Gloves off again as Pritzker, Bailey face off for final gubernatorial debate
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CHICAGO (CBS) -- In three weeks, voters from across the state will decide the next governor of Illinois.
On Tuesday night, Democratic Gov. JB Pritzker and Republican challenger state Sen. Darren Bailey faced off for their final debate at WGN-TV Channel 9 studios, 2501 W. Bradley Pl.
Many people believe Bailey won the first debate between the candidates two weeks ago – possibly putting more pressure on Gov. Pritzker to make his points and even fight back.
The candidates traded barbs and brickbats throughout the debate – with each repeatedly making accusations against the other about what kind of policies they really supported. There were also several interruptions and demands to make rebuttals, in particular from Bailey.
Early in the debate, Bailey said he will now begin calling Chicago "Pritzkerville." He said the city is suffering from Pritzker's policies that have resulted in "out-of-control crime, devastated education, the fact that corporations are patching up and leaving every day."
"Chicago is the nightmare called Pritzkerville, and it's still two weeks from Halloween," Bailey said.
This came just after Pritzker called Bailey a "Trump extremist" who opposes abortion and "thinks it's okay to force a 13-year-old rape victim to give birth, and who also wants to "throw Chicago out of Illinois."
Following up after Bailey's "Pritzkerville" comment, Pritzker said: "Darren Bailey just showed us that he has no plan to address crime in Chicago. He wants to throw Chicago out of Illinois – calls it a hellhole."
Pritzker said crime went up across the nation during the pandemic, and he has worked to fight crime by increasing the number of Illinois State Police troopers, creating state-of-the-art crime labs, and eliminating the state rape kit backlog.
Bailey went on to claim again that the Illinois Safe-T Act would result in the release of dangerous prisoners. He was also asked about his visit to the scene of a mass shooting in Washington Park. Bradley asked Bailey about victims of color when it comes to violence in Chicago, and what the expression "Black Lives Matter" means to him.
Bailey replied that the expression means "every life matters," accused Pritzker of "creating so much division and hate in this state with racial ideas and ideologies."
Pritzker retorted that it was Bailey who has "surrounded himself with racist, homophobic, xenophobic people and organizations – including Donald Trump." Pritzker said Bailey will not stand up for Black and brown people.
On abortion, Bailey said Democrats have a had a stranglehold on legislative process for decades and still do – and said he could not pursue changes to Illinois abortion law by executive order or in any other way in the current political climate.
Pritzker replied: "Darren Bailey wants to ban abortion in Illinois. He wants to jail doctors and jail women who are seeking to exercise reproductive rights."
There was a podium set up for candidates to take other questions after the debate. Gov. Pritzker did, while for the second time, Bailey ducked out.
As CBS 2 Political Investigator Dana Kozlov reported, the debate came a day after a new poll provided a window into what's on the minds of voters – including what issues are important to them.
Both debates have made clear that Pritzker and Bailey do not see eye-to-eye, and are not afraid to say as much. When they faced off two weeks ago at Illinois State University, Bailey called Pritzker an "arrogant liar," while Pritzker called Bailey a "hypocrite."
The poll from the Illinois Broadcasters Association included 1,000 registered voters and has a margin of error of +/-3.1%.
A total of 49.7 percent of respondents reported they would vote for the Democrat Pritzker, 27.7 percent said they would vote for Republican Darren Bailey, and 6.3 percent said they would vote for Libertarian Party candidate Scott Schluter. A total of 12.6 percent reported they did not know or have not decided, 3.6 percent said they would choose none of the above, and 0.1 percent said they would choose another candidate than those listed.
A total of 45.9 percent of respondents said they had a favorable view of Gov. Pritzker, compared with 36.1 percent with an unfavorable view and 12.3 percent with a neutral view. For Bailey, 38.1 percent of respondents had an unfavorable view, while 27.1 percent had a favorable view and 17 percent had a neutral view.
Bailey has said crime, taxes, and education are the issues that matter to voters. According to the poll, he is definitely right on the first two.
In terms of the most important issues in the gubernatorial race, 41 percent of respondents ranked Illinois finances, taxes, or spending. Crime followed at 39.1 percent, jobs and the economy at 36.5 percent, gun control at 28.9 percent, health care at 28.2 percent, women's rights at 22.5 percent, Roe v. Wade being overturned at 19 percent, education at 15.7 percent, immigration at 14.1 percent, racial equality issues at 11 percent, drug abuse at 7.9 percent, and national politics at 5.7 percent.
Respondents were allowed to choose up to three issues.
The main issues of concern to voters in the poll all involve money and safety.
Pritzker, Bailey each find something they admire about each other
After some other heated questions, the moderators asked Pritzker and Bailey each to identify one thing they admire about their opponent. Each man did find an answer.
"Governor Pritzker, I'm going to be honest with you – you look awesome," Bailey said. "I like your suits. You look good in them."
Bailey said he hoped Pritzker would take him suit shopping when the race was over.
To Bailey, Pritzker said, "I admire the fact that you married your high school sweetheart; that you've been together for 30 years. That shows deep commitment. That's something that I feel strongly about as well."
Pritzker defends record on cannabis program, DCFS
Moderators Materre and Bradley then asked the candidates about cannabis policies, and the issuing of cannabis business licenses. Bailey – who voted against the legalization of recreational marijuana – was asked whether he would seek to reverse the decriminalization of cannabis.
"Nope, I don't see that happening," Bailey said. "That's not on my priority list."
But Bailey took Pritzker to task for the fact that Black and brown entrepreneurs have been waiting for years to get cannabis business licenses under the state's social equity program.
Pritzker said it was ironic that Bailey is complaining about how Illinois cannabis policies are being carried out when Bailey does not even support legal marijuana, and said work toward equity for Black and brown entrepreneurs in the cannabis industry is moving ahead.
The moderators also addressed the fact that Illinois Department of Children and Family Services Director Marc Smith has been held in contempt of court 12 times over the failure to place children in state care.
Pritzker said for 20 years, the DCFS was underfunded and understaffed, and the directors kept changing – with 13 directors over 12 years. He said past governors did not want to fix the structural problems at DCFS, but rather just wanted to pass the buck.
Pritzker noted that he had brought in experts from Chapin Hall at the University of Chicago and the Annie E. Casey Foundation to train everybody up and down a the DCFS, and also pursued hiring at the organization.
But he said fixing the institutional problems at the DCFS is not like "flipping a switch." He added that firing Smith would not accomplish anything, and the problems in the organization have to be addressed directly in a way past governors did not.
Pritzker said the state needs to "do more than throw money" at the DCFS, and said Smith should have been fired.
"What does that tell us about our children and Governor Pritzker's desire to care for them?" Bailey said. "(Smith) should have been fired years ago."
Bailey calls education 'embarrassment' in Illinois, Pritzker takes him to task
Bailey was also asked how he would get more people to become teachers in Illinois. He responded by calling education in Illinois a national embarrassment, and said Illinois schoolchildren cannot read or do math at grade level, and also claiming that Pritzker supports a "radical woke curriculum."
Pritzker said he has added 5,000 more teachers in Illinois as governor, and the teacher shortage is the lowest in a decade. He claimed that Bailey wants to "defund" education.
Bailey went on to claim that "critical race theory" is taught in Illinois schools, which Pritzker said it is not.
However, the moderators did note that Illinois now requires the teaching of social-justice oriented subjects such as Asian American history and LGBTQ history, and there has also been a change to the sex education curriculum. Pritzker noted that parents can opt out of the sex education curriculum.
When asked what Illinois' involvement should be in education, he said, "We should set standards for our schools all across the state and make sure that they are, in fact, teaching to that standard."
Bailey says he would not be able to change abortion policies
Moderator Micah Materre of WGN-TV later asked Bailey directly about his claim that he was not able to seek a change to abortion laws in Illinois.
Bailey attacked Pritzker for approving of "children getting abortions without their parents knowing anything about it," which Bailey called "extreme." He went on to veer off the topic of abortion and claimed Pritzker supported a "gender curriculum" that amounts to "woke ideology."
Bailey also claimed the Pritzker Family Foundation is the primary sponsor for "experimental gender surgery in children's hospitals." Pritzker said this is not true.
Materre asked Bailey to get back on topic. Bailey said Democrats have a had a stranglehold on legislative process for decades and still do – and said he could not pursue changes to Illinois abortion law by executive order or in any other way in the current political climate.
Pritzker replied: "Darren Bailey wants to ban abortion in Illinois. He wants to jail doctors and jail women who are seeking to exercise reproductive rights."
Pritzker went on to emphasize that he is a strong and longtime activist for abortion rights, and wants Illinois to remain a haven for those seeking safe abortions.
Bailey, Pritzker spar on crime, social justice issues
Bailey went on to claim again that the Illinois SAFE-T Act would result in the release of dangerous prisoners.
The controversial SAFE-T Act would get rid of cash bail for many offenses. Pritzker said he is open to reviewing the bill.
"As you know, I support the SAFE-T Act," Pritzker said. "Again, we ought to amend it appropriately, and make sure that we're ending cash bail while keeping murderers, rapists, domestic abusers in jail."
Bailey was also asked about his visit to the scene of a mass shooting in Washington Park. Bradley asked him about victims of color when it comes to violence in Chicago, and what the expression "Black Lives Matter" means to him.
Bailey replied that the expression means "every life matters," accused Pritzker of "creat(ing) so much division and hate in this state with racial ideas and ideologies." He added that Pritzker would not go to the scenes of shootings in struggling Chicago neighborhoods like Washington Park like he himself did.
Pritzker retorted that it was Bailey who has "surrounded himself with racist, homophobic, xenophobic people and organizations – including Donald Trump." Pritzker said Bailey will not stand up for Black and brown people.
Pritzker said he himself has not only invested hundreds of millions of dollars into the neighborhoods of Chicago, but also has the most diverse administration in Illinois history.
Bailey went on to accuse Pritzker of supporting "gender issues" that are "extreme." He also complained that Pritzker repeatedly brings up protecting abortion rights in Illinois, when Illinois already has the "most permissive abortion laws in the nation."
"I couldn't change it if I want to," Bailey said of Illinois abortion laws.
Pritzker said Bailey says he does not support legal abortion, yet also claims he cannot change the law when he can – and asked which one Bailey really believes.
Bailey later blamed a lack of security at the southern U.S. border for "gang violence, drug trafficking, sex trafficking."
He said Illinois should "get rid of this sanctuary state status so law enforcement can do their job and start reining in gang activity."
Pritzker noted that he was the first governor in nine years to fund the gang witness protection program, and also reiterated that he has increased the number of ISP troopers.
Bailey calls Chicago 'Pritzkerville'
Debate moderator Tahman Bradley of WGN-TV Channel 9 noted Sen. Darren Bailey's past endorsement of kicking Chicago out of Illinois, and calling Chicago a "hellhole" and the "OK Corral." Bradley asked Bailey what his message to Chicago was given those remarks.
"To let the people know that help is on the way and things can be better," he said, adding that just after he called Chicago a "hellhole" at WGN-TV studios, "Walking Man" Joseph Kromelis was set on fire downtown.
Bailey said he will now begin calling Chicago "Pritzkerville." He said the city is suffering from Pritzker's policies that have resulted in "out-of-control crime, devastated education, the fact that corporations are patching up and leaving every day."
"Chicago is the nightmare called Pritzkerville, and it's still two weeks from Halloween," Bailey said.
This came just after Pritzker called Bailey a "Trump extremist" who opposes abortion and "thinks it's okay to force a 13-year-old rape victim to give birth, and who also wants to "throw Chicago out of Illinois."
Following up after Bailey's "Pritzkerville" comment, Pritzker said: "Darren Bailey just showed us that he has no plan to address crime in Chicago. He wants to throw Chicago out of Illinois – calls it a hellhole."
Pritzker said crime went up across the nation during the pandemic, and he has worked to fight crime by increasing the number of Illinois State Police troopers, creating state-of-the-art crime labs, and eliminating the state rape kit backlog.
