Former Illinois House Speaker Mike Madigan is currently sitting trial facing 23 felony charges, including racketeering, bribery, wire fraud, and extortion. While Madigan’s trial takes place in Chicago, House Republican lawmakers are continuing their call for comprehensive ethics reform and will continue to push for common sense laws as the trial continues over the next 11 weeks.
Opening arguments from federal prosecutors summarized what this trial represents: “This is a case about corruption at the highest level of state government,” Assistant U.S. Attorney Sarah Streicker said. The trial is slated to include nearly 200 wiretapped audio and video recordings as evidence.
While House Minority Leader Tony McCombie has led the charge for ethics reform to be passed in the Illinois House, no such measures have moved forward. For McCombie, no time should be wasted: “We have not passed any ethics legislation this General Assembly and I would argue any significant ethics reform since I was elected in 2017,” she said. “This is not acceptable, and it is our responsibility that a lack of action does not continue.”
One of McCombie’s bills is House Bill 4119, which would prohibit elected officials from using political campaign donations to pay for criminal defense. Read more about her efforts to pass that bill here.