South Central Reporter

Don Moore is hoping a federal corruption probe that now finds longtime house speaker at the center will mark the beginning of a new Springfield taking hold.

“Maybe this is the start of the house cleaning we’ve all been hoping for,” the former Republican House candidate told the South Central Reporter. “I know some time when you come across legal activity the more you look the more it leads to other discoveries. I think Mike Madigan has been at center of a lot of it, a lot of underhanded activity for a very long time.”

Madigan, who easily reigns as the longest-tenured lawmaker in the state, now finds himself at the center of a still-evolving probe into ComEd, in which prosecutors are on record in asserting that the company engaged in a “years-long bribery scheme” involving jobs, contracts and payments that were steered to him in his role as house speaker and chairman of the Illinois Democratic Party.

While stopping short of formally levying any charges, prosecutors contend Commonwealth Edison attempted to “influence and reward” Madigan by providing financial benefits to those directly tied to him.

Moore said no one in Springfield should be surprised by the speaker’s alleged involvement.

“It’s the source of his power,” he said. “I think there’s a lot more out there, but whether it’s enough to make the speaker step down, as he should. I don’t believe that it will.”

In publicly announcing the case against ComEd public, U.S. Attorney John Lausch noted the investigation is ongoing as public corruption continues to run rampant across the state.

According to the Chicago Tribune, federal investigators moved to subpoena Madigan for information including “possible job recommendations.”

“This is serious, and I’m starting to believe it can really be his downfall,” Moore added. “That they’re finally going after him after everything is a welcome surprise.”

In a statement, a spokesperson for Madigan said he plans to cooperate with the probe.

“The speaker has never helped someone find a job with the expectation that the person would not be asked to perform work by their employer, nor did he ever expect to provide anything to a prospective employer if it should choose to hire a person he recommended,” the news release said.