New Rauner campaign ad includes 11-minute Pritzker-Blagojevich conversation

The re-election campaign of Gov. Bruce Rauner on Thursday released another ad featuring recorded conversations between Democratic gubernatorial candidate J.B. Pritzker and then-Gov. Rod Blagojevich.

The campaign already had released an ad using a one-minute excerpt taken from federal wiretaps during the period investigators suspected Blagojevich of trying to sell the Senate seat being vacated by then President-elect Barack Obama.

The latest ad — 14 minutes long — features what is says is the entire 11-minute chat Pritzker and Blagojevich had.

This ad’s introduction notes that after the earlier commercial, “Pritzker didn’t deny the conversation — he complained what was released wasn’t the full conversation.”

In the latest volley, the campaign now is promising the “full, unedited, original wiretap recordings.”

In response to the new ad, Pritzker campaign spokeswoman Galia Slayen said: “Hundreds of people spoke to the governor at the time and whether Bruce Rauner chooses to buy a 60-second or even a 14-minute negative ad, the fact is JB Pritzker was accused of no wrongdoing. Bruce Rauner is desperately trying to interfere in the Democratic primary because he can’t defend his failed record and because he doesn’t want to face JB Pritzker in November.”

Though it had been known that Pritzker was one of the people Blagojevich considered for the Senate vacancy, the wiretaps showed Pritzker asked Blagojevich to appoint him as state treasurer instead.

“What you will not hear,” the latest ad intones, “is Pritzker rule out an appointment.”

The recordings had been obtained by the Chicago Tribune, which didn’t say how it obtained them.

According to the campaign, the longer ad will air in every major media market in Illinois on Saturday and Sunday.