Metro East Sun

Former Republican House candidate Mike Babcock is angered at the thought of what Springfield has become.

“When there’s no balance, there’s no democracy and government becomes a dictatorship,” Babcock told the Metro East Sun. “That’s what we have with (House Speaker) Mike Madigan running things the way he does in Springfield.”

As the latest example, Babcock points to a WBEZ report that details since moving into the Governor’s Mansion just 18 months ago, Gov. J.B. Pritzker has hired at least 35 individuals from a so-called “clout list” compiled by and supplied to him by the longtime House Speaker.

“They’re definitely teaming up, even though the Governor has preached about how independent he is,” Babcock added. “Mike Madigan has been running the show in Illinois for a long, long time and he has only his best interest at heart.”

Babcock said he’s convinced Madigan’s fingerprints are all over the state’s still-rising tax levels, including the push for a progressive income tax to replace the flat tax system.

“The way he controls everything is to keep these majorities and he’s shown he’s willing to go to great lengths to do that,” he added. “To have any chance at true reform, we need an opposing party to be in the majority on some level.”

In the end, Babcock said hard-pressed taxpayers are the real victims.

“People here are getting hurt by all these increases and all these laws that absorb far too much of our hard-earned incomes,” he said. “It’s really sad because many of the people still in Illinois are locked in here and really don’t have many other options for themselves.”