A group of ultra-conservative Illinois House members
known as the Eastern Bloc has been stirring up trouble with the establishment
in both parties for years.
The Republican districts they represent stretch from
north of Decatur, over to Tuscola and down to Mattoon, Shelbyville, Effingham
and Vandalia.
They are the fellas (they’re all men) who demanded that
Chicago be kicked out of Illinois.
The most famous member you’d likely know of is Darren
Bailey, who served in both the Illinois House and the Senate and then ran for
governor last year and is now running for Congress against Republican US Rep.
Mike Bost.
Those folks were so steadfast against pandemic
mitigations that they sometimes came off as almost pro-COVID. They love guns,
they think abortion is an abomination, they’re up in arms about a Chinese
company opening a huge electric vehicle battery factory in Kankakee County, and
they rarely if ever pass any substantive legislation.
There are now a handful of primary races in that region
which could tell us a lot about the future of the Republican Party in this
state. Bailey vs. Bost is one of them. The race to replace retiring Rep. Dan
Caulkins, R-Decatur, is another. The father of the kick-Chicago-out-of-Illinois
“movement” is Rep. Brad Halbrook, R-Shelbyville, and he’s being challenged by
an equally right-wing opponent because Halbrook broke his term limit pledge.
The Eastern Bloc rebranded themselves as the Illinois
Freedom Caucus and is gearing up to challenge Rep. Dave Severin, R-Benton, with
one of their own. Severin is conservative, but not sufficiently pure for them.
He’s accepted a few union contributions, for instance.
The race we’re going to talk about today is related to
the Severin battle. It’s in the 110th House District, which is
currently held by Rep. Blaine Wilhour, R-Beecher City. He’s every bit of the
fire-breather that Darren Bailey is, but without the burning desire (so far) to
seek higher office.
Wilhour has been fighting a behind-the-scenes war with
House Republican Leader Tony McCombie all year. He’s also taken on the
teachers’ unions, which are trying to reestablish ties to Republican legislators
now that their wealthy anti-union benefactors like Bruce Rauner and Ken Griffin
have fled to Florida.
Back in September, Reps. Wilhour and Chris Miller (who is
married to US Rep. Mary Miller) demanded that the Illinois Republican Party
change its rules to declare that Republican candidates who solicit money from
teachers’ unions or refuse to return their contributions “shall be condemned
and automatically disassociated from the Republican Party.”
Several weeks ago, Illinois Department of Corrections
employee Matt Hall started quietly circulating petitions to run against Wilhour
in the Republican primary.
The IEA confirmed that it had been looking for a
candidate against Wilhour. A union spokesperson said the IEA did not recruit
Hall, but said, “we are excited about his candidacy and believe our members who
live in the district will be as well.”
Asked if he would accept union contributions, Hall said,
“I will accept everyone’s support and I expect to get everyone's support.” He
said he decided to run because Wilhour “quit doing what I think a state
Representative needs to do,” including being responsive to constituents.
“He just doesn't do anything,” Hall said. “In my opinion,
all he does is kick and scream and doesn’t get anything passed.” Wilhour also
hasn’t stopped any Democratic bills, Hall claimed. “We need to learn how to
work together and get things done and care about this district.”
“A primary fight with the teachers’ union has been a
forgone conclusion,” Wilhour said in response. “It’s always been about them
finding their tool willing to carry their woke agenda.”
People on Wilhour’s side are convinced that House GOP
Leader McCombie is somehow behind Hall’s race. “I prefer not to speak of who
I've had contact with,” Hall said when asked if he’d spoken with McCombie about
his candidacy. A McCombie aide said the leader was focused on holding and
picking up seats.
Hall ended up filing his petitions. They were solid, and
he had help from the IEA.
Interestingly enough, a formal objection was filed
against Wilhour's petitions. “It looks like a concerned citizen filed the
complaint and we’re interested to see what comes of it,” said an IEA spokesperson.
Sure.
Anyway, if Hall manages to beat Wilhour, a shockwave will
reverberate through the far right of the party. But, if nothing else, a barrage
of union money aimed at Wilhour could divert Eastern Bloc resources away from
their hoped-for battle against Rep. Severin.