Capitol Fax.com - Your Illinois News Radar

Friday, Nov 14, 2025 - Posted by Rich Miller

* Have a good weekend…

Sometimes I don’t speak right
But yet I know what I’m talking about

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Friday, Nov 14, 2025 - Posted by Isabel Miller

…Adding…The Tribune…

Only 2.6% on list of 614 ‘Operation Midway Blitz’ arrestees had criminal histories, DOJ records show

The Trump administration on Friday released the names of 614 people whose Chicago-area immigration arrests may have violated a 2022 consent decree, and only 16 of them have criminal histories that present a “high public safety risk.”

The list was produced as part of an ongoing lawsuit alleging immigration agents have repeatedly violated the terms of the in-court settlement, mostly during “Operation Midway Blitz,” that puts a high bar on making so-called warrantless arrests without a prior warrant or probable cause.

The Department of Homeland Security has claimed since the outset of the operation that they were going after the “worst of the worst,” including convicted murderers, rapists and other violent offenders who were allegedly taking advantage of Illinois’ sanctuary policies to terrorize the citizenry.

But the government’s own data, provided in a filing posted to the public docket Friday, appeared to show otherwise. Of the 16 arrestees with criminal histories — or about 2.6% of the 614 people — five involved domestic battery, two were related to drunken driving, and one allegedly had an unidentified criminal history in another country.

* Sun-Times…

What started as a peaceful protest outside the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement processing facility in Broadview erupted into scuffles, shoving and multiple arrests Friday morning. Four police officers were hurt and 21 demonstrators, including faith leaders, were arrested during the demonstration demanding an end to immigration “abductions” in the Chicago area. […]

Officers from the Cook County sheriff’s police, state police and Broadview police were on hand during the event. During the fray, several demonstrators could be heard yelling and chanting as a Broadview police officer pulled out a taser and shot it in the air as an apparent warning.

Oak Park resident Sue Humphreys was trying to call for de-escalation as protesters spilled into the streets and the shoving began. […]

“The violence by out-of-town protesters that has led to two Village of Broadview police officers, one Illinois State police officer, and a Cook County Sheriff’s deputy being injured this morning, with the two Broadview officers and the sheriff’s deputy being transported to Loyola hospital, is unacceptable and outrageous,” [Broadview Mayor Katrina Thompson] said in a statement.

“I have repeatedly pleaded to protesters to raise their voices, not their fists. They have chosen their fists,” Thompson said in the statement. “These out-of-towners have chosen to brutalize police officers who have been protecting their free speech and protecting them against assaults by ICE agents. We will see them in court,” Thompson said in the statement.

*** Statewide ***

* The Grist | ‘They’re playing games’: Illinois lawmakers press Trump administration over stalled lead-pipe funding: Lead pipes are ubiquitous. At this point, no state has gotten rid of all of its toxic lead service lines, which pipe drinking water to homes and businesses. But some cities like Chicago, New York City, and Detroit have more lead plumbing than others, and replacing it can cost tens of thousands of dollars. The Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act, the Biden-era infrastructure law, promised $15 billion for lead pipe replacements across the country to be disbursed over five years. But in a letter to the Environmental Protection Agency sent earlier this week, a group of Illinois congressional delegates allege that $3 billion appropriated for lead pipe replacements nationwide for the fiscal year that ended in September has not reached communities yet. They warn that the delay is a “dangerous politicization” that puts children and families at risk.

*** Statehouse News ***

* WCIA | New gun legislation looking to make a difference in Illinois: Mayors, police chiefs and more heard the breakdown of the Responsibility In Firearms Legislation Act, or RIFL. Experts say people being hurt from firearms costs the public in Illinois between $18-20 billion each year. This new act would pass those costs onto gun manufacturers instead.

* The Real Deal | Pritzker’s attack on surging home-insurance rates killed in Springfield: Illinois’ regulatory void has become a political liability. Pritzker, speaking Thursday in Chicago, framed the State Farm hike as exactly the kind of move that should trigger state oversight. The Bloomington-based giant blamed extreme weather and rising repair costs, but the governor said that explanation wasn’t enough. “We don’t know if homeowners are being gouged,” he said, adding that a nearly 30 percent jump “ought to be reviewed by a state regulator.”

* BND | ‘Something came off’ Bailey helicopter before it crashed, witness says: The witness, whose name was not released, said she saw the helicopter flying low over the Chalk Buttes ahead of the Cessna. […] “She stated that the helicopter then began to gain altitude, and something came off it, after which it descended out of her line of sight,” the report states.

*** Chicago ***

* Tribune | Key alderman warning Mayor Brandon Johnson a vote on budget ‘premature’: Ald. Pat Dowell, 3rd, told reporters after weeks of budget hearings for Johnson’s $16.6 billion spending plan concluded Thursday that she advised the Johnson administration not to proceed with a vote in her committee Monday. But she stopped short of saying she would try to block a vote should the mayor proceed regardless. “I think going on Monday is premature. I have said that to the administration,” Dowell told reporters. “My role as the Finance chair is to give advice, and on Monday I’m going to have a meeting, and those things will either be on the agenda or they won’t. And I will call balls and strikes, and we’ll see where this goes.”

* Fox Chicago | Chicago alders urge Mayor Johnson to slow down on $16.7B budget push: Ald. Brian Hopkins (2nd Ward) is questioning the timing, as folks will be hearing about these higher taxes just as their second installment Cook County property tax bills arrive in the mail. “But that’s going to create the kind of atmosphere that will make it difficult for this mayor to pass a budget that doesn’t include any cuts and efficiencies,” he said. “People will open their tax bill and they’ll get angry, and they’ll call their elected official and they’ll say, ‘what’s going on here? Why did my bills go up?’ They don’t want to hear that elected official say, ‘well, you know, we’re going to tax you even more this year, but don’t worry about it.’ That’s a very hard sell in an anti-tax environment like we’re faced with right now.”

* WTTW | DoorDash Agrees to Pay $18M to Settle Chicago Lawsuit Alleging Firms Hurt Restaurants During COVID-19 Pandemic: The lawsuit was brought by former Mayor Lori Lightfoot. The city also sued Grubhub, another third-party delivery service, and that lawsuit is scheduled for trial on Dec. 10. A spokesperson for DoorDash could not immediately be reached for comment. The city’s lawsuit against DoorDash claimed the firms “lured consumers into a bait-and-switch with deceptively small delivery fees upfront, only to charge misleading fees at the end of the transaction.” That inflated the final bill by as much as six times higher than the advertised amount, city officials said.

* Crain’s | Realtor group’s turnaround CEO rolls out plan to hang onto members: Two years after she was brought in to take over the troubled National Association of Realtors, Nykia Wright yesterday laid out a lengthy agenda for building up the trust and transparency she said the Chicago-based association’s membership is demanding. With just under half of NAR’s members saying they are somewhat or very satisfied with the organization in the wake of its sexual harassment scandal, $418 million settlement in the legal battle over agent commissions and reports of past officers’ lavish spending, Wright and NAR President Kevin Sears took the stage at one of the industry’s biggest conferences to lay out a three-year plan for rebuilding the organization’s ties to its base.

* The Triibe | Emmy win highlights Dilla’s quest to preserve Chicago’s Black heritage: Winning an Emmy is no easy feat. Usually networks submit the works of creators, but in Thomas’s case, he submitted his own after sifting through what he describes as“hundreds” of categories. He also paid a submission fee. Voters from the National Academy of Television, Arts and Sciences view the content and select finalists and then a winner. When asked if he thought he had a chance of winning, Thomas was quick with a “Hell no.”

* WBEZ | Obama Presidential Center takes shape after 10 years of delays and construction: My full critique of the complex will have to wait until the project is done. But enough work has been completed to get a solid look at what will be the most expensive presidential center in U.S. history. Construction costs come to $620 million. The current leader, the George W. Bush Presidential Library, cost $327 million to build, according to the Texas Comptroller of Public Accounts. More importantly, enough has been built to get a sense of what the public will get for giving up 20 acres of historic Jackson Park for a campus of new buildings, gardens, parkland — and the much-discussed 225-foot museum tower.

*** Cook County and Suburbs ***

* Daily Southtown | Following Riverdale Mayor Lawrence Jackson’s perjury conviction, village faced with filling vacant seat: According to Illinois law, any person who has been convicted of a felony is automatically ineligible to hold public office unless they are pardoned or receive a restoration of rights from the governor. The statute says that a qualifying guilty plea or verdict constitutes an automatic resignation. An attorney representing the village confirmed the mayor’s position is now officially vacant following the verdict, and said the Riverdale Village Board would have to select an acting mayor from among its ranks to serve until the April 2027 municipal election.

* AP | Protesters arrested after clashing with police outside Chicago-area immigration facility: Authorities arrested 21 protesters Friday outside a Chicago-area federal immigration facility that activists say functions as a de facto detention center and is plagued by inhumane conditions. The Cook County Sheriff’s Office said the arrests were made by midday, and that it was working on verifying identities and potential charges. Just moments before the clash, demonstrators were singing and chanting. Around 10 a.m., a large group, knowing they were going to be arrested, allegedly crossed the protest barrier and attempted to walk up toward the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement facility.

* Tribune | Activists rally outside Morton Grove board meeting, calling for ICE-free rules in town. Mayor Witko says they would only be ‘symbolic.’: Demonstrators chanted and hoisted signs during the nearly hourlong rally, pushing for legislation that activists say would help protect residents – and others in the village – against federal immigration enforcement agents, including from U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement and U.S. Border Patrol. […] “I feel your frustration. I feel your anger. And I understand that protesting against inhumane immigration policies can feel futile. Sometimes, it can seem like our objections to this invasion are just a drop in the bucket,” Bushra Amiwala, a member of the Skokie School District 73.5 Board of Education and candidate for Congress, said to the rally goers. “But they’re not.”

* Tribune | West Chicago brothers are on the front lines against ‘Operation Midway Blitz.’ And they’re only teenagers.: At 16 and 17 years old, Sam and Ben for the past two months have made it their mission to follow, investigate and capture federal immigration activity across the Chicago area. It’s an undertaking the brothers say happened naturally after growing up in a household where social justice and civic duty were as much a part of their homeschool curriculum as math and science. “If I get the opportunity to fight like this for the rest of my life, I would be totally OK with that,” Ben said.

* Crain’s | Chicago-area warehouse space is almost full. Are developers getting back to building?: Local warehouse developers ought to be hurrying to kick off new projects, based on the lack of available space in the area. But with wishy-washy tariffs and stubborn borrowing costs clouding the future, they’re taking their time. The Chicago-area industrial vacancy rate ticked down to 4.67% midway through the year from 4.79% at the end of the first quarter, according to data from real estate services firm Colliers. The metric is down from 4.84% one year ago and inching closer to the all-time low of 4.5% set at the end of 2022, when companies adjusting to a pandemic-induced online shopping boom were scrambling for space to store and distribute goods.

* Daily Herald | All about that new roundabout art in Woodstock — and the artist’s response to critics: The sculpture is by Woodstock artist Bobby Joe Scribner, who named it “Whorled.” He said the name is a play on words, as it sounds like “world” and “whirl.” […] Social media reaction has been mixed, with some people calling the art a welcome addition and others saying it’s too expensive, unnecessary and a potential distraction for drivers. A few people called it ugly. Regarding the public’s response, Scribner said you can’t please everyone and that he hasn’t really read the comments.

*** Downstate ***

* WGLT | McLean County Board approves 2026 budget; hears concerns over aquifer protections: No changes were made from the first presentation made in September. The $144.5 million budget calls for a nearly 5% increase — $7.2 million — over the previous budget, and is less than the $147 million budget for the 2024 fiscal year. “Staff worked very hard this year,” said board chair Elizabeth Johnston. “I would like to applaud the staff for their excellent work in creating a budget that is well within reason, given the inflationary pressures that we all face.”

* WGIL | Objections filed against 5 Knox County GOP candidates for 2026 primary: Five Republican candidates for Knox County office face objections to their nominating petitions ahead of the March 17, 2026, primary election, County Clerk Scott Erickson confirmed Thursday. The objections, filed Monday with the Knox County Clerk, allege that the candidates filed multiple invalid signatures, sometimes indicating “a pattern of fraud, that would undermine the integrity of the nominating process in Illinois.”

* WQAD | Sheriff: Whiteside County man arrested for threatening judge: A man has been arrested after a judge received a death threa, the Whiteside County Sheriff’s Office said According to the sheriff’s office, deputies began investigating the threat on Oct. 30. During the investigation, officials said they identified 30-year-old Alexander A. Lopez as a suspect. Lopez had attempted to purchase a handgun at a business in Whiteside County earlier the same day, according to the sheriff’s office.

* WICS | Springfield, Decatur, and Champaign engage public in superintendent selection process: Respondents emphasized wanting a superintendent who stays long-term, is visible in schools and the broader community, and builds trust through strong relationships with families and staff. Springfield District 186 saw more than 1,500 responses.

* WCIA | Former employees of a Vermilion Co. factory blame chronic diseases on work conditions: One employee who worked for almost 50 years at the plant said she was diagnosed with Parkinson’s after she retired and believes it was caused by working in the factory. Another person said her spouse suffers from chronic respiratory illness, something many at Thursday night’s meeting said comes from the building’s conditions — although they aren’t sure.

* WCIA | Parkland College announces new auto maintenance apprenticeship program: Parkland College and Rick Ridings Automotive Group have announced a new partnership to offer a student apprenticeship program in the field of automotive maintenance. The school’s Director of Apprenticeships, Aimee Densmore, said she knows how much Central Illinois employers value local hires. The program’s goal is to help students grow during college and set down roots in the area after graduation.

*** National ***

* Thresholds | Housing Advocates Urge HUD to Avoid Forcing Thousands of Illinoisans into Homelessness: For several weeks, there have been reports that the NOFO would be a vehicle for fast-tracking a dramatic restructuring of the program, including a 30% cap on the funds that can be used for Permanent Supportive Housing (PSH) and other permanent housing, which is in the released NOFO. Currently, more than 80% of federal CoC funding in Illinois is used for these purposes—an evidence-backed, market-based approach to ending homelessness that also generates economic activity in the form of rent to property owners and on-site services. “Rather than making drastic changes to the CoC program with no input from stakeholders or Congress, we urge HUD to renew existing grants for one more year as authorized by Congress to prevent a devastating gap. This will keep our community members safely, stably housed, and avoid pushing them back into homelessness,” said Mark Ishaug, President and CEO of Thresholds, one of the state’s largest providers of permanent supportive housing.

* WaPo | First, the frogs died. Then people got sick: What is becoming increasingly clear is that without them, humans are in trouble. It turns out that frogs — in biblical times regarded as a plague — are actually guardians against disease. As dozens of frog species have declined across Central America, scientists have witnessed a remarkable chain of events: With fewer tadpoles to eat mosquito larvae, rates of mosquito-borne malaria in the region have climbed, resulting in a fivefold increase in cases.

* HR Dive | Front-line workers are more difficult to find, train and retain, study says: Three-quarters of front-line workers feel burned out, and 51% say they “feel like a number, not a person,” fueling their sense of feeling overworked, underappreciated and disconnected, the Nov. 5 report found.

* Courier | We created a searchable database with all 20,000 files from Epstein’s Estate: To make this massive data dump more accessible, COURIER has compiled the 20,000 documents from Epstein’s estate into an easily searchable repository via Google Pinpoint. Use the search tool here.

* AP | Epstein emails reveal enduring ties with influential figures even after his sex crime conviction: During that time, Epstein’s network was eclectic, spanning the globe and political affiliations: from the liberal academic Noam Chomsky to Steve Bannon, the longtime ally of President Donald Trump. Some reached out to support Epstein amid lawsuits and prosecutions, others sought introductions or advice on everything from dating to oil prices. One consulted him on how to respond to accusations of sexual harassment.

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Report: Indiana Senate won’t convene to take up redistricting bill

Friday, Nov 14, 2025 - Posted by Rich Miller

* As you’ll recall, Gov. JB Pritzker said he would push for a congressional remap here if Indiana redrew its congressional boundaries. From an Indiana Statehouse reporter…

Bray is the Indiana Senate President Pro Tempore.

* So, unless Pritzker comes up with another state “pairing” idea, or if Indiana politicians change their minds, this issue looks to be finally off the table.

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Stratton, Kelly and Krishnamoorthi make their cases to union members at Senate forum

Friday, Nov 14, 2025 - Posted by Isabel Miller

* The Illinois AFL-CIO…

Last night, the Illinois AFL-CIO and the Chicago Federation of Labor hosted a Democratic U.S. Senate Forum at IBEW Local 134 in Chicago. Exclusively for union members and their families, the event featured the top three Democratic candidates – Rep. Robin Kelly, Rep. Raja Krishnamoorthi, and Lt. Gov. Juliana Stratton – in a discussion focused on labor rights, the future of unions, and their plans to address the most pressing challenges facing Illinois’ working families.

The forum was moderated by Jennifer Rodriguez, National AFL-CIO Political and Field Mobilization Director. Candidates discussed a range of topics, including the growing influence of Big Tech in the Democratic Party, affordable housing, healthcare access, and the need for clear regulations and guardrails against Artificial Intelligence (AI). […]

In December, the Illinois AFL-CIO will endorse candidates for the 2026 election, following the recommendations of delegates from across the state at the Committee on Political Education (COPE). Endorsed candidates must demonstrate their commitment to working families through their voting record and/or a submitted questionnaire.

Through its statewide political program, the Illinois AFL-CIO will mobilize union volunteers to canvass, phone-bank, and text-bank the state’s 1.7 million people in union households – ensuring direct, personal outreach from trusted messengers on the issues that matter most to working people.

* Rick Pearson covered the forum for the Tribune…

Stratton, the two-term lieutenant governor under Democratic Gov. JB Pritzker, sought to portray herself as the outsider against the Washington “status quo” of her two rivals, who now serve in Congress.

“I can tell you that this is a time where we need real fighters,” Stratton told the audience of union members at the headquarters of the International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers Local 134 in Bronzeville. […]

But Kelly, a 12-year congresswoman from Lynwood, sought to counter Stratton’s call.

“It’s one thing to be a fighter, but you’ve got to be a winner too. You can’t just fight. You have to have things to show for it,” she said, touting her ability to work across the political aisle. […]

Krishnamoorthi of Schaumburg pointed to his five congressional victories in a mostly northwest suburban district that gave Trump 47% of the 2024 vote as proof that he will “always fight for our constituents.”

* Krishnamoorthi got a little off topic on a question about affordability. From the forum…

Moderator: Why do you think housing, food and healthcare are so unaffordable and how would you address those problems in the Senate? And this time we’d start with Congressman Krishnamoorthi.

Krishnamoorthi: I think it’s because of anti-competitive behavior by special interests in Washington, DC, and elsewhere. I’ll give you an example. In the food conglomerate industry, there is a certain concentration of power among the largest companies that basically keep out smaller players so that they can then raise prices, lower choices and hurt workers. That is what is happening every single day. For us to prevail as both a party and as a working party movement, we have to crack down on anti-competitive behavior wherever it exists. I was proud to work with SEIU during the pandemic to crack down on what is happening with nursing homes and their anti-competitive behavior. I am proud to work with others to crack down on big tech, which has put a target on my back as well. And the same is true with other industries. We have to be the folks that are always promoting small businesses, more players at the table, making sure that workers have choices, that consumers have choices, and that the American people always have a level playing field when it comes to dealing with corporations and special interests. I should just say one last thing, which is I believe very strongly that it is incumbent on us to always fight for our constituents. That is why I have managed to win five times in a row in a district that last voted for Donald Trump with 47 percent of the vote. We have to win all voters. And the reason why voters have consistently reelected me is because I stand up for them, and they know that my office and I have been indispensable partners to them as they pursue their American dream.

Moderator: Thank you, Lt. Governor Stratton.

Stratton: Just to clarify, the question is why housing, food and healthcare is becoming so expensive.

Moderator: Yes. I’ll let you address that.

Stratton: Well, that is the quintessential question right now. When I travel the state and talk to everyday Illinoisans, the number one issue is affordability. Things are just too expensive. We are at the grocery store, too expensive. I am the mom of four daughters, and I can tell you that I have adult daughters who are wondering, will I ever be able to buy a home? When I think about what is happening with healthcare, people right now are deciding, do I go to the doctor and get the care I need, or do I pay my bills? Do I pay my rent? That is a false choice. And too many of us are put in positions where we should not have to choose. In the richest nation in this world, we should not have to do that. And so what is happening, why things are getting so expensive, is not just the corporate special interests, but also the attacks that we are seeing on workers. We are seeing millionaires and billionaires and corporate CEOs get richer. This president wants to make sure that he is giving tax cuts to the wealthiest, and he is paying for it on the backs of the rest of us. You know how he is paying for it? Cutting our healthcare, stripping away healthcare from millions of Americans. It is why we need to make life more affordable. And one of the ways that I will do that is I will fight for Medicare for All, because we need to make sure that healthcare is available to everyone. Now, of course, I would work alongside organized labor to figure out what model works best and how to make sure that you can continue having your good healthcare. For those of you that have really strong healthcare, we need to do that. […] We should not live in a country where the government can decide, “I am taking away your healthcare,” or decide you do not have access to food benefits. So we need to raise wages. I want to see a minimum wage of at least fifteen dollars an hour. We did it here, by the way, and I was a part of that here in Illinois, working alongside so many of you who were always in that fight for fifteen. And then when we came in, we got it done. I want to see that happen at the federal level. I want to make sure we protect collective bargaining rights. We passed, and I was a part of the team advocating for, the Workers’ Rights Amendment to make sure that we can protect your right to ask for and negotiate for the best wages and benefits that you can have. I want to see that in Washington. And I will, on day one, be a sponsor of the Protecting the Right to Organize (PRO) Act to make sure that we can protect collective bargaining rights. But mainly we need to make sure that we center the needs of working people and stop letting the wealthy get away with the power in Washington. […]

Moderator: Congresswoman Kelly.

Kelly: I go back to my platform, people over profits. We need to make sure that we are taxing millionaires, billionaires and corporations at the proper rate. If we do that, then we will have money for more affordable housing. We will have money to pay for healthcare. We will have money to pay for a federal minimum wage increase. We will have money to help parents with childcare. And when I think of competition, competition is good, but I want to make sure that competition comes from within America. I sit on the Steel Caucus. I have traveled to different places in the world, and I see the dumping that is done. So it makes it unfair for people working in the United States, because other countries are dumping their goods and making them so cheap. So it hurts those of us in the United States. It hurts working families in the United States. So really keeping an eye on that. And then I will jump into tariffs, not defending those at all, because those are just attacks on people. We want to make things fair for affordable trade and fairness. But what is happening now is absolutely ridiculous. When I think about other people in the solar industry and how the money was clawed back from all of those people, people that had union jobs, good union jobs, and now so many people that were trained do not have those jobs anymore. So I think when you talk about housing and affordable healthcare and all of that, taxing people wisely, looking at what we are doing with tariffs, which is absolutely ridiculous, because we are losing our farmers. They are getting killed. But making sure that we do not have to deal with the dumping and all of that from around the world, because we heard that constantly in the Steel Caucus and other caucuses also.

Please pardon any transcription errors.

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Catching up with the congressionals

Friday, Nov 14, 2025 - Posted by Isabel Miller

* Evanston Now reporter Mathew Eadie covered a 9th Congressional District candidate forum last night…

ON SUPPORTING HAKEEM JEFFRIES AS SPEAKER:
Pyati: No
Amiwala: No
Biss: Would support the best candidate, right now "haven’t seen any evidence of who that would be"
Abughazaleh: No, willing to accept change, but "at this moment, that’s not Hakeem Jeffries"

— Matthew Eadie (@mattheweadie22) November 14, 2025

More on the candidate forum from The Daily Northwestern…

Candidates often agreed with each other, never interrupting or insulting anyone else. Yet each candidate also sought to differentiate themselves from their opponents. […]

“I am the grassroots candidate in the race,” [Kat Abughazaleh] said. “We’re using our resources in a different way — mutual aid is a top priority for our campaign.” […]

[Former Google employee Nick Pyati] said the Democratic Party needs a candidate who can turn the party into one that will win general elections.

“The candidates in this race are fantastic Democrats,” he said. “Another year, I would’ve been putting up lawn signs and knocking doors for them.”

* Evanston Now…

If elected to Congress next year, Evanston Mayor Daniel Biss says he plans to resign from his city job in time to give voters a chance to elect a new mayor in April 2027.

Pressed at a candidate forum Thursday night about his transition plans, Biss said he would leave the mayor’s office after the Nov. 3, 2026 general election, but before Nov. 27.

Legally the mayor wouldn’t have to resign until Jan. 3, 2027, the day he would take office in Washington.

But under state law, if the resignation occurred later than Nov. 27 — less than 130 days before the next scheduled municipal election — an acting mayor to be named by the city council from among its members would serve until 2029, rather than facing the voters in 2027.

* Donna Miller announced some endorsements in CD2. Press release…

National leaders, educators and public safety officials are supporting Donna Miller for U.S. Representative in the state’s 2nd Congressional District. Since announcing her candidacy in July, the Cook County Commissioner has received a long list of endorsements from elected officials across the Chicagoland area. Her support to fill the vacancy left by U.S. Rep. Robin Kelly continues to grow. […]

- Carol Mosley Braun, former U.S. Sen., Illinois
- Terri Sewell, U.S. Rep., Alabama-7th District
- Troy Carter, U.S. Rep., Louisiana-2nd District
- Eartharin Cousins, U.S. Ambassador to the United Nations Agencies for Food and Agriculture in Rome
- Larry Snelling, Chicago Police Chief
- Demetrious Cook, Richton Park Police Chief
- Mitchell Davis, Hazel Crest Police Chief
- Sean Staples, South Holland Police Chief
- Blondean Davis, School Supt. District 182
- Tiffany Robinson, Moraine Valley Community College

Commissioner Miller also announced an endorsement from Dolton Mayor Jason House this morning…

Miller (no relation) deleted that post, probably because the Willie Preston campaign reached out to say House has actually endorsed him…

* Crain’s…

Chicago Ald. Byron Sigcho-Lopez, 25th, says he’ll decide in the coming weeks if he’ll mount an independent bid to replace retiring U.S. Rep. Jesus “Chuy” Garcia in Congress in what would be an uphill battle if he can’t gain union support. […]

Sigcho-Lopez is considering a run for the seat as an independent, but he’s been blocked out of consideration from unions currently conducting their screening process for the primary, which will make it difficult for him to gain traction and raise the money necessary to launch a campaign.

He reached out to the Chicago Federation of Labor and other unions last week to be considered, but was rebuffed because he won’t be on the ballot.

“We don’t stall our process for someone who’s going to potentially run in the general election, but not stand for a primary,” CFL president Bob Reiter told Crain’s. “If he wants to run as an independent, we’ll see him down the road when the time is right, but there’s nothing for us to do or to engage with him right now.”

According to the State Board of Elections, Sigcho-Lopez would need 10,816 valid signatures to run as an Independent. He could collect up to 17,304 signatures.

* US Rep. Brad Schneider…

Rep. Brad Schneider (IL-10) proudly announced the endorsement of more than 100 current and former elected officials serving the people of Illinois’s 10th Congressional District. Such an early display of broad and enthusiastic support is unprecedented in the district and reflects Schneider’s long record of working closely with local, state, and national leaders. These people recognize Brad’s commitment to delivering results for the people of the 10th District. […]

These endorsements reinforce the overwhelming momentum the Schneider campaign is building across the district. […]

Rep. Schneider’s newly announced endorsements include:

Illinois Statewide Leaders

Governor JB Pritzker
Secretary of State Alexi Giannoulias
Treasurer Michael Frerichs
Comptroller Susana Mendoza

U.S. Senate

Senator Dick Durbin
Senator Tammy Duckworth

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IBHE urged to push governor to release the rest of higher ed’s budget hike

Friday, Nov 14, 2025 - Posted by Rich Miller

* Capitol News Illinois…

University students and faculty urged the Illinois Board of Higher Education to press Gov. JB Pritzker to release more than $29 million in funding for state colleges and universities that state lawmakers approved this year but the Pritzker administration is holding back.

But the governor’s office said in an email to Capitol News Illinois that it does not intend to release the state-approved funding until it sees “stability” on federal education policy coming from Washington.

“(President) Trump’s budget bill and reckless tariffs have wreaked havoc on state revenues nationwide, making it essential to double down on fiscal discipline,” a spokesman in the governor’s office said. […]

In his budget proposal to the General Assembly in February, Pritzker proposed a 3% increase in higher education funding. But the $55.3 billion budget bill that lawmakers approved in May contained only a 1% increase, with an additional 2% — or $29.5 million — that could be distributed only “after the purpose and amounts have been approved in writing by the Governor.”

Democratic leaders in the General Assembly said at the time the money was intended to be used if there were significant cuts in federal higher education spending.

But in its statement this week, the governor’s office said it was always Pritzker’s intent to hold the money back as a cushion against uncertainties caused by the Trump administration.

“When the budget was approved by the legislature and signed, the Governor was clear that a 2% reserve would remain in place until we saw stability on education from Washington, which has yet to materialize,” the statement read.

In addition to holding back the higher education funding, Pritzker issued an executive order in September directing executive branch agencies to make plans to hold back as much as 4% of their budgets this year. The IBHE and Illinois Community College Board were not subject to that order.

I get why the union leaders, advocates and students quoted in the story want the money released. But this is not previously appropriated money that is being withheld from the system. It’s new money that is being held back just in case. And these days, “just in case” is a reasonable assumption, even though inflation is eating up all of that 3 percent hike.

Anyway, there’s more, so go check it out.

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RETAIL: Strengthening Communities Across Illinois

Friday, Nov 14, 2025 - Posted by Advertising Department

[The following is a paid advertisement.]

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Isabel’s morning briefing

Friday, Nov 14, 2025 - Posted by Isabel Miller

* ICYMI: Full SNAP benefits going out starting Friday as shutdown ends, Illinois officials say. Sun-Times…

*** Isabel’s Top Picks ***

* Tribune | Gov. JB Pritzker renews push for Illinois homeowners’ insurance rate oversight after bill fails in state House: Gov. JB Pritzker on Thursday renewed his call for legislation requiring insurance companies to justify and disclose the reasons behind steep homeowners’ insurance rate hikes — a proposal that stalled in the Illinois House last month despite support from the Democratic-controlled Senate. Pritzker said the state’s lack of authority over insurers leaves homeowners vulnerable to sharp premium increases, pointing to Bloomington-based State Farm’s decision this summer to raise home insurance rates by more than 27%. The company attributed the increases to extreme weather coupled with costly repairs.

* Sun-Times | Clock ticking for Illinois lawmakers to navigate hemp hurdles: That measure easily passed Illinois Senate President Don Harmon’s chamber, but never got a vote in the House, facing steep opposition from the hemp industry and pushback from lawmakers reluctant to criminalize products that have supported thousands of jobs. “This surprised everybody, and we’re trying to figure it out,” Harmon said. “Obviously, the Senate’s been trying to regulate hemp for a long time, and maybe this changes the baseline and gives us a fresh perspective from which to tackle the problem, but it’s just too early for us to pronounce what direction we’re going in.”

* Capitol News Illinois | Durbin defends shutdown vote, says it wasn’t coordinated with Schumer: “I think that is the crudest form of political weapon that I can imagine — and that’s why I came to the conclusion that we had tried to find a bipartisan agreement, and we reached it,” Durbin said following an unrelated event in Springfield. Durbin was one of eight members of the Senate Democratic caucus who joined Republicans in advancing the deal, providing the votes needed to break a filibuster. The measure passed Congress and was signed by President Donald Trump on Wednesday.

*** Statewide ***

* WTWO | Illinois Lottery named top performing lottery in the nation for second time: The Illinois Lottery under Allwyn Management has managed to be named the highest-performing lottery in North America even after an absence of major multistate jackpots. Despite this, the Illinois lottery has only seen a 2.6% decline, beating the next state by .4%. Illinois also ranked in the top 10 nationally for total instant ticket sales and record online sales of $702,000,000 in fiscal year 25. This is also impressive with Illinois holding no billion-dollar or more jackpots throughout the fiscal year.

*** Statehouse News ***

* Press Release | Prominent Union Endorsements Propel Momentum–United Steelworkers District 7 Endorses State Rep. Stephanie Kifowit for Illinois Comptroller: United Steelworkers (USW) District 7 has given its endorsement of State Representative Stephanie Kifowit for Illinois Comptroller, citing her unwavering pro-labor record, her deep financial expertise, and her visionary plan to protect workers’ rights and pensions through the Comptroller’s office.

* Journal & Topics | Moylan’s Health Issues, ‘Frustration’ Led Dem Candidate Cochran To Run In Primary: Justin Cochran, the 38-year-old Des Plaines resident whom it’s believed will replace longtime State Rep. Marty Moylan (D-55th) on the March 17, 2026 Democratic primary ballot, said this week that “frustration” with politics, specifically the Donald Trump presidential administration, is what directed him into the political arena. Cochran’s entry into local politics was in 2018 and within a year he was working as Moylan’s legislative office chief of staff. In that role, he provides constituent services, schedules meetings for Moylan, and “interfaces with Springfield.”

* WMBD | On the Record: Energy bill will not raise rates according to Peoria Democrat: That second measure would allow the creation of “energy storage facilities.” Once constructed, the storage units will hold power produced by solar and wind, allowing it to be dispersed when the sun isn’t out or the wind is slow, Koehler said. “We have to add more supply and battery storage adds supply,” he said. “We know that we have to put more energy onto the grid if we’re going to bring prices down. It’s a simple fact of supply and demand, and we know that demand is high in the summertime.

* Capitol News Illinois | Education union, students call on governor to release higher education funding: But the governor’s office said in an email to Capitol News Illinois that it does not intend to release the state-approved funding until it sees “stability” on federal education policy coming from Washington. “(President) Trump’s budget bill and reckless tariffs have wreaked havoc on state revenues nationwide, making it essential to double down on fiscal discipline,” a spokesman in the governor’s office said.

* Tri States Public Radio | Illinois education groups call for tax on millionaires : The president of a union representing employees at more than half a dozen public universities in Illinois said they will be pushing state lawmakers next year to improve funding for the institutions, even though it’s an election year. “There is no good year, right? Every year is always a reason not to do something. So when is the reason to do something?” said John Miller, President of the University Professionals of Illinois Local 4100.

* Muddy River News | Quincy lobbyist Michael McClain gets 45-day extension to report, after prison screw up, defense attorney says: Judge Manish Shah has granted lobbyist Michael McClain until December 29 to report for his two-year prison sentence as part of the Commonwealth Edison conspiracy case. “It’s not like we’re begging for more time,” defense attorney Patrick Cotter said. “The Bureau of Prisons screwed up, again.” McClain was scheduled to report to the Federal Bureau of Prisons by October 30, but his attorney was forced to seek an extension when the BOP failed to designate a location.

*** Chicago ***

* Crain’s | Johnson wants $1.3 billion as part of $18 billion, 5-year infrastructure plan: Mayor Brandon Johnson is seeking $1.3 billion in new borrowing to support a $18 billion, five-year capital funding plan in the City Council. The infrastructure plan includes issuing up to $3.9 billion in general obligation bonds over five years, and the new borrowing is drawing fire from members of the City Council who only authorized $830 million in infrastructure borrowing in February in a narrow 26-23 vote after a protracted fight over the structure of the financing.

* Crain’s | Johnson unveils amended budget to a skeptical City Council: The largest revenue change is increasing the city’s lease tax, which extends to everything from film production equipment rentals to computing software, from 11 to 15% to bring in an additional $416 million. Johnson’s initial proposal called for a 14% rate. […] Jack Lavin, CEO of the Chicagoland Chamber of Commerce, said in a statement the City Council should push off a vote until more detail is provided on the overall plan. “Our city’s businesses, families, and taxpayers deserve greater transparency and demand better accountability,” he said.

* NBC Chicago | ISIS terror plot exposed against 2024 Chicago Pride Parade: An ISIS plot to attack the Chicago Pride Parade with a backpack bomb in 2024 was discussed on a terrorist website but never carried out, according to FBI records obtained by the NBC Chicago investigative team. The bombing plot was to be carried out as an initial salvo in a series of attacks against gay targets in the U.S., according to an FBI affidavit in a terror case indicted Thursday in Detroit.

* Sun-Times | Judge plans March trial over feds’ use of force in Chicago deportation push: During a hearing Thursday afternoon, U.S. District Judge Sara Ellis told lawyers, “All I know about this is what I’ve read in the paper, which is that the operation is changing, I guess, over the next few months. … But then I read that they intend to be back in March.” Justice Department lawyer Andrew Warden told the judge, “There has been a transition of officers. There always is. Folks come in and out of operations. As far as, ‘will there be a sort of ramp-up in the spring?’ I don’t know whether that’s the case.”

* Chalkbeat Chicago | Chicago offers free virtual therapy to students, but some have concerns: CPS and the company, Hazel Health, say the provider safeguards student data and has helped the district tackle a teen mental health crisis at a time of limited access to care, threatened further by looming Medicaid cuts. “CPS has worked hard to ensure all CPS high school students have access to free, high-quality online therapy and counseling while maintaining student safety, privacy, and trust,” a district spokeswoman said in a statement. But student privacy advocates are urging the school board to drop or overhaul the district’s agreement with Hazel Health. They say the company’s parent consent form raises concerns about the possible use of student data to develop its product in violation of the state’s online student privacy law.

* Block Club | Derrick Rose Moves Back To Chicago In Retirement: ‘I Love Chi. The Good, The Bad, The Ugly’: The city declared Jan. 4 “Derrick Rose Day” in honor of the former All-Star point guard, while Rose had an Englewood garden dedicated to him and the Chicago Bulls announced plans to retire his jersey on Jan. 24, 2026. Rose discussed how his move back to Chicago was motivated by him wanting to be present for his three children. “Since I retired, I had time to really think about what’s the difference between a dad and a father,” Rose said, reflecting on his father’s absence in his life. “I always looked at my pops in the father category because he never was around.”

* NBC Chicago | Popular Chicago pie shop adds Malort-flavored item to their menu: “Here’s to you Chicago! We don’t have a liquor license so we can’t raise a glass, but we can raise our forks. Bring your big shoulders in for a slice of Chicago Sunrise (aka Malort and grapefruit) pie!” the post said. The pie is described on the shop’s website as a “one of a kind pie” that’s “garnished with a ring of lightly sweetened whipped cream.”

*** Cook County and Suburbs ***

* Sun-Times | Metra, Pace approve budgets with no fare hikes: Metra’s leaders approved a budget that spares riders from a fare hike next year, but they acknowledged it won’t be an express train to the hoped-for transformational service expansion. The commuter rail agency won’t see any service cuts next year, thanks to the $1.5 billion transit bailout passed in Springfield last month. But Metra’s $1.2 billion proposed budget, passed Thursday by the agency’s board of directors, largely keeps the status quo with plans for yet-to-be determined “modest service increases.” Metra CEO Jim Derwinski said there is still tough work ahead to expand service, even though the agency has overcome an impending deficit when federal COVID-19 funds run out next year.

* CBS Chicago | Judge tours Broadview ICE processing facility amid claims of inhumane conditions: Lawyers for the plaintiffs did not speak to reporters after completing the tour. In a statement from the MacArthur Justice Center, the ACLU of Illinois, and Eimer Stahl of Chicago, attorneys declined to discuss the conditions they saw inside the facility during the tour.

* WGN | Costs mount as National Guard soldiers sit on standby: On a military base an hour southwest of Chicago, National Guard soldiers from Texas are more than a month into a deployment. The Trump administration ordered troops to the area to protect federal property and personnel during immigration enforcement operations. […] The military says 200 National Guard soldiers from Texas and 300 from Illinois have been federalized for the Chicago operation for 60 days. The left-leaning Institute for Policy Studies pegs the deployment cost at a minimum of $647 per day, per soldier. The estimated total cost: $12.8 million.

* Daily Southtown | Homer Glen trustees again voice support for license plate reader cameras: Homer Glen officials are preparing to move forward with installing license plate reader cameras in town, but want to hear all potential privacy concerns before final approval. All six trustees voiced their support for the Flock Safety license plate camera system at a board meeting Wednesday and want to obtain more information about price, locations they would be installed and how they would be implemented. No vote on installing the cameras was taken, and trustees plan to continue discussion in December.

* Daily Herald | DuPage County clerk’s request for more money denied; board member suggests censure: In addition to raising doubts about the need for extra money, board members pointed to an ongoing lack of communication, questions over billing and bidding practices in the clerk’s office and Kaczmarek’s absence from county board meetings. “They are giving us information piecemeal, which makes it really difficult for us to have a full financial picture,” board member Yeena Yoo said. “I just feel like we’re giving them a blank check.”

* Daily Herald | ‘Belief in the limitless potential of our kids’: Boys and Girls Club turning old school into Impact Center: On Thursday, the club held a ceremonial wall-smashing where leaders took small sledgehammers to demolish a piece of drywall. Leaders also updated community members about the organization’s plans to help middle school and high school students. “This space will once again be filled with the sounds of young people learning, laughing and growing,” Barrington Unit School District 220 Superintendent Craig Winkelman told the crowd.

*** Downstate ***

* KWQC | Emails show Mercer County superintendent ordered nurse to turn over student health records: KWQC obtained his emails through the Freedom of Information Act. They center on communications in September between Farquer and a nurse, Amber Wood. According to the emails, Wood alerted the county health department that the school was seeing cases of hand, foot and mouth disease. Farquer asked Wood to compile information about the students, but Wood was reluctant.

* PJ Star | Peoria County approves fee increases for five departments in $174 million : A gradual increase of some user fees in Peoria County was approved by the Peoria County Board on Thursday night after some debate about how to structure the fee increases. User fees will be raised across five county departments, but only the new fees raised by the County Clerk’s Office will be implemented on a two-year ramp after County Clerk Rachael Parker raised concerns about the increases.

* Illinois Times | Voters to weigh tax increase for mental health board: The Mental Health Commission unanimously voted to approve language for a March referendum asking Sangamon County residents if they would approve a half-percent sales tax increase (an additional 5 cents per $10 of goods purchased, 50 cents per $100) to fund a county mental health board that would disburse such taxes toward various mental health initiatives. The tax would not be included on grocery or medication purchases. If approved, the tax would generate more than $14 million for a mental health board, according to county estimates.

* WGLT | Explosion of sports wagering discussed at problem gambling conference in Normal: Dave Wohl is executive director of the Illinois Council on Problem Gambling [ICPG], the nonprofit hosting the conference at the Marriott Hotel and Conference Center. Wohl said the council is neutral on gambling but is opposed when it leads to addiction, noting gambling is the leading cause of suicide among all addictions. “As with any addiction, when it starts affecting other aspects of your life, that’s when you need to talk to somebody, you need to get some help,” Wohl said in an interview on WGLT’s Sound Ideas.

* Illinois Times | Newly formed PURPLE Coalition aims to tackle unresolved inequalities: Made up entirely of volunteers and organized as a limited liability company, the Springfield-based coalition will “bring our community together, not through fear or division, but through understanding and community,” she said. “We will keep listening, keep organizing and keep pushing until justice, transparency and compassion are the standard, not the exception,” she said. Standage said the group’s name is an “ode” to Sonya Massey, the 36-year-old Black woman who was murdered in her home in Woodside Township, just outside the borders of Springfield’s east side, in July 2024 by former Sangamon County sheriff’s deputy Sean Grayson. The acronym formed by the coalition’s name was Massey’s favorite color.

* WICS | Lanphier High principal resigns amid battery charge for allegedly punching student: Christopher Hampsey, the Lanphier High School principal who faces an aggravated battery charge as authorities said he punched a student in the face, has resigned. Hampsey was previously on administrative leave after an incident involving Hampsey pushing a student into a corner and punched him in the face and head.

* Rockford Register Star | Rockford apartments for rent saw price increases since last October: Renters in Rockford saw apartment listing prices increase 8% from last year’s median of $999, an analysis of new data from rental marketplace Zumper shows. The typical apartment listed for rent at $1,080 in October. Median listing prices in Rockford are trending 8% upwards from last month’s $1,000 price.

* News-Gazette | Campustown restaurant to close after 53 years: Timpone’s Ristorante, 710 S. Goodwin Ave., announced the news in a Saturday advertisement with The News-Gazette. The business is set to close on Dec. 20. “Until our final day of service, we will continue to offer the signature made-from-scratch menu that has defined Timpone’s Ristorante since 1972,” the business stated in its ad. “We warmly invite you to join us one last time to savor your favorite dishes, share a story or two, and celebrate the wonderful journey we’ve shared together.”

*** National ***

* Newsweek | Tokyo Named World’s Richest City—Here’s Where US Cities Ranked: U.S. cities dominated the top 25 spots, with Greater Chicago coming seventh, followed by the San Francisco Bay Area (9), Greater Washington (12), Dallas-Fort Worth (13), Greater Houston (14), Greater Boston (15), Greater Seattle (18), Greater Philadelphia (19), Metro Atlanta (20) and Silicon Valley (24).

* AP | The trend of unproven peptides is spreading through influencers and RFK Jr. allies: But the peptides being promoted by influencers, celebrities and wellness gurus are different: Many have never been approved for human use and much of their purported evidence comes from studies in rats and other animals. Several peptides, such as BPC-157 and TB-500, are banned by international sports authorities as doping substances. “None of them are proven,” said Dr. Eric Topol, a research methods expert and director of Scripps Research Translational Institute. “None of them have gone through what would be considered adequate clinical trials, but nonetheless many people are taking these. It’s actually quite extraordinary.”

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Good morning!

Friday, Nov 14, 2025 - Posted by Rich Miller

* I saw this guy last weekend…

I smelled the roses

What’s up by you?

5 Comments

Protected: SUBSCRIBERS ONLY - Today’s edition of Capitol Fax (use all CAPS in password)

Friday, Nov 14, 2025 - Posted by Rich Miller

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Selected press releases (Live updates)

Friday, Nov 14, 2025 - Posted by Isabel Miller

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Live coverage

Friday, Nov 14, 2025 - Posted by Isabel Miller

* Click here and/or here to follow breaking news on the website formally known as Twitter. Our Bluesky feed…

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Isabel’s afternoon roundup

Thursday, Nov 13, 2025 - Posted by Isabel Miller

* Capitol News Illinois…

Most state agencies were required to submit spending cut plans to Gov. JB Pritzker by Oct. 23, but the governor’s office has declined to release details about those plans.

A spokesperson for Pritzker said the governor’s budget office is still reviewing the proposed cuts.

“Gov. Pritzker is taking proactive steps to protect Illinois’ fiscal stability,” spokesperson Andres Correa said in a statement. “These reviews are part of ensuring the state remains on solid financial footing and can continue delivering the core services Illinoisans depend on.” […]

But this lack of transparency is not sitting well with Republicans, who said Pritzker needs to be open about the cuts agencies have proposed.

“I was very much looking forward to seeing where Gov. Pritzker’s agencies identified inefficiencies and excessive spending and hoped that maybe this executive order would create a slightly more efficient government,” Rep. Amy Elik, R-Godfrey, the House Republicans’ budget leader, said at a news conference Thursday.

* Border Patrol Commander Greg Bovino’s responds to federal judge’s plan to grant bond to about 615 people arrested in violation of a consent decree…

Bovino: "Whether they were criminals or individuals that were taking jobs from Americans — you name it, that's what they were doing. And I'll tell you what's gonna happen. We're gonna go even harder on the streets. If he releases those 650, we're gonna apprehend 1,650 on the… pic.twitter.com/6qFE16hU6L

— Aaron Rupar (@atrupar) November 13, 2025

*** Statehouse News ***

* Evanston Now | Ruttenberg scores nurses union backing: The Illinois Nurses Association announced this week it’s endorsing Rachel Ruttenberg of Evanston in her state senate race. The endorsement was part of a slate announced Tuesday, which included Lt. Gov. Juliana Stratton in her race for the U.S. Senate, State Sen. Rob Peters in his race for the 2nd District U.S. House seat and Karina Villa, who’s running for state comptroller. Ruttenberg was the only candidate INA backed in a state senate race, according to Tuesday’s announcement. She’s running for a seat currently held by Sen. Laura Fine (D-Glenview). Fine is leaving her seat to run for Congress in the 9th District.

* Press Release | Manley Appointed to Legislative Audit Commission, Tapping CPA Experience: As a Certified Public Accountant (CPA) working in the accounting field for nearly three decades, state Rep. Natalie Manley, D-Joliet, will serve on the state’s Legislative Audit Commission (LAC), a select group of legislators to lead public hearings on major audits of state agencies to review performance, correct outstanding issues and ensure public dollars are being spent appropriately for Illinois residents.

*** Chicago ***

* Sun-Times | Mayor Johnson offers concessions to salvage his $16.6B budget, but City Council support still in doubt: The $18 million revenue loss from that change would be made up by raising the personal property lease tax on cloud computing and software higher than Johnson initially proposed. Instead of 14%, the tax on cloud computing would be raised to 15%, which would generate an estimated $416 million. That would make the tax 66% higher than what it was a year ago when Johnson raised the tax from 9% to 14%. With that increase, the tax yielded $333 million. Towing fees would also be raised by 66% — from $150 to $250 for vehicles under 8,000 lbs., a category that includes passenger vehicles and SUVs. The towing fee for heavy-duty vehicles would rise from $250 to $350, under the revised fee schedule expected to raise $7 million a year.

* Tribune | Judge rules mandatory detention of Chicago day care teacher by ICE is illegal: A federal judge ruled Wednesday that the U.S. government’s mandatory detention of Diana Patricia Santillana Galeano, the day care teacher arrested at a Chicago preschool, is illegal and she must be given a bond hearing. According to the ruling by U.S. District Judge Jeremy Daniel, Santillana will be given a bond hearing in front of an immigration judge, who could order her released while her civil deportation case proceeds. Her hearing is scheduled for Tuesday.

* NPR | Some labor unions remain committed to recruiting women despite policy rollbacks: Women make up less than 5% of the construction trades - professions such as carpenter, electrician and plumber. President Trump wants to grow the industry, but there are fears women could be further sidelined. Some labor unions say they will not let that happen.

* WTTW | Toxic Dump Set for Transformation Into Chicago’s Next Lakefront Destination, Introducing Park #608: On Wednesday, with the sun shining on a brisk fall day, the Chicago Park District unveiled signage for the future home of Park #608. The name is a placeholder for 43 acres adjacent to Calumet Park that have, since 1984, been home to a disposal facility used by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers to hold polluted sediment dredged from the Calumet River and Cal-Sag Channel. “What was once a dumping ground will be a destination,” said Carlos Ramirez-Rosa, CEO and general superintendent of the Chicago Park District.

* Block Club | 3 Friends Visit Every CTA ‘L’ Stop In 9 Hours In Effort To Set Guinness World Record: “We think Chicago is one of the best places in the whole world, and we want more people to come here and understand how easy it is to get around,” he said. “It’s about showing people that you can go to Little India on the North Side, Little Village on the Southwest Side and anywhere in between on the CTA.”

* ABC Chicago | Chicago’s Manny’s Deli shares noodle kugel recipe on Cooking up a Storm: BC7 Chicago meteorologist Tracy Butler was Cooking up a Storm Thursday with an iconic Jewish deli that has called Chicago home for decades. Manny’s, located at 1141 S. Jefferson St. in the South Loop, is a frequent stop for politicians and celebrities. And it’s also been giving back, dishing up 1,800 free meals during the government shutdown.

*** Cook County and Suburbs ***

* Sun-Times | Protest hours at Broadview ICE facility too restrictive, lawyer suing village says: A Chicago attorney who filed for a preliminary injunction as part of a federal lawsuit against the village of Broadview over its recent restrictions on protests near the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement processing facility appeared Thursday to discuss the ongoing matter. “My hope and expectation is that a federal judge will sustain the rights to ordinary working people to exercise their first amendment rights other than the restricted hours of 9 a.m. to 6 p.m.,” Robert Held, a Chicago Council of Lawyers board member and activist, said during a short media briefing Thursday outside the facility at 1930 Beach St.

* Daily Herald | Why Elgin could increase its general property tax levy for the first time in more than a decade: The 13.2% levy increase will help close a $4.2 million gap in the city’s roughly $407.6 million budget, City Manager Rick Kozal said Wednesday during a special committee of the whole meeting to discuss the 2026 budget and a three-year plan. “It is with great debate and deliberation that this recommendation for this modest increase was coming,” Kozal said. “But we thought that the property tax increase, rather than going to other revenue sources, was the most efficient and economical way to recover what is needed, that $4 million, to maintain the level of city operations.”

* Evanston Now | Body camera contract gets mixed reaction: Ald. Matt Rodgers (8th) argued in favor of the proposal, pushing back on some panel members’ suggestion the city try and purchase services ‘À la carte’ from various providers to try and bring the price tag down. “I think it’s very important that it be a whole ecosystem,” Rodgers said, something Ald. Tom Suffredin (6th) agreed with. “This isn’t a place to cheap out,” Suffredin said, raising concerns about potential liability for the city by trying to find a cheaper deal.

* Aurora Beacon-News | First home unveiled in Aurora’s new ‘smart neighborhood’: The show home highlights various features that houses in the neighborhood will have, from solar panels on the roof to electric car chargers in the garage. The innovation going into these homes is expected to make them more resilient against inclement weather plus lead to lower utility costs, making them more affordable. One example of the houses’ innovative features is the method used to create the walls of the structure: foam blocks connected by plastic webs that fit together sort of like LEGO bricks.

*** Downstate ***

* Fox News | Duckworth staffer accused of posing as lawyer in attempt to free illegal immigrant from ICE custody: According to a letter sent Wednesday to Duckworth, D-Ill., U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) Acting Director Todd Lyons said the staffer told federal agents he was the attorney of Jose Ismeal Ayuzo Sandoval — a 40-year-old illegal immigrant previously deported four times to Mexico and who had a DUI conviction. […] While at the facility, York successfully met with Ayuzo and got him to sign a G-28 form, the letter said. It allows an attorney to represent a client on immigration matters, empowering them to receive official correspondence, communicate with government agencies on their behalf and more.

* WCIA | City of Decatur implements water rationing measures as lake level drops: On Oct. 8 it was reported that Lake Decatur was 2.4 feet below its normal water level. A month later, Ryan Huffer, the City of Decatur’s Communications Coordinator, said the lake is now more than three feet below normal, and the water level continues to decline due to evaporation and a lack of consistent rainfall. While rain did fall on Oct. 18 and 19, it wasn’t enough to reverse the lake’s decline.

* WJBD | Marion County Board chair wants to begin work on multi-million-dollar digital radio system for emergency responders: The Marion County Board will be asked to add $1 million to next year’s budget from the Public Safety Tax to begin work on converting the county to a new digital radio system. Board Chair and Centralia Police Lieutenant Steve Whritenour says the old analog system has outlived its time. “Marion County unfortunately is still on an old analog system,” Whritenour said. “Improving communications throughout the entire county would benefit every fire department, every law enforcement agency and ambulance service, to have that lifeline between the dispatch and all those agencies. It’s a vital link.”

* WICS | Springfield voters may decide on landlord registry in March 2026 ballot: Springfield voters could soon have a say on a proposed landlord registry ordinance, potentially appearing on the March 2026 ballot. After years of discussion, city leaders are considering allowing constituents to weigh in on the matter. Roy Williams Jr., co-sponsor of the ordinance, emphasized the need for public input. “All we’re asking for tonight is for the permission to put it on the ballot,” Williams said. “It’s been well over time to do something different in Springfield, Illinois.”

*** National ***

* Bond Buyer | SEC muni enforcement down sharply in 2025: Municipal securities enforcement actions by the Securities and Exchange Commission have totaled just three so far this year, putting 2025 on track to record a noteworthy decline from the enforcement level pace it has maintained going back to at least 2019.

* Bloomberg | VW, Rivian eye selling EV technology to other carmakers: Volkswagen AG and Rivian Automotive Inc. have ambitions of selling the electric vehicle technology they’re developing together to other carmakers in the future. Their joint venture, known as RV Tech, said it has made solid progress on delivering the EV electrical and software platform that Volkswagen needs to compete with Tesla Inc. and Chinese rivals. The JV is focused on delivering models for Rivian and VW but is keeping communication open with third parties about the scalability of its platforms.

* AP | Lifelong drugs for autoimmune diseases don’t work well. Now scientists are trying something new: Researchers are altering dysfunctional immune systems, not just suppressing them, in a variety of ways that aim to be more potent and more precise than current therapies. They’re highly experimental and, because of potential side effects, so far largely restricted to patients who’ve exhausted today’s treatments. But people entering early-stage studies are grasping for hope.

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Pritzker on federal shutdown, Trump, midterm elections

Thursday, Nov 13, 2025 - Posted by Rich Miller

* More from Gov. Pritzker’s press conference today…

Q: Does this current political climate suggest that these kinds of government shutdowns are going to become more regular? And if everything’s funded through January, SNAP through September, but what concerns do you have that conditions in this country are going to make this kind of thing much more common?

Pritzker: When Donald Trump doesn’t want to give people health care and is willing to take away people’s food in order to force people to take less health care or pay higher premiums, that’s going to cause Democrats and Republicans, apparently, not to be able to get along and not to be able to get the things that average Americans want.

What I am so upset about is that Donald Trump was fine with people not being able to travel, people not being able to get their food. He was fine, he is fine with taking away health care from people.

And, yeah, if you want to see division in the country, stop feeding people, stop giving them health care. And so it’s Donald Trump and MAGA Republicans that have done this to this country. I’m hopeful that there will be reasonable minds that will come together and that we will be able to move past January and the end of January, which is now when the CR goes to, and not have to have any more shutdowns. But this is on Donald Trump. Remember, MAGA Republicans control the House, the Senate, the presidency and the Supreme Court. So who’s in charge? It’s the Republicans. When things aren’t going well in this country. It’s the people in charge that you ought to look to, and it’s Donald Trump that’s leading them.

Q: What do you think this is going to do for the 2026 election? Are the voters going to remember this shutdown?

Pritzker: Well, I think you saw, I mean, a wave election about nine days ago, where Democrats swept across the country. Look at what happened. Nobody’s paying attention to Georgia, where there were two candidates, Democratic candidates running for the highest offices that were on the ballot there, and they won by 20 points in a state that most people would say is mostly a red state. So when Democrats are winning by 20 points in a red state, and when Democrats who were supposed to win by three or six points in New Jersey and Virginia, which are purple states, winning by 13 and 15 points. I think you can see that people are very upset with the leadership of the MAGA Republicans of the federal government

Thoughts?

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Pritzker on hemp ban, BSL, Johnson head tax, and homeowners insurance bill

Thursday, Nov 13, 2025 - Posted by Isabel Miller

* As part of the spending deal to end the federal government shutdown, Congress approved provision banning THC products. Governor Pritzker was asked about the hemp ban during an unrelated news conference…

Pritzker: What I wanted was for intoxicating hemp to be regulated the same way that cannabis is in the state, and I haven’t looked at the details of the bill that was passed, because it’s not a complete ban. There’s regulation around it. It makes it harder for the worst parts of intoxicating hemp to be just sold to anybody. So we’re going to have to look at how we might regulate it now that we see that the federal government is limiting it. But the goal here is to keep our children safe. That really is my number one goal about regulating intoxicating hemp. And when it’s available everywhere, and it’s got names like Skittlz with a Z on the end, and it looks the same as Skittles the candy. It’s just not right. I have been disappointed that the industry here has been unwilling to accept proper regulation. So now we’ll end up at the table talking about how best to move forward.

Reporter: Will you ask the General Assembly to look at regulating it?

Pritzker: Again, I have to sort of sort through what the federal bill actually allows us to do, because Supremacy Clause, we’ve learned a lot about that in the last few months. But we want to make sure that whatever it is that’s allowed in the state of Illinois, again, is just safe for children and, obviously, safe for anybody that uses it.

* Click here for some background. On Chicago Mayor Brandon Johnson’s head tax…

Reporter: Reporter: You spoke on Veterans Day with Ald. Byron Sigcho-Lopez about Mayor Johnson’s proposed head tax. How would you characterize your conversation with him, and did he swing you at all on your opposition to the head tax?

Pritzker: Well, yelling isn’t a conversation, and that’s how he came at it. But I was the one who stopped to talk to him, because, look, he’s an alderman — dialogue is always a good thing. I know he disagrees with me. He thinks there ought to be a head tax. I think that taxing businesses on the number of jobs that they’re creating is a bad way to go. Do I think that we ought to have a more graduated income tax system, or one in which wealthy businesses, wealthy people are paying a higher percentage than average working people? Yes, I do. I think that’s been pretty clear. So I’m not sure exactly what he was yelling about, except that we have a disagreement about that head tax. I don’t think that’s a good idea, because telling people that, well, the fewer people you hire, the less you’re going to pay, is not a good message for businesses or for workers, for that matter. So I was happy to have a conversation. I don’t think he did it in the right way. He could have called me. He’s not ever called me. I know he said he’s reached out to members of my administration, but I’m pretty easy to find and pretty easy to get on the phone with and talk. That’s not what he wants. He just wants headlines, because I think he wants to run for Congress — although I don’t see how that’s available, except, of course, as a write-in. We’ll see how that goes.

The governor is wrong that Sigcho-Lopez would need to run a write-in campaign. He can run as an independent, but he’ll need more than 11,000 valid signatures.

* On the Homeowners’ insurance reform bill that failed in House with 56 votes…

Reporter: Can I ask you about homeowner’s insurance. There was a bill that failed on the House floor, can I get your reaction to that? What do you think is the pass moving forward?

Pritzker: Look, we’re one of the very few states that doesn’t have any limits on what a an insurance company can charge and how they can increase the homeowner’s insurance premiums. So I believe that we need to move forward looking at that bill that didn’t quite get through the House, and see how it might be adjusted, so that our Department of Insurance can review the premiums that are increases that State Farm and Allstate and other homeowners insurance companies are charging. But increases like 27 percent in a single year ought to be reviewed by a state regulator, and that’s all we’re asking.

Reporter: What kind of adjustments?

Pritzker: Again, what we want is for the insurance companies simply to show us why it’s appropriate for them to raise rates by 27 percent. They didn’t do that. They haven’t done that. All they did was say, ‘Well, we had losses, so we’re increasing by 27 percent.’ We don’t know if the homeowners are being gouged. And that’s what it feels like with 27 percent increases. By the way, that’s the average increase. There’s some that are getting 40 and 50 percent increases and some lower, but 27 percent on average is ludicrous in a single year. And so again, we just want them to justify what they’re doing to homeowners across the state. I think 27 percent sounds outrageous.

20 Comments

Catching up with the federal candidates

Thursday, Nov 13, 2025 - Posted by Isabel Miller

* Politico…

A fellow Democrat moved to sanction Illinois Rep. Chuy García Wednesday for a gambit in which he retired and functionally guaranteed that his chief of staff would be the only Democrat on the ballot to succeed him.

Rep. Marie Gluesenkamp Perez of Washington went to the House floor as lawmakers prepared to debate legislation reopening the government to introduce a resolution accusing García of “undermining the process of a free and fair election” and calling on the House to disapprove of his behavior.

Gluesenkamp Perez read her resolution aloud in its entirety, which calls García’s maneuver “beneath the dignity of his office and incompatible with the spirit of the Constitution.”

From US Rep. Garcia’s spokesperson…

“Congressman García made a deeply personal decision based on his health, his wife’s worsening condition and his responsibility to the grandchildren he is raising after the death of his daughter. He followed every rule and every filing requirement laid out by the State of Illinois.

“At a moment like this, he hopes his colleagues, especially those who speak about family values, can show the same compassion and respect that any family would want during a health crisis. Congressman García remains committed to finishing his term with dignity and continuing his lifelong fight for working families.”

The Sun-Times’ coverage of Patty Garcia’s campaign launch yesterday…

Acknowledging a “whirlwind of emotions” after her surprise candidacy for Illinois’ 4th Congressional District seat, Patty Garcia swatted down criticism Wednesday that retiring U.S. Rep. Jesus “Chuy” Garcia had cleared her path to the Democratic nomination with a maneuver from the old-school playbook of Chicago politics. […]

“It’s an open process. Any person who’s interested in running for office can apply, can circulate their petitions and submit an application. We followed the rules. We collected signatures, and we submitted an application,” she said during her first campaign appearance at a grocery store in her hometown of Cicero. “People can apply at any point. We didn’t stop anybody from applying.” […]

But for anyone who would’ve considered running if they had known Chuy Garcia wouldn’t — like Ald. Byron Sigcho-Lopez (25th), who’s exploring an independent bid — that’s on them, Patty Garcia said. […]

“For those that are saying like, ‘Oh, this was planned,’ — it wasn’t. Those that know me know that I plan and I organize ahead and I’ve got everything set up. Some people here didn’t know we were doing this till yesterday, because that’s how we’ve been planning,” she said.

* US Senate candidate Raja Krishnamoorthi has released his sixth TV ad of the cycle. Press Release…

Today, Raja for Illinois released its sixth television ad of the cycle, “No One.”

In the new spot, 16th Ward Alderman and Chair of the Aldermanic Black Caucus Stephanie Coleman outlines why she proudly endorsed Raja for U.S. Senate, citing his proven record of delivering for communities and taking on the powerful to protect everyday Illinoisans.

“Plenty of politicians talk a good game. Raja delivers for the community I represent, and every community. Raja never stops fighting for people left behind. I’ve seen him take on some of the most powerful people to hold them accountable, to lower our costs, to protect our rights,” said Alderman Stephanie Coleman. “We’ve never needed someone like Raja in the Senate more. No one fights harder – No one.”

Watch “No One” HERE

* Chicago Treasurer Melissa Conyears-Ervin is one of 13 Democrats running to succeed retiring U.S. Rep. Danny Davis in the 7th CD,. Crain’s…

Chicago Treasurer Melissa Conyears-Ervin today proposed the city stop investing in U.S. Treasuries to protest President Donald Trump’s increased immigration enforcement and deployment of troops, drawing criticism from some colleagues who called the plan “reckless.”

During a City Council budget committee hearing, Conyears-Ervin said her office, which oversees an investment portfolio of more than $9 billion, will propose to immediately prohibit direct purchases of US Treasury marketable securities.

She also plans to seek the council’s approval to shift the portfolio, which includes cash, bonds, commercial paper and money market funds, away from holdings that derive benefits from the $30 trillion Treasuries market, according to a statement.

It’s uncertain the treasurer’s proposal will get sufficient backing from the city council. Alderman Raymond Lopez called it “reckless” while Alderman Bill Conway, a former banker, questioned the wisdom of divesting US government securities when their returns top the roughly 3.6% return the city’s portfolio made last year.

* Evanston Now…

The name of Evanston Mayor Daniel Biss will appear first on the Democratic ballot next March in the 9th District U.S. House primary.

Biss won Wednesday’s ballot order lottery involving a dozen candidates.

The dozen Democratic candidates who were waiting in line when the filing period opened at 8 a.m. Oct. 27 and filed the needed 1,173 signatures were entered into the lottery streamed live from the state Board of Election’s office in Springfield.

The full order of how candidates will appear on voters’ ballots for both the Democratic and Republican primaries is as follows:

DEMOCRATIC primary ballot

- Daniel Biss
- Justin Ford
- Mike Simmons
- Bushra Amiwala
- Patricia A. Brown
- Jeff Cohen
- Bruce Leon
- Laura Fine
- Phil Andrew
- Nick Pyati
- Kat Abughazaleh
- Sam Polan
- Bethany Johnson
- Howard Rosenblum
- Natalie Angelo
- Hoan Huynh
- Mark Arnold Fredrickson

REPUBLICAN primary ballot

- John Elleson
- Paul Friedman
- Rocio Cleveland
- Mark Dongbo Su

* More from Politico…

— In IL-08: A Democratic candidate forum tonight is being sponsored by Citizen Action/Illinois. Details to attend here, or watch the livestream here.

— In IL:08: Mark Rice, a Republican running in the 8th Congressional District has signed on to the U.S. Term Limits pledge that if elected, he’d run to serve three terms in Congress. Democratic candidates Junaid Ahmed and Sanjyot Dunung have also signed the pledge.

— In IL-07: Reed Showalter, who’s running for the open 7th District congressional seat, is teaming up with former USDA Public Affairs Director Alan Shannon on Nov. 18 for a virtual conversation about the nation’s food system. Details here

— In IL-08: Yasmeen Bankole has been endorsed by the Elk Grove Village International Association of Fire Fighters Local 2340 and the Hoffman Estates IAFF Local 2061.

25 Comments

Isabel’s morning briefing

Thursday, Nov 13, 2025 - Posted by Isabel Miller

* ICYMI: ‘We will win’: Six Broadview protesters plead not guilty to conspiracy, decry attack on First Amendment. Sun-Times…

* Related stories…

• WTTW: Kat Abughazaleh, Other Democratic Candidates Plead Not Guilty to Charges Stemming From Confrontation at Broadview ICE Facility
• Tribune: Attorneys plan logistics for tour of ICE facility in Broadview; temporary restraining order to be extended
• Block Club: Protesters Keep Getting Arrested At Broadview By State Police Despite Promise To Protect Free Speech

* Gov. Pritzker will attend the ribbon cutting for the newly renovated International Alliance of Theatrical Stage Employees Local 2 training facility at 10 am. Click here to watch.

*** Isabel’s Top Picks ***

* Sun-Times | Hemp product ban, tacked onto law to reopen government, stuns Illinois businesses: ‘Unnecessary and cruel’: ”In the absence of action in Springfield, Governor Pritzker supports policies to protect people, including children, from being misinformed or harmed by these products,” a spokesperson said. West Side state Rep. La Shawn Ford — who has pushed for less stringent regulations including age limits, testing standards and packaging requirements for hemp products — said the ban starts “a whole new war on drugs.” “You can’t ban it. It’s still here. It’s just being driven underground,” he said.

* E&E News | Grain Belt Express faces Illinois high court review: Lawyers for the developers of the Grain Belt Express power line and Illinois utility regulators said a state appellate court erred last month when it overturned approval of a permit for the $7 billion project, throwing its future into limbo. They made their case during oral arguments before the Illinois Supreme Court, the latest plot twist in a decadelong effort to build the 780-mile Grain Belt Express line to deliver renewable energy from windy, sunny southwest Kansas to the nation’s largest electricity market, PJM Interconnection.

* Tribune | Illinois sees record EV sales as Trump administration ends federal tax credits, but state goals still far off: The third quarter of this year saw EV sales grow to 8.4% of overall vehicle sales in Illinois, a record, according to data from Experian Automotive published in Illinois Auto Outlook, a local publication of Foltz’s group. That was up a percentage point from the same period last year and from 7.1% the previous quarter, the data showed.

*** Statewide ***

* Tribune | Illinois climbs in national hospital safety ranking, but four hospitals get F grades: Illinois now ranks 17th in the country — up from 23rd a year ago and 30th before that — for its percentage of hospitals earning A grades for safety, according to Leapfrog, which releases hospital safety grades twice a year. Illinois moved up in the rankings because its percentage of A-graded hospitals increased slightly, while other states have seen their percentages drop, said Alexandra Campione, program manager of the safety grade for the Leapfrog Group.

* NPR Illinois | Looming court decision on conversion therapy could impact Illinois law: Mike Ziri is Director of Public Policy for Equality Illinois, an LGBTQ+ advocacy group. He said the laws protect patients. “Impacted communities know that this law exists and that they have recourse under the law to file a complaint if a therapist unethically engages in conversion therapy practices, coerces someone into conversion therapy practices,” he said.

*** Statehouse News ***

* Governing | How Illinois Made a ‘Transformational’ Investment in Transit: Supporters of the legislation hope it makes the transit network easier to use, with more intuitive wayfinding for riders, simpler fare policies, a stronger sense of safety and cleanliness and more frequent service. The ultimate goal is to increase ridership and make transit a viable alternative to driving for more people. “What’s super exciting about this is that it is taking the fiscal cliff and turning it on its head,” says Yonah Freemark, a researcher at the Urban Institute. “It’s saying, not only do we need to solve the funding crisis, but we need to make transit better.”

* WMBD | Pekin Republican said Downstate bailed out Chicago transit: State Rep. Travis Weaver is still sore that some of Central Illinois’ tax dollars were used to fix Chicago’s transit problems. The Pekin Republican had blunt words when it came to helping Chicago and Cook County dig out of their $200 million budget hole. “You and I don’t pay our gas tax to bail out Chicago Transit,” he said. “You and I pay our gas tax so that we can have good roads here in Peoria. So, I was really, really disappointed to see how that came together.”

* The Read Deal | A look at newest GOP gubernatorial candidate Rick Heidner’s real estate business: Heidner and his wife, Alisa Heidner, run commercial real estate firm Heidner Properties, along with their four children. The company owns and manages 280 commercial properties across the U.S., making him the most experienced real estate professional in the GOP primary. Over the past three years, the company has led the turnaround of a struggling suburban Chicago shopping mall, the Arboretum of South Barrington.

*** Chicago ***

* Crain’s | Head tax talks in flux as Johnson scrambles for budget votes: Johnson has held meetings with individual aldermen to gauge their support for the potential changes, but it’s far from certain the amendments will gain the 26 votes required for budget approval. Meanwhile, members of the Progressive Caucus say the mayor’s actual plan doesn’t line up with how he’s framed it.

* Illinois Answers Project | Feds Deployed Tear Gas on the Far South Side Even After Cops Told Them They Had No Gas Masks, Sources Say: Just after police officers arrived to take over and secure the area, the federal agents deployed tear gas, smoke and other riot-control chemicals against residents and officers, including Chicago Police Department Deputy Chief Dan O’Connor, who had asked the feds not to use the gas, the sources said. In addition to O’Connor, the South Chicago police district’s second-in-command, shift commander and much of the district’s tactical team were sickened by the gas, according to police sources.

* ProPublica | “I Lost Everything”: Venezuelans Were Rounded Up in a Dramatic Midnight Raid but Never Charged With a Crime: Stephen Miller, the White House homeland security adviser and architect of the nationwide immigration crackdown, declared that the building was “filled with TdA terrorists,” that the raid had “saved God knows how many lives” and that it was “one of the most successful law enforcement operations that we’ve seen in this country. A ProPublica investigation, however, has found little evidence to support the government’s claims. ProPublica has discovered the names of 21 of the detained Venezuelan men and women and interviewed 12 of them. We also spoke with dozens of their relatives, friends and neighbors. And we reviewed U.S. public records databases and court websites, examined court documents and social media accounts, obtained audio and video recordings made that night, and attended immigration court hearings.

* WIRED | DHS Kept Chicago Police Records for Months in Violation of Domestic Espionage Rules: For seven months, the data—records that had been requested on roughly 900 Chicagoland residents—sat on a federal server in violation of a deletion order issued by an intelligence oversight body. A later inquiry found that nearly 800 files had been kept, which a subsequent report said breached rules designed to prevent domestic intelligence operations from targeting legal US residents. The records originated in a private exchange between DHS analysts and Chicago police, a test of how local intelligence might feed federal government watchlists. The idea was to see whether street-level data could surface undocumented gang members in airport queues and at border crossings. The experiment collapsed amid what government reports describe as a chain of mismanagement and oversight failures.

* WGN | $172M and counting: What taxpayers spent on misconduct claims tied to one Chicago detective: The Chicago City Council is expected to approve a $17 million settlement in another wrongful conviction case involving a notorious former Chicago Police detective. Jose Maysonet spent 27 years in prison for a double murder conviction that was later overturned, amid allegations of misconduct by Reynaldo Guevara. Maysonet claimed in legal filings that Guevara beat him during a lengthy interrogation, forcing him to falsely confess to the 1990 killings of two brothers on the Northwest Side.

* Block Club Chicago | St. Sabina Food Pantry Sees ‘Record-Breaking Numbers’ As SNAP Benefits Falter: “We have made record-breaking numbers in the last two weeks,” Norwood said. Less than a week ago, lines formed outside the pantry an hour before it opened at 9 a.m., Norwood said. Staff couldn’t shrink the line until 2 p.m. — an hour before closing. One day, they had to cut the line off and ask people to return in the morning.

* ABC Chicago | Civil rights activist Rev. Jesse Jackson hospitalized amid rare brain disorder diagnosis: Jackson is “under observation for Progressive Supranuclear Palsy (PSP), a neurodegenerative disorder he has managed for more than a decade,” a statement from Rainbow PUSH read. The civil rights activist was initially diagnosed with Parkinson’s disease. However, he was diagnosed with PSP in April 2025.

* The Times | Tales of Pope Leo, the Blues Brothers fan ‘on a mission from God’: Pope Leo XIV, 70, was a big fan of the anarchic 1980 Hollywood classic, a Vatican-produced documentary has revealed. He dressed up as one of the brothers while a seminarian, donning dark glasses and a fedora hat years before he switched to a mitre and papal robes. Leo from Chicago was released on Monday to mark six months since the pope’s election. It investigates the American pope’s younger years, interviewing his brothers, childhood friends and seminary colleagues.

* Chicago Eater | Alinea Has Lost a Michelin Star: “We were disappointed to learn of our @michelinguide demotion to two stars. For 20 years, Alinea has been devoted to pushing creativity, rigor, and the pursuit of perfection in our craft. That commitment remains as unwavering today as it was on day one, and will continue until the back door of 1723 locks for the last time,” the post reads.

*** Cook County and Suburbs ***

* ABC Chicago | Judge to tour Broadview ICE facility amid ‘inhumane conditions’ allegations: The ICE facility in Broadview has been at the heart of “Operation Midway Blitz.” On Thursday, it will be in an even greater spotlight as U.S. Magistrate Judge Laura McNally will visit the facility. Attorneys who filed a class action lawsuit over alleged inhumane conditions will join Judge McNally.

* Daily Southtown | Dolton says former Mayor Tiffany Henyard should be responsible for attorneys fees in FOIA lawsuit: The village, during a court hearing Wednesday, called the amount sought by the Edgar County Watchdogs in attorney fees unreasonable. The nonprofit requested Cook County Judge Kate Moreland order the village pay $10,000 in civil penalties, $41,000 in attorney’s fees and $1,500 in other costs, which will be decided ahead of a hearing at 10:30 a.m. on Nov. 26.

* Tribune | Riverdale Mayor Lawrence Jackson convicted of perjury, obstruction of justice: A federal jury on Wednesday found Riverdale Mayor Lawrence Jackson guilty of perjury and obstruction of justice, a verdict that may force the four-term mayor from office. The verdict came just hours after prosecutors and defense attorneys presented conflicting portrayals of Jackson’s conduct in a 2021 deposition. The charges stemmed from Jackson’s deposition in a civil lawsuit brought by Tri-State Disposal, a waste company that had trash disposal contracts in Riverdale for years.

* Aurora Beacon-News | Aurora to host town halls on proposed 2026 city budget next two Saturdays: The city’s proposed budget for next year was made available last month, and since then Aurora aldermen have been reviewing the document during special meetings of the City Council’s Finance Committee. As proposed, the $569 million budget for 2026 is $163.6 million less than this year’s, mostly because of bonds the city took out this year for big construction projects, city officials have said.

*** Downstate ***

* WCIA | Sangamon Co. Mental Health Commission urges formation of countywide mental health board: The commission also approved videos pushing for the creation of a Sangamon County 708 Mental Health Board in an effort to coordinate and expand mental health and substance use services across the county. If the county board agrees with this recommendation, the question of whether to establish and fund a mental health board will be placed before Sangamon County voters in March 2026.

* WCIA | Mahomet School Board member facing felony charge in I-57 crash that hurt State Trooper: Illinois State Police said around 1:50 p.m. on March 1, a trooper responded to a report of debris in the road on I-57 near Chebanse. The trooper was parked in the right lane with their emergency lights on. Later, the trooper returned to the car, and the squad car was hit by a Lincoln SUV that failed to move over. Both the trooper and the other driver, who was later identified as 66-year-old Harold (Max) McComb, were brought to the hospital with injuries. […] Now, however, McComb is facing a charge of passing an emergency vehicle and causing an injury, which is a Class 4 felony. He is also facing charges of reckless driving and failure to reduce speed — a Class A Misdemeanor and a Petty Offense, respectively.

* WGLT | Bloomington homeless shelter village delays opening due to electrical component: The Bridge was originally anticipated to be open in December. But HSHM CEO Matt Burgess said it will not likely open until January because there has been a delay in shipping a switchgear that is a crucial part of electrical grids. “We won’t be able to open without power running to the cabins,” Burgess said. “And that [switchgear] is not due to arrive until the very end of December.”

* WMBD | Panel discussion at Illinois Central College addresses education landscape in Illinois: The Student Center CEFCU Commons at Illinois Central College‘s Peoria campus was occupied by around 50 educators, administrators and local officials, all to discuss what Illinois schools are succeeding in, and what they need to improve. The discussion, hosted by Advance Illinois, is entitled “The State We’re In”, and is a state-wide initiative to be transparent about the educational landscape of the individual communities within Illinois.

* WSPY | Kendall County budget draws criticism from State’s Attorney’s Office: Kendall County State’s Attorney Eric Weis says his office is having trouble keeping good prosecutors due to competition with other counties. Weis says the Kendall County Board’s recently approved budget lacks the pay increases for prosecutors needed to make the county competitive. “Even when they give us funding for new employees, if they don’t give us enough money, it’s really kind of a moot point. If I can’t fill the position with a prosecutor that is willing to take that money that we’re offering them when they could go work somewhere else, we’re not going to fill the spot. So it’s sort of a hollow gesture to say here’s the position, but we’re not going to give you enough money to actually fill it. It’s really not going to make a difference overall.”

*** National ***

* Politico | Fellow Democrat takes aim at Chuy García’s ‘undemocratic’ retirement gambit: A fellow Democrat moved to sanction Illinois Rep. Chuy García Wednesday for a gambit in which he retired and functionally guaranteed that his chief of staff would be the only Democrat on the ballot to succeed him. Rep. Marie Gluesenkamp Perez of Washington went to the House floor as lawmakers prepared to debate legislation reopening the government to introduce a resolution accusing García of “undermining the process of a free and fair election” and calling on the House to disapprove of his behavior.

* NYT | Trump Administration Expected to Drastically Cut Housing Grants: The Trump administration has developed plans for a wholesale shift in homelessness policy that would slash support for long-term housing programs, according to a confidential grant-making plan, and critics say it could quickly place as many as 170,000 formerly homeless people at risk of returning to the streets. Pivoting from housing aid, the administration’s approach would shift billions to short-term programs that impose work rules, help the police dismantle encampments, and require the homeless to accept treatment for mental health or addiction.

* Financial Times | How high are OpenAI’s compute costs? Possibly a lot higher than we thought: A Microsoft spokeswoman told us: “We won’t get into specifics, but I can say the numbers aren’t quite right.” Asked what exactly that meant, the spokeswoman said Microsoft would not comment and did not respond to our subsequent requests. An OpenAI spokesman did not respond to our emails other than to say we should ask Microsoft.

8 Comments

Good morning!

Thursday, Nov 13, 2025 - Posted by Isabel Miller

* I started off my day with some O’Donel Levy…

* How are you?

5 Comments

Selected press releases (Live updates)

Thursday, Nov 13, 2025 - Posted by Isabel Miller

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Live coverage

Thursday, Nov 13, 2025 - Posted by Isabel Miller

* Click here and/or here to follow breaking news on the website formally known as Twitter. Our Bluesky feed…

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Isabel’s afternoon roundup

Wednesday, Nov 12, 2025 - Posted by Isabel Miller

* The Sun-Times…

Six people, including congressional candidate and social media influencer Kat Abughazaleh, are set to be arraigned at the Dirksen Federal Courthouse on Wednesday afternoon on charges stemming from protests outside the feds’ immigration facility in Broadview.

It’s one of a series of controversial prosecutions at the federal courthouse tied to the feds’ “Operation Midway Blitz” deportation campaign. The arraignment is expected to draw protests and prompt speeches in the Federal Plaza across the street from the courthouse.

One of the six charged, Catherine Sharp, told followers on social media Wednesday she was “heading to court today for my arraignment on ludicrous charges” tied to the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement facility in the western suburbs.

The charges stem from a protest Sept. 26 outside the Broadview facility, which has been the subject of separate litigation. Video of the incident shows Abughazaleh and several others crowding and pushing against a black SUV, slowing its approach toward the facility.

The Tribune’s Jason Meisner is in the courtroom…

Judge McShain is on the bench
Abughazaleh pleads not guilty though her attorney, as do all the other 5 defendants.
Prosecutor Sheri Mecklenberg says they face up to 6 years in prison on the conspiracy charge.

— Jason Meisner (@jmetr22b) November 12, 2025

* Bloomberg…

China’s purchases of American soybeans appear to have stalled, less than two weeks after the U.S. touted a wide-ranging trade truce that signaled thawing relations between the world’s two biggest economies.

After a flurry of orders late last month — which were the first of this season — Chinese imports of U.S. cargoes seem to have faltered, according to traders who asked not to be identified discussing confidential information. They said they were not aware of new shipments. The pause is fueling uncertainty over whether the biggest consumer of American soybeans will import as much as U.S. President Donald Trump’s administration claims to expect. […]

Washington said Beijing had pledged to buy 12 million tons of soybeans by the end of this year, followed by 25 million tons annually over the next three years. China has yet to confirm the specific purchase commitments mentioned by Trump’s team, but Beijing has reduced tariffs on American soybeans and lifted import bans on three American exporters, including CHS Inc., reciprocating similar conciliatory actions from the U.S. […]

China has spent the past few months buying massive amounts of South American beans in a bid to diversify its sources. Therefore, Chinese demand is expected to be lower in the coming months regardless of any trade deal with the U.S., according to Vitor Pistoia, senior grains and oilseeds analyst at Rabobank.

*** Chicago ***

* Sun-Times | Mayor Johnson sues to keep $6 million federal grant for community policing: The new lawsuit filed this week in federal district court in Chicago challenges conditions that the Justice Department imposed on a $6.25 million grant that the Johnson administration had hoped to use to recruit, hire and train 50 Chicago police officers to fill vacancies in the city’s community policing program. St. Paul, Minnesota, joined Chicago in asking the court to declare such grant conditions illegal.

* Injustice Watch | ‘Horrific’ video of incident at Chicago’s juvenile jail raises questions about recent trial, experts say: The minute-and-a-half-long video, which was provided to Injustice Watch by the Cook County State’s Attorney’s Office in response to a public records request, appears to show former detention center rapid response specialist Kevin Walker flinging a handcuffed 15-year-old boy to the floor by his shirt. Shortly after, the boy can be seen lying motionless on the floor of a holding cell. The boy was knocked unconscious and sustained visible bruising around his left eye, according to the testimony of a doctor who treated him afterward.

* AP | Chicagoans buy out street vendors amid a federal immigration crackdown: In Little Village, Rick Rosales, community organizer with Cycling x Solidarity, helps organize two of these “buy out” rides per week that typically support five street vendors each. “The vendors are often speechless,” Rosales said. “They’ll say, ‘I have a lot of tamales. You want all of them?’”

* Sun-Times | CTA board approves no fare increase in 2026 budget, questions when new transit bill money will come: The board’s Wednesday budget vote closes the door on a potential fare increase after the Regional Transportation Authority walked back its 10% fare hike requirement last week for CTA, Metra and Pace. The RTA did so after the state legislature passed a $1.5 billion transit bailout last month, sparing the agencies from drastic service cuts. Without the CTA’s 25 cent fare hike for bus and train tickets, the agency expects to lose nearly $30 million in additional revenue next year, according to budget figures shared at the board meeting. Those lost funds will be made up by $141 million in extra money from the transit bill, which Gov. JB Pritzker is expected to sign.

* WTTW | With No Easy Fixes in Sight, Debate Over Chicago’s 2026 Spending Plan Reaches Tipping Point: But a marathon session before the City Council’s Budget and Government Operations Committee on Monday made it clear there is no easy way to bridge the city’s $1.19 billion projected shortfall, leaving alderpeople across the political spectrum frustrated as the budget debate hits a tipping point. Even as departmental budget hearings are set to wrap up Thursday, there is no clear consensus on the bulk of Johnson’s proposal to impose $617 million in new taxes on the wealthiest Chicagoans and largest firms. That makes it likely negotiations over the city’s spending plan will once again stretch past Thanksgiving, forcing alderpeople to scramble to meet a Dec. 31 deadline.

* WBEZ | What happens to survivors of police torture after the big payout?: James Gibson is a busy man. The 59 year-old has his hand in a number of projects, from starting an investment firm to writing an autobiography to producing music. He feels he has no time to waste because he spent nearly 30 years in prison for a crime he did not commit. “I lost everything,” he said. “I never had a chance to serve my country. I never had no kids. I never had a chance to get married. I don’t know what it feel[s] like to be feeling emotions. I don’t know what it feel[s] like [to have] human contact.. [The] only thing I had was God.”

* Sun-Times | Try to see the Northern Lights over the Chicago area Wednesday night: Residents got their first taste Tuesday night when the aurora borealis lit up the night sky in pink, yellow and green. It was the most visible example of the Northern Lights in the Chicago area since at least October 2024, when another geomagnetic storm sent heads looking up to the sky. Forecasters say those who missed it might get another shot.

*** Cook County and Suburbs ***

* Daily Herald | Bodycam video shows how Palatine police officer assisted immigration agents with arrest: The arrest, and the officer’s involvement, led some residents to call for Palatine leaders to ban immigration agents from using village property and resources. Village Manager Reid Ottesen told a packed crowd at Monday’s village board meeting there are no plans to enact such policies because they are merely cosmetic and unenforceable. The village also defended the officer’s actions, saying the unidentified officer “made a split-second decision to assist in stabilizing the situation.”

* Daily Herald | Barrington delays ICE ordinance, Palatine rebuffs citizen proposal: arrington officials delayed action on a proposal restricting federal immigration agents from village property, while Palatine leaders rejected a similar proposal. Both boards met Monday night. A packed audience at village hall in Palatine was upset with the decision announced by Village Manager Reid Ottesen. “As a longtime Palatine resident, I have never felt unsafe in our community until today,” said resident Jennie Lussow, who captured video of two masked U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents with guns detaining a man Monday afternoon at the corner of Colfax and Schiller streets.

* Naperville Sun | Police make gun-related arrest No. 17 near Naperville Topgolf: Naperville police were patrolling the Topgolf parking lot at 3211 Odyssey Court when officers “took note of an odor of fresh cannabis coming from a parked vehicle,” Naperville police Cmdr. Rick Krakow said. When officers observed multiple people, including Billups, return to the vehicle, they pulled it over for an unlawful tint violation, Krakow said. Billups was seen reaching down as if he was placing something on the floorboard, leading police to conduct a probable cause search that revealed open cannabis and alcohol. Under the front passenger seat, which was just in front of Billups, officers found a loaded Taurus 9mm handgun, Krakow said. Billups did not possess a valid Firearm Owners Identification card or a concealed carry license, leading to his arrest.

* Aurora Beacon-News | St. Charles adopts new rules for e-bikes, e-scooters: St. Charles officials have indicated that the city’s ordinance reflects current state law, which offers some guidance about where e-bikes can be used and who can ride them, but also gives local municipalities some leeway to make their own rules. Under Illinois law, e-bikes, which are sometimes referred to as low-speed electric bicycles, are different from an electric motorcycle. An e-bike must have an electric motor of less than 750 watts, and is split into three classes.

* Naperville Sun | Naperville rules for e-bikes, e-scooters would set age limits, make parents liable for fines: If adopted, the new minimum age requirement for e-bikes in Naperville would be 16. Fines ranging from $100 to $500 would be assessed on the parents of children caught violating the law.

* Daily Herald | ‘We are listening’: Wauconda District 118 officials pause proposed deficit reduction plan: The school board was to have voted on the budget deficit reduction plan Thursday but the item will be removed from the agenda to allow for more discussion and input. Parents and others say the situation remains concerning and there is no transparency or accountability about how the deficit happened.

* Shaw Local | Dale Berman’s widow among 4 to be interviewed for his seat on Kane County Board: Mary Berman, Dale Berman’s widow, is one of the candidates for the seat. The other three are Batavia Township resident Kimberley Young and North Aurora residents Martha Quetsch Davison and Matt Dingeldein. Mary Berman described herself as a “dedicated and compassionate professional with over 42 years of experience in retail, specializing in fine jewelry sales and customer service.”

* NASCAR | NASCAR appoints Jacqueline Herrera as general manager of Chicagoland Speedway: As a child, Jacque Herrera was heading to Chicagoland Speedway to watch the stars of NASCAR rip around the 1.5-mile oval in Joliet, Illinois. She gets to relive those glory days in a new way now as Herrera was introduced as general manager of Chicagoland Speedway on Tuesday, just under eight months before NASCAR makes its triumphant return to Will County for the 2026 Fourth of July weekend.

*** Downstate ***

* WGLT | U of I College of Media removes Illinois Public Media executive director, promotes from within to fill: Staff at the Urbana-based station learned in an email Tuesday morning that the College of Media is removing current executive director Moss Bresnahan, moving him to an advisory role within the college. Longtime development and operations leaders John Steinbacher and Lillie Duncanson are being promoted to share the executive director role. “The fact that they picked two people within the organization who had been working here for so long, I think, says that they have a lot of confidence not only in Lillie and I but in the entire team and in the direction that Illinois Public Media has been heading,” Steinbacher said.

* 25News Now | New chemical manufacturing plant to run along Illinois River in Peoria: Viridis Industrial Chemistry will be operating next to the former BioUjra facility. Based in Nebraska, the company specializes in producing ethyl acetate, a renewable chemical compound commonly used in manufacturing. This compound has previously been made using fossil fuels, but Viridis will use corn-based ethanol as a greener alternative.

* WNIJ | Rockford panel to discuss local housing shortage and homelessness on Nov. 12: The League of Women Voters of Greater Rockford is hosting a community housing meeting Wednesday, Nov. 12 from 6-8 p.m. at the Rockford District 1 Police Station. The meeting will discuss needed resources such as affordable housing, homelessness and home maintenance. Gina Meeks is an alderwoman in Rockford who represents the city’s 12th ward. She says Winnebago County faces a shortage of between 3,000-9,000 housing units over the next decade to meet demand.

* WSIL | Carterville library trades food for fines to help with food insecurity: “This is the time of year when the community needs to come together and support people who maybe don’t have that support on their own,” said Adult Services Librarian Mike Terrana. All collected items will be donated to the Crainville and Cambria pantries.

* WCIA | EIU looking to improve emergency messaging after Monday’s false threat: While the call wasn’t credible, students said it wasn’t any less alarming to receive emergency notifications from the university on the situation or false information from friends that a campus shooting was underway. “EIU recognizes that some of its emergency messaging created confusion or concern,” university officials said in a news release. “Emergency situations are dynamic and complex, and EIU recognizes the importance of clear, timely, and easily understood communication in such moments.”

*** National ***

* NYT | The Penny Dies at 232: The American penny died on Wednesday in Philadelphia. It was 232. The cause was irrelevance and expensiveness, the Treasury Department said. Nothing could be bought any more with a penny, not even penny candy. Moreover, the cost to mint the penny had risen to more than 3 cents, a financial absurdity that doomed the coin. The final pennies were minted on Wednesday afternoon in Philadelphia. Top Treasury officials were on hand for its final journey. No last words were recorded.

* 404 Media | Judge Rules Flock Surveillance Images Are Public Records That Can Be Requested By Anyone: In a ruling last week, Judge Elizabeth Neidzwski ruled that “the Flock images generated by the Flock cameras located in Stanwood and Sedro-Wooley [Washington] are public records under the Washington State Public Records Act,” that they are “not exempt from disclosure,” and that “an agency does not have to possess a record for that record to be subject to the Public Records Act.” […] Stanwood’s attorneys first argued that the records were Flock’s, not the city’s, which is clearly contradicted in the contract, which states “customer [Stanwood] shall retain whatever legally cognizable right, title, and interest in Customer Generated Data … Flock does not own and shall not sell Customer Generated Data.”

11 Comments

Federal hemp ban included in deal to reopen government (Updated)

Wednesday, Nov 12, 2025 - Posted by Isabel Miller

* The Guardian…

A last-minute provision in the federal spending bill heavily restricting hemp-derived products such as CBD and THC drinks could lead some Republicans to vote against the spending bill which, if passed, could end the government shutdown as early as Wednesday. […]

On Monday night, Kentucky senator Rand Paul broke with the Republican party and voted against the bill because of the hemp provision, which was revealed at the 11th hour and which Paul tried unsuccessfully to have removed. […]

The current version of the provision “criminalizes any product that has more than .4 milligrams of total THC per container. That’s basically zero. 95% of hemp products have more than .4 milligrams,” [Jonathan Miller, an advocate for the hemp industry and former Kentucky state treasurer,] said.

The 2018 farm bill’s only restriction on hemp was that it contain less than 0.3% delta 9 THC. The new provision would ban THC in all forms, including delta 8 THC and THCA, which are common in hemp products, and would also criminalize non-intoxicating CBD products with trace amounts of THC, Miller said.

Gov. JB Pritzker has been hoping to pass a bill to regulate the intoxicating hemp industry for almost a year now, but Illinois’ General Assembly has repeatedly failed to enact its own regulatory system.

I’ve asked the governor’s office for a response and will post it if and/or when I hear back.

…Adding… Governor’s Office Spokesperson…

“Last year, Governor Pritzker proposed state legislation that would close loopholes and regulate the intoxicating hemp industry to protect the public health of all Illinoisians, especially children who have been harmed by misleading and poorly labeled products. While special interests and Illinois House legislators stopped this important legislation, Governor Pritzker has always supported advancing these safety measures and bringing the intoxicating hemp industry into the state’s existing system of cannabis dispensaries that are regulated, safe, and equitable. In the absence of action in Springfield, Governor Pritzker supports policies to protect people, including children, from being misinformed or harmed by these products.

* Brownfield Ag News…

[The chairman of the National Hemp Association Geoff Whaling] says the measure would end the unregulated sale of hemp-based products and return the focus to hemp grain and fiber production. […]

The bill overrides 23 state laws and limits allowed cannabinoid levels in products to well below current thresholds. Whaling tells Brownfield that the legislation’s effects would take effect a year after it’s signed into law. […]

He says the year window could offer opportunities to re-establish a legitimate cannabinoid market. […]

In a statement to Brownfield, Rachel Berry, president of the Illinois Hemp Growers Association (IHGA), says, “The IHGA and its members are disappointed in the Senate-approved Continuing Resolution language that devastates the hemp industry, particularly small producers, and prioritizes special interests over agricultural innovation and family farms.”

* Craft brewers have cashed in on the THC beverage market as more consumers shift away from alcohol. Minnesota Reformer…

[L]iquor stores and breweries that sell THC products would have to pay significantly higher taxes, thanks to a section in the federal tax code that forbids businesses from selling illegal substances and also getting tax deductions on their business expenses. They’d also be unable to work with credit card companies or many banks, limitations which have forced cannabis dispensaries to largely use cash.

“There will be a number of breweries that will close their doors,” said Bob Galligan of the Minnesota Craft Brewers Guild.

Also, since hemp-derived THC comes from immature cannabis plants with more non-THC biomass, it’s less efficient to produce compared to cannabis. Federal legalization made hemp less of a headache to deal with compared to higher-potency weed, Galligan said, but a federal ban on hemp would reverse that calculation.

“The THC category we started two and a half years ago, it’s grown to be approaching 15% of our overall business,” said Jon Halper, owner of Top Ten Liquors, which Halper said is one of the top two hemp-derived THC retailers in Minnesota. Halper attributes Top Ten’s sales growth this year to those THC sales.

Thoughts?

* More…

Missouri Independent | Missouri hemp businesses fear new federal THC limits will destroy the industry:

* Cannabis Business Times | 13 GOP House Reps Oppose Hemp Product Ban Ahead of Vote to End Shutdown: U.S. House Rep. James Comer, R-Ky., and 12 of his Republican colleagues previously spoke out in opposition to a federal ban on intoxicating hemp products that was under consideration earlier this year. Comer led a bipartisan coalition of 27 representatives – 13 Republicans and 14 Democrats – in asking House Speaker Mike Johnson, R-La., to strike anti-hemp provisions from a previous version of the fiscal 2026 Agriculture, Rural Development, Food and Drug Administration (FDA) and Related Agencies Appropriations Act.

* Milwaukee Journal Sentinel | Wisconsin hemp businesses say Senate bill banning THC products would ‘decimate’ the industry: John Kashou, owner of Kangaroo Brands, which includes THC and CBD shop Kind Oasis, said he and other local business owners agree with enacting “common-sense” regulations on the hemp industry statewide. Among the regulations business owners proposed were testing requirements, clearly labeled packaging and age restrictions to avoid children accessing the products. “Whatever happens on a national level is going to happen,” Kashou said. “We’ve got to be more concerned about what we’re going to do on a state level in order to ensure not only our continued existence, but to protect thousands and thousands of jobs that are at stake.”

11 Comments

Caption contest!

Wednesday, Nov 12, 2025 - Posted by Isabel Miller

* Yesterday, Ald. Byron Sigcho-Lopez got into it with Gov. JB Pritzker and Ald. Michael Rodriguez at a Veterans Day event in Little Village. The Tribune…

[Southwest Side Ald. Byron Sigcho-Lopez] allied with Mayor Brandon Johnson shouted questions at Gov. JB Pritzker in Little Village Tuesday over the governor’s opposition to Johnson’s proposed corporate head tax. […]

Sigcho-Lopez confronted Pritzker in front of an array of reporters, photographers and television cameras Tuesday. He told the governor the need for more taxes on the rich is tied to Trump’s immigration policies that have hit the Latino Southwest Side particularly hard. […]

Pritzker responded by referring to his unsuccessful efforts to amend the state constitution to create a graduated income tax. The 2020 referendum question Pritzker backed received support from 46.7% of voters, short of the 60% threshold. […]

Sigcho-Lopez moments later approached Rodriguez, a fellow City Council Progressive Caucus member known as a close ally of labor unions. “Who are you protecting?” Sigcho-Lopez appeared to ask.

“Don’t get in my face, dude,” an animated Rodriguez shouted back.

* Tribune staff photojournalist Brian Cassella captured the moment between Rodriguez and Sigcho-Lopez. From Cassella’s Instagram…

There’s some profanity in both of these videos of the incident (here and here), so maybe don’t play them on speaker.

Caption?

16 Comments

Today’s number: 2 percent (Updated)

Wednesday, Nov 12, 2025 - Posted by Rich Miller

* Tribune…

A federal judge on Wednesday said he plans to grant bond to hundreds of immigrants whose arrests under “Operation Midway Blitz” allegedly violated a consent decree against “warrantless arrests.”

U.S District Judge Jeffrey Cummings ordered the Department of Justice to produce a list by Nov. 19 of which of the 615 potential class members were still in custody.

As long as a detainee had no criminal history or prior removal order, Cummings said he would allow their release on a $1,500 bond, pending the outcome of immigration proceedings.

Federal prosecutor William Weiland called the ruling “quite significant” and asked the judge to immediately stay any order of release so he could speak with his superiors. At least 12 of the 615 were considered to be a significant security risk, and more time was needed to vet them, Weiland said.

…Adding… Another one…

JUST IN: A federal judge rules that Diana Santillana Galeano, the North Center day care worker arrested by ICE, deserves a bond hearing.
It will happen on Tuesday.
Background: https://t.co/BxVoi7tO1N

— Jason Meisner (@jmetr22b) November 12, 2025

6 Comments

Catching up with the federal candidates (Updated)

Wednesday, Nov 12, 2025 - Posted by Isabel Miller

* The Daniel Biss campaign released an internal poll yesterday. The press release…

New polling released by the Biss for Congress campaign shows Daniel Biss holding a commanding lead in the Democratic primary for Illinois’ 9th Congressional District. Biss is currently supported by 31% of likely IL-9 Democratic primary voters, with no other candidate earning more than 17% of the vote. Biss is also the best-known and most well-liked candidate in the district, recognized by 74% of the Democratic primary electorate, with 61% viewing him favorably.

“I’m fired up by the results of this poll, which show our campaign emerging as the clear leader in a crowded field,” said Daniel Biss. “I’m working every day to make sure voters know that I’ll stand up to Donald Trump and fight to ensure Congress serves the people, not just the wealthy and powerful. In recent weeks, we’ve taken on ICE and protected our neighbors right here at home. In Congress, I’ll close the loopholes that let the ultra-rich dodge taxes, and I’ll push for a wealth tax to fund Medicare for All and affordable child care. With four months to go before the primary, we’ll keep building a grassroots movement for real, lasting change.” […]

The poll was conducted by Impact Research and based on N=500 interviews of likely 2026 Democratic primary voters in IL CD-09, conducted via phone and text-to-web from November 4-9, 2025. The expected margin of sampling error is +/-4.4% overall and is higher for subgroups.

Click here for the polling memo.

Biss’ pollster Impact Research also tested favorability and name ID for Massachusetts Sen. Elizabeth Warren…

Biss and Warren have history. He was among the Illinois Democrats who backed her 2020 presidential bid. She returned the favor in July and tops the endorsement list on his campaign website.