Illinois Valley Times

In the wake of former House Speaker Mike Madigan's federal indictment, Sen. Sue Rezin (R-Morrison) is calling on her Democratic colleagues to pass ethics reform legislation.

"For far too long, Illinois has been darkened by the shadow of former Speaker Madigan's alleged corruption," Rezin posted on Facebook. "Rumors of his unethical behavior have been all too common throughout his reign as speaker. However, those rumors had never been substantiated enough for criminal charges, until today. With his indictment, I hope that my Democrat colleagues choose to take a tougher stance on public corruption and work with us to create stronger ethics reforms, so the people of Illinois don't have to rely on the federal government to hold Illinois officials accountable for their corruption." 

As Speaker of the House, Madigan wielded enormous power over Democratic politics in Illinois for decades.  He has been indicted on 22-counts of federal racketeering, wire fraud, bribery, and extortion.

State Sen. Jason Barickman (R-Bloomington) called the indictment "another example of the need for stronger ethics standards and the continued need to root out corruption in Illinois government." 

Madigan released a statement denying all federal charges. "The government is attempting to criminalize a routine constituent service: job recommendations. That is not illegal, and these other charges are equally unfounded."