Screw popcorn, this requires a good Chicago-style deep dish pizza:
State Treasurer Dan Rutherford "contended Friday that his opponent, millionaire businessman Bruce Rauner, paid an attorney who demanded $300,000 from him on behalf of a Rutherford employee making allegations against him."
According to the Chicago Sun-Times, the allegations were made last week by a treasurer's office employee whose attorney, Rutherford said, is Christine Svenson, who was paid $3,500 by Rauner's campaign last July 30.
Svenson allegedly made the demand for a settlement in a conversation with the treasurer’s lawyer on Jan. 23. Rutherford says Svenson promised that a $300,000 payment would ensure “we will walk away and keep it under wraps.”
I'll update later this afternoon as this fleshes itself out (sorry for any unfortunate imagery that may conjure up), but check out the Sun-Times and the (always indispensable) Capitol Fax Blog's
story and live feed.
Update: Here's the Chicago Tribune's story.
Of course, with the latest sewage flowing out of New Jersey and the season's 4,492nd snowstorm bearing down on us tonight and tomorrow, and then the Superb Owl on Sunday (four Badgers in the game; suck on that, Michigan & Ohio State), this story will be buried for the weekend. Next week, though? We'll wait and see.