* Fox 32…
Former Chicago Mayor Lori Lightfoot said she and other attorneys are creating a nonprofit called “The ICE Accountability Project.”
The group plans to “unmask” agents by documenting physical traits, clothing and vehicles, though not names or identities. […]
“We want to create a centralized archive of all the purported criminal actions of ICE and CBP agents,” Lightfoot said. “We want to create a portal where what’s happening real time can be centralized and put out for the public to view.”
* WTTW…
Gov. JB Pritzker announced Thursday he would form a commission to document what he called “countless acts of harassment and intimidation and brutality and abuse of power” during a series of increasingly aggressive immigration enforcement raids across Chicago and the suburbs
* Fox News…
More here.
* White House Deputy Chief of Staff for Policy and Homeland Security Advisor…
- Friendly Bob Adams - Friday, Oct 24, 25 @ 9:25 am:
This situation gets more and more scary. I don’t see a positive outcome. Hope I’m wrong
- Non-Negotiable - Friday, Oct 24, 25 @ 9:30 am:
If/when this administration loses power, retaliation will get us nowhere with some exceptions. Stephen Miller has to go to prison. Non-negotiable at this point. He is a cancer on society. Even Trump jokes about the need to restrain him.
- Capcitynewt - Friday, Oct 24, 25 @ 9:33 am:
This situation gets more and more scary. I don’t see a positive outcome
Easy solution. Take the word illegal for what it is. Real simple.
- TinyDancer(FKASue) - Friday, Oct 24, 25 @ 9:34 am:
Every time you think you’ve seen everything, it gets worse.
I have no words.
- Larry Bowa Jr. - Friday, Oct 24, 25 @ 9:41 am:
And to think we’re only 9 months in. In other words still in the ‘feeling their oats’ stage for this administration.
It is a one way ratchet Miller et. al. are turning and they appear committed to keep cranking it until the country breaks.
- hisgirlfriday - Friday, Oct 24, 25 @ 9:41 am:
Can anyone recommend some good non-fiction books about American life in the 1850s?
- Bob - Friday, Oct 24, 25 @ 9:48 am:
Pritzker absolutely wants to get indicted at this point. Best thing ever for his struggling 2028 hopes.
- Steve - Friday, Oct 24, 25 @ 9:49 am:
The Supremacy Clause of the U.S. constitution does give the federal government precedence over conflicting state laws and federal immigration law for you rookies out there. Calling yourself a sanctuary place from some immigration laws and obstructing enforcement of immigration laws might make you a subject of a criminal investigation.
- illnifan - Friday, Oct 24, 25 @ 9:50 am:
Documenting abuse of power is the furthest thing from impeding agents. The fact that the AG and others in this administration see it this way is beyond scary.
- Rich Miller - Friday, Oct 24, 25 @ 9:54 am:
===Calling yourself a sanctuary place from some immigration laws and obstructing enforcement of immigration laws===
Both of those are false claims.
- James - Friday, Oct 24, 25 @ 9:55 am:
May you live in interesting times.
- Incandenza - Friday, Oct 24, 25 @ 9:59 am:
Democracy is like a marriage: if one party is unwilling to participate, there is nothing the other party can do to save it. May we all pray to avoid a national divorce, but this is exactly what you would expect to see as the first steps to that great and disastrous outcome.
- Perrid - Friday, Oct 24, 25 @ 10:05 am:
Citizens monitoring the President’s “secret police” is illegal now, huh?
They keep pushing, and lying about it juuuuuuuuust enough that their incredibly gullible base doesn’t question it. Boiling the frog.
- New Day - Friday, Oct 24, 25 @ 10:09 am:
Classic for this administration. Lightfoot and Pritzker both explicitly say they are not going to reveal identities and Pam Bondi and Stephen Miller respond by attacking them for revealing identities. Sadly, they are completely untethered to any sense of truth, justice or reality.
- VK - Friday, Oct 24, 25 @ 10:14 am:
Interesting statements from the gang who can’t shoot straight enough to get a grand jury to indict anyone without actively misconstruing the facts.
- Jocko - Friday, Oct 24, 25 @ 10:17 am:
==Innocent American citizens is how Pritzker describes domestic terrorists assaulting ICE officers.==
But you HAVE detained (however briefly) American citizens, right? You also know that almost 75% of these ‘terrorists’ have no criminal record.
- Dtown Resident - Friday, Oct 24, 25 @ 10:24 am:
Forthe 1850s the first third of Battle Cry for freedom has a decent rundown of the conflicts between the states and within the Federal government leading up to the Civil War
- Lt Guv - Friday, Oct 24, 25 @ 10:33 am:
If Miller & Bondi are gunning for you then you must be doing something right.
- Norseman - Friday, Oct 24, 25 @ 10:34 am:
Newsom attacks with mocking tweets, JB is attracting more attention with his actions with his efforts to demand accountability and the abuse of rights. That’s driving the regime crazy - bringing out their go to threat of Trump’s DOJ.
- LincolnCoNative - Friday, Oct 24, 25 @ 10:46 am:
== Pritzker absolutely wants to get indicted at this point. ==
Initially did not think this was the case, but when he held his hands up during a TV interview and said “come and get me”, it became apparent there is more going on here than concern for rule of law in Illinois. He does want to and will use whatever is coming for futher political aspirations (my opinion only, and as a fan of him at that)
- Streator Curmudgeon - Friday, Oct 24, 25 @ 10:46 am:
Until Republicans in Congress and the Supreme Court stop being invertebrates, this is only going to get worse and worse.
- H-W - Friday, Oct 24, 25 @ 10:49 am:
=== What is the correct term for a governor conspiring to oppose ===
A lie. That’s the term you seek to explain your words.
- New Day - Friday, Oct 24, 25 @ 10:52 am:
“Pritzker absolutely wants to get indicted at this point.”
That’s just insane. He’s using techniques to illustrate the absurdity of Trump’s conduct. Nobody other than Trump wants to get indicted.
- WeMostlyAgree (enter - politics) - Friday, Oct 24, 25 @ 10:58 am:
I get the idea of wanting to prioritize deportation of the “worst of the worst” and “criminals” - but that means that we need to wait until an individual commits a serious crime? That just doesn’t make much sense.
In the not so distant past, we were all largely on the same page about all of this - “The American people are a welcoming and generous people. But those who enter our country illegally and those who employ them disrespect the rule of law. And because we live in an age where terrorists are challenging our borders, we cannot allow people to pour into the U.S. undetected, undocumented, and unchecked. Americans are right to demand better border security and better enforcement of the immigration laws.” Barack Obama
- Mason County - Friday, Oct 24, 25 @ 11:01 am:
= Calling yourself a sanctuary place from some immigration laws and obstructing enforcement of immigration laws might make you a subject of a criminal investigation. =
The key wording is “might make you a subject”
Yes, Illinois and Chicago are Sanctuary State/City
places. That alone is not necessarily illegal, but it has the potential to be depending on a variety of actions that might be taken by these ‘Sanctuaries.’
JB may be treading a thin line but I do not see how he has specifically violated federal law- at least for an indictment.
So, I have no problem with your comment but it needs more information, with specifics, if you believe federal law has been violated.
- Rich Miller - Friday, Oct 24, 25 @ 11:09 am:
===Yes, Illinois and Chicago are Sanctuary State/City===
No, they are not. The statutes/ordinances don’t shield anyone from laws or offer protection.
- CA-HOON! - Friday, Oct 24, 25 @ 11:11 am:
It is absolutely unhinged that some people in this comment thread think that Pritzker is only opposing Trump in order to run in 2028. I can only assume the people who think that everything which JB is opposing (illegal troop deployment, illegal theft of funds, illegal prosecutions, etc.) should just be fine.
Trump supporters are a cult, there is no other way to describe this behavior.
- localgovhero - Friday, Oct 24, 25 @ 11:13 am:
https://constitution.congress.gov/browse/essay/amdt10-4-2/ALDE_00013627/
A little explanation on why a lack of state enforcement of immigration law is not obstruction. States cannot be compelled to aid or partake in this sort of thing.
- Rich Miller - Friday, Oct 24, 25 @ 11:15 am:
===In the not so distant past, we were all largely on the same page about all of this===
The word “this” is carrying a whole lot of weight in that sentence.
I don’t think we’ve seen sustained, daily, multiple aggressive and even violent immigrant street sweeps in numerous cities and suburbs by masked, unmarked federal agents driving cars with phony license plates and lobbying tear gas containers at people in neighborhoods (near schools) without a single warning to back off.
Also, since when has the POTUS federalized national guards from other states to help carry out these deportation roundups?
- Rich Miller - Friday, Oct 24, 25 @ 11:15 am:
=== States cannot be compelled to aid or partake in this sort of thing. ===
Correct.
- Kenny Steele - Friday, Oct 24, 25 @ 11:29 am:
Attorney General Bondi cites federal laws against unmasking federal agents and disclosing where they live etc as well as laws against impeding, conspiring or assaulting federal officers carrying out their lawful duties enforcing federal immigration laws.
How is she wrong?
What statues allow Governor Pritzker to take these actions?
- Rich Miller - Friday, Oct 24, 25 @ 11:35 am:
===What statues allow Governor Pritzker to take these actions?===
Who says he is? You really think he’s “assaulting federal officers”?
Take a breath.
- Payback - Friday, Oct 24, 25 @ 11:51 am:
To me Pritzker and the Chicago Dems are puffing their chests and showing the world “the Chicago way” like Al Capone’s Outfit and the Daley machine. Pritzker seriously thinks he can get away with anything he wants in Illinois with a Dem majority in the legislature. An out of touch Boomer mentality, although he is a GenXer.
- Demoralized - Friday, Oct 24, 25 @ 11:55 am:
==but that means that we need to wait until an individual commits a serious crime==
So now we’re going after people because the MIGHT commit a crime? What is wrong with you?
- Demoralized - Friday, Oct 24, 25 @ 11:57 am:
==How is she wrong?==
If you have to ask how the Attorney General is wrong to threaten the sitting Governor of a state with arrest then I really have lost faith in some of the people in this country.
- Give Us Barabbas - Friday, Oct 24, 25 @ 12:11 pm:
The ire of the administration is a badge of honor for decent people. Like the cartoon character says:”your boos mean nothing:I’ve seen what makes you cheer.”
It’s also telling that the administration feels it has to crank their rhetoric up to eleven so early in a debate; that’s definitely a Trump move, meant to intimidate and discourage an opponent, but JB knows his cards and isn’t going to flinch with this guy, who is flailing away with empty threats.
- Kenny Steele - Friday, Oct 24, 25 @ 12:12 pm:
This is tone deaf and will backfire. .
Explain how Lori Lightfoot disbanding the gang member database but instituting one for Federal immigration officers will work out with the middle of the road voter?
- Rich Miller - Friday, Oct 24, 25 @ 12:13 pm:
=== puffing their chests===
I would suggest the true chest puffers are those who threaten people with arrest for lawful activities.
- Rich Miller - Friday, Oct 24, 25 @ 12:14 pm:
===with the middle of the road voter===
Last I checked her political career was over.
People who run literally everything through a campaign prism are truly tiresome.
For instance, your comment. The post: US AG threatens arrest. Your comment: Campaigns!
- Southern_Dawg - Friday, Oct 24, 25 @ 12:15 pm:
This whole thing, all of it, is about a draft dodger with 34 felony convictions sending military into large cities that didn’t vote for him. All of “this” is only about punishment. He doesn’t care about immigration. All of his wives are/were immigrants. All of his kids, anchor babies. He only cares about punishing those who didn’t vote for him. Tyranny doesn’t even begin to describe “this”.
- Occasionally Moderated - Friday, Oct 24, 25 @ 12:16 pm:
I can’t shake the feeling of doom that how our state is reacting to this bizarre attack by the federal government is exactly what the administration wants. That would make our current approach the wrong approach.
I try not to offer a criticism without a solution, in this case I can’t. I doubt any of us can say with a straight face we know the way forward. This isn’t it I fear.
- H-W - Friday, Oct 24, 25 @ 12:19 pm:
=== puffing their chests ===
=== seriously thinks he can get away with anything ===
And, yet. When Miller and Bondi and Trump do the exact same thing, you justify it.
Think deeply. America’s future is not a win-lose proposition, and Americans do not need to choose sides. Greater minds will prevail, either after or preferably before great harm happens.
Choosing which puffed chest to is correct only guarantees that chests will be puffed and harm will occur. It is past time for us to start finding a better path forward.
- Excitable Boy - Friday, Oct 24, 25 @ 12:26 pm:
- Easy solution. Take the word illegal for what it is. Real simple. -
I agree, what these federal thugs are doing is illegal. You ought to head over to the Northender and grab another 30 pack of Natty Ice for being right for once.
- Think again - Friday, Oct 24, 25 @ 12:29 pm:
This is a furthering of the Trump two-step before the 2026 midterms. He moves aggressively with the use (or abuse) of Executive authority. Blue states react, and it creates a “narrative” that the Administration is in favor of “law and order” and the Dems are standing up for non-citizens. I’m not saying any of this is right or wrong - just looking at it from the POV of the national politics of it.
- Excitable Boy - Friday, Oct 24, 25 @ 12:30 pm:
- That would make our current approach the wrong approach. -
Cowering from wannabe tyrants doesn’t solve anything.
- Walker - Friday, Oct 24, 25 @ 12:32 pm:
The best thing Bondi can do to “protect” these Federal agents is to hold them accountable for both illegal acts and unnecessary abuse of the public by some of them. If Bondi and her underlings would hold their own troops accountable, to their own Federal standards for law enforcement, that would be a start.
But holding themselves accountable seems to far a bridge for senior Trumpers.
- TheInvisibleMan - Friday, Oct 24, 25 @ 12:33 pm:
“I doubt any of us can say with a straight face we know the way forward.”
I can. Historically, it’s fairly obvious.
I would wager you can too. What’s likely stopping you is what it means to you, to acknowledge what’s actually happening.
This time, not talking about the bad stuff and hoping it just goes away in a performative desire to avoid being negative, isn’t going to work.
That’s how we got here.
“I can’t shake the feeling of doom that how our state is reacting to this”
No offense, but this is a mindset which allows abuse. And again this is not meant to be an insult, but please think very hard about why your main concern is the reaction to the horrible actions - and not the actions themselves.
It’s a learned response. You’ll have to unlearn it. Please.
- West Side the Best Side - Friday, Oct 24, 25 @ 12:34 pm:
Am I the only one a bit nostalgic for the days when CapFax stories were mostly about Illinois goings on and national stories were more peripheral. Now, unfortunately with the actions of the Felon in Chief and his insane clown posse, the coverage has to keep up with what comes out of Washington and how it affects Illinois and the entire nation.
- ZC - Friday, Oct 24, 25 @ 12:36 pm:
Sigh. Everyone should take a close look at Stephen Miller’s paper trail and past record of public statements. It’s pretty damning.
He really does feel that America as a nation, goes under, if there are too many nonwhite people here. At least too many nonwhite people from Africa and Latin America and other undesirable nations. He thinks America has to stay at a certain percentage lily-whiteness, or as he’s said many times, “Import the Third World, you become the Third World.”
You don’t have to play his game and frame all of this as a discussion about violent illegal gang members. It’s a question of whether America as a nation is going to increasingly turn into an old white retirement home, or whether it’s going to reinvent itself (as it has so many times before) with new immigrants from countries previously deemed undesirable or “unassimilable” (think in the past Ireland, China, large stretches of Southern and Eastern Europe; the list goes on and on).
- JS Mill - Friday, Oct 24, 25 @ 12:40 pm:
The trump admin is simply looking for a level of agitation that will spark an actual riot or violent reaction. To most everyone’s credit this we are not seeing this, at least on scale, and it seems like in many places the reaction has been more of a mocking party or ironic party atmosphere. Which is absolutely perfect. It is driving maga nuts (or more nuts) and, of course, the admin and their propaganda outlets simply lie (obvious lies to boot) about it.
My prediction, based on history, is that the admin will crack down harder and harder. They will work to prevent mid-term and presidential elections or alter them due to a “national emergency”. They will ultimately end up where all authoritarian regimes end up. How much time it will take is tougher to predict and how much damage and potentially how many loves will be lost is unknown. That is the “preparing for the worst” view. The hoping for the best part is that the economic damage is enough to force a political change during the mid terms. I am not betting on one or the other.
- Pundent - Friday, Oct 24, 25 @ 12:41 pm:
=but that means that we need to wait until an individual commits a serious crime=
Being in the country illegally is a civil violation. By your logic we should lock up parking violators before they become murderers.
- Larry Bowa Jr - Friday, Oct 24, 25 @ 12:44 pm:
Well said Southern Dawg. There is no principle in any of this. Only the exercise of power to punish perceived enemies. Most of us here are old enough to remember when that was considered unAmerican.