Illinois Political Highlights

March 27, 2023

March 27, 2023

Daily News

• * AP | Pardon sought for Black Illinois man executed in 1908: The review board then could make a recommendation for pardon to Gov. J.B. Pritzker. If successful, the posthumous action would be the third such pardon in Illinois over the past decade and follow recent ones elsewhere in the U.S.

  * Sun-Times | Conservative groups that are behind book bans don’t speak for all moms: Moms for Liberty is one example of groups that are behind censorship efforts in many states. What they and other groups like them are claiming is their prerogative to decide what is right not just for their kids, but for your kids

  * WGLT | Illinois House members pass hundreds of bills onto the Senate: The House of Representatives raced to beat a deadline Friday to move substantive bills that originated in that chamber over to the Senate. The week featured long nights, short debates that at times got testy and the passage of hundreds of bills. Here are some of them…

  * Inside Higher Ed | The Role of Politics in Where Students Want to Go to College : The first thing about these studies is to gauge their significance. Most college students attend a college in their home state, and this has been the case for decades. And even states that send a lot of students out of state (say, California or Illinois) also import students. In fact California colleges (public and private) are 88.9 percent made up of Californians, and Illinois colleges have 88.2 percent of students from Illinois. Students who attend community colleges, the plurality of all students, stay close to home. And despite the extensive press coverage of the Ivies and the Universities of California, Michigan and Virginia, all which have tons of out-of-state applicants, they are not the norm.

  * NPR Illinois | Strikes loom on three Illinois college campuses: The latest action involves Governors State University in University Park. According to the union, 97% of members voting agreed to strike if a deal can’t be reached. A 10 day strike authorization has also been filed, meaning the earliest a walk out could occur is April 7.

  * Crain’s | Rivian relocating some engineers to Normal plant: Engineers hired during the worst of the COVID-19 pandemic were allowed to work remotely but are now focused on a reorganization that will see those engineers move to either the Illinois factory or the electric vehicle maker’s headquarters in Irvine, Calif.

  * WTTW | Johnson, Vallas Both Talk a Green Game. Here’s a Look at the Candidates’ Environmental Plans: Brandon Johnson and Paul Vallas have released environmental plans, both of which sound similar notes: preparing a workforce for green economy jobs; transitioning buildings to cleaner energy; supporting CTA’s plan to electrify its fleet by 2040; and the need to speed up the replacement of lead service lines.

  * Block Club | As Antisemitic Attacks Hit Record High, Chicago Jewish Groups Fight Back By Empowering Communities: Chicago saw 47 reported incidents of anti-Jewish hate last year, compared to 37 in 2021, according to the Anti-Defamation League.

  * Bloomberg | The world’s largest crypto exchange sued by the feds in Chicago: Binance Holdings Ltd., the world’s largest cryptocurrency exchange, and Chief Executive Officer Changpeng Zhao were sued by the US Commodity Futures Trading Commission for allegedly breaking derivatives rules.

  * Block Club | Rap Legend Twista’s Cannabis Company Wants To Open Growing Facility In Austin’s Former Moo & Oink Building: Several neighbors said they want a grocery store instead. Ald. Jason Ervin said the team behind the project needs to do more to gain community support.

  * Tribune | An ISU student created a media platform by and about people of color to fill a void in campus journalism: While reporting, Jackson learned that Black students would arrive in Bloomington-Normal with concerns about resources such as hairstylists and barbers, and other things needed to make them feel comfortable in their new surroundings. So Jackson found people on and off campus who provide these services and wrote about them for the Vidette. The community responded. Those Vidette stories led Jackson to create a stand-alone media outlet for the underrepresented, Onyx Connect.

  * Sun-Times | Self-repossessing cars? Ford’s patent application suggests the technology is in our future: Although Ford claims it has no intentions to carry through with the technology, the patent application shows how cars may one day lose their standing as the embodiment of American independence.

  * Barbara Flynn Currie and Juliana Stratton | This Women’s History Month, remember the rich history of women in Illinois politics: Twenty-three years ago, Loretta Durbin gathered a group of Illinois women attending the 2000 Democratic National Convention in Los Angeles with an idea. From her decades spent around politics and lawmakers in Springfield, Loretta saw a tremendous need for more Democratic women in elected offices. She knew the policy impact that women could have. So she pitched an idea: Illinois needed an organization that prepared Democratic, pro-choice women to run for elected office, serve as public policymakers and govern effectively in Illinois.