Pritzker Is Clearly Lying, But Why?

The moon landing was a lie. America did not send Neil Armstrong, Edwin "Buzz" Aldrin, and Michael Collins to the moon.

If Apollo 11 traveled to the moon, why did NASA deem it necessary to discard all the hardware that helped build it? Why and how did the original moon landing recordings get erased? How is it that as technology has become more advanced, space travel has regressed? If we put men on the moon, why are we celebrating a Virgin Galactic spaceship that traveled outside the Earth's atmosphere for a few minutes? Why does the lighting from the moon landing photos look like it was staged in a studio?

There are some plausible explanations for the moon landing tale. The United States and Russia were in the heat of The Cold War. Two global superpowers were competing for technological superiority and global hegemony. American masterminds decided faking a moon landing would accomplish three goals. First, it made America look like winners, thus demoralizing the Soviets. Second, while Russia invested valuable time and resources in its space program, America spent its resources in more fruitful areas like military and infrastructure. Third, it distracted the public from focusing on the war, which was very unpopular during a time of rising racial unrest and economic uncertainty.

I rehash this bit of history to illustrate a point. It is not enough to call out the lie. There must be an explanation for why the lie was told. Nobody lies for the sake of lying. Everyone, from children to politicians, lies for a reason.

Illinois Governor J.B. Pritzker is taking a victory lap after a Census report found an undercount of Illinois' population numbers.

The 2020 Census officially omitted over 45,000 residents of our state.

I'm pleased the Census Bureau approved the correction for future estimates, bringing in millions in additional fed funding.

In fact, we've gained population in the prior decade contrary to reported declines.

— Governor JB Pritzker (@GovPritzker) January 3, 2024

According to the report, the Census undercounted Illinois' population by 46,400. However, that number cannot be retroactively added to the 2020 total. As a makegood, the Census will add 46,400 to Illinois' 2023 total. Last year, the state saw a population decline of 32,800. Adding the uncounted total from 2020, you have a net gain of 13,600. (-32,800 + 46,400 = 13,600). This is why Pritzker is claiming the state gained in population.

It's a lie. No one will ever know if the uncounted 46,400 residents from 2020 would have stayed in the state for those three years. In 2020, initial estimates were that the state lost 79,500 residents. Add 46,400 and Illinois would still have had a net loss of 33,100, still resulting in ten straight years of population loss.

Pritzker knows he's lying. His supporters in the media know he's lying. Most Illinoisans know he's lying. But as I mentioned earlier, spotting the lie is only half of the battle. Why is he lying? How does he benefit from the lie?

First, and most importantly, he is secretly politicking to be Michelle Obama's Vice President.

One of the worst-kept secrets in American politics is Michelle Obama is quietly gearing up for a Presidential run. Pritzker as V.P. makes perfect sense. He is charming enough to win over white suburban and college-educated voters. He could help sure up the midwest where Democrats have lost some ground in recent years. Pritzker is boring, which is not a bad thing in American politics. He would not overshadow Michelle Obama, allowing her to soak up all the spotlight (and criticism). As an heir to the Hyatt Hotel fortune, billionaire Pritzker would be a substantial financial backer for a POTUS ticket with Michelle. The Obamas and the Pritzkers have a long and mutually beneficial relationship. Penny Pritzker, J.B.'s sister, invested heavily in Barack's 2004 Senate run and 2008 Presidential run. Barack nominated her for U.S. Secretary of Commerce, which she served from June 2013 to January 2017.

Most Democrats are playing nice by saying they support Joe Biden, but they are (you guessed it) lying. Pritzker and other prominent Democrats like California Governor Gavin Newsome are boosting their profiles nationwide and abroad. Pritzker recently attended the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland, a footsie fest of global elites discussing their ideas for the future. He has been attending various Democrat rallies over the last couple of years. J.B. is also building a nonprofit, Think Big America, that vows to build on the "progress that Governor J.B. Pritzker's administration and its allies have made in Illinois and takes the fight to right-wing extremists all across the country."

Many pundits view Pritzker as one of the top Democrat figures in the country. Politico ran a piece last August titled "Pritzker: The Dems' Secret Weapon." New York Magazine published a piece highlighting Pritzker's financial might. Venture capitalist Mark Glennon, who is no fan of J.B., wrote rather glowingly about the Illinois Governor, "In Pritzker, any of them would face a candidate that Democrats would find to be not only right on the issues as they see things, but articulate, funny and poised – somebody comfortable with words, ideas and policy."

A possible Obama/Pritzker Democrat ticket leads to the second reason he is lying about Illinois' population. Illinois has seen an electoral vote decline since the 1948 Presidential Election. In the infamous "Dewey Defeats Truman" election, Harry S. Truman won with 303 electoral votes, collecting 28 from Illinois. In the 2020 "Democrats Changed All the Voting Laws" election, Biden received 306 electoral votes, with only 20 coming from Illinois. Electoral votes are tied to the population of each state. In what will be a tight and very contentious 2024 election, every electoral vote matters. Pritzker wants to add another vote for Illinois in the electoral college.

The third reason is that while Pritzker's popularity is not terrible, it's not great either. According to Morning Consult, Pritzker ranks 38th among U.S. Governors with a 52% approval rating. He is in a five-way tie for the highest disapproval rating at 43%. As the economy worsens, it is no surprise that a billionaire Democrat politician has one of the highest disapproval ratings. His constituents are the "Tax the Rich" progressives who are pushing the party further left. It is why he is trying to appease them at every turn. Banning ghost guns, raising the minimum wage, carbon-free mandates. And he still can't crack mid-50s in approval.

People are leaving Illinois in droves. All the metrics suggest it. J.B. Pritzker is lying. Will his blatant lie even matter? Probably not. With the star power of Michelle Obama, money to run endless television ads, institutional support from the media and big tech, and his own political savviness, Pritzker can lie as much as he wants with little to no penalty.

Hopefully, he doesn't lie his way to the Oval Office.