Former Sawyerville resident Christopher Hicks said he was not surprised House Speaker Chris Welch’s (D-Hillside) office sent out a group of talking points in defense of indicted former speaker Michael Madigan.
“Democrats have continuously defended Madigan even after it was clear he was running a criminal enterprise similar to the Chicago Mafia,” Hicks, who ran for several offices before recently relocating to Colorado, told West Central Reporter. “Democrats continuously refused to stand up to him even when the writing was on the wall for his criminal acts. In order to end corruption in Illinois, we must hold all elected officials accountable. We cannot wait for criminal indictments before we take action.”
A set of talking points was erroneously sent, according to Welch’s office. One statement from the talking points that Democrats were suggested to say was, “While I always stand with law enforcement, I unfortunately feel I must call into question certain aspects of the investigation process regarding Speaker Madigan’s case. From the start, he has faced unfair, partisan accusations; charges which appear to have influenced the indictments laid out today.”
“Despite my misgivings regarding this case, I want to reiterate that Speaker Welch has my full support,” another statement from the talking points read. “Our legislative accomplishments since he has taken the lead, including a major Medicaid Reform and the landmark Climate and Equitable Jobs Act, are undoubtedly victories to be proud of.”
Welch, Madigan’s handpicked successor, chaired an investigative committee to probe the ComEd bribery scandal involving Madigan. He was accused of protecting his predecessor after shutting down the investigation in 2020.
“You’re going through excruciating lengths to protect Michael J. Madigan from ever having to testify to his nefarious behavior,” Rep. Grant Wehrli (R-Naperville) said at the time, according to WGN.
Madigan was indicted by a federal jury on 22 charges, including running a racketeering ring involved in a $150 million bribery scandal.
The longest House Speaker who served in the country’s history maintains his innocence. In a statement, he said he was “never involved in any criminal activity” in his 50 years in office. “I adamantly deny these accusations and look back proudly on my time as an elected official, serving the people of Illinois,” Madigan said.
