Springfield News
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The longtime Madigan aide who was fired earlier this year for allegedly sexually harassing a political consultant sent reporters a 14-page document that blasts his accuser as unreliable. Critics described the move as an old trick often used to “discredit and undermine women who come forward.”
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Former Lieutenant Governor candidate State Rep. Litesa Wallace, D-Rockford, became the latest politician to make a bid to lead the Illinois Democratic Party. Attorney General Lisa Madigan took aim at U.S. Education Secretary Betsy DeVos for ending a rule designed to protect online students and 14 female senators signed a letter urging their colleagues to do more to stop sexual abuse in the statehouse.
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Eight Republican state representatives — led by State Rep. Jeanne Ives (R- Wheaton) — called on Illinois Democrats to dump Speaker of the House Michael Madigan before the November elections or face the wrath of voters incensed by allegations of sexual harassment and bullying in the Illinois General Assembly.
Republican Illinois House candidate Ammie Kessem likened the Illinois Democratic Party as led by House Speaker Michael Madigan to the Mafia. [Heather Cherone/The Daily Line] -
While Gov. Bruce Rauner and other state lawmakers continued to congratulate themselves for passing a budget on time, the Civic Federation issued an analysis that found it “does not address Illinois’ biggest fiscal challenges, including a backlog of unpaid bills that currently stands at $7.5 billion.” The U.S. Supreme Court OK’d an Ohio law that purges voters from the rolls if they don’t cast a ballot or respond to a postcard. That law has been opposed by Attorney General Lisa Madigan.
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Three female lawmakers in the Illinois House are calling for an independent investigation of House Speaker Michael Madigan’s office. The Thursday announcement follows allegations of harassment made Wednesday by a statehouse employee against Madigan’s chief of staff Tim Mapes who resigned his post hours after the claims became public.
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AG Madigan - Illinois Attorney General Lisa Madigan is once again joining a group of attorney general to urge action on a hot-button federal issue. With 13 others, Madigan has issued a letter to the Consumer Finance Protection Bureau, urging it to leave open its public database of consumer complaints. The bureau recently called for public comment on its move to change access to the database used by millions.
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Only one bill aimed at stopping sexual harassment is waiting on the desk of Gov. Bruce Rauner more than a week after the Illinois General Assembly concluded its spring session and adjourned.
A slate of bills approved by the legislature remain in a holding pattern. Once a bill has cleared both chambers, the governor has 60 days to act on it. While final parliamentary procedures are being completed, here’s a list of the bills now waiting in the wings with the clock ticking.
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Madigan calls for dismissal- Illinois House Speaker Mike Madigan’s lawyers are calling on a federal judge to dismiss the lawsuit filed by former campaign worker Alaina Hampton. Hampton alleges that while working under Madigan, she was sexually harassed by Madigan aide Kevin Quinn and when she tried to stop the harassment she was iced out of a job in Madigan’s political organization. The Associated Press reports that in a Tuesday filing, Madigan’s lawyers say she was wasn’t working for the Illinois Democratic Party at the time of the harassment, and no “employment relationship existed.” [Associated Press]








