Illinois House Speaker Mike Madigan (D-Chicago) recently gave engraved crystal clocks to his Democratic supporters in the House, at a cost of $46,000.
The Simon Pearce-designed clocks were engraved, “The honorable Michael J. Madigan. Longest serving Speaker of a state House of Representatives in United States history," Capitol Fax reported.
The clocks were sold by Sawbridge Studios. An expenditure search on the Illinois State Board of Elections page showed that the Friends of Michael J. Madigan has spent hundreds of thousands of dollars on gifts from Sawbridge Studios since 2005. Madigan spent more than $111,385 on gifts from the business in 2016.
"House Democrats sold out the people of Illinois, and Mike Madigan paid them off with thousands of dollars in expensive clocks while mocking the people of Illinois with gifts as tone deaf as the Chicago agenda he supports," Illinois GOP spokesman Steven Yaffe said. "Now House Democrats and other Madigan cronies can be constantly reminded that they are always on the clock for Mike Madigan."
Simon Pearce is an internationally known Irish-American designer of glassware. Foreign dignitaries and presenters at the Academy Awards are among the recipients of his work. Pearce's creations are sold in his own retail store chain and other upscale retail stores, such as Neiman Marcus.
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