Free Republic

In him was life, and the life was the light of men” (John 1:4). On Jan. 22, 2019, the 46th anniversary of the Roe v. Wade Supreme Court decision legalizing abortion on demand, the governors of both New York and Illinois signed laws to extend and promote abortion. As he signed the Reproductive Health Act into law, New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo described it as the “evolution” of humankind in America. In Illinois, Gov. J.B. Pritzker signed an executive order to ensure taxpayer funding of abortions, saying that it would make his state “the most progressive … in terms of...

Illinois Gov. J.B. Pritzker (D) on Wednesday opted to withdraw the harsh emergency rule his administration filed last Friday, which criminalized business owners violating his stay-at-home order. The emergency rule had noncompliant businesses facing a Class A misdemeanor for reopening against the governor’s orders — an action that could have carried jail time or a fine of up to $2,500. A Pritzker spokesperson, at the time, described the rule as an “additional enforcement tool for businesses that refuse to comply with the most critical aspects of the stay-at-home order.” The governor faced a slew of backlash and, while he has...

Republicans in Illinois are crying foul that Gov. J.B. Pritzker could be financially benefiting from the coronavirus pandemic following reports that his family’s investment firm has a stake in two companies doing tests for the contagion. Illinois GOP Chairman Tim Schneider said in a statement to Fox News that the Pritzker Group – the family firm run by the governor’s brothers – “controls the companies that are making millions off the pandemic” and called on the Illinois Democrat to divest any interest he had with the firm. "Let's be clear - Governor Pritzker and his family are clearly profiting off...

Governor JB Pritzker reportedly has withdrawn his emergency rule imposing a Class A Misdemeanor on businesses that violate his executive order from consideration by the Illinois General Assembly's Joint Committee on Administrative Rules. State Rep. Grant Wehrli confirmed (the) announcement, saying he too, had been inundated with constituent calls. “Since Friday, my legislative office has received thousands of emails and hundreds of phone calls from constituents and business owners who vehemently objected to this emergency rule and the blatant abuse of executive power it represents. Those serving on JCAR received upward of 7,000 emails, which is the biggest response any...

[A]fter she broke the news that his family was spending his statewide lockdown at an equestrian estate in Wisconsin, Governor J.B. Pritzker revoked longtime Chicago reporter Amy Jacobson’s access to his daily press briefing, claiming she is not an “impartial journalist.” Jacobson, who co-hosts a morning talk show on AM 560, worked as a general assignment television reporter for WMAQ-TV Channel 5 (NBC) in Chicago from 1996-2007. Jacobson was first to report that Pritzker’s wife and children, who have spent the last seven weeks at the family’s $12 million horse farm in Florida, had moved to another family horse farm...

March 31, 2020 San Diego, CA (March 31, 2020) – Cue Health Inc. (“Cue”), a healthcare technology company, announced that is has been awarded a $13 million contract to accelerate the development, validation and FDA clearance of a portable, molecular diagnostic test capable of detecting SARS-CoV-2, the virus that causes COVID-19, in less than 25 minutes using a simple nasal swab. The test is part of the Cue Health Monitoring System, which is designed to be a portable device that can perform a molecular test and connect patients to a mobile health platform that features interventional components such as telemedicine...

President Donald Trump recently seems to have found his message: “I am on your side. Democrats and the liberal media don’t want you to have a job.” And Jared Kushner has named Democrats “the eternal shutdown crowd.” This aligns well with the nightly barrage of gloom and doom from CNN and MSNBC. Every night, my liberal friends love to watch Rachel Maddow, Anderson Cooper, et. al. who — while begrudgingly admitting that the pandemic statistics are looking somewhat better — emote a level of condescension and disdain toward unemployed folks who are losing their patience. I love the interview segments...

Illinois was one of only eight states to have shut down as early as March 23. Nearly two months later, Illinois is just one of four states “to remain on lockdown, with stay-at-home orders in place and most businesses shuttered,” according to a New York Times comparison as of May 15. Michigan, New Jersey and Delaware were the other three states. Illinois’ position has become even more extreme in recent days. Gov. Pritzker has just added new emergency rules that threaten jail time to any business owner found violating the governor’s shutdown orders. At Wirepoints, we’ve often documented what a...

It appears the Governor is realizing his Executive Orders are not laws and they violate people’s Constitutional rights. What is the norm in Illinois when elected officials get exposed for violating the law? Change the law. In this case, change the rules and make criminals out of the very people that are the economic engine in this state. Not only do these new suggested rules invoke criminal penalties, but they also are to last 150 days and are being pushed through in an Emergency provision for such rule changes, meaning the public has little say about it. Let that sink...

President Donald Trump singled out Gov. J.B. Pritzker in an interview on Sunday for Illinois' coronavirus response. Maria Bartiromo of Fox Business asked Trump how he would decide which states and cities will receive federal financial support, to which he called out local Democratic leaders. Trump accused Pritzker of money being the motivating factor for the his response to the pandemic, the president claiming he "knows the family." "He wants money because, you know, let's make up for the 25 years and some very bad current years," Trump said. Both leaders have previously traded attacks on how their respective governments...

It appears the Governor is realizing his Executive Orders are not laws and they violate people’s Constitutional rights. What is the norm in Illinois when elected officials get exposed for violating the law? Change the law. In this case, change the rules and make criminals out of the very people that are the economic engine in this state. Not only do these new suggested rules invoke criminal penalties, but they also are to last 150 days and are being pushed through in an Emergency provision for such rule changes, meaning the public has little say about it. Let that sink...

[A] vocal contingent of demonstrators rallied again outside the Thompson Center in the Loop and the State Capitol Building in Springfield demanding Pritzker reopen the state immediately. With a roster of conservative speakers including radio host Erich “Mancow” Muller, people in the crowd chanted “Right to go to church” and toted signs declaring “Jesus is my vaccine,” a day before a handful of churches planned to hold services in defiance of Pritzker’s stay-at-home order, which bars gatherings of more than 10 people. Other signs declared “Freedom is essential” and suggested Pritzker’s extended stay-at-home order is part of a political scheme...

Fatass has now added Wisconsin to the list of places his family has been staying in violation of the "quarantine" and "no-travel" orders he has given: Gov. J.B. Pritzker for the first time Friday acknowledged his wife and daughter were in Florida before Illinois’ statewide stay-at-home order took effect in March and just recently returned to Chicago. But don't worry! It's all because of "safety:" He said he was being “very private and very reserved” about his family “because there are threats to my safety and to their safety. “You have seen that there are people that stand outside the...

Gov. J.B. Pritzker for the first time acknowledged his wife and daughter were in Florida before Illinois’ statewide stay-at-home order took effect in March and just recently returned to Chicago. He was being “very private and very reserved because there are threats to my safety and to their safety." “You have seen that there are people that stand outside the Thompson Center and stand outside the Capitol in Springfield, holding, I mean, hateful signs that reference me personally and that suggest, if not say, but suggest the potential for violence." "If his family can’t even heed the guidance of his...

WASHINGTON, D.C. — Illinois' five Republican US Congress members called on Congress to protect local municipalities from governors withholding federal funds as leverage to demand they keep small businesses closed due to the COVID crisis. U.S. Representatives Darin LaHood (IL-18), John Shimkus (IL-13), Adam Kinzinger (IL-16), Rodney Davis (IL-13), and Mike Bost (IL-12) sent a letter Friday to Congressional Leadership urging that Congress take action to prevent governors from withholding federal funds appropriated by Congress for local municipalities that allow their small businesses to reopen in accordance with federal health guidelines, but ahead of arbitrary timelines outlined by states. Following...

The other day I went out to talk with restaurant guys. They once fed hungry people for a living. Now they’re restaurant guys without customers. Gov. J.B. Pritzker, the trust fund kid who bought the governor’s office, shut business down to “flatten the curve” of coronavirus. Pritzker keeps pushing back the goal posts he set for when businesses will be allowed to reopen. First, it would be only be for a few weeks. Now it may be late June or even longer until business opens up. In their empty places, the restaurant guys stare at the walls and hear the...

Gov. J.B. Pritzker said Tuesday he would consider withholding federal pass-through funds to counties ignoring his stay-at-home order and said it “would be best” for the General Assembly to meet before the end of May to take up key state business. When asked in his daily COVID-19 briefing via videoconference Tuesday if the state would consider withholding federal aid to counties reopening early, Pritzker said, “we would consider that.”

Former Illinois Gov. Bruce Rauner believes it’s time reopen the state amid the coronavirus pandemic, blaming politics for the decision to keep restrictions in place. In a text message, Rauner argued that the state’s phased reopening plan is a boon for Democrats, who he says are looking to benefit politically from the coronavirus. “Keeping economy shut (is a) Trifecta for Dems: justification for income tax hike in November, justification for federal bailout of states, (and a) horrible economy for Trump’s re-election,” the former governor said. “We’ve put this problem almost entirely on the backs of our children (who are at...

The medical examiner’s database showed COVID-19 as the primary cause of death for 2,303 people. Of those, 2,112 were shown to have at least one underlying condition as a secondary cause of death. Those conditions, also known as comorbidities, included hypertension, diabetes, obesity and heart disease. As of May 8, the average age of all COVID-19 deaths in Illinois was 74, almost 50 percent of all Illinois deaths have been tied to long-term care facilities... This is important because Gov. J.B. Pritzker has refused to release any statewide comorbidity data as part of his official Illinois Department of Health releases....

CHICAGO, IL — Gov. J.B. Pritzker is quarantining at home after a member of his senior staff tested positive for the coronavirus, his office said Monday. All staff members at the governor's office will now work from home for the "appropriate isolation period," although officials did not say how long that will be.