Lake County Gazette

State Senate GOP Leader, Dan McConchie, claims Gov. J.B. Pritzker is focusing on abortion, ignoring inflation, and rising gasoline prices.

The U.S. Supreme Court last week issued a 6-3 decision to overturn Roe v. Wade, according to CNBC, a landmark decision which had stood for nearly half a century.

The move effectively gives states control over the legality of abortion within their borders, with Justice Samuel Alito writing for the majority that the Constitution makes no reference to abortion and as a result its right is not guaranteed by any constitutional provision, according to the report.

The news organization also noted that Alito stated it is time to send the issue of abortion to “to the people’s elected representatives.”

McConchie said in a June 24 Facebook post the governor is pushing Illinois toward the extreme when it comes to abortion.

“Right now, Illinoisans can already get an abortion in all nine months of pregnancy for any reason and use taxpayer dollars to pay for it,” he said in the post. “But that's not enough. Now, they want us to help pay for out-of-state residents to travel to Illinois to receive abortions and even allow non-physicians here to perform them.”

McConchie said Pritzker is out of step with mainstream residents in the state. A News Channel 20 report noted that in the wake of the adoption of House Bill 20 in 2018, taxpayer funded abortions have increased in Illinois, and in the first six months after the bill became law, 1,561 abortions were performed at the state’s expense, including a procedure for a 12-year-old girl. 

“While the governor is calling a special session to act on these and potentially other extreme measures, Illinoisans are trying to deal with soaring gas prices and massive grocery bills that are leaving families hopeless,” McConchie said on Facebook. “Instead of dealing with these vital issues, Pritzker is embracing an extreme agenda that will make Illinois an outlier even amongst the most liberal states."

The American Automobile Association (AAA) reported that the average price for a gallon of regular gasoline in Illinois stood at $5.435 as of Monday. The report also stated the average price of a gallon of gasoline in Lake County is $5.601.

The Chicago Tribune reported that Illinois has among the least restrictive abortion laws in the United States, with women traveling from neighboring states for the procedure each year. More than 36,000 women from Illinois underwent the procedure in 2020, while nearly 10,000 women came from other states to receive an abortion.

In the wake of the Roe decision, Pritzker said in a press release that reproductive health care would remain accessible in the state.

“In Illinois, we've planned for this terrible day, an enormous step backward and a shattering loss of rights,” the governor said in the release. “We passed the Reproductive Health Act, enshrining choice as the law of the land in Illinois. We removed the trigger law that would have prohibited abortion in Illinois with the overturning of Roe v. Wade.” 

Pritzker also noted that the state expanded health care to ensure that finances would not be an issue for women seeking reproductive health care.

“In Illinois, we are a state committed to expanding access to reproductive health care including abortion care, contraception access, fertility treatment and gender affirming care,” he said in the release. “We've made it clear that we trust people to make the best decisions for themselves about their own reproductive health.”

Pritzker said the state will continue to work with leaders to expand rights for women in the state and announced that he would call the General Assembly into special session with the consultation and support of House Speaker, Emanuel "Chris" Welch, and Senate President, Don Harmon.

“Together, we are committed to taking swift action to further enshrine our commitment to reproductive health care rights and protections,” Pritzker said.