Metro East Sun

State Sen. Paul Schimpf (R-Waterloo) believes Illinois House Speaker Mike Madigan owes it to voters to be a standard-bearer in Springfield.

"While Madigan does not have a legal obligation to appear before the investigatory committee, I do believe he has a moral responsibility as the speaker of the House to testify and answer for the culture of corruption that has permeated throughout the General Assembly, including the issues exposed in the deferred prosecution agreement with ComEd," Schimpf told the Metro East Sun.

With a Special House committee now looking into some of the longtime Speaker’s most questionable actions involving ComEd and a pay-for-play scheme where all the perks are reported to have been steered to him in exchange for favorable legislation, Schimpf is one of a growing list of GOP lawmakers demanding that committee members do whatever’s needed to get answer from Madigan.

The longest-tenured lawmaker in the state, Madigan recently let it be known he has no intention of appearing before the committee for questions and castigated its work as nothing more than a “publicity stunt.” He made his feelings known in a three-page letter he fired off to committee members in which he also fiercely defended his well-known penchant for patronage hiring as “not ethically improper.”

As the House committee continues digging, Madigan also finds himself at the center of an ongoing federal corruption looking into the matter.

Serving as the face of the 58th District since 2016, Schimpf is also one of a growing list of Republican lawmakers to be calling on Madigan to immediately step down as House Speaker.