South Central Reporter

State Rep. Blaine Wilhour (R-Beecher City) recently responded to Gov. J.B. Pritzker's decision to lift COVID-19 emergency mandates which have been put in place for more than three years. 

"Gov. Pritzker destroyed lives and livelihoods during his COVID-19 lockdown. Gov. Pritzker owes every Illinoisan an apology for 1,155 days of destruction," Wilhour wrote in a May 11 Twitter post.

In a YouTube video attached to his tweet, Wilhour marked from the House floor that “after 1,155 days, today is the day. A momentous occasion that the governor finally begrudgingly aligning Illinois' COVID-19 policies with the rest of the country and allowing the COVID-19 emergency to expire.”

“Thank you Gov. Pritzker for putting the acquisition of political power ahead of the health and the well-being of the people of this state,” Wilhour said. “Thank you Governor Pritzker for destroying kids’ education. Thank you Gov. Pritzker for destroying the businesses and the livelihoods of so many people in the state. Thank you [Gov. Pritzker] for closing playgrounds. Thank you for forcing disgusting masks on our kids long after the science, observation, and common sense deemed it unnecessary. Thank you Gov. Pritzker for the increase in depression, addiction, antisocial behavior. Thank you Gov. Pritzker for making our loved ones die alone. Thank you Gov. Pritzker for the massive inflation and recession that will be the result of your reign of tyranny. Thank you for your lack of transparency on the data behind all of these measures. Thank you for putting fear, shame, and coercion over truth, education, and freedom. Thank you Gov. Pritzker for forever destroying the public trust in Public Health.”

Pritzker issued the first emergency declaration in response to the pandemic on March 12, 2020. Since then, he has issued a new proclamation every 30 days until the 42nd and final emergency proclamation on April 28, 2023. The final declaration was scheduled to expire on May 11 to match the Biden administration's announcement that all national states of emergency and disaster relating to the pandemic would expire the same day. 

The monthly declarations tracked the number of infections and deaths related to the pandemic.