State House District 79 candidate Lindsay Parkhurst thinks legislators should be working around the clock to solve the ongoing budget impasse.
"Illinois hasn’t had a balanced budget for years, social service organizations are being shuttered, and schools are at risk of not opening on time," Parkhurst said. "It’s despicable that legislators aren’t working around the clock to pass a balanced budget."
Although the General Assembly adjourned its regular session on May 31, House Speaker Mike Madigan said representatives would meet weekly through June for a special session to get a balanced budget passed, but that changed when he canceled all scheduled meetings.
The cancellations came at the same time Moody’s Investors Service, considered the ultimate authority on credit ratings nationwide, downgraded the state based on its $26 billion worth of debt from Baa1 to Baa2—a rank just two places removed from a so-called “junk” rating.
“Just when you think politicians in Springfield could not work any less, they somehow manage to do so," Parkhurst said in a statement.
She called the decision to call off the meetings "shameful," and said it was "symbolic of the stranglehold" Madigan had on the Illinois government.
"It is imperative that all legislators return to Springfield and end this crisis once and for all," she said. "We need to put Illinois first and stop playing politics with our future."
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