In the highest-profile speech of his political career, Illinois Gov. JB Pritzker on Tuesday blasted the “stupidity” of former President Donald Trump and called the Democratic ticket a way to restore “serenity” to the country at the Democratic National Convention the governor secured for Chicago.
“We have a choice, America. Between the man who left our country a total mess and the woman who has spent four years cleaning it up,” Pritzker said. “And I think it’s time we stop expecting women to clean up messes without the authority and the title to match the job.”
Pritzker, who has called Trump racist, homophobic and xenophobic for years, took aim at Trump’s economic and anti-abortion policies, which he called “anti-freedom and anti-family.” The governor said Trump and his running mate, JD Vance, “aren’t just weird, they’re dangerous.”
“Donald Trump thinks we should trust him on the economy because he claims to be very rich,” Pritzker said. “Take it from an actual billionaire, Trump is rich in only one thing: stupidity.”
Former Republican U.S. Rep. Adam Kinzinger, scheduled to speak at the convention later this week, posted on X that Pritzker’s comment about being a “real billionaire was to an audience of one: Donald Trump.”
“And I GUARANTEE you Trump is currently going even more insane. … He’s losing his mind. Perfect,” Kinzinger wrote.
Pritzker, whom Forbes estimates is worth $3.5 billion, has amped up the billionaire vs. billionaire rhetoric in campaign speeches since 2022 — especially since Trump is competitive about wealth. In introducing himself to Democrats at various state party events, Pritzker has called himself a “Ukrainian American Jewish Democratic billionaire businessman.”
“That’s not exactly the archetype that the party was looking for to run for governor,” Pritzker said in a June 2022 address before New Hampshire Democrats. “That’s OK with me. I know who I am and where I come from.”
On Tuesday night, the governor’s prime-time address came just after Sen. Bernie Sanders, I-Vermont, told the crowd, “billionaires should not be able to buy elections, including primary elections.”
Pritzker, the billionaire heir to the Hyatt fortune, has poured $323 million directly into his two campaigns.
The Democratic governor, who has said he’ll help bolster his party’s ticket by campaigning in neighboring battleground states, told delegates that Harris and running mate Tim Walz have “spent their lives lifting people up rather than pushing them down.”
“They know that a White House that leads with kindness looks at someone who is struggling and sees not what they might cost society, but what they might create for it,” Pritzker said.
“More than anything, Kamala Harris and Tim Walz want a country where we can all live with a little serenity,” Pritzker added. “The serenity that comes with a balanced checkbook, an affordable grocery bill, and a housing market that has room for everyone.”
Pritzker has presidential ambitions — and this week’s convention, after he was vetted as a potential VP contender, has put a huge spotlight on the second-term governor. His address also served as a way to introduce himself to a room full of prominent Democrats.
The second-term governor has spent the week shuttling between delegation breakfasts, panels and parties, leading to a slightly hoarse voice during his address. On Tuesday night he planned to host thousands of VIPs, and some reporters, at a Salt Shed concert on the North Side featuring John Legend.
Pritzker’s high-profile address before thousands of Democrats and delegates came just before former first lady Michelle Obama and former President Barack Obama took the stage to close out the second night of the convention on an electrifying note.
But working in Pritzker’s favor, Illinois delegates, some holding stick signs of Pritzker’s face, were already buzzing on the convention floor before Pritzker’s speech. The governor stood on the convention floor to deliver Illinois’ votes in a ceremonial roll call.
“He’s been behind all of our state’s biggest accomplishments that we’ve had in terms of helping everyday people,” said North Side state Sen. Ram Villivalam. “We’ve boosted the rights of workers, the rights of women, immigrants, those in the LGBTQIA+ community, and turned us into the economic engine that we’ve become. He’s helped give us a great story to tell.”
Lt. Gov. Juliana Stratton said she was “proud of him to have the national stage to talk about all that Illinois has accomplished, and that can really be a model for what we want to see happen in the nation.”
“He’s going to motivate voters, not just from Illinois, but all across the country,” Stratton said.
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