* Crain’s…

The Department of Homeland Security says it has begun an immigration-enforcement crackdown in Chicago that it’s calling “Operation Midway Blitz.”

A statement from DHS was short on details about the enforcement action, which has been expected for weeks as the agency began mobilizing agents here, but took aim at Gov. JB Pritzker, the state and Chicago for so-called sanctuary policies on immigrants.

“DHS is launching Operation Midway Blitz in honor of Katie Abraham who was killed in Illinois by a criminal illegal alien who should have never been in our country. This operation will target the worst of the worst criminal illegal aliens in Chicago,” Assistant Secretary Tricia McLaughlin said in the statement.

“For years, Governor Pritzker and his fellow sanctuary politicians released Tren de Aragua gang members, rapists, kidnappers and drug traffickers on Chicago’s streets—putting American lives at risk and making Chicago a magnet for criminals. President Trump and Secretary Noem have a clear message: no city is a safe haven for criminal illegal aliens. If you come to our country illegally and break our laws, we will hunt you down, arrest you, deport you, and you will never return.”

Ed Yohnka, communications director for the ACLU of Illinois…

“Donald Trump’s Administration appears to possess so little understanding of the State of Illinois that they are justifying militaristic ICE actions in Chicago based on the tragic death of Katie Abraham in a car accident more than one hundred miles away.  There is no emergency justifying these harsh and destabilizing operations — other than the Trump Administration’s authoritarian impulses to attack communities that do not support his unpopular and harsh immigration policies.”

Governor JB Pritzker…

Once again, this isn't about fighting crime. That requires support and coordination — yet we've experienced nothing like that over the past several weeks.

Instead of taking steps to work with us on public safety, the Trump Administration's focused on scaring Illinoisians. https://t.co/LoFPM0E4PF

— Governor JB Pritzker (@GovPritzker) September 8, 2025

 
Pritzker spokesperson Matt Hill…

“The Governor’s Office has received no formal communication or information from the Trump Administration. Like the public and press, we are learning of their operations through their social media as they attempt to produce a reality television show. As Trump has said himself, this is not about seriously fighting crime or reforming immigration – it’s about Trump’s plan to go to war with America’s third-largest city. If he cared about delivering real solutions for Illinois, then we would have heard from him. Unlike Trump’s reality show, we don’t like keeping people in the dark. Since we have learned of the Trump Administration’s plans to deploy federal agents and active-duty military to Illinois, Gov. Pritzker has shared information with the public and the Governor’s Office has remained in regular contact with leaders and partners at the City of Chicago, Cook County, the Illinois congressional delegation, state legislature, and mayors and representatives from the collar counties.”

* Lt. Gov. Juliana Stratton…

Today, Congressman Danny Davis announced his endorsement of Juliana Stratton for United States Senate. Congressman Davis is the first House Democrat from Illinois to make an endorsement in this race. Elected officials and community leaders State Senator Mattie Hunter, State Representative Camille Lilly, Alderwoman Emma Mitts, and Pastor Michael Eaddy joined Congressman Davis in expressing their support for Juliana.

“I am deeply honored to receive the endorsement of Congressman Danny Davis. His lifelong commitment to public service and tireless advocacy for the 7th District inspire me every day.” said Juliana Stratton. “I’m grateful to have his endorsement, and I hope to continue his legacy of fighting for the people he has served by making sure their communities are invested in and their voices are heard.”

*** Statewide ***

* Tribune | Black McDonald’s operators detail history of alleged racial discrimination in lawsuit: Bonner was the owner-operator of six McDonald’s stores in Illinois and the St. Louis region. But he left the chain after enduring numerous alleged racist actions from McDonald’s that he says impeded his opportunity for entrepreneurial growth and generational wealth. “Those Golden Arches … you have the belief that at some point this is going to go the way you were promised it would go,” he said. “The day you get the keys, it becomes an us and them mentality, corporate versus the people who run the store.”

* WSIL | West Nile spreads in Illinois with 42 human cases and in 66 counties: The Illinois Department of Public Health confirmed the presence of the West Nile virus in 42 human cases across 66 counties this year in Illinois. Pulaski County recently reported a confirmed case of the virus on September 5. […] In 2024, there were 69 human cases of West Nile virus, with the virus found in 72 counties.

*** Statehouse News ***

* WAND | Illinois law will improve access to hypodermic needles, syringes January 1: The law will require pharmacies to sell sterile syringes and needles to patients with prescriptions if they are in stock. Sponsors said pharmacists will be able to use their professional judgement to sell the equipment to any customer for proper administration of medications. This plan was filed after a constituent was unable to receive the equipment from their pharmacist. “This legislation is necessary for those who are looking to access syringes or needles and are not able to access them through venues they would normally go to that are not pharmacies,” said Sen. Mike Simmons (D-Chicago). “We did something similar a couple years ago when we passed legislation to make PrEP and PEP access available through pharmacies under a standing order.”

* Center Square | GOP AG candidate: IL’s triplex of Democrat statewide offices ‘fails the people’: Joe Cervantez said after serving in the Marines, he decided to stay in southern Illinois and became a lawyer. Eventually, he was elected Jackson County state’s attorney in 2020. Running for attorney general made sense, he said. “I really can see now in retrospect the evolution of my career starting off as an assistant state’s attorney and seeing things that definitely could be improved,” Cervantez told The Center Square.

*** Chicago ***

* Crain’s | Burnett appointment delayed further as feds say CHA must seek waivers: The U.S. Department of Housing & Urban Development has told CHA leadership Burnett requires at least two waivers to lead the $1.3 billion agency that has been without a full-time CEO for nearly a year, according to a letter obtained by Crain’s, a process that could take months with an uncertain outcome. “Our office requests that the CHA take no action on the appointment of former Ald. Burnett until the CHA submits” the two waiver requests and until HUD has “formally approved them,” William O. Dawson III, HUD’s regional director, said in the letter dated Sept. 5.

* Tribune | British woman caught at O’Hare with $6.2M in cocaine sentenced to 6 years after allegedly seeking deportation: Whether on purpose or by accident, Hall was taken by federal agents to a facility in Indiana and ticketed for an airline flight before prosecutors realized what happened. They were notified when the Cook County sheriff’s office received back her electronic monitoring band, according to court records.

* WTTW | Cost to Settle, Defend Lawsuits Accusing CPD Officers of Misconduct During 2020 Unrest Tops $10.8M: Analysis: Chicago taxpayers paid $6.3 million to settle 54 lawsuits identified by WTTW News that were filed by Chicagoans who said they were the victims of misconduct by CPD officers during the protests and unrest, according to records from the Chicago Department of Law. An additional $4.5 million went to pay private lawyers to defend the conduct of CPD officers from late May until mid-August 2020, one of the most tumultuous periods in Chicago history, according to records obtained by WTTW News through a Freedom of Information Act request.

* Block Club | Bob Newhart Gets A Block Named After Him In Edgewater: About 200 neighbors, friends and Newhart’s family gathered Friday to celebrate the honorary sign’s unveiling outside the Thorndale Beach North Condominium, 5901 N. Sheridan Road, known best from the opening sequence of “The Bob Newhart Show.” In it, Newhart’s character takes a long and convoluted commute, during which he crosses multiple Downtown bridges in opposite directions before heading to Evanston. He then gets off the “L” before apparently walking more than 6 miles to Edgewater.

* Block Club | Meet The Bike-Riding ‘Pint Peddler’ Bringing Homebrews To The People: Avid cyclists and local Instagrammers may already know Miller by her distinctive ride: a blue bicycle — more like a large tricycle — carrying a huge, black metal box on its back wheels. The box houses two taps with four kegs, a boom box blasting Miller’s favorite tunes and an orange neon sign that reads “Drinkers with a cycling problem.” Another colorful sign proclaims, “PINTS TO THE PEOPLE.” Miller, 29, often passes out free pints at Critical Mass and other Chicago festivities as a way to share her love of homebrewing and make the events a little more unique.

*** Cook County and Suburbs ***

* Fox Chicago | Chicago suburb alerts residents to possible ICE activity as Trump admin ramps up enforcement: The City of Evanston is warning residents that federal immigration agents may be present in the community in the coming days, following signals from the Trump administration about ramped-up enforcement in the Chicago area. Late this weekend, city officials said they were informed about the likelihood of ICE activity in Evanston. The city encouraged residents to report sightings of federal agents to the Illinois Coalition for Immigrant and Refugee Rights hotline at 855-435-7693 or icirr.org.

* Lake County News-Sun | A Lake County veteran asked people on social media to join her protesting outside Naval Station Great Lakes. Roughy 600 people showed up.: Hundreds of people stood with signs at the corner of Illinois Route 137 and Martin Luther King, Jr. Drive expressing their opposition to the Trump Administration’s immigration enforcement plans. Both the Indivisible Northeast Lake County and Party for Socialism and Liberation learned about the event and got people there. After more than an hour of demonstrating along Highway 137, the group heard impromptu speeches from a variety of people. After listening, Alvarez said, they crossed the highway, walked to Sheridan Road outside the main gate of the base.

* Naperville Sun | Naperville 7 Brew ends special ‘Jackpot’ deals to curb traffic issues: “We get the finger. We get yelled at. We get profanities because we’re just trying to get in and out,” said Collins, who works at the Naperville Acupuncture Center. “That’s very stressful to come to work and say, ‘Oh, am I going to be able to get in today or not, or leave today or not?’” Since opening in October 2024, the drive-thru-only franchise off Ogden Avenue has drawn customers from all over the Chicago area. Nearly half of all customers who visit the Naperville location travel anywhere between 10 to 30 miles for the coffee, according to Laura Karet, whose 7 Brew franchise territories are in the Chicago and Nashville markets.

*** Downstate ***

* Shaw Local | Oglesby man to be extradited to Minnesota for threats: Caden J. Sluder, 22, was picked up Friday on a warrant and taken to La Salle County Jail, where he’ll remain pending transfer to Minnesota. Monday, he appeared in La Salle County Circuit Court and told the judge he won’t fight efforts to remand him to Ramsey County, Minnesota. What did he allegedly do? According to a Minnesota TV station, he made social media posts threatening Minnesota Lt. Gov. Peggy Flanagan. “Authorities say Sluder was posting with the username lfoke85949 and had responded to two posts that Lt. Gov. Flanagan made about the (Annunciation School) shooting,” according to a report from KMSP. “Flanagan’s posts mourned the loss of life in the shooting and thanked first responders dealing with the tragedy.”

* WGIL | 8 apply for Galesburg’s Ward 1 City Council vacancy. Here’s what is next: Schwartzman expressed satisfaction with the applicant pool, telling WGIL, “I was actually [satisfied] with the number, diversity and the quality.” He noted this is the largest and most diverse group he’s encountered in his three appointments, saying, “This is definitely the largest and most diverse contingent to apply.” The mayor said the field includes two men and six women, four candidates of color, and an age range he estimates from late 20s to mid-70s. He pointed out that the candidates bring a variety of professional backgrounds, including academic roles, food industry experience, and other local employment.

* WMBD | Peoria City Council to vote on $11M amphitheater proposal: At their meeting Tuesday, council members will vote whether to accept a “letter of intent” by the foundation to build the 5,000-seat facility on Peoria’s riverfront. Approving the proposal would mean the council would accept the money given by the foundation and what their vision of the outdoor venue would be. This proposal, was rerouted to the city after the Washington City Council decided earlier this year that the foundation’s proposal it wasn’t for their city.

* WCIA | Decatur’s Faries Parkway to close nightly for construction, beginning Monday: The City of Decatur announced that bridge work will cause overnight closures of Faries Parkway at Brush College Road — but, the road will remain open during the daytime. The jughandle road will also remain open. Faries Parkway will close from 8 p.m. to 5 a.m. each night. The road is expected to close each night until 5 a.m. on Sept. 19.

* Capitol City Now | Springfield students win ‘Governor’s Hometown Award’ for special service project: Lincoln Magnet School‘s Beta Club, with help from the city, recently won the Governor’s Hometown Award for a project called “Fishing Tales and Bytes of Wisdom.” It was a project that started simple enough. “When we all started, we just liked to fish together,” said Ian Presnell, student. “We wanted to find a way to connect the older and younger generations. We just started by going to nursing homes and talking to the older generations about our catches our catches while fishing, and they’d talk about theirs. Then, eventually, it expanded into something bigger, where we’d go and talk about how to stop digital scams, and teach them something from us, the younger generation, who’s more acquainted with the tech.”

*** National ***

* 404 Media | ICE Spends Millions on Clearview AI Facial Recognition to Find People ‘Assaulting’ Officers: The records are unusual in that they indicate ICE is buying the technology to identify people who might clash with the agency’s officers as they continue the Trump administration’s mass deportation efforts. Authorities have repeatedly claimed members of the public have assaulted or otherwise attacked ICE or other immigration enforcement officers, only later for charges to be dropped or lowered when it emerged authorities misrepresented what happened or brutally assaulted protesters themselves. In other cases, prosecutions are ongoing.

* NYT | The Supreme Court lifts court-imposed restrictions on Los Angeles immigration stops: The Supreme Court on Monday lifted a federal judge’s order prohibiting government agents from making indiscriminate immigration-related stops in the Los Angeles area that challengers called “blatant racial profiling.” The court’s brief order was unsigned and gave no reasons. It is not the last word in the case, which is pending before a federal appeals court and may again reach the justices.

* AP | Wisconsin legislative feud erupts in public with lawmaker accused of threatening fellow legislators: Wisconsin Democrats are accusing one of their own of threatening to kill three of her colleagues, an allegation that the lawmaker has told local media stems from “poorly worded hyperbole.” Democratic leaders said in a statement Saturday that state Rep. Sylvia Ortiz-Velez made a comment about shooting three caucus members with whom she’d had disagreements. The statement followed one Thursday announcing that Ortiz-Velez was leaving the Democratic caucus.