Lake County Gazette

State Rep. David McSweeney (R-Barrington Hills) fears where Gov. J.B. Pritzker could be looking to gain traction now that his signature progressive tax has been so soundly rejected.

“The Illinois economy has reached a breaking point,” McSweeney said. “Gov. Pritzker is still pushing to raise taxes. This is wrong.”

Even after the plan he has been pushing since his days on the campaign trail as a measure that would only mean higher rates for the state’s most affluent residents fell far short of reaching the 60% approval it needed from voters for passage, Pritzker still doesn’t seem convinced. After having pumped upwards of $50 million of his own money into a campaign created to sway voters to his way of thinking, he has now turned to lashing out at every turn, threatening everything from across-the-board tax increases to severely “painful” cuts needed to counterbalance things as he sees fit.

McSweeney views it all as just more of the same thinking that has led to all the current suffering felt by many taxpayers.

“Illinois residents have the highest tax burden of any state,” he said. “As chairman of Cut Illinois Taxes Now, I’m fighting to stop Pritzker’s tax hikes so Illinoisans can keep more of their hard-earned income.”

Almost from the day the governor began singing the praises of his progressive tax system, McSweeney has blasted it as one that had little chance of achieving what it was being billed to do.

“I’m leading the fight against the progressive income tax because Illinois taxes are too high,” he said. “The progressive tax is a code phrase for a massive hike.”