February 22, 2026

FROM ILLINOIS CENTER-LEFT SOURCES

CBS2
— Republican Illinois U.S. Senate candidate Jeannie Evans shares her agenda
https://www.cbsnews.com/chicago/video/republican-illinois-u-s-senate-candidate-jeannie-evans-shares-her-agenda/

CHICAGO TRIBUNE
— FRONT PAGE WITH PICTURE: Democrat leaders ever-increasingly a) glorify and praise their illegals and b) fight their deportation.
https://www.chicagotribune.com/2026/02/22/japanese-americans-incarceration-broadview/
— FRONT PAGE TOP OF FOLD IN NAPERVILLE SUN: Naperville D203 to offer teacher retirement incentives as $12.4M deficit looms. DD: In 1993, when I was 45 years old, to deal with Gingrich’s ever-increasing budget cuts, the Democrats who ran GAO “offered” its employees like me who had 25 years or more of federal service a $25,000 ($56,000 in today’s dollars) buyout and early retirement. Virtually all my coworkers who took that “offer” were White males who had not made GS-15 ($165,386-$197,200/year in today’s dollars). Their buyout “offer” expired September 30, 1994 and their early retirement “offer” expired September 30, 1997. They led me to believe they would let me work until I was 55 in 2003 and eligible for regular retirement. But in August of 1997, they made it clear that they were going to force me to retire by September 30, 1997 and they succeeded in doing that. They would not have done that if I had been a Democrat, female, or veteran. By forcing me to retire, they flushed down their toilets what I had learned a) working for GAO for almost 18 years, the last 11 years of which at the GS-13 Step 1-10 Levels ($118,984-$154,682/year in today’s dollars), b) working for IRS for almost 9 years, the last 5 1/2 years at the GS-12 Step 1-5 Levels ($100,069-$113,402/year in today’s dollars), c) earning three job-related master’s degrees, d) earning six job-related professional certifications, and e) earning a job-related professional license. By forcing me to retire, my Democrat GAO superiors forced the Civil Service Retirement System (CSRS) to pay me a $68,640/year pension in today’s dollars to stop me from coming to work. So far, that has been $1.95 million in today’s dollars. SEE: https://gopillinois.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/09/DiersenGAOFifthAmendedComplaint.pdf
https://www.chicagotribune.com/2026/02/20/teacher-retirement-incentives-naperville-203-deficit/
— Illinois lawmakers push university funding overhaul amid regional enrollment drops and U. of I. opposition
https://www.chicagotribune.com/2026/02/22/illinois-lawmakers-push-university-funding-overhaul-amid-regional-enrollment-drops-and-u-of-i-opposition/

CHICAGO SUN-TIMES
— ALL OF THE FRONT PAGE: Democrat leaders ever-increasingly a) glorify and praise their illegals and b) fight their deportation.
https://chicago.suntimes.com/immigration/2026/02/20/operation-midway-blitz-effects-latino-neighborhoods-pilsen-little-village-southeast-side
— As Stratton airs ad with anti-Trump expletive, Krishnamoorthi launches first negative TV ad attacking her
https://chicago.suntimes.com/elections/2026/02/21/us-senate-democratic-primary-stratton-krishnamoorthi-negative-tv-ads
— DD: What do you stress in defense of your ancestors? I stress that my ancestors always lived in northeast Illinois.
https://chicago.suntimes.com/2026/02/21/black-artists-express-complicated-relationship-with-u-s-flag-in-show-honoring-nations-250th-anniversary
— Unions demand more from Pritzker for education
https://chicago.suntimes.com/columnists/2026/02/20/pritzker-state-budget-proposal-education-evidence-based-funding-rich-miller

FROM NATIONAL CENTER-RIGHT SOURCES

WASHINGTON EXAMINER
— Sanctuary cities and the New Confederacy. Sanctuary cities were always a bad idea. The notion that city or state leadership can declare a jurisdiction exempt from federal law is antithetical to core American principles.
https://www.washingtonexaminer.com/restoring-america/fairness-justice/4439839/sanctuary-cities-and-the-new-confederacy/

BIZ PAC REVIEW
— Omar shows up to ‘support’ detainees but ICE deported them first
https://www.bizpacreview.com/2026/02/21/rope-a-dope-rep-ilhan-omar-shows-up-to-support-detainees-but-ice-deported-them-first-1623546/

FOX NEWS
— Bureaucrats hide true price of Obama Presidential Center as taxpayers hit with infrastructure bill
https://www.foxnews.com/politics/bureaucrats-hide-true-price-obama-presidential-center-taxpayers-hit-infrastructure-bill
— Scrapping SAT/ACT in name of ‘inclusivity’ is leaving students unprepared
https://www.foxnews.com/politics/cal-state-prof-warns-scrapping-sat-name-inclusivity-leaving-students-unprepared

LEGAL INSURRECTION
— Arizona State University Dean Admits to Rebranding DEI in Undercover Video. DD: Democrat leaders ever-increasingly give preference to those who have demographics that vote for Democrats. That is why those who have demographics that vote for Republicans are ever-increasingly leaving Illinois.
https://legalinsurrection.com/2026/02/arizona-state-u-dean-admits-to-rebranding-dei-in-undercover-video/

WESTERN JOURNAL
— D.C. Water Chief Said DEI Was a Top Priority – Now City Faces Historic Sewage Spill. DD: Since the 1960s, Affirmative Action and DEI has been the top priority for those above me. That ever-increasingly have rendered worthless my job-related bachelor’s degree, my three job-related master’s degrees, my six job-related professional certifications, and my job-related professional license.
https://www.westernjournal.com/flashback-d-c-water-chief-said-dei-top-priority-now-city-faces-historic-sewage-spill/

FROM NATIONAL CENTER-LEFT SOURCES

MSN
— DD: Democrat leaders ever-increasingly crow about their success in making people LGBTQ, that is, their success in destroying traditional marriage and family. How successful have Democrat leaders been in your county, township, municipality, school district, and precinct?
https://www.msn.com/en-us/news/us/twice-as-many-lgbtq-people-in-us-than-in-2012-study-shows/ar-AA1Wxequ

WASHINGTON POST
— Why it’s becoming so expensive to buy a car in America. Prices are at record highs. More loans are going bad. It’s not an easy time to afford a new car in America. DD: Back in the good old days, I was able to earn enough money to a) pay for my undergraduate and graduate college expenses, b) buy new cars when I was 17, 19, 20, 23, 25, 29, etc., and c) buy real estate when I was 24, 25, 27, 29, and 35.
https://www.washingtonpost.com/business/2026/02/17/new-cars-high-prices/

PAXTON MEDIA
— Early voting continues. DD: The DuPage County Election Division (DCED) should highlight early voting data on its website. That data should include how many votes have been cast the day before, the week before, and cumulatively broken out by the number of Republican, Democrat, and NA ballots that were cast. Further, voters should be able to easily see the aforesaid data for their township and for their precinct. Voters should be able to see and analyze trends. According the DCED website, 2,406 have voted as of 2/21/26.
https://www.paxtonmedia.com/news/jonesboro_sun/early-voting-continues/article_542f3a10-3938-5265-bc98-1172c8fd68a9.html

FORTUNE
— 40% of Stanford undergrads receive disability accommodations—but it’s become a college-wide phenomenon as Gen Z try to succeed in the current climate
https://fortune.com/article/rise-in-elite-students-seeking-accomodation-gen-z-phenomenon-find-success-in-competitive-job-market-stanford-university-skills-based-hiring/

FAST COMPANY
— Careers aren’t ladders, they’re quilts. Why traditional career maps miss the real shape of growth, and what to do instead. DD: The Democrats who run the federal government use “up-or-out” to get rid of their employees who are Republican, White, male, and/or non-veteran who they do not promote to GS-13 ($118,984) by age 25, GS-14 ($140,604) by age 30, GS-15 ($165,386) by age 35, and Senior Executive Service ($197,200) by age 40. Extremely few federal employees make the aforesaid promotion deadlines.
https://www.fastcompany.com/91486024/careers-arent-ladders-theyre-quilts

INSIDE HIGHER EDUCATION & SLATE & AMERICAN EDUCATOR
— College material. DD: When I was a student at Crete-Monee High School 1962-1966, no one thought that I was college material. Nevertheless, to earn a job-related bachelor’s degree, I took college preparatory courses, got an ACT score of 24, graduated in the upper 20% of my class, and got accepted by UIC. I did yard work 1962-1964 and delivered newspapers 1962-1966 and used the money I earned to buy a 1958 Chevrolet Bel Air I used to get to/from my parents’ home in Crete and a minimum wage job washing dishes in Chicago Heights 1964-1966. I used the money I earned to buy a new 1966 Pontic Tempest Sprint in May of 1966. I used that car to get to/from my parents’ home in Crete and classes at UIC 1966-1968. I got a part-time job working for the Park Forest Post Office in 1966 and used the money I earned to pay for my UIC expenses, to buy a new 1968 Oldsmobile 442 in 1967, to buy a new 1969 Dodge Charger SE in 1968, and to pay for my NIU expenses. I graduated debt-free from NIU with a bachelor’s degree in management and owning that Charger in August of 1970.
https://www.insidehighered.com/views/2021/04/12/colleges-should-reimagine-what-it-means-be-college-material-and-be-force-equity
https://www.insidehighered.com/blogs/just-visiting/not-college-material
https://slate.com/human-interest/2014/03/college-isnt-for-everyone-lets-stop-pretending-it-is.html
https://www.aft.org/ae/fall2007/cushman

FROM FOREIGN SOURCES

INDEPENDENT
— ICE recruits are showing up for training with disqualifying criminal backgrounds. DD: The Democrats who ran the Post Office in 1966, IRS in 1971, and GAO in 1980 hired me because they could not find a qualified Democrat, minority, female, younger person, or veteran who would take the job. Since then, to hire Democrats who are minority, female, younger, and/or veteran, they have lowered standards. If I had not earned a high school diploma and passed the postal employment test, the Democrats who ran the Post Office in 1966 would not have hired me. If I had not earned a job-related bachelor’s degree and passed the Federal Service Entrance Examination, the Democrats who ran IRS in 1971 would not have hired me. If I had not earned a job-related master’s degree and passed the CPA examination on my first attempt, the Democrats who ran GAO in 1980 would not have hired me.
https://www.aol.com/articles/ice-recruits-showing-training-disqualifying-160752475.html

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.