* ICYMI: Illinois National Guard still federalized as President Trump extends order, despite troops sitting idle. Tribune…

- Democratic Gov. JB Pritzker’s office said Wednesday that the 60-day federalization order — issued Oct. 4 in conjunction with the Trump administration’s Operation Midway Blitz deportation efforts — was earlier extended for at least another month.
- The 300 Illinois National Guard troops have mostly remained at an Illinois Army National Guard training site in Marseilles and were never deployed for the White House’s stated purpose of protecting federal officers and assets.
- In a statement, U.S. Northern Command, which oversees the National Guard deployment, said the soldiers “are conducting planning and training but not engaging in Federal Protection Mission operational activities.”

* Related stories…

• NPR: Judge blocks Trump’s National Guard deployment in LA with sharp rebuke
• Fox 59: 300 Indiana National Guard troops arrive in Washington D.C.

*** Isabel’s Top Picks ***

* Tribune | Charges formally dismissed after grand jury refused to indict Laugh Factory manager accused of assaulting agents: Prosecutors’ move to drop the case against Griffin is the latest instance in a string of high-profile cases against U.S. citizens caught up in “Operation Midway Blitz” to fall apart only weeks into proceedings. U.S. District Judge Keri Holleb Hotaling, walking into a 17th floor courtroom of the Dirksen U.S. Courthouse Wednesday morning, asked Assistant U.S. Attorney Jeff Snell about the move to dismiss the charges, filed Dec. 3 in what Hotaling called a “bare bones” motion. Snell said the deadline to return an indictment in the case had already been extended once and the grand jury assigned to the case had not seen fit to indict Griffin.

* Sun-Times | Family of Chicago cop killed in botched chase sues Chicago Police Department and partner who shot her: The mother of Chicago police Officer Krystal Rivera filed a wrongful death lawsuit Wednesday in which she says her daughter’s partner, Officer Carlos Baker, was struggling to accept her decision to end their romantic relationship when he fatally shot her during a foot chase on June 5. […] Baker then “ran in the opposite direction and left her to die,” according to the lawsuit, which says he failed to provide medical aid, call for an ambulance or acknowledge he was the shooter.

*** Statehouse News ***

* Daily Herald | 33rd state Senate candidate removed from ballot: The Illinois State Board of Elections ruled that he did not have enough valid signatures on his petition. It said that after signatures were checked, Holt fell 120 signatures short. Former St. Charles alderman Rita Payleitner and Patrick Carroll of St. Charles had filed the objection, questioning 225 of the 1,047 signatures Holt submitted. The board agreed that 167 were invalid for various reasons.

*** Chicago ***

* Sun-Times | Chicago’s bond rating likely to drop to a notch above junk, no matter how and when budget stalemate ends: “The danger is that it will be incredibly expensive to issue a lot of debt,” said Dana Levenson, who spent three years as Chicago’s chief financial officer under former Mayor Richard M. Daley. “It’ll be at a higher price and the property tax will be impacted. That’s where the average Joe gets affected.” Levenson said Chicago has no choice but to issue general obligation debt backed by property or sales taxes. It’s the only way to bankroll upkeep of roads, bridges, sidewalks and other infrastructure that every city needs to function.

* Sun-Times | Council opposition wins Round 1 in budget battle with Mayor Johnson: Council members who oppose Brandon Johnson’s proposed budget and its corporate head tax showed Wednesday that they have more than the 26 votes needed to pass their alternate spending plan, which steers clear of short-term financial fixes that threaten Chicago’s beleaguered bond rating.

* WTTW | CTA Board OKs $1.75M Settlement, Pushes Back on Federal Claims of Lax Transit Safety: Separately, the board approved a $1.75 million lawsuit settlement. The case was brought by the estate of a man who fell while riding on a northbound #50 Damen bus in July 2022. The lawsuit accused the bus driver of slamming on the brakes as the man was waiting to exit the bus, causing him to fall and suffer serious injuries that eventually resulted in his March 2024 death.

* Crain’s | Hemp ban delayed, but one carve-out makes City Council OK more likely: The ordinance, first introduced by Ald. Marty Quinn, 13th, was deferred until at least the next City Council meeting by Ald. Rosanna Rodriguez-Sanchez, 33rd, and Ald. Byron Sigcho-Lopez, 25th. There are expected to be multiple meetings through the end of the year as the city looks to pass a 2026 budget. The measure is opposed by Mayor Brandon Johnson and local entrepreneurs who instead want to tax and regulate the industry, including banning the sale of the products to those under 21. By excluding hemp beverages from the ban, Quinn neutered what would have been a significant block of opposition from local bars, restaurants and the hospitality industry and he believes he is closing in on 30 votes, which would secure approval but fall short of the 34 votes necessary to override a potential veto from Johnson.

* Tribune | New Chicago teen curfew plan would require 12-hour notice by police: The mayoral opponent said that’s a necessary tool after a chaotic “teen takeover” outside the Chicago Theatre last month ended with a 14-year-old boy killed and eight other teens wounded in shootings. “We wanted to have reasonable restrictions. There were concerns about the possible abuse of the curfew tool under the previous snap curfew ordinance,” Hopkins said. “The point is to prevent these events from happening in the first place, and this new time and place curfew will absolutely accomplish that goal.” A spokesperson for the Chicago police did not immediately comment Wednesday morning.

* Sun-Times | A union wave is rolling through more Chicago cultural venues, even at precarious moment for museums: Employees at the Adler Planetarium could soon join them after a vote on Thursday. Separately, staffers at the Chicago Botanic Garden are organizing under the Chicago and Midwest Regional Joint Board of Workers United. But such votes are happening at what museums say is a perilous time, as about a third of U.S. museums have lost government grants or contracts. More than half of U.S. museums reported fewer visitors in 2025 than in 2019, according to a November report by the American Alliance of Museums. As a result, financial performance has stalled or declined for about half.

* WTTW | In Chicago’s War on Rats, Cats Lack the Killer Instinct, Study Suggests: The question Murray’s team posed: Are feral cats likewise likely to become collateral damage in the campaign to control Chicago’s rat population? Initial results suggest no. Of the 57 free-roaming cats tested in the study, only four — or just 7% — were found to have traces of rodenticide in their blood samples. The amount of rat poison was significantly less than that of other local species subjected to the same test.

*** Cook County and Suburbs ***

* Daily Herald | ‘A win for fiscal responsibility’: DuPage County lauds latest ruling in ongoing legal battle with county clerk: On Wednesday, DuPage County Judge Bryan Chapman denied a motion for a summary judgment in which Kaczmarek argued that she has the authority to procure services and that contracts awarded to two election-related vendors fit under the professional services exemption for public bidding. Chapman also ruled in favor of the county’s request for a summary judgment. Attorneys for the county had argued that the contracts had been bid during previous years. If Kaczmarek had determined the services were exempt from bidding, the county argued that she should have communicated that to the county auditor.

* Sun-Times | Former Summit police chief convicted of bribery, conspiracy, obstruction of justice: A federal jury on Wednesday convicted a former police chief of southwest suburban Summit, finding him guilty of bribery, conspiracy and obstruction of justice at the end of a seven-day trial tied to several corruption cases that swept Chicago’s suburbs. John Kosmowski seemed to close his eyes for an extended period of time after U.S. District Judge Steven Seeger read the three guilty verdicts in a 23rd-floor courtroom at the Dirksen Federal Courthouse. Kosmowski now faces significant prison time at his sentencing, set for March 27.

* Daily Southtown | Oak Lawn sets $277 million budget with 4.7% property tax levy increase: “It was a difficult budget,” Village Manager Thomas Phelan. “We started six, eight weeks ago with an $8 million projected deficit, and through a coordinated effort with all our department heads and chiefs worked very hard to focus on needs, not wants.” Phelan said village staff prioritized “cutting down as much as they could” considering future economic uncertainty and “all the political drama and fighting” nationally.

* Patch | Hinsdale Likely To Keep Lobbyist To Deal With Expressway Project: The lobbyist, John D’Alessandro of JLD Consulting Group, has been working for the village for six years. The village wants the lobbyist to help in dealing with the state’s years-long Interstate 294 project. According to a village memo, Hinsdale continues to negotiate several issues with the Illinois Tollway, many of which are related to the Hinsdale Oasis.

* Daily Herald | Mundelein creates local 1% grocery tax — but revenue won’t arrive for months: Months after many neighboring towns took the same action, Mundelein trustees this week approved a 1% local tax on groceries to replace a state tax set to expire at year’s end. But whereas the towns that acted before an October deadline can start collecting that tax Jan. 1, Mundelein’s grocery tax won’t become effective until July 1. That means the village won’t see the tax money until October 2026.

* Daily Southtown | Tinley Park’s Credit Union 1 Amphitheatre adds parking charges for the 1st time in venue history: General parking will cost $20 per vehicle if customers pay online in advance or $25 per vehicle if paid on the event date. Parking spots can be reserved and upgraded on Ticketmaster. Premier parking spots, closer to the venue, cost $50 online. Reserved, oversized and limo parking spots cost $90. Parking spots labeled as easy out, which provide an easy entry and exit according to the website, cost $120.

*** Downstate ***

* Illinois Times | Data center debates: Organized labor pushes for project, while critics question long-term effects: Company officials said they hope the full Sangamon County Board will take a final vote on the zoning issue by the end of March. Construction on the first of six one-story, 232,000-square-foot buildings would begin later in 2026. Few board members appear to be concerned enough about the proposal to vote against it.

* WCIA | New shelter coming to Champaign to help homeless families: Families who are interested can go to the Champaign County Regional Planning Commission facility next to the C-U At Home offices. That’s on South Neil Street and West Springfield Avenue. From 7 to 7:30 p.m., the RPC is screening applicants. You do have to be a parent or legal guardian of a person under the age of 18. If you are accepted on a first-come, first-serve basis, you’ll be given the location of the shelter, which the RPC said it’s keeping secret for safety.

* BND | Former metro-east cop pleads guilty to stealing from union fund: A former Alton police officer has pleaded guilty to stealing nearly $58,000 from the department’s union fund for officers, Attorney General Kwame Raoul said Wednesday. Jeremiah T. Dressler, 42, of Brighton, Illinois, pleaded guilty on Tuesday to one count of felony theft, one count of felony theft by deception and three counts of felony wire fraud, according to a news release from Raoul.

* WCIA | Champaign City Council approves next step for U of I themed hotel: The hotel will be University of Illinois themed and will go on the corner of Neil and Hill Streets. At Tuesday’s meeting, the council heard a presentation on the tax incentive agreement with the developers. The city said it won’t be giving the builders more money from its general fund, and instead, it will give $7 million in reimbursements from revenue the hotel itself generates. They’re expecting these incentives to pay off in a big way for the city long-term.

*** National ***

* NYT | How Online Crypto Casinos Use Celebrities and Livestreamers to Recruit Gamblers: Many sites do not have strong identity verification and are able to advertise on social media with little oversight. Tech-savvy young people in the United States can gamble on them using false identities and readily available software to mask their locations, often unbeknownst to their parents. Eight years ago, crypto casinos were obscure websites. Now they are a multibillion-dollar industry with dozens of operators. The success of Stake and Roobet, two of the largest casinos, has enabled them to sign partnership deals with the Ultimate Fighting Championship, Premier League soccer teams and celebrity rappers like Drake and Snoop Dogg.

* AP | Trump wants to keep farmers happy with cash. They’re still worried about the future: “It’s a bridge. It’s not the ultimate solution we’re looking for,” said Charlie Radman, a fourth-generation farmer who grows corn and soybeans on the land his family has owned near Randolph, Minnesota, since 1899. “What we really want to have is a little more certainty and not have to rely on these ad hoc payments.”