Juliana Stratton says she’ll fight, not fold, if elected to succeed Durbin

Illinois Lt. Gov. Juliana Stratton believes that the status quo of her party has not served the American people well — and that she’s the Senate candidate to bring the fight needed to Washington, D.C.

“I’m not going to sit on the sidelines,” Stratton said on the latest episode of Politically Speaking. “I don’t shy away from a fight, and everything is at stake right now.”

Stratton has a number of high-profile endorsements by sitting U.S. senators, including Tammy Duckworth of Illinois, Elizabeth Warren of Massachusetts and Tammy Baldwin of Wisconsin, but she still trails in the polls by double digits to U.S. Rep. Raja Krishnamoorthi, D-Schamburg.

She’ll also need to overcome the immense campaign war chest that Krishnamoorthi has built up for the Democratic primary on March 17. A $5 million donation from Illinois Gov. JB Pritzker to the super political action committee that’s supporting her will help.

Stratton’s start

Stratton first got into politics after her mother died battling Alzheimer’s and the state legislature and her representative voted to cut in-home services for seniors.

“I lost my mother the day before I launched that campaign, but it was a reminder that government can and should be a force for good,” she said.

She won her race for state representative in 2016, and Pritzker tapped her as his running mate in 2018.

Stratton said Democrats haven’t fought as aggressively as they should against the Trump administration.

If elected, Stratton said she wouldn’t support Chuck Schumer as leader of Senate Democrats.

“I’m the only candidate, leading candidate, in this race that has made that commitment,” she said. “My opponents have not done so, and I don’t think that’s what Illinois voters are looking for — for people to, again, just keep the status quo going.”

At a recent debate, Krishnamoorthi said he was undecided about Schumer, and another frontrunner, U.S. Rep. Robin Kelly, D-Lynwood, said it would depend on who challenged Schumer.

All three have expressed frustration with Durbin for voting to end last fall’s government shutdown without guarantees to reauthorize subsidies for the Affordable Care Act, which have since expired.

“I believe that we should have held the line and not given away the leverage that we had to fight for people to have health care,” Stratton said.

In her eyes, the Pritzker-Stratton record over the last two terms proves that she’ll bring the fight to Congress. And she cites the state’s credit rating revival from near junk status and further protections for abortion access as the team’s major accomplishments.

Race heats up

Stratton has admonished Krishnamoorthi for accepting donations from donors allied with President Trump. While Krishnamoorthi later donated that cash to immigrant-rights groups, Stratton believes it shows he won’t stand up.

“This is an example of values,” said Stratton, who pledged to not accept PAC money from corporations.

After initially backing a $17-per-hour federal minimum wage, Stratton is now pitching $25. Kelly has called $25 per hour unattainable, but Stratton believes it’s needed and would provide a livable wage.

“I don’t think people are looking for people to say, ‘Well, this is not realistic. I’m not sure if we can get that done,’” Stratton said. “That’s not the fight people are looking for right now. People want bold ideas.”

She’s also committed to backing legislation that would create Medicare for all.

Those two proposals would likely run into a problem with the Senate’s filibuster rule that requires 60 votes — which has been the target of both parties when they are in power.

“I think we need to abolish the filibuster, or at least seriously reform the filibuster,” Stratton said.

Immigration and Customs Enforcement should also be abolished, Stratton said. What exactly would replace ICE is unclear, but Stratton said it’s important to remember that its work existed before the federal agency was created in 2003.

“It doesn’t mean I don’t want secure borders,” she said. “Of course I do, but that’s not what this is.”

While she supports public-private partnerships, Stratton said she’s skeptical of Trump’s efforts to intervene with private business in his second term, as he’s done with a profit-sharing agreement with the chipmaker Nvidia or a “golden share” in U.S. Steel’s deal with Nippon that’s been watched in Granite City.

“I think we need to be very clear on our motives as a government, which is to do what’s best for the people and not for ourselves as elected leaders,” Stratton said.