“There is particular national interest in Illinois from an equity perspective because it was the first to pass legalization through the legislative process rather than by referendum, which other states haven’t had,” said Shaleen Title, a former commissioner of the Massachusetts Cannabis Control Commission and a leading advocate for robust social equity programs.

“There should definitely be another way,” third grade teacher Asima Rahman said. “Everyone just needs to get on the same page to figure out how to effectively provide the vaccine to all the people in group 1B.”

“Consider the top five cities that people are leaving: New York, New York; Anaheim, California; San Diego, California; Chicago, Illinois; and Riverside, California. All five of those cities remain even to this day in stringent lockdowns. The top five destinations are: Phoenix, Arizona; Houston, Texas; Dallas, Texas; Atlanta, Georgia; and Denver, Colorado.”

“Public pensions represent a huge state and municipal problem because so many are seriously underfunded. That means they don’t have near enough money to meet their obligations…What’s the solution? People disagree on that. While it’s not clear what to do, it ought to be obvious what not to do — don’t increase benefits.”

Sen. Dick Durbin is the Senate’s No. 2 Democrat as party whip, and his new title will confer clout that benefits Illinois, political expert Kent Redfield said. “Because he will be chairing the committee that will be handling judicial nominations and dealing with immigration legislation and voting rights/election legislation, etc., other members will want to be on good terms with him.”

“It’s either a $500 million or a $1.4 billion dollar hit on a bunch of small businesses that have been devastated for the last 10 months because of the Governor’s actions,” Rep. Mike Marron, who represents parts of Champaign and Vermillion County, said. “It’s just unbelievable.”

As for a solution, Gov. J.B. Pritzker has echoed President Joe Biden’s plan for free child care via government programs. Scott Centorino, a senior fellow at the Foundation for Government Accountability, says cutting through the hurdles keeping qualified providers from offering their services is a better approach.