Rauner Slammed by Leading Opinion Voices for Failure to Show Leadership on Guns

WGN’s Walter Jacobson: “Here He Goes Again, Our Governor, Bruce Rauner, Refusing to Take a Position.”

Over the weekend, WGN’s Walter Jacobson and Chicago Tribune’s Dahleen Glanton called out Governor Bruce Rauner for failing to lead on gun violence prevention. Rauner has put great effort into avoiding the issue and often papers over specifics by saying he wants a “good conversation” or that he would be “open to considering changes.” But that’s not good enough for Jacobson, Glanton, or Illinois voters.
To WGN’s Walter Jacobson, this is a reoccurring problem for Rauner:
“Here he goes again, our Governor, Bruce Rauner, refusing to take a position. Or even say what he thinks about the most critical issues. He so often goes quiet on issues, like should Illinois be a sanctuary state for immigrants? How would he implement an Affordable Care Act? What about right-to-life? He’s quiet on all of those. And now on guns.” 
Jacobson says its incumbent on Rauner to say where he stands before next Tuesday’s primary:
He’s asking for our vote. Okay, but before we vote, he ought to tell us what he will do or not do about those weapons. That’s reasonable, isn’t it? Seems reasonable to me.”
The Chicago Tribune’s Dahleen Glanton blasted Rauner for dodging the issue:
“The future of the legislation now rests with Rauner. And we don’t know where he stands. All he’s been willing to say so far is that we need to talk about it some more… That’s a cop-out.”
Glanton calls on Rauner to have the “guts” to show Illinois residents he’s looking out for them:
“In a state where urban gun violence kills or maims thousands of people each year, it would be wonderful to have a governor who isn’t afraid to show us that he’s with us in the struggle to make Illinois one of the safest states in the nation…These would be good, commonsense laws. The people of Illinois deserve this protections. And we deserve a governor who has the guts to make sure we get them.”
What’s Rauner so afraid of?
“By staying silent on gun violence prevention, Bruce Rauner tells the people of Illinois he’s not interested in keeping them safe,”said DGA Illinois Communications Director Sam Salustro. “Rauner’s reluctance to speak out is just another example of his failure to show the leadership required of a Governor. Illinois voters deserve more than what Rauner’s offering.”

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