SE Illinois News

Sen. Darren Bailey (R-Louisville) says Gov. J.B. Pritzker's decision to remove the state’s indoor mask mandate falls short because it doesn't order a repeal of masks in public schools.

“We're in a fight for our freedoms and we're in a fight for the future of Illinois,” Bailey said in an announcement that came soon after the governor made his plans public. “Working families, our students, need relief and they need an advocate fighting for them. I applaud and stand with the many parents, students, teachers across the state standing up and demanding an end to the forced unilateral mandates and return to local control, which I've been calling for since day one.”

With certain exceptions, Pritzker recently said he plans to lift the state’s indoor mask mandate by the end of this month.

With the overall number of COVID cases and hospitalizations both down dramatically, Bailey, now seeking the Republican nomination for governor, argues Pritzker should expand end all mask mandates.

“Unfortunately, Gov. Pritzker has put his political agenda in front of what we know to be in the best interest of our students and their education,” he said. “Gov. Pritzker is fighting in court to force masks on your school children. This unilateral move without engaging the legislators does not make him a leader, it makes him a tyrant. And his inability to stand up to the woke mobs and special-interest groups makes him a coward. I will continue fighting for freedom and common-sense policies.”

Republicans are pointing to the ruling of a Sangamon County judge rendering a temporary restraining order prohibiting certain school districts from enforcing the current mask mandate.

“As parents your freedom to make the best decisions for you and your family matter,” Bailey said. “As students, your education and your mental health matter. After seeing what Gov. Pritzker has done to our students, businesses, churches and people since he has taken office, I want to ask you a very simple question. Years from now, when your children and your grandchildren ask where you stood when their freedom was on the chopping block, what will you be able to tell them? I'm going to be able to tell them that I fought for their rights, their mental health and their freedoms and I did absolutely everything that I could do to ensure that parents and students had access. We can't sit back and let one person who has never stepped foot in most school districts across our state pretend he knows what is best for your kids and our schools.”

Bailey argues such decisions should be left to parents, teachers and elected school board members.

“It's time to end the mandates and provide our children with the education that they deserve, one where masks are optional and possibilities are endless,” he said. “Where parents choose the best school for their children and their involvement is encouraged. It's time to stand up to the special interests, eliminate the mandates, remove the woke policies from classrooms and restore the “P” to “PTA.”