An abundance of scandal-plagued investments isn’t enough to force GOP gubernatorial candidate Richard Irvin’s hand in speaking out against his megadonor Ken Griffin. From funding gun manufacturers to supporting the Chinese Communist Party’s anti-Democratic crackdowns to providing funding for rightwing conspiracy websites, Irvin has continued to rake in Griffin’s cash despite its unsavory origins.
Earlier this year it was revealed Griffin has $86 million invested in gun manufacturers that produce guns and ammunition used to commit crimes in Illinois. Nearly one out of every four guns recovered from Chicago homicides in the past five years were made by the companies in which Griffin holds shares. Despite Irvin’s near constant exploitation of crime, Irvin says “Griffin is ‘free to invest’ as he chooses.”
Even more shocking is Irvin’s refusal to denounce Griffin’s $110 million convertible loans to China Security and Surveillance Technology, which was used to acquire surveillance companies that have been accused of providing surveillance infrastructure for the Chinese Communist Party. This Griffin-funded technology has been “used to alert police of possible unsanctioned protests and monitoring of internet cafes to track down democracy advocates and dissidents.”
As long as Griffin keeps writing multi-million dollar checks, Irvin is more than willing to continue doing Griffin’s bidding and leading the Rauner Reboot slate. Illinosians want candidates who are going to be honest about their records––but so long as Griffin is in the picture––they won’t be getting that from Richard Irvin.
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