-- Connecting the dots between our economy, government and business --
“My fear is we would be conducting worship service, and agents would come in and start deportations from there,” said Pastor Emma Lozano, with Lincoln United Methodist Church. For a long time now, it’s been U.S policy to bar immigration officials from making arrests inside schools, hospitals and churches.
In addition to the drop in opioid overdose deaths, the medical examiner’s office also reported declines in homicides and suicides in Cook County last year.
“The truth is that, like our mayor, many of these elected officials have deep ties to the CTU and rely on its financial and volunteer support to secure their elections. This loyalty to the CTU was prioritized over standing up for our community.”
Ald. Ray Lopez wants festivals protected by the same barriers the city deployed during the Democratic National Convention in August. “Time is not on our side when it comes to terrorists looking to exploit weaknesses within our planning,” Lopez said. “We must learn from these events and plan accordingly if we want these hundreds of neighborhood events to continue in the most American of American cities.”
“[It’s] 2025. I’m a male, I can now get a pap smear covered under insurance. Like, that doesn’t even make sense,” state Rep. Jed Davis said. “Why are those the issues occupying our bandwidth in Springfield instead of ‘how do we figure out the tax burden.’”
State Rep. Chris Miller, a farmer, said if Duckworth and Democrats are serious about helping farmers, they’d address inflation. “Because of the velocity of money that they’re shoving into the economy, it’s caused massive inflation. Inflation is killing the farmer more than whether you got 15 percent more ethanol or not,” Miller said. “Government spending is out of control. Right now the price of corn is $4.40. And I’ve farmed for almost 50 years, and I would have never thought that we would be able to sell corn for that price.”
“What we’re trying to figure out is how much of it will be bluster, and how much of it will be real,” said U.S. Rep. Jesus “Chuy” Garcia.
Homeowners may have escaped a property tax hike, but their pocketbooks will be hit in other ways, with new taxes and fees expected to generate $181 million this year. During the city’s budget season, City Council members warned that everyday Chicagoans were being nickel and dimed to death.
“Governor, the tide is turning. Progressive governance is on the defensive, and for good reason. The results are scanty, and the costs are high. Simply stated, the cost of government in Illinois is exorbitant.”
“That’s not to say the state won’t be affected by a president who is hostile toward clean energy policy. Several federal tax credits and grants that have helped accelerate progress in Illinois could be at risk under Trump, and a rollback of federal environmental regulations or enforcement could prolong pollution from coal ash, power plants and other sources.”
A new law in Illinois will require recyclable metal dealers to record the vehicle identification numbers (VIN) of a car which has had its catalytic converter removed. House Bill 4589 would also require that any numbers, bar codes, stickers or other unique markers of the catalytic convertor to be recorded.
Illinois lawmakers refuse to do anything about the state’s punitive property taxes, so Illinoisans continue to get crushed. A recent analysis by SmartAsset, a consumer-focused financial information company, finds that six of the top 20 cities with the highest real estate taxes in the nation are located in Illinois, including the top two spots.
A vote on amending the Illinois Constitution, similar to the fight in 2020 over the graduated income tax amendment, would likely attract more interest than an advisory referendum. A high-profile campaign could yield a result that contradicts those of the referendums. Still, supporters are working to get Springfield to take action and put a constitutional amendment on the ballot in 2026.
Retired Chicago Police First Deputy Supt. Anthony Riccio said Chicago does a lot of things right as it is. He pointed out the measures taken during Christkindlmarket in Daley Plaza this past holiday season.”I was looking over the security there, and they had concrete barriers all around it. That’s what you need,” he said. “You can’t just go, like New Orleans had squad cars kind of curb to curb. It’s easy to get around those.”
“Gov. JB Pritzker and state leaders should put guardrails in place to protect students and Chicago taxpayers from a hostile takeover of the school system by the CTU and (Mayor Brandon) Johnson, its former employee. … In 2025, Johnson, the Board of Education and the new CEO must ensure all students are reading and doing math at grade level. The school board should end the policy of social promotion.”
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