December 16 Morning Edition

CHICAGO SUN-TIMES
— Conservative GOP support for pot legalization could tip scale – MARK BROWN (DIERSEN: If you promote pot, you are not conservative or Republican. You are Libertarian, Democrat, or Green. If you promote pot, you promote destruction.)
https://chicago.suntimes.com/chicago-politics/brown-conservative-gop-support-for-pot-legalization-could-tip-scale/

CHICAGO TRIBUNE
— Food stamp benefits disrupted for thousands as state launches new eligibility system – Greg Trotter
http://www.chicagotribune.com/business/ct-biz-snap-benefits-delayed-20171214-story.html
— There’s a difference between giving thanks and getting played – Austin Berg
http://www.chicagotribune.com/suburbs/daily-southtown/opinion/ct-sta-berg-column-st-1217-20171215-story.html

DAILY HERALD
— 22 months into talks, still no deal in West Chicago District 94 – Katlyn Smith
http://www.dailyherald.com/news/20171214/22-months-into-talks-still-no-deal-in-west-chicago-district-94

ABC7
— Cutting bureaucratic bloat in Ill. – BGA (DIERSEN: Are/were you a government employee? Ever since 1966, when I was 18 years old and started working part-time for the Park Forest Post Office, my critics/opponents, their operatives, and their dupes have always demonized me, denigrated me, and condemned me as being bureaucratic bloat.)
http://abc7chicago.com/politics/weekend-watch-cutting-bureaucratic-bloat-in-ill-/2785310/
— Some CTA workers get free parking in paid Blue Line lot – Jason Knowles and Ann Pistone (DIERSEN: In 1973, my 1962 Chevy BelAir was stolen while I was working at IRS’s office at 63rd and Halsted in Chicago.)
http://abc7chicago.com/travel/some-cta-workers-get-free-parking-in-paid-blue-line-lot/2786862/

HERALD & REVIEW
— As Chicago contemplates pot legalization, Decatur officials still skeptical – JAYLYN COOK (DIERSEN: If you promote pot, you promote destruction.)
http://herald-review.com/news/local/govt-and-politics/as-chicago-contemplates-pot-legalization-decatur-officials-still-skeptical/article_a2b4b6f6-eb83-56c6-95ad-ad49c5f0d80a.html

CHAMPAIGN/URBANA NEWS GAZETTE
— Duckworth: ‘I do have some real concerns’ with GOP tax plan – Tom Kacich (DIERSEN: What about the housing market crash that taking away itemized deductions will cause?)
http://www.news-gazette.com/news/local/2017-12-16/duckworth-i-do-have-some-real-concerns-with-gop-tax-plan.html

TIMES
— Windy City guides Illinois politics – David Giuliani
http://www.mywebtimes.com/news/local/column-windy-city-guides-illinois-politics/article_bc1448ad-dc2b-5930-8a02-27e86e0feb6f.html

AFSCME31
— Rauner appeals court ruling that employees owed step increases (DIERSEN: Of course, my critics/opponents, their operatives, and their dupes have always been beyond furious that I got step increases and COLAs while I worked for the federal government. They have also always been beyond furious a) that the Post Office hired me in 1966 and let me work there for almost 3 years, b) that IRS hired me in 1971 and let me work there for almost 9 years, c) that IRS promoted me in 1972, 1973, and 1974, d) that GAO hired me in 1980 and let me work there for almost 18 years, and e) that GAO promoted me in 1986.)
http://www.afscme31.org/news/rauner-appeals-court-ruling-that-employees-owed-step-increases

NEWSMAX
— CBO: Legalizing ‘Dreamers’ Would Cost US Nearly $26B Over 10 Years – Wanda Carruthers (DIERSEN: Of course, anti-Trumps want Trump supporters to pay that $26B.)
https://www.newsmax.com/newsfront/daca-dreamers-congressional-budget-office-economy/2017/12/15/id/832125/

TOWNHALL
— ‘Christ’ Purged from Christmas and the Left Rejoices – Douglas MacKinnon
https://townhall.com/columnists/douglasmackinnon/2017/12/16/christ-purged-from-christmas-and-the-left-rejoices-n2423048

CHRISTIAN SCIENCE MONITOR
— Trump’s tax plan: Why many middle-class Republicans support it UNDERSTANDING MOTIVATIONS While some Trump voters see the bill as a betrayal of his populist campaign promises, more than two-thirds of GOP voters say they support it – even if it may not help them personally. – Christa Case Bryant (DIERSEN: What about the housing market crash that taking away itemized deductions will cause?)
https://www.csmonitor.com/USA/Politics/2017/1215/Trump-s-tax-plan-Why-many-middle-class-Republicans-support-it

POLITICO
— Progressives hunt down one of the last conservative Democrats Chicago-based Congressman Dan Lipinski has never before been targeted with so much political firepower. – NATASHA KORECKI
https://www.politico.com/story/2017/12/16/dan-lipinski-conservative-democrat-election-299572
— Jeff Sessions Isn’t Giving up on Weed. He’s Doubling Down. Congressional dysfunction may do what the pot-hating attorney general hasn’t managed to do all year: Remove protections for the booming legal weed industry. – JAMES HIGDON (DIERSEN: Ever-increasingly, my critics/opponents, their operatives, and their dupes talk and/or act like a) they smoke pot, b) they want to smoke pot legally, c) they want to make lots of money selling pot legally, and/or d) they want government to take in lots of revenue from taxing pot. If you are any of the aforesaid, you are not conservative or Republican, you are Libertarian, Democrat, or Green.)
https://www.politico.com/magazine/story/2017/12/16/jeff-sessions-marijuana-216109

NEW YORK TIMES
— A Middle-Class Tax Cut? Americans Aren’t Buying It – Ben Casselman and Jim Tankersley
https://www.nytimes.com/2017/12/15/business/economy/tax-survey.html
— Charities’ Fear Under Tax Bill: Less Money to Help the Needy – Ann Carrns
https://www.nytimes.com/2017/12/15/business/charities-tax-bill.html
— Facebook Conceded It Might Make You Feel Bad. Here’s How to Interpret That. – Farhad Manjoo
https://www.nytimes.com/2017/12/15/technology/facebook-blog-feel-bad.html
— E.P.A. Contractor Has Spent Past Year Scouring the Agency for Anti-Trump Officials – Eric Lipton and Lisa Friedman (DIERSEN: My critics/opponents, their operatives, and their dupes have always promoted patronage. Because I have always been a Republican, were it not for federal civil service protections, a) the Post Office would NOT have hired me in 1966 or let me work there for almost 3 years, b) IRS would NOT have hired me in 1971 or let me work there for almost 9 years, c) IRS would NOT have promoted me in 1972, 1973, or 1974, d) GAO would NOT have hired me in 1980 or let me work there for almost 18 years, and e) GAO would NOT have promoted me in 1986.)
https://www.nytimes.com/2017/12/15/us/politics/epa-scott-pruitt-foia.html

WALL STREET JOURNAL
— Law School Is Hot Again as Politics Piques Interest The number of people applying to law school has risen 12%, in the first significant boost in years – Sara Randazzo
https://www.wsj.com/articles/law-school-is-hot-again-as-politics-piques-interest-1513333801
— Facebook Acknowledges Some Social-Media Use Is Harmful Rare admission follows criticism by former executives of Facebook’s imprint on the world – Deepa Seetharaman
https://www.wsj.com/articles/facebook-acknowledges-some-social-media-use-is-harmful-1513379765

USA TODAY
— HARDCOPY ARTICLE TITLE: Growing wealth gap will lead to retirement crisis – Peter Dunn
https://www.usatoday.com/story/money/personalfinance/2017/12/16/how-handle-growing-wealth-gap-crisis/921655001/

DEMOCRAT UNDERGROUND
— If Your Are A Federal Employee You Risk Being Purged If Not Loyal To Trump/GOP Policies. (DIERSEN: Democrats run the federal government. Those Democrats use Affirmative Action, Diversity, and Inclusion to not hire, to not retain, to not promote, and to get rid of Republicans, and especially Republicans who are White, male, older, and/or non-veteran.)
https://upload.democraticunderground.com/10029989944

Author: David Diersen

The opinions that I express in GOPUSA ILLINOIS emails are based on experience that I have gained doing many things since 1948. I base my opinions on what I learned a) working for the federal government for almost 30 years -- Post Office 1966-1969, IRS 1971-1980, and GAO 1980-1997, serving on the Executive Committee of the Association of Government Accountants Chicago Chapter 1983-1996, and being a union member while I worked for the Post Office and IRS; b) earning an MBA from Loyola in 1976, a masters degree in accounting from DePaul in 1980, and a masters degree in financial markets and trading from IIT in 1997; c) passing the CPA examination on my first attempt in 1979 and passing the Certified Internal Auditor examination on my first attempt in 1981; c) serving as a Republican Precinct Committeeman since 1999, the GOPUSA Illinois Editor since 2000, the TAPROOT Republicans of Illinois Chairman 2005-2012, a member of the 2008 Illinois Republican Party (IRP) Platform and Resolutions Committee, a Wheaton Chamber of Commerce Government Affairs Committee member 2003-2011, the Milton Township Republican Central Committee webmaster 2008-2010 and 2000-2004, an Illinois Center Right Coalition Steering Committee member 2003-2007, and an American Association of Political Consultants Midwest Chapter board member 2001-2004; d) attending the 2000, 2004, 2008, 2012, and 2016 IRP State Conventions as a delegate; e) being the subject of a nasty 4-page article in the February 1978 issue of Money Magazine; f) pursing litigation including Diersen v. GAO and Diersen v. Chicago Car Exchange; g) being married since 1978; h) living in Crete 1948-1972, in University Park 1972-1976, in Chicago 1976-1978, and in DuPage County, Milton Township, and Wheaton since 1978; and i) being baptized, raised, and confirmed as a Missouri Synod Lutheran. View all posts by David Diersen