State Rep. Ann Williams and eight others early this month got Gov. J.B. Pritkzer to freeze $144 million of Rebuild Illinois projects tied to former Speaker Mike Madigan. The next day, they said never mind.
They got it right the first time.
Williams and eight others have taken some strong, right-minded steps toward cleaner government in Illinois. They have been leaders, lonely ones at that.
They were among the 19 Illinois House Democrats who turned their backs on Madigan in January 2021. They responded to public disgust over alleged misdeeds by Madigan that had surfaced in a sprawling federal investigation into public corruption. With their public refusal to extend Madigan’s reign as speaker, they helped bring his political career to an end.
Read more at the chicagotribune.com.