* ICYMI: Rare Abraham Lincoln artifacts sell for nearly $8 million at Chicago auction. WBEZ…

An auction of precious Abraham Lincoln artifacts raised close to $8 million Wednesday, meaning a likely seven-figure windfall for a cash-strapped Springfield foundation that was selling part of its Lincoln collection to pay down a multimillion-dollar debt.

The Lincoln Presidential Foundation’s decision to auction off about 10% of its collection was a jolt to Illinois’ history world, but it posed a rare opportunity for Lincoln collectors to buy museum-quality relics that can go generations without being on the market.

In Wednesday’s auction, an unidentified bidder known only as “Paddle 1231” snatched up some of the most expensive and historically dramatic items for sale, including blood-stained gloves and a handkerchief Lincoln had with him the night he was fatally shot at Ford’s Theatre.

The gloves were the most expensive thing sold Wednesday, drawing a winning bid, with fees included, of $1.51 million.

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* BlueRoomStream.com’s coverage of today’s press conferences and committee hearings can be found here.

*** Isabel’s Top Picks ***

* WGN | Federal budget cuts threaten academic support for at-risk Chicago youth: For the last 25 years, Chicago Hope for Kids (CHK) has supported some of the city’s most vulnerable children, providing academic support throughout the year. Federal budget cuts proposed by President Donald Trump’s administration threaten a significant reduction in the number of kids they can serve this summer.

* WGN | Homer Glen man accused of threatening Illinois State Representative: Steven Brady, 40, faces a felony charge in connection with an alleged threat against Illinois State Rep. Nicole La Ha on Friday, May 16. La Ha is an Illinois House of Representatives member, representing District 82. Following an Illinois State Police probe, troopers arrested Brady without incident on Monday, May 19. Authorities did not disclose the nature of the threat or offer any additional details.

*** Statewide ***

* Report: Medicaid cuts risk maternity care for rural Illinois: Medicaid pays for half of all births across the state. Kathy Waligora, deputy director of external affairs for the advocacy group Everthrive Illinois, said rural communities already face health care challenges, including hospitals closing or no longer offering maternity care. She emphasized any threats to the program would leave millions without health insurance and affect health outcomes for women and babies across the state.

* 25News Now | Local food bank worries more will need help if SNAP benefits are cut: As current federal budget negotiations suggest a $300 billion cut to the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program funding, a local nonprofit believes this will only spike the demand for food. The reconciliation bill is under consideration by the House of Representatives to determine how much federal funding programs like SNAP will receive. The Community Impact Director for the Neighborhood House, Noah Palm, said the nonprofit is tracking a 20% to 30% increase in people coming to the food pantry.

*** Statehouse News ***

* A musical interlude…

* Politico | The Danny Davis question: Congressman Danny Davis, who hasn’t officially announced his plans for 2026, tells Playbook he’s only focused on the budget negotiations in Washington this week. But we hear state Rep. La Shawn Ford, an ally of Davis’, has started to call mayors and aldermen in the 7th Congressional District to let them know he’s pulling together a campaign. Stay tuned.

* FYI…

It's official: Illinois State Representative La Shawn Ford files his Statement of Candidacy to run for Congress in IL07. pic.twitter.com/a6UQSLUEXm

— Frank Calabrese (@FrankCalabrese) May 22, 2025

* Press Release…

Just one week after launching his campaign for Congress, Evanston Mayor Daniel Biss has unveiled his initial slate of endorsements in the race for Illinois’ 9th Congressional District. The early backing from prominent state legislators and elected officials underscores strong momentum behind Biss’ progressive vision for the district.

Initial endorsers include:
State Rep. Mary Beth Canty (54th District)
State Rep. Kelly Cassidy (14th District)
State Rep. Sharon Chung (91st District)
State Rep. Nicolle Grasse (53rd District) 
Retired State Sen. Heather Steans (7th District)
Illinois Democratic State Central Committeeman Leo Smith (9th District)

* Crain’s | Illinois payroll hits highest level since Great Recession: State government has 55,340 workers, eclipsing the total it had in 2008. The state positions it as a success in finally staffing hard-to-fill roles at chronically understaffed social service agencies, such as the Department of Children & Family Services and the Illinois Department of Human Services.

*** Chicago ***

* WTTW | Chicago to Pay $62.5M to Settle 4 Police Misconduct Cases: The Chicago City Council agreed Wednesday to pay $62.55 million to resolve four lawsuits alleging a wide range of misconduct by Chicago police officers. Just five months into the year, Chicago taxpayers have spent at least $144.5 million to resolve nearly two and a half dozen lawsuits, exceeding its budget to resolve lawsuits alleging police misconduct by more than 76%, city records show.

* Invisible Institute | Chicago cops dismissed recruit’s claim a colleague sexually assaulted her. Then, he was accused again and again: At the same time, Chicago Police Department investigative records show, Tabb started telling other recruits that Byrd-Maxey had overreacted and that he had only tapped her on the shoulder so he could get to his seat. The following week, when Byrd-Maxey reported the incident to her class leader, he talked with fellow recruits, and they downplayed the encounter. A recruit who witnessed what happened and was friends with Tabb later told investigators Byrd-Maxey was “trying to victimize herself.”

* WTTW | Vote Blocked on Plan to Allow CPD to Declare ‘Snap Curfews’ to Stop Teen Gatherings: Seventeen members of the Chicago City Council joined together in an unprecedented show of force Wednesday to block a vote on a measure to allow Chicago Police Department officials to preemptively impose a curfew anywhere in the city and begin enforcing it with just 30 minutes notice in an effort to stop large teen gatherings. It takes just two City Council members to use a parliamentary procedure to block a vote until the City Council’s June meeting. But Ald. Jason Ervin (28th Ward) and Ald. Andre Vasquez (40th Ward) said 15 other members of the City Council had signed on to the letter stopping the vote.

* Leslie S. Richards | Philadelphia’s transit faces deep cuts. Chicago can still avoid this fate: These are not doomsday scenarios. They are very real and very imminent, and they will profoundly affect how people get to work, school and critical appointments. Trust in transit cannot be rebuilt while preparing to take it away. Philadelphia and Chicago have much in common. Both operate legacy transit systems that serve millions of riders across dynamic and diverse regions. Both are navigating post-pandemic ridership trends and rising operating costs.

* WBEZ | What’s the deal with Lower Wacker? Answers to your questions about Chicago’s basement: On its face, the phrase “double-decker street” sounds unique and innovative. But once you actually enter the bowels of Wacker Drive, it can lose its allure quickly. Like the top level, Lower Wacker winds along the curves of the Chicago River. Add in the dim lighting, minimal signage and nonexistent GPS signal and you’re in for a far more daunting adventure than you anticipated on a trip downtown.

*** Cook County and Suburbs ***

* Tribune | Waukegan parade organizer accuses alderman of intimidation; ‘This behavior is … inappropriate and very unethical’: Elizabeth Marrero, a director of not-for-profit organization Juntos — the organizer of the Viva la Independencia parade in September — said Felix asked the group to withdraw its special-use permit granted by the city on Jan. 14. The group began working on it in December. “Felix stated that the parade had been promised to other individuals and warned us that if we do not withdraw, they will find loopholes to revoke the permit,” Marrero said. “No public official should use their position to intimidate or manipulate (a) community group.”

* Daily Southtown | Calumet City clerk Nyota Figgs testifies in document destruction lawsuit: In a lawsuit brought by Calumet City alleging she illegally destroyed records, city clerk Nyota Figgs testified Tuesday that she was given proper authorization. Though Figgs’ supporters claim the records lawsuit represents a targeted political attack from Mayor Thaddeus Jones, its trial has continued, with closing arguments scheduled for June 18.

* Naperville Sun | Firearm arrest No. 10 made at Naperville Topgolf parking lot: Officers were performing a proactive foot patrol of the Naperville Topgolf lot when they observed suspected drugs and a handgun in plain view inside a parked, unoccupied Honda, according to Naperville police spokeswoman Kelley Munch. […] After a nearly four-month break, gun-related arrests outside the facility started up again in early February. Last month alone, police made five such arrests in the business’ lot.

* Naperville Sun | DuPage County Board member Sheila Rutledge to step down in August: Reached over the phone, Rutledge said she loves her work on the county board but decided that her focus should be on Winfield Township. When she vied for the supervisor position earlier this spring, Rutledge had always intended on stepping down but anticipated an overlap between the two roles to see through several county projects, she said.

* Daily Herald | Naperville police chief says the city will have ‘zero tolerance’ to unlawful conduct at gatherings: On Friday, Naperville police issued multiple citations after a group of about 200 teens gathered in the downtown area. One 15-year-old female from Aurora was arrested and charged with three counts of aggravated battery to a police officer and other misdemeanor charges. Police responded again on Saturday to a car meetup that attracted roughly 100 spectators who were standing outside as cars drove around them in a circle and did doughnuts in the parking lot, authorities say.

* Reuters | Exxon Mobil says working to resolve operational issue at refinery in Joliet, Illinois: Exxon Mobil (XOM.N), opens new tab said on Tuesday it was working to resolve an issue at its 275,000-barrels-per-day refinery in Joliet, Illinois. The Houston, Texas-based company reported an equipment failure involving its process unit boiler that resulted in a gas release at the Joliet facility, according to a filing.

* Crain’s | Highland Park penthouses sell at $3.7 million, a record for suburban condos: The two condos are both on the fourth floor, the top, of the Park Sheridan, a project of Fulton Developers, whose president, Mark Muller, told Crain’s a year ago that he was targeting affluent empty nesters who are reluctant to move to downtown Chicago.

*** Downstate ***

* WQAD | Woman accused of stealing from Rock Island County has previous conviction for embezzlement: News 8 has learned that 62-year-old Leisa Streeter previously went by the name Leisa Whan, who pleaded guilty in 1990 to embezzling $9,000 from the Aledo branch of the state bank of Sherrard where she worked as a teller. She was sentenced to three years of probation in 1991.

* Our Quad Cities | Rock Island County deputy announces candidacy for sheriff: Rock Island County Sgt. Marcus Herbert on Monday announced his candidacy for Rock Island County sheriff. “For 20 years, I’ve served with the Rock Island County Sheriff’s Office,” he said in a news release. “I started my career as a correctional officer in 2005, becoming a deputy sheriff in 2010 after graduating from the Police Training Institute. In 2014, I became a certified bomb technician through the FBI and U.S. military, equipping me to handle complex threats.”

* WGLT | Town of Normal and nonprofit collaborate to facilitate homeless encampment dispersal:
The Bloomington-Normal Water Reclamation District [BNWRD] and the Town of Normal have been working with Home Sweet Home Ministries [HSHM] on how to best handle dispersing the AutoZone tent encampment along Sugar Creek. BNWRD is starting a major construction project this summer in the encampment area because one of the last combined sewer overflows in Normal is nearby.

* NCSL | My District: Is Home to the Legacy of Carl Sandburg: Sandburg, one of America’s most celebrated writers, won three Pulitzer Prizes, including one for his multivolume biography of Abraham Lincoln. He addressed Congress on the 150th anniversary of Lincoln’s birthday and even earned a Grammy. Before achieving literary acclaim, he worked locally as a milkman, an ice harvester, a firefighter and a pottery laborer, and he served in the Spanish-American War.

* WCIA | U of I researchers discover two new crayfish species, encourage conservation action: University of Illinois researchers studying an invasive species of crayfish recently made a unique discovery — two new species that had long been mistaken for the Signal Crayfish. The Signal Crayfish is invasive and has spread to Europe, Asia and parts of the United States. As U of I researchers studied the Signal Crayfish, they eventually identified two new species — the Okanagan Crayfish and Misfortunate Crayfish — in the Pacific Northwest.

* WGLT | Downtown Bloomington named as a new State-Designated Cultural District: The City of Bloomington’s Downtown Cultural District and the other four designees can “apply for $3 million in funding that will be tailored to fit their individual needs and support the goals of their program to foster economic development and help communities preserve their unique cultural identities,” according to a state announcement.

*** National ***

* DNYUZ | States and Cities Fear a Disaster Season Full of Unknowns Amid Federal Cuts: Governors and mayors are also anticipating less financial aid, as the Trump administration shifts the burden of response and recovery away from the federal government. Exactly who will pay for what moving forward is a gaping question as disasters become bigger and costlier. “There’s no plan in writing for how FEMA intends to respond during this disaster season,” said Trina Sheets, the executive director of the National Emergency Management Association, which represents state emergency managers. “Things seem to be changing on a daily basis. But there’s no road map for states to follow or to be able to plan for.”

* KFF | The Spotlight Is on Medicaid Cuts, But the ACA Marketplaces Could See a One-Third Cut in Enrollment: Some of the legislative language describing these policy changes is murky and the policies themselves are quite technical. It’s not entirely clear what is intended and unintended. But a cut in coverage even close to this magnitude in the Marketplaces would also result in financial hardship for millions of low-income people and destabilize some smaller state Marketplaces or possibly lead to them closing up shop. Marketplaces have to maintain a fixed operational structure to function (supported by plan payments to them, not government), so if enrollment falls too much, smaller Marketplaces in smaller states may no longer be viable.