* WBEZ…

Police Superintendent Larry Snelling said this week the department won’t tolerate “violent actors” who are “committing acts of vandalism, violent attacks against the police, against each other, against our citizens.”

“The minute that starts, we have to put an end to it,” Snelling said. “When people become comfortable committing acts of violence and vandalism, that’s when it turns into a riot.”

Police can use batons, but CPD policy deems striking a head or neck with one to be deadly force and requires documentation justifying it.

CPD also allows police to use pepper spray, even on people who are not actively resisting cops. But this policy is out of sync with “national standards,” according to Chicago Inspector General Deborah Witzburg.

The use of force should be “surgically focused on those who are attempting … to trigger chaos and mob action,” said Civic Federation President Joe Ferguson, who preceded Witzburg as IG.

* Chicago Reader…

Civil rights advocates and oversight reports pointed to confusing policies, leadership failures, and poor compliance with existing rules as key elements behind the department’s chaotic and often brutal response. Police were caught on video covering their identification, using slurs, and beating demonstrators with batons. Their behavior generated hundreds of civilian complaints and was reflective of the CPD’s history of meeting periods of protest and civil disobedience with violence.

Experts warn the CPD is replicating many of those same conditions as it changes key policies and walks back protections for protesters in the run-up to the Democratic National Convention (DNC), where the city expects widespread demonstrations. […]

The CPD is also under fire for failing to provide arrestees with prompt access to a phone call and lawyer. In addition to state law, both are required by separate consent decree that emerged out of the mistreatment of protesters arrested in 2020.

* NBC’s senior national political reporter…

The Chicago DNC stage is officially set! pic.twitter.com/t41iWmV52a

— Natasha Korecki (@natashakorecki) August 15, 2024

* Washington Post…

Vice President Kamala Harris aims to share the campaign trail vibes with the public in Chicago next week with free manicures, friendship bracelet making and campaign training at the city’s convention center.

The daytime programing, dubbed “DemPalooza” by party bosses, will take place at the McCormick Place convention center, about five miles from the United Center, where more than 4,000 credentialed delegates will gather Monday through Thursday for nightly televised celebrations of their presidential ticket. No credential is required to pass through the security perimeter at the convention center, party officials said. […]

DemPalooza will take place alongside the regularly scheduled meetings of 33 Democratic Party caucuses and councils, events that are expected to draw elected speakers. Sens. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.), Kirsten Gillibrand (D-N.Y.) and Edward J. Markey (D-Mass.) are scheduled to address different groups at the convention center, along with the governors of Maryland, New Mexico and Massachusetts. Rep. Maxwell Frost (D-Fla.), the youngest member of Congress, will stop by, as will Angela D. Alsobrooks, the Democratic nominee for U.S. Senate in Maryland, among others.

Unlike the arena events, which are open only to those with credentials, the off-site events are free and open to the public from 9 a.m. to 4:45 p.m. There will be a space for live podcast tapings and other performances, the DNC announced.

* More…

* Sun-Times | Here’s a look at protests planned during Chicago’s DNC: There’s also the “city-designated speaker platform” set up in Park 578, 1919 W. Maypole Ave., open from 11 a.m. to 6 p.m., Monday through Thursday this week. The Secret Service, in cooperation with law enforcement agencies, has established security perimeters around McCormick Place, where party officials will meet during the day, and around the United Center.

* Semafor | Here come the Democratic National Convention protests: Protest organizers in Chicago expect between 30,000 and 40,000 people to join Monday’s march on the Democratic National Convention, and are asking the city for a permit that would get them closer to the event itself. “We’re going to march regardless, but we’re fighting for the best route possible,” said Faayani Aboma Mijana, a spokesperson for the March on the DNC coalition. “We’ve got our park permit, but the City has refused to allow us to use port-a-potties, a stage, and a sound system.”

* Sun-Times | Poor People’s Army plans to march to ‘front doors’ of the DNC next week — but not ‘to cause a ruckus’: The Poor People’s Army was granted a permit to march during the DNC on a technicality. The city failed to respond to the group’s application within its own 10-day deadline. Its march kicks off at 4 p.m. Monday from the National Museum of Puerto Rican Arts, 3015 W. Division St., in Humboldt Park. The 1.5-mile march will head east on Division Street and then south on Western Avenue.

* Crain’s | Why the DNC could be a bust for Chicago restaurants: “We’re not seeing much of a change for our normal business,” said Jim Lasky, co-owner of Gold Coast steakhouse Maple & Ash. Reservations have remained relatively steady, he thinks, because DNC events are scheduled at night during Maple & Ash’s regular dinner hours. […] Lasky is one of many local owners who say the convention is not shaping up to be the business driver they initially thought. Other operators in River North, the Fulton Market District and the Loop said their reservations during DNC week are either on par with or slightly lower than last year during the same period.

* Tribune | As the DNC looms, how will Mayor Brandon Johnson sell Chicago — and himself?: Johnson is slated to speak Monday evening at the made-for-TV event and plans to underscore the host city’s successes and significance in the Democratic Party, per sources close to the mayor. […] Monday evening will likely be the most visible moment Johnson gets inside the United Center, where dozens of speakers will be trotted out over four days to cheer on Vice President Kamala Harris’ nomination. For his part, the mayor intends to seize the opportunity to pitch Chicago to party bigwigs, out-of-town politicos, business titans, everyday voters, naysayers and other observers — while connecting the city’s liberal values to Harris’ candidacy, per his political team.

* WTTW | Illinois Democratic Party Chair on the DNC: ‘There’s Just So Much at Stake Right Now’: “This is an opportunity for us as a party,” [Rep. Lisa Hernandez] said. “… We have targeted in particular, two congressional districts, the 13th and the 17th, which is Nikki Budzinski, Eric Sorensen, and this is an opportunity within those districts, if there is any other targeted districts, from bottom ballot all the way up, to make sure that people are coming out to vote in this ticket is a way to use, for all races of all government levels. So really taking advantage of that moment.”

* ABC Chicago | DNC volunteer appreciation rally thrown at Wrigley Field; Gov. Pritzker, Lt. Gov. Stratton speak: “Our volunteers ages range from 16 to 102,” said JD Van Slyke, chairperson of the Chicago 2024 Host Committee. “I’m going to be at Chicago Midway greeting the VIPs coming in, greeting them off the airplanes,” said volunteer Crystal Flynn. “I’m going to be very proud.”




Volunteers with the Democratic National Convention gather at Wrigley Field for a volunteer appreciation event this evening.

Spotted: Longtime Chicago Cubs fan and local celebrity Ronnie “Woo Woo” Wickers with a Kamala Harris jersey. @wttw pic.twitter.com/AfQJ5O7fQR

— Eunice Alpasan (@eunicealpasan) August 15, 2024

* WGN | 12,000 volunteers aged 16 to 100 will help with Democratic National Convention: At Thursday’s party, volunteers will have the opportunity to take photos with the 2016 World Series trophy, stand on home plate, and hear from Gov. JB Pritzker and Cubs co-owner Laura Ricketts. Another welcome party for delegate and media will be held Saturday and Sunday at Navy Pier.

* Tribune | The Rev. Jesse Jackson’s half-century at the DNC: Landmark speeches and presidential bids helped reshape a party: “Reverend Jesse Jackson paved the way for many of us,” said convention Chair Minyon Moore in an email. A Chicago native, Moore’s extensive political resume includes work on Jackson’s 1988 presidential campaign. “He is a giant in the Civil Rights Movement and embodies the spirit of the more perfect union we strive toward everyday. The Reverend’s legacy isn’t just cemented in the work he’s done, it lives and breathes in each of the lives that he has touched, including mine. His invaluable work has played a key role in propelling us to this historic moment, and his legacy will be reflected in the faces and stories we see on the convention stage.”

* Axios | The Dems ditching Chicago: The Senate’s three most vulnerable Democrats are skipping next week’s Democratic National Convention in Chicago — an effort to fence their campaigns off from the top of the ticket. Sens. Sherrod Brown (Ohio), Jon Tester (Mont.) and Jacky Rosen (Nev.) all plan to campaign back home instead, Axios has learned.