State to lay out ‘next steps in managing the asylum seeker crisis’ tomorrow (Updated)
Wednesday, Nov 15, 2023 - Posted by Rich Miller * The mayor broke the seal…
* Media alert from the governor’s office a bit ago…
From what I’ve been hearing, this has more to do with programs than money, but money will be a part of it. …Adding… Johnson talked a little about the state’s approach…
Please pardon any transcription errors. …Adding… The mayor said earlier in the press conference that there would be a new “landing zone” or “entry point” for migrants. “I am grateful that the county and the state have heard our advocacy and their commitment to fund this mission.” …Adding… More from the mayor…
Also…
…Adding… Update…
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Afternoon roundup
Wednesday, Nov 15, 2023 - Posted by Rich Miller * Ugh…
* SJ-R…
* The Illinois Farm Bureau found the price of a Thanksgiving meal has dropped a bit since last year…
Meanwhile…
* Politico…
Khalil has close connections to progressives and former Cook County Clerk David Orr. * Media advisory from SoS Alexi Giannoulias…
* Notice anything off about this calendar?…
There is no month of May. July is listed twice. …Adding… From Mike Phillips, a geology professor at Illinois Valley Community College…
* From Isabel… * Tribune | Chicago judge rules federal statute barring felons from possessing guns is unconstitutional but says it’s a ‘close question’: As a five-time convicted felon, Glen Prince was facing a mandatory minimum 15 years behind bars when he was charged in federal court with being a felon in possession of a handgun stemming from an armed robbery on CTA train in 2021. Instead, Prince’s case was tossed out earlier this month by a federal judge who ruled the statute barring felons from possessing handguns is unconstitutional in light of a recent U.S. Supreme Court decision. * Center Square | Prosecutors want life in prison for ComEd 4, defense attorneys say: Defense attorneys had asked for more time to deal with what they said were complex issues regarding sentencing guidelines. At a hearing Wednesday, defense attorney Patrick Cotter said prosecutors would be seeking life sentences for the defendants. “The government apparently is going to suggest that the guidelines of this case are life,” Cotter said. “And we are asking for what we believe to be adequate time, a couple extra weeks, to respond not only to the [pre-sentencing report] but to what the government files when they’re asking to put our clients in jail for life. And I think that that’s not unreasonable.” * Crain’s | Rivian lines up $15B fake bond plan to snag tax break: The debt is structured as what’s known as “phantom bonds” that are used by companies to get a property tax break in Georgia, and involve no real financial or accounting impact for the company involved, according to a report by law firm Smith, Gambrell & Russell LLP. In Rivian’s case, it’s a workaround because the state doesn’t have legislation allowing for companies to get abatements that provide such relief. * ABC Chicago | Inside STIC, the Illinois terrorism intelligence agency fighting real and viral hoax terror threats: At a time when authorities say threats to public safety are mounting and coming from new directions, the ABC7 I-Team went to the STIC for a rare look at the safety net operation that’s working to keep Illinoisans and others across the county safe. Aaron Kustermann, chief intelligence officer for STIC, said there is more suspicious activity than ever before coming into the facility. * Tribune | Michael Frerichs and Nell Minow: Those who want to ban sustainability-focused investing are on the losing end: In his ruling on the lawsuit, which was brought forward by 26 Republican attorneys general, Kacsmaryk acknowledged that the rule permits environmental and other risk factors to be considered in determining an investment’s risk and return while requiring pension investment firms to act “solely in the interest” of working people whose retirement they’re protecting. Unsurprisingly, none of the challengers was able to provide a single example of an investment decision that was not justified by strictly financial considerations. * The Marshall Project | An Illinois Warden Tried to Fix an Abusive Federal Prison. He Faced Death Threats: “When the regional director called me and said, ‘Well, they looked into it and put those guys back on their post,’ I’m like, ‘Are you freaking kidding me right now?’” Bergami said. “My staff were saying to stab me and the captain. I’ve got to worry about our safety.” * The Nation | How We Ended Cash Bail in Illinois: Leaders at these organizations recognized that none of us had the power to win on our own, so we came together and launched the Coalition to End Money Bond in 2016. We intentionally assembled a set of groups with important complementary capacities in the movement ecosystem: base building, electoral work, inside game, policy expertise, political education, and direct service. We anchored the work in an abolitionist orientation but worked to bring in more moderate groups who were willing to join because the abolitionist organizers were serious about power and created a clear center of gravity for the broader bail reform movement in Illinois. * Tribune | Jennifer Hudson, Chance the Rapper and Quincy Jones teaming up to reopen Chicago’s Ramova Theatre: Chicago icons Jennifer Hudson, Chance the Rapper and Quincy Jones have teamed up to reopen and revitalize the Ramova Theatre, located in the South Side neighborhood of Bridgeport, after the venue’s nearly 40-year dormancy. With Hudson, Chance and Jones as co-owners, the Ramova will reopen in fall 2023 as a 1,500-capacity live music venue with a grill, beer garden and brewery in partnership with Other Half Brewing. * AP | Northern Illinois can become bowl-eligible by winning its final game after shutting out Western Michigan 24-0: Antario Brown ran for 159 yards and two touchdowns, and Northern Illinois kept its postseason aspirations alive with a commanding 24-0 win over Western Michigan on Tuesday night. The Huskies (5-6, 4-3 Mid-American Conference) last shut out an opponent on Oct. 26, 2019, when they beat Akron 49-0. NIU will get a chance to become bowl-eligible when it closes its regular season Nov. 25 at Kent State (1-9, 0-6). * NYT | So Thieves Nabbed Your Catalytic Converter. Here’s Where It Ended Up: An examination of business records and social media posts, as well as interviews with more than 80 officials on three continents who have ties to the industry, showed that the stolen devices pass through middlemen, smelters and refineries in the United States and overseas. Along the way, their provenance becomes opaque, leaving beneficiaries of the thefts with plausible deniability and little incentive to stop them. During processing, the metal is blended with legitimate supplies from mines and scrapyards, The New York Times found, before being sold primarily to companies that make catalytic converters for automakers, as well as pharmaceutical companies for cancer and other drugs, military contractors for weapons production, and banks for their precious-metals trading desks, among others. * Sun-Times | Sister Jean’s latest fan? President Biden, who sent flowers during Chicago visit: During his visit to Illinois Thursday, Biden sent a bouquet of flowers to Sister Jean, the 104-year-old icon at Loyola University Chicago, as an amiable gesture to a fellow Catholic. “Dear Sister Jean, Thinking of you during my trip to Chicago today! Keep the Faith!” Biden wrote in a note sent along with the flowers, which were purchased from a florist in Rogers Park. * NBC Chicago | Suburban Chicago hot dog joint to be inducted into ‘Hot Dog Hall of Fame’: Scooby’s Hot Dogs, in the Chicago suburb of Downers Grove, will be inducted into Vienna Beef’s Hot Dog Hall of Fame at 10:30 a.m. Wednesday, a press release from Vienna Beef said. Customers are encouraged to join the ceremony, organizers said. * Sun-Times | Earthquake measured at 3.6 magnitude confirmed in Putnam County: There were no reports of injuries but about 120 people reported feeling it, according to the U. S. Geological Survey. The quake happened at 4:41 a.m. about 2 1⁄2 miles south of Standard, in Putnam County, said the USGS. It did not occur along a fault line, according to a USGS spokesman.
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The state needs to step in now
Wednesday, Nov 15, 2023 - Posted by Rich Miller * The solution in this particular instance is to either do actual case work at police stations, which isn’t happening now, or move those folks more quickly into shelters, where case work processing is being done. There’s simply no excuse for spending money on people who would rather be elsewhere…
So, the man wants to leave, but since there are no case workers at the station he can’t tell anyone who is authorized to hook him up with a bus ticket. Complicating matters further is that some folks who do wind up in shelters really don’t like the way the shelters are run (not enough food, cold food, etc.), so they go back to the police stations where volunteers help see to their needs. But the volunteers are rapidly burning out and going back to the stations means they receive no case worker assistance and that means they’re stuck. Ugh! The city’s process is just so messed up. The state really needs to step in a lot more forcefully there. * Meanwhile, I agree with Shia Kapos…
More from the Sun-Times…
That purposely lowball appropriation isn’t going to help the mayor with the state at all, and he can probably forget about convincing this Congress to step up. * A few more from Isabel… * ADDING…Sun Times | Brandon Johnson’s first budget sails through City Council: The $16.77 billion plan, approved 41-8, holds the line on taxes and increases spending for an array of popular programs. But it also relies on one-time revenues and budgets far too little for the ongoing migrant crisis, on the hope that more state and federal help is on the way. * WBEZ | Chicago Mayor Brandon Johnson’s $16 billion budget poised for passage, despite questions about migrant spending: Several alderpersons have warned the city is being reckless by budgeting just $150 million for next year to help shelter and support migrants. According to figures shared with reporters last month, Johnson’s administration estimated that the city could spend upwards of $361 million from August 2022 through December 2023, with a funding shortfall in the hundreds of millions. * Block Club | Fewer Migrants Are Sleeping In Police Stations As City Increases Shelter Capacity, Bus Arrivals Slow: About 1,400 people were waiting in police stations across Chicago for a shelter space as of Tuesday morning, according to the Office of Emergency Management and Communications. That’s down from about 2,800 Oct. 30 and 3,300 Oct. 16, according to data from the office. At the same time, the number of migrants in city-run shelters has increased from about 11,200 Oct. 16 to about 12,200 as of Tuesday, according to city data. * WBEZ | The stars of the high school concert? A rock band of migrant teens.: One of the first people Ahiled met when at Sullivan was social worker Josh Zepeda. The two bonded over music. (Zepeda moonlights as a DJ and musician under the stage name Sunkissed Kid). Zepeda urged Ahiled to join the school rock band, and encouraged other Venezuelan students, like her friends Luis and Antony, to get involved too. * CBS Boston | Massachusetts looks to make $250M available for migrant housing after shelters reach capacity: With a vote of 37-3, the Senate passed a bill Monday night that would provide $250 million to the state’s strained shelter system. “It’s our estimate this will get us well through the winter and into the spring. I think we’ll be having more conversations come next spring on additional resources,” Massachusetts State Sen. Michael Rodrigues said.
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An insight into the Crimo family
Wednesday, Nov 15, 2023 - Posted by Rich Miller * Robert Crimo Jr. swore under oath that he was pleading guilty to several charges of his own free will and was not promised anything in exchange for his plea. He also swore that nobody coerced him into making a plea deal. And he swore that he understood the consequences of his guilty plea, and understood that he was giving up his right to a trial. And then today…
* Kinda reminds me of this Jan. 6 defendant…
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Question of the day
Wednesday, Nov 15, 2023 - Posted by Rich Miller * ABC 7…
* The Question: If you or friends and family had any experience with the “Skip the Line” program, how did it go?
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I kid you not: Freshman Republican legislator claims electing a Chicago school board in November is actually a scheme to elect Dems statewide in perpetuity
Wednesday, Nov 15, 2023 - Posted by Rich Miller
Seems a bit much to claim that electing those school board members in November will ensure “a republican [sic] never wins a statewide election again.” People turn out in higher numbers in November anyway, and particularly in presidential years. I doubt this will have much turnout impact next year. Rep. Davis’ head will likely explode if/when the Dems put an abortion-related constitutional amendment on the ballot next year. Anyway, your thoughts?
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Pritzker puts $1 million into Nevada abortion rights effort, may also assist in Arizona
Wednesday, Nov 15, 2023 - Posted by Rich Miller * NBC News…
…Adding… I missed it when I first read the story a couple of weeks ago, but Tina Sfondeles reported on the same $1 million Nevada contribution on November 1…
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Top mayoral aide offered to empty homeless encampment in exchange for floor votes
Wednesday, Nov 15, 2023 - Posted by Rich Miller * Gregory Royal Pratt…
* From Jason Lee in 2018…
This is what Dr. King said…
Thoughts? …Adding… There’s also the practical side…
…Adding… Ald. Conway…
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Open thread
Wednesday, Nov 15, 2023 - Posted by Isabel Miller * What’s going on?…
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Isabel’s morning briefing
Wednesday, Nov 15, 2023 - Posted by Isabel Miller * ICYMI:Chicago Mayor Johnson’s first budget leans on one-time revenue, hopes for federal, state help to avoid tough choices down the road. Sun-Times…
- Johnson kept his campaign promise to not raise property taxes. - Two mental health clinics will open, staff will double for an alternate response program to mental health emergencies and 4,000 more summer jobs will be added for young people. * Related stories… ∙ Tribune: Fresh costs in Mayor Brandon Johnson’s budget: Police pay and benefits, more staffers for aldermen, resources for reparations and ex-prisoners ∙ Crain’s: Soldier Field and TIFs help boost the Chicago Park District’s budget * Isabel’s top picks… * Daily Southtown | Calumet City Mayor Thaddeus Jones asked police for court order barring Southtown reporter from City Hall, records show: No paperwork was filed in Cook County Circuit Court, however, attempting to secure an order of protection against the reporter, Hank Sanders, an attorney for Calumet City said Tuesday. In an Oct. 20 email from Jones to police Chief Kevin Kolosh, with other city employees and city attorneys copied, Jones instructed the chief to have officers take statements from city employees, including himself and the director of public works, to prepare the citations, according to a public records request filed pursuant to the state’s Freedom of Information Act and recently received by Sanders. The memo directed fines be $750 and $250 each day. * WBEZ | Midwestern corn and soybean crop threatened by climate change: Compared to the first half of the 20th century, the Midwest is a warmer and wetter place than it used to be. Precipitation is expected to increase throughout the region as temperatures climb, which will mean wetter springs and winters and summers with more variability. This past July was the hottest on record. So was the following August, September and now October. As the planet heats up, scientists agree that the risk of climate impacts could spiral as extreme events become more frequent and severe. * Tribune | Ethics board finds probable cause Treasurer Melissa Conyears-Ervin wrongfully fired 2 whistleblowers: Over the coming months, Conyears-Ervin will have a chance to rebut the findings before the board issues a final ruling and potentially a fine. Her office had no comment on the matter Tuesday. Monday’s findings follow internal complaints by several now-former employees of the treasurer’s office who accused Conyears-Ervin of ethical lapses or misusing public resources for her private benefit. While many of the allegations were made years ago, they weren’t detailed publicly until recent Tribune reports. * If you’re in town, put this on your radar…
* Here’s the rest of your morning roundup… * Capitol News Illinois | State high court to hear case against staffing agencies accused of suppressing wages: The Chicagoland-based companies have already lost twice in lower court. But they contend those decisions are a new interpretation of Illinois’ decades-old antitrust law. Wednesday’s oral arguments come after Attorney General Kwame Raoul sued the companies in 2020, alleging they used their mutual client to coordinate no-poach agreements, which created a secondary agreement to pay less than the market rate. * Pioneer Press | Oak Park taking the lead on ‘coordinated western suburban response’ to migrant crisis, looking for others to partner, officials say: “We are a village of 54,000 and we have hoped that Cook County would step up and lead an effort that we could participate in, that Chicago could lead an effort that we could participate in,” Trustee Brian Straw said at the Oct. 30 board meeting. Straw said “it’s time” for Oak Park to be a leader, and “work on stepping out in front so we can bring along our neighboring communities. * Tribune | Johnson administration tied fate of homeless encampment to alderman’s votes: And an official in Mayor Brandon Johnson’s administration is taking the unusual step of acknowledging the would-be quid pro quo took place, calling it a typical example of “how political will is created.” Ald. Bill Conway is crying foul after Johnson’s administration said they would have the city remove the tents in which people are sleeping downtown only if Conway voted in favor of two pillars of the mayor’s progressive policy agenda. * NBC Chicago | J.B. Pritzker, a key Biden surrogate, builds up nonprofit group as 2024 looms: Pritzker’s Think Big America has hired Christina Amestoy as its communications director after she previously worked at the Democratic Governors Association for four years. At the DGA, she was a top communications strategist in competitive governor’s races, including campaigns in Arizona, Wisconsin, Minnesota, Nevada and Illinois. * ABC Chicago | Illinoisans struggle to find available DMV appointments through new ‘skip the line’ program: Lynn Cannon spent part of her work day scrolling through the Illinois Secretary of State Office’s website, trying to schedule an appointment for her 16-year-old son. “I’ve been looking for over a month, because he’s now eligible to get his first driver’s license and he’s pretty upset that he can’t get it yet,” Cannon said. Each day, she says she logs on at 6:30 a.m., 30 minutes before the secretary of state’s website says new appointments are made available. * Crain’s | Chicago’s labor market is driving migration to the city: Chicago is among the national leaders on that metric with the report finding 13.7% of the city’s newcomers moved for a new job. The city sits just behind Boston and Portland, Ore., and outpaces other major metros including New York City, San Francisco and Los Angeles when it comes to the percentage of new residents who also shifted employers. * Chalkbeat | Many states are moving toward private school choice. Illinois is letting its program lapse: A little over three years ago, Eva Villalobos was searching for a public school for her four daughters, two of whom she had recently adopted in March 2020. […] The price tag for the Catholic school was steep — Villalobos said it cost her almost $20,000 a year for all four children. But her oldest daughter received funding from Illinois’ tax-credit scholarship, Invest in Kids, to bring the price down to about $10,000 a year. * Rockford Register Star | Rockford mayor wants power to appoint members to county mental health board: A measure approved easily last week by the General Assembly and headed to Illinois Gov. JB Pritzker’s desk would change the board from nine members to 11. The nine current board members are appointed by the Winnebago County Board chairman with the consent of the Winnebago County Board. […] “Since we represent more than 50% of the revenue that’s collected and have some of the greatest need for the services, Rockford should be able to appoint members to that board,” he said. * Post-Tribune | Highland Police investigating racial epithet broadcast during council meeting: ighland Police are investigating the identity of the person who snuck a screenshot of a video with a racial epithet through an online meeting platform during the Highland Town Council meeting Monday night. The Town Council had just sat down after the Pledge of Allegiance and prayer to start the meeting when a person using the name “John Williams” posted the screenshot through the meeting platform’s image sharing feature. In it, a Black recording artist who goes by the name London Yellow is seen staring at the camera behind the epithet; the song itself repeats the epithet many times. * Grown In | Illinois Town Hall meeting to dive deep into hemp, THC and cannabis business issues : Of course, not all hemp-derived THC proprietors are as invested in regulation and education as Cubbington’s. The licensed industry in Illinois, and all other states, incur considerable costs and operational obstacles that are not required by this new set of competitors. There is also scant information about what goes into a hemp-derived THC product and how it will impact consumers. * MJBizDaily | Progress not happening fast enough for marijuana social equity entrepreneurs: Arizona, Illinois and Michigan were among a handful of states over the past year where Black entrepreneurs opened marijuana stores in key markets. In March, Nuggets Dispensary became the first Black-owned business with a marijuana social equity retail license to open in Detroit, four years after the state approved recreational cannabis sales. * City Bureau | Missing in Chicago: Part 1: A two-year investigation into how Chicago police handle missing person cases reveals the disproportionate impact on Black women and girls, how police have mistreated family members or delayed cases, and how poor police data is making the problem harder to solve. * ABC Chicago | Traffic study finds Chicago police are 6 times more likely to stop Black drivers: Free2Move data shows less than 1% of traffic stops in 2021 resulted in the recovery of things like drugs, alcohol or weapons. They said often broken taillights or headlights are the reason for the stop in the first place. * Sun-Times | How to always win at a casino: Stepping into the Medinah Temple had none of the existential sorrow of Vegas casinos. I’d pondered how much to gamble and, more importantly, whether I could expense my losses. While I have in the past stuck the newspaper with a variety of vices in the name of research, from a $200 bottle of champagne at the Ritz-Carlton bar, to table dances and tips to strippers at Thee Doll House on Kingsbury, something told me that Chicago Public Media might look askance at financing my casino spree. So I figured: eat my losses. Besides, a gambler should never bet anything he isn’t prepared to lose. I initially thought: $100 but then dialed it back to $50. Frugal. * AP | Gaming pioneer who advised Illinois on riverboat gambling dead at 89: Steve Norton, who ran the first U.S. gambling facility outside Nevada — Resorts casino in Atlantic City — and gave advice around the world on how to set up and operate casinos, has died. He was 89. […] Norton spent more than half a century in the casino industry, running companies and advising state governments on the expansion of gambling, including on riverboats. He helped create the industry’s national trade association and worked to address gambling addiction. * TEXT:
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