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Afternoon roundup

Thursday, Nov 16, 2023 - Posted by Rich Miller

* IDES…

The Illinois Department of Employment Security (IDES) announced today that the unemployment rate increased +0.2 percentage point to 4.6 percent, while nonfarm payrolls decreased -15,000 in October, based on preliminary data provided by the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS), and released by IDES. The September revised unemployment rate was 4.4 percent, unchanged from the preliminary September unemployment rate. The September monthly change in payrolls was revised from the preliminary report, from +9,500 to +11,400 jobs. The October unemployment rate and payroll jobs estimate reflect activity for the week including the 12th.

In October, the industry sectors with the largest monthly payroll job declines included: Professional and Business Services (-6,700), Manufacturing (-5,300), Financial Activities (-2,900), and Educational and Health Services (-2,900). The industry sectors with the largest over-the-month job gains included: Government (+4,200), Leisure and Hospitality (+1,500), and Construction (+700). […]

The state’s unemployment rate was +0.7 percentage point higher than the national unemployment rate reported for October. The national unemployment rate was 3.9 percent in October, up +0.1 percentage point from the previous month. The Illinois unemployment rate was unchanged from a year ago when it was also 4.6 percent.

Compared to a year ago, nonfarm payroll jobs increased by +65,300 jobs, with gains across most major industries. The industry groups with the largest jobs increases included: Educational and Health Services (+34,900), Government (+28,200), and Leisure and Hospitality (+25,200). Professional and Business Services (-16,900), Manufacturing (-12,000), and Information (-6,200) reported the largest declines in payroll jobs. In October, total nonfarm payrolls were up +1.1 percent over-the-year in Illinois and up +1.9 percent in the nation.

The number of unemployed workers was 296,600, up +5.0 percent from the prior month, and down -1.1 percent over the same month one year ago. The labor force was up +0.1 percent over-the-month and down -0.1 percent over-the-year. The unemployment rate identifies those individuals who are out of work and seeking employment. An individual who exhausts or is ineligible for benefits is still reflected in the unemployment rate if they actively seek work.

* Illinois PIRG…

Regulators took critical first steps to reform the failing Peoples Gas pipe replacement program Thursday. The action was one of many included in three major gas utility rate decisions voted on by the five-person Illinois Commerce Commission.

The Commission, recently overhauled by Gov. J.B. Pritzker, disallowed the entire proposed 2024 pipeline replacement budget, paused the program, and ordered a new investigation into the program, noting particular interest in reforming the program’s “neighborhood” approach. These decisions stem from recommendations made by Illinois PIRG and co-intervening organizations Environmental Defense Fund, Environmental Law and Policy Center, and NRDC. The Office of the Illinois Attorney General and City of Chicago made similar recommendations.

The pipe replacement program, which has been plagued by severe cost overruns and consistently failed to achieve its public safety objective, has raised customer bills for the past decade and is the primary driver of the record rate hike. On Wednesday, Peoples Gas published its third quarter report on the program, revealing the program to be once again over budget and behind on its pipe retirement goals.

Over the past decade, the state “QIP” law shielded the obviously troubled program from meaningful oversight or accountability, causing widespread affordability problems in Chicago and delivering six consecutive years of record-breaking profits to Peoples Gas and its out of state parent, WEC Energy Group.

The pipe replacement decision is just one of many made in three rate cases impacting gas utility customers across Illinois. In all cases, the Commission approved lower rate increases than requested by utilities.

The Commission also took important steps to lower profit rates, rein in unnecessary utility spending, lower fixed customer charges, plan for the future of the gas system, and create robust low income discount rates.

Final written orders are not available yet.

* Press release…

Governor JB Pritzker and the Illinois Department of Commerce and Economic Opportunity (DCEO) today announced $25 million in available grant funding through the Back to Business (B2B) NewBiz program. Following state recovery programming for businesses totaling $1.5 billion, the latest American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA)-funded opportunity is designed to provide additional support for businesses in hard-hit sectors who launched during the pandemic. Businesses that launched in 2020 or 2021 and remain in operation have faced significant impacts during the pandemic, but they have not been eligible for other federal or state relief programming since they were not operational prior to the pandemic.

To provide hands-on support and raise awareness about the program, the State has mobilized a network of nearly 100 community navigators across Illinois. Applicants are encouraged to visit b2bnewbiz.com to learn more and apply.

…Adding… ACLU of Illinois…

ACLU of Illinois Hails Judge’s Decisions on IDOC Treatment of Transgender Persons Under Their Care

In a pair of orders issued this morning, U.S. District Court Judge Nancy Rosenstengel today denied a motion by the State of Illinois to vacate previous court orders mandating steps to be taken by the Illinois Department of Corrections to care for prisoners who are transgender and gender non-conforming, and ordered the Department to carefully consider the requests made by those prisoners at the Pinckneyville Correctional Center to be transferred out of that facility because it is unable to provide safe conditions for prisoners with gender dysphoria. The rulings are the latest development in a case – Monroe v. Bowman – seeking constitutionally-required health care and housing for those with gender dysphoria in IDOC custody. The following can be attributed to Camille Bennett, Director of the Corrections Reform Project at the ACLU of Illinois:

Today’s rulings by Judge Rosenstengel continue to allow our clients to navigate the very difficult conditions they face inside IDOC facilities. While there has been modest improvement in recent years, the court noted that the pace of change has been “glacial” and that a slow response is the wrong response to rectifying constitutional harms. The court ordered changes more than two years ago that still have not happened today, including things as simple as access to safe and private showers.

We are pleased that the court has ordered IDOC to consider moving our clients out of Pinckneyville, calling for individualized review of transfer requests before the end of the calendar year. At a recent hearing, a number of our clients at Pinckneyville bravely testified and twenty-two clients submitted written declarations about the abysmal conditions and daily humiliations and abuse they face at that facility.

We will continue to advocate for changes in the way IDOC cares for those with gender dysphoria. Today’s rulings will move that effort forward.

* Um…

The emotional, 22-day speakership battle has Republicans still feeling raw. One member, Rep. Mike Bost (R-Ill.), said his stress over the ordeal manifested in physical symptoms — headaches and an upset stomach that occasionally led him to vomiting. The anger culminated in a now-infamous clash between Bost and Rep. Matt Gaetz (R-Fla.) during a closed-door conference meeting, when Bost yelled at the instigator of McCarthy’s ouster to “sit down.”

“It took a lot of prayer to get through it,” Bost said, noting his symptoms began to alleviate once they elected Johnson.

* Press release…

Today, Mayor Brandon Johnson announced the appointment of Sydney Holman to serve as the Deputy Mayor of Intergovernmental Affairs. In this role, Holman will lead Mayor Johnson’s legislative priorities at the city, state and federal levels.

“Sydney brings a vast array of experience which will prove invaluable as we tackle some of the most vexing challenges our city faces,” said Mayor Johnson. “She will bring people together and find compromises that work for all parties involved, but most important, that work for the residents and communities of the City of Chicago.

“I also want to express my gratitude to Beth Beatty who served the City of Chicago admirably and championed some historic pieces of legislation over the past six months, including One Fair Wage, Bring Chicago Home and Paid Leave, as well as yesterday’s passage of our first City budget. Her contributions were invaluable, and I wish her all the best in the future.”

“It is my top priority to work with Chicago City Council and all levels of government to pass transformative legislation for the working people and families of the City of Chicago,” Holman said. “I am honored to serve this great city and I look forward to working with Mayor Johnson to continue investing in people and moving an historic legislative agenda.”

Holman most recently worked at Cozen O’Connor Public Strategies where she assisted clients with legislative strategy and policy advocacy across a diverse range of topics. Holman previously served as Deputy Director of Legislative Affairs and as House Liaison of Legislative Affairs with the Office of Governor JB Pritzker. During her time at the Governor’s Office, Holman successfully lobbied the Governor’s progressive agenda on a wide range of issues including pension and business reform, gaming initiatives, higher education issues and healthcare accessibility.

Now, for the love of Mike, please hire a competent comms staff…


* Rep. Buckner has some serious chops…

* From Isabel…

    * WBEZ | As Chicago struggles to shelter migrants from Venezuela, neighboring Oak Park steps in to help: Earlier this month, Oak Park officials voted to declare a month-long emergency disaster. They appropriated $150,000 of the village’s COVID recovery funds to help migrants, adding to the $400,000 they were granted by the Metropolitan Mayors Caucus for the cause. After a few days at Good Shepherd and United Lutheran, most of the migrants were moved to the Carleton of Oak Park Hotel and the West Cook YMCA.

    * Tribune | Passengers injured in train crash on CTA Yellow Line in Rogers Park: At least 19 CTA train passengers were injured, three in critical-to-serious condition, Thursday morning when a Yellow Line train crashed in the Rogers Park neighborhood, said Larry Langford, a spokesman for the Chicago Fire Department. According to preliminary information provided by the CTA, at approximately 10:40 a.m., a Yellow Line train made contact with rail equipment in the Howard Rail Yard. Langford said it was a snow removal apparatus.

    * Sun-Times | Dozens injured in CTA train crash near the Howard Street station: The injured were taken to hospitals in fair-to-serious condition, and 15 refused care, said Keith Gray, assistant deputy chief paramedic, during a media briefing at the scene. No one suffered life-threatening injuries. The CTA operator, who was near the point of collision, was among the most critically injured. The children, the youngest of whom was 2, suffered “bumps and bruises.”

    * Crain’s | Cresco Labs leans into efficiency, innovation after lower-than-expected loss: The approach – which the company leaned heavily into after its merger with Columbia Care (now The Cannabist) collapsed – resulted in a moderate decline in sales as the company closed out operations in states where it had a weaker position, such as Arizona. But the metric fell less than the high single-digit drop initially projected.

    * WBEZ | More Palestinians live in Cook County than any other county in the nation: Like many other Palestinians in the Chicago area at the time, Naser’s parents initially settled on the Southwest Side of Chicago where they found a vibrant and diverse Palestinian community, especially in places like the Arab Community Center. The center is now home to the Arab American Action Network, a grassroots organizing and social services nonprofit. Naser currently serves on the board.

    * CBS Chicago | Parents furious after girls are subjected to racist taunts at Illinois high school: “For us, this is a nightmarish déjà vu,” said Morgan’s mom, TeSaxton Washington. It is déjà vu because in 2021, Washington settled a lawsuit with the school district after another student threatened to “lynch” her son during class in 2019.

    * Media-Ite | ‘Unvarnished Anti-Semitism’: Elon Musk Catches All Hell for Agreeing With Bigoted Tweet: The initial post written by @breakingbaht claimed Jewish communities “have been pushing the exact kind of dialectical hatred against whites” with the user adding, “I’m deeply disinterested in giving the tiniest shit now about western Jewish populations coming to the disturbing realization that those hordes of minorities that support flooding their country don’t exactly like them too much. You want truth said to your face, there it is.” Musk replied to the tweet, stating, “You have said the actual truth.”

    * AP | Take heart, it looks like China could send new pandas to the US: The bears have long been the symbol of the U.S.-China friendship since Beijing gifted a pair of pandas to the National Zoo in Washington in 1972, ahead of the normalization of bilateral relations. Later, Beijing loaned the pandas to other U.S. zoos, with proceeds going back to panda conservation programs.

    * CBS Chicago | Stateville prison inmates receive diplomas from Northwestern University: William Peeples is serving a life sentence at Stateville Correctional Center in Crest Hill, but for the past five years, he’s been working toward a college degree. “Best five years I ever spent. This moment is the culmination of literally 30 years of people pouring into me,” Peeples said. Peeples is part of a cohort of students in the Northwestern University Prison Education Program.

    * Shaw Local | Princeton’s Red Covered Bridge heavily damaged by semi-trailer: Princeton’s iconic Red Covered Bridge, located 1.5 miles north of the city off Route 26, sustained heavy damage Thursday morning as a semi-trailer attempted to pass through it. The semi attempted to pass north to south and caused damage to both the historic structure and the semi itself. Portions of the trailer were ripped off after becoming stuck in the top of the covered bridge.

    * AP | Thousands of Starbucks workers walkout, go on 1-day strike on Red Cup Day: The union said it was expecting more than 5,000 workers to take part in its “Red Cup Rebellion.” Around 30 stores also staged walkouts on Wednesday. […] Starbucks downplayed any potential impact of the strike Wednesday, saying it would occur at a “small subset” of the company’s 9,600 company-owned U.S. stores.

    * WaPo | A rare look at the devastation caused by AR-15 shootings: The review lays bare how the AR-15, a weapon that has soared in popularity over the past two decades as a beloved tool for hunting, target practice and self-defense, has also given assailants the power to instantly turn everyday American gathering places into zones of gruesome violence. This is an oral history told in three parts that follows the chronological order of a typical AR-15 mass shooting. It weaves together pictures, videos and the recollections of people who endured different tragedies but have similar stories to tell.

  6 Comments      


Today’s quotable

Thursday, Nov 16, 2023 - Posted by Rich Miller

* Background is here if you need it. Tribune…

Mayor Brandon Johnson on Wednesday deflected questions about a City Hall controversy in which a top adviser tried to persuade an alderman to vote for parts of Johnson’s progressive agenda by tying those votes to the administration’s willingness to remove homeless camps in the alderman’s ward.

The mayor was responding to questions from reporters about the proposal, which was made by top aide Jason Lee to Ald. Bill Conway, 34th, a day after the Tribune first reported on the discussion. Conway criticized Lee’s efforts and said it was an inappropriate quid pro quo.

The mayor Wednesday at first sidestepped a question about the exchange, telling reporters, “I am not necessarily privy to every single conversation that happens throughout the city of Chicago.” But pressed further on Conway’s allegations, Johnson said they were “a mischaracterization” and said “pushing for real support around the unhoused (is) what this has always been about.”

* Full mayoral quote…

I am not necessarily privy to every single conversation that happens throughout the city of Chicago. Now, if you’re asking me do I apologize for my administration advocating for working people and making sure that we put forward solutions to do with the unhoused in this city? I’m not going to apologize for that. In fact, I’m going to invest in that and that’s exactly what I’m doing. […]

That’s a mischaracterization. There’s been a lot of mischaracterization of conversations all over the city and that look, I get it, you know, whether it’s tension, whether it’s you know, what someone said or what someone else heard. Here’s the truth. That we have 70,000 people who are unhoused in this city, of which one in four Black students in the city of Chicago go unhoused. This is about advocacy. Whether it’s my senior advisor or whether it’s Ald. Vazquez, or anyone else who’s been pushing for real support around the unhoused. This is what this has always been about. And again, I’m not going to apologize for doing right by the people of Chicago. I said that I was going to bring Chicago home. I said I was going to invest in the unhoused. There is no secret to what I said I was going to do. And my administration carrying that out, is exactly what the people of Chicago expect in their mayor.

And let me just say something to you, Chicago, every promise that I’ve made, I’ve kept it and that includes making sure that we are dealing with the unhoused in this city. And if anyone wishes to stand in the way of the people of Chicago, well, they’re going to get rolled over by the people of Chicago.

Except the unhoused people living under those viaducts by Union Station are still there, without housing, because Ald. Conway refused to vote for a a couple of ordinances which passed anyway.

  11 Comments      


Pritzker on why state is stepping in: Chicago ‘isn’t moving fast enough’ and ‘We cannot have people freezing on the streets of Chicago’ and the city did not make the case to legislature for direct funding

Thursday, Nov 16, 2023 - Posted by Rich Miller

* Background is here if you need it. From Gov. Pritzker’s answers to reporters earlier today about his asylum-seekers plan…

The city has been operating its own methodology process. And it hasn’t moved fast enough. So we’ve done a complete data analysis of everything that’s happened for the last 14 months to determine exactly where the bottlenecks are. And so we’re bringing our resources in to try to flatten out those bottlenecks, make sure that people are moving through faster, and make sure that the city is building shelters faster. […]

And once again, we’re stepping in here to try to help and accelerate this process. It isn’t moving fast enough. That’s why you’re seeing people still on the street and we just can’t have people on the street. This is a humanitarian endeavor. We cannot have people freezing on the streets of Chicago as we head into very cold weather. […]

The [soft shelter site] we’re assisting with is going to be dependent on the city turning over a property to us. That’s going to be up to them entirely. Speeding up the front end, the welcoming and the intake is something that will begin nearly immediately. We’re already working on it. […]

The city is running the shelter system. We are not. We are doing what we’ve been doing all along, which is providing all the wraparound, not all, but many of the wraparound services, including by the way, the immigration assistance, making sure people move through the TPS system. We brought the federal government in to work alongside of us in order to get that done. So I just wanted to make sure you understand the state doesn’t run shelters. […]

I don’t know, you’ll have to ask the city, they run the shelter system. We’ve been absolutely encouraging the city to find bricks and mortar shelter. I’m not criticizing, I’m just suggesting that now, here we are. We’re right up against winter and very cold weather and we want to make sure that no one is left outside. […]

The state doesn’t control property in the city of Chicago that could provide a location. The city really has to do that. But we’ve talked to the city literally every day and try to be responsive to their needs. Once again, we’ve been in charge of certain kinds of things in this process. And now that we’re very close to winter, it is clear that the city needs more help. So the state is now stepping in to provide some of that help to do the contracting, to up the game when it comes to breaking through the barriers in the pipeline. You know this is a challenge that no doubt everybody’s aware of, but with very cold weather upon us, the state is now having to step in and be more aggressive. […]

[Reporter says the city has been requesting help from the state for months, “Are you saying because they didn’t identify specific dollar amounts or specific funding requests for X, Y and Z, is that why the state didn’t step in sooner?”]

When you say stepping in sooner, we’ve been working with them all long. And indeed, we have spent much more money to support the system of asylum seekers arriving here than the city has. So, you know, I want to make sure you understand that that’s the case.

I also would say that, to the extent that the city is looking for dollars and not assistance, then it needs to go to the General Assembly and make the case for that in Springfield. They have not done that. They did not do that.

The mayor chose not to show up today. Oops.

Please pardon all transcription errors.

  28 Comments      


Rate the new Monarch Butterfly Specialty License Plate

Thursday, Nov 16, 2023 - Posted by Rich Miller

* Press release…

After more than seven years, Illinois residents who placed deposits for the state’s Monarch Butterfly Specialty License Plate can finally redeem it, Illinois Secretary of State Alexi Giannoulias announced today.

The Monarch Butterfly License Plate is the first Universal Specialty Plate issued by the State of Illinois – even though the General Assembly approved it in 2016. […]

In 2016, Illinois lawmakers passed legislation to create a “universal” license plate to limit the number of specialty license plates – all designed differently and deemed problematic for law enforcement. At the time, there were 109 different specialty plates.

The legislation stated that any new charitable organization would need at least 2,000 Illinoisans to place deposits that benefitted an organization or charity before any new specialty plate could get issued. Furthermore, the new specialty plates would have a universal, standardized design, but include a decal on the left side depicting the cause or charity it supports.

The Monarch plate reached the necessary 2,000 deposits in 2018, yet it was never produced despite residents having already paid the necessary $10 to pre-order the plate. The money raised from Illinoisans’ deposits goes toward protecting the Monarch from extinction. […]

“Native pollinators, like the iconic Illinois State Insect, the Monarch Butterfly, play a critical role in preserving the biodiversity of our local ecosystems. The Illinois Environmental Council is proud to have played a role in recruiting over 2,000 Illinois Monarch protectors to sign up for the new license plate decal seven years ago, funding the state’s Monarch Habitat Fund,” said IEC Executive Director Jennifer Walling. “Today, we couldn’t be more appreciative of Secretary of State Giannoulias, his office and the Illinois Department of Natural Resources for finally getting this project across the finish line and into the hands of Illinois’ many pollinator protectors.” […]

The $10 deposits are allocated to the Roadside Monarch Habitat Fund, which is part of the Illinois Department of Natural Resources. If renewed, $23 of the universal special license plate renewal fee will benefit the fund. The Monarch Butterfly, Illinois’ state insect, is considered endangered.

The fund helps foster habitats to support the butterflies during their twice-yearly migratory journey from Mexico to Chicago with a goal to add 150 million new milkweed stems and other nectar resources to the Illinois landscape in the next 15 years.

* Here it is…

I love everything about this except the phrase “Protect Monarchs.” I think we fought a war of independence over that slogan. /s

Anyway, try to ignore my snark.

  16 Comments      


Outline of Pritzker’s $160 million migrant plan emerges

Thursday, Nov 16, 2023 - Posted by Rich Miller

…Adding… The governor’s press release is here. It’s worth a read.

* Subscribers know more. No direct money to Chicago. These graphics were given to reporters this morning…



* Crain’s…

Gov. J.B. Pritzker announced Thursday the state is providing an additional $160 million to help care for the thousands of migrants arriving in the state and awaiting shelter space in Chicago.

The $160 million will be provided in three buckets: $30 million to create a “large intake and welcome center” at an undisclosed location, $65 million to help Chicago establish a tent base camp to provide shelter for up to 2,000 people at a time and another $65 million to help coordinate the resettlement of migrants, including rental assistance. […]

State officials hope that devoting more resources to the point of entry for buses carrying migrants from border states will provide better coordination for where migrants are sent in Chicago and assist those who have a sponsor, are seeking to go elsewhere or who may have family they are seeking to connect with. […]

Pritzker previously said this fall the state was unlikely to continue providing assistance to Chicago, but state officials said Thursday the $160 million would be taken from the budget of the Illinois Department of Human Services for emergency response and did not require a vote by the General Assembly, which is not set to meet again until January.

* WBEZ…

State lawmakers didn’t explicitly authorize this level of funding to handle the flood of new migrants, but Abudayyeh said the state has authority within the Illinois Department of Human Services budget to reallocate dollars.

If additional funding is needed, she said, that could be dealt with when the General Assembly is next scheduled to return to Springfield in mid-January.

Prior to today’s $160 million commitment, the state has spent $478 million on the migrant crisis during the past fiscal year and the 2024 fiscal year, which ends next June, she said.

* WTTW…

The plan outlined by state officials calls for $65 million to be used to erect a temporary “soft-sided” shelter that could house some of the more than 2,400 migrants living in police stations across the city and at O’Hare International Airport waiting for a bed to open up in a city shelter, according to city data updated Wednesday morning.

No location has been identified for that shelter, which will house as many as 2,000 people, officials said. […]

Pritzker’s announcement came just hours after Mayor Brandon Johnson announced migrants in city shelters will be limited to no more than 60 days in city shelters. In addition, Cook County Board President Toni Preckwinkle asked commissioners to earmark $100 million to help confront the crisis facing Chicago as part of Cook County’s 2024 budget, which is set for approval Thursday.

That plan calls for $70 million to be used by the county’s health system to care for the migrants, with $20 million set aside for suburbs to care for migrants. Oak Park launched an effort to do that in recent weeks, and officials hope more will follow suit. The remaining $10 million will be held in reserve, in an effort to allow county officials to respond to unanticipated disasters in 2024, officials said.

The governor is speaking now. We’ll have updates soon.

…Adding… More…


  20 Comments      


*** UPDATED x1 *** Mayor Johnson says he supports half-appointed school board plan, CTU President says she’s still ‘trying to understand’ Harmon’s plan

Thursday, Nov 16, 2023 - Posted by Rich Miller

* Background on the Chicago elected school board bill is here. Let’s also go back to a Sun-Times report in 2021…

“Our mayor [Lightfoot] has misled us on a number of issues: Lincoln Yards, Hilco, Anjanette Young, No Cop Academy. Her shift on the elected, representative school board is consistent with other misleading actions,” Davis Gates said.

To “exalt mayoral control in a post-Trump America is the wrong direction” for Democrats, Davis Gates said.

“Democrats should be prioritizing and amplifying democracy. … An elected school board is about democracy … for Chicagoans. One would even say that it is a voting rights issue. This is a district that serves predominantly students of color. Why shouldn’t their parents have an opportunity to take a vote for the futures of their neighborhoods, their schools and their children?” she said.

* Sun-Times in February…

[Mayoral candidate Brandon] Johnson, in fact, has a long list of what he says are Lightfoot’s broken promises to progressive voters. […]

“It’s not a surprise to me that she broke those promises because she never believed them from the beginning,” he said.

Johnson, an organizer for the Chicago Teachers Union, cited the mayor’s about-face on an elected Chicago Public Schools board as one of her broken progressive promises.

* WBEZ yesterday afternoon…

Jen Johnson, deputy mayor of education under Brandon Johnson, said the mayor wants to stick with starting with a hybrid [half elected, half appointed] board as laid out in the law. She said, as an organizer for the CTU, the mayor worked to pass the law, which took a lot of advocacy, pressure and compromise.

“Interjecting change at this stage is not super helpful,” she said.

In an interview, CTU President Stacy Davis Gates said the union isn’t opposed to all members being elected next year, but Harmon needs to answer how he thinks that’s now possible when he previously argued it would be too complicated.

“The Senate president dropped this on everyone’s head without the benefit of stakeholder input or even understanding,” Davis Gates said. “So, no, the implications of this haven’t been weighed yet. We’re still trying to understand what just happened.”

“What just happened” is that Harmon gave the CTU everything it asked for at a public hearing during which the CTU lobbyist said there could be a lawsuit filed over equal representation.

*** UPDATE *** From Rep. Ann Williams (D-Chicago), who sponsored the House’s hybrid bill…

The missing piece in the conversation about the elected school board bill is that everyone - including the Senate (at least until Tuesday evening) - presumed we were working from the initially hybrid structure put into place in the 2021 bill. (The hybrid board for the first two years before going to a fully elected board in 2026.)

That was my understanding and why the House proposal was developed - to ensure everyone got the ability to vote in year one while still utilizing the (heavily negotiated) structure from the 2021 agreed bill.

We first heard about the Senate proposal to open up the agreement, scrap the transition period and go to a fully elected board late Tuesday. With only a few days left in the veto session, there wasn’t time to fully evaluate if this could be put together in time for an election less than a year away without negatively impacting the stability of Chicago public schools.

I have been a strong supporter of a fully elected board for many years; if the proposal to revisit the agreed initial hybrid structure had been proposed a year or even six months ago, it would’ve been a different story. But to abruptly switch gears at the 11th hour gave me pause. This is really really important for Chicago and we need to get it right.

If we can identify an approach which will get us there faster in a way that provides for an equitable and representative board, while ensuring a smooth transition, of course it will be considered.

  23 Comments      


Protected: SUBSCRIBERS ONLY - Pritzker announcement preview

Thursday, Nov 16, 2023 - Posted by Rich Miller

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Protected: SUBSCRIBERS ONLY - Supplement to today’s edition

Thursday, Nov 16, 2023 - Posted by Rich Miller

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

Thursday, Nov 16, 2023 - Posted by Rich Miller

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Open thread

Thursday, Nov 16, 2023 - Posted by Isabel Miller

* What’s going on in your part of Illinois?…

  7 Comments      


Isabel’s morning briefing

Thursday, Nov 16, 2023 - Posted by Isabel Miller

* ICYMI: Johnson unveils 60-day shelter limit for asylum seekers ahead of big Pritzker aid infusion. Crain’s…

    -The plan is to curtail shelter stays, which was developed in coordination with state officials, will increase staffing capacity at the “landing zones” where migrants first arrive in the city, impose a “tiered 60-day shelter stay limit.”

    - Pritzker is expected to announce more state money for migrant aid today. The amount is “more than” the $150 million Johnson included in his own 2024 budget for migrants. a knowledgeable source told Crain’s Greg Hinz.

    -Johnson said the city also will begin to “cite and fine bus companies that disregard our curfews, landing zone locations and loading and unloading rules,” beginning this weekend.

* Related stories…

* Isabel’s top picks…

    * WBEZ | One year before Chicago’s first school board election, key details remain unresolved: That schedule has long been set in stone — until last week. Illinois Senate President Don Harmon, D-Oak Park, threw a wrench in those plans by proposing to move elections for all board members to next fall. His reasoning? It’s too difficult to create a racially representative voting map that adheres to voting rights laws with only half the districts. He believes every model for transitioning from a partially elected to fully elected board has “glaring shortcomings.”

    * WTTW | Suspended CPS Security Guard is 3rd Fired Chicago Cop Hired by District After Being on City’s Do-Not-Hire List: WTTW News previously reported that two CPS security guards suspended by the district were hired despite being placed on the city’s do-not-hire list after they were fired from their positions as Chicago police officers. Deluna, like those two other guards, also worked as a police officer for Chicago before his suspension by the school district. Unlike those guards, Deluna didn’t even make it past his training cycle as a police officer before being banned by the city from holding a municipal job. He was hired back by CPS about a year and a half after his CPD firing.

Governor Pritzker is set to announce new state investments in services for asylum seekers at 10 am today. Click here to watch.

* Here’s the rest of your morning roundup…

    * Capitol News Illinois | State Supreme Court weighs constitutionality of lifetime restrictions on child sex offenders: According to court records included in briefs filed with the Supreme Court, Kopf served three years of probation and reportedly has had no other criminal convictions since then. Still, because he was convicted of a sex crime involving a minor, Kopf remains subject to an Illinois statute that requires him to register for the rest of his life as a sex offender and prohibits him from ever living in certain areas. Those residency restrictions cover any place within 500 feet of a “playground, child care institution, day care center, part day child care facility, day care home, group day care home, or a facility providing programs or services exclusively directed toward persons under 18 years of age.”

    * Tribune | Corruption trial of ex-Ald. Ed Burke to resume after weeklong COVID-related delay: After a sluggish start to jury selection and a weeklong COVID-related delay, the historic corruption trial of former Chicago Ald. Edward Burke is finally expected to head to opening statements Thursday after a jury is empaneled.

    * WBEZ | Cook County pitches a $100 million fund for migrants and disaster aid: About $70 million in that fund would be set aside to provide medical care for migrants. That’s in addition to money already budgeted next year to treat this population, proposed budget documents show. About $20 million would flow to suburbs to help cover costs related to providing services for migrants, and about $10 million would be used to help communities with other disaster response and recovery efforts, such as record-setting rainstorms that have inundated many residents’ homes.

    * Tribune | Mayor Brandon Johnson deflects questions over proposal tying homeless tent removal to City Council votes: The mayor Wednesday at first sidestepped a question about the exchange, telling reporters, “I am not necessarily privy to every single conversation that happens throughout the city of Chicago.” But pressed further on Conway’s allegations, Johnson said they were “a mischaracterization” and said “pushing for real support around the unhoused (is) what this has always been about.”

    * WGN | Migrants, crime, investment in people: Brandon Johnson’s first 6 months as mayor: “As I’ve said repeatedly, I don’t know if there’s ever been a mayor that understand the trauma that violence causes in communities than someone like me who is living in one of those communities,” he said in a recent interview with WGN’s Tahman Bradley. “Today of course we’re centered in Austin, the neighborhood that I’m raising my family in. I can tell you the touch points have literally reached just outside my front door. And so I think about it every day, it’s a very serious problem that we have.”

    * WAND | Pritzker highlights trade jobs, workforce development during Apprenticeship Week: USDOL plans to award $98 million in grants to YouthBuild programs across the country. YouthBuild pre-apprenticeship programs lift up low-income children and young adults who dropped out of school, are unemployed or have limited job skills. “If we think of our workforce system as infrastructure, apprenticeships are the super highways,” said USDOL Acting Secretary Julie Su.

    * SJ-R | Milhiser: ‘Prioritizing public safety’ and ‘reducing violent crime’ is job one: John Milhiser said he has a slightly different perspective returning as Sangamon County state’s attorney. The 53-year-old Milhiser, who was nominated for the position by Sangamon County Board Chairman Andy Van Meter and was sworn in at Tuesday’s board meeting after being unanimously approved, served as state’s attorney from 2010 to 2018 before being appointed U.S. Attorney.

    * Crain’s | Former state, city officials win Democratic National Convention contract: An advisory firm run by former state of Illinois and city of Chicago facilities officials has been tapped to oversee the preparation of the United Center and its surrounding area for the Democratic National Convention next summer.

    * The Pantagraph | Caulkins seeks Supreme Court review of Illinois semiautomatic weapons ban ruling: A downstate lawmaker whose challenge of Illinois’ semiautomatic weapons ban lost at the state Supreme Court earlier this year has petitioned the U.S. Supreme Court to review that decision.

    * Michael Frerichs and Nell Minow | Those who want to ban sustainability-focused investing are on the losing end: Listening to Republican lawmakers and conservative voices, you might think that the ESG investment movement — which focuses on environmental, social and governance factors — is coming to an end. Growing anti-ESG sentiment among lawmakers, they would argue, is reflective of how the public is rejecting “woke” sustainable investment practices. We are here to tell you that this is simply not the case. Behind the smoke and mirrors of the anti-ESG fad lies a crumbling edifice with little support among investors, public fund managers or even other Republicans.

    * Illinois Times | From colleges to cannabis: Before George Kennett joined Cresco Labs eight years ago, he was in a job he didn’t like, and his abuse of alcohol and other drugs led to what could have been a fatal spiral. The job at Cresco “saved my life and changed my life for the better,” Kennett, 32, told Illinois Times. “It gave me purpose.”

    * Block Club Chicago | Narcan Vending Machine Comes To CTA Station, But Mother Of Overdose Victim Says More Must Be Done: The CTA’s Narcan vending machine is one of five turned on by Chicago Department of Public Health over the past two weeks, in a new pilot program bringing life-saving supplies to public spaces in high overdose areas. Uptown Library, Garfield Community Service Center, Harold Washington Library, Roseland Community Triage Center and the 95th Red Line station are recipients of the vending machines, which ask users to a create a unique PIN by first completing an anonymous online survey, although just Narcan can be dispensed by dialing “1234.”

  10 Comments      


Live coverage

Thursday, Nov 16, 2023 - Posted by Isabel Miller

* Click here or here to follow breaking news.

  Comments Off      


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…

Tomorrow morning Governor Pritzker will hold a press conference to announce the state’s next steps in managing the asylum seeker crisis. In advance of the presser, we are offering an embargoed background briefing at 9 AM with Acting IDHS Secretary Dulce Quintero, Associate Secretary for Early Childhood, Family & Community Kirstin Chernawsky, and Governor’s Office staff to provide more in-depth background to members of the media.

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…

They know that we have to clear out these police districts, we’ve got to get people who are sleeping outside, indoors. And we have to create work authorization in an expedited way so that these [migrants] can contribute to the economy. And also creating a village in the community so that when other migrants, or asylum seekers arrive that there’s a community to receive them.

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…

On the front end, you know, we have to make sure that we are setting up these newly arrivals with the best opportunity to be successful. On the back end, part of the investments that the state will be providing is to expand a more expedited process for them to be resettled.

Also…


…Adding… Update…


  10 Comments      


Afternoon roundup

Wednesday, Nov 15, 2023 - Posted by Rich Miller

* Ugh…


* SJ-R…

The U.S. House approved a temporary measure to fund the government Tuesday, keeping fears of a federal shutdown at-bay through the end of the year. […]

U.S. Rep. Mike Quigley, D-Chicago, was one of two Democrats voting against the continuing resolution and was joined by all Illinois GOP members in opposition. All remaining Illinois Democrats voted ‘yes.’

No cuts to spending led to ‘no’ votes from Reps. Mary Miller, R-Oakland; and Darin LaHood, R-Peoria — Miller calling on zero funding to the Department of Education and World Health Organization. Quigley, who also voted against the prior stopgap measure, wanted more funding for Ukraine. […]

U.S. Rep. Nikki Budzinski, D-Springfield, said in a statement that she voted in favor of the resolution due in-part to a one-year funding extension of the Farm Bill. The spending bill funds federal agriculture and food programs for five years will now continue through September 2024, the end of the fiscal year.

* The Illinois Farm Bureau found the price of a Thanksgiving meal has dropped a bit since last year…

Illinois Farm Bureau (IFB) volunteer shoppers reported a state-wide average price of $63.87 for a classic holiday feast for 10, or around $6.39 per person. This reflects a 2.5% decrease over the previous year’s state average of $65.53. […]

AFBF reported a national average of $61.17, or less than $6.20 per person, for a classic holiday feast for 10. This is a 4.5% decrease from the previous year’s record-high of $64.05, but a Thanksgiving meal is still 25% higher than it was in 2019, which highlights the impact high supply costs and inflation have had on food prices since before the pandemic.

The centerpiece on most Thanksgiving tables – the turkey – brought down the overall cost of dinner. The national average price for a 16-pound turkey is $27.35. That is $1.71 per pound, down 5.6% from last year. […]

“Traditionally, the turkey is the most expensive item on the Thanksgiving dinner table,” said AFBF Senior Economist Veronica Nigh. “Turkey prices have fallen thanks to a sharp reduction in cases of avian influenza, which have allowed production to increase in time for the holiday.” […]

Individual Prices

    • 16-pound turkey: $27.35 or $1.71 per pound (down 5.6%)
    • 14-ounces of cubed stuffing mix: $3.77 (down 2.8%)
    • 2 frozen pie crusts: $3.50 (down 4.9%)
    • Half pint of whipping cream: $1.73 (down 22.8%)
    • 1 pound of frozen peas: $1.88 (down 1.1%)
    • 1 dozen dinner rolls: $3.84 (up 2.9%)
    • Misc. ingredients to prepare the meal: $3.95 (down 4.4%)
    • 30-ounce can of pumpkin pie mix: $4.44 (up 3.7%)
    • 1 gallon of whole milk: $3.74 (down 2.6%)
    • 3 pounds of sweet potatoes: $3.97 (up .3%)
    • 1-pound veggie tray (carrots & celery): $.90 (up 2.3%)
    • 12-ounce bag of fresh cranberries: $2.10 (down 18.3%)

Meanwhile…

Americans for Prosperity-Illinois (AFP-IL) will be joined by House Republican Leader Tony McCombie and Senate Republican Leader John Curran at Montrose Food Mart & Deli in Chicago to provide free groceries for customers for a limited time.

The event will connect the rising grocery costs to the disastrous Bidenomic agenda in Washington and tax increases coming out of Springfield. The Leaders will join AFP-IL to chat with customers about the challenges they face with rising prices –especially around the holidays and discuss how Illinois can tackle inflationary policies moving forward.

Years of Biden and Pritzker’s reckless spending and inflationary policies have wreaked havoc on the American economy, making it harder than ever for Illinoisans to make ends meet. Governor Pritzker recently increased the grocery tax by one percent, hitting Illinois families even harder during economic uncertainty. From gasoline to groceries, everything seems more expensive nowadays.

Prices for groceries are up 24.4 percent since January 2021, costing a family of four an extra $59.08 per week for a moderate-cost plan. To highlight the consequences of the broken policies coming out of Washington, DC and Springfield, AFP will provide $60 gift cards to be used on groceries for Montrose Food Mart & Deli. To highlight the consequences of the broken policies coming out of Washington, DC and Springfield, AFP will provide $60 gift cards to be used on groceries for Montrose Food Mart & Deli.

* Politico…

The race for Democratic state Rep. Kelly Burke’s seat in the suburban 36th District is about to get interesting.

Sonia Anne Khalil is filing paperwork to run. She faces Rick Ryan, an attorney in Evergreen Park who’s been endorsed by Burke.

Khalil is known in Democratic circles in part for her work in the Cook County Clerk’s Office. Her father is Samir Khalil, founder of the Arab American Democratic Club.

About the district: It includes Palos Hills, Oak Lawn and Evergreen Park, where Burke is also the mayor. The district also has a large population of Arab Americans.

Khalil has close connections to progressives and former Cook County Clerk David Orr.

* Media advisory from SoS Alexi Giannoulias…

Giannoulias will be joined by elected officials and environmental leaders to celebrate the unveiling of the state’s new Monarch butterfly license plate.

Deposits for the plates raise funds for the Roadside Monarch Habitat Fund, which is part of the Illinois Department of Natural Resources.

The Monarch butterfly, Illinois’ state insect, is considered endangered. The fund helps foster habitats to support the butterflies during their twice-yearly migratory journey from Mexico to Chicago with a goal to add 150 million new milkweed stems and other nectar resources to the Illinois landscape in the next 15 years.

* 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…

At 4:42 am (Central), an earthquake occurred in eastern Putnam County, Illinois. The epicenter was approximately 1 mile south of Standard, Illinois (6.5 miles southwest of LaSalle/Peru). The earthquake focus is estimated to be 2.75 mi (4.6 km) below the surface. Reports to the US Geological Survey indicate that the earthquake was felt primarily within a 25-mile radius of the epicenter, but people as far away as Chicago, Illinois, and Dubuque, Iowa, also reported minor shaking. The most common report from my students and co-workers was that people were jarred awake as if someone hit their bed or something hit their house. While there is no known fault at this location, earthquakes happen in our area about once every 5-10 years.

The cause of the earthquake is still to be determined and includes several possibilities. The first is the result of pressure on our tectonic plate. The Earth’s surface is made of plates that move and interact with each other. That interaction results in earthquakes where the plates are touching, but some of that stress can result in the occasional earthquake in the middle of the plate where we are located. A second possibility related to the glaciers that left our area around 12-15,000 years ago. When they melted back, the loss of weight results in our part of the crust rising very slowly (about 1 mm/year) which can also result in the occasional earthquake.

For context, this is a normal experience for our area. Our area experiences a small earthquake about once every five or ten years. There was a M4.2 near Troy Grove in 2004 and a M3.5 near Dixon in 1999. The largest on record was a M5.1 in eastern Ogle County (west of DeKalb) in 1909. The Earth is a very active planet with earthquakes occurring all the time. They tend to make the news when they occur where people live. So, we can expect more earthquakes in the future.

Earthquakes are relatively minor, but it is always a good idea to have fragile, important items attached to something so they do not fall and break, and you probably shouldn’t have a shelf with things that could fall off directly over your bed.

I encourage anyone who experienced the earthquake or would like to know more about it to visit earthquake.usgs.gov to learn more and to share what they experienced. The Did You Feel It? reports are a very important data source for researchers.

* 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.

  23 Comments      


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…

With the realization that there is a cold winter ahead, combined with the lack of shelter and jobs, many migrants ABC7 spoke to at the 1st and 12th Police District stations said if given the opportunity they would leave Chicago for another city. […]

Jorge Barrera has been living at a police station for six months. With no opportunity to work here, the 39-year-old said he would leave, but he doesn’t have the money or luxury to pack up and go to warmer places like California, Texas or Miami.

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…

The Chicago City Council is expected to approve Mayor Brandon Johnson’s first budget proposal today.

The mayor and his team will call it a balanced budget that provides $150 million for migrant care, even though Johnson has said it costs $40 million a month to care for migrants. So “balanced” seems a stretch to some folks given the budget is for a whole year.

More from the Sun-Times…

Johnson’s $16.77 billion budget is poised to sail through the City Council on Wednesday despite earmarking only $150 million for asylum-seekers.

“That won’t even get you through the first quarter. We’re spending about $40 million a month right now. It’s not a balanced budget,” said Ald. Anthony Beale (9th), who plans to cast one of about a dozen expected “no” votes. […]

Johnson has acknowledged $150 million is not enough to care for migrants, but is using that lowball figure to strengthen the case for more state and federal funding.

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…

  15 Comments      


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…

A Proud Boy pleaded for leniency from a judge, then yelled ‘Trump won’ on his way out

  16 Comments      


Question of the day

Wednesday, Nov 15, 2023 - Posted by Rich Miller

* ABC 7…

llinois is about two and a half months into Secretary of State Alexi Giannoulias’ new “Skip the Line” program.

The idea is to make an appointment in advance and eliminate the unpredictability of wait times at Illinois DMVs. But, the problem has now shifted to finding an available appointment.

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. […]

A spokesman for the secretary of state said, in part, “Since launching the program on Sept. 1, more than 500,000 appointments have been scheduled. Customers with appointments are also experiencing little to no wait times, which is a vast improvement compared to the long lines and hour-plus wait times that Illinoisans had been used to.”

* The Question: If you or friends and family had any experience with the “Skip the Line” program, how did it go?

  31 Comments      


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

* Rep. Jed Davis (R-Newark)…

During veto session, we voted to allow public elections of the Board of Education for Chicago Public Schools. Without question, it’s great placing elections in the hands of people. However, the timing is essentially a legislative scheme to ensure electoral victories.

“This bill aligns the city’s school board elections with general elections, meaning it’s the same time people elect statewide officials like their governor, secretary of state, and treasurer.” Representative Davis continues, “Everywhere else in Illinois, school board elections occur during consolidated elections, during off-years, meaning not during general elections. So, we must ask why are we allowing special circumstances for Chicago?”

Representative Davis answers why, “The city’s school board elections will turn out voters in heavily democrat areas. It’s an infusion of democrat votes for statewide officials, ensuring a republican never wins a statewide election again. It’s corruption right out in the open for everyone to see.”

This nonsense must end and Representative Davis promises to push against this legislation and address the issue as needed through judicial means.

“We must ensure equality across the aisle and not give one party or the other advantages during general elections. This legislation is shameful and the people deserve better. Let’s absolutely give the people the power to vote, but let’s not treat Chicago differently from a timing perspective compared with all other Illinois voters. I’m asking both House and Senate leadership to do the right thing and fix this issue before sending anything to the Governor’s desk.”

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?

  51 Comments      


Pritzker puts $1 million into Nevada abortion rights effort, may also assist in Arizona

Wednesday, Nov 15, 2023 - Posted by Rich Miller

* NBC News…

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. […]

Pritzker, a billionaire, has sunk his personal money into the group to fund efforts in competitive races. That includes the group’s donating $250,000 to Ohioans United for Reproductive Rights in the state’s ballot measure vote last week, when voters chose to add protections for reproductive health decisions to the state constitution. Members of Think Big worked as strategists in the Ohio effort, and Pritzker gave $750,000 personally to the effort to defend abortion.

In the Virginia elections, Think Big also gave $250,000 to a combination of the state Democratic Party and support in four state Senate districts that could have been decisive, the group said.

The group has also invested $1 million in Nevada, which is pursuing a 2024 ballot initiative to protect abortion in the state. And according to Amestoy, the group is in conversations to possibly assist the on-the-ground effort in Arizona.

…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…

In Nevada, Think Big America also contributed $1 million to the Nevadans for Reproductive Freedom PAC, which is fighting for a November 2024 ballot question that would establish a “fundamental right to reproductive rights.” The newly formed PAC is affiliated with Planned Parenthood.

  11 Comments      


Top mayoral aide offered to empty homeless encampment in exchange for floor votes

Wednesday, Nov 15, 2023 - Posted by Rich Miller

* Gregory Royal Pratt…

Ald. Bill Conway is crying foul after Johnson’s administration said they would have the city remove the tents in which people are sleeping [in West Loop homeless encampments] only if Conway voted in favor of two pillars of the mayor’s progressive policy agenda.

The conflict between Conway and [op Johnson adviser Jason Lee] begins with the encampment near Union and Ogilvie stations, which Conway said is a trouble spot for drugs and violent crime in the ward. Two recent shootings in the area have exacerbated his concern. […]

Lee pulled Conway into a copy room behind council chambers and offered to help remove the homeless camps, but Conway said he tied the action to the alderman supporting two Johnson initiatives: an increased real estate transfer tax on properties over $1 million to help fund citywide homeless services and an end to the tipped wage for restaurant workers. […]

Conway also recalled Lee saying that the administration’s progressive allies would “raise hell” if they helped clear out the viaducts, but City Hall was willing to make that happen because Conway’s votes “give us all the ammunition we need to justify why this is a critical intervention.” […]

“What I expressed to Ald. Conway is that … there’s a perception that doing something like removing encampments is not necessarily in line with progressive values and that it could be perceived as a callous act disconnected from the realities of what the unhoused and other vulnerable populations are going through,” Lee said.

“Ald. Conway demonstrating his commitment to progressive values, including eliminating the subminimum wage but most importantly Bring Chicago Home, is helpful to neutralize some of the criticism he might face in pursuing that.”

* From Jason Lee in 2018…

I learned the meaning of Dr. King’s axiom that the “ends are pre-existent in the means.” If my goal was truly to create a just world, I decided that I could not use unjust means … to achieve those ends.

This is what Dr. King said…

The means represent the ideal in making and the end in process. And in the long run of history, destructive means cannot bring about constructive ends.

Thoughts?

…Adding… There’s also the practical side…


…Adding… Ald. Conway…

Playing politics with public safety is dangerous, both in the literal sense and when it comes to restoring people’s trust in government.

I take my oath and responsibility to protect our community seriously, so when the Mayor’s Office offered to address rising drug and violent crime incidents under the viaducts in my ward only if I agreed to support two of their legislative priorities, I was shocked.

When I subsequently learned the Mayor’s Office canceled plans to address those issues after I didn’t vote according to their wishes, I was speechless.

As a result, I have referred this matter to the City Inspector General and will cooperate with any investigations that follow.

This all began when I brought concerns about a rise in crime under several viaducts in the 34th Ward to the Mayor’s top aide. What started as peaceful homeless encampments has quickly turned into a magnet for narcotics and violent crime.

On a weekly basis, my staff works on site with Chicago Police and other city departments to safely remove drug packets, guns, abandoned tents, and propane tanks which present a danger to those living under the viaducts, the surrounding community, and the rail line running above. We’ve also been working with Family & Support Services to offer rehousing support to individuals who will accept it. I appreciate all of their work.

I had been told by city agencies that nothing more could be done, despite several overdoses, armed robberies, and two shootings in the immediate area. The Mayor’s aide told me that was not true. He said that the Mayor’s Office frequently intervenes in special circumstances and would do so here in exchange for my votes on the tipped minimum wage and real estate transfer tax.

It’s no secret that political horse trading occurs within the City Council. However, the denial of public safety resources and essential city services in exchange for legislative votes is abhorrent and unethical.

I have supported this administration’s efforts at times and when we disagree, I’ve always been willing to have a conversation and find common ground. But I will not bargain with public safety.

  36 Comments      


Open thread

Wednesday, Nov 15, 2023 - Posted by Isabel Miller

* What’s going on?…

  21 Comments      


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’s $16.77 billion budget is poised to sail through the City Council on Wednesday despite earmarking only $150 million for asylum-seekers.
    - 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…

* 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:

  7 Comments      


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Wednesday, Nov 15, 2023 - Posted by Isabel Miller

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