Lake County Gazette

Republican state House candidate Thomas McCullagh insists Gov. J.B. Pritzker has plenty of explaining to do in regard to his recent decision to place Joliet bars and restaurants back under government restrictions.

“The governor needs to be a lot more transparent about where he’s getting the data from he’s basing the decisions he’s making that are impacting so many people on,” McCullagh told the Will County Gazette. “In some cases, we’re finding that we triple counting the real number of COVID-19 cases. You don’t want to be an owner out there on the verge of losing your business and seeing your livelihood go down the drain based on this kind of faulty information.”

McCullagh, who is now running against Democrat Meg Loughran Cappel in the 49th District, was one of handful of Will County Republicans who recently gathered outside the Will County Courthouse to call attention to what they see as the governor’s rush to judgment in reenacting his restrictions.

“It’s even more frustrating that he won’t even engage us on the issues,” McCullagh added. “So many people don’t feel the same way he does about this, but he continues to attempt to rule by fiat. It may take us filing lawsuits to get to the point where we can open this state back up the way it needs to be.”

In the meantime, McCullagh said he’s not sure what to expect from frustrated small business owners.

“A lot of people are saying people need to do what they feel is best for them and their families,” he said. “If they want to reopen their business, maybe they should go ahead. There’s no a law that says you can’t have your business open. The majority of people I talk to just want their lives back, want to be able to reopen their businesses while adhering to all the precautions that have been laid out.”