Blago Looking to Please His Base

By Amy Hart in News on Dec 7, 2005 6:13PM

As we all know, Governor Blagojevich’s poll numbers are bad, his office is being rocked by scandal, he hates the White Sox, and he will most likely face Republican Judy Baar Topinka in the general election.

So what’s a sitting governor to do in the face of such adversity? Previously Blago has tried to increase his chances or reelection by tackling some issues important to all Illinoisans, most notably with his All Kids insurance program and efforts to increase support for military veterans.

Now it appears he is trying to play to the Democrats who may think he may be a liability to the party and are thinking Topinka is possibly a more viable option, even though voting for a Republican may make them feel sick to their stomachs.

Case in point, earlier this week Blago let around 8,000 non-union state management employees know that they would be getting a four percent pay raise. The raises will cost the state around $14 million, with most of the money coming out of the state’s general checking account. The workers affected had not received a raise for the previous three years Blago has been in office.

Why four percent? Maybe because Topinka just gave her employees a three percent raise. Plus, a lot of chatter regarding Blago’s actions and worker discontent has been coming out of state government offices lately, and offering them a bit more cash might make them less likely to complain to the press.

Blago also recently contacted Senators Obama and Durbin, asking them to seriously question the nomination of Samuel Alito to the Supreme Court. In letters to them, Blago wrote, ''If Judge Alito is elevated to the Supreme Court, the chances of Roe vs. Wade being overturned increase considerably.” Obama and Durbin have both previously expressed reservations about Alito. This move by the governor allows him to cozy up to two popular Illinois Democrats and reach out to progressives and women. And it comes after abortion rights groups challenged Topinka to clarify her pro-choice status.

Will any of this help his chances at reelection? Possibly, but it could also backfire and cause people to think that he is too focused on pandering to voters instead of governing. But in order to win, Blago must convince the disappointed Democrats who supported him in the last election that he is worthy of another term, and that voting for a Republican, even a moderate like Topinka, is a disservice to the party and to Illinois. Retaining Democratic support without looking desperate will be a big challenge.