Rauner attacks Pritzker in new ad about toilets: 'royal flush of tax avoidance'

The campaign for governor went into the toilet Tuesday.

In a new attack ad, Governor. Bruce Rauner ridiculed something his Democratic challenger did with toilets in a Gold Coast mansion.

Property taxes are suddenly center stage in the battle between Illinois’ two super-rich candidates for governor.

“He's a cheater on his taxes. And he's a tax hiker,” Rauner said about challenger JB Pritzker.

To drive home his new message, the Republican incumbent took Democrat Pritzker right into the toilet with a new campaign ad.

“Pritzker spent millions on his second Gold Coast mansion, then took out the toilets…to dodge hundreds of thousands in property taxes Pritzker removed every single toilet from his multi-million dollar second home and claimed it as uninhabitable...a royal flush of tax avoidance…lower taxes for him, higher taxes for you,” Rauner’s ad said.

The governor's ad cited reporting by the Tribune last year. Pritzker responded with a spot on the nine homes Governor Rauner owns. He allegedly benefited from 22 separate appeals for property tax reductions, though Rauner claims it wasn't his doing -- that others, such as homeowners’ associations, sought the tax breaks.

Pritzker's ad also ripped Rauner for proposing that suburban and downstate school districts pay a share of their teacher pensions, which the complaint could force a billion-dollar increase in property taxes.

“Lawmakers from both parties criticized the idea, calling it the largest property tax hike in Illinois history. Bruce Rauner -- four years of failure is enough,” Pritzker’s ad said.

Rauner tried another new tactic Tuesday. He grew up well-to-do on the North Shore and now has a net worth in the hundreds of millions of dollars. But he repeatedly told reporters, "my grandparents lived in a double-wide," contrasting that with Pritzker, who he said a half-dozen times, "inherited billions."