East Central Reporter

Now seeking the GOP nomination for governor, state Sen. Darren Bailey (R-Louisville) has a clear vision for where he wants to take the state.  

“We must restore common sense in Springfield,” Bailey said in a post to Twitter. “As your next governor, I will fight to cut taxes, stand up for working families and put Illinois first.”

Bailey further argues not much has a chance of improving in the state until lawmakers in Springfield get serious about ethics reform. He points to the recent resignation of Legislative Inspector General Carol Pope as being indicative of how deep such problems now run across the state.

“The root of the problem leads directly to the governor and his Democratic cronies,” Bailey posted on Facebook soon after Pope tendered her resignation, which becomes official in December. “We have lost the public’s trust in our state to do business and until substantive ethics reforms are passed nothing will change.”

Bailey has also recently been vocal in speaking out against new critical race theory education standards, which he recently blasted as “political indoctrination.”

"It's got to stop," Bailey said in another Facebook post. "Let me be clear, our nation was founded on July 4, 1776, and this ridiculous theory and racially divisive rhetoric are not bringing our state or our nation any closer together — it's dividing us."

Billed as being designed to aid educators in sharpening their responsiveness to racism, sexism, homophobia, privilege and Eurocentrism, the CRT standards are slated to go into effect by 2025.

Critics of the standards further blast it as the latest attempt by Democrats to force teachers into embracing leftist ideologies and bringing social activism to the classroom.