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Reader comments closed for the weekend
Friday, Sep 5, 2025 - Posted by Rich Miller * The String Cheese Incident with Molly Tuttle…
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Isabel’s afternoon roundup
Friday, Sep 5, 2025 - Posted by Isabel Miller * Secretary of State Alexi Giannoulias…
* Sun-Times…
* Tribune | Security fencing at Chicago’s federal courthouse an early sign of Trump immigration push: The fencing, which surrounds the high-rise courthouse at 219 S. Dearborn St. and is buttressed by concrete barriers, offers added protection should protests break out across the street at Federal Plaza, officials said. The block has been the site of numerous rallies challenging Trump administration initiatives, particularly immigration. Anyone seeking to enter the courthouse Friday morning was being directed to a single entrance through the fence on the northeast corner of Dearborn and Monroe streets. Once past it, however, there was no additional visible security inside the building. * Sun-Times | Volunteers on ICE patrol in Pilsen, looking for agents: Cepeda and the other patrollers are among the many residents and advocates hoping to prevent or stop federal officials from making arrests by warning families of ICE sightings. Cepeda says they scout alleyways, parking lots and the main streets around the schools while parents are dropping off or waiting for their kids. The idea is to sound the alarm if they spot ICE or other federal agents before they can start making arrests. Their main focus now is around Pilsen schools, but Cepeda says they also want to help protect churches, community organizations and businesses, like restaurants and car washes. * WTTW | CPS Rebuffs Remote Learning Calls, Says School Remains ‘Best and Safest’ Place for Students Amid ICE and National Guard Fears: “Our students are finalizing their third week of the school year, and our focus remains on teaching and learning,” a CPS spokesperson said in a statement. “Schools are consistently following established procedures to welcome students, provide in-person instruction, and keep families informed of any updates. We remain committed to making sure every CPS school is a safe and supportive place for students each day.” * Tribune | With Chicago under a microscope, anti-violence group responds to mass shootings in Bronzeville: “I can tell you we’re going to continue to do our job,” said Bamani Obadele, community engagement director for Acclivus, Inc., a community organization that provides violence intervention programs to help people in Chicago’s most vulnerable neighborhoods. “We’re not taking any days off.” City violence data reviewed by the Tribune found that, after last weekend, 10 mass shootings have occurred in Bronzeville since the start of 2019. Cook County court records indicate charges have not been filed in any. * Crain’s | Free health care clinic moves to shield patients from ICE ahead of surge: CEO Stephanie Wilding said today Community Health’s strategy to ensure patients get access to health care, and stay safe doing it, includes encouraging telehealth visits, using its partnership with Uber Health to transport patients to its flagship clinic, coordinating access to medications and “having someone at the door of our facility to ensure only patients, their companions and those with appointments” are the only ones let in. * Sun-Times | Chicago’s invisible property owners: Like many tenants, Carter knew the name of his property management company. But he didn’t know the names of the people who hired them: the investors ultimately accountable for the caved-in bathroom ceiling, the recurring heat shut-offs and litany of other building code violations he had endured in the past two years. […] In some cases, the anonymity that LLCs provide makes it next to impossible to find out what other buildings a landlord owns, impeding the city’s ability to go after neglectful property owners in a systematic way. * Crain’s | Re/Max stakes claim in North Shore turf war: The acquisition of one real estate mega-brokerage by another created an opportunity for a third brokerage to dive into the lucrative North Shore market. Compass, the national powerhouse that acquired Chicago market leader @properties Christie’s International Real Estate in December, is selling offices that were made redundant in five North Shore towns. Janice Corley, who owns five Re/Max brokerages in Chicago and the suburbs, is doubling that number by buying the Compass offices in Winnetka, Glencoe, Highland Park, Lake Forest and Glenview, she announced Sept. 3. * Block Club | Harvest Moon Walk Aims To Shine A Light On Avondale’s Forgotten Riverfront History: “As a city of industry, before there were rails, it was water. That was the transportation network and a vital link between the nation, connecting the Great Lakes Basin all the way to the Gulf of Mexico in New Orleans,” Pogorzelski said. “It played such a pivotal role — but what made it so attractive to industry kept residents away.” The free walk will begin 7 p.m. Sunday at Burning Bush Brewery, 4014 N. Rockwell St., and organizers ask that those interested RSVP on Facebook for a headcount. The walk should last 70-90 minutes, but participants can leave whenever they want, organizers said. * NBC Chicago | Nearly 100 cars found in Chicago River amid search for missing couple: A crew of divers from downstate Illinois were searching for a missing couple from the 1970s when they uncovered something else beneath the water’s surface. The search efforts, which had been ongoing for at least a week, saw divers come across nearly 100 cars in the river. […] As of Thursday afternoon, the group said it had discovered 97 vehicles, though it anticipates topping 100 shortly. Crews had been in the water searching for Edward and Stefanie Andrews, a married couple who went missing on May 15, 1970. The couple disappeared after leaving a dinner party and crews were searching the water to see if their vehicle may have gone into the River that night. “We’ve searched extensively downtown, as well as other teams throughout the years. Unfortunately, they’ve never been found,” Bussick said. “But we wanted to expand our search in the event that he was confused that night.” * Daily Herald | ‘You are not alone’: Suburban communities try to reassure residents ahead of threatened immigration raids: Mundelein, North Chicago and Lake County officials have issued online statements emphasizing their law enforcement officers won’t participate in federal immigration activities. The statements also stress that anyone living in the U.S. has legal rights regardless of citizenship status, and they provided links to groups that can provide information or assistance regarding immigration issues. Aurora officials on Friday emphasized their commitment to the city’s immigrant population ahead of a Mexican historical and cultural celebration scheduled for this weekend. * Daily Herald | Trump’s National Guard threats upend Mexican parade plans in Waukegan, Chicago: One Mexican Independence Day parade in the Chicago area is postponed. Another doubled its volunteer staff to ensure celebrators’ safety. A third parade’s organizers are watching closely, poised to pivot if the political climate worsens. President Donald Trump on Tuesday said he plans to deploy National Guard troops to Chicago, casting a shadow over the region’s upcoming Mexican Independence Day festivities. The Sept. 16 holiday is usually a time of joy in the Chicago area, where more than 20% of the city’s population is Mexican. Now, community leaders are trying to balance residents’ safety and their cultural celebration. * Daily Herald | Fox River Grove adds sales tax, plans to lower other fees and taxes: Fox River Grove will add a 1% sales tax starting next year, with officials planning to reduce other taxes and fees for residents to offset the new tax. Board trustees agreed in a 5-1 vote Tuesday to enact a 1% non-home-rule sales tax, with Trustee David Joseph being the sole no vote. At the same meeting, trustees also unanimously approved substantial cuts to a telecommunications tax imposed on residents and businesses. * Daily Southtown | Lansing District 171 teachers’ union to pay custodian $110,000 in racial discrimination lawsuit settlement: The Sunnybrook Educational Association agreed to pay District 171 custodian Eugene Johnson $110,000 after Johnson alleged the union discriminated against him when it contested his promotion to head custodian in November 2018. […] District 171 Superintendent Erika Millhouse-Pettis said, as of Friday, the union had not made the district aware of the consent decree reached with the EEOC. She confirmed Johnson was not promoted since the union grieved his promotion to head janitor in 2018. * Evanston Roundtable | Evanston on track to meet greenhouse gas reduction goals: The task force and city staff members agreed in July to put together a presentation that would focus on goals Evanston was supposed to meet in 2025 and earlier, as well as some goals that don’t have a firm timeline. As the RoundTable previously reported, the city has a mixed record of meeting CARP goals. It did not fully meet most of them for 2025, though it saw more progress on some than others, according to a presentation at the June 12 Environmental Board meeting. * ProPublica | The Floods Kept Coming. He Needed to Grow a Crop That Would Thrive in Water — or to Quit: Corn, soy and wheat were the crops Gerard, now 55, was growing in the early 1990s when he took over his family farm near the confluence of the Ohio and Mississippi rivers. By then, the floods were already coming more often. Gerard’s grandfather remembered them in 1943 and 1973, but as Gerard began farming, they came every two years — in ’93, ’95 and ’97. […] “I could grow something that would grow in water,” he said. Or quit. But for many farmers, making the transition to a new crop is nearly impossible, as ProPublica and Capitol News Illinois reported this week. Although rice is a commodity crop and Gerard receives insurance subsidies and commodity supports, corn and soybeans dominate U.S. agriculture, especially in the Midwest, and that’s what federal subsidies are set up to support. * Manufacturing Dive | Boeing begins hiring to replace striking workers at Missouri, Illinois plants: Boeing has begun the hiring process to replace workers on strike at its fighter jet and weapon systems plants in St. Louis and St. Charles, Missouri, and Mascoutah, Illinois. It’s been a month since more than 3,200 Boeing workers, represented by the International Association of Machinists and Aerospace Workers District 837, went on strike at the planemaker’s defense facilities after they voted to reject the company’s second contract offer. Boeing’s “last, best and final offer” withdrew alternative workweek schedules, added a reward for good attendance at $0.50 per hour, and a $5,000 bonus, contingent upon the contract being ratified by the end of the day of Aug. 3. Since the union voted to reject the offer, Boeing said it withdrew the $5,000 ratification bonus. * WJBD | Centralia Sentinel, Salem Times-Commoner, 13 Other Papers to be sold to Kentucky based group: The family that owns the Centralia Sentinel, Salem Times Commoner, Carlyle Union Banner, Washington County News in Nashville, and the Greenville Advocate has sold the newspapers and 11 others to the Paxton Media Group based in Paducah, Kentucky. The Hoskins family, who owned Better Newspapers, Inc., is selling the newspapers according to a news release from John Cribb of Cribb and Associates, who represented the Hoskins family in the transaction. The terms were not disclosed. * WCIA | Champaign’s culinary scene getting a new flavor: Bezza Ayalew, the owner of the new restaurant, said that his original plan was to open before the pandemic, but is he grateful that it’s coming now instead. Ayalew is from Ethiopia, but has lived in Champaign for almost twenty years. The closest authentic Ethiopian restaurant is in Chicago or Indianapolis. * Muddy River News | Old Adams County Courthouse brought back to life in miniature form: Todorov said it was his brother who inspired him to get into doing scale models. Todorov is especially interested in buildings that are of historic significance. While there are still many historic structures standing, he says he was drawn to the buildings that are no longer here. So based on old photos, he began to create. His first choice was the third Adams County Courthouse. It was built in 1876 but was damaged by a tornado in 1945 and then demolished four years later. * AP | Gregory Bovino, head of Los Angeles campaign, shows how immigration agents rack up arrests: While Trump’s aggressive deportation plans accelerate, Bovino carefully hones his image, both his own and the one projected to the country that shows well-armed officers moving swiftly into place to make arrests. […] Undeterred by court orders over racial profiling, Bovino also revels in breaking norms. Agents have smashed car windows, blown open a door to a house and patrolled the fabled MacArthur Park on horseback. Bovino often appears in tactical gear, as he did outside Gov. Gavin Newsom’s news conference on congressional redistricting on Aug. 14. * CBS | Appeals court rules Florida’s “Alligator Alcatraz” detention site can stay open: But on Thursday, the panel of appellate court judges froze that ruling. The court concluded that state and federal officials are likely to succeed in showing that the site isn’t subject to the National Environmental Policy Act, because it is a state-operated facility and Florida has not yet received any federal reimbursement for the cost of running the site. * AP | US hiring stalls with employers reluctant to expand in an economy grown increasingly erratic: The Labor Department reported Friday that U.S. employers — companies, government agencies and nonprofits — added just 22,000 jobs last month, down from 79,000 in July and well below the 80,000 that economists had expected. The unemployment rate ticked up to 4.3% last month, also worse than expected and the highest since 2021.
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Trump administration investigating Medicaid spending on immigrants in Illinois, other Democratic states
Friday, Sep 5, 2025 - Posted by Isabel Miller
* From the March letter sent to California’s Department of Health Care Services…
* More from AP…
We’ve asked the Illinois Department of Healthcare and Family Services for its letter, the deadline to turn over the data, and whether any data has been provided. We’ll update when we hear back. * Related…
* CPR News | House Republicans demand health care and Medicaid data from Colorado : In a letter sent Wednesday to Gov. Jared Polis and the state agency that administers Medicaid, House Republicans from the Committee on Oversight and Government Reform asked for detailed information about the “state and local programs that provide health coverage and other services for illegal aliens.” Specifically, they’re demanding lists and information, dating back to 2019, about costs associated with operations and medical procedures done on people unauthorized to be in the country. They asked for the number of individuals denied Medicaid due to unsatisfactory immigration status, a list of every procedure performed on unauthorized immigrants and “all documents and communications” related to Colorado’s charity care programs for immigrants.
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Today’s quotable
Friday, Sep 5, 2025 - Posted by Rich Miller * Alice Yin at the Tribune…
* One more from Alice…
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Roundup: Chicago braces for ICE raids
Friday, Sep 5, 2025 - Posted by Isabel Miller * The Washington Post reported yesterday the Pentagon has officially approved ICE and Customs and Border Protection to use Naval Station Great Lakes, just outside Chicago, as a base for large-scale immigration raids…
* A quick rundown ahead of this weekend…
• The Sun-Times reported agents are expected to leave the base by 5 am each day and will stay in hotels in nearby suburbs, including Waukegan. The operation is expected to last more than a month. • About 140 unmarked vehicles are already on site, and officials are seeking a no-fly zone to keep news helicopters and drones away, according to the Sun-Times. • El Grito Chicago, a Mexican Independence Day festival in Grant Park, was canceled yesterday due to concerns about increased immigration enforcement. • Organizers of the Pilsen Mexican Independence Day parade say it will go forward with extra precautions. • The ICE facility in Broadview will serve as the main processing site CBS Chicago reported yesterday, running seven days a week for roughly 45 consecutive days. Mayor Katrina Thompson told residents that “a large-scale enforcement campaign will soon be underway.” The building’s windows were boarded up Wednesday ahead of anticipated protests. • Advocates raised concerns last month about conditions at the Broadview facility, which traditionally was used to process detainees for less than a day. “People were going without beds, with cold food, no showers for three days on average, and that’s completely unacceptable,” Omar Flores, chair of the Immigrants’ Rights Working Committee, told WGN. * Related stories… * WBEZ | Flash-bang grenades and early morning raids: How Trump is planning to target Chicago: At least 30 agents already have arrived at Naval Station Great Lakes near North Chicago, where they’ve been practicing crowd control with shields and flash-bang grenades, the sources said. Similar training has been underway for several months. * Sun-Times | Chicago’s Latino leaders urge ‘don’t take the bait’ as city braces for uptick in federal agents: Latino Leadership Council members, former U.S. Rep. Luis Gutiérrez, D-Chicago, and other officials at Daley Plaza Thursday repeatedly emphasized that residents “don’t take the bait” from Trump, suggesting his plan to send troops to Chicago is a ploy to agitate the community. They also called on residents to remain peaceful during protests that might arise from a National Guard deployment to the city. * Fox Chicago | Lake County defends immigrant families as agents arrive in Naval Station Great Lakes: Lake County and the City of North Chicago reassured residents that they would not take part in federal immigration enforcement after reports of “unprecedented” operations being coordinated out of Naval Station Great Lakes. In a joint statement released Thursday, officials said the activities are “entirely at the federal level,” adding that Illinois law prohibits state and local police from assisting in immigration enforcement. * Tribune | ICE agents detain 2 at county domestic violence courthouse this week. Advocates warn of chilling effect on victims: “It’s an affront to all the work this country has done over the last 40 years to ensure that victims of domestic violence and sexual assault have access to justice,” said Amanda Pyron, president and CEO of The Network: Advocating Against Domestic Violence. “There’s no other result to an action like this but a deterrent to victims seeking the safety and justice they deserve.” The Cook County public defender’s office confirmed to the Tribune that two of its clients were arrested by immigration agents — a 41-year-old woman on Wednesday and a 40-year-old man on Monday. Officials said they were still gathering information, but said the woman had no criminal background and was not a risk to the public. The woman who was arrested had been charged with two misdemeanor counts of domestic battery, but the charges were dropped on Wednesday, according to court records. * Crain’s | As Trump targets Chicago, businesses prep for raids and protests: “Once the agencies come in, you’re going to get protesters, and that will lead to street closures,” says Sam Toia, president of the Illinois Restaurant Association. Immigration raids present a challenge to restaurants on two fronts: Protests and street closures keep patrons away, and the threat of immigration enforcement can keep restaurant workers home. Restaurants still haven’t fully recovered on either front from the COVID-19 pandemic. “Some people will be timid about coming into work and restaurant operators are planning for that,” Toia said, anticipating absenteeism could run as high as 20%. “(Staffing) has gotten a little better, but restaurants are still running pretty tight.” * Sun-Times | CTU calls for remote learning option for families amid looming immigration raids: Union President Stacy Davis Gates said the district should have a plan to shift those students to online learning to minimize the impact of being outside of the classroom. But Gates wasn’t optimistic that the district would be able to achieve that. “CPS is not ready for that,” she said, though she noted CPS was in a better position to stand up remote learning than it was when the pandemic hit. * WIFR | With ICE raids planned for Chicago, city of Rockford alerts immigrants to know their rights: United States Senator, Dick Durbin agrees with McNamara’s statement, explaining there is a possibily it expands into Rockford. “There is a genuine concern in the Hispanic population that there’s a mass deportation underway,” Durbin explained. Sara Dady, an area immigration lawyer also spoke out. Adding it is important for individuals to know their rights. “Everyone needs to exercise their rights. It’s important to remain calm, know who you’re dealing with, and decline to answer any questions. No one has to be rude; be firm, people can be respectful, but be firm in their rights,” explained Dady. * ABC Chicago | Chicago area braces for expanded ICE operations, protests this weekend: People gathered outside Naval Station Great Lakes Thursday night to pray ahead of the expected enforcement. Pastor Julie Contreras with United Giving Hope Church says these operations will separate families while Illinois Republican Chair Kathy Salvi says the administration is following through on its campaign promises. * WTTW | Under Threat of ICE Strikes, El Grito Canceled and Communities Prepare for Mexican Independence Day Celebrations: Immigration and Customs Enforcement strike teams are likely to begin operations around Chicago in the coming days, and local officials expect agents to target large gatherings like Sunday’s parade in Little Village and Saturday’s 26th Street Mexican Independence Day Parade in Pilsen. While this weekend’s planned events are still scheduled to proceed, the two-day El Grito Chicago festival scheduled to take place in Grant Park Sept. 13-14 has been postponed due to the threat of raids. * NBC | How Chicago and Boston officials are readying for Trump’s promise of more immigration raids: Massachusetts Gov. Maura Healey told NBC News in a statement Wednesday that “what we are seeing from Donald Trump across the country isn’t about public safety — it’s about political intimidation.” While there aren’t yet concrete indications of exactly when additional law enforcement could be expected in those cities, immigration enforcement has gone hand in hand with the Trump administration’s sending National Guard troops to Los Angeles and in the federal takeover of Washington, D.C. Trump said late Tuesday that he would be “going in” to Chicago and that he had a right to go into the city to “protect this country.” * CNN | Hundreds of undocumented immigrants apprehended in massive ICE raid at Hyundai plant in Georgia: About 450 people were apprehended as several law enforcement agencies descended on the Hyundai Metaplant site in Ellabell, about 25 miles west of Savannah, officials said, in the latest example of the Trump administration’s crackdown on immigration at workplaces across the country. The raid halted construction of a factory being built to produce batteries for electric vehicles, the Associated Press reported. The facility has been touted by Georgia’s governor as the largest economic development site in the state’s history, the AP added.
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Pritzker slams DeSantis over end of vaccine mandates
Friday, Sep 5, 2025 - Posted by Rich Miller
* I asked the governor’s office for a response. From Matt Hill…
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What Illinois Can Learn From Texas On Battery Energy Storage
Friday, Sep 5, 2025 - Posted by Advertising Department [The following is a paid advertisement.] As Illinois confronts skyrocketing electric bills, legislators are on the hunt for solutions that provide relief as quickly as possible. Battery energy storage is our best and most cost-effective solution. But last session— without evidence —opponents attempted to claim that battery energy storage wouldn’t work. Try telling that to Texas, where the rapid deployment of battery storage has already prevented blackouts and saved consumers billions. Called “Ground Zero for the US Battery Boom” by Bloomberg, Texas added enough storage in 2023 to power 3 million homes and drop grid emergency risk during peak hours from 16% to less than 1%. The result? Storage saved consumers an estimated $750 billion in 2024. Texas has proven that storage is the quickest, cheapest, most reliable way to get consumers relief from skyrocketing, demand-induced price spikes. Storage is a nimble way to address growing populations, power-hungry data centers, and meet other electrification-related power needs. These are benefits Texas saw from storage even as the state reduced its gas generation capacity by 166 MW last year. Illinois lawmakers should follow Texas’s lead and pass SB40 this fall to deploy 6GW of energy storage by 2035. Click here for more information.
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Isabel’s morning briefing
Friday, Sep 5, 2025 - Posted by Isabel Miller * ICYMI: Pritzker says he’ll head to court as soon as troops show up. Crain’s…
- Pritzker, like other governors, has asserted that President Donald Trump has no authority to dispatch National Guard members or federal troops. -In recent days, the White House has been cagey about whether it plans to deploy troops. * Related Stories… * WGLT | Rivian plans job cuts as it plans for R2 production in Normal: Rivian is cutting about 1.5% of its global workforce as the electric vehicle maker prepares its plant in Normal for production of its new lower-cost sport utility vehicle. The automaker had about 15,000 employees globally at the end of the year. It’s unclear how many of the job cuts could be in Normal. “We have made some recent changes to the commercial team as part of an ongoing effort to improve operational efficiency for R2,” according to a statement from a Rivian spokesperson. * Sun-Times | In Illinois, soybean is king and helps fuel everything from farmers to Chicago Park District trucks: About 80 park district vehicles are fueled by biodiesel blends made from refined soybean oil. That’s about 25% of its diesel fleet, which includes service and forestry trucks, tractors and mowers. The parks department uses various kinds of clean energy for its vehicles and equipment. It started using soybean-based biodiesel blended with regular diesel in 2011. The liquid fuel can supplement regular diesel often used in heavy vehicles. “It performs better than standard diesel, and the power is the same. It also benefits the health of our employees and park visitors,” Mike Dimitroff, manager of cultural and natural resources for Chicago Park District, said. * SJ-R | Free monthly STI testing now at all 13 Planned Parenthood Illinois centers: Walk-in patients will be offered a variety of STI tests and have a consultation with a provider. While at the health center, individuals can schedule a wellness visit, make an appointment for other services and get enrolled in Medicaid. Walk-in appointments will end 45 minutes before closing, are first-come, first-served and results are confidential, according to the announcement. * Daily Herald | New Illinois law requires police to act swiftly on missing persons cases: You’ve probably seen it play out on a TV crime drama: A distraught person enters a police station to report a loved one missing, only to be told by the desk officer that there’s nothing they can do about it for at least 24 hours. A new state law championed by a suburban legislator and Cook County Sheriff Tom Dart will keep that scenario the stuff of fiction here in Illinois. Senate Bill 24 — also known as the Missing Persons Identification Act — was signed into law late last month by Gov. JB Pritzker, paving the way for major changes in how police handle missing persons cases. * Education Week | How This State Is Protecting Undocumented Students’ Right to an Education: House Bill 3247—signed into law by Democratic Gov. JB Pritzker on Aug. 15—is the state’s response to rising fear among local immigrant communities over the Trump administration’s push for increased immigration enforcement across the country, lawmakers and advocates said. The law is also a response to the efforts of policymakers in other states to overturn the 1982 U.S. Supreme Court decision in Plyler v. Doe, which granted a constitutional right to a free, public education to all students regardless of immigration status. Since President Donald Trump’s re-election, policymakers in at least six states have taken actions to challenge Plyler, with at least one of these still in process, and the rest paused or defeated, according to an Education Week analysis. * WAND | Illinois law could ensure families with NICU babies receive info on early intervention services: The Illinois Department of Human Services’ early intervention program helps children with disabilities or developmental delays up to age three learn and grow. However, many families are unaware they are eligible for these services. This law states hospitals must sign a written letter referring babies to early intervention programs if the child is sent to their neonatal intensive care unit. * Chalkbeat Chicago | Chicago’s Air Force Academy High School to change name, switch to Army JROTC: The school opened in 2009 and was the only wall-to-wall public Air Force Academy high school in the country. It’s been lauded by Mayor Brandon Johnson and is one of six military schools in CPS where participation in JROTC is mandatory. Currently, there are roughly 130 students enrolled, down from more than 300 a decade ago. The deactivation of the Air Force Academy High School JROTC program means there are no longer Air Force JROTC programs in CPS. A program inside Phillips High School was closed for low enrollment in 2022. There are 815 active Air Force JROTC programs at other schools across the country. * Sun-Times | ‘The powder keg is growing.’ Former Chicagoans in D.C. call guard deployment ‘unprecedented and scary’: “In Chicago, it feels like the powder keg is there. In D.C., I think the powder keg is growing. I’ve had friends who have been in Ubers or have been in situations where people around them have been stolen and arrested and taken to who knows where, and you can feel there’s tension building,” said Albano, 30. “But it does not quite feel as intense of a tension as how the activists and organizers in Chicago are planning to protect immigrant communities and their families and loved ones.” * ABC Chicago | UIC student sues university police, claiming arrest was unlawful, led to visa revocation: In police body-worn camera video, you can hear one UIC officer say, “Mr. Presta, just to let you know you are being charged with theft under, it’s a class A misdemeanor, under meaning under $500 in value.” “The allegation is he was working out and, at some time during his workout, he stole someone’s little gym bag,” attorney Gregory Kulis told the I-Team. He represents Presta in a new lawsuit against four UIC police officers filed Thursday. Kulis says video evidence shows Presta did not take the bag in question. * Sun-Times | White Sox’ 2025 loss cause: If 100 is inevitable, at least try to stay under 106: Unless the 50-88 Sox scratch out seven more victories, they’ll be tied to last year’s 121-loss team forever — with the two most “L”-acious seasons in franchise history coming back-to-back. * Sun-Times | Angel Reese officially suspended after eighth technical foul: Angel Reese will miss the Sky’s game Friday against the Fever. She received her eighth technical foul in the first half Wednesday against the Sun, which triggered a one-game suspension. Coach Tyler Marsh said the Sky appealed the call, but the WNBA issued a statement Thursday confirming the suspension. The Sky have appealed other calls this year without success. Reese was assessed a technical for a “flail” in the second quarter against Sun forward Aaliyah Edwards. There was no whistle on the court, but officials upgraded the play after review. Marsh argued at the time and said he was frustrated by the explanation. * Naperville Sun | Naperville commission seeks more info before voting on Karis Critical data centers plan: “This is the only zoning district where data centers are permitted,” said Russ Whitaker, an attorney representing Karis. While the development is planned for an appropriately zoned area, it is also in close proximity to multiple residential areas, including the Naper Commons, Danada Woods and Indian Hill Woods subdivisions. Those residents opposed to the project say it will have a negative effect on their health and quality of life as well as the environment. An online petition urging the city to reject the development has been signed by about 1,900 people. * Daily Herald | Former Arlington Heights school nurse sentenced for misappropriating students’ medicine: Eitz worked at from Aug. 19, 2019 through May 8, 2024, at Westgate Elementary School school, where prosecutors say she was responsible for documenting, storing, handling and administering prescribed medication that “included controlled amphetamine substances” for several students. She was fired in May 2024 amid an investigation into the allegations. In April of this year, the parents of nine Westgate students sued Eitz, school leaders and Arlington Heights Elementary District 25 administrators alleging she intentionally gave children the wrong medication and school leaders had the ability to stop her but “actively chose not to.” * Daily Southtown | Orland Park passes Israel-Hamas ceasefire resolution, continuation of grocery tax: The board also voted to join neighboring suburbs in creating a 1% municipal grocery tax to begin when a statewide tax expires on Jan. 1. Similar action was taken by neighboring communities including Tinley Park, Homewood and Homer Glen. Milani and Healy voted against the measure while Dodge, Lawrence, Lawler and Leafblad voted in favor. * Aurora Beacon-News | Aurora committee tables talk of lifting ban on backyard chickens: No official ordinance was drafted, but aldermen who sit on the City Council Rules, Administration and Procedures Committee have spent time at the past several meetings discussing the possibility of allowing backyard chickens within city limits and the logistics of how that may work. They’ve also heard from the city’s Animal Care and Control division about the idea, including its current response to backyard chickens. Currently, city code bans people from keeping dangerous animals, bees or farm animals within city limits, but special permission can be given to things like pony rides and petting zoos. * Daily Southtown | Blue Island’s random water sampling finds no hot spots for immediate pipe replacement: City Administrator Thomas Wogan said the results met the Environmental Protection Agency’s 90th percentile value, which means lead in the drinking water samples did not exceed 15 parts per billion, comparable to adding 15 drops of a substance to a 10,000-gallon swimming pool, in at least 90% of the homes sampled. Wogan also said no individual homes that were tested met the 90th percentile. He said in June the city would immediately notify any homes that had a high concentration of lead in their sampled drinking water. * Daily Herald | How runway safety system slowed plane, averted disaster in Wheeling: Installed a decade ago on the north end of Runway 1634, the Engineered Material Arresting System is a rectangular, graded bed of large, concrete blocks that rise slightly above ground level. The blocks can support a person’s weight but are designed to give way under greater pressure, slowing and eventually stopping an aircraft that overruns a runway. Miller compares the system to the emergency escape ramps often found in mountainous areas that help trucks with braking problems stop safely. * WCIA | Viper Mine coal plant in Central Illinois permanently closed; some caught off guard: On Thursday, Village President of Williamsville Mark Esker said that the coal plant was being torn down and officially closed on Sept. 4. At this time, there is not an estimated completion date on the demolition of the Viper Mine. The mine had been providing coal to the Springfield area over the course of the last 40 years. According to CWLP, the closure of the Viper Mine locations was first made public in November 2024 after the Springfield City Council approved a new coal supply contract with Foresight Coal Sales LLC to serve Dallman 4. However, Esker said he only found out about the closure a few months back when some of the workers laid off at the plants let him know they would be receiving severance. * WGLT | Dueling letters show rising tension between local leaders over shared sales tax: An Aug. 22 letter sent by Normal Mayor Chris Koos to County Board Chair Elizabeth Johnston contains phrases that accuse the county of “stockpiling” sales tax revenue rather than spending it on purposes approved under a decade old intergovernmental agreement (IGA). The letter, obtained by WGLT through a Freedom of Information Act request, called the $20 million fund balance “excessive.” And it objected to county leadership’s refusal to have its full board consider the town and city request to pause sales tax sharing during negotiations. * WGLT | Illinois State University approaches 22,000 students as enrollment sets new record: ISU has increased its student headcount by 448 students to 21,994 students this fall. “Given the climate and the environment that is becoming ever so competitive for college admissions, I am very happy with the group we are bringing in,” said Pat Walsh, the university’s director of recruitment and operations for admissions. * WCIA | Blue Mound water unsafe for kids under six months old: In a news release sent to WCIA, the village said on Sept. 4, samples that were collected the day before showed nitrate levels of 12 milligrams per liter (mg/L). The standard for nitrate is 10 mg/L. Nitrate in drinking water can pose a serious health concern for infants less than six months old. And, nitrate in drinking water can come from natural, industrial, or agricultural sources, like septic systems and run-off. Levels of nitrate in drinking water can change throughout the year. * WSIL | Bob Odenkirk returns to Carbondale for SIU event in September: The Odenkirks will participate in a public event at The Varsity Center on September 12 from 3-5 p.m. They will discuss their careers in the entertainment industry with H.D. Motyl, an associate professor at SIU’s School of Media Arts. Bob Odenkirk graduated from SIU in 1984 and has since built a successful career as a comedy writer. He is well-known for his roles in “Breaking Bad” and its spinoff “Better Call Saul,” as well as his recent work in the films “Nobody” and “Nobody 2.” * KPTV Oregon | U.S. Border Czar threatens to ‘flood’ Portland, other cities with ICE agents: PORTLAND Ore. (KPTV) - U.S. Border Czar Tom Homan said Wednesday at a news conference that the Trump administration plans to “flood the zone” with ICE agents in sanctuary cities like Portland, Seattle, and Chicago. “We’ve got 10,000 more agents coming on, we’re going to flood the zone,” Homan said to reporters on the White House lawn. “You’re going to see a ramp up of operations in New York. You’re going to see a ramp up of operations continue in L.A. and, you know, Portland, Seattle. I mean, all these sanctuary cities refuse to work with ICE … we’re going to address that.” * NYT | The Doctors Are Real, but the Sales Pitches Are Frauds: Dr. Robert H. Lustig is an endocrinologist, a professor emeritus of pediatrics at the University of California, San Francisco, and an author of best-selling books on obesity. He is absolutely not — despite what you might see and hear on Facebook — hawking “liquid pearls” with dubious claims about weight loss. “No injections, no surgery, just results,” he appears to say in one post. Instead, someone has used artificial intelligence to make a video that imitates him and his voice — all without his knowledge, let alone consent. * Forbes | AI Startup Flock Thinks It Can Eliminate All Crime In America: Langley offers a prediction: In less than 10 years, Flock’s cameras, airborne and fixed, will eradicate almost all crime in the U.S. (He acknowledges that programs to boost youth employment and cut recidivism will help.) It sounds like a pipe dream from another AI-can-solve- everything tech bro, but Langley, in the face of a wave of opposition from privacy advocates and Flock’s archrival, the $2.1 billion (2024 revenue) police tech giant Axon Enterprise, is a true believer. He’s convinced that America can and should be a place where everyone feels safe. And once it’s draped in a vast net of U.S.-made Flock surveillance tech, it will be.
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Good morning!
Friday, Sep 5, 2025 - Posted by Rich Miller * I tweaked my mom’s meatloaf recipe just a little bit yesterday and then added fresh sweet corn to the gravy. Man, it was good… 
* Those are my own homegrown tomatoes, by the way… All winter without ‘em’s a culinary bummer Weekend plans?
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Protected: SUBSCRIBERS ONLY - Supplement to today’s edition
Friday, Sep 5, 2025 - Posted by Rich Miller
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Protected: SUBSCRIBERS ONLY - Today’s edition of Capitol Fax (use all CAPS in password)
Friday, Sep 5, 2025 - Posted by Rich Miller
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Selected press releases (Live updates)
Friday, Sep 5, 2025 - Posted by Isabel Miller
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Live coverage
Friday, Sep 5, 2025 - Posted by Isabel Miller * Click here and/or here to follow breaking news. Hopefully, enough reporters and news outlets migrate to BlueSky so we can hopefully resume live-posting.
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Pritzker asked to respond to several recent news stories
Thursday, Sep 4, 2025 - Posted by Rich Miller * Tribune…
Um, he can’t legally “order” soldiers to disobey a federal order. * Pritzker was asked about that story today…
* Crain’s…
* Pritzker was asked about that as well…
* Sun-Times…
* From the presser…
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Isabel’s afternoon roundup
Thursday, Sep 4, 2025 - Posted by Isabel Miller * Tribune…
* The US Department of Justice Civil Rights Division is asking to take part in oral arguments against Illinois’ assault weapons ban…
* WGLT…
* Mexican Independence Day parade organizers have said they’ll be taking additional precautions this weekend amid the threat of immigration raids. Governor JB Pritzker…
* Daily Herald | Rojo drops out of House 52nd Dem race, endorses Chan Ding: Jesse Rojo, U.S. Army veteran and policy advocate, announced Wednesday he’s exiting the Democratic primary race for state Rep. Martin McLaughlin’s 52nd District seat, endorsing recently reelected Barrington Area Unit District 220 school board member Erin Chan Ding. Rojo’s withdrawal leaves Chan Ding and Maria Peterson, vice chair of the Lake County Zoning Board of Appeals, as the two remaining Democratic candidates. “The decision to end my campaign was not an easy one,” said Rojo, who recently ran an unsuccessful campaign for the Barrington village board. “I came to realize that now is simply not the right time for me to run. My focus must remain on my professional obligations and, most importantly, on my family.” * Crain’s | Immigration crackdown deals a blow to Chicago’s Latino business corridors: Since President Donald Trump started his second term in January, his immigration enforcement orders have been a different story. They have contributed to a grim first: The store’s sales are down 20% this year, says Mike Moreno Jr., 34, who runs the business with his parents. “It was said, and we said, the liquor industry was recession-proof,” Moreno says. But this is a perfect storm, he adds, citing concerns over high-profile immigration enforcement, inflation, tariffs and worries that a recession looms. * Tribune | Facing fiscal cliff, CTA will hold September town halls on budget: During the town halls, the CTA said, agency leaders will discuss the funding situation and CTA riders will have the opportunity to weigh in. The CTA said it would release its budget plans next month. The Chicago region’s transit agencies face a budget deficit in the hundreds of millions of dollars next year as federal pandemic aid runs out. The CTA was previously expected to run out of money some months before Metra and suburban bus agency Pace. * Daily Herald | Youth prison worker accused of sexually-oriented official misconduct: A worker at the state youth detention center in St. Charles has been accused of official misconduct over allegations she had sexually-oriented interactions with a teenage detainee. Bryana E. Phelan, 31, of the 1500 block of West 80th Street in Chicago, faces 15 felony counts, according to a news release from the Kane County state’s attorney’s office. […] The complaint accuses Phelan of having multiple phone conversations with a 17-year-old boy and driving him around the facility in a state vehicle for personal reasons. * Aurora Beacon News | Aurora fiber network nearly $1 million in debt, Mayor John Laesch says: During a presentation at a City Council Committee of the Whole meeting Tuesday, Laesch said the organization is currently operating at a $27,000 monthly deficit and has the resources to make it roughly to the end of the month. He has replaced the organization’s executive director, Charles Baker, with a volunteer as a cost-saving measure, and has made other cuts, he said at the meeting. Baker told The Beacon-News that he believes his firing was unlawful and unjust. He and other former leadership at OnLight Aurora say this is an overreach by Laesch, and that he is doing this to go after those associated with the previous administration, which the current mayor has heavily criticized. * Illinois Times | Trump’s trans ban affects Chatham resident: Dahl, 22, a Chatham resident and the daughter of Dave and Corrina Dahl, enlisted in the Illinois Army National Guard in late 2020 to help pay for college. The Glenwood High School graduate and cinema major beginning her junior year at Southern Illinois University Carbondale went through basic training in June 2021 and is a specialist in the East St. Louis-based 1844th Transportation Company, for which she serves as a part-time truck driver. She began coming out as a transgender woman in 2022 and started her medical transition in January of this year. Dahl filed for voluntary separation from the military to meet a July 6 deadline set by the Trump administration. That way, she can receive an honorable discharge, call herself a veteran and maintain some benefits rather than be removed from the military. Her service with the National Guard was originally supposed to extend until December 2026. * NPR Illinois | SIU Carbondale enrollment holds steady while Edwardsville campus sees an increase: SIU Carbondale reports overall enrollment on the 10th day of class for fall 2025 remained nearly flat at 11,785 – only five fewer students than last year – which saw a record percentage enrollment growth. This figure reflects increases among several demographics, including new students from the Southern Illinois region (6%), new students from states bordering Illinois (16%) and online students (23% growth overall, 161% in graduate programs). * STL PR | Bucking national trend, SIUE reports increased fall semester enrollment: A total of 12,813 students are enrolled at SIUE, which accounts for a 7.7% increase since last fall, according to university figures released on Wednesday. “The numbers tell us that the value proposition of a high quality, affordable college degree still has meaning for students,” said SIUE Chancellor James Minor in a statement. “We now have the extraordinary opportunity to serve them.” * WCIA | ADM worker files lawsuit, claims company responsible for 2023 explosion: Just weeks before the two-year anniversary of the event, Ogilvie and Shay filed suit against ADM, saying the company had ignored federal safety regulations concerning hazardous materials, leading to the blast. […] “ADM used hexane gas in a device called an extractor, located within the East Plant, to process flaked soybeans into a mixture of oil and hexane called miscella,” Williams wrote. “On the date of the explosion, ADM then conducted further processes to recapture most of the hexane from the miscella mixture in order to reuse said hexane gas in its cyclical soybean oil extraction process.” * WCIA | Champaign church changing security policies: Some Catholic churches in Central Illinois are changing their security policies after a shooting at a school mass in Minneapolis last week killed two children and hurt 21 others. St. Matthew’s Roman Catholic Church in Champaign is locking its doors during weekend mass services, after already locking school mass doors for years. “I said you know what, you don’t know when it’s going to be your turn,” Pastor Father John Zilimu said. * PJ Star | Constant crisis or signs of hope? Longtime Peoria nonprofit PCCEO at a crossroads: Denise Moore had been warned during her interview to be the next CEO of the Peoria Citizens Committee for Economic Opportunity that the state of the nonprofit was bad. The reality of the organization, as she said she would quickly come to learn, was “so much worse.” Moore resigned from her role as CEO of the PCCEO on Aug. 26, citing a family health crisis and disfunction at the longtime Peoria agency. She spoke with the Journal Star and offered perhaps the deepest account yet of the steep troubles plaguing an organization that has spent multiple years in a state of disarray. * WCIA | Champaign’s Black Dog donates food to soup kitchen after fire: As the restaurant moved food they already prepared to their Urbana location, they decided to donate the rest to the Daily Bread Soup Kitchen, where it made a big difference. “All of our main entree today, is from Black Dog. And if that goes all the way and we think it will, it will feed somewhere up in excess of 400 people,” soup kitchen cook Tom Scott said. * Bloomberg | Trump Sued Over Washington National Guard Troop Deployment: The city contends that the mobilization of more than 2,200 troops since mid-August violates US laws meant to bar the US military from carrying out domestic law enforcement activities — a dynamic that DC officials described as an involuntary occupation. The lawsuit, filed in federal court on Thursday, also alleges Trump illegally called in National Guard units from other states. * Frank Cerabino | DeSantis betrayed Florida’s chemtrail conspiracy theorists by feeding into it: Twisting the benign common appearance of water vapor trails from aircraft into a nefarious weather modification plot used to be the sole province of America’s fringiest crackpots. People such as Alex Jones at Infowars have been claiming for years that Americans are under air attack from secret forces who poison the skies. Now, those fringe views have taken center stage in Florida, thanks to Gov. Ron DeSantis and the Republican-led legislature. * NBC | In rare interviews, federal judges criticize Supreme Court’s handling of Trump cases: Some judges believe the Supreme Court, and in particular Chief Justice John Roberts, could be doing more to defend the integrity of their work as President Donald Trump and his allies harshly criticize those who rule against him and as violent threats against judges are on the rise. […] Ten of the 12 judges who spoke to NBC News said the Supreme Court should better explain those rulings, noting that the terse decisions leave lower court judges with little guidance for how to proceed. But they also have a new and concerning effect, the judges said, validating the Trump administration’s criticisms. A short rebuttal from the Supreme Court, they argue, makes it seem like they did shoddy work and are biased against Trump. * The Guardian | Texas bill allowing residents to sue out-of-state abortion pill providers reaches governor: If the measure becomes law, it is nearly certain to spark legal challenges from abortion rights supporters. Under the measure, Texas residents could sue those who manufacture, transport or provide abortion-inducing drugs to anyone in Texas for up to $100,000. Women who receive the pills for their own use would not be liable. Under the bill, providers could be ordered to pay $100,000. But only the pregnant woman, the man who impregnated her or other close relatives could collect the entire amount. Anyone else who sued could receive only $10,000, with the remaining $90,000 going to charity.
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Madigan files appeal in bid to remain out of prison
Thursday, Sep 4, 2025 - Posted by Rich Miller * Sun-Times federal courts reporter…
* From Madigan’s appeal…
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What Illinois Can Learn From Texas On Battery Energy Storage
Thursday, Sep 4, 2025 - Posted by Advertising Department [The following is a paid advertisement.] As Illinois confronts skyrocketing electric bills, legislators are on the hunt for solutions that provide relief as quickly as possible. Battery energy storage is our best and most cost-effective solution. But last session— without evidence —opponents attempted to claim that battery energy storage wouldn’t work. Try telling that to Texas, where the rapid deployment of battery storage has already prevented blackouts and saved consumers billions. Called “Ground Zero for the US Battery Boom” by Bloomberg, Texas added enough storage in 2023 to power 3 million homes and drop grid emergency risk during peak hours from 16% to less than 1%. The result? Storage saved consumers an estimated $750 billion in 2024. Texas has proven that storage is the quickest, cheapest, most reliable way to get consumers relief from skyrocketing, demand-induced price spikes. Storage is a nimble way to address growing populations, power-hungry data centers, and meet other electrification-related power needs. These are benefits Texas saw from storage even as the state reduced its gas generation capacity by 166 MW last year. Illinois lawmakers should follow Texas’s lead and pass SB40 this fall to deploy 6GW of energy storage by 2035. Click here for more information.
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Caption contest!
Thursday, Sep 4, 2025 - Posted by Rich Miller * The Sun-Times accidentally posted a link to my newspaper column this morning on its homepage under the name and photo of Sen. Lakesia Collins…  I laughed so hard. And Sen. Collins got a kick out of it, too. I told her I hope she wins a Pulitzker Prize. …Adding… They just fixed it.
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Competition Works: Lower Bills. Reliable Power. Say NO To Right Of First Refusal
Thursday, Sep 4, 2025 - Posted by Advertising Department [The following is a paid advertisement.] Illinois families are sweating through heat and higher electricity bills this summer. Across the Midwest, some relief from energy inflation is in the forecast. Thanks to competitive bidding, dramatically lower costs have resulted compared to no-bid Right of First Refusal (ROFR) proposals. Here’s the proof:
Fairport to Denny Transmission Line (MISO – Missouri)
Reid EHV to IN/KY Border Transmission Project (MISO)
• Delivered long-term cost savings
Matheson–Redbud Transmission Line (SPP – Oklahoma)
• Provided a superior engineering solution compared to other proposals In many cases, incumbent utilities won these bids, proving that when they compete with other qualified builders, consumers win. It saves money and drives better results.  Competition Works. Legislators should choose competition and protect Illinois families.
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Catching up with the congressionals (Updated)
Thursday, Sep 4, 2025 - Posted by Isabel Miller * Politico…
* NBC Chicago…
* More from the 8th Congressional District…
* Sen. Willie Preston’s congressional campaign…
Preston’s press conference will be streamed here. * US Rep. Bill Foster has endorsed Biss for the 9th CD…
* US Rep. Mike Bost… Click here for the full list. …Adding… 8th CD candidate Kevin Morrison…
…Adding… Sen. Robert Peters…
US Rep. Khanna endorsed Kat Abughazaleh in the 9th CD in July.
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Protected: SUBSCRIBERS ONLY - Stuff
Thursday, Sep 4, 2025 - Posted by Rich Miller
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The reality behind the rhetoric
Thursday, Sep 4, 2025 - Posted by Rich Miller * This question about ICE was asked during Gov. JB Pritzker’s press conference yesterday…
OK, let’s stop there for a moment. * People from the right, the left, and many, many, many in between, as well as the news media and quite a lot of immigrants have totally bought into the “sanctuary state” rhetoric. The only “sanctuary” this state offers is that state and local police are barred from cooperating with immigration authorities on civil matters. State and local cops can’t help ICE arrest suspected undocumented immigrants unless there’s a judicial warrant. State prisons and county jails can’t release inmates to ICE without a judicial warrant and can’t accept accused undocumented prisoners without judicial action. ICE mostly uses civil warrants, which are basically just paper or electronic forms that the agents themselves often fill out right before they arrest someone. Under federal law, that’s legal. There is nothing the state can do to help the arrestees if ICE is following federal law. And even if they’re not following the law, I don’t know what the state could legally do except go to court. I asked Illinois Attorney General Kwame Raoul back in July if he planned to release any guidance to state and local police about how to deal with federal immigration enforcement officers. AG Raoul said he only issues such guidance when there’s a state law involved, and since no state laws exist about this, he said, no guidance would be forthcoming. And, as far as I can tell, he’s right. * Because of federal supremacy, ICE’s core mission is legal in Illinois like it is in every other state. And local cops can help protect immigration authorities and other federal agents if Illinoisans are violating state laws during the course of the federal agents’ duties. This may not be a perfect example, but it’s local and fairly recent…
The Broadview PD is helping ICE, but in a manner that falls within state laws. If we were an actual sanctuary state (which cannot exist under our US Constitution), the local cops would be forced to let the protesters do whatever they wanted. But we’re not because that’s just reality. As far as I know, the state and the county health departments can’t force inspections of that Broadview facility. DCFS can’t legally demand to check on children being held. Forget it, Jake, it’s federal. I mean, if this was really a sanctuary state and Chicago was a sanctuary city, then Mayor Brandon Johnson could’ve ordered federal agents to take off their masks, instead of just asking them to. * Back to Pritzker…
OK, but a lot of those federal police are now working with ICE…
It’s a bit of a pickle for Pritzker. Ask for more federal help, and all he may do is bring in more immigration reinforcements. * This is a classic example of how Illinois is not a “sanctuary” state as so many people believe. These folks will receive no protection from the state and the county even in a county courthouse designed for domestic violence cases…
The woman was an accused abuser, but if ICE is around, what are the chances that a victim with a perhaps shaky visa status will refuse to go to court against her abuser? Pretty high, I imagine. Ugh. * Amanda Pyron, President & CEO of The Network: Advocating Against Domestic Violence, sent out a press release that basically offered ways to avoid federal police, but didn’t detail any state or local protections because there are none…
* One more thing from Pritzker…
Aside from possible lawsuits, that’s really all there is. * Sorry to all sides for the bluntness, but that’s just the way it is. You gotta deal with the reality as it exists, not argue over the lazy hot takes.
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Isabel’s morning briefing
Thursday, Sep 4, 2025 - Posted by Isabel Miller * ICYMI: Gov. JB Pritzker expecting federal ‘actions’ by weekend as local officials brace for 300 immigration agents. Tribune…
- The officers will stay in hotels in Waukegan, Gurnee and possibly other area communities. National Guard troops will be used as they were in Los Angeles to protect federal buildings, Jackson said. - “I’m not suggesting that I am absolutely certain of whether or not the Texas National Guard will, in fact, end up in the state of Illinois. What I know is that we’ve been told by people who seem to have the credentials to know,” Pritzker said Wednesday at the Metropolitan Peace Academy on the Lower West Side. * Related stories…
• Crain’s: Pritzker: Trump’s immigration raids could start as soon as Saturday • CBS Chicago: Gov. Pritzker meets with violence interrupters as Chicago prepares for possible federal troop deployment NBC Chicago: Feds plan to reassign 600 military attorneys to serve as immigration judges * Governor Pritzker will be in Berwyn at 12:30 to make the start of the school year at Prairie Oak Elementary School. Click here to watch. * WCIA | Illinois joins 23 other states in opposing rule change that could cut homecare workers pay: The Trump Administration wants to do away with an Obama era rule that required homecare workers to be paid at least the federal minimum wage, which is $7.25 an hour. The rule also guarantees overtime pay if it is required. “If something bad happens right before my shift ends with that individual that you’re serving, then that worker has to choose between either not doing it for that individual or doing the work without the pay,” Keller said. * CBS Chicago | Broadview mayor says ICE campaign “will soon be underway” at local immigration facility: Federal officials have informed us that a large-scale enforcement campaign will soon be underway,” Broadview Mayor Katrina Thompson wrote in a letter to residents and business owners. The U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement facility on Beach Street — a brick building with barbed-wire fencing — will serve as the primary processing location for detainees, according to Thompson. “This effort may draw protests and demonstrations, like those seen earlier this year in Los Angeles, where property damage and assaults against law enforcement were reported. As a result, we will be working closely with all businesses along Beach Drive to alert them to the possibility of traffic disruptions that may affect employees and deliveries over the next 45 to 60 days,” Thompson wrote. * Capitol News Illinois | The federal farm policy trap: why some farmers are stuck raising crops that no longer thrive: In these Mississippi River bottoms, federal farm policy became a trap. Farming is one of the most heavily subsidized industries in America. Each year, Congress allocates billions to keep crops in the ground, cushioning the blow from droughts, floods, fires and market swings — a safety net that dates to the 1930s, when the Depression and Dust Bowl put the nation’s food supply at risk. But today, in some of the most flood- and drought-prone parts of the country, those programs can also keep people hanging on, even when it makes more sense to walk away. That’s increasingly clear along parts of the Mississippi River Valley and especially here in Alexander County, at the rural tip of Illinois. As the climate changes and as aging levees fail, the risk is becoming more predictable, the losses so frequent it is clear some land will no longer yield what it used to. * Tribune | Fall foliage tracker 2025: Where and when to go leaf peeping in Illinois, the Midwest and throughout the U.S.: The National Weather Service’s Climate Prediction Center expects above normal temperatures and normal chances of precipitation from September through November. So, the sweaters might have to stay tucked away for a bit longer. What does the weather forecast mean for leaves? When will they change color? Since 2013, SmokyMountains.com has used historical temperature, precipitation and regional tree data and feedback from foliage fans around the United States to produce a map that shows a county-by-county view of the best times to visit for peak leaf-peeping. * Republican Jimmy Ford has announced a bid against Rep. Katie Stuart. Press Release…
Rep. Stuart won the district by 9 points in 2024. The last Republican to win it was President Trump in 2016, by a slim margin. Kamala Harris won the district by 6 points in 2024. * Sun-Times | Illinois attorney general joins push for bond hearings for detained immigrants: In the amicus brief, Raoul and 19 other attorneys general rejected the federal policy giving Immigration and Customs Enforcement the authority to detain unauthorized immigrants without giving them opportunity to attend a bond hearing. The policy was implemented in July as a new interpretation of an existing law that says immigrants in the U.S. without legal status “shall be detained” after their arrest, according to The Washington Post. In a memo sent to immigration enforcement employees, ICE acting director Todd Lyons said such immigrants should be detained “for the duration of their removal proceedings.” * Sun-Times | ICE detains woman at Chicago courthouse as Trump threatens to ramp up immigration enforcement: Lauren Hanna, an advocate at the courthouse, said she saw four plainclothes agents take the woman into custody around 8:45 a.m. One of the agents told Hanna that they wanted to talk to the woman “about her immigration status.” The woman was a defendant in a case that was scheduled to be heard 15 minutes later. Her domestic violence charges were dismissed during the hearing, and the presiding judge wrote in a court document that the woman was in the custody of U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement. * Sun-Times | CTU calls for remote learning option for families amid looming immigration raids: Union President Stacy Davis Gates said the district should have a plan to shift those students to online learning to minimize the impact of being outside of the classroom. But Gates wasn’t optimistic that the district would be able to achieve that. “CPS is not ready for that,” she said, though she noted CPS was in a better position to stand up remote learning than it was when the pandemic hit. * Sun-Times | Pilsen Mexican Independence Day parade to be held with precautions amid potential deportation campaign: Volunteers stationed along the route will carry radios, cellphones and whistles to quickly report any issues, said Rigoberto Gonzalez Jr., executive director of the Pilsen Chamber of Commerce. “We want people to feel safe,” he said. * Second City Cop | FOP Charges Filed (huge post): We’re told that five charges were filed against the president of Lodge 7 Tuesday afternoon. We don’t have a list yet, but supposedly this will be THE topic discussed at the Board Meeting Wednesday with a possible suspension pending investigation. * FOP President John Catanzara’s response to the “drama”…
* Sun-Times | As Chicago braces for troops, a reminder — soldiers have been here before, and often made things worse: That first military effort in Chicago — for years called the Fort Dearborn Massacre, but really a battle, a minor skirmish in the War of 1812 that went very badly for one side — was a mixed bag. The Army’s presence planted the seeds of the city. They also got its residents killed by mishandling relations with the local Native Americans. The history of American soldiers in Chicago — about to get a significant new chapter with President Donald Trump planning to deploy the National Guard to the city — is also checkered. * MediaIte | Daily Wire Host Calls for the Execution of Chicago’s Mayor: Daily Wire host Matt Walsh accused Chicago Mayor Brandon Johnson of treason and said Johnson should be “given the requisite punishment for a capital offense.” Speaking on Wednesday’s edition of The Matt Walsh Show, which airs on Ben Shapiro’s Daily Wire platform, Walsh expressed support for President Donald Trump’s deployment of National Guard soldiers to large cities controlled by Democrats, ostensibly to combat crime. * Sun-Times | City-owned vacant lots near United Center could become housing, retail: The city of Chicago is looking for developers to revive more than a dozen vacant lots near the United Center, ahead of the arena’s ownership kicking off construction of its $7 billion 1901 Project. The city opened up requests for proposals last month for four clusters of city-owned lots, totaling 19 sites, along West Madison and West Fifth streets in the Near West Side and East Garfield Park. On Wednesday, it held a presubmission meeting for interested parties. * Chicago Reader | Nancy Faust transformed the sound of baseball: During a particularly good Sox season in 1972, Faust and announcer Harry Caray ramped up the showmanship. When she was hired, Faust had been asked to play the state song of each batter as he strolled to the plate, but she also had license to get more creative. In ’72, she debuted a customized version of “Jesus Christ Superstar” for popular White Sox slugger Dick Allen. * Daily Herald | Batavia alderman to resign: Batavia is looking for a new 7th Ward alderman, as Alderman Sarah Vogelsinger is resigning. Mayor Jeff Schielke announced the news at Tuesday’s city council meeting. Vogelsinger said she is doing so due to increased obligations to her family because her husband is working more hours at his job. “It was a really hard decision,” she said. “I have thoroughly enjoyed the time here learning from all the experts” on topics that come before the council, she said. * Daily Herald | A ‘terrible desecration’: Antisemitic graffiti painted outside Vernon Hills synagogue: A retaining wall near the parking lot at Congregation Or Shalom, 21 Hawthorn Parkway, was vandalized about 8:30 p.m. Sunday night. Someone used spray paint to draw a lewd symbol and write a short phrase targeting Jews, Vernon Hills police said. The graffiti, which faced the synagogue, was discovered Tuesday morning by an employee arriving for work, Rabbi Ari Margolis said. It was being removed Wednesday in a laborious process. * Daily Herald | Aurora mayor says broadband service mismanaged its finances: Aurora Mayor John Laesch is shaking up OnLight Aurora, saying the fiber-optic broadband service has mismanaged its funds and is deep in debt. He is questioning more than $337,000 in marketing expenses that the former chairman of the city-affiliated not-for-profit paid since 2018. Laesch said there is little to show for the money that was spent. The list of expenses includes $7,206 on what the mayor called adult entertainment and $50,937 in debit card withdrawals at ATMs by OnLight’s former chairman. * Lake & McHenry County Scanner | ‘Reckless and dangerous’: County board member to introduce resolution opposing ICE, National Guard in Lake County: Lake County Board Member Esiah Campos said Wednesday that he will call for an emergency meeting of the Lake County Board. Campos said he is introducing a resolution opposing President Donald J. Trump’s decision to deploy National Guard units and Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agents to Naval Station Great Lakes in Lake County. Campos, a Navy reservist, said the resolution is about defending the values of Lake County and rejecting federal action that would bring fear and division into the community. * Patch | Addison Township Official’s Home In Question: Bobby Hernandez, a Democrat, is currently the supervisor of Addison Township. In the April election, he ousted Republican Dennis Reboletti, who served two terms. On Oct. 15, he registered to vote at a house in the 400 block of West Diversey Avenue in Addison. He remains registered there, according to records from the DuPage County Clerk’s Office. Two months later, Hernandez, 36, used that address in a filing with the state Board of Elections as the chairman of Democratic Candidates for Addison Township. The Diversey house is now in foreclosure, with more than $253,392 still owed, according to DuPage County court records. * Aurora Beacon-News | Oswego Village Board discusses possible extension of 1% grocery tax: Oswego trustees meeting as a committee of the whole Tuesday evening directed village staff to prepare an ordinance to locally extend a 1% state grocery tax set to expire at the end of the year. The Oswego Village Board is set to take a formal vote on the measure Sept. 16. However, trustees have yet to decide whether the funds generated by the proposed grocery tax extension should remain in the village’s general fund or to direct some or all of the revenue to the Water and Sewer Fund to help with debt service payments. * Naperville Sun | Naperville D203 contract keeps current school day, increases base salary: A new four-year contract for members of the Naperville Unit Education Association, approved unanimously Wednesday by Naperville District 203 School Board, calls for the current school day structure to remain as is and the annual base salary to increase between at least 2% and 3.85%. The ratification ends several contentious weeks during which members of the teacher’s union overwhelmingly voted to strike after teachers started the school year without a contract and bargaining sessions failed to produce results. * Daily Herald | Naperville city council to vote on appointing Supna Jain to vacant spot: Jain was first elected to the District 204 board in 2021 and won reelection this past April. She is the principal lecturer in communication and media studies at North Central College in Naperville. * Fox Chicago | Suburban attorney accused of forging hundreds of service hours for client, prosecutors say: The indictment alleges Luster “knowingly delivered to the DuPage County Circuit Court Clerk’s Office a false document apparently capable of defrauding another, being a volunteer community service documentation form … dated Dec. 16, 2024, that indicated” her client had completed 247.5 hours of community service at a daycare facility in Calumet City. * Lake County News-Sun | Lake County Forest Preserves wage war on invasive buckthorn; ‘Lots of people hate this’: While visually unremarkable to the layman, the plant is the bane of people like Matt Ueltzen, the manager of restoration ecology with the forest preserves, who is one of dozens of staffers and teams of volunteers that work year-round to combat the invasive species that has detrimental impacts on local ecosystems. Today, more than 50% of Lake County’s trees are buckthorn. At the Edward L. Ryerson Conservation Area, Ueltzen pointed out a few small buckthorn shrubs, maybe a few feet high. The tips of their trunks have a pair of buds resembling deer hooves. […] But its competitive advantages have allowed it to outperform native plants. Ueltzen said it spreads seeds at a young age, leaves out earlier in the spring than native plants and remains green into the fall. * WTVO | Could Illinois ICE surge extend to Rockford? City officials issue warning: The City posted a notice to its Facebook page in both English and Spanish, saying, “We are aware that Homeland Security recently confirmed plans to expand ICE operations in Chicago. While there is no confirmation that these operations will extend to Rockford, we recognize it is a possibility. And, we also recognize the fear and uncertainty this news may cause.” “It’s also important to be clear – the Rockford Police Department follows the Illinois Trust Act. We do not participate in ICE raids, nor will we,” the statement continued. “To our immigrant neighbors: please know this — you are valued, you are cared for and you are an important part of who we are.” * Tribune | A year after opening, Hard Rock Casino Rockford looks to add hotel as it anticipates competition from Wisconsin: One year after launching its $300 million permanent casino, the Hard Rock Casino Rockford is looking to add a hotel and other amenities to defend its turf against the Ho-Chunk Nation, which is building a casino complex 18 miles away in Beloit, Wisconsin. The casino border war could see millions of dollars in play across state lines in an escalating competition for customers when Ho-Chunk Gaming Beloit opens next summer. Both sides are preparing for battle. * WTVO | Over 1 million guests visit Hard Rock Casino Rockford in first year: Since its opening, the casino has generated over $8 million in tax revenue for Winnebago County. A significant portion of this revenue supports the Rockford Promise Scholarship Program, which benefits local students. * OCPA | Federal judge strikes down Oklahoma’s in-state tuition for illegal immigrants: In his order and final consent judgment in United States of America v. State of Oklahoma, U.S. District Judge Ronald White declared that the Oklahoma law is “unconstitutional and invalid.” […] The Higher Ed Immigration Portal notes that Oklahoma state law allowed illegal immigrants to receive in-state tuition if a youth graduated from high school in Oklahoma, resided in Oklahoma with a parent or guardian for at least two years prior to high school graduation, and had applied with the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) for legal status. * The Hill | Oz backs Florida dropping school vaccine mandates: In an interview on “The Story with Martha MacCallum,” the Fox News host asked Oz whether he agrees with officials who want to make Florida the first state in the nation to end childhood vaccine requirements and whether Oz would “recommend the same thing to your patients.” “I would definitely not have mandates for vaccinations,” the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) administrator told MacCallum.
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Good morning!
Thursday, Sep 4, 2025 - Posted by Rich Miller
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Selected press releases (Live updates)
Thursday, Sep 4, 2025 - Posted by Isabel Miller
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Live coverage
Thursday, Sep 4, 2025 - Posted by Isabel Miller * Click here and/or here to follow breaking news. Hopefully, enough reporters and news outlets migrate to BlueSky so we can hopefully resume live-posting.
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