Greg Brownfield
For State Representative
Why I'm Running
Our State government has been playing political games with our futures instead of serving the people of Illinois. Most of us work hard to take care of our families and the government should respect our effort. My perspective on this comes from my own life experience and from hearing so many of my clients talk about their struggles to meet their families’ most basic needs.
I worked nights in a hot grocery warehouse to put myself through college. For years I worked toward a career goal that seemed extremely distant for someone who earned a union paycheck with nothing but a strong back and lots of sweat. Upon achieving that goal, I spent long hours away from my family. I’ve worked on a forklift and behind a desk. And I know how good it feels to work hard toward a new career and finally achieve it.
But I’ve also seen people do everything right and still see their goals slip away. As an attorney and a community volunteer I’ve helped lots of good people who got an education, worked hard, and took care of their families. Their goals didn’t include poverty. And it was heartbreaking to hear their stories of lost jobs, depleted savings, and—far too often—lost homes.
In particular, I’ve seen a huge spike in the number of my middle class clients who are losing good jobs and falling into poverty. Poverty is never a happy subject but hearing about it from hard-working people who used to earn $60-$100K is shocking. Sadly, the most extreme cases result in homelessness, including the prospect of moving from a middle class neighborhood to a homeless shelter. The situation is even more difficult for older workers given the additional obstacles they face in finding new jobs or new careers.
While so many real people were hurting, Illinois-politics-as-usual put many more jobs at risk and blocked responsible funding for key aspects of our State’s economic future. Sadly, this risky, irresponsible behavior was the product of both parties’ politics-first maneuvering. Even worse, this year’s final budget “solution” is a model of fiscal irresponsibility that thumbs its nose at the State’s creditors, increases future costs by ignoring existing pension obligations, and misses the opportunity to expand the tax base by providing more of our kids with the education they will need to compete for good jobs.
We deserve better from our State government. We need fiscally responsible budgets that don’t shirk the State’s obligations to pension plans and creditors. We need responsible funding for education and other vital programs so that we can protect our State’s economic future. Most of all, we need independent-minded Representatives who have demonstrated a commitment to serving people, are willing to look for common-ground solutions, and are not captive to connected insiders, divisive ideology, partisan advantage, or their own self interest.
Please join this effort to bring these values to Springfield. Together we can work for responsible government in Illinois—government that meets its financial obligations, avoids politics-as-usual, and puts people first.
