State Representative Jeff Keicher (R-Sycamore) issued the following statement after the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Northern District of Illinois filed bribery charges in federal court against ComEd on Friday implicating House Speaker Michael J. Madigan as “Public Official A” the utility worked to “influence and reward”:
“Today’s announcement by the U.S. Attorney’s Office regarding the federal bribery charges filed against ComEd and the implication of Speaker Madigan’s role in the misconduct, demonstrate how pervasive the culture of corruption remains embedded in Illlinois State Government. The tight grip of Chicago machine politics controlling the passage of legislation needs to be broken once and for all. In the two years I’ve been in Springfield, I have co-sponsored several pieces of ethics reform legislation that was never allowed to see the light of day, let alone a hearing or a vote. Today’s deeply troubling news concerning ComEd is a reminder of how urgently we need to pass tough, comprehensive ethics reform in Illinois to root out corruption in public office.”