Illinois Review

IL Congressman Hultgren disagrees with US pulling out of UN Human Rights Council

WASHINGTON, D.C. – Congressmen Randy Hultgren (R-IL) and Jim McGovern (D-MA), Co-Chairs of the Tom Lantos Human Rights Commission, say they "regret"Tuesday’s decision by the Trump Administration to withdraw from the United Nations Human Rights Council.

The announcement to withdraw from the Council was made by UN Ambassador Nikki Haley and US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo. The ambassador said the council had become a “protector of human rights abusers and a cesspool of political bias" in overlooking human rights abuses in the Congo, Iran and Venezuela - which all participate in the Council. In contrast, over the years, the Council has condemned Israel nearly 70 times.

“I want to make it crystal clear that this step is not a retreat from our human rights commitments,” Haley said. “On the contrary. We take this step because our commitment does not allow us to remain a part of a hypocritical and self-serving organization that makes a mockery of human rights.”

A statement from Hultgren and McGovern's offices explains their opposition:

Grieving Illinois father to attend White House meeting Friday

Tessa Tranchant, 16 and Ali Kunhardt, 17, killed by drunk illegal in 2007

In the midst of one of the nation's most heated, emotional discussions over children being separated from their parents when being caught illegally attempting to enter the United States, the White House is calling a roundtable discussion Friday that will include Ray Tranchant of downstate Catlin, Illinois. 

Tranchant's 16-year-old daughter Tessa and her 17-year-old friend Ali were instantly killed eleven years ago while sitting at a Virginia Beach stop light. The drunk driver that hit the girls was in the US illegally and is now serving 40 years in prison for manslaughter.

The grieving father told Illinois Review that the White House discussion he will be attending is expected to include officials from Homeland Security and Immigration and Customs Enforcement. He expects the current controversy over separating children from parents entering the country illegally to be central. 

Tranchant had an opinion about the situation.

Thorner: Trump works to shrink America's debilitating trade deficit

By Nancy Thorner - 

As noted in an article by Kimberly Amadeo, updated May 10, 2018:  The United States has the world's largest trade deficit. It's been that way since 1975. The deficit in goods and services was $566 billion in 2017. Imports were $2.895 trillion dollars and exports were only $2.329 trillion.

The U.S. trade deficit in goods, without services, was $810 billion. The United States exported $1.551 trillion in goods. The biggest categories were commercial aircraft and automobiles.

Worth noting is that we have the largest deficits with our top five trading partner (Census provides trade data by country for goods only, not services): 

• China- $636 billion traded with a $375 billion deficit.
• Canada- $582 billion traded with an $18 billion deficit.
• Mexico - $557 billion traded with a $71 billion deficit.
• Japan - $204 billion traded with a $69 billion deficit.
• Germany - $171 billion traded with a $65 billion deficit.

Rhoads: When History Comes Alive - Bishop Sheen's remains to return to Illinois

By Mark Rhoads - 

As a student of Illinois history, I am sometimes surprised that many IR readers miss interesting stories from the past that impact on our present.

For example, Bishop Fulton J. Sheen became famous on TV in the 1950s as an auxiliary bishop in New York. But he was actually a native of Illinois. He was born on May 8, 1895 in El Paso, Illinois and was ordained a priest of the Diocese at St. Mary's Cathedral in Peoria in 1919.

One fun fact is that in high school Sheen played basketball against radio star Jim Jordan who played the role of Fibber McGee on network radio.

What Is Intersectionality?

Intersectionality is the newest fad in political activism. What is it? Who’s involved? And, what does it even mean? Nobody is better prepared to answer these questions than Daily Wire editor-in-chief and podcast sensation, Ben Shapiro.

Gov Rauner marches in Aurora's First Gay Pride Parade

AURORA - Republican Governor Bruce Rauner celebrated Father's Day by marching in west suburban Aurora's first Gay Pride Parade Sunday. (More HERE)

Just a few years ago, Aurora's downtown was the site of a rally for traditional marriage - with local church members encouraging their state lawmakers to support one-man/ one-woman marriage. 

What a difference five years make, eh? 

David E. Smith, executive director of Illinois Family Institute, helped organize that rally in 2013. Here's what he had to say today: 

Why am I not surprised to learn that Bruce Rauner marched in Aurora's Pride Parade over the weekend? For some strange reason, he believes that the path to a second term is to pander to potential voters on the left of the political spectrum. Instead of appealing to the 341k Republican voters who voted against him in the March primary election, Rauner apparently believes that he has to highlight his pro-LGBTQIA credentials to supplement his infamous pro-abortion advocacy. This leftward politicking only supports the growing number of voices accusing him of being an imposter.

Thorner: Gun Owners of America's Larry Pratt, Rep. Ives honored by Lake County conservative group

Gun Owners of America's Larry Pratt

By Nancy Thorner - 

The Republican Assembly of Lake County was host to its 14th Ronald Reagan Dinner held to honor our 40th President.  It is the longest-running Reagan dinner in the U.S.  This year's dinner was held on June 8, 2018, at the Dover Straits Restaurant in Mundelein, Illinois and featured special guest Jeanne Ives and featured speaker of the night, Larry Pratt of Gun Owners of America. 

The RALC is a grassroots organization made up of Ronald Reagan conservatives who believe in small government, lower taxes, free market capitalism, strong defense, and the right-to-life.  Read here the RALC Statement of Principles. The organization meets at 7:00 p.m. on the 3rd Thursday of the month at the Fremont Library, 1170 N. Midlothian Road, Mundelein, IL.  Membership is open to all share and promote the principles expressed in the National Republican Platform.

Judicial Watch Sues State Department for Obama-Era Records on Refugee Resettlement Site Locations

Syrian children re-settled in northern Illinois during Obama Administration

WASHINGTON -- Judicial Watch announced Monday that it filed a Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) lawsuit in the United States District Court for the District of Columbia for records on sites that were considered for the resettlement of refugees in the United States during the last two years of the Obama administration. (Judicial Watch vs. U.S. Department of State (No. 1:18-cv-01244))

Judicial Watch filed the lawsuit after the State Department failed to respond to a February 23, 2017, FOIA request seeking:

• All records reflecting the locations within the United States that were considered as possible sites for refugee resettlement under the U.S. Refugee Admissions Program (USRAP) in 2015 and 2016.
• All records reflecting the criteria used to determine suitability of locations as refugee resettlement sites in 2015 and 2016.
• All records reflecting the names of local organizations promoting any of the locations identified above for consideration as refugee resettlement sites.

Clark Co joins growing number of Illinois counties passing resolutions upholding Second Amendment

CLARK COUNTY - The number of Illinois counties declaring themselves "sanctuary gun counties" that support the Second Amendment and oppose firearm restrictions continues to grow - with Clark County adding its name to the list last week. 

"We did it!!!" Marshall Illinois resident Warren LeFever announced on his Facebook page June 15th, after Clark County voted to oppose the 100th General Assembly of Illinois' "gun control efforts."  LeFever, who introduced the resolution, thanked those who came out to support the effort, and county board member Jim Bolin, who took the lead in adopting LeFever's resolution. 

50% oppose sanctuary communities in new Rasmussen poll

A federal judge ruled earlier this month that the Trump administration cannot deny Philadelphia grant money because of its status as a sanctuary city that protects illegal immigrants from federal immigration authorities. Half of voters continue to oppose their community declaring itself a sanctuary community, with many who think such communities are less safe.

Chicago Mayor Rahm Emanuel claimed Chicago as a sanctuary community. Cook County jumped on the bandwagon. The whole state's law enforcement was forced to abide by the Trust Act, which the Democrats passed, and which Governor Rauner signed into law. 

These 5 Changes Would Fix the Nation’s Budget Woes

Federal debt held by the public is expected to reach 96 percent of GDP in 10 years. But if we adopted The Heritage Foundation’s
new budget plan, the federal budget would be balanced by 2024 and $11.9 trillion would be cut from federal deficits over the next 10 years. From Justin Bogie and Romina Boccia, here are some details on the proposed spending reforms:

Withdraw the Obama Administration’s ‘Dear Colleague’ Letter on School Discipline

School safety or racial quotas? Roger Clegg and Hans von Spakovsky write in support of withdrawing the Obama administration’s “Dear Colleague” letter on school discipline:

Threatening lawsuits if the administrators didn’t comply with the “guidance,” the 2014 letter coerced many school systems into adopting illegal racial quotas in their disciplinary decision-making. [...]

U.S. Supreme Court ruling protects political self-expression

Free speech at the polls! This week, the Supreme Court struck down a Minnesota law barring the wearing of political badges, buttons, or other political insignia in polling places. The Pacific Legal Foundation argued for the plaintiffs in Minnesota Voters Alliance v. Mansky. PLF’s Debra La Fetra explains the court’s reasoning:

An Apology to Illinois Review readers

To: Illinois Review Readers

From: Illinois Review editorial board

Since CNBC's Chris Matthews declared a couple of weeks ago that "Republicans are told [to] ‘read the Wall Street Journal, play golf, and talk about pro sports.' The men especially are all programmed a certain way. They don't have too many outliers, Republicans. They all behave basically the same, right?", we're breaking our regular format to share U.S. Open standings.

We at Illinois Review seem to owe our readers, who for the most part are conservatives, Republicans and energetic Trump supporters, an apology. We weren't as sensitive as we should have been to what you're really interested in ... the WSJ, golf and pro sports. We've mistakenly been focused all this time on serious conservative issues and Illinois' corrupt politics.

Thorner/Ingold: Inspector General report reveals scary times for Liberty

By Nancy Thorner & Ed Ingold - 

It’s all coming together with the release Thursday of the Inspector's General Report on the Clinton investigation, A Review of Various Actions by the Federal Bureau of Investigation and Department Justice in Advance of the 2016 Election.  Read it for yourself here. 

Among other things, it confirms that there is a political wing in the FBI which feels it has the right to act as kingmaker in national elections. From other reports, similar functions exist in the DOJ, the CIA and NSA. If this sounds familiar, look back at the old Soviet Union, which took political action to extreme in the KGB (internal security) and GRU (foreign intelligence), and to a great extent, their current versions under Putin. 

Sam McCann says he's establishing Illinois' Conservative Party with gubernatorial bid

NORMAL - State Senator Sam McCann of downstate Benton told WEEK.com he's establishing Illinois' first Conservative Party with his bid to run for governor. McCann says he expects to gather the needed number of petition signatures to be on the November 2018 ballot alongside the Republican Party's candidate Governor Bruce Rauner and Democrat challenger J.B. Pritzker. 

McCann, who was elected to the Illinois legislature as a Republican, says Governor Rauner bought up the IL GOP in a "fire sale." He went on to say while he doesn't approve of President Trump's tweeting or some of his comments, he approves of the direction Trump is taking the nation. 

Will conservatives in Illinois choose to support McCann over Rauner? 

Di Leo: The Magna Carta and the Path to Freedom

By John F. Di Leo - 

On June 15, 1215 A.D., King John of England affixed his seal to the Magna Carta, and the world was changed.

While England was not yet the dominant power on the world scene that it was to become, England was already a typical major monarchy, and its monarchy behaved as monarchies always had.  The king might not choose to be a tyrant – might not choose to exert his will upon his people in every way, all the time – but he reserved the theoretical right to do so.  It was just what “being a king” meant.

There was certainly a history of freedom in the world, even by that time.  Ancient Rome had been forced to publish the Twelve Tables over a millennium and a half earlier; the Ancient Athenians and some other city-states had practiced versions of republics and democracies in ancient time as well.  But if a nation had a king, well, that king generally considered his powers to be unlimited.

Until this day in 1215.

Illinois State Rep offers free conceal and carry training for 12 constituents

CRYSTAL LAKE  – If you're 21 years old, live in Illinois' 66th House District and want to be trained in conceal and carry, Rep. Allen Skillicorn (R-East Dundee) is offering cost-free classes for the first 12 to reach out to him.

"As the right to keep and bear arms is necessary to the security of a free state and shall not be infringed, Representative Allen Skillicorn a strong supporter of the Second Amendment is sponsoring FREE Conceal and Carry Training," his announcement said. "This training will be available to twelve (12) people in the 66th District on a first come, first service basis."

Illinois Home Value Armageddon

Crime, pensions and taxes are driving down the value of your home.

Americans think the news industry is “headed in the wrong direction”

Americans are fractured over the role of journalists, confused by terms like “op-ed,” and wary of the “watchdog” part of journalism, a new report suggests. Yet they’re also increasingly trustful of their favorite news outlets.

A report out Tuesday from the Media Insight Project, surveying 2,019 adult members of the American public and 1,127 American journalists, suggests a somewhat jumbled and confusing situation. It’s most enlightening when it drills down into how specific groups are thinking about the media in general and about their own favored news sources.

More HERE