Author: jnjhackler

With Kilbride losing his retention race and Anne Burke set to retire, the Madigan Machine is attempting to install Mary K. O’Brien and Elizabeth Rochford to our state’s highest court

Mary K. O’Brien’s and Elizabeth Rochford’s candidacies for the Illinois Supreme Court reflect the latest iteration of one of Illinois’ oldest and saddest political axioms. For decades, there has been one constant catalyst in the election of justices: the Madigan Machine promotes its own.

Case-in-point, the careers of outgoing Chief Justice Anne Burke and former Justice Tom Kilbride, who lost his retention race in a historic judicial election in 2020. Both Burke and Kilbride were backed by the Madigan Machine. 

For decades, the most reliable way of being appointed judge was Mike Madigan and Ed Burke’s stamp of approval. According to a Chicago Tribune article from April 17th, 2011 “Madigan’s List”:

“…Many of those full circuit judges were publicly elected with the help of the Democratic Party that Madigan controls — and the judicial slating committee run by Ald. Edward Burke, 14th. While the party wields overt power in those elections, the process of picking associate judges is touted as a way for talented lawyers to make the bench without bowing to political bosses or wooing uninformed and uninterested voters. But politicking for the coveted associate judgeships is rampant in Chicago’s legal community, and the Tribune found one of the best ways to win a spot is to be on what is widely referred to as ‘Madigan’s list.’”

Now, two more machine judges – Mary K. O’Brien and Elizabeth Rochford – are rising through the ranks of the Madigan Machine, seeking spots on the State’s highest court.

O’Brien was appointed as an Appellate Court Justice during her final year in the Illinois General Assembly after voting with Madigan 93.6% of the time. O’Brien also “Helped Madigan Regain The Speakership,” according to the State-Journal Register article “Wishing for some goodies for public officials in 1998” from December 28th, 1997. O’Brien also received over $200,000 in political contributions from political groups led by Madigan over the course of her career.

Rochford was also appointed, not elected, to her judgeship. Rochford served for over two decades on the Illinois Court of Claims, which has long been noted as a proving ground of political patronage. Rochford has given over $15,000 to indicted machine boss and Alderman Ed Burke since 1999. She also gave Burke $1,500 just a month after Burke was charged with 14 counts of corruption. When asked about the contribution, Rochford justified it, calling Burke “a longtime friend of the family”. 

“Mary K. O’Brien and Elizabeth Rochford are the latest chapter in Illinois’ sad history of Madigan Machine-backed judges rising through the ranks of Illinois’ judicial system. Illinois voters can’t afford any more Madigan-backed judges who block anti-corruption reforms. We must elect justices to our state’s highest court who are loyal to the rule of law and the people of Illinois, not to indicted party bosses like Mike Madigan and Ed Burke,” said Illinois Republican Party Executive Director Shaun McCabe.

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It was another sky-high month for inflation in August as CPI rose to 8.3% from last year, while Illinois families and businesses were once again left to bear the brunt of price increases. Nationwide, grocery prices are up 13.5% from this time last year, the largest increase since March of 1979. The blame lies squarely on the Biden Administration and Congressional Democrats who enabled the Biden-Pelosi spending binge at every turn.

“The Democrats own August’s devastating inflation numbers. Senator Duckworth, Congressman Casten, Congressman Krishnamoorthi, Congressman Foster, and Congresswoman Underwood, all must answer why they’ve supported the Biden-Pelosi inflationary spending binge every step of the way, despite dire warnings from respected Democrat economists that it would cause the very inflation that we’re seeing today,” said Illinois Republican Party Chairman Don Tracy. “We need to elect responsible Republican leadership to Congress this fall and end the Biden-Pelosi inflationary spending binge.”

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Illinois State Senator Michael Hastings continues to blame everyone but himself for his problems, like the inexcusable domestic violence allegations and the taxpayer-funded defense of alleged discrimination and retaliation against a former staffer. Meanwhile, Hastings’ Democratic colleagues have been either completely silent on his alleged misconduct or, in some cases, have even come to his defense.

Senator Napoleon Harris went so far as to defend Hastings, saying in a statement he was, “one of the most upstanding, professional, and honest legislators in the Illinois Senate.”

According to the police report as quoted in WBEZ, Hastings’ wife, “advised on 11-09-2020, Michael battered her, by placing her in a chokehold/neck restraint, and slammed her body into a door multiple times.” What has Hastings himself had to say?

Instead of taking responsibility for these deplorable allegations, Hastings has attempted to deflect time and again.

According to WBEZ, “Records show Hastings called two different police departments and unsuccessfully sought to have his wife arrested and charged two months ago in a dispute over visitation rights. In addition to denying his wife’s allegations of domestic-battery, he also sued south suburban Frankfort for allegedly leaking the report containing those allegations.”

According to the Chicago Tribune last month, Hastings accused the police report of being, “intentionally leaked to the news media in a sinister attempt to influence the elections, hurt me politically by tarnishing my reputation, and turning the divorce around to blame the divorce on me by using these false domestic violence accusations.”

While Hastings and his colleagues dodge and deflect, Illinois taxpayers are left to pick up the tab for his state-funded settlement and legal fees, to the tune of nearly $150,000.

“Senator Hastings’ colleagues should be ashamed of their silence. He has lashed out against everybody while using our tax dollars to do so. It’s time for Illinois Democrats to step up and condemn Hastings for these allegations unbefitting of anyone, let alone a public servant,” said Illinois Republican Party Chairman Don Tracy.

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Candidate for the 13th Congressional District in Illinois Nikki Budzinski has spent her career championing policies that cause tax increases, higher gas prices, and inflation, all of which are the triple threat faced by working families today all across Illinois. Now, Budzinski wants to take her attack on middle-class families a step further, and repeal the 2017 Tax Cuts and Jobs Act.

According to Budzinski’s policy agenda, her top economic priority is repealing the 2017 tax cuts legislation that save Illinois families over $1,000 a year. 

“This is the absolute worst time to raise taxes on Illinois families,” said Illinois Republican Party Chairman Don Tracy. “As families across our state grapple with Gov. JB Pritzker’s high taxes and President Joe Biden’s inflation, the last thing we need in Congress is another tax-and-spend-happy politician. Whether working for Pritzker or Biden, one thing is consistent about Nikki Budzinski – she’s made a career out of championing policies that have caused pain at the pump, higher taxes, and the generationally high inflation that we’re facing today. She will do even more damage if elected to Congress.”

In 2019, while Nikki Budzinski was serving as a Senior Advisor in the Office of the Governor, JB Pritzker signed a $45 million package of bills that doubled the gas tax, while indexing annual gas tax increases to inflation. She was also in a senior role in advocating for Pritzker’s failed tax referendum that would have changed the Illinois Constitution to give politicians more opportunities to raise income taxes. 

In 2021, Budzinski joined the Biden Administration as Chief of Staff to the Office of Management and Budget to – you guessed it – advance higher taxes and higher inflation while turning a blind eye to skyrocketing energy costs. Budzinski led the office that was in charge of implementing Biden’s vision for America that included canceling the Keystone XL Pipeline, which eliminated more than 1,000 great jobs and cut Americans off from much-needed additional energy resources. Budzinski continues to champion the American Rescue Plan, despite dire warnings from respected Democrat economists that it would cause the severe inflation that we are now seeing.

“Nikki Budzinski’s solution to solving the inflation problem she helped create is implementing higher taxes on working families. Central Illinois families cannot afford Nikki Budzinski,” said Chairman Tracy. 

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Illinois State Treasurer Mike Frerichs has a long history of changing his facts. Last week, he lashed out against State Rep. Tom Demmer and the media for repeating comments he made about taxing retirement at the Des Plaines Chamber of Commerce Forum in 2020.

FACT: Frerichs added one argument for the progressive tax is the consideration of taxing retirement income of those who can afford it. 

Daily Herald, June 17, 2020: “Frerichs added one argument for the progressive tax is the consideration of taxing retirement income of those who can afford it. He said he knows people who receive 6-figure yearly pensions and do not pay income taxes, but the current system doesn’t differentiate between them and retirees who barely get by on their savings or pensions.”

“One thing a progressive tax would do is make clear you can have graduated rates when you are taxing retirement income,” he said. “And, I think that’s something that’s worth discussion.”

FACT: Frerichs has been flip-flopping on whether he supports combining the offices of the Comptroller and Treasurer. 

Chicago Tribune, September 21, 2014: “I think his statements on Israel bonds weren’t carefully thought out. It’s been one of the better investments in the state treasurer’s office,” Giannoulias said of Frerichs.

Giannoulias also appeared critical of Frerichs’ back-and-forth on the issue of combining the offices of state treasurer and comptroller. Frerichs had supported the idea, later appeared to back off the position, but then said he was in favor of combining the offices.”

FACT: Rather than taking accountability for his statement on retirement income or repeated flip-flops on the Comptroller’s Office Frerichs said everyone else is lying.

Herald-Whig September 1, 2022: “It is good to hear that Tom Demmer agrees with me in that retirement income should not be taxed and that the comptroller’s office should be folded into the treasurer’s office,” Frerichs said, in an email to The Herald-Whig. “I’ve been saying the same thing for years. Anything that contradicts these statements simply is not true. Anyone who contradicts these statements should be asked, ‘Why are you lying?’

FACT: Frerichs has been supporting a progressive income tax as a way of raising taxes since 2007.

Frerichs introduced his own constitutional amendment to create a progressive income with SJRCA69 in 2007 and followed with two more amendments SJRCA92 and  SJRCA89 in 2008,  SJRCA101 in 2010, SJRCA17 in 2013.

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Republican candidate for U.S. Senate Kathy Salvi announced today that she has accepted the invitation to attend the first Senate debate, hosted by WTTW, WBEZ, and the Chicago Sun-Times. Kathy Salvi called for two additional debates with Senator Duckworth, consistent with the three debates held by Duckworth and then Senator Mark Kirk in 2016 as well as in keeping with Illinois’ “long tradition of monumental political debates,” as said in the Salvi campaign’s press release.

“Senator Duckworth should accept Kathy Salvi’s invitation to debate. Illinois families are facing a triple-threat from Washington; record inflation caused by out-of-control government spending, unprecedented pain at the pump from anti-energy policies, and looming tax-hikes at the worst time. The fate of the US Senate could very well hinge on this seat, and Senator Duckworth owes voters the same transparency that she demanded of her 2016 opponent. She must answer for her support of the reckless Biden administration policies that have fueled gas and groceries inflation, handcuffed US energy producers while enriching foreign energy producers, and hired 87,000 IRS agents to harass Illinois taxpayers,” said Illinois Republican Party Chairman Don Tracy.

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While businesses leave in droves taking thousands of jobs with them, business is booming for J.B. Pritzker. This morning it was revealed by the Better Government Association (BGA) that Governor JB Pritzker’s “blind” trust has the governor’s money in at least a dozen companies with billions in state business.

“A BGA investigation of Pritzker’s holdings — including an examination of his annual economic interest disclosures, thousands of pages of state contracts, corporate filings with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission and the Illinois secretary of state and gubernatorial email communications — shows at least 12 cases large and small in which the governor’s office and the agencies he oversees took action that created a potential conflict of interest for Pritzker,” said the report, “Pritzker’s staff and his campaign office refused BGA requests to provide basic financial reports — full tax returns, a copy of his blind-trust agreement or a detailed accounting of his personal holdings. Pritzker also won’t say when he bought any of the stock or at what price.”

What’s worse is that this isn’t the first time that the investments of Pritzker’s so-called “blind trust” have come under fire.

“Governor Pritzker’s repeated lack of transparency is disturbing. The Governor needs to answer why he has failed to avoid financial conflicts by not telling his trust managers to refrain from investing in state contractors. The Governor, or his trusts, should release all correspondence and documents pertaining to any companies in his ‘blind’ trust that have done business with the state since he became Governor. To do otherwise would be a disservice to the voters of Illinois and to honest and transparent government,” said Illinois Republican Party Chairman Don Tracy.

According to Forbes, Pritzker is worth $3.6 billion, already making him the “richest politician in the U.S.”

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Former Illinois State Treasurer Alexi Giannoulias just can’t seem to shake his past as he attempts his reboot. It’s been twelve years since Giannoulias left the public eye. As he continues his rehabilitation tour hoping voters will forget about his scandal-laden past, let’s recap his greatest hits.

First, there was his mismanagement of Illinois’ college loans savings programs, causing families to lose millions. According to NBC Chicago from January 6, 2010:

Bright Start was supposed to be Alexi Giannoulias’ shining achievement. Instead, the beleaguered fund, which lost more than $150 million through risky Oppenheimer investments, is radiating trouble for the Illinois State Treasurer and his Senate campaign.

Then, there were the loans to mobsters when he was a Senior Loan Officer of Broadway Bank. According to the Chicago Tribune from April 1, 2010:

The family bank of Democratic Senate candidate Alexi Giannoulias loaned a pair of Chicago crime figures about $20 million during a 14-month period when Giannoulias was a senior loan officer, according to a Tribune examination that provides new details about the bank’s relationship with the convicted felons. Broadway Bank had already lent millions to Michael Giorango when he and a new business partner, Demitri Stavropoulos, came to the bank in mid-2004. Although both men were preparing to serve federal prison terms, the bank embarked on a series of loans to them.

As if that wasn’t bad enough, Broadway Bank was later seized by the feds. According to Reuters from April 23, 2010:

Regulators on Friday seized a Chicago bank owned by the family of the Democratic nominee running for the Senate seat once held by President Barack Obama. Broadway Bank was among seven Illinois banks whose failure was announced on Friday. U.S. regulators have seized 15 banks in the past two weeks, as the Federal Deposit Insurance Corp ratchets up efforts to clean up the banking industry.

“Trouble seems to follow Alexi Giannoulias wherever he goes, and it never seems to be his fault if you ask him,” said Illinois Republican Party Chairman Don Tracy. “The Giannoulias family bank loaned money to mobsters when he was a Senior Loan Officer there, and Giannoulias as Treasurer lost millions in college savings loans. Putting Alexi Giannoulias in charge of the Illinois Secretary of State’s Office, where he’d be in charge of 4,000 state jobs, would be like putting an arsonist in charge of the fire department.”

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Illinois State Treasurer Mike Frerichs’ office failed to provide  proper accounting for more than $1.6 billion in state fund deposits according to a report by the Office of the Illinois Auditor General. 

On page 142 the report states:

“The Office of the Treasurer (the Office) had inadequate internal controls over the Office’s Fiscal Officer Responsibilities financial statement adjustment process. During testing of the Statements of Assets and Other Debits, Liabilities and Accountabilities (financial statements), it was determined the Clearing Account Deposits and Deposits in Transit as well as the Agencies’ Deposits Outside the State Treasury accounts were each understated by $1,635,711,097.”

Rather than taking responsibility and addressing the mistake head on, Frerichs’ office said the finding was because of ‘incomplete information given to our office,’ according to Center Square.

“Treasurer Frerichs continues to blame other people for his offices’ mistakes proving that he is not the leader we need to bring financial accountability to Illinois’ reckless tax-and-spend government,” said Illinois Republican Party Chairman Don Tracy. “Frerichs has proven that not only is he a reliable lapdog for J.B. Pritzker’s tax-and-spend agenda, but that he can’t be trusted to manage public tax dollars. Republican Candidate for Treasurer Rep. Tom Demmer is the true financial watchdog Illinois families need and deserve.”

This is not the office’s first financial mishap under Treasurer Frerichs’ watch. As families face rampant inflation and record gas prices, they’ve also been hit hard from Frerichs’ mismanagement of the State’s college savings programs – which have lost millions of dollars in student college savings this year. 

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