East Central Reporter

State Rep. Brad Halbrook (R-Shelbyville) disapproves of Gov. J.B. Pritzker's extension of the state's stay at home order and supports a decision made by a state judge in a lawsuit filed by State Rep. Darren Bailey (R-Xenia).

"No one wants people to die," Halbrook told the Shelbyville Daily Union. "The governor shut down our economy and assumed tremendous powers on the pretense of flattening the curve and making sure our hospitals were not overrun."

Halbrook said that the hospitals were not overrun and that Pritzker now needs to relinquish the power to where it belongs — with the people of the state.

"I support what my colleague is doing, and it is my hope that the Circuit Court decision will stand," Halbrook said.

Halbrook said Bailey filed the lawsuit after Pritzker extended the stay at home order, petitioning that the Emergency Mandate Act only allows the governor to make an emergency declaration for 30 days. After that, he needs legislative action to extend an emergency declaration.

“So far, the governor has had the ability to do whatever he wants with no input from the other branches of government," Halbrook said in his statement. "My colleagues and I have been pleading with the governor’s office to take a bipartisan approach to this situation and to be more transparent and more willing to share information. If the governor had been more inclusive and more transparent, there likely would not have been a need for this lawsuit, but since he has chosen to ignore these modest requests, he has left no choice but court action."

Halbrook noted in his statement that the court decision was the beginning of the process. He said the point of the shutdown was to flatten the curve and that was done.

“We shut down to prevent our hospitals from being overwhelmed and we have accomplished that goal," Halbrook said. "It is time to reopen Illinois and it is time for our governor to stop demeaning the office by making outrageous statements implying that people who dare to disagree with him and his lack of leadership somehow want people to die."