Chicago City Wire

Gov. Pritzker launched his re-election campaign and was asked by NBC5 reporter Mary Ann Ahern why there was zero mention of Chicago in his announcement video. His publicly expressed reasoning was that he has to serve all of Illinois, not just Chicago. But the real reason is Pritzker has embraced a Chicago-style government of high taxes, rampant crime, and unbounded corruption that the rest of Illinois is rejecting.

Chicago has the highest combined state and local tax burden in the nation, but when Pritzker tried to hike taxes on all Illinoisans, his proposal failed because 67% of downstate voters and 58% of voters in the collar counties voted against it. Voters outside of Chicago don’t trust Gov. Pritzker and don't want politicians to have even more power to raise taxes. 

Both Chicago and Illinois have exploding pension debts but no plan for reforms. Just like the Chicago City Council, Gov. Pritzker raised the gas tax, in addition to the other 18 tax and fee hikes passed in his first budget. His only solution to fixing the city and state’s financial mess is more taxes. 

In addition to rejecting these failed high tax and spend policies, Illinois voters fear Chicago’s crime problem. Chicago is on track to have one of its deadliest years in decades, and Chicago Alderman Anthony Napolitano has already issued a warning that Chicago’s crime is spreading to the suburbs: the floodgates are opening as criminals go unpunished. 

64% of Illinoisans say they worry about their safety on a daily basis. Yet Gov. Pritzker championed legislation that critics claim will defund the police and bring the Cook County style of justice to the whole state. So far this year, there have been 32 individuals accused of killing, trying to kill, or shooting someone in Chicago while awaiting trial for another felony. No wonder Pritzker doesn’t want to talk about how Chicago is his model for so-called criminal justice reform. 

Chicago ranks as the most corrupt city in the nation. Ten former and current Aldermen have been indicted in just the past two years, three of which are still in office voting on city business. 

Instead of fighting corruption at the state level, Gov. Pritzker embraced it. From famously ripping out his toilets to get a property tax break to helping prop up former House Speaker Mike Madigan with $7 million in campaign cash, Gov. Pritzker has benefited from Illinois’ culture of corruption. 

The Legislative Inspector General in the statehouse resigned, blasting the Democrat-controlled assembly saying her office “has no real power to effect change or shine a light on ethics violations.” After three years in office, Gov. Pritzker has done little to pass fundamental ethics reforms. 

Chicago is the microcosm of failed, corrupt Democratic governance, and Pritzker has spent the last three years exporting that governance to Springfield. That’s why Gov. Pritzker won’t say the ‘C’ word.