(CAPITOL CITY NOW) – “A true win for all the American people.”
That’s what Governor JB Pritzker says about the Supreme Court ruling this week keeping President Trump’s executive order on voting by mail from taking effect. Pritzker made the comment during an event marking the anniversary of the start of “Operation Midway Blitz” this week, during a news conference.
“What we should be doing is not taking away people’s voting rights, but making it easier for people to vote,” said Pritzker, in Chicago. “If you are a U.S. citizen and eligible to vote, it should not be made more difficult by Donald Trump, because he knows he’s going to lose in November.”
Pritzker claims it should be even easier for people to vote, regardless of who they vote for.
Reports suggest that even President Trump has been able to vote by mail through his home district in Florida, even without any tightening of restrictions.
As Illinois and Chicago are suing the Trump administration over proposed cuts to the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP), Pritzker claims Trump isn’t trying to root out government waste and fraud, as much as he has a different motive.
“He’s trying to make it easier to throw people out of this country,” said Pritzker. “I think it’s wrong. I think that we ought to be stepping back and recognizing he’s trying to do two things at once: One, he wants to throw people out that don’t look like him, and he wants to make it harder for people to get by with SNAP benefits being taken away.”
The Governor says it’s the same with changes Trump has tried to implement regarding Medicare.
Silverio Villegas-Gonzalz, 38, was shot and killed one year ago by a federal agent as “Operation Midway Blitz” — the effort to find and lessen illegal immigration — began in Chicago.
No charges have been brought in the case or even decided yet, and that has Pritzker concerned — but in a way, it’s something he expected.
“That investigation is dependent upon getting evidence,” said Pritzker. “As you know, back then, when he was killed, there were not so many people walking around with their cameras looking at the despicable behavior of ICE and (Customs and Border Patrol), and filing it. So, there’s very little video.”
Pritzker says attorneys have asked for police body-worn camera video from the feds, and they still have not complied. It’s not clear if they will.
