A Federal district court judge in Rhode Island is continuing to weigh the legality of the Trump administration’s move earlier this week to freeze trillions in congressionally approved Federal funding despite the administration’s action on Wednesday to rescind the order that authorized the freeze effort.
On Monday, the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) declared a freeze on most Federal grant and loan program payments with an aim to defund Federal programs that don’t align with the president’s agenda – creating nearly universal confusion as agencies and funding recipients alike scrambled to fall into compliance with the order and understand how it would impact them.
Subscribers had access to the proposed TRO from the various state attorney general plaintiffs as well as the response from the federal government.
* Chief Judge John J. McConnell, Jr. of the United States District Court for the District of Rhode Island today…
In Count I, the States allege that the Executive’s actions by the Office of Management and Budget (“OMB”) violate the Administrative Procedure Act (“APA”) because Congress has not delegated any unilateral authority to the Executive to indefinitely pause all federal financial assistance without considering the statutory and contractual terms governing these billions of dollars of grants.
In Count II, the States allege that the Executive’s actions violate the APA because the failure to spend funds appropriated by Congress is arbitrary and capricious in multiple respects.
In Count III, the States allege that the failure to spend funds appropriated by Congress violates the separation of powers because the Executive has overridden Congress’ judgments by refusing to disburse already-allocated funding for many federal grant programs.
In Count IV, the States allege a violation of the Spending Clause of the U.S. Constitution. U.S. Const. art. I, § 8, cl. law 1.
And in Count V, the States allege a violation of the presentment (U.S. Const. art. I, § 7, cl. 2), appropriations (U.S. Const. art. I, § 7), and take care clauses (U.S. Const. art. II, § 3, cl. 3) (the Executive must “take care that the laws be faithfully executed . . .”)
The Court finds that, based on the evidence before it now, some of which is set forth below, the States are likely to succeed on the merits of some, if not all, their claims. The reasons are as follows:
• The Executive’s action unilaterally suspends the payment of federal funds to the States and others simply by choosing to do so, no matter the authorizing or appropriating statute, the regulatory regime, or the terms of the grant itself. The Executive cites no legal authority allowing it to do so; indeed, no federal law would authorize the Executive’s unilateral action here.
• Congress has instructed the Executive to provide funding to States based on stated statutory factors—for example, population or the expenditure of qualifying State funds. By trying to impose certain conditions on this funding, the Executive has acted contrary to law and in violation of the APA.
• The Executive Orders threaten the States’ ability to conduct essential activities and gave the States and others less than 24 hours’ notice of this arbitrary pause, preventing them from making other plans or strategizing how they would continue to function without these promised funds.
• Congress appropriated many of these funds, and the Executive’s refusal to disburse them is contrary to congressional intent and directive and thus arbitrary and capricious.
• Congress has not given the Executive limitless power to broadly and indefinitely pause all funds that it has expressly directed to specific recipients and purposes and therefore the Executive’s actions violate the separation of powers.
The Executive’s statement that the Executive Branch has a duty “to align Federal spending and action with the will of the American people as expressed through Presidential priorities,” (ECF No. 48-1 at 11) (emphasis added) is a constitutionally flawed statement. The Executive Branch has a duty to align federal spending and action with the will of the people as expressed through congressional appropriations, not through “Presidential priorities.” U.S. Const. art. II, § 3, cl. 3 (establishing that the Executive must “take care that the laws be faithfully executed . . .”). Federal law specifies how the Executive should act if it believes that appropriations are inconsistent with the President’s priorities–it must ask Congress, not act unilaterally. The Impoundment Control Act of 1974 specifies that the President may ask that Congress rescind appropriated funds.3 Here, there is no evidence that the Executive has followed the law by notifying Congress and thereby effectuating a potentially legally permitted so-called “pause.” […]
Justice Brett Kavanaugh wrote when he was on the D.C. Circuit:
Like the Commission here, a President sometimes has policy reasons (as distinct from constitutional reasons, cf. infra note 3) for wanting to spend less than the full amount appropriated by Congress for a particular project or program. But in those circumstances, even the President does not have unilateral authority to refuse to spend the funds. Instead, the President must propose the rescission of funds, and Congress then may decide whether to approve a rescission bill. […]
The Court finds that the record now before it substantiates the likelihood of a successful claim that the Executive’s actions violate the Constitution and statutes of the United States.
The Court now moves on to the remaining three injunction considerations.
Irreparable Harm
The States have put forth sufficient evidence at this stage that they will likely suffer severe and irreparable harm if the Court denies their request to enjoin enforcement of the funding pause. […]
Balance of the Equities and Public Interest
As the Court considers the final two factors, the record shows that the balance of equities weighs heavily in favor of granting the States’ TRO. […]
Mootness
The Defendants now claim that this matter is moot because it rescinded the OMB Directive. But the evidence shows that the alleged rescission of the OMB Directive was in name-only and may have been issued simply to defeat the jurisdiction of the courts. The substantive effect of the directive carries on.
Consistent with the findings above, and to keep the status quo, the Court hereby ORDERS that a TEMPORARY RESTRAINING ORDER is entered in this case until this Court rules on the States’ forthcoming motion for a preliminary injunction, which the States shall file expeditiously.
During the pendency of the Temporary Restraining Order, Defendants shall not pause, freeze, impede, block, cancel, or terminate Defendants’ compliance with awards and obligations to provide federal financial assistance to the States, and Defendants shall not impede the States’ access to such awards and obligations, except on the basis of the applicable authorizing statutes, regulations, and terms.
If Defendants engage in the “identif[ication] and review” of federal financial assistance programs, as identified in the OMB Directive, such exercise shall not affect a pause, freeze, impediment, block, cancellation, or termination of Defendants’ compliance with such awards and obligations, except on the basis of the applicable authorizing statutes, regulations, and terms.
Defendants shall also be restrained and prohibited from reissuing, adopting, implementing, or otherwise giving effect to the OMB Directive under any other name or title or through any other Defendants (or agency supervised, administered, or controlled by any Defendant), such as the continued implementation identified by the White House Press Secretary’s statement of January 29, 2025.
Defendants’ attorneys shall provide written notice of this Order to all Defendants and agencies and their employees, contractors, and grantees by Monday, February 3, 2025, at 9 a.m. Defendants shall file a copy of the notice on the docket at the same time.
Defendants shall comply with all notice and procedural requirements in the award, agreement, or other instrument relating to decisions to stop, delay, or otherwise withhold federal financial assistance programs.
The TRO shall be in effect until further Order of this Court. A preliminary hearing, at which time the States will have to produce specific evidence in support of a preliminary injunction, will be set shortly at a day and time that is convenient to the parties and the Court.
*** UPDATE 1 *** Speaker Chris Welch…
The Trump administration’s unlawful order should never have been issued. I’m grateful to Attorney General Raoul’s leadership in this fight for the resources families need to make ends meet, afford rent, put food on the table, and get ahead.
*** UPDATE 2 *** Gov. JB Pritzker…
As I’ve said since it was released and as was previously supported by Tuesday afternoon’s action in court, these cuts were a blatantly illegal power grab intended to cripple programs that provide essential services for millions of the most vulnerable Americans. This ruling specifically calls out the falsehood told by the White House Press Secretary that the retraction of the order does not affect the intent to cut funding. I’m grateful to Illinois Attorney General Raoul and the other Attorney’s General who brought this action, and I pledge to continue to fight unlawful and harmful authoritarian actions like these on behalf of Illinoisans
*** UPDATE 3 *** Comptroller Mendoza…
Millions of Illinois residents, young and old, urban and rural, Republican and Democrat, who receive federally funded state services can be thankful that a federal judge today blocked the Trump administration’s confusing, unconstitutional and dangerous funding freeze.
The constitution empowers the president to align federal spending with Congressional appropriations, not presidential priorities, the judge wrote.
Veterans and poor people who need health care in all 102 counties of Illinois, college students trying to finish their semesters, and school kids in Head Start programs should not be held hostage to political games.
Even as presidential staff try to backpedal, this week has been filled with panic for our most vulnerable residents. These actions create chaos rather than stability and predictability, putting American lives at risk.
My office is closely monitoring the situation and will keep getting payments out as fast as we can.
Many downstate Illinois residents dislike Chicago’s strong influence in the state. Last year, a total of 33 counties voted to secede from Illinois and form their own state. Huston invited those counties to join Indiana. He even created a commission to study the possibility.
That’s first-rate trolling.
I thought it’d be fun to think through the prospect of Indiana picking up these 33 counties. Would it be good for Indiana? Would it be good for those counties? Would it be good for the remaining 69 Illinois counties? […]
Adding the [Illinois] secessionist counties to Indiana would cut [Indiana’s] per capita income enough for us to slide from 14th to 11th place from the bottom. Only 18.6% of adults in these counties have completed college, while the Illinois total is 36.7%. This new “secessionist” state would instantly be the least well-educated state and would be right about where the USA as a whole was in the late 1980s.
*** Statehouse News ***
* Capitol News Illinois | Parents: School didn’t help our child after an older child repeatedly sexually assaulted her: A Stonington couple hopes the Illinois General Assembly takes their daughter’s sexual abuse more seriously than the Taylorville school district seems to. Ashley and Chadd Peden (pictured) appeared at a statehouse news conference Wednesday with State Sen. Steve McClure (R-Springfield) and State Rep. C.D. Davidsmeyer (R-Murrayville). Their bill would require an immediate expulsion in such cases.
*** Statewide ***
* NBC Chicago | Real ID appointments filling up ‘fast.’ Tip to know if you want to secure your spot: Secretary of State Alexi Giannoulias said last year that his office was stepping up efforts to ensure that residents get REAL ID-compliant identification prior to the May 2025 deadline, but acknowledged there are “tremendous concerns” about what will happen as the deadline arrives. “We feel pressure … Our facilities will swell up, and it will be a problem if people don’t get out and get their REAL ID’s,” he said at the time.
*** Chicago ***
* Tribune | Judge hands 32-month sentence to developer convicted in scheme to bribe Ald. Edward Burke: In sentencing Charles Cui, U.S. District Chief Judge Virginia Kendall said Cui violated the trust the public put in him as a lawyer through his corruption, and exacerbated it by later lying to federal agents and failing to turn over crucial emails to a grand jury in an attempt to cover it up. Kendall also said a message had to be sent to “other developers here in the city, especially those who are trying to make money on real estate and development of properties.”
* WBEZ | Taxpayers are out more than $30 million on University of Illinois’ scuttled South Loop project: The DPI project was still going forward last summer as two pro sports teams — baseball’s White Sox and soccer’s Fire — were looking to build their own, separate stadiums on Auchi’s land. The current status of those stadium plans is unclear. Dutta says it’s possible that the work the companies did on that proposal might still be able to be used to build on the Far South Side site of the planned Illinois Quantum and Microelectronics Park.
* Tribune | Obama Presidential Center subcontractor sues over cost overruns, alleges discrimination: Robert McGee, the owner of II in One, a South Side firm that provided concrete and rebar services for the center starting in 2021, sued New York-based Thornton Tomasetti in federal court earlier this month, seeking to be paid back for roughly $40 million in construction costs the local firm covered itself along with its joint venture partners. II in One blamed Thornton Tomasetti for changing standards, saying the company made an “improper and unanticipated decision” to impose new rules around rebar spacing and tolerance requirements, subjected the company to “excessively rigorous and unnecessary inspection,” and extensive paperwork that “impacted productivity and resulted in millions in losses.”
* Tribune | Chicago Sky to face Brazil in a preseason game on LSU’s campus to celebrate Angel Reese and Kamilla Cardoso: The Chicago Sky will play a preseason game against the Brazilian national team on LSU’s campus on May 2. The event will celebrate the team’s pair of second-year stars, pitting Kamilla Cardoso against her native country’s team while bringing Angel Reese back to Baton Rouge for her first game at the Pete Maravich Assembly Center since her senior season with the Tigers.
* Block Club Chicago | Volunteer-Run Avondale Maker Space Raising Funds To Buy Building From Landlord: The volunteer-run membership group has been negotiating with its landlord since at least September; the members will be able to buy the building if they raise $300,000, Plasterer said. […] Close to $100,000 has been raised for the mission so far, said Andrew Wingate, another member leading fundraising efforts. The group has a year to raise the money it needs, and its members hope to find various revenue streams over the next several months.
*** Cook County and Suburbs ***
* Daily Southtown | Teacher’s comment about deportations at Dixmoor school sparks fear as threat of ICE raids loom: Amid community fears of potential raids by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents, Guadalupe Gutierrez sensed more chaos when her cousin came home from Dixmoor’s Rosa Parks Middle School crying. “He told me, ‘I’m scared to go out,’” Gutierrez said Tuesday. Gutierrez said her cousin and other students told her their teacher came into class holding up a newspaper with a story about potential mass deportations under President Donald Trump and saying, ‘I can’t wait for this to happen.’” […] The teacher said Thursday that “these are all false allegations,” declining to elaborate further.
* CBS Chicago | Solidarity volunteers patrol Chicago neighborhoods, responding to tips of possible ICE raids: A group in the western Chicago suburbs say they are taking action over changing immigration policy. They’ve created teams looking for U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement operations in progress and responding to tips about immigration detainments. The group describes themselves as advocates for immigrants and says they want them to know their rights. They spent part of their Wednesday making the rounds in Elgin.
* Daily Southtown | Judge reverses special prosecutor decision in Will County veto case: A Will County judge Thursday reversed his December ruling that would have appointed a special prosecutor to represent 10 Will County Board Republicans in a road widening dispute with County Executive Jennifer Bertino-Tarrant. Ten board Republicans filed a lawsuit last year against Bertino-Tarrant after she vetoed a resolution that would have stopped the planned widening of 143rd Street to five lanes through Homer Glen. Bertino-Tarrant originally signed the resolution that asked the county’s division of transportation to explore a three-lane alternative, but later said that was in error and issued the veto.
*** Downstate ***
* WCIA | ‘I strongly denounce this hate’: Champaign mayor responds to council member’s swastika post on Facebook: Council member Davion Williams changed his profile picture to the image of a swastika. The post quickly drew criticism in the comments, with people responding that the symbol is hateful. Williams replied, saying the swastika had been used for thousands of years prior across multiple cultures and religions to represent “good fortune, well-being, and spirituality” and symbolize “peace, prosperity, and the cyclical nature of life.” “I have just seen the swastika on Council Member Davion Williams Facebook page. I strongly denounce this hate,” she said. “I will be issuing a full statement today on this, but I did not want to let this hate happen without taking an immediate stand.”
* WCIA | Central IL nursing administrators call for communication to protect patients: People in long-term care facilities trust people like nurses to take care of them, but some people in the industry in Central Illinois say that doesn’t always happen. They say a nurse in St. Joseph has been disciplined for stealing drugs several times — and she still has an active license. They’re frustrated by what they see as a lack of communication between the Illinois Department of Public Health (IDPH) and the Illinois Department of Financial and Professional Regulation (IDFPR). IDPH deals with the violations and disciplines the facilities. But when it comes to individuals who commit the acts, they see them continuing to work with little to no consequence.
*** National ***
* Investigate Midwest | Trump’s funding freeze chills agriculture industry: Rob Larew, president of the National Farmers Union, said farmers and ranchers throughout the U.S. were confused by this week’s order. “We’re getting questions from our members who have made investments on a number of fronts, everything from commercial kitchens to building out processing to even big questions about the IRA,” said Larew, referring to the Inflation Reduction Act. “We have very few answers right now and lots of questions.”
* BOLTS | This City Inspired A New National Standard for Policing Homelessness. Now It’s Cracking Down Even More: Since the campsites opened last summer, many have raised concerns over the conditions, which are gravel lots with portable toilets and no running water. Disability Rights Oregon (DRO) condemned conditions at the sites in letters to Bartholomew and the local police chief in September and October 2024. The organization cautioned that a requirement that residents vacate their plots every week, forcing them to shuttle back and forth between the two designated campsites if they had not secured housing, was “effectively impossible” for some with disabilities.
* AP | RFK Jr. kept asking to see the science that vaccines were safe. After he saw it, he dismissed it: But Kennedy repeatedly refused to acknowledge scientific consensus that childhood vaccines don’t cause autism and that COVID-19 vaccines saved millions of lives, and he falsely asserted the government has no good vaccine safety monitoring. While appearing to ignore mainstream science, he cited flawed or tangential research to make his points, such as suggesting Black people may need different vaccines than whites.
* Reuters | Exclusive: Musk aides lock government workers out of computer systems at US agency, sources say: The two officials, who spoke to Reuters on condition of anonymity for fear of retaliation, said some senior career employees at OPM have had their access revoked to some of the department’s data systems. The systems include a vast database called Enterprise Human Resources Integration, which contains dates of birth, Social Security numbers, appraisals, home addresses, pay grades and length of service of government workers, the officials said.
* You can read all 100+ pages of the jury’s instructions by clicking here. Happy hunting.
Click here to see the Tribune’s breakdown of the charges against Madigan and McClain.
* You can click here and here to follow the Madigan trial. If you want live updates on the trial, the Sun-Times will be texting out the latest on jury deliberations and the verdict. Click here to sign up.
“Apparently there is some kind of arts and crafts going on back there,” U.S. District Judge John Robert Blakey quipped after reading the Thursday note. When another message from the jurors arrived later in the day, the judge joked that it would be a red flag only “if they start asking for pipe cleaners and macaroni.”
The panel was sent back to deliberate at about 3:15 p.m. Wednesday after attorneys presented roughly 27 hours of closing arguments this week and last. Jurors will have to consider 23 counts against Madigan alleging an array of schemes to enrich his political allies and line his pockets. McClain is charged in six of those counts.
To assist their deliberations, jurors have about 100 pages of legal instructions, dozens of undercover recordings, and hundreds of emails, texts and other documents entered into evidence.
* While we await a ruling, federal courthouse reporters Jon Seidel and Jason Meisner flagged these stories…
* Sun-Times | ‘Facts and common sense’: Chicago’s corruption jurors reflect on past trials as Ed Burke’s case nears: The views of those who spoke to the Sun-Times were just as varied. But the jurors largely praised the staff at the federal courthouse, believed they were fair to the defendants and did their best to follow the rules laid out by each judge. “All I had were the facts and common sense and some instructions,” said Tiesha Jones, a Chicagoan who served on the panel that convicted former Madigan chief of staff Tim Mapes of perjury and attempted obstruction of justice.
* Tribune | In State of State speech, Gov. J.B. Pritzker says Illinois needs to ‘root out the purveyors of greed and corruption’: “We must root out the purveyors of greed and corruption — in both parties — whose presence infects the bloodstream of government,” Pritzker said in his midday speech before the General Assembly. “It’s no longer enough to sit idle while under-the-table deals, extortion and bribery persist. Protecting that culture or tolerating it is no longer acceptable. We must take urgent action to restore the public’s trust in our government,” he said.
Chicago Mayor Brandon Johnson on Tuesday declined to respond to a request from the Republican chairperson of the U.S. House Oversight Committee about the city’s self-proclaimed status as a sanctuary city.
Instead, Johnson referred questions to the city’s top lawyer, Corporation Counsel Mary Richardson-Lowry, who said the letter sent by U.S. Rep James Comer (R-Kentucky) was under “legal review.”
The letter from Comer, which does not have the legal force of a subpoena, also invites Boston Mayor Michelle Wu, Denver Mayor Mike Johnston and New York City Mayor Eric Adams to a hearing of the House Oversight and Government Reform Committee on Feb. 11. […]
Comer’s letter also requests all documents and communications related to Chicago’s sanctuary status, including those between each city, non-governmental organizations and state officials. State law also prohibits law enforcement agents from assisting federal immigration agents.
* OK, on a related note, I received a few of these releases today from the House Republican Organization…
Harry Benton Must Stand with Taxpayers, Not Illegal Migrants
Springfield, IL – While Illinois taxpayers shoulder the hundreds of millions of dollars wasted on sanctuary city policies, Rep. Harry Benton has remained silent. This week, Mayor of Chicago Brandon Johnson was invited to testify before Congress and provide documentation on Chicago’s “sanctuary city” policies. Chicago’s mayor is pushing back, showing an unwillingness to be transparent. Benton has been silent.
The people of Illinois are paying the price for Mayor Johnson’s radical agenda, and Harry Benton refuses to ask where the money is going. If Brandon Johnson won’t testify in Washington, then Benton must stand up and demand hearings in Springfield to bring transparency and accountability to this mess.
While Illinois families struggle with rising taxes, crime, and underfunded services, Benton continues to protect the failed policies draining state resources. Instead of demanding real solutions, he’s choosing to bury his head in the sand while taxpayers foot the bill.
The people of Illinois deserve answers. Will Benton deliver them, or continue protecting Chicago’s radical sanctuary city policies?
The 97th District comprises portions of Will and Kendall Counties.
* Similar one for Rep. Stuart. Excerpt…
The people of Illinois deserve to know just how much they’re paying for Chicago’s sanctuary city chaos. If Mayor Brandon Johnson refuses to answer questions in Washington, then Katie Stuart should demand hearings in Springfield to find out exactly what’s happening, how much it’s costing taxpayers, and who is paying the price.
* And Rep. Ness…
Taxpayers have already spent hundreds of millions of dollars covering the costs of Mayor Johnson’s disastrous immigration policies, yet Suzanne Ness refuses to ask where that money is going. If Johnson won’t testify in Washington, then Ness must stand up and demand hearings in Springfield. People across Illinois deserve answers.
* Meanwhile, Marter is already running again…
Congressional candidate Jim Marter released the following statement today, denouncing U.S. Representative Lauren Underwood’s repeated failure to support the safety and well-being of American women. Marter emphasized Underwood’s recent votes against key bipartisan legislation designed to protect women from violence, particularly crimes committed by illegal immigrants.
“In the first month of 2025, Lauren Underwood voted against the Laken Riley Act and the Preventing Violence Against Women by Illegal Aliens Act, both of which had broad bipartisan support,” said Marter.
“She even refused to support the Protection of Women and Girls in Sports Act. That’s three major votes in a single month that prove Lauren Underwood is not for women; she is for radical ideologies. She continually votes against the safety of American citizens, disregarding the victims of violence, perpetrated by criminal illegal aliens.
“Underwood has demonstrated an alarming lack of concern for the safety of women in her district. She has shown she is even unwilling to deport the most dangerous criminals—including rapists, pedophiles, and murderers. She is putting American women, our wives and daughters, neighbors and loved ones, in harm’s way. Additionally, her votes disproportionately endanger marginalized communities, where many of these violent criminals continue to victimize innocent people.”
Underwood defeated Marter by 10 points in November, doubling Kamala Harris’ five-point winning margin in the 14th District.
* I very much agree with the Chicago Tribune editorial board that one of the state’s three employee recruitment ads is cringey as all getout. But the Tribsters based their overall argument - that the state doesn’t really have a recruitment problem - on faulty data…
But as the state looks to lure more employees to join its ranks, it’s worth noting that state government added 15,600 jobs, among the highest gains of any industry statewide, from December 2023 to December 2024, according to an Illinois Policy Institute analysis of Bureau of Labor Statistics data.
The editorial board just hired a former IPI employee, so of course they’d use those numbers.
* I reached out to the comptroller’s office to double-check. Here’s the actual state headcount based on W2s issued, including temporary workers/contractors like snow plow drivers…
State employee headcount end of December 2023: 78,232
State employee headcount end of December 2024: 80,039
So, that’s an increase of 1,807 people, a 2.3 percent rise above the previous year, not an increase of 15,600.
* From the governor’s press secretary…
The Tribune’s editorial is an insult to hardworking state employees who dedicate their lives to serving the people of Illinois. State employees show up every day to do the critical work of supporting working families, making sure taxpayers receive benefits, providing healthcare services, and serving in law enforcement. Attracting and retaining talent to the state workforce positions Illinois to succeed.
Having a job where good healthcare is available, competitive benefits, and a commitment to public service is something we are proud of. After state government was stripped to the studs during the previous administration, Governor Pritzker took the necessary steps to rebuild a government that actually functions.
Some Illinois Democrats are pushing the General Assembly to pass legislation that would require the state’s five pension systems to divest from fossil fuel companies.
Under Senate Bill 130, the pension systems for legislators, state employees, university employees, teachers and judges would be prohibited from investing in any fossil fuel companies or their affiliates. Pension systems would be required to complete divestment in fossil fuel companies by 2030 but would be prohibited from making any new investments in them once the bill is signed by the governor.
Fossil fuel companies covered under the legislation include subsidiaries, affiliates and parent companies of 200 publicly traded companies with the largest fuel reserves in the world, the 30 largest public companies owning coal-fired power plants and any company with fossil fuel operations at the core of its business. […]
Rep. Will Guzzardi, D-Chicago, a budget leader in the House, said he believes divesting from fossil fuel companies will ultimately lead to better investment outcomes for pension systems as lawmakers search for ways to improve pension liabilities. Illinois has a $143.7 billion unfunded pension liability, according to the Commission on Government Forecasting and Accountability.
Democratic state Sen. Dave Koehler has started his sixth term seeking to advance legislation in several key areas including agriculture and the environment, but concerns about the state budget could overshadow much of lawmakers’ work during the spring session. […]
Koehler said he is interested in passing bills related to agriculture and the environment this spring. His bill, the Clean Transportation Standard Act, would seek to limit carbon emissions in transportation by creating a credit marketplace advised by the Illinois Environmental Protection Agency. Companies could earn credits from this marketplace for using plant-based fuel or switching to electric vehicles. Airline, rail, ocean-going, and military fuel would not be included. […]
Koehler also said he is planning to reintroduce a bill to raise the threshold for the estate tax to prevent farmers from losing their land to estate taxes. The bill did not get out of committee last year. […]
Koehler also plans to sponsor a bill with Rep. Sharon Chung to increase funding for Illinois State University through a change to the higher education funding formula.
Amends the Unified Code of Corrections. Eliminates provisions that a person must serve various percentages for particular offenses. Provides that the rules and regulations of the Department of Corrections shall provide that the individual in custody shall receive one day of sentence credit for each day of service in prison other than when a sentence of natural life imprisonment has been imposed. Provides that each day of sentence credit shall reduce by one day the incarcerated person’s period of incarceration set by the court. Provides that within 6 months after the effective date of the amendatory Act, the Department of Corrections shall recalculate each incarcerated person’s release date by crediting each person one day sentence credit for each day the incarcerated person has spent in prison on the current sentence. Provides that an incarcerated person serving a term of natural life imprisonment shall be eligible to accumulate sentence credit so that in the event that his or her sentence is reduced to something less than a sentence of natural life imprisonment, it can thereafter be credited toward his or her new sentence. Makes technical changes. Effective January 1, 2026.
Two state lawmakers have filed bills that would officially “lock the clock” by making daylight saving time permanent.
This would end the decades-long practice of Illinois residents setting their clocks forward one hour on the second Sunday in March and setting it back one hour on the first Sunday in November.
The bills, proposed by Reps. Bob Morgan, D-Highland Park, and Brad Halbrook, R-Shelbyville, would keep the time set as it is during the spring and summer. The practical effect of this would be darker mornings and lighter evenings during the fall and winter seasons. […]
In Illinois, at least a dozen bills on the subject — most of them within the past 10 years — have been filed by members of both political parties. Most of them aimed to move the state to permanent daylight saving time.
Nearly all those bills died without receiving a committee hearing in its chamber of origin. However, the Illinois Senate in 2019 overwhelmingly passed legislation sponsored by then-state Sen. Andy Manar, D-Bunker Hill, that would have transitioned Illinois to permanent daylight saving time pending federal legislation repealing or amending the Uniform Time Act of 1966. That bill, however, never got past the gatekeeping House Rules Committee.
Illinois is a bit below the national birth rate average (51.8 births per 1,000 women here vs. 54.5 nationally). So, not good for us, unless and until someone successfully sues.
Illinois does pretty well on that measurement. In 2023, for example, just 3.5 percent of all live births were delivered by those under 20 years old. Here are the same results for the surrounding states which wouldqualify for those additional USDOT funds…
President Donald Trump issued an executive order on Wednesday seeking to withhold federal funding from K-12 schools that teach “discriminatory equity ideology” or “gender ideology.”
The order defines discriminatory equity ideology as anything “that treats individuals as members of preferred or disfavored groups” rather than as individuals. That includes the idea that people can be inherently privileged or oppressed because of their race or gender, which likely targets concepts such as white privilege. […]
Federal funding accounts for about 8% to 10% of funding for K-12 schools but can represent a much larger portion in high-poverty schools and districts. […]
On Tuesday, the Department of Education opened a civil rights investigation into a Denver high school that converted a girls’ restroom to an all-gender restroom based solely off a local news report, rather than a formal complaint. That probe could be a preview of how the federal government might deal with schools that the Trump White House believes are ignoring or somehow flouting the executive order, without a time-consuming complaint or investigative process.
Coming to a school near you.
* Also, I’m still waiting to hear back from the Illinois State Board of Education on the potential loss of funds if this executive order stands…
President Donald Trump signed an executive order Wednesday that aims to steer large amounts of federal money away from public schools and toward private-school vouchers and other “educational alternatives.” […]
The executive order sidesteps Congress and directs the U.S. Department of Education and the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services to find ways to take existing money that goes to public schools, child care providers, and nonprofits and give it to families to use at private schools or for homeschooling expenses. […]
The order also directs the Department of Education to prioritize school choice programs in its discretionary grants.
The state board didn’t even give me the courtesy of acknowledging receipt of my question.
…Adding… The state board of education finally got back to me…
Hi Rich,
We do not have a definition of discretionary to make this determination and have not been provided any guidance on this issue from the U.S. Department of Education.
– On Wednesday, Chicago organizers withdrew pending motions requesting an emergency court order against the Trump administration’s raids in Chicago. Given that the Trump administration, Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE), and a host of deputized federal law enforcement agencies have already begun their operations in Chicago, organizers will focus on responding to the immediate needs of communities while gathering additional evidence about the wide scope of rights violations federal law enforcement is creating in Chicagoan communities. These violations are far beyond the First Amendment violations alleged in this lawsuit.
The lawsuit will remain active while organizers engage in widespread outreach and fact finding on the ground. Local groups are committed to sharing vital know-your-rights information with local immigrant communities, monitoring immigration enforcement operations in Chicago, and growing the sanctuary movement even in the face of repression and the chilling effect from the Trump administration. […]
Filed on January 25, the lawsuit was brought forth by Just Futures Law, Community Justice Civil Rights Clinic of Northwestern Pritzker School of Law, and MK Law on behalf of four organizational plaintiffs: Organized Communities Against Deportation (OCAD), Illinois Coalition for Immigrant and Refugee Rights (ICIRR), Brighton Park Neighborhood Council (BPNC), and Raise the Floor Alliance (RTF). In the filing, groups claim President Trump’s animosity toward sanctuary cities motivates his administration’s plan to unconstitutionally target and conduct raids in Chicago, a violation of groups’ First Amendment rights, an attempt to quash the sanctuary movement.
Today, the American Federation of Government Employees (AFGE) and the American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees (AFSCME), represented by Democracy Forward and Bredhoff and Kaiser PLLC, filed suit against the Trump administration challenging efforts to politicize the civil service through illegal executive orders.
The lawsuit asserts that President Trump illegally exceeded his authority in attempting to unilaterally roll back a regulation that protects the rights of civil servants. The suit also names the Office of Personnel Management for its role in failing to adhere to the Administrative Procedure Act in its attempts to roll back this same regulation.
“AFGE is filing suit with our partner union today to protect the integrity of the American people’s government,” said AFGE National President Everett Kelley. “Together, we can stop the efforts to fire hundreds of thousands of experienced, hard-working Americans who have dedicated their careers to serving their country and prevent these career civil servants from being replaced with unqualified political flunkies loyal to the president, but not the law or Constitution.”
“Schedule F is a shameless attempt to politicize the federal workforce by replacing thousands of dedicated, qualified civil servants with political cronies,” said AFSCME President Lee Saunders. “Our union was born in the fight for a professional, non-partisan civil service, and our communities will pay the price if these anti-union extremists are allowed to undo decades of progress by stripping these workers of their freedoms. Together, we are fighting back.”
Illinois Gov. JB Pritzker is blocking those who took part in the Jan. 6, 2021, attack on the U.S. Capitol from working in state jobs, ignoring President Donald Trump’s attempt to offer them a clean slate last week in a sweeping set of pardons and commutations.
Late Thursday, Pritzker directed the state’s Department of Central Management Services, the state’s primary hiring authority, to restrict hiring of those who took part in the attack on the Capitol by declaring they had taken part in “infamous and disgraceful conduct that is antithetical to the mission of the State.” […]
Pritzker’s new directive marks the first and most direct pushback to Trump’s power spree that has tested the bounds of presidential authority through a fray of executive orders, including some that have drawn judicial rebuke. The Democratic governor of the Midwestern blue state has for years acted as an antagonist to Trump.
Pritzker’s directive is likely to draw legal challenges, but sources familiar with it said that working through the personnel code was thought to serve as the best legal footing should it face court pushback.
One of my most important duties as Governor is protecting public safety in the State of Illinois.Recently, Donald Trump issued more than 1,500 clemencies and pardons for individuals who were convicted or accused of rioting at the United States Capitol on January 6, 2021. These rioters attacked law enforcement officers protecting people in the Capitol, disrupted the peaceful transfer of power, and undermined bedrock principles of American democracy.
These rioters were accused or convicted of a combination of felonies and misdemeanors, including but not limited to: violence against law enforcement officers, threats against Members of Congress, destruction of federal property, and many other crimes. These crimes attacks threatened public safety as Members of Congress, staff, and other workers who were forced to hide from the violence for hours.
I am committed to building a State workforce that upholds our shared values and delivers results for the people of Illinois. Our State workforce must reflect the values of Illinois and demonstrate honesty, integrity, and loyalty to serving the taxpayers. No one who attempts to overthrow a government should serve in government.
The State’s Personnel Code, administered by the Department of Central Management Services (CMS)and by you as its Director, requires the rejection of candidates for State employment who have engaged in infamous or disgraceful conduct (20 ILCS 415/8b.4). To protect the integrity of our workforce and safety of our State, I hereby direct CMS to apply the State Personnel Code and consider any participation in the January 6 insurrection as infamous and disgraceful conduct that is antithetical to the mission of the State.
Thank you for your leadership at CMS building a workforce that reflects our shared values, prioritizes public safety, and prevents these rioters from attacking the rule of law in Illinois.
* Related…
* NPR | Criminal records of Jan. 6 rioters pardoned by Trump include rape, domestic violence: While many people had no criminal record prior to committing crimes on Jan. 6, NPR has identified dozens of defendants with prior convictions or pending charges for crimes including rape, sexual abuse of a minor, domestic violence, manslaughter, production of child sexual abuse material and drug trafficking.
* Law & Crime | ‘Efforts to … erase the insurrection’: Deletion of Jan. 6 database by Trump administration appears to violate federal law, watchdog says: The Citizens for Responsibility and Ethics in Washington, a federal watchdog group, has penned an open letter to the Inspector General of the Department of Justice and the Archivist of the United States, urging them to “take action” and investigate the DOJ’s removal of its Jan. 6 database — detailing criminal charges and convictions related to the 2021 Capitol attack — which they call a “likely violation” of federal law.
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My sense is, I haven’t heard anything new, that things have calmed down quite a lot.
Having said that, there is no indication, you heard this from the White House press secretary, there’s no indication that the Trump administration has any intention of pulling back on the idea of a freeze or even an elimination of major federal programs that benefit people in the state of Illinois, Meals on Wheels, Head Start, Medicaid, things that really matter to people every day. Not to mention grant programs for state police, for local police, those are all things that are at risk as a result of the threat that was made.
And it’s clearly their intention to carry it out. It’s just that they got so much negative feedback all in one day from all across the country, including from Republican elected officials, Democratic elected officials and just nonprofits across the country. So, you know, I think they’re rethinking how they can still accomplish the goal without getting all the negative feedback. […]
We’re doing our best to put together a budget that is balanced. We’re doing our best to think about the contingencies that we might have to have as eventualities because of what we think might be coming from the Trump administration.
But every day we’re going to have to communicate to all the nonprofits and all the people in our states, and by the way, Republican mayors, Republican local elected officials that we talked to over the last 48 hours, deeply concerned about what the threat is to their local communities.
And so I think that, again, if we keep the pressure on and we keep communicating that, hopefully, hopefully they will be deterred from the worst parts of what they’re intending. Are we for efficiencies? Of course, we are. We all want to find efficiencies in government, and if they can find some and help us effectuate them, that’s great, but cutting programs massively to basically give a massive tax break to the wealthiest people in the country does not seem like something the American people will tolerate
We have worked so hard over the last six years to get nine credit upgrades, and I believe we have others that are coming to us because of being prudent. And if we balance the budget again this year, I believe people will finally see that Illinois can govern itself.
I heard that when I went to New York my first year in office. In fact, my first month in office. I met with the credit rating agencies, I met with the bond investors. And I heard this thing. I never heard anybody like, the most insulting thing you can get as a state, which is ‘We don’t think Illinois knows how to govern itself.’ And can you imagine?
And so I said, ‘Wait, well, I just took over. So could we, you know, could you give us the benefit of the doubt?’ And the answer was, essentially, no. ‘We’ve seen you mishandle budgets in Illinois,’ and not me, but previous administrations. ‘And so we need to see some consistency. We need you to balance the budget. We need you to make progress, etc.’ And I said, we’re going to do that. And I told them how we do it, and guess what? We’ve done it, and that’s why we’re getting credit upgrades, and we want to stay on that path.
So that, to me, is the most important thing we can have. Whatever it is that we do on the pension system has to be within the context of making sure we’re improving our credit. And if you think credit ratings don’t matter, let me tell you, hundreds of millions of dollars get spent in interest payments if we don’t get that right. And if we do get it right, savings of hundreds of millions of dollars, either in the potential for tax cuts or spending on the things that we really need to invest in.
It’s very important that we live within our means in this state, and that we not resort to tax increases as a way to, you know, to balance the budget, right? And so that’s what the communication we’ve had with our agencies and looking at all the priorities that we need to take care of.
Kaegi touted the need to pass “circuit-breaker” legislation in the General Assembly during Wednesday’s appearance. Supporters have floated several forms of a circuit-breaker program in recent months. Most involve a rebate or credit to low- or fixed-income homeowners who see their property tax bills rise above a certain percentage. Kaegi’s plan would apply to “the bottom half of people who are experiencing spikes of 25% or more,” he said Wednesday. “We know the key is making it a priority in Springfield.”
Ald. Desmon Yancy, 5th, and Ald. Mike Rodriguez, 22nd, joined suburban mayors from Hazel Crest, Burnham and Dixmoor at the news conference, saying quickly rising tax bills for low- and fixed-income homeowners are becoming unsustainable.
“My residents, the working-class residents of our communities, need stability so that they are not driven from their homes,” Rodriguez said. “We see just east of my ward significant displacements, and, yes, gentrification happening. We want to be on the vanguard of preservation.”
While Kaegi said his proposal has sponsors in both the Illinois House and Senate, it does not have a funding source for an estimated $200 million price tag.
* ICYMI: Chicago sued by white men barred from Bally’s casino investment. Tribune…
- Bally’s Corp. and the City of Chicago were accused of discriminating against white men in a lawsuit by a conservative legal group challenging a $1.7 billion casino project that offered a 25% ownership stake only to women and people of color.
- Richard Fisher and Phillip Aronoff allege they were unable to invest in the project because they’re White men, according to the suit filed Wednesday in federal court by the American Alliance for Equal Rights.
- The suit challenges a provision in the Illinois Gambling Act requiring gaming companies to establish diversity programs that award 25% of contracts and other agreements to women and minority-owned businesses.
- American Alliance for Equal Rights focuses on lawsuits targeting DEI initiatives and “distinctions made on the basis of race and ethnicity,” according to its website. The organization was founded by conservative legal activist Edward Blum.
* QC online | Illinois GOP lawmaker says she’s received ’some phone calls’ on undocumented IDOC inmates: Since then, Bryant claims she has received phone calls from employees about undocumented inmates. She instructed her staff to not ask for names of those calling her office in order to ensure they are not reprimanded. “I asked for the offender’s name, the offender’s institutional number, and what facility the offender is in which they’re located,” Bryant said at a press conference at the state Capitol on Tuesday. “So I don’t know if it’s their family who are calling, I don’t know if it’s staff at the facilities that are calling, specifically because I don’t want to know who those folks are, and then I can protect them from those who would go after them for reporting someone who has violated federal law.”
* Tribune | Madigan jury, flush with office supplies, finishes first full day of deliberations without reaching verdict: So far the only communication from the jurors has been about scheduling — and office supplies. Shortly before noon Thursday, they sent a note to the judge asking for more highlighters, sticky notes and white-out. That followed requests on Wednesday for “more pens and highlighters and tape” as well as “at least five more copies of the indictment.” “Apparently there is some kind of arts and crafts going on back there,” U.S. District Judge John Robert Blakey quipped after reading the Thursday note. When another message from the jurors arrived later in the day, the judge joked that it would be a red flag only “if they start asking for pipe cleaners and macaroni.”
*** Statehouse News ***
* 21st Show | ‘It makes you wonder what is next’: Illinois Comptroller Susana A. Mendoza reacts to freeze on federal aid: Illinois Comptroller Susana A. Mendoza reacted to the freeze and how the state is reacting, including Attorney General Kwame Raoul and other states suing to stop Trump’s Executive Order. Besides that, she said the chaos caused by the changes has made many anxious. “We should always be looking to find efficiencies in government, to find wasteful spending… this is certainly not the way to go about it. It was a master class in incompetency,” said Mendoza. “It’s easy for people to say we should cut something until it’s their child’s cancer treatment that gets cut.”
*** Statewide ***
* Tribune | Illinois state flag has fans, and could keep flying after design contest: Ted Kaye, a vexillologist, or person who studies flags, calls it a “seal on a bedsheet” — an unflattering term for a flag design in vexillology circles — and said Illinois needs a rebrand. He noted that the flag’s details can’t be distinguished at a distance and that the white background can’t be used on graphic designs because the white bleeds into the background. […] [Rep. Terri] Bryant said she was not clear on what the costs of changing the flag might be and plans to request an estimate during the spring legislative session. But [Sen. Doris] Turner said she is confident the costs won’t be high. She noted that the commission is made up of volunteers and said the state would follow Utah in replacing flags gradually as they wear out.
*** Chicago ***
* WBEZ | New CPS Board boosts its legal tab as it faces its outgoing CEO in court: Initially, the board approved a $40,000 contract for firm Cozen O’Connor in mid-November, just two and a half months ago. While the amount is not much in the scope of a $9.8 billion budget, it shows that costs are adding up in a leadership drama that has gripped Chicago Public Schools since the summer. At its root is a bitter disagreement between the CEO and the mayor’s office over how to deal with a budget deficit and how to settle the Chicago Teachers Union contract.
* WGN | Irish immigrant living in Illinois faces growing fear amid nationwide federal immigration raids: She said she initially tried to fix things with an attorney but was told that she had no options to make things right. So she stayed, fell in love, and later became pregnant. But things eventually took a turn for the worse. “The relationship became extremely, like, abusive,” the woman said. “And any time I tried to leave with my children he would tell me, you know, ‘You’re not a citizen, they’re not going to let you take her.’”
* Tribune | Chicago sued by white men barred from Bally’s casino investment: Bally’s Corp. and the City of Chicago were accused of discriminating against white men in a lawsuit by a conservative legal group challenging a $1.7 billion casino project that offered a 25% ownership stake only to women and people of color. The city violated the civil rights of Richard Fisher and Phillip Aronoff, who said they were unable to invest in the project because they’re White men, according to the suit filed Wednesday in federal court by the American Alliance for Equal Rights.
* Tribune | For first time in 92 years, Walgreens suspends quarterly dividend amid financial struggles: The change comes amid struggles for the Deerfield-based retail pharmacy giant. Walgreens announced plans in October to shutter 1,200 stores over the next three years, including in Chicago. Walgreens has been cutting costs for years, including through layoffs in Illinois and other locations. Walgreens said in a news release Thursday that it was suspending quarterly dividends “as management continues to evaluate and refine its capital allocation policy consistent with the company’s broader long-term turnaround efforts.”
* Crain’s | WBBM gains ground as Chicago radio listeners demand real-time news: Driven largely by interest in the 2024 presidential election, WBBM Newsradio 780 AM saw its audience grow from a 4.8 to 5.7 in Nielsen’s annual audio ratings. The station held its No. 3 spot in the 2024 rankings and outperformed rival WGN Radio 720 AM, which saw listenership decline from 3.2 to 2.9, landing it tied for eighth.
*** Cook County and Suburbs ***
* Daily Herald | A serial killer prowling the suburbs? Here’s the truth behind viral posts: It wasn’t long before police there received numerous online messages and phone calls about the ominous reports, Deputy Chief Victor DiVito told us this week. It’s not clear exactly who’s behind the hoax or why, but versions of the post have appeared in groups from Pennsylvania to Washington state and Wisconsin to Louisiana. “It’s instilling fear, obviously, nationwide,” DiVito said.
* Daily Herald | Northwest Community Healthcare cuts more than 100 jobs, discontinues inpatient psychiatric services: Endeavor Health, which now runs the Arlington Heights hospital following a series of mergers and acquisitions, announced the job cuts to employees Wednesday and in a legal public notice published Thursday in the Daily Herald. The layoffs are tied to the upcoming discontinuation of inpatient psychiatric services effective April 11 and are expected to include nurses and others with specialized skills who work at the NCH Behavioral Health Center, 901 W. Kirchoff Road.
* Daily Herald | ‘Losing this funding will cause deaths’: Suburban leaders blast Trump’s federal funding freeze: “I am not being melodramatic when I say this — losing this funding will cause deaths,” said Laura Fry, Executive Director of Live4Lali, an Arlington Heights-based nonprofit group fighting substance abuse. Fry joined representatives from other suburban social service agencies at an online news conference Thursday to discuss the potential impacts of Trump’s $3 trillion funding freeze, the fate of which is unclear. Lake County State’s Attorney Eric Rinehart and Lake County Board Chair Sandy Hart also participated in the discussion, which was hosted by U.S. Rep. Brad Schneider of Highland Park.
*** Downstate ***
* Rockford Register Star | Letter carrier’s campaign for Rockford City Council raises federal Hatch Act concerns: A U.S. Postal Service letter carrier’s campaign for Rockford City Council is raising questions about a 1939 law that prohibits federal employees from participating in a partisan elections. Lawrence Steward, 41, of Rockford, grew to prominence when his friend and colleague Jay Larson was killed during a bloody March 27 spree of violence last year that left four dead and seven wounded in a Rockford neighborhood. Grief-stricken letter carriers across the region turned to Steward for guidance and leadership as president of the National Association of Letter Carriers Local 245. Steward said he has no plans to drop out of the election.
* WCIA | I-155 back open after standoff with driver, State Police say: State Police said they responded to Milepost 9 near Emden around 10 p.m. on Wednesday to help a driver on the highway. But, a portion of the interstate was closed in Logan County after the individual refused to leave their car. By 2 p.m. on Thursday, the individual still refused to leave their vehicle. As of 7 p.m. on Thursday, State Police confirmed that the individual was taken into custody and transported to an area hospital for treatment. All lanes of I-155 are open.
* Illinois Times | How the 1908 Race Riot led to the NAACP: On Aug. 14-15, 1908, mobs and demonstrators destroyed at least 21 Black businesses in Springfield and burned the homes of more than 40 families. Among those killed during the riot was William Donnegan, a prominent elderly Black cobbler and real estate investor who was lynched across from his house at Spring and Edwards streets. The day after Donnegan was dragged from his home, an out-of-town journalist named William English Walling came to Springfield and interviewed many local people. He published an article, “Race War in the North,” two weeks later in the New York periodical The Independent. Racial violence and lynchings were sadly common in many cities at that time. In 1905, W.E.B. DuBois and a few others had founded the Niagara Movement, a national civil rights organization.
* Illinois Times | Rail project gets closer to completion: During a presentation Friday, Jan. 24, at the Citizens Club of Springfield, city and county officials outlined plans to finish work on the sixth and final “usable segment” of construction to accommodate the new two-lane railroad along the 10th Street corridor. Construction of overpasses and underpasses is aimed at improving traffic flow and eliminating excess train noise between Stanford Avenue and Sangamon Avenue. The final usable segment, which will begin construction in spring 2025 and is expected to be completed in 2027, will include the North Grand overpass located from 11th to 19th Street, and the North Grand Avenue underpass from Ninth to 11th Street.
* Illinois Times | SIU’s economic impact: Illinois taxpayers support the Springfield-based medical school to the tune of $41.1 million in state general revenue funds each year, according to SIU spokesperson Catie Sheehan. That total is part of the $219.4 million in GRF money for the entire system, which also includes SIU’s campuses in Carbondale and Edwardsville. The report said the state’s investment in the medical school generated almost $36 million in tax revenues during the most recent fiscal year.
*** National ***
* WTTW | Pritzker Says Trump ‘Unfit to Lead’ After President’s Response to Fatal DC Plane Crash: An American Airlines flight from Kansas that was landing at Ronald Reagan National Airport and a U.S. Army Black Hawk helicopter on a training flight collided. Both aircraft crashed into the Potomac River, and authorities report no one survived. “While times of tragedy should be focused on mourning the victims and getting answers to their loved ones, we face the unfortunate reality that we must be honest with the nation about: Donald Trump is unfit to lead during moments of crisis like these,” Pritzker said in a Thursday evening statement, saying that “before victims have even been identified, Trump is blaming people.”
* CNN | Trump Administration’s Halt of CDC’s Weekly Scientific Report Stalls Bird Flu Studies: Its scientific reports have been swept up in an “immediate pause” on communications by federal health agencies ordered by Dorothy Fink, the acting secretary of the Department of Health and Human Services. Fink’s memo covers “any document intended for publication,” she wrote, “until it has been reviewed and approved by a presidential appointee.” It was sent on President Donald Trump’s first full day in office.
* ProPublica | Boxed Up: A Portrait of an Immigrant Community Living Under Threat of Deportation: Box by box, the Nicaraguans who milk the cows and clean the pens on Wisconsin’s dairy farms, who wash dishes at its restaurants and fill lines on its factory floors, are sending home their most prized possessions, bracing for the impact of President Donald Trump’s mass deportations.
* You can click here and here to follow the Madigan trial. Click here and/or here to follow breaking news. Hopefully, enough reporters and news outlets migrate to BlueSky so we can hopefully resume live-posting.
