Will County Gazette

State Rep. Margo McDermed (R-Mokena) fears what could come of Illinois if Gov. J.B. Pritzker gets his way with his progressive tax system.

“Instead of making a budget to fit their income, Democrats want to make their income fit their budget,” McDermed told the Will County Gazette. “They need money for their base of government unions and progressive agenda seekers. With this unfair tax, they’ll be able to meet their bases demand of more and more, even as it proves to be a disaster for everyone else.”

McDermed argues there’s no way the tax can do what Pritzker has been selling it to do since his days on the campaign trail, namely only mean higher tax rates for the state’s most affluent residents.

“We know the Democrats will have to change the rates for the tax also immediately, to the point every wage earner in the state will eventually be on the hook,” she said.

McDermed argues the recent indictment of veteran state Sen. Terry Link (D-Indian Creek), a strong supporter of the tax, should serve as a message to taxpayers. Link joins former state Rep. Luis Arroyo, who faces up to 10 years in prison, and state Sen. Tom Cullerton, who has been hit with a 41-count indictment on embezzlement charges. One-time state Sen. Martin Sandoval has already pleaded guilty to taking $250,000 in bribes from SafeSpeed, a red-light camera vendor.

And then there is longtime House Speaker Mike Madigan, who now finds himself implicated in an ongoing federal corruption probe involving ComEd in which it’s alleged bribes were steered to several of his close associates as part of a pay-to-play scheme aimed at currying favor with him.

“The fact that people that are indicted are the ones pushing this the most should tell you exactly where they’re coming from, which is a ‘where’s mine’ way of thinking,” McDermed added. “If we pass this unfair tax, even more of yours will become theirs.”