Few people would ever accuse J.B. Pritzker of being a Republican. Illinois' billionaire two-term governor has become one of the country's most prominent Democrats through his support for the state's bail-reform law and efforts to raise the minimum wage, as well as his willingness to clap back against often-personal criticism from President Trump and members of his Administration.
Yet when Republican leaders and delegates arrived in Dallas for this week's first-ever national midterm party convention, there was J.B. Pritzker ... appearing with members of Texas' Democratic Party to serve as a counterpoint to the program on the dais at the American Airlines Center.
Political observers have suggested the Republican confab was an effort to energize supporters as GOP lawmakers face headwinds caused by higher gas prices, the status of American military action against Iran, and general issues of affordability. The President tried to serve as cheerleader-in-chief during his appearance Wednesday night, promising each American adult $5,000 if Republicans hold onto control of the House and Senate ... a premium that would cost the country more than a trillion dollars (that's $1,000,000,000,000.00) if Congress were to approve it as required by the Constitution.
"Donald Trump is hoping a flashy primetime event will make you forget that, well, his trade war is killing costs for families," Gov. Pritzker said ahead of Wednesday night's convention program. "Voters can see through the BS that Republicans are spewing."
The governor's appearance in Dallas wasn't exactly out of left field. When Texas Democrats sought to deprive that state's Legislature of a quorum as it considered re-drawing Congressional districts to increase Republican representation in Washington, they came here to Illinois, where Gov. Pritzker greeted them warmly.
However, reporters asked the governor about his decision to travel to Texas as he seeks a third term, and as his name is bandied about as a potential Democratic Presidential candidate in 2028. "I'm running for re-election in Illinois. I absolutely could be in Illinois right now," he said, before suggesting that doing what he can to help Democrats take control of Congress will be good for Illinois and the country. "I'm really glad to be here with our Texas Democrats."
As the governor parried questions about his decision to come to Texas in the middle of his re-election bid, his Republican opponent, former state Sen. Darren Bailey, was also in Dallas ... as a convention attendee.
"There's a lot of really great conversations that are happening down here," Bailey's running mate, Aaron Del Mar, told me this week in a telephone conversation from his hotel room in Dallas. Del Mar said he and Sen. Bailey were talking to leaders from other states to see what policy solutions ... from inflation to data centers ... could be applied to Illinois.
And he had pointed criticism of Gov. Pritzker's decision to serve as a foil to the Republican roundup: "Democrats like to try to shift the conversation to the President rather than addressing the challenges in their home state, and I think J.B. Pritzker is a great example of that."
One of the party's other Illinois standard-bearers, U.S. Senate candidate and former party chief Don Tracy, stayed home from the convention, choosing instead to step up his campaign against Democratic nominee and current Lt. Gov. Juliana Stratton. Skipping the GOP gathering could make it easier for Tracy to run away from President Trump, which might be critical if gas prices continue their post-Iran rise.
But creating daylight between the President and the Bailey-Del Mar ticket could be harder with their presence in Dallas, especially as the Pritzker campaign floods the zone with commercials tying his Republican opponents to the occupant of the White House. To illustrate the challenge Republicans across the country may face when running under the banner of what's become known as the Party of Trump, I asked Del Mar whether Sen. Bailey was hoping to come away from the convention with a Presidential endorsement, which he had in 2022.
"Not really," he replied. "That's not on our radar."
However, their trip to Dallas is certainly on Gov. Pritzker's radar, and he has the resources to make sure it registers as more than a "blip" in November.
