Neal Earley
Contributor
Neal Earley is a Chicago Sun-Times intern.
State Rep. La Shawn Ford, D-Chicago, called for Pritzker to sign an executive that he says will free up spending to help rebuild African-American communities around the state in the wake of both the COVID-19 pandemic and the looting.
State Rep. Allen Skillicorn said he would “happily” take his recall petition “off the table,” if the governor fixes the problem. But it might not matter what Skillicorn leaves on the table, given the high threshold for a successful recall petition.
The Illinois Senate approved the casino plan 42-14, and it will be sent to Gov. J.B. Pritzker’s desk who has said he’ll sign it. It marked a huge feat for Mayor Lori Lightfoot, who achieved what several Chicago mayors couldn’t.
The wheels were rolling on Friday — all day — on several key issues, including measures to delay property tax payments during the pandemic and allow a ”bridge loan” from the federal government — up to $5 billion — to help fill a revenue gap caused by COVID-19.
Democrats supported the measure saying they worried about a second-wave of the coronavirus suppressing voter turnout for the 2020 election. Republicans contended the bill would make Illinois’ election more vulnerable to fraud.
No mask faceoffs added any drama to Day Two of the special legislative session. State Rep. Darren Bailey, R-Xenia, entered the Bank of Springfield Center wearing a face covering. State Sen. Jim Oberweis, R-Sugar Grove, went a little further, donning a complete face shield.
State Rep. Darren Bailey’s ouster provided some drama in a day marked more by confrontations than legislation. Hours earlier, House Minority Leader Jim Durkin confronted a protester over a sign comparing Gov. Pritzker to Adolf Hitler.
Bailey said not wearing a mask is his way of making Democrats face facts. “These Chicago legislators are making more of a deal of wearing a mask in Springfield than they are about, you know, getting this $7.2 billion deficit that we’re staring at with our budget,” he said.
Mulling an about-face, state Rep. Brad Halbrook and fellow Republican state Rep. Darren Bailey said they won’t commit to wearing masks when the House meets on Wednesday, potentially creating a standoff between them and Illinois House Speaker Mike Madigan.