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Four Republican candidates are vying for the opportunity to challenge Illinois Governor JB Pritzker in the upcoming general election this November, with the primary just a month away.
In the coming two weeks, we are set to interview each of these candidates.
This week, our focus turns to Ted Dabrowski and Rick Heidner.
Rick Heidner hails from Barrington Hills and works as a real estate developer.
He is also the proprietor of Gold Rush Gaming, a leading video gaming terminal operator in Illinois. Ted Dabrowski previously served as the president of Wirepoints.
It’s an independent, nonprofit company which provides research and commentary about the state’s economy and government.
He also worked for the Illinois Policy Institute and Citibank.
Dabrowski is from north suburban Wilmette.
“This great state has fallen behind.,” Dabrowski said. “We’re losing people, we’re losing businesses, we may lose the Bears, we’re on the wrong trajectory right now and I want to help change that, I want to fix that. We should be a top five state.”
Dabrowski says he’s traveled the state and the biggest complaint people have is that they can’t afford to live in Illinois, and they’re leaving.
“So we have to bring down the taxes. Number two is opportunity for jobs. We’re not creating jobs anymore. If you look at job creation under Governor Pritzker, we’re at the bottom of the country. The bottom five. We’re seeing other states just balloon and blossom. And the third thing, I’m a passionate advocate for literacy in kids. We’re not teaching our kids to read in our schools anymore. We have to get back to these kitchen table issues. We should be one of the best places for education and we’re not.”
Dabrowski is the son of immigrants; “that said, I like controlled borders, I like closed borders, I like legal immigration. We need a good plan on immigration, Law and order are key when it comes around to immigration.”
“What I want to bring here to Illinois is some business sense. I want to bring business back to Illinois. And I want to build, build, build,” Dabrowski said.
He added that the last legislative session was about, “How much more money they’re going to take from you. And I never hear how they’re going to make money. How are they going to make more money for us? And build Illinois.”
If elected, he says the first thing he would do is put a freeze all taxes.
“No tax increases at all. Then i want to go through every single solitary department and I want to go through it with a fine tooth comb. And i want to get rid of any waste or any fat that’s there’s there.”
He says some tax incentives will be needed to bring more businesses here. Heidner says he is not in favor of Illinois being a sanctuary state.
He is not in favor of the Safe-T Act. “I want people to be safe, I want our citizens to be safe.”
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