Dan Caulkins has a name for what he considers to be the harsh way House Speaker Mike Madigan (D-Chicago) has dealt with Rep. Scott Drury (D-Highwood) and everyone else from his party who dares to stand up to him.
“It’s the Madigan Rules, and that means his way or the highway” Caulkins told the Chambana Sun. “Here you have this guy (Drury) who was willing to stand up and take a principled stance, and what he got for it was the death penalty from his own party leaders. I think Madigan rules that way because he’s afraid if he accepts criticism from just one Democrat all the rest of them might gain the courage to stand up to him and break the stranglehold. It’s fear and intimidation that he rules by.”
Madigan and Drury have waged a back and forth war ever since Drury didn’t vote to re-elect Madigan as House speaker.
Dan Caulkins
Drury, a former federal prosecutor, is now running for attorney general, and Madigan has been far from a supporter, culminating in what the Illinois News Network has reported were efforts by Madigan to have Drury knocked off the primary election ballot.
“That’s the way Madigan operates and that’s the reason why Illinois is in the mess that it is,” said Caulkins, a Republican who is running for the seat held by retiring Rep. Bill Mitchell (R-Forsyth) in the 101st District. “This is what’s kept the state from moving forward. How can we if our so-called leaders are run by just one man and there is never any exchange of ideas. That exemplifies everything that’s wrong with politics in the state and absolutely sends the wrong message to voters about reform being just all talk.”
Across the board, Caulkins said Illinois continues to be short-circuited by dirty politics, including in his race.
“They’re trying to buy the election,” he said of some recent five-figure contributions his GOP rival in the primary election, Randy Keith, received for his campaign.
Caulkins said he believes Democrats are behind the ploy and it’s all part of a larger scheme where they hope to have someone in Springfield they think they can more easily manipulate.
“It’s strange for a Republican to be getting money from the unions, but in this case I guess they figure it might be worth it,” he said.
Caulkins said he plans to continue meeting and greeting as many people as he can, just as he has been doing throughout his campaign.
“We’ll keep doing what we’ve been doing,” he said. “I have a good feeling it’s really starting to resonate with people.”
The 101st House District includes parts of Champaign, McLean, Dewitt, Macon and Piatt counties.
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