Gov J.B. Pritzker could have walked away after his press secretary called an abrupt end to a press conference Wednesday. Instead, after stepping away from the lectern as if he was preparing to leave, Pritzker stepped up to the microphone to deliver a tirade aimed at AM 550’s Amy Jacobson.
Just moments earlier, Jacobson had asked Pritzker whether he should be doing more to calm the fears of Chicago Public Schools parents protesting outside of the press conference. The parents are pushing CPS to offer remote options for students concerned about COVID safety during in-classroom teaching.
Jacobson was cut off by Pritzker’s press secretary Jordan Abudayyeh, who ended all questioning.
“Amy, as a supposed reporter, you should probably stop the misinformation,” Abudayyeh said. “We are done here.”
As Pritzker gathered his papers from the lectern, Abudayyeh continued. “You know how you prevent schools from being closed? You stop complaining about mask wearing.”
Then, a flustered Pritzker returned to the lectern and addressed Jacobson directly.
“You are spreading misinformation,” Pritzker said, pointing at Jacobson. “I wish you would stop spreading misinformation. You come in here with a political agenda, and you spread misinformation.”
His voice trembling with anger, he continued, “And I just think you should stop. We now need to protect our children. We need to protect the people in our communities — parents, grandparents, teachers. You are working against that. And it is extremely upsetting for all of us who are trying to keep the rest of the state safe.”
The governor then promptly left the room. It’s not clear from Pritzker’s remarks or those from Abudayyeh what part of Jacobson’s questions they considered to be misinformation.
The actions of Pritzker and Abudayyeh reveal an administration under immense strain, as the governor has struggled to navigate the state through the pandemic. Pritzker has been quick to exercise his executive powers to close schools and businesses and to impose mask mandates during the pandemic, with no clear evidence that such mitigation efforts have succeeded in stopping the spread of the virus. The governor suffered a humiliating defeat last November when a tax increase measure which Pritzker promoted with millions of dollars of his own money failed to pass.
This week Pritzker has once again threatened to reimpose such measures based arbitrary metrics.
This is not the first time Abudayyeh and Pritzker have attempted to silence Jacobson. In May of 2020, Abudayyeh banned Jacobson from attending press conferences, a move condemned by news organizations and free speech advocates. Jacobson sued Abudayyeh and Pritzker to regain access. Abudayyeh relented under legal pressure and allowed Jacobson back into press conferences.