“E pluribus unum — out of many, one.” It’s the foundation of a system built on equal representation and a shared voice. But in Illinois today, that principle is being tested. From ongoing redistricting battles and record-breaking spending proposals to public safety failures and top-down mandates from Springfield, the question becomes harder to ignore: are we still representing the people—or choosing the voters? With just weeks left in the 2026 spring legislative session, major decisions remain unresolved, and the direction we take will have lasting consequences for families, communities, and the future of our state.
Brad
“E pluribus unum — out of many, one.”
It’s a simple idea: many voices, many communities, many perspectives—coming together as one people, equally represented under the law.
With only 19 scheduled days of regular session left, here are a few of the big unsettled policy items for May:
The Budget – Pritzker’s introduced budget is over $56 billion, the largest in state history and will require tax and/or fee increases
Pension reform – Democrats make a tweak to pensions every year. There has been clamoring to change Tier II pensions back to the same level of benefits as Tier I. This change would massively increase pension debt in Illinois, which has the worst-funded pension system in the U.S.
The Bears/Mega-Project bill – The bill is now in the Senate, and revisions are expected. I voted No on the bill. There is nothing in it that helps ordinary property tax owners, and plenty that could hurt them.
Pritzker’s BUILD Bill – this bill usurps local control on zoning and gives power to state government to demand low-income, multi-family housing in every neighborhood. It also supports this with massive subsidies for developers and first-time homebuyers.
Energy/Data Centers – The Chicago Tribune, after first supporting CEJA, is now calling loudly for changes as it becomes increasingly obvious are facing potential energy shortages. Literally, one natural gas company is dismantling equipment and moving it to Texas to operate because CEJA requires it to shutdown by 2030. They aren’t waiting, and they are taking 900 MW, the output of one nuclear plant, out of the state. There have been marathon hearings on data centers and their energy and water use, with no final legislation proposed yet.
Rep. Halbrook’s Comfort for Kids Drive
Representative Brad Halbrook recently met with Michael Wall, Philanthropy Manager at HSHS St. Anthony’s Memorial Hospital in Effingham, to collect comfort items generously donated by local residents. These donations are part of the ongoing Comfort for Kids Drive, which helps bring a sense of peace and support to children facing hospital stays.
St. John’s Children’s Hospital in Springfield is currently in need of stuffed animals and blankets used to comfort young patients. This drive is a simple but meaningful way for our community to step up and make a difference for families going through difficult times.
“Soak the taxpayers so ‘I’ can afford to do whatever ‘I’ want.”
Governor Pritzker has presided over $77 billion in tax increases since 2019 while Illinois’ economic growth woefully lags behind the rest of the country, yet HE WANTS MORE TAX AND FEE HIKES! Last year alone, Illinoisans paid $16.5 billion more in state taxes than they would have if taxes stayed consistent with 2018 levels.
This article lays out the stark reality of this man’s fiscal mismanagement and his unquenchable greed:
Not an actual person (haha), ‘gerrymandering‘ goes back a long way and refers to the practice of ‘moving the political goal posts’ by deliberately designing voting districts to achieve specific outcomes rather than representing voters fairly. It is named after US Governor Elbridge Gerry of Massachusetts (pictured above), who helped creatively redraw districts in 1812 to ensure his political party’s continued majority in the state senate.
The word ‘gerrymander’ was a political satire, made famous in a cartoon (also pictured above) that combined the governor’s name with his slithery map, likened to a salamander.
You can dig a little deeper into the history of the practice here:
Illinois is currently in ‘gerrymandering news’ after the US Supreme Court recently put a pause on Governor Pritzker’s effort to redraw the state’s legislative districts. In a 6-3 decision, the Supreme Court struck down Louisiana’s congressional map and ruled that racial gerrymandering is unconstitutional. In response to the ruling, Illinois Senate President Don Harmon (D-Oak Park) announced that a proposed state constitutional amendment on redistricting would not advance this legislative session.
Read more in these articles on how the high court’s decision is impacting Illinois:
Governor Pritzker’s pro-illegal immigrant madness has consequences. More than 400 criminal illegal aliens have been released into Illinois’ streets in just one year. Recently released public records show that despite explicit Immigration and Customs Enforcement detainers, Democrats in this blue sanctuary state are endangering American lives by blatantly ignoring the law.
Pritzker has said, “Every family, every child, every human being deserves to feel safe and secure in the place they call home”, but he neglected to further qualify- only if you are politically advantageous to him.
Governor Pritzker then takes it one step further by hurling abuse charges at federal immigration law enforcement officers in Illinois. He created a commission in October designed specifically to target agents.
The system Pritzker has created is making Illinois UNSAFE!
Judge John Lyke (above left) and Cook County Chief Judge Charles Beach (above right) have been friends for 25 years, and they are both delivering the goods that Governor Pritzker feeds on- incompetence and chaos.
Last month, under the ‘leadership’ of these two judges, two Chicago police officers were shot (one killed) at Swedish Hospital. The shooter, Alphanso Talley (pictured above) had been released by Judge Lyke even though he had five prior felony convictions and pending cases for possessing a stolen vehicle, battering a correctional officer, armed carjacking and armed robbery. And the dangerous criminal was released under Chief Judge Beach’s disaster of an electronic monitoring system, which he claimed to have cleaned up during his administration.
The dangerous situations that Governor Pritzker’s SAFE-T Act continues to put law enforcement and Illinois citizens in needs to be challenged and intelligently rewritten if not completely abandoned- NOW!
SAFE-T Act Back In the Spotlight
Dozens of Illinois school districts have been put on notice and are being investigated by the Justice Department’s Civil Rights Division for including ‘sexual orientations and gender ideology’ content in their pre-K – 12 grade classes, and whether or not parents were notified. The investigation will also assess the school districts’ use of single-sex intimate spaces (such as bathrooms and locker rooms).
The following article includes a full list of the school districts being investigated:
Chicago Schools Being Investigated
Many of the words and phrases we commonly use to communicate actually originated in the military! It only makes sense that an institution so valuable to any society would have a lasting impact on its language.
You might be surprised by these 10 ‘military’ words that we use every day:
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