Illinois getting a credit upgrade is good news. I’m not going to tell you otherwise just because I’m running against JB Pritzker. But let’s put it in perspective. Illinois STILL has the lowest credit rating of any state in America. And while Wall Street says Illinois government is doing better, ask the people who actually live here how they’re doing. In some Chicagoland communities, property tax bills have jumped more than 30%. The gas tax has more than doubled since Pritzker took office. Vehicle registration costs more. Sales taxes have gone up. Now tolls are going up too. And somehow, after taking all that money from us, JB Pritzker signed the largest budget in Illinois history at nearly $56 billion, with hundreds of millions MORE in new taxes. That’s the part he wants you to ignore. JB didn’t make government more affordable. He made YOU pay more to afford government. More at the pump. More at the toll booth. More to register your car. A lot more when the property tax bill comes. Death by a thousand cuts. And Illinois families are bleeding out. A credit rating tells Wall Street whether Illinois government can afford to pay its bills. It doesn’t tell you whether YOU can afford yours. It doesn’t tell you about the family looking at their property tax bill wondering how much longer they can stay in their home. It doesn’t tell you about the small business owner watching every cost creep higher. It doesn’t tell you about the mom driving her kids back and forth to school, stopping at the grocery store, then watching $70 disappear when she fills up the tank. That’s the Illinois I care about. Because when Springfield spends too much, there is no magic pot of money that makes up the difference. It comes from you. It ALWAYS comes from you. So yes, I’m glad Illinois can borrow money cheaper. Now let’s make Illinois cheaper to live in.

Red light cameras aren’t about safety. They’re about revenue. Put a ban on my desk and I’ll put pen to paper.