Two Lawmakers Want To Kick Chicago Out Of Illinois

By Samantha Abernethy in News on Nov 23, 2011 9:20PM

Two downstate state lawmakers think Cook County should be its own state because it is always bossing around the rest of Illinois. State Representatives Bill Mitchell (R-Forsyth) and Adam Brown (R-Decatur) held a press conference (video below) to announce their intention to petition for the de-annexation of Cook County.

They argue that Chicago's leadership is what is bringing the rest of the state down, pointing out that most of the state's major elected officials are from Chicago -- the governors, speakers of the House, etc. (We really are sorry about that Blagojevich thing, guys.)

They blame the state's financial problems on Chicago, and now want a divorce. They neglect to mention, though, that the rest of Illinois would have to live without the economic forces of Chicago. WAND-TV writes:

"Our downstate values are being overshadowed by Chicago's influence over the legislative process," Rep. Brown added. "The 2010 election swept a number of downstate Republicans into office, but the lame-duck Democrats went ahead and passed a 67 percent income tax increased, along with civil unions and the abolition of the death penalty in Illinois. These liberal policies are an insult to the traditional values of downstate families."

Of course this has been done before, but not since the 1860s when West Virginia seceded from Virginia over the issue of slavery. The population of Cook County would be larger than 29 other states, and Illinois would still have a larger population than Indiana.

"Quite frankly, I would rather be Indiana than what we're existing right now, in terms of the absolute mess that we see in Springfield," said Rep. Mitchell.

In order to split Illinois in two, they must file a resolution, then if the general assembly passes it, it would go to the U.S. Congress. If it passes there, it would come back to Illinois for implementation. What are the chances Cook County becomes a state before the District of Columbia or Puerto Rico? Washington, D.C. has been pushing for this for decades, and the issue is purely political. If DC becomes a state, it would be 90 percent Democrat, so Republicans demanded a Republican-leaning district be created in Utah to even out the chances. That bill died last year.

So yeah, good luck creating the left-leaning state of Chicago.