FBI
CHICAGO — Michael Madigan’s former chief of staff reached out to a defense attorney for the then-powerful Illinois House speaker after he was approached by FBI agents in early 2019, then he called a longtime Madigan confidant and said he was “reporting in,” prosecutors say. While the feds do not argue those actions by Timothy…
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“It was pride that changed angels into devils; it is humility that makes men as angels.” — St. Augustine Mike McClain’s friends and supporters always saw him as their champion. When roads and bridges needed to be built, McClain got the call. Need a Civic Center? McClain is on it. The ultimate fixer. The insider’s…
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CHICAGO — Federal jurors have spent five weeks listening to the voice of former ComEd CEO Anne Pramaggiore, caught in a cache of secret FBI recordings in which prosecutors say she conspired with her colleagues to bribe then-Illinois House Speaker Michael Madigan. But late Thursday, the polished former energy executive and theater major finally got the chance to…
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QUINCY — ComEd and Exelon faced another round of serious negotiations over legislation in Springfield early in 2019, and former ComEd lobbyist Michael McClain had a problem. The longtime confidant ofthen-Illinois House Speaker Michael Madigan had already retired from his lobbying job, so Madigan asked who would serve as ComEd’s “lead” on the bill. McClain couldn’t…
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Jury hears 16 more recorded calls; Rep. says Madigan ruled ‘through fear and intimidation’ CHICAGO – Facing a perceived betrayal during a make-or-break election season in 2018, former Illinois House Speaker Michael Madigan called the person he often sought counsel from: longtime friend and confidant Mike McClain. Several Democratic candidates running for the state Senate…
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A newly unsealed search warrant in the ComEd bribery probe centered on former House Speaker Michael Madigan provides the greatest detail yet about an alleged behind-the-scenes effort to kill an energy bill supported by Madigan’s daughter, the then-Illinois attorney general. “We got — we’ve gotta kill it. Period,” Madigan’s longtime confidant, Michael McClain, allegedly told…
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QUINCY — The computer systems of the City of Quincy were hit with a cyber attack over the weekend. Quincy Mayor Mike Troup said the attack apparently started at the Quincy Public Library before spreading through other departments. “(The library) shares some servers here (City Hall),” Troup said. “The police noticed their laptops in their…
Read Full Article SPRINGFIELD – Former Illinois House Speaker Michael Madigan and former lobbyist Michael McClain on Wednesday pleaded not guilty in federal court to charges of racketeering, bribery, fraud and extortion. Both were arraigned on those charges during a teleconference hearing before U.S. District Judge Jeffrey Cole, a hearing that was prolonged several minutes because McClain had…
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Mike McClain and Abraham Lincoln both served in the Illinois Legislature. Not together, of course. Chicago Tribune reporters Jason Meisner and Ray Long shared an interesting tidbit from the criminal defense of McClain, the “retired” Quincy lawyer/lobbyist/insider and consigliere to former Illinois House Speaker Michael Madigan. Muddy River News linked to it Monday, and it…
Read Full Article It’s the biggest federal corruption investigation in years, but the most remarkable thing about the Commonwealth Edison bribery probe in 2021 might be what didn’t happen. The year began with pressure mounting on Michael Madigan, the then-powerful House speaker whose ironclad grip on the General Assembly was slipping after being exposed the previous summer as…
Read Full Article Federal prosecutors argued Monday that a bid from four members of ex-House Speaker Michael Madigan’s inner circle to convince a judge to toss part of the indictment filed against them ignores the alleged corruption at the heart of the case. “The illegal conduct alleged in the indictment did not consist merely of lobbying, and it…
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From Chicago Tribune – The 11-page indictment alleged Tim Mapes repeatedly lied during a March 31 appearance before the grand jury when asked about Madigan’s relationship with his longtime confidant Michael McClain of Quincy, who was charged in November with orchestrating the ComEd bribery scheme. He also lied when he said he had no knowledge…
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