“Entrepreneurship works differently than political machines. Let’s look at that entrepreneurship piece because the government can’t build this. It’s got to be built by the private sector and the private sector will do it faster and more efficiently anyway.”
The documents, obtained through FOIA and reviewed by The Epoch Times, reveal that police were dispatched to the Inn of Chicago, a hotel now serving as a shelter for illegal immigrants, more than 250 times between January 2023 and February 2024.
Ald. Raymond Lopez argued the gas workers’ union had been unfairly excluded from conversations planning the ordinance over the last two years, eliciting claps from two dozen men seated together in the public gallery. “I think what we’ve seen time and time again is we’re trying to ‘stack the deck’ to move forward on things.”
“This involuntary layoff — coupled with positions that have not been filled in the last year — represents a significant reduction in WBEZ’s content unit. These losses are devastating to our listeners and members,” SAG-AFTRA, which represents WBEZ employees, said in an emailed statement.
Gov. JB Pritzker signed a new law that took effect Jan. 1, 2023, allowing all retired law enforcement officers to qualify for special permits. But the state agency tasked with issuing those permits has since refused to enforce the law, arguing it conflicts with federal guidelines.
When the Bring Chicago Home effort failed at the ballot box last month, and the more progressive Democratic candidate for Cook County State’s Attorney lost, some wondered if Chicago’s political winds were changing. “We won 21 out of 23 races, which is better than we’ve done in a long time,” Preckwinkle said.
In December 2020, around 145,000 pending FOID card requests were taking 121 days on average, double the 60 days cards are to be processed by law. Illinois State Police Director Brendan Kelly said this week that, “the FOID backlogs are virtually near zero, but there are always potential improvements to the system that need to be made.”
According to MarketWatch, the average cost of a full-coverage car insurance policy in Illinois is about $128 per month, or $1,541 per year, which is 23 percent cheaper than the national average of $2,008. Minimum liability coverage in Illinois is around $37 monthly, which is about 29 percent cheaper than the national average.
Americans have been slow to give up their gas-powered vehicles for EVs. EV manufacturers, including Tesla and Ford, have been slashing prices to pick up sales, and General Motors is talking about bringing back plug-in hybrids, possibly taking a step back from the company’s earlier commitment to shifting straight to pure EVs.
In the House Judiciary-Civil Committee Wednesday, one proposed measure would allow lawsuits to be filed against companies for alleged violations of health care privacy. Representing a group of technology companies, Tyler Diers opposed the measure. saying, “And it would be required for the purchase of everyday activities like purchasing ibuprofen, makeup, deodorant or even something like low-carb bread.”
Ann Whalen, Gov. JB Pritzker’s choice to oversee the transition, said much of the money the new agency would spend will be federal dollars that currently flow to other agencies. On multiple occasions, though, she declined to speculate about what the net cost would be to the state and whether the overall administrative costs – including new office spaces – would be more or less than what the state is spending now.
Every youth in care would have a hair care plan that accounts for their racial, cultural, gender, religious or other identities unless the child indicates that they don’t need a hair care plan. DCFS could also be required to develop training for caregivers to provide culturally-competent hair care by June 1, 2025.
A Venezuelan migrant allegedly told police he carried a Taser because there are “a lot of crazy people” in the Loop and he’d heard about stabbings outside the shelter where he lives. Separately, a Colombian man arrested days later allegedly told police he had a gun in his pocket to protect himself from Venezuelans.
The weekend’s violent incidents affecting young people are proof that “people are hurting,” Ald. Emma Mitts said. Parents need to be more involved in their kids’ lives and monitor their social activity and social media use to keep them safe, she said.
A coalition of tipped workers, service operators, and local businesses urged the General Assembly to reject a proposal that would eliminate the tip credit.
While murders and shootings have declined in each of the last three years, newly released crime data show burglaries, car thefts and carjackings have also declined this year after stubborn rises in recent years.
Together, the projects on Monroe and LaSalle streets would cost roughly $520 million and build 1,000 new apartment units downtown, with 319 of those units rented at affordable rates.
Illinois Attorney General Kwame Raoul said the measure prohibits the use of artificial intelligence to create child pornography that involves either real children or obscene imagery. The legislation also prohibits the non-consensual dissemination of certain AI-created sexual images.
The Chicago Department of Public Health confirmed a “small number” of tuberculosis cases were reported in a few different shelters in the city. The confirmed tuberculosis cases come as measles cases in Chicago surpass 50, with the majority of cases being reported in the Pilsen migrant shelter on Halsted Street.
When compared to the rest of the Midwest, Illinois licenses more professions and imposes a higher burden than other states – encouraging prospective professionals and state residents to pursue their careers elsewhere.
Experts with the Government Finance Officers Association recommend states keeping enough in reserve to run for 60 days. That is $8.8 billion for Gov. JB Pritzker’s proposed 2025 fiscal year budget. In other words, Illinois needs to quadruple its rainy-day fund to have adequate savings on hand.
“Does Ald. (Lamont) Robinson actually believe a street sign bearing Obama’s name is going to change the futures of Chicago’s Black kids, when Obama as president for eight years did not? And does he really believe changing a street sign is going to bring more tourists to Chicago than stopping the senseless crime that plagues the very area the street runs through? “
“The city has long uplifted a version of public safety that focuses on the purported needs of tourists while failing the Black and brown people who live here. The Uniform Crime Reporting Act and its proposed amendment are powerful tools for empowering Chicago residents to evaluate CPD effectiveness, ensure police accountability and build community trust.”
“The main problem faced by (Ald. Byron) Sigcho-Lopez is that he is now an elected official with significant responsibilities in a major American city and thus, in the worldview of his friends at Behind Enemy Lines, actually one of the ‘rulers.’ But he is still behaving like an activist throwing stones. At his own body.”
Jim Dey: “(Former House Speaker Mike) Madigan, who faces a variety of corruption charges, is looking to tax deadline day because that’s when the U.S. Supreme Court will hear oral arguments in an Indiana case that will determine the length and breadth of the federal bribery statute. Depending on how the court rules, the case against Madigan could dissipate.”
The Chicago Sun-Times printed an OpEd by Wirepoints, the Illinois Policy Institute, the Technology and Manufacturing Association and the Center for Pension Integrity – all members of the Taxpayer Pension Alliance – that warns Chicagoans are being burned by the proverbial “slow boil” that’s wiping out retirement security for city workers, burdening residents with increasingly punitive taxes and depressing opportunities for the city’s most vulnerable.
Few Illinoisans found reason to vote in the most recent primary elections. Overall, voter turnout was maybe just 20 percent statewide. Perhaps it was a lack of competitive elections. Or gerrymandering. Or people think their votes don’t matter. Maybe it was a little bit of each. Whatever it was, few seem to care. And that’s bad news for Illinois’ future.
Ted joined Dan and Amy to talk about the hundreds of new sexual abuse and misconduct cases reported by CPS in 2023, the massively lower gas prices Ted experienced traveling down to Florida, why so many productive people are leaving the state, and more.
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