Observations on GOP Debates
GOP gubernatorial candidate Richard Irvin introduced during an NBC 5/Telemundo debate Tuesday. (NBC Chicago)
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OPINION
After watching both debates Tuesday, we had some thoughts:
Richard Irvin and team got exactly what they wanted. A TV debate without their three closest challengers taking swings at them for an hour. He got out of his debate mostly unscathed.
Bailey had very few specifics for a person who has been running for Governor for more than a year. His downstate strategy won’t have enough appeal to suburban voters to win the primary if he doesn’t make a few entreaties to voters north of I-80. He sure didn’t do that last night.
Jesse Sullivan has come 1,000 miles since announcing his campaign last summer. He got into the race not knowing a thing about policy in Illinois and, while he’s still not a wonk, he has actually come up with some policy proposals. He has a charisma on screen that is hard to overlook.
It’s sad to see that Paul Schimpf hasn’t been able to get off the ground. Of any of the six candidates, he knows more about state government than any of them. But since when do qualifications matter?
I doubt a lot of voters sat there and watched two hours of debates, but here are my rankings on performance for the night:
1. Sullivan
2. Schimpf
3. Irvin
4. Bailey
5. Rabine
6. Solomon
