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Fact Check: Michael Madigan was sentenced to 7 1/2 years in prison and fined $2.5 million.

Fact Check: Michael Madigan was sentenced to 7 1/2 years in prison and fined $2.5 million.

Published June 14, 2025
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# Fact Check: "Michael Madigan was sentenced to 7 1/2 years in prison and fined $2.5 million." ## What We Know Michael Madigan, the former Speaker of...

Fact Check: "Michael Madigan was sentenced to 7 1/2 years in prison and fined $2.5 million."

What We Know

Michael Madigan, the former Speaker of the Illinois House of Representatives, was sentenced to 7.5 years in prison and fined $2.5 million for his involvement in a bribery scheme. This sentencing occurred on June 13, 2025, following his conviction on 10 criminal counts, which included conspiracy, bribery, and wire fraud (source-1, source-2). The jury deliberated for 11 days before reaching a split verdict, acquitting him of seven other charges, including attempted extortion (source-1).

During the sentencing, U.S. District Judge John Blakey criticized Madigan for providing false testimony during the trial, stating, "You lied, sir. You lied" (source-2). Madigan was accused of soliciting bribes from Commonwealth Edison (ComEd), which allegedly hired his associates as subcontractors who performed little or no work in exchange for his legislative support (source-1, source-3).

Analysis

The claim that Michael Madigan was sentenced to 7.5 years in prison and fined $2.5 million is substantiated by multiple credible sources. The New York Times, Chicago Sun-Times, and CBS News all report the same details regarding his sentencing and the nature of his crimes (source-1, source-2, source-3).

The sources are reliable, coming from established news organizations with a history of reporting on political matters. The New York Times and CBS News are known for their journalistic integrity, while the Chicago Sun-Times has a long-standing reputation for covering local political issues in Illinois. The consistency across these reports enhances the credibility of the information.

Madigan's defense argued for leniency, claiming that he did not seek to amass power or money, but the judge's remarks during sentencing indicated a strong belief in Madigan's guilt (source-2, source-4). The judge's decision to impose a significant prison sentence and fine reflects the severity of the offenses and the impact of Madigan's actions on public trust in government.

Conclusion

Verdict: True
The claim that Michael Madigan was sentenced to 7.5 years in prison and fined $2.5 million is accurate. This information is corroborated by multiple reputable news sources, and the details surrounding his conviction and sentencing are consistent across these reports. The evidence clearly supports the claim, confirming its truthfulness.

Sources

  1. Once-Powerful Illinois Democrat Sentenced to 7.5 Years in ... New York Times
  2. Michael Madigan sentenced to 7.5 years in prison for ... Chicago Sun-Times
  3. Former Illinois House Speaker Michael Madigan ... CBS News
  4. Ex-Illinois Speaker Michael Madigan Sentenced to 7.5 ... WTTW
  5. Meier: Madigan is Finally Going to Prison Where He Belongs Charlie Meier
  6. Ex-IL House Speaker Michael Madigan, 83, sentenced to ... ABC7 Chicago
  7. Windhorst Says Madigan Prison Sentence Should be a Wake ... Rep. Windhorst

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Miller isn’t concerned about the state of New York “society.” What bothers him is the idea of nonwhite people having political power. Bessent isn’t really deeply worried about Zamdani’s economic ideas. But he feels free, maybe even obliged, to slander a foreign-born Muslim with language he would never use about a white Christian politician, even if that politician were (like some of his colleagues in the Trump administration) a total crackpot. And while Tuberville stands out even within his caucus as an ignorant fool, his willingness to use dehumanizing language about millions of people shows that raw racism is rapidly becoming mainstream in American politics. Remember, during the campaign both Trump and JD Vance amplified the slanders about Haitians eating pets. And now that they’re in office, you can see the resurgence of raw racism all across Trump administration policies, large and small. You can see it, for example, in the cuts at the National Institutes of Health, which are so tilted against racial minorities that a federal judge — one appointed by Ronald Reagan! — declared I’ve never seen a record where racial discrimination was so palpable. I’ve sat on this bench now for 40 years. I’ve never seen government racial discrimination like this. You can see it in the renaming of military bases after Confederate generals — that is, traitors who fought for slavery. You can even see it in a change in the military’s shaving policy that is clearly custom-designed to drive Black men — who account for around a quarter of the Army’s new recruits — out of the service. So racism and bigotry are back, big time. Who’s safe? Nobody. Are you a legal immigrant? Well, the Supreme Court just allowed Trump to summarily strip half a million U.S. residents of that status, and only a fool would imagine that this is the end of the story. Anyway, when masked men who claim to be ICE agents but refuse to show identification are grabbing people off the streets because they think those people look illegal, does legal status even matter? Does it even matter if you’re a U.S. citizen? And the One Big Beautiful Bill Act is set to massively increase ICE’s funding — basically setting up a huge national secret police force. Now, maybe you imagine that you yourself won’t suffer from this new reign of bigotry and imagine that everyone you care about is similarly safe. But if that’s what you think, you’re likely to face a rude awakening. I personally don’t have any illusions of safety. Yes, I’m a native-born white citizen. But my wife and her family are Black, and some of my friends and relatives are foreign-born U.S. citizens. Furthermore, I’m Jewish, and anyone who knows their history realizes that whenever right-wing bigotry is on the ascendant, we’re always next in line. 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MUSICAL CODA Discussion about this post Michael Roseman Jun 30 Edited For a while, American bigotry was ashamed of itself. Or pretended to be. Now it runs the government. Reply Share 106 replies Megan Rothery Jun 30 Edited Take a stand - Call. Write. Email. Protest. Unrelentingly. Use/share this spreadsheet as a resource to call/email/write members of Congress, the Cabinet and news organizations. Reach out to those in your own state, as well as those in others. Use your voice and make some “good trouble” ❤️‍🩹🤍💙 https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/13lYafj0P-6owAJcH-5_xcpcRvMUZI7rkBPW-Ma9e7hw/edit?usp=drivesdk Reply Share 31 replies 852 more comments... No posts Ready for more? © 2025 Paul Krugman Privacy ∙ Terms ∙ Collection notice Start writing Get the app Substack is the home for great culture

Detailed fact-check analysis of: Paul Krugman Paul Krugman We’re All Rats Now Time to take a stand, again, against racism Paul Krugman Jun 30, 2025 Zohran Mamdani’s upset victory in New York’s Democratic primary has created panic in MAGAland. Stephen Miller, the architect of Donald Trump’s deportation policies, waxed apocalyptic: Scott Bessent, the Treasury secretary, declared that New York is about to turn into “Caracas on the Hudson.” And Sen. Tommy Tuberville of Alabama basically declared New York’s voters subhuman, saying: These inner-city rats, they live off the federal government. And that’s one reason we’re $37 trillion in debt. And it’s time we find these rats and we send them back home, that are living off the American taxpayers that are working very hard every week to pay taxes. These reactions are vile, and they’re also dishonest. Whatever these men may claim, it’s all about bigotry. Miller isn’t concerned about the state of New York “society.” What bothers him is the idea of nonwhite people having political power. Bessent isn’t really deeply worried about Zamdani’s economic ideas. But he feels free, maybe even obliged, to slander a foreign-born Muslim with language he would never use about a white Christian politician, even if that politician were (like some of his colleagues in the Trump administration) a total crackpot. And while Tuberville stands out even within his caucus as an ignorant fool, his willingness to use dehumanizing language about millions of people shows that raw racism is rapidly becoming mainstream in American politics. Remember, during the campaign both Trump and JD Vance amplified the slanders about Haitians eating pets. And now that they’re in office, you can see the resurgence of raw racism all across Trump administration policies, large and small. You can see it, for example, in the cuts at the National Institutes of Health, which are so tilted against racial minorities that a federal judge — one appointed by Ronald Reagan! — declared I’ve never seen a record where racial discrimination was so palpable. I’ve sat on this bench now for 40 years. I’ve never seen government racial discrimination like this. You can see it in the renaming of military bases after Confederate generals — that is, traitors who fought for slavery. You can even see it in a change in the military’s shaving policy that is clearly custom-designed to drive Black men — who account for around a quarter of the Army’s new recruits — out of the service. So racism and bigotry are back, big time. Who’s safe? Nobody. Are you a legal immigrant? Well, the Supreme Court just allowed Trump to summarily strip half a million U.S. residents of that status, and only a fool would imagine that this is the end of the story. Anyway, when masked men who claim to be ICE agents but refuse to show identification are grabbing people off the streets because they think those people look illegal, does legal status even matter? Does it even matter if you’re a U.S. citizen? And the One Big Beautiful Bill Act is set to massively increase ICE’s funding — basically setting up a huge national secret police force. Now, maybe you imagine that you yourself won’t suffer from this new reign of bigotry and imagine that everyone you care about is similarly safe. But if that’s what you think, you’re likely to face a rude awakening. I personally don’t have any illusions of safety. Yes, I’m a native-born white citizen. But my wife and her family are Black, and some of my friends and relatives are foreign-born U.S. citizens. Furthermore, I’m Jewish, and anyone who knows their history realizes that whenever right-wing bigotry is on the ascendant, we’re always next in line. Are there really people out there naïve enough to believe MAGA’s claims to be against antisemitism, who can’t see the transparent cynicism and dishonesty? The fact is that the Trump administration already contains a number of figures with strong ties to antisemitic extremists. The Great Replacement Theory, which has de facto become part of MAGA’s ideology, doesn’t just say that there’s a conspiracy to replace whites with people of color; it says that it’s a Jewish conspiracy. So I’m definitely scared of what the many antisemites inside or with close ties to the Trump administration may eventually do. And no, I’m not frightened at all by the prospect that New York may soon have a somewhat leftist Muslim mayor. Anyway, my personal fears are beside the point. Everyone who cares about keeping America America needs to take a stand against the resurgence of bigotry. Because the truth is that we’re all rats now. 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Fact Check: Michael Madigan was sentenced to 7 1/2 years in prison and fined $2.5 million. | TruthOrFake Blog