Illinois Politics
Have you ever noticed the bike path along Columbus Road and Cannonball Road, running each side of Wismann Lane? Did you know it has a name? It is the Erin East Memorial Bike Path. Erin was a 13-year-old, seventh-grade student at Quincy Junior High School. The weather in November 1988 reached the high 60s. …
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CHICAGO — The jury that will determine the fate of former Illinois House Speaker Michael Madigan is nearly complete after three slow days of jury selection this week. But in addition to the 11 jurors who have already been chosen, one final jury member must survive challenges, plus six alternates — a larger number than…
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Illinois surpassed $2 billion in tax revenue last year from all types of gambling and the state lottery – a record bolstered by continued growth in video gambling, sports betting and the opening of several new casinos. But that growth comes at the expense of Illinois’ traditional riverboat casinos and the horse racing industry, which…
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SPRINGFIELD, Ill. — State Sen. Jil Tracy (R-Quincy) has been named a Champion of Free Enterprise by the Illinois Chamber of Commerce for her contributions to the defense of free enterprise and job opportunities for all Illinoisans. Tracy also received the chamber’s inaugural Bridge Builder award, which recognizes two lawmakers from each legislative chamber who…
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Last year, the Democratic Party of Illinois and Gov. JB Pritzker targeted local school board races to defeat candidates who wanted to ban books and/or were receiving support from right-wing political organizations. The governor ended up claiming victory in more than 70 percent of those campaigns. The push was unusual because the state’s Democratic Party,…
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SPRINGFIELD – Senate Republican Leader John Curran (R-Downers Grove) and Senate Republican Caucus Whip Jil Tracy (R-Quincy) filed an official resolution calling for an independent audit by the Illinois Auditor General into serious accusations of violence against children under the state’s care at Aunt Martha’s Integrated Care Center in Chicago, as well as what appears to…
Read Full Article SPRINGFIELD — Four Illinois state senators are calling on state and federal leaders to address concerns about recent federal data that shows thousands of non-citizens who have crossed into the United States are charged with serious crimes. State Sen. Jil Tracy (R-Quincy), State Sen. Chapin Rose (R-Mahomet), State Sen. Dave Syverson (R-Cherry Valley), and State Sen.…
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A judge on Wednesday denied former Illinois House Speaker Michael Madigan’s motion to dismiss some of the charges he faces before trial next week. Judge John Robert Blakey also denied a motion from Madigan’s co-defendant in the case, Michael McClain, for a separate trial. McClain, a former state lawmaker, lobbyist and longtime Madigan ally, had…
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Early voting began Thursday in Illinois, and Capitol News Illinois has launched an interactive election guide to help Illinoisans navigate the voting process. Illinois gives voters 40 days prior to Election Day to cast their ballot – in most jurisdictions. Beginning Thursday, most Illinoisans can vote at their local election authority’s office – in most…
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SPRINGFIELD —The State of Illinois African Descent-Citizens Reparations Commission (ADCRC) announces the third stop on its series of statewide public hearings it is hosting to discuss reparatory actions for Black Americans in Illinois who are descendants of American chattel slavery. The next public hearing will take place in Springfield at Southeast High School on Saturday, Oct.…
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SPRINGFIELD – In a case testing the limits of a state law designed to protect citizen participation in government, the Chicago Sun-Times is asking the Illinois Supreme Court to dismiss a defamation suit filed against it by a former state official. Mauro Glorioso, a former chair of the Illinois Property Tax Appeal Board who later…
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SPRINGFIELD – The Illinois Supreme Court last week vacated a lower court ruling and reinstated a statute that authorizes the state to revoke a person’s Firearm Owners Identification card once they’ve been charged with a felony, even if they haven’t yet been convicted. The case involved Aaron and Charles Davis, a father and son who were charged…
Read Full Article As I’ve been telling Statehouse types for a long while, lobbyists and legislators need to be paying very close attention to what’s happening in the corruption trials relating to and involving former House Speaker Michael Madigan. For example, lots of folks rely on lawyers to help guide them through the Springfield swamp. Then-AT&T Illinois President…
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EAST ST. LOUIS – A federal judge invoked images from the 1917 race riots in East St. Louis, Illinois, on Thursday at the end of a trial in a case challenging the constitutionality of the state’s ban on assault-style weapons and large-capacity magazines. Judge Steven McGlynn, who has presided over the trial, called attention to…
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CHICAGO – A federal judge on Thursday declared a mistrial after a jury deadlocked in their deliberations over whether former AT&T Illinois President Paul La Schiazza bribed longtime Illinois House Speaker Michael Madigan via a no-work contract for the speaker’s political ally. After nearly 15 hours of deliberation over three days, the jury’s foreperson told…
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EAST ST. LOUIS – An engineer who spent decades designing weapons for one of the world’s leading gun manufacturers testified Tuesday that the assault-style weapons now banned in Illinois are intended only for civilian use and cannot be easily converted into military-grade firearms. James Ronkainen, a former engineer for the Remington Firearms, said the AR-style…
Read Full Article CHICAGO – After years of pushing in Springfield, AT&T Illinois’ executive team was thrilled when the Illinois General Assembly in 2017 passed legislation that would get the company out from under expensive obligations to maintain its aging copper landline wires in Illinois. “Game over. We win,” AT&T Illinois President Paul La Schiazza wrote to a…
Read Full Article It’s been an open secret for weeks that at least some members of Chicago Mayor Brandon Johnson’s Intergovernmental Affairs staff would be leaving after the Democratic National Convention, including its director, Sydney Holman. That happened last week. Holman quit and two others were forced out of the IGA office, which liaisons with both the city…
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SPRINGFIELD – One year after Illinois became the first state in the nation to eliminate the use of cash bail, the impact on the state’s criminal justice system appears to have been far less dramatic than people on either side of the debate had predicted. That, at least, is the early indication from an analysis…
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Illinois is one of just 12 states that still has a state estate tax. Thirty-eight other states do not have a state estate tax. To keep Illinois competitive, we need to eliminate this tax. The estate tax is imposed on a decedent’s estate before distribution to heirs. The amount of the tax is calculated after…
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CHICAGO – Jury selection began Tuesday in the trial of former AT&T Illinois president Paul La Schiazza, who federal prosecutors allege bribed once-powerful Illinois House Speaker Michael Madigan in exchange for favorable legislation in Springfield. It’s the last in a series of related trials that have played out in Chicago’s Dirksen Federal Courthouse over the…
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Growing unrest over the policies coming out of Cook County is spurring talk among downstate counties of breaking free and forming a new state. Illinois Separation revealed that seven counties will vote on separating from Cook County and forming a new state. Spokesman Eric Ivers, a member of the Jersey County Board, said he is confident that…
Read Full Article Several stories and columns appeared in the national news media shortly before and during the recent Democratic National Convention about Vice President Kamala Harris’ emphasis on the concept of “freedom” in her speeches and messaging. Convention delegates in Chicago hoisted signs with the word “Freedom” on them all week. Oprah Winfrey even talked about freedom…
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An Illinois law intended to help people with mental illness avoid confrontations with police had been on the books for three years when Sonya Massey was shot by a Sangamon County Sheriff’s deputy. The Community Emergency Services and Supports Act, or CESSA, requires mental and behavioral health calls to 911 be handled by mental health…
Read Full Article November 12, 2024
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