Metro East Sun

Doug Jameson might find the current controversy swirling around Democratic gubernatorial candidate J.B. Pritzker comical if it weren’t such serious business.

“It reminds me of the old Saturday morning cartoon where the cat gets caught with the Tweedy bird in his mouth and instantly spits it out, but it’s still obvious to everyone that a crime has occurred,” Jameson told the Metro East Sun. “People should see what he would do with their money from this and how we all will be left paying the price for all his mischief.”

The Chicago Tribune reports Pritzker now plans to reimburse the Cook County treasurer’s office $330,000 for property tax breaks and tax refunds he was granted after an inspector general's probe sparked questions about if he may have received them under false pretense.

For much of his campaign, Gov. Bruce Rauner has ripped his rival as a “tax cheat” who once went as far as to remove toilets from one of his mansions as a way of avoiding having to pay an equitable tax rate on the property.

“This is the classical M.O. of the democratic machine,” said Jameson, running against Rep. Jay Hoffman (D-Swansea) in the 113th District. “Mike Madigan made a ton of his money in many of the same ways.”

Now announcing that he plans to refund the money is just playing more politics, said Jameson, pointing out that Pritzker only revealed his reimbursement plans after State’s Attorney Kim Foxx said her office planned to look into the matter.

“Some may see it as a practical solution, but the fact that it happened really reveals the flaws of his characters,” he added. “We clearly see what his motivations are, and it has nothing at all to do with contrition. It’s just another indication of what type of leader he would be.”

The 113th House District includes Madison and St. Clair counties.