Illinois has become a dictatorship

It is beyond comprehension that our proud state of Illinois still does not have a proper budget in place. This stalemate has become the sole responsibility of Governor Rauner primarily due to his autocratic belief that by being able to fund his own candidacy and purchase the office of governorship he feels that his will should be law of the land. He is not king.

Governor Rauner is failing all of us as a leader by demanding that our state workers give up their rights to have good jobs that offer them reasonable pay and offer fair benefits. His neglect in offering to discuss and debate these issues with our local leaders proves that he has no interest in what our state workers have done for the community and is only fighting for the wealthy donors who reside here.

The poor shape of our state's finances is not the fault of our state workers and many organizations continue to provide services to their community without compensation. By continuing to push his detrimental "Turnaround Agenda" as a "my way or the highway" approach, Governor Rauner is doing the people who most need this budget passed a great disservice.

According to the Illinois State Board of Elections, Governor Rauner won the election by 3.92 percentage points with only 49.18 percent of all registered voters casting a ballot. This result does not give our governor the ability to hold the entire state hostage until his demands are met. He should show the people of Illinois how Democracy works and offer to meet with our local leaders for open debate and discussion. Until that happens, we are all living in a dictatorship.

Bill Malecki

Geneva