By Dave Dahl
SPRINGFIELD– A member of the Illinois Legislative Black Caucus, State Rep. Andre Thapedi (D-Chicago) says there are far more pressing concerns than the legal problems swirling about House Speaker Mike Madigan (D-Chicago).
Thapedi said he could not comment on the ongoing federal investigation in which Commonwealth Edison paid $200 million in a deferred prosecution deal, admitting it bribed Madigan for favorable legislation. Madigan, though, has not been charged.
“Obviously, what we’re seeing right now in life,” Thapedi said, “and in our community with the George Floyd scenario and now looting in the city of Chicago, we’ve got much bigger problems that we’ve got to deal with.”
And, Thapedi adds, with a county and a state prison named for Pierre Menard – the state’s first lieutenant governor and also a slaveholder – he’s not that concerned now about statues. Madigan says the state should move toward removing the Menard and Stephen Douglas statues from the grounds, and giving the Martin Luther King, Jr., statue a more prominent place.
Back to Madigan: Of the Democratic lawmakers asking for him to resign, none are Black, and only one is a man: State Rep. Yoni Pizer (D-Chicago), who is not returning next year.
