Way back in 1996, I spent a few minutes walking around the Chicago-based Democratic National Convention with then-House Minority Leader Michael Madigan. Madigan at the time was working to regain his chamber’s majority after the 1994 national Republican wave, combined with the Republican-drawn legislative district maps, to knock the Speaker’s gavel out of his hand. But even with his lessened official status, Madigan was still hugely powerful within his party, and he was clever enough that many figured he’d somehow find a way back.