* Here you go…

* Sun-Times | Cook County judges talk about their first week without cash bail. ‘The world is looking at us.’: Despite glitches in other courthouses, the first week of bail reform in Cook County went relatively smoothly. But hearings were slower than usual, marked by extensive arguments from prosecutors and defense attorneys as they tested guidelines under the Pretrial Fairness Act.

* Crain’s | The Midwest fell behind in the race for EVs. Now, it’s mounting a comeback: Southern states were decades ahead in site readiness, but other factors including market dynamics and business climate also have influenced the auto migration south, Barrott said. It’s become more important for automakers to produce batteries and vehicles nearer to where they sell them, for one. Cheaper labor, as facilities are largely nonunionized, lower energy costs and taxes, faster permitting and the lack of UAW influence are all major bonuses in the South, too.

* Daily Herald | Bill inspired by July water crisis in Lake County introduced in state House: On Thursday, Syed filed legislation that would require water utilities to notify affected fire departments within two hours of the discovery of an unplanned service disruption, including those as small as a damaged fire hydrant.

* Crain’s | Gotion’s $2 billion battery plant is a possible front for Chinese spies, Illinois GOP claims: The email pitch, which went out late last week, says the Gotion plant, to be located in a former Kmart warehouse, claims the facility will be located “RIGHT NEXT to a military base.” It adds, “Vote Red. Vote the Reds out,” urging recipients to send a donation and “put the CCP on notice.”

* Tribune | Use of 14th Amendment to keep Trump off 2024 ballot still under debate in Illinois: Several legal experts say they believe any lawsuit seeking to prevent the Illinois State Board of Elections from placing Trump’s name on the GOP primary ballot or object to his candidacy would be premature prior to the two-day filing period for petitions for presidential candidates on Jan. 5-6.

* Scott T Holland | To gauge intent and consequence, wade into legislative language: On Tuesday, state Sen. Sue Rezin, R-Morris, issued a release recapping a Senate Judiciary Committee hearing focused on her Senate Bill 1126, which Rezin described as “regulations to protect minors from harmful aspects of social media platforms.” […] the legislative language itself has a few red flags, including one near the top of page two, defining an online service as “likely to be accessed by children” to mean, in part: “the online service, product, or feature is determined, based on competent and reliable evidence regarding audience composition, to be routinely accessed by a significant number of children.”

* Block Club Chicago | Mayor, All But 2 City Council Members In Line For Raises In January: Johnson’s office did not answer questions about whether he would accept the raise, but he did not submit paperwork declining it, according to records obtained by Block Club. By not opting out of the pay hike, Johnson would receive a raise of about $4,800 next year, which would bring his salary to $221,052. With raises, most members of the City Council — including 12 freshmen alderpeople who took office in May — are set to make $145,974 in 2024.

* Tribune | Suburban Congressman Raja Krishnamoorthi balances Illinois’ more progressive politics as he looks to future: Krishnamoorthi said there’s nothing difficult or contradictory for him about working within the Democratic Party’s new reality. “I think a lot of (progressives) are in the same place I am,” Krishnamoorthi said before rattling off a string of GOP-lead initiatives in Congress he said Democrats of all stripes would oppose.

* WJBC | Speaker of the Illinois House leads contingent to Israel: The Speaker of the Illinois House led a contingent to Israel this month. State Rep. Bob Morgan (D-Deerfield), chairman of the Illinois Legislative Jewish Caucus, says there were about eight House Democrats on the trip. He says it was unforgettable. “The NATAL Trauma and Resiliency Center in Tel Aviv is focused on trauma and recovery of those who have been victims and have been impacted by terrorism. To be able to relate that to some of the trauma challenges that we have in Illinois and the ways in which we provide wraparound services and supports for those who have experienced – particularly gun violence – was very powerful for me.”

* Tribune | Wheaton College examined its racial history, but absence of hijab-wearing professor, LGBTQ rights questioned: Over the course of the next century and a half, the private evangelical Christian liberal arts college at times held an “underlying mindset of white superiority” as well as “attitudes, beliefs and actions that created an inhospitable and sometimes hostile campus environment” for people of color, according to a 122-page report on Wheaton College’s history of racism and discrimination, which was recently released by a college task force.

* Tribune | A month after shooting inside Sox Park, a mystery persists: Rumors and hearsay, peddled largely by content aggregators on social media, have done little to quell speculation about the shooting — which, in the nearly 150-year history of Major League Baseball, is believed to be perhaps just the fourth instance of a fan being shot while inside a big league ballpark.

* SJ-R | Willing to take on the responsibility: Marine vet becomes first Black female firefighter: Jackson came on under former SFD Chief Brandon Blough, who attended the graduation along with other former fire chiefs Bob Bartnick and Allen Reyne. “We’ve been trying to improve our recruitment process and in doing so, with our last couple of classes, we are increasing our minority hiring,” Canny said. “We feel our efforts are paying off, so we hope that trend continues in the future, but again, we’ve got a lot of work ahead.”

* Tribune | Illinois is running out of volunteer firefighters: ‘It’s going to become very critical, very shortly’: “It’s going to become very critical, very shortly,” said Kevin Schott, an Illinois Firefighters Association board member. “The county and the state are going to need to look at this because the public safety is going to be impacted.” Firefighting organizations and some state lawmakers have tried over the years to address the dearth of volunteers, offering tax breaks and other incentives aimed at buoying department ranks.

* Sun-Times | Bears defensive coordinator Alan Williams left after ‘inappropriate’ activity, sources confirm: Two sources confirmed ESPN’s Adam Schefter’s report Sunady characterizing former Bears defensive coordinator Alan Williams’ departure being related to “inappropriate” but not illegal activity. Schefter did not give give details other than to say the Bears’ human resources department was involved and the team examined his computer.

* 247 Sports | Jordan Love’s dismantling of the Bears earns praise from Aaron Rodgers: “I think you just gotta not listen to those expectations outside the facility and outside your own mind,” Rodgers said. “He’s done a great job of that. He’s always had a good head on his shoulders. He put in a lot of great work last year that I think set him up to be confident. I think that’s what I saw in the preseason — he just looked confident.

* ABC Chicago | Rare pink flamingo sighting on Lake Michigan in Wisconsin draws large crowds: Jerry Lorenz, the state director of research for Audubon Florida, told WISN that he speculates the birds were flying between Cuba and the Yucatan and got diverted by Hurricane Idalia. According to the American Birding Association’s Facebook page, flamingos have shown up in at least 12 states with Wisconsin being the northernmost. This is the first recorded flamingo sighting in Wisconsin.