FROM ILLINOIS CENTER-LEFT SOURCES
CHICAGO TRIBUNE
— Growing downstate Illinois secessionist movement deserves more than smirks from Chicagoland.
https://www.chicagotribune.com/2026/07/14/new-illinois-illinois-separation-downstate-secession-illinois/
— Do elected officials owe their constituents health reports?
https://www.chicagotribune.com/2026/07/14/editorial-do-elected-officials-owe-their-constituents-health-reports/
POLITICO ILLINOIS
— Pritzker’s high school years. DD: What did you do during your junior and senior years in high school? While I was a Crete-Monee High School junior and senior 1964-1966, I washed dishes for the minimum wage in the basement of the SS Kresge in Chicago Heights for 28 hours a week during the school years and for 40 hours a week during the summer of 1965. I got to/from my parents’ home in Crete and that job with a 1958 Chevrolet BelAir that I bought with money I had earned doing yard work and delivering newspapers. I used the money I earned washing dishes buy a new 1966 Pontiac Tempest Sprint ( https://over-drive-magazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/02/1965-12-CD-1966-Pontiac-Tempest-Sprint-Test-1-4.pdf ) in May of 1966 to use to commute to/from my parent’s home and UIC. Even though I spent far too many hours washing dishes instead or studying, I got an ACT score of 24 and I graduated in the upper 20% of my class, but only just barely, and I got accepted by UIC. Because of my dishwashing, my interaction with my classmates was very limited.
https://www.politico.com/newsletters/illinois-playbook/2026/07/14/summer-break-not-quite-00995832
(FROM THE NEWSLETTER: OPPO MEETS NOSTALGIA: Republican gubernatorial candidate Darren Bailey appears to have gone digging through Gov. JB Pritzker‘s high school yearbook, posting images and comments from it and demanding answers about phrases including, “funny things on your knees” and “drugged for drugs.” Pritzker didn’t exactly take the bait. Instead, the governor responded as though he were signing the yearbook all over again: “This was a great year. Thanks for the reminder, Darren.” Here’s the post)
CAPITAL FAX
— Morning briefing
https://capitolfax.com/2026/07/14/isabel%e2%80%99s-morning-briefing-769/
FROM NATIONAL CENTER-RIGHT SOURCES
NEW YORK POST
— New revelation about Muslim ‘grooming gangs’ is yet one more way progressives have let women down.
https://nypost.com/2026/06/18/world-news/progressives-continue-to-let-women-down-with-victim-hierarchy/
1819 NEWS
— Combatting the rise of socialism in America.
https://1819news.com/news/item/kristin-landers-combatting-the-rise-of-socialism-in-america
FOX NEWS
— Democratic socialists erupt over 2028 endorsement as AOC speculation grows.
https://www.foxnews.com/politics/democratic-socialist-party-infighting-erupts-pick-president-aoc-rumors-loom-dangerous-path
FOX BUSINESS
— Lack of leadership allowed socialism’s influence to grow.
https://www.foxbusiness.com/video/6401066135112
— Destructive socialist policies.
https://www.foxbusiness.com/video/6401067182112
HERITAGE FOUNDATION
— The Case for Capitalism. DD: To advance under socialism, you have to be a socialist. To advance in the Democrat-run federal government, you have to be a Democrat. When I was 49 in 1997, my salary was only $154,682/year in today’s dollars working in the Democrat public sector. My critics/opponents have always hinted/implied/argued/shouted that if I had worked in the private sector, I never would have earned that much. In my defense, I had earned three job-related master’s degrees, six job-related professional certifications, and a job-related professional license. If I had been a Democrat, my GAO salary when I was 49 in 1997 would have been $197,200/year in today’s dollars.
https://www.heritage.org/conservatism/commentary/the-case-capitalism
FROM NATIONAL CENTER-LEFT SOURCES
MSN
— 2027 Social Security COLA forecast rises on inflation surge. DD: My critics/opponents were, are, and will always be furious a) that I got COLAs when I was a federal employee 1966-1969 and 1971-1997 and b) that I have gotten COLAs as a federal retiree since 1997 and as a Social Security recipient since 2010.
https://www.msn.com/en-us/news/insight/2027-social-security-cola-forecast-rises-on-inflation-surge/gm-GM56D67C7D
NEW YORK TIMES
— Tension Emerges Among Democratic Socialists Over 2028 Endorsement.
https://www.nytimes.com/2026/07/13/nyregion/dsa-endorsement-aoc-new-york.html
— Our Never-Ending Race to the Bottom. Something is wrong if vice is all on their side and virtue is all on yours. DD: Far too many run for offices as Republicans and get elected as Republicans who have far too much baggage, that is, far too many skeletons in their closets. I should write about candidates on ballots in my precinct since 2000 who ran as Republicans, but had far too much baggage, that is, far too many skeletons in their closets. I would focus on those who had their political consultants, major donors, pollsters, campaign managers, campaign staff members, and campaign volunteers destroy me because I refused to cover up their wrongdoing.
https://www.nytimes.com/2026/07/12/opinion/paxton-talarico-platner-trump.html
(FROM THE ARTICLE: This brings me to three of my least favorite politicians: Donald Trump, Ken Paxton and Graham Platner. Why have so many people so vigorously supported such deeply flawed men? Why are their supporters so loyal, so vociferous, even after scandal after scandal?
And why are their supporters often such raging hypocrites — gleefully pointing out the sins and flaws in others while ignoring or rationalizing their own candidate’s profound faults?)
WASHINGTON POST
— DD: For Democrats, the federal government exists to hire, retain, and promote Democrats who are minority, female, younger, veteran, non-Protestant, non-German American, and/or have ancestors who have not been in America for a long time. Virtually all federal employees are Democrats who are one or more of the aforesaid. All of my coworkers who my Democrat superiors in the federal government promoted over me were Democrats who a) had less education than I had, had less work experience than I had, had no professional certification or fewer than I had, and/or had no professional license like the one I had and/or b) were minority, female, younger, veteran, non-Protestant, non-German American, and/or had ancestors who had not been in America for a long time.
https://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/2026/07/13/colorblind-constitution-concept-underlies-key-supreme-court-rulings/
USA TODAY
— Leaving for a better job. DD: I had to take a $23,699/year (21%) pay cut in today’s dollars to transfer from IRS to GAO when I was 31 in 1980 even though I had earned an MBA in 1976 and I had passed the CPA examination on my first attempt in 1979. My IRS supervisors, coworkers, and subordinates were furious about the president that the aforesaid pay cut set for them. I would stress to my Democrat IRS superiors, coworkers, and subordinates a) that none of them came to my defense when my Democrat IRS superiors disallowed my travel vouchers in 1974, disallowed my education deductions in 1978, and never promoted me beyond GS-12 and b) that was why I had to take the aforesaid pay cut to transfer.
https://www.usatoday.com/story/money/columnist/2026/07/07/is-it-disloyal-to-leave-supportive-company-job/90820006007/
— DD: Communism is taking over the Democrat Party.
https://www.usatoday.com/story/opinion/columnist/2026/07/01/trump-communism-democrat-socialists-midterms/90752688007/
— FRONT PAGE TOP OF FOLD WITH BIG GRAPHIC: Democrat leaders crow about their success in driving Trump’s approval rating down.
https://www.usatoday.com/story/news/politics/elections/2026/07/12/trump-approval-rates-fall-rural-white-working-class-voters/90864576007/
WALL STREET JOURNAL
— Capitalism Gets a Bum Rap. DD: Do/did you work in the private sector or the public sector? I planned to work in the private sector, the automotive industry to be exact. But my high school friend asked me to join him to take the postal employment test. Because I passed, I was a part-time postal employee while I attended UIC 1966-1968 and NIU in 1969. I graduated from NIU in 1970 and accepted the only job offer that I got, to be the Retail Sales Manager in a Firestone Store, a job that not really require a college degree. I accepted a job offer from Oldsmobile in 1971, but Oldsmobile withdrew that offer saying it had just agreed to stop hiring Whites to settle an EEOC complaint. My Firestone Store boss rudely fired me because I had accepted that offer. Because I had to have a job, I accepted a job offer that I got from IRS. I had taken and passed the Federal Service Entrance Examination while I was a NIU student. Potential employers saw me as being draft bait. They did not believe that my application for a financial hardship draft deferment to help support my mother and brother would be approved.
https://www.wsj.com/opinion/free-expression/capitalism-gets-a-bum-rap-c36d1cdf
— Mick Jagger Doesn’t Love Us Anymore. The Rolling Stones’ new song ‘Ringing Hollow’ knocks Trump and the country that elected him. DD: The more demographics that you share with Trump, the more that hate-filled Trump-hating Trump-haters promote hatred against you.
https://www.wsj.com/opinion/mick-jagger-doesnt-love-us-anymore-fea5c9cc
— Jewish Democrats have found their loyalty to the party isn’t being returned. DD: Democrat leaders are ever-increasingly antisemitic. My Democrat superiors in the federal government had my many Jewish superiors and supervisors take many big adverse actions against me.
https://www.wsj.com/opinion/schumers-tragedyand-ours-39091bf2
— Why White-Collar Men Are Obsessed With the Perfect Lawn. DD: I am one of the few who continue to mow and edge their lawn, trim bushes, kill yard weeds and insects, rake leaves, shovel snow, etc.
https://www.wsj.com/lifestyle/careers/why-white-collar-men-are-obsessed-with-the-perfect-lawn-d2c0487d
— More U.S. Workers Are Testing Positive for Marijuana. Fewer Employers Are Concerned. DD: Pot is poison. Democrat leaders ever-increasingly push more pot. Sooner or later, Democrat pot will destroy America. I never used pot and I never will. If I had used pot, the Post Office would not have hired me in 1966. Firestone Stores would not have hired me in 1970. IRS would not have hired me in 1971. GAO would not have hired me in 1980. I would not have been able to earn a job-related bachelor’s degree, three job-related master’s degrees, six job-related professional certifications, and a job-related professional license.
https://www.wsj.com/health/healthcare/more-u-s-workers-are-testing-positive-for-marijuana-fewer-employers-are-concerned-550bf186
— Chicago’s Coming Pension ‘Pneumonia.’ The Illinois comptroller warns of big trouble in a stock-market downturn.
https://www.wsj.com/opinion/susana-mendoza-chicago-pensions-stock-market-aaa2f9c6?st=1szpdx&reflink=desktopwebshare_permalink
FORBES
— Getting promoted. DD: What did you do to get promoted? I focused on my job duties and I earned a job-related bachelor’s degree, three job-related master’s degrees, six job-related professional certifications, and a job-related professional license. What delayed/stopped your promotions? For me, it was my refusal to become a Democrat. Then it was my complaining about political affiliation discrimination, reverse discrimination, and age discrimination. Then it was my becoming an active member in a class action lawsuit that charged my superiors with the aforesaid when I was 40 in 1988.
https://www.forbes.com/sites/jacquelynsmith/2013/10/24/16-mistakes-employees-make-when-trying-to-get-a-promotion/
— Workplace Favoritism. DD: My Democrat and RINO superiors have always favored those who are liberal/moderate, Democrat, RINO, minority, female, younger, veteran, non-Protestant, non-German American, have ancestors who have not been in America for a long time, and/or non-citizen.
https://www.forbes.com/sites/bryanrobinson/2025/04/23/workplace-favoritism-one-in-10-are-quitting-over-it/
NPR
— How Lindsey Graham tried to stay ‘relevant.’ DD: I try to stay relevant in the Republican Party by continuing on as the GOPUSA Illinois Editor and as a Republican Precinct Committeeman.
https://www.npr.org/2026/07/13/nx-s1-5891751/how-lindsey-graham-tried-to-stay-relevant
LIBRARY OF CONGRESS
— Veterans and the GI Bill. DD: My initial plan was to enlist and to earn a bachelor’s degree with the GI Bill. But then I saw that my high school neighbor friend in Crete was on track to get accepted by UIC and to commute to/from classes at UIC from his parents’ home. I adopted that plan, I took college preparatory classes, got an ACT score of 24, and I graduated in the upper 20% of my 1966 Crete-Monee High School class. My high school neighbor friend commuted in a new 1965 base Chevelle that his father bought for him. I commuted in a new 1966 Pontiac Tempest Sprint that I paid for with money that I earned washing dishes for 28 hours a week during my junior and senior years 1964-1966 and for 40 hours a week during the summer of 1965.
https://blogs.loc.gov/folklife/2014/08/back-to-school-veterans-and-the-gi-bill/
FROM FOREIGN SOURCES
ECONOMIC TIMES
— DINKs. DD: My Democrat GAO superiors 1980-1997 a) decried the time and money that they spent raising their children and b) decried the little or no income that their spouses had. They used against me big time a) my wife and I giving up trying to have children without trying IVF, our not adopting, and our not becoming foster parents and b) my wife’s good job. According to them, were it not for the aforesaid, we would not have been able to buy two new cars and a home in Wheaton in when we got married in 1978 and I would not have been able a) to pass the CPA examination on my first attempt in 1979, b) to take a $23,699/year (21%) pay cut in today’s dollars to transfer from IRS to GAO in 1980, c) to earn a master’s degree in accounting in 1980, d) to pass the Certified Internal Auditor examination on my first attempt in 1981, e) to become a licensed CPA in 1981, or f) to have a home built in Wheaton in 1984. My Democrat GAO superiors ever-increasingly demonized, denigrated, and condemned my wife and I as being disgusting selfish rich DINKs. I should write about my Democrat GAO superiors?
https://economictimes.indiatimes.com/news/international/canada/psychology-explains-why-modern-couples-prefer-being-dinks-instead-of-having-children/articleshow/132106673.cms
THE WORLD
— India’s Caste system persists across the globe. DD: What Caste were you born into? Neither of my parents attended college. My father was only the first of my ancestors to earn a high school diploma. He never earned more than $50,000/year in today’s dollars. He almost always worked second jobs to pay the family’s bills. He died suddenly when he was 47 and I was 21, My mother never attended high school. All my grandparent spoke German. I had to work my way through college. Nevertheless, my critics/opponents have always outrageously, disgustingly, falsely, and unethically painted my parents as having been filthy rich. They have always known full-well that I did yard work 1962-1964, delivered newspapers 1962-1966, washed dishes 1964-1966, cleaned golf shoes, chipped slag, and pumped gasoline in 1966, delivered mail 1966-1969, worked on an automotive assemble line in 1970, sold tires, automotive services, and major appliances 1970-1971, pumped more gasoline 1971-1972, collected delinquent taxes 1971-1980, and audited federal agencies 1980-1997. I should write about my critics/opponents. I would focus on those whose parents were wealthy.
https://theworld.org/segments/2026/07/13/how-indias-caste-system-persists-across-the-globe
