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Isabel’s afternoon roundup
Monday, Sep 21, 2026 - Posted by Isabel Miller * WSIU…
* Sun-Times | Gov. Pritzker discusses his 80-pound weight loss, use of GLP-1 — ‘I think it’s what I need to succeed’: He said he’s been on “every diet you could imagine” with no long-term success. But it wasn’t until a doctor diagnosed him with prediabetes, and later Type 2 diabetes, at age 58, that he began taking insulin — and ultimately a GLP-1 medication to help regulate his blood sugar. […] But more than two years into his new weight loss journey, the governor said he wants to talk about it openly, largely in part because he knows millions of Americans are suffering from obesity-related health conditions. He said he didn’t talk about it sooner because he wanted to make sure the weight loss stuck. The disclosure also comes just months before Democrats are expected to announce their intentions to run for president. * Crain’s | As Medicaid cuts near, one free Chicago clinic pushes expansion: As hospitals, clinics and physician offices stare down huge Medicaid losses, with hundreds of thousands of patients set to lose coverage, many providers are considering the need to cut services and survive on less. Chicago-based Community Health is instead running toward the trouble by expanding. * Injustice Watch | Discredited UIC lab manager Jennifer Bash is back on the witness stand: Winnebago County prosecutors called former UIC lab manager Jennifer Bash to testify in a pair of fatal driving-while-high cases earlier this year despite being informed in 2024 that her now-shuttered forensic toxicology lab had produced unreliable test results. In response to recent Injustice Watch inquiries about Bash’s testimony, Winnebago County State’s Attorney J. Hanley said his office had dropped some charges in one of the cases and would launch a review of all convictions based on the University of Illinois Chicago Analytical Forensic Testing Laboratory’s controversial and discredited urine testing. But Hanley said his office is continuing to pursue charges based on the lab’s blood testing, despite known flaws. * CBS Chicago | Thousands of downtown Chicago hotel workers vote to authorize strike: UNITE HERE Local 1 said, after negotiations on new contracts failed to reach an agreement, 85% of workers at more than 40 hotels voted to authorize strikes. Most of those contracts expired on Aug. 31, according to the union. Collectively, the hotels employ more than 7,000 room attendants, cooks, dishwashers, front desk agents, servers, and food service workers at more than 40 hotels downtown and near McCormick Place. The union said, if all those workers go on strike, it would be the largest hotel workers strike in Chicago history. * Tribune | Bears QB Caleb Williams avoided a major injury to his hamstring, report says: Per the report, the Bears are not ruling out Williams’ possible return for the Week 3 game against the Philadelphia Eagles on “Monday Night Football” at Soldier Field. Speaking with Bears radio play-by-play voice Jeff Joniak on Monday on WMVP-AM 1000, coach Ben Johnson said he still needed to talk to the training staff, but “it sounds like it’s going to be a week-to-week deal for him.” * Daily Southtown | Park Forest mayor’s altercation with business owners expected to be election issue: In what has now become a man-bites-dog controversy, Woods is now suing the village because Park Forest says it will not pay Woods’ defense or cover his expenses because his actions were committed outside the scope of his office. Woods claims that under the village’s Municipal Code, Park Forest is obligated to pay all his legal expenses. Meanwhile, in his statement announcing his decision to run for mayor, White touched all the bases: high property taxes, the cost of living, decent housing availability and that the village faces “an infrastructure issue that needs to be addressed.” * Aurora Beacon-News | League of Women Voters of Central Kane County hosting candidate forums on Sept. 22, 23 before Nov. 3 election: The two candidate forums will be held at 6:30 p.m. on Sept. 22 and 23 at Batavia’s City Hall, at 100 N. Island Ave. in Batavia. The forums will also be recorded and streamed to BATV’s YouTube channel, a news release from the League of Women Voters of Central Kane County said. “Voters in our community deserve the opportunity to learn about their candidates for public office,” Kelly Rotella, the League of Women Voters of Central Kane County’s co-president, said in the news release, “so they can be best prepared to make informed decisions at the polls.” * Daily Herald | Midterm elections bring wave of referendums to suburban voters: Voters in St. Charles Unit District 303 will decide whether the district should borrow $282.5 million for a host of building projects, in the first such referendum in 17 years. Proposed projects include adding a $61 million field house to St. Charles North High School; enlarging three elementary schools; and razing and replacing wings at two elementary schools. * Crain’s | How other Midwestern cities are building the supply of new homes: On Rockford’s west side, “if you look south of State Street, you see a lot of vacant lots,” Capovilla said. “That’s where we need development, but people have come to us and said they want to build a house but the bank won’t give (them) a loan. If they can build a two-flat and rent out the first floor, the bank looks at that differently” because of the income produced. Importantly, in this era when the notion of allowing multiple units on single-family lots sparks opposition from a range of people, including YouTubers and municipal leaders, Rockford is only relaxing single-family zoning on already-vacant lots in areas targeted for redevelopment. * WCIA | Air Evac closes Decatur base, cites limited resources: “While this decision was not made lightly, it reflects our responsibility to ensure limited aircraft. Clinical teams and aviation personnel are positioned where they can have the greatest impact on patient care across our service area,” the spokesperson said. “We want to extend our sincere gratitude to the Decatur Park District and Decatur Airport for their partnership, support and hospitality over the years. Their collaboration has been instrumental in helping us serve the community, and we value the strong relationships we have built together.” * WGLT | High numbers of fire alarms discourage ISU students from evacuating: Assistant Director of Fire Safety and Compliance for ISU Environmental Health and Safety Adam Streenz said the fire alarms went off in ISU housing and connected dining centers a total of 54 times in 2025. That’s more than once each week. According to students, repeated alarms, especially at inconvenient times, quickly led to alarm fatigue. * AP | States settle lawsuit over Paramount-Warner merger, clearing key hurdle for $81 billion deal: But among terms of Monday’s agreement announced by California Attorney General Rob Bonta — who led the states’ case — Paramount pledged to increase film production in the U.S., commit millions of dollars to a fund aimed at supporting workers who are displaced by the merger and establish monitoring of editorial independence of the company’s news operations. The settlement still needs a final sign-off by a judge. Bonta said Monday’s agreement was about “protecting people’s careers, the lives they’ve built here in California, the livelihoods their families rely on” — but he maintained it was not a vote in support of the merger.
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It’s just a bill
Monday, Sep 21, 2026 - Posted by Isabel Miller
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Democratic Party splits over money
Monday, Sep 21, 2026 - Posted by Rich Miller * My weekly syndicated newspaper column…
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When RETAIL Succeeds, Illinois Succeeds
Monday, Sep 21, 2026 - Posted by Advertising Department [The following is a paid advertisement.] Good American Barber Company offers quality haircuts and traditional shaves while making every customer feel like family. The shop specializes in short hair cuts for men and women alike, giving customers a classic barbershop experience. Rooted in owner Maira Soto’s Mexican American heritage and her lifelong connection to Grayslake, Good American Barber Company is built on care, personal service, and community. Findings of a recent economic study are clear: the retail sector is a cornerstone of the state’s economy and crucial to our everyday lives. Retail in Illinois directly contributes more than $112 billion in economic investment annually – more than 10 percent of the state’s total Gross Domestic Product. Policies that support small businesses help communities thrive as retailers like Maira from Grayslake are better equipped to meet local needs. We Are Retail and IRMA are showcasing the retailers who make Illinois work. Please visit https://WeAreRetail.IRMA.org/.
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Isabel’s morning briefing
Monday, Sep 21, 2026 - Posted by Isabel Miller * ICYMI: JB Pritzker says Dems should add corruption to list of midterm issues. Politico…
- He pointed to Illinois’ AI regulations and said the federal government and other countries will need to establish guardrails as the technology develops. On Friday, Pritzker called for Congress to return to Washington to address AI issues. - For now, Pritzker said, he’s focused on winning a third term as governor, but he has not ruled out a presidential bid. […] Asked whether he’d run if Kamala Harris jumped in the race, Pritzker said that wouldn’t be a factor in his decision-making.
* Gov. JB Pritzker has no public events scheduled today. * CNI | Illinois EPA releases ‘Comprehensive Climate Action Plan’ to reach ‘net zero’ emissions: The Comprehensive Climate Action Plan is intended to provide a roadmap for Illinois to reduce its carbon footprint to as little as 72% below its 2005 baseline. It also outlines two scenarios under which Illinois could virtually eliminate all carbon emissions. Those would involve a combination of incentive packages and regulatory changes that would affect nearly every sector of the economy. But doing so, the report suggests, would produce $21 billion a year in net economic benefits. * Tribune | Illinois Supreme Court to hear case that will determine future of Chicago police misconduct process: After three years of negotiations, lawsuits and appeals, the Illinois Supreme Court this week will hear arguments from attorneys for the city of Chicago and the Fraternal Order of Police in a case that will determine the future of serious misconduct cases involving Chicago Police Department officers and the public’s right of access. The crux of the dispute is whether officers accused of severe wrongdoing may have their disciplinary cases heard and decided by a third-party arbitrator — as is the case for other municipal employees represented by labor unions — instead of the Chicago Police Board, which has been the city’s practice since 1961. * Capitol City Now | Lesko: DUI mentioned in ad was 22 years ago, and it changed my life: ccording to Sangamon County Court records, Lesko pleaded guilty in November of 2004, was sentenced to one year of court supervision, underwent alcohol treatment, and paid roughly $800 in fines. The records also state in May 2005, a judge signed an order discharging Lesko from the court supervision. The arrest itself happened in March, 2004. “I’ve spent the last 20 years speaking with groups and encouraging them not to make the same mistake that I did,” said Lesko, on social media, also claiming he has given up drinking since then. * WCIA | Keith Smith will challenge Carol Ammons as write-in candidate for 103rd District: According to his LinkedIn profile, Smith previously ran a catering company in Champaign and worked as a realtor. In an announcement on social media, Smith said he would prioritize education issues, affordable healthcare and cost of living. * The Daily Egyptian | Shantel Franklin returns to SIU, ‘the place that changed my life’: Franklin arrived at SIU in 2012 after experiencing homelessness as a child and attending eight different schools. She told attendees that arriving in Carbondale gave her an opportunity to redefine herself. […] While studying political science, Franklin became involved across campus. She worked at what was then called the Black Resource Center, joined the Zeta Chi Chapter of Delta Sigma Theta Sorority, served as chief of staff for Undergraduate Student Government and was crowned SIU’s 2014 homecoming queen. […] After graduating from SIU, Franklin spent seven years working for the Illinois Attorney General’s Office. When the 8th District seat became open, she said she had developed the courage, experience and passion to run. She is the first woman and youngest Democratic nominee for state representative in the district. She is running unopposed and is expected to take office in January 2027. * Muddy River News | How Republican Darren Bailey sees the numbers adding up to victory in the Illinois Governor’s race November 3: [Note from Isabel: The Bailey campaign hasn’t made this polling public. And, yes, I’ve asked for it more than once.] Bailey said his campaign’s internal polling shows him neck and neck with the incumbent. This was also the case the last time he ran and lost against Pritzker. But here’s what Bailey said is different this time around, if they can get the voter turnout numbers up. […] “We believe people are staying home on his side of the aisle. It’s called an under vote,” Bailey said. “Possibly 20% to 25% of solid voters for JB Pritzker might not vote for him.” * Muddy River News | Republican U.S. Senate candidate’s mantra: Don’t vote for crazy, vote for Don Tracy: Lawyer turned U.S. Senate candidate Don Tracy thinks he’s got a slogan that will stick with voters as he goes against the Democratic Party’s anointed successor to the retiring Dick Durbin: “Don’t vote for crazy, vote for Don Tracy.” He repeated the mantra during his formal speech and in an interview with Muddy River News Saturday night at the Brown County GOP dinner, which also featured Republican Gubernatorial candidate Darren Bailey and a fellow lawyer running for Illinois Comptroller, Bryan Drew. * Tribune | City strikes sweeping Guevara police misconduct deal as proposed settlement fund soars: But recently filed federal court records seem to have provided the answer, and it comes in one of the biggest police corruption scandals in Chicago history. In a filing quietly put on the public federal court docket Friday, a judge revealed that, pending City Council approval, a “global settlement” has been reached in dozens of pending lawsuits against former homicide Detective Reynaldo Guevara, who has been accused of manipulating lineups, threatening witnesses and beating suspects into confessions. * Sun-Times | Bears QB Caleb Williams hurts hamstring on non-contact play in 9-3 loss to Vikings: Williams hurt his left hamstring in the Pac-12 championship game while at USC. Before Sunday, he had gone two seasons and two games never having missed an NFL snap because of injury. That’s likely to change, starting with the Bears’ ‘‘Monday Night Football’’ game Sept. 28 against the Eagles. * Block Club | Chicago’s Oldest House Faces Uncertain Future As Historical Society Funds Dry Up: “Yes, we saved the house, however, saving it is a constant thing,” Arthur Krumrey, the acting president of the Norwood Park Historical Society, said as he walked past walls of black-and-white photographs on a Wednesday in August. Keeping the house up and running costs about $250 per day, Krumrey said. With a small stream of monthly visitors, the $5 suggested donation doesn’t even begin to cover the house’s costs, he said. Instead, the historical society relies on donations. Krumrey said fundraising fell short last year, but they hope to raise at least $12,000 this year. * Tribune | Cook County awards $191 million in loans to bridge property tax payout gap: Cook County Board President Toni Preckwinkle’s office awarded stopgap loans to 32 villages, library and school districts worth $191 million, an effort to dull the impact of this fall’s property tax delay that nonetheless left many suburban agencies already in dire financial straits with less money than they asked for to help make ends meet. Several officials praised Preckwinkle’s efforts, and the payouts also left $109 million in the loan pot, according to data received through a Tribune open records request. * Evanston Now | Federal agents detained U.S. citizen Sunday morning: A video posted to Facebook on Sunday shows the end of the incident as agents drove off near El Pueblito Mexican Grill on Howard Street, including a man lying near the curb with at least two agents near him. Responding to the call, Stewart said an Evanston police officer encountered “two SUVs near Dodge Avenue and Brummel Street,” which included an individual in “plain clothes and a vest marked ‘POLICE’ with federal law enforcement markings.” The person “identified himself as a federal agent conducting a fugitive investigation,” EPD said in a statement released Sunday night, and “told the officer that agents had attempted to identify an individual who resembled a person they were seeking.” * Pioneer Press | Evanston District 65 proposes cutting $20 million, closing two schools to end budget crisis: The district will also look at cutting “purchased services” to increase cash on hand and examine non-mandated programs, transportation systems and teaching positions to improve current staff-to-student ratios, Witherspoon, D65 CFO Eric Miller and Assistant Superintendent Stacy Beardsley told the Board Monday. * Sun-Times | Push for independent review of Cook County Jail comes amid concerns over deaths, supervision: A resolution calling for a review is scheduled for a vote Tuesday in the Health and Hospitals Committee of the Cook County Board of Commissioners. Advocates, elected officials and faith leaders say a historic 2023 death toll underscores the need for third-party oversight. * WGLT | Data center cooling failure hits Central Illinois credit union customers: A data center cooling failure has disrupted online and mobile banking for customers at several Central Illinois credit unions for the past three days, part of a nationwide problem. The incident began Tuesday, impacting the Illinois State Credit Union, the Credit Union For All in Bloomington, the Streator Community Credit Union, and many others across the U.S. that use the same vendor Sharetec for core-processing services. Several credit unions said Saturday that their systems were finally coming back online, although not all services are yet available. * WAND | University of Illinois Students to hold rally opposing data centers: The protest is scheduled for Sept. 25 at noon. SECS said participants will gather on the Main Quad in front of Foellinger Auditorium, march the length of the Main Quad and rally at the Alma Mater statue. SECS invited experts, professors and community and student organizers to speak in front of Foellinger Auditorium and the Alma Mater during the protest. * WGLT | Normal proposes 6-month extension to data center moratorium: In a memo to the council, town staff said there is renewed interest for data center regulation at the state level. “Any state action on data centers will necessarily affect how the town handles data centers,” states the memo from assistant city manager Brian Day. “All data center regulation was expected to remain at the local level.” * WGLT | Proposed McLean County budget includes body cams for jail guards: The proposed $150 million spending plan would be up 4.1% from the current fiscal year — an increase of $5.9 million. County plans indicate rising property values will allow the property tax rate to go down and homeowners whose assessments do not change would see a modest decrease in the county share of their property tax bills. * WCIA | Mahomet organizations prepare resources for families amid strike uncertainty: As a teacher strike looms for the Mahomet-Seymour School District, non-profits and various organizations are looking for ways to be a helping hand for families in the village. The Mahomet Seymour Education Association said they have no plans to strike. However, they have not yet come to an agreement with the Board of Education. * NYT | Republicans are now the ‘elitist’ party, voters say: When our pollsters asked likely voters which party they think the word “elitist” describes, 43% of them said Republicans, and 33% said Democrats. The Times’ polling editor, Ruth Igielnik, said that we asked the same question in 2022. Back then, Republicans and Democrats were about tied — 35% for Democrats, 36% for Republicans — so the new figures, Ruth said, represent a notable shift. * NYT | How DraftKings uses AI to target gamblers likely to lose: The Times interviewed more than 40 former DraftKings employees and obtained internal research memos, presentations and Slack messages as well as betting records from experiments conducted on customers. The documents show how the model Butts worked on analyzed dozens of data points for gamblers, including how frequently they played, their daily account balances and how much they typically lost compared with how much they bet. It also incorporated another model that calculated how likely a user was to stop gambling. * ProPublica | Ectopic Pregnancy Deaths Have Nearly Doubled. It’s Worse in States With Abortion Bans.: In this new analysis, ProPublica found that 310 more patients in Texas experienced substantial blood loss after an ectopic pregnancy in 2023 and 2024 compared with 2018 and 2019, an increase of about 29%. Similar to ectopic deaths, the rise appeared to begin during the COVID pandemic, but the rate of complications remained elevated after hospital systems stabilized and the state passed its restrictive law. ProPublica is working to acquire similar data from states without abortion bans. * AP | Voting groups sound alarm on funding shortfalls that they say could affect midterm turnout: A July memo circulated among major Democratic fundraisers warned that “the organizations that registered and persuaded millions of voters to participate in the 2018 and 2022 midterms are drastically underfunded. They have raised nearly 40% less than they had at this point in those cycles.” It further warned that funding voter mobilization groups was especially critical “given that the Democratic brand is underperforming on generic ballot tests relative to historical comparisons and the president’s approval ratings.”
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Good morning!
Monday, Sep 21, 2026 - Posted by Isabel Miller
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Selected press releases (live updates)
Monday, Sep 21, 2026 - Posted by Isabel Miller
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