Kendall County Times

James Marter fumes that Illinois Democrats, led by Gov. J.B. Pritzker, can’t seem to help themselves when it comes to what he calls their tax-at-all-cost mentality.

“Taxes have become their answer to everything and we’re all paying the price,” Marter told Kendall County Times. “The things they’re doing in Springfield are only going to drive more people out of this state.”

Marter, currently running for Congress in Illinois’ 14th Congressional District against incumbent Lauren Underwood (D-Naperville), points to the progressive tax supported by Pritzker as the latest example of Springfield’s misguidance.  

“Nothing about it is fair,” he said. “It’s based on nothing but lies, and if we make the mistake of allowing it to pass it won’t be long before we see the damage.”

Indeed, a recent Illinois Policy Institute (IPI) analysis concludes that if the proposal were to become law it would easily cost the state all of the 45,000 jobs it gained in 2019 and then some. With the state already having a higher unemployment rate than the national average, IPI pegs the overall job loss in the neighborhood 56,366. On a per capital basis, adjusted to take into account the number of employed residents, Kendall County would lose 1,054 jobs.

“It might be worse than that,” Marter added. “The things they’re doing are driving the biggest wage earners and businesses out of this state and over time that will hurt everyone. It’s so sad because Illinois is a very rich state in terms of all its resources and we’ve got the democrats trying to run everybody out.”

Marter said he wouldn’t mind seeing at least one person forced out of Springfield.  

“I stand with my friend Rep. Mark Batinick (R-Plainfield) in calling for Speaker Mike Madigan (D-Chicago) to step down right now," he said. "I know he might get indicted first but he needs to go.”

As much as they seem to try, Marter said he can’t see how Democrats think they can tax away all the state’s problems.

“No matter how much they raise taxes, costs and debt just keeps going up faster,” he said. “There has to be a better way.”