During a rip-roaring speech in New Hampshire this week, Gov. JB Pritzker called for mass national protests and “disruption,” assailed “do-nothing” Democrats for their “simpering timidity” and labeled President Donald Trump a “madman” who cannot be reasoned with.
The Jewish Ukrainian American governor said of Trump: “Stop tearing down the Constitution in the name of my ancestors. Do not claim that your authoritarian power grabs are about antisemitism. When you destroy social justice, you are disparaging the very foundation of Judaism.
“These Republicans cannot know a moment of peace.”
Trump’s deputy chief of staff Stephen Miller told reporters that line “clearly could be construed as inciting violence.”
The president’s son, Donald Trump Jr., tweeted at the governor: “Are you trying to inspire a 3rd assassination attempt on my dad? Two wasn’t enough for you?”
Illinois Republican Party chair Kathy Salvi claimed Pritzker was “calling for political violence against Republicans” during his speech.
Fox News host Sean Hannity jumped into the fray, claiming the governor, “all but threatened half the country with violence.”
But here’s the rest of Pritzker’s paragraph: “They must understand that we will fight their cruelty with every megaphone and microphone that we have. We must castigate them on the soapbox and then punish them at the ballot box.”
Pritzker called the Republican accusations “ridiculous” and continued: “I called for people to take out their megaphones and their microphones, to stand up on soapboxes and get to the ballot box in order to defeat the people who are trying to take so many things away from the American people. That has nothing to do with violence.”
Basically, Pritzker was the Republican outrage of the day. It’s all pretty standard stuff.
The Pritzker folks appeared to be unfazed and even found it kind of amusing, with one calling the developments, “a master class in the right-wing echo chamber.”
As for the rest of us, we should probably just learn to get used to this. We’re in for about three or four more years of this stuff if Pritzker runs for reelection and then campaigns for president.
Mention to anyone near Pritzker that it sure looks like he’s setting up a presidential bid, and they will tell you he’s simply trying to rally the party and the nation against Trump. His folks will also correctly remind you the 2028 election is years away and the 2026 midterms are the next real concern.
But it’s obvious he can be fighting in the here and now and positioning the party for 2026 and also be trying to set himself for a 2028 bid.
Whatever the case, I only care about whether he’s doing the job he was twice elected to do. I was born here and have lived in Illinois all but a few years of my life, and I plan to be a resident for the rest of my life.
So far, Pritzker seems to be keeping up the pace of his state public events. And his agencies, while far from great, are not falling into further disrepair.
He’s made some poll-friendly proposals the last year or so, which a few have claimed are explained by his grand ambitions. But c’mon. Politicians love to push ideas that poll well.
The billionaire also has access to a fleet of jets, so he can zoom back and forth to national events in about the same time that it would take us mere mortals to drive from Chicago to Springfield during rush hour. And a Sunday event in another state is hardly the end of the world.
But if Pritzker’s governance does start slipping because he’s running for higher office, I pledge to let my opinion be known. I will not stand for it. This state is far too important, and its position has long been far too precarious to sacrifice it on the altar of national ambition. This ain’t Arkansas Gov. Bill Clinton running for president. Arkansas could’ve slid off a cliff and nobody would’ve cared, because it was mostly already there.
And if he decides to run for reelection, he absolutely must choose a running mate who could step into the position if, by chance, Pritzker actually wins the nation’s top job. He also needs to make sure he has staffers in place who can keep the government running while his top staffers are directing his national efforts.
Rich Miller also publishes Capitol Fax, a daily political newsletter, and CapitolFax.com.
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