Column: Reclusive Madigan pulled strings from behind the scenes – Champaign News-Gazette

Jim Dey: One asked the other if he should assign "agents" to deliver "body blows" to their target. "I know you’ve got a law degree, but you’re more of a street fighter than anybody knows, except maybe for guys like me. And if you want to put the squeeze on the guy, you could hurt him pretty badly." That’s a snippet of a conversation between Michael McClain and former Illinois House Speaker Michael Madigan.