* ICYMI: ‘Unusual and possibly unprecedented’: Judge calls out Chicago feds as Midway Blitz cases fall apart. Sun-Times…

- U.S. Magistrate Judge Gabriel Fuentes closed the book on the last of five now-dismissed prosecutions tied to September protests outside a federal immigration holding facility in the western suburbs.
-Fuentes used a nine-page opinion not only to dismiss, with prejudice, a misdemeanor charge against Dana Briggs, but to highlight how each of those five cases, all tied to Operation Midway Blitz, “were highly unusual in this district for several reasons.”
- “The court cannot help but note just how unusual and possibly unprecedented it is for the U.S. attorney’s office in this district to charge so hastily that it either could not obtain the indictment in the grand jury or was forced to dismiss upon a conclusion that the case is not provable, in repeated cases of a similar nature,” Fuentes wrote.

* Related stories…

• Tribune: Injunction ruling provides new look at Operation Midway Blitz, from tear gas to agent using ChatGPT to help write report
• ABC Chicago: Federal judge’s report shares details on use of force during Operation Midway Blitz

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*** Isabel’s Top Picks ***

* Chalkbeat Chicago | School transportation funding a top request for Illinois State Board of Education’s 2027 budget: What do Illinois teachers, families, and educators want the state’s Board of Education to prioritize? Reliable transportation funding and a $350 million increase toward K-12 education are the top concerns, according to budget requests submitted throughout the fall. The Illinois State Board of Education held budget hearings in September and October to get input from the public regarding the budget for the next fiscal year. During a board meeting Thursday, officials said they received a total of 938 budget requests this year, up from 826 last year.

* Daily Herald | Tollway leaders assert rate hikes tucked into transit legislation are their call: Toll hikes passed by the General Assembly in October will need to go through the Illinois tollway board, agency officials said Thursday. The controversial legislation intended to avert a transit funding collapse also would raise tolls by 45 cents on cars and 30% on trucks starting in 2027, and generate about $1 billion a year for the tollway’s latest capital program. In addition, the bill would impose toll increases tied to the Consumer Price Index every two years, effective in 2029.

* Subscribers know more. WAND | Illinois Department of Human Services working to minimize SNAP error rate amid threat of federal funding cuts: The Illinois Department of Human Services told the Joint Committee on Administrative Rules this week that they are working to ensure the state can minimize errors and follow the new federal rules. DHS leaders said they are looking at multiple options to prevent taxpayers from being on the hook for roughly $800 million of funding.

*** Statewide ***

* WBEZ | Illinois public university enrollment rises, driven by gains for Black, Latino students: Chicago State University enrolled its largest freshman class in a decade this fall — an encouraging trend at the state’s only predominantly Black university, which has struggled with declining enrollment and funding cuts in recent years. Undergraduate enrollment was up by 3.7% at public universities across the state, according to state data released this week. Statewide, students of color drove much of that growth.

*** Statehouse News ***

* Subscribers know more. Daily Herald | ‘I am not perfect’: District 220 school board finds member violated board policies in her statehouse campaign: The Barrington Area Unit District 220 school board voted 6-1 this week to accept an outside investigator’s findings that board member Erin Chan Ding violated district policies by using school resources, property and social media for prohibited political campaign activities. Investigators described the violations as merely technical, but board members agreed that Chan Ding’s campaigning as a Democratic candidate for District 52 state representative were flagrant violations instead. Chan Ding was the lone dissenting vote but agreed to undergo remedial board policy training as a result of the board decision.

*** Catching Up with the Federal Candidates ***

* Sun-Times | Stratton vows to not take corporate PAC money in Senate bid, but has history of getting corporate backing: But Stratton has a history of taking in corporate PAC and direct corporate contributions into her state campaign funds since 2016 — and this year returned a $5,000 check from The Marquis Energy Corporate PAC for her Senate campaign while taking in $21,000 from the same family controlling the company. This year, she also received $5,000 in corporate PAC money and $46,000 from corporations in her super PAC, the Level Up PAC, a hybrid PAC she created in January in anticipation of a Senate run.

* ABC Chicago | Black pastors from Illinois endorse Raja Krishnamoorthi in US Senate race: “So we need to trust Raja, trust him with our vote, trust him with our feet on the ground,” said Warren Dorris with Prayer Tower Ministries in Joliet. Dozens of Black pastors from around the state gathered to deliver an ecumenical endorsement Thursday in the U.S. Senate race, rallying behind Raja Krishnamoorthi. “We don’t need another politician,” Bishop Shirley Coleman said. “We need a public servant.”

* WTTW | Amid Controversy Sparked by Chuy García’s Resignation, Patty Garcia Vows to Stand on Her Own: During an appearance on WTTW News’ “Chicago Tonight,” Patty Garcia acknowledged that the congressman’s decision not to announce his retirement until after the deadline to qualify for the March primary election had triggered a political firestorm. “This isn’t a done deal,” Patty Garcia said, noting that members of the Republican and a third party filed to run to represent the district drawn to include a significant majority of Democratic voters. “I’m taking this seriously, and I’m going out to every voter, to every municipality, to every neighborhood and ward.”

*** Chicago ***

* Tribune | Mayor Brandon Johnson’s plan to borrow money to pay police settlements raises questions: The borrowing proposal revives a practice past mayors discontinued and derided as financially reckless. While members of the City Council raise concerns and questions, Johnson’s team is defending the move as a way to finally clear a backlog of looming police misconduct lawsuits and save money. “The Department of Law has been very focused on settling cases and lowering our costs by getting them settled quicker,” Johnson’s chief financial officer, Jill Jaworski, told aldermen Monday. “Instead of increasing those costs all in the budget this year and spiking up our expenses, we’re spreading that out over a five year repayment period.”

* Fox Chicago | Former CPS student speaks out on alleged abuse by gym teacher: While CPS settled for $1.1 million with the former student over the summer, that man, who wishes to remain anonymous and who we are referring to as John Doe, wants his story heard. FOX 32 Chicago reached out to the accused gym teacher — who was terminated from CPS in 2022 — and his attorney but did not receive a response as of filing this report. “It’s just something that never leaves you. It’s just always there,” Doe said.

* Tribune | Plan Commission approves DePaul’s controversial plan for Lincoln Park athletic facility: The Chicago Plan Commission approved a proposal Thursday by DePaul University to build a $42 million basketball practice facility in the heart of its Lincoln Park campus, a controversial plan that will require demolishing a row of century-old residential buildings. University officials told commission members DePaul’s lack of modern practice courts makes it hard to compete for athletic talent with schools in the Big East Conference, decreasing DePaul’s national visibility and potential to attract other students.

*** Cook County and Suburbs ***

* Sun-Times | Cook County Board votes to approve Toni Preckwinkle’s $10 billion 2026 budget: The Cook County Board voted unanimously Thursday to approve Board President Toni Preckwinkle’s $10.1 billion budget for next year, a spending plan without a deficit or layoffs, new taxes, fees or fines. The budget was also widely popular among commissioners for funneling cash toward health care, public safety and legal representation. Passing the budget was also a counter to President Donald Trump and his policies, including cuts to health care and the deportation campaign that has left the Chicago area reeling, Preckwinkle said.

* The Triibe | Cook County becomes the first county in the US to establish permanent funding for guaranteed income : oday, Cook County became the first county to establish permanent funding for guaranteed income at the county level. The Cook County Board of Commissioners approved $7.5 million for the program through its FY 2026 budget, which totals $10.12 billion. With permanent funding for guaranteed income, the county is providing relief for low-income families “who have been severely impacted by inflation and federal budget cuts,” the Economic Security Illinois (ESIL) wrote in a press release. ESIL works in partnership with Cook County on the guaranteed income program.

* WTTW | Cook County Assessor Pushes to Ease Property Tax Burden on Homeowners: Cook County Assessor Fritz Kaegi, who is running for reelection, argues the property tax system favors corporations. He has said he’s working to change it. Kaegi’s office assesses the value of nearly 2 million parcels in Cook County. When property owners think their bill is too high, they can file appeals with the Board of Review, which reviews valuations.

* Sun-Times | Cook County Commissioner Sean Morrison says he won’t seek reelection: Morrison stepped down as the chair of the Cook County GOP in April, saying it was “time for new energy” in the party. This time, he said he believed public office should be “a season of contribution, not a lifetime occupation, and it is important that I lead by example.”

* The New Republic | ICE Suddenly Loses Key Evidence One Day After Being Sued: 404 Media reports that after ICE’s Broadview Detention Center outside Chicago was sued October 30 for allegedly abusing detainees, the agency said that two weeks of video footage that could have shown how immigration detainees are treated in the facility was lost in a “system crash” on October 31.* “The government has said that the data for that period was lost in a system crash apparently on the day after the lawsuit was filed,” one of the lawyers representing detainees, Alec Solotorovsky, said in a Thursday hearing about the footage, according to 404 Media. “That period we think is going to be critical … because that’s the period right before the lawsuit was filed.”

*** Downstate ***

* Illinois Times | A family’s quest for justice: Second-degree charge controversial, but Grayson is one of only a few on-duty cops convicted of murder: Of the 211 nonfederal sworn law enforcement officers charged nationwide in fatal shootings since the beginning of 2005, Stinson and other experts at Bowling Green State’s Police Integrity Research Group wrote that 171 cases have been concluded, and 73 of those cases, or 43%, ended in conviction. Of those convicted, only 11 officers, or 15%, have been convicted of murder, including second-degree murder and the various other ways states have created to classify murder. The 11 cases include Grayson’s conviction.

* BND | Carlyle suspends police chief amid FBI investigation: The statement noted no charges have been filed and that the city was informed of the FBI investigation on Wednesday. Pingsterhaus announced earlier this year that he was running for the Republican nomination in the Clinton County sheriff’s primary scheduled for March 17.

* WAND | New Urbana solar farm will give customers discounted energy: Urbana City Council approved a special use permit Monday night for Total Energies, which will build a solar farm on a closed landfill currently owned by the City. The closed landfill already houses solar panels that create 5.3 MW of Community Solar Power. This second solar farm will be a market-rate community solar array, meaning that residents in Ameren’s territory can subscribe to be part of the program. The panels are targeted to be 4.3 MW of solar power.

* BND | St. Clair County veterans assistance warns of service delays without added funds: Leaders of the Veterans Assistance Commission of St. Clair County warned county officials Monday that veterans could face waitlists and service delays if the agency does not receive additional funding for increased staffing. The commission provides financial aid to veterans for rent, mortgage, utilities or food, and helps veterans and their families claim disability and pension benefits. […] The county initially rejected the commission’s request for a $282,000 budget increase, which included about $100,000 for a new office and furniture, according to Kern. The request also included a $67,000 increase for payroll.

* WREX | Rockford local organizations brace for impact: New HUD rules pose potential threat to funding: hanges to the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) funding criteria have local organizations concerned about the future of homeless services in the area. The new criteria could significantly reduce funding for permanent housing, which has been the focus of local efforts to support the homeless community.

* WREX | Freeport to consider adding public transit route strictly within city: The City of Freeport and Pretzel City Area Transit (PCAT) announced they will start to look into the development of a fixed or deviated fixed-route public transit system within the City of Freeport. The initiative comes after there was increased ridership demands within city limits, according to the City. Currently, PCAT operates a countywide service, providing more than 50,000 trips a year across Stephenson County. But over the past 200 days, more than 90% of all PCAT trips started and ended within Freeport, which the City said highlighted the need for reliable in-city transportation.

* WICS | https://www.chalkbeat.org/chicago/2025/11/20/illinois-fy-2027-budget-requests-for-transportation-evidence-based-funding/: The City of Decatur has announced a shift from mandatory to voluntary Stage 1 Water Rationing, citing several chances for rain in the current forecast. Officials are urging all water customers to continue their conservation efforts despite the easing of restrictions. The city anticipates that, with the slowing drop in lake levels, the voluntary status will remain in place for the next two months.

* PJ Star | Super Bowl champ named head football coach at Illinois high school: Former Super Bowl champion James White has been hired as the new head football coach at Lisle Benet Academy, the school announced on Thursday afternoon. White, 33, replaces Patrick New, who retired early this month following 15 years with 89 wins and 10 playoff appearances. The Redwings are coming off a 3-6 season as a member of the East Suburban Catholic Conference.

*** National ***

* WGEM | Missouri attorney general challenges abortion medication: Missouri’s attorney general is attempting to limit abortion access by challenging the FDA-approval of a medication used in chemical abortions. Missouri is joining Kansas and Idaho in challenging the recent approval of a generic version of mifepristone. Mifepristone is one of the drugs used to induce abortion, it’s also used to treat miscarriages. Medical abortions make up two-thirds of all abortions performed in the United States, according to the Guttmacher Institute.

* Financial Times | Lawrence Summers’ extraordinary fall from grace: Others said it was typical of his hubris. “Nobody writes things like that in an email unless they think they’re untouchable,” said one economist who knows him. “Which he has been — for a long time.”

* Media ITE | Nick Fuentes’s 6 Most Hateful, Disturbing Moments: Fuentes, who is only 27, has a long history of explicitly anti-Semitic rhetoric, Holocaust denial, and praising Hitler. He has regularly called for limiting the rights of women, minorities, and the LGBTQ community, while often using alarmingly violent rhetoric. “All I want is revenge against my enemies and a total Aryan victory,” Fuentes said, for example, in 2022.