Capitol Fax.com - Your Illinois News Radar

Protected: SUBSCRIBERS ONLY - Fundraiser list

Tuesday, Dec 12, 2023 - Posted by Rich Miller

Comments Off

Tuesday, Dec 12, 2023 - Posted by Isabel Miller

* Danny Solis has been summoned to the witness stand…

#BREAKING Danny Solis, labeled by the feds as one of Chicago’s “most significant cooperators in the last several decades,” has been summoned to the witness stand in the trial of ex-Chicago Ald. Edward M. Burke pic.twitter.com/kehr5d3lhv

— Jon Seidel (@SeidelContent) December 12, 2023

* H/T to Hannah Meisel for putting this on my radar…

Writing & reporting this story with @ad_quig was one of the wildest days of my life https://t.co/sE20K2z7lb

— Heather Cherone (@HeatherCherone) December 12, 2023

* Democratic Party of Illinois…

Last week, the Democratic Party of Illinois filed a friend of the court brief in a Republican challenge attempting to prevent the counting of mail-in-ballots received after Election Day. The original challenge, brought by Congressman Mike Bost and two 2020 Trump electors, was rejected by the District Court, and they have now appealed to the US Court of Appeals for the Seventh Circuit. The Republican National Committee is backing the appeal despite “promoting a ‘bank the vote’ program to get Republicans to pledge to vote by mail,” according to the Chicago Tribune.

Current Illinois statute protects voters by ensuring that mail ballots that are timely cast will not be thrown out due to postal delays or other circumstances outside of voters’ control. The lawsuit could invalidate thousands of mail-in ballots, including those of military members serving overseas, if they are postmarked on or before Election Day but received after.

DPI’s brief urges the court to affirm the district court’s decision that the plaintiffs lack standing to bring this case and their claims fail on the merits.

“Republicans will stop at nothing to roll back our voting rights and suppress the voices of Illinoisans, including the brave men and women serving in active military duty, because they know it’s their only hope for winning elections with their losing records and disastrous agendas. The Democratic Party of Illinois is committed to always defending our values and our fundamental rights against attacks from extremists, and this case is no exception. Safeguarding the right to vote is foundational to a strong and functional democracy. It is fundamentally un-American and antidemocratic for Republicans to continue their attempts to silence Illinoisans when the will of voters is not on their side,” said DPI Chair Lisa Hernandez.

* Preliminary NTSB report on the Yellow Line crash has been released. Tribune…

The operator of a Yellow Line train hit the brakes in the moments before the train struck a snow plow on the tracks in mid-November, a preliminary report issued by federal investigators shows.

The operator also tried to use the train’s emergency brakes. A system designed to reduce sliding by the train’s wheels while braking activated, according to the report, issued Tuesday. Still, the train failed to stop, slamming into the snowplow and injuring more than a dozen people.

CTA estimated the crash caused about $8.7 million in damages to equipment, the report shows. […]

The operator knew the snowplow would be on the tracks for training, but didn’t know exactly where, federal investigators wrote.

Emphasis added by me.

* Press release…

State Senator Mike Simmons announced the launch of the 7th District Small Business Restoration Grant with $2.5 million in funds available to assist small businesses located in the 7th District. […]

“This initiative is in direct response to what we’ve seen, and will provide a much needed boost to entrepreneurs and mom and pop small businesses across our district who are struggling.”

The 7th District Small Business Restoration Grant is intended to provide funds to small businesses who have missed out on previous funding opportunities, are in danger of closure, are facing financial hardship and identify as historically underserved. Simmons secured funding in the Fiscal Year 2024 budget to provide one-time, $10,000 micro-grants to qualified small businesses operating in brick and mortar sites within the 7th District. […]

Applications for the 7th District Small Business Restoration Grant close Feb. 2, 2024 at 5 p.m. To apply or learn more about eligibility and application requirements, visit 7sbrg.org.

* Here’s the rest of your roundup…

Crain’s | The Civic Federation names a new chief:

* Tribune | Will County judge shares frustration with pace of criminal case against New Lenox gun shop owner, business partner: Defense attorney Jack Friedlander told the judge his team received 300 pages of discovery last week and the grand jury transcript an hour before a court proceeding Dec. 5. Friedlander asked for a continuance to review the material. […] [Will County Judge David Carlson] called the delay for grand jury transcripts an “oversight.” Pointing to the two Secret Service agents in the courtroom, Carlson said he was ready to scold them for the delay in the case. In a previous hearing, Carlson said he understood the agents were not cooperating, but it turns out that wasn’t true.

* Injustice Watch | Unsealed records reveal new details about Illinois appellate judge’s alleged role in decades-old fraud scheme: Judge Carl Walker was never charged and denied any wrongdoing in mortgage frauds perpetrated by a real estate client. But a controversial 2003 raid on his law offices has reemerged in an effort to remove him from hearing a case.

* Muddy River News | After losing to Pritzker, Bailey using Miller playbook in attempt to join her in Congress: Bailey is going with the Miller playbook to beat Bost. He has called him an establishment RINO (Republican in Name Only), bashing Bost’s “liberal” voting record and pledging fealty to former President Donald Trump, the tough guy who doesn’t have the cojones to debate his opponents. While most of Illinois is geographically red, the big blue dot of Chicago and the smaller blue dots in Metro East and many college towns still have the majority of people and votes, which is why Democrats have all of the statewide offices and super majorities in both chambers of the General Assembly.

* Pioneer Press | Evanston plans event to select descendants for reparations funds: The committee expects to be able to disburse payment to at least 80 direct descendants in 2024, according to the letter, and those selected will be contacted in March to decide how they would like to spend the money. A majority of those in the ancestor group have been awarded funds from the city’s cannabis dispensary tax revenues, with 26 of 140 ancestors, those who were 18 and older at the time and directly experienced racist housing policies in Evanston from 1919 to 1969, awaiting disbursements or continuing to weigh their options.

* Daily Herald | Elgin mayor proposes using $6M in discretionary funds to lessen lead pipe replacement debt: The city has been replacing lead service lines using $13.5 million from the American Rescue Plan Act and voted Wednesday to approve accepting a $2 million loan from the Illinois Environmental Protection Agency. The city planned to sell $20 million in general obligation bonds next year for the program, but Kaptain’s proposal would drop that down to $14 million.

* Pioneer Press | Skokie Village Board violated Open Meetings Act, Illinois Attorney General finds: According to the public access counselor’s review of information sent by Johnson and Van Dusen, the village board adjourned its open meeting session on Oct. 2 at 8:10 p.m. to go into a closed session to discuss pending litigation. “The closed section verbatim recording confirms the allegations in Trustee Johnson’s Request for Review, which stated that during the relevant portion of the closed session meeting, the Board approved the June 5, 2023 closed session minutes with Trustee Johnson abstaining,” according to the public access counselor’s opinion.

* SJ-R | Injunction levied against the city of Springfield for “discriminatory” housing ordinance: A federal court has blocked the city of Springfield from enforcing a local housing ordinance that prevented people with disabilities from living within 600 feet of each other, over a year after damages were awarded in the case.

* Patch | 2 Run For Elmhurst State House Seat: Elmhurst Alderman Marti Deuter is running as a Democrat to succeed Jenn Ladisch-Douglass, a Democrat who decided not to run again after one term. The Republican candidate is Elmhurst resident Dennis Reboletti, who is the elected supervisor of Addison Township.

* Austin Weekly News | Illinois Senate President Don Harmon reflects on 20 years of change and calls for solidarity with migrants: “We need to do a better job of using these opportunities to create a more durable social infrastructure, so that we are prepared to handle the next crisis that comes around the corner, because once this one is addressed, another will inevitably come,” Harmon, of the 39th district, said.

* Tribune | Rylie O’Meara: Chicago’s warming shelters are not adequately caring for the unhoused in winter: In my role on the board of Chicago Street Medicine and as a third-year medical student at the Stritch School of Medicine, I regularly go on “street runs” with medical providers who travel to locations in the city where people experiencing homelessness congregate and provide them with medical care. Unsurprisingly, cold weather injuries are common among those with no indoor refuge during a Chicago winter.

* Chicago Mag | Cops vs. Counselors: Rebecca Neusteter, executive director of the Health Lab at the University of Chicago Urban Labs, which is formally evaluating the CARE pilot, says the biggest implementation hiccups are often mundane ones — “even basic questions like procuring vehicles and making sure people’s schedules align” — products of melding teams of first responders from different city agencies, with their own workplace cultures and systems. Then there’s this vital consideration: What if it had been a social worker, not a police officer, facing a bat-wielding Quintonio LeGrier? Are unarmed mental health professionals equipped to handle potentially violent situations?

* Chicago Mag | Joe Shanahan: The Metro and Smartbar owner, 66, on DJ’ing, meeting Bob Dylan, and battling cancer: Metro was the building I could afford. It was rundown, in a rough-and-tumble neighborhood. We were duct-taping the pipes because they’d burst in the middle of a Saturday night. At first, neighbors were unhappy that we were causing such a ruckus, but then they began to realize, Oh, there are people around here at night who aren’t breaking into the cars. There’s a caretaker’s unit in the building, and I lived there with a .38 under my pillow and a cat that chased the rats out. Those first 10 years, it was pure adrenaline.

* AP | Shohei Ohtani’s Dodgers contract has $680 million deferred: Ohtani’s record-setting deal, agreed to Saturday, calls for annual salaries of $70 million, according to details obtained by The Associated Press. Of each year’s salary, $68 million is deferred with no interest, payable in equal installments each July 1 from 2034-43.

* WICS | Hunters encouraged to support Illinois Deer Donation Program for community meals: Hunters still have time to donate to the Illinois Deer Donation Program, as the 2023-2024 hunting season ends. Donated deer help feed individuals and families in east-central Illinois, and hunters do not have to pay the processing fee at partnering meat processors.

* Tribune | 4,000 days of prayer: A man’s journey out of Chicago street violence to a trucking convoy honoring the Feast of Our Lady of Guadalupe: Since he was released from prison in October 2019, Romero commemorates the Feast of Our Lady of Guadalupe every December with hundreds of other truckers in a pilgrimage the weekend preceding the holiday, on Dec 12. They join thousands of devotees who visit the shrine walking, running, biking and horse riding, making the Midwest celebration the second largest one after Mexico City and the Des Plaines shrine the most visited monument of its kind in the U.S.

7 Comments

NAACP IL President causes furor with horrific remarks about new arrivals

Tuesday, Dec 12, 2023 - Posted by Rich Miller

* NAACP Illinois State Conference President Teresa Haley talked about asylum seekers during the group’s October president’s call…

* From Ms. Haley’s remarks…

There’s an average 10 to 15,000 a day. So they’re up to about 80,000 immigrants on the West Side of Chicago on the South Side, where they’re dumping them off in parks, abandoned schools and finding every apartment that they can find to put them in.

OK, first of all, 80,000? Not even close.

* Back to Haley’s comments…

And we’re seeing families on the street and we’re like, oh my God, we’re not used to seeing families on the streets. But Black people have been on the streets forever and ever. And nobody cares because they say that we’re drug addicts, we’ve got mental health issues.

But these immigrants have come over here, they’ve been raping people. They’ve been breaking into homes. They’re like savages as well. They don’t speak the language and they look at us like we were crazy, because we were the only people in America who were brought over here against our wills and were slaves, sold into slavery. But everybody else who comes over here? We’re so kind we’re so friendly. You need some clothes, you need a place to stay? We’re gonna make it happen. So brother, I feel your pain. I’m right there with you. I’m trying not to be a [N-Word] but you know, I’m pro-Black.

Haley is currently vying for a seat on the NAACP’s National Board.

* Now-former DuPage County NAACP President Patrick Watson, who told me today that he saw Haley make the comments in real time, released this statement announcing his resignation from the organization a while back…

NAACP State Conference President Teresa Haley is caught in yet another tirade “…, but these immigrants coming over here, they been raping people, they been breaking into homes, they’re like savages as well, they don’t speak the language, and they look at us like we were crazy because we were the only people in America brought over here against our wills and were slaves, sold into slavery… not trying to be a “N”…,.” This captured recording is not the only time NAACP Illinois State Conference President, Teresa Haley, uses her powerful platform in a manner that sets up a destructive atmosphere as Illinois NAACP State Conference President. Teresa Haley is also Springfield Branch President and a candidate seeking election to the National NAACP Board of Directors representing Region Three.

We live with the horror of persons being shot, shot at, exploited, shunned, burned out of houses and homes, and murdered due to being immigrants, migrants, asylum seekers, refugees, being Black, surviving being Black and male in hostile environments. We live with the news of LGBTQIA persons being harmed, missing, and being un-alived. A person in a leadership position should exercise care of her heart and words and not be flippant when speaking about how the LGBTQIA community wants to be described and acknowledged. No group of human beings should be described as, We have all these new diverse people at NAACP National. When dealing with the annual reports with National, we had people wanting me to call them they, them, it, what the hell is that?.

I cannot remain part of this, expected to nod in agreement and applaud to that which is abhorrent to me. I therefore resign as President of the DuPage County NAACP. “I will remain allying with the communities abhorrent to Ms. Haley, mistaken in her words that advocating powerfully and effectively for the descendants of the formerly enslaved means to denigrate others struggling to find their way. Those granted positions must not allow themselves to become agents of hate speech and divisiveness, she should resign and sit to answer for her words” said Patrick Watson

Watson told me Haley made disparaging remarks about LGBTQ+ people at the November meeting, which was not recorded.

* Gov. Pritzker was asked about Haley’s remarks today…

Reprehensible remarks. I would hope that she would apologize for the remarks. I also think that people should recognize that immigrants to this country are all around us. My family’s an immigrant family from a couple of generations ago. Virtually all of us came here from somewhere else. And so remarks like that are a commentary on our entire society. Extraordinarily inappropriate.

I reached out to Ms. Haley earlier today and haven’t yet heard back. But the reporter who brought up the topic with Pritzker has apparently talked to her and quoted her as saying “AI can generate anything.”

22 Comments

Gov. Pritzker says he hasn’t yet spoken to AG Raoul about crisis pregnancy center lawsuit settlement

Tuesday, Dec 12, 2023 - Posted by Rich Miller

* Background is here and here if you need it. Gov. JB Pritzker was asked by a reporter today if he agreed with Attorney General Kwame Raoul’s decision to come to an agreement with the Thomas More Society to not enforce the new state law which added crisis pregnancy centers to the Consumer Fraud and Deceptive Practices Act…

I haven’t spoken with the attorney general about his decision.

Looks like the guy who came up with the idea for the bill (Raoul) didn’t give a personal heads up that he was settling to the guy who signed that bill into law (Pritzker) and repeatedly defended that signature, including on CNN in August…

I’m confident this is constitutional. It’s legal.

* Anyway, the governor continued…

What I can say is it’s my understanding that the existing Consumer Fraud Protection Act will do what’s necessary to keep organizations like the crisis pregnancy centers from providing misinformation, disinformation and allow people to sue under that act. So it’s my understanding that the reason that the Attorney General made the decision to do this was it was not necessary to have this separate piece of legislation.

* But why have the new law then?…

Again, I think that there was an idea that came from the legislature. It’s a good idea to protect people when they’re seeking health care from having their healthcare provider lie to them. And so that was the impetus behind it.

Um, the idea came from AG Raoul.

* Was there an overreach by the legislature, because this is the second time the state has agreed not to enforce a law (judicial campaign limits)?…

What I can tell you is that the people who are on the losing end of a vote in the legislature often decide that their recourse is to take this thing to court, because they didn’t win in the battleground of the legislature. And so that’s been their choice to do that. They’ve done that on quite a lot of things, the vast majority of which we have won on, those of us who have advocated for a law. And occasionally, a decision is made. This was not a decision, by the way, against the state. This was a decision made by the Attorney General simply to fall back on the existing law, because it does what’s necessary.

Please pardon all transcription errors.

4 Comments

A new take on ribbon cutting

Tuesday, Dec 12, 2023 - Posted by Rich Miller

* Press release…

Today, Governor JB Pritzker joined mHUB leadership, local elected officials, business leaders, and members of Illinois’ entrepreneurial community to celebrate the ribbon cutting and grand opening of mHUB’s new headquarters. The new innovation center is receiving $9.6 million in funding from the Department of Commerce and Economic Opportunity (DCEO) to continue advancing technology solutions for a clean tech economy through energy infrastructure, grid modernization, and long-energy storage.

“To make Illinois a leader in clean energy innovation, we need institutions like mHUB that convene public and private sector interests towards a common goal, such as protecting the future health and economy of our state by developing new solutions to our climate crisis,” said Governor JB Pritzker. “The State is proud to recognize mHUB for the work it’s doing to scale the early-stage technologies needed to modernize, decarbonize, and incentivize industry, while protecting our most vulnerable communities.”

mHUB is a hardtech and manufacturing innovation center launched in 2017 to create an entrepreneurial ecosystem that promotes growth, advancement, and innovation solutions in the manufacturing industry. The community includes over 500 active and alumni startups and small business that are supported by a coalition of product designers and developers, entrepreneurs, engineers and manufacturers, corporate leaders, industry experts, mentors, and investors.

The new location will also provide more equitable access to Chicago’s south and west side to enhance mHUB’s partnerships with community-based organizations and uplift historically underrepresented communities.

The State’s funding will help propel clean energy and sustainable manufacturing innovation to advance the Pritzker administration’s clean energy goals as outlined in the landmark Climate and Equitable Jobs Act (CEJA). With its manufacturing and sustainability-centered work, mHUB is one of the state’s most active investors in climate technologies.

* It’s kinda hard to see because of the photog hogging the shot, but Pritzker used a plasma torch to cut the “ribbon”…

“Nobody injured, nobody died.”

…Adding… Another angle is here.

8 Comments

Question of the day: 2023 Golden Horseshoe Awards

Tuesday, Dec 12, 2023 - Posted by Rich Miller

* The 2023 Golden Horseshoe Award for Best Democratic Illinois State Representative goes to Rep. Lance Yednock…

While I don’t always agree with his positions on the issues, he is a principled, respectful and hardworking legislator who is well-liked and respected by so many around the Capitol. He gets along well with people across the political spectrum, and has been a great leader for the moderate voices in the House. What a class act. He will be missed!

* The 2023 Golden Horseshoe Award for Best Republican Illinois State Representative goes to Rep. Norine Hammond…

Norine Hammond is what more lawmakers should aspire to be. She works her sprawling district hard. She seems to know everyone and what their pressing issues are. She knows how to work with Dems to get things done. Even when you disagree with her, she never lets anger or emotion take over.

Being a former district staffer she understands taking care of things back home means working for everyone, not just the GOP but everyone. In Springfield she knows her stuff and understands how government works and how to cut through things and get to the heart of issues.

Illinois could use a lot more Norine Hammonds.

Some very solid nominations were made yesterday, so thanks for that and congrats to our winners!

* Today’s categories…

Best Republican Illinois State Senator

As always, explain your nomination or it won’t count. And please do your best to nominate in both categories.

* This is your daily reminder to click here and help Lutheran Social Services of Illinois buy Christmas presents for their foster kids. So far, we’ve helped LSSI buy presents for 2,086 foster children. That’s just so amazing, but they serve 2,530 kids, so please click here.

23 Comments

Protected: SUBSCRIBERS ONLY - Another update to today’s edition

Tuesday, Dec 12, 2023 - Posted by Rich Miller

Comments Off

*** UPDATED x2 *** Elections have consequences

Tuesday, Dec 12, 2023 - Posted by Rich Miller

* Buried deep within the Chicago Public Schools board agenda for Thursday’s meeting is a proposed resolution entitled, “Resolution Regarding Values and Parameters for New Five-Year Transformational Strategic Plan, SY25-SY29.” And buried deep within that proposed resolution is this passage, which was spotted by some readers who are Chicago parents and who then forwarded it to me…

3) transition away from privatization and admissions/enrollment policies and approaches that further stratification and inequity in CPS and drive student enrollment away from neighborhood schools

It sure looks like the resolution, if approved, would eventually move the district away from charter schools and selective enrollment schools. These are, of course, longstanding policy goals of the Chicago Teachers Union, which helped elect one of its own as mayor.

I reached out to CPS for comment earlier today. I’ll let you know if they respond.

*** UPDATE 1 *** CPS responded and confirmed…

The Board’s resolution aims to guide engagement and development in partnership with the District on a new strategic plan with an emphasis on strengthening all neighborhood schools as a critical step toward supporting all students and closing opportunity and achievement gaps. Work on the District’s next five-year Strategic Plan has begun and will continue this spring with community engagement and outreach, beginning with the District’s Shape Our Future Survey as well as current engagement sessions about the District’s facilities master plan. The new strategic plan will be approved by the Board of Education in the summer of 2024.

While CPS will work with the community and its City partners to co-design the strategic plan, the parameters set a vision for the District to develop a plan that shifts away from a model which emphasizes school choice to one that elevates our neighborhood schools to ensure each and every student has access to a high-quality education in a supportive and welcoming school.

Specific community engagement sessions about the development of the new strategic plan will begin in February.

*** UPDATE 2 *** Hmm…

This came up during the runoff: "A Johnson administration would not end selective enrollment at CPS," his campaign had said after he was pressed by reportershttps://t.co/7JFgf8fwjj https://t.co/M0RDbphTBO

— Alice Yin (@byaliceyin) December 12, 2023

50 Comments

*** UPDATED x1 - House sponsor says she’s ‘heartbroken by the decision to back down on our promise to Illinois women’ *** Thomas More Society declares victory over AG Raoul

Tuesday, Dec 12, 2023 - Posted by Rich Miller

* More background is here if you need it. Tribune…

The state would drop enforcement of a new law Gov. J.B. Pritzker and legislative backers said was aimed at deterring deceptive practices by anti-abortion pregnancy centers under a proposed agreement between the Illinois attorney general’s office and several organizations that challenged the measure.

A federal judge in August temporarily blocked the law from being enforced in a scathing opinion that called it “both stupid and very likely unconstitutional.”

If finalized and signed by a federal judge, the agreement to make the judge’s decision permanent would mark a rare victory for anti-abortion groups in a deep blue state with some of the nation’s strongest reproductive rights laws, and a blow to Pritzker, who signed the measure into law last summer and who has promoted Illinois as a national beacon for abortion rights.

* The proposed agreed order…

It is hereby ORDERED that Defendant Kwame Raoul, in his official capacity as Attorney General of the State of Illinois, and those persons identified in Rule 65(d)(2), specifically, Illinois Attorney General Raoul’s officers, agents, servants, employees, and attorneys, all in their official capacities, as well as other persons who are in active concert or participation with those persons are permanently enjoined from enforcing the amendments to the Consumer Fraud and Deceptive Business Practices Act set forth in Senate Bill 1909 of the 103rd General Assembly, Public Act 103-0270, against Plaintiffs National Institute of Family and Life Advocates and its 81 Illinois members; Women’s Help Services d/b/a 1st Way Life Center & Focus Women’s Center; Rockford Family Initiative; Relevant Pregnancy Options Center; and Pro-Life Action League

Emphasis added.

* Thomas More Society press release…

Pro-Life Ministries Victorious Against State of Illinois’ Attack on Pregnancy Centers

Illinois Attorney General Kwame Raoul has agreed to an order permanently prohibiting the State of Illinois from enforcing a law that declared pro-life speech to be a “deceptive business practice” and defined as “consumer fraud” the sharing of certain information about the risks of abortion. Thomas More Society attorneys today filed, together with the Attorney General, a Joint Motion to Enter an Agreed Order, imposing a Permanent Injunction on the Attorney General. The Joint Motion was filed in the United States District Court for the Northern District of Illinois, for the signature of U.S. District Judge Iain D. Johnston.

In July, Thomas More Society attorneys sued the Attorney General over the law—known as Senate Bill 1909, or SB 1909—representing the pregnancy center umbrella group National Institute of Family and Life Advocates (NIFLA), along with Illinois pregnancy centers Women’s Help Services and Relevant Pregnancy Options Center, and sidewalk counseling organizations Pro-Life Action League and Rockford Family Initiative. The Agreed Order provides for a full recovery of attorney’s fees by Thomas More Society.

Peter Breen, Thomas More Society Executive Vice President & Head of Litigation, who served as lead counsel for NIFLA and the other plaintiffs, hailed the victory as a significant win for pro-life ministries and free speech in Illinois—which will also serve as a warning to other states across the country that attempt to target pro-life ministries with discriminatory laws.

“The federal court was spot on in holding that SB 1909 is ‘both stupid and very likely unconstitutional,’” stated Breen, recalling Johnston’s preliminary injunction order. “SB 1909 exempts abortion facilities and their speech, while exclusively regulating pro-life organizations and their speech, in flagrant violation of the First Amendment. This law is just one of a number of illegal new laws enacted across the country that restrict pro-life speech—we hope this permanent injunction, with full attorney’s fees, serves as a warning to other states that would seek to follow Illinois and try to silence pro-life viewpoints. We are honored to represent NIFLA and other life-affirming organizations to protect them from unjust laws like SB 1909 that seek to put a halt to their good work.”

Thomas Glessner, Founder and President of NIFLA, stated: “We are elated that a permanent injunction has been issued against Illinois Attorney General Kwame Raoul and SB 1909, which ensures this unconstitutional law will never go into effect. This is a huge win not only for NIFLA and our wonderful attorneys at the Thomas More Society but especially for pregnancy centers in the state, who serve the thousands of women in Illinois who are facing unplanned pregnancies—all at no cost. SB 1909 was an absolute weaponization of government that unfairly and unconstitutionally targeted pregnancy centers simply because they refused to refer for or perform abortions. Let this be a stern example of what awaits those who attempting to pass and enforce similar laws—look to Illinois and save taxpayer dollars for actually helping their communities instead of going after organizations that help women and their families.”

The Joint Motion follows an August 3, 2023, preliminary injunction entered by Johnston, which blocked Illinois’ enforcement of SB 1909. That court order was issued one week after Illinois enacted SB 1909. Thomas More Society attorneys filed the lawsuit against SB 1909 one hour after the law was signed.

* Personal PAC CEO Sarah Garza Resnick…

While we would have liked to see the Deceptive Practices of Limited Services Pregnancy Centers Act take full effect, we have full confidence that Attorney General Raoul will continue to investigate and hold bad actors accountable to the existing Illinois’ Consumer Fraud and Deceptive Practices Act. The lawsuit brought by the Thomas More Society is yet another example of extreme right wing groups trying to push their anti-choice agenda by any means necessary.

What people in Illinois need to know about so-called “crisis-pregnancy centers” (CPCs) is that they are run with the express purpose of preventing as many people from obtaining abortions as possible. They use a wide range of tactics to achieve this end, from simply setting up shop next to abortion providers so as to confuse and mislead patients, to actively deceiving the people who walk through their doors with regards to their private medical details, such as how far along a pregnancy is. CPCs outnumber abortion providers in Illinois 3-to-1, and they are putting pregnant people at risk. Where CPCs are using deceptive or fraudulent practices to achieve their stated goal of preventing abortions, they must be held accountable.

Apparently, the AG’s office has told folks on his side that he can use existing state consumer fraud laws against the clinics. But, if that’s the case, why spend the political capital to pass a bill and go through all this? This was his legislative initiative, after all.

* Jennifer Welch, President and CEO of Planned Parenthood Illinois Action…

“All people should have equitable access to the reproductive health care they need and deserve. Planned Parenthood of Illinois stands by its patients ability to access reproductive health care including abortion, without being deceived, intimidated or misled. Planned Parenthood Illinois Action continues to fight for the rights of people to get the information they need to make a decision about reproductive health care that is best for their bodies, their lives and their future.”

I’ve reached out to others for comment. I’ll let you know.

*** UPDATE *** House sponsor Rep. Terra Costa Howard…

Today’s decision by the Illinois Attorney General to back off from the fight against so-called “crisis pregnancy centers” is a disappointing setback in our battle to protect every woman’s right to reproductive autonomy and freedom.

The decision whether to bear a child is one of the most profound and personal choices a person can make, and no one should try to interfere with that decision by using scare tactics or outright deception. By passing the Deceptive Practices of Limited Services Pregnancy Centers Act (SB 1909) into law, we empowered the Attorney General to hold these centers accountable if they use pressure tactics or provide misleading information to keep women from accessing abortion care.

As the House sponsor of this bill, I am heartbroken by the decision to back down on our promise to Illinois women that these deceptive centers and their staffs will face legal consequences if they tell lies or conceal important health information from the patients who walk through their doors. This settlement undoes so much hard work by so many advocates, organizations, and legislators, who stood together against the pressure tactics of these forced birth extremists.

This decision is especially painful given yesterday’s ruling by the Texas Supreme Court that denied Kate Cox’s right to end a doomed pregnancy and preserve her own health and fertility. Since the Dobb’s decision in 2022, Illinois has been a beacon of hope to American women across our country. So this move to dismantle SB1909 is a gut punch to millions of women beyond our state.

One last point: It is deeply unfortunate that these centers are trying to hide behind the First Amendment. Let us be clear: The First Amendment does not give a shady used-car salesman the right to lie to you about the mileage on a car. A scammer does not have the right to lie to you about a fraudulent investment. And a deceptive forced-birth zealot does not have the right to lie to you about your health, your medical choices, or your right to make your own decisions about your body and your life.

30 Comments

Protected: SUBSCRIBERS ONLY - Update to today’s edition (Updated)

Tuesday, Dec 12, 2023 - Posted by Rich Miller

Comments Off

Protected: SUBSCRIBERS ONLY - Today’s edition of Capitol Fax (use all CAPS in password)

Tuesday, Dec 12, 2023 - Posted by Rich Miller

Comments Off

Open thread

Tuesday, Dec 12, 2023 - Posted by Isabel Miller

* What’s going on? Keep it Illinois-centric please…

1 Comment

Isabel’s morning briefing

Tuesday, Dec 12, 2023 - Posted by Isabel Miller

* ICYMI: Under proposed agreement, Illinois would drop enforcement of law deterring deceptive anti-abortion practices. Tribune…

* Isabel’s top picks…

* WBEZ | Chicago scraps plans for migrant tent camp in Morgan Park: City officials say a plan to shelter migrants on a vacant lot in Chicago’s Morgan Park neighborhood has stalled because of a “lack of urgency” as the city turns to alternative housing options for migrants. The decision comes less than a week after the state of Illinois rejected the city’s first attempt to house migrants in winterized basecamps on top of contaminated soil in Brighton Park. An outside environmental report deemed the site at 38th Street and California Avenue as toxic. Construction had already begun before the state pulled the plug.

* Center Square | Illinois’ gun ban registry rules in federal court Tuesday: While a three-judge federal appeals panel has since sided with the state, the law is still being challenged. Two cases are pending in front of the U.S. Supreme Court. Tuesday afternoon, attorney Kostas Moros said plaintiffs will argue for the Southern District of Illinois federal court to delay the Jan. 1 registration deadline.

* Tribune | Migrants arriving by busload in Rosemont and Cicero are sent away, but welcomed in Oak Park, as suburbs respond differently to crisis: Police in Rosemont allowed migrants to get off the buses if they had someone picking them up, but threatened to impound the bus and arrest the driver for endangering the passengers if he let them out, Mayor Brad Stephens said. The Village Board planned to consider an ordinance Monday to back up such measures. Cicero approved a measure to fine bus companies $750 per person for letting out homeless migrants, spokesman Ray Hanania said.

Governor Pritzker will be in Chicago to celebrate the grand opening of the new mHUB innovation center at noon. Click here to watch.

* Here’s the rest of your morning roundup…

* WCIA | New professional licensing system coming to Illinois: “This new law will move us one step closer to streamlining the state’s licensure process to help connect residents with good jobs and alleviate workforce shortages across our communities,” Senator Suzy Glowiak Hilton (D-Western Springs), who sponsored the bill in the Senate, said. “By providing IDFPR with this support, we will help promote an effective and streamlined licensure process for all Illinoisans.”

* Center Square | Prosecutors push back against ex-Madigan chief’s bid for acquittal or new trial: Mapes in November asked for an acquittal, or in the alternative, a new trial in a motion before Judge John Kness. Mapes and his attorney argued that mistakes by prosecutors and the judge required an acquittal. Prosecutors pushed back on those claims in a 50-page motion in response. “At trial, the government presented ample evidence of Mapes’ repeated lies in the grand jury on March 31, 2021,” prosecutors wrote. “His motion for judgment of acquittal … ignores this evidence.”

* Sun-Times | 100 secret recordings, 36 witnesses later, feds winding up case against Burke — but will defense call Solis as ‘hostile’ witness?: Burke’s defense team has promised to summon former Ald. Danny Solis to the witness stand — finally giving Burke the chance to confront the man who famously turned on him while wearing an FBI wire.

* Daily Southtown | Calumet City Ald. Monet Wilson threatens legal action over Mayor Thaddeus Jones’ liaison appointment: Wilson said she recalls the roles being created by Jones when he first came into office but does not recall a more recent conversation that would have triggered the two latest appointments. The role of community liaison does not exist in the Calumet City municipal code.

* Crain’s | Johnson wants recommendations to ’streamline’ city’s development approval process: Johnson will also create a new position of “director of process improvement” within the mayor’s office to implement the proposed changes. In a press release announcing the executive order, Johnson is quoted as saying the city’s current “processes are overly cumbersome and counterproductive for commercial and housing development.”

* Capitol News Illinois | Secretary of State helps launch first-of-its-kind state ID program for inmates exiting Cook County Jail: Inmates released from Illinois prisons have been receiving state IDs at no charge since late 2020 when state leaders launched a pilot program, which was subsequently expanded statewide and codified into state law earlier this year. But doing the same with detainees in county jails has proved much more difficult. Prison inmates have more stable and predictable release dates, but jail detainees may stay for as long as years while awaiting trial, or as short as just a few hours.

* Chalkbeat | Chicago Public Schools is tapping principal Joshua Long to lead its special education department: The department — known as the Office of Diverse Learners Supports and Services — serves nearly 52,000 students with disabilities and has been without a chief since June. That’s when Stephanie Jones stepped down amid fallout from Chicago’s violations related to the use of restraint and timeout of students. The department has also struggled in recent years to ensure students with disabilities are getting services they’re legally entitled to under federal law.

* Tribune | Republican National Committee backs effort to block mail-in ballots received after Election Day: The RNC, which is promoting a “bank the vote” program to get Republicans to pledge to vote by mail, joined with the National Republican Congressional Committee in filing a court brief in the 7th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in support of the effort to nullify ballots received by Illinois election authorities after Election Day. … The case could have far-reaching consequences. During the 2020 pandemic year general election, when mail-in voting increased, as many as 266,417 votes were counted in the two-week period after Election Day, according to court documents.

* AP | Speculation about eventual rate cuts is rising, but Fed is set to leave interest rates unchanged: With inflation edging closer to the Federal Reserve’s 2% target, its policymakers are facing — and in some cases fueling — hopes that they will make a decisive shift in policy and cut interest rates next year, possibly as soon as spring. Such a move would reduce borrowing costs across the economy, making mortgages, auto loans and business borrowing less expensive. Stock prices could rise, too, though share prices have already risen in expectation of cuts, potentially limiting any further rise.

* NYT | This Economy Has Bigger Problems Than ‘Bad Vibes’: The economy is growing. Wages are up. Unemployment is low. Income inequality is narrowing. The fearmongering about inflation proved to be, well, wrong. According to many economy watchers, Americans should be sending the Biden administration a gift basket full of positive vibes — and votes. Instead, consumer confidence polling paints a different picture. A recent Times/Siena poll found that only 2 percent of registered voters said economic conditions are “excellent,” and only 16 percent said they were “good.” While economic indicators suggest that the economy is healthy and growing, the American public doesn’t feel that way. Why the perception gap?

* AP | Epic Games wins antitrust lawsuit against Google over barriers to its Android app store: Epic Games, the maker of the popular Fortnite video game, filed a lawsuit against Google three years ago, alleging that the internet search giant has been abusing its power to shield its Play Store from competition in order to protect a gold mine that makes billions of dollars annually. Just as Apple does for its iPhone app store, Google collects a commission ranging from 15% to 30% on digital transactions completed within apps.

* NYT | Texas Supreme Court Rules Against Woman Who Sought Court-Approved Abortion: The court ruled that the lower court made a mistake in ruling that the woman, Kate Cox, who is more than 20 weeks pregnant, was entitled to a medical exception. In its seven-page ruling, the Supreme Court found that Ms. Cox’s doctor, Damla Karsan, “asked a court to pre-authorize the abortion yet she could not, or at least did not, attest to the court that Ms. Cox’s condition poses the risks the exception requires.” Texas’ overlapping bans allow for abortions only when a pregnancy seriously threatens the health or life of the woman.

* NYT | Why Are So Many American Pedestrians Dying at Night?: What’s even more perplexing: Nothing resembling this pattern has occurred in other comparably wealthy countries. In places like Canada and Australia, a much lower share of pedestrian fatalities occurs at night, and those fatalities — rarer in number — have generally been declining, not rising.

10 Comments

Live coverage

Tuesday, Dec 12, 2023 - Posted by Isabel Miller

* Live coverage is back, sorta. This will be different than the old Scribble Live feed because Twitter broke itself and almost everything else it touched. These new feeds do not update instantly. There’s a bit of posting lagtime, but it’s much better than nothing. We are also limited to just 20 Twitter sources. The service may also not last long. We just can’t give you any guarantees about this. You can still click here or here to follow breaking news the way we’ve done since Twitter stopped Scribble Live from working…

Comments Off

Live Ed Burke Trial Coverage

Tuesday, Dec 12, 2023 - Posted by Isabel Miller

* These new feeds do not update instantly. There’s a bit of a lagtime and you have to refresh the page every now and then. The service we’re using may also not last long. We just can’t give you any guarantees. You can still click here to follow the Ed Burke trial on Twitter. Posts without a Twitter author name below them are from online news sources via Bing…

Comments Off

« NEWER POSTS