* ICYMI: Illinois attorney general reaches agreement to protect $1.4 billion in education funding. Sun-Times…

- Illinois Attorney General Kwame Raoul announced Friday that he helped secure an agreement with the Trump administration that will protect nearly $1.4 billion in annual federal education funding for the state.

- The agreement resolves a lawsuit filed by a group of states after the U.S. Department of Education in April 2025 threatened to withhold federal funds from schools that refused to certify compliance with new restrictions on DEI programs.

- “The Trump administration attempted to illegally stop the allocation of congressionally mandated funds to push a vague, anti-diversity, equity, inclusion and accessibility agenda at the expense of some of the most vulnerable children in Illinois and across the country,” Raoul said in a press release Friday.

* Gov. JB Pritzker will be in Belleville at 11 am to celebrate the expansion of the Sales Tax and Revenue (STAR) program. He’ll then head to Granite City at 2 pm for an event marking the centennial of Route 66. Click here to watch.

*** Isabel’s Top Picks ***

* Sun-Times | Chicago Tribune owner Alden wants to acquire publisher of northwest suburban Daily Herald: Alden Global Capital, aggressive as a buyer and cost-cutter at American newspapers, declared its desire for the Daily Herald via a full-page ad in Sunday’s Tribune. The Herald, long a dominant source of northwest suburban news, has shared the misfortune of traditional media outlets struggling to keep an audience and advertisers in the digital age.

* Sun-Times | Teams of lawyers put drivers back on the road by reinstating suspended licenses: Without a valid license, Caldwell says she has been spending nearly $80 a day on Uber rides to get herself and her children to work and school. “I’m crying tears of joy because I’ve waited years to get my license back,” Caldwell said. “I’m racking up more debt than I’m able to pay working one job.” The driver’s license reinstatement expo provides Cook County residents with free legal assistance to help restore suspended or revoked Illinois driver’s licenses. Saturday’s event was hosted by the Pilsen Neighbors Community Council at Malcolm X College.

*** Statehouse News ***

* Former legislator and lobbyist Jack Kubik has passed away. His obituary is available here.

* Tribune | Two challengers attempt to unseat Sen. Emil Jones III in Democratic primary for 14th Senate District: Karrar, the son of Sudanese immigrants, is an attorney and an advocate for community development. He received his law degree from Loyola University Chicago’s School of Law, and a master’s degree in public policy from Northwestern University. “In the past six years I’ve worked in the social impact space, helping companies invest in struggling neighborhoods throughout the Midwest and using research and community engagement to connect large institutions to folks on the ground,” Karrar said.

* Tribune | Rep. Bob Rita testifies in trial over alleged obscene text messages, harassment by Tinley Park political operative: Timothy Pawula, a former political ally of Tinley Park Mayor Michael Glotz, was charged in October 2024 with two counts of both electronic harassment and transmitting obscene messages. Both charges are misdemeanors and carry a maximum sentence of 180 days in jail and an up to $1,500 fine, according to Cook County Associate Judge Mohammad Abedelal Ahmad.

*** Chicago ***

* Sun-Times | Ald. Beale says Johnson team is working behind the scenes to repeal video gambling: Johnson has yet to provide the official notification to the state needed to trigger the licensing process. Ald. Anthony Beale (9th), who’s leading the charge for video gambling, thinks he knows why. “They’re behind the scenes secretly trying to repeal this. Why? I don’t know. The mayor has an obligation to execute the budget that we passed. That is his responsibility as mayor. Not to pick and choose what you want to enforce and what you don’t want to enforce,” Beale told the Sun-Times.

* WBEZ | Chicago-area Asians were arrested in Midway Blitz. They kept quiet about it, for a while.: Amin’s father is one of more than 140 Asians in Illinois arrested during the second Trump administration, according to a WBEZ analysis of data obtained by the Deportation Data Project through a public records request. That makes up about 4% of all immigration-related arrests in Illinois. The majority of Asians arrested were from three countries: India, China and Kyrgyzstan. The numbers only include arrests through Oct. 15, 2025, before the peak of Operation Midway Blitz.

* WTTW | A Tunnel Under DuSable LSD and Parkland Over Rail Tracks Among the Ideas in Updated Vision for Grant Park: The new framework, presented to the public via Zoom on Wednesday evening, has been three years in the making and will guide development in Chicago’s “front yard” for the next two decades, building on a 2002 plan that delivered additions including Maggie Daley Park. Several of the plan’s biggest swings tackle Grant Park’s wonky layout: 300-plus acres bisected by streets and railroad tracks. To create cohesion and a friendlier environment for pedestrians, one audacious proposal would send a portion of DuSable Lake Shore Drive underground in order to connect Buckingham Fountain with the lakefront.

* Tribune | Convenient ordering option or ‘sidewalk hog’? Food delivery robots get mixed reception in Chicago: Anthony Jonas, 33, said he was trying to catch the bus when he tripped over the robot , making contact with its visibility flag as he fell. The Lincoln Park resident said he needed stitches and a tetanus shot. “My eye was swollen for about two weeks,” he said. He retains a scar near his left eye. Jonas, a speech language pathologist, said that separately from his own case, he had concerns about the impact robots have on his neighbors who use wheelchairs or strollers. Serve has downplayed the severity of the collision.

* Sun-Times | One of the most expensive paintings by a living artist hung unnoticed in a Downtown hotel lobby: It was “Domplatz, Mailand (Cathedral Square, Milan)” by Gerhard Richter, who is still alive. In fact, Monday, Feb. 9 is his 94th birthday. Richter is having a banner year, with a big show in Paris, and since my going is out of the question, the second best thing is to tell how one of his major works ended up next to the front desk at the Park Hyatt Chicago on Michigan Avenue, and why it is now gone. […] The painting hung in the lobby for 15 years, except during 2002, when the hotel lent it to the Museum of Modern Art for a traveling retrospective of 40 years of Richter’s work that included the Art Institute of Chicago.

* Sun-Times | Chicago Auto Show’s Chi-Town Alley celebrates best of the city’s ‘hidden’ car culture: A new attraction this year, Chi-Town Alley also features a variety of vehicles owned by local enthusiasts, including a sleek, 1975 Datsun and an eye-catching 1995 Porsche 911 RWB Sandstorm. Also on display is a row of gleaming Mustangs and tricked-out lowriders from car clubs in the region. The exhibit was created to encourage community-building and celebrate Chicago’s car scene, which participants say is full of talent but not widely recognized.

* Sun-Times | Joy fills Humboldt Park during ‘Benito Bowl’ halftime show watch party: ‘It’s a good day to be Puerto Rican’: In Humboldt Park, Chicago’s largest Puerto Rican neighborhood, organizers of the annual Fiestas Puertorriqueñas hosted a watch party at their VIP Residencia pop-up space at 2701 W. Division St. The event drew dozens who cheered for the singer and sang along to his top reggaeton hits throughout the 13-minute performance. Instead of wearing their favorite team’s jersey, partygoers wore Puerto Rican flags, Bad Bunny T-shirts and pavas, traditional Puerto Rican straw hats. Organizer Melissa Gomez said she wanted to create an event that would bring the community together, and Bad Bunny’s performance provided the perfect occasion to do just that.

*** Cook County and Suburbs ***

* Sun-Times | County’s top prosecutor calls Mayor Brandon Johnson’s ICE executive order ‘wholly inappropriate’: In an email to employees obtained by the Sun-Times, O’Neill Burke said Yvette Loizon, the chief assistant state’s attorney for policy and external affairs, sent a memo to the mayor’s office calling the executive order “not only wholly inappropriate, it also jeopardizes our ability to effectively prosecute and secure convictions when federal law enforcement agents have committed a crime.”

* Tribune | Toni Preckwinkle didn’t seek Chicago Teachers Union’s endorsement. Why not?: “I didn’t seek their endorsement,” Preckwinkle told reporters Thursday, before rattling off a list of unions like the Chicago Federation of Labor and other left-leaning groups who are backing her campaign. “And I’m proud of those endorsements,” she said. “I’ve also been endorsed by the governor of the state, JB Pritzker, the speaker of the House and the president of the Senate.” Preckwinkle didn’t elaborate on her reason. Nor did she mention Mayor Brandon Johnson, who has not endorsed her reelection bid so far.

* Tribune | Late Cook County property tax distributions spell trouble for libraries: Village library leaders have added their voices to the chorus of complaints about delayed and sporadic distributions of Cook County property tax revenues, saying the situation has drained their reserves, making it harder to hire or buy new books. And in the latest complication in Cook County’s ongoing property tax woes, about $175 million in excess money was sent to taxing bodies that weren’t expecting it.

* CBS Chicago | Trusted Chicago judge takes Tuskegee Airman’s cash, then flips it into bitcoin for herself: Patricia Martin, a lawyer turned judge who spent 24 years on the bench, rising to become the top judge in Cook County’s Juvenile Court, seemed to have the credentials to be trusted handling the finances of Oscar Lawton Wilkerson as he reached his mid-90s. She had been related to the former Tuskegee Airman and agreed to help. Instead of helping Wilkerson, court records show Martin instead helped herself to his cash, moving money from his accounts and buying bitcoin.

* Crain’s | Bankrupt First Brands cutting nearly 400 jobs in McHenry: First Brands is cutting 389 Illinois jobs as it shutters its Brake Parts facility in McHenry as part of its bankruptcy proceedings, according to a filing the bankrupt company made with the state. […] The company told the state in a letter it sent earlier this week that 332 employees would be laid off Feb. 3. The remaining 57 will be let go by April 10. The layoffs include 206 order fillers and 113 forklift operators, according to the letter.

*** Downstate ***

* BND | Granite City residents pack forum to press officials about data center proposal: Opinions were plentiful and divided. Trade union leaders spoke in favor of the facility, touting it as a job creator and economic development tool. Other residents expressed concerns about utility costs, environmental impacts and transparency. Several speakers questioned whether the project was a “done deal,” noting that city officials appeared to have been laying groundwork without public input. One suggested placing a referendum on the ballot.

* BND | EPA dismisses resident concerns over Cahokia Heights sewer repair timeline: “I feel like the city is waiting for us to die before they do anything,” resident Michael Hayes, 80, wrote in his comments on the plan before court approval Jan. 20. “I have had to seriously consider moving out of this area, and I should not have to.” Cahokia Heights Mayor Curtis McCall Sr. and the city’s attorneys did not respond to requests for comment. The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency also did not respond to multiple requests since Jan. 23. In court filings, the agency largely dismissed residents’ concerns and suggested changes to the plan.

* Leland Grove Police Chief on leave after ISP investigation:WICS |The Chief of Police for Leland Grove has been placed on administrative leave, following his arrest on charges of DUI and Domestic Battery. It seems from an incident that happened in 1000 block of Elliot in Springfield, early Thursday morning. The Sangamon County Sheriff’s Office was at the scene at 12:15 AM, when they called for assistance from the Illinois State Police. After ISP investigated, they arrested Daniel Ryan for Driving Under the Influence and Domestic Battery. Ryan is currently the Police Chief for Leland Grove.

* PJ Star | East Peoria threatens to sue Peoria as clash grows between cities: East Peoria, according to multiple Peoria city officials, has been threatening to sue Peoria on a claim that a 1991 intergovernmental signed between the cities about revenue sharing from riverboat gambling also applies to revenue brought in from video gaming terminals.

* ABC Chicago | Sheriff’s deputy released from hospital after traffic stop shooting in Peoria County: As Peoria County Sheriff’s deputies approached the vehicle, a passenger got out and fled the scene on foot, police said. The suspect fired multiple shots at a deputy, striking him twice. Deputy Jack Evans underwent surgery for multiple gunshot wounds. One week after the shooting, Evans was released from the hospital.

* WCIA | Attendance in Homer schools falls to 50% as illness circulates: After attendance at the elementary and junior high school dropped to around 50%, one Champaign County school district is implementing “enhanced cleaning protocols” and encouraging students showing signs of illness to stay home. Dr. Kimberly Norton, superintendent at Heritage CUSD #8 in Homer, said during the past two school days, about half of the students at Heritage Elementary and Junior High School were absent. Norton added that there has been a viral illness circulating in the community. Symptoms include fever, headache, fatigue, and a cough.

* NBC Chicago | The maker of Hot Wheels and Barbie is planning huge new indoor waterpark in Illinois: One of the confirmed park locations will be in Orlando, Florida, Mattel said. Bradley, in Kankakee County, appeared to be another, with local reports saying the Village in December voted to approve the park. “Local excitement continues to grow around Mattel Wonder Indoor Waterpark coming to the Village of Bradley, with plans to become one of Illinois’ premier indoor waterparks,” a statement from Michael Watson, Village of Bradley Mayor read. “We view this venture as the perfect opportunity to showcase our great town alongside Mattel’s iconic brands.”

* WCIA | Decatur soup kitchen receives $240K+ from community to continue service: This soup kitchen feeds around 200 people each day, seven days a week. The executive director said in less than two months, they have received more than $240,000. She said most of that money was from community members. “It’s definitely shifted my narrative and my thought process of, ‘no, the community sees how much we do every day,’” said executive director Tanya Melendez. “They see how much it is needed; they see the benefit that it provides. And so, it is so incredibly heartwarming.”

*** National ***

* The Atlantic | ‘The Trust Has Been Absolutely Destroyed’: “The trust,” Maine Secretary of State Shenna Bellows told us, “has been absolutely destroyed.” The sentiment is not confined to Democrats. Some state-level Republican election officials, who, like others interviewed for this story, requested anonymity to speak freely, said that federal officials’ activities involving elections have become so unusual that they are starting to question the federal officials’ competency and motives. These state officials wonder whether the feds are trying to do what Trump has accused others of doing: rig an election.

* WaPo | Trump plans to keep Democratic governors out of traditionally bipartisan meeting: According to the governors’ offices, the president also revoked invitations sent to Maryland Gov. Wes Moore (D), the NGA’s vice chair; and Colorado Gov. Jared Polis (D) to attend a second White House event scheduled to occur around the summit: a dinner for governors. “This week, I learned that I was uninvited to this year’s National Governors Association dinner — a decades-long annual tradition meant to bring governors from both parties together to build bonds and celebrate a shared service to our citizens with the President of the United States,” Moore said in a statement Sunday. “… It’s hard not to see this decision as another example of blatant disrespect and a snub to the spirit of bipartisan federal-state partnership.”

* WaPo | The AI boom is so huge it’s causing shortages everywhere else: Electricians are getting harder to find, and some construction projects are on hold. Smartphones are expected to get pricier for potentially years to come. And promising innovations are being starved of investment funding. Those are just some of the domino effects from the technology industry’s insatiable spending on artificial intelligence, which is diverting resources and attention from other sectors of the economy.

* WaPo | Can these Super Bowl ads make Americans love AI?: Americans are using artificial intelligence apps more but surveys show they doubt the technology is good for them or the world. A growing number of their elected officials are moving to restrict the industry. Companies are trying to exorcise the bad vibes and spent more than $1.7 billion on AI-related advertising last year — an ongoing marketing blitz that will be inescapable during Sunday’s Super Bowl. […] The Washington Post asked experts in marketing and political campaign messaging to analyze four AI TV commercials set to air during this year’s Super Bowl or that appeared in recent months to see how the messages are trying to win over an AI-skeptical public. The campaigns tout how AI might improve a young man’s love life, help a mother and son decorate their new home or preserve jobs in small-town America.

* AP | Health costs are fueling voter stress and powering Democratic campaigns: Republicans last year cut about $1 trillion over a decade from Medicaid and declined to extend COVID-era subsidies that had lowered the cost of health plans under the Affordable Care Act. Democrats are filming campaign spots outside struggling hospitals, spotlighting Americans facing spiking insurance premiums and sharing their own personal health care stories.