Speaker Madigan has too much power

I concur with Alan Murdoch, who recently pointed out that Mike Madigan has presided over the demise of Illinois’ financial condition for the past three decades. Beyond that, there is also budget gimmickry, lack of ethical standards, a complex structure consisting of too many units of government, obsolete office practices and backroom wheeling/dealing. During his all-powerful reign, the state has gone down the tube! Why do people still elect him, and why do other representatives continue to maintain him as speaker? We need help from the media to keep us informed about how and when these deals are made and which elected representatives are complicit.

Furthermore, since the speaker is the person who decides what legislation goes to the floor for a vote, those of us whose reps are not speaker have virtually no voice in state government. He is the one who controls what goes on. That’s a violation of our constitutional rights, because we can only elect people who are subject to someone else’s calling.

Richard Cichanski

Palatine