Afternoon roundup
Monday, Mar 6, 2023 - Posted by Rich Miller
* Center Square…
An attorney for state Rep. Dan Caulkins, R-Decatur, says he’s confident a final judgment against Illinois’ new gun ban issued by a Macon County judge Friday is statewide pending an expected appeal from the state.
Gov. J.B. Pritzer enacted the ban on certain semi-automatic weapons and magazines over certain capacities on Jan. 10. Two weeks after the ban was in effect, lawsuits were filed in federal- and state-level courts.
Macon County Judge Rodney Forbes ruled the state’s gun ban and registry unconstitutional.
“The Court is bound to apply the appellate court’s holdings to plaintiffs’ identical equal protection claim in this case,” Forbes said.
From Attorney General Kwame Raoul’s office…
We believe it applies to named plaintiffs only.
* We talked about this very issue in January, but it’s not quite fixed yet. If you click your back button to start a brand new search, the search page won’t accept the text input and you get kicked to another page…
* Click here for the dashboard. Press release…
The Illinois Department of Transportation today announced the launch of a new webpage dedicated to keeping the public informed of the progress delivering Gov. Pritzker’s historic, bipartisan Rebuild Illinois capital program. The online dashboard offers up-to-date cumulative data on accomplishments for improving roads and bridges since the 2019 passage of Rebuild Illinois.
“Rebuild Illinois is delivering lasting, positive improvements to transportation and infrastructure throughout our state,” said Illinois Transportation Secretary Omer Osman. “Our new dashboard is a simple, effective way to share with you details on this transformational capital program in a convenient, transparent format that’s easy to understand.”
On the dashboard, the public can find information on number of projects awarded, miles and bridges improved and safety improvements completed, as well as the total amount of investment that has been made possible by Rebuild Illinois. The data can be looked up annually or by each quarter of each fiscal year, showing the impact of Rebuild Illinois on roads and bridges under IDOT’s jurisdiction as well as accomplishments on the local system overseen by counties, municipalities and townships.
The page will be updated on a quarterly basis, adding accomplishments as the year progresses.
* My story from last week…
No, Lori Lightfoot did not blame her loss on racism and gender bias
The story included a quick interview with the AP reporter whose work was being badly mischaracterized by some Rupert Murdoch news outlets to make a point that didn’t exist.
Today in another publication…
Every time I post something without explicitly mentioning it’s from that publication, I receive a chiding email. Yet, that company casually rips me off on the regular. Not cool.
* On to something more fun…
The Illinois State Museum (ISM) will celebrate the opening of its Growing Up X exhibition with a Gen-X Prom on Friday, March 10 from 7 p.m. to 11 p.m. at its flagship facility in Springfield.
The Illinois State Museum invites guests to break out the hairspray and their best ’80s or ’90s attire. Visit the museum after hours for Gen-X Prom, a reinvented version of this high school rite of passage, including all the traditions: great music, food, keepsake photos, and prizes for best ’80s and ’90s attire.
“Whether you were prom queen or spent prom night playing Dungeons and Dragons at home, whether you went to prom in 1966, 1986, or 2016, this event is for you!” said ISM Curator of History Erika Holst. “We hope you’ll buy tickets and join us for a truly rad night.”
Tickets are $40 for ISM members and $50 for non-members and include Gen X-inspired food, non-alcoholic drinks, and sick tunes spun by local DJs. Alcoholic-beverage packages and individual beverage tickets are available for pre-purchase online or at the door.
“Buying a ticket to prom is fun with a purpose – your purchase helps the Illinois State Museum continue to put on awesome exhibits and programs,” Holst said.
Gen-X Prom is an Illinois State Museum Society fundraiser. The Society, founded in 1952, is a non-profit that supports the Museum’s programs, exhibitions, and research projects.
For more information, visit bit.ly/ISMGenXProm or call 217-782-7388.
* Isabel’s afternoon roundup…
* Pantagraph | How Democrats can win more ‘Waffle House’ districts, from a congresswoman who did: “I think that Democrats, as a whole, we need to start winning more in Waffle House and Cracker Barrel districts,” Budzinski told me. “I mean, I’m really honored to get to represent this district, which is very classically Midwestern. It’s a big district, but it is connected by a lot of common interests, common challenges and, I think, also opportunities.”
* Shaw Local | Illinois senators announce additional $51 million for LIHEAP: U.S. Sens. Dick Durbin and Tammy Duckworth announced an additional $51 million in federal funding through the Low-Income Home Energy Assistance Program to help Illinoisans pay the rising cost of home heating bills.
* Axios | Millions in Illinois hit by end of enhanced SNAP benefits: Extra food assistance benefits put into place during the pandemic ended nationwide last week. The change cut monthly benefits to nearly 2 million Illinoisans — about 16% of the state — who received the aid known as the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP).
* Tribune Editorial | Carbon capture could be a boon for rural Illinois: In an ideal world, of course, emissions would stop altogether. Realistically, though, fossil fuels will be needed to produce electricity and industrial goods for decades to come. During that inevitably lengthy transition, something needs to be done to reduce their impact on the environment.
* Center Square | How the Average Wage for Interns in Illinois Compares to Other States: According to career search website Zippia, the average hourly wage for interns in Illinois stands at $15.99, the 25th lowest among the 50 states.
* Sun-Times | Near North Side condos aim to put home ownership in easier reach: The Seng, a building completed near North and Clybourn avenues, is being marketed to working families who find other starter homes beyond their budgets.
* WTTW | Childbirth is Deadlier for Black Families at Any Income, Study Finds: The nearly decade-long study from the National Bureau of Economic Research looked at births in California. The study found that babies born to the richest Black women were still more likely to die than babies born to the poorest White women.
* Pantagraph | Livingston County courthouse dispute spans more than a decade : Efforts to make Livingston County Law and Justice Center compliant with the Americans with Disabilities Act and other accessibility statutes span more than a decade. The issues stem from an alleged breach of contract between the county and the firm responsible for the design and construction of the new courthouse, 110 Main St. But after being stuck in litigation for years and hiring new architectural firms and contractors, the county could be weeks away from settling the matter.
* Tribune | Taxes, development among issues in Geneva City Council race in 4th Ward: The race for City Council in the 4th Ward in Geneva in the April 4 election is between incumbent Gabriel Kaven and challenger Martha Paschke.
* WaPo | ‘Slavery was wrong’ and 5 other things some educators won’t teach anymore: A study published by the Rand Corp. in January found that nearly one-quarter of a nationally representative sample of 8,000 English, math and science teachers reported revising their instructional materials to limit or eliminate discussions of race and gender. Educators most commonly blamed parents and families for the shift, according to the Rand study.
* Sun-Times | A Winnetka man spent decades trying to prove he owned a Renaissance masterpiece. Does AI back his claim?: Tony Ayers died last year, but his friends now say they have proof the artwork is a rare gem worth tens of millions of dollars — thanks to artificial intelligence.
* CBS Chicago | Celebrating Pulaski Day in Illinois: The Polish Museum of America is holding a virtual ceremony at 10 a.m. with guest speakers, live performances and a wreath-laying.
* NYT | The MAGA-fication of North Idaho College: G.O.P. activists set out to root out the “deep state” at home. An Idaho community college may never be the same.
* Sun-Times | White Sox working on ‘togetherness’ in 2023, Tim Anderson says: “For sure, we have to find that togetherness and this spring has been good,” Anderson said. “Being as one. We weren’t as one last year, and it showed in the way we played. We looked good on paper but didn’t look good on the field.”
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That toddlin’ town roundup
Monday, Mar 6, 2023 - Posted by Rich Miller
* This is a pretty good story in Crain’s, but it fails to mention the name of Paul Vallas, who was a principal Daley budget architect back in the day…
As Chicago’s second Daley dynasty ended in May 2011, the departing regime left a gift for the new one: a pension-debt problem that had been quietly snowballing for a decade before exploding into view in the run-up to the election.
With nearly a third of the City Council following departing Mayor Richard M. Daley out the door, a bewildered cohort of freshmen council members scrambled to understand the mess they had inherited.
* On to the Tribune…
Unofficial election results show Vallas and Johnson had obvious bases of support, with clear room for potential growth. Vallas was strongest in the conservative white bungalow belts along the Northwest and Southwest sides and found backers along the lakefront near downtown. But it was Lightfoot who won all the city’s Black wards, while U.S. Rep. Jesus “Chuy” García was successful in low-voting Latino wards and generated some white lakefront support. Johnson’s best showings were in progressive areas around the northern lakefront, though he also won some Black votes. […]
“I actually did well in every ward, and I don’t think Brandon won a single Black ward,” Vallas said Wednesday morning. “So I just want to point that out.”
That’s obviously why the Jesse White endorsement is so important for Vallas on many levels. Bernie Sanders-style lefties (and Sanders himself) generally don’t do well with older Black voters. Jesse White can help Vallas take full advantage of his position and fend off attacks that he’s a racist.
* But this is important as well…
Veteran political consultant Delmarie Cobb said she isn’t surprised by White’s endorsement. But while White is popular, she said, it also gives Johnson an opportunity to argue that the endorsement represents “the politics of old … that got us in this mess in the first place.”
Why does the city have such fiscal problems? You can trace it back to skipping pension payments during the Daley years. And Vallas was there, mapping the path.
Even so, Johnson’s defund the police comments are undoubtedly gonna be a powerful weapon against him. And after four years of instability and upheaval, some folks are definitely looking to the past for comfort, regardless of how hazy that looking glass might be.
* Then again, speaking of older folks…
* Sun-Times…
Retiring Ald. Roderick Sawyer (6th) chose Paul Vallas, becoming the first of seven mayoral challengers to choose sides in the April 4 runoff. […]
Although Johnson no longer talks about “defunding” the police, Sawyer said he is equally concerned about Johnson’s refusal to commit to filling the 1,700 police vacancies or fully funding the Chicago Police Department’s $1.94 billion budget.
In fact, Johnson wants to cut at least $150 million from the CPD budget by reducing the ratio of supervisors to rank-and-file officers and make the shortage of officers worse by promoting 200 detectives.
“When Johnson talked about moving up detectives, I didn’t see a real plan to replace those officers. I don’t want to take more officers off the street to do that,” Sawyer said.
Sawyer said he has no doubt Vallas will get the 20% to 25% percent of the Black vote he needs to win the runoff. His only concern is how ugly and racially divisive the race might get.
* Greg Hinz…
Johnson, in Selma, Ala., over the weekend for the Bloody Sunday march, reported the first contribution of what’s likely to be a flood of national union money: $568,500 from the American Federation of Teachers. SEIU is expected to write a big check, too.
Vallas is hoping to get help from building trades unions that were big Lightfoot backers. Johnson’s folks are hoping to keep them neutral, with no firm indication yet whether the Chicago Federation of Labor will join in.
And Vallas may also get a flood of big business dough from execs worried about Johnson’s tax-hike plans. The $100,000 he got from Citadel COO Gerald Beeson could be just a down payment of such cash.
Meanwhile, both sides are holding their fire in their TV ads so far, sticking to positive messages. That could change after Wednesday’s scheduled debate on Channel 5, which could be a very lively affair.
* When Charlie Kirk is saying nice things about you, does that tell the rest of us something?…
* Fox 32…
Activists rallied Sunday in front of Chicago mayoral candidate Paul Vallas’ headquarters to demand a controversial piece of history be returned to Grant Park.
They said Vallas recently promised the Joint Civic Committee of Italian Americans that he will put the Christopher Columbus statues back in Grant Park and Arrigo Park. Vallas has not made that statement publicly, and his campaign did not return FOX 32 Chicago’s requests for comment.
“The confusing thing is he’s saying it behind closed doors, he’s not saying it in public,” said activist Frank Coconate. “We want clarification. We don’t want to just go out there and support a guy that saying it behind closed doors because we’ve been let down in the past by [Mayor Lori] Lightfoot and other people.”
* Isabel’s Chicago roundup…
* Fox Chicago | Brandon Johnson receives endorsement from US Rep. Danny Davis: “[Johnson] is fair-minded, meaning that he will represent every part of the city of Chicago. He is well-prepared being a Chicago Public School teacher, which means that he is educated but he’s also a father,” Davis said.
* Crain’s | NYC mayor says Lightfoot’s loss is a ‘warning sign’ on ignoring crime issues: “Mayors, we are closest to the problems. I stated on the campaign trail and in the city — public safety is a prerequisite to prosperity, same as Chicago, like New York, and many of our big cities across America,” Adams said. “People want to be safe.”
* Block Club | Meet Jessie Fuentes, The First Woman And Youngest Alderperson To Lead The 26th Ward: Fuentes won the election to replace Ald. Roberto Maldonado, who held the seat 13 years. The 32-year-old community organizer said she’ll have more of a “grassroots” approach to leadership than her predecessor.
* Sun-Times | Indicted Ald. Carrie Austin gets head start on political retirement: Austin’s decision to retire from rather than fight the new ward map has made it easier for the Black Caucus to accommodate the loss of more than 85,000 African-American residents over the last decade.
* Block Club | Chicago’s Progressive Alderpeople Retain Seats, Look To Expand Influence On City Council — And Even Mayor’s Race: “We were already working toward that as a goal, albeit more slowly than I think was necessary or appropriate,” Martin said of the Department of Environment, which was disbanded in 2012. “But I think at the end of the day, we can’t afford not to do this.”
* Sun-Times | CTA adapting to keep electric buses running during Chicago winters: The CTA started experimenting with electric buses in 2014, and has developed a system it thinks will work as the transit authority moves to an all-electric fleet by 2040.
* Jack Modzelewski | Words of wisdom for Chicago’s next mayor from Harold Washington and 2 other predecessors: When the time comes for the next mayor to draft an inauguration speech, he can find humble inspiration in the inaugural remarks of three previous mayors — Joseph Medill, Anton Cermak and Harold Washington. All were elected in times of crisis or crucial junctures facing Chicago.
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NY Times out-pitchbots the pitchbot
Monday, Mar 6, 2023 - Posted by Rich Miller
* With this parody account, imitation is not a form of flattery…
* Which brings us to this NY Times piece…
Gov. J.B. Pritzker of Illinois sat comfortably in an office board room high above the Loop on Monday and halfheartedly batted away the notion that he was preparing a run for the White House.
The billionaire heir to the Hyatt Hotels fortune may be seen by some Democrats as the “in case of emergency break glass” candidate, one of the few prominent politicians who could stand up a White House run at a moment’s notice. Although President Biden has said he intends to mount a campaign, that has not eased Democrats’ obvious worry: the famously dilatory Hamlet on the Potomac might decide not to run for re-election at 81, and worry could turn to panic.
But while Mr. Pritzker declined to provide a yea or nay on whether he would run, he added that a last-minute swap of an understudy for Mr. Biden was “such an odd hypothetical if you ask me.”
They’re really working overtime to keep that thread alive. The “in case of emergency break glass” candidate? Who came up with that pitch?
* But this bit could’ve been written by the pitchbot author…
Late last month in the Lexington Elementary School gym in Maywood, a Chicago suburb, Mr. Pritzker unveiled his youth mental health initiative, then waited, sitting on a foldout metal chair, as each health policy expert, school official, state representative and state senator took their turn at the lectern. His security detail and black S.U.V. were at the ready behind the school, but he listened for over an hour with a wry smile on his face.
Patience, of course, is a virtue in politics, but don’t try to tell Mr. Pritzker there was a metaphor in his ability to wait out other Democrats.
Wry…
1. using or expressing dry, especially mocking, humor.
“a wry smile”
I watched that press conference. I didn’t come away with “wry” at all, but maybe some saw it otherwise.
Anyway, as far as anyone can tell, he’s gonna be one of several presidential surrogates. That’s pretty much it.
* As for Biden…
“He’s notoriously slow on campaign decisions,” said Andrew Feldman, a Democratic strategist who interned on Biden’s 2008 presidential campaign and worked as part of an advance staffer team during his vice presidency. “None of this should be a surprise.”
…Adding… From his Face the Nation appearance…
MARGARET BRENNAN: I have a lot to get to with you. But I want to get something out of the way. New York Times has a big feature on you calling you the Democrats’ SOS candidate, saying you’re keeping your options open for a presidential run in 2024. In case Biden doesn’t run, is that true?
GOV. PRITZKER: No, I’m supporting Joe Biden. He’s running for reelection, and he’s going to get re-elected. I’m just, you know, happy that people think of me in that way. That’s certainly very flattering, but I intend to serve out my term as Governor of Illinois. […]
MARGARET BRENNAN: So do you think he needs to make it official and say he’s running so that there isn’t more speculation or people considering other options?
GOV. PRITZKER: I don’t think there’s anybody that’s serious, that’s actually considering running against Joe Biden, because he’s done such a great job.
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* WBEZ…
The first Black woman hired to lead Northeastern Illinois University is on her way out from the campus on Chicago’s North Side — but not before directing serious accusations at two board members who pushed for her removal.
In an email obtained by WBEZ, NEIU President Gloria Gibson told a top state official that the university’s board discriminated against her “based on my race and gender.” Gibson also accused the two board members of trying to force her out in “retaliation” for her refusal to give scholarships to three ineligible students — including the wife of a board member.
Using her personal email account, Gibson leveled those charges in December against the then-chairman of the NEIU board, Jim Palos, and another board member at the time, Charles Serrano. In an email to Illinois Deputy Gov. Martin Torres, Gibson wrote that she had filed grievances against board members and that NEIU’s ethics officer advised her that none of the three students should get scholarships. […]
In January, the governor did not reappoint Palos to the university’s board at the end of his term. Contacted by WBEZ, Palos denied the charges that Gibson leveled in the letter, saying he and others pushed for her removal because they thought NEIU would benefit from new leadership. […]
Serrano declined to comment on the letter Gibson sent to the governor. But he told WBEZ he felt he had done nothing wrong by calling a university official on behalf of his wife, who wanted to enroll in a graduate class but was erroneously listed as an international student. He also defended trying to get scholarships for the charter school students.
* Crain’s…
Northeastern Illinois University was hardly in great shape before state budget cuts and the pandemic clobbered it. Now, it’s got a president in limbo and a board in upheaval after trustees moved to get rid of the president and the Pritzker administration began overhauling the board.
Trustees are expected to meet Monday for the first time since November to decide what’s next for a school that, having lost half of the 11,580 students it had a decade ago, is an extreme example of higher education’s fiscal challenges and a case study in how public universities are run. […]
Only 331 full-time students enrolled in fall 2021, and among recent full-time graduates, a mere 4.5% finished within four years. Fewer than 20% did within six years. Tuition doubled over the decade ended in 2016, just as public education in the state reeled under a two-year budget impasse between then-Gov. Bruce Rauner and the General Assembly, and Northeastern’s debt ratings plunged to junk status. […]
Relations began to sour when the faculty and some trustees felt [Gibson] wasn’t listening to their turnaround ideas, which included better connections with Chicago business and its job-training needs. The faculty grew frustrated with what it perceived as a lack of urgency to address the enrollment crisis and related budget shortfalls.
* Last month, faculty asked the Board of Trustees to pressure Gibson to resign. NEIU Independent…
Several faculty members voiced their concerns of mismanagement, incompetence and lack of transparency, regarding the looming deficit to the Board of Trustees. Dr. Olivia Perlow, the Department Chair Sociology, and Dr. Ashley L. Elrod, Assistant Professor of History, voiced their concerns and asked the Board of Trustees to consider pressuring President Gloria J. Gibson to resign immediately and appoint Dr. Wamucii Njogu as interim president.
At NEIU’s Town Hall Presentation on January, 24, 2023, Manish Kumar, Vice President of Finance and Administration confirmed that the university has a projected $11 million in deficit for the current fiscal year. The fiscal problem goes down to 10 years of mismanagement, declining enrollments of 50% less than pre-COVID-19 levels and reduced state appropriations. The university is considering a reorganization and restructuring plan to save $680,000. That is a saving of only 6.18% from the projected deficit. […]
Dr. Stacey Goguen, Associate Professor of Philosophy, said, “Thus, I ask you, the trustees of the university, to take action now. Let us remember, if her reorganization plan fails, she will not be here when it does. Instead, you will be left with the fallout from her bad decisions.”
Dr. Goguen confirmed a group of 160 faculty members have sent a letter to the Board of Trustees and Governor J.B. Pritzker demanded Dr. Njogu to be nominated as interim president of NEIU. Dr. Njogu already held that position in 2018 for two months, and Dr. Elrod stated Dr. Njogu is more in touch with the university’s students, processes and faculty.
* Last year from WGN…
“The leadership has failed us. We need help.”
Those are the words of Dr. Olivia Perlow, Sociology professor and Chair of the African American Studies Department at Northeastern Illinois University.
NEIU faculty and professors met with State Senator Ram Villivillam Tuesday afternoon to address grievances they have with the university’s president — Gloria J. Gibson — and their board of trustees over damaging cuts that have slashed departmental chairs and allegedly reinforced the school’s declining enrollment.
Dr. Olivia Perlow, who chairs two other departments on top of African American Studies, pointed toward the College of Arts and Sciences dropping from 17 to eight department chairs as a major reason why enrollment is dropping as well.
“At this very moment, we have 3,500 students going into the Spring,” Perlow said.
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* Dude appears to be more upset about the solid whupping he got last year than I realized…
Kane County Republican Party…
A financial disclosure filing from the Democratic Party of Illinois was just made public, and it confirms our worst predictions about Governor Pritzker’s involvement in our local school and library elections this April:
This $500,000.00 donation follows Prtizker’s commitment to infuse his radical ideology into our own schools and motivate Democratic “base” voters to vote in traditionally low-turnout municipal elections.
With over a dozen key school board races on the ballot across Kane County this year, we are certain that these funds will be used to prop up hyper-partisan school board candidates across Kane County who do not prioritize safety, academic excellence, and college preparedness.
* From the Face the Nation interview…
Q: I want to ask you about the issue set that Democrats are running on. Your office told us you’re very focused on school board races in Illinois to make sure extreme right wing candidates aren’t dominating them. I’m wondering how strong the Republican ground operation is on things like school boards is parents rights, really something you think Democrats need to be concerned about on the national scale?
Pritzker: Well, what Republicans are trying to do is, of course, ban books in libraries, they’re trying to keep our schools from teaching Black history. They make up things about CRT in schools that just don’t exist. And so they’ve got a lot of extreme right-wing candidates, frankly, on the crazy end of things that are running and we just want to make sure that people know who they are and know not to vote for them.
Q: I want to follow up on something you said right before we took that break. You said you want to make sure people know who they are and not to vote for them. And we’re talking about Republicans, you said trying to do things like ban teaching Black history, ban books and ban CRT. You talking about people in Illinois? What are you talking about? Where’s that happening?
Pritzker: Well, you asked me about school boards. [Crosstalk] We’ve got people running at the local level. [Crosstalk] But of course, the Republicans are carrying this as a national message. And honestly, it’s something that’s offensive to most Americans. This idea of banning Black history. It’s important for people to understand the history of slavery in the United States, our entire US History, warts at all.
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Today’s feel-good story
Monday, Mar 6, 2023 - Posted by Rich Miller
* Press release from last November…
Illinois State Treasurer Michael Frerichs urges people to assist with Operation Purple Heart, an unprecedented mission to return 11 Purple Heart medals to their rightful owners.
The military honors were submitted to the Illinois State Treasurer’s Office for safekeeping and return as part of the Unclaimed Property program, also known as I-Cash or missing money.
Military medals are among the most difficult items to return because neither the Armed Forces nor the federal government maintains a comprehensive list of awardees.
In an effort to find the rightful owners, the Illinois State Treasurer’s Office is releasing additional information that the owners or their relatives might recognize. A thorough vetting of inquiries will occur once an electronic claim is made at www. illinoistreasurer.gov/icash.
Misrepresenting oneself in an effort to recover unclaimed property is a crime, will not be tolerated, and the state treasurer’s office will seek prosecution to the fullest extent of the law, especially with regard to military honors.
Each of the 11 Purple Heart medals was inside a bank safe deposit box. Each bank determined the safe deposit box as abandoned because the owner(s) of the box had not touched it in several years. As a result, the contents of each safe deposit box were turned over to the Illinois State Treasurer’s Office.
In most cases, the conflict in which the Purple Heart was awarded, such as World War I, World War II, Korea, Vietnam or Desert Storm, is unclear or unknown. […]
Since 2015, the Illinois State Treasurer’s Office has successfully reunited seven Purple Hearts with their owners or heirs. It did so through an internal investigatory process, and the office is required by law to try to return unclaimed property no matter how long it takes. Private entities holding abandoned or misplaced property are not compelled to try to identify nor locate the owner.
From the list…
Kenneth Wiest, turned over to the treasurer’s office in October 2019. Wiest may have lived in O’Fallon in southern Illinois, about five miles from Scott Air Force Base.
* Weekend press conference…
Coverage…
“Army Specialist Wiest served his country, and it is our duty to honor this soldier no matter how many years have passed,” Frerichs said during a somber ceremony in Springfield with Mr. Wiest’s children.
Wiest was born in Kelly Township, Pennsylvania, on July 28, 1950. Wiest’s family moved to O’Fallon while he was a child. He graduated from Mascoutah High School in 1968, entered the Army, and was deployed to Vietnam.
Wiest died in O’Fallon on Sept. 4, 1998. He was 48.
“Dad was a good soldier, a loyal friend and dedicated father,” said Andrea Wiest Schone, the youngest of Wiest’s four children. “My brother and sisters are grateful to have these medals that honor his legacy.”
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* My weekly syndicated newspaper column…
Last month, I wrote a tongue-in-cheek headline for my blog: “Poll conducted for IEA finds about 10% of Illinoisans are wackos.”
The Normington-Petts and Next Generation Strategies poll of 1,000 Illinoisans conducted in January found that 11% strongly favor “the fighting, yelling, or other contention at school board meetings that has been happening around the country.”
Ten percent strongly opposed “teaching Illinois high school students about slavery in the United States and its impacts.” Another 14% strongly opposed “teaching Illinois high school students about racism and its impact in the United States.” And 11% strongly favored “banning books from Illinois school libraries.”
But we didn’t need a scientific survey to know that “wackos” are proliferating.
Last year, then-Rep. Deb Conroy (D-Villa Park) came under attack after false and ridiculous claims were made that she sponsored a bill to forcibly round people up and lock them in internment camps for refusing to take a vaccine.
The attack was patently absurd on its face, but it was fanned by some Republican legislators and even so-called “moderates” like Republican DuPage County Board chair candidate Greg Hart, who lost to Conroy last November.
The result was, I wrote last year, “profanity-laden, disgusting, misogynistic messages from hateful and violent-sounding people.” It got so bad that Conroy closed her district office for a time, and a man was eventually charged with two felonies for making threats against her.
Conroy stood firm, but the bill as introduced died on the vine and more than 21,000 electronic witness slips were filed in opposition.
Then, the other day, Rep. Katie Stuart (D-Edwardsville) announced she had canceled a constituent meet and greet over threats about her own bill.
House Bill 1286 merely sets state guidelines for commercial property owners who want to construct multiple-occupancy, all-gender restrooms. The Illinois Retail Merchants Association, the American Institute of Architects-Illinois, the Chicago Alliance Against Sexual Exploitation, the Illinois Public Health Association, Equality Illinois, Illinois NOW and large numbers of other reputable groups filed electronic witness slips in support.
But the same usual suspects fanned the flames against Stuart’s bill. Some current legislators, Stuart’s former Republican opponent, former Rep. Jeanne Ives, and groups like Awake Illinois and the Illinois Family Institute ginned up yet another social media explosion, warning people that Stuart wanted to mandate all-gender public restrooms everywhere.
The result was “phone calls, emails filled with vile language,” to Stuart, according to a House Democratic spokesperson. None of the communications referenced the people and groups spewing the misinformation, the spokesperson said.
“There’s no specific connection other than they’re all saying the same things essentially, all using the same language as these groups are, and they’re all taking the same misinterpretation.”
Stuart “has shared everything she has” with the Illinois State Police and other local law enforcement, the spokesperson said.
So far, the number of electronic witness slips generated against Stuart’s bill hasn’t come close to the massive numbers recorded on Conroy’s legislation. (Perhaps partially because last year was an election year, and groups had been organizing around vaccines in general for years.)
But the end result is essentially the same: A legislator was forced to temporarily back away from the public because a bunch of easily manipulated, perpetually angry “wackos” got all worked up over nothing — again.
The witness slips are an incredibly useful tool for activists because the groups can track their efforts’ real-time results online. Groups all across the political and issue spectrum try to encourage people to file witness slips on the General Assembly’s website in support of or opposition to bills to show supporters, donors, the other side and legislators they have public backing.
The slips are empowering. People feel seen. They believe they’re making a difference. But the slip wars also provide a positive feedback loop for dark conspiracy theories.
And since it’s pretty easy to post one’s position online, the witness slip web pages have become an extension of social media, for good and ill. There is no identity verification required, although users do have to fill out a “captcha” box to prove they’re not a robot.
There was a time when filling out a paper witness slip made you subject to forgery laws. Maybe it’s time now for responsible groups that are committed to public involvement to sit down with legislators and come up with a solution for this.
It won’t stop all the craziness, but at least the state doesn’t have to play a role.
Thoughts?
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Open thread
Monday, Mar 6, 2023 - Posted by Isabel Miller
* I hope you all had a relaxing weekend! What’s up?…
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Isabel’s morning briefing
Monday, Mar 6, 2023 - Posted by Isabel Miller
* Here you go…
* NYT | The Democrats’ SOS Candidate Keeps His Options Open: Although President Biden has said he intends to mount a campaign, that has not eased Democrats’ obvious worry: the famously dilatory Hamlet on the Potomac might decide not to run for re-election at 81, and worry could turn to panic. But while Mr. Pritzker declined to provide a yea or nay on whether he would run, he added that a last-minute swap of an understudy for Mr. Biden was “such an odd hypothetical if you ask me.”
* Sun-Times | Illinois leads nation in applications for student debt relief: The Supreme Court heard arguments in a case that could derail hopes of canceled student debt for 1.5 million Illinois residents.
* Tribune | When it comes to smog, Cook County is the worst neighbor in the country, EPA finds: Newly released data from the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency show air pollution from the city and 120 of its suburbs contributes more to smog violations in other states than any other county.
* Daily Herald | Taxes? Tolls? ‘Transit is the Answer’ plan brings bevy of questions: Imagine being able to jump from Metra to the CTA or Pace seamlessly. Imagine audible announcements instead of “ruhmmhmmm … delays …” And imagine “real-time” updates on your ride that are delivered in real time.
* Tribune | Nearly half of Chicago voters didn’t choose Brandon Johnson or Paul Vallas. Winning them over could be key in April: Bowen said the largely college-educated bloc of white liberals on the North Side will be listening to how candidates communicate on a variety of issues beyond violence, such as transportation and homelessness.
* Clarence Page | Chicago politics still ‘ain’t beanbag,’ but try to keep it civil: Mayor Lori Lightfoot said in a pre-election interview with The New Yorker that, “I am a Black woman, let’s not forget. Certain folks frankly don’t support us in leadership roles.”
* Sun-Times | Dead Bridgeport banker routinely hid bad loans from federal regulators, trial shows: Washington Federal Bank for Savings failure trial lays bare how CEO John F. Gembara told employees to conceal delinquent loans for millions owed by ‘friends of John.’
* Tribune | Controversial Chicago police union President John Catanzara wins reelection: The union leader weathered a challenge from Detective Robert Bartlett, who argued in his campaign that Catanzara’s confrontational style hurt the union’s public image and effectiveness. Catanzara was elected to a four-year term.
* Fox 2 | Illinois State Treasurer returns Purple Heart to family of O’Fallon veteran: Army Specialist Kenneth Wiest received the Purple Heart for his service in the Vietnam War, which included injuries suffered taking enemy fire while inside a helicopter, Treasurer Michael Frerichs said. Wiest also received a pair of Gulf War service medals for his participation in Operation Desert Storm.
* Scientific American | The Forgotten History of the World’s First Trans Clinic: The Institute for Sexual Research in Berlin would be a century old if it hadn’t fallen victim to Nazi ideology
* AP | Fox libel defense at odds with top GOP presidential foes: In an email a few weeks after the 2020 election, Fox Corp. Chairman Rupert Murdoch described a news conference featuring Powell and former New York City Mayor Rudy Giuliani, another attorney who pushed the election lies: “Really crazy stuff. And damaging.”
* Tribune | 90 years ago, the father of Chicago’s political machine died after being struck by an assassin’s bullet intended for FDR: Cermak barely got to speak to Roosevelt that Feb. 15. Just as he reached him, a bystander named Lillian Cross saw a man in front of her take a gun out of his pocket. “I saw the man level the gun, it seemed to me, at Mr. Roosevelt’s head and he fired one shot,” Cross told the Tribune.
* Tribune | Rockford Youth Poet shines light on the health care system as a daughter of immigrants: “There’s a lot of challenges to overcome when it comes to language barriers,” Gamero told the Tribune. “And a lot of this is almost saddening to see just because there aren’t as many accommodations … as there should be.”
* Tribune | Mike Clevinger won’t face discipline from MLB, which closed its investigation of allegations vs. the Chicago White Sox pitcher: Mike Clevinger and the Chicago White Sox received notice from Major League Baseball on Sunday that it won’t impose discipline on the starting pitcher in connection with allegations of domestic violence and child abuse.
* Sun-Times | Walking Man revealed: Friends who knew him as ‘Mojo’ in the ’70s share photos, stories: Mammina remembers one personal moment with Kromelis. She had taken a sudden trip to Hawaii for two weeks but Kromelis didn’t know. “I think he was worried about me,” she said. Kromelis found her at a payphone “and we ended up kissing,” she said. “It was so funny because, I mean, I had a major crush on him. But we never talked about it after that,” she said. “I’m sorry today I wasn’t bolder, because I would’ve followed him anywhere.”
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Live coverage
Monday, Mar 6, 2023 - Posted by Isabel Miller
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