Gov. JB Pritzker riffs on his wealth and staying out of prison in Stephen Colbert appearance

Gov. JB Pritzker is “OK” with being a billionaire, takes pride in bucking a tradition of Illinois governors doing prison time and said he's “preserving democracy” by taking in Texas Democrats in an appearance Tuesday’ on “Late Night with Stephen Colbert.”

Pritzker is once again in the national spotlight for harboring dozens of Texas House Democrats as they break quorum in order to stop Texas Republicans from enacting a redistricting plan that would net the state an additional five seats in Congress, at the behest of President Donald Trump amid concerns Republicans will lose their majority in the House of Representatives next year.

“Well ,Donald Trump is trying to steal five seats from the people, frankly from the country , not just the people of Texas and disenfranchise people. We’re talking about violating the Voting Rights Act and the Constitution,” Pritzker said. “... Where did they decide to come to? The safe haven of the state of Illinois. And we’re going to protect them and take care of them.”

Colbert asked Pritzker whether Illinois is considering new maps, should Texas go through with its plan.

“It’s possible. And I’ve said everything is on the table. We gotta fight fire with fire. They frankly tossed the rule book out and they’re just acting in an unconstitutional fashion, and what we’re gonna have to do is whatever it takes to preserve democracy.”

The late night host held up a map of Illinois’ congressional districts, noting the unusual shapes of the 17th and 13th congressional districts, as the state becomes a focal point during the latest redistricting talks. Republicans hold just three congressional seats in a state that saw 43.8% vote for Trump last year. The maps Illinois Democrats approved in 2021 sealed in their political power for a decade.

“It’s like the stinger on a scorpion down there,” Colbert said of the 13th District, which stretches from central to southern Illinois. "Is this common for all states to do?"

“We handed it over to a kindergarten class and let them decide,” Pritzker joked. “...That’s our independent commission.”

In asking why a billionaire would want to be a governor, Colbert said it's "not a very popular thing to be right now."

"I'm OK with it," Pritzker said to laughs.

"You're OK with it, I'm sure," Colbert said. "You know what? That shows real courage."

"I've got to stand up for my people," Pritzker said.

Pritzker credited his mother, who died when he was 17, for showing him how to be an activist and advocate for reproductive rights. He said he "absorbed a lot of her enthusiasm."

"I think you know this, that when you lose a parent when you're young or during your lifetime, you're hoping to, in some way, honor them and in fact to fulfill something that they may have wanted to do during their lifetimes," Pritzker said. "And so standing up for people's rights and making sure that we're making life more affordable, raising the minimum wage, protecting people from the onslaught of somebody like Donald Trump. That's something my mother would be out doing right now, and so I'm very proud."

Colbert told Pritzker that he'd be the first Democratic governor in Illinois to finish two terms by next January, because "a lot of them end up in the hoosegow."

"Yes. It's extraordinary to stay out of prison," Pritzker said. "...Believe me, I think about Donald Trump picking me up and taking me to El Salvador, or to the gulag. So I hope that doesn't happen."

Pritzker said he once showed his son a book in the governor’s mansion in Springfield that featured the names and pictures of all Illinois governors dating back to 1818.

“I turned to the most recent page. I started counting, and I said, ‘There’s a 40% chance I’ll end up in prison at the end of this. But if you accept my collect calls, we can talk all the time,’” Pritzker said to laughs. “That did not make him feel all that comfortable about me being governor, I have to say.”

The show opened with a satirical montage dedicated to Texas Democrats fleeing to the Windy City. It ended with Pritzker doing a shot of Malört, Chicago’s much-beloved, or much-hated, liqueur.

Pritzker has publicly, and repeatedly, shown his ability to do a shot of Malört, including in a “Daily Show” segment ahead of the DNC, and in an MSNBC segment with Jen Psaki.

“If you come to Chicago, every Chicagoan knows you’ve got to have a shot of Malört,” he told Psaki. “I’m not saying it’s the best-tasting liqueur. I’m just saying that it’s the one that if you want to prove your mettle, you’ve got to have a shot of Malort.”