Illinois House of Representatives

So Laura has... is currently the State Senator for the 9th District since 2018.

Before that, six years in the Illinois House.

Thanks to her husband, Michael, we've become friends over the last decade.

And I really admire her.

She raised her family there.

She has served on the Wheaton City Council and in the Illinois House of Representatives.

Well, let me tell you, she is absolutely fabulous.

I have been following Jeannie since she ran for governor.

And so with us in studio is Lori Smith, and she is vying to be the next...

House District Representative for District 51 that's up in the Palatine area.

And we're so happy to have you here.

Thank you so much for having me here.

Yes.

And then also big unions.

And I was looking over the numbers here, and just since the last filing, just since the cutoff for the last quarter, she has gotten $105,000 for Democrats for the Illinois House, actually more than that.

$5,000 from J.B. Pritzker, another $3,000 from Personal Pack.

Or maybe it's because of liars like Pocahontas, who's going to tell you if Republicans stay in control, they'll bow to Donald Trump.

If Republicans stay in control of the House and the Senate, it's going to be a whole lot more of the same.

Donald Trump does whatever Donald Trump wants, and there are no constraints of any kind.

If you want to see a Donald Trump completely unchained, unfettered, unrestricted in any way whatsoever, then keep the Republicans in charge of the House and Senate.

For the next two years, because the only action they are capable of taking is to bow down to Donald Trump.

But if you think they're actually Congress should weigh in.

Yeah.

All of them.

Um, so just a couple quick choose views news items for this October 19th.

And speaking of October 19th, for those listening to WCPT later today to-- on Live Local and Progressive, Joan Esposito will be taking your calls and talking to Amanda Zurek, Democratic candidate for Illinois House District 48.

Paul Lesnik, multi-EM- Emmy award-winning TV host who served as political and legal analyst at WGN for 18 years.

He's al- also the author of 15 books and host of Curtain Call Chicago and Paul on Politics.

He was elected senator in 2004.

By the time the campaign really started and he was a candidate, it was 2006, barely two, two years, um, before that, obscure in the Illinois State House.

Then you have his race, his name, just kind of his whole vibe and youthful charisma.

He was very credibly able to sell himself as an agent of transformative change.

And she went in, and she said, "Listen, we need to syste- systemically change it," as you've alluded to, but it's fallen on deaf ears.

Can you please tell our audience that, uh, that, uh, sees things probably more the way you do than anything else, how hard it is when you're in, uh, in, in, you know, chamber, whatever you wanna call them in the State House, to even bring a bill of change, uh, you know, because we're such a highly Democrat, uh, state.

You, you have a hard time getting these things, uh, even heard, don't you?

We do.

Uh, the Republicans are in the super minority in the Illinois House and Senate.

Uh, that means that we have, uh, no ability to, uh, have a bill called even in committee unless the majority party says it will be called.

Uh, the speaker of the House controls what bills get called on the House floor.

Uh, so ultimately, it's entirely up to the Democrats on what is called for a vote in the House, what's called in, for a vote in the Senate.