Illinois Review

McHenry County township consolidation bill likely to reach governor's desk

SPRINGFIELD - A bill sponsored by Republican State Rep. David McSweeney and Democrat Senator Terry Link that would provide new ways to eliminate townships in McHenry County passed another legislative hurdle last week.

“Illinois has more units of local government than any other state and multiple layers of government drive up the state's property taxes,” McSweeney said. “Our voters should have the opportunity to do something to scale back government and bring down costs." ‎

Governor Rauner visits Continental Tire world headquarters in Germany

HANOVER, Germany  — Monday, Gov. Bruce Rauner visited the world headquarters of Continental Tire in Hanover, Germany, to meet with company leaders and discuss support for their growing operation in Illinois. Continental is one of the largest automotive suppliers in the world and the fourth-largest tire manufacturer, and it is the state’s largest private sector employer south of Peoria.

“Continental Tire has built a significant manufacturing presence in Illinois, and they are a valued investor in our economy,” Gov. Rauner said. “They are making high quality products and providing high quality jobs across the state. We are proud to be a part of their world-class operation and Illinois stands ready to support their continued growth and success.”

Waffle House shooter caught; Lawmakers could attempt to close relative gun law exception

SPRINGFIELD -  As news of the shooter's arrest Monday hit the air waves, word that the Waffle House killings just outside Nashville Tennessee early Saturday morning could provoke new gun control legislation in Illinois' state capitol began to emerge. 

Even with Illinois' strict gun laws, it is apparently legal for a relative to hand over confiscated firearms to a person that has no FOID card - if that person is related.

The Nashville shooting could lead to an attempt to close of that gun ownership loophole.

Aurora Public Library censors display that offends Muslim patrons

From the ALA's public website 

AURORA, Illinois - Despite the American Library Association's strong anti-censorship stand, a poem on display at the Aurora Public library caused such an uproar over the weekend that the library took it down Sunday morning.

With the background of a Confederate flag, the poem title "Hijab means jihad," begins with "Every kid should be like my kid, and snatch a hijab." It went on to mock southerners with more anti-Muslim rhetoric.

The poem was satire -the use of humor, irony, exaggeration, or ridicule to expose and criticize people's stupidity or vices - the author George Miller says. He's the chair of Lewis University's Philosophy Department. 

"It wasn't meant to be incendiary," Miller told ABC7 News. 

Downstate Illinois counties stand for Second Amendment rights

EFFINGHAM COUNTY - While the state legislature threatens more gun control measures for Illinois, Effingham County's council has decided to stand in resistance, based on the U.S. Constitution.

“If the Government of the State of Illinois shall infringe upon the inalienable rights granted by the Second Amendment, Effingham County shall become a ‘sanctuary county’ for all firearms," a resolution passed 8 to 1 Monday night says. 

TPUSA Illinois Conference Crashed by ANTIFA Group

A Chicago-area Antifa group barged in on Turning Point USA's Midwest Regional Conference in Illinois on Saturday, creating a brief hullabaloo before security escorted them from the premises.

Once outside the convention center, the Antifa members continued to demonstrate until police officers showed up to usher them away, even lighting toilet paper and some of their own signs on fire, according to one attendee.

More HERE

Thorner/Ingold: David Hogg: a hero or a convenient spokesman for the Left?

By Nancy Thorner & Ed Ingold - 

David Hogg is behaving as a demagogue willing to demonize his opponents. In a personal feud with Laura Ingraham of Fox News, he published a list of 12 companies which constitute her main sponsors, urging his supporters to write. That much is well documented. However, the dark web of professional supporters is hard to identify, as the same internet companies which filter conservative thought protect the activists as well. Nevertheless, David Hogg has become a darling of the liberal media and leads a flash mob on social media. He has raised a virtual army against anyone who opposes him. Might they be described as Brown Shirts?

Nevertheless, Hogg isn’t the organizer but merely a convenient spokesman (shill) for a small group of professional organizers who are funded by liberal action committees. They have collected a large group of potential supporters, whom through social media, are then urged to write a list of targets in support of a cause or to gather in a protest. Their messaging is relentless in order to urge people act on their behalf, much like you get bombarded with requests once you have contributed to a political candidate or party.

Pritzker-endorsing Union writes $50k check to McCann just before announcing gov bid

JACKSONVILLE - State Senator Sam McCann (R-Jacksonville) got a $50,000 check from Local 150 Electrical Union just before he announced his bid to run for governor as an independent - something McCann threatened to do in 2014, but didn't come to fruition. 

Local 150's financial support for McCann raised eyebrows since the Local endorsed J.B. Pritzker in the Democrat primary. 

Di Leo: A Farewell to Carson’s, and the Assignment of Blame

 

By John F. Di Leo - 

For over a century, Chicagoans grew up with a signature memory: special days downtown, shopping at Marshall Field’s and Carson’s, the great rival retail giants down the block from each other on State Street. (shown here: Carson's longtime downtown landmark by Louis Sullivan, sold off years ago).

Smaller stores came and went, but Field’s and Carson’s were the giants, the dominant figures in Midwestern retail for generations.

Macy’s bought out the struggling Field’s chain over a decade ago and cremated the brand name while keeping the stores.  Carson, Pirie, Scott & Co. wasn’t so lucky; its current holding company, Bon-Ton, is giving up the ghost for good this spring.

Unable to find a buyer or investor to keep the chain alive, Bon-Ton is shuttering its 200 stores and terminating its many brands. Along with Carson’s, we’re likely saying goodbye to Bergner’s, Boston Store, Younkers, Elder-Beerman, and Herberger’s (though there’s still a chance that the liquidation might leave one or two of these names standing, God willing).

IL GOP releases list of those elected Wednesday night to the State Central Committee

CHICAGO - The Illinois Republican Party has just released the list of those elected Wednesday night to the State Central Committee. 

Changes took place in four of the 18 CDs: Bob Grogan in the 6th, Mark Hosty in the 7th, Char Foss-Eggeman in the 9th and Chapin Rose in the 15th. 

Word is the 15th CD race may be disputed, but overall, the SCC leans more conservative post-election.

McCann's nothing burger could now be appearing Thursday

SPRINGFIELD - The independent-minded State Senator Sam McCann (R-Jacksonville) didn't make an announcement Monday about what he plans to do in November. He didn't make it earlier as others heard he would do.

Now Springfield insiders are saying his news will be released Thursday. We know that the senator said he isn't running again as a Republican - and slapped Governor Rauner up the side of the head as he departed. But what - if anything - will he do next? 

Who's affecting change in your state capitol? This week in Illinois, it's Planned Parenthood

SPRINGFIELD - Who is able to take time away from work, board a bus or organize a carpool, head to the State Capitol and press lawmakers to pass legislation you and your colleagues want to see passed? 

This week, taxpayer-funded Planned Parenthood documented their day meeting with lawmakers - and other like-minded policy pushers, including gun control advocates and LGBT rights proponents.

Maybe Governor Rauner and the Republican establishment whose jobs and appointments depend on the governor don't want Illinois Republicans to care about, address or divide over social issues, but when will the Left step back from their social agenda? 

Preckwinkle elected new chairman of Cook County Democrats; Berrios ousted

CHICAGO - Having lost the Democrat Primary race for the powerful and lucrative Cook County Assessor office in March, Joe Berrios lost his second powerful position Wednesday afternoon. Cook County committeemen voted unanimously to hand over local party power to Cook County Board Chairman Toni Preckwinkle, reports Fox 32 political editor Mike Flannery:

Joe Berrios sat to Toni Preckwinkle's right when she accepted the party's support 

In the fall and winter leading up to the March 2018 primary, Pro Publica-Illinois exposed stunning facts about how unfair Cook County properties had been assessed under Berrios' watch, putting Berrios on the defensive and making him a Democrat difficult for party faithful to defend. 

17th CD State Central Committeewoman Jan Weber re-asserts her desire for re-election

SPRINGFIELD - Conservatives that expressed their views in the March primary by nearly stopping the renomination of incumbent Republican Governor Bruce Rauner are unusually engaged as the party officials meet Wednesday night. 

Letters endorsing and condemning candidates are appearing online and in emails as some defend the status quo while others call for a dramatic directional change.

Throughout the state Wednesday night, elected members of the IL GOP's county and township organizations will meet to decide who will represent them on the Republican Party's State Central Committee. They will also determine who the next state party chairman. 

In the 17th CD, incumbent State Central Committeewoman Jan Weber is being challenged by Patrick Harlan. Illinois Review featured Ms. Weber's letter requesting precinct committeemen re-elect her Wednesday night. 

Ms. Weber was not happy with IR's story, and made it clear on Facebook.

Thorner & O'Neil: Biased, Progressive Media is uprooting the nation's founding principles

By Nancy Thorner & Bonnie O'Neil - 

The mainstream media has become unapologetic in its blatantly biased reporting that favors the Leftist agenda and personalities within the Democrat Party.  Such news bias is especially evident at this nation's federal level.  Such a trend has been evident for many decades, but never more so than in the media's blatant preference for Hillary Clinton, in contrast to its relentless attacks against her opponent Donald Trump in the 2016 election.  Sadly, the war has continued non-stop during the first year of President Trump’s presidency.  

Cops Are the Good Guys

Are cops perfect? Of course not. And no one should expect them to be. But every single day, under the most difficult conditions, the police protect us from the bad guys. In other words, they do their job and they do it well. Former Milwaukee County Sheriff David Clarke makes it very clear: cops are not the problem.

Progressive ‘Federalism’ Makes a Mockery of the Founders’ Vision

New York Attorney General Eric Schneiderman (Brendan McDermid/Reuters)

Blue-state lawsuits are more about politics than the law. Lawsuits emanating from Democratic attorneys general against Trump administration policies “are unprecedented in scale and detrimental to constitutional government,” writes John York:

America's Sinking Public Pension Plans Are Now $1.4 Trillion Underwater

Public pensions are in bad shape. Eric Boehm reports:

According to a new report from the Pew Charitable Trusts, the states collectively carry more than $1.4 trillion in pension debt—and only four states have at least 90 percent of the assets necessary to meet their long-term obligations to retirees. The Pew paper, which is based on states' 2016 financial reports, shows that pension debt increased by about $295 billion since the previous year, making 2016 the 15th consecutive year in which state-level pension debt increased.

As the Rich Get Richer, the Poor Get Richer

The rich are getting richer, and the poor are... also getting richer. What's driving this wealth creation process? In this video, Daniel Hannan explains why it is capitalism — and capitalism alone — that has led to the unprecedented enrichment that is the central fact of Western life.

Are Shootings More Likely to Occur in Public Schools?

Are private schools less likely to experience a mass shooting? Corey DeAngelis surveys some suggestive data:

Hyewon Kim—a Cato Center for Educational Freedom Intern—compiled information on school shootings in the United States from 2000 to 2018 using the Tribune-Review database. The database is limited to legitimate school shootings; that is, shootings that occurred on or near a K-12 school campus while classes were in session or when students were present. The list also excluded suicide-only incidents.