SPRINGFIELD – Yet another Illinois governor says he won’t live in the Executive Mansion, at least for now.

First there was Rod Blagojevich, who said he couldn’t move to Springfield because he didn’t want his daughters to go to school here.

Then there was bachelor Gov. Pat Quinn, who didn’t have a family to blame. He promised to move to Springfield. He never did.

And now, Gov.-elect Bruce Rauner said he can’t move into the 158-year-old manor because it’s in such bad shape.

The basement floods. The roof leaks. The whole house is in disrepair.

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Rauner, who compared the building to his college frat house, said he’s still moving to Springfield despite the condition of the mansion, but he will rent his own place until the mansion gets fixed up. And he’s seeking private funding to renovate the historic building.

Some folks don’t see the importance of a governor living in Springfield.

But imagine the outcry if George W. Bush or Barack Obama refused to live in Washington, D.C., during their presidencies.

Just as Washington is the nation’s capital, Springfield is our state’s seat of government. Whether one chooses to live in Springfield speaks loudly to a governor’s level of engagement.

And, rightly or wrongly, Illinoisans living outside of the Chicago area have interpreted the absence of a chief executive in Springfield as a sign of contempt for downstate Illinois.

The Blagojevich family didn’t help matters any.

Who can forget first lady Patti Blagojevich comments at the Illinois State Fair?

After watching thousands of downstaters teeming about the fairgrounds, the first lady said the state should promote the fair more because nobody knows about it.

Ouch.

And, of course, it was Rod Blagojevich who insisted on nightly flights back to Chicago, in a state plane at taxpayer expense, at time he was warring with the Legislature and calling it into daily special sessions.

It was as if he were saying he was too good to lay his head in the Capital City.

Illinois lacks the cohesive self-identity that other states such as Texas or Florida have. Much of that is because of the state’s sad history of regional infighting.

The last two governors to live in Springfield – George Ryan and Jim Edgar – were downstaters themselves.

For Bruce Rauner, a Chicago-area native, to choose to live in Springfield sends a message of unity.

And that’s one thing Illinois sorely needs.

If only the state’s fiscal situation were as easy to fix as the mansion’s physical condition.

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