· Editorial: In chiding his fellow party members for shying away from discussions and debates over religious issues for fear of giving offense or appearing insensitive to those with opposing views, Obama made a timely, considered statement that would carry weight whether Democrats look to him as a savior or not — and clearly a lot of them do, given the ceaseless speculation about his prospects as a presidential candidate… “Not every mention of God in public is a breach to the wall of separation — context matters,” said Obama. In the context of politics, injecting a real moral dimension matters, too.

· Gubernatorial debates still up in the air

· “Four years before an agreed deadline, Adventist Hinsdale Hospital will shut down its medical waste incinerator Friday.”

· “llinois Governor Rod Blagojevich’s office no longer plans to use a five-year loan to buy 500 new state police cars, because that would be illegal.”

· Toll Road deal just speck on windshield for Indiana motorists

· “Faced with mounting criticism of its $1-per-page copying fee, the DuPage Election Commission is expected to revisit the long-standing policy.”

· From an SEIU press release:

The Service Employees International Union is increasing its involvement this year in the city’s aldermanic politics. Because of our growing base in the city (100,000 members; 253,000 in SEIU households), we want to work harder to hold the Chicago City Council accountable to the city’s working people.

To this end, we will be offering full-day trainings in July to those wishing to run for alderman or work on aldermanic campaigns. In addition to community activists and Local School Council members, all incumbents have been invited to join us for these trainings.