Quincy Reporter

Quincy conservative activist Mecki Kosin is convinced just about everyone has trepidations about Gov. J.B. Pritzker’s latest COVID-19 restrictions.

“It doesn’t matter if you’re a liberal or a conservative, more restrictions mean more misery,” Kosin told the Quincy Reporter. “Everyone can see that everyone else is hurting. We’ve got small businesses closing down everywhere and this is just going to lead to more of the same thing going forward”

Citing rising infection rates, the governor recently moved to reenact COVID-19 restrictions that include banning indoor bar and restaurant service in a flood of counties spread across the state, quickly raising the ire of many small business owners still reeling from the impact of the governor’s initial shutdown just months ago. More recently, a few Democrat lawmakers have joined the chorus of those demanding the governor convene public hearings to justify his latest COVID-19 restrictions.

“This is about survival for these owners," Kosin added. “Many of these small business owners know if they’re forced to slow down again they probably won’t be around for long. I think the action you’re starting to see Democratic lawmakers taking now stems from the pressure they’re getting from their constituents.”

Kosin said she’s hoping and praying that it’ll be enough to sway the governor.

“Either way, I think these owners need to hang tough and stand up to the governor,” she said. “The truth is he doesn’t have the power to do any of these things. The one shutdown order he was authorized to enact ended back in April. What he’s doing now, with all the tough talk and threats, is about trying to scare people into submission and his obsession with being a power hungry tyrant.”