Chicago Sun-Times: All posts by Tina Sfondeles

U.S. Supreme Court again refuses to block Illinois’ assault weapons ban

2023-12-14T17:06:50.483-06:00

Assault weapons and hand guns are seen for sale at Capitol City Arms Supply in Springfield.

Associated Press

The U.S. Supreme Court on Thursday refused to block Illinois’ year-old assault weapons ban.

Justice Amy Coney Barrett denied an emergency request for an injunction without comment. A similar request was denied by the court in May.

The high court had been asked to step in after the federal appeals court in Chicago last month upheld the law, which prohibits the possession, manufacture or sale of semiautomatic rifles and high-capacity magazines.

Federal appeals court upholds Illinois gun ban, finds no 2nd Amendment protection for assault weapons

A three-judge panel of the 7th Circuit Court of Appeals voted 2-1 in favor of the law, ruling that weapons covered by the legislation don’t have Second Amendment protection.

The appeals court found assault weapons and high-capacity magazines “are much more like machine guns and military-grade weaponry than they are like the many different types of firearms that are used for individual self-defense.”

In doing so, it found that Illinois’ controversial gun law survived the first part of a two-step test laid out in a crucial June 2022 ruling by the U.S. Supreme Court. That means the court’s analysis could stop without exploring the nation’s historical tradition as required by the second step. But the appeals court said challenges to the state’s law fare no better there.

Still, the appellate court said that it did not set out “to rule definitively on the constitutionality of the act” and that its opinion stems from lower courts’ rulings on requests for preliminary injunctions against Illinois’ law.

Among them was a challenge from Naperville gun store owner Robert Bevis. His bid to block the law was initially rejected by U.S. District Judge Virginia Kendall in February. Kendall found that because assault weapons “are particularly dangerous … their regulation accords with history and tradition.”

The U.S. Supreme Court has twice turned down requests for emergency injunctions, but it has not yet said whether it would rule on the merits of the appellate opinion.

Illinois’ law bans the sale of assault weapons and caps the purchase of magazines at 10 rounds for long guns and 15 for handguns. Anyone who already owns the banned guns is allowed to keep them but required to register them with the Illinois State Police by Jan. 1.

The law was enacted last January in response to the shooting at Highland Park’s 2022 Fourth of July parade that left seven people dead.

The Illinois Supreme Court narrowly upheld the law Aug. 11 in a lawsuit brought this year by a central Illinois legislator who argued the sweeping ban violates the state constitution.

Federal appeals court considering Illinois assault weapons ban questions ‘popularity contest’ for guns

Meanwhile, the federal appellate court heard arguments that led to last month’s decision. During oral arguments, the panel seemed to struggle at the time with the recent guidance laid out by the U.S. Supreme Court.

In that decision, known as New York State Rifle & Pistol Association v. Bruen, the Supreme Court found that gun regulations must be “consistent with the nation’s historical tradition of firearm regulation.”

Opponents of the Illinois law argued the decision forbade governments from banning weapons that are “in common use.” Millions of Americans own assault-style weapons, attorneys say.

The Brady Campaign to Prevent Gun Violence hailed Thursday’s decision, calling it “a victory for all communities who have been held hostage by the gun industry.”

“The absence of any noted dissent illustrates just how misguided the gun industry’s attempts to undermine the state’s efforts are,” it said. “We are grateful that while this case is being litigated, the assault weapons ban will stay in effect and continue to save countless lives in Illinois and surrounding states.”

Protect Illinois Communities, a nonprofit advocacy group formed to help support passage of the ban, applauded the Supreme Court’s decision, calling the law a “common sense gun safety measure to keep assault weapons off of our streets.”

“This law helps save lives, and every day it remains in place is a step toward keeping weapons of war out of our neighborhoods,” the group’s president, Becky Carroll, said in a statement.

Former U.S. Associate Attorney General John Schmidt, a board member for the Gun Violence Prevention Political Action Committee (G-PAC) said in a statement that the repeated efforts by gun rights groups to block the law is getting “nowhere.”

“No amount of flailing around by losing lawyers alters the basic fact that sale in Illinois of these destructive weapons continues to be blocked completely,” Schmidt said in a statement.

Responding to the decision, Gov. J.B. Pritzker said “all Illinoisans are safer.” He also urged Congress to enact a federal assault weapons ban.

“We must not become inured to mass shootings in our communities. All Americans deserve the right to worship, go to school, and celebrate without living in fear,” Pritzker said in a statement. “I’m thankful once again for the members of the General Assembly who supported this law and the brave survivors who fought to make it a reality. I continue to urge Congress to act on national gun legislation so Illinois is not a lone island in a sea of states with weak gun laws.”

At least eight other states and the District of Columbia have some sort of prohibition on semiautomatic weapons, and several cases challenging those laws are making their way through the federal courts, relying at least in part on the Supreme Court’s decision in 2022 that expanded gun rights.

Contributing: Associated Press

Pritzker stops Chicago migrant tent development over soil contamination

2023-12-05T19:07:20.296-06:00

Gov. J.B. Pritzker on Tuesday said the state is ending development of a proposed migrant camp at 38th and California in Brighton Park.

Brian Ernst/Sun-Times

Citing “serious environmental concerns,” Gov. J.B. Pritzker said Tuesday that the state is ending development of a proposed migrant camp in Brighton Park.

The decision follows the city of Chicago’s release of an environmental report Friday night that showed the location at 38th Street and California Avenue required cleanup of heavy metals and toxic chemicals.

The state halted construction Sunday.

“My administration is committed to keeping asylum seekers safe as we work to help them achieve independence,” Pritzker said in a statement. “We will not proceed with housing families on a site where serious environmental concerns are still present.”

Brighton Park migrant tent site is polluted with toxic heavy metals; city plans cleanup

The decision came after Mayor Brandon Johnson’s administration on Monday publicly said the site could be made safe for temporary residential use by removing the harmful metals and other substances.

The Illinois Environmental Protection Agency disagreed, saying under its guidelines, “insufficient sampling and remediation at the Brighton Park site does not meet state cleanup standards for residential use.”

The agency began reviewing the almost 800-page report prepared by a consultant to the city over the weekend. That report listed mercury, arsenic, lead and other contaminants on site.

“Given the significant time required to conduct additional sampling, to process and analyze results, and to implement corresponding further remediation, the state will work with the city to identify alternate shelter options,” the governor’s office said.

What defines Pritzker-Johnson relationship so far? Tension

The halt once again highlights some of the behind-the-scenes divisions between the mayor and governor’s offices as they deal with the migrant crisis.

Speaking to reporters after an event Tuesday, Johnson repeatedly said the state was aware an environmental impact study would be conducted and would likely reveal problems on the land.

“There was no indication throughout the entire process that a standard or a different methodology was preferable by the state of Illinois,” Johnson said of the state review.

As for a plan B, or an alternative site, Johnson criticized the state for not having opened a shelter on the former site of a CVS pharmacy in Little Village.

Timeline of Chicago’s migrant response

Timeline of Chicago’s response to incoming migrants

August 2022: Chicago begins to receive buses of migrants sent from Texas

Jan 12: Temporary shelter for asylum-seekers receives neighborhood backlash

Apr 3: FOP boss files complaint about the city housing migrants in police stations

May 9: Mayor Lori Lightfoot declares a state of emergency amid a new surge of arrivals

Sept 1: Hundreds of migrants stuck at overcrowded O’Hare Airport shelter

Sept 7: Winterized base camps suggested under Mayor Brandon Johnson’s new plan

Sept 20: Federal government announces it will expedite work visa process for Venezuelans seeking asylum

Nov 16: Chicago receives $160 million boost from the state to house and manage influx of migrants

Nov 17: Mayor Brandon Johnson limits shelter stays for migrants under new 60-day shelter rule

Nov 29: ‘Winterized tent’ construction begins in Brighton Park

Dec 1: Mercury, arsenic and other contaminants found at planned migrant tent location, according to environmental study

Dec 5: Gov. J.B. Pritzker stops construction of tents because of toxic chemicals found in soil

“We can’t wait six months before a decision is made in order for a site to be made available for a crisis,” Johnson said. “That’s happening today.”

The governor’s office said that site, which will provide 200 beds, would be open within the next two weeks.

The governor’s office has also requested alternate sites from the city, and the state is working with the Archdiocese of Chicago to explore other options.

Brighton Park migrant site construction halted pending environmental review

The decision to scrap the Brighton Park tent site comes as more than 600 migrants remain camped out at police stations and O’Hare airport.

And Ald. Ray Lopez (15th) has sent a letter to Johnson asking that the Gage Park shelter be wound down, meaning no new admittances and confirmation that the people there have gotten their 60-day notices according to city policy.

Johnson said he wanted “to make sure that we are removing people off of the floors of police stations,” adding, “the base camp was an option for us to be able to address this crisis.”

Ald. Andre Vasquez (40th), chair of the City Council’s Committee on Immigrant and Refugee Rights, welcomed the state’s decision.

“It makes sense to find the safest way possible because we don’t want situations where, years from now, we find out people are ill — especially when you’re talking about kids that are on that site,” Vasquez said. “It makes sense to do all our due diligence to treat people the way we would all want to be treated in that situation.”

Toxic past leads to concern about Brighton Park migrant tent site

Johnson pushed ahead with the plan for 38th and California despite weeks of protest from residents who objected to the site being used for a migrant camp.

Ald. Julia Ramirez (12th), who represents the area, ultimately opposed the project. Initially, she took the brunt of protesters’ anger.

Pritzker “made sure that we are stepping up to the responsibility of caring for the health of the immigrant families and residents by not continuing to use this lot as a shelter,” Ramirez said Tuesday. “We have to continue finding shelter that is safe for asylum seekers.”

The Brighton Park site wasn’t the city’s only potential tent location.

The other is the parking lot of a former Jewel-Osco in the Morgan Park neighborhood at 115th and Halsted.

Ald. Ronnie Mosley (21st) said city crews had begun preparing the site by clearing it, repairing and providing water service lines and putting up fences.

Mosley said he had not heard back from the city about an environmental assessment of that site.

Pritzker has committed $65 million to build the tent camp. The governor’s office said it couldn’t provide an estimate for money that may be owed to construction contractor GardaWorld due to the site change.

Separately, the city has been leasing the Brighton Park land from a private owner since late October, agreeing to pay $91,400 a month.

Contributing: Michael Loria

Retired judge files in Democratic race for Cook County state’s attorney

2023-12-04T20:15:49.557-06:00

Democrat Eileen O’Neill Burke carries in her petitions to run for Cook County state’s attorney Monday.

Anthony Vazquez/Sun-Times

The race to succeed Cook County State’s Attorney Kim Foxx is shaping up to be a battle between a candidate blessed by the Cook County Democratic Party and a retired judge who prides herself on being a fair jurist but “a terrible politician.”

And U.S. Rep. Danny Davis could face up to five Democratic challengers in the March 19 primary.

Eileen O’Neill Burke, a retired Illinois Appellate Court judge and a former Cook County assistant state’s attorney, filed more than 13,000 signatures on Monday afternoon to run as a Democrat for Cook County state’s attorney.

It was the last day candidates had to file petitions with the Illinois State Board of Elections and the Cook County Clerk’s Office.

Should the candidates survive potential petition challenges, Burke will face Clayton Harris III, a public policy professor and former political aide, who last week said he filed more than 27,000 petition signatures — more than five times the required amount. Harris received the support of the Cook County Democratic Party in August.

Clayton Harris III, a former prosecutor and political aide, files nominating petitions with the Cook County Clerk’s office last week.

Ashlee Rezin/Sun-Times file

Burke said she’s running to “restore our faith in the justice system because nobody thinks this is working.”

“I am a terrible politician. I will tell you that, first and foremost,” Burke said shortly before dropping off her petitions.

“I am a judge, and as judges we are evaluated on whether we are fair, whether we follow the law and whether we have good judgment. That’s exactly what we need in a prosecutor. And that’s exactly what people are looking for right now. They’re looking for someone who knows the system and knows how to fix it.”

Burke, whose campaign had $214,427.81 cash on hand, said she is not concerned about going up against Harris in fundraising. Harris has $174,057.96 on hand.

Democrat Eileen O’Neill Burke holds up her receipt for nomination after handing in petitions to run for Cook County state’s attorney on Monday.

Anthony Vazquez/Sun-Times

“I am getting a lot of support throughout the county, from people, everyday people, union members, rank-and-file members of those unions,” Burke said. “I’m getting support from people throughout the county. So no, I’m not worried about that at all.”

Former Ald. Bob Fioretti filed more than 8,000 signatures to run as a Republican candidate for state’s attorney about 30 minutes before Burke.

Fioretti, who served as 2nd Ward alderman from 2007 to 2015, previously launched unsuccessful bids for mayor, state Senate, Cook County state’s attorney and Cook County Board president.

Former Chicago Ald. Bob Fioretti carries in his petitions to run for the Republican nomination for Cook County state’s attorney on Monday.

Anthony Vazquez/Sun-Times

Fioretti called next year’s contest “a critical race determining which way the direction of the county is going to go.”

“I think it’s time we stop coddling the criminals, and we make sure the victims and the citizens of this city and county are protected,” Fioretti said. “And when I say that, not just in crime, but also in the corruption that’s happening.

Former Illinois House Republican Leader Jim Durkin last week announced he would not be running for state’s attorney.

In the 7th Congressional District, five candidates filed petitions to challenge Davis, 82, who faced Kina Collins last year and held onto his seat by 4,600 votes.

Rounding out the list of Davis’ opponents are City Treasurer Melissa Conyears-Ervin; Kouri Marshall, who served in Gov. J.B. Pritzker’s administration; Collins, a community organizer and activist making her third bid for the seat; Rhonda Sherrod, a lawyer and educator; and Nikhil Bhatia, a teacher.

Davis was first elected to his House seat in 1996.

U.S. Rep. Jonathan Jackson also filed his petitions on Monday in the 1st Congressional District and faces no Democratic challengers.

Seeing an open path to Congress, 17 candidates made it onto the primary ballot in 2022, after U.S. Rep. Bobby Rush announced his retirement — after 15 terms in the South Side and suburban congressional seat.

Toxic chemicals found at Chicago site to house migrants in tents, construction halted for review

2023-12-04T17:12:23.36-06:00

A Brighton Park migrant housing tent on Monday shows a roof now covering the shelter. But construction was halted Sunday at the site with tents intended to house newly arrived migrants pending an Illinois Environmental Protection Agency review of a nearly 800-page city consultant’s study that was released Friday night.

Ashlee Rezin/Sun-Times

The state has paused construction at a Southwest Side site intended to house newly arrived migrants amid an environmental report that found toxic contaminants and heavy metals in its soil.

Construction was halted Sunday pending an Illinois Environmental Protection Agency review of a nearly 800-page city consultant’s study that was released Friday night. The review will determine whether the project goes forward.

“We are continuing the construction pause tomorrow as the IEPA continues their review,” Jordan Abudayyeh, a spokesperson for Gov. J.B. Pritzker said. “We are hopeful we will have more information to share tomorrow.”

Earlier Monday, the governor’s office said the agency still had unanswered questions regarding the study.

Pritzker is committing $65 million for the shelter and directing the contractor on the site.

The Brighton Park migrant housing tents on Monday show roofs now covering the shelters. But construction was halted Sunday at the site intended to house newly arrived migrants pending an Illinois Environmental Protection Agency review of a nearly 800-page city consultant’s study that was released Friday night.

Ashlee Rezin/Sun-Times

Late Friday, City Hall released the report that found a number of heavy metals and toxic chemicals were present on the property.

Despite those findings, the city said the property will be “safe for temporary residential use” once the soil is cleaned up.

Jason Lee, a senior adviser to Mayor Brandon Johnson, said Monday the city’s testing and cleanup of the site was done in a thorough manner “to make sure that all risk was eliminated.”

“Ultimately, the state will decide to move forward on this site,” Lee said. “They may have other options if they were to choose not to pursue this site.”

The privately owned industrial land at 38th Street and California Avenue is being leased by the city to shelter as many as 2,000 migrants.

Suit to stop Brighton Park migrant tent site dismissed, for now

Johnson has been promoting the site amid a firestorm of protests from residents who say they don’t want the shelter built.

The land is zoned for heavy manufacturing, has a long history of industrial use and has never been approved for residential purposes.

Brighton Park migrant tent site is polluted with toxic heavy metals; city plans cleanup

Despite City Hall’s stated confidence in the safety of the property, the city’s own consultant warned that activity should be halted if more toxic materials are discovered.

“We cannot represent that the site contains no hazardous substances, toxic material, petroleum products or other latent conditions beyond those identified during this evaluation,” city consultant Terracon said in its report.

Around 650 migrants remained camped out at O’Hare Airport and police stations Monday, according to the city’s Office of Emergency Management and Communications.

Contributing: Fran Spielman

Toxic past leads to concern about Brighton Park migrant tent site

Best way to define Pritzker-Johnson relationship so far? Tension.

2023-12-04T05:30:00-06:00

Brandon Johnson was Chicago’s mayor-elect when he appeared with Illinois Gov. J.B. Pritzker in April, before a news conference to discuss details of the 2024 Democratic National Convention to be hosted by Chicago.

Anthony Vazquez/Sun-Times

Mayor Brandon Johnson campaigned on a promise to be the likable consensus-builder that Lori Lightfoot wasn’t.

He touted lessons learned as one of 10 siblings in a home with one bathroom, along with his previous work as a paid organizer for the Chicago Teachers Union. Listening, negotiating and collaborating is part of his DNA.

And yet, Johnson’s relationship with Gov. J.B. Pritzker is off to a rocky start not all that different from the tension between Lightfoot and Pritzker that worsened during the pandemic and became a hallmark of her single term.

Analysis bug

Analysis

Don’t be fooled by Johnson’s winning smile and soaring, preacher’s son rhetoric, nor by Pritzker’s make-nice statements from the podium.

There is real frustration behind the scenes on both sides, stemming from the migrant crisis, Chicago’s crime wave, a tug of war over leadership of the Democratic National Convention, and the parade of tax increases and costly mandates being imposed on Chicago’s business community.

It’s also at least tangentially tied to Pritzker’s presidential ambitions and his fears that Johnson’s executive inexperience, painfully slow decision making and progressive political tilt could be detrimental to Chicago’s long-term financial health and somehow undermine the governor’s political future.

As convention host, Chicago will be under a magnifying glass next summer — hardly a moment for the governor and mayor to be at odds.

Chicago’s recent arrivals bring Johnson-Pritzker divide into focus

The migrant crisis serves as the most glaring example of their political differences.

After enduring months of social media potshots from Johnson’s allies, Pritzker rode to the rescue with $160 million in state funding to build a winterized base camp on a contaminated abandoned industrial site at 38th Street and California Avenue in Brighton Park, to open a brick-and-mortar shelter at a shuttered CVS pharmacy in Little Village, and to create an intake center where arriving asylum-seekers can be processed.

Tent frames are erected at a Brighton Park site where a winterized camp is being built for migrants arriving in Chicago.

Brian Ernst/Sun-Times

But Johnson stole the governor’s thunder. During a November news conference held to celebrate City Council approval of Johnson’s $16.77 billion city budget, the mayor teased that state help was on the way. The city’s budget also turned up the heat on the state by budgeting only $150 million for the migrant crisis in 2024.

At his own news conference the next day to announce that help, the normally genial Pritzker uncharacteristically took aim at Johnson. Pritzker said he was taking over because temperatures were plummeting and the city hadn’t “moved fast enough” to set up the base camps the city had proposed in September as it raced to get migrants off the floors of Chicago police stations, O’Hare Airport and tiny tents outside those crowded facilities before winter.

Tent construction underway in Brighton Park, Johnson’s solution to house migrants

“When have you ever heard J.B. Pritzker do that? Not even in the worst of COVID did he criticize Lori Lightfoot like that. He doesn’t like to do that. He’s not comfortable being an aggressive guy,” said a veteran political observer, who asked to remain anonymous for fear of alienating both sides.

“It must have been the governor’s frustrations and not wanting to own the mayor’s failures.”

Johnson and his team were concerned the state’s announcement would look like they were rescuing the city. He was also told that would almost certainly be the media spin if he was not standing next to the governor to announce the plan. Even so, Johnson opted out of the news conference, with his team citing scheduling conflicts.

Gov. J.B. Pritzker (from left), Chicago Mayor Brandon Johnson and retired Navy Adm. Cecil D. Haney make their way to a wreath-laying ceremony during Chicago’s Veterans Day Commemoration Ceremony at Soldier Field this year.

Pat Nabong/Sun-Times

A surprising public scolding

Veteran political strategist Peter Giangreco, who advised former 4th Ward Ald. Sophia King’s unsuccessful mayoral campaign, said Pritzker’s complaint about the slow pace of Johnson’s migrant efforts raised eyebrows.

“That’s usually something that happens behind closed doors. This [tension] is out in the open,” Giangreco said.

Senior mayoral adviser Jason Lee refused to comment on rising tension between the mayor and the governor, though the mayor’s office on Monday released a statement: “We value our partnership with the State in ensuring our city’s success and will continue working collaboratively with the governor’s team to find equitable solutions to the challenges we face, and build a better, stronger, safer Chicago.”

The governor’s office previously had released a statement saying, “The Governor and Mayor have a good relationship and the Governor is committed to working together to lift up Chicago. The State of Illinois succeeds when our largest city succeeds.”

Johnson on his first 100 days: It’ll take time ‘to right this ship in its entirety’

Another City Hall observer faulted Johnson for his reluctance to call out the governor and demand more of him. Instead, Johnson played the good cop and relied on his progressive City Council allies to take the lead in criticizing the state.

“Brandon wants to be liked by everyone. He wants to be the anti-Lori. He thinks Lori was too combative, that she made too many enemies. And so he’s just going to be nice to everyone and hope that results in better relationships,” the veteran political operative said.

“While there’s some truth to that, politics is also not beanbag,” the political operative added. Johnson “really set himself up for failure with the migrant mission by refusing to be more of a leader on the mission. He should have done briefings months ago where he was standing up there, explaining to the city what the plan was, what the city was doing and saying, ‘Here are the gaps. Here’s where we need the state to fill in.’”

State legislators are miffed about social media potshots at the state lobbed by the Council’s most progressive members and by Chicago Teachers Union President Stacy Davis Gates. The criticism came even though the state has already committed $478 million — all without Johnson directly lobbying Springfield for help.

During Lightfoot’s tenure, the governor’s office frequently heard from lawmakers on her behalf. Former Mayor Rahm Emanuel lobbied lawmakers himself.

U.S. Sen. Dick Durbin (from left), Gov. J.B. Pritzker and Chicago Mayor Brandon Johnson attend a news conference in August where officials and business leaders called on the Biden administration to expand work authorizations for immigrants in hopes of addressing the labor shortage in Illinois and other states.

Pat Nabong/Sun-Times

Picking a fight on the convention

Fissures in the relationship between the mayor and governor also deepened when Johnson pushed his pick, Keiana Barrett, to lead the Democratic National Convention in Chicago. Sources said the newly elected mayor told Pritzker and U.S. Sen. Tammy Duckworth, D-Ill., that his choice needed to be interviewed and selected for the job of executive director of the convention’s host committee, and that no other candidates should be considered.

That came even after Johnson was given extra time and space to deal with the convention after taking office. The mayor’s hardline stance was viewed as being disrespectful to Duckworth’s interim pick, her former chief of staff, and to Pritzker, who, along with Duckworth, took a lead role in securing the convention.

At one point, a neutral candidate — recommended by convention chair Minyon Moore — was brought in who was not part of the Pritzker, Duckworth or Johnson circles. But the mayor still pushed for his choice.

Ultimately, Pritzker won the personnel battle, with a top aide, Christy George, picked as DNC host committee executive director. Barrett ended up with the consolation prize of senior adviser.

Christy George, top Pritzker aide, named executive director of Chicago DNC host committee

Johnson’s battle for convention stewardship was viewed as starting out on the wrong foot with a governor and a senator — both of whom stayed on the sidelines during the mayoral election — whose support could be critical to his legislative agenda. The relationships have suffered since then.

Yet another concern is the impact Johnson’s ambitious progressive agenda will have on Chicago’s business climate.

During the first six months of the new mayor’s administration, Johnson’s Council allies have phased out the subminimum wage for tipped employees in the restaurant industry and approved the nation’s most generous paid leave policy.

They also moved to put a binding referendum on the March primary ballot that would quadruple the city’s real estate transfer tax on property sales over $1.5 million and more than double the tax on sales over $1 million. There would be a nominal reduction in the tax on sales under $1 million. The estimated $100 million in annual revenue from those tax increases would create a dedicated funding source to combat homelessness.

Far apart on some issues

Johnson’s first budget included none of the $800 million in tax increases he championed during the campaign to help bankroll the $1 billion worth of “investments in people” that form the cornerstone of his anti-violence strategy.

Pritzker has opposed many of those ideas, including a proposed financial transaction tax, a revived employee head tax and legislative approval of the real estate transfer tax. That’s why Johnson was forced to go the referendum route on the homelessness fund, an initiative known as “Bring Chicago Home.”

Members of The Salvation Army Chicago give a homeless man some supplies, including blankets and hand warmers, on Lower Wacker Drive in 2021.

Tyler LaRiviere/Sun-Times

Giangreco said he has no idea how the tension between Johnson and Pritzker compares to the Lightfoot-Pritzker infighting.

Nor does he know how that evolving relationship will ultimately stack up with those between Emanuel and former Gov. Pat Quinn; ex-Mayor Richard M. Daley and former Gov. Jim Edgar; and, of course, the cold war between Emanuel and ex-Republican Gov. Bruce Rauner.

He only knows Chicago’s role as host of the Democratic convention in August “raised the stakes” dramatically.

“The governor has spent a lot of time, effort and money on national politics. … The folks in the Pritzker administration don’t want to be embarrassed by a city that doesn’t really seem to have a plan,” Giangreco said. “All [Johnson] seems to say is, ‘I need Washington or Springfield to fix this for me.’”

Mayor Brandon Johnson (left) and Gov. J.B. Pritzker appear alongside a parrot at the Shedd Aquarium to announce planned renovations.

Anthony Vazquez/Sun-Times

Amid city delays, state supplying additional $2M to feed migrants

2023-12-01T21:18:31.513-06:00

Cots for migrants are set up in the Chicago City Life Center Wednesday. The community center and church welcomed about 40 migrants who were previously living at police stations and airports.

Erin Hooley/AP Photos

Citing further “delays” in the city’s procurement process, Gov. J.B. Pritzker’s administration on Friday said it would chip in an additional $2 million to feed asylum-seekers in Chicago through the end of the year.

Another $2 million will be matched by the Chicago Food Depository, which has already been providing meals to migrants since June, in partnership with 15 minority-owned restaurants in Chicago.

It’s the latest in a back and forth between the city and state for resources to shelter, feed and resettle thousands of migrants sent to Chicago, mostly by Texas Gov. Greg Abbott, who has said his state cannot handle a ramp-up in border crossings.

What defines Pritzker-Johnson relationship so far? Tension

The Illinois Department of Human Services said the state stepped in as the city continues to search for additional food vendors. The department attributed the fund shortage to “delays in the procurement process.”

The city in June approached the state, asking for help in providing food for the shelters beginning in July and lasting about 10 weeks. City officials said then they would put out a requests for proposal (RFP) to find a contract that would provide better quality food at a better price. The state, however, has been funding the food since then, according to state officials.

The request for further funding came this week, and the state agreed to help until the end of the year with an understanding the city will assume the cost in January.

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The new funds will go toward food for migrants in shelters and police stations.

Mary May, a spokeswoman from Chicago’s Office of Emergency Management and Communications, said in a statement the deadline for an RFP for the food contract closed on Friday and was delayed because the city received more than 200 questions from applicants. May said the new contract is slated to begin Jan. 15.

It’s unclear who will be funding the food between Jan. 1 and Jan. 15, when the city said its contract would begin. The city did not comment on that gap.

The Greater Chicago Food Depository, with over $10 million from the state plus several million from private donors, has already been providing meals at 20 of the city’s 26 shelters, said Jim Conwell, a spokesman for the nonprofit.

The depository serves lunch and dinner for around 10,000 migrants daily, Conwell said. That includes the majority of the 13,000 migrants in shelters and all those at police stations.

The nonprofit cooks about 2,000 meals at its own facility on the Southwest Side and provides the remaining meals through local restaurants and catering businesses it funds.

The state will also be providing meals at the new shelter sites in Brighton Park and Little Village, which will house up to 2,200 people at full capacity, the department said.

The first tent frames for winterized tent camps first went up on Wednesday for the Brighton Park site. The city has said construction will take just days.

Mayor Brandon Johnson said Tuesday an environmental assessment of that site — which was found to be polluted with heavy metals — would be released “by the end of the week.”

City officials made the nearly 800-page report public shortly after 8 p.m. Friday.

“The environmental errors that have been ongoing in this city for generations now is something that I get to address, and I’m happy to do it,” Johnson told reporters earlier this week. “I consider this is further proof that I’m committed to environmental justice.”

The state will require the study to be reviewed by the Illinois Environmental Protection Agency.

Pritzker in mid-November announced the city would receive an additional $160 million for an intake center, a winterized tent shelter and other help in resettling migrants. That announcement came a day after Johnson passed his first budget, which included just $150 million for migrant arrivals.

Pritzker at the time said the funds were needed to help migrants in temporary shelters as dangerously cold temperatures make their way to the city.

Johnson has also imposed a 60-day shelter stay limit for migrants, following New York City’s lead. The mayor’s office said exceptions will be made for “medical crises or extreme cold weather.”

More than 1,000 migrants remain camped out at O’Hare International Airport and temporary shelters as of Friday, according to the city’s Office of Emergency Management and Communications.

No primary pass for six Congressional Democrats on first filing day

2023-11-27T17:53:47.866-06:00

Clayton Harris III, a former prosecutor and political aide, files nominating petitions Monday at the Cook County Clerk’s office to run for Cook County state’s attorney in the March 19 primary. Mariyana Spyropoulos (in red), a commissioner for the Metropolitan Water Reclamation District who is running for Cook County Circuit Court Clerk, stands at his right.

Ashlee Rezin/Sun-Times

Six Chicago area Democratic members of Congress could see primary challengers in the March 19 election.

And a downstate congressional battle of who admires former President Donald Trump the most has officially begun.

U.S. Reps. Danny Davis, Jan Schakowsky, Sean Casten, Bill Foster, Jesus “Chuy” Garcia and Mike Quigley all filed their required nominating petitions on Monday, and at least one Democratic challenger filed petitions in each of their races.

The six Democrats are among a slew of statewide and county candidates who filed petitions with the Illinois State Board of Elections and the Cook County clerk’s office on the first day of the week-long filing period.

Candidates who turned in their signatures first thing Monday morning earned a spot in a lottery to have their names appear at the top of the ballot, a spot that many believe offers a slight advantage in crowded races.

Beyond the bragging rights and a visual image of a heaping pile of petitions, candidates try to file many more signatures than required to withstand challenges by rival candidates hoping their campaigns will end before they even begin.

Clayton Harris III, a public policy professor and former political aide, filed more than 27,000 petition signatures — more than five times the required amount — in the race to succeed Cook County State’s Attorney Kim Foxx.

Harris received the powerful support of the Cook County Democratic Party in August, which will help bolster his campaign with money and foot soldiers. He filed his petitions alongside Cook County Board President Toni Preckwinkle, who is also chair of the party. Preckwinkle also filed petitions for herself for 4th Ward committeeperson.

Harris on Monday said he did not see support from Preckwinkle, as well as her support for Foxx, as a negative, telling reporters he is his own person.

“I think what it does is it gives me an opportunity to build my own path and to be my own candidate in person,” Harris said. “I think what people will see is that regardless of the support that I have, and I have a lot of support, incredible support, that I’m forging my own way.”

Eileen O’Neill Burke, a retired Illinois Appellate Court judge and a former Cook County assistant state’s attorney, planned to file her petitions to succeed Foxx on Dec. 4. A spokeswoman said Burke’s campaign has seen an “enthusiastic response from voters.” Former Ald. Bob Fioretti also said he plans to file petitions as a Republican candidate for state’s attorney.

There are several key congressional races to watch next year, including the 7th Congressional District, which Davis won last year by more than 4,600 votes. City Treasurer Melissa Conyears-Ervin and Kouri Marshall, who served in Gov. J.B. Pritzker’s administration, also filed to run in the 7th.

But Davis, 82, likely will see more challengers, including Kina Collins, who is expected to make her third bid for the seat; Kip Knutson and Nikhil Bhatia. Davis was first elected to his House seat in 1996.

In the 12th Congressional District in southern Illinois, incumbent Rep. Mike Bost is fending off a formidable challenge from former Republican gubernatorial nominee and downstate farmer Darren Bailey.

Both Bailey and Bost were endorsed by Trump during their respective races last year, with the former president hosting a rally in central Illinois in the waning days of the GOP primary to publicly back Bailey for governor. Two days later, Trump endorsed Bost in his 2022 congressional reelection race.

But Bailey calls Bost a “career politician.” He has also taken aim at President Joe Biden, recently putting out an image of the 81-year-old president blowing out candles and writing that he “can’t string a cohesive sentence together.”

Bost said he filed more than 5,000 signatures on Monday in Springfield. He has called himself the “proven, conservative leader.” And even though it came nearly a year ago, Bost keeps his Trump endorsement from 2022 at the top of his Facebook and X page as a featured image. Bailey also filed his nominating petitions Monday.

Back in Chicago, Quigley saw one Democratic challenger file petitions in the 5th Congressional District: Jerico Matias-Cruz of Chicago. In the 11th Congressional District, incumbent Foster faces Qasim Rashid, a Naperville human rights lawyer who filed petitions on Monday.

Ald. Raymond Lopez (15th) filed petitions to challenge Garcia in the 4th Congressional District, and Charles M. Hughes, of Chicago, filed petitions to challenge Casten in the 6th Congressional District. Michael Donahue of Park Ridge also filed petitions to challenge Schakowsky in the 9th Congressional District.

Foster, Schakowsky and Garcia saw no primary challengers in 2020. But next year’s election marks the second with redrawn districts, with some incumbents still fairly new to voters.

Former State Senate President James ‘Pate’ Philip dead at 93

2023-11-22T10:52:30.246-06:00

Former Illinois Senate President James “Pate” Philip, a Republican from northwest suburban Wood Dale, shown in April 2002 at the state Capitol, has died.

Associated Press

James “Pate” Philip, a once powerful Illinois Republican known for his ability to deliver votes as well as blunt remarks, died Tuesday at his home in Wood Dale. He was 93.

Mr. Philip was the longest-tenured Republican to serve as Illinois Senate president, in a career that began in 1966 in the Illinois House of Representatives. He also served more than 30 years as chairman of the DuPage County Republican Party — creating a suburban GOP machine that Republican presidents would count on to win.

Born May 26, 1930, in suburban Elmhurst, Mr. Philip worked as a salesman for Pepperidge Farm for nearly four decades. He was married to Nancy Philip and had four children. He died with his wife of 46 years by his side.

National Republicans courted Philip, well aware of his ability to deliver the vote.

“Former Presidents Reagan and Ford, U.S. Senate Minority Leader Bob Dole, and New Jersey Gov. Thomas Kean have paid homage to Philip on his home turf,” Sun-Times political columnist Steve Neal wrote in 1990. Neal wrote that Mr. Philip created “the most effective political unit in the state,” as Republican boss of DuPage County.

But Neal also noted that “few persons are neutral about Philip.”

“The late Mayor Harold Washington, with whom Philip clashed politically, once said that Philip was an example of ‘the Peter principle gone wild.’ Former Mayor Jane Byrne denounced him as ‘a Chicago hater’ and former Sun-Times columnist Mike Royko referred to him as a “polyester jerk,’ though Philip now favors wool suits,” Neal wrote.

Mr. Philip didn’t mince words when fighting for his legislative gains, and he was known for sometimes controversial comments. One of his most notable accomplishments, instituting reforms that minimized the power of corrupt school boards, was marked by his claim that disseminating more money to Chicago’s public schools would be “pouring money down a rat-hole.”

James “Pate” Philip, voting on Election Day.

Sun-Times file photo

Mr. Philip’s harsh tongue got him into trouble more than once. In the 1990s, he made remarks that resulted in state and city officials — and unions — to call for his resignation.

“I want people to understand when they look at his style, he came from a different era,” said former state Sen. Kirk Dillard, the chair of the Regional Transportation Authority Board of Directors and former chairman of the DuPage County Republican Party. “He had impeccable integrity. He was very patriotic as an ex-U.S. Marine. And most importantly, his word was his bond, whether you were a political ally or an opponent.”

James “Pate” Philip, shown in his office during his time as Republican minority leader of the Illinois Senate.

Sun-Times file photo

Jim Durkin, former Illinois House Republican leader, was first sworn into office by Mr. Philip in 1995 in his Woodridge office. Durkin described him as larger-than-life, a “caricature of himself,” and someone who never dropped names.

“I have to say this. He was a very intimidating man. You know, this big German truck driver. He was the blue-collar conservative Republican,” Durkin said. “He was such a strong supporter of Republican principles and was able to figure out ways to get things done. And he ran his chamber when he was president like a master.”

Patty Schuh, a veteran spokeswoman who worked for Mr. Philip from 1995 to 2003, said the former Senate president was most proud of delivering responsible state budgets “on time, maybe even a little early,” in addition to his work on suburban tax caps and education funding.

Schuh said he treated everyone in the Capitol equally, from the janitors to fellow senators. He was humble, she said, often describing meetings with legislative leaders and Gov. Jim Thompson as a gathering of “four lawyers and a bread salesman.”

“He was very proud of his work with Pepperidge Farm. It made him humble. He was well-grounded. He stayed connected with people that hunted and fished, and he just lived his philosophy,” Schuh said.

That life philosophy included a well-rounded life surrounded by family after he stepped out of the political spotlight, she said.

Mr. Philip is survived by his wife, stepsons Randy and Kevin, daughter Cindi and son Jase, as well as nine grandchildren and two step-grandsons.

“Pate truly had what we all strive for: a successful family life, a successful professional life, a successful public service career, including his time in the military,” Schuh said. “He truly had it all, and he worked hard to get it.”

The son of German parents, Mr. Philip served in the U.S. Marine Corps during the Korean War from 1951 to 1953. He put his patriotism on display during his years in the Illinois Senate, bringing in the Marine Corps flag for every inaugural ceremony he led.

Illinois State Sen. James “Pate” Philip (left) and Gov. James Thompson, at Fenton High School in Bensenville, look through a wheelbarrow of petitions signed by people who opposed an expansion of O’Hare Airport.

Sun-Times file photo

He described his gratitude for his mother leaving Germany as a child, just before World War II, in an oral history for the Abraham Lincoln Presidential Library and Museum.

“We are so lucky to be Americans, the greatest country in the history of the world. Is it perfect? No. But, if you can’t make it in America, you can’t make it,” Mr. Philip said. “I don’t care what your color is, what your religion, you are so lucky to be an American.”

James “Pate” Philip, shown in his office when he was Illinois Senate minority leader.

Sun-Times file photo

Bill to boost pensions for retired CPD cops will cost city $60M

2023-11-13T18:14:42.312-06:00

Chicago Fraternal Order of Police Lodge 7 President John Catanzara addresses police officers in a video after the passage of a bill to benefit retired police officers’ pensions.

Screenshot/FOP Chicago Lodge 7

Backed by the Fraternal Order of Police and Mayor Brandon Johnson, lawmakers plan to send Gov. J.B. Pritzker a measure ensuring all retired Chicago police officers receive the same cost-of-living bump in their pension checks.

Senior mayoral adviser Jason Lee pegged the 2024 cost of the police pension sweetener at roughly $60 million. It will be paid for by reducing the $306.6 million that Johnson has earmarked in his first budget to “pre-pay” Chicago’s pension debt, Lee said.

The pension bill — approved last week during the Legislature’s veto session — will grant 3% cost-of-living increases for all retired Chicago police officers, regardless of whether they were born before or after Jan. 1, 1966. Pritzker in 2021 signed into law a similar measure that boosted pensions for retired firefighters.

State Sen. Robert Martwick, the bill’s chief sponsor, has long maintained that Illinois’ two-tiered pension system created in 2011 violates the Social Security Administration’s so-called “Safe Harbor” provision, which requires that benefits for government employees who aren’t eligible for Social Security must at least match that same level of compensation.

“The pension bill was a necessary fix to stay ahead of Safe Harbor for that category of workers,” Lee told the Sun-Times. “We’ve already accounted for the cost in our budget for 2024. ... The money was already accounted for in our advanced pension payments.”

The Policemen’s Annuity and Benefit Fund of Chicago granted a 1.5% cost-of-living increase for those born after Jan. 1, 1966. But for many years, the city’s practice has been to move that date forward, the last time being in 2017. That meant that retired officers still received the 3% to put them on par with other police unions, but the city did not calculate that amount in its total pension obligations.

“The city would come in every five years and just by agreement, boot the state forward, which is totally irresponsible,” said Martwick. “The whole idea of a pension system is calculate out what the benefits are going to be, and figure out what you have to pay for it now.

“This is one of the reasons why the police fund is so horribly funded and the firefighters fund so horribly funded, is because they gave benefits, 3% simple, when they didn’t pay for it,” Martwick said.

Asked how the city plans to pay for the increase going forward, Lee acknowledged it is part of its pension obligation, and the administration is looking at strategies “to figure out more sustainable funding mechanisms for our entire pension system.”

“We’ve got four pension funds at the city level. All of them have structural issues that need to be addressed,” Lee said. “The city has not kept up with the funding levels that are appropriate, even without structural fixes. There’s work to do. But, we all will be working diligently to find those solutions.”

Passage of the police pension bill marks yet another victory for Fraternal Order of Police President John Catanzara, who spent four years at loggerheads with former Mayor Lori Lightfoot, but has forged a dramatically different path with Johnson.

In a video posted to social media after the bill’s passage, Catanzara thanked Johnson for his support of the measure, which he said “Lightfoot just would have nothing to do with.”

“Where we’re at today is leaps and bounds above where this Lodge [7 of the Fraternal Order of Police] has ever been,” Catanzara said.

The new mayor recently agreed to sweeten the last two years of a police contract signed by Lightfoot and extend the deal for two more years in exchange for operational changes that could help solve murders and reduce CTA crime.

Johnson also invited Catanzara to be part of a pension working group to search for long-term solutions to Chicago’s $35.4 billion pension crisis.

Lawmakers have yet to tackle an even thornier issue for police officers hired after Jan. 1, 2011, when Illinois created a two-tiered pension system that reduced benefits for newly hired workers as a way to chip away at the state’s mountain of pension debt.

It made the annual cost of living adjustment for the most junior Chicago police officers equal to the full annual increase in the consumer price index. That’s double the current cost of living adjustment, which is either half the consumer price index increase, or 3%, whichever is lower.

The Civic Federation has warned on its website that companion pension bills ending the two-tiered system for police officers and firefighters would “jeopardize the hard-won financial stability attained over the last several years” by the state and city and “could potentially result in the reversal of recent bond rating upgrades for both governments.”

Illinois lawmakers approve lifting moratorium on new nuclear reactors

2023-11-10T16:23:01.612-06:00

Steam escaping from Exelon Corp.’s nuclear plant in Byron, Illinois, March 2011. Illinois has six nuclear plants, with a total of 11 reactors, more than any other state in the U.S.

AP/Robert Ray

SPRINGFIELD — Lawmakers left Springfield on Thursday with a bipartisan agreement on a measure that will lift a 36-year moratorium on new nuclear power plants in the state — and Gov. J.B. Pritzker has vowed to sign it.

Proponents say smaller nuclear reactors will help get the state to its goal of being carbon-free by 2045 by providing an alternative to coal and natural gas. Opponents, however, say new nuclear power plants would take away resources from renewable energy, adding that there are more cost-friendly ways to reach the state’s clean energy goals.

The measure, which cleared the Illinois House 98-8, lifts the ban on nuclear reactors producing less than 300 megawatts beginning January 1, 2026. The Illinois Senate cleared the legislation on Wednesday. Rules establishing issues like environmental monitoring and emergency preparedness would also be due by that date, with the Illinois Environmental Protection Agency providing consultation.

Pritzker in August vetoed the lifting of the moratorium that was approved in a separate bill, saying it did not provide regulatory protections for the health and safety of Illinois residents. Pritzker also said there was an “overly broad definition of advanced reactor” that could open the door to large-scale nuclear power plants. Environmental groups like the Sierra Club and the Illinois Environmental Council had asked for the veto.

But a measure filed by State Sen. Sue Rezin, R-Morris, and State Rep. Lance Yednock, D-Ottawa, during the veto session seemed to address those concerns, adding in provisions that would task the Illinois Emergency Management Agency with oversight of newly installed reactors.

Instead of working to override the veto, the governor’s team negotiated on the new measure with senators. The legislation was supported by labor, and the Illinois Environmental Council took a neutral stance on the new measure.

“This new bill addresses my concerns from the spring session’s proposal and I’m looking forward to reviewing and signing it when it reaches my desk,” Pritzker said in a statement. “Illinois is already a leader in clean energy under the Climate and Equitable Jobs Act, and developing an on-ramp for responsible small nuclear reactor development is another step towards a cleaner, climate-friendly future for our state.”

The legislation also authorizes Pritzker to commission a study to research the state’s role in guiding the development of new nuclear technology.

“In order to achieve our clean energy goals, we may have to invest in more nuclear generated carbon-free energy,” Yednock said on the House floor. “The policy does not subtract from the growth of wind and solar energy.”

Yednock said the legislation was created to deal with the adequacy and reliability of energy in the state, which has seen multiple power plants shut down. That has forced the state to purchase “dirty generated energy for a higher price from out of state.”

“We need to be the leader in clean energy generation and small modular nuclear reactors are a potential part of that portfolio,” Yednock said.