U.S. Rep. Nikki Budzinski testifies about influence of 'Sphinx' Madigan during Pritzker ascension

U.S. Rep. Nikki Budzinski told jurors in former Illinois House Speaker Michael J. Madigan’s trial Monday that Gov. JB Pritzker’s team gave “serious consideration” to job recommendations from Madigan and other legislative leaders, but would “absolutely not” have acted based on a private payment or benefit to Madigan.

Budzinski also acknowledged that Madigan was known around Pritzker’s office as “Sphinx” — a nickname Budzinski used in a December 2018 email but credited to others while testifying.

“I never talked to them about it,” said Budzinski, a former Pritzker aide, when asked to explain the nickname.

Budzinski, a Springfield Democrat who was elected to the 13th Congressional District seat in 2022, served as executive director of Pritzker’s transition team after his 2018 election and then served as senior adviser once he was sworn into office.

Prosecutors called Budzinski to testify while laying out evidence of a scheme in which Madigan allegedly agreed to help then-Chicago Ald. Danny Solis secure a paid seat on a government board in 2018 and 2019. Budzinski was not involved and is not accused of wrongdoing.

Testimony in the trial ended early Monday, after Budzinski left the stand, due to services for 7th Circuit Judge Joel Flaum, who died Wednesday. Prosecutors are nearing the end of their case against Madigan but told U.S. District Judge John Blakey they now expect to rest early next week.

Madigan is accused of leading a criminal enterprise designed to enhance his political power and reward his allies. Solis was the powerful chairman of the City Council’s Zoning Committee, and prosecutors say Madigan used the former 25th Ward alderman to steer business to Madigan’s private tax appeals law firm.

In one such example, the feds say Madigan asked for Solis’ help connecting with the developers of Chicago’s Old Post Office after Solis asked for help landing the board seat. Solis was working undercover for the FBI at the time, and his request was a ruse.

Solis agreed to wear a wire for the FBI after agents confronted him with evidence of his own wrongdoing in June 2016. However, the Chicago Sun-Times exposed his undercover work in January 2019, and jurors have seen no record of Madigan actually referring Solis to Pritzker’s team.

Still, Budzinski testified about the influence Madigan had at the time. She said the Pritzker team had roughly 1,500 positions to fill after his election. She said the incoming governor’s staff “gave serious consideration” to recommendations from Madigan — as well as other top legislative leaders.

Jurors saw one email in which Budzinski referred to Madigan as “Sphinx” as she passed along a list of his recommendations. In another Dec. 24, 2018, email seen by the jury, Budzinski tried to make sure a recommendation didn’t fall through the cracks.

“We need to call him at least,” Budzinski told people in charge of personnel about one possible candidate for an Illinois Department of Transportation slot. “The Speaker raised with JB yesterday.”

Budzinski testified that she felt it important to be “responsive” to Madigan’s recommendations, but that it wasn’t necessary to “act” on them. And when asked if anyone was appointed based on a private payment or benefit to Madigan, she told a prosecutor “absolutely not.”

“Because that would be wrong, and we have a process, we would never do that,” Budzinski said.

Earlier Monday, Blakey heard from Gabrielle Sansonetti, defense attorney for former state Rep. Edward “Eddie” Acevedo. The judge on Friday immunized Acevedo and ruled that he could not avoid testifying in Madigan’s trial by asserting his Fifth Amendment right not to incriminate himself.

Acevedo is one of five Madigan allies who prosecutors say were paid by ComEd through third parties in order to curry favor with Madigan. Acevedo allegedly received $120,000 as part of that scheme. The feds also say AT&T Illinois bribed Madigan in 2017 by paying another $22,500 to Acevedo.

Acevedo has not been charged as a result of any of that conduct, but he served a six-month prison sentence in 2022 for tax evasion in a spinoff prosecution. Prosecutors have argued Acevedo was important to Madigan because the fellow Southwest Side Democrat was a leader in the Latino community, and that population had begun to grow in Madigan’s 22nd District.

Sansonetti argued Monday that Acevedo has dementia and “the impact of that in his testimony is concerning and is a matter that is legitimate.”

However, Assistant U.S. Attorney Amarjeet Bhachu said Acevedo previously testified before a grand jury and “he had specific recollection of particular events.”

Blakey agreed to meet with Acevedo on Tuesday to assess his ability to testify. That will likely mean another short day of testimony for jurors.

Contributing: Dave McKinney