To the Editor:
Two weeks ago ComEd agreed to pay a $200 million fine for a pay-to-play scheme that involved Speaker of the House Mike Madigan, and dozens of lawmakers are calling for the Speaker’s resignation.
The level of corruption outlined by the FBI is just the beginning of our understanding of how Mike Madigan’s operation really works. Unfortunately as the days and weeks unfold, we’ll learn that the corruption problem in Illinois has tentacles that reach deep into the corporate and political institutions in our state. It’s time for Mike Madigan to resign and since he won’t, it’s time for lawmakers to return to Springfield and vote to remove him as Speaker of the House.
I have co-sponsored (HR 855) to remove Mike Madigan as Speaker of the House. As of July 30, Madigan said he will not step down as Speaker of the House, leaving the legislature with no alternative except to return to Springfield for a special session and vote to remove Madigan as Speaker of the House.
We’ve got a constant "drip, drip, drip" of corruption related news coming out of Springfield and Chicago. One way we can turn off the corruption faucet, so to speak, is to get lawmakers back to Springfield to pass a sweeping ethics reform package. My House Republican colleagues and I have introduced more than 30 bills aimed at ending public corruption.
Governor Pritzker has the power to call lawmakers back to Springfield. I urge him to call us back to Springfield so we can remove Madigan from his post as Speaker of the House and pass stricter ethics reform.
State Rep. Charlie Meier (R-Nashville)