By Dave Dahl

SPRINGFIELD – Gov. JB Pritzker looks toward Phase Four of his post-pandemic re-opening plan.

“We certainly do not want to move backward, and I think you have seen in the other states, they moved very quickly, and they’ve seen a spike, and now they have to move backward. You can imagine how damaging that is to small businesses. They get ready to open, they put more money into opening, they get open, and then they have to close again.”

The governor said he has confidence in, given the information available at the time, the decisions he has made about managing Illinois during the coronavirus crisis.

“Look, like all of the decisions around capacity and events, I’ve listened to the experts, the Department of Public Health first, but also epidemiologists from other organizations, from our universities in Illinois and nationally; I’ve spokes with Dr. (Anthony) Fauci a number of times,” referring to the federal government’s top infectious disease specialists.

Pritzker last week angered Downstate Republican lawmakers by cancelling both state fairs this year without checking with them.

The governor was in Belleville Monday morning to announce a grant program for lower-income Illinoisans.

Dave Dahl can be reached at [email protected].