Michael Quigley (D-Ill.)

U.S. Representative (since April 2009)

(Quigley Campaign)

Why He Matters

The void left by the larger-than-life Rahm Emanuel in Congress will be filled by Quigley, a reform-minded Chicago politician who issues treatises on how government should operate.

Very different in style from the bombastic Emanuel, the former White House chief of staff, Quigley's political focus is also distinct. He still worries that political reforms continue in Cook County, where Chicago is located, and where he served for ten years as a pugnacious commissioner challenging the status-quo. Unfamiliar with Washington, Quigley visited the city only three times before his primary victory. On one of those trips, for the Obama Inauguration, he was left standing in the "tunnel to nowhere" holding a silver ticket. His new friends in Washington assure him that four years from now, he'll have the clout to get a real seat.

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Background

At a Glance

Career History: Cook County Commissioner (1998-present); Adjunct Professor, Loyola University (2002 to present);Attorney, private practice, (1990 to present); Aide to Ald. Bernard Hansen (1983 to 1989)
Birthday: October 17, 1958
Hometown: Indianapolis, Ind.
Alma Mater: Roosevelt University, Bachelor of Arts, Political Science, 1981;University of Chicago, Master's in Public Policy,1985; Loyola University, Law Degree, 1989
Spouse: Barbara
Religion: Attends Catholic services with his wife
Phone: phone...

State Office: Chicago, 773-472-4876 (campaign office), 773-935-1010
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Path to Power

Son of a school teacher and phone company employee,Quigley worked his way through graduate school and law school as an aide to former Chicago alderman Bernard Hansen, part of the regular Democratic organization.

Quigley earned a master's in public policy at the University of Chicago in 1985, and a law degree from Loyola University in Chicago in 1989. While in law school he helped organize the opposition to the Cubs' plans to install lights for night games. Wrigley Field got its lights, but the neighborhood won concessions limiting the number of night games.

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Quigley set up a neighborhood office practicing general law and in 1991, ran for alderman himself,against incumbent Helen Shiller, a firebrand and critic of Chicago's Mayor Richard M. Daley (D) at the time. Daley financially backed Quigley, but he lost.

In 1998, he set his sights on county government, which operates a public hospital, and funds county-wide agencies that serve Chicago and nearby suburbs. This time Quigley ran as an independent, saying it would be "hypocritical "to seek machine endorsement for his reform agenda.

Cook County Commissioner

Quigley is one of the feistiest commissioners Cook County has seen. Chicago Sun-Times columnist Mark Brown called him "an odd mix of policy wonk and street fighter." His scrappy nature and sincere outrage over wasting taxpayers' dollars led to pitched battles with board presidents John Stroger (D), and later his son Todd Stroger (D), over political patronage, tax hikes and bloated budgets. Fellow County Commissioner Forrest Claypool (D) says "Mike went on the board and wouldn't be silenced." Quigley's athleticism mirrors his political style. At 50, he still competes in a men's hockey league, claiming to have had 300 stitches over the years. "He mucks it up in the corners and isn't afraid to go out there whether on the ice or in politics, and get his nose bloody," says friend and political consultant Peter Giangreco.

Relationship With Mayor Richard M. Daley

"He's not afraid of the political consequences of challenging people more powerful than he is," says Claypool. One of those consequences was a chilly relationship with Mayor Richard M. Daley (D), whom Quigley blamed for single-handedly dishing out hundreds of millions of dollars in tax funds (called "tax increment financing") to favored developers.It is one of those policy wonk issues Quigley is famous for, but despite the enormous costs punted to all other taxpayers, it's an issue that got little traction.

Observers such as veteran Chicago political consultant Phil Krone say Quigley's relocation to Washington should please Mayor Daley. "I'm sure that the Mayor is happy to have him out of town because he's not going to be a thorn in the Mayor's side anymore." Since Quigley's primary victory, they're talking more. At the mayor's invitation, Quigley visited City Hall to discuss priorities such as increased federal funding for mass transit, O'Hare Airport, and Chicago's desire to host the 2016 Summer Olympics. Quigley says his relationship with Daley is "all good now."

In 2005, both Claypool and Quigley wanted to run for county board president. They would have split the reform vote so Quigley put his ambitions on hold to back Claypool, who had raised more money. "It's a tough time for me, because in this business we all have considerable egos," Quigley said at the time. But in a strange set of circumstances, John Stroger won the primary, despite suffering a debilitating stroke, and was later replaced by his son Todd. Soon, Quigley was tangling with the second generation Stroger over strikingly similar issues.

In the March 3, 2009 congressional primary, the Democratic and labor establishment endorsed two other better-financed candidates over Quigley. "It was Mike, really, against the world," said Claypool. But both Chicago newspapers endorsed Quigley and his reputation for standing up to machine politics in Cook County resonated with voters, says consultant Pete Giangreco.,

The Issues

Though he supports President Obama's stimulus package, Quigley is worried about the huge amount of deficit spending envisioned. He doesn't advocate using the funds for short-lived projects such as road paving, but would rather invest in improvements to public transit and reduce the need for fuel-intensive road travel in the long term. Environmental policy, more than any other issue, drives Quigley's political ambitions. "It's the issue that got me here." If given a choice, he'd like to be assigned to the House Committee on Energy and Commerce, to work on fuel-economy issues and the like.

While hoping to establish a reputation in Washington as a watchdog, Quigley is not entirely prepared to "reinvent" Congress if his reluctance to tackle the sacred cow issue of Congressional earmarks is any guide. "It's very hard to go back to your district and say, I'm not going to help you with any of these projects." But he agrees there should be a more orderly procedure for determining deserving earmarks. "There has to be an open process where that is sorted out."

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Quigley has pledged to post campaign donations on his Web site as quickly as possible, rather than make the public wait for the Federal Elections Commission to release them. And if any come in from tobacco, pharmaceutical, gas, or oil interests, he intends to return them, because he says he doesn't like how their industries do business. He also accepted Chicago Sun-Times reporter Lynn Sweet's challenge, and agreed to allow reporters to cover future fundraisers.

Past Reform Agenda

As Cook County commissioner, Quigley hoped to streamline government, and wrote a 145-page report entitled "Reinventing Cook County." Quigley argued the county would never be able to control spending or tax increases until it eliminates duplication of services such as health and policing, now provided by overlapping town and county jurisdictions. His proposals made him the darling of editorial writers, but enemies of the unions, the sheriff's department,and other county officials who feared job cuts.

A coalition of like-minded county commissioners formed after the 2002 election had some success blocking routine rubber-stamping of big budgets and tax increases, but more recently lost a fight against higher sales taxes.

On other issues, he was able to work with Republicans and conservatives to pass measures that, for example, extended health benefits to domestic partners of Cook County employees. "He's been an extraordinarily effective legislator," says fellow Cook County Commissioner Forrest Claypool Claypool, crediting Quigley with reforms in the areas of gay rights, ethics, disclosure, green building, forest preserve management, "and the list goes on and on."

"I admire his courage and independence. It's a trait so difficult for an ambitious politician to maintain. The temptation is always to accommodate. And despite that he's been able to advance," said Claypool.

The Economy

Quigley calls the government financial bailout strategya failure because it didn't restart bank lending, and he wants a better accounting of stimulus spending. "I will push for transparency so that the American people can see exactly how their money is being spent and to whom it has been given, "he says on his Linkedin profile.

But in general, Quigley applauds Obama's response to the recession. "Under extraordinary circumstances, I think he's doing a great job."

The Network

Quigley's network of political allies is limited. The only elected officials who supported him in the Congressional primary were Cook County Commissioner Forrest Claypool and Cook County Assessor James Houlihan.

Additional Resources

"Crushing defeat for Stroger," by Abdon M. Pallasch, Chicago Sun Times, December 10, 2003
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tYDJ_z7TKk8
Mike Quigley press availability at DNC headquarters in Washington, March 17, 2009
"TIF Reform Hits the Wall," Chicago Tribune, October 9, 2006
http://www.commissionerquigley.com/library/reinventingpart1.pdf,
"Quigley's case for Congress has kernel of truth; Tough policy wonk could be good fit for Emanuel's seat," by Mark Brown, Chicago Sun-Times, November 16, 2008
The Almanac of American Politics, 2008
Email from press secretary Billy Weinberg, March 23, 2009
Whorunsgov.com interview with Mike Quigley, March 17, 2009
http://www.linkedin.com/in/mikequigleyforcongress
"Ald. Shiller sweeps out old image," by John Kass, Chicago Tribune, Sept. 23, 1990
"Whole county may profit from this prophet's choice," by Mark Brown, The Chicago Sun-Times, December 20, 2005
Mike Quigley: biography and questionnaire, Chicagotribune.com, Feb. 9, 2009
McCormick, John, Chicago.com, "Quigley claims victory in race to replace Rahm Emanuel," April 7, 2009
Whorunsgov.com interview with Cook County Commissioner Forrest Claypool, March 19, 2009
Whorunsgov.com interview with Chicago political consultant Peter Giangreco, March 19, 2009
Youtube.com
"Gay marriage is in our future, like it or not," by Mark Brown, The Chicago Sun-Times, July 2, 2003
Whorunsgov.com interview with Chicago political consultant Phil Krone, March 19, 2009
"Daley flattens his opposition; Mayor now in a position to exert national influence," by Thomas Hardy, Chicago Tribune, April 3, 1991
http://www.commissionerquigley.com/library/reinventingpart2.pdf