formally declared his run for a full term as governor.
The Democrat acknowledged there was still plenty of work to do, but promised to move the state forward by creating more jobs and economic opportunities.
"I want to assure the people of Illinois that my heart is ever at your service," Quinn told a few dozen cheering supporters at a Chicago hotel before heading out to visit eight other cities around the state.
The former lieutenant governor is trying to convince voters to give him four more years in the job he inherited in January when lawmakers removed Gov. Rod Blagojevich from office after his arrest on federal corruption charges.
But Quinn has a formidable primary challenger in Comptroller Dan Hynes, and either one could emerge vulnerable from a bruising Democratic contest in which they are already sniping at each other in TV ads.
Republicans have their sights on the governor's job in the wake of the scandal surrounding Blagojevich, who ran on a ticket with Quinn twice.
Quinn was thrust into Illinois' top job at a time of both political and financial crisis, with the state facing a ballooning deficit that eventually topped $11 billion. During his nine months in office, Quinn has earned both praise and criticism from lawmakers, who sometimes questioned his inexperience and complained about flip-flops on issues such budget cuts and linking a public works project to the budget.
The governor focused only on the high points Thursday, touting some of the accomplishments during his tenure that included passing the state's first construction spending plan in over a decade and getting an amendment on the ballot that would allow voters to recall the governor.
He also unveiled a five-point plan to create jobs and expand the state's economy.
"I am the candidate for governor of either party who has the best record of actually creating jobs and working with businesses and with working people on economic development," Quinn said after his stop in Springfield. "When you need help, when it comes to jobs and the economy, I'm the guy to call."
But he glossed over how he would pay for some of his plans, including future investments in college scholarships and early childhood education.
He also â€" notably â€" did not mention during his Chicago announcement his proposal for a 50 percent increase in the state's personal income tax rate that lawmakers have yet to go for.
Instead, legislators cobbled together a budget that Quinn agreed to that relied on borrowing money, delaying payment of the state's bills and promises to make future spending cuts.
"He's running on a platform of creating jobs but not demonstrating how to pay for his programs or getting the state out of this unprecedented budget crisis," Hynes said.
Like Quinn, Hynes has said the state needs to raise income taxes but he has a different plan.
Quinn has said he's hopeful a tax increase will get through the Democrat-controlled Legislature next year, even though it is an election year.
State Sen. Kwame Raoul of Chicago, who attended Quinn's campaign announcement, said a tax increase must pass.
"If we don't get a tax increase through, I don't know how we get to June. I don't know how we get to April or May. We don't have money. Our money is running out," he said.
But Republican state Sen. Bill Brady of Bloomington, one of the candidates in a crowded GOP primary for governor, was quick to denounce Quinn's plans.
"We need a clean break from tax-and-spend politics of the past," Brady said in a statement.
Democratic state Rep. Lou Lang of Skokie, who also attended Quinn's announcement, said the state is in such dire straits that Quinn has to win the February primary.
"The state of Illinois cannot afford to have a lame duck governor for the next year," Lang said.
Oak Park attorney Ed Scanlan also has said he will be a candidate in the Democratic primary.