Illinois Governor JB Pritzker has so many fans and friends that he receives a $30 gift every three days, but because of his job he doesn’t accept any and rarely sees them.
The second-term Democratic governor and multi-billionaire received hundreds of gifts from around the world, ranging from a $950 bottle of Japanese whiskey to 35 cents, or a quarter and a dime, to be exact.
The 25-year-old Gift Ban Act prohibits public officials such as Pritzker from accepting gifts, with broad exceptions. Therefore, the high price offered by the Japanese Embassy and three bottles of tequila worth $450 remained untapped.
“I can’t do this,” Pritzker said during a stop in Springfield. “I will say I like tequila, that’s why people will have given it to me, but there are a few other spirits that I like too.”
Expensive bottles of alcohol aren’t the only gifts Pritzker avoids. Most are stored in Springfield and Chicago, with a staff member responsible for thank-you notes. Together, they represent 4 1/2 years of gratuities totaling 561 gifts worth $16,890.14, according to a log provided to The Associated Press in response to a public records request.
Perishable items are shared with office staff and visitors. The rest will eventually end up in an appropriate charitable home, said the governor’s spokesman Jordan Abudayyeh.
A governor receives gifts for reasons you’d expect: a gift bag when he visits a city or cuts a ribbon, a plaque from an advocacy group when he advocates for his cause. Promotion also plays a role. Louisiana Governor John Bel Edwards sent king cake and pearls to drum up interest in Mardi Gras, while the authors seem to believe putting a copy of their latest work in Pritzker’s hands will put it on the bestseller list.
With a net worth of $3.5 billion as the Hyatt Hotel heir, Pritzker doesn’t want much. But for government employees who are not among the 326 richest people in the country, according to Forbes magazine, the law prohibits accepting gifts from those who do or seek business with the state, who carry out activities regulated by the state and lobbyists.
Acceptable gifts from a single source must not exceed $100 per year, and no person may accept food or refreshments worth more than $75 per day.
Initiated in 1998 by the late U.S. Senator Paul Simon, co-authored by then-first-term Senator Barack Obama, and signed by Republican Governor Jim Edgar, the Gift Ban Act was the first major ethics reform in the Illinois since the post-war period. Watergate campaign finance disclosure laws.
“It worked pretty well,” said David Melton of the advocacy group Reform for Illinois. “As a general rule, they (civil servants) are not allowed to accept gifts. This is the right approach.
Based on value alone, Pritzker could accept the vast majority of his stack of gubernatorial gifts. Each gift, arriving at a rate of just under 10 per month, costs on average about $30.
Besides the four bottles of luxury alcohol, there are only six gifts that are generally prohibited, including a $200 Mondaine watch from the Swiss ambassador to the United States and a $120 medley of eco-friendly bags for animal waste, biodegradable diaper bags, bamboo utensils and more than one citizen named Tiffany Kuhl.
The COVID-19 crisis has imbued the governor’s admirers with generosity. From March 2020 to December 2021, Pritzker received 33 gifts specifically in appreciation of his pandemic protocol, including some that seemed more personal: handmade face coverings, items with inspirational messages, a selection of food and a Governor Pritzker figurine from the National Bobblehead Hall. of fame and museum in Milwaukee.
There was also “2:30 p.m. Man,” an acrylic painting of a smiling Pritzker by Chicago professor and artist SeungRi “Victoria” Park.
“Every day at 2:30 p.m. he would appear on my television,” Park said, referring to Pritzker’s daily news conferences during the height of the pandemic. “I don’t vote for any politician, but I like him. I wanted to paint it. He reminded me of Buddha.
Pritzker, the state’s third Jewish governor, was not a spiritual leader for Park, but his message resonated.
“I’m not pro-religion or pro-politicians,” said Park, who has remained COVID-19-free in the three and a half years since the coronavirus arrived in Illinois. “But I choose science.”
As for the governor’s gift scorecard? Shirts: 54. Hats: 21. Mugs and totes: 23. Scarves: Seven, including three brown and gold Loyola University scarves. Pens and pencils: 8. Pins: 11 (plus a rolling pin).
There were 188 books, 27 of which were written by the authors themselves, including former Israeli Prime Minister Shimon Peres. He is listed as having sent a signed copy of his autobiography, although he died two years before Pritzker’s election. Sidney Blumenthal, a former adviser to President Bill Clinton, sent his latest biography of Abraham Lincoln, complete with tequila and a stuffed pink flamingo. Consumer rights advocate Ralph Nader and his co-author, Mark Green, each sent a copy of “Wrecking America,” a critique of Donald Trump’s presidency.
Sometimes gifts are wrapped in the wrong bag of chips, like when Pritzker stopped at a Freeport elementary school on June 6 and received two bags of Mrs. Chips from the Stephenson County Democratic Party. Fishers made in nearby Rockford, instead of Mrs. Chips. Fishers, just as salty. Mike’s chips made in Freeport.
Party Chair Jody Coss can’t say for sure whether she took the Freeport snack when she decided to add a hometown twist to the governor’s greetings.
“The intention,” said Coss sheepishly, “was to give him Mrs. Mike’s.”
___
Associated Press researcher Jennifer Farrar in New York contributed.