|
Isabel’s afternoon roundup: Rep. Canty says she won’t run for speaker; Sen. Johnson wants reentry housing bill taken up in veto session
Tuesday, Nov 10, 2026 - Posted by Isabel Miller * Rep. Mary Beth Canty…
* Capitol News Illinois | Illinois Republicans assess damage from nationwide ‘blue tsunami’: “The party has to thread a needle,” Grogan said. “We have to make sure that viable, competitive folks do put their name forward.” Grogan said, for example, the party can’t leave statewide offices uncontested. Last year, no Republican candidate filed to run for Illinois treasurer in the March primary. Attorney Max Solomon won the party’s ballot line after waging a write-in campaign. Grogan called the situation “suboptimal.” * WCSJ | 106th District State Rep Reelected, Talks About General Election Results: “I guess if anything else, it gives us a wake up call that we need to work with the other side. We need to have discussions that are going to help, the cost of living, have discussions that are going to help constituents with some of the concerns that they’ve got. We just need to get back to good government,” Rep. Jason Bunting said. * Sun-Times | City Council’s aldermanic opposition demands that Mayor Johnson revamp his proposed budget: Mayor Brandon Johnson built his pre-election budget around a revival of his failed corporate head tax, defying a warning from the City Council majority that rewrote his budget last year. On Tuesday, 28 members of that same coalition drew an even wider line in the sand. They informed Johnson that his proposed $17.6 billion budget does not have the votes to pass the City Council for reasons that go far beyond the head tax, and that it’s up to him to rewrite his spending plan — they’re not going to do the work for him. * Crain’s | City Council majority draws line against $400M in Johnson tax plans: Johnson responded with a letter of his own, saying his administration is already working on changes to the proposed lease tax increase and a tax credit included in his corporate head tax proposal. The credit, known as SEED, would exempt companies from the head tax for employees who spend most of their working hours in designated economically disadvantaged areas of the city. The letter also claims the mayor has broad support for new spending in the city’s corporate fund in his proposal. * CBS Chicago | Chicago Public Schools blocks generative AI on student account as Google threatens to block search access: Chicago Public Schools is blocking generative AI tools like Google Gemini, ChatGPT and Claude on student accounts, even as Google has threatened to block search access for schools that disable its artificial intelligence. In a statement released Monday, a CPS spokesperson said the decision to block the AI apps was made for “student privacy and safety.” Apps like Gemini, ChatGPT and Claude will be blocked on CPS-issued devices and on the CPS network for all students. * CBS Chicago | Amtrak begins construction on new “level boarding” platforms at Chicago Union Station: Construction starts Tuesday on a $112 million project to create new “level boarding” platforms for Amtrak trains at Union Station in Chicago. The 2 ½-year project is designed to install platforms that serve multiple tracks and allow passengers to step directly onto trains without using stairs, ramps, or lifts. The project will transform platforms 30 through 38 at Union Station. * WBEZ | Chicago’s South Side used to be a hub for Black theater. There’s hope it could flourish again: Built in 1897, the Forum Hall in Bronzeville may appear to be in a state of disrepair. But the venue, a staple of the 1950s-era Black Metropolis, is on the precipice of a return. Today, developer Bernard Loyd is working to revitalize the Forum and has already brought musicians back to the space. He understands the historical importance of the theater. * Block Club | Gino & Marty’s Workers Still Owed Thousands As Former Owner Launched Projects In Dubai, Mexico: Camiola’s is one of at least 20 wage complaints filed against Bartucci from 2022 to 2025, according to state records. They are all connected to the once-popular Italian restaurant Gino & Marty’s, previously located in Fulton Market, collectively alleging tens of thousands in unpaid wages. * Daily Herald | ‘They did not want public scrutiny’: Judge to rule on Grayslake data center lawsuit by end of year: During a hearing Friday, Judge Janelle Christensen heard the motion to dismiss, filed by the village of Grayslake and T5. They argued the plaintiffs had “waited a year past the deadlines” to file. In an order filed Friday, Christensen said the court would issue a written ruling no later than Dec. 30 on the motion. Michael Smith, co-founder of the Lake County Illinois Data Center Opposition Coalition, said project opponents hope the judge will “see through their arguments,” and deny the motion to dismiss. * Daily Herald | Loud demonstration at Mundelein village hall prompts police response: A loud demonstration outside Mundelein village hall Monday night prompted a large deployment of police officers equipped with riot helmets and disposable restraints for potential crowd control efforts — but no arrests were made. It was the latest protest over the May 11 fatal shooting by police of Mundelein resident Mary Alice Love during a mental health crisis at her home. The noise began Monday night as the village board held a regularly scheduled meeting inside. Demonstrators banging on drums, yelling and making siren sounds with an electronic bullhorn could be heard within the boardroom. Protesters hit the boardroom’s windows several times, too, which eventually triggered a verbal response from Village Administrator Eric Guenther. * Daily Southtown | Orland High School District 230 Superintendent Robert Nolting placed on administrative leave: The board voted to place Nolting on leave and appointed McMillan acting superintendent, effective Oct. 20, during its Oct. 29 meeting. Because the board took action after a closed session, the district did not livestream the vote like the rest of the meeting. Johnson said Monday the district would not provide more details regarding Nolting’s leave. * Daily Herald | Batavia narrowly approves much-discussed telehealth service for city residents: After considerable discussion, Batavia will pursue a program that provides city residents access to text-based consultations with a doctor for a monthly fee added to their utility bills. The program — called Tap, or “Text a Physician” — has been discussed at several city meetings, generating both support for the healthcare access it provides and concern about the way residents are charged for it. Ultimately, the city council recently voted 7-7 to approve an agreement for the program, with Mayor Jeff Schielke casting the tie-breaking vote in favor of it. * Tribune | Round Lake mother released from ICE detention after 15 months, reunites with daughters: ‘She’s safe now’: U.S. District Judge Angelica Powers of the Memphis Immigration Court in Memphis, Tennessee, released Beata Siemionkowicz on bond, allowing the 57-year-old Polish citizen to return to the Chicago area and reunite with her daughters, Gabi, 22, and Claudia, 26. Her daughters drove to Kentucky early Monday to pick up their mother from Campbell County Detention Center, where she’d been detained since August 2025. Then they sat in the detention center’s parking lot for more than 24 hours, waiting for the moment their mom would walk out the front door. * CNI | IDOC worker who embezzled $125K sentenced to 2 months in prison: A federal judge on Monday sentenced a former Illinois Department of Corrections payroll worker who stole about $125,000 from the agency to two months in prison and 18 months of supervised release. Maggi Tudor, 34, pleaded guilty in July to a monthslong scheme to embezzle the money from the state of Illinois. She did so by using her position as a payroll technician at Pinckneyville Correctional Center to falsify the overtime and holiday pay of her husband, who worked as a correctional officer at the prison’s satellite campus, the Murphysboro Life Skills Re-Entry Center, federal court records show. * WAND | Public hearing set for Springfield proposed property tax levy increase: According to a statement from the Board of Education, the corporate and special purpose property taxes extended or abated for 2025 were $127,698,088, and the proposed corporate and special purpose property taxes to be levied for 2026 are $134,067,170, which represents a 4.99% increase over the previous year. Additionally, the estimated total property taxes to be levied for 2026 are $144,846,780, which represents a 5.50% increase over the previous year. * WGLT | ISU campus community celebrates first-generation students and others who are ‘their own opportunity’: First-generation students at Illinois State University were celebrated Sunday at an event to mark National First-Generation College Day. TRIO Student Support Services [SSS] at ISU hosted the event at the Bone Student Center. The day is celebrated annually to mark the anniversary of the signing of the Higher Education Act of 1965, which laid the foundation for federal financial aid programs, including TRIO programs. * NPR Illinois | SCHEELS Sports Park GM planning for the future: “Right now we’re doing all that work. I think we’re going to be able to be a major player in the next three to four years. It is a process. It is new. But what’s exciting is that Springfield has done such a great job and the owners of looking forward with a vision of saying this is important for this community. Let’s do the little things right and they haven’t cut corners,” Brandon Doherty, SCHEELS Sports Park General Manager said. * NYT | America’s Measles Problem Has Reached Endemic Level: Measles is once again endemic in the United States, 26 years after it was declared eliminated in the country, an analysis of genetic data from outbreaks of the disease has found. Data from the outbreaks will be the focus of deliberations by an international panel of scientific experts convening on Tuesday to decide whether the United States should lose its official designation as a nation that has eliminated measles. An announcement of the decision is expected on Nov. 17. (The CDC has confirmed 5,182 measles cases in the US this year) * Punchbowl | Inside the competitive House leadership races: Dem leadership watch. As Rep. Sara Jacobs (D-Calif.) mounts her run for House Democratic Caucus vice chair, the California Democrat is showing off her fundraising prowess. This cycle, Jacobs raised more than $7.8 million to help Democratic House candidates. Jacobs also campaigned for candidates from 35 different districts. Jacobs is running against Rep. Lauren Underwood (D-Ill.) for the vice chair role. Underwood officially entered the race on Wednesday. * WaPo | ‘No business having a gun’: Some ICE recruits had a record of red flags: Another ICE officer named in the leaked data, Timothy Keske, resigned from the police department in Berwyn, Illinois, a Chicago suburb, in October 2023 following disciplinary measures over excessive force, inflating tuition reimbursement requests and falsifying a police report. In a 2021 incident, Keske asked a man to step out of his car after smelling marijuana, which is legal to possess in Illinois. […] In another incident, in August 2023, Keske sideswiped an Amazon delivery truck that was parked on the side of the road for deliveries, according to the findings of an investigation by the Berwyn Police Department. […] The investigative report, issued by Deputy Chief of Police Michael Ochsner, said that Keske admitted during an interrogation to submitting false reports, omitting evidence and improperly investigating his own case, among other violations of department policy.
|
|
Your moment of zen
Tuesday, Nov 10, 2026 - Posted by Isabel Miller * It’s been a while since we’ve had an Oscar photo around here. Let’s fix that…
|
|
It’s time to bring safer rides to Illinois.
Tuesday, Nov 10, 2026 - Posted by Advertising Department [The following is a paid advertisement.] Waymo is ready to bring safe, reliable, autonomous rides to Illinois. Never tired or distracted, Waymo provides hundreds of thousands of fully autonomous rides every week across fifteen major U.S. cities, from Los Angeles to Denver — navigating multi-lane expressways and dense city streets. The data shows Waymo’s technology is involved in 95% fewer crashes involving serious injuries or worse when compared to humans (as of 10/2026, see waymo.com/safety). Let’s bring safer rides to Illinois.  Waymo’s autonomous vehicles can support Illinois’ goals for road safety and enhanced accessibility for all communities. With 360° vision, Waymo helps protect pedestrians, cyclists, and other vehicles on the road.
Comments Off |
|
State delays intoxicating hemp ban enforcement for some businesses
Tuesday, Nov 10, 2026 - Posted by Isabel Miller
* Crain’s…
* More…
* Marijuana Herald | Illinois Agrees to Pause Hemp THC Enforcement for 250 Businesses Until November 19 Amid Federal Lawsuit: Under the new law, consumable and topical hemp products containing more than 0.4 milligrams of total THC per container would be classified as marijuana, restricting their sale to licensed dispensaries. The rules also establish new restrictions on synthetic cannabinoids, product packaging, labeling and testing. * Tribune | Illinois ban on intoxicating hemp will end unregulated legal market, but likely shut or shrink many businesses: “I think most people on both sides agree that regulated markets would be a good thing for assuring quality assurance,” said Donald Opitz, director of cannabis studies at DePaul University. “The concern is about how this is interrupting one of the last spaces where some inclusivity in the market remained. A lot of business owners who entered this space are from minority communities that have been pushed out of the legal cannabis market.”
|
|
Isabel’s morning briefing: Cunningham says Bears warming to stadium authority; Aaron Ammons seeks trial delay
Tuesday, Nov 10, 2026 - Posted by Isabel Miller * ICYMI: Bears discussions move toward publicly-owned stadium. Center Square…
- “It’s an approach that the NFL is familiar with. All but three stadiums in the NFL were built under that kind of public ownership construct. And I would say in the recent weeks, the Bears have gotten more comfortable with that approach,” Cunningham said. - Gov. JB Pritzker said he would like a stadium bill to be ready for fall veto session next week. * Related stories… * Gov. JB Pritzker has no public events scheduled today. * WCIA | Aaron Ammons asks for delay in trial as prosecutors respond to Carol’s motion to dismiss: Court documents filed in the Ammons’ cases indicate that Aaron requested that his trial — currently set for Dec. 7 — be postponed to late April or early May. He cited his “professional governmental responsibilities,” his counsel’s availability and the “complex nature of the case” as reasons why. Aaron already had a pretrial hearing scheduled for Election Day postponed due to his duties as Champaign County Clerk in overseeing election proceedings. His motion notes that he briefly met with his counsel the day after, but he still has responsibilities concerning certification of the 2026 midterm elections on Nov. 17 and the looming municipal elections. * Sun-Times | Class of 2027 Illinois congressional delegation arrives in Washington: The state will see five new faces in Congress next year after a series of retirements created a seismic shift in Illinois politics. Senator-elect Juliana Stratton arrived in Washington on Monday for a two-day Senate orientation after winning the open race to succeed Sen. Dick Durbin. * Tribune | Community leaders say new environmental study of Amtrak’s proposed South Side facility ‘woefully inadequate’: “This assessment process, which Amtrak and the FRA only agreed to under intense pressure, is woefully insufficient,” said Ald. Nicole Lee, 11th, and Cook County Commissioner John Daley in a joint statement. They called for an independent study of Amtrak’s proposal, which has drawn fierce community opposition. Local residents say they worry their neighborhoods will get hit with diesel fumes and suffer from noise pollution as Amtrak trains rumble in and out of the proposed $915 million maintenance facility near Rate Field. * Daily Herald | From social worker to senator, Santa Maria is latest Arlington Heights trustee off to Springfield: One of the first things Santa Maria said she wants to do is pass a law ending child marriage in Illinois. But the topic she’s often asked about — the prospect of a Bears stadium in Arlington Heights — may not come across her desk by the time she gets to Springfield. “I think it’ll be on my plate from a trustee perspective,” said Santa Maria, who noted the “deep conversations” to come during the upcoming veto session that opens Nov. 17. * Capitol City Now | Del Mar: “I’m not going anywhere”: He says the “national headwinds” brought down the GOP last week, and now – not two years from now – is the time to recruit “high-quality candidates.” Connecting with potential donors and discussing the platform are important. “This election really should be a wakeup call for everybody across the state that we need to get our act together,” added Del Mar. Del Mar wants a party convention next year “to draft new bylaws, new platform and elect new leaders and build a solid foundation for future growth.” * Block Club | Mayor Says He’s ‘Always’ Favored Gunshot Detection Technology As Voters Back Its Return: The mayor said he wants any replacement technology to protect residents’ privacy and demonstrate its effectiveness before the city commits to a long-term contract. The city is preparing to launch a six-month pilot program testing a range of violence interruption and public safety technologies, including gunshot detection systems in six South and West side police districts: Wentworth (2nd), Calumet (5th), Englewood (7th), Deering (9th), Ogden (10th) and Harrison (11th). * Sun-Times | Mayor Johnson upends gunshot-detection pilot after voters resoundingly back the technology: Roberts said her office initially planned a pilot program with one vendor that wasn’t involved in a lengthy, competitive bidding process for a gunshot-detection contract. But the Johnson administration has now decided to let all of the “short-listed” bidders showcase their violence prevention strategies in the pilot, Roberts said. * WGN | Mayor Johnson, opposition alders dig in for budget debate: Mayor Johnson’s proposal is already facing fierce opposition from a group of alders who blocked his budget last year and passed their own alternative budget. Among them is 39th Ward Ald. Samantha Nugent. “I think you look under the hood, what my colleagues will tell you is let’s look for efficiencies first before we put new spending in a budget,” she said during an interview on Monday. * WGN | Guevara claims cost Chicago $475 million: Last month, the Chicago City Council approved a mass settlement to resolve lawsuits, filed by 17 men who claim they were framed by a former Chicago police detective. At a total of $261 million, observers say it ranks as one of the largest police settlements in U.S. history. The detective, Reynaldo Guevara, retired in 2005. * Crain’s | As gaps widen, community health centers double down on Chicago: Impending cuts to Medicaid, the expiration of enhanced Affordable Care Act marketplace subsidies and staggering premium increases making coverage unaffordable are placing immense financial and operational strain on CHCs, even as the services they provide are becoming more critical to some communities. Chicago’s biggest healthcare providers, Rush among them, in the last decade have taken more steps to strengthen outreach and services to surrounding communities. They’ve invested millions in providing care to address the social determinants of health — the non-medical conditions in the environments where people live and work that influence health and quality-of-life outcomes, and reduce disparities. * ABC Chicago | Chicago mayoral petition challenges begin as candidates defend ballot access: Johnson’s campaign began defending the signatures it submitted as part of the nomination process. Last month, the mayor turned in more than 31,000 petition signatures. His team maintains that total will leave him with more than enough valid signatures after challenges to meet the required threshold of 12,500 signatures needed for ballot access. Johnson faces challenges from activists with Flip Chicago Red, as well as political consultant and former State Sen. Ricky Hendon, who is working for mayoral candidate Willie Wilson. Hendon contends the mayor has fewer than 5,000 valid signatures. * ABC Chicago | Alderpersons grill Chicago election officials about glitch that caused ballot shortages: Ald. Bill Conway, of the 34th Ward, asked the executive director of the Board of Elections, Sandra Aspera, if she thought they did a good job last Tuesday. “I actually feel our staff did a really good job. It was the ballot error, the coding error, a big confusion, not a confusion. It created a lot of media attention and then everyone assumed it was because of the ballot error. No, there were many reasons why we had long lines,” said Aspera. * Sun-Times | City sports commission hopes better terms can be met for hosting 2031 Women’s World Cup: The city is pinning its hopes on FIFA choosing Soldier Field, though a decision is years away. Chicago Sports Commission executive director Kara Bachman hopes the exclusivity period — the number of days Soldier Field must be shut down before and after the tournament — will be shorter than in years past. * Daily Herald | Why 5-term incumbent Elgin City Council member was kicked off ballot: According to the documents, Elgin City Clerk Kim Dewis told Steffen that she couldn’t certify his candidacy. She said his nominating petition failed to comply with the Illinois Election Code, specifically because it “was not signed by you or notarized.” * Evanston Now | Parents groups criticize D65 budget errors: “It has been a hard couple weeks for anyone trying to follow District 65 finances.” That statement, from the community group Thrive 65, is hard to dispute, whatever your position may be regarding the proposed $20 million budget cuts, which include closing Dewey and Lincolnwood schools at the end of this academic year. * Daily Herald | ‘We rise together and we fall together’: Refurbished Illinois Holocaust Museum reopening: Among the improvements are a new reflection gallery; a larger, state-of-the-art auditorium; improved accessibility; a refurbished lobby and welcome center; and expanded exhibitions, including virtual reality and digital options available to visitors around the world. * Daily Herald | New Metra alert system offers texts and train arrival predictions — but you have to sign up: With prediction alerts, commuters who select origin and destination stations will receive a list of trains at a specified time. For example, a weekday commuter who requests a prediction alert for trains leaving the Union Pacific West Line’s Oak Park station en route to Ogilvie Transportation Center around 7 a.m. might receive six options, Metra spokesperson Michael Gillis said. * Capitol News Illinois | BJC HealthCare, Aetna agree to extend access for southern Illinois retirees: Thousands of Illinois retirees will maintain in-network access to BJC HealthCare hospitals and providers through the end of next year after BJC and insurer Aetna reached a one-year agreement. The deal, announced Friday, Nov. 6, applies specifically to members enrolled in the TRAIL program through the end of 2027. Discussions remain ongoing between Aetna and WashU Medicine. * WIFR | More Rockford families turn to food pantries as holidays near: Rock River Valley Pantry CEO Tabatha Endres-Cruz says the organization has seen a more than 235% increase in the number of people served over the past four years. The pantry now helps between 7,000 and 8,000 people each month. * WCIA | Memorial Health looks to expand Springfield presence with new rehab facility: It would be located in a current farm field at the corner of Milby Lane and Alex Boulevard. The 60-bed rehab center would treat patients recovering from brain injuries, fractures and other medical issues. It will cost just over $66 million to build. * WGLT | Bloomington council hears call for hyperscale data center ban ahead of 2nd hearing on draft regulations: Adam Heenan was one of two speakers during public comment at the city council’s meeting on Monday. He said the results of an advisory question on the 2026 midterm ballot indicated a large majority of Bloomington residents want a permanent moratorium on data centers. About 78% of voters said they would like the city to implement a permanent moratorium. “It is a mandate to act,” Heenan said. “We don’t want them.” * AP | California voters reject measure to tax the wealth of billionaires: The “no” side raised roughly 10 times as much as the “yes” side. Google co-founder Sergey Brin alone dumped more than $100 million into a political action committee working to defeat the measure. The measure would have imposed a one-time 5% tax on the wealth of Californians whose net worth exceeds $1 billion. Most of the money would have been used to backfill federal funding cuts to healthcare, and 10% would have gone toward education and food-assistance programs. SEIU United Healthcare Workers West, which backed the tax, said it was necessary to replace an estimated $100 billion the state will lose in federal healthcare funding over five years. * Chicago Reader | Now that Democrats can do something, will they?: U.S. Representative Lauren Underwood,, first elected to Congress in 2018, outlined similar priorities in an interview with the Reader. Underwood hopes to reduce rising healthcare costs and reverse Trump-imposed Medicaid cuts. She said Democrats should pursue “a really rigorous oversight agenda . . . to offer a sense of transparency to the American people,” and that accountability must extend beyond hearings to include investigations and depositions of key political figures. * The Atlantic | The One Source Bob Woodward Can’t Get to Talk: Throughout most of Woodward’s career, several criticisms of his journalism have recurred: It provides little or no analysis; he’s a pawn of his sources, telling the story they want told; and he’s dangerous to talk to, because he privileges scoops above all else. These might seem to contradict one another, but in fact few people can survive stenography.
|
|
Good morning!
Tuesday, Nov 10, 2026 - Posted by Isabel Miller
|
|
Selected press releases (live updates)
Tuesday, Nov 10, 2026 - Posted by Isabel Miller
|
| PREVIOUS POSTS » |
