For years, reporters and pundits have said that Illinois House Speaker Michael Madigan preferred Republican governors because Madigan wanted to be the state's most powerful Democrat.
There is some truth to that. Madigan hasn't played well at all with the two Democratic governors whom he's served under as speaker. He battled constantly with Rod Blagojevich, and he's made Pat Quinn squirm time and time again, including holding a press conference during which he repeatedly castigated Quinn for "flip-flopping."
But there was always much more going on than just Madigan's desire to be the absolute top dog. As we've seen time and time again over the decades, Madigan prefers to share the pain of governing with the other party to deflect blame from his own party. It's one way he's held onto power for so long. And it's tough to do that without a Republican governor.