Potential Ill. gov candidates gather at convention
DENVER — Mayoral brother Bill Daley has arrived at the Democratic National Convention, adding a fifth (at least) potential candidate for Illinois governor to the mix here.
Even as they all profess to be completely focused on being “cheerleaders for Barack Obama,” Illinois Democrats are jockeying to run for governor; to get the appointment to replace Barack Obama as senator if he wins the presidency; even to succeed retiring Illinois Senate president Emil Jones.
Daley, who served as President Bill Clinton’s secretary of commerce and is now Midwest Chairman of J.P. Morgan Chase, said he was at the Democratic National Convention to cheer on Obama, and he did not want to talk about the 2010 governor’s race.
“January” he said, trying to get back to his breakfast. “I’m going to talk about it next year in a serious way.”
Illinois Democrats gathering here every day for breakfasts and cocktail parties have been very encouraging to him, Daley said.
“People are always nice to us, we are very fortunate,” Daley said. “It’s nice of people to say that, but I’m not going to worry about things of next year till next year.”
Three of the top Democratic prospects to run for governor — Attorney General Lisa Madigan, Comptroller Dan Hynes and Treasurer Alexi Giannoulias — all spoke in rapid succession at the convention Monday.
Madigan likewise said she would make no decision until after the presidential election. She said she found it “a bit strange” that Gov. Rod Blagojevich would not be flying in until later today, then leaving before the convention is over. The governor has feuded with most of the top Democrats in the state.
“It’s certainly something I’m thinking about,” Madigan said of the governors race. “I’m not going to be supporting Gov. Blagojevich for a third term. I think we need better leadership in the state of Illinois. ... It’s not news.”
Asked about Blagojevich’s criticism of her father, House Speaker Mike Madigan, for not attending an Illinois delegation event with Blagojevich, Madigan replied, “I’m not part of their fight, so go find them.”
Giannoulias denied the speeches by himself, Madigan and Hynes on Monday night were a “test run” for the 2010 Democratic governor’s primary. Lt. Gov. Pat Quinn, who protested outside a recent Blagojevich speech, is also a potential candidate.
As for the “Who’ll replace Obama?” sweepstakes, Blagojevich’s Veterans’ Affairs Director Tammy Duckworth and Democratic congressmen Jan Schakowsky, Jesse Jackson Jr., Danny K. Davis and Luis Gutierrez are among those who have been mentioned. Jones threw a new name in for consideration, Obama’s replacement in the state senate, Kwame Raoul.
“You always have people who are self-promoting themselves,” Jones said. “You have Kwame Raoul — he isn’t self-promoting — a very fine young man.”
The decision of who replaces Obama will be entirely up to Blagojevich. He will be hosting a reception for Duckworth tonight.
And finally, in the race to replace Jones, Democratic state senators John Cullerton of Chicago, Jeff Schoenberg of Evanston, James Clayborne of Downstate Belleville and Terry Link of Vernon Hills are all spending quality time with their fellow state senators.