Aaron Del Mar, entrepreneur, GOP operator, and guest on the Lake Forest Podcast, said two billionaires "call the shots" in Illinois, with J.B. Pritzker influencing Democrats and Dick Uihlein funding Republicans through four "gatekeepers" who decide which candidates get support and how much money to allocate.
“There’s two billionaires that call the shots in Illinois," said Del Mar on the Lake Forest podcast. “ One's J.B. Pritzker. He picks and chooses runs for whatever it is. If you want to be a state rep, it may not be him personally, but one of his people is vetting you and checking you out on the Democratic side. On the Republican side, if you want a prayer to win in Illinois, you'd better make your homage to Lake Forest and kiss the ring of Dick Uihlein to get that money.”
“That's if you can get through his four gatekeepers that pretty much hate everybody else and want to light the whole Republican Party on fire, right?" said Del Mar. “ Just watch it burn and then extract, you know, 20 or 30% for their time. Right? They have to be compensated. He is a hard Republican. But he's also 80-some years old. And he's got the four gatekeepers that tell him what checks to sign and what checks not to sign.”
This full episode is available on Apple Podcasts and Spotify.
The latest episode of the Lake Forest Podcast, featuring Pete Jansons, Joe Weiss, and Jeff Urso, includes guest Aaron Del Mar, an entrepreneur, former UFC fighter, and Republican political figure. Del Mar discusses the possibility of running for Illinois governor, GOP election challenges, Gen Z political involvement, and high-cost campaign consultants. His background includes serving as Cook County GOP Chairman, Palatine Township GOP Committeeman and Highway Commissioner, 2016 Trump RNC delegate, 2022 lieutenant governor candidate with Gary Rabine, appointee to the Illinois International Port Authority under Gov. Bruce Rauner, president of the Inverness Fire Protection District, and owner of U.S. Arcade Rentals.
The Lake Forest podcast is hosted by Pete Jansons, an entrepreneur with a background in neuroscience; Rick Lesser, an attorney and former village trustee; and Joe Weiss, who has experience in multiple government and public service positions. The podcast covers topics and politics impacting the area around the city of Lake Forest, according to the Lake Forest podcast website.
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