Having a billionaire governor has, on balance, been good for Illinois.
Gov. J.B. Pritzker has been willing and able to use his personal resources to attract a high level of talent to public service at the state level, to all of our benefit. And his level of personal wealth has made it easier for him to stay out of the swamp that has tripped up so many other Illinois pols. When you can finance your own campaigns, and have plenty left over, you’re less motivated to make ethical compromises to please potential big donors.
With Pritzker, it’s inconceivable we’ll ever see a replay of the Rod Blagojevich pay-to-play affair in which the disgraced and corrupt former governor sought to obtain personal gain from his authority to appoint a replacement for the U.S. Senate seat vacated by Barack Obama when he became president.
