From the Freedom Caucus:
Gov. Pritzker’s State of the State is more of the same failed policies wrecking our state
Springfield, IL – JB Pritzker once again delivered a hate-filled speech devoid of real policy solutions to address the financial hardships facing millions of Illinois residents, according to the Illinois Freedom Caucus.
State Representative Adam Niemerg (R-Dieterich) said the Governor’s policies are failing the people of Illinois – particularly when it comes to his energy policies that are directly responsible for higher utility bills as a result of his decision to prematurely shutter coal power plants including the cleanest coal burning plant in the nation.
“Governor Pritzker speech today should have been a formal apology to the people of the state of Illinois for his terrible record and his terrible policies,” Niemerg said.
“He is making life harder for the average Illinoisan while spending our state into bankruptcy.
“We need real reform.
“We must repeal CEJA, the Climate and Equitable Jobs Act, and return some sanity to our energy policies to get these prices down for working class families.
“In short, we need a governor to stop pretending he is a serious candidate for president, which he is not, and focus on real issues facing Illinois residents.
“It’s time to get serious about the challenges facing this state.”
Instead of solutions, Gov. Pritzker once again focused his attention on President Trump, stating his proclamations read like the “Lollipop Guild.”
“It is JB Pritzker, it is not Donald Trump who is responsible for spending billions and billions of dollars on illegal immigrants,” said State Senator Andrew Chesney (R-Freeport).
“It is JB Pritzker, not Donald Trump that chose to use covid Relief dollars to create new programs rather than paying down debt.
“It is also JB Pritzker, not Donald Trump who is responsible for Illinois population decline as both taxpayers and businesses continue to flee our state, driving up the tax burden for those of us left, it is JB Pritzker, it is not Donald Trump who raised the gas tax, gave taxpayer funded healthcare to transgenders and illegal immigrants, paid for taxpayer funded abortions and killed school choice tax credit programs, and now it is JB Pritzker and his radical leftists who want to raise income taxes on those people that can easily move while he holds all of his money conveniently in the Grand Cayman Islands.”
Once again, his budget relies on more tax increases in Illinois, the state with the highest combination of state and local taxes in the nation including being the state with the highest property taxes and the third highest motor fuel taxes.
“If this governor actually cared about things being too expensive, he wouldn’t have doubled the gas tax,” said State Rep. Wilhour (R-Beecher City).
“That was one of the first things he did when he got here.
“That’s one of the most regressive taxes there are.
“It disproportionately affects working families, especially in rural parts of the state – parts of the state he doesn’t care about.
“If this governor really cared about things being too expensive, he would take his own new green scam, and he would wad it up and he’d throw it in the trash where it belongs because your energy prices have doubled, tripled, and quadrupled because of this fantasy policy.
“If this governor cared about things being too expensive, he would have been working over the past eight years to get our spending under control and to lower the nation’s highest property taxes.
“His lack of action on the real issues affecting Illinois residents indicate his lack of seriousness in solving these problems for working people.”
Governor Pritzker continues to show how out of touch he is with working people. Niemerg said working people want a leader who is focused on the issues confronting them in everyday life.
“Governor Pritzker has no idea what it’s like to work for a living,” Niemerg said.
“He has no idea what it’s like to turn down the heat in the middle of winter, try to save a couple of dollars.
“No idea what it’s like to drive a car with 200,000 miles and the check engine light on and the check engine light on and wonder if he has the money to fix it or pay for his kids’ baseball camp.
“No idea what it’s like to move money around just to make a mortgage payment.
“No idea what it’s like to walk into an Aldi, Walmart or Costco and have sticker shock from high grocery bills.
“No idea what it’s like to work a dead-end job, put your head down and get it done just for your family to give them a better life.
“And he has no idea what it’s like to come from nothing, build a business just to have it stripped away by people like him.
“These are working people’s problems, and he is out of touch.”
State Representative Brad Halbrook (R-Shelbyville) said he and the other Illinois Freedom Caucus members are ready to work with the Governor on lowering taxes, reducing spending, and creating jobs and opportunities in Illinois.
They are calling on the Governor to lead a transparent and honest budget process.
“The people of Illinois deserve an honest assessment of where we stand,” Halbrook said. “That’s what we hope this press conference can provide to you all today. We stand ready to work on a budget that reins in spending, delivers property tax relief, lowers taxes, and that creates an environment where businesses can grow and families can thrive.
“And – a budget that doesn’t get revealed for the first time at 3 a.m. It’s time to break the cycle. Illinois deserves better than another year of Groundhog Day budgeting.”
