GOP Slams Democrats for Pushing Back Madigan Investigation
Rep. Emanuel Chris Welch (D-Hillside) speaks on the House floor in 2019. (Source: NPR Illinois)
Republicans lashed out at Rep. Emanuel Chis Welch (D-Hillside) Tuesday, the Chairman of the Special Investigative Committee charged with looking into House Speaker Michael Madgian’s role in a long running bribery scheme from utility Commonwealth Edison after Welch reportedly delayed any further hearings until after the November 3 election.
The move angered Republicans, who held an impromptu virtual news conference Tuesday afternoon.
“Chris Welch is a man who, up until today, I thought was a man of integrity,” said Rep. Grant Wehrli (R-Naperville). “Today, Chris has decided that integrity doesn’t matter.”
Rep. Deanne Mazzochi (R-Elmhurst) called Welch’s decision an “insult” to voters and, using Trumpian flair, referred to Rep. Welch as “Squelch.”
“The Speaker has spoken, apparently. And, as he commonly does, through a surrogate. And now that surrogate is Chris Welch,” Mazzochi said. “He’s been told, one way or another, to make it stop.”
Mazzochi did not present any proof that Madigan directed Welch to cancel the committee until after the election.
“Chris Welch said he was going to run a professional investigation. This is not how a professional runs an investigation,” she said. “This is how a political professional covers up the truth and crushes an investigation.”
“Chris Welch is a coward,” she alleged. “He doesn’t have the resolve to have Mike Madigan come before our committee and actually answer questions.”
Republicans created the committee in August, and it has held two meetings, including around 4 hours of testimony from a Commonwealth Edison official last week. The authority for the committee expires before the new General Assembly is sworn in in January. Unless Democrats change the rules for the process, Republicans could create a committee again in January.
Democrats have alleged that Republicans are trying to score political points in the process, as two of the members, Mazzochi and Wehrli, are in tightly contested elections to keep their seats.
“This is not political,” said Mazzochi. “This is about [if] the people of Illinois deserve to have a House of Representatives that can police itself and [won’t] put up with this garbage anymore.”
It appears, though, Republicans do not have much recourse to force hearings or subpoenas before the election, or at all.
“This process is a process by which the House of Representatives seeks to investigate and pursue discipline against one of our members,” said Rep. Tom Demmer (R-Dixon), the top Republican on the committee. “This is the only way that process can happen. This is not a case where we can punt to somebody else. The job is ours. This is the form in which the job can get done and that’s why we’re calling on this committee to continue its important, valuable, and relevant work.”
Welch has not returned multiple messages seeking comment.
At last week’s hearing, Demmer requested ComEd provide information to the committee about a job recommendation forwarded by one of his district office staff. Demmer says Welch instead expanded that request to nearly every document and communication ComEd had with Madigan or legislative leaders in that time.
Demmer called it a “document dump” designed to take months to provide.
We requested the letter ComEd received from Welch, but the company chose not to share it.