Illinois Valley Times

State Sen. Win Stoller (R-Germantown Hills) thinks Illinois Gov. J.B. Pritzker is using emergency orders to his own benefit under the guise of COVID-19, even though the pandemic is long gone.

In a recent Facebook post, Stoller questioned the continuation of COVID state-of-emergency declarations.

"Clearly the emergency phase of COVID has been over for a long time," he said. "However, our Governor keeps declaring emergency powers for himself. Why? When will it end? It's like we are caught in the endless Groundhog Day movie!"

This is not the first time Stoller has criticized Pritzker's use of emergency orders regarding the COVID-19 pandemic.

“In the last two years, Governor Pritzker has issued more than 100 Executive Orders—a milestone that nobody is celebrating,” state Sen. Jason Plummer (R-Edwardsville) said in a March newsletter posted on Stoller's website. “Through those orders and mandates, the Governor single-handedly created chaos, confusion, and devastation to families across Illinois. From school and business shutdowns, to agency dysfunction, the Governor’s go-it-alone approach has failed us all. Our democracy was built on a system of checks and balances to ensure that no one person could exercise too much power. Yet, here we are, two years later, and Governor Pritzker continues to monopolize COVID-19 related decisions for our families, our communities, and our state. This must end. Additionally, those who are willing to blindly allow this to continue are setting a terrible precedent for any future crises that Illinois may face.”

Senate Republicans proposed Senate Bill 3888, which would have required Pritzker to get the General Assembly's approval to renew emergency powers after an initial 30-day state of emergency declaration. The bill was referred to Assignments on Jan. 21.

Stoller has also spoken about the problems he sees with the SAFE-T Act, particularly the elimination of cash bail. In a Sept. 13 Facebook post, he advocated for the repeal of the SAFE-T Act, outlining the crimes that perpetrators would be released for.

"Beginning in January, state’s attorneys say they will have no choice but to release dangerous offenders from jail," he said on Facebook, quoted by the Illinois Valley Times. "This is the 'SAFE-T Act,' folks. Remember that 800-page bill passed in the middle of the night with no public input, even from law enforcement and prosecutors? This is it. Time is ticking. We need to repeal this law immediately!"