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* Governor JB Pritzker…
Today, Governor JB Pritzker released the following statement ahead of the U.S. Senate vote on the Continuing Resolution:
“Republicans in Congress have abdicated their responsibility to critically evaluate the damage Donald Trump is doing to critical services the American people need. Democrats have the ability to force bipartisanship and bring the two sides together to make a budget that reflects priorities we all ought to share.
“America was founded on the concept of checks and balances, but Republicans in Congress have decided to bend their knee to Donald Trump, Elon Musk, and their cronies who seek to gut our government from the inside out. It is dangerous.
“Illinoisans know all too well what happens when Republicans are reckless and play politics with people’s livelihood. Veterans will have trouble getting healthcare. Workers will lose jobs when infrastructure projects grind to a halt. Preschools will lose teachers and parents will be left without childcare. Make no mistake: people will suffer the consequences of their negligence.
“Democrats have the power to stop the cessation of power to Donald Trump and Elon Musk and they should use it. I urge a no vote on the Continuing Resolution.”
…Adding… CNN…
Veteran Democrats privately believed Chuck Schumer’s decision on the shutdown was inevitable. Others were ready for the top Senate Democrat to lead them into their first big battle against President Donald Trump — and instead have been left fuming.
Schumer’s declaration Thursday night that he would vote for Republicans’ stopgap spending bill, backing down in the party’s first big leverage point in President Donald Trump’s second term has confirmed a dire political reality for his caucus: Democrats had no good options left to avert a government shutdown with just hours to go until the deadline.
“If we go into a shutdown, and I told my caucus this, there’s no off-ramp. The total off-ramp of a shutdown, how you stop a shutdown, is totally determined by the Republican House and Senate, and that is totally determined because they’ve shown complete blind obeisance [to] Trump, DOGE, etc. They could keep us in a shutdown for months and months and months,” Schumer told reporters Thursday night.
The Democratic leader’s decision privately disappointed many in his caucus, and stunned his House colleagues across the US Capitol — leaving the party deeply divided on the path ahead at a moment when their base is clamoring for a strong response against Trump and Elon Musk’s actions to radically reshape the federal government.
…Adding… Lt. Gov. Juliana Stratton…
“In less than 55 days, our nation has watched the reckless dissolution of America’s most basic foundations. Republican Congressmembers have chosen to ignore the needs of their constituents to appease Donald Trump and his toy soldier, Elon Musk. Democrats have an opportunity to start healing the divide that has ripped through our nation by bringing true public servants from both parties together to draft a budget that honors what our people have told us they want and need.
America’s brilliance is most visible in our moments of balance; Republicans are making a choice every day to silence what they know is right in their hearts for the sake of what they hope is right in the bank accounts of corporations.
Illinois is no stranger to the lasting effects of haphazard Republican experiments. We know what the proposed cuts will look like in action:
Students will fall behind and fail to meet standard benchmarks when their teachers are laid off; working parents will be forced to make up the gap in childcare; veterans will be turned away from doctors and stunned by prices at pharmacies; and families will continue to struggle to put food on the table. The people who will feel the most brutal effects of the GOP’s slash-and-burn approach are the same people who spend their days just trying to get by.
Democrats have a chance to stop this unconscionable submission to Donald Trump and Elon Musk’s impulses. It’s time to start using the leverage we have. I join Governor Pritzker and strongly urge a no vote on the Continuing Resolution.”
…Adding… US Sen. Tammy Duckworth…
“I refuse to vote for Republicans’ highly-partisan slush fund bill that grants Donald Trump and co-President Elon Musk permission to continue rigging our government and our economy against the middle class. After weeks of an unelected billionaire taking a chainsaw to programs and services that millions depend on, Republicans are ramming through a bill that would greenlight more of the same chaos—and further cut programs for middle-class Americans, seniors and Veterans in order to carve out tax cuts for billionaires. Hell no, I cannot support that.
“Americans deserve so much better. Before the clock runs out, it’s time for Republicans to come back to the negotiating table that they walked away from and strike a bipartisan deal to keep our government open, invest in families and protect our national security. If they don’t, then make no mistake: Republicans own whatever outcome tomorrow may bring.”
…Adding… The Chicago Federation of Labor, Equality Illinois, Illinois Coalition for Immigrant and Refugee Rights, Personal PAC, and Sierra Club Illinois…
“In just two months, Donald Trump and Elon Musk have ransacked the federal government, causing untold damage to Chicagoans and people across the country. Their extreme agenda has wrecked the economy, targeted immigrants, undermined workers’ rights and women’s rights, endangered our environment, attacked LGBTQ+ people, and subverted the foundation of our democracy.
“Not only does the Continuing Resolution further cut services, it gives Trump and Musk explicit approval to continue to loot our government and corrode shared values. The spending bill is just an extension of the DOGE effort to purge the federal government to pay for massive tax breaks to billionaires. On behalf of the communities we represent, we urge the U.S. Senators from Illinois and across the country to reject the spending bill and vote no on cloture while working to avoid a government shutdown. We also thank the Illinois delegation in the U.S. House of Representatives for their opposition.”
…Adding… Some discussion in comments about cloture. Duckworth is a ‘No’ on that as well…
Also, Rich checked and the governor is urging a ‘No’ vote on cloture, too.
* Rich went over this topic with subscribers earlier today, including this…
…Adding… The Washington Post…
The spending bill expected to pass the Senate on Friday could bolster President Donald Trump’s push to wrest power away from Congress, giving the administration even greater control over the budget as he seeks to shrink the federal government.
Trump and billionaire Elon Musk’s U.S. DOGE Service have aggressively pushed the legal limits of the president’s power over government spending, dismantling departments and eliminating hundreds, if not thousands, of federal functions without authorization by lawmakers. Although courts have blocked some of these moves, many congressional Democrats had hoped to use the deadline over government funding to force Republicans to reverse — or at least limit — the Trump administration’s unilateral cuts. […]
But the GOP-written spending bill, pushed through the House on a near party-line vote by Speaker Mike Johnson (R-Louisiana) earlier this week, could give Trump a freer hand to redirect funds as he sees fit, according to congressional Democrats and several nonpartisan budget experts. […]
Democrats had hoped to include language in the bill requiring Trump to spend all the money in the measure and potentially thwart the unilateral cuts Trump and Musk are pursuing to agencies like the Education Department and Social Security Administration. But because Johnson was able to persuade all but one House Republican to back the measure, the GOP didn’t need any Democratic votes — which meant Republicans didn’t need to negotiate over that language before sending the bill to the Senate.
…Adding… The American Federation of Government Employees…
…Adding… Durbin voted for cloture…
…Adding… Some major groups are pretty upset at Sen. Durbin right now…
The Chicago Federation of Labor, Equality Illinois, Illinois Coalition for Immigrant and Refugee Rights, Personal PAC, and Sierra Club Illinois released a joint statement regarding Congressional passage of the government funding bill on Friday:
“The Congressional Republicans’ spending package ensures Donald Trump and Elon Musk can continue unabated as they loot the government while lining the pockets of the ultra-wealthy. We are profoundly disappointed in Sen. Durbin’s decision to advance this irresponsible spending bill, for which millions of people in Chicago and across our country will pay the price in diminished services, lost jobs, higher prices, dirtier air and water, eroded civil liberties, and a weakened democracy. This puts all of the diverse constituencies we represent in danger. We thank the rest of the members of the Illinois Democratic Congressional delegation, who voted no and made a clear statement in opposition to the Trump/Musk agenda.
“There will be many more moments when we need Illinois Democrats to stand strong for our communities and our values. We hope we can count on our delegation to stand up and fight back.”
Emphasis added.
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* Politico…
The Agriculture Department has axed two programs that gave schools and food banks money to buy food from local farms and ranchers, halting more than $1 billion in federal spending.
Roughly $660 million that schools and child care facilities were counting on to purchase food from nearby farms through the Local Food for Schools Cooperative Agreement Program in 2025 has been canceled, according to the School Nutrition Association.
State officials were notified Friday of USDA’s decision to end the LFS program for this year. More than 40 states had signed agreements to participate in previous years, according to SNA and several state agencies.
The Local Food Purchase Assistance Cooperative Agreement Program, which supports food banks and other feeding organizations, has also been cut. USDA notified states that it was unfreezing funds for existing LFPA agreements but did not plan to carry out a second round of funding for fiscal year 2025.
In a statement, a USDA spokesperson confirmed that funding, previously announced last October, “is no longer available and those agreements will be terminated following 60-day notification.”
* The Hill…
Democratic governors are also objecting to the cuts, saying they will impact students and farmers alike.
“Cutting funds for these programs is a slap in the face to Illinois farmers and the communities they feed,” Gov. JB Pritzker said.
“The Trump Administration’s refusal to release grant funds doesn’t just hurt farmers in the program, it devastates our most vulnerable, food-insecure communities relying on meat, fresh produce and other nutritious donations.”
I asked and the governor’s office said the Illinois portion of this is roughly $27 million.
* The House Agriculture & Conservation Committee is having a hearing about this topic today in Room 115…
Investigating the negative impact of the USDA funding freeze, tariffs, and the delayed farm bill on Illinois Agriculture
…Adding… Illinois Department of Agriculture…
Illinois Department of Agriculture (IDOA) Director Jerry Costello II, along with key stakeholders representing farmers, research institutions, and food banks, appeared before the General Assembly’s House Agriculture & Conservation Committee hearing to discuss federal funding cuts and tariffs – which amount to taxes on working farmers.
Costello’s testimony in Springfield focused on several agreements between USDA and IDOA, including the Local Food Purchase Assistance Program (LFPA) and the Resilient Food Systems Infrastructure Program (RFSI). Illinois was the only state in the nation to prioritize socially disadvantaged farmers. These same farmers will lose over tens of millions of dollars in fair market value payments for crops and livestock they are currently raising as well as the ability to invest in infrastructure for growth and sustainability.
The purpose of the LFPA program is to “maintain and improve food and agricultural supply chain resiliency.” The cooperative agreements between USDA and states allow states “to procure and distribute local and regional foods and beverages that are healthy, nutritious … and meet the needs of the population.” The program was intended to serve “food banks and organizations that reach underserved communities” and would help “build and expand economic opportunity for local and underserved producers.”[1] The intent of the program is to target socially disadvantaged farmers.[2]
“LFPA was designed to support both ends of the food chain – farmers and those they feed. Cutting the funding leaves farmers on the hook for expenses they incurred believing they would be reimbursed and leaves our most vulnerable, food-insecure communities without meat, fresh produce and other nutritious donations they were promised,” said IDOA Director Jerry Costello II. “The federal government broke its promise, and the people of Illinois are paying the price.”
IDOA announced on January 17, 2025, an additional $14.7 million was awarded by the federal government for this program. The USDA recently announced the funds were terminated.
The purpose of the RFSI program is “to build resilience in the middle of the food supply chain, to provide more and better markets to small farms and food businesses. The RFSI program requires farmers to make upfront investments in input costs with the promise of grant dollars to reimburse them. Without those federal funds, the program is unable to operate.
The RFSI program would have provided $6.4 million in grant funds to build resilience in the middle of the food supply chain, supporting activities that happen after harvest and prior to retail such as processing, storing and transporting Illinois products. In recent surveys of Illinois farmers, infrastructure and equipment were identified as the greatest obstacle to creating local food systems.
“Governor Pritzker called the move ‘a slap in the face to Illinois farmers and the communities they feed’ and I couldn’t agree more,” Costello said. “These are federal funds that were passed by Congress, a coequal branch of government, signed into law, and promised to Illinois farmers. They have been cut with no explanation or timeline, and farmers are left to deal with the consequences.”
Other federal funding sources of concern are the USDA Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS) Regional Conservation Partnership Program (RCPP) which launched the successful Conservation Planner program creating a talent pipeline attracting a workforce to implement boots on the ground conservation measures; Specialty Crop Block Grants which funded research to increase the state’s competitiveness in the industry; the I-COVER program, a three-state initiative to encourage cover crop adoption and technology advances; and the agreement for state inspectors to ensure food safety at more than 190 meat and poultry processing plants in Illinois.
In addition to federal funding cuts, Costello explained to the committee the impact of Trump’s tariffs on Illinois farmers before testimony from industry groups and others.
Three countries – Canada, China and Mexico – account for 48% of all US agricultural exports, $91 billion of the total $191 billion exported annually.
Illinois is the third largest exporter of agricultural products in the nation. Illinois farmers export $2 billion in products to Canada; $2.9 billion to Mexico and $1.9 billion to China.
“These tariffs are an attack on Illinois farmers. Countries forced to pay them may simply find new trade partners beyond the U.S.,” Costello said. “Illinois farmers are then left to struggle with shrinking markets on top of rising costs and declining crop prices.”
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* [From Rich: I think the bar was set so super-low for Johnson that he cleared it. Also, local Chicago reporters who relentlessly hyped the mayor’s appearance may have failed to consider that Congress is chock full of people who almost solely exist to go viral on social media or appear on their particular factions’ cable news programs. The congresscritters proved to be far less formidable than the pre-hearing hype suggested. Johnson’s rehearsed answers clearly frustrated committee members hoping to knock him off script. And it helped that some of the other mayors, particularly Boston’s, did quite well.]
* Sun-Times political columnist Lynn Sweet…
What a good day for beleaguered Chicago Mayor Brandon Johnson. He was attacked by several Republicans for polling 6% in one survey, which is pretty lousy. Another Republican committee member tried to make Johnson look bad in the wake of the city’s inspector general report a few weeks ago that he did not properly report luxury gifts — not good, but later rectified.
Johnson had a good day because he avoided disaster while he defended Chicago’s “Welcoming City” Ordinance, in place since 1985. The law does not block federal Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents from doing their jobs. When proper and legal, Chicago does cooperate with federal authorities.
Johnson was calm, measured, soft-spoken and disciplined, with days of prep since landing in Washington Sunday. The city hired the D.C. law firm Debevoise & Plimpton, whose partners have expertise in prepping witnesses for high-stakes hearings.
For Johnson, absorbing a few insults about being unpopular and taking a punch about not disclosing gifts in this context was nothing.
* Fran Spielman and Mitchell Armentrout at the Sun-Times…
Under questioning from Pennsylvania Republican Scott Perry, Johnson was asked to define Chicago’s 40-year-old sanctuary city policy.
“You have welcomed 51,648 aliens to your sanctuary city. So I ask you: Sanctuary from what?” Perry said.
Johnson replied, “If you’re referring to the number of individuals that were bused by [Texas Gov. Greg] Abbott without any coordination — the 52,000 individuals that were seeking asylum — those individuals were bused to us.”
Johnson said he “passed a bus ordinance to work to coordinate with” Abbott, but “he refused to do that.”
“So, you don’t care about federal law enforcement policies. Only local policies,” Perry later said. Johnson stood his ground.
“We comply with all laws. What I do care about is this body — Washington — passing comprehensive immigration reform,” Chicago’s mayor replied.
* Tribune…
GOP Illinois Rep. Darin LaHood, not a member of the committee, joined at the end and launched into a detailed takedown of the mayor. “I’ve been amazed at how tone-deaf you have been and how oblivious you’ve been to the decline of Chicago,” LaHood said.
Johnson fired back by saying crime has gone down since he’s been mayor. Chicago ended 2024 with a 7% drop in shootings, per police data, though its gun violence epidemic still far outpaces that of the other cities represented Wednesday.
“I will not apologize for my investments in the people of Chicago,” Johnson told the congressman. “We have one of the most diverse economies, the top universities. As violence continues to go down and investments continue to go up, that is what’s most important.” […]
Multiple GOP members said the mayors deserve to be prosecuted for their sanctuary policies, picking up on the Trump Justice Department’s January memo ordering the investigation of state and local officials who “threaten to impede” the president’s immigration crackdown. Florida GOP Rep. Anna Paulina Luna declared: “Unfortunately, based on your responses, I’m all going to be criminally referring you to the Department of Justice for investigation.”
* WTTW…
Few of the questions from Republican members of the committee reflected an understanding of Chicago’s Welcoming City Ordinance, which does not require city officials to encourage immigrants to move to Chicago nor does it obligate officials to use taxpayer funds to care for immigrants in Chicago.
In addition, most of the migrants who made their way to Chicago after crossing the southern border, are not undocumented after requesting asylum and getting permission to remain in the United States while their cases are resolved.
Since Trump took office, many undocumented immigrants have returned to life in the city’s shadows, for fear of exposing themselves or their families to deportation, immigrant advocates said.
* Crain’s…
“These policies only create sanctuaries for criminals,” Rep. James Comer, a Kentucky Republican who is chairman of the committee, said in his opening statement. “Sanctuary policies violate federal immigration law by protecting criminal aliens at the expense of the American people.”
Comer said that in Chicago, “an illegal alien who was recently arrested for killing a 63-year-old man had previously been arrested in Chicago for trying to lure a child. (Immigration & Customs Enforcement) lodged a detainer against the criminal alien, but Chicago authorities released him back onto the street because of the city’s reckless sanctuary policy. And now an innocent man is dead because of Chicago’s refusal to follow the law.”
When Comer pressed Johnson on that case, the Chicago mayor said, “We do not harbor criminals.” The city routinely cooperates with federal authorities when they have a criminal warrant, he said.
“With a criminal warrant,” Johnson said, immigrant suspects “are subject to federal laws, and that includes deportation.”
* WBEZ…
But it was not a flawless performance. At one point, U.S. Rep. Byron Donalds, R-Fla., asked Johnson how much the city has spent to support migrants.
In his prep, Johnson was advised to give a percentage, instead of a raw number, to paint how small the amount is in the broader context. […]
But it might have left people wondering whether he knew his facts.
“If you don’t have a hard number, you’re not running your city well,” Donalds quipped.
…Adding… [From Rich: The Illinois House Republicans appear to acknowledge that the DC hearing could’ve gone better.] HRO press release…
Following the Congressional hearing on sanctuary city policies and Mayor Brandon Johnson’s embarrassing testimony, Illinoisans are left with more questions than answers on how taxpayer dollars are being used to support illegal immigrants. The Illinois House Republican Organization is calling on House Democrats to demand that Chicago Mayor Brandon Johnson testify before a legislative committee in Springfield after his evasive and inadequate responses before Congress.
* More…
* NYT | Brandon Johnson Counters Republican Attacks at ‘Sanctuary City’ Hearing: At times, especially when responding to friendly questions from Democrats, Mr. Johnson pushed back against Republicans’ characterizations of Chicago, which generally ranged from unflattering to dystopian. Mr. Johnson talked about Chicago’s business growth and its airport, and used the stage to call Chicago the best “freakin’ city in the world,” one of his favorite phrases.
* Block Club | Mayor Johnson Forcefully Defends Chicago’s Sanctuary Status During Congressional Hearing: Texas Rep. Brandon Gill, a far-right Republican married to the daughter of conservative activist Dinesh D’Souza, later got into an extended exchange with Johnson over issues with little or no relation to the city’s Welcoming City ordinance. That included ripping Johnson over the city’s so-called gift room, which was the subject of an Inspector General report published in late January that took aim at an informal agreement over how the mayor and his staff accept gifts on behalf of the city.
* Fox Chicago | Chicago Mayor Brandon Johnson testifies in front of House committee: Lori Lightfoot reacts: Former Chicago Mayor Lori Lightfoot criticized the hearings as a “sideshow.” Lightfoot, who lost reelection to Johnson in the mayoral primary in 2023, reportedly helped her successor prepare for the hearing. The trained attorney told Fox 32 that she approached it like she was preparing a witness.
* ABC Chicago | Chicago Mayor Brandon Johnson testifies in DC at sanctuary city hearing: “The advice I would have given him going in was certainly to stay focused, not to go off message, to stay on message, not to be baited,” political consultant Delmarie Cobb said.
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