Gov Pat Quinn, Democrat of Illinois, has chosen Paul Vallas to be his running mate as lieutenant governor in next year’s gubernatorial election, the Chicago Tribune reports. The choice “could provide (Gov Quinn’s) 2014 ticket with (the) financial and educational gravitas needed to counter an anticipated push by Republicans who need to regain the Executive Mansion to rebuild their brand,” the paper’s reporters Rick Pearson and Ray Long wrote.
That judgment might be in error.
Mr Vallas was the first CEO of Chicago Public Schools. His tenure began in 1995, and after he was done ushering in an era of standardized tests and charter schools in Chicago, he moved on to New Orleans, then to Philadelphia, and then to Bridgeport, Conn., where he was judged, by a lower court, ineligible to serve as superintendent of schools.
His appeal in Bridgeport is pending before the state’s Supreme Court, but a few bits of his trial come to mind:
- He testified under oath that he was a resident of Connecticut
- He paid in-state tuition at the University of Connecticut
Paying in-state tuition at UConn isn’t a legal basis for a residency challenge, I suppose, but it is evidence of a mindset, on Mr Vallas’s part, that he abandoned his Illinois residency. He was ordered to take a class at UConn in school leadership because the state found he didn’t meet the requirements to be a school superintendent. But some reports suggested he didn’t actually attend the classes, even though he paid the tuition. It was kind of a way of buying eligibility, I suppose, instead of earning it.
And keep in mind, Mr Vallas’s appeal is still pending on the case, but the testimony described above is not part of the grounds for appeal. If he did indeed give up his Illinois residency and testify, under oath, that he was no longer a resident of the state of Illinois, the three-year law in the Illinois constitution would have to come into play. Candidates for a statewide office, such as lieutenant governor, must be Illinois residents for three years before their election, the constitution says.
I suppose, also, that the Tribune will eventually dig into their archives and follow up with the Times-Picayune in New Orleans, the Inquirer in Philly, and certainly the Hartford Courant in Connecticut, which falls under the same ownership as the Tribune. When they do, they’ll learn what a mess Mr Vallas made of the school districts in these cities. One’s performance as a school leader doesn’t necessarily provide any clues to how one will do as a lieutenant governor, but we have to question this choice.
A blunder or madness with a method?
I think this is a monumental blunder. I have often asked myself why politicians going for the top job make blunders this bad. For example, did John McCain really want to become president of the US? What do you think? Here is a venerable war hero, a great American, a lover of all people and of this country, a man who would reach across the aisle without blinking a political eye. Why on earth would such a superior man want to be president? Or more specifically, why would he want to run for president and become the target of vicious attacks, privacy invasion, and other evils that come with the territory of national elections? If I were such a man, I would want my record to stand right where it was and keep up the good fight from my seat, all but secured, in the US Senate.
So, what did John McCain do? He brought on Sarah Palin, who was unknown on the national level and even to Mr McCain himself. This move was seen by Republicans and Democrats alike as the undoing of any chance he had to win the election. Yes, Barack Obama, a junior senator from Illinois, had a date with destiny at the time, but the naming of Sarah Palin as a running mate was a clear blunder.
Is Mr Quinn doing a John McCain? Since he has taken office, Illinois has become increasingly difficult to govern. People like the state and like living in the state less than they did when he took office, despite the corruption in Rod Blagojevich’s governor’s office. My family, in fact, has advised me not to move back to Illinois, even if my job in Maryland should be lost. “It’s not the same as it was when you left,” they say, and I left only about seven years ago.
Is it possible that Mr Quinn simply wants to end the struggle, to go out as he signs gay marriage into law, or to throw in the proverbial towel while still putting on a good fight? It’s a possibility. If I were the man who took over for a governor who’s now serving time in federal prison for what he did as governor and I had ushered in marriage equality, I might seriously want to call it a career. Who wants the evils that the election will bring? I would ask. And believe me, once a few media outlets find out what Mr Vallas has been up to around the country, the candidacy of the incumbent governor is going to be a tough sell.
Mr Quinn, it has been an honor to write about your initiatives over the past few years, including the law that requires schools to carry catastrophic injury insurance for student-athletes and the moratorium on virtual charter schools. These laws, which move our schools and students in the right direction, are a testament to your positive thoughts about education, and I hope more are in the making in this year before the gubernatorial primaries and election. I will enjoy writing about those as well. However, I cannot see your re-election with Paul Vallas on your ticket, and I wish you well in your future, whatever that may be.
