St. Rep. Brad Fritts and St. Rep. Jason Bunting say Republicans didn’t get a seat at the table for budget talks again. Gov. Pritzker announced a framework for a $50 billion state budget that makes investments in higher education, public safety, and mental health services. Fritts says not even a draft of the budget has been shown at the end of the spring legislative session. The Dixon Republican says drafting a $50 billion budget of thousands of pages behind closed doors will limit hours of review and debate before a vote and are just some of the tactics Illinois Democrats continue to use. Bunting agrees. He says Republicans are just as much of a captive audience as to what is in the budget as Illinois residents are.
Fritts says the problems Illinois faces will never be solved if the government is run in an echo chamber of partisan political ideology.