* I fully intended to have a subscriber edition and the blog up and going for at least a few hours today, but life has intervened. I have workers at my home and people I haven’t seen in a while are coming to town. Not to mention that my Internet connection is buggy as heck so I’m currently tethering from my mobile phone. Like I said, life has intervened.

My buddy Ryan Keith sends out a very handy news roundup every morning, so I’m going to post that. You also have our live coverage post and all the RSS feeds to rely on. I’ll see if I can post a story or two/tree today, but it could be tough unless it’s big breaking news.

As always, please keep your conversations Illinois-centric and be nice to each other. Thanks…

* Pritzker backs former Senate Republican leader for ethics commission after mistakenly appointing recent lobbyist

* Illinois GOP uses Trump impeachment effort to fuel fundraising: Despite Schneider’s rhetoric, any money raised by the “defense fund” will go to the Illinois Republican Party and not to any legal defense fund or to Trump’s campaign fund, according to the fundraising website.

* Editorial: ‘We need to send a message’ about corruption? Illinois voters, too, should send a message.

* Elgin mayor wants ethics ordinance after reports that councilman is a lobbyist

* Police shouldn’t ticket pot smokers in backyards or on balconies, Lightfoot says

* When a ComEd rate cut is actually a rate hike

* The stakes are high for Illinois cannabis

* Your Guide to Marijuana in Illinois

* And here’s a few more from me…

* CVS Health to buy Illinois insurance unit: IlliniCare has 16 percent of the state’s Medicaid managed care market, and WellCare’s Meridian has 36 percent, according to the latest data from the Illinois Department of Healthcare & Family Services, which oversees Medicaid. … Centene says it will retain IlliniCare’s Medicare-Medicaid Alignment Initiative business and that its Ambetter business in Illinois is not affected.

* FOID card law’s age saves it from constitutional challenge: appeals court: A state appellate court this week ruled that the saving grace for Illinois’ Firearm Owners Identification card law was the fact that it’s been in place for 51 years — and any ruling finding it unconstitutional would upset the status quo. But in the same opinion, justices on the state’s Fourth Appellate Court said the group that filed the case against Attorney General Kwame Raoul and Illinois State Police Director Brendan Kelly earlier this year satisfied three other key elements of an argument against the law’s constitutionality.

* How Bad Are Billionaire Politicians for Democracy?

* SIU Carbondale applications up significantly as recruitment efforts pay off

* Mascots, Money Or Math: What Stops School Consolidation?

* Springfield’s Shortfall Illustrates Broader Pension Problem

* Schoenburg: Despite distance, Gray thinks he’s best for 15th

* Colleges and Universities Adopting Test Optional Policies

* Preliminary plan for downtown Springfield university campus emerges

* Trump food stamps rule could affect up to 140K people in Illinois

* CTA wants answers from Chinese L car manufacturer after NBC report on child labor

* SJ-R veteran reporter set to depart

* Nearly 5 decades into performing career, Tawl Paul releases 1st studio album