From Former Quigley Supporter:
Are Democrats Concerned Sue Rezin’s Candidacy Threatens Lauren Underwood’s Reelection in IL-14 the DCCC is Hyping a Possible Retirement in IL-16?
Throughout the month of August, and particularly in the past week, the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee (DCCC) has been talking up the possibility of the retirement of 5-term Congressman Adam Kinzinger (R, IL-16) which could impact IL-14, and the DCCC started this talk with an August 7 tweet:
The DCCC’s “Republican Retirement Watch List” was launched back in mid February of this year, and none of the 5 Republican Illinois congressmen were on the list.
Of the two IL Republicans on the list now, Congressman Rodney Davis (IL-13) is a very understandable “vulnerable” addition, given he won his 2018 reelection with just over 2000 votes and the same Democratic candidate who gave Davis the scare last year is seeking the seat again next year.
But Kinzinger’s reelection to a 5th term last year, in spite of the “blue wave” that swept Illinois, was by a comfortable nearly 18.25 percentage points margin which the final IL State Board of Elections totals show and challenges the DCCC assertion Kinzinger is “vulnerable”:
So even if Kinzinger did retire, the demographics of the district would make IL-16 a long-shot Democratic pick-up at best.
Prior to the August 7 addition of Kinzinger to the DCCC’s “watch list”, last Monday, Kinzinger told Crain’s Chicago Business he would definitely seek reelection to IL-16 next year:
Crain’s reporter Greg Hinz is very respected across Illinois and reputable but in the circled portion of the Crain’s story, Hinz openly expressed doubt about Kinzinger seeking reelection and took a “I’ll believe it when I see it” approach.
As the article points out, the Democrats were dismayed on August 5 when the Crain’s story was published and then on the 7th, the DCCC adds Kinzinger to the watch list in spite of the Crain’s article nearly 2 days earlier.
As has been posted here on McHenry County Blog, Kinzinger posted several components for gun legislation he would support in the wake of mass shootings in Gilroy, CA, El Paso, TX, Dayton, OH and Chicago, and in an interview with TMZ last Tuesday, Kinzinger stated he’s changed his mind on background checks and possibly would have voted for H.R. 8 and H.R. 1112 background check legislation he voted against earlier this year.
Maybe that change on background checks got people thinking Kinzinger was about to call it quits.
But then yesterday mid-morning Chicago time, the DCCC tweeted this:
So now the Kinzinger retirement watch has gone beyond Democratic wishful thinking or hype and now the DCCC is going to spend some money in a digital ad buy to hope Congressman Kinzinger retires in 2020 instead of running for a 6th term in IL-16 which does not lend itself to be a Democratic pickup in 2020 even as an open seat.
So why do the Democrats want Kinzinger to retire?
ANALYSIS: The Democrats are concerned with Congresswoman Lauren Underwood’s reelection bid in IL-14 and in particular the candidacy of State Senator Sue Rezin and since Rezin lives in IL-16 and though it is legal for Rezin to run for Congress in IL-14, an open IL-16 would likely move Rezin’s congressional bid to IL-16 if Kinzinger were to retire, and the Democrats have Governor J.B. Pritzker to thank for their concern for Rezin’s ability to beat Underwood next year.
Towards the end of July, Governor Pritzker vetoed legislation sponsored by Rezin to protect Illinois residents with pre-existing conditions under the Affordable Care Act, as written-up fully in POLITICO Illinois Playbook on August 2nd:
So given the irony of Underwood and Rezin having similar stances to protect patients with pre-existing conditions, Rezin’s record includes alignment with voters in IL-14 and across the country about health care in general, and protection of patients with pre-existing conditions in particular.
Health care, and Underwood’s position on the Affordable Care Act, and in particular pre-existing conditions patient protections is no longer the sole record of the Democratic incumbent in IL-14, and like with Underwood well-documented personal story of her pre-existing condition, Rezin has a personal story that literally hits close to home for her and for many IL-14 families, too.
And while fellow IL-14 candidate Jim Oberweis voted in favor of Rezin’s legislation, Rezin showed on an issue of importance to Illinois voters that in spite being in a super-minority Republican caucus in the state senate, she can move legislation through both chambers of the Illinois General Assembly on major health care legislation.
That is something Underwood has not been able to do in Congress even though her party controls the House.
Unrelated to the late July veto of Rezin’s legislation, Underwood’s congressional staff tweeted the following last Friday concerning health care while Underwood was travelling in Central America:
So that same 5,471,600 Illinoisans Underwood is concerned about are also the target for Rezin’s legislation that was vetoed last month.
Rezin plans to challenge the veto of SB 2026 during the veto session this fall and if the votes in the General Assembly hold true in the fall, the prospects are good to override the governor’s veto, but whether the governor’s veto is overridden or not, Rezin has demonstrated she can get things done in Springfield on significant legislation she sponsored and convinced colleagues across the aisle to support, which is proof to voters she could do the same in Washington, and that is why the Democrats are concerned about Underwood’s reelection..
Rezin’s success on SB 2026 is statesmanship and one can easily see why a Rezin-Underwood General Election is something the Democrats want to avoid, and when the timeline of the governor’s veto in late July, the POLITICO article on August 2nd, and the other dates the DCCC followed to hype a possible Kinzinger retirement in the IL-16 are factored in, the DCCC retirement watch on Kinzinger all falls into place to prevent a Rezin-Underwood General Election match-up.
All of that said, I do believe Kinzinger will seek reelection in IL-16 next year and it will be up to IL-14 Republican primary voters who will match-up against Underwood next year.
- POLITICO Illinois Playbook 8/2/19 Link: https://www.politico.com/newsletters/illinois-playbook/2019/08/02/rezin-pritzker-health-care-on-giving-chicago-the-boot-happy-birthday-mayor-and-barack-obama-464439
- TMZ YouTube Kinzinger 8/6/19 Link: https://youtu.be/eyhP1u5G9Sw
- Crain’s Chicago Business 8/5/19 Link: https://www.chicagobusiness.com/greg-hinz-politics/kinzinger-set-run-us-house-again
Lauren who?
Is Rezin too obnoxious to defeat the incumbent?
Here’s what Democrats are really worried about:
http://assets.nydailynews.com/polopoly_fs/1.1612771.1392301074!/img/httpImage/image.jpg_gen/derivatives/landscape_635/racist14n-1-web.jpg
and these:
https://nicedeb.files.wordpress.com/2015/05/nuns-with-guns-2.jpg
Somebody finally figured it out what we really need is pre-existing conditions to extend to auto insurance so you don’t have to buy insurance until after you’ve had an accident makes sense to me right?
National Democrats worried about a local named Rezin? No. National Democrats are super privately worried about the lackluster list of 20 some list of presidential candidates. The top polled candidates are terrible, led by sleepy Joe who now appears to have dementia. Then next is crazy Bernie, the self proclaimed socialist wannabe communist. Then, Cherokee Liz who faked her heritage as Native American to gain employment preferences for minorities. They all have outlandish and reckless ideas on how they would lead this nation if any one of them, by miracle, were elected president. The Democrat Party is in big, big trouble with nobody reputable for top positions and crazies such as AOC coming in as freshmen.
Nothing more worrisome for the Democratic National committee than the wise predictions and sound analysis of my please-take-me-seriously, Sociology and Political Science professor. Stay tuned…tic, tock, tic, tock, tic, tock…..
In answer to the headline: They shouldn’t be worried.
She’s the most Liberal of the Republican candidates and isinterchangavle with Underwood.
Be smarter and vote Marter.
He’s the only True Conservative running for that seat!
“bred winner”, the national Democrats, through the DNC, are worried about their presidential field, no doubt.
With the top 3 Dem POTUS candidates all being septuagenarians (Biden, Sanders and Warren) and this was supposed to be the presidential field where a younger candidate was expected to break through, yet the top 3 are all in their 70s, and Biden continuing to show signs of age with his very recent gaffes.
Kamala Harris has faded since her June debate performance and Mayor Pete couldn’t solve issues in South Bend with a police shooting caused him to fade, but he had a lot of money before his decline started.
And with the exception of Biden, and one or two lower-tier candidates, most of the DEM POTUS candidates are breathing socialism.
And everyone else that is still in the field are auditioning for vice president or cabinet positions, like Beto O’Rourke and Tulsi Gabbard.
Sheesh, even O’Rourke was overtaken by Andrew Yang according to recent polling from Iowa.
Beto showed what happened to candidates that have a lot of flash, but no substance.
That can also be a lesson to the 14th congressional district Republicans, too.
Some candidates, even with elected public office experience, may lack substance.
Look at Beto O’Rourke, 3 terms in Congress and people quickly saw through him as without substance from his Beto-mania campaign kickoff in March, to behind Andrew Yang now.
With Skillicorn now out of the congressional race, we’ll see which of the 6 remaining candidates have real substance, and see if they have a record to match.
Yup, Angel, the DEM POTUS field and their socialist policy positions is enough to make you giddy, but makes many more people afraid, which may seal President Trump’s 2nd term. Right now, President Trump’s only real threat to a 2nd term is the economy and the inverted bond yield curve that showed itself this week.
Going back to the archives, and in response to Lani Murphy, here is something I wrote last month concerning the field after Allen Skillicorn assessed the 14th congressional district field in early July with a “Skillicorn predicted only three have a chance. Besides himself, he pointed to the two state senators, Jim Oberweis and Sue Rezin…”
To which I responded:
ANALYSIS: While it is easy to dismiss candidates like Danny Malouf and Anthony Catella, despite what both men bring to the table, dissing Ted Gradel and James Marter shows Skillicorn has a lack of depth understanding successful men in the private sector.
Monday night [July 8], when Skillicorn made this assessment was his 45th birthday, so maybe he was doing a “birthday wish” with some wishful thinking when discussing the congressional race.
Skillicorn may be writing off James Marter, despite he is the strongest supporter of President Trump including being a maxed-out donor to the President’s re-election, because of Marter’s two past unsuccessful primary challenges against incumbent Republicans.
That doesn’t take away Marter’s success in business, his record as a party chairman for Kendall County and his patriotism, including attending President Trump’s inauguration.
Ted Gradel is a successful self-made millionaire.
Both men have raised children into adulthood, and Marter’s oldest son was elected as a Republican to a village trustee office earlier this year in Oswego.
Gradel back in May, saw his oldest daughter graduate from the University of Notre Dame, and commissioned into the Army as a 2nd lieutenant, due to her participation in R.O.T.C.
The 14th will be a fun and exciting race, and the next real check point or report card will be in mid-October, when 3rd quarter campaign finance reports are made public.
Protecting Social Security, Medicare and our elections is socialism now.
Is there an issue Republicans are on the popular side of?
Immigration? No.
Gun control? No.
Abortion? No.
Trump’s budget busting corporate tax boondoggle? No.
Add in Trump’s pathetic mishandling of EVERY SINGLE world issue- Iran, Korea, Mexico, Syria, Russia!
No wonder Biden is looking so good.
Robert Gates, who served as Secretary of Defense for both President George W Bush and President Barack Obama, had experiences with VP Joe Biden on various foreign affairs decisions said this about Biden:
“I think he’s been wrong on nearly every major foreign policy and national security issue over the past four decades.”
VP Biden and Obama had made numerous disastrous decisions in foreign affairs, including escalating Obama’s “War of Necessity” in Afghanistan, the too early withdrawl of U.S. troops in Iraq leaving a vacuum that was taken over by ISIS, the decision to go to war in Libya that led to the death of Kadafi and the takeover by ISIS, etc.
Sleepy Joe Biden is an old guy with signs of dementia who was the sidekick for the absolutely worst ever president of the U.S., Barack Obama.
Joe, there is that misconception again, believing that the liberal side is the popular side.
No Joe, protecting Medicare in and of itself, is not socialism.
Transforming Medicare into single-payor Medicare-for-All IS socialism.
Protecting elections?
If you mean the House Democrat-passed H.R. 1 is your definition of protecting our elections, then go back to the drawing board.
And figure out a way to get real bipartisan support.
H.R. 1 passed the House on a straight party-line vote, and the Senate is right to not even bring it to the floor.
Fortunately, some of the good elements of H.R. 1 has provisions in the FY2020 appropriations bills which will be taken up once Congress returns and pass the FY2020 appropriations legislation, after serious negotiations with the Senate.
Thank you expert. Medicare as it is happens to be a single payer system. Stay tuned, tic, tock, tic, tock, tic, tock…
Trump 2020 is looking good tic tock tic tock 🙂
Can’t trust any Democrat on health care or anything for that matter. Their top leader, Barack Obama, had promised many, many times on national tv and videotaped that if Americans liked their health care plans and doctors then they could keep these when the ACA was implemented.
Turns out that the untrustworthy Democrats in Congress, led by Nancy Pelosi, NEVER put in mechanisms or procedures that would allow Americans to KEEP the plans and doctors they liked. When ACA, Obamacare kicked in, about 4 million Americans lost their plans and/or doctors.
Boo hooo. The stock market shall crash and Tronald Dump goes down.