State Board of Elections asks Proft papers to take down personal data from websites
Friday, Apr 5, 2024 - Posted by Isabel Miller * Press release…
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Reader comments closed for the weekend
Friday, Apr 5, 2024 - Posted by Rich Miller * Beyoncé will play us out… All your life
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Isabel’s afternoon roundup
Friday, Apr 5, 2024 - Posted by Isabel Miller * Good to know… * IDOT…
* CBS Chicago…
* This will be an innovative string ensemble specializing in contemporary classical crossover… * Here’s the rest…
* LGBTQ Nation | Rep. Kelly Cassidy helped make Illinois a haven for LGBTQ+ rights & says the impact is beyond words: You chair the Restorative Justice Committee in the General Assembly, where you did a lot of work on your cannabis bill. What’s the most egregious miscarriage of justice you’ve seen in your work, and how was it resolved? “I’m a mother of many, many children. I love them all equally, so it’s difficult to choose just one. In the criminal justice arena, there are so many things that are still not quite right. But last year, I was finally able to pass a comprehensive bill that allows incarcerated survivors of gender-based violence, whose abuse was not contemplated in their original trial, to be offered an opportunity to seek resentencing.” * Tribune | Justice Department can reopen realtors case, court rules: The Justice Department can reopen an antitrust probe into the National Association of Realtors, an appeals court ruled Friday, rejecting a bid by the real estate trade group to enforce a 2020 settlement with the Trump administration to close the case. “The fact that DOJ ‘closed its investigation’ does not guarantee that the investigation would stay closed forever,” the U.S. Court of Appeals for the DC Circuit wrote in a 2-1 decision. “The words ‘close’ and ‘reopen’ are unambiguously compatible.” * Crain’s | Johnson unveils plan to cut red tape for real estate developers: The report, dubbed “Cut the Tape,” is the result of an executive order Johnson signed in December giving city departments involved in the approval process 90 days to provide recommendations to streamline the bureaucratic hurdles developers face when seeking zoning changes, building permits and financial assistance from the city. * Daily Herald | Keep your eyes on the road: More than 200 law enforcement agencies throughout Illinois this month are stepping up enforcement of the state’s texting while driving law, which spells out clearly what you may and may not do behind the wheel. […] In 2021, 193 people died in distracted driving crashes in Illinois, according to the Illinois State Police. Every one of them was completely avoidable. * NPR Illinois | Lt. Governor Juliana Stratton spotlights women in Illinois with two new initiatives: Juliana Stratton is the 48th lieutenant governor of Illinois. In December 2023, the office of the Lt. Governor launched a new initiative called We Thrive, which focuses on women and financial freedom. In February 2024, Governor Pritzker announced a new initiative that focuses on maternal health care called the Birth Equity Initiative. Lt. Governor Stratton spoke to Community Voices about how Chicago shaped her life, the challenges women have faced, and how the whole state will benefit from the two new initiatives. The Lt. Governor also talks about traveling throughout the state hosting “We Chats” to hear from a variety of different women. * Chalkbeat | Chicago Public Schools shares student-to-teacher ratios used in new budgeting formula: Elementary schools will get one teacher for every 26 students next year and high schools will get one teacher for every 21 students, according to details about the new budget formula replacing student-based budgeting shared by Chicago Public Schools officials. Those ratios will decline for higher-needs schools — potentially providing them with additional teachers — and all schools will be staffed with at least 10 classroom teachers for the 2024-25 school year, officials told Local School Council members Thursday night. * Sun-Times | Union wave is picking up at Chicago, suburban libraries, cultural institutions: In addition to the Newberry’s staff, library workers in the suburbs also have unionized. Since 2020, library employees in the Niles-Maine district, Elk Grove, Oak Lawn, St. Charles and Waukegan have organized. In contrast, none had joined AFSCME in 2019. AFSCME Council 31, which represents workers in Illinois, added more than 2,200 members from the state’s cultural institutions since 2021, according to spokesperson Anders Lindall. * Sun-Times | Arab American community in Chicago says data from new racial category could help address disparities: Atassi, who identifies as Syrian American, considered choosing Asian, but the definitions on forms usually guided her to check white. Although she was born in the United States, Atassi often traveled to her parents’ native Syria. The ties to the country were an important part of her identity that weren’t captured in the questions about her race. “It’s really just recently that I’ve been able to see the fabric of how the system works and how there’s power in the system in excluding people, but there’s also power in the system when you want to advocate for what your needs are,” said Atassi, the co-executive director of the Syrian Community Network, based in Chicago. * Sun-Times | Bears in a hurry to build domed lakefront stadium, but Friends of the Parks says, `Not so fast’: Bears president Kevin Warren sounds like a man in a hurry when it comes to building a domed stadium adjacent to Soldier Field. But the advocacy group that has long served as the lakefront’s primary protector is saying, “Not so fast.” Gin Kilgore, acting executive director of Friends of the Parks, is not about to go along with what she called Warren’s “Buy now, this deal won’t last!” sales pitch. * Crain’s | Baxter among 200 companies warned by FTC over deals: The FTC sent identical letters to Baxter over its $10.5 billion acquisition of medical device maker Hill-Rom Holdings Inc., to Thermo Fisher related to its $17.4 billion deal for clinical research services company PPD Inc. and to Clarivate Plc for its deal to purchase the data provider ProQuest. All of those deals closed soon after receiving the FTC warning letters. * WBEZ | Your guide to EXPO Chicago, from must-see artists to after-hours parties: Art from around the globe, along with the who’s who of the art world, will descend on Chicago next week in the first EXPO Chicago since the prominent Midwest art fair was purchased by the mega-global brand Frieze. The event next weekend at Navy Pier’s Festival Hall will bring to town nearly 200 galleries, thousands of artists and seemingly infinite opportunities to see art. * Sun-Times | Caitlin Clark vs. Paige Bueckers is a rematch years in the making: “It takes the entire team to win a basketball game,” Clark said. “Both of us are going to do everything we can. “I think the coolest thing about Paige is how resilient she is.” […] “I think the biggest thing about her is she competes and she’s just a winner; she wants to win at all costs,” Bueckers said. “So I know going into that, it will be a great matchup.” * Sun-Times | White Sox trounced by Royals, fall to 1-5: Three walks, an error by shortstop Braden Shewmake on a routine ground ball, a throw from right fielder Dominic Fletcher to the wrong base that allowed a run to score and a home run by MJ Melendez against Leone were the lowlights. “Physical mistakes are OK, but we made some fundamental mistakes we’re not accustomed to making,” manager Pedro Grifol said. * Sun-Times | What’s that lean, green, pedal-powered machine on Chicago streets? And who’s inside it?: It’s a velomobile, and the man behind the wheel is Greek Orthodox monk Father Ephraim, who moved to the Northwest Side after five years at a religious commune in remote Alaska. And who wouldn’t want to navigate Chicago streets in a vehicle not much taller than a fire hydrant? * WaPo | I’m a planetary physicist. An eclipse is wondrous — don’t underestimate it:Thousands of years ago, early scientists used eclipses to refine their calendars by pinning down the regular characteristics of the Earth’s and the moon’s orbits. As the moon passed in front of the sun, an ancient astronomer could also figure out the diameters of both bodies. Today’s astronomers take advantage of the moments of totality to study the sun’s fainter atmosphere, observing important phenomena such as solar flares, which spew hazardous high-energy particles at Earth.
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Judge tells Marquez: ‘You have now handed a gift to Madigan’s defense attorneys’
Friday, Apr 5, 2024 - Posted by Rich Miller * The setup…
* From Jason’s story…
* Jon Seidel explains why this is important…
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It’s just a bill (Updated)
Friday, Apr 5, 2024 - Posted by Isabel Miller * Today’s House session day was cancelled yesterday. Here’s Leader McCombie’s statement…
Rep. Dan Didech responds… Click here for more on Rep. Didech’s bill. …Adding… [From Rich] Rep. Haas worked her bills hard and even though she has a fairly strong Democratic opponent managed to move four bills out of committee this week…
[From Rich] This goes to show that members gotta do more than sit around and complain. * WBBM…
* SJ-R…
* WAND…
* WAND…
* WAND…
* Chalkbeat…
HB5617 didn’t make it out of committee this week. * KHQA…
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*** UPDATED x1 *** Migrant shelter population falls below ten thousand, influx greatly slows
Friday, Apr 5, 2024 - Posted by Rich Miller *** UPDATE *** Press release…
* From a January 31st Block Club Chicago report…
* Those numbers have drastically changed. As of yesterday, 9,764 people were in 21 migrant shelters, with 92 at the landing zone and 1 at a police station. That’s down 5,000 or so from the end of December. At the end of February, 12,189 were in shelters, so that’s a net reduction of 2,425 since then, although at least some of those currently at the landing zone have probably been evicted and are trying to get back into a shelter. According to the city, 15,763 people have been resettled as of yesterday and 5,793 have been reunited with sponsors. That’s up from 13,798 and 4,893, respectively, at the end of February, for a 2,865 net. * One reason for this is that the influx has slowed. By the end of December, almost 31,000 asylum-seekers had been sent to Chicago. Another 10,000 or so were transported in by the end of February. Since then, less than 2,600 have been sent to the city. That’s somewhere around half of the late December through late February rate. * From Isabel…
* NBC | Denver defends encouraging migrants to leave for other cities over lack of resources: After a Denver official was recorded telling newly arrived migrants they would “suffer” if they stayed there and encouraging them to consider New York City or Chicago instead, the city on Wednesday defended the comments and said promoting “onward travel” is part of its strategy for addressing the influx of new residents. * Rockford state rep: $165 million available to communities willing to help asylum seekers: In the first round of Supporting Municipalities for Asylum Seeker Services Grants, Chicago received $30.25 million; Elgin, $1.27 million; Lake County, $1 million; Urbana, $250,000; and the Village of Oak Park, $400,000.On March 28, the Winnebago County Board approved a resolution outlining the county’s response in the event of a crisis where asylum seekers are abandoned in Winnebago County without means of transportation to the landing zone in Chicago. * Center Square | Illinois coalition urges Biden to extend work permits for migrant workers: Chicago Mayor Brandon Johnson joined the American Business Immigration Coalition Thursday for a roundtable discussion in an effort they said was designed to address a growing labor shortage and stabilize the workforce. “We are going to continue to urge President Biden to use every tool that is at his disposal to support our new arrivals and undocumented residents,” Johnson said. * NBC Chicago | ‘Small number’ of tuberculosis infections detected at Chicago migrant shelters: TB cases pop up in Chicago each year, with about 100-150 infections detected annually, said Jacob Martin, a spokesperson for the health department. Because of that, the health department needs to sort through its data to figure out which cases are new arrivals and which are other city residents. Those numbers will be made public once that analysis is complete. “I would not characterize this as an outbreak,” Martin said. “It’s relatively inline with what we expect to see.” * Tribune | Girl, 5, at migrant shelter recovering from tuberculosis, her father says, as city officials confirm ‘small number’ of cases: The Venezuelan man said he had pleaded for help from staff that night at the city-run migrant shelter on Ogden Avenue where they are staying, but he was told he’d have to pay for the ambulance himself. “Because I don’t have a work permit or any money, I didn’t have any way to pay for it,” said the man who didn’t want to share his name out of fear of being kicked out of the shelter for talking to reporters. * WTTW | Venezuelan Migrant Depicts His Journey to Chicago in Series of Paintings: Last year, a Belmont Cragin pastor opened his church’s doors to house a group of migrants who were sleeping at a police station. One of the men, 31-year-old Yeison Perez, has now created a series of paintings describing his journey to America. His artwork will be on display this weekend at the church. * Tribune | Refuge on the field: A migrant teen finds home in baseball: Baseball is more than a sport, Guerra said. It’s a way to build confidence. It’s a refuge. “I try to have the most fun that I can,” he said. “Whatever problems I have, baseball makes them go away.” […] Guerra’s mother Carolina Escobar, 31, said her family of seven came to the United States from Venezuela, mainly for more opportunities for her children. They’ve been lonely since they moved into their new house in Little Village over a year ago. * ABC Chicago | Southwest Collective, CPS Parent University launch weekly group therapy for Chicago migrants: The road for a migrant to get to Chicago is not an easy one. “They are seeing a lot of things, a lot of trauma. A lot of rape. The children are going days without eating. The parents are going days without eating,” said Maria Perez, a public health ambassador at nonprofit Southwest Collective. “They are walking through a jungle. We are having cases of malaria come in, broken legs, people coming with all types of issues.” * Sun-Times | Gala to support migrant housing that provides ‘safe places’ amid shelter evictions: Luisette Kraal, who immigrated here 15 years ago from Curacao and now lives in Rogers Park, has been working nonstop since the very first bus arrived in the city in 2022, and Jessica Leving Siegel, a Wilmette resident, stepped up to help once she saw the crisis up close in the Chicago suburbs. […] To Siegel, it’s “mind boggling” that there isn’t a “more organized response.” “There’s no serving dinner at a soup kitchen experience that compares remotely to what it’s like being there when these people are getting off the bus,” she said. “Kids are crying and everyone is scrambling and they’re all talking about how hungry they are.”
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If you’re heading to Carbondale…
Friday, Apr 5, 2024 - Posted by Isabel Miller * The eclipse is almost upon us! Here’s an interesting factoid from the SJ-R…
* I’m heading to my hometown of Carbondale where forecasts say skies will be clear. Tribune…
* More on the weather…
* SIU will have events going on all weekend…
* PK’s is a southern Illinois staple, I highly recommend seeing Taul Pawl … Carbondale also has a thriving punk scene with shows all weekend * Here’s a list of great food in the area…
- Buckwater Brew Works in Carbondale - PK’s has fantastic breakfast and lunch on weekends * Is anyone else heading to Carbondale?…
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Today’s quotable
Friday, Apr 5, 2024 - Posted by Rich Miller * David Struett at the Sun-Times…
Not sure what that’s about.
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Stop The Political Attacks On Natural Gas - 80% Of Illinoisans Use It To Heat Their Homes
Friday, Apr 5, 2024 - Posted by Advertising Department [The following is a paid advertisement.] We need to stop the political attacks on natural gas. The reality is 80 percent of Illinoisans rely on natural gas to heat their homes. Our politicians need to create a plan for a gradual transition to clean energy that recognizes how homes are heated and powered today. When Governor Pritzker’s appointees on the Illinois Commerce Commission (ICC) shut down the natural gas line Safety Modernization Program, it not only wiped out 1,000 jobs, but also subjected residents and business owners to the unnecessary danger of old, leaky gas infrastructure. At this time, it makes no sense for Illinois to shut down the gas line safety program that prevents methane leaks and catastrophic accidents. We are calling on Illinois residents to fight back with us and tell Governor Pritzker and the ICC to decarbonize the right way. Fix our dangerous gas lines first. Click on the links to view our ads: Ticking Time Bomb & Real Change. Paid for by Fight Back Fund
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Protected: SUBSCRIBERS ONLY - Supplement to today’s edition
Friday, Apr 5, 2024 - Posted by Rich Miller
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Protected: SUBSCRIBERS ONLY - Today’s edition of Capitol Fax (use all CAPS in password)
Friday, Apr 5, 2024 - Posted by Rich Miller
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Open thread
Friday, Apr 5, 2024 - Posted by Isabel Miller * It’s Friday! What’s going on in your part of Illinois?…
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Isabel’s morning briefing
Friday, Apr 5, 2024 - Posted by Isabel Miller * ICYMI: Ahead of solar eclipse, early forecast is clear skies for southern Illinois. Tribune…
- There is a less than 15% chance of rain for certain parts of southern and eastern Illinois. - The US won’t see another total solar eclipse for 20 years. * Related stories…
∙ NPR: Thinking of taking a last-minute drive to see the eclipse? Here’s what to know * Isabel’s top picks… * Tribune | New DCFS director in court to face questions on children stuck in emergency placements: “I don’t think there’s disagreement about the fact that there’s a lot of work to do,” DCFS head Heidi Mueller said in a Cook County juvenile courtroom. Cook County Judge Patrick Murphy, the county’s former public guardian, summoned Mueller to his courtroom to discuss what he called the “systemic” problem of children being kept by DCFS in emergency or psychiatric facilities longer than medically necessary, which often causes their condition to worsen. * Crain’s | Bears sit down with agency that would subsidize their lakefront stadium: The Bears met with Illinois Sports Facilities Authority CEO Frank Bilecki on April 2 at the team’s office for a “high-level” discussion about their looming request that the agency issue tax-exempt bonds to help pay for a new stadium just south of Soldier Field — a project that could cost over $3 billion. Despite the team’s own $2 billion private commitment, it was expected the Bears, like the Chicago White Sox, would look to the authority — which is still paying off hundreds of millions in debt tied to the 2003 renovations of Soldier Field — to subsidize the stadium costs * WGLT | State authorities are looking into release of voter data that includes McLean County: The McLean County Times, one of more than 30 websites owned by Local Government Information Services [LGIS], has published a series of articles that purportedly examine “who voted” or “how” a given precinct voted in the 2020 presidential election. But those articles provide little context or analysis of any electoral trends and instead are largely populated by identifying voter information — the release of which is being contested by the Illinois State Board of Elections [SBE]. * Make sure to put this in your calendar… * Here’s the rest…
* Shaw Local | Numbers don’t lie: It’s true, Kane County has shifted blue: Now Board Chair Corinne Pierog is a Democrat. State’s Attorney Jamie Mosser is a Democrat. Sheriff Ron Hain is a Democrat. Circuit Clerk Theresa Barreiro is a Democrat. Auditor Penny Wegman is a Democrat. That leaves County Clerk Jack Cunningham, Coroner Rob Russell and Recorder Sandy Wegman as the only three current county-wide elected officials who are Republicans. Sixteen of the 24 County Board members are Democrats. * Capitol News Illinois | Court upholds law limiting where child sex offenders can live: In a 6-0 decision, the court found the residency restriction “does not infringe upon a child sex offender’s fundamental rights” and that there was a “rational basis” for the state to restrict where a person convicted of such a crime can live. * Lake County News-Sun | Judge throws out challenge to Waukegan casino-selection process; rejects discrimination claim: U.S. District Judge John F. Kness issued a summary judgment dismissing the case Friday in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Illinois in Chicago because, he ruled, it had no right to claim discrimination under the Constitution. After the state gave Waukegan the right to have a casino in 2019, the city sought proposals from potential operators and four — the Potawatomi, Full House Resorts, North Point and Rivers — applied. * WCIA | Danville agencies, politicians prepare for new jobs and resources after Quaker factory closure announcement: State lawmakers including State Representative Brandun Schweizer (R-Danville) and State Senator Paul Faraci (D-Champaign) have worked with local resources to help the transition into new jobs. “I am stunned and immensely saddened by the news that the Quaker Oats factory is closing after 65 years of doing business in Danville,” Schweizer said. “This is devastating to our community, to the families that depend on the income they receive from the factory, and also to our local economy.” * Tribune | Girl, 5, at migrant shelter recovering from tuberculosis, her father says, as city officials confirm ‘small number’ of cases: The Venezuelan man said he had pleaded for help from staff that night at the city-run migrant shelter on Ogden Avenue where they are staying, but he was told he’d have to pay for the ambulance himself. “Because I don’t have a work permit or any money, I didn’t have any way to pay for it,” said the man who didn’t want to share his name out of fear of being kicked out of the shelter for talking to reporters. * Sun-Times | Johnson to Biden: Long-term undocumented immigrants deserve work permits, too: On the first anniversary of Johnson’s election as mayor, he touted a letter he signed with leaders from dozens of other cities urging the president to push harder for more work permits for immigrants. “We need the president to extend the same economic opportunities to our long-term undocumented brothers and sisters,” Johnson told a roundtable of business and immigrant advocates Thursday. * Crain’s | Johnson stands by Bally’s despite financial speed bumps: In a statement, the mayor’s office says it “expects Bally’s to fulfill its obligations to build, finance and open the permanent casino” on former Tribune printing plant property at Chicago Avenue and Halsted Street in River West. The company has opened a temporary casino in the former Medinah Temple in River North. * Tribune | The popularity of women’s basketball is undeniable. It’s not an interest issue — it’s access.: All of the most-watched games included either Hall of Fame players such as Cheryl Miller, Sheryl Swoopes and current South Carolina coach Dawn Staley or future WNBA stars such as Clark and Reese. The matchups also featured some marquee coaches in Geno Auriemma, Pat Summitt, Tara VanDerveer and Stringer. But the most important common denominator was their availability on national TV. (ESPN took over as the broadcast partner for women’s college basketball in 1995.) * NYT | A Breakthrough in Plastic Recycling Is Coming Up Short: To get there, these companies and others are promoting a new generation of recycling plants, called “advanced” or “chemical” recycling, that promise to recycle many more products than can be recycled today. So far, advanced recycling is struggling to deliver on its promise. Nevertheless, the new technology is being hailed by the plastics industry as a solution to an exploding global waste problem. * Block Club Chicago | Mavis Staples Urges South Siders To Use Art As Activism In First UChicago Show In 62 Years: Staples shared a small fraction of the knowledge and experiences she’s gained in the 70 years since at a stirring University of Chicago performance Wednesday, aiming to inspire today’s young South Siders to join her in carrying forward the ideals of the Civil Rights Movement. “We can’t save the world, but we help with some parts of it,” Staples told the audience after the concert. “I wonder sometimes, but I feel like I know that our music has done some good. It has changed some things.”
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Live coverage
Friday, Apr 5, 2024 - Posted by Isabel Miller * You can click here or here to follow breaking news. It’s the best we can do unless or until Twitter gets its act together.
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