A courtroom sketch depicting ex-Illinois House Speaker Michael Madigan, left, alongside his attorneys inside the Dirksen Federal Building during jury selection in his corruption case. (Cheryl Cook)

Potentially crucial testimony targeting Michael Madigan’s longtime confidant and current co-defendant Michael McClain was tossed out Wednesday during the pair’s ongoing racketeering and bribery trial.

Will Cousineau, Madigan’s former issues director, previously testified before a grand jury that McClain had joined him and Madigan in late 2016 for a call discussing a then-upcoming House vote on legislation critical to Commonwealth Edison.

But testifying again Thursday in the former House speaker’s corruption case, Cousineau said he didn’t recall exactly how he knew McClain was involved on the call.

Madigan, 82, and his longtime confidant McClain, 77, are charged with racketeering, bribery and wire fraud. They have each pleaded not guilty. The former House speaker is alleged to have orchestrated multiple corruption schemes, wielding his significant political power to enrich himself and reward loyal allies.

The most substantial of those alleged schemes involved utility giant ComEd as prosecutors have claimed Madigan and McClain arranged subcontractor jobs for several of the speaker’s “political cronies” with the company.

In exchange, according to the government, Madigan gave his sign-off on critical legislation in Springfield that benefitted ComEd. Already McClain and three other ComEd officials — Anne Pramaggiore, John Hooker and Jay Doherty — have been convicted of conspiring to bribe Madigan.

One such piece of legislation was the Future Energy Jobs Act (FEJA), passed in late 2016, which ComEd saw as a vital bill for the company’s financial well-being.

Cousineau testified about a 2016 roll call vote that revealed the Madigan-backed energy legislation didn’t yet have the votes necessary to pass the House. He then said he relayed this information to Madigan, and believed McClain was involved on the phone call when he did so.

“My recollection was that Mr. McClain was with the speaker,” Cousineau testified.

When asked by Assistant U.S. Attorney Julia Schwartz how he knew that, he replied: “I don't have a specific recollection.”

“It is simply his guess, his assumption, his speculation,” McClain attorney Patrick Cotter argued after objecting to Cousineau’s response.

After deciding Cousineau wasn’t “certain” in his answer, U.S. District Judge John Blakey struck the testimony from the record, telling jurors to “totally disregard” the response.

Prosecutors had hoped to show that McClain — who in 2016 was working as a contract lobbyist for ComEd — was working in lockstep with Madigan to try and get FEJA passed as part of this alleged subcontractor scheme.

FEJA was eventually passed in December 2016

Cousineau explained Wednesday that during FEJA negotiations, McClain could be “wearing both hats” as he seemed to be acting on behalf of both ComEd and Madigan’s office.

“I recall him talking about the interests of the company,” he testified, “but certainly he understood the needs of the speaker."

Those comments mirror testimony from Tuesday when ComEd’s former general counsel Thomas O’Neill told jurors that utility execs jokingly referred to McClain as a “double agent,” because, although he worked as a ComEd contract lobbyist, he also had several other prominent clients — including Madigan.

“It was hard to know which client he was serving,” O’Neill testified. “Seemed he had a lot of clients, a lot of interests, and sometimes he was serving his own interests.”

Cousineau eventually left the speaker’s office and became a lobbyist. In an April 2018 wiretapped phone conversation played for jurors Wednesday, McClain asked Cousineau how’s the “dark side” in reference to Cousineau’s move into lobbying.

Cousineau replied it was “stressful” but in a different way from his work in the speaker’s office. McClain then responded: “As long as we always remember who our real client is … it’s not easy, but it mollifies it.”

That “real client,” Cousineau testified, was a reference to Madigan.

Cousineau’s testimony extended throughout the day Wednesday and is expected to continue Thursday. Madigan’s trial, now in its fourth week, is expected to last nearly three months.

Capitol News Illinois contributed to this story.