East Central Reporter

State Rep. Brad Halbrook (R-Shelbyville) said that billboards placed in Chicago with provocative messages such as "Welcome to America's murder capital" and "Welcome to the unemployment capital of the Midwest" are the direct result of state and city leaders' policies. 

These ads, which challenge the policies of Illinois Governor JB Pritzker and Chicago Mayor Brandon Johnson, were visible throughout the Democratic National Convention and have sparked a broader discussion on the nature of media in the state after some billboard companies turned down the advertising. 

Halbrook said that both Pritzker and Johnson deserve the notoriety provided by the ad campaign due to their handling of critical issues.

"It is a misnomer to say that JB Pritzker and Brandon Johnson have failed," Halbrook said. "They have been quite successful in getting the policies they want implemented. What is happening with the immigration crisis in Chicago is 100 percent by design. They could easily solve this problem by ending the Sanctuary State and Sanctuary City policies that created the crisis in the first place."

In fact, Johnson reiterated his commitment to Chicago’s “sanctuary” status in late 2023.

Halbrook further accused Pritzker and Johnson of exacerbating crime rates through lenient policies. 

"The soft-on-crime policies Pritzker and Johnson have embraced have resulted in Chicago being a city with a lot of crime," he said. "As crime keeps increasing, so does the number of companies leaving. The problems in Chicago are a direct result of poor policies and poor leadership."

In 2023, Chicago led the U.S. in homicides for the 12th consecutive year with 617 murders, despite a 13% drop from 2022, Wirepoints reports. 

The city's murder rate is five times that of New York City and only lower than Philadelphia among major cities. Homicides were 23% higher than pre-COVID 2019 levels, and overall major crimes rose by 16%.

Also, according to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, at 5.2% Illinois has the second highest unemployment rate in the nation and Chicago’s is even worse at over 7%.https://www.bls.gov/web/laus/laumstrk.htm

Halbrook said he saw the DNC as a prime opportunity to highlight what he views as the failures of Democrat leadership.

"Illinois is a great state with terrible leaders," he said. "Being in the national spotlight with the DNC is an opportunity to highlight the bad policies destroying our great state. Highlighting the impact of these bad policies is a way to remind voters across the nation about what happens when Democrats are in charge. We do not want what is happening in Chicago to happen to the nation as a whole."

The rejection of the ads by France-based JCDeceaux, the nation’s largest outdoor advertising company, and Clear Channel Outdoors has ignited a broader debate about media influence and political accountability in the state.

Dan Proft, who runs the People Who Play by the Rules PAC responsible for the ads, voiced frustration over censorship from billboard companies, reflecting a broader trend of media influence and control by the powerful. Pritzker controls advertising budgets for his personal empire – $3.5 billion he inherited from his father – as well as state funds and campaign cash used for advertising.

Halbrook noted the hypocrisy inherent in the anti-wealth stance held by some Democrats. 

"JB Pritzker spoke right after Bernie Sanders, who spent the balance of his time railing on the wealthy," Halbrook said. "It was an interesting choice to put JB Pritzker on right after Bernie Sanders. The Democrats are all too happy to take money from billionaires who agree with their far-left ideology. The problem with JB Pritzker is not that he is a billionaire. The problem is that he is wrong on the issues, and he is pushing a radical agenda that is driving jobs and opportunities away from our state."

Halbrook also voiced frustration with mainstream media, drawing parallels to the way he and others were treated during the pandemic.

"It is time for the mainstream to stop pretending to be objective," he said. "During the pandemic, there were people like me who raised questions about the lockdown strategy, and the mainstream media was merciless in attacking us. It turns out the reservations we had were 100 percent correct. Much of what was done had no basis in science. But none of the people in the media attacking us have ever apologized or admitted that we were right – not them. We need honesty in the media, and that will only happen if the people demand it.” 

“As long as average citizens remain silent, the dishonesty in the media will not only continue–it will flourish."