* Tribune…

Cook County Democrats last week declined to pick official favorites in the crowded primary fields ahead of next year’s congressional primaries, but the party’s chair is backing a protégé in the race to replace U.S. Rep Robin Kelly in the district that stretches from the South Side to central Illinois.

Cook County Board President Toni Preckwinkle on Monday announced her support for state Sen. Robert Peters, a South Side progressive, in the March Democratic primary to replace Kelly, who is forgoing a reelection bid for the 2nd Congressional District seat to run for the U.S. Senate.

Peters worked as an activist on economic and criminal justice issues with both Preckwinkle and another of her protégés, former Cook County State’s Attorney Kim Foxx. Preckwinkle also backed Peters for an appointment to the Illinois Senate in 2019 to replace Kwame Raoul after Raoul’s was elected the state’s attorney general.

Preckwinkle’s endorsement comes as the potential entry of former U.S. Rep. Jesse Jackson Jr. into the race could dramatically alter the landscape in the 2nd Congressional District primary.

* Bridget Degnen, the current 12th District commissioner, announced she won’t seek a third term. Catherine Sharp has since launched her campaign for the Cook County Board seat…

Cat Sharp announced her candidacy for the 12th District on the Cook County Board on Monday, following incumbent Commissioner Bridget Degnen’s announcement that she does not plan to run again for the seat.

Sharp has worked as chief of staff to Ald. Andre Vasquez (40) since 2023. She previously served as Director of Outreach on Degnen’s County Board staff.

During her tenure as Chief of Staff, she has overseen tens of millions of dollars of investments for infrastructure, park, school, public safety, and small business improvement projects in the 40th Ward.

Handling business and neighborhood development for the 40th Ward, Sharp has helped new businesses open and expand by identifying grants and assisting small businesses navigate through City red tape. As the public safety liaison of the 40th Ward, Sharp works with local police to share accurate and timely public safety updates with neighbors and has assisted in the investigations of violent crime by connecting witnesses and evidence to detectives.

At Degnen’s office, Sharp worked with hundreds of constituents across the district to assist them in filing their own property tax appeals and applying for exemptions, saving or getting back thousands of dollars for some residents. […]

“I’m proud to support Cat Sharp, who has been an incredibly hard working and principled leader of our local government offices here in this community,” said Degnen. “Over eight years, I’ve worked hard to build an office that stays focused on what matters the most–serving our residents and leading with compassion and conscientiousness. I trust Cat to pick up that torch and carry it forward.” […]

“As chief of staff for our office, Cat has been an exemplary leader–compassionate, strategic, and committed to improving services and results for our constituents,” said Ald. Vasquez. “There is no one more equipped to step into this role, and I’m thrilled to support her.”

* The Illinois Department of Human Services’ breakdown of ACA-related Medicaid in Illinois…

Click here for the full presentation.

* From the Illinois Legislative Latino Caucus Foundation’s 2024 impact report…

The Foundation awards twenty $5,000 scholarships annually, to students across Illinois. Recipients are honored at our annual gala and participate in a weekend Leadership Development Training Program.

■ +400 scholarships have been awarded
■ +$1 Million in scholarship funds
■ +500 applications received per year

The Alumni Association currently includes 367 members, with 26 alumni serving on the Alumni Association Board. Alumni help support efforts across three subcommittees:

■ Leadership Development
■ Networking and Outreach
■ Communications
■ Scholarship Review

* Crain’s…

Automotive seating manufacturer Adient is setting up shop next to the Rivian plant in Normal as the electric-vehicle maker gears up to make a new, smaller SUV.

Dublin-based Adient will invest more than $8 million and create at least 75 new jobs, the state of Illinois says. The company will receive an estimated $4 million in credits for payroll taxes under a state incentive program aimed at EV manufacturers and suppliers.

Adient has more than 70,000 employees worldwide and operates more than 200 manufacturing facilities, including 30 in the United States. It serves virtually all the world’s automakers, including Detroit’s Big Three — Toyota, Honda and Volkswagen — and posted $14.7 billion in sales last year.

Rivian has been the biggest success so far in the state’s move to become an EV manufacturing hub. The company employs more than 8,000 people at its manufacturing plant in Normal. In addition to its electric truck, SUV and a commercial delivery van, Rivian is preparing to manufacture a smaller, less expensive SUV.

…Adding… ABC Chicago…

Tom Durkin, a nationally known trial attorney, has died, the ABC7 I-Tean has learned. He was 78.

He was a known for specializing in the defense of complex federal criminal matters with a special emphasis on the defense of prosecutions involving national security, domestic terrorism, and civil rights related matters.

Durkin, a Chicago native, represented the likes of Mohammed Hamzah Khan, Adel Daoud, Robert Sorich, and Matt Hale. […]

Durkin passed after a short illness, the I-Team learned.

*** Statehouse News ***

* Tribune | Chicago activists urge Pritzker to pass law to make polluters pay for climate change damages: Young climate activists from Chicago called on Gov. JB Pritzker to enact legislation that would make the fossil fuel industry — instead of taxpayers — responsible for funding green, resilient infrastructure and disaster response in the face of climate change, following similar bills recently passed in Vermont and New York. “Illinois can and must do the same,” said Oscar Sanchez, co-executive director of the Southeast Environmental Task Force, at a Sunday rally.

*** Chicago ***

* Block Club | Agents Break Montclare Mom’s Window, Detain 2 In Little Village In Separate Immigration Arrests: Two men were taken after federal agents stopped their car Thursday morning in Little Village, according to volunteers with the Pilsen Rapid Response Network and a social media post. Later that afternoon, federal agents detained Catalina Mota Martinez outside her Montclare home, relatives said. The incident was also captured in a Facebook Live video. Relatives said Martinez, who immigrated to the United States from Mexico around 30 years ago, was taken after agents broke her car window and removed her from the car. “She’s been here more than half of her life, this is her home, so for them to try and take her and send her somewhere she’s unfamiliar with, it’s unfair,” said Martinez’s daughter, who has asked to remain anonymous for safety reasons. “They treated her like she was dangerous.”

* WGN | ‘Purpose Over Pain’ pushes for progress as thousands of Chicago cold cases remain unsolved: The group Purpose Over Pain organized a panel discussion and resource fair for families involved in cold cases. It was held Saturday morning at Saint Sabina Church. “Our goal is to try to figure out how can we get justice for our children? How can we walk with the detectives to get our cases solved because we feel like if we aren’t out there, nobody seems to care,” Pam Bosley, Executive Director of Purpose Over Pain, said.

* Crain’s | Justice Department appeals Jenner & Block’s win in fight with Trump: Deputy Associate Attorney General Richard Lawson, who argued for the Trump administration in favor of the executive order, notified the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia of the appeal today. The appeal has yet to appear on the appellate court’s docket. “The district court correctly declared that Jenner’s clients have a right to independent counsel and that the firm’s right to represent clients vigorously and without compromise is sacred,” Jenner & Block said in a statement to Crain’s. “We look forward to confirming this on appeal. We will continue doing what we do best: fearlessly representing our clients under all circumstances.”

* Block Club | Alderpeople Vs. Chicago Cops In 16-Inch Softball: ‘This Is The Best We’ve Gotten Along All Year’: The game disintegrated by the seventh inning, when a variety of local political celebrities took the field, including recent mayoral also-ran Paul Vallas, county Treasurer Maria Pappas and county Clerk Anna Valencia. Tabares got the final at-bat, crushing an infield home run as the police conveniently overthrew fielders at every base. After Tabares crossed the plate, the score had somehow shifted to favor the aldermen, 16-15 — an act of legislative trickery all-too-common in Chicago’s City Hall that had found its way to the grounds of Kerry Wood Field.

* Chicago Reader | Lowering the curtain: The Harris Theater is among many organizations and artists nationwide to get late-night emails from the NEA notifying them that their funds had been terminated or withdrawn. And because the NEA pays its grants by reimbursement, this didn’t just throw a wrench in the theater’s planning—it created a deficit by stripping funds that had already been spent.

* Chicago Mag | The Pope Slept Here: Before becoming the Vatican’s VIP, Leo XIV was better known around these parts as Bob Prevost. Here’s a tour of his local haunts.

* Chicago Eater | A Chicago Pastry Chef Opens Up on Limb Difference and New Motherhood: Fat Peach Bakery replaced Bridgeport Bakery, a neighborhood staple for 50 years, which briefly reopened under new ownership and became Bridgeport Bakery 2.0 before closing in 2021. Both were best known for cookies and for paczkis, with long lines forming on Fat Tuesdays. Fat Peach Bakery chose a different approach, focusing on sourdough-based, fancy, flaky pastries with unexpected fillings, and a surprise approach to their ever-changing weekly menu. Castillo and Breuer were inspired by Mexican café culture and a desire to create a workplace that nurtured their employees as well as the neighborhood.

* Southside Weekly | Captivating, Nourishing, Sacred: What Promontory Point Means to South Siders: The beloved limestone rocks that serve as stair-step revetment to Lake Michigan are a signature part of what makes the space special. They have also been the subject of intense debate and controversy over the past two decades, since the US Army Corps of Engineers (USACE) and the Chicago Department of Transportation (CDOT) first proposed that the limestone be replaced with concrete in order to buttress the shoreline against rising lake levels. Those proposals faced pushback from community members, who have organized to preserve the park’s limestone and mobilize park goers toward civic engagement, in part through the advocacy of the Promontory Point Conservancy.

*** Cook County and Suburbs ***

* Daily Herald | Homeland Security takes Bolingbrook man into ICE custody after he appears in Kane County court on DUI: He had just pleaded guilty to one count of aggravated DUI, a Class 4 felony. It was part of a plea agreement that included 24 months of probation and other charges not being prosecuted, according to court records. He’d been stopped by Montgomery police about 1:39 a.m. Aug. 3, 2024, and charged with drunken driving on a suspended or revoked license. […] Hours after Manriquez-Valdivia’s arrest, Elgin attorney Caroline Hernandez emailed Chief Judge Robert Villa asking that Villa’s office reinstate the option for remote court appearances over Zoom, “particularly those involving people of Latino descent who are now being actively targeted by ICE outside the Kane County courthouse.”

* Daily Herald | Man charged with hiding Antioch woman’s death detained by ICE: Jose Luis Mendoza-Gonzalez, 52, is charged with concealing the death of 37-year-old Megan Bos. He was granted pretrial release in April, two days after his arrest. Though he’s now in ICE custody, Lake County prosecutors want Mendoza-Gonzalez tried locally, warning that deportation could allow him to go free. “We believe that a criminal trial and sentencing is more appropriate than deportation proceedings,” the Lake County state’s attorney’s office said in a statement Sunday.

* Daily Southtown | Blue Island mobile home residents, management to meet as city pushes shut down: Some residents started receiving 5-day eviction notices and immediate possession orders July 12, and resident Joe Cervantes said the property management’s attorney said only 10 residential units out of more than 66 are up to date on rent payment and qualify for housing assistance, which residents protest. Cervantes said he hopes to prove more residents have paid rent before the meeting. He said many residents told him they have proof they are up to date on rent or, if they haven’t paid, it’s because they don’t trust management.

* Naperville Sun | Naperville council OKs new residential developments, one with proposed rents of up to $5,000: The Naperville City Council has signed off on two new residential developments — one with rents ranging from $3,900 to $5,000 — that will add a total of 154 new homes to the city when construction is complete. A final plat for M/I Homes’ Northwoods of Naperville, which proposes converting the former 12-acre DeVry University site at 1151 E. Warrenville Road off Interstate 88 into 64 single-family townhomes, was approved by the council Tuesday as were the land annexation and variances needed for The Residences at Naper & Plank. The latter will bring 34 townhouses and 56 rowhouses, all leased luxury units with monthly rents of up to $5,000, to an 8.2-acre site at Naper Bouelvard and Plank Road.

* Sun-Times | Cook County air quality ‘unhealthy,’ heat watch issued: An elevated concentration of microscopic particles in the air makes it “unhealthy for sensitive groups,” according to the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency’s “AirNow” interactive map. People should reduce their exposure to outdoor air if they have heart or lung disease, are older adults, children or teens, according to the EPA.

* Aurora Beacon-News | Aurora City Council to vote on doubling hotel room tax: Aurora is considering doubling its hotel room tax rate, which has not risen since it was first adopted in 1987. The city’s Hotel Occupancy Tax rate is currently set at 3%, but many nearby communities have higher rates that are similar to what is being proposed, according to Chief Financial Officer Chris Minick. He estimates that the proposed 6% rate would bring in an additional $1.1 million for the city each year, especially after the opening of the new $360 million Hollywood Casino-Aurora resort.

* Talia Winiarsky | Why Kat Abughazaleh isn’t the next Zohran Mamdani: Though Abughazaleh has tried to immerse herself in the community through events like beach cleanups and collecting mutual aid, it will still be a challenging task. She moved to Illinois just months before announcing her candidacy, a decision which she attributed to her partner’s job. She didn’t live in the district at the time, but in Streeterville -– she said she’d move here this summer. Just because you meet many people who live in a district in a short amount of time doesn’t mean that you have the intricate knowledge required to lead them. That takes years.

* Shaw Local | Elgin arts studio gets $200K state grant to transform downtown building: An Elgin lawmaker helped secure a state grant for an Elgin-based art studio that plans to refurbish a long-vacant downtown building and turn it into a flourishing gallery and entertainment venue. State Sen. Cristina Castro, D-Elgin, recently announced $200,000 was awarded to sustain and enhance local arts programs in the northwest suburbs.

*** Downstate ***

* Center Square | NIU takes verbal lashing from audit commission over timekeeping findings: The Legislative Audit Commission heard audit reviews for three public universities throughout the state. For Northern Illinois University, there were 15 findings officials said were not material and they are working on repeated findings. President Lisa Freeman said they hope to change a state law requiring tracking work hours in 15 minute increments. “Where appropriate, NIU and sister public universities seek legislative changes as the corrective action to audit findings,” Freeman said.

* IPM News | With water from out of town, the Mattoon Bagelfest is underway: Organizers trucked in water from out of town to avoid tapping into the city’s reservoir. Since the 1980s, the Lender’s Bagels factory in Mattoon has been providing food for what organizers call “The World’s Biggest Bagel Breakfast.” Brian Heaton brought his daughter with him to the festival. They went on carnival rides at Bagelfest, an annual ritual for the two of them.

* WSIL | Rep. Mike Bost set to address the “One Big, Beautiful Bill” in telephone town hall: In a social media statement, Rep. Bost says, “Hope to hear from you soon as we cover my latest work for you in Congress and what the One Big, Beautiful Bill means for Southern Illinois.” You must register to participate. You can do so by going to Rep. Bost’s website.

* WSIL | Murphysboro Farmers Market cancels for the rest of summer: The Murphysboro Farmers Market took place every Saturday from May to September, offering locally grown produce, food, and handmade crafts. On social media, organizers say some vendors are no longer able to participate, including farmer Homer Jenkins, who is retiring. They also added that this summer’s weather has made crop production increasingly difficult. […] The city is also looking for new managers for the farmers market. If interested contact Sandra Ripley at a city office.

*** National ***

* Wisconsin Public Radio | Drought means ‘drier than normal.’ How will climatologists define drought if the new normal is dry?: The National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine is working on a study to answer that question. The query was originally brought to the independent nonprofit research organization by the National Integrated Drought Information System, a group within the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration. […] “It’s really a question of, is this drought, or what we call aridification, which is the entire climate getting drier?” Leasor said. In that case, the drier baseline would mean a drier bar for what qualifies as a drought.

* 404 Media | Spotify Publishes AI-Generated Songs From Dead Artists Without Permission: According to his official Spotify page, Blaze Foley, a country music singer-songwriter who was murdered in 1989, released a new song called “Together” last week. The song, which features a male country singer, piano, and an electric guitar, vaguely sounds like a new, slow country song. The Spotify page for the song also features an image of an AI-generated image of a man who looks nothing like Foley singing into a microphone. […] “It’s harmful to Blaze’s standing that this happened,” he said. “It’s kind of surprising that Spotify doesn’t have a security fix for this type of action, and I think the responsibility is all on Spotify. They could fix this problem. One of their talented software engineers could stop this fraudulent practice in its tracks, if they had the will to do so. And I think they should take that responsibility and do something quickly.”

* CNN | US Marines mobilized to Los Angeles are being sent home, Pentagon says: A senior Pentagon official said during a congressional hearing last month that the mobilization of the Marines and National Guardsmen was estimated to cost $134 million. “The current estimated cost is $134 million, which is largely just [temporary duty] cost, travel, housing, food, etc.,” Bryn MacDonnell, a special assistant to the Secretary of Defense and official performing the duties of the Under Secretary of Defense (Comptroller), told the House Appropriations Subcommittee on Defense.

* AP | Less selection, higher prices: How tariffs are shaping the holiday shopping season: The consequences for consumers? Stores may not have the specific gift items customers want come November and December. Some retail suppliers and buyers scaled back their holiday lines rather than risking a hefty tax bill or expensive imports going unsold. Businesses still are setting prices but say shoppers can expect many things to cost more, though by how much depends partly on whether Trump’s latest round of “reciprocal” tariffs kicks in next month.

* WaPo | A new era of floods has arrived. America isn’t prepared: From last year’s disaster in Asheville to this month’s catastrophic floods in Central Texas, the world has entered a new era of rainfall supercharged by climate change, rendering existing response plans inadequate. A Washington Post analysis of atmospheric data found a record amount of moisture flowing in the skies over the past year and a half, largely due to rising global temperatures. With so much warm, moist air available as fuel, storms are increasingly able to move water vapor from the oceans to locations hundreds of miles from the coast, triggering flooding for which most inland communities are ill-prepared.

* WIRED | At Least 750 US Hospitals Faced Disruptions During Last Year’s CrowdStrike Outage, Study Finds: Now a new study by a team of medical cybersecurity researchers has taken the first steps toward quantifying the cost of CrowdStrike’s disaster not in dollars, but in potential harm to hospitals and their patients across the US. It reveals evidence that hundreds of those hospitals’ services were disrupted during the outage, and raises concerns about potentially grave effects to patients’ health and well-being. Researchers from UC San Diego today marked the one-year anniversary of CrowdStrike’s catastrophe by releasing a paper in JAMA Network Open, a publication of the Journal of the American Medical Association Network, that attempts for the first time to create a rough estimate of the number of hospitals whose networks were affected by that IT meltdown on July 19, 2024, as well as which services on those networks appeared to have been disrupted.