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Isabel’s afternoon roundup
Monday, Mar 3, 2025 - Posted by Isabel Miller * Sun-Times…
* Congrats, Jaclyn! Stomping Ground Strategies…  * Shaw Local | Focused on Trump, Pritzker blasts administration’s actions in Kane County speech: While giving a speech Sunday evening in St. Charles echoing the pomp and sentiments of a presidential campaign, Gov. JB Pritzker denounced the actions of President Donald Trump and rallied voters to take action against their liberties being taken away. “We’ve got to tell people not just what we’re against, but also what we’re for, and then we’ve got to deliver on it,” Pritzker said during his speech. “Democrats are for making it easier to get childcare and to send your kid to preschool. We’re for making it more affordable to get quality healthcare and for seniors to grow old with dignity. We’re for raising the minimum wage so no family goes hungry without a roof over their heads. We spent the last six years doing that here in Illinois.” * WTVO | Rep. McCombie reintroduces bill to repeal Illinois pro-abortion laws, faces activists in Pecatonica: McCombie stopped by the Pecatonica Library to discuss issues with her constituents and said she was surprised by the protests. […] She also acknowledged the bill had little hope of passing. “We’re in the super minority. This bill will sit like it does every year. It’ll sit where it is, and it’ll just die in rules,” she said. * The Atlantic | Migrants Prepare to Lose Their American Lives: One recent morning on Chicago’s southwest side, the manager of a Mexican grocery store began the day posted at the front door, rehearsing the phrase “I wish to exercise my right to remain silent” in English in case immigration agents showed up asking about employees. At a Mexican restaurant, the owner stashed newly laminated private signs under the host stand, ready to slap on the walls of the kitchen and a back dining room where workers could hide if agents arrived without a proper warrant. * WTTW | 250 Jobs Charged With Implementing Court-Ordered Police Reforms Are Empty, Chicago Officials Say: Approximately 250 positions charged with implementing a court order that requires the Chicago Police Department to stop routinely violating Black and Latino residents’ constitutional rights are vacant, even as Chicago officials are facing increasing pressure from a federal judge to “accelerate” the reform effort, records show. A department spokesperson told WTTW News police officials are “actively” working to fill the vacant positions charged with implementing the court order known as the consent decree and reforming CPD, which has faced decades of scandals, misconduct and brutality. * Sun-Times | CTA launching ‘Frequent Network’ bus service on some routes that will arrive every 10 minutes or sooner: The CTA said buses on eight routes will arrive every 10 minutes or sooner between 6 a.m. and 9 p.m. on weekdays and 9 a.m. to 9 p.m. on weekends beginning March 23. Twelve more routes will be added later this year. * Sun-Times | What is Pulaski Day? Here’s what’s closed and the history of this Chicago holiday: Pulaski Day, observed on the first Monday of March, honors Pulaski’s role in the American Revolution and celebrates the contributions of Chicago’s Polish American community. The holiday is held around Pulaski’s birthday, March 6. Illinois established the holiday in 1977 under Gov. James Thompson. In 1986, the Chicago City Council passed a resolution introduced by Mayor Harold Washington to officially recognize it, following strong advocacy from local Polish organizations and community leaders. * Sun-Times | She had a deal to run a coffee bar inside the Englewood Save A Lot, but Yellow Banana ghosted her: The Ohio-based company offered the Auburn-Gresham native a low-risk, low-cost opportunity: She’d pay them 5% of her shop’s monthly sales in exchange for using the space, as well as equipment Whole Foods left behind in 2022. But Simmons has since walked away from the deal, disgusted, after spending thousands on inventory. Her coffee bar never opened for business. The 38-year-old blames Yellow Banana, saying the company didn’t keep its end of the deal to provide working internet and equipment and then stopped responding when she spoke up. She describes a chaotic situation during the 16 months she showed up to prep for opening and run her online business. * Aurora Beacon-News | Fear of ICE arrests keeping customers at home, immigrant-owned businesses in Aurora say: ‘The streets were so lonely’: Just off the Metra tracks on the East Side of Aurora, Elotes Gus, a food truck, sits in a parking lot. It’s open every day, according to its owner, Gustavo Salmeron, 47. When he’s not working as a Spanish teacher, he’s probably there, serving tacos to the passersby and witnessing the hustle and bustle of the streets around him from his truck. On a recent Friday evening at just before 6 p.m., Salmeron’s truck has no line. He said on a typical day, even in the winter, there would regularly be three or four customers waiting for their dinner by now. But business has been slow lately, Salmeron said. * Crain’s | Schaumburg reaches deal with Zurich in tax break dispute: The village and the insurance company were at odds over whether employees had to merely be “assigned” to a location or physically be onsite to meet the contractual requirement for the number of workers necessary to qualify for the tax break. At stake were millions of dollars a year. Under terms of original agreement, created two decades ago, the village offered to reimburse Zurich up to $100 million in property taxes over 23 years for building a gleaming $325 million headquarters on a 39-acre campus at Interstate 90 and Meacham Road, which would employ a minimum of 1,700 workers. * Daily Herald | As U.S. sees rough flu season, what’s happening in the suburbs?: At Endeavor Health Edward Hospital in Naperville, it’s been a “very busy flu season,” says Dr. Jonathan Pinsky, medical director of infection control and prevention. There were 1,345 lab-confirmed influenza cases in the emergency room and in the hospital throughout the entire flu season in 2023-24. * Aurora Beacon-News | Opening of Kane County Flea Market an early sign of spring for Aurora-area shoppers: With spring in the air, it wasn’t surprising to find Geneva resident Matt Jania looking for some baseball memorabilia on Saturday on opening weekend of the Kane County Flea Market in St. Charles. “I’ve been to a flea market a few times and this one is nice,” he said as he looked over some framed pictures of professional athletes. “I haven’t bought much, but when I find something that I like I’m a pretty good negotiator. I knew this weekend was coming, and I’m going to check out some other stuff like maybe a few jerseys and stuff to hang up in my room in the house.” * Evanston Round Table | Picturing Evanston: 45 Paczki in 5 minutes: In honor of Guy Downer — the patriarch of Bennison’s who passed away this year five hours shy of this 101st birthday — portions of prune paczki sales are going toward “Folds of Honor,” an organization that provides academic scholarships to the children and spouses of fallen or disabled military members and first responders. Each competing team received 30 paczki, and the group that ate the most in five minutes won. Cups with warm water were a crucial component for the speedy and successful intake of the pastries. * SJ-R | Major construction underway on I-55 near Springfield. Here’s what to know.: Builders began widening the bridges last week as a step towards adding a northbound and a southbound lane to the bridges, as well expanding a stretch of the interstate. The bridges are just north of the northbound RailSplitter rest area. The project will also add safety and capacity improvements to the interstate, according to the Illinois Department of Transportation. * WICS | Illinois Fire Service Institute to host Discover IFSI events in Champaign: Participants in the Discover IFSI events will gain insights into the requirements and process for becoming a firefighter in Illinois. The program includes guided tours of a fire service training facility and up-close observations of live fire and technical rescue fire training. * BND | This $1 million road project is starting soon in St. Clair County: A $1 million road work project is expected to start this spring on a portion of Sullivan Drive, which runs through Belleville and Swansea. Crews will be repairing Sullivan Drive between Huntwood Road in Swansea and Illinois 161 in Belleville. This section of the road has an average daily traffic of 8,250 cars, according to data from the state transportation agency. * STAT | HHS review of a vaccine contract sparks worries about preparedness for a potential bird flu pandemic: Most flu vaccines are currently made using a decades-old approach where viruses are grown in hen’s eggs, then inactivated — a process that can sometimes result in mutations that undermine the vaccines’ effectiveness. Production is slow and reliant on huge quantities of eggs — the supply of which could be threatened by outbreaks of H5N1 or other bird flu viruses, as is happening now. Wide-scale outbreaks of H5N1 in poultry are occurring in multiple parts of the country, forcing the culling of flocks and driving egg costs to historic highs. * Politico | Top HHS spokesperson quits after clashing with RFK Jr.: The top spokesperson at the Health and Human Services Department has abruptly quit after clashing with Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. and his close aides over their management of the agency amid a growing measles outbreak, two people familiar with the matter told POLITICO. Thomas Corry announced on Monday that he had resigned “effective immediately,” just two weeks after joining the department as its assistant secretary for public affairs.
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Robert Crimo III pleads guilty to Highland Park parade shooting
Monday, Mar 3, 2025 - Posted by Isabel Miller * Tribune…
* WGN…
* Rep. Bob Morgan responded to Crimo’s guilty plea today…
* Another bill passed after the parade shooting which expanded police use of drones. WTTW…
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Question of the day
Monday, Mar 3, 2025 - Posted by Rich Miller
* Quad Cities TV…
* Forbes…
* More restrictions from the bill…
* BND…
It was discussed at the press conference today that half of community colleges are 30 miles or more from universities. * The Question: Do you support or oppose allowing community colleges, with some restrictions, to offer four-year degrees? Take the poll and then explain your answer in comments, please.
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Tribune editorial board: ‘Nevermind’
Monday, Mar 3, 2025 - Posted by Rich Miller * From the Chicago Tribune print edition…  * To the editorial…
Um, one problem: That’s not Pritzker’s proposal, it’s the Citizen Action proposal. The governor intends to introduce his own proposal without a state board. * So, the Tribune rewrote the headline and the editorial, took out the remarks about Pritzker and appended this “Editor’s note” to the bottom of the piece…
[Headline explained here.]
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Judge tosses bribery convictions in ComEd Four case, prosecutors indicate a new trial may not be necessary
Monday, Mar 3, 2025 - Posted by Isabel Miller * Lawyers in the ComEd Four case were back in court this morning to see whether Judge Manish Shah would pause proceedings after President Donald Trump ordered a review of the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act. Jason Meisner from the Tribune…
* But…
* The four were found guilty on all of these counts…
Counts 3, 4, 7 and 9 are under the currently paused Foreign Corrupt Practices Act (15 U.S.C. 78dd-1).
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Fair hit?
Monday, Mar 3, 2025 - Posted by Rich Miller * Hmm…
* On Friday, we posted two items here, one directly after the other. The first one was what the Pritzker administration had done to slash the costs of providing health insurance to undocumented immigrants (mostly by limiting and cutting or even eliminating enrollment). The second was entitled: “Pritzker: Cuts to Medicaid will be devastating to Illinois.” Both arguments are based on the fact that Illinois cannot afford to provide this healthcare assistance on its own. But… Your thoughts on this criticism?
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When RETAIL Succeeds, Illinois Succeeds
Monday, Mar 3, 2025 - Posted by Advertising Department [The following is a paid advertisement.] Findings of a recent economic study were 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. Retailers like Stacy and Amanda enrich our economy and strengthen our communities. We Are Retail and IRMA showcase the retailers who make Illinois work.
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It’s just a bill
Monday, Mar 3, 2025 - Posted by Isabel Miller * ProPublica…
* Illinois Environmental Council…
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State finally making major progress on funding ‘four core services’
Monday, Mar 3, 2025 - Posted by Rich Miller * My weekly syndicated newspaper column…
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Intoxicating Hemp: No safety? No thanks!
Monday, Mar 3, 2025 - Posted by Advertising Department [The following is a paid advertisement.] A federal loophole has led to a booming gray market across Illinois for intoxicating hemp products, which use synthetics to alter the composition of hemp to get consumers high. This is happening outside the structure of the state’s legal cannabis industry. This means intoxicating hemp faces NO quality testing, NO age restrictions, NO packaging requirements, NO potency rules, and NO taxes to fund programs in communities impacted by the War on Drugs. Most intoxicating hemp products aren’t even produced in Illinois. By contrast, Illinois cannabis businesses face extensive rules and regulations to operate, with products tracked from seed to sale. When consumers purchase legal cannabis grown and processed in Illinois, they know their products are safe. Hemp and cannabis come from the same plant. Both products can get users high. Why the different rules? Illinois already has a system in place to regulate hemp – it’s called the Cannabis Regulation and Tax Act. It’s time for Illinois to close the intoxicating hemp loophole.
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Isabel’s morning briefing
Monday, Mar 3, 2025 - Posted by Isabel Miller * ICYMI: Mayor Brandon Johnson arrives in DC to prep for testimony before GOP-led sanctuary city hearing. Sun-Times…
- The Sun-Times learned that Johnson spent Sunday in a DC hotel prepping. City Hall has hired a Washington law firm with experience in helping witnesses get ready for congressional hearings and navigate unfamiliar terrain. - The House Oversight and Government Reform Committee hearing, to kick off at 9 a.m. on Wednesday. * Related stories…
∙ Axios: What’s at stake if we lose sanctuary city laws * At 10:30 am Governor Pritzker will be in East Alton to celebrate the Wieland factory expansion. At noon, the governor will be in Godfrey to amplify a plan to offer bachelor degrees at some community colleges. Click here to watch. * Tribune | People with developmental disabilities can wait years for community placements, state records show: Across Illinois’ seven state-operated developmental centers for people with developmental disabilities and medical or behavioral needs — known as SODCs — more than 200 residents were seeking placement elsewhere as of last month, close to 15% of the total population in those centers, according to records from the Illinois Department of Human Services. Of those, more than 125 had been on a waiting list for at least a year, records showed. * Tribune | Midwest communities worry that firing of parks and forest employees will harm ecosystems, economies and education: “Since 2010, park staffing has gone down 20%, but park visitation has gone up 16% — so these park staff are resilient folks who have been doing more with less,” said Crystal Davis, Midwest senior regional director for the National Parks Conservation Association, a nonpartisan organization that advocates on behalf of the parks system. But the current changes are wide-reaching, she said, with a “devastating impact.” * Bond Buyer | Illinois’ 2023 ACFR may become latest ever filed by state: Illinois’ Annual Comprehensive Financial Report for fiscal year 2023 is threatening to break California’s record for latest audit, having recently passed 600 days since that fiscal year ended, according to data on audit times. * Shaw Local | Focused on Trump, Pritzker blasts administration’s actions in Kane County speech: “Trump is going to try to tear down all of it from Washington D.C. if people don’t stand up, show up, speak at town halls and at Congress,” Pritzker said. “Everyone, even kids, need to get into the fight. Never give up. Never surrender. We are the bulwark of the resistance. The rest of the country is depending on Illinois.” * Tribune | Federal funding freeze lifted for some Illinois clean energy projects: With the fight over a federal clean energy funding freeze entering its second month, two of the biggest prizes in Illinois are emissions-reduction grants totaling more than $570 million. Now, the state appears closer to claiming both of them. Money from an expected $430 million in federal Climate Pollution Reduction grants was blocked until Feb. 19, but the state can now access it, according to a statement from Gov. JB Pritzker’s office. Part of a $148 million National Electric Vehicle Infrastructure grant for public EV chargers also appears to be within reach. * WJBD | State Representative Meier provides update on prostate cancer treatment: Meier says he is feeling great after completing the final treatment of his first round of radiation for prostate cancer. He notes after announcing his prostate cancer diagnosis earlier this year, he was totally overwhelmed with the outpouring of support, prayers, well wishes, and love from people across the country. Meier says every text, call, and message were a bit of encouragement he needed to get over this bump in the road. * NBC Chicago | 12 Illinois DMVs will offer only Real ID services on Saturdays. List of locations: On Monday alone, Giannoulias said his office saw a record 58,000 people on its website looking to make Real ID appointments. For the first 24 days of February, 860,000 people attempted to make appointments. “And this surge is not confined to Illinois. DMVs across the country have experienced unprecedented lines and wait times. In Miami, people are sleeping overnight outside of DMV facilities and in their cars just to improve their chances of getting a Real ID,” he said. * Daily Herald | ‘Instability in the market’ or rightsizing? What does federal EV cold shoulder mean for Illinois?: Affected businesses could include: electric truck manufacturer Rivian in Normal; Stellantis, which is reopening its closed Belvidere plant to produce an electric Dodge Durango; and Gotion, which plans to open a EV battery factory in Manteno, he said. Meanwhile, Illinois Alliance for Clean Transportation Chairman John Walton noted rebates were first offered to offset the high prices of EVs for consumers new to the technology. “I think the rebates have served their purpose,” the Wheaton resident said. Now, “you can buy an electric car for just north of $30,000. I think the goal of what they wanted to do — bring the price down to where the average guy could afford one” has been met. * Tribune | Ascension completes sale of 8 Illinois hospitals to Prime Healthcare for more than $370 million: The hospitals are all generally keeping their names but without the Ascension branding. The hospitals are: Holy Family Medical Center in Des Plaines, Mercy Medical Center in Aurora, Resurrection Medical Center in Chicago, Saint Francis Hospital in Evanston, Saint Joseph Medical Center in Joliet, Saint Joseph Hospital in Elgin, Saint Mary’s Hospital in Kankakee and Saint Mary of Nazareth Hospital in Chicago. * Tribune | After 4 years leading COPA, departing chief reflects on time at police oversight agency: Four years ago, 20 members of the Chicago City Council signed a letter to then-Mayor Lori Lightfoot, “vehemently” opposing her nominee to lead the Civilian Office of Police Accountability, Andrea Kersten, who was the agency’s deputy chief administrator at the time. COPA, bound by the city’s municipal code, had recently released its report on the Chicago Police Department’s botched raid at the home of Anjanette Young in 2019. In that report, authored by Kersten, the agency recommended a three-day suspension for police Officer Ella French because she didn’t have a body-worn camera. * Click here for some background…
* Sun-Times | Chicago scientists reel from Trump funding cuts: ‘We are just going to abandon all those discoveries’: These three scientists aren’t professional agitators. None have ever organized a public protest before. But the trio is part of the effort behind Chicago’ s “Stand Up for Science” rally Friday at 12 p.m. at Federal Plaza, one of 32 rallies taking place nationwide to draw attention to the enormous damage caused by the Trump administration’s wholesale slashing of National Institutes of Health research. * Crain’s | Bally’s Chicago IPO for women and minority investors hits a stumbling block: Bally’s plan to raise $250 million for its Chicago casino from women and minority investors is in regulatory limbo. Bally’s Chicago said in a securities filing today that “we have not yet received clearance from the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission to price and close our initial public offering.” * Daily Herald | ‘The right stuff and more’: What happened in near miss at Midway Airport: As Dennis Tajer watched the video of a Southwest Airlines jet preparing to land at Midway International Airport as a smaller jet taxis into its path, he thought, “Oh no.” Then, “I thought, ‘Heroes,’” said Tajer, a spokesman for the Allied Pilots Association, which represents American Airlines aviators. * Block Club | Indoor Sports Facility For Kids Opens In Little Village Thanks To Local Nonprofit: “I am so excited,” Raigoza said. “Spaces like this, we have to drive typically 45 minutes to see something like it. And now we have it here, in the heart of our community.” Upon entry to the building, patrons are greeted with the green turf of a miniature soccer field. The 3,000 square-foot, two-story building also contains two batting cages, a weight room and a yoga studio. * Lake County News-Sun | ‘Not every case is defendable’: Criminal defense attorneys evaluate Highland Park shooting trial as opening statements are set to begin: With opening statements in the trial set to begin Monday at the Lake County courthouse, Chicago-area criminal defense lawyers with experience in high-profile cases offered insight into how Crimo’s attorneys may go about the “next-to-impossible” task of defending a man some believe indefensible. “The reality of it is, not every case is defendable, and the evidence in that case is overwhelming,” said Mark Richards, a prominent defense attorney and a former prosecutor in nearby Racine County, Wisconsin. “Thinking you’re going to get a fair and impartial, unknowledgeable jury is just not realistic.” * Daily Herald | Why some suburbs compensate members of appointed boards: A little more than half of 93 suburbs surveyed by the Daily Herald reported offering some type of remuneration to members of appointed boards such as plan commissions, and public safety and zoning appeal boards. In all, 47 suburbs in Cook, DuPage, Kane, Lake and McHenry counties reported offering some type of pay that ranges from as little as $10 per meeting in towns like Batavia, Glendale Heights and Round Lake Heights to as much as $5,000 a year in Rosemont. * Sun-Times | Workers at big employers like Northwestern get protections from Evanston City Council: A new law, the first of its kind in Illinois, means dining hall workers and housekeepers can keep their jobs if the university changes contractors. The university is worried about the costs. * WICS | ISBA working to combat growing attorney shortage in rural Illinois: Austin Willis, an associate attorney in Will County said, “A lot of older attorneys plan to retire. You’re just not seeing new people come in. There’s just not a ton of incentive.”Angel Wawrzynek from the ISBA explained that younger attorneys are hesitant to move to rural areas due to concerns about employment opportunities for their significant others or a preference for city living. The ISBA has mapped the availability of private practice attorneys across counties, revealing that some areas have fewer than five attorneys. * PJ Star | ‘Adverse effect’: East Peoria mayor criticizes Pritzker for ending Illinois grocery tax: Kahl took aim at Illinois Gov. JB Pritzker, who decided to end the statewide 1% tax on groceries. It was a move that upset many municipalities, including Peoria and East Peoria. “I don’t want to be disparaging here, but that was not the governor’s tax to put a feather in his cap and give it back to the people,” Kahl said Friday. “He likes to talk about how he’s helping working class people, and I’m not going to dump on him, I’ll let him figure out his political aspirations for himself, I’m the mayor of East Peoria and my focus is here.” * WGLT | State Farm’s financial results improve, as underwriting losses decline: State Farm released its annual financial results on Friday. State Farm says its core property-casualty business posted a $6.1 billion underwriting loss in 2024, much better than the $14.1 billion underwriting loss in 2023. That cut down operating losses from $8.5 billion last year to $111 million in 2024. State Farm said the improvement was due in part to “significant improvement in auto lines underwriting results which was partially offset by an increase in homeowners incurred catastrophe claims.” * WCBU | Fate of East Peoria riverboat casino casts shadow over Kahl’s State of the City address: East Peoria Mayor John Kahl shared an optimistic vision for the city’s next few years Friday, albeit while speaking at a venue with an uncertain future. Kahl delivered his annual State of the City address from the banquet room at the Par-A-Dice Hotel Casino, steps away from the riverboat gambling attraction that parent Boyd Gaming is looking to replace. * WMBD | Bloomington Mayoral candidates answer questions at student led panel: Mayor Mboka Mwilambwe, Cody Hendricks, and Dan Brady all said their top three goals are to focus on public safety, the affordable housing crisis and infrastructure needs like water and sewage. […] “I think it’s extremely important. We talk about our infrastructure needs when we talk about public safety and when we talk about economic development. For the city of Bloomington,” said Brady. * WGLT | Bloomington does more testing as it tries to improve taste and remove odor in water: City manager Jeff Jurgens said he’s heard from restaurant owners, too. “[We’ve] talked to many business owners … about the taste of the water. That is an issue. It affects coffee, it affects tea and it’s not acceptable,” Jurgens said in an interview on WGLT’s Sound Ideas. said the city has upgraded its water filtration system in recent days and that seems to have made some difference. City officials said in a statement they’ve also “slowed filter flows to increase contact time and made strategic staffing adjustments to improve response efforts.” * WCIA | Mahomet mothers concerned with federal cuts impacting rare diseases: Events for Rare Disease Day were supposed to happen this weekend in the nation’s capital. However, after federal layoffs and funding freezes within the FDA and National Institute of Health, it was postponed indefinitely. “The concerns are that when we’re making cuts at those agencies, the funding going toward rare diseases, and all diseases, will be impacted for research and supporting people that have these conditions,” Houser said. * WIFR | Racial slur spray-painted on Ogle Co. business, investigation underway: On March 2, Clearly Customs Motorcycle Service at 206 Linn St., took to its Facebook page about the reported vandalism. “How do I move on from this. My business? I literally have no feeling left. I’ve lived in ogle county for almost 20 years,” a post from the business owner reads. […] About eight hours after the initial post, the business took to Facebook again, saying this isn’t the first threat the business has received and that it plans to close the Kings location. Owners say they will instead “rebuild in an environment more suited to who we are.” * The Guardian | Formerly anti-vax parents on how they changed their minds: ‘I really made a mistake’: Anti-vax rhetoric may be so persistent because it is profitable. Research by the Center for Countering Digital Hate showed that 70% of Covid-19 anti-vax disinformation between February and March 2021 had been generated by 12 individuals with collective annual revenues of around $36m. They include Joseph Mercola, a content producer who made $7.2m during the height of the pandemic, and RFK Jr, who received a salary of more than $500,000 for chairing the anti-vax Children’s Health Defense in 2021, among other enrichment for his anti-vax views (Kennedy’s own children have been vaccinated). * People | ‘Explicit’ Sex Claims ‘Exaggerated,’ Black and LGBTQ+ Characters Overwhelmingly Targeted, New Book Ban Analysis Finds: On Feb. 27, the nonprofit organization, which raises awareness about book censorship in the United States, analyzed the 4,218 unique titles banned in the country’s public schools during the 2023-2024 school year. PEN America documented 10,046 instances of book bans in total, marking a 200% increase from the previous school year. Per the analysis, 1,534 (36%) of banned unique titles featured real people or fictional characters of color. Of the nonfiction books banned, including historical titles and biographies, 44% featured people of color, with 26% of these titles specifically centering Black people. * AP | Trump administration to slash funding for enforcement of fair housing laws: The grants are disbursed by the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development to private nonprofits, which act as the frontline enforcement of the federal anti-discrimination law. They educate communities on their rights, test whether a landlord is racially discriminating, investigate complaints, resolve disputes and can fund legal counsel. Of some 34,000 fair housing complaints lodged in the U.S. in 2023, these private nonprofits processed 75%, according to a report from the National Fair Housing Alliance. The rest were fielded by state and local governments, with HUD and the U.S. Department of Justice working on less than 6% combined. * WIRED | The Incompetence of DOGE Is a Feature, Not a Bug: Just look at all of those firings. DOGE has targeted so-called probationary employees first, often without regard for their skill or the necessity of their roles. Do you know what a probationary employee is? It’s people who have been in their position for less than a year, or in some cases less than two years. That means new hires, sure, but also experienced workers who recently transferred departments or got promoted. * FOX | Latest DOGE layoffs threaten lives, experts say: The first wave of firings, carried out Thursday, marked a significant reduction in NOAA’s workforce, an agency responsible for issuing weather warnings, tracking hurricanes, supporting wildfire response, and providing oceanic and atmospheric data used across industries. * Forbes | 5 Essential Things To Know About Your Weather Forecasts: It is stunning to see posts and comments suggesting that we do not need the National Weather Service because we have Apps, TV stations, your favorite social media influencer and so on. To me, that is like saying, “Why do we need potato farmers when I can just get fries at my fast food place?” NOAA and the National Weather Service are significant providers of weather information, weather prediction models, upper atmospheric conditions via weather balloons, satellite images, Doppler-Polarimetric radars, ocean observations and more.
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Protected: SUBSCRIBERS ONLY - Supplement to today’s edition
Monday, Mar 3, 2025 - Posted by Rich Miller
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Protected: SUBSCRIBERS ONLY - Today’s edition of Capitol Fax (use all CAPS in password)
Monday, Mar 3, 2025 - Posted by Rich Miller
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Selected press releases (Live updates)
Monday, Mar 3, 2025 - Posted by Isabel Miller
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Live coverage
Monday, Mar 3, 2025 - Posted by Isabel Miller * Click here and/or here to follow breaking news. Hopefully, enough reporters and news outlets migrate to BlueSky so we can hopefully resume live-posting.
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Reader comments closed for the weekend
Friday, Feb 28, 2025 - Posted by Rich Miller * Click here for some of the video. We’re going to end Black History Month with what I would contend is one of the top ten greatest live musical performances of all time. Turn it all the way up… Higher!
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Isabel’s afternoon roundup
Friday, Feb 28, 2025 - Posted by Isabel Miller * Subscribers were told about this earlier. Daily Herald…
* I wrote a piece about this hearing for subscribers yesterday. Capitol News Illinois…
* Shaw Local | Illinois AG warns of ticket scams as festival, outdoor concert season nears: As tickets for spring and summer concert tours, festivals and sporting events begin to go on sale, Illinois Attorney General Kwame Raoul cautioned about ticket scams. Buying tickets from a third-party vendor or private party increases the risk of fraud and Raoul warned residents to avoid paying for tickets with anything other than a credit card. * Tribune | Discontinued violence-prevention program for struggling teens revived with $25 million: A Chicago non-profit received $25 million in funding Thursday to lead a previously discontinued violence-prevention program after the school board voted unanimously for its restatement. The program, called Back to Our Future, was designed to be a trailblazing initiative to prevent gun violence and reengage youth ages 14 through 21 who were disconnected from Chicago public schools. Armed with an $18 million grant, the joint effort between the city of Chicago, the state, the University of Chicago’s Crime Lab and three local non-profits aimed to reach 1,000 youth in 15 neighborhoods on the South and West sides who had stopped going to school 18 months prior or longer and re-enroll them in school. * Sun-Times | Feds want hearing after expert finds ex-Ald. Carrie Austin unfit for trial on bribery charges: Indicted former Chicago Ald. Carrie Austin (34th) has been found not medically fit for trial by an expert appointed by the federal judge presiding over Austin’s nearly four-year-old criminal case. Defense attorneys say that should be enough to call off her trial, set for Nov. 3. But prosecutors say they still want an evidentiary hearing to gather “additional facts” from the expert “about her analysis and conclusion” so U.S. District Judge John Kness can make a more informed decision. * WBEZ | Former Chicago Mayors Rahm Emanuel and Lori Lightfoot are helping Brandon Johnson prepare for DC testimony: Lightfoot, who is meeting with Johnson on Saturday, echoed that sentiment in a statement to WBEZ. “When Chicago leaders are given a national platform, it’s important to combat the cynical and false narratives about our city,” she said. “Anything I can do to help push back against the Trump Republicans and right wing media to tell the true story of this great city, I will do. I look forward to talking with Mayor Johnson.” * Sun-Times | Fenwick High School is keeping secrets about teacher’s alleged sex abuse of female students: The suit accused the school of conducting a “sham” investigation seemingly designed to clear Dineen, and failing to notify authorities about the accusations — even though that was required under state law — or girls’ parents. Fenwick also didn’t document anything in Dineen’s personnel records — essentially white-washing matters so he would be able to get another teaching job, the suit says. * Crain’s | American Airlines takes some of the hassle out of boarding at O’Hare: The carrier is deploying software at O’Hare International Airport that’s designed to keep passengers from jumping the line during boarding. The software sounds an audible alert to gate agents as passengers scan their boarding passes if they are trying to board before their group is called. * Tribune | Two reputed Mexican cartel figures brought to Chicago in historic prisoner transfer: Norberto Valencia González, a financial guru affiliated with the once-powerful and notoriously violent Beltrán-Leyva cartel, was extradited to Chicago and made an initial court appearance Thursday on an indictment alleging he conspired to traffic kilogram quantities of cocaine and launder drug proceeds, according to court records. The trafficking activity took place between 2013 and 2017 in Chicago and nearby areas, including Arlington Heights, Morris and Plainfield, the seven-page indictment states. * Tribune | Can a Chicago White Sox investor actually buy the team — or is it just a pipe dream for angst-ridden fans?: The light at the end of the long, dark tunnel suddenly seemed real. A savior would arise from these streets and start handing out nine-figure contracts like candy, changing the culture of the Sox organization and ending their seasonal pain. This sudden burst of optimism stemmed from a report in The Athletic that an anonymous investor and limited partner of the Sox was attempting to buy shares from other limited partners. That mystery investor, author Jon Greenberg wrote, was none other than Justin Ishbia, who co-owns the Phoenix Suns and Phoenix Mercury with his brother, Mat, and recently had pulled out of a plan to buy the Minnesota Twins. * South Side Weekly | Traveling Exhibit at Chicago Public Libraries Honors History of Black Steelworkers: “When I moved to the Southeast Side, I became interested in the region’s steel history and began doing personal research,” said Bianca Milligan Garcia, Harold Washington’s library associate for exhibits. “I wanted to make an exhibit about my community and our contributions to Chicago’s labor history but couldn’t find a narrow enough topic to make into an exhibit. I saw an opportunity when ASALH announced its 2025 theme.” After pitching the idea to the Exhibits Team and the African American Heritage Committee (of which she is a member), Milligan Garcia began the time-consuming process of finding information about the Black labor experience in Chicago’s steel industry by digging through archives at the Chicago Public Library’s repositories and exploring articles by scholars across various disciplines. * AP | Jury finds Illinois landlord guilty of murder, hate crime in 2023 attack on Palestinian American boy: Joseph Czuba, 73, was charged in the fatal stabbing of Wadee Alfayoumi and the wounding of his mother, Hanan Shaheen on Oct. 14, 2023 in Plainfield, about 40 miles (64 kilometers) from Chicago. Authorities alleged the family — who were renting rooms in Czubas house — was targeted because of their Islamic faith and as a response to the war between Israel and Hamas that erupted on Oct. 7, 2023. Jurors deliberated less than 90 minutes over the crime that renewed fears of anti-Muslim discrimination in the Chicago area’s large and established Palestinian community. * WGN | FBI drops new subpoena on Dolton: WGN Investigates has obtained a copy of the subpoena which is dated February 25… Election Day. A source says FBI agents hand-delivered the subpoena to Dolton Village Hall late Thursday. The subpoena seeks records related to the development of a restaurant and entertainment venue on land once reportedly owned by Henyard’s boyfriend. “They wanted to take our land,” Tiffany Kamara told WGN Investigates in a story broadcast one day before the subpoena was served. * ABC Chicago | Northwestern among 10 schools to be visited by federal antisemitism task force: DOJ: The U.S. Department of justice announced the visit in a news release Friday. “The President, Attorney General Pamela Bondi, and the entire Administration are committed to ensuring that no one should feel unsafe or unwelcome on campus because of their religion,” Assistant Attorney General for Civil Rights Leo Terrell said in a statement. “The Task Force’s mandate is to bring the full force of the federal government to bear in our effort to eradicate Anti-Semitism, particularly in schools. These visits are just one of many steps this Administration is taking to deliver on that commitment.” * Shaw Local | Abraham Lincoln visits Morris to teach students the value of honesty: 16th US President Abraham Lincoln (R-Illinois) visited Morris on Thursday and Friday, first stopping in for a haircut with Dick Sohan Thursday before stopping in at Morris Elementary for a talk with third grade students. For Lincoln, it was a retreading of old ground: He last visited Morris in 1858, stopping for a haircut at about the same location as the Sanitary Barber Shop at 121 W. Washington St. and sleeping at an inn that was somewhere close to Corleone’s at 110 Liberty St. * WSIL | Senator Fowler provides updates on Cairo Port District project: “Planning for the Alexander-Cairo Port District has been ongoing for nearly a decade,” Senator Fowler said. “Local, state and federal officials have been working to secure funding and advance the next stages of the project, which are expected to generate economic development, as well as possibly establish the Port District as a National hub for river commerce.” * WCIA | VA employees ‘scared to death’ over federal cuts, dismissals: The federal government is continuing its effort to cut government spending, with some coming through workers with Veteran Affairs. Since the beginning of the month, there have been almost 3,000 VA employees dismissed across the country, some of whom were let go at the VA Illiana Health Care System in Danville. The VA Illiana in Danville confirmed a small number of probationary employees were dismissed this month. It put some employees who are within their first couple of years out of work. * WCIA | Concerns over homeless prevention programs rise as cuts loom: Heartland Housed helps the homeless in the Springfield area, and they rely on Federal funds for a third of it’s funding, but that money isn’t just dropped in the organizations accounts. Josh Sabo says they have to work to get as much money as they can, and HUD staff is often very helpful with that. * 25News | Lawyer proposes locally-owned cannabis dispensary in Pekin: A local lawyer specializing in cannabis industry law, Thomas Howard, proposed the business to the Pekin City Council on Monday. He said it would be the first and only locally-owned dispensary in the area. The business would potentially revitalize 359 Court St., the vacant, 12,000-square-foot historic Pekin Performing Arts Center. Howard said through the Cannabis Regulation and Tax Act, the store would also be a licensed social equity dispensary in what the act defines as a “disproportionately impacted” area. * WAND | Upgrades to the I-55 bridges over the Sangamon River: The Illinois Department of Transportation announced Thursday that a $29.5 million project to expand the Interstate 55 bridges over the Sangamon River north of Springfield is starting this week. […] “Improving these bridges is a major investment in the Springfield region and a big first step to modernizing a vital corridor for freight and travel for Illinois and the entire country,” said Lora Rensing, IDOT’s chief engineer and director of highways project implementation. “While we are busy working on I-55, we’re asking drivers to be patient, slow down and pay extra attention approaching and driving through the work zone.” * Herald & Review | Decatur Public Library to celebrate 150 years of service to community: Activities are scheduled throughout the year, including a performance by folk artists Hungrytown on Saturday, March 1, a visit by PBS personality and social media library enthusiast Mychal Threets on March 22, and a 2-mile Color Run on April 12 that will have participants running/walking past previous library locations. * WSIL | Upcoming event will commemorate 100th anniversary of Tri-State Tornado: The Tri-State Tornado stuck parts of southeast Missouri, southern Illinois, and southwest Indiana, on March 18, 1925. In our area, impacted communities include Gorham, Murphysboro, De Soto, Hurst-Bush, Zeigler, West Frankfort, Eighteen, Parrish, Crossville. Murphysboro was one of the hardest hit, with nearly 300 people killed, and thousands of buildings destroyed. * WICS | Gabby Barrett to headline Du Quoin State Fair: Gabby Barrett will take the stage at the Du Quoin State Fair Grandstand to close out the 2025 Fair on Monday, September 1. Barrett’s debut single “I Hope” ruled the Billboard Hot Country Songs chart for a record-breaking 27 weeks, making her the youngest artist with a #1 debut on country radio in over two decades. * Democracy Docket | Democrats Sue Trump Over Attempt to Control Independent Election Agency: The Democratic Party is suing President Donald Trump over an executive order that could make it easier for him to tilt elections in the GOP’s favor. The lawsuit, filed Friday by Elias Law Group on behalf of the three national Democratic committees, challenges an expansive executive order Trump issued earlier this month that would give him unprecedented power over key regulatory agencies that were designed to operate without direct White House control. * WaPo | Trump officials start dismantling civil rights offices, as part of DOGE’s secret plan: Leaders at the Labor Department are planning to cut by 90 percent the Office of Federal Contract Compliance Programs, which for decades has worked to ensure government contractors took affirmative action to end discrimination at their firms, documents obtained by The Washington Post show. The Federal Trade Commission, meanwhile, has halved its internal equal employment opportunity office to three employees from six, and similar moves have taken place at NASA, where most information about how to file complaints has been removed from its websites. * CNN | Skype is shutting down after two decades: Skype will “no longer be available” to use starting in May, the company confirmed on X, telling users that their log-in information can be used on Microsoft Teams’ free tier in the “coming days.” Skype’s shutdown comes 14 years after Microsoft bought the service for $8.5 billion in cash, marking the company’s largest ever acquisition at the time. Microsoft integrated the service into its other products, such as Office and its ill-fated mobile operating service Windows Phone.
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Protected: SUBSCRIBERS ONLY - Updates to previous editions
Friday, Feb 28, 2025 - Posted by Rich Miller
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Pritzker: Cuts to Medicaid will be devastating to Illinois
Friday, Feb 28, 2025 - Posted by Isabel Miller * Crain’s…
Click here to view Medicaid enrollment by Illinois State House and Senate districts. * The Governor was asked about the budget ramifications if Federal Medicaid funds were cut…
* From the governor’s press release…
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A look at the history of Illinois’ health insurance program for undocumented residents
Friday, Feb 28, 2025 - Posted by Rich Miller * Flashback to May 27, 2020…
Emphasis added because cost and enrollment have always been extremely tough to predict, partly because not enough is known about the folks who are eligible and whether they’d even apply. That $2 million prediction was widely believed at the time, but the Fiscal Year 2021 cost for the senior program turned out to be $67 million and it doubled a year later and more than tripled by FY23. * People ages 42-64 were added during the Fiscal Year 2022 budget. First-year costs were about $52.5 million. The following year, in FY23, costs rose 725 percent to $433 million. Total costs for all age groups was $644 million by that time, up from $187 million the year before. And that’s when this happened…
Those changes were authorized by SB1298. The actions stopped the rapid cost increases, and enrollment fell…
And by this past December, total projected costs for Fiscal Year 2025 were down to $558 million, with total enrollment plunging from about 70,000 at its height in FY23 to 41,505. * Even so, the costs were still far too high. During his budget address, the governor proposed eliminating the program for everyone but the seniors…
If the HFS projected costs for this fiscal year holds up, getting rid of coverage for the 42-64 age cohort would save the state $419 million, leaving a $139 million cost for seniors, although that will likely fall too because entry is still cut off. * The governor’s office undoubtedly knew the recent audit findings were published before he made those proposals. The Auditor General must submit his reports to agencies and allow them to respond. HFS responded on January 21st, so it had the report on-hand long before the governor’s budget address on February 19th. The report focused on two things: Actual enrollment and costs far exceeded initial projections; And…
HFS pledged to strengthen its internal controls. We’ll see.
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When RETAIL Succeeds, Illinois Succeeds
Friday, Feb 28, 2025 - Posted by Advertising Department [The following is a paid advertisement.] Findings of a recent economic study were 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. Retailers like Barb enrich our economy and strengthen our communities. We Are Retail and IRMA showcase the retailers who make Illinois work.
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If you won’t listen to me, Sen. Durbin, then listen to this expert and look at what got us here
Friday, Feb 28, 2025 - Posted by Rich Miller * Background is here if you need it. From a Sun-Times op-ed by Seth Stern, the director of advocacy at Freedom of the Press Foundation and a First Amendment lawyer…
Demanding the elimination of Section 230 is probably the dumbest thing that Sen. Durbin has ever done. * Here’s what led to the original congressional passage of the Communications Decency Act of 1996…
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Please, don’t do stuff like this (Updated)
Friday, Feb 28, 2025 - Posted by Rich Miller * Daily Herald poses a campaign question to a government employee on state time…
Apparently, Gough told him Pritzker had already spoken to this and then referred the reporter to the campaign side. * I don’t have hard data, but I have decades of experience listening to state government spokespersons regularly complain about reporters asking them campaign questions during state hours. Hey, I’ve done it sometimes without thinking. It happens. But it’s not right to put a government employee in that position. People write stories all the time about ethics violations, etc., yet it’s reporters who might be committing the most common ethics breach. * Anyway, here’s an announcement/background roundup from Isabel… * WGN | DuPage County Sheriff James Mendrick announces GOP run for Illinois governor: DuPage County Sheriff James Mendrick on Thursday announced a Republican bid to become the next governor of Illinois. Seeking the GOP nomination in 2026, Mendrick declared that he would not be running for a third term as DuPage County Sheriff. Mendrick endorsed Undersheriff Eddie Moore as his successor. * Politico | Illinois Playbook: Mendrick doesn’t even have a campaign manager yet. His wife, a psychiatric nurse, filled the role in his two bids for sheriff, “but this will be too big for her to do alone so we’re going to figure all that out this weekend,” he said in an interview with your Playbook host. […] “I did not plan on running for sure,” Mendrick said. He made the surprise move after choosing not to leave Illinois because he didn’t like how it’s being run. He’s now staying put in Woodridge after his 25-year-old son said he wasn’t budging. Mendrick and his wife also have a 22-year-old son with autism and are active in the disability community, he said. * FOX Chicago | DuPage County sheriff announces run for Illinois Governor: What’s next: Mendrick will need strong Republican backing to mount a successful campaign against Governor Pritzker, who has a significant financial advantage with $323 million spent on past campaigns. “The backing I’m already getting is more than I expected. Will I be able to match a billionaire? No, probably not, but I just watched a presidential candidate (Kamala Harris) spend $2 billion and get nowhere with it,” he said. * Daily Herald | ‘We want our state back’: DuPage sheriff announces he will run for governor in 2026: Mendrick acknowledges that running for governor is a costly proposition, especially if he ultimately faces off with a self-funded billionaire like Pritzker. Even so, he said he didn’t make much effort to contact Republican leadership to line up support and fundraising before Thursday. “I think my message is strong enough that it will draw support,” he said, adding that he’s already been inundated with calls and messages from people offering support. * Tribune | DuPage County Sheriff James Mendrick seeking GOP bid for Illinois governor in 2026: “I don’t care if the Democrats hate me and the media hates me. Do you really think I’m gonna get their votes anyway? I mean, really. And this is the Republican problem. A lot will be, ‘Oh, I’m so sorry. Let me join with …’” he told the GOP group. “No. Absolutely not. Hold firm. Do your job. Be a Republican. And don’t waver to these people just because they’re crying and screaming at you.” * ABC Chicago, 2023 | Hundreds pack DuPage County Board meeting to criticize, laud sheriff over assault weapons ban: The large response comes after DuPage County Sheriff James Mendrick said he would not enforce the ban. He is one of more than 80 of the 102 sheriffs in the state who said they are not enforcing the new law. * NCTV | No censure for DuPage Sheriff, agreement reached on weapons ban enforcement: On Jan. 23, U.S. Representatives, state legislators, members of the Illinois congressional delegation, and DuPage County Board members met at the Danada House in Wheaton for a press conference, speaking out against Mendrick’s stance. During it, Rep. Sean Casten called for Mendrick to either retract his statement or resign. After the announcement, Mendrick released a statement saying the legislators held the press conference “to admonish and berate me, your DuPage County Sheriff, for questioning their authority of a very poorly written piece of legislation that has no clear direction on who will be enforcing new gun laws.” …Adding… The governor was asked about Sheriff Mendrick during an unrelated event…
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There’s No End To Credit Card Swipe Fee Greed
Friday, Feb 28, 2025 - Posted by Advertising Department [The following is a paid advertisement.] Credit card companies collect more than $172 billion in swipe fees from customers and businesses each year, but it’s not enough to satisfy their greed. As consumers and retailers continue to grapple with inflation, Visa raised swipe fees on January 1. Gov. JB Pritzker, Senate President Don Harmon, House Speaker Emanuel “Chris” Welch and the General Assembly took a stand against swipe fee greed by passing the Interchange Fee Prohibition Act, which limits swipe fees from being charged on the sales tax and tip portion of transactions. This law will provide tangible relief to Illinois families and retailers of all sizes. While Visa and Mastercard fight to protect their unchecked duopoly in court, Illinois policymakers have sent a clear message that enough is enough.
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It’s just a bill
Friday, Feb 28, 2025 - Posted by Isabel Miller
* WAND…
* House Minority Leader Tony McCombie…
* WCIS…
* Rep. Jed Davis…
* Crain’s…
* WAND…
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Open thread
Friday, Feb 28, 2025 - Posted by Isabel Miller * What’s up? Keep it Illinois-centric please…
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Isabel’s morning briefing
Friday, Feb 28, 2025 - Posted by Isabel Miller * ICYMI: Mayor Brandon Johnson to appoint Ald. Carlos Ramirez-Rosa to lead Park District. Tribune…
- The Park District Board of Commissioners on Friday will approve Ramirez-Rosa’s appointment, effective April 1. - It would also open up a midterm vacancy in City Council that provides Johnson his first chance to exercise his mayoral powers to appoint an alderman * Related stories…
∙ Block Club: Park District CEO Rosa Escareño Stepping Down * Governor Pritzker will be At UI Mile Square Health Center at 10:30 am to advocate against potential cuts to Medicaid. Click here to watch. * Sun-Times | Workers at big employers like Northwestern get protections from Evanston City Council: When big companies or institutions change contractors, workers can suddenly lose their jobs. But Evanston now is the first municipality in Illinois to give them some protections. The Evanston City Council passed the Workers’ Retention Ordinance Monday, requiring hotels, restaurants, cafeterias and educational institutions with at least 200 contracted positions to take steps to retain existing workforce. Currently, only Northwestern University meets the threshold. * Tribune | Chicago faith and civic leaders encourage people to participate in nationwide ‘Blackout Friday’: Faith-based and community leaders from across Chicago urged the public to not buy from major retailers and companies on Friday as part of nationwide ‘Blackout Friday’ protest. The movement is a 24-hour economic blackout in which consumers are not supposed to buy from corporations, avoid all nonessential purchases and if necessary, only shop at local businesses. * Center Square | Craft distillers call for updated spirit distribution laws in Illinois: Craft distillers in Illinois are trying to level the playing field when it comes to distributing their products. According to the Illinois Craft Distillers Association, while 47 states allow for the direct shipment of wine directly from winemakers to consumers, only 11 states currently allow distillers to ship their products directly to consumers and Illinois is not one of them. * WCIA | Illinois DNR encourages residents to buy fishing license, invest in conservation: When buyers purchase an Illinois fishing license, they’re paying for fishing privileges for the year. But, they’re also investing in conservation, education and economic activity throughout Illinois. Illinois fishing licenses go on sale March 1 and cost $15. * WBEZ | Chicago’s top film post vacant as production season kicks into high gear: Kicking off production season, Apple TV’s Dark Matter is opening up portals in Wicker Park, The Bear is cooking up drama downtown and the seemingly omnipresent One Chicago (Fire/Med/P.D.) is staging emergencies across the city. But who’s here to roll out the red carpet as those teams arrive? The city’s top film post has been vacant since December. * Tribune | As distraught parents plead, school board votes to keep Acero charter schools open, despite financial warning: The Chicago Board of Education approved an amended resolution Thursday requiring Chicago Public Schools to keep open several charter schools slated for closure despite financial warnings that doing so would be unwise. After a protracted and often confusing debate on the feasibility and fine print of the amendment, the school board voted 16 to 3 with one abstention to keep five of the seven schools slated for closure in Acero Charter Network open through the end of the 2025-26 school year and incorporate them as district schools the next year. The board did not provide a concrete determination for the other two schools. * WGN | Chicago drivers will face an additional 50 speed cameras this year: While locations for the additional cameras have largely not yet been determined, CDOT officials said they’ll consider crash data and requests from alders over the last three years. By state law, cameras can only be within 660 feet of a school or a park. * Crain’s | CTA unveils plans for space beneath new Red and Purple Line el tracks: The design plans, developed in conjunction with Chicago-based Site Design Group, were presented to residents of Edgewater and Uptown at public meetings this week. The concept for the space includes a pedestrian trail, dog parks, playground, fitness area, benches and a plaza space for community events. * Tribune | In Midway near-collision, NTSB chair cites business jet crew’s apparent ‘failure to listen’: “We don’t believe that this was an air traffic control issue,” Jennifer Homendy, chair of the National Transportation Safety Board, said in an appearance Wednesday morning on “Fox & Friends.” “It appears this was a failure of the flight crew from Flexjet to listen and abide by the instructions of air traffic control.” The NTSB is continuing to investigate, as is the Federal Aviation Administration. But Homendy said the crew of the smaller plane, operated by private jet company Flexjet, was supposed to line up and wait short of the runway on which the Southwest plane was to land. The smaller plane failed to do so. * WTTW | Have You Seen Little ‘Blue Lobsters’ Washed Up on Chicago Beaches? Congrats, You’ve Met One of the Great Lakes Most Successful Invaders: For an invasive species specialist like Reuben Keller, Lake Michigan is teeming with research opportunities. “Almost everything that we see in the lake that is alive is invasive,” said Keller, a professor at Loyola University Chicago’s School of Environmental Sustainability. “Any rocks are covered in zebra or quagga mussels, both of which are invasive. Most of the time that we dive, the only fish that we see are round gobies, which are an invasive fish.” * Daily Herald | Mundelein mayoral candidates spurn Trump on mass deportations, say police shouldn’t assist U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement: The stance shared by Robin Meier and Tim Wilson aligns with current village policy and defies attempts by President Donald Trump to quickly purge the nation of immigrants living here illegally. The issue particularly is pertinent in Mundelein, where more than 36% of residents are Hispanic and more than 45% of residents age 5 or older live in homes where languages other than English are spoken, according to the latest U.S. census data. * Daily Herald | ‘We want our state back’: Why DuPage sheriff says he’s running for governor in 2026: Mendrick, a Republican from Woodridge, announced Thursday he will run for Illinois governor in the 2026 election. He’s the first candidate to formally declare for the race. In a phone interview Thursday, Mendrick said he’s been thinking about running for governor for about two years, as he’s watched legislation like the state’s SAFE-T Act — which eliminated cash bail in Illinois — have what he sees as negative impacts on law and order. * Daily Southtown | Homewood OKs new TIF district with eye toward redevelopment on Halsted: Homewood officials have approved a new tax increment financing district that takes in property along the Halsted Street commercial corridor and includes the vacant Walmart property, empty for nearly two years. Using increases in property tax revenue, the village hopes to spur redevelopment in that area of the community, which includes commercial businesses as well as empty office space at the northwest corner of Halsted and Ridge Road. * Daily Herald | Honoring history: Elk Grove Village’s plan to revive a revolutionary relic: Elk Grove Village plans to annex the historic final resting place of a number of notable locals — including the only two known Revolutionary War veterans interred in Cook County — while launching a fundraising campaign to fix faded and sunken graves and make other upgrades. Elk Grove Cemetery — a 38,000-square-foot graveyard tucked in between Arlington Heights Road, the Jane Addams Tollway and a Nicor gas pipeline — is a relic of pre-suburban sprawl, when pioneers arrived from the east and found expansive land to till. * PJ Star | ‘Full of gratitude’: Peoria mayor comfortably wins primary: Peoria Mayor Rita Ali and at-large City Councilmember John Kelly have secured their spots as Peoria’s mayoral candidates in April’s general election after emerging as the top two vote getters in Tuesday night’s primary election based on unofficial election results. With 100% of precincts reporting, mayoral candidate Chuck Grayeb, a city councilmember representing the 2nd District, does not have enough votes to advance in the race. * Rockford Register Star | Rockford elects 21 year old to City Council: Tamir Bell, 21, easily defeated a field of three opponents to win the Democratic primary election Tuesday. He is expected to appear on the April 1 consolidated election ballot unopposed. Bell said he entered the race to provide better leadership for the city’s westside and give its residents a louder voice in city government. * BND | Former bookkeeper sentenced in theft of $135K from metro-east school district: A former bookkeeper for Dupo School District 196 has been sentenced to 15 months’ incarceration for embezzling from the district. Linda J. Johnson, 58, of Waterloo, was employed by the district from 1993 to 2022. She was accused of pocketing $135,566.80 in cash that she was supposed to deposit in a school district bank account to support student athletics, clubs and other extracurricular activities. * WCIA | Danville resident reminisces about Gene Hackman after his death: But — many people in Danville still wanted to save the Fischer Theatre, a downtown staple since 1884. So, Norris and two other men started the Vermillion Heritage Foundation. […] Norris said they needed about $4 million for the project. So, in 1988 they hosted a fundraiser at the home of Julius Hegeler — and invited Hackman, Dick and Jerry Van Dyke, Bobby Short and Donald O’Connor. * WCIA | World’s oldest brewery is coming to Central Illinois: The world’s oldest brewery is coming to Central Illinois. Yuengling will be hitting shelves in hundreds of stores next week. An Effingham based company called Koerner Distributors will be handling the distribution in Central Illinois. The president of Koerner Distributors said they’ve been planning this launch for about a year now. * LA Times | Mass firings across National Weather Service, NOAA ignite fury among scientists worldwide: The full extent of the layoffs across NOAA were not immediately clear, but Democratic legislators said hundreds of scientists and experts had been notified of terminated employment. NOAA — which includes the National Hurricane Center and the Tsunami Warning Center — is the latest in a string of federal agencies targeted for cuts by billionaire Elon Musk’s so-called Department of Government Efficiency.
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Selected press releases (Live updates)
Friday, Feb 28, 2025 - Posted by Isabel Miller
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Live coverage
Friday, Feb 28, 2025 - Posted by Isabel Miller * Click here and/or here to follow breaking news. Hopefully, enough reporters and news outlets migrate to BlueSky so we can hopefully resume live-posting.
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Isabel’s afternoon roundup
Thursday, Feb 27, 2025 - Posted by Isabel Miller
* WCIA | ‘Drugs don’t work if you cannot afford them’: Rally held in Illinois Capitol to regulate prescription costs: Many people across Illinois are struggling to pay for their prescriptions, and around 250 people came together in the Capitol with an idea to curb the prices. Advocates are fighting for the Illinois lawmakers to pass a bill to create a Prescription Drug Affordability Board. That five-person board will cap the prices of certain drugs across the state to ensure residents can afford them. * Crain’s | Chicago sees dealmaking slump as early Trump moves drive uncertainty: Dealmaking has remained stuck in neutral in 2025 as uncertainty about the impact of President Donald Trump’s early actions has kept mergers and acquisitions activity light, belying forecasts for a long-awaited market surge this year. “It certainly has not materialized,” said Brad Haller, senior partner for mergers and acquisitions at business and technology consulting firm West Monroe. “In terms of new inbound activity, the first two months of this year, it has not met our expectations.” * Fox 32 | Why is Brandon Johnson testifying before Congress?: In January, the House Committee on Oversight and Reform sent a formal letter to City Hall, requesting Johnson’s participation in a public hearing on Capitol Hill. The letter cited concerns about the impact of sanctuary policies in Chicago and three other cities—New York, Boston, and Denver. It claimed such policies fail to comply with federal law and suggested, “Citizens of all four cities have suffered due to sanctuary policies.” House Committee on Oversight and Government Reform Chairman James Comer (R-Ky.) confirmed all four mayors will testify at the full committee hearing on March 5. * Bloomberg | Walgreens rises on report that Sycamore would split company: Sycamore, which has been reportedly exploring a purchase of Walgreens for months, is planning on splitting up the company’s US and UK pharmacy businesses, as well as its specialty pharmacy unit, the Financial Times reported Thursday. Walgreens shares rose as much as 7.3% when US markets opened. They had gained 18% this year through Wednesday’s close. Representatives for Walgreens and Sycamore declined to comment. The stock was up 4% at about $11.50 as of 11:50 a.m. on Thursday. * Sun-Times | Bears have 4th-most salary-cap space as NFL announces record-high $279.2 million cap: Regardless of where the final number fell, the Bears were set to have the fourth-most salary-cap space when the new league year begins March 12. After recent cuts of tight end Gerald Everett and defensive end DeMarcus Walker, they’re on track to have $79.5 million in space when they start negotiating with free agents March 10. That trails only the Patriots at $127.8 million, the Raiders at $96.5 million and the Commanders at $81.9 million. NFC North rivals the Vikings ($63 million) and Lions ($51.5 million) also are in the top 10, and the Packers have $48.8 million to spend. * Monica Gordon | Lives are lost in south suburban Cook County because it’s a trauma center desert: In the heart of the Southland, a critical health care gap has been widening, one that endangers lives every day. The absence of a trauma center in this region is more than an inconvenience; it is a public health crisis that demands immediate attention and collective action. As someone who has lived and worked in the south suburbs throughout my career and served as an elected official, I have seen firsthand the devastating impact of this health care void. Trauma centers are not just hospitals; they are lifelines. These centers significantly improve survival rates and patient outcomes for traumatic brain injuries, gunshot wounds, injuries sustained in motor vehicle crashes and so much more. * Naperville | Naperville craft brewers worried about potential impact of Trump’s aluminum tariffs: For Naperville’s Go Brewing, aluminum cans play a substantial role in manufacturing. Ask president and founder Joe Chura, and he’d say about 99.99% of the nonalcoholic craft brewery’s offerings are doled out in aluminum cans. So with President Donald Trump’s 25% tariffs on all imported aluminum set to go into effect on March 12, the potential local impact “is really on our mind,” Chura says. * Sun-Times | Graduate saddled with $138K debt for ‘worthless’ degree sues loan servicer Navient for fraud: An Aurora woman who attended a “predatory for-profit” college in the Loop filed a proposed class action lawsuit Wednesday on behalf of student loan borrowers who were shut out of getting their loans discharged, following a 2022 settlement against loan servicer Navient Corp. Amanda Luciano, 38, racked up more than $138,000 in debt and has paid off about $52,000. The lawsuit says Navient should have erased her loans because she attended a “predatory for-profit” school. Instead, the company refused and wouldn’t explain why. Luciano filed the lawsuit against Navient and its subsidiary, Navient Solutions, in Cook County Circuit Court, saying the servicer fraudulently and unfairly denied her request to have her loans discharged. Her complaint seeks class action status for other Illinois borrowers who also received “boilerplate” denials from Navient. * Tribune | Ex-sailor pleads guilty to terrorist plot to attack Naval Station Great Lakes in 2022: A former sailor at the Naval Station Great Lakes has pleaded guilty to a 2022 terrorist plot to attack the base in Chicago’s northern suburbs on behalf of Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps, purportedly to avenge the death of an Iranian general killed by U.S. forces. Xuanyu Harry Pang, 38, of North Chicago, pleaded guilty to conspiring to and attempting to willfully injure and destroy national defense premises with the intent to obstruct the national defense of the U.S., court records show. * WJBD | Demolition work underway for new operating and emergency room at Salem Township Hospital: Demolition work is now underway in the future area that will house the Salem Township Hospital emergency and operating room areas. Hospital CEO James Timpe says no surprises have been found. “Demolition has been underway for about three weeks, and we’re seeing the area downstairs that used to be the rural health center is being cleared out,” Timpe said. “It’s looking good, and we should have a plan from our architect in a couple of weeks. They’ll send that out for bids, and we’ll see if we can come in under budget.” * Shaw Local | Keast ousts Schore in Bourbonnais mayoral primary: The village of Bourbonnais will have a new mayor after the April 1 consolidated general election. Trustee Jeff Keast soundly defeated four-term incumbent Mayor Paul Schore in Tuesday’s Bourbonnais Citizens Party primary race. Keast has been a trustee for 10 years. According to unofficial results, Keast finished with 1,061 votes (60.7%) to Schore’s 686 votes (39.3%). * WJBD | Marion County Board hires new county highway engineer: The Marion County Board has hired Alex Kreke as its new county highway engineer, pending IDOT approval. Kreke is currently an engineer with the city of Wentzville, Missouri. Road and Bridge Committee Co-Chair Adam Smith says Kreke is originally from Dietrich and wanted to return to the Southern Illinois area. “He seems to be really motivated to be back in the area, and he seems like he’s very much interested in learning about the county highway business,” Smith said. “He’s got a lot of experience with city streets, sewers and infrastructure, so he ought to be a great fit for our county.” * Illinois Times | The Taste of Black Springfield: Celebrate Black History Month and experience the best of local Black-owned food, music and fun at the same time. This event’s menu ranges from barbecue to soul food to sweet treats. Entry is free but event attendees are urged to donate to vendors at the event. Fifteen Black-owned businesses are set to provide their specialties for this event. * Bloomberg | From egg prices to housing, US inflation is heating up again: “Our outlook is very much for inflation to be coming back. We’ve been saying second half of this year, but it seems like the pressures are already starting to build,” said Lauren Saidel-Baker, economist at ITR Economics. And between the administration’s policies on tariffs and immigration, there’s more to come, she said. “I want to be absolutely clear: there are upside risks to our inflation outlook.” * NYT | Organ Transplant System ‘in Chaos’ as Waiting Lists Are Ignored: For decades, fairness has been the guiding principle of the American organ transplant system. Its bedrock, a national registry, operates under strict federal rules meant to ensure that donated organs are offered to the patients who need them most, in careful order of priority. But today, officials regularly ignore the rankings, leapfrogging over hundreds or even thousands of people when they give out kidneys, livers, lungs and hearts. These organs often go to recipients who are not as sick, have not been waiting nearly as long and, in some cases, are not on the list at all, a New York Times investigation found. * The Atlantic | Inside the Collapse at the NIH: The lights at the NIH are on; staff are at their desks. But since late January, the agency has issued only a fraction of its usual awards—many in haphazard spurts, as officials rushed grants through the pipeline in whatever limited windows they could manage. As of this week, some of the agency’s 27 institutes and centers are still issuing no new grants at all, one NIH official told me. Grant-management officers, who sign their name to awards, are too afraid, the official said, that violating the president’s wishes will mean losing their livelihood. (Most of the officials I spoke with requested anonymity, out of fear for their job at the agency, or—for those who have left—further professional consequences.)
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Stop Credit Card Chaos In Illinois
Thursday, Feb 27, 2025 - Posted by Advertising Department [The following is a paid advertisement.] A last-minute provision called the Interchange Fee Prohibition Act (IFPA) was snuck into the budget process last May and will create chaos for small businesses and consumers across Illinois if it takes effect on July 1, 2025. The IFPA gives corporate mega-stores like Walmart and Home Depot — who pushed for this backroom deal — millions more in profits, while small business owners get new expenses and accounting headaches. What’s more, consumers could be forced to pay for parts of their transactions in cash if this law moves forward. A recent court ruling in the litigation challenging the law suggests IFPA is likely pre-empted by federal law for national banks and will only apply to credit unions and local Illinois banks, putting local banks at a disadvantage against their national competitors. Illinois lawmakers should repeal the IFPA and focus on protecting small businesses and consumers across the state — not lining the pockets of corporate mega-stores. Stop the countdown to chaos by supporting a repeal of this misguided and flawed policy. Learn more at https://guardyourcard.com/illinois/ 
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DuPage County sheriff says he’s running for governor (Updated)
Thursday, Feb 27, 2025 - Posted by Rich Miller * DuPage County Sheriff James Mendrick’s Facebook page…
* Sheriff Mendrick went on Ray Stevens’ WLS program today. Core message…
Please pardon any transcription errors. * Regarding Gov. Pritzker’s rhetoric about President Donald Trump and whether that has had an impact on DuPage County…
* SAFE-T Act…
* Asked whether he has campaign donors…
In ten years, he’s raised $854K. As of the end of the last quarter, he had $87K in the bank. He had one race, in 2018, which he won. He was unopposed in 2022. * You’ll likely hear this question a lot from him…
…Adding… From DuPage County Board Chair Deb Conroy…
* Related… * Capitol News Illinois | Audit finds Illinois’ noncitizen health care programs far outstripped original cost estimates: The audit, which lawmakers requested in late 2023, comes one week after Pritzker delivered his annual budget proposal to the General Assembly. The governor’s plan would defund the newer of the two programs, which is aimed at noncitizens aged 44 to 64, while leaving in place the smaller program for noncitizen seniors aged 65 and older. * Tribune | Audit finds many were improperly enrolled in state health care program for noncitizens, while costs were vastly underestimated: The cost overruns were particularly pronounced in the program meant for recipients ages 42 to 64, with the actual expenditure of $485 million through the three years ending June 30, 2023, the period covered by the audit, coming in at nearly four times the initially estimated cost of $126 million, according to the report. During the same period, the actual cost of the program for those 65 and older was $412 million, nearly double the original projection of $224 million. * Crain’s | Illinois’ immigrant health plans cost taxpayers much more than projected, audit finds: Auditors found 6,098 enrollees designated as “undocumented” who had Social Security numbers. When that information was presented to the Illinois Department of Healthcare & Family Services, or HFS, the agency provided responses for a sample of 94 enrollees. Auditors determined that 19 of those 94 should have been designated as lawfully present or as being a legal permanent resident — an important distinction because legal permanent residents become eligible for Medicaid after five years in the U.S. * Sun-Times | Pritzker team vastly underestimated health care costs for adults who lack legal status, state audit finds: At a news briefing in Chicago Wednesday, Pritzker bypassed some of the errors spotlighted in the audit and focused on the fleeting nature of immigration status. He also spoke of his support for universal health care. “I think the thing that is missing from the reporting, and what I would point out to you, is that number one, people’s immigration status changes during the course of a year. You’ve got people who were eligible for the program, who became ineligible for the program,” Pritzker said. * WTVO | Audit finds Illinois vastly underestimated cost of noncitizen heathcare on taxpayers: Republicans have been critical of the program since its inception. “We’re the only state that puts this burden on Illinois tax on their own state taxpayers taking this on and to not run it properly and to have these large cost overruns, that’s how you end up with a budget deficit,” Senate Minority Leader John Curran (R-Downers Grove) said Wednesday. “That’s what’s crowding out spending on education. That’s what’s crowding out spending on other components of the state budget. That’s why we need an audit.”
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It’s just a bill
Thursday, Feb 27, 2025 - Posted by Isabel Miller * HB1710 from Rep. Kam Buckner was discussed in a subject matter hearing of the House Gun Violence Prevention Committee yesterday. WAND…
* Sun-Times…
More from ABC Chicago…
* WAND…
* Sen. Robert Peters…
* WCIA…
As of this morning, HB3614 has 24 Democratic co-sponsors.
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Open thread
Thursday, Feb 27, 2025 - Posted by Isabel Miller * What’s going on in your part of Illinois?…
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Isabel’s morning briefing
Thursday, Feb 27, 2025 - Posted by Isabel Miller * ICYMI: Pritzker announces round 3 of medical debt relief program at University of Chicago. WGN…
- The two previous rounds eliminated $345 million in debt for 270,000 Illinoisans. - Pritzker said that while the state is implementing programs to forgive medical debt, he remains concerned about potential cuts to vital services like Medicaid at the federal level, pointing out that cuts to programs like Medicaid threaten access to critical healthcare for Illinois families. - “If Donald Trump and the Republican congress eliminate the Medicaid expansion, we will have people who get sick and die because they don’t have coverage,” Pritzker said. * Related stories…
∙ Fox Chicago: Illinois slashes $220M in medical debt for 170K residents, more relief on the way * BlueRoomStream.com’s coverage of today’s press conferences and committee hearings can be found here. * Tribune | State representative blasts Metra for failing to release internal investigation results: State Rep. Kambium “Kam” Buckner called on Metra to release the findings of an internal investigation, expressing his “deep disappointment” in the rail agency’s decision to withhold the results of the work of an outside law firm. “At a time when fiscal constraints require us to scrutinize (transit) governance, operations and agency structures, this lack of transparency raises serious concerns,” he wrote in a letter to Metra’s board. “Simply put, you cannot ask taxpayers to pay for an investigation and then tell them they have no right to know the results.” * Capitol News Illinois | Audit finds Illinois’ noncitizen health care programs far outstripped original cost estimates: A pair of health care programs that benefit noncitizens – one of which is already on Gov. JB Pritzker’s budgetary chopping block – far outstripped its original estimated price tag and cost the state of Illinois $1.6 billion through last summer, according to a new audit of the programs published Wednesday. The report also found more than 6,000 people enrolled in the state-funded programs were classified as “undocumented” despite actually having social security numbers. Some of those people were green card holders who would have instead qualified for health coverage like Medicaid or traditional insurance. * ABC Chicago | Couple shocked by $26K water bill from city of Chicago, others come forward: ‘We’re on edge’: Elizabeth Finan and her husband have owned a North Side apartment complex for decades. She said every other month, they get a water bill for about $3,000, but her January bill made her jaw drop: $26,369.94. […] Finan said they called an engineer the next day to inspect the building for leaks, but nothing was detected. So, she called the city’s Department of Water Management. “She said the last actual reading was in 2017, and these are all estimated and when they came out and read the meter, this was the bill,” Finan said. * Press Release | Doug Scott confirmed to five-year term as ICC Chairman: Scott was reappointed to a five-year term by Governor JB Pritzker in January 2024 after serving out the remainder of former Chairman Carrie Zalewski’s term. […] “States are at the forefront of keeping the country’s clean energy ambitions apace. Three years ago, the Climate and Equitable Jobs Act (CEJA) charted Illinois’ path to a 100 percent clean energy economy, and in the years to come, the ICC will continue to play a critical role in steering Illinois toward its decarbonization goals,” said Governor JB Pritzker. “As a regulator, Doug Scott understands the importance of balancing reliability, safety, and affordability alongside these goals. Illinois is fortunate to have Chairman Scott at the helm of the ICC.” * Capitol News Illinois | Pritzker says federal funds still being withheld; warns of further spending cuts: Meanwhile, Pritzker also warned this week that as many as 770,000 Illinoisans stand to lose Medicaid health care coverage under a Republican-backed budget resolution that cleared the U.S. House Tuesday night. That resolution, which would amend the current federal fiscal year’s budget, calls for deep cuts in federal funding for Medicaid, a health insurance program for low-income and disabled individuals that is jointly funded with state and federal money. * WAND | Senator Rose responds to Health Alliance’s decision to end majority of coverage by 2026: State Sen. Chapin Rose (R-Mahomet) is also looking for answers. “I wish I had answers, I don’t, but we’re trying to get them. And I’ve already talked to CMS, the meeting is set for Tuesday of next week to to try and figure out where they’re going to go in open enrollment,” said Rose. Nearly 200,000 people are losing their health insurance. And 600 people are potentially losing their jobs. * Tribune | In anticipation of rush, DMV facilities to open on Saturdays for Real ID applicants: The extended hours begin this Saturday and will run through May 10. Twelve of the facilities will be open to walk-in customers on Saturdays for the first time, starting at 7:30 a.m. In addition to the Chicago DMV at 7301 W. Lexington Ave., the facilities in Addison, Aurora, Des Plaines, Elgin, Joliet, Lake Zurich, Melrose Park, Plano, St. Charles, Waukegan and Woodstock will have Saturday hours. * Tribune | To balance Mayor Brandon Johnson’s 2025 budget, Chicago installing 50 new speed cameras to ticket drivers: Chicago will add 50 speed cameras as part of Mayor Brandon Johnson’s plan to balance this year’s budget, increasing the stock of the devices used to ticket drivers by 30% citywide. The city’s Department of Transportation confirmed this week that it is “actively working” to install the 50 cameras this year but declined to share the locations, saying they have yet to be finalized. * Tribune | City Council passes Mayor Brandon Johnson’s $830 million infrastructure bond plan after pushback: Aldermen approved the plan in a 26-23 vote a day after Johnson’s administration proposed a version with clearer spending guardrails. While opponents decried the debt package as financially irresponsible, allies of the mayor defended it as a typical and crucial way to fund basic infrastructure work. “We are not mortgaging the future of our children. We are building the roads that they are going to use,” Ald. Pat Dowell, 3rd, said. * Sun-Times | After OKing plan to save 7 Acero charter schools, CPS may decide to close several of them after all: The about-face would suddenly leave three campuses shuttered at the end of this school year and the other four facing uncertain futures. But it’s not a done deal — some board members are pushing to keep at least five schools open next year. * Tribune | Trauma on trauma: Immigration agents detain Acero charter schools parent on eve of school board vote to shutter some locations: In a letter Wednesday, Acero officials said “Community Wellness Protocols” were immediately implemented at two schools, Victoria Soto High School and Jovita Idar Elementary, which share a campus, to “maintain the safety and security” of the schools’ community. Chicago Public Schools’ Office of Safety and Security was also engaged, according to the letter signed by the schools’ principals, Elizabeth Obrzut and Nicolle Macias. ICE agents did not attempt to enter either school, according to the letter. ICE did not immediately respond to a request for comment. * Crain’s | Tech incubator 1871 is leaving the Merchandise Mart: “As you all know, 1871 has not been immune to the post-COVID challenges that many organizations — especially nonprofits — have faced,” CEO Betsy Ziegler told members and partners in a letter today. “While our impact across Chicago and beyond has grown significantly, like many other businesses, we were not able to adapt our real estate model quickly enough to the evolving economic landscape. * Sun-Times | Federal lawsuit says Chicago police officers framed man in 2011 slaying of fellow cop: One of the men who was initially charged in the 2011 slaying of Chicago Police Officer Clifton Lewis has filed a federal lawsuit alleging fellow officers “perpetuated a wide-ranging scheme” to manufacture evidence to secure convictions in the case. Alexander Villa’s conviction was vacated and charges were dropped in October after the Cook County state’s attorney’s office learned that the defense had not been provided with some potentially exculpatory evidence — evidence that could have been favorable to their client. * Tribune | Suburban Chicago elections: Two high-profile politicians ousted, Larry Dominick keeps control of Cicero: Closer to Chicago in west suburban Cicero, town President Larry Dominick appeared to hang onto his seat, with 57% of the vote against challenger Esteban Rodriguez. Dominick started working for the town’s public works before becoming a police officer and then mayor in 2005. He said his major achievements include reducing local gang killings and improving town services. * Shaw Local | Nguyen likely secures ballot bid for DeKalb mayor race in April election: If unofficial results hold, Nguyen’s name will appear with three other challengers to be DeKalb’s next mayor: incumbent Cohen Barnes, 7th Ward Alderman John Walker and Kouame Sanan, who works in NIU’s IT department. * Fox Chicago | Chicago suburb approves ban on Delta-8 and Delta-9 THC edibles: The Elgin City Council has officially approved a ban on certain THC products, a move that will remove Delta-8 and Delta-9 THC edibles from store shelves. […] Unlike cannabis products sold at licensed dispensaries, these edibles are largely unregulated and have reportedly been linked to a surge in poison control calls. * Tribune | State police: Crete man sent threatening email to Gov. JB Pritzker : The email containing “a message of a threatening nature” was sent to Pritzker’s Office of Constituent Affairs from an email associated with Michael Dascenzo, 49, on Jan. 9, state police said in a news release. Authorities didn’t say exactly what the email stated but did say the email sparked an investigation that led to them obtaining an arrest warrant on Tuesday. * Herald Whig | One day after primary, Moore kicks campaign into high gear: Independent mayoral candidate Linda Moore kicked her campaign into high gear on Wednesday ahead of the April 1 consolidated election when she will face Mayor Mike Troup. “(It’s the) first day of the consolidated election cycle,” Moore told those gathered for her press event Wednesday afternoon. “I am so excited to be able to share with you my plan for how we’re going to fix and grow our city.” * WGEM | Prairie Farms announces Quincy expansion: At a Planning Committee meeting on Wednesday, Mayor Mike Troup announced plans for Prairie Farms to expand. Troup said the company bought two lots next to their property at 24th and Broadway. According to Troup, the expansion will add 10-15 jobs. * 25News Now | Bloomington non-profit suggests cabin village for housing city’s homeless: “The shelter village would really be able to cater to those individuals who really just need their own space to connect with others when they choose and to be alone when they want to be as well,” said Audrey Cail, Home Sweet Home’s Director of Client Services. It will cost about $2.5 million to build the village. HSHM plans to fundraise and apply for a grant through McLean County to pay for it. They need a lot of money to make this happen, but the Home Sweet Home staff, believe in what they’re doing. * Rockford Register Star | Rockford Public Schools: Girl’s tragic death is a ‘wake-up call’: An 11-year-old student in Rockford, Illinois, died by suicide on February 21st. The student’s family alleges that bullying at Eisenhower Middle School contributed to her death, but the school district says they have not found evidence of this. [Superintendent Ehren Jarrett] emphasized the importance of communication and encouraged students to report any concerns they have, assuring them that resources are available. * KWQC | Rock Island cancels meetings after protesters gather outside of city hall: The protesters are angry at the city after an officer fatally shot a driver on Jan. 5. After an investigation, the officer returned to duty and the county attorney’s office released body camera footage of the shooting. At one point Monday, Davenport police blocked access to the Centennial Bridge. * Florida Politics | Who will run for Byron Donalds’ seat in Congress?: Former Illinois state Sen. Jim Oberweis could also jump in. The investment manager and frequent CNBC guest now lives in Southwest Florida and could bring an opportunity to self-fund. Catalina Lauf, another former Illinois congressional candidate who worked in the Commerce Department under Trump, has also moved to Florida and been suggested as a possible candidate. * WaPo | Finally, something is puncturing conspiracy theories: A new paper in the journal Science by Thomas Costello of MIT’s Sloan School of Management, Gordon Pennycook of Cornell University and David Rand, also of Sloan, is so exciting. It finds hope in new technology: a conversation partner powered by artificial intelligence. In a pair of studies involving more than 2000 participants, the researchers found a 20 percent reduction in belief in conspiracy theories after participants interacted with a powerful, flexible, personalized GPT-4 Turbo conversation partner. The researchers trained the AI to try to persuade the participants to reduce their belief in conspiracies by refuting the specific evidence the participants provided to support their favored conspiracy theory. * NBC | FDA cancels meeting to select flu strains for next season’s shots: The email, Offit said, offered no explanation for the scrapped meeting. A spokesperson for the Department of Health and Human Services, which oversees the FDA, did not immediately respond to a request for comment. The cancellation comes as the United States is in the midst of a particularly severe flu season. So far, 86 children and 19,000 adults have died this season, according to data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. * NYT | The Covid Alarmists Were Closer to the Truth Than Anyone Else: Five years later, though the world has been scarred by all that death and illness, it is considered hysterical to narrate the history of the pandemic by focusing on it. Covid minimizers and vaccine skeptics now run the country’s health agencies, but the backlash isn’t just on the right. Many states have tied the hands of public health authorities in dealing with future pandemic threats, and mask bans have been implemented in states as blue as New York. Everyone has a gripe with how the pandemic was handled, and many of them are legitimate. But our memories are so warped by denial, suppression and sublimation that Covid revisionism no longer even qualifies as news. When I come across an exchange like this one from last weekend, in which Woody Harrelson called Fauci evil on Joe Rogan’s show, or this one from last year, in which Rogan and Tony Hinchcliffe casually attribute a rise in excess and all-cause mortality to the aftereffects of vaccination, I don’t even really flinch.
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Protected: SUBSCRIBERS ONLY - Today’s edition of Capitol Fax (use all CAPS in password)
Thursday, Feb 27, 2025 - Posted by Rich Miller
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Selected press releases (Live updates)
Thursday, Feb 27, 2025 - Posted by Isabel Miller
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Live coverage
Thursday, Feb 27, 2025 - Posted by Isabel Miller * Click here and/or here to follow breaking news. Hopefully, enough reporters and news outlets migrate to BlueSky so we can hopefully resume live-posting.
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